Pride and Prejudice by: Jane Austen

In Pride and Prejudice, you will meet the Bennets. A family of five girls, a gossipy mother, and a quiet father. Mrs. Bennet is eager to get her daughters married to handsome, rich men.

Jane is the eldest. She is sweet, very pretty, and thinks badly of no one. She is also very close to Elizabeth and they often confide in one another.

Next in line is Elizabeth, or Lizzy. A witty and independent girl who is every bit as pretty as her sister Jane. As the author, Jane Austen, declared of her heroine in Pride and Prejuduice, "I must confess that I think her as delightful a creature as ever appeared in print."

After Elizabeth comes Mary. Mary is homely and not as pretty as her other sisters, who are known for their beauty. Because of this Mary works very hard to be good at other things to make up for the fact that she is not pretty.

The two younger sisters are Catherine, or Kitty, and Lydia. Together they are always flirting with officers and looking for future husbands.

Elizabeth, the main character, is determined to dislike the handsome, rich Mr. Darcy, who is the most eligible bachelor in the whole of English literature. He is prideful and arrogant. But Mr. Wickham, on the other hand, is friendly and much liked by everyone. He tells Elizabeth many negative traits about Mr. Darcy that are not necessarily true.

It isn't long before Mr. Darcy proposes to Elizabeth, and she refuses. After that she sees Mr. Darcy very little.

Later, while traveling the country side with her aunt and uncle, Elizabeth tours Mr. Darcy's home. By chance, Elizabeth meets Mr. Darcy, finding a caring, generous person who dotes over his sister, in place of the proud and arrogant man she thought he was. Her feelings toward him slowly begin to change. Soon she discovers that she is in love with him. But does he still love her?

I would definitely say that my least favourite characters are Mr. Wickham and Mary. I found Mary to be annoying, as with Mr. Wickham. I was trying to get on with the book and read the good parts but Mary and Mr. Wickham just kept getting in the way.


All the girls in the family are searching for happiness and trying to find what their future might be, so I'd say this book is mainly concerned with happiness and how it might be achieved.

"Pride and Prejudice" is an excellent book. It has a mix of romance and comedy. I think this book is for all ages and hope you enjoy this book as much as I did!

From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs.Basil E. Frankweiler by: E.L.Konigsburg

Claudia knew that she could never pull off the old-fashioned kind of running away... so she decided not to run FROM somewhere, but TO somewhere.

This is a very entertaining book about a girl named Claudia Kincaid and her adventures with her stingy brother Jamie.

Claudia is the oldest in the Kincaid household and feels ignored. The only thing to do is run away. Then the whole family (in about a week or so) would begin to realize that she, Claudia Kincaid, is not to be taken lightly.
Claudia convinced her younger brother Jamie to join her on this excursion. So, with careful planning (done by Claudia), she and Jamie left for New York - Claudia with her violin case full of clothes and Jamie with his trumpet case stuffed with his belongings.

Upon arriving in New York, Claudia decided that she and Jamie were to stay at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This would nicely fulfill full Claudia's requirements for accommodations as it was large, comfortable, and beautiful. Claudia had a strong dislike of being uncomfortable. She even hated picnics. She also had a theory that night guards only look under the stall door in the bathroom so if she and Jamie stand on the toilet seat the night guards won't see their feet. And the big bed on display would be perfect for sleeping in.

It isn't long before Claudia finds a display in the museum that no one knows the maker of. Whenever Claudia sees the display she feels like she needs to find out more about it. She figures that it's up to her to find out who made it since the museum isn't making too much of an effort. So she explores the library, examines the statue, and talks to people. Then she finds out that one person, Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, might hold the key to the entire mystery.

I feel that this book would be enjoyed by ALL age groups.

My favourite character is Claudia. I like the way she carefully plans things through before she carries through with them and how she doesn't let anything discourage her from finding the truth. That is one thing that I learned from this book. Never give up.

9/10 stars

Runaway by:Dandi Daley Mackall

I've runaway seven times - never once to anything, just away from. Maybe that's why they call me a "runaway" and not a "run-to."

Meet Dakota Brown, a 16-year-old girl who is full of bitterness and anger. Dakota has spent most of her life in foster homes, but has never stayed in the same foster home for long. With the help of a friend Dakota has managed to escape every foster home she's ever lived in, and this new home is no different. The moment she sets foot on her new foster parents farm - Starlight Animal Rescue - she begins to plan her escape.

But then something happens. She feels love. She feels God's love. Dakota has never felt love before, until now.
The family has two adopted children and one biological child, and the whole family is animal crazy. Well, not just animal crazy, they are just crazy in general. The family is perfect for Dakota. Dakota can spend time in the barn with the horses, learn about God, and, for the first time, be a part of a family. But will Dakota realize this before it's too late and she runs away with Neil and his friend?

This book is awesome!
I especially like this book because it is about horses. One thing I learned from this book is that God's love can change anyone's heart, even when they seem impossible.

My favourite characters are Dakota and Kat.
Kat (one of the other kids living there) is very sweet and helps Dakota feel God's love, something Dakota had never ever felt and needed to feel. Dakota finds a home and can be around her very favourite thing, horses!

I think this book would be enjoyed by all people who love animals and reading!
Dandi Daley Mackall also wrote the popular "Winnie the Horse Gentler" series.


Definition of Starlight Animal Rescue: A place where problem horses are trained and loved, where abandoned dogs and stray cats find a home, and where people who don't fit in find a place to belong.

The Battle of The Labyrinth by: Rick Riordan

"The Battle of The Labyrinth," by Rick Riordan, is the fourth book in his popular series Percy Jackson and The Olympians.

Percy Jackson is a regular boy who one day discovers something fascinating about himself. He has always just accepted the fact that his father was gone, until he discovers that his father is Poseidon, god of the sea.

From here on it's danger for Percy. He is attacked by monsters and has to be taken to a secret camp called Camp Half Blood, for boys and girls who are half human half god. Here at Camp Half Blood they are safe because a barrier keeps out all the evil things that try to get in. But it can't last forever.

In "The Battle of The Labyrinth" a war breaks out between the Olympians and the evil Titan lord Kronos. Camp Half Blood must prepare for battle. But so many things happen to get in the way. Before the fight, Percy must first find a way to get through the labyrinth, a maze that is known for how many people go in that never come out.
I found this book very interesting to read. But I would advise being careful when reading this book because of a few things that happen in it.

This book is full of Greek mythology and it would be best before you read this book to know a little about Greek mythology (if I hadn't known some Greek mythology when I read this book I would have found it very confusing).
These books can be a bit dark and there are several bad words in them.

Some people find these books to be really funny but I didn't find them to be that way (they are kind of funny). They are quite interesting to read though and I think that you would like reading them too if you like Greek mythology and magic.

Peppermints in the Parlor by: Barbara Brooks Wallace

Eleven year-old Emily Luccock is looking forward to living with her aunt and uncle at Sugar Hill Hall. Vivid in her memory is its vast, beautiful parlor, marble fire place, and the white china cups of steaming hot chocolate.

But time changes things, and Sugar Hill Hall is no exception. Sugar Hill Hall is no longer the warm, cheerful mansion Emily once knew. Evil lurks in every corner. A cruel lady named Mrs.Meeching has taken over the place and enslaved Emily's aunt. How can Emily's aunt be a slave in her own home?

And where has Emily's uncle disappeared to?


Mrs.Meeching has turned Sugar Hill Hall into a home for unwanted elderly people. The elderly people are fed moldy bread lumps and fish head stew, while Mrs.Meeching feasts on tarts, fruit, eggs, and anything else she wants. Everyone is under her command. She makes the people unhappy and punishes them for every little thing, like taking a peppermint from the bowl in the parlor. If that isn't bad enough, Mrs.Meeching also has a special room set aside specifically for punishment, called the "Remembrance Room" which is a plain, dark room with a cot and stone walls. Or is there more to that room then meets the eye? Emily, with the help of the delivery boy, Kipper, must discover the secret of Sugar Hill Hall.

Emily is weak and small for her age, but is still forced to do dish washing, floor scrubbing, and room cleaning. Emily is determined that Mrs.Meeching shall not see her cry, but everyone has to cry sometimes, don't they? This is a story filled with courage, true friendship, and suspense.

I could barely put this book down and hope you'll feel that way about this book too. If you enjoy this book you'll probably like the sequel,"The Perils of Peppermints."

The Witch of Blackbird Pond by:Elizabeth George Speare

It was a mid-April morning in 1687, and Kit Tyler knew as she gazed at the bleak shores of Connecticut Colony that her new home was never going to be like the beautiful, shining Caribbean Islands that she had left behind.

Kit is a free-spirited sixteen year old girl from Barbados who comes to live with relatives in the hard-working, serious town of Wethersfield, Connecticut.
Kit feels caged in under the stern, watchful eye of her puritan Uncle Matthew.

One day, Kit flees to a meadow where she meets an old Quaker woman named Hannah, known as "The Witch Of Blackbird Pond." Hannah is mistrusted because she is a Quaker.
Kit and Hannah became fast friends and began seeing each other often. Then Kit's uncle found out. He forbid Kit from seeing Hannah. But Kit kept on seeing Hannah and even helped a mistreated girl named Prudence find peace at Hannah's house.

But when an epidemic occurs, Hannah is accused of causing it and the townspeople go after her. Kit helps Hannah escape and discovers the consequences when she is charged with witchcraft herself!

I loved this book!
Kit learns many new things in her aunt and uncles house, from making soap to carding wool. She also learns about making choices. Deciding her feelings towards two young men and choosing whether or not to give way to her temper are just some of the choices Kit must make.
Everything she does seems wrong, and the villagers are scandalized at some of the things Kit says and does.
This is a romantic, historical book and I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did!

Rowboat in a Hurricane by:Julie Angus

In this book you will read the fascinating autobiography about Julie Angus, a lady who attempted to do something that no one else would dream of doing: row 10,000 kilometers across the Atlantic Ocean.

Imagine, living on a 21-foot-long rowboat, with barely enough space to lie down and sleep, for five months. Or as one man put it, "Climb under your kitchen table and don't come out for five months."

Julie Angus did this and more with her now husband, Colin Angus, as part of his quest to circumnavigate the world by human power alone. Together they went through three hurricanes, had a scary visit from a Great White Shark, encountered a lovestruck turtle, and experienced many more adventures.

Julie Angus did something most people would look at and say,"That's impossible! I could never do that." And when preparations for the trip started going wrong, she didn't quit, she kept on going and was rewarded by becoming the first woman to do so.

One of the things that really captivated me about this book was that someone could actually row across the Atlantic Ocean and spend 5 months in that small rowboat and live to tell about it. I also liked that they met all those whales, dolphins, and fish. One thing that I thought was really neat was that they met some pilot fish and made friends with them. The pilot fish followed them from the time they met them to the time that they had to get off the boat and leave them.


This book is one adventure after another and I really enjoyed reading it!
9 out of 10 stars.