Journey to the Center of the Earth

Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne is a classic science-fiction story of a boy and his uncle that find some old writings that lead them to the center of the earth. Along the way they encounter extinct animals and run into natural disasters. The story has many scientific references and is highly detailed. However, the scientific viewpoint at the time has since been disproved.
I would rate this 9.3 out of ten.

Airman

Airman, by Eoin Colfer, is the story of a boy, living on a island, that wants to build the first flying machine. Although this seems ordinary the book eventually leads into a plot of assassination and political corruption. I can't tell you much about it because if I did, it would ruin the story. There is also tons of detail put into the book (the history of the island that the airman lives on could convince you that it's real). If you like Artemis Fowl you will like this book. I think this book should be rated 9/10.

The Looking Glass Wars

Nearly everyone knows the story of Alice and her trip to Wonderland...right? In The Looking Glass Wars, written by Frank Beddor, a different story is portrayed. Wonderland does exist, but it has a much darker story. Alyss Heart, heir to the Wonderland throne, is forced to flee from it when her Aunt Redd makes a bid for the throne. After falling through the mysterious Pool of Tears, Alyss finds herself in London, where she is soon taken in by another family. She manages to tell her story to an aspiring author by the name of Lewis Caroll, but he bungles the story and Alyss despairs in ever returning to Wonderland; but fortunately there is still someone searching for her. This is a great story, and with action, adventure, and mystery around every turn it's hard to put the book down. The added thrill when you recognize the characters from Caroll's book make it a fun read, and I highly recomend it for anyone who loves a good adventure. However, it has a moderate style of writing, which gives the story a little less depth, but nonetheless I, reading nearly advanced books, found it a great tale. I give it a 8.5/10. It's the 1st in a trilogy so look for more reviews.

Five Ancestors - Mouse

The Five Ancestors is series so it is not just one book. Jeff Stone is the author of the series. I really like the series. It is very nice reading. Mouse is the sixth book in the series. The story of this series is set in ancient China. Each book focuses on a different character. You have to read the books in order or you won't understand the story. I like these books because they are not 5 year olds books but not teenager books either. I like it because it is about Kung Fu and it adds something new to the series every book. I suggest this book for 9 year olds and up.

The Man in the High Castle

One woman that I highly admire is Susan Wise Bauer. She wrote The Well-Trained Mind as well as many other books that support homeschoolers. This year on her blog she is cronicling her way through 52 books in 52 weeks. One of the books she reviewed was The Man in the High Castle. It caught my eye and I decided to try it out. It is an alternate history -- written as if the Japanese and Germans won WWII. I've always been fascinated with this time frame. It was an interesting book, although hard to get into at first. I had a hard time understanding why things were happening until I was a chapter or two in. This book is really about what we think of as "reality". Each character is put in a situation that makes them questions their reality. This is definitely not a book for everyone but I enjoyed it.

That's Not My Snowman

T really likes books right now... they don't even have to have trains in them! That's not my Snowman is an Usborne board book in their "touchy-feely" line. Each page, including the cover has a snowman with something to feel. For example, the cover has a snowman with a soft fleece hat to feel. T also has the Kitten and Robot books in this line and enjoys them equally. These are a good choice for young kids!

Twilight

In the book Twilight a teenage girl named Bella moves to the dull town of Forks, where the sun never shines. There she meets a vampire named Edward, and, despite the fact that a small part of Edward wants to suck her blood, Bella falls in love with him. I personally didn’t know if I should read it because it seemed to be aimed at teen girls, but with the release of the film and pressure from friends I tried it out. I was right: it was aimed at teenage girls. Most vampire stories have a lot of action, but this book focused on the emotions of the characters which, as the story progressed, grew very tiring. Constantly the beautiful features and actions of Edward were pointed out, and, being a guy, hearing about the beauty of other guys isn’t my idea of fun. However, the story and characters are all perfect, and the details make it a wonderful book. My overall rating would probably be 7.5/10 because although it was a good book it is not a good one for me.