Book 30: Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane

Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane by Collins is the second book her the Underland Chronicles series. Although Gregor's father has returned home, life at their New York apartment is far from normal. His father is too ill from his time in the Underland to work, and the expenses related to his medical bills have pushed the family into a very tight financial position. Gregor has taken a once a week job assisting his neighbor Mrs. Cormaci, who gives him an old pair of boots that were just laying around and never fails to send him home without food for his own family. Shortly before Christmas, Gregor takes his youngest sister Boots sledding in Central Park, but in one unwatched instant she disappears. He quickly realizes that she has been taken back to the Underworld by some crawlers, calls his father to let him know what has happened, and heads after his sister. Ares finds him and flies him to Regalia where he reunites with his sister. The crawlers explain that the rats were after Boots trying to kill her because they believe that the prophecy of Bane means that her death will lead to their triumph. Gregor agrees to set out in search of the Bane, which is supposed to be a vicious, ten foot white rat, capable of leading the rats to victory over the people of the Underland. Gregor and a crew set out by boat to hunt for the Bane in the labyrinth. Before they even reach the labyrinth, they encounter giant squid, a whirlpool, flesh eating mites, and massive serpents and suffer both injury and loss. In the end the group becomes separated, and Gregor and Ares must finish the quest alone.

An excellent follow up to the original book Gregor the Overlander, my boys and I completely enjoyed Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane together as a read aloud and are looking forward to starting the third book in the series this coming week. I highly recommend this book for ages 7 and up.

Book 29: The Perfect 10 Diet

The Perfect 10 Diet: 10 Key Hormoes That Hold the Secret to Losing Weight and Feeling Great Fast! by Aziz proposes that many of the problems plaguing the health of individuals today can be traced to poor dietary habits that cause an imbalance of various hormone levels. The hormones that he focuses on include: insulin, glucagon, leptin, thyroid hormone, HGH, cortisol, DHEA, estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. The basic diet advocates a balance of 40% carbs, 40% fats, and 20% proteins; the elimination of refined foods, sugar, and trans fats; a focus on eating 3 meals a day with breakfast being the largest meal; and of course drinking plenty of water. He divides the plan into 3 stages including 3 weeks of no grains or alcohol followed by the addition of 1 to 3 whole grains per day while still losing weight, and then 3-4 servings of grains in the maintenance stage. He also advises exercising 3-4 days per week and includes sections dealing with common questions, diets for various medical issues, and sample meal plans and a few recipes for each stage.

Overall I found the arguments well-stated and intriguing, and I would say that the overall premise is sound. I found his information on dairy somewhat contradictory. He states that dairy is unnecessary and should be limited, yet at the same time he advocates cooking with butter and includes cheese, yogurt, and sour cream in many of his meal ideas. I'm also a fairly picky eater, so it's going to take some work to figure out how to make this work. Still if I could lose weight just eating my current foods, I wouldn't need to research a new diet. The book also lacks information on portion sizes. I found that information online in a bonus chapter. I also found a nice cheat sheet on a blog that looks really helpful. I would recommend this book for adults looking to eat healthier or lose weight.

Book 28: Medea

Medea by Euripides is the classic Greek tragedy telling the tale of the vengeance of Medea on her husband Jason after he decided to marry the daughter of King Creon in order to have a more secure position in the city of Corinth. Enraged by what she sees as her husband's infidelity, Medea hatches a plan to get revenge on her husband, his new bride, and the bride's father. Because of her anger, King Creon decrees that Medea must leave the city immediately but relents to allow her to stay for one day in order to make preparations for herself and her children. Medea then sends her children with poisoned garments to the new bride on the pretense of asking that they be allowed to remain in the city with their father. The princess and her father are both killed by the poison. In a final act of revenge, Medea murders her children and escapes from Jason's wrath with their bodies.

A classic tragedy, I would recommend Medea for ages 15 and up.

Book 27: Michael Vey Battle of the Ampere

Michael Vey Battle of the Ampere by Evans is the third installment in his young adult series. Separated from his friends and hunted by Elgen guards, Michael discovers Tessa, another of the original 17 kids in a native Amazon village. The villagers assist the two youths in reuniting with Jaime, the Peruvian contact who dropped the kids off at the compound. As the three hike through the jungle, Michael's friends are in far worse circumstances. Arrested by the Peruvian army, they have been branded terrorists by the Peruvian government for destroying the Elgen plant that was supplying power to nearly all of Peru. The team's first attempt at escape fails; but Michael, Tessa, and Jaime set up on the only rode to Cuzco to ambush the military convoy and free Michael's friends. Hatch, meanwhile, has arrested the Elgen board; taken control of the company; and is planning the establishment of an Elgen base in the Pacific. The voice wants Michael to not only rescue his friends, but also blow up the lead ship of the Elgen fleet, the Ampere. After the loss of one of their own in the rescue, the group is fracturing and only five are left to once again face Hatch in another perilous quest to stop his plans of global domination.

Michael Vey Battle of the Ampere is another excellent action packed tale sure to be enjoyed by readers of the previous books in the series. I would recommend it for ages 12 and up.

Book 26: Michael Vey Rise of the Elgen

Michael Vey Rise of the Elgen by Evans is the second book in the Michael Vey series for young adults. Having escaped the academy, Michael and his friends head back to Idaho to make plans to find and rescue Michael's mother from the Elgen. When they arrive, they discover Elgen guards waiting to recapture them, but working together and with a little help from a mysterious voice on a phone, they elude capture. Upon discovering that his mother is being held at the Elgen power plant complex in Peru, Michael enlists the aid of his mysterious new friend to get he and his friends safely to the edge of the compound; but the task before them is enormous. Not only is the Peru power plant complex the largest and most secure of the Elgen facilities, but Hatch has brought in all of the Elgen security forces to Peru for retraining in an attempt to consolidate his own power over the company. Once again Michael and his friends must rely on each other if they are to have any hope of not only success but also survival.

An excellent follow up to the previous book, Michael Vey Rise of the Elgen by Evans is an action packed adventure that I would recommend for ages 12 and up.

Book 25: Black Order

Black Order by Rollins is the third book in his Sigma Force series. A mysterious illness in a monastery in Nepal brings together Sigma Force's Director Crowe with Lisa Cummings, a nearby doctor who agrees to help local forces, to investigate the madness that suddenly descended on it. When clandestine forces arrive to destroy all of the evidence, the two try to flee but are soon captured and taken to a nearby castle. The hidden group of scientists as well as director Crowe have also been exposed to the radiation released after the sabotage of their secret experiment, so they band together to try to find the saboteur and a cure before time runs out. Meanwhile, Gray Pierce is attacked in Copenhagen while investigating a plot related to the sale of rare works by Victorian era scientists. He links the sale to a mysterious Nazi society responsible for horrific experiments in the 1940s. He and his team are captured and taken to South Africa. while Sigma Force links his case with the work in Nepal and the deteriorating Crowe and the other survivors from Nepal travel to South Africa to seek a cure. Time is running out for Pierce to save his team, his director, and the rest of the world from the threat of a Nazi mastermind determined to bring about a new world order.

Black Order is another well-written, action-packed tale in the spirit of the previous books in the series. I would recommend it for ages 18 and up.

Book 24: Michael Vey the Prisoner of Cell 25

Michael Vey: the Prisoner of Cell 25 by Evans is the first book in the Michael Vey series for young adults. Michael Vey is a quiet 14 year old with Tourette's syndrome living in a quiet town in Idaho with his mom. Only he, his mom, and his best friend Ostin know that Michael has electric powers until one day when some bullies at school push Michael too far, and he sends all three flying backward with an electric shock. The whole incident is witnessed by a cheerleader named Taylor, who quickly befriends Michael and reveals that she too has electric powers. Their search for the cause of these powers alerts a powerful group who has been searching for the two teens for several years. Taylor and Michael's mom and kidnapped, and Michael heads to Pasadena to try to rescue them. He and those helping him are captured by the Elgen group, and the leader Hatch threatens to harm Michael's friends and his mom if he doesn't choose to cooperate, join the group, and help them rule the world. When Michael refuses to use his power for murder, he is thrown into cell 25. With the secret help of new friends, Michael not only survives but remains determined and hopeful; and Hatch soon discovers that he has greatly underestimated not only his determination but also his power.

I picked up this book to preread it as a possible title to pass along to my girls, and thoroughly enjoyed myself. I would recommend it for ages 12 and up and am looking for to reading the other two books that are currently available in the upcoming weeks.