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Who knew that pirates could exist in real life?

Pirates are usually told in fairy tales but according to Adrienne Kress, and award winning writer, Adrienne Kress, not anymore. This adventure book has a mixture of real life and fantasy and it has attracted a lot of readers

Not only is this book thrilling and exciting but all of the characters are unique in their own way. Sometimes the characters are really unexpected when they are introduced and the book has an outstanding balance of helpful and unhelpful characters. 

This story is about a girl named Alex who doesn’t have parents so she lives with her uncle. Then a new teacher came by called Mr. Underwood. Alex doesn’t know how his arrival can change her life. Mr. Underwood’s house gets burned down and he tells Alex about the “Wigpowder Treasure”. Mr.Underwood lives with Alex’s family when Alex finds out that her uncle was mysteriously murdered and that Mr. Underwood is kidnapped.

She starts a journey to find her only family left, Mr.Underwood. Will she find Mr.Underwood or even survive? You must find out by reading the book.

 Hi Rachael,

I thought that I should recommend this book to you because you like to read mystery books. This book is all about an evil shop called “The Life Shop”. It gives you absolutely anything you need but for that, you have to pay with something more important then money. The main character Lorna has a little brother called Charlie. Lorna is a very brave straightforward, and a caring girl. She is always curious and sometimes easily frustrated by thing but she isn’t afraid to admit her feelings. The author Margaret McAllister describes the main setting very inviting but cruel. The place is very colorful, polished and looks comfortable but it makes you uncomfortable when you realize that this is where all the cruel decisions were made. She tells the story in 1^st person and the present tense blends in very well with the story. The minor characters her brother and her best friend’s brother Kieron help her throughout the journey whereas the other main characters don’t help at all whatsoever, her mom gets tricked by the catalogue and Simon is the boss of the crime. This story begins where Lorna hangs out with her best friend Fern as usual when her mom finds a catalog, which is no surprise for Lorna because Fern’s mom always bought things from the catalogue. A while later, the catalogue is read by everyone around the world. Lorna starts noticing that the people around her looks lifeless, even her mom except for Fern’s brother Kieron.  He and Lorna decide to find out what the life shop is up to. Lorna sets up a fake interview with Simon and Kieron decides to work for them but Lorna soon finds out the Kieron is hypnotized as well leaving only her to solve the problem. Will she be able to help Kieron and find out what the life shop is after? But most importantly, will she be able to stop the life shop? I hope that I convinced you to read this book and I am sure that you’ll love it.

This book, “The Dragon Keeper” is an extremely thrilling book and I am sure that absolutely no one will regret reading it. What makes the book absorbent is the fact that all of the characters are unique.

I think that Caroline Wilkinson, the author, put a lot of effort writing this book and I was fortunate to read this book recommended by Rachael. My favorite genre is realistic fiction so it was amusing to read a different genre myth/legend. The book is told in past tense with the setting time in present but because of the locations and the scenery that you create in your head, you begin to wonder when this all actually happened.

The story takes place in China and the way the author describes the setting makes the book engaging. The main character Ping worked in a palace that was not kept clean at all. She was forced to sleep in the dark cold dungeon everyday. I think that  Ping’s personality shows a lot in this part of the book because she has to be brave and smart. She is also modest, curious and gifted. When Ping is ordered to steal wine from the palace where all slaves are forbidden, she overhears that they were going to sell the dragons . Ping knew that there was only 1 dragon left and she that she had to free it as soon as possible. She let the dragon go when the guards catch her.

The dragon  helps her escape and they fly to a mountain far away from the palace. In return to saving her life, Ping agrees to accompany the dragon to the ocean-a place she had never been before.

She is told to keep the dragon stone-the dragon’s most prized possession safe, even if it meant risking her life. They set off on the long trip not knowing that there were dangers to overcome. 

NAME: Sakurako Naka

        GENRE READING – BOOK INFORMATION

These are some useful websites on how to draw cartoon characters for anything or even to become a better drawer.We thought that they were very helpful because it shows the steps clearly and it is easy to copy and draw it. It also helps you with your drawing ability and it doesn’t take long. It gives you quotes and tips and teaches you step by step so it is easy to follow the directions. We know that this works because we tried it and it turned out perfectly. This makes your drawing a lot easier and not complicated. Before you know you will become a professional artist and will be able to draw anything you want to at any time. These websites will allow you to draw people, animals and even objects. We hope you enjoy drawing from this website as much as we did! All you have to do is click one of our links and it will take you straight there.

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enjoy the websites like we did too!!!

If I won a fantasy factory, it would be overflowing, wall to wall with purikuras. There would be uncountable numbers of them and each one, different to others and unique in lots of ways. Inside, there would be bars, chairs, couches and everything you could possibly imagine!

For a brief description, purikuras are similar to photo booths except they are not black & white and you can decorate the pictures that you took.A lot of people like to take purikuras especially with their friends. You can put color contacts and even change their hair colors. You can also send pictures that you took to your cell phone. Purikuras are very famous in Japan but rarely known in other countries. 

It will be separated in different categories, world regions, animals, and maybe even one that looks like a normal room in someones house! For additional changes, I will add a new technology that will actually cut the pictures for you and also send the pictures to your computers. Also, I will have a room that has clothes, costumes and different items for you to dress up to take pictures in! In the middle there would be a space for a disco to get you automatically excited.

The whole place will have a stunning wallpaper covered in glitter all over with colorful swirls that will amaze you. There would be music that you would want to dance to and there would be muti-colored lights shining everywhere. It would be a perfect place to spend time and the people that would work there would have a lot of fun because all they would have to do would just be taking plenty of splendid pictures!

I came up with the idea of my dream factory being a purikura factory because it is one of my hobbies and I think that it is inspiring of how somebody created such an astonishing machine. I would be delighted if they become more common in other countries because nobody that I have ever met has not liked to take purikuras. I strongly advise anyone who has never taken a purikura to take one because I think that it makes life happier and you always laugh when you find yourself with a funny face as well as looking at the pictures you took with someone that you haven’t seen for a very long time.

During the winter vacation, I have been reading the Golden Compass series number 1,2, and I have been reading a little of the 3^rd book. I think that it is an extraordinary book and I can read it the whole day through! Many of you should probably know the first book “The Golden Compass” that was made into a movie. I personally think that the book is better than the movie because it describes everything more specific and it makes it more fascinating to read. It introduces new characters often so you can always look forward to more excitement in the book. At some parts you have to read it over because it is hard to understand when it introduces the character later in the book or forget who’s talking. The author sometimes makes it harder to read so that it becomes more interesting, and also, there is always a minor question, which makes you want to read further to find out what the answer is. It is also an amusement to read Lyra (the main character) take risks to help her friends and family. This book contains a lot of trust, adventure and cooperation. It is a complete fantasy book but the author makes it sound like it is in real life so you think what would happen if it were true. Lyra is a smart brave intelligent girl and everything about her makes you admire her thoughts and her tough commitments. She is very curious about everything and she is able to take care of herself, but the author also makes it so that she is not perfect so she makes mistakes time to time. I think that one of the main points that makes this book interesting to read is how the author uses descriptive language and splendid uses of Imagery. I recommend every one out there to read this book and I assure you it is worth it.

I’m really happy that Obama won the election.

I heard that  he wont be president until January.

My favorite 2 books are the “The Grim Sisters” and “Jane Blonde”.

I really like The Grim Sisters because it includes stories that everyone knows and it is probably one of the most exciting books you’ll ever read!

I really like The Grim Sisters but Jane Blonde is the BEST! You can imagine that you’re actually there and you just cant stop reading!

I think that we should definitely have field trips because they turn into great memories, know more about people, lots of experiences and a great way to communicate!

At the Hakuba camp, I learned a lot and I had great experiences and made more friends and became closer to those that already are. I know that i’ll remember it when I’m in high school!