“A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and illustrated by Gris Grimly, is an intriguing novel about a baffling murder that puts our heroes, Sherlock Holmes and Watson, on the case. With sharp turns of plot development and captivating characters, this page-turning mystery is a great read for young, adventure-seeking teens. Trouble is a five-letter word in this novel and once you are in, watch your back, for who knows who might be lurking around the corner.” --Submitted by Kalliope K., East Prairie School
“You should read the book The Bullies of Wall Street by Sheila Bair, because it can encourage you to make better decisions in the future. This book is about people getting loans from the bank and how they would struggle if the wrong choices are made. In the story, Matt, Anna, Jorge, Imani, Mary, and Zach have their own stories about how their parents made the wrong choices with spending money. Anna, one of the characters, had moved many times, because her dad would buy a house and sell it over and over again. Eventually he quit his job because he thought he could make money by turning houses. Then he bought two houses. He and Anna were going to live in one of the houses, and they would try selling the other. After a while, nobody seemed interested in the house. They lost money, because of the taxes they had to pay for the properties. One day, a man came to their house and said if they gave him the keys for both of the houses, he would give them $10,000. You should read this book if you want to find out what happens to Anna’s family.” --Submitted by Matthew A., East Prairie School
“The sorcery and lies, once kept hidden, are now revealed within the novel, In the Shadows by Kiersten White and Jim Di Bartolo. Displayed in the quote, Arthur remembers, ‘seeing that necklace here ended all his nights trying to tell himself that his father had been crazy, had poisoned his mother’s mind, had merely abandoned them instead of meeting a horrible fate… As he watched, a dark hand raised and pressed itself against the glass… They had been seen.’ The depravity that chased Arthur’s father to death years ago comes back for revenge against five children: Cora, Arthur, Charles, Minnie, and Thom. For an unknown reason, Thom has been sent away to Main with his dying brother, only to discover they had trespassed into a whole new world containing sorcery, evil, death, romance, and revenge. Expose the hidden secrets concealed within the past as these five children come face to face with the inconceivable. This book is an action-packed novel filled with great words and amazing illustrations they use to tell the other half of this incredible story.” --Submitted by Elezabeth A., East Prairie School
“The Extra Yard by Mike Lupica is about an out-of-shape boy who gets encouraged by his friend to join football. This is overall an enjoyable book, however you have to know the rules of football to understand it. The parts of the book where the main character is playing football seemed a bit too long and got old towards the end of the book. Some of the details of the book are not realistic and make the book seem hard to believe.” --Submitted by Justin N., East Prairie School
