Semi-Colons/Colons Remediation
Emmett Till Video
Remediation for Parallel Structure
Parallel Structure Remediation Quiz
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Good Reads
Bruiser by Neal Shusterman
*Nominee for Beehive Book Award 2011
Gr 8 Up–Tennyson, 16, is a hulking loner who seems to possess the power to heal both physical and psychic hurts. When his twin sister, Brontë, befriends their shy and withdrawn classmate Brewster “Bruiser” Rawlins, he is concerned that her relationship with this boy from the wrong side of the tracks will prove somehow dangerous. After he spies Bruiser changing in the locker room and notices that his back is covered in scars and welts, he becomes even more certain that the teen and his family are bad news. In spite of her brother's warnings, Brontë continues her relationship with Bruiser, drawing him closer to her family–and Tennyson–in the process. The twins begin to notice Bruiser's unusual talent: not only can he assume the physical pain and wounds of those he cares about, but he can also absorb their anger, hurt, and grief. Told from the three characters' alternating perspectives, with Brewster's rendered in poetic form, Shusterman's novel reveals its secrets and their implications slowly, allowing readers to connect the dots before the characters do and encouraging them to weigh the price of Bruiser's “gift” against the freedom from pain that Tennyson and Brontë enjoy.Amy S. Pattee, Simmons College, Boston
Chasing Lincoln's Killer by James Swanson
Genre: Non-Fiction
Based on rare archival material, obscure trial manuscripts, and interviews with relatives of the conspirators and the manhunters, Chasing Lincoln's Killer is a fast-paced thriller about the pursuit and capture of John Wilkes Booth: a wild twelve-day chase through the streets of Washington, D.C., across the swamps of Maryland, and into the forests of Virginia.
* "...the rich details and suspense are ever present. Excellent black-and-white illustrations complement the text. Readers will be engrossed by the almost hour-by-hour search and by the many people who encountered the killer as he tried to escape. It is a tale of intrigue and an engrossing mystery. With the approaching bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth, this is a most welcome addition to all libraries." — School Library Journal, starred review
"Swanson provides a fast-paced account of the assassination of the sixteenth president. Though Booth remains his principal focus, the author cuts cinematically among the actions of the other conspirators. ...Swanson's colorful account will hold readers’ interest throughout." — Booklist
"Readers will find the list of the people involved a terrific help in keeping track of the large cast of characters. The sequence of events leading up to and following the assassination is meticulously detailed." — Kirkus Reviews
* "...the rich details and suspense are ever present. Excellent black-and-white illustrations complement the text. Readers will be engrossed by the almost hour-by-hour search and by the many people who encountered the killer as he tried to escape. It is a tale of intrigue and an engrossing mystery. With the approaching bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth, this is a most welcome addition to all libraries." — School Library Journal, starred review
"Swanson provides a fast-paced account of the assassination of the sixteenth president. Though Booth remains his principal focus, the author cuts cinematically among the actions of the other conspirators. ...Swanson's colorful account will hold readers’ interest throughout." — Booklist
"Readers will find the list of the people involved a terrific help in keeping track of the large cast of characters. The sequence of events leading up to and following the assassination is meticulously detailed." — Kirkus Reviews
Matched by Alli Condi
Genre: Sci-Fi
Cassia is a 17-year-old girl living in a society that is based on probability. It's community members do not get a whole lot of choices in life, including the person they will marry and have a family with. Instead, they are matched with an individual from a neighboring town, based on their likes/dislikes/hobbies/etc. At Cassia's matching ceremony, she ends of being matched with her best friend Xander, a boy she has known most of her life. It's already a rarity that she's been matched with someone in her own town, but also someone she knows and loves, and Cassia thinks she's the luckiest girl in the world. That is, until, she sees someone else's face on her match card...an accident? Or her real, true match for life? What follows is an exciting adventure of love and what it means to give yourself to someone fully. There is definitely a feeling of romance throughout the story, but subtle romance, which was really nice for a change. I was excited to turn each page and wasn't able to put the book down until I found out what happened with Cassia, Xander, and Ky. I am a huge fan of dystopian stories and Matched will definitely be ranking high on my favorites list of 2010...I loveed it! One of the blurbs on the front of the ARC I was sent compares the story to a blend of The Hunger Games and The Giver, definitely a good way to describe it. A nice mixture of high tension and that utopian/dysopian vibe so many of us love.I would hand this one to teens that enjoyed either of the two above mentioned books or anything else dystopian. If they're a fan of romance or love triangles, this would also fit that bill. Definitely an exciting page-turner with a nice bit of the romantic.
Review From A Patchwork of Books
Review From A Patchwork of Books
Tiger's Curse
Genre: Sci-Fi
When 18-year-old Kelsey takes a job with a circus, she finds herself oddly attracted to the white tiger she has been hired to feed. Little does she know the animal is really a 300-year-old Indian prince who has been cursed and transformed by an evil wizard. She soon discovers the truth and, to her amazement, learns she may be the only one who can help. The next thing she knows, she is on her way, with the tiger, to India, where they embark on a dangerous quest to break the curse. The tiger can change into a man for 24 minutes during each 24-hour period. And what a man! “He’s like James Bond, Antonio Banderas, and Brad Pitt all rolled into one,” Kelsey thinks. Originally self-published as an e-book, Houck’s first novel is part Twilight, part Indiana Jones, and part fairy tale. Although her book—the first in a proposed series—is sometimes derivative, she tells a good story filled with chaste romance that will keep readers turning pages to the inconclusive ending. Grades 7-12.
from Booklist Reviews
from Booklist Reviews