Book Review 22: The Rule of Won by Stefan Petrucha

Wow, I have to say I REALLY liked this book. It's basically kind of a spoof on the book "The Secret". Where it says if you want something bad enough, and you picture yourself with it, and write about wanting it, etc, that you'll get it. I personally know this is a load of crap as I've been trying to get a library job for about 5 years now, and I've pictured myself over and over and over in a library and I'm still stuck in a classroom teaching science, as well as all the daydreaming I do about David Cook, and yet I'll never really end up with him.

It starts that a boy named Ethan actually has a sister who can make things happen by drawing pictures. No one knows this, but they all buy in when things that they agree to wish for together start happening, the funding for a new school gym, the basketball team wins a game. Caleb is the main character though actually, and he is a slacker. Doesn't want to have to work hard for anything. His ex-girlfriend, Vicky, is running for Student Council president, and convinces him to join giving him the impression it'll help him get back with her. Soon, things happen to cause their wishes to come true that don't seem right. One girl wants to pass her algebra test, so they wish for everyone to pass it, and a teacher has a car accident. Other bad things happen like this. And it turns out, that someone may be causing these things to happen, only it might not be Ethan's little sister.

It reminds me a bit of the book The Wave, in how all the students get so sucked into it that they'll be violent to those who don't agree or participate. It even gets teachers and the already lousy principal involved. The girl who wished to pass the test, tries to kill herself because of the teacher getting in an accident.

This was a great book, and I will recommend it to many students.

My next book is another sports book, Big Field by Mike Lupica. And after the last sports book I read, Boost, I'm seeing a bit of a pattern in sports books. Ones I probably haven't seen before because I normally don't choose to read them. I'll talk more about that pattern in my blog about that book when I finish it.

I'm almost done with Truman list, only 3 more to go, then I'll be on to Mark Twain.

Book Review 21: Boost by Kathy Mackel

Boost is about a 13 year old girl named Savvy who is REALLY tall and REALLY good at basketball. She's just moved to live with her aunt because her father has lost his job and her aunt needs some help. She decides to try out for league basketball, different than school basketball. A person she meets convinces her to leave the middle school age tryouts and go to the high school tryouts. They make it, but Savvy starts out on the bench, because while she's good, she needs some work. The coach gives her drills and all that to help her do better. They call it her "boost" list. The cover shows pills, so you assume he gives her those, but it's not, it's just drills and ways to improve her game. Her sister is older, and a cheerleader. A cheerleader who has gained weight over the summer and must lose it in order to stay on the new school's squad. At a big stakes game, pills are found, and they lead to Savvy's locker. Savvy doesn't know where they came from, but many people don't believe her, and she decides to do a drug test to prove her innocence, which it does.

This is an okay book. It started out slow, got good in the middle, but then I was bored at the end again. So not sure if kids would like it. But they might!

The next book I'm reading is the Rule of Won by Stefan Petrucha, I'm almost done with it as well. It is pretty good, I'll have lots to say when I write my review of it, probably tomorrow.