Faking Normal

Faking Normal
Courtney C. Stevens
321 pages

Summary: Direct from Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/Faking-Normal-Courtney-C-Stevens/dp/0062245384)

An edgy, realistic debut novel praised by the New York Times bestselling author of Between Shades of Gray, Ruta Sepetys, as “a beautiful reminder that amid our broken pieces we can truly find ourselves.”
Alexi Littrell hasn’t told anyone what happened to her over the summer by her backyard pool. Instead, she hides in her closet, counts the slats in the air vent, and compulsively scratches the back of her neck, trying to make the outside hurt more than the inside does—and deal with the trauma.
When Bodee Lennox—“the Kool-Aid Kid”—moves in with the Littrells after a family tragedy, Alexi discovers an unlikely friend in this quiet, awkward boy who has secrets of his own. As their friendship grows, Alexi gives him the strength to deal with his past, and Bodee helps her summon the courage to find her voice and speak up about the rape that has changed the course of her life.

Opinion:

Stars: 4/5
One-sentence summary: Two broken victims of circumstances out of their control come together to help each other heals

This book just brought some plot twists, right out of the woodwork. I didnt expect the ending that i got, but that made the book much better. I liked both the main characters: Bodee and Alexi. Bodee's, Kool-aid colored hair, was my favorite part of the book. Its ingenious. It involves the benefits of dyeing your hair but without the hair color damage associated with it. And if you dont like the color, then you can easily change it. Sadly though, somebody could have drank that Kool-aid. Also, i wish i knew the songs Captain Lyric and Lexi exchanged. I had never heard of them before, but i sorta consider myself a music connoisseur. This was one of my favorite reading bowl books. It had a good message, though albeit a predictable plot (excluding the last couple chapters). I recommend you guys read it. Enjoy!


P.S. Two weeks ago,My Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl Team won 1st place in the Regional level competition. Today we compete in District we go!!

The Map

The Map
William Ritter
60 pages

Jackaby: Short Story

Summary:

My Opinion:

Stars: 5/5 stars
One-sentence summary: A combination of magic and good only treasure hunting makes a great book.

This was such a cute story about Abigail's birthday. Jackaby is sweet in an oblivious Sherlock show type way. I could see them becoming a couple.

Now back to the book. I liked this short story. It was really cute and lighthearted. I wonder  if any of the names used in the book were real. Because history is one of my weaknesses. The map's challenges were really cute too. Combining Abigail and Jackaby's way of thinking makes everything so clear. Overall i really enjoyed this book and i think everyone else will too. I recommend reading the main book: Jackaby too. Ima read the second book in the series soon.