The Wanderings Of Odysseus

The Wanderings of Odysseus by Rosemary Sutcliff tells the tale of Odysseus, a Greek warrior, trying to get back home from the Trojan War.  The book is a version of the classic tale, The Odyssey by Homer, for younger readers. 

Odysseus comes along a giant cyclops on his way home.  He outsmarts the monster and blinds him.  He and most of his men escape, but foolishly he taunts the giant.  He calls to the giant that it is the great Odysseus that has blinded him.  But, the cyclops is son of Poseidon, and so he asks his mighty father to curse Odysseus. 

This book is very true to the title, The Wanderings of Odysseus, because he visits place after haunted, cursed and magical place, fighting off evil and trying to get back home to Penelope.  Will he make it back home?  Filled with monsters and gods, tragedy and miracles, this is a classic that people have enjoyed; and still enjoy! 

Don't worry, unlike most epic Greek tales of heroes, this one has a happy ending.  This was an excellent book, writen is a style that I haven't read much of.  I would highly recommend this book to everyone.  One of the really cool things about it is that things all around us pop out, because they reference back to the Greek tales.

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

If you want a book of adventure, suspense, and coolness, then read The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. This book is very exciting.

It is about a boy named Percy and his 2 friends, Annabeth and Grover. Percy is the son of Poseidon, so they go on a quest to get back Zeus’s master bolt. In one part Percy is fighting the Minotaur and falls off the Minotaur and hits his head on a rock. Does he survive? Read this book to find out!

Second, this book really makes you wonder what will happen next. I would have never figured out who stole the lightning bolt without reading the whole book. And I never would have known if he gets out of Hades without some kind of curse.

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes adventure and suspense.

Guest Post by Mason

Dazzling Desserts

Dazzling Desserts by American Girl is a really cute book.  It had lots of ideas for fun and easy desserts to make with little or no assistance from the 'rents!  Same as everything else though, it did have a ton of clean up- so keep that in mind when you start something.  I made two cakes, one with penguins and a pumpkin patch.  The candy clay recipe was very nice, I loved it and was able to do some really cool stuff!  I would definitely pick up this book. 

Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins

Katniss Everdeen has won the Hunger Games and has returned back home to district 12 with Peeta. The Capitol has been very angry with her because of stunts causing rebellion in many districts. They went on a tour through all of the districts to celebrate their victory, and learned that the Capitol was very harsh to all of the other districts. With the next Hunger Games coming soon, the Capitol decided to have the competitors be winners from other years. Katniss and Peeta go through many challenges throughout Catching Fire. This book was a very fun to read on account of its numerous fast-moving adventures that took twists and turns that I never saw coming.

The Misadventures of Maud March By Audrey Couloumbis

Sallie has read about the western frontier for as long as she can remember. Maud, her older, ladylike sister has nothing to do with that. When orphaned for the second time, Maud surprises Sallie with the idea to go and battle the western frontier looking for their long lost uncle. On the way they become outlaws, known for horse thievery, bank robbing, and being cold blooded murderers.

Sky Memories by Pat Brisson

Ten-year-old Emily's mother has been diagnosed with cancer. Emily is mad, sad, and hopeful all at once. She wants her mother to get well but the treatment isn't making things better. In the last few months of her mothers life she and Emily take mental pictures of the sky. They take pictures everywhere and each photo is very different. All of beautiful pictures of the sky seem to reflect her mothers illness and how Emily is effected by it. This book made me cry but, it also made me see that I don't need to dwell on the past. You can look on to the future and eagerly expect what is there.

Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes

I truly enjoyed Johnny Tremain which was a 1944 Newbery Award winning book. This book is historical fiction, set during the beginning of the American Revolution. The weaving in of historical figures such as Paul Revere, Samuel Adams, and John Hancock was quite interesting and lended a great deal of authenticity to the book. The build-up of tension in the colonies to the point of the first battle of the American Revolution was quite intense.

Johnny Tremain is also a wonderful story about the transition of an arrogant, self-centered boy into a sensitive teenager. Johnny Tremain is the apprentice to a silversmith and he is far and away one of the best silversmith apprentices in the area. He is also attractive, strong, and intelligent. The combination of gifts in his life make him overly proud and often unkind to those around him.

Due to a practical joke that goes horribly wrong, Johnny loses the use of his right hand for any kind of detail work. Therefore, all of his dreams of becoming a silversmith are destroyed. The challenges he encounters as he deals with his new limitations and the kind and evil people he meets combine to slowly change Johnny's personality for the better.

I highly recommend the book to anybody who enjoys excellent historical fiction.