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The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
This book was an excellent prequel for the beloved Hunger Games series. It was the back story behind President Snow and how he came to be the person he is. The book follows Snow as he leaves school and becomes a mentor for one of the tributes in the Hunger Games. In the book he must decide where his loyalties lie, and he is faced with choosing between love and friendship or the Capitol. -
Woods Runner
This book is set during the American Revolution and told from the perspective of a young boy. His parents are taken and he spends the remainder of the novel tracking the soldiers to rescue them. His tracking and hunting skills come in handy as he works to travel noiselessly through the midst of war. He runs across many people and is unsure of who to trust because he does not know who is loyal to the British. The story had lots of action and was very fast paced. -
Hatchet
Another Gary Paulsen novel that was full of just as much action as The Woods Runner. This one was a gripping story I could not put down. The main character is in a plane crash in the middle of the Canadian wilderness. He survives the crash but then must survive the wilderness stranded on his own. He had many trial and error mishaps in trying to find food and shelter, etc. I was rooting for the character the entire novel and found myself desperate to know if he made it! -
Love That Dog
I originally thought I would not enjoy this story. However, I found myself pleasantly surprised. The story is written in poetry form, and the irony is that the boy writing the story does not like poetry and thinks he cannot write poetry, yet he ends up writing a whole book in poem form. -
The Girl on the Train
I've been waiting to read this novel for a while and was glad to finally check it off my list. In the book a girl rides the same train everyday and watches the people in the houses she passes. She sees something startling and when the girl she sees goes missing she involves herself in the investigation to help find her. The story has a surprise twist ending that adds an extra thrill. -
Surprise Me
Another Sophie Kinsella classic to give you a good lighthearted laugh. The main character in the book goes to a doctor's appointment with her husband during which they are told to expect to live a long life. They realize that means 68 more years of marriage and end up feeling a little daunted by this number. They decide to plan surprises for each other as a way to keep things exciting. Naturally, many of the surprises go terribly wrong.
