Famous First Lines: Wednesday

Tuesday's answer was Scorpio Races by Maggie Stievfater!  Today's first line is....

"There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it."

Know what book this comes from?  Post a comment below (with your student ID) or drop off your answer at the library!

Remember, you can use any resource to find the answer! Ask your friends, ask a teacher, find it on Google!

Famous First Lines: Tuesday

Monday's answer was Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen!  Today's new first line is....

"It is the first day of November, and so, today, someone will die."

Write the title of the book and your student ID number in a comment below OR submit your answer at the library!

Don't forget-you can use any tools you want to find the answer! Ask a friend, ask a teacher, or Google it!

Famous First Lines: Monday

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."

You can submit your answer two ways:

Reply to this post with a comment containing the book title and your student ID # ( no names please).

OR

Come by the library and put your answer in the purple box at the front desk.

Don't forget-you can use any tools you want to find the answer! Ask a friend, ask a teacher, or Google it!

WIN A BARNES AND NOBLE GIFT CARD!

Think you know your books?

Join in on this fun contest and you could win a $25 gift card to Barnes and Noble!!!!  Here's how to play:

1.  Come to the blog every day during the week from  March 4th to March 7th.

2.  Read the "famous first line" for that day and see if you can guess what book it's from.  First lines will be chosen from books that are very well known or are very popular.

3.  If you think you know the answer, write the title of the book and your student ID number (NOT your name) in a comment on the blog or stop by the library to submit your answer.

You MUST submit your answer the same day that the first line is posted.  (For example, answers given on Tuesday for Monday's first line won't count).  Only one answer per student per day will be counted. 

We will randomly pull one winner's name out of the week's correct answers.  The more first lines you guess correctly, the better your chances of winning!

We will announce the winner over the announcements and on the blog Friday morning. 



Book Review: Death Cloud

Death Cloud by Andrew Lane

(Sherlock Holmes, the Legend Begins)

http://www.amazon.com/Death-Cloud-Sherlock-Holmes-ebook/dp/B004EPYWKG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1361993144&sr=8-2&keywords=death+cloud

Sherlock Holmes, the famous consulting detective, is one of the most famous literary characters out there.  There have been countless movies, tv shows (including my personal fav, Sherlock), and book series spin-offs.  What makes this book different is that it is the first Sherlock book actually endorsed by the family of Sir Aurthur Conan Doyle (the man who wrote the original Sherlock Holmes books). 

Young Sherlock Holmes, only 17 and shipped off to live with an estranged aunt and uncle for the summer, expects to spend the next few months bored and lonely. Instead, he finds himself smack in the middle of a murder most mysterious. Two men are found covered with sores and a strange yellow powder.  As they lay dying, a black cloud leaves their bodies, a cloud that seems to have a mind of its own.  With the help of his new friend Matty, an orphan who lives on the canals, and Virginia, the attractive and spunky daughter of his tutor, Sherlock learns to put the pieces together and use his blossoming powers of deduction to solve the riddle.

There is plenty of action and suspense in this book.  In the midst of fistfights, gunshots, and narrow escapes, we meet a Sherlock who we easily see becoming the hero we know today.  Mix in a very creepy villian and you have a story that's definitely a page turner. 

If you like it, check out the sequel, Rebel Fire!

Book Review: The Inferno

The Inferno by Dante Alighieri



http://www.amazon.com/Dantes-Inferno-Classic-Collections-ebook/dp/B002MPPU38/ref=sr_1_6?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1361993390&sr=1-6&keywords=dantes+inferno

The book The Inferno was written by Dante Alighieri.  This book is about a man going to hell just so he can be with the one he loves, Beatrice.  In this book it describes the intense challenges he must face and all the punishments of this horrible world.  He must go through all of the nine circles of hell to get to Beatrice.  The first circle is limbo where everyone goes to be told what circle they are going to go to.  The second circle is for the lustful, the third for gluttons, fourth for hoarders, and the fifth is for the wrathful, which is one of the worst.  Level six is for all the heretics who believe in another god.  Level seven is for the violent, those who will cause harm to anything for any purpose.  Level eight is for those who committed fraud.  Nine is for the traitors who are considered the worst of all since they turned their backs on those who believed in them.  This is where Satan himself watches over the people as they drown in their own crimes.  Dante must convince the devil to free Beatrice.

This book was full of detail, a great book and one of my favorites!

                                                                                            Reviewed by Kobe Z.

                                                                                             (a DHS student)

Book Review: Chinese Cinderella

Chinese Cinderella  by Adeline Yen May

http://www.amazon.com/Chinese-Cinderella-Unwanted-Daughter-ebook/dp/B0028MBKRK/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1361993559&sr=1-1&keywords=chinese+cinderella

In this true story, The Chinese Cinderella follows the story of Adeline, a girl who becomes bad luck after her mother dies during her childbirth.  She works hard at being good at school even though she is unwanted by her own family.  When her stepmother takes over, the times just get worse for her, but she still tries her best at school.

The book really talks to kids about what it's like to be an unwanted child, but still do their best at at school.  It teaches lessons about the kids with bad luck and also tells you that you can still make good choices and be a success even if bad things are happening to you.  I think you should read this book.  This book got me thinkig about being thankful for the parent that really loves their child.

                                                                                           Reviewed by Sion L.

                                                                                            (a DHS student)