"Skylab" By William J. Cromie

This is the true tale of Skylab, man's first Space Station. In 140 pages, this book tells the tale of all three missions into Skylab to collect information about what space does to humans. Not all that was planned happened in the missions, and disaster almost overcame the station from day one. But true to the motto of Skylab, "We fix anything," these errors were overcame. Much information was gathered in space, and new discoveries were made. It was proved that humans can survive an extensive period in space without complications. Many other discoveries were made, such as that forging is better done in space, where lack of gravity lets any element combine, and with less impurities. It was also found that spiders, after a little bit of time, can spin webs in zero-gravity. One interesting discovery is that an adult fish brought into space needs time to get used to swimming with no gravity, yet a fish born in space swims like it was meant to be there. This was a glorious book for me to read, and it made me realize just how far we've come. This, the information provided, and the images are the reason I give this book a 5/5 stars.

"The Language of Cookery An Informal Dictionary" By Betty Wason Illustrated by Ruth Feibelman

This book is for all those chefs out there. It is titled, "The Language of Cookery" and is just that. It is a dictionary of cooking terms, from A-1 Steak Sauce to Zwieback, it covers every cooking term you'll come across. It is an amazing book, with over 1100 words, and with an appendix section that includes Beef, Lamb, Pork, and Veal cuts, and also has a chart of pan sizes, and equivalent measures for dries, liquids, and foods. I enjoyed reading this book, as it increased my interest in cooking, and has given me new vocab, and a greater understanding of food terms and where they originate. For example, the term, "Cordon Bleu" is a French term that literally means, "Blue Ribbon," and is a famous French cooking school. Another example is that gingerbread is more of a spice cake than a bread. If you like to cook, or rather just eat, this book is a great one to have, in the kitchen, in the home, and anywhere you might cook. The book's coverage of terms is why I give it a 5/5 stars.

"Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry" By Mildred D. Taylor

The book, "Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry" is one that I read in Social Studies. It has won many awards, such as The Newberry Medal, it was a National Book Award nominee, it was an ALA Notable Book, and has won the Pacific Northwest Young Readers Award. It is the fictional tale of the Logan family living in Mississippi during the height of the 1930's Depression. As quoted from the jacket of the book, "More than a work of fiction, this is a story culled from Ms. Taylor's own family's life and it stands and it stands as an important record of an African-American experience from our country's complicated and not-so-distant past." I recommend this book for those who wish to look into the life of an African-American family during the depression. Such a vivid recollection of this kind of life, is why I give this book a Five of Five stars. I however, didn't really enjoy reading this book. True, the tale of Cassie is inspirational, but it didn't really capture my attention. Other than that, all aspects of the book were beautiful.

"Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events Book The First, The Bad Begining" By Lemony Snicket

This book is the first book in the Series of Unfortunate Events. It is the first book the author, Lemony Snicket worked on, and should be the first one you read. It is a fictional tale of three children, Violet, Clause, and Sunny Baudelaire. Violet is the oldest and wears a ribbon in her hair when thinking, Clause is the middle child who is an extravagant reader, who has probably read more books than most people do in a life time, and Sunny is the youngest, and is a baby who enjoys to bite. The book starts with the three of them at Briney Beach, when they receive terrible news from their family's friend and financial advisor, Mr. Poe. The Baudelaire's parents have died in a fire that burned down their entire mansion. The three orphans then are forced to live with their uncle Count Olaf. The three Baudelaires soon discover that he is a cruel man, who is the leader of a theater troupe. I would recommend this book to those who do not mind books with no happy endings. I give this book a 5 of 5 stars, as I can read and reread it, and still feel the story.

"Red Glass" by Laura Resau

In the book Red Glass Sophie, the main character, and her family meet this boy named Pablo. Pablo and Sophie take a trip to his village. Pablo must decide whether he wants to stay with Sophie or his family. to find out more about Pablo and Sophie's adventures read the book Red Glass by Laura Resau. i think this book should be rated a 5 out of 5.

"Jack's Run" by Roland Smith

This book by Roland Smith is the sequel to "Zach's Lie" and if you haven't read "Zach's Lie" yet you might want to do that before you read this book. This book is about a kid named Jack but in the middle of the story his name gets changed to Mack. In the last book, Jack messed up by telling people who he really was, but in this book someone else in his family messes up.... to find out who it is pick this book up at your local library. If I hadn't put the book down, it probably would have taken me two to three days to complete this book. It grabs your attention!

I rate this book a five out of five stars!

"The Lorax" by Doctor Seuss

The Lorax, by Doctor Seuss, is probably one of the best books I, or any other person, shall ever read. It is the tale of a little creature known as the Lorax, who is the guardian of the Truffula trees in his quest to try and stop the Once-ler. It becomes a sad tale, but one that truly shows what effect industry can have. I give this book a 5 out of 5, because of how it truly tells the story of what's being done to our environment. I don't want to spoil any part of the story for you, so I think I'll leave out the summary. But I will say that this book can be a great source of inspiration.

"The True Meaning of Smekday" by Adam Rex

You would think that a book about aliens conquering Earth would be full of futuristic weapons, gory battles, and lots of ugly, horrific aliens, right? What you might NOT expect, and what you get plenty of in "The True Meaning of Smekday," is a lot of laughs along with the aliens, the adventure, and an extremely plucky and likeable heroine. Gratuity Tucci is an 11-year-old trying to reunite with her mother after the latter is abducted by the conquering alien race of Boov. The Boov, a race of three-foot high creatures with tiny hands and many legs, have ordered the entire human race to Arizona, and Gratuity is determined to get there illegally by driving by herself in her mom's old car along with their pet cat, Pig. Complications ensue when:

1. her car is damaged by patrolling Boov
2. her car is fixed by a Boov calling himself J.Lo
3. J.Lo reveals he is on the run from other Boov because of a horrible mistake he has made, and
4. J.Lo's horrible mistake involved insulting yet another conquering race of aliens.

So how does Gratuity juggle traveling with an enemy alien, looking for her mom, and trying to save the human race? With a lot of adventure, determination, and acceptance that friendship and family often comes in unexpected combinations.

If you like your thrillers interspersed with a lot of fun, you will love this book. I rate it FIVE out of FIVE stars!

Check out the funny official website, too: http://www.smekday.com/