Eckert Incident at Hawk's Hill.

Elliott, L. M.  Under A War-Torn Sky.  

ÙÙÙÙÙ Shelbie

Henry was in a war camp and he goes out on his 15^th mission, a mission that most people at that time did not come home from. The plane that he was in crashes and everyone but he died in it. He tries to make it home and innocent people risk their lives for him whose only mission at this point is to get home alive.

ÙÙÙÙÙ Jeff, eighth grade

Under a War-Torn Sky features a downed pilot named Henry Forester in WWII.  Every pilot in the squadron fears their fifteenth bombing run, because hardly anyone ever returns from the big 1 5.  When his plane is shot down, he is forced to bail out.  He lands in Nazi occupied France, and has been trained to always head west.  I enjoyed this book because I am very interested in WWII, and downed pilots are not covered so much in books or movies.  However, it doesn’t just talk about the war.  In the book there are many characters that Henry meets that are just civilians.  It really grabs the reader and throws them into battle.

ÙÙÙÙÙ Thomas R., eighth grade

Henry starts out in an air base in Europe. The camp is getting ready for a bomb run over Germany in WWII. During the bomb run the main characters plane is shot down. Throughout the whole book he is trying to get back to Europe. Along the way he has people risking there lives to help him. Some of the people even get captured and tortured for helping him. He also gets captured by Nazis and tortured. This is a very exciting book, and keeps you on the edge of your seat, and you won’t want to stop reading it.

ÙÙÙÙÙ Paul F., eighth grade

  Henry, the main character of this book, flies in a B-24 bomber and they are going to bomb the Nazis in WWII.  This is the fifteenth trip for this 19-year-old co-pilot. They say the fifteenth is the unluckiest trip for pilots.  He was shot down.  Now he has to find his way back to England. This book reminds me of the Underground Railroad, because people who do not like the Nazis sneak him from house to house, and if the Germans find him they will capture him.  I recommend this book for people who like adventures and action books. 

ÙÙÙÙÙ Mr. Greenlee

The beginning is somewhat cheesy, the ending choppy, but the bulk in between is a good tale.  

Ellison Invisible Man. 

Estes, Eleanor. The Hundred Dresses.

ÙÙÙÙÙ Michi, 9th grade 

 Wanda Petronski was this invisible girl who just wanted to be friends with the popular girls. She was poor and she wore a faded blue dress every day.

     One day the popular girls were talking about there dresses and she claim that she had hundred dress lines up in her closet. It’s an ok book very easy and quick book to read.

Eugenides, Jeffrey.  Middlesex.  

Evans, Nicholas.  The Horse Whisperer. 

ÙÙÙÙÙ Emily, senior

 For her entire life Grace has gotten anything she wanted from her parents.  When she wanted a horse, they drove to Kentucky and bought her a gorgeous Morgan horse, Pilgrim.  Everything was perfect, until one morning.  Grace and Judith, her best friend, met at the barn early to go for a ride.  Neither of the girls could have imagined that this wonderful ride would have turned out so deadly.  With her best friend dead and her beautiful horse now wounded and crazy Grace swears she will never ride again.  Can one man, Tom Booker, change Grace’s decision?

Fargo, Ladislas.   Patton: Ordeal and Triumph. 

x

Farmer, Nancy.  A Girl Named Disaster. 

Fast, Howard.  April Morning. 

Revolutionary War

Faulkner, William.  As I Lay Dying.

ÙÙÙÙÙ Mr. Greenlee

     This book has many problems beyond its melodramatic title. 

     Faulkner writes each of the book’s small chapters in first person from the point of view of various members of an ignorant backwoods family or one of their neighbors.  Yet, many times it’s difficult to see the advantage of this, with large chunks of these chapters being essentially third person narration.  In dialogue, the language of these rough country characters is “them eyes a hisn,” but the narration that is supposed to be interior monologue is laced with Faulkner’s own U of M vocabulary - recapitulant, cubistic, interminable, ascetic, ejaculant, etc. (Darl especially).  Other places, these uneducated backwoodsmen are making comparisons between what they are seeing and Greek sculpture. 

     The mental snap of the young child is unconvincing, being developed mostly by repetitions that he believes that his mother is a fish.  The mental snap of a second character is weaker yet – Faulkner fundamentally fails to develop it at all, as though he didn’t even care whether it was convincing.  This is symptomatic of the limp ending of the book.  Only the plight of the sister upholds the interest-level of earlier parts of the book. 

     The plot is also weak – essentially the story of a trip to the graveyard where everything goes wrong.  The intentional ambiguity in the novel’s beginning was also annoying in that the relationships between the characters are a mystery, which comes off as less something to pique the curiosity and more of a bother –  why doesn’t Faulkner just let his readers know? 

     But with all these criticisms plainly stated, I must also state that I kept right on reading.  This book, like the father in the family of characters, has something strange that draws people to it and keeps them at it, reading right through to the end, even when there is a part of the reader saying it’s not worth it. 

Faulkner, William.  Light in August.

Faulkner, William.  The Sound and the Fury.   

ÙÙÙÙÙ Mr. Greenlee

Caddie, a young woman, is the focus of four stories, each told from a different character's viewpoint.  They can be read in any order, but don't read the first one first.

Feinstein, John. Last Shot.  

ÙÙÙÙÙ Morgan, 8th grade

This book would be a great book for someone who likes basketball and a mystery. It is about a boy named Steven, and a girl named Susan Carol, who won a writing contest, and their prize is to go to the final four and write about the teams and the winners. As they were snooping around the Superdome as all writers do, they overheard some people talking, talking about blackmailing a student athlete. Somehow they have to solve this mystery without getting caught by the security guards who are around every corner. I gave this book five stars because it has a lot of ESPN news people, and people that a lot of other people know.

Filipovic, Zlata.  Zlata's Diary.  New York: Viking Penguin.  

Find it in the biography section.  

One of the popular girl's diaries, after Anne Frank and Go Ask Alice (Anonymous).  

Fitch, Janet.  White Oleander.  

 ÙÙÙÙÙ  Zhané, 9th grade 

White Oleander is a great book; it’s about how this girl lives her life.  Her mom is in jail for killing her boyfriend that cheated on her. The   Girl had to move and live in a foster home. She misses her mom and She never get’s to she her, she is trying to live her life and be strong. Were she’s at every body is older then her and nobody know how she feels. Every body at the foster home treats her like family

ÙÙÙÙÙ  Marie, 11th Grade

White Oleander was the first book I read my junior year. I must admit I had watched the movie before I read the book. The movie was very interesting which lead me to reading the book. The book was 10 times better than the film! The book tells the story of a mother (Ingrid) and daughter’s (Astrid) relationship. For the majority of the book Ingrid is in prison. Astrid is moved from foster home to foster home. She gets caught up in boys, drugs, sex, and bad people. She does this basically all on her own, due to the fact her mother can’t be there. It’s truly a great book. I would recommend this to any teenager who is looking for a good read.

ÙÙÙÙÙ  Melissa, junior

The book White Oleander is set on a mother (Ingrid) and daughters (Astrid) relationship between one another as Astrid has to survive on her own while her mother Ingrid is in prison for murder.  The mother and daughter both stay in contact while Ingrid is in prison and while Astrid is sent into many different foster homes over the years until she is legal.  Astrid has to deal with boys, mean foster parents, drugs, sex, and school on her own without any advice from her real mother.  Once Astrid is eighteen she travels to New York with a young man she met in a different foster home.  She lives a happy life with him, but the relationship with her mother will never be the same as it was when she was younger because her mother was sentenced to life in prison.  Astrid goes on with her life and doesn't let her past life effect her present of future life.  This book is a great story for older teenagers to read as you travel along with Astrid on her path of life.   Better than the movie.  

Fitzgerald, F. Scott.  The Great Gatsby. 

ÙÙÙÙÙ Jason, senior 

        The main character Nick moves to the east coast from his home on the west.  He has a little place next to this magnificent mansion owned by a man named Jay Gatsby.  As he meets the man and they begin to become friends, when Nick realizes things about Gatsby.  Gatsby slowly but surely reveals his reasons for moving to the east coast.  Its all for woman named Daisey who once was a love in Gatsby’s life.  The love he still had for this woman was the reason for buying the mansion and throwing huge parties in hopes that she might turn up at one.  This woman was now a friend of Nick’s, but only because of her husband Tom.  It’s a drama that goes into the minds of those who are deeply in love.  It shows the rise and fall of Jay Gatsby and is filled with many real life situations.  This book should be read by older or more mature individuals.

Fleeman, Michael.  Laci: Inside The Laci Peterson Murder.  New York: Henry Holt.    

 ÙÙÙÙÙ Danielle, ninth grade

In April of 2002, Laci Peterson’s body was uncovered. It was a sad time for all of Laci’s family and friends. None of them could understand why her loving husband had done such a thing to her, how he could have even thought to do something like that. It was unbelievable.

     In this book the author takes the reader through the ups and downs of the Laci Peterson murder case. They tell all about the investigations, press conferences, and the pain the family goes through. The reader just can’t help but think how in the world someone could even think about doing such a thing to a loving, caring, and eight-month-pregnant woman? 

     This book was good. It can really get someone thinking about why this happened, that maybe there was something going on between the couple that no one knew about.  But the main thing that I thought the whole way through the book was: how in the world, could someone kill their wife and fake through the investigation, act like they are so depressed and sad that they are gone. I just wondered how someone could do that to their wife that was caring their child that was due in a month. But I guess not all people seem to be who they act to be.       

ÙÙÙÙÙ  Shay, ninth grade 

     Laci lived in California and was happily married to a man named Scott Peterson. They were known as a very fun-loving couple and they were always happy and laughing together.  They were only married for a short time and they found out that they were expecting a little baby boy, and they were overjoyed when they found out.  The both of them always dreamed of having children. 

    On December 24, 2002, Christmas Eve, Laci was now eight months pregnant and missing.  She went out to the park to bring their dog for a walk when she disappeared.  Nobody could find her anywhere. 

Four months later, Laci’s decomposed body was found in the murky water of the San Francisco Bay. The body of Laci’s baby Conner had washed ashore about a mile away. 

    The investigators of Menisto, California, convicted Scott of murdering Laci and their unborn child Conner. The question is still, Why did Scott Peterson murder his pregnant wife?

Fleischman, Paul. Whirligig.  

Forbes.  Johnny Tremain.  

Foster, Alan Dean. The Man Who Used the Universe. 

ÙÙÙÙÙ   Tyler F., senior 

This is a very corny sci-fi novel set in a stereotypical technology-gone-wrong world.  The protagonist is boring and very forgettable.  This book may also be trying to be allegoric to the deception and corruption in politics, but the connection is weak and contrived. 

Fox. One-Eyed Cat.  

Frank, Anne.  Diary of A Young Girl.  Find it in 9bio Frank

Be sure to also check out the companion photo book, Beyond the Diary.  

ÙÙÙÙÙ Mr. Greenlee 

Also check out other girl's real diaries, such as 

Filipovic, Zlata.  Zlata's Diary.  

Anonymous.  Go Ask Alice.  

and Jiang Ji Li's memoir Red Scarf Girl. 

Franzen, Jonathan The Corrections.  

Frazier, Charles.  Cold Mountain. 

French, Jackie.  Hitler's Daughter. 

Friend, Natasha.  Perfect.  

ÙÙÙÙÙ Danielle, 10th grade

       When Isabelle’s little sister finds out how Isabelle is dealing with her father’s death, everything that she has been trying to hide is found. 

        Isabelle has been dealing with her father’s death by binging and purging. She eats and eats and eats and then makes herself sick. When her mom finds out about it, she makes Isabelle go to group therapy. Isabelle hates it. 

         When Isabelle enters her first session, she finds that the most popular girl in her school is also there. She figures out that even though a person may put on a happy face, the face underneath is not always the same. 

          This is a great book for showing people how some people aren’t always what look like. All people have problems that no one else can see. 

ÙÙÙÙÙ Arial, 10th grade

Isabel’s life is far from perfect.  Her father just died, her little sister is a brat, and to top it all of she has developed an eating disorder.  It all starts when Ape face (her sister) walked in on Isabel shoving her finger down her throat.  After that her mom brings her to Group.  She expects everyone in group to be a bunch of losers, but when Ashley walks in things get flipped around.  Lets just say Ashley is the equivalent to Aphrodite in Isabel’s school.  She just seemed perfect.  Turn out they are a lot more alike then they think.  When Isabel and Ashley develop an unhealthy friendship, Isabel needs to decide if she wants to get better.