Schools Books

I thought that this book was interesting, sad, and happy altogether. This book is around Christmas time, it has to do with babies and people dieing. It sounds like you wouldn't want to read it, but it really isn't that sad. Thats I recamend you to read this book.

Starry Starry Night is about a girl's mom who's pregnant. Her daughter and husband are really exited and ready for the baby to come, but when its time for her to have the baby, they find out that the baby won't live too long because only half of her brain developed. They try to donate her organs to other babies who needed it, but, once they all decided that it was right they found out they couldn't do it because once the baby had died her organs would be useless.
My favorite part of the story is when they are waiting at the hospital because all of her friends were there to support her. You should not read this book if you don't like sad endings, because the ending is sad.

i read this book, and i thought that it was good! at the sad parts in the book, i cried, because they were very heartbreaking! if u don't have this book, i recommend getting it!
P.S. read all of the other books by Lurlene McDaniel. they r very good!

In "Starry, Starry Night," Lurlene McDaniel has written three more wonderful stories that will without a doubt make you cry.

The first story "Christmas Child," is about a fifteen year old girl named Melanie, and her mother is pregnant. Melanie is extremely excited to be an older sister, and has already finished painting the nursery and buying Christmas presents for the baby. Five days before Christmas, her mom goes into labor - and Jessica is born. But there's one problem, Jessica has a terminal illness that can't be fixed...she will die within a few days. Even though Jessica is only in the family's lives for a few days, she changes each of them forever.
This story made me cry, it's a great one!

"Last Dance" is my favorite of the 3 stories. Brenda gets a phone call from a Mrs. Drake, and she's asking her to go out with her son, Doug. Doug has cancer, and his wish is to go out with Brenda, because, according to him "She's the most beautiful girl in the world." Brenda really begins to fall for Doug, but, will it all work out in the end?

"Kathy's Life" is the last story in the book, and my least favorite. Ellie has it all: the boyfriend, the popularity, and...oh yeah, the divorced parents. But when Ellie and Kathy are assigned to do an English project together, they both change, for better. Kathy is the live in nanny for a young couple's son, Christian. When Ellie and Kathy begin to talk, Ellie finds out a big secret, about why Kathy is the way she is.

All the stories in this book are good, but Ellie's (Kathy's Life) story is pretty racy at first...it's pretty different than any other Lurlene McDaniel book in that sense.

Overall grade: A-

This book is awesome. I sat down almost a whole day and just read this book. I love how it had three different stories in it. I loved all of them i really liked the baby one and i wish tha she would like write like what happens afterwards and so on. She is such a good author i wonder how she gets all these inspiration.

I am not a strict vegetarian and I found this book very helpful. I would highly recommend it.

I became a vegetarian a few months ago, and coming from a carnivorous family, problems immediately arose. Suddenly, I needed to learn how to cook protein/iron rich dishes for myself and discover meat substitues. I looked through a lot of books for this, and The Teen's Vegetarian Cookbook has definately been the best.

It addresses teen-specific problems, like how to make really quick, easy, nutritious dishes, eating vegetarian in the cafeteria, and myriads of tips, info, terms, etc.

It's not so big that it's overwhealming, but it's not to small that it's limited. It's perfectly organized and easy to navigate.

It makes foods you didn't like before delicious. I used to hate tofu, but after making some of the recipes in the book, I am a fan.

There are really nice charts to help you figure out how to get all of the important daily nutrients you need, so you don't become anemic or get porous bones and such.

It talks about meat-alternatives that you most likely would never have found out about on your own.

It uses really relaxed, genuine language without ANY straining to be hip and cool to appeal to the youth -- this is so common in books for teens and it is so degrading and stupid. This book has none of that, thank God.

I've made a lot of the recipes and they turned out wonderfully. The rest of my family totally stole my marinated tofu out of the fridge the other day. Which really says something, in my humble opinion.

Easy recipes for adults. Still haven't gotten my 14-yr-old, newly turned vegetarian to read it, but perhaps she'll take it to college.

I purchased this book for an 11 year old vegetarian as a christmas gift. She loved it, and began choosing recipes that she wanted to try immediately. After looking at it, her college age sister asked if she could have a copy. When the non-vegetarian rest of the family tried the foods created from the recipes this book became an instant family favorite. Recipes are clearly written, easy for even a child to follow, creative and tasty enough for adults to love. Teaches many basics of nutrition and cooking. Vegan and non-vegan choices are given for many recipes. Lots of the recipes are developed by real teens.

I LOVE this book! Being the only vegetarian in my family (and also being a 'kid')makes it really hard to find things to eat that are healthy that I still like. The Teen's Vegetarian Cookbook is the best cookbook I've ever used. The format is fantastic, the instructions are really simple to follow, the recipes don't usually include strange things or anything that no one would actually eat. If you're vegan, there are lots of really good recipes that don't contain any animal products at all. This book isn't just for vegetarians, though! I got my whole family eating some of it. They added meat to theirs, but they still love the pizza dough. I even make the Chocolate Coma Pie for a party and everyone ate it and enjoyed it. Whether you're a teen, a parent, someone hoping to eat more healthy but still delicious food, or you were just dared to be vegetarian for a week, this book is the ULTIMATE!

I liked ballet shoes so since this was the sequil I wanted to read it and was disapointed. It's not as funny and there's not as many crazy adventures as the first. It also has lots of flaws that the first didn't have. But read the third shoe book called dancing shoes way better than even the first one!

I think Theater Shoes is a great book fo kids intrested in acting,dancing or singing.This book had three strong charcters intrested in diffrent areas of theater so it was easy to find a charcter I could relate to.I would suggest this book for girls ages 9 to 14.

Theater Shoes is a wonderful story with an attention grabbing plot, a lovely setting, and a well thought out conflict and resolution. This is, now, one of my favorite books and I really enjoyed it.
Throughout this story, there is a great plot. In this book, Sorrel, Mark, and Holly's parents die. They are forced to live with their grandmother, a bitter, but famous, english actress. She puts the children through a Childrens Academy of Dancing and Stage Training. Almost everyone in their family, before the children, had been a famous in the arts. Their grandmother was determined to keep the family tradition. At first all three children hated the academy. They thought that all of the teachers were too harsh and too serious. Then, after getting used to it, the academy "grew" on to them. Each of the three children discover something about themself at the academy. Sorrel, the eldest, discovers that she is a real actress. She can be very dramatic and play roles quite well. Mark finds out that he is a really fabulous singer. Little Holly can do a lot. She charms almost everyone at the academy with her adorable ways of doing things.
There is a lovely setting in this book. It takes place in England! I have always wanted to go to England, and by the way Noel Streatfeild, the author, describes it in the book, it seems so beautiful. It is in such detail and it is so easy to put an image in your mind.
The conflict / resolution in the story, almost stated in the second paragraph, is the children are forced to go to an academy, by their bitter grandmother, that they have no interest in. But in the end, it all pans out. Each child learns something different about themselves and are now striving to learn more. They end up loving the academy and treating it like their home. It means more to them now, than just pleasing their grandmother. Do you think that all of the hard work the children put into learning will result to something? Read this wonderful book and you will find out quickly.
In conclusion, this book was really great! I think that one reason why I liked it so much was because I can really relate to it. I love to do musical theater, and I think that reading about something that I really enjoy helped me understand the text better than it was already described. You don't have to love musical theatre to enjoy this book, but I think that it really helped. This book was enchanting and I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did!

I started the Shoe books a few years ago. The first one was absolutley stupendous and cute. This one is amazing too.

Although each book is its own story, they are all linked with an amazing writing quality and performance.

This one is the story of Holly, Sorrel and Mark, whose grandfather, who supports them, just died -- so they go and live with their grandmother who puts them in an Academy for Stage Training and Dancing. It starts out rough but they learn to like, and even love it.

The overall story is really sweet a precious, which still warms my heart to this day.

This book is about three children named Sorrel, Mark and Holly. When their grandfather dies and they are sent to live with their maternal grandmother, and former famous actress. They are sent to the Children's Academy of Dancing and Stage Training so that they can carry the family's stage tradition. Holly is very good at dancing, Mark at singing and Sorrel at acting. The grandmother is very distant and cold, yet the children find love in their nanny and other family members. Meanwhile, they must put up with their talented, bratty cousin.
The story is wonderfully told and once again, the characters are completely lovable. Kids and adults will love this story, especially Shoes fans.

It was day 157... and it was raining... or at least Amy hoped it was.

Thats how the story unfolds, and I have to tell you seeing this book again after all these years is like seeing a friend I haven't seen in a long long time.
The story is great. Listen, ya'll don't know me, but if you are looking for a book to let your kids read, or to read to your kids, this is it. I read it often in 1981 I also recommend two other books, "The Children of Morrow" also by HM Hoover, and "A Wrinkle in Time" by Madeline L'Engle.

This book was the first book I felt I could not do without. I checked out this book from my elementary school library in the 5th grade.. and never took it back. I didn't want to let it go. I was so nervous that I saved my allowance money and bought the book from the library when I told them I lost it.. when I was 10. I am now 32 and still have that book on the shelf. It is a truly wonderful story and will help your (or your childs) imagination run wild.

All her eleven years, Amy has lived in the dim underground City--eighty levels deep in the earth with its endless expanse of crisscrossing halls. The "Outside," as everyone knows, is polluted, barren and hostile. No one can go out and no one wants to.

Reading is not allowed in the City (or even taught), but Amy got hold of a book once about the Outside and she's very curious. Axel, a "psycho," says he's from the Outside--that's why he's a mental case. But Amy believes him. And together they secretly plan and execute a haunting and terrifying escape to the Outside.

A Hard-to-put-down book from beginning to end.

[Juvenile science fiction suitable for the intermediate grades and up.]

A Non-Workbook, Non-Textbook Approach to Teaching Language Arts: Grades 4 Through 8 and Up

I first read this as a child, and it was one of several books that really made an impression on me. Every couple of years I would hunt it down through the local library, and it never lost its impact, even reading it as an adult! Finally, through Amazon, I was able to buy it for myself, and it will always have a place of honor on my bookshelf.

The story may have been labeled for young adults, but don't let that stop you from reading it! The writing is excellent, the plot is intriguing and moves swiftly. The ideas presented are thought-provoking and will have you thinking about the book long after you've finished it.

It's vaguely science fiction, set on a futuristic Earth, in a crowded, self-contained city -- one with no sunlight, no grass, no flowers, no beauty, no hope. Intelligence is frowned upon, reading is forbidden, life has little meaning. Then a boy appears and claims to have come from somewhere else, somewhere with bright sunlight and wide open spaces! Only one girl believes him, and together they set out to escape the dismal walls of her city, to find the impossible freedom of his home. Along the way they make some startling discoveries about the world they live in and the choices their ancestors made.

In a far-flung future, the people are told the air above is too polluted to breathe-there is nothing left on the surface anymore. All that exists is the crowded underground city. Eleven-year-old Amy has always been the curious sort, but she has learned to hide her curiosity-and the fact she can read-from the adults who watch her. Until a strange boy tumbles into her world, claiming he is from the outside-and together the two of them must uncover old secrets and new worlds.

This is a rollicking preteen SF tale by H.M. Hoover that I found back in the eighties and was one of my favorites. Though this was originally published in the eighties, Hoover's ability to conjure up a another kind of world, to tell the kind of stories that speak to the reader and spark their imagination still shines through-so it's unsurprising that so many of her books are being reprinted for a new generation of young readers to discover and enjoy. Hoover herself confesses in her bio that she wrote the kind of stories she enjoyed reading as a child-what better way to capture an audience? THIS TIME OF DARKNESS encapsulates the idea of a strange, oppressive future society with appealing preteen protagonists. Readers journey with them as the discover the way out of the darkness, but will the watchers allow them to find freedom and hope in the world?

Many will want to pick this book up out of nostalgia-having read this when they were kids-to revisit the story they remember, and maybe to share with their children who are just encountering science fiction for the first time.

This story is perfectly tailored to its audience, and while some of the future technology may feel a little dated since publication, the overall themes hold up well, and deliver their message of hope and perseverance admirably. If you are encountering Hoover for the first time, look for some of her other SF classics, like THE WINDS OF MARS, ORVIS, or my favorite, THE LOST STAR. For books in a similar vein, you might also check out THE CITY OF EMBER by Jean Duprau and DEVIL ON MY BACK by Monica Hughes.

Happy Reading! ^_^ Shanshad

We first saw this book at our local Children's Museum. After reading it, I had to have this as part of our home library. The illustrations are so original, as is the funny story. It makes us laugh each time we read it together. Plus, the final soup is made of lots of different kinds of vegetables--a great healthy meal reinforcement for your preschooler.

My grandmother used to tell me this story and now I can pass that on to my grandchildren who unfortunately do not live in the same state. It's a wonderful story (with lines I still quote as an adult!) and terrific illustrations that will make you laugh right out loud.

The juxtaposition of the photograph-like mishmashed black and white backgrounds with the colorful illustrations of characters and key items make this book fun and interesting to look at. The twist on the nursery rhyme is hilarious and easy for children to identify with. My child loves to point out the different animals and vegetables and always laughs throughout the story (a lamb hanging out in the diswasher, etc gets lots of giggles). Makes vegetables fun.

We just love the cadence of the words, so fun to read. And the art is so unique, mixing photography with drawing of the characters. My 3 year old picks this one over and over. GREAT gift for a vegetarian friend! (the lady in the book gets so fed up going to Market and managing the animals and fish she has purchased, that she finally gives up and makes veggie soup for everyone~animals included) We are not vegetarians, and this book in no way was preaching Veganism...but it would be appreciated on another level by a Vegan I think. Just buy it...its great.

Anne Miranda made a fun story out of a small nursery rhyme.

The book keeps the rhythm of the old rhyme but you will have trouble keeping it as the artwork has many things to take you away from the story.

The pictures made my daughter stay on each page for a little while as she had to see what happened as each animal started to trash the old lady's house.

It's a great little book and I have had to read it every night. A couple times in fact.

The book was great and all but (sigh) why does it always talk about Kara more? And i didnt like when she was able to go to avalon what about Adriannne or Emily? they deserve it more!! Anyway it was about them defeating the sorceress( Kara and Adrianne), (Emily) and destoring blackfire, healing the mistwolves and healing Aldenmore. I hope the next 6 book in the new series waan't talk about Kara more like she is not goood of a character.

This is one of my favorite books but it broke my heart. this author has a special gift of making a character in a book dear to you but she took away
one of those charecters later she will return this charecter but the feeling for the charecter will never quite be the same.

KEEP THIS IN MIND,

avalon heartbreak

This was definatly my favorite Avalon book. It is so exciting and full of adventure. Sure, Kara was mentioned alot, but I thought it was so cool anyway. After a firemental comes for Adrianne, Kara, and Emily, they have to go to Aldenmor to stop the Dark Sorceress. It was full of surprises right to the end when they find the mistwolves. This was a thrilling adventure all the way through, even though one of my favorite characters Stormbringer, makes a painful sacrifice...

The fight for Aldenmor is finally drawing to a close. Join Emily, Adriane, Kara, and their magical animal friends as they jump through portals and rescue the mistwolf pack from the Dark Sorceress. Adriane and Stormbringer, her bonded Mistwolf, find Dreamer, an orphaned pup who is a gifted magic tracker. Storm disappears while holding the pack in mist form and Adriane grows depressed in the long run. Kara and Lyra, a winged leopard, find AvAlon and restore Aldenmor to its original beauty. Emily, in the mean time, is with Ozzie, an elf trapped in a ferret's body, in an elf village where Black Fire has poisoned the villagers and their livestock. Emily heals them and advances in her magic skills. This is an awesome book that teenage magic lovers would enjoy.

AvAlon: Trial by Fire is part of an amazing series by Rachel Roberts. Adriane and Stormbringer, the main characters, are my favorites. I hated the Dark Sorceress though. This book has made me a magic fan for good. I loved Trial by Fire.

I must say it wasn't the best in the series and it wasn't the worst, it was perfect. I am a BIG fan of the avalon series so right away when it was out I so bought it. Anyways now with the story which is basically what we are supposed to type about, Emily, Adriane, and Kara now finally have to destroy black fire... and all have a major part to fufill(i may have spelled it wrong!lol) the prophcey and compelets their destiny. First of all Adrianne has to deal with the dark sorceress with Lyra as Storm turns into mist to save all the mistwolves from these crystals stored with Blackfire! She totally saves the day but... there was a huge price to pay for that. Kara well we find out more about her and she gets once again in this spellsinging spell and is in the sorceress cluthes. Basically the sorceress captures Kara to make her open these portals with fairy map given to her by firemental, to get the unicorn. But eventually the unicorn rescues her and she sadly goes to Avalon which is UNFAIR they all had should, not to mention gets her unicorn jewel!!! Well the magor thing, Emily has to destory blackfire, break the crysatls that contain the mistwolves and most of all heal the mistwolves with blackfire but has help with Zach and later the mages. Well I shouldn't really say they ALL complete their destiny since in book 4 heart of avalon Emily compeletes anpther of her destiny as well so she has to heal avalon later. It was an excellent ending and ALL AVALON FANS SHOULD READ IT NOW!!!!!!!

Things are starting to get even more interesting. Ed's relationship with Heather is heating up; Heather broke up with Sam. And Gaia remains unaware about Loki's true identity...

Another great book in a great series.

Really, all of the Fearless books stink, but this one stinks the most....what does it smell like? BORING! I can't believe I started reading these books.....what ever you do DO NOT READ THIS BOOK! You'll hate it! TAKE MY WORD FOR IT!

Seventeen-year-old Gaia Moore has never really trusted anyone in her life. And it's pretty obvious why. Her father killed her mother - supposedly - then ran off into the night never to be seen again, and she's living with George and Ella, foster parents who aren't the greatest. Especially Ella, considering she's doing everything in her power to ruin Gaia's life, first by sleeping with Sam, and now by beating Gaia to a pulp - but Gaia got some good punches in as well. But now Uncle Oliver has come into the picture. Gaia's true Uncle. Sure, he may look like her father - after all, they are identical twins - but he's different. Gaia feels that she can truly trust him. Especially after he offers her an offer she can't refuse - freedom from George and Ella and the opportunity to travel the world with her Uncle, without school to bog her down. But maybe it's too good to be true...

As always, Francine Pascal has done a fabulous job of weaving another story starring Gaia Moore together perfectly. Gaia is her usual snippy, karate kid, complete with witty comebacks and enough crazy family members to make anyone's head spin. Readers will be excited to see how Gaia's relationship unfolds with Uncle Oliver - aka Loki - and will find themselves begging for the next installment in the series, KILLER. A must read book for all series fans.

Erika Sorocco
Book Review Columnist for The Community Bugle Newspaper

trust is the perfect name for this book. about every character that we have come to know starts reexaming their relationships and their lives. breakups and new relationships start. then gaia
and ella have a fight and low and behold she actually can fight.
of course this gets back to loki in an most unexpected way and
he is seeing red. this book was really good. not as good as number 9, but it comes in a close second. highly recomend.

"Trust" is the eleventh instalment in Francine Pascal's Fearless series. Gaia Moore, the girl without the ability to feel fear, is struggling to come to terms with the relationship between her thirty-something foster mother Ella and Sam Moon, the boy Gaia secretly loves. After a fight with Ella results in a shock defeat for the martial-arts expert, Gaia is soon wondering who her seemingly pathetic foster mother really is. With her friend Ed now involved with her worst enemy Heather Gannis, Gaia has no one to turn to but her mysterious `Uncle Oliver'. His offers of freedom and escape are extremely tempting, but are her Uncle's intentions really as innocent as they claim to be?

This was a fast-past, action-packed story that was both entertaining and exciting and will keep you on the edge of your seat until the end. I would recommend this book to any fans of the Fearless series. I also appreciated being allowed to glimpse a more naïve side to Gaia. The characters' relationships grow more and more complex with every book and as questions are answered, still more arise. I read #7 - Rebel and wasn't sure I really liked the Fearless books, but after reading Trust I've decided I love them. Gaia is such a complex, fascinating character although I initially dismissed her as cold and not very likeable. I can wait to read the remaining books in the series.

this is possibly the best children's version of this story i've come across. the pictures are beautiful with attention paid to detail. the illustrations are kind of reminiscent of classical art... whatever era that is, but you get the idea from the front cover. there's a lot to look at in any case. the storytelling isn't bad either. the author knows how to put a decent sentence together.

this story is probably what i would (in this day and age) consider to be a 'classically told' fairy tale. a must read.

This classic fairytale is vouluptuously illustrated in this version of the 12 wayward princesses that wear out their shoes dancing away the night in secret and the clever persistent man who finally follows them and wins a bride. Th eillustrations really are amazing and win the 5 star rating for this edition.

I ordered this for my 5 year old grandaughter. She read it 5 times the day she received it. It is beautifully presented. A delite to see.

Wonderfully written and illustrated

I was familar with this book as a child and bought it for my 7 year old daughter. It took he a moment to wrap her mind around it not being Barbie-related but once we read it and she got lost in the incredible artwork there was no going back. This is a keeper to pass down. The story is dear but the artwork is what gets you talking with your child. Every adult at her party was looking through it with interest. A definite for a children's library.

This is a wonderful book. Our main character has just gone to live with her uncle while her mom is away. She meets friends, and is wary of her uncle and his messy house. especially when she finds a surprise in her bed. And, to top it all off, a murderer called the Vampire is on the loose. Police are baffled. Soon, our character finds SHE will be the next victim. the ending is surprising, and very good. this is one of my favorite books.

I love her work. richie is my favorite author of all time. This is the first book from her I read. I still have the book and always read it when I get bored. Darcy Thomas was dumped by her mother, who had a "honeymoon" with a new fifth husband in Europe. The plan was to leave Darcy at her aunt's place but her laywer aunt was busy on a business, so Darcy was dropped to her unknown Uncle Jake, an uncle she had never know, just only heard of by her mother. And what she heard wasn't very pleasant. When she met Uncle Jake she was very surprise because he was young, around 22 or 23, not much older than her. She met his friends Kyle and Liz. Liz was mean to her because she used to having her way before Darcy came. Kyle was nice to her. So was his bestfriend Brandon, who was interest in Darcy. Liz was jealous of Darcy since she was liking Brandon. Then there was Elliott, whom seem to be watching her all the time but nobody see him except her. He appeared almost everywhere she goes. Jake was always nervous when he was around her, almoat afraid of her. Then there were these murders with girls and the culprit always leave his signature behind: a vampire dots on the girl's neck. Darcy thought someone was watching when she went to bed and it turn out that there was. She found the lipstick that use for the signature of the vampire in Jake's closet, and she also found these bloody stain with mud towels in the closet. Jake seem to be having a little secret he doesn't want her to know. Can she trust him or anyone?

I love her work. richie is my favorite author of all time. This is the first book from her I read. I still have the book and always read it when I get bored. Carolyn Baxter and her mother moved to an island to get an inherited Glanton House that left from a distant greataunt whom they haven't talk for years. Mrs. Baxter wanted to transform the house into a houseguests for tourists. Carolyn thought it was a bad idea, since the house was near a cliff, and the ocean that seem to go on and on forever; then there was fog all the time, making it harder to see. Nora, the creepy housekeeper left from Hazel, gave Carolyn all these horrible folklore that scare the hell out of her. Then a drifter came. His name is Joss Whitcomb, who needed a place to stay in exchange of doing handywork for them. Carolyn was half attracted to him with his dark, compelling look and half terrify of him for knowing too much of the tale of the house. the legend of the sea captain was scaring her cuz the captain's wife have the same name as Carolyn. The legend say that the captain have to go and the captain built a widow's walk for her to wait him there to return. But the wait seem to be forever so the Carolyn Glanton fall in love with another man. He was a drifter that she took care of; a cruel he was;very jealos and spiteful. Soon, Carolyn was depress. One stormy night, the ship of Captain Glanton came back but all people died except the captain. He was barely alive. The drifter killed the captain and killed the wife also and left. No one know where he go. With the legend like that, how could Carolyn trust the devastating drifter when she was feared of him?

I love this book so much! It is the story of seventeen-year-old Darcy, who is dumped by her mother at her handsome Uncle Jake's house, who is just 6 years older than her. There, she becomes friends with Brandon, the dark-haired, hot, guy who is already taken, but likes Darcy; Liz, the spoiled girlfriend of Brandon who is used to getting what she wants and does not have any real friends; Kyle, the sweet brother of Liz; and Elliott, the weird young man who never takes off his sunglasses and seems to follow Darcy around. Meanwhile, girls are being murdered in the town and left with slits in their throats and marks that look like a vampire's. Strange things start happening to Darcy, and at first everyone thinks she is overreacting. When Darcy finds a note saying "You are my chosen one," she must hurry to find who is doing the killing before she is next. This book has romance and suspense, and it keeps you guessing until the end. I think this book is somewhat hard to find, but I ordered it off amazon.com and am thankful I did.

Darcy is dumped by her mom, and left at her Uncle Jake's house. His home is inside a horror museum -- The Dungeon of Horrors, which he owns. As soon as she arrives, strange things start to occur. Girls start turning up in dark alleys with their throat slashed, and two lipstick marks on their necks -- implying a vampire bite. Darcy's thrown into the midst of the terror when she believes that she's being stalked and receives a threatening note under her pillow. To add to the situation, she starts suspecting that someone she knows is the killer! Will she survive long enough to find out?.....

"Vampire" was a very good book, and up to par with a great author -- Richie Tankersley Cusick. This was my second book by her, and it was great! Keeping that in mind, it did have a few flaws. It was a bit hard to get into, and didn't get straight to the point. Aside from that, it wasn't too fast-paced. The ending (being the most important part of a book -- especially in mysteries) was satisfying, but not completely shocking -- like most other books. Still, it was unique how the author made you change your mind three times about who the killer was before they were revealed.

Anthony Browne is the author and illustrator of more than 20 children's books such as Gorilla, Willy's Pictures, Into the Forest and Silly Billy. He has won numerous awards for his work including, the highest international honor for illustration the Hans Christian Anderson Award, the Kate Greenaway Medal twice and the Kurt Maschler Award three times. Browne has once again gone above and behind with his beautiful illustration that tell a story all on their own in Voices in the Park.
Browne has written and illustrated another fabulous book involving monkeys. This intriguing story is told from the perspective of four monkey characters: a bossy woman, a sad man, a lonely boy, and a young girl. All the characters visit the same park and describe their visits completely different. Browne uses different styles of text to represent each character in the story. He also uses different color hues to help express the characters outlook on life. The illustrations have very intricate details, every time it is read a viewer notices something in the pictures that they didn't notice before.
I highly recommend this book for all parents and teachers. Every time I read this book, teachers and children alike fall in love with the very detailed illustrations and interesting story line. The children all respond by pointing out the new images they see in each picture. It is a book that never gets old and gets the children thinking about how everyone can see the same things in a different light.

I found this book when I was getting my teaching certification, and wanted to teach a 4th grade class on "Voice" or point of view. It was the basis for a great lesson! I think this could be appropriate for students in 3rd grade up to a basic high school English class. The same event (a trip to the park) is told by 4 distinctly different characters who all encounter each other in the park. So the story is told 4 times, once by each character. Everything from the word choice, font style, and beautiful illustrations relates the "voice" or point of view of each person. It is not only highly instructuve, it is a visual treat and intriguing. I have read the story many times, and each time the students see something that I missed. I love this book and share it with all my teacher friends and librarians.

This is a great book, with very clever pictures throughout. It left my 3rd grade class with much to discuss. They asked to borrow this book for quite some time. I think the only way to improve this book would have been to make the characters human instead of animals.

Many mention the writing convention of "point of view" as a strong point of this book,and it is, but few reviewers mention the complex themes and issues that arise from this book. The illustrations are worth more than the cost of the book, as one reviewer put it. However, I found that the subtle ways in which this book invites the reader to ponder socio-economic class, child-parent relationships, financial struggle, and the innocence of childhood to be much more thought-provoking. I appreciate how the characters are not people--they are not of any certain ethnic background. I appreciate the detail to diction. Mostly, I appreciate the simplicity of the ending and what it says about how we all might view things when all is said and done at the end of the day.

As a teacher, I love this book because it really makes the idea of perspective come to life especially for elementary students. Anthony Browne does a great job explaining what perspective is through his writing and his illustrations.