Looking for your next great read? Check out the reviews below from members of the Truth community.
Review by Madison, 7th grade
Stamped, by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
The book is about race and is written by Jason Reynolds. It is not a history book, and it is not hard to read after you take interest in it. I was emotional about Stamped at first. I love to read, however I was hesitant to read it because I was not comfortable talking with white people openly about race. When I had the opportunity to meet everyone in the book club, I found out how nice they were and open they were. I made statements and I was more comfortable with the group. I began to take interest in Stamped once I understood that no one was uncomfortable or afraid to speak about the topics of history and antiracism. That is what I like about this book. Jason Reynolds did not make Stamped boring to the point where I didn’t want to read it. It spoke about more than just the same black people that we all know about such as Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Dr.Martin Luther King Jr, and others. It spoke of people that we do not know or had barely heard of. It had funny cheerful sentences. Like when someone in history would say something racist Reynolds would say things like “uh-oh” or “whoops.” It made the topic more light-hearted and less hard to talk about.
What else was Stamped about?
Women's rights
Race
Affairs
Betrayals
Books written throughout history
Families
Vocabulary
-Madison, 7th grade
Review by Yadier, 6th grade
Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales, by Nathan Hale
Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales is a fun graphic novel series for kids 8-12 years old. Nathan Hale’s books are about important events in American history such as World War I (WWI), Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad, and the Alamo. Nathan Hale is a spy in the Revolutionary War. In the first book, One Dead Spy, he is going to get hanged. He said his last words “I regret that I have but one life to give for my country” and he became part of history. Then he knows all the history from the future and he tells it to the hangman and the provost so he doesn’t get executed. Every story he tells is a new book in the series. His series has 9 books. The next book to come out is called Blades of Freedom, which is about the Louisiana Purchase and it comes out on October 27th, 2020.
Nathan Hale’s books are very funny and educational. The characters in his books are hilarious. They pop out in between chapters and in the corners with jokes and funny comments about what’s going on. These books are great, I would definitely recommend them to people even if you don’t like history because it’s a new and funny way to learn. For example, I learned more about WWI and they made every country into a different animal. The topics Nathan Hale writes about are very interesting and are filled with lots of facts about things you might not know about. I hope you want to read NHHT!
-Yadier, 6th grade
Review by Elliot, 7th grade
George, by Alex Gino
When people see George, they see a boy, but George knows she is a girl. Once, when George saw a magazine in a trash can something stuck with her. The word “girl” on the magazine stuck with her. George collects magazines and pictures herself in them wearing a skirt and standing next to another smiling girl. George is the story of a girl who was born in the body of a boy. She is in the fourth grade and likes playing Mario Kart with her brother Scott and going to the zoo with her best friend Kelly. George knows who she is, but she thinks it's time for the world to know. With the fourth grade performance of Charlotte's Web coming up, George decides to show everyone who she is. With Kelly’s help they will put on a performance that is, as Charlotte might say, terrific and radiant. From best friends to bullies, George is a beautiful story about being yourself and accepting others. I loved this book and the characters in it. Alex Gino takes the reader on an unforgettable journey.
-Elliot, 7th grade
Review by Madison, 7th grade
The Track Series, by Jason Reynolds
The Track Series is 4 different books about a group of newbies on a track team. Each book is written from first person of the the person on the front the order of the books are:
Ghost
Patina
Sunny
Lu
These books are interesting and are written in different ways. Sunny’s book is written like he is writing in a diary. He says he’s weird and funky but has a little secret. He doesn't want to run track anymore he wants to dance.
Patina’s book is written as a to-do list. She has a little sister and a mom who isn't really her mom, she's her aunt. Her real mom has diabetes and had to get her legs amputated (which means cut off). Patina, also known as Patty, holds all her emotions until she blows up in fury.
Ghost’s book is written as world records. Ghosts father was a kind man at first who ate sunflower seeds, seed shells and all. But after Ghosts father began to drink out of control he would be abusive to his mother. His mother fought back and ghosts dad shot at him and his mom as they ran from him. Ghosts' real name is Castle Cranshaw.
Lu’s is written as a new name for blank. Lu is an albino kid who has a baby sister on the way he found out at dinner. He was surprised because he was told that his mother was incapable of having another child. Lu is a leader who does hurdles and runs the 800. If I write anything more I will spoil the book.
Jason Reynolds finds new and fun ways to write stories and the track series I think is one of his best works. In books when he is acknowledging. He commits the book to certain types of people, instead of one type of person.
To the runners
For those who’ve been passing the baton to young
To the weirdos
For the leaders
And in that order too! My favorite book is Lu. But what I didn't like is that he did not write a book from the perspective of the coach. I recommend this series to people who enjoy comical but also complicated stories. I enjoyed it. I bet you will too.
Review by Morgan, 7th grade
A Blade So Black by L.L. McKinney
In my opinion, every book has a meaning. Even if it is a sad story, or a story that can make you laugh, every book has a story. For example, the book that I am reviewing, A Blade So Black by L.L. McKinney, would be a great book to read if you like fantasy, drama, and danger. It is about this girl whose world is about to change when she found a nightmare. If you read the book, you could see that it is like the movie Alice in the Wonderland, but different from the movie. When you read, it is like you are there experiencing it while you are flipping through each page, and even when you are in danger it makes it even better because you are there watching every moment of it.
In general, I love reading books. I like books that are fiction, non-fiction, horror, romantic, adventure, history, etc. When reading a book it is like an escape from the real world and an entry to this whole new world that is fun, scary, exciting and beautiful. I have a few books that I like, and I would recommend them to other readers:
A Blade So Black by L. L. Mckinney
Twinchantment by Elise Allen
We’ll Meet Again by Mary Higgins Clark
On the Street Where You Live by Mary Higgins Clark
Stamped by Jason Reynolds
Love Music, Love to Dance by Mary Higgins Clark
Pushout by Monique W. Morris
Lottery Winner by Mary Higgins Clark
Weep No More, My Lady by Mary Higgins Clark
Amina’s Voice by Hena Khan
Series of Unfortunate Events 1-13 by Lemony Snicket or Daniel Handler
The Complete Poetry by Maya Angelou
-Morgan, 7th grade
Review by Lulu, 7th grade
March by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin
John Lewis, a boy from Troy, Alabama, has a dream to be a preacher. At that time, going to school was a luxury his family could not afford. He would hide. By the time his parents and siblings got tired of looking for him, they would go off to the fields to do work. When he would hear the school bus he would run and jump on. He read about justice and he wanted his voice to be heard. He wanted to desegregate Troy, Alabama. John Lewis and others started a movement.
In the book March there is some foul language. This is a book that shares John Lewis’s Civil Rights Movement with America’s young leaders. John Lewis and Andrew Aydin make this book an adventure. I loved this graphic novel so much. This book taught me that to change something, you need to have courage and stand up for yourself and others.
-Lulu, 7th grade
Review by China, 6th grade
The Watsons Go To Birmingham - 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis
The Watsons Go To Birmingham 1963 is a book mostly about racism. This book is about a family of five. Daniel and Wilona are the parents, and the three kids are Kenneth Watson, Joetta Watson and Byron Watson. They live in Flint, Michigan. This family goes down to Down South to Alabama. They go down to Alabama because they want to teach their oldest son, Byron, a lesson. Byron is what some might call a delinquent. He did bad things like skip school, bully, fight and more. So they took him and the two other kids to Alabama. They chose Alabama for two reasons. One was because they wanted to stay at Grandma’s house and two was because in Alabama, back in 1963, there was a lot of racism going on, so the parents thought it would be a good idea to go there! The lesson they wanted to teach Byron was that there are CONSEQUENCES FOR OUR ACTIONS... Sometimes we do things without caution that we cannot take back. It was only after two weeks in Alabama that Byron’s behavior started to change. He started to realize how people with his color of skin were treated. When the Watson family went back to Flint, Michigan after about a month, Byron was a new man. He started treating people better, doing right in school, and more!
I really enjoyed this book because it taught a little bit more about racism on every page! I also really like this book because it is based on a very true and sad story. The author did not necessarily make the book fun but he made it interesting. He made the book interesting because if you read the first page and you get bored, on the next page there is something even better! Then, on the next page it’s EVEN BETTER! The book is very interesting.
-China, 6th grade