Divergent - Book Review - Travis Time

Title ~ Divergent
Series ~ Divergent #1
Author ~ Veronica Roth
Release Date ~ May 3, 2011
Publisher ~ HarperTeen
Source ~ HarperTeen

*This is a Travis Time Review by my 9-year-old brother*

GOODREADS SUMMARY

Beatrice "Tris" Prior has reached the fateful age of sixteen, the stage at which teenagers in Veronica Roth's dystopian Chicago must select which of five factions to join for life. Each faction represents a virtue: Candor, Abnegation, Dauntless, Amity, and Erudite. To the surprise of herself and her selfless Abnegation family, she chooses Dauntless, the path of courage. Her choice exposes her to the demanding, violent initiation rites of this group, but it also threatens to expose a personal secret that could place her in mortal danger. Veronica Roth's young adult Divergent trilogy launches with a captivating adventure about love and loyalty playing out under most extreme circumstances.

REVIEW

Divergent is a really cool book because it has ACTION. I’m not talking about a little bit of action here and there. I am talking about lots and lots of it! There are fights and battles, but there are also characters doing crazy and dangerous stunts. Someone even climbs up to the top of a Ferris wheel. I love this kind of book!  It's something boys like to read about.  Wild stunts and epic battles!

The book is told from Tris’ point of view. I know, it's a girl main character, but she is so awesome that it didn't matter what she was.  Tris is supposed to be part of the Abnegation faction, but she decides to switch over to the Dauntless faction. It is very rare to switch factions and everyone is questioning Tris about her decision. She is switching from a faction that spends most of their time helping others and being kind to a faction that is all about bravery and making rash decisions. Whoa! Everyone thinks Tris has lost her mind!  I think she's lost her mind...but, then again, the Dauntless faction is majorly awesome.

Tris meets lots of cool people. Some of them did what she did. They switched to over-the-top Dauntless from other factions. They must not have been a good match for the faction they started out in. I can see how that would happen.  They just didn't quite fit into the faction they were born into for whatever reason.  They are searching for something different.  Something more.  By choosing Dauntless, they must want to take things to the edge! And there's someone named Four who is Tris' trainer.  He is mysterious and he challenges Tris to do things. 

Do you like romance in your books? If you do, then you are going to love Divergent.  I don’t really get into all the kissing scenes and the "kiss me now," "I want to feel his tender touch,"  and "he gazed into my eyes" stuff . I read those parts pretty fast because I don't care about all the kissing details. But, I still get the idea of which characters are in love with which other characters and WHY they kiss each other.  They feel passion.  It matters because they are the ones who will do anything for each other. They are expressing their love.  I guess they have some sort of special kissing bond between them. That's how it works!  Special Kissing Bond!

Divergent is filled with action (YAY!) and romance and a really awesome main character! 

Son of Neptune - Book Review - Travis Time

Title ~ The Son of Neptune
Series ~ Heroes of Olympus #2
Author ~ Rick Riordan
Release Date ~ October 4, 2011
Age Group ~ Young Adult
Publisher ~ Hyperion
Source ~ Bought

*This is a Travis Time Review by my 9-year-old brother*

GOODREADS SUMMARY

Seven half-bloods shall answer the call,
To storm or fire the world must fall.
An oath to keep with a final breath,
And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death.

Percy is confused. When he awoke from his long sleep, he didn't know much more than his name. His brain fuzz is lingering, even after the wolf Lupa tol him he is a demigod and trained him to fight with the pen/sword in his pocket. Somehow Percy manages to make it to a camp for half-bloods, despite the fact that he has to keep killing monsters along the way. But the camp doesn't ring and bells with him. The only thing he can recall from his past is another name: Annabeth

Hazel is supposed to be dead. When she lived before, she didn't do a very good job of it. Sure, she was an obedient daughter, even when her mother was possessed by greed. But that was the problem - when the Voice took over he mother and commanded Hazel to use her "gift" for and evil purpose, Hazel couldn't say no. Now because of her mistake, the future of the world is at risk. Hazel wished she could ride away from it all on the stallion that appears in her dreams.

Frank is a klutz. His grandmother says he is descended from heroes and can be anything he wants to be, but he doesn't see it. He doesn't even know who his father is. He keeps hoping Apollo will claim him, because the only thing he is good at is archery - although not good enough to win camp war games. His bulky physique makes him feel like an ox, especially infront of Hazel, his closest friend at camp. He trusts her completely - enough to share the secret he holds close to his heart.

REVIEW

I like that the characters from the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series meet up with the characters from the Heroes of Olympus series. It is sooooo cool that Annabeth and Grover show up and are a big part of this series. It seems like the Percy Jackson series was just the beginning for the seven demi-gods.

My favorite character, other than Percy of course, is Frank.  He is hilarious.  Frank is a total klutz!  And he can shape shift into ANIMALS!  

ACTION! That’s what I’m talkin’ about! The book starts out with a BANG and Percy is running for his life. I love when a book starts out with action right IN YOUR FACE. It doesn’t stop there though. The entire book is filled with action as Percy, Hazel, and Frank go on their awesome journey. They encounter danger at every turn and there is a massive battle scene that is EPIC GOOD!

I LAUGHED OUT LOUD! Ask Melina about it. I would read something funny, laugh, and then read it out loud to her. I think she got a little annoyed with me after a while. I was laughing on the very first page and all the way through. Rick Riordan put a bunch of punch lines and sarcasm all over the place and I couldn’t help but laugh a lot. 


Some of the action takes place at Camp Jupiter, which is Roman instead of Greek. Camp Jupiter is the same as Camp Half-Blood, but is also the opposite. Both camps are set up pretty much the same with their houses, banners, other buildings, and a capture-the-flag game.  YES, these books have CAPTURE THE FLAG in them! The camps are different because the Greeks are old-school and the Romans are more high-tech. I like them both!

This book and this series both ROCK!

The Unwanteds - Book Review - Travis Time

Title ~ The Unwanteds
Series ~ Unwanteds #1
Author ~ Lisa McMann
Release Date ~ August 30, 2011
Age Group ~ Middle Grade
Publisher ~ Aladdin
Source ~ Lisa McMann









*This is a Travis Time Review by my 9-year-old brother*

GOODREADS SUMMARY

Every year in Quill, thirteen-year-olds are sorted into categories: the strong, intelligent Wanteds go to university, and the artistic Unwanteds are sent to their deaths.

Thirteen-year-old Alex tries his hardest to be stoic when his fate is announced as Unwanted, even while leaving behind his twin, Aaron, a Wanted. Upon arrival at the destination where he expected to be eliminated, however, Alex discovers a stunning secret—behind the mirage of the "death farm" there is instead a place called Artime.

In Artime, each child is taught to cultivate their creative abilities and learn how to use them magically, weaving spells through paintbrushes and musical instruments. Everything Alex has ever known changes before his eyes, and it's a wondrous transformation.

But it's a rare, unique occurence for twins to be separated between Wanted and Unwanted, and as Alex and Aaron's bond stretches across their separation, a threat arises for the survival of Artime that will pit brother against brother in an ultimate, magical battle.

REVIEW

The Unwanteds is a dystopian book with magic. It’s not just everyday magic either. It’s artistic magic that you can control with your mind. If I had that sort of creative magic, I would be coming up with some really awesome spells against the bad guys. Things like turning them into chickens and making them dance around with their feathers painted in neon rainbow colors. See what I mean! Awesome spells.

The main characters in The Unwanteds are twin brothers named Aaron and Alex. When they turn thirteen, their lives are changed forever. Aaron is declared to be a Wanted, so he stays in Quill. Alex is chosen as an Unwanted and he is taken to Artime where he expects to be killed. This happens way at the beginning of the book. It made me sad that they were going to be apart. I didn’t even want to keep reading. But my sister said “Keep Reading! KEEP READING TRAVIS! It will be worth it!” She was right!

When Alex gets to Artime, he finds out that it is really a cool place where he can use his imagination. Everything is backwards to what I thought it was going to be. I really liked the mansion that seems to go on forever. And I liked all the magical training using music and art. And then something happens that leads up to an epic battle between the Wanteds and the Unwanteds.

The Unwanteds is EXCITING to read because of all the ACTION. I like that the main characters are brothers, but they are so different from each other. There is a big conflict between them because they are separated. Great books need a great conflict and The Unwanteds has that.

It only took me a few days to read The Unwanteds because I liked it so much. I even stayed up late at night to finish it because it was that good.  Melina thought that was funny.  I am waiting for book two.  Hurry book two!

RATING

5 Loved

COVER COMMENTS

WOW! It’s such a cool cover! I like the colors and the mansion in the background. The cover is all full of action!

The Death Cure - Book Review - Travis Time

Title ~ The Death Cure
Series ~ Maze Runner #2
Author ~ James Dashner
Release Date ~ October 11, 2011
Age Group ~ Young Adult
Publisher ~ Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Source ~ James Dashner

*This is a Travis Time Review by my 9-year-old brother*

GOODREADS SUMMARY

Thomas knows that Wicked can't be trusted, but they say the time for lies is over, that they've collected all they can from the Trials and now must rely on the Gladers, with full memories restored, to help them with their ultimate mission. It's up to the Gladers to complete the blueprint for the cure to the Flare with a final voluntary test.

What Wicked doesn't know is that something's happened that no Trial or Variable could have foreseen. Thomas has remembered far more than they think. And he knows that he can't believe a word of what Wicked says.

The time for lies is over. But the truth is more dangerous than Thomas could ever imagine.

Will anyone survive the Death Cure?

REVIEW

I read The Maze Runner and The Scorch Trials last year and FINALLY The Death Cure is here! It was a loooong wait. I finished reading it last night and WOW it was EXPLOSIVE!

In The Maze Runner, I thought the setting was most important because it was the enemy Thomas was fighting. The maze was the ENEMY!  In The Scorch Trials, the plot was most important because Thomas and the Gladers teamed up to launch a devastating blow against WICKED. Did you know it is kind of like The Scorch Trials in Texas sometimes during the summer? Finally, in The Death Cure, I thought the characters were most important because some of the old characters from the first two books came back. No joke.

There is a lot of death and destruction in The Death Cure. There are knives, killer sticky goo, starvation, weapons, falling rocks, and explosives! I think James Dashner is pure evil for letting some of my favorite characters die. Everything I like in a dystopian book is in here. EVERYTHING – including the evil! If you like kissing you may be disappointed because there isn't very much kissing.

Thomas is extremely brave as he fights WICKED. He stands up for himself and doesn’t back down from his opinions. This makes the Gladers look up to him for advice and leadership. I think Thomas would make a great president for our country. Really. I would vote for him if I were old enough to vote.

The Death Cure is a gnarly good ending to the series. The very last scene was dramatic and I really wish there was at least one more book. Yes, I am talking to you, James Dashner. I want another book!

RATING

5 LOVED

COVER COMMENTS

This cover is not bold! It is all snowy and I think that must be WICKED’s headquarters. I like the big letters that say THE DEATH CURE.

Travis Time - Meet My Little Brother

MEET TRAVIS

This is Travis, my little brother. He also goes by Travy, Mr. T, Iced Tea, Sweet T, and Little T.  He is nine years old and he is in fourth grade. Travis is very popular among the kids at school because he has such a fun sense-of-humor. He is such a great brother for me to have because he keeps me from looking at things too seriously. One huge thing we have in common is books!

Travis really loves reading and he has a fascination with dystopian books lately. I think he would read dystopian books every day if he could. As long as they don’t have too much kissing, he wants to read them.

Some of the books that he has read over the past year include.

Harry Potter Series

The Hunger Games Series

The Maze Runner Series

The Unwanteds

Jack Blank Series

The Red Pyramid

The Lost Hero

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series

Travis is going to start posting guest reviews on Reading Vacation.  They will be called "Travis Time" reviews.  When you see them, be prepared for the words of a nine-year-old boy who doesn’t take himself too seriously. He will tell you EXACTLY what he thinks, but with a smile!

One last thing - Travis is the best little brother in the whole world because he is mine!  Love this boy!