Michael

Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry By Michael Dickson

Thought provokingand captivating, __Roll of Thunder Hear my Cry__ by Mildred D. Taylor takes place in Mississippi in 1933. This story is about African-Americans being treated unfairly by whites who think they have a right to hurt blacks. The genre of this book is historical fiction because this happened in real life before the Civil Rights movement took place. The blacks are forced to live and deal with racism. The story is about how blacks deal with whites treating them dishonestly.

The author uses Cassie Logan (the main character) and her family to describe the wrongdoings of whites towards African-Americans. The whites made the African-Americans run up onto the river banks by using a school bus from the Jefferson Davis School to splash them and make their clothes all dirty and then the white kids would laugh inside the school bus when Cassie, Stacey, Little Man, Christopher-John, Claude, and T.J ran up onto the river banks. Then the whites decided to burn people like the Berry's or they would put tar on blacks and then pluck them with chicken feathers. Whites could also put blacks on chain gang or put them in jail. Eventually, Papa was shot without reason by the whites and T.J was put in jail while his white friends were set free. Whites were disrespecting blacks all over the South.

The author did a sensational job of creating life-like characters by using real life situations and characters that people my age could relate to. For example, T.J, who is fourteen, robbed a store with two white boys and when the white boys said they didn't do it, the whites believed them, but when T.J said he didn't do it, the whites said he did do it. The whites also killed the gun store owner Mr. Barnett, and Mrs. Barnett was badly hurt. Then the whites beat T.J up and threw him in the back of the truck and left him there. The whites then went down to the pool room and said that they had seen a black person go into the gun room but yet they did not mention that they were apart of it so they did not get in trouble. This unfair treatment of blacks occurred often in the South where the book took place. The author also expressed a little bit of humor when the Logan's make a ditch so that the Jefferson Davis bus could not get through and they ran into the ditch and blew their front tire and could not get the bus out. The blacks were determined to get some kind of revenge even if the laws didn't get changed.

The book ends when Papa sets his own land on fire so that T.J does not get killed that instant. Instead, T.J. gets put in jail and then is put on the chain gang. I would rate this book a five out of five stars because the book was about history and reasons the United States needed to change. It tells a good lesson. The lesson is that all people should be treated equally and that all people have the same rights no matter what race. I would recommend this book to people who like history and to people who want a quick entertaining read. I have enjoyed this book, and I hope you do too.

__The Hunger Games__ By Suzanne Collins Book Review by Michael Dickson

Exciting and surprising, the __Hunger Games__ by Suzanne Collins takes place in Disrict twelve and the Capitol of this unknown country. This story is all about the life of Katniss Everdeen and the life in Disrict twelve. Disrict twelve is the farthest district away from the Capitol and they are responsible for coal. Katniss's dad died in a mine accident when she was young. The genre of this book is science fiction because the Hunger Games are not a real event.

At the picking for who goes to the Hunger Games, Katniss's sister Primrose (Prim) Everdeen is selected to go to the Games, but Katniss steps up for her sister and takes her place. The other person is Peeta Mellark. At the beginning of the Games, Peeta distracts Katniss so that she does not go straight toward the cornucopia which is where the weapons, food, water, medicine, and all the other supplies needed to survive were. Katniss ends up with a backpack filled with sunglasses that help you see in the dark, strips of beef, an empty water bottle, crackers, and a knife that the girl from district two (Glimmer) threw at Katniss but hit the backpack.

In the middle of the Games, Katniss allies with Rue who is from disrict eleven and they made a plan to destroy the Careers supplies. Katniss goes and blows the supplies up as well as herself and she lost her hearing in her left ear. After Rue was killed by the Careers, the Capitol made up a new rule which was that if the last two people were from the same district, you both would be considered winners. Peeta and Katniss allied because they are from the same district, but when Katniss found Peeta, Peeta was injured badly. In the Games you can get things from your sponsors. In this case, Katniss received medicine from a sponsor to help heel Peeta. While Peeta was still recovering, the Game makers called for a feast in the cornucopia which is in the center of the arena. Katniss gets the tiny little backpack that says district twelve on it and finds a needle to stick into Peeta to heel him.

I think the author did a great job of expressing the Hunger Games by having action every two pages and had the boring part at the beginning and the best part at the end. I would rate this book 4 stars because I didn't like the beginning but when the Games started it got really good. I recommend this book to people who like survival book because the book is all about learning how to survive in the Hunger Games. [|www.amazon.com/s/ref/=nb_sb_ss_i_0_12?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=hunger+games&sprefix=hunger+games]

Rats on the Loose By Michael Dickson

Holling Hoodhood thinks his teacher hates him and a dad that is all over him for inheriting his architecture company. Holling is a seventh grade boy in the historical fiction __The Wednesday Wars__  by Gary D. Schmidt. Set in 1967 in a city near New York City, Holling learns that his teacher really does care about him and does not dislike him. He also learns that he needs to pick his own job. He had a lot of adventures and discoveries along the way while the author made the book humorous.

In the book the author uses humor by using rats to keep you reading. Sycorax and Caliban, the two rats, were let out accidentally by Holling when he was cleaning the cage. Then one day when the kids were in the classroom and a school board member was in the classroom, the ceiling fell with the rats and everyone hopped on their desks except for Mrs. Sidman and Mai Thi.

The author also uses humor when he puts Holling in a play as a fairy in yellow tights. Holling is embarrassed that he has to wear the tights. He likes Shakespeare and likes doing the plays. Mrs. Baker and he were reading Shakespeare when all the other students went to religion classes at their churches. However, Hollings best friends were at the play and thought it was cool. He thought his friends would laugh at him, but they didn’t. They were proud of him.

The author also used humor with the rats when Holling was trying out for the track team and the rats started to chase him. Holling climbed the tennis court fences and ended up being on the eighth grade team. He was the only seventh grader on the team because he finished first. After that, Mrs. Baker gave Holling some tips on how to run.

Holling figured out that Mrs. Baker was trying to help him and that she appreciated him. I rate this book four stars out of five because the author wrote with humor. The lesson you learned in this book was a good one because teachers do like you, except if you perform a prank on the teacher. Most teachers are trying to help you. So, if you want a humorous book and want to learn a lesson read __The Wednesday Wars.__  

The Game of Twists and Turns By Michael Dickson

Sixteen heirs are brought together for the reading of the will of Samuel Westing in the unpredictable __Westing Game__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> by Ellen Raskin. In Sunset Towers, the sixteen heirs become suspects in the murder mystery of Samuel Westing. The will becomes a game of twists and turns to figure out who the murderer is.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">I adored this book because the action never stopped and what was going to happen next was unpredictable. From the time Sam Westing’s body was found, the action was continuous. For example, there were bombings and important things taken away from people. Many unpredictable moments happened in the story. For example, everybody is at Angela’s wedding shower and she opens up one of her presents and there is a bomb inside and the bomb blew up in her face.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Ellen Raskin made her characters act like real people, but the one that I related to the most was Theo Theodorkis because he was smart and clever. Sam Westing had never lost a game of chess and there was a chess board in Sunset Towers. Theo was moving the black pieces and someone else was moving the white pieces. Theo figured out who it was. I liked the way Theo was always thinking.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The characters in the Westing Game were paired and given a set of clues. One clue was “mountain.” The characters become confused as Sandy McSouthers, the doorman, gives the heirs more clues. As the story unwinds one character solves the case. I liked trying to figure out the case myself using all the clues.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">I rate this book five out of five stars because I like mystery stories and they had to figure out what happened. Also, the book seemed realistic because of the clues and the problem solving. If you want a great mystery story, it is the best book you will find in the mystery genre. Samuel Westing said, “What you have doesn’t count, it’s what you don’t have that counts.”

__<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Harriet Tubman, Conductor on the Underground Railroad __ Book review by Michael Dickson

In this biography of Harriet Tubman by Ann Petry, I thought it was a very swift moving book. Harriet lifetime is very sad and interesting. This book is all about the life and journeys of Harriet Tubman. The genre of this book is non-fiction because this is the true story of Harriet Tubman's incredible lifetime. Harriet Tubman was born a slave on a Maryland plantation, and was named Harriet Ross before she was called Harriet Tubman.

Ann Petry made this book a fast moving book by putting Harriet in situations that actually happened. For example, when Harriet and her group of slaves heard a sound they would hide in bushes, holes, hay stacks (When at abolishionists houses), etc. Ann also made this book feel like you were a slave that followed Harriet to the North on the Underground Railroad.

Harriet Tubman was nicknamed "Moses" because she helped over 300 slaves to the North to be free. At one point there was a huge reward for finding Harriet, but no one could find her. Even when she saved Charles Nalle from being forced into court and then back to his plantation owner. Harriet was disguised as an old woman until she decided to rip the disguise off. They still didn't catch her. Harriet originally took them to Philadelphia, but after the Fugitive Slave Law, she had to take them to Canada. Harriet had to take them to Canada because white people could take them to court and then back to their original owners. Harriet was very important to the Underground Railroad and slavory.

I would rate this book five out of five because the book was fast moving, and when I have a fast moving book, then I read it faster than slow moving books. Harriet Tubman died in Auburn, New York at the age of 92. She will always be remebered as the Moses of her people because of her skills to take 300 slaves to freedom.