The Avid Reader (and enjoyer of all subjects)

My Books Page (ANNOTATION AND RENOVATION, GUARANTEED!!!)

Count Down | by Steve Olson | Rating:  5 | Date finished: 11/3/08 | Genre: Informative-Nonfiction  The book ”Count Down” talks about the lives of six young mathematical wizzes who represented the United States in the International Mathematical Competitions.  It also talks about the pathway to success in academics.  Since I am a mathematical person, this book is a perfect match for me. 

The Red Badge of Courage | by Stephen Crane | Rating: 4-4.5 | Date finished:  11/13/08  |  Genre:  Historical Fiction  This book is a widely-known classic, and its language is quite difficult for some people on the team (and me).  It shows the views of a youth at the battle of Chancillorsville (which was a famous battle in the Civil War).

Invisible Enemies | by Jeanette Farrell | Rating:  5 | Date finished: 1/6/09 | Genre: Informative (Nonfic.)  “Invisible Enemies” is an informative book.  It is a story of some deadly diseases that have changed the course of history.  Diseases include:  smallpox (the only disease we have been able to eradicate); leprosy (which makes body parts deformed); tuberculosis (which easily attacks people with AIDS); the Black Plague; cholera (the disease of vomiting and diarrhea caused by a water pump); and AIDS (which is a modern threat in Africa, especially Sub-Saharan Africa, though it is no longer a death sentence).  If you like this book, you’ll also like “Invisible Allies” by the same author.  You’ll also like “Deadly Invaders” by Denise Grady. 

Everything Scrabble | by Joe Edley | Rating: 5+ * | Date finished: 1/6/09 | Genre: Informative (Nonfic.)  I’d like to thank Ms. Paisie for lending me this book for a while until my mom bought it for Christmas!  It’s the special guide for a Scrabble player: it shows cool bingos; words with “j”, “q”, “x”, and “z”; and AMAZING Scrabble facts and records.  The highest play was BRAZIERS (311 points), and the highest play without a bingo was RORQUALS (243 points).  Note that all of these plays require double triples, when a word takes up two triple-word-scores.  Also, the highest score ever scored by one tile–and many people will be fuming when they hear this–is 99 points by an S.

Adventures of a Verbivore | by Richard Lederer | Rating: 5 | Date finished:  1/29/09 | Genre:  Informative (Nonfic.)  Again, thanks to Ms. Paisie for lending me this book to read.  “Adventures of a Verbivore” is a book filled with many cool word patterns.  If pro and con are antonyms, then are progress and congress opposites?  Embargo, when spelled backwards, is “O grab me”.  The word “infinitesimal” means small even though the “infinite” at the beginning of the word is exactly the opposite.  ‘What’s going on’ and ‘What’s coming off’ mean the same thing, even though ‘a wise man’ and ‘a wise guy’ are antonyms.  Your nose can run and your feet can smell.  Just a few excerpts of these word puzzles… I’d really recommend this book to some “verbivores” out there!!!

The Jungle Book (unabridged) | by Rudyard Kipling | Rating: 5 | Date finished:  3/1/09 | Genre:  Realistic Fiction | Pages:  303 This book is a famous classic about a boy (Mowgli) who grows up in the forest with a pack of wolves, a panther (Bagheera) and a bear (Baloo).  He learns all the lessons that normal wolf cubs learn and is treated just like a wolf cub.  Mowgli also kills a nefarious tiger, Shere Khan.  However, after he meets with a benevolent couple, he knows that he is destined to return to man.  A response will be on www.theavidreader.edublogs.org/my-reading-responses for the week of 3/6/09.

The Curious Case of the Abandoned Toys | by Julian Fellowes | Rating: 5 | Date finished:  3/7/09 | Genre:  Fantasy | Pages: 64  This colorful book focuses on a doctor bear dubbed “Doc”.  He is a hospital toy for sick children.  However, when the managers throw him away, Doc finds himself in a garbage dump with other bears with similar fates.  Doc finds that life there actually isn’t so bad, after mending a blackbird’s wing and helping a rabbit reunite with his owner! 

The Da Vinci Code | by Dan Brown | Rating: 5 | Date finished:  3/24/09 | Genre:  Realistic Fiction  | Pages:  454  Yes, I know this is a book for adults.  Yes, I know this book is not the book you would expect me to read.  But THOUGH it is a book for people more, say, mature than me, the vocabulary is not advanced at all, and there are so many complicated codes that are a perfect blend of Brian Jacques and France’s harsh police department (DCPJ).  Robert Langdon, an American professor, visits France and is about to meet Jacques Sauniere, the director of the Louvre art museum when suddenly, he receives an urgent call that Sauniere has been murdered.  Bezu Fache, an agent of the DCPJ, and his partner Collet suspect Langdon and work together to corner him, but it never happens.  Langdon and Sophie Neveu, a master cryptologist, try to avoid arrest as they encounter many seemingly trustworthy people who betray them!  Many puzzles here, including anagrams, which Ms. Paisie would definitely be interested in.  (I’m not about to give them away here!)

Catch-22 | by Joseph Heller | Rating: 4 | ABANDONED (too difficult) | Genre:  Realistic Fiction  This book was a bit “weird” and had a few stumping vocabulary words.

The Golden Ratio | by Mario Livio | Rating: 5 | Date finished:  4/27/09 | Genre:  Informative (Nonfiction)  Pages:  294  “The Golden Ratio” is the superb book about the number phi (1.618…), which appears in everything from the Giza Pyramids to the shells of mollusks!  A note:  My version had a comment from Dan Brown, the author of “The Da Vinci Code”, and this book does turn out to have some facts Dan Brown used in his bestselling book, including “The Vitruvian Man” (whose body ratio is the golden ratio) and the priori (Priory).  To see a complete response with the Da Vinci Code, go to: www.theavidreader.edublogs.org/my-reading-responses. 

———-CLASSICS REVOLUTION———-

(In the last week or so, I have suddenly started to read many classics, from famous poet Shakespeare’s works to Mark Twain’s satirical novels.)

For your information:  “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald and “The Good Earth” by Pearl Buck were two books finished during the 2008 summer vacation, before 7th grade.  They are not included this list.

Hamlet (abridged) | Retold by Bruce Coville, written by William Shakespeare | Rating: 5 | Date finished:  5/10/09 | Genre:  Realistic Fiction | Pages:  37  This book is basically an abridged, non-play version of Shakespeare’s classical “Hamlet”.  Hamlet is a prince who learns that his uncle Claudius has killed his father so that Claudius could become king.  Hamlet wants to avenge his father’s death, and he acts very troubled.  Hamlet’s advisor, Polonius, has a daughter who Hamlet loves, Ophelia.  People suspect Hamlet of being troubled because of his distress over Ophelia.  Meanwhile, Hamlet continues to seek ways to kill Claudius.  When Hamlet accidentally kills Polonius, Ophelia becomes distressed until she kills herself, and her brother avenges her death by fatally wounding Hamlet in a battle, but not before Hamlet kills Claudius.

To Kill a Mockingbird | Harper Lee (whose birthday is on the day I started her book) | Rating: 5+ ** | Date finished:  5/15/09 | Genre:  Realistic Fiction  The wonderful classic “To Kill a Mockingbird” is about the prejudice of blacks in the Deep South in the 1930s.  In the beginning, Jean Louis Finch (Scout)’s life is normal for a white girl–playing with her older brother Jem and her boyfriend Dill, school, and meetings with their neighbor, Miss Maudie.  One thing is that nearby lives a footwashing Baptist in the Radley house.  Then, her father, Atticus, is appointed to defend Tom Robinson (a black who was accused of raping a white girl, Mayella Ewell).  No matter how experienced Atticus is, or that Tom Robinson is innocent, the jury rules that Tom Robinson is guilty, and Scout learns of the discrimination.  I found it perplexing how the book was named “To Kill a Mockingbird”.  There was only one trivial mention of killing a mockingbird, and that was when Scout and Jem received toy guns, and Atticus tells them that killing a mockingbird is a bad act because the mockingbird produces sweet music.  Perhaps there’s just a hidden analogy.

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (unabridged) | by Mark Twain | Rating: 5+ ** | Date finished:  5/18/09 | Genre:  Realistic Fiction  “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” is the one book that will keep all of its readers laughing.  Tom Sawyer is a witty boy who has many adventures in one year, including a witness of the murder of a young doctor and the framing of a drunkard.  Tom Sawyer also pretends to be dead, along with three other friends, and when they attend their own “funeral” everybody is pleased to have them back.  Tom also gets lost in a cave with a girl, Becky.  Note:  If you want the humor and adventure to continue, read “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by the same author.  For a complete reading response, please visit:  www.theavidreader.edublogs.org/my-reading-responses. 

Shakespeare’s Stories:  Tragedies | by William Shakespeare | Retold by Beverley Birch | Rating (okay, I’ll have to rate this story by story…):  Macbeth (5+**) Romeo and Juliet (4) King Lear (4.5) Othello (5+**) Hamlet (5+**) | Date finished: 5/28/09 | Genre:  Realistic Fiction | Pages: 126  These plays are some of Shakespeare’s best, and therefore some of the best plays.  In “Macbeth”, the tyrant Macbeth is persuaded by his wife to assassinate King Duncan and scare away the king’s son.  Macduff avenges Duncan’s death by killing Macbeth. 

In Romeo and Juliet, Romeo and Juliet are two lovers from families which have hated each other.  When Romeo kills Tybalt of the opposing family to avenge the death of his friend, he is exiled, and his lover Juliet has to marry Paris, so she pretends to be dead.  Romeo kills himself because he thinks she is dead, and Juliet, after waking herself from fake death, meets real death.  This was rated a 4 because I find it hard to believe how Romeo could fall in love with Juliet so quick. 

King Lear is the story of family life–the two elder daughters of King Lear lie to him that they love him more than anybody/anything else in the world, while his youngest simply tells the truth (that she loves him, but her future husband will share her love) and is married away to a French royal family.  In the end, the two elder daughters turn on King Lear, and he must look to his youngest daughter for support. 

Othello is the tale of the Moor (a.k.a. Othello), who is black, and has a loving wife, Desdemona.  Cunning Iago devises a brilliant plan to manipulate the Moor’s death–Iago pretends to be an honest advisor who tells gullible Othello about a fake affair one of Othello’s other advisors “had” with Desdemona. 

In Hamlet, young prince Hamlet learns that his father’s death was caused by his uncle, and Hamlet, determined to avenge his father’s death, ends up killing his father’s advisor, Polonius, causing the death of his daughter and igniting the anger of Polonius’s son.  Hamlet is wounded in a brief skirmish with Polonius’s son, but ensures the death of his uncle before his death himself.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (unabridged) | by Mark Twain | Rating: 5+** | NOT FINISHED YET | Genre:  Realistic Fiction  “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” continues off the humorous novel “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer”.  When Huck Finn’s drunken father Pap Finn returns to town, Huck is forced to give up his life with Widow Douglass.  After Pap Finn gets so drunk he threatens to kill Huck, Huck forges his own murder and runs away.  He meets Widow Douglass’s slave, Jim, and the two of them have many adventures, including meeting two notorious criminals, the King and the Duke!  This book didn’t focus mainly on the humor “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” had, but it’s a good choice for a book to read.  For a reading response, go to:  www.theavidreader.edublogs.org/my-reading-responses. 

Animal Farm | by George Orwell | Rating: 5+** | Date finished:  6/7/09 | Genre:  Fantasy |  Though most people my age would just think of this as a maybe childish, fun book, adults like Ms. Paisie would realize the significance of this novel.  There are so many resemblances that this book seems like a reenactment of the Russian Revolution!  Here is the book from the average teenager’s perspective:

An old bull pig named Old Major has long thought that man has been the animal’s worst enemy.  After Old Major dies, the animals rebel against the farm owner, Mr. Jones.  They quickly form their own government with seven rules.  The intellectual pigs lead the animals.  At first, everything goes okay–the animals beat back a rebellion, almost all of the animals work hard and earn food, and there is almost no fighting.  But soon, things begin to change–a pig (Napoleon) who has been quarreling with another (Snowball) over almost everything debatable drives the other (Snowball) out of the farm, with help from his accomplice dogs.  Under Napoleon’s rule, things go okay, but only for a short time.  After awhile, Napoleon begins to over-enjoy his rank, and does whatever he wants to–changing the rules if necessary.  In one situation, Napoleon even slaughters all his opponents.  He fools his main worker and supporter, the strong horse Boxer, by manipulating his death when Boxer’s working days are over.  Napoleon is none other than a tyrant, and at the end the author makes clear that he resembles a man. 

Well, that’s not the average adult’s perspective.  The average adult’s perspective is probably substituting Russian characters in for the animals in this book–Leon Trotsky for Snowball, Joseph Stalin for Napoleon, Old Major for Karl Marx, the Russian KGB for the dogs, Mr. Jones for Czar Nicholas II, …  If you’re interested, go to this site:  http://theavidreader.edublogs.org/my-reading-responses.  If you’re really interested, you may want to consider this site:  http://barney.gonzaga.edu/~sbennet3/mead/lessonplans/animalfarm.htm

Les Miserables (abridged) | by Victor Hugo | Date finished: 6/13/09 (I forget) | Genre:  Historical Fiction  ”Les Miserables” is a highly acclaimed French classic.  A convict, Jean Valjean, wishes to efface all his crimes committed previously.  However, a policeman (Javert) who believes that people who have committed crimes will always remain bad is determined to arrest and kill Jean Valjean. 

Zero | by Charles Seife | Abandoned (too complicated at the end) | Genre:  Informative  “Zero” is the story of a dangerous idea.  Many societies banned the thought of the void and infinite, but a few conflicts that enabled zero’s rise to power soon emerged. 

The Lord of the Rings | J. R. R. Tolkien | Date finished:  I don’t remember | Genre:  Fantasy |  Frodo Baggins is only a little, common hobbit whose life is turned upside-down when he is given the task to destroy the One Ring of Power–a ring that the evil lord Sauron can use to destroy all good in Middle-earth.

A Study in Scarlet | Arthur Conan Doyle | Date finished:  7/3/09 (yeah, I haven’t done much updating on this page) | Genre:  Realistic Fiction  In this debut Sherlock Holmes mystery, the narrator, John Watson, meets Sherlock Holmes when he is looking for a place to stay.  Sherlock Holmes can deduce many things from basic reasoning, and Watson is quite surprised.  One day, a mystery turns up–there has been a murder.  It is very ponderous to two Scotland Yard detectives, but after much fumbling and unsuccessful plots, Sherlock Holmes finds the culprit. 

The Grapes of Wrath | John Steinbeck | ABANDONED (too difficult) | Genre:  Realistic Fiction 

Life of Pi | Yann Martel | Date finished:  7/19/09 | Genre:  Realistic Fiction  In “The Life of Pi”, a boy called Piscine Molitor Patel, referred to as “Pi”, is a believer in three religions (Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam) and is fond of animals (his father is a zookeeper).  When his family goes on a journey to Canada, their ship sinks, and Pi is thrown into a lifeboat with a wounded zebra, an orang-utan called Orange Juice, a vicious hyena, and a tiger called Richard Parker.  Soon, the hyena, which killed the orang-utan and the zebra, is killed by the tiger, and Pi finds himself in the same boat as a 450-pound monster, when only his will to live can determine his fate.  They continue on for 227 days catching fish and turtles as food.  Soon, they land upon an island.  Pi discovers that it is man-eating, after a while, so they continue on until they finally arrive at Mexico.  See http://theavidreader.edublogs.org/my-reading-responses for more info.

*This was rated a 5+ because at Scrabble Club of 1/6/09, I beat Roy and Ms. Paisie 300-120 (Roy) -192 (Ms. Paisie).  I used a word right from the book, “adze” (a type of tool).  And while it was mainly luck in the tiles that I drew–-My opponents drew horrible tiles (Ms. Paisie had the rack of TTTOOOO once)–-this book also educated me A LOT about the game.  Special thanks to Ms. Paisie for lending the book to me to read–now I have my own copy–and Roy for being a good opponent . 

**These books were just too good for a rating 5.  They are unlike any modern books written–just THE best in their category.

I’ve also read a lot of magazines, which are listed below:

…Newsweek 12/1/08, Newsweek 12/8/08, Newsweek 12/15/08, Newsweek 12/22/08, Newsweek 1/7/09, Newsweek 1/16/09, Newsweek 1/23/09, Newsweek Special Inaugural Issue, Newsweek 2/2/09, Newsweek 2/9/09, Newsweek 2/16/09, Newsweek 2/25/09, Newsweek 3/1/09, Newsweek 3/9/09, Newsweek 3/16/09, Newsweek 3/23/09, Newsweek 3/30/09, Newsweek 4/6/09, Newsweek 4/13/09, Newsweek 4/20/09, Newsweek 4/27/09, Newseek 5/4/09, Scientific American August 08, Scientific American September 08, Scientific American October 08, Scientific American November 08, Scientific American December 08, Scientific American January 09, Scientific American February 09, Scientific American March 09, Discover December 08, National Geographic May 05, National Geographic January 08, National Geographic March 08, National Geographic August 08, National Geographic September 08, National Geographic October 08, National Geographic November 08, National Geographic December 08, National Geographic January 09, National Geographic February 09, National Geographic March 09, National Geographic April 09, National Geographic May 09, Smithsonian September 08, Smithsonian October 08, Smithsonian November 08, Smithsonian December 08, Smithsonian January 09, Smithsonian February 09, Smithsonian March 09, Smithsonian April 09, Smithsonian May 09, Wildlife December 04, Kids Discover February 09, Kids Discover March 09, Kids Discover April 09,… 

Those magazines are very informative, and I encourage you to read them.

GALLERY OF MY UTMOST FAVORITE BOOKS:

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WINNER(S) OF SUSPENSEFUL BOOKS (competition!):  The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown.  Every chapter had action, and I couldn’t bear to put this book down when I was reading.  OTHERS:  Lord Brocktree by Brian Jacques | The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm by Nancy Farmer | The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman

WINNER(S) OF HUMOR:  The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain.  How could somebody read this book without laughing?  This book is known for its humor.  A for-your-information:  Mark Twain means “two fathoms deep”, not the average pen name for an author.  OTHERS:  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.  This book shares some exaggeration in the previous book.

WINNER(S) OF ADVENTURE:  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.  In this book, Huck and his friend Jim go on a journey to find Cairo, but instead meet two sly frauds and imposters.  OTHERS:  Stowaway by Karen Hesse | The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain.

WINNER(S) OF REALISTIC FICTION:  To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.  This book shows the discrimination in the Deep South during the 1930s.  OTHERS:  The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain | The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

WINNER(S) OF NONFICTION:  Count Down by Steve Olson, The Golden Ratio by Mario Livio, Adventures of a Verbivore by Richard Lederer, and Everything Scrabble by Joe Edley and John D Williams, Jr.  Count Down is the story of the 2001 IMO team, and all the facts and “biases” of success in math, while the Golden Ratio describes–you guessed it–Φ, the Golden Ratio and the ratio associated with beauty, and math, generally, and its relation with history, art, music, and the rest of the real world.  In literature, Adventures of a Verbivore thoroughly describes the “art of words” and fun patterns, and “Everything Scrabble”, as the only book authorized by the National Scrabble Association (NSA), provides key tips to success in Scrabble, strategic and high-scoring plays, and statistics in the game of Scrabble.

WINNER(S) OF BIOGRAPHY:  The Tree of Life by Peter Sis.  I know this choice would seem out of the blue, but Peter Sis definitely teaches readers about Charles Darwin the interesting way, unlike any other biography stating facts.  OTHERS:  Frederic Chopin by Mike Venezia (very colorful, and a creative way to learn!)

WINNER(S) OF FANTASY:  Animal Farm by George Orwell.  UPSET!  While many children and teens would probably recognize this book as a simple fairy tale, it means much more than that. “Animal Farm” is the story that closely resembles the Russian Revolution–and shocked many adults when it was first published.  OTHERS:  Lord Brocktree by Brian Jacques | The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman | The Willows and Beyond by William Horwood | The Jungle Book (unabridged) by Rudyard Kipling. 

WINNER(S) OF SCHOOL-ASSIGNED BOOKS:  The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm by Nancy Farmer.  Very suspenseful, with a lot of ideas packed inside.  OTHERS:  Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr.

WINNER(S) OF SIMPLE, PICTURE BOOKS:  The Curious Case of the Abandoned Toys by Julian Fellowes.  This book is a book little children would adore to read–it describes a stuffed animal’s life in a dump, with other “abandoned” or discarded toys.  OTHERS:  Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney.

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BEST BOOK FOR LANGUAGE ARTS:  Every single book on this page.  No need for explanation.  Most importantly:  Adventures of a Verbivore by Richard Lederer.  He is the guy who truly loves language arts, puns, and word puzzles, as his book tells us.

BEST BOOK FOR MATH:  The Golden Ratio by Mario Livio.  As well as telling all about this special number, it relates mathematics with art, music, and history.  (Just like the Donald Duck movie we watched!)  Another option would be Count Down by Steve Olson, which is more of mathematics today.

BEST BOOK FOR SCIENCE:  Invisible Enemies by Jeanette Farrell.  All about medicine!

BEST BOOK FOR SOCIAL STUDIES:  Very hard question to answer.  It will probably be Journey to Johannesburg by Beverly Naidoo because of its description of the crude places for black people in South Africa, but Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr would be another candidate.

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