Book reviews from the Castilleja Middle School.
Women learning, Women reading
 By: Veronica Roth
★★★★★ Genre: Dystopia Length: 400 pages Summary: Divergent is set in a dystopian world that is divided into four factions; Erudite: the smart, Amity: the peaceful, Abnegation: the selfless, and Dauntless: the brave. The book follows sixteen-year-old Tris, as she transfers from Abnegation to Dauntless. Tris has to understand who she is, develop relationships, and face her every fear, all while trying to survive the grueling Dauntless Initiation. Review: Divergent has become one of my favorite books. The world Veronica Roth has created is absolutely brilliant. In addition, the characters and their backstories are highly developed and the relationships are extremely deep. It has the perfect balance of action and emotion. Roth leaves you questioning your own identity, and wanting more with this amazing dystopian novel. Warnings: Romance: ●●●●○ Violence: ●●●●● Language: ●○○○○ Substances: ●●○○○ More Books Like This: The Hunger Games Reviewed By Krisaana, 2024
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 By: Karen M. McManus
★★★★★ Genre: Mystery Length: 384 pages Summary: One of Us is Lying is a mystery told in four different perspectives, Bronwyn the brain, Addy the beauty, Cooper the athlete, and Nate the criminal. The four of them, and Simon, the school gossip blogger, all wind up in detention. Suddenly, Simon drops to the floor dead and the question everyone is asking is "who did it"? Secrets are revealed, relationships are compromised, and everyone is trying to solve the mystery in Karen M. McManus’ new book. Review: One of Us is Lying is absolutely amazing! Karen M. McManus will leave you falling in love with each character and the relationships they develop. While the book may seem like an average story from a stereotypical high school, unexpected twists will leave you at the edge of your seat. And if you read closely, you might just figure out who killed Simon on that Thursday afternoon. Warnings: Romance: ●●●●○ Violence: ●●●○○ Language: ●●●●○ Substances: ●●●●○ More Books Like This: The Hate You Give Reviewed By Krisaana, 2024  Forward by: Senator Amy Klobuchar
★★★★★ Genre: Non-Fiction Length: 320 pages Summary: Nevertheless, We Persisted is a compilation of 48 stories from a diverse group of people. The theme of the book is triumph over adversity. The stories come from a range of people, athletes, educators, activists, and many more, and the topics are a range, from figuring out sexual identity, overcoming racism or sexism, defying expectations, and other such concepts. Review: This is a really captivating book, and very inspirational. These are true stories from real people, and if you’re like me where you like gaining different perspectives through reading that you wouldn’t gain otherwise, this is the book for you. If you feel like you’ve lost your voice, or you’re sort of stuck in where you want your life to go, I recommend this book because it’s very down-to-Earth. You may recognize some names in this book because there are actors', athletes', and politicians' accounts in this book. Warnings: Romance: ●○○○○ Violence: ●●○○○ Language: ●○○○○ Substance: ●○○○○ Reviewed by Ellie, 2023  By: Jonathan Maberry
★★★★★ Genre: Realistic Fiction, Science Fiction Length: 400 pages Summary: Tristen is one of four teens out of forty people total to be sent on the Mars One mission to create the first colony on Mars. Even before blast off he faces challenges hard to imagine, such as rare privacy, onerous training, and saying his last goodbyes to Earth, with everything, including his girlfriend, along with it. Not only that but there is also the ever-present threat of the dangerous opposers to Mars One, the Neo-Luddites. Once in space, things only get worse, ranging from implausible mechanical errors to heartbreaking struggles to keep relationships alive over the million-mile stretch. Tristan can only rely his skills and those of the people around him to keep everyone on the mission alive. Review: Mars One is a thought-provoking book that made me consider the pros and cons of space exploration and interplanetary travel, particularly on manned missions. It gorgeously showcased the thoughts and emotions of the characters, particularly Tristen, through the descriptive language. Despite being very descriptive, Mars One is a nice, moderately fast paced book that kept me interested the entire way; I could hardly put it down. Warnings: Romance: ●●●○○ Violence: ●●●○○ Language: ●●●○○ Substances: ○○○○○ More Books Like This: Rot and Ruin The Martian Reviewed By Syd, 2024  By: Raina Telgemeier
★★★★★ Genre: Realistic Fiction, Graphic Novel Length: 213 pages Summary This is a story about a young girl having a rough time in her life. This young girl's name is Raina. Her teeth are all messed up, she doesn’t have nice friends, etc. This is a book about her life starting from when she was in sixth grade. She lives in san Francisco with her younger brother and sister plus her two parents. She gets bullied in school. She wants nothing more than some good friends/ family to help her go through some troubles. Review: I love this book so much. It is a very honest story and makes you feel that you are not alone. The teenage girl is figuring out were she belongs at her school. These are one of those stories that are relatable... and, it's a graphic novel. If you are that kind of person that just looks at the pictures in books (like me) then you should read this book. It does have a fair share of words, but more cool, awesome, and amazing pictures. Warnings: Romance: ●○○○○ Violence: ○○○○○ Language: ○○○○○ Substances: ○○○○○ Other books in the Series:
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Reviewed by Mia, 2025  By: Fredrik Backman
★★★★★ Genre: Fantasy, Thriller Length: 400 pages Summary: My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, by New York Times best-selling author Fredrik Backman, is at the crossroads of fiction and mystery. The tale follows Elsa, a prodigious child, and her grandmother, who has a talent for telling stories. Elsa and her grandmother often visit the Land-of-Almost-Awake, riding on cloud animals to the kingdom of Miamas. Then her grandmother dies, leaving Elsa with a list of people to apologize to, and stories, stories with villains realer than Elsa knows. Review: This book was fantastic! Chock-full of humor, heists, and all sorts of intrigue! The twists and turns were shocking- I was so surprised when the author exposed the villain! Warnings: Romance: ○○○○○ Violence: ○○○○○ Language: ●●●●○ Substances: ○○○○○ More Books Like This: Britt-Marie Was Here The Martian Reviewed By Emma, 2024  By: Randall Munroe
★★★★★ Genre: Humor and Non Fiction Length: 320 pages Summary: The author of this book, Randall Munroe, is a NASA roboticist turned webcomic author. He created the webcomic series xkcd, and is a total physics geek. The International Astronomical Union named an asteroid after him, and the Massachusetts-based scientist has a website where people ask him ridiculous questions that he responds to with serious, scientifically accurate answers. Munroe chose the most absurd, ludicrous questions he could find on his website to answer in-depth in this book. He extensively researched things like powerful laser pointers, Pittsburg-style steak, speed bump injuries, and Yoda’s telekinesis to answer a variety of odd questions. Review: This book is perfect for people who love physics, as well as for people who don't. The book is hilarious as well as eye-opening to things you might never have thought about before. Randall Munroe has a crazy sense of humor, and you will be laughing all day at his ridiculous jokes and comedic approaches to the questions. Funny little cartoons are added to give visuals, provided by the cartoonist side of Munroe, which adds to the book in a way that normal illustrations don’t. I really recommend this book; I was laughing for hours! Warnings: Romance: ◦◦◦◦◦ Violence: ●●◦◦◦ Language: ◦◦◦◦◦ Substances: ◦◦◦◦◦ Reviewed by Aasiya, '24  By: John Green
★★★★★ Genre: Realistic Fiction Length: 313 pages Summary: The Fault in Our Stars is an emotional book about a sixteen-year-old girl named Hazel with a severe case of cancer. She is convinced that she is going to die soon, because she most likely will, so she has begun to give up on life. In the book, Hazel meets a boy named Augustus (Gus) who used to also have cancer. She falls in love with him, and they go on a huge adventure, as Hazel begins to love living again. Review: I loved this book. It gave me an idea of what it was like to have a chronic illness, and the emotional burden that comes with it. Although I, like many others, don’t usually like romance novels, I really enjoyed this book, as it was an example of the powers of friendship and love. After reading this story, I felt deeply moved, and I understood the fact that everyone deserves to have an amazing life, no matter how short or long. Warnings: Romance: ●●●●○ Violence: ●○○○○ Language: ●●●○○ Substance: ●○○○○ Reviewed by Megan, 2025  By: George Orwell
★★★★★ Genre: Dystopian Length: 328 pages Summary: George Orwell's novel 1984 is about a dystopian future where no one knows exactly what year it is and they are all being watched, tested, and controlled by Big Brother, the omniscient figurehead who is ruling society. The story follows a man named Winston who is working for Big Brother’s government to destroy all documents that depict Big Brother in a bad light and replace the said document with the “correct” information. Winston becomes more and more aware of the flaws in his society and vows to destroy Big Brother. Review: I truly love the book 1984 because it tells the story of dangers that I think are becoming more and more real and more and more pressing. I enjoy the way that the story was written and the way the author truly made you feel a sense of urgency or calm through the chapter placement and plot points. Throughout the story, you are not quite sure what is going to happen next, making it very hard to put the book down. I do think that some parts of the book may have gotten a little too graphic or he may have taken up a few too many chapters describing one event, but in the end, the storyline fell right into place and gave the book a perfect ending. I Love this book so much and I appreciate George Orwell's stunning prediction of a possible future for our world. Warnings: Romance: ●●●●● Violence: ●●●●● Language: ●●◦◦◦ Substances: ●●●◦◦ More Books Like This: Fahrenheit 451 Animal Farm Reviewed by Hannah, 2023  By: Lauren James
★★★★☆ Genres: Romance, Science Fiction, Young Adult Length: 204 pages Summary: Romy Silvers is the final crew member aboard the Infinity. Despite being hurtled through space towards Earth II, she wants nothing more than to be an average 16 year-old girl. With no parents and no companions, save for Dr. Molly Simmons, her psychologist who is a million miles too far. One day, she receives an email from Molly, explaining that they are sending another ship to meet her halfway through the journey and accompany her. Ecstatic, she sends a email to the Eternity now in tow. Message by message she slowly begins to fall for J, the captain. As the ship draws closer though, something begins to feel off. Review: This book was a really quick read. In the beginning it feels a little cliché, but as the book moves on, it takes a turn. I really liked this book, and by the end it left me feeling a little rattled. In the beginning, you in a way pity Romy for her sad life. She’s alone, in the middle of nowhere. But as hope comes along in the form of the Eternity, you can’t help but to root for her, but by the end, the book takes a sharp turn, leaving you terrified and saddened. This book, despite short, will leave you with a rollercoaster of emotions. Warnings: Romance: ●●●○○ Violence: ●●●○○ Profanity: ●○○○○ Substance: ○○○○○ Reviewed by Pallavi, 2023 |
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