Kids Book Blog » Historical Fiction

The Time Travelers – Buckley Archer

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 21:29:01 +0000

The Time Travelers is a fictional book taken place in the 21st century and the 1900s.Two children get swept back in time thanks to an anti-gravity machine. A vicious man named the Tar Man tries to get revenge on the world, while the children(named Peter and Kate) try to get back home. In the meantime, Peter and Kates parents are very worried about them. The question is, will Peter and Kate get back to the 21st century, or will the Tar Man stop them from doing so? Read the book to find out!

Caleb W.

Five Ancestors: Mouse-Jeff Stone

Mrs. Phillips — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 17:27:06 +0000

This is the sixth book. Don’t read this summary before reading Tiger, Monkey, Snake, Crane, and Eagle. The main character is ShaoShu. The small boy sneaks onto Tonglong’s boat without being seen. He stays hidden for awhile before he is captured and used as a spy for Tonglong. Fu, Malao, Seh, Hok, Ying, and Charles find a friendly band of Dutch pirates with guns. The Dutch are here because China is trading with the Holland for guns. The friends meet each other in a battle between boats. ShaoShu tell what has happened and Hok tells him to find Long and get him to them. Does ShaoShu find Long? What is Tonglong’s next move? If you want to find out, read Mouse. This book is good for boy and girls and those who like Chinese history.

Blogged by:

Enoch T.

Five Ancestors: Eagle-Jeff Stone

Mrs. Phillips — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 01:45:06 +0000

This is the fifth book. Don’t read this summary before Tiger, Monkey, Snake, and Crane. Ying, the eagle kung-fu master whose old name used to be Saulong, snuck in the fighting club to rescue Fu, Malao, Seh, Hok, and Charles. Long disappears again until Ying splits off from the other kung fu masters. Ying is trapped when Long leads him out of the building via a trapdoor. Long leaves him and he later joins Hok on a journey to find a treasure using the secret map on the dragon scrolls. They receive help from a street kid named ShaoShu, whose name means little mouse in Mandarin. Ying leaves the two behind and finds his mother in a mountain near the river. He learns that his beloved father, Cholong, was a theif who lead a band of theifs. He stole the dragon scrolls from his fater, the Grandmaster of Cangzhen Temple. Then his mother makes Ying fighte her. He lost and had to practice a breating technique of tai chi, a martial art that combines breathing and moving meditation. But something happens during his training. What happened? What is going on with Fu, Malao, Seh, Hok, Long, and ShaoShu? If you want find out, read Eagle. This book is good for both boys and girls and those who like Chinese history and martial arts.

Blogged by:

Enoch T.

Five Ancestors: Crane-Jeff Stone

Mrs. Phillips — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 22:39:28 +0000

This is the fourth book in the series. Don’t read this blog before you read Tiger, Monkey, and Snake. Hok is the main character of this story. Her name is means Crane in Cantonese and she is a crane style kung-fu master. The story starts in her dream of what has happened to her so far. She’s been drugged and was asleep until she pinches herself. Another fallen monk from Shaolin has used Hok as a bait when she was unconscious again to destroy Shaolin. After waking up, she runs away from Shaolin Temple during another assault and gets a dislocated arm. She relocates it and finds her mother Bing, and a Dutch boy named Charles. They find Seh, Malao and Fu and escape from Tonglong and Seh’s mother, AnGangseh. Malao and Fu gets captured by Tonglong. Ying is under arrest from false accusation, and Hok rescues him. Seh becomes blind after the rescue attempt. Later Fu, Malao, are in a fighting club where they find there hiding brother, Long. What is Long doing there? What is Ying accused of? What is Tonglong’s next move? If you want to find out, read Crane. This book is good for both boys and girls and those who like Chinese history and martial arts.

Blogged by:

Enoch T.

Five Ancestors: Snake-Jeff Stone

Mrs. Phillips — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 04:20:39 +0000

This is the third book in the FIve Ancestors series. Don’t read this blog before you read Tiger and Monkey. This time the main character is Seh, the young snake style kung-fu master whose name means Snake. The prologue tells about the secrets about Seh and Hok. Seh learns that Hok is a girl and that he is the son of Mong, a bandit and a kung-fu master on snake style. After the assult of Cangzhen Temple, receives help from a beuty snake and finds his two brothers Fu and Malao and the old dragon scrolls they have been trying to protect. They join a group of bandits led by Mong. They had met many of his collegues on thier journey. But they soon need to leave after another ambush from Ying at the bandit’s stronghold. Later during a festival they find two people. Who are the two people? Where is Long? What will happen to the scrolls? If you want to find out, read Snake. This book fits mostly boys and those who like some humor, Chinese history, and martial arts.

Blogged by:

Enoch T.

Five Ancestors: Monkey-Jeff Stone

Mrs. Phillips — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:32:16 +0000

This book is in the series Five Ancestors. Don’t read this book before you read the first book Tiger. Monkey is about a young monkey-style kung-fu master named Malao, which means Monkey in Cantonese. He and his four brothers have escaped a assult on the Cangzhen Temple led by their fallen brother Ying, which means Eagle in Cantonese. He runs away and eventually meets four of his brothers, trains some children in a village, and finds two dragon scrolls. They leave soon and try to look for thier dragon style kung-fu brother Long and rescue thier brother Hok. They also try to avoid Ying and his general Tonglong. Will they mange to find their lost brother? Who will they meet next? If you want to find out, read Monkey. This book would fit mostly boys and those who like some humor, Chinese history, and martial arts.

Blogged By

Enoch T.

Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte

Mrs. Phillips — Wed, 13 May 2009 04:48:24 +0000

Warning! I give away the ending in this book. So if you want to read it, do not read my blog!
I just read a fantastic classic! This book is includes several flashbacks. It’s the retelling of a twisted story of love and death.

In 1801, Mr. Lockwood arrives at an inn called Thrushcross Grange.When the weather turns bad, Mr. Lockwood is forced to stay at the inn. During the night, he finds a book telling the experiences and adventures of a girl named Catherine Earnshaw (Cathy). Mr. Lockwood reads a few adventures and realizes that Cathy and Heathcliff were extremely close. The next day, he leaves but suffers from a terrible cold so, he asks the housekeeper who lead him to his inn in the Thrushcross Grange to tell him the story of Heathcliff and Cathy. The housekeeper, Nelly tells the story of thirty years ago in Wuthering Heights:

When Cathy’s father died, her brother, Hinley inherited the property. Also, Cathy and a man named Heathcliff are inseperable friends. But, Hinley dislikes Heathcliff so, Hinley forces Heathcliff to work on the estate. Because Cathy loses Heathcliff she is upset but, she becomes friends with the Lintons. She is extremely fond of the youngest of them all, Edgar Linton. After a few months Cathy agrees to marry Edgar. Because Heathcliff still loves Cathy, he storms out of Wuthering Heights. But, when he leaves, Cathy is upset and she gets a terrifying fever. But, Edgar makes Cathy feel all better.
Months pass…years pass…and finally Heathcliff comes back. He tries to kill everyone who doesn’t let him and Catherine be together. But, since he feels hate toward Edgar, he marries his sister, Isabella. Because he married her, he will inherit the land of Wuthering Heights after Edgar dies. Catherine is extremely happy to see Heathcliff again. But, during the time that Heathcliff was gone, Catherine got pregnant. Heathcliff and Catherine fall in love right before Catherine gave birth to Edgar and her son. She dies of giving birth and Heathcliff is left with nothing but a broken heart. Soon Heathcliff dies and their graves are right next to each other. Their souls will live together forever. Their love for each other is unbreakable even after death.

After hearing this story, Mr. Lockwood visits their graves and realizes their importance in love and death.

I loved this bookk. A true classic. It was so sad but, I really loved the way it was written. I think it would appeal to both boys and girls.

Blogged by:
Heather C.

Spirit Walker – Michelle Paver

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 01 May 2009 03:05:43 +0000

This book is the second book in the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series. This book is about a boy named Torak that lives in a forest during the ancient times. Torak has been through many adventures and tragedies such as when his mother died when he was a baby and when his father died by being attacked by a bear. Torak has also learned many secrets about himself like how he is the listener and how he can talk to wolves. Torak was living in the Raven clan with his friend Renn, when the leader of the clan, Fin-Kedinn, told everybody about a terrible sickness that had infected the clans and the forest. Everybody was terrified when they heard this news. This sickness caused people to kill and be very, very crazy. Everyone knew that only Torak could find the cure to the sickness and save all of the clans in the forest. This book is about Torak fights monsters, demons, whales, and even mages to find the cure for the sickness. He will have to go all the way to the sea with the seal clan to find the cure. On this adventure Torak will learn secrets about himself and his father that will change his life forever. I think this book will appeal to boys and girls of all ages. I also think that any reader that likes adventures and action-packed books will love this series. It is 356 pages long and not that difficult to read. I think you will love this book and I also think the author of this series is brilliant and should continue to write books. I really, really recommend you read this series. I know I will continue.

By: David G.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn – Mark Twain

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 04:02:45 +0000

Huckleberry Finn hates a perfect life. He is forced to live with Widow Douglas which he calls “widow.” He goes to school, attends church, plays peacefully, and wears proper clothes. He gets used to his life even though he misses some of his freedom. When he gets used to all the rules, his drunk, missing, and cruel father appears and takes him away to an unknown forest. His father locks him up in a cabin and there is absolutely no way out. He finds an axe and he chops a hole big enough for him to squeeze out. He uses a canoe to escape down a river and travels to an island. He lives there for a week and finds Jim, a runaway slave. They travel together and they cross many cities. They meet new people such as Mr. Lothrop, Peter Wilks, and Mary Jane. Huckleberry Fin and Jim struggle for food and survival while they try to manage their friendship. Not only that, they have to survive murderers, robbers, and dangerous people who have no reason to kill…

I really liked this book! It was really long but, it only took me 4 days to read. It was spectacular!

Blogged by: Heather C.

Daughter of China – Meihong Xu

Mrs. Phillips — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 19:12:27 +0000

Daughter of China by Meihong Xu is about a girl who goes through an adventure to escape her country.

Daughter of China is like a version of Pocahontas. The girl, Meihong Xu, meets a man from a different country that comes to China. Meihong soons falls in love with this man. BUT! In order for them to be together, Meihong has to leave her homeland. (More like ESCAPE her homeland.) She is forced to make a decision that will change her life. Will she go with her lover? Or will she leave her lover and stay in China? You have to read Daughter of China to find out her choice!

I LOVED THIS BOOK! I really can relate to it because, like Meihong, I am Chinese. I knew what it was like to live in China back then. My parents had told me many stories of their childhood. Escaping from their home to find a better place.

I’d give this book a 10 out of 10, and I’d recommend this book to girls mostly. Daughter of China is a book about love, betrayal, and sacrifice.

Blogged By,
Cynthia P.

Farmer Boy- Laura Ingalls Wilder

Mrs. Phillips — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 00:06:39 +0000

The book Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder is a historical fiction book that can teach you about the olden days. This book is based not on Laura Ingalls Wilder but on her husband Almanzo Wilder. The book explains about Almanzo and how a boy’s life is and what they have to do. Almanzo’s biggest dream is to be a farmer just like his father. But to do this he must learn how to grow and plant crops, milk cows, and break in calves. He did very well with these jobs and he didn’t want to stop because to Almanzo breaking in was so fun. He trained his two calves Star and Bright, they loved him so much that is why they ended up tusting him. Then he realized that he was going to turn nine and will have to got to school for his education. At the end of his term when he came home it was Independence Day. He drank lemonade, ran around, and had fun! Then the next day it was the town’s annual county fair. Almanzo entered his pumpkin and won for biggest and tastiest pumpkin. He felt so proud. Then one day on his ride to town with his father he found a pocketbook that wrote Mr. Thompson on the front cover. He ran as fast as he could into every store to try and find Mr. Thompson. He then saw him in the shipbuilding store and quickly handed the pocketbook to him. Mr. Thompson was outraged and accused Almanzo of stealing. Almanzo denied and stood tall knowing he did not steal. The store keeper Mr. Paddock was so impressed that he gave an offer that was too good to be true. It was to come with him and become his apprentice. With this Mr. Paddock said you can become very wealthy. Almanzo was speechless and didn’t know what to do. If you want to know if Almanzo takes the job and becomes wealthy with Laura you will have to read Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Blogged By: Jennifer P.

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell – Susanna Clarke

Mrs. Phillips — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 19:05:22 +0000

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke takes place in 1806 when Mr. John Segundus joins a group of magicians in England. Mr. Segundus and a man called Mr. Honeyfoot are wondering: What happened to magic in England? Magic used to be most powerful in England but, at one point it all vanished. Mr. Segundus and Mr. Honeyfoot visit the only magician left in England, Mr. Norrell. When they are in Mr. Norrell’s enchanted library, they see it consists of books that have disappeared many centuries ago. Also, Mr. Segundus and Mr. Honeyfoot hear a prophecy that two magicians will restore England’s magic. Mr. Segundus is thinking that they are two magicians and might be able to restore England’s magic by visiting Mr. Norrell! But, when the group of magicians want proof of Mr. Norrell’s magic, Mr. Norrell makes statues in Yorkshire alive! They can speak and sing and do many things humans can. Mr. Norrell also brings back a woman from the dead. Another magician, Jonathan Strange, pops up in England. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell create a spell to give magic to a nameless slave. When the nameless slave realizes his power, he greeds for more magic. He creates dangerous things to….

I really loved this book. It had an extremely high-level vocabulary so, whenever I read, I was in front of my computer with an online dictionary open so I could look up words I didn’t understand. I was really addicted to the book and it was inevitable from me. I recommend it to both boys and girls. It was a short read for me. Even though it was really long it didn’t take me that long to read it because it was really good. It consists of 782 pages, is historical fiction, and is worth 52 whole points!

Blogged by:
Heather C.

Darby – Jonathon Scott Fuqua

Mrs. Phillips — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 17:04:32 +0000

It is 1926, and Darby Carmicheal lives on her family’s farm with black tenant workers in the south. Even though the Civil War has been over, some people don’t treat the african-american people fully like themselves. Darby’s best friend is a tenant worker on the family’s farm, Evette. Darby dreams of growing up as a rich, fancy lady, and Evette wanted to be the same, too, until Evette tells Darby that she wants to be a newspaper writer. Darby became inspired by this and wanted to be a newspaper writer, too. When Darby writes a article about toads, she gives it to the newspaper place, and a couple days later, she is “famous” in her town, recieving compliments. After she writes a couple stories later…she decides to write an article about black people, and how they are not different from anybody. When it gets put into the newspaper days later, she’s no longer getting compliments, but………………

I would rate this book 3.5/5 stars, because it kind of starts out slow, but on some parts, it gives a lot of detail in historical settings. My favorite part in this book is Darby’s birthday party.

blogged by, Anna Marie N.

Elephant Run – Roland Smith

Mrs. Phillips — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 20:09:20 +0000

The book I read was Elephant Run. In this book the main characters are Indaw, Jackson Freestone, Nick Freestone, Mya, and Hilltop. They all are living in Burma. One day the Japanese attacks! Everyone in Burma expected this to happen. The Japanese take everyone in Burma to different camps. Nick, Mya, and Hilltop are in the same camp. Jackson, and Indaw are in a different camp from Nick, Mya, and Hilltop. Hilltop knew of this secret place where they could escape and then save Jackson and Indaw. Hilltops plan was for him, Mya, and Nick to hide in the secret place for a long time. When the Japanese go into there rooms they will think that they had escaped. Once the Japanese called off the search for them Hilltop, Nick, and Mya would escape. So the next day Hilltop, Nick, and Mya did as Hilltop said. Once the Japanese called off the search they left! If you want to figure out if they end up saving Jackson and Indaw, or if the Japanese catch them, read Elephant Run.

The Lacemaker and the Princess- Kimberly Brubaker Bradly

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 21:40:01 +0000

Life was very hard in the 1700s in the French town of Versailles, especially for an eleven year old lacemaker named Isabelle. Her Grand-mere is horrible to her and Isabelle’s Maman can barely afford to put food on their plates. But one day Isabelle’s Grand-mere tells her to make a lace delivery to the Queen of France, Marie Antoinette. She had always wanted to go to the palace and now she actually could. While she was making her delivery, she met the Queen’s daughter Therese. The Queen said that she wanted Isabelle to be Therese’s companion. Isabelle was very excited and her family was living lavishly because of Therese. But while Isabelle was with the royals, carefree and lighthearted, there were rumors going around about starvation and revolution. Isabelle tried to tell herself that they are not true, but when a mob of women come stampeding to the palace, demanding bread, the friends know that this is the beginning of the revolution. Will their friendship get torn apart because of it? Read this book to find out.

I liked this book a lot. I loved how it was a child’s perspective of the French Revolutionary War. I learned a lot about France when I read it, about how their government was set up and about what people thought of it. The revolutionaries were always talking about how they wanted a government like America’s and how much better it would be there, if they had the money. It made me feel we were a strong country and we are. It was different ways how different countries got their freedom and how it was like for America. It taught me how much you depend on each other in situations like this and what war can do to one another.

Ryan K

In Darkness, Death – Dorothy & Thomas Hoobler

Mrs. Phillips — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 07:21:06 +0000

In Darkness, Death by Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler is the sequel to The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn, and The Demon in the Teahouse.

For new readers, to give you an overview of the main character and the setting…

This takes place in around the 1800s in Japan.

The main character, Seikei, was born into the son of a wealthy tea merchant. But, if you know your history, at that time merchants were pretty low in the social classes, even if they were rich, they were looked down upon. Seikei wasn’t quite happy with being the son of a tea merchant because he knew that when he grew older, he had to carry out the family line. What he really wanted to be was a samurai. Samurai were greatly respected and their lives were more adventurous. Seikei had that chance to become a samurai in The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn, when his new father, the honorable Judge Ooka took him in and taught him the way of the samurai.

That is all about Seikei and the time period for all of you new readers. Now, moving on to In Darkness, Death…

Seikei and Judge Ookaare off on yet another adventure, but this one, is more important than all the others so far. The Samurai Lord Inaba is discovered murdered in his sleep while under the protection of the shogun. Since Lord Inaba had died, the blame is on the shogun. If he does not find the killer, he loses his honor, and in that world… honor is EVERYTHING! So he “hires” Judge Ooka and Seikei to catch the killer so the shogun may “restore his honor”. The crime is quite difficult to figure out for Judge Ooka and Seikei because the only clue is a bloodstained origami butterfly that is left at the crime scene. They finally figure out who they’re dealing with, a ninja, a ninja that will stop at nothing to keep his identity a secret. Will they ever FIGURE out who the ninja really is? Will the shogun restore his honor? You HAVE TO READ this book to find out. In Darkness, Deathis a book truley about murder… honor… and justice.

My Comments:

I really Really REALLY L-O-V-E-D this book!! The reason why is because while I’m reading the book, I can actually picture in my head what’s going on. For me, it’s really hard because only some books have that effect on me. If I could rate it up to 1-10, I would pick 1million! =) This book would be great for boys and girls… and mostly for people that really want to learn about the history of Japan, samurai, the social classes, etc.

Blogged By,
Cynthia P.

A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck

Mrs. Phillips — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 15:28:37 +0000

Every August, Mary Alice and her brother Joey go to Chicago to visit their unforgettable Grandma Dowdel. She isn’t your normal grandma, when you’re with her you will have a great adventure: whether it’s cheating in a pie contest, illegally catching catfish, or having a dead man in your house. This book tells you about the adventures Mary Alice and Joey have for a few years. It starts out with grandma lying to a reporter that a man that died recently, Shotgun Cheatham, was a famous man. He wasn’t. Then the word got out and Grandma eventually had a gathering at her house for Shotgun. However, Grandma’s cat was in the coffin for Shotgun, and only grandma knew this. The cat moved the coffin and everybody thought that Shotgun was coming back from the dead! Grandma got out her gun and starting shooting like crazy, jumping around in “horror” for effect. Then she illegaly catches fish in one of the Sherrif’s boats. You would think Grandma was in enough trouble, but then she brings some of her old clothing to a yardsale her church was having. She had Abe Lincoln’s name stitched into it, and, with persuasion, got customers to believe it was Abe’s!

Grandma now is in serious trouble with the Sheriff.

Read more about Grandma Dowdel’s fun tricks in the book a Long Way from Chicago.

Blogged by: Sophia R.

A Long Way from Chicago-Richard Peck

Mrs. Phillips — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 01:46:08 +0000

Grandma now is in serious trouble with the Sheriff.

Read more about Grandma Dowdel’s fun tricks in the book a Long Way from Chicago.

Blogged by: Sophia R.

Seven Daughters and Seven Sons – Barbara Cohen & Bahija Lovejoy

Mrs. Phillips — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 06:48:17 +0000

Seven Daughters and Seven Sons is an Arabic tale about a young woman who disguises herself as a man to earn fortune and keep her family alive.

The young woman, Buran, is part of a family including seven daughters, a father, and a mother. The family is excruciatingly poor because of its lack of men. In this time period, only men could run businesses and earn money. Because of that, Buran’s father has to support all nine of them on his own while his wife took care of the house and their children.

On the other hand, Buran’s uncle, her father’s brother, has seven sons. The family is overwhelmingly rich because of the eight men and their businesses around the country.

Buran has always dreamed of being in business. She was the only one out of ALL her sisters who was interested and willing to learn from their father. Buran’s father saw her willingness and taught Buran things only men were to know. Things such as, reading, writing, and playing chess. She embraced everything she was taught and one day she hoped all of it would be at use to her family and their terrible fortune. When Buran knew that her parents were losing money, she begged of the idea to be in business and dressing up as a man. Her parents automatically denied her request even though they knew it would really help the family. Buran’s father keeps losing money and slowly his business gets taken away.

Despite all of of this, her father gets a horrendous fever on an unfaithful day. He definitely can’t support his family now that his business is gone. After a long thought her father finally agrees to let Buran find business. She is glad that her father trusts her but, she is also serious about making the money needed to support the whole family. Her mom and dad has money saved for emergencies such as this one. Buran’s parents risk giving all the saved money to Buran. She buys men’s clothing and things needed for her trip on a cavern with other men.

She travels for days untill she finally reaches the city. When Buran reaches the city, she sustains her disguise as a man. Her name as a man in the new city is Nasir. She also creates a successful business selling and trading. The city’s prince, Mahmud, visits Buran’s shop pretty often. After they mingle and get to know each other, they become best friends. Buran soon discovers her love for Mahmud but, she knows that Mahmud thinks of her as a man knowned as Nasir. But, if she tells Mahmud she is a woman, she is afraid that all her business will be gone. But, most importantly she’s afraid that the friendship between Mahmud and Buran will disappear.

Heather C.

Cabin on Trouble Creek – Jean Van Leeuwen

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 17:51:06 +0000

In this book, Daniel and Will Griffith had to take care of their new cabin they just built while their dad had to go to Pennsylvania to fetch the rest of family and the new baby. While they were here, they faced danger. They met an Indian named Solomon and he taught them how to make traps and tools they needed to survive with. They also got attacked by a bear! Who knows what great danger lies in the woods. As time goes by their dad didn’t come back after 6 weeks. How will they survive the winter? Would their dad ever come back? Are they going to live on their own? Read Cabin on Trouble Creek.

Blogged by Justin L.

Cabin on Trouble Creek – Jean Van Leeuwen

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 17:50:14 +0000

The Transall Saga – Gary Paulsen

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 17:46:50 +0000

As 13 year old Matt Harrison finally get to go on a 7 day trip across the old Magruder Missile Range, he fell into a blue light that transports him to what Matt thinks is a different planet but later told it was the future. Matt finds some arrow people that looks like Indians and he gets invited to live with them. A few days later, the Tsook captured the arrow people and took them as slaves. Matt was also a slave and escaped. As he was escaping, some Rawhaz were coming to attack the Tsook. Matt didn’t want the village to be destroyed by the Rawhaz. Matt ran back to the village and warned the people about the Rawhaz. After the fight with the Tsook and the Rawhaz, Matt was given his freedom and the Merkon the ruler of the Tsook came to see Matt. There was a big feast the night the Merkon came. Matt asked the Merkon about the blue light and the Merkon told him that the light will strike at any random time. The Merkon asked Matt to visit his palace. When Matt did, the Merkon tried to kill Matt. Would Matt die? Would Matt kill the Merkon? Read The Transall Saga to find out.

blogged by Justin L.

Daughter of Venice- Donna Jo Napoli

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 22:37:09 +0000

14 year old Donata is the Daughter of a Noble family. In the late 16th Century, there are strict rules for noble daughters. The noble daughters could not go outside of their palazo,house (unless it is for parties), while noble sons get to go outside whenever they please. And when they get older, the sons would get a college education, and the daughters would be sent to a convent. Donata thinks that this is not fair, so as she diguise herself as a boy and sneaks out of her palazo, she sees a whole different world outside her palazo. I enjoyed this book, although it was a little slow. I would rate it 3/5 stars and I think it would appeal to mostly girls.

blogged by: Anna Marie N.

Elizabeth

Mrs. Phillips — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 03:00:09 +0000

In this story a young girl named Elizabeth writes about her life. She talks about her mothers! She had 6 mothers and 1 father who married them all! Elizabeth starts her entries with talking about her 1st mother and how she had got her head cut off. It ,was disgusting! Her sister and her don’t like each other at all! Her father is very chubby and jolly! Her brothers name is Edward and gets sick alot. But he also likes to play. Like the time Edward got Elizabeth a pet monkey! They trained them all day in the tennis courts. That would be so much fun! Any way, she travels alot and feels invisible because no one seems to notice her. Because of that she never is going to be Queen. But thats OK because she doesn’t want to be Queen. If her sister Marty dies than a baby will become Queen! A baby , as a Queen! I can’t tell you anymore than that reader but I can tell you that its an awesome book and that you should read it.

Blogged by Ione Griffin

Historical Fiction

Soldier X – Don Wulffson

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 02:48:46 +0000

Soldier X stands for soldier Alexander. In soldier X Alexander goes to war. He meets a couple of people and they become his friends. The main characters in this story are Alexander, Tamara, Jakob, and Dobelmen. In the beginning of the story, in the war against Russia Alexander gets shot in the arm. Then he is stuck down in this huge ditch and can’t get out. Dead Russian people get killed and fall in the same ditch that Alexander is in. The only way he can get out a live is to change his clothes with the Russians clothes. He ends up getting out of the ditch and Russian soldiers think that he is from Russia because he is wearing Russian clothes. The Russians then take Alexander to the hospital for help and he ends up recovering well. When he is there at the hospital he meets a girl named Tamara. He has a crush on her. Tamara ends up liking Alexander too. Tamara has always dreamed of living in California. If you want to figure out if they make it to California or if they end up dying or getting hurt, read Soldier X by: Don Wulffson.

Blogged By,

Phillips5th

Anastasia ” The Last Grand Duchess”

Mrs. Phillips — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 19:21:10 +0000

In this book a girl named Anastasia writes in her diary. I thought it was an interesting book. In this story she writes about the days of her life. That may sound boring but can you imagine riding your bike down the hallway or roller blading down the stairs in a huge castle in Russia? Its awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Also during winter getting snow and freezing it to get a frozen snow mountain to sled down ? There’s so much more fun and tragedy. Hope U read this book!!

blogged by : Ione G.

mrs. phillips class

Historical Fiction

The Lottie Project by Jacqueline Wilson

Mrs. Phillips — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 19:21:38 +0000

This is a fun book I read. Charlotte’s (she’d rather be called Charlie, so that’s what I’ll say) world is being turned upside. Her new teacher is beyond bad,( she calls Charlie Charlotte-GROSS!), she’s forced to sit by the obnoxious teacher’s pet, Jamie, her single mother, who she calls Joe, can’t keep up with their apartment bills, and they’re assinged a victorian times project. Let me slow down. Jo, Charlie’s mom is left without a job, so she starts working for a family, Mark, and his son Robin. She takes care of Robin and brings him to their apartment when his dad, Mark, is busy. Weird though… whenever Jo goes to pick-up Robin Jo dresses up, you know, perfume, heels, skirt, her special sweater. Charlie thinks she kind of likes Mark…ooooh!
At school, Charlie decides to make a diary for her victorian times project. Part of this book is the diary. In the diary there is a girl named Lottie, she work as a maid to make money, for a very strict master I must say!
Later on, Mark invites Jo and Charlie to go with Robin and him to the amusement park. Charlie reluctantly goes with Jo (and Jo is of course very happy). They have a nice time. However Jo and Mark go on some lovey-dovey ride while Jo and Robin just watch. But what was that? Did Jo and Mark just kiss? Charlie wanted to puek. But she started to tell Robin that his father doesn’t love him, and he will get rid of him. This is not true, of course. But Robin is young and shy, and this startled him. Later on in the night, when Mark was going to say goodnight to Robin. He was gone. He ran away. Charlie felt terribly guitly for telling him those bad things, causing him to run away. Everyone was looking for him, including the cops.
What happens to Robin, will he be found? Will Mark and Jo marry? Read this book to find out!

blogged by Sophia R.

These Happy Golden Years by: Laura Ingalls Wilder

Mrs. Phillips — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 23:51:40 +0000

The book These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder is a very good book, but only if you are into Historical Fiction. In this book Laura is going to go to “teacher’s examinations” hoping to get a good school to teach. She soon takes the examinations and thinks that they are very hard. In the mail the next day she gets her results and finds out that she got a good school! Laura soon stays with Mrs. Brewster’s because her school is so far away. Pa and Laura are soon on there way to Mrs. Brewster’s. The next day Laura is off to her first day at school teaching. When she gets there she finds out that she as 5 students some good, some bad. She gets through a whole month of teaching, and decides to use her money to get Mary, who is off at college home for the summer. When Laura and Mary come home, the Wilder family brings back a lot of their family traditions- like Pa playing the fiddle while he sings along, and all the girls and young women cleaning the house together. Once Laura was home she was playing with Almonzo a lot more often. I do not want to say anything else because that would give away part of the book, but this is for sure a book that I would recommend for 4th, 5th, and 6th graders!

The Five Ancestors: Tiger-Jeff Stone

Mrs. Phillips — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 23:35:50 +0000

This book is about a Chinese kung-fu fighting monk from Cangzhen Temple named Fu, which means Tiger in Cantonese. He and his four other brothers escaped Cangzhen Temple during an attack from one of the fallen brothers named Ying, which means Eagle in Cantonese. Fu’s goal is to teach citizens of China the kung-fu of Cangzhen Temple, stop Ying from continuing what he has done, and get back the secret scrolls of the dragon style kung-fu. This book would fit those who like kung-fu and Chinese history.

Blogged,
Enoch T.

Catherine: The Great Journey- Kristiana Gregory

Mrs. Phillips — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 23:38:48 +0000

This journal is one of the many of the Royal Diaries. You don’t have to read them in order, because each book does not link to another. This story is about a 14-year-old girl named Figchen. She is to become a princess of Russia if the King approves. One obstacle in this royal rollercoaster is that the Queen is very strict. Once, she cut off a women’s tongue and sent her by herself to Siberia. Figchen has to be a perfectly pretty young woman to not have the same thing happens to her. She is not sure this is possible because her mother always has told her she is ugly. If she wants to be princess, she must marry a 15-year-old boy, Peter III. When she meets him, he turns out not to be a dashing prince, but a silly boy-prince. He plays with his plastic soldiers, and he has a pet rat that he dresses up as a soldier. Do you think she can get through this marriage? Will she even get far enough as the wedding with the queen around? These are questions that will not be answered by the book of Stephanie, but by the book Catherine: The Great Journey. This book would appeal to girls more because this is a book about a girl’s inner feeling. Hope you read it!

Blogged by:
Stephanie D.

A Little Princess – Frances Hodges Burnett

Mrs. Phillips — Thu, 22 May 2008 18:59:41 +0000

In this book, a wealthy, little girl named Sara Crewe is sent to Miss Minchin’s Boarding School. At the school, she meets many friends, and acts like a princess. Then one day, her father dies, and leaves her in the school in poverty. As Sara is left like an orphan, she is a servant at the school, and sleeps in the dreary attic. I recommend this book to girls, at least 9 years and older.

blogged by,
Anna Marie N.

Dragonwings-Lawrence Yep

Mrs. Phillips — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 03:07:06 +0000

Dragonwings is about a Chinese boy named Moonshadow who travels to California to live with his father Windrider after the 1869 Transcontinental Railroad was built. Moonshadow stayed in San Francisco and made friends with a group of Chinese called the Company. After many street fights and arguments, Moonshadow and Windrider leave the Company to live with another friend named Miss Whitlaw and her niece named Robin. During their stay, the 1906 earthquake struck. Will Moonshadow, Windrider, and their friends, survive? Where will they stay? To find out, read Dragonwings I would recommend this book to those who like historical fiction.

Bloged by,
Enoch T.

The Samurai’s Tale-Erik Christian Haugaard

Mrs. Phillips — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 00:27:39 +0000

This book is about a Japanese boy named Taro who is captured by Lord Takeda Shingen. Takeda brings Taro to his castle to work as a servant. During his stay, Taro befriends the cook Togan. During one of the walks they did with each other, a merciless samurai kills Togan when they try to go through. When Taro was fifteen, he became a messenger. He befriended a samurai named Yoshitoki. Later, Taro became a samurai and was renamed Murakami Harutomo. Will Taro go into battle? If he does, will he survive? If you want to find out, read The Samurai’s Tale. I would recommend this book for boys and girls and those who like Japanese history.

Blogged by:
Enoch T.

Wolf Tower-Tanith Lee

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 04:15:30 +0000

This book is for fans of Ella Enchanted. It has about the same plot, but is very different. Wolf Tower is about a girl named Claidissa Star. She lives in the House. That is an orphanage. Claidi doesn’t know anything about her mom, or what her first name is. Claidi sees the love of her life, at least now the love of her life, Nemian. He asks her to go to his town. It is called the City. Why? I won’t say. She soon learns her mother’s name was Twilight. In the middle of their journey to the City, they run into a group called the bandits. Their leader, Argul, is attractive to Claidi. Will she choose to stay with Nemian, or go with Argul? Read Wolf Tower to find out. Girls and boys would very much enjoy this book because you never know what will happen next. The next book is called Wolf Star.

Blogged by:
Stephanie D.

Shadows on the Sea- Joan Hiatt Harlow

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 00:18:28 +0000

This book is about a girl named Jill Winters who has to go live with her grandma in were she finds out some interesting hints about the war. The first friend she meets is Wendy and the second is a boy named Quarry. Together they do a lot of stuff in. The first thing that Jill finds is a carrier pigeon which has a note on it that is in German, but the pigeon is injured so Jill holds onto it until it heals. Once the pigeon healed the Jill and her friends let it go to see were it would go. The bird went to a house with a guy who owns a whole bunch of carrier pigeons. One night Jill hears the Bird Man talking to some one so she decides to follow the man. After she had followed the man for a while she sees something. If you want to know what Jill finds out you will have to read this book. I think this book is good for boys and girls who like mystery books.

Blogged by,
Myles C.

Esperanza Rising- Pam Munoz Ryan

Mrs. Phillips — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 02:39:07 +0000

This book is about a girl named Esperanza Ortega who lives on a ranch in Mexico. She lives with her father and mother, and is very happy. She is rich, and has servants who do everything for her, and make sure she never has to lift a finger. But one unfortunate day, while her dad is away, he is ambushed by bandits and is killed. After he is buried, his two stepbrothers come and the eldest offers his hand in marriage to Esperanza’s mother. She says no, but when their ranch burns down and Abuelita (the grandmother) gets very sick from the smoke, she agrees, but the night before they are supposed to be married, she and Esperanza get in a wagon with the servants and begin to ride to California.

While they are riding, Esperanza’s mother tells them that they must put on dirty cloths that the poor wear. Esperanza does not understand why she must put on dirty cloths when they are rich.

I would recommend this book to girls mostly because it has a girl in it.

Blogged by Carina D.

Esperanza Rising – Pam Munoz Ryan

Mrs. Phillips — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 18:31:41 +0000

Esperanza Rising is about a girl, Esperanza Ortega, living in Mexico in a huge house on their rancho, in the 20th century, with her Mama, her Papa, her Abuelita, and the servants. Then one day, her Papa gets killed by bandits. Then after that, their house gets on fire, and her uncle, (who she dislikes) offers to marry Senora Ortega, and says that he would rebuild the house, while sending Esperanza to a boarding school. Senora Ortega says “yes” while asking for a wagon, and a horse. Then they left with their trusting servants to California, to become farm workers at a Mexican camp. Esperanza is so used to being rich that she did not understand why they should act like the poor. I would recommend this book to anybody, but mostly girls, because it is about a girl. My mom read this book and she enjoyed it as much as I did.

Blogged by,
Anna Marie N.

Milkweed-Jerry Spinelli

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 05:21:04 +0000

At first, he was just a boy with no identity in Nazi occupied Warsaw, Poland, and the first thing that he remembers is being a thief. Then Uri and other boys find him, give him the name Misha Pilsudski, and give him a place to live. But they have to live in hiding, because the Nazis can’t find out that they are Jewish. You can see the sadness of the things that happen through Misha’s eyes, a young boy’s eyes, as the story follows Misha and the orphans as they are forced to live behind the brick wall of the ghetto in Warsaw. There, Misha finds a family, changes his identity again, and struggles to find food for the boys, the orphans, and his family. But when the trains come to empty out the Jewish from the ghetto, he loses the person that he loved the most. Another fantastic book by Jerry Spinelli, Milkweed is so beautifully written and a definitely a favorite. Even though I love this book, I did have a bad dream about it once. I recommend it for both boys and girls.

Emily N.

When Heaven Fell- Carolyn Marsden

Mrs. Phillips — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 20:37:06 +0000

Binh lives in a small house in Vietnam with her older brother, mom, father and her grandmother. She has always wanted to go to school and visit the beach. Binh’s best friend is her older cousin Cuc. Binh and Cuc always go to see a movie on the weekends about teenagers who live in America. So, when she hears that her aunt from America is coming Binh thinks that she will be rich and dress in beautiful clothing. She hopes that her aunt will take her back to America but when her aunt arrives she is in for a big surprise.

I thought this book was very touching and I enjoyed it a lot.

Maranda W

Pirates!-Celia Rees

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 18:41:20 +0000

Nancy Kingston was a young heiress who fell in love with a young boy named William. William has to leave for the Navy but promises to come back for her someday. But with her now very close friend Minerva Sharpe, a runaway plantation slave, Nancy flees from an arranged marriage to the very scary and rich man Bartholome. She and Minerva become very close, like sisters, and they become pirates on the ship Deliverance, pretending to be boys. Many things happen as they live their difficult lives as a pirate, but Nancy always has dreams and fears that Bartholome, actually a deadly pirate, will come back after her. Will the two young women escape the cruel Captain Bartholome, who could be following them over the seven seas? And will Nancy’s beloved, William, still love the pirate she has become? This story takes place in the eighteenth century times. I recommend it for both boys and girls who love to read exciting books.

Caution: This book is not for the squeamish. It’s filled with some gore, a lot of action, and a lot of excitement.

Emily N.

A Jar Of Dreams- Yoshiko Uchida

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 01:14:08 +0000

Eleven year old Rinko lives in California with two brothers, Cal (short for California) and Joji. One day when Rinko gets home she finds a letter from her Aunt Waka in Japan. She brings the letter to her Papa and tells her that Aunt Waka is coming to California. Rinko thinks that having her Aunt Waka come will be horrible because she will have to share a room with her brother Joji and she is afraid her Aunt Waka will embarase her.

I think this was a great book. I think that both boys and girls would like this book. This book takes place in the Great Depression.

Blogged by,
Maranda W.

The Demon in the Teahouse-Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler

Mrs. Phillips — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 03:46:34 +0000

This book is about a samurai boy named Seikei who is trying to find out why the geishas of Japan are being killed one by one. His father, Judge Ooka, travels with him to Yoshiwara to find out. Seikei works as an attendant in a teahouse to find clues about this mystery. During a party in the teahouse, a bearded samurai named Fukushu gives a geisha a silk kimono that Seikei had heard of before. Seikei had a bad feeling about Fukushu. Will Seikei find the murderer? Is Fukushu the murderer? Read this good book to find out. The Demon in the Teahouse is recommended to those who like mystery stories.

blogged by:
Enoch T.

Kazunomiya; Prisoner of Heaven- Kathryn Lasky

Mrs. Phillips — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 03:43:14 +0000

Kazunomiya; Prisoner of Heaven, is about princess Kazunomiya, the half-sister to Japan’s 1858 Emperor. In this confusing book, Kazunomiya tells about royal life in Japan. I kind of think that title “Prisoner of Heaven” does not match. I think people who like history would like this book.

Blogged by: Anna Marie N.

Wolf Brother – Michelle Paver

Mrs. Phillips — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 02:02:58 +0000

If you like action and adventure this is your type of book. When a demon possessed bear comes into life only Torak can defeat it. Torak teams up with a wolf and goes through all these crazy adventures trying to find the Mountain of the World Spirit and find the Nanuak to defeat the bear that killed his father. Along the way he meets Reen and finds out a secret in his family. This is a great book for boys and girls of any grade. It also teaches you a little of what Native Americans worshiped and made weapons out of. It is a 293 page book and is easy to read. Some parts in this story may make you a little grossed out. I recommend this book to everyone who loves to read and has a great passion for the outdoors. If you like this book read the next three in the chronicles of ancient darkness. Visit her website at www.chronaclesofancientdarkness.com

blogged by
Ravi M.

The Ghost In The Tokaido Inn – Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler

Mrs. Phillips — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 02:55:22 +0000

This is a story about a 14 year old boy that has studied the way of the samurai, and he would like nothing more than to be one. But, unfortunately a samurai is born, not made, and he was the son of a tea merchant so, he must become a tea merchant. Then, when a priceless ruby intended for the shogun- the military governor of Japan- is stolen by a ghost, he finds himself displaying the courage of a samurai. He is the only person to see the thief, and the famous samurai, Judge Ooka, needs the boy’s help to solve the mystery. I think this is a wonderful book because, it teaches you about the time period and the way of life. The characters are memorable, and in some parts, it was a bit scary. I think this book would appeal to boys and girls and I would recommend it. But, in my rating, I would give it 4 stars.

Blogged by Cynthia P.

Please send comments!

Under a War Torn Sky-L.M. Elliot

Mrs. Phillips — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 23:06:32 +0000

This is a story about a 19 year old boy who is a fighter pilot in World War II. He is helped to safety by members of the French Resistance who are risking everything in their secret fight against Hitler and Germany. This is a fantastic book because it moves quickly and also teaches you about this time period. It is not overly descriptive and is a quick read as well. The characters are memorable and it is touching in some parts. I think this book will appeal to both boys and girls equally and I really recommend it. Here is a link to the author’s website. http://www.lmelliott.com/