Book 15

Title: Wuthering Heights

Author: Emily Bronte

Pages: 284

Date finished: May 29, 2010

Publication: 1907

Grade: 8.5/10

Plot:
The name of the novel comes from the Yorkshire manor on the moors on which the story centres. The narrative tells the tale of the all-encompassing and passionate, yet thwarted, love between Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw, and how this unresolved passion eventually destroys them and many around them.

Book 14

Title: Vampire Diaries pt. 2 The Struggle

Author: L. J. Smith

Pages: 237

Date finished: May 26, 2010

Publication: 1991

Grade: 8/10

Plot:
Picking up where The Awakening left off, Elena confronts Damon about Stefan's disappearance. But when Elena stands firm on her rejection of Damon's romantic advances, Damon refuses to help find Stefan. Elena must turn to her best friends, Bonnie McCullough and Meredith Sulez. Bonnie, who is a witch, uses magic to track down Stefan. The girls discover Stefan trapped in the bottom of a well, close to death. After Stefan's rescue, Elena offers him her blood to recover.

Book 13

Title: Carrie

Author: Stephen King

Pages: 245

Date finished: May 22, 2010

Publication: 1974

Grade: 9/10

Plot:
It revolves around the titular character Carrie, a shy high-school girl, who uses her newly discovered telekinetic powers to exact revenge on those who tease her. King has commented that he finds the work to be "raw" and "with a surprising power to hurt and horrify." It is one of the most frequently banned books in United States schools. Much of the book is written in an epistolary structure, through newspaper clippings, magazine articles, letters, and excerpts from books.

Book 12

Title: Impulse

Author: Ellen Hopkins

Pages: 666

Publication: 2007

Date finished: May 18, 2010

Grade: 10/10

Book 11

Title: Slaughterhouse-Five

Author: Kurt Vonnegur, Jr

Pages: 215

Publication: 1969

Date finished: May 9, 2010

Grade: 10/10

Book 10

Title: The Giver

Author: Lois Lowry

Pages: 180

Publication: 1993

Date finished: April 16, 2010

Grade: 10/10

Plot:
The novel follows a boy named Jonas through the twelfth year of his life. The society has eliminated pain and strife by converting to "Sameness", a plan which has also eradicated emotional depth from their lives. Jonas is selected to inherit the position of "Receiver of Memory," the person who stores all the memories of the time before Sameness, in case they are ever needed to aid in decisions that others lack the experience to make. When Jonas meets the Giver, he is confused in many ways. The Giver is also able to break some rules, such as turning off the speaker and locking his door. As Jonas receives the memories from the previous receiver—the "Giver"—he discovers the power of knowledge. The people in his community are happy because they don't know of a better life but with the knowledge of what they are missing out on it could create chaos. He faces a dilemma: Should he stay with the community, his family living a shallow life without love, color, sound and knowledge or should he run away to where he can live a full life?

Book 9

Title: Vampire Diaries: The Awakening Book 1

Author: L.J. Smith

Pages: 253

Publication: 1991

Date finished: April 19, 2010

Grade: 10/10

Plot:
The first volume of the series introduces the reader to Elena Gilbert, a popular high school student in Fell's Church, Virginia, and her best friends Bonnie, Meredith, and Matt. A former friend, Caroline, is also introduced and revealed to be Elena's antagonist. As her senior year at Robert E. Lee High School begins, Elena meets and becomes involved with a mysterious new student, Stefan Salvatore. At the Homecoming Dance, Elena is upset to see that Caroline has shown up with Stefan, and later leaves with Dick, Tyler, and Vickie to go to the cemetery. After getting Elena alone with him in the graveyard, an intoxicated Tyler begins to assault her, but she is rescued and brought home by Stefan. As Elena and Stefan fall in love, strange attacks begin to happen in the town, and Elena encounters another mysterious man - Damon, who turns out to be Stefan's older brother. During a Halloween fundraiser at the high school, Bonnie finds their history teacher, Mr. Tanner, dead. When Elena leaves to go to the boarding house where Stefan is staying, she finds him on the roof, feeding on a dove. She starts to back away in fear and falls from the roof, but he catches her and then they both go back up to his room. Stefan reveals his past, and explains that he wasn't avoiding her, but protecting her. Stefan tells of his love for a young vampire named Katherine, and his fight against his brother to get her. He says that Elena reminds him of Katherine, and that Katherine was unable to choose between him and his brother. Katherine killed herself, claiming it was an attempt to bring the two brothers together. However, her death just fueled their feud, and Stefan and Damon fight, resulting in both of their deaths, and re-awakenings as Vampires. After Stefan takes Elena home, Damon shows up to taunt Stefan with his own desire for Elena. This leads to a vicious fight. In the morning, Elena becomes extremely upset with Stefan's disappearance.