I loved this book! It is exciting, but at the same time a story of personal conflict of a girl,Elsha who is chosen to be the handmaiden to the all powerful firelord who uses his extraordinary powers to divine for coal for the people to use. The Quelled people mine the coal and are shunned by the Chosen people, who think they are superior. Elsha has strange dreams finds that she has the firelord's power as well. In a triumphant ending,she uncovers ancient secrets which reveal her peoples mysterious past.

This book is one of the best books I have ever read. It's my favorite book in the world. Very descriptive, totally captures you and brings you right into the book. I've read the book so many times that there is no front cover on it and the back cover is wearing off and starting to fall off too. Even the words are starting wear out. I don't know where the book is, which makes me very sad, and I'm tryin to find a new one, but the book is absolutely amazing.

Elsha, handmaiden to the Firelord, is living in a world of darkness and a world of hatred. As she fulfills her dreams and provisions, she faces many obstacles to overcome. When the Firelord dies, her heart is broken, for she shared a special love that she had never felt before. When she finds out the truth about the Quelled, she rages with fury and is determined more than ever to become Firelord to change the laws and way of life. The Chosen fought to keep their laws but were defeated and finally after many battles gave in. Because this was a matter of life of death, they had no choice. Elsha then found a way to keep warm without burning coal by using your mind. She taught as many people as she could and soon almost everyone could do it.

Do you believe in faeries? After reading this you'll want to. There are plenty of books about faeries out there - what makes this one unique is that it is written as a field guide and it is full of beautiful (and I do mean beautiful) paintings and drawings of the creatures described. The book is titled Faeries, but it also contains goblins, witches, selkies and the like. Not only is it fun to read and look at, but if you draw, it's a great artistic reference. (Many of the illustrations in Faeries are used as tattoos today.) Brian Froud is an amazing artist himself and he helped design the creatures in movies such as the Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. Buy this book if you loved fairy tales as a kid.

If you thought you liked Lady C's Pressed Fairy Book (now out of print), then you'll LOVE this one!! It is the best faerie book i have ever seen, and read. It not only tells you the history of faeries, but it also gives you an idea where Faerie -the land of faeries- is, it gives you detailed information about all the wee folk! If you thought faeries were the pretty winged Tinkerbell likes, think again, and read this book! You'll get surprised on how many faerie types there is!!

The book is beautifully illustrated, and a must for every one interested in faeries, and art! This one should be in the bookshelf in every home! Buy it for yourself, for your mom, your kid and for your best friend!! It makes a great present!

Definately worth the money, i'd pay the double price if i had to, it's that great!

This was the book where I first encountered the artists Froud and Lee, and also where I discovered that faeries are indeed either ugly or beautiful, old and young; everything I had ever hoped and imagined, and more. Froud and Lee's breathtaking and altogether masterly portrayal of the intrinsic, metamorphic world of fantasy forever hovering at our fingertips, is truly masterly, and I have never encountered another yet which rates quite as highly as this. I would definately recommend this book to anyone who loves faeries, and/or queries the 'pretty' flower-faeries we tend to be bombarded with today. s This book has all my dreams, nightmares and fantasies woven together in it's intricate, detailed illustrations, the thick, scrawling lead pencil script... I cannot find the words to speak highly enough of this simply unique, marvellous book. I am an avid admirer of Froud and Lee's works, the faery-kingdom, faery poetry, stories, tales, photographs, illustrations, and can never have enough information on that mystical kingdom where people such as Thomas the Rhymer and Tam Lin vanish to, where a cup of wine can bind you a prisoner, where the young are old, and the old are yound, where anything is possible whether you believe or not. I for one, do strongly believe in faeries, and wish that I could see one. This book is - where are the words to describe it? Magnificent/Fabulous/Beautiful/Moving/Terrifying/Fantastic/Eye-opening - they are only some... I would like to congratulate Lee and Froud on their admirable skill for illustrations, the publishers for - well - publishing this book, and all the readers out there who fell in love with this book, which is a gift from faeryland itself.

I love this book, and I would put put my soul on the line to be in it. In this book, you know about Jenny, Dee, Tom, Zach, Michael, Audry, Summer, and all those people, and they are your ordinary teenagers. But, then, out of the blue, you meet Julian. The most wonderful person in the whole series. Jenny was so stupid not to love him. I mean, he comes into the story, and steals your heart, with his unbelieveable beauty, and she still despises him. This book has changed my life, because I am forever on the lookout for the beautiful Shadow Man, Julian. When he died, he took my heart and my soul along with him. He leaves you stunned, and shocked, and just so in love. It hurts to see him gone. I wake up in the middle of the night, sometimes, to see, as all of the characters did, a human figure in my room, and I call to him. I call to him,"Julian?" And he disapears. Of course, this is in my imagination, but this book makes you want it to be so real. You fall into a silly childhood-once-in-a-lifetime-spring time-love. And you never want to be brought out of it. When the book is over, you want to die along with Julian. And I believe a little bit of all of us does die with him. The very best part of us, our imaginations of love....

My favourite quote from this book. I love all the Forbidden Game Trilogy, but after re-reading them recently, I decided if I had to pick a favourite, this has to be it. #1 had the most intresting game and I guess the best plot, but this one win because it had all the best parts about Julian!(my favourite character.) Like a lot of L.J Smith's books, this sounds like a typical teen horror/romance novel, but it really isn't. In this last part of the trilogy, Jenny and her friends return to the Shadow World to rescue others left behind, and of course, meet Julian again, the evil (??) Shadow Man in love with Jenny. I found the ending to be perfect, though sad, and wouldn't want another book in this trilogy. Although I liked Julian SO much more then Tom,(Tom was the least developed main character in it!) (spoiler) I love this book and this trilogy, I really recommend them and also the 'Night World,' series by L.J Smith, though they aren't quite as good.

This was a good series, but my least favorite out of the ones I have read. (I have read Dark Visions, Night World, and the first book in the Secret Circle.) I didn't like the ending at all. Jenny was stupid to chose Tom over Julian! I cried at the end.

Anne Of The Island is a great book. It is about a girl with dark strawberry-blonde hair. She goes off to college with her friends: Charlie, Gilbert, and Diana. She makes some new friends and one of them, Priscila which is Pris for short, they meet in the graveyard across from the college. She meets many men she thinks she is in love with, including Gilbert, but when the propose to her she finds out she really doesn't love them that much. She even turns down the man of her dreams. So, it is partially a love story. She was adopted when she was young by Marilla. Now they have taken in twins when their mother died and their only relative can't take care of them. The younger one is Davy, who is always asking questions and getting in to mischief. He especially likes to bother his twin sister, Dora. She is always quiet and quite lady-like. They all live on Prince Edward Island in Canada. If you want to know the rest, you can read the book for yourself. Happy reading!

If you like the Anne of Green Gables series this is the best one in the whole thing! Anne of the Island has something for everyone! Anne Shirley leaves the small town of Avonlea to attend Redmond collage.. There the novel introduces you to a character who is extremely funny named Pricella! (Hope I spelled her name right). In this novel Anne falls in love with a fellow school mate, while her long time friend Gilbert Blythe finds a love interest as well! Do they end up together at last? Read the book and find out! This book is definatly for people who liked the movie "Anne of Avonlea". They are without a doubt slightly similar, but the book is definatly better!

I love alll of the Anne of Green Gables series. They are so vividly written you find yourself wishing that you were born as Anne a hundered years ago on PE Island. I would have happily endured all her hardships for all the wonderful moments in her life, and the fact she married Gilbert Blythe! It's so well written that you actually feel that you know Gilbert and I actually found my self falling in love with him! I've read the series 2 times. The first time I couldn't stop thinking about Anne. I read Anne, I tried to live like Anne and I dreamt Anne. Anyway, although I love all 8 books almost equally Anne of the Island is just a little better. And although it's romantic it's definitely not just a romance. Anne of the island includes wit and humour that makes it an all-round perfect book. If you're an Anne fan you havvvvvve to read this. I could not describe how wonderful it is in 1000 words. Anne of the Island is truly a book you CANNOT put down. After reading this I recommend you read all the rest of the Anne of Green Gables series (there are 5 more book,) although you'll probably be rushing to buy them anyway.

Title:I Am Regina Author:Sally M. Keehn Reviewed By: Veronica Rossi and Alexis Umowski Rating:9 Category:Historical Fiction We read this book and we want to review it. This story is mainly about a girl named Regina getting captured by the Allegheny Indians. When she was captured she had to walk on a long journey to her new home in an Indian village. Regina begins her new life with an Indian woman named Woelfin who shelters her as her daughter. Nonschetto became a friend to Regina and gave her one of the puppies her dog had. Regina named the puppy Tummaa. We think the author did a good job because she made us realize how it felt to be an Indian during that time through the main character, Regina. The white men were bad because they stole the Indians land. The white men thought the Indians were savages. If we had to change one part it would be when Woelfin and Tummaa ran in to the woods. We would change it by saying that Woelfin and Tummaa ran into the woods and then found their Indian tribe and lived there. We liked the way the author handled the climax. It was so exciting at the end when Regina got reunited with her mother!

We give this book five stars because when our teacher passed this book out to us and we started reading it...we just couldn't stop reading the book ! "I am Regina" is based on a true story about a girl named Regina Leininger. One day in the fall of 1755 in Pennsylvania, Regina and her sister, Barbara,get captured by the Allegheny Indians. Their father and older brother are killed. Her mother and her other brother are away at the time of the capture. Barbara and Regina are separated soon after they are captured. To find out if Regina will ever see her sister, mother or brother again... read the book!

I Am Regina is a must read for anyone who loves historical fiction.I first read this book when I was twelve years old.Now that I am fully grown,there is still not a year that goes by that I don't open it up and read it.It's about a ten year old girl named Regina who's family is attacked by Indians.Her father and brother are killed and Regina and her sister,Barbara are taken.Regina befriends a small girl,another captive,that she names Sarah.The sisters are seperated and Regina is forced on a long journey to a Lenape village.At the village she must face cold and hunger.As time goes by she loses almost all memory of her white family and accepts her new life.This book is based an actual incident that occured during the French And Indian Wars. The story allows the reader to see what it might have like,on either side.This is a book that cannot be put down.

The whole series took me about 3 years to read, even though I thoroughly enjoyed the books I didn't have much time for constant catching up. The Last vampire series is one of my all time favorites. When I'm in a situation I'd think, what wouls Alisa(Sita) do (other than kill). I totally bonded with her and her pain hurt me too. When I read the 6th novel on the train, I was shocked with the ending. I kept on looking for more pages, but... Wish there were more. I wish for an Oxford Dictionary size Sita novel. I really do. And even though I'm in college and I read Freud and other thinkers, I still go to the bokstore and charge five Pike books at a time. I love reading them on the train going to school. The last book minght not be the best, but it was awesome. I just love them all. Everyone else-enjoy! thank you fo rreading.

This is truly the best book in the The Last Vampire series. The book has a wonderful ending even though it is sad. The whole series is a true masterpeice of words. Well written and heart wrenching. A series for collection and deserves to be cherished for many years through many generations. Sita is a gripping charatcter. She grabs you by the kneck (literally) from the opening line in the first book and you hang on for dear life to Seymors last words of goodbye. I had to fight the tears. Seymour was a wonderful young man and should have been born a vampire like Alisa said! This whole series must be read by all. My compliments and best regards to Mr.Pike. You really outdid yourself! Please read my reveiw of the adult novel Sati.

I have been a fan of Christpher Pike since I was in the fourth grade. I am now a sophmore in college and I still find myself lingering in the young adult section with the hope of finding a Christopher Pike book that I have not read. His adult novels are incredible, and his young adult novels are absolutely amazing. This book provided the perfect closure to the previous ones in the series. The epilogue was wonderful. I truly wonder sometimes where this author gets his incredible gift. A lot of people claim that Pike has gone off the deep end, his newer books are too "strange" etc. I completely diagree. He has grown a great deal as a writer, and I am fortunate to say that I have grown along with him. As sad or as ridiculous as this may seem to many of you, the work of "Chistopher Pike" has truly changed my perspective on life. It has inspired me in so many ways, and I honestly wish that some day I could thank him, or at least do the same for someone else. His work provokes people to think, allows people to dream. This book is only an example of the incredible writings of Pike. I would strongly suggest to anyone who reads this to give Pike a chance. His books are truly remarkable pieces of work.

In My Hands: Memories of a Holocaust Rescuer by Irene Gut Opdyke is a remarkable autobiography about the life of a Polish woman who risked her life in order to save her Jewish friends. When World War II began, Irene was only seventeen years old; she was a devoted nursing student and an innocent Catholic girl. As Germany took over her country Poland, Irene volunteered to accompany the Polish army as part of the Red Cross. Separated from her family, she was forced to endure harsh living conditions while aiding hundreds of wounded soldiers. A few weeks later, she was seized and raped by Russian soldiers who then left her for dead in the snow. Irene would have frozen to death if a kind woman named Dr. Miriam had not found her and nursed her back to health. When Irene had finally regained her strength, she was allowed to return to Poland, now a part of Germany, to be reunited with her family. It was a joyful reunion, but Irene was stunned by the changes in her hometown, Radom. The Jews had been forced to move into ghettos while the Poles had to live by strict rules. Only one week had passed since Irene had come to Poland when she and her sister were captured and transported to Germany to work for the Reich. She became a domestic worker in a Nazi hotel; there, she witnessed the cruel, monstrous acts that were being committed against the Jews in the nearby ghetto. Overwhelmed with horror, Irene began sneaking food and blankets to the ghetto, as well as transporting runaway Jews in a wagon to a nearby forest. She had also befriended the ten Jewish workers she supervised at the hotel. When she was released from her hotel duties to work in a German major's villa as a live-in housekeeper, she found a way to smuggle and hide her Jewish friends in the basement of the villa. When he discovered them, Irene became his mistress in cooperation for his silence; later, she and her friends managed to escape from him during the Germans' retreat. In 1949, through the acquaintance of an old rabbi, Irene was interviewed by a delegate from the United Nations, and she was accepted to be a citizen of the United States, which is where she lives to this day. Irene Gut Opdyke is the courageous hero of this amazing autobiography. She had started out as a seemingly ordinary nursing student, but she had been separated from her family at 17 and forced to work for her enemies. She was determined to do all that she could to help the Jews after she had witnessed the abominable suffering inflicted on the local Jews. Being sensitive to her Jewish friends' needs, she always put their safety ahead of her well being. She demonstrated extraordinary bravery and heroism throughout her life.

I have read many books about the Second World War, and the Holocaust. This is one of the best.For those who ever read Diary of A Young Girl by Anne Frank, and wondered what life might be like for a Gentile girl at the same time, this book answers that question.Irene Gut's strong faith, and loving family led her to make the right, if very difficult, choices.The contributions by Jennifer Armstrong are seamless, the true voice of Irene never falters.I have only a few slight quibbles. I wish that there had been more followup on Irene's post-war life, and on the post-war lives of those she saved.Irene Gut Opdyke's faith is as clearly presented as the late Corrie Ten Boom's (The Hiding Place), however, I found In My Hands to be a much more gratifying book.I deeply hope that this book becomes part of the standard curriculum in schools worldwide.However, adults who have any interest in the Second World War and the Holocaust will find this to be a well-written, encouraging book.

In reading class, we were required to read a book about the Holocaust. I had read a few before, but I thought that they were boring and uninteresting. I thought that I would have to read another boring, uninteresting book.
This book totally surprised me. It was the first Holocaust book I had read that actually had me feeling the emotions of the main character. This book kept me turning pages until the very last word. This person's true emotions were brought to life throughout this book by colorful language and interesting similes and metaphors.
In My Hands is the story of Irene Gutowna, a Polish, Gentile girl, 17 years of age, who starts to work for a restaurant, which is run by Nazis. She never thought of becoming a resistance fighter. But she started small. The restaurant was located right next to the ghetto. Irene began to hide food under a hole in the fence.
Then she eventually did bigger things, leading up to hiding 10 Jews in the basement of a German sergeant's house. He finds out, but keeps quiet. In return, Irene must be his mistress.
This book was very good, and even made me cry. I think that everyone should read it.

I was an avid reader as a child, and the GREAT BRAIN books were some of my favorites. I am now a mother of an avid reader, and tried to locate the books in several book stores. (For some reason, the library did not occur to me--shame on me!) I am so glad to have found them on Amazon.com that I am buying the whole set. This will be a great way to spend time with my son this summer! To parents--you will enjoy reading these with your children (sons or daughters)To children--you will enjoy reading these yourself (or listening, if you don't read yet). Very humorous series! Have a great time reading!

John Dennis Fitzgerald intended to chronicle his youth in Utah for adults, not children. His publisher thought otherwise and the result are these gems. I don't even call them children's lit gems because I find them just as enjoyable as an adult. Before I go on, you should know that Fitzgerald wrote one book about his youth that is for adults, called "Papa Married a Mormon". It is one of the most amazing books on the American west that I have ever read. Sadly, it is out of print, and you may, like me, have to pay an exorbitant sum to get a copy. Trust me, save up and do it. Now back to this book. Every single Great Brain book in the series is pure gold, and the entire set can be had cheaply, so I say buy them all at once. I "put my money where my mouth is" as Tom the Great Brain would say, and bought the lot.

I first read this book and the others in the series as a sixth-grader back in the mid-70s. I, too, read them over and over! I was so enthralled with the stories that I did what I always did with terrific books: looked for any other books by the same author. I was thrilled to discover that in addition to this fictionalized version of J.D.'s childhood, he had also written three non-fiction books detailing his family history and experience in late 19th century Utah: Uncle Will and the Fitzgerald Curse, Papa Married a Mormon, and Mama's Boarding House. I promptly checked them out of the library and devoured them all. They are wonderful stories and an informative background to the Great Brain series. I add my plea to that of another reviewer: SOMEONE, PLEASE REPRINT THESE BOOKS by John D. Fitzgerald! They are a treasure that should not remain relegated to the dusty shelves of used bookstores!

I am currently reading The Great Brain to my six-year old son. At first I was afraid that the writing was a little too sophisticated for him, but with an explanation here and a definition there, he's doing just fine with it. He laughed uproariously at the scene in the opening chapter of the public uncrating and display of the first water closet (indoor flush toilet)in Adenville. These stories are terrific entertainment, as well as history lessons. They give kids a sense of how daily life was a century ago from a kid's perspective.

i am a major f Lurlene fan and this is another great book, but i dislike it because in the first of the 2 books, Till death do us part, april falls in love with mark. In the 2nd, to get over marks death, she goes on vacation to an island in the bahamas to get over the death of mark and meets brandon. yep, you gessed it, they fall in love. i love brandons character,, but mark and april were co in love. just weeks after marks dreath, aprilis not going to fall for another guy. i love the book, but, i hate the way mark and aprils love is down played.

When i first saw this book on the shelf of the skool library i knew it would be good, so i checked it out and found out it was the best book i have ever read! This book was about a gurl named April Lancaster and she has a tumor in her brain.Shes had it since she was 5 years old and after a while it stopped growing.When she was 17 she decided to get married to the love f her life,Mark. When Mark crashes his race car, April is devistated! She feels more lonely then ever and she's so sad! Her parents decide to take her to St.Croix to see if that helps her forget and try to have a good time. When she gets there a boy named Brandon sees her and he thinks shes the most beautiful thing. They get to be friend but April decides not to tell Brandon about her medical condition because shes afraid he might not like her anymore or run away from her like all the other guys she liked. They get really close and then one day on a sailing trip April experiences her headaches again and her parents rush her back to New York for tests. April didn't even have time to say goodbye to Brandon! April finds out that the tumor has started growing...will her and mark still be able to be together after she tells him her problem? what will happen to April?...read the stroy to find out!

I just got done with this book and it was absolutely one of the best books I could have ever read by lurlene McDaniel. She is one of the best authors. I read this book in one day and it made me cry so much. I burst into tears with this book. It was one of the greatest sequils to a book I could have ever read. I liked how brandon stuck by April the whole time even though she left him with out saying good bye when she went back to long Island (her home where she grew up) It was sad but yet it makes ya think about life and stuff. But it was amazing how some teen age boy who didn't even know a girl but a few months could care so much for her. I loved it.