Classics

Crime and Punishment is a novel like no other. Set in Russia in the mid-1800s, Crime and Punishment watches the mental anguish suffered by a poor man forced to turn to murder in order to survive. The work has been cemented as one of the greatest pieces of psychological writing of all time and for good reason. Raskolnikov is a deeply tortured protagonist, and Dostoevsky brutally captures his emotions, fears, and motivations throughout the novel. As other characters with conflicting motivations threaten Raskolnikov's plans and schemes, his stress only becomes more powerful.
Crime and Punishment is not an easy novel by any means. The writing style is fairly archaic, and conversations can run on for what feels like forever. However, the story is so well thought out and executed that it deserves a read from anyone interested in psychology, literature, or even acting (the story serves as an excellent example of a character study from which one can take notes). Do not expect light reading or a feel-good story, as this book will take the reader into the desperation and pain experienced by the protagonist.
Crime and Punishment is one of the best novels of all time, and although it is a challenge to read, it is absolutely worth it for its views on society and man's mental state. If this review has sounded interesting to you, do yourself a favor and check it out today.

Sense and Sensibility follows two sisters, Marianne and Elinor, who have been left destitute following their father's death. Marianne is an impulsive romantic who chases love wherever it will lead her. Elinor is logical and socially conscious, and hides her turbulent emotions even from those closest to her. Together, the two of them will survive scandal, family drama, and first loves in an attempt to find the prized middle ground between passionate expression and silent intelligence.
This is not the best Jane Austen novel. I've only read about one and a half of her other works, but I can guarantee anyone that this is not the best Jane Austen novel. My main problem with this work is that it has all the drawbacks of a Jane Austen classic (slow pace, meandering conversations, way too many characters) with none of the expected romantic investment.
There's still a lot of great stuff about this book. The best thing for me was the main character, Elinor. Elinor is the character through which we sees the story, which has a lot of benefits. It makes her sister's antics more endearing and impactful. It makes her romantic situation more sympathetic, which it needs. It also makes the book much more interesting, because Elinor is an amazing character! She's funny in the best, most sarcastic way possible. She's observant and intelligent, so its great to watch how her mind works. She deeply loves the people around her, and gives everyone new dimensions. She is what makes this book special. The other benefits, I'd say, is the general humor in the writing, the drama of the story, and the sustained level of tension.
The thing I don't like about this romance novel is that it doesn't do what its supposed to do: create a compelling romance. Both sisters have romances that both end somewhat in tragedy, which is supposed to be very sad and moving. This works a pretty well with Marianne, since her situation involved a lot of deceit and drama that was very fun to read. It does not work at all with Elinor. Elinor's love interest is present for very little of the novel, and is so boring that I already forgot his name for this review and wouldn't have remembered it while reading the book if Elinor didn't think about him so often. And she does think about him a lot, which doesn't make sense to the audience, since he's offered so little of himself as a character to be a compelling love interest. This wouldn't be as big of a problem if romance wasn't the central pivot of the book, but as it stands it's distracting to see the intelligent, charismatic lead longing after someone the audience couldn't care about less.
All in all, this book is still very good, and worth a read! I'd recommend this to anyone who likes regency romance, interesting female lead characters, moving emotion, and lots of drama!

Reviewer Grade: 12

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is a dystopian novel written in 1953. Although some of the concepts and references are harder to understand due to when the story is written, it still holds many good messages relevant today. In this novel, books are banned, and firefighters burn houses with books inside instead of saving them. They are the protectors of happiness because books make people unhappy. Fahrenheit 451 follows a fireman, Guy Montag, as he starts asking questions about his job and society. This novel has many hidden meanings and is worth the time to read. The author does a beautiful job of keeping the writing and concepts simple enough for younger audiences. Overall, I would give it a five out of five stars.

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros is a coming-of-age story that follows a Latina girl living in Chicago. It is a story about finding who you are and your place in the world. This book is fun, simple, and written so anyone can read it. The book does not have to be read in any order, and the individual chapters carry so much meaning. The book is heartbreaking and inspiring, touching the reader's heart with warmth. This book will not disappoint. Overall, I would give it a five out of five stars.

This book was good, but kind of old. It is a book about a girl named fern and she saved a pig from being killed. She named him Wilbur and he became kind of like her pet. Wilbur became bff's with a spider named Charlotte. I did like how the author described everything. It was very sweet how she made you feel like Wilbur and Charlotte were real and they were really friends. I did get nervous before the ending of the story for how it would end up.
-an almost 9th grader

This book was pretty good. It was a little harder to get into than I thought it would be. The plot of the story was all about these animals on a farm, and how they wanted to have equality with the farmer. It is an old book that was written in 1945, but I thought it was really crazy how it is similar to some of the modern day issues the world is facing. My big sister has read it and we talked about it a lot, I think it is a better book for adults than for teen agers (I'm 14). The ending was not what I expected.
- almost 9th grader

I have never really been good at reading long books, but my sister kept talking about the Harry Potter books and so I read the sorcerer's stone, and it was so good. I have a hard time actually picturing what's going on in the books, but the way that JK Rowling writes made it easy. The book is all about a fantasy world full of magic and wizards and spells and witchcraft. I literally wish I went to Hogwarts. If I did I would be a ravenclaw. I am really good at riddles.
Reviewer's Grade: 9

Their Eyes Were Watching God, written by Zora Neale Hurstson, is a contemporary fiction novel regarding the tale of Janie Crawford and her quest to find love. I like how the book introduces the characters in the beginning, after Janie's journey to find love, and then Janie tells her best friend about how she ended up where she was. Originally, her grandmother wed her to a man she was uninterested in. In fact, she was so uninterested in her husband that she ran off with another, more exciting man. The more she stayed with the exciting man, named Joe Starks, (she eventually married him), the more he hurt (physically/emotionally) her. Later, Joe dies, and she has little to no remorse over his death. A couple months later, she meets Tea Cake, and eventually falls in love with him. The part that I don't like about this book is that Tea Cake has a lot of warning flags, but they all seem to fly over Janie's head. I don't know if the author intended for the main character to be foolish or not, it simply shocked me how willing Janie was to devote herself to Tea Cake.

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, written by Maya Angelou, is an autobiographical account of Angelou's childhood. When Maya is a young child, her parents divorce. After the divorce her parents send her and her brother, Baily to Stamps, Arkansas to live with their Grandmother, where her Grandmother, affectionately referred to as "Momma", runs a convenience store. Angelou, despite her self-consciousness, appears to have had a great childhood growing up in the store. After about five years, Angelou's dad unexpectedly comes in and takes Bailey and her to their mother, who was living in St. Louis. While there, Angelou is molested by her mother's boyfriend. The boyfriend is quickly murdered and Angelou feels responsible for the death.
I liked to book because Angelou highlights how anyone can do what they set their mind to, and even in bad situations a human can grow immensely.

This is a childhood favorite of mine. The story follows Louis, a mute swan who travels across Canada to learn how to communicate and find his sense of self. He has to figure out how to adapt to his unique circumstances when no other swans have gone through the same thing. It is funny and unexpectedly educational about Canadian wildlife. Louis is such an entertaining and sweet character. There are occasional language choices that reflect the author's time period (vague stereotypes of Native Americans) but everything else is completely wholesome. Read this book if you have little ones or just want something lighthearted to read!
Grade 12