Burned

by Hopkins, Ellen.

Seventeen-year-old Pattyn, the eldest daughter in a large Mormon family, is sent to her aunt's Nevada ranch for the summer where she temporarily escapes her alcoholic, abusive father and finds love and acceptance, only to lose everything when she returns home.

     Perfect Family

by

The story Perfect Family follows a character named Welcome O'Neil throughout one of the hardest points in her life. Throghout the story, she deals with many difficult teenage situations. Confusion with boys, pregnancy and death all become a sudden part of the life of an average 15 year old girl. It is up to her to find her own way to deal with the tough situations she is handed. I would recommend this story to any who are interested in reading about teenage drama. This story has good morals and concludes with a great ending.

Reviewed by Brittany Graham

     The Age of Innocence

by Edith Wharton

The Age of Innocence is a heartwarming and heartrending novel about the challenges of society in 1870's New York. On the brink of change and the impending first World War, the society of New York faces dramatic alterations. This novel describes the romantic love affair between lovers Newland Archer and Ellen Olenska. Despite all odds, they cannot deny their growing fellings for each other. Both know that their love cannot be. Newland is strained between the whims of society and following his heart. He feels pressured to do what would be fit and proper rather than openly pursue Ellen. This novel tells astory of how the narrow perspectives and rigid expectations of the aristocratic society of New York stifled people's individuality. In addition, this novel also shows how a man and a woman faced the temptations of adultery and how the highly critical and watchful eyes of society thwarted their hopes of ever being together. My favorite part of the novel is when Newland Archer befriends the countess Olenska because he understands her more than anyone else and comprehends her feeling like she doesn't fit in with the rest of the elite residing in New York. This book is similar to another book I've read called Honey, Baby, Sweetheart in that it describes the world through a humanist view. Both of these books depict themes such as loneliness, friendship, and love. I would definitely recommend this book to another reader because it is challenging to read and vey difficult to put down once one starts reading it. I would rate this book a five star.

Reviewed by Aracely Jimenez

     The Rescue

by Nicholas Sparks

The novel, The Rescue, by Nicholas Sparks is about a single mother whose son can't really communicate with other people. In this story, Denise (the mother), gets into a car accident and upon awakening, she discovers her son is not in the car. The fire man who finds her gets a search team together to help her find her son. If you love reading suspenseful stories and a book you can't put down, you will love Nicholas Sparks', The Rescue. This is rated a four out of five.

Reveiwed by Regina Chavez