Book Title: Imani All Mine

Author: Connie Porter

Rate: 7/10

Warnings: harsh language and actions. adult content.

Imani All Mine tells the story of a young 14 year old girl by the name of Tasha. She lives in the slums with her, and her mother. She attends highschool, and gets exceedingly good grades, but the atmosphere around her is very hard. She winds up becoming pregnant and this story tells of her journey and viewpoint of what she is going through. She decides to name her baby "Imani" symbolizing faith. Other characters that are portrayed in this story are Peanut, Eboni, Miss Odetta, and Tasha's mother. At first I didn't think I could relate or enjoy this book, but I found it hard to put it down. It made me think about other peoples lives and how blessed I am. It opened up a whole new world to me. I feel more for the people who struggle and want to help them someday. Throughout the book her way of life is written page to page, and I couldnt imagine what she went through. I would recommend this book to those who don'd mind adult content. I found it very insightful. A few things I got from this book is to not judge others. Tasha was raped and that is how she became pregnant. Also, accept other people. Although others may be different, we are more the same.

"Maybe I am getting too grown to want to sleep with Mama. But like a baby, I still have this smallness to my mind. I don't need her hands to convince me the world I can't see from under my blanket is real. I need her hands to do more than her words. Convince me the world I see outside it- ain't.” 

Stargirl

 Jerry Spinelli

This book is a whirlpool of imagination and acceptance. It centers itself around a girl, "Stargirl", who moves to an area called Mica, Arizona. It also focuses on a character named Leo Borlock's junior year at Micah High School. Stargirl impacts his life greatly.

Leo helps direct a "Television" show, on the school's announcements. There him and his best friend, Kevin, interview students and do other segments.

Stargirl's abnormalities are what make her herself. She shocks the entire school and becomes the topic of conversation. The students are buzzing about her day to day. At first the people are pushed away by her extremely happy attitude, weird perks, unusual way of living,and dress and appearance. They feel as though she is too strange to befriend. Later on in the story they discover she isn't so bad, she actually be comes wildly popular and all students are wanting to befriend her. She becomes a cheerleader, and when starting to cheer for the other team as well, gets kicked out of the popular croud. This book is a twisting and turning of events of love, acceptance, and highschool in general. Every student should read this. It is a very inspiring book and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for a good, quick read, especially middle school students and high school students.

rate: 8/10

warnings:

recommend to: middle school students and high school students.

“Nothing’s more fun than being carried away.”

“The earth is speaking to us, but we can’t hear because of all the racket our senses are making. Sometimes we need to erase them, erase our senses. Then–maybe–the earth will touch us. The universe will speak. The stars will whisper.”

“You know, there’s a place we all inhabit, but we don’t much think about it, we’re scarcely conscious of it, and it lasts for less than a minute a day…. It’s in the morning, for most of us. It’s that time, those few seconds when we’re coming out of sleep but we’re not really awake yet. For those few seconds we’re something more primitive than what we are about to become. We have just slept the sleep of our most distant ancestors, and something of them and their world still clings to us. For those few moments we are unformed, uncivilized. We are not the people we know as ourselves, but creatures more in tune with a tree than a keyboard. We are untitled, unnamed, natural, suspended between was and will be, the tadpole before the frog, the worm before the butterfly. We are, for a few brief moments, anything and everything we could be. And then… and then–ah–we open our eyes and the days is before us, and–we become ourselves.”

My five favorite things!

1. I love to dance. It is the greatest form of expression for me.

2 I love to hangout with my cousins. we go to my cabin a lot and fourwheel, go boating, play in the game room, and hunt. We always have a good time together even outside of my cabin.

3. I love to hang out with my friends. and go to parties!

4. I love to watch baseball and basketball!

5. I love music!