Abel's Island by William Steig

This book wasn't my favorite book, but it was pretty good. I liked that it had some illustrations in it, but it wasn't filled with them like a picture book.
One day Abel and Amanda(mice) went into the woods for a picnic. In the middle of their picnic it started pouring so Abel and Amanda ran to the first covered place they could find. The place that they found was a tree with other furry creatures inside. When everybody was looking at the rain Amanda's scarf blew off her neck. Abel left the tree and got her scarf, but he got blown away by the wind. He ended up on an island. He tried to get off the island every way he could: by swimming, sailing, stepping stones and even flying.

One day Abel met a frog and he became friends with the him. The waves slowed down and the frog left. Abel tried to get off of the island again. This time he succeeded by swimming and jumping onto near by rocks. He went home and lived a happy life with Amanda, his wife.

When I was reading this book, I thought it would end with Abel still on the island. I am happy that he did make it home.

The Lucky Baseball by Susanne Lieurance

This book is about a boy named Harry and his friend Mike who are excluded from baseball because they are Japanese-American.

In the beginning of the book, Harry goes down to a drawing for a contest at Mr.Weaver's General Store. When he gets there and the drawing starts, Harry's name gets pulled from the barrel. He wins a baseball signed by Joe DiMaggio and a chance to meet him.

Everything is normal until one day when the Japenese bomb Pearl Harbor.

Harry and all the other Japanese Americans are forced to go to a special camp that is off in the mountains, called Manzanar. They are sent there because the American government doesn't trust them. It is afraid they might help the Japanese by spying on special headquarters and sending messages to the Japanese.

When they are at Manzanar they get covered in dust and the food is not good—lots of canned fruit and lumps of rice. They have 20'x25' apartments with one window, one lightbulb and metal cots. While they are at the camps Harry's grandparents and his dad(Papa) volentered to be cooks at the mess hall. Harry decides to start a baseball game. He picks team captins: he and Mary. Then Chester (the bully) bumps Mary out and says that he is captain. Chester picks the date for the big game but what Harry dosen't know is that he can't go. It is on the same date as a big birthday that he will have to be the waiter for. What will he do? Will he go to the game or the birthday? What he tried to do was pretty clever…I hope you read the book to find out.

I was glad this book was historical fiction, because I learned about World War II. I never knew that there were internment camps in America. I don't think these camps were fair because the Japanese-Americans were being punished for something that they didn't do.

Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen

In the beginning, there was a poor (money-free) twelve year old boy whose life changed on his birthday when his grandma gave him an old riding lawn mower. While he was riding around town on his lawn mower a man came up to him and asked him how much he charges. He said $20. Once he finished, the person around the corner asked him to mow his lawn. That was how his lawn business started. He kept mowing. One day he met Arnold who paid him in stocks. He eventually became his manager. Arnold invested in a few companies. What happens when Arnold invests in a prize-fighter? Will he win big or lose everything? Read this book to find out. I liked this book because it was a quick read and it had a lot of twists and turns. I liked this book and I hope you do to.

Origami Fortune Teller

First get a square piece of paper

Next fold the paper like a book

Now unfold the paper

Turn the paper so the crease goes through the center

Fold the paper in half again

Next unfold the paper so there will be a plus

Now fold the corners to the center of the paper

Flip it over and do the same thing on the back

Next you fold it in half

Finally open it up by squeezing the top two corners

Now write things inside and tell people's fortune

How to Make a Swan

1. Put your origami paper down so it's a diamond.

2. Fold your origami paper in half so it's a triangle.

3. Unfold the last fold (keeping it like a diamond with crease down the middle)

4. Fold the two outside corners in so they meet up with the crease line. It should look like a kite.

5. Fold the new outside corners in so they meet up with the crease line.

6. Flip the paper over so you can see the crease line.

7. Now fold up the bottom point to meet the top point of the paper.

8. Turn the paper to the left.

9. Fold the paper up in half together.

10. Fold up the inner narrow triangle, this will be the swan's head and neck.

11. Fold down the top of the narrow triangle and it will be the beak.

12. Pinch the swan's body together and fold up the flaps to make it's feet.

13. And now you have completed your swan!

I hope you like it because I did!

Choose Your Own Adventure: Journey Under the Sea

I started a series called Choose Your Own Adventure. I liked Journey Under The Sea best because you get to explore under water. There were a lot of different endings. My favorite story path was battling a giant squid and finding a map to the center of the earth, then going to the center of the earth. It was really fun there! I read five different endings but I liked that one the best. I hope you like it because I did.

Magic Tree House #40: Eve of the Emperor Penguin

In this mission Jack and Annie get sent to Antartica. Antartica is at the south pole. Jack and Annie walk until they find penguins. Jack saves one.Then Jack and Annie keep walking until they get to a bus. They get on the bus. Then they arrive at a helicopter and fly to a place to get ready to go riding on the mountain. They have to go home because only adults can do it. When they are waiting for the helicopter they fall in a ditch and find the Emperor penguin.The Emperor penguin shows them the penguin that Jack saved. The Emperor said the penguin will help your friend, Merlin. They speed to Camlot to get Merlin better and then go home. I hope you like this book because I did.