Monsters Against Bullying

We are so happy that we are a part of this.  Please make sure you visit:

http://ladysbookstuff.blogspot.com/ and

http://www.uniquelymoibooks.com/

to see wonderful posts by Authors and Bloggers who are taking a stand against bullying.

Being Different

By Emiline, age 8

I am different and proud.  I don’t want to fit in.  I like being original.  When people call me weird, I don’t care.  I take weird as a compliment—never an insult.

I’m a girl who loves comics, a girl who pursues a retro style and I am proud.

Being different is not bad; different is just different.  Different can be swell.  I have a bold personality and I love to stand out. 

I don’t like it when people change for someone or something.  They don’t need to.  They are amazing just the way they are.  They’re not bad, just like I’m not bad.  I’m just different.

I wrote this one day after I was bullied at school and was feeling bad about myself.  My intention is to stop bullying.  When you get bullied, your ego starts lacking.  

It’s frightening when you get bullied.  Your heart sinks and you don’t know what to do.  But I think if we show lots of perseverance and take things one step at a time, we can stop bullying. 

One of the reasons people get bullied is because they stand out.  They are different.  It’s okay to be different.  The world would be boring if everyone was the same.

I was bullied, but I stood up for myself.  And I think we can stop it all together.  The key is not to bully.  So join me and stop bullying.

Bullying

By Marsh, age 11

When you are bullied it feels like you are an outcast.  It feels like you have less than no friends.  You feel completely alone.

In the fourth grade, I felt like a huge outcast.  There were a couple of kids who were always making fun of me.  It was terrible.  Then someone recommended Heather Brewer’s Vlad Tod series of books.  Brewer’s main character, Vlad, is an outcast himself.  It felt good to read about someone else who was feeling the way that I felt.  I liked to see that I was not the only one being bullied.

If you are being bullied, you are not alone.  A lot of people are bullied.  Sometimes those people just learn to be mentally stronger and better than their bullies.  I felt like, because I was bullied, I became a stronger person.  But I did not do it all by myself.  If you know someone who is being bullied, reach out to him.  Be a good friend.  Tell him that it is going to be okay.  And maybe suggest that they read a good book.  Reading always seemed to help me.

Monsters LOVE Banned Books!

Wow! It's time for Banned Books Week Hop again.  It seems like not so long ago we made this video for Banned Book Week.  We are readers and since you are visiting us, we guess you are too.  This is a great hop hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and I Read Banned Books.  There are lots of other blogs participating in this hop and they are sharing their Banned Book Giveaways, so make sure you visit

http://www.jenbigheart.com/ and

http://iamareadernotawriter.blogspot.com/ for the list of all the blogs participating.

Also make sure you check out the ALA website for lists of banned and challenged books and activities:

http://www.ala.org/advocacy/banned/bannedbooksweek

Since we are siblings sometimes we can't agree on things. We have so many banned or challenged books we love to read, that we couldn't agree on what we wanted to give you.  So, we decided YOU should CHOOSE the right (banned or challenged) book for YOU.

To see a list by year of the most challenged books click here:

http://www.ala.org/advocacy/top-ten-most-frequently-challenged-books-2011

Here are the Rules:

The Hop runs from 9/28- 10/6.

1. Become a PUBLIC follower of our blog (that's so we can see you).

2.  Leave a comment on this post and include your email so we can get in touch with you if win.

Here's the what we have-- 

a $20 dollar eGift Card to Barnes & Noble for one follower.

Some of the Monsters favorite Banned or Challenged Book are:

The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins

In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak

Captain Underpants Series by Dav Pilkey

Goosebumps Books by R.L. Stine

and

Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling

We can't imagine our lives without these books.

Marvelous Middle-Grade Mondays

  It's Monday, and that means it's time for us to tell you all about another wonderful Middle-Grade Book.  This meme was started by Ms. Shannon and she's gotten a lot of other bloggers to join in.  This is a great meme for discovering new books that are just for Middle-Graders.  Make sure you visit Ms. Shannon's blog for the list of all the bloggers. http://ramblingsofawannabescribe.blogspot.com/

           Marsh & Emiline

Katie Kazoo Switcheroo: Going Batty

     I thought Katie Kazoo Going Batty by Nancy Krulik was a great book to review for MMGM because it is ever so close to Halloween!  So here is a taste of what you will find in this book.

     Katie is going on a field trip to the zoo. She finds out that you can adopt an animal, not for real, but by donating money and you can name the animal too! But Katie alone does not have enough money and two other girls who are interested pitch in so now they have enough to adopt one animal. But the two girls who pitched in are arguing about witch animal they should so they agree on one thing choosing which animal at the zoo but something odd happens… Katie turn into a bat! What will happen after this peculiar event? 

Emiline's Review of This Dark Endeavor

Emiline's Review of This Dark Endeavor

(The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein #1)

By Kenneth Oppel

     This is a modern prequel to the gothic classic Frankenstein. Victor Frankenstein’s brother is very ill and not a single doctor knows a cure.  To make matters worse, they do not even know the illness!  So Victor and his sister, Elizabeth, secretly set out to find the legendary alchemist.  He is known for his advanced healing skills, but he was prosecuted for creating the elixir of life which sometimes you do not live through.  This is the story of how Victor Frankenstein started to figure out the secrets of life and death.

           These are the things I loved when I read this book:

I loved the way the author, Kenneth Oppel, described the potions in the alchemist’s laboratory.  I also thought the passion that Victor had for Elizabeth was wonderful.  Oppel really did well creating the emotion between the characters.  I also enjoyed the brotherhood between Konrad and Victor.  Victor stood by his brother’s side even during his illness.  Finally, I loved the last words in this book.  They really were emotional and sent chills up my spine.

My friends at Little Shop of Stories recommended this book for me. Thanks!  I would also like to thank Mr. Oppel for taking his time to sign my book and talk to me at the Little Shop of Stories Author Reception.  That was very nice.

If you would like to read This Dark Endeavor, you can find it at your school or local library or your favorite Indie Bookstore.

To find out more about this book and the author, Kenneth Oppel please visit this website:

http://www.kennethoppel.ca/

This is the Book Trailer for This Dark Endeavor:

On the Same Page for MMGM!

  It's Monday, and that means it's time for us to tell you all about another wonderful Middle-Grade Book.  This meme was started by Ms. Shannon and she's gotten a lot of other bloggers to join in.  This is a great meme for discovering new books that are just for Middle-Graders.  Make sure you visit Ms. Shannon's blog for the list of all the bloggers. http://ramblingsofawannabescribe.blogspot.com/

           Marsh & Emiline

I'm On the Same Page and I read Holes by Louis Sachar

     Stanley Yelnats has been accused of stealing a famous baseball player's shoes.  He is given two options:  He can go to Camp Green Lake or he can go to prison.  He chooses Camp Green Lake.  In Camp Green Lake, the "campers" have to dig holes every day in the hot sun and Stanley is beginning to think the camp's warden is looking for something . . .

     I absolutely loved this book!  My favorite character is Zero.  I liked how he is both mysterious and intelligent, but no one knew how smart he was. I also enjoyed Stanley evolving throughout the story. In the beginning he was not as cunning or strong as he was in the end of the story.  And of course, I really liked how they had to dig holes for punishment.

  So here's your Monday night homework, since we are spreading the word about On The Same Page, you need to pick up a copy of Louis Sachar's Holes and get to reading.

I'm signing the On the Same Page poster.

To find out more about On the Same Page, please visit:

http://weareonthesamepage.org/

and on facebook

http://www.facebook.com/samepagelittleshop

To find out more about Louis Sachar and his other books, please visit his website:

http://www.louissachar.com/

We want you to get On the Same Page with us! Please leave us a comment and include your email address and we will send you a copy of Holes. We only have 5 extra copies, so make sure you let us know that you want to be On the Same Page.

Marsh's Review of Insurgent

     After the Erudite declared war on Abnegation, the Dauntless split up into two sides:  the Erudite Dauntless and the Loyal Dauntless.  Tris is a loyal Dauntless that is fighting against the Erudite to destroy the simulation.  The simulations are serums that the Erudite use to take over people's minds.  Can Tris destroy the Simulation?

     I thought this was a perfect sequel to Divergent.  I really liked how the book was paced.  I loved the descriptions, like the description of the battle-ruined Erudite.  I really felt like I was there. I think that it was well written and very well planned out.  Veronica Roth's writing makes you think about what you would do in the situations she describes.  

I give Insurgent by Veronica Roth 5 Monsters.

To find out more about the Divergent series and the author, Veronica Roth please visit the author's website:
http://veronicarothbooks.blogspot.com/

Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday!

  It's Monday, and that means it's time for us to tell you all about another wonderful Middle-Grade Book.  This meme was started by Ms. Shannon and she's gotten a lot of other bloggers to join in.  This is a great meme for discovering new books that are just for Middle-Graders.  Make sure you visit Ms. Shannon's blog for the list of all the bloggers. http://ramblingsofawannabescribe.blogspot.com/

           Marsh & Emiline

Who is J.K. Rowling?

By Pamela Pollack and Meg Belviso

            Who is J.K. Rowling? is a great biography about the author, J.K. Rowling.  It tells all about what she went through and her inspiration for Harry Potter.  I enjoyed this book because I love Harry Potter and wanted to know more about the author.  My intention is to be an author and I want to know the flips and turns of being an author.  I liked that I could learn more about the series of books, also.  I recommend this book to Harry Potter fans everywhere.