Archives for April 2014

Cahills vs Vespers Book 6: Day of Doom by David Baldacci

April 28, 2014 by Daniel Johnston Leave a Comment

Here it is. The end. One way or another.

Amy and Dan have been fighting against the evil Vespers for some time, but it wasn’t until the end of the last book that they realized the truth: Vesper One is trying to create a doomsday device to destroy the world.

For those of you who don’t know, Cahills vs Vespers is the second arc in the exciting series The 39 Clues. In the first arc Amy and Dan learn they are members of the most powerful family in human history. They embark on a quest around the world, fighting their vicious relatives to be the first to discover the secret of their families’ power.

In Cahills vs Vespers, Amy and Dan and the rest of the group face off against a rival family named the Vespers who want to rule the world for themselves (or destroy it).

Click here to learn more about The 39 Clues

Day of Doom is the last book of the series. All the secrets are revealed, all questions are answered, and the fate of the world hangs in the balance.

Summary

At the end of the previous book Atticus discovers the Vespers master plan: To recreate a doomsday device designed by Archimedes. The ingredients necessary to activate the device were given by Dan and Amy to Vespers as ransom to keep the hostages alive.

Now the Vespers have all of pieces and are about to activate it. Already there are natural disasters happening all over the place.

Dan freaked out at the end of the last book and took the serum he had been assembling. However, Amy realized what he was trying to do and switched the serum with a harmless concoction.

Amy also became very upset and ran out of the room when she learned of the Vespers true intentions. How could she have been stupid to trade the lives of the hostages for the whole world?

The Cahill team have been doing some digging and learn that Isabel was not Vesper One, as they had thought, but Vesper Two. They also have ascertained that she is heading to Washington D.C.

They also try to chase after Isabel, but fall into her trap. Luckily, they are able to escape, but Isabel gets her hands on the serum. Dan also learns that Isabel has been posing as his dad and sending him messages.

The hostages (now including Evan, Ian, Jonah, and Hamilton) are being transported to the Rocky Mountains, but manage to escape and meet up with Amy and Dan. They arrive at the doomsday device at the same time as the Vespers, in time for a colossal fight.

Here is the moment that matters. The moment that the Cahills will trimuph over the Vespers once and for all or the world will be destroyed forever. Who is Vesper One? Will he destroy the world? How many will die? Will an old enemy end up saving the world?

Review

After enjoying this book, I was surprised to learn that it has received absolutely terrible reviews on Amazon. The current star rating is only 3.2/5, by far the lowest of any book in The 39 Clues series.

Although I understand the criticism, I have to disagree. I thought this book wrapped up everything very nicely. It did do everything quite rushed, but there was no way around it because of all the events that took place in the book.

Some people complained about the characters being very different than in the other books. I didn’t notice this, but that doesn’t mean it’s not true. However, I felt the characters were fine.

The action at the end is very exciting. It is not dealt with as delicately as we would all like, but what do you want when an evil maniac is about to activate a doomsday machine? I was glued to my seat reading about who would triumph.

Probably the worst thing this series does in wrapping up compared to the first one is that it gives absolutely no lead in to the next one. I was kind of looking forward to this being the last 39 clues book, and then at the back it said there is a new series.

I was like, “Really, come on.” However, I’ve been reading the series since it’s start all the way back in September of 2008, so this book came out about four and a half years later. That’s a long time to be reading a series.

As far as this series, though, I think this is a good wrap up. Is it as good as Into the Gauntlet? No, the emotional connection Margaret Peterson Haddix was able to make in that book was truly special. For everyone who has been involved in the fight against the Vespers, however, it is an exciting book that ties the series up in spectacular fashion.

Get Day of Doom by David Baldacci

Cahills vs Vespers Book 5: Trust No One by Linda Sue Park Review

April 21, 2014 by Daniel Johnston 1 Comment

In Trust No One by Linda Sue Park, we reach the fifth book of the explosive Cahills vs Vespers series. There are only six books, so.the action is coming to a head. Whereas in previous books Amy and Dan were willing to sit by and wait, things are heating up now as the Vespers are getting closer to their goal.

For those who don’t know, The 39 Clues is a multi-author series in which two orphans, Amy (14) and Dan (11) Cahill discover that they are members of the most powerful family in human history. The source of their families power is scattered throughout the world in the form of 39 special clues.

Unfortunately, Amy and Dan aren’t the only ones after the clues. Their vicious relatives are willing to do anything to get the clues first; even kill.

The first ten books of the series were about Amy and Dan fighting to try and find the clues. The second series, Cahills vs Vespers is about Amy, Dan, and the rest of the Cahills facing off against an evil rival family named the Vespers who want the clues for themselves.

Click here to learn more about The 39 Clues

Summary

At the end of the last book, Vesper 1 informed Amy and Dan that they’d need to steal the Voynich Manuscript. Unfortunately, there is another problem going on as the Cahills have realized they have a Vesper mole in their midst.

Although at first they thought it was Ian Kabra (especially after he disappeared), Amy’s boyfriend Evan discovers that Sinead Starling was actually the one who sold out to the Vespers. She attacks Amy and tries to kill her, but Amy is able to subdue her.

This is a huge shock for Amy because Sinead was an integral member of their team and had even become Amy’s best friend. Sinead admits she did it because the Vespers promised her that they would develop a cure for her brothers ailments if she helped them.

Ian also lets Amy and Dan know about what he’s been to. He traveled to Africa to research his mothers charity, which he learned is just a bogus fake. They are well aware by now of the fact that Isabel is an active Vesper (possibly even Vesper 1).

Meanwhile, Atticus and Jake are continuing to develop as characters. Atticus remembers some of the stuff his mom told him (including about the Voynich), and they keep running into people who do them favors because them remember Astrid. He also knows he’s a guardian, although he’s not exactly sure yet what that means.

They are able to track down the Voynich from Yale to a Dr. Siffright who worked with Astrid. Although Amy and Dan are able to retrieve the manuscript, they keep getting attacked. It doesn’t take long for them to realize Isabel is the one behind it.

With all of the pieces in place for whatever the Vespers are doing, things are about to get bad. Amy and Dan begin to realize what the Vespers may really be planning, and that by trying to save their relatives, they may have destroyed the whole world. Will the Vespers take Amy’s ring? Will Dan take the serum in order to stop the Vespers? Is it too late, or can Amy and Dan still save the world?

Review

This is an excellent book. Even though Park isn’t an action writer, you wouldn’t know it by reading this book. She leaves us in complete suspense the whole way through.

While Park’s earlier contribution to the series was kind of in her own style, it appears she has gotten more in touch with the series now and this book is written very well, much like the rest of the books.

We learn a ton of mysteries in this book, which only make us want to ask more. This is the best part of The 39 Clues, and this book does it masterfully. You won’t be able to wait to read book six after this!

If you haven’t read The 39 Clues yet, I’d recommend starting with the first book of the current series. If you have, Trust No One is a definite slam dunk.

Frindle by Andrew Clements Review

April 18, 2014 by Daniel Johnston 4 Comments

There are a lot of kids books that are fun, that are exciting, that you enjoy.

There are very few, however, that you still love and treasure long after your childhood. The type of books that you remember perfectly, that you return to and read and like it just as much you did all those years ago.

Frindle by Andrew Clements is one of those books. Written for third to sixth graders, it’s a story that will keep any reader entertained throughout the whole book.

Summary

At the beginning of the book we are introduced to Nick, a fifth-grader in Mrs. Granger’s class. The school year is just starting, but Nick is already experimenting with ways to sidetrack his teacher (and maybe make her forget to give the homework). Nick is known for stuff like that.

Unfortunately, the plan backfires, and Nick is forced to answer his own bogus questions about where words come from. Even though Mrs. Granger intended it as a punishment, Nick finds the subject interesting.

When Nick’s friend drops a pen and Nick accidentally calls it a frindle, he gets a crazy idea: What if everyone started calling pens frindles? Since a word is given a name by popular usage, wouldn’t that make it a frindle, not a pen?

Nick recruits his friends to start using the word frindle instead of pen. When they go to the store, they ask for frindles. In Mrs. Granger’s class, people begin referring to pens as frindles. Unsurprisingly, Mrs. Granger doesn’t like this, and anyone who uses the term frindle in her class has to write, “I am writing this punishment with a pen,” 100 times.

The term frindle has become a fad, however, and many people look upon the punishment as merely a badge of honor. Before long the entire school has replaced pen with frindle in their own vocabulary.

The news media finds out about this, and it ends up making national news. The frindle fight is full blown. Will frindle be added to the dictionary, or will Mrs. Granger win in the end?

Review

This is an awesome book. Clements does a very good job of communicating a worldview in his books, and this one is no exception. Nick is a smart kid who has his own sense of what is right, and is more than willing to stand up for it.

Nick is a totally real person and so are his friends. We can also identify with his teacher Mrs. Granger, who in the end actually turns out to have been Nick’s ally all along!

This book also brings up an important point that words are only what we call things, not what the thing actually is. Although not very many kids will get this at a deep level, it will definitely get them thinking.

Plus, it’s a blast to read, so even reluctant readers will like it. You’re totally hooked on what Nick is going to do next and what will happen with the frindle battles.

A national fad like frindle is not going to come for every idea, but it definitely encourages kids to get creative and approach life with vigor and energy. For third to sixth graders, Frindle is a sure-hit.

Get Frindle by Andrew Clements

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury Review

April 15, 2014 by Daniel Johnston 1 Comment

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is a classic dystopian book and one most people read in school. Unlike the proliferation of poor dystopian books today, Fahrenheit 451 demonstrates a very clear point and is written quite well.

I read Fahrenheit 451 for English in 9th grade and rather enjoyed it. The point of the book is the importance of freedom in regard to what books we read (451 degrees Fahrenheit is the temperature at which paper burns). It is therefore ironic that Fahrenheit 451 has been censored in many libraries.

Summary

At the beginning of the book we meet a man named Guy Montag who is a fireman at some point in the future. Where and when is never explained.

Although firemen as we think of them are people who set out fires, in Fahrenheit 451 firemen burn the possessions of people reading outlawed books.

Montag is pretty much as deeply entrenched in this book burning business you can get, being a fireman and everything. However, he meets a girl named Clarisse who makes him start to reconsider his life.

Not long after, Montag’s wife Mildred overdosing on sleeping pills, but wakes up fine the next morning without memory of the incident. He keeps talking to Clarisse, but one day she disappears.

Montag’s worldview has been challenged enough that while burning a house he secretly steals one of the books. The woman in the house refuses to abandon her books and instead dies with them. Montag also realizes how little he really knows about his wife and much people are distracted by the TV screens all around.

Montag begins to consider quitting his job, and Captain Beatty, the fire chief, talks with Montag. He explains how books are not good for the new pace of life. He also knows that Montag took the book but says that every fireman does it and it’ll be fine as long as he burns it.

Montag only becomes more disillusioned from his talk with Beatty and reveals to his wife that he has been collecting a stash of hidden books. At first she is astonished to tries to burn them, but they decide to read them together to see if anything worthwhile is contained in them.

Montag realizes that he’ll need help to understand the books and enlists the help of an old English teacher named Faber. He takes to him a rare copy of the Bible, and Faber gives Montag an earpiece communicator so they can chat.

Montag continues getting more into books and at work is shocked when he drives at work to burn his own house. Mildred has reported him and is now leaving him for his interest in books. Beatty forces Montag to burn his own house down, but he also burns Beatty.

Montag is hunted by mechanical dogs and helicopters for his life. Will he manage to escape, or will he be torn to shreds? Has the world completely done away with books, or are there still book lovers left, waiting will society suffers?

Review

Fahrenheit 451 is a really well written and easy to understand book. The other lesson other than the importance of books is the negative impact of the distraction that all the TV and media can have on our lives. Definitely a timely message.

This book was written at a time when a lot of books where being censored. Even today many schools censor books, and this book has even been censored more than once.

Any book lover will love of course love reading about the value of books and how important they are to society. I also think this is a good one to read for people who don’t already have such an appreciation of books to help them develop it. Not for reluctant readers, but definitely good for those whose reading interest level is indifferent or above.

The best age range for this book is probably 8th to 10th grade. This book means to communicate a clear message. I only wish all dystopian novels were like this.

Get Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

The 39 Clues: Shatterproof by Roland Smith

April 14, 2014 by Daniel Johnston 2 Comments

I was a little worried when I first saw that Roland Smith was to be the author of Shatterproof, book 4 in The 39 Clues: Cahills vs Vespers series.

For those of you who don’t know, The 39 Clues is a multi-author series in which two kids, Amy (14) and Dan (11), learn they are members of the most powerful family in human history. The source of their families power is scattered throughout the world in the form of 39 special clues. If they fall into the wrong hands, the price could be the world itself.

After fighting against their vicious relatives for the clues in the first series, in Cahills vs Vespers Amy and Dan face off against the Vespers, a rival family that wants to steal the clues, and also Amy’s mysterious ring she got from her grandmother. The Vespers have kidnapped many Cahills, and are holding them to force Amy and Dan to do their bidding.

Click here to learn more about The 39 Clues

I was worried when I got Shatterproof because I tried to read Peak by Roland Smith, but I just couldn’t. Smith didn’t seem like too good of an author. I’m glad this book was a pleasant surprise.

Summary

Amy and Dan have now fully teamed up with Atticus and Jake and are traveling to Germany. Vesper 1 tells them they need to steal a jewel, and sends fake police officers to put a fake diamond into Amy’s bag. Vesper 1 tells them they need to switch this with the one at the Pergamon museum.

Meanwhile a team of Erasmus, Jonah, and Hamilton are tracking the movements of Luna Amato, Vesper 5. In the last book the Cahills learned that McIntryre was murdered, and Erasmus believes Amato might have answers. Although they are able to kill Amato, the Cahills suffer yet another tragic death.

Things are also still getting harder for Amy and Dan because Interpol is on them, especially one Milos Vanek. They are able to sneak into the museum and switch the diamonds, but not without being spotted. They are able to get away, but Amy loses the valuable ring she has been told to protect. Luckily, Vanek is able to give it to her in exchange for information about Amato, who also works for Interpol.

Of course, Vesper 1 isn’t about to let Amy and Dan off that easy. He wants them to find the “apology for my great transgression,” and doesn’t give them a whole lot of time to do it. Despite the stress, the book continues developing the idea of a romance between Jake and Amy, and Amy even ends up kissing him. This is despite the fact that Evan is already Amy’s boyfriend.

Amy, Dan, Atticus, and Jake are hot on the heels of finding the Apology, but two old friends named Casper and Cheyenne seem to be getting in their way. Meanwhile, the hostages are planning an escape plan. But things aren’t looking too good for young Phoenix Wizard. Will another hostage die?

Review

Although I wasn’t expecting this book to be super good, it actually was. It was very well written in the same style that we have gotten accustomed to throughout the series of The 39 Clues. It continues to develop the new characters of Atticus and Jake, and keeps the story exciting; not an easy thing to do towards the end of the second arc of a series.

I don’t really think all this romance stuff has a place in The 39 Clues, but a lot of people apparently like it judging by the incessant talk about it on message boards.

I do think there is getting to be a little too much action in the books with some many deaths close together. It used to really mean something when a character died earlier in the series, but now it’s almost routine.

I’m really impressed with the Cahills vs Vespers series and this is a great book to keep it moving. It definitely pushes you forward and keeps you guessing on the most fundamental questions of all: What do the Vespers want? Will Amy and Dan be able to stop them? Who is Vesper 1?

I’d recommend this book for sure. If you haven’t already read the earlier books in the Cahills vs Vespers saga, however, I’d recommend starting with the first book. Otherwise, dive right in! This book is a winner.

Get Cahills vs Vespers Book 4: Shatterproof by Roland Smith

Shredderman: Secret Identity by Wendelin Van Draanen

April 11, 2014 by Daniel Johnston 1 Comment

Shredderman: Secret Identity by Wendelin Van Draanen is one of my absolute favorite kids books. It has inspired me in a lot of ways, and this website would probably not exist had I not read the book.

I first discovered it in the school library and soon became encapsulated in it. I was reading it at the end of school and the teacher announced that it was time to pack up.

I didn’t hear the teacher, however, so engrossed was I in the book. A few minutes later I looked up and realized that everyone was already out the door. I don’t think I’ve ever been into any book that much before or since!

Summary

The main character in Shredderman is a kid named Nolan Byrd. Nolan is a nerd, the smartest kid in fourth grade but also one of the least popular. He eats lunch by himself every day and is constantly bullied and called nicknames such as “Turd.”

The worst bully at Nolan’s school is a kid named Bubba Bixby. Bubba is in Nolan’s class and constantly torments not only him, but the entire school.

Luckily, Nolan has a really cool teacher named Mr. Green. Mr. Green drives a hippy van and plays guitar. But when he assigns the class a term project, Nolan is not exactly enthusiastic. He’s not very good at hands on stuff.

For this project, however, Mr. Green asks the class to become reporters. This should be easy for Nolan because his dad’s a reporter. And then Nolan suddenly gets hit with a great, once in a lifetime, idea.

He should start a website and expose what Bubba’s been doing! Granted, Nolan doesn’t know how to create a website, but a few late nights should fix that. He convinces his mom to let him use her credit card to pay for the hosting, and the site is live.

Of course, Nolan can’t share his true identity. If Bubba sees the website and finds out who did it, he’ll pummel them for sure. His secret identity? Shredderman.

Nolan uses clever ways to spread the word about the site and before long the school is paying attention to shredderman.com.

Things change, and Bubba even gets suspended! Mr. Green realizes that Nolan is Shredderman, but he doesn’t rat him out. No, he even offers to be his sidekick! That’s how the Bouncer was born.

This is a super inspiring book of a nerd creating an awesome website that saves the kids from the horrible terror that is Bubba.

Review

I haven’t made it any secret that this is one of my favorite books ever. I’ve read it several dozen times, and it never loses its magic.

Nolan tells us the story from the first person in a really realistic and exciting way. Nolan is a super awesome kid, and almost anyone would want to be like him.

After reading this book I became interested in creating websites. I read it in third grade and my passion for making websites has only gotten stronger.

Every kid loves this book. For reluctant readers, for frequent readers, for ANY type of reader, this is simply the best. Elementary school boys love Shredderman!

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