Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I just finished reading the Suzanne Collins trilogy.  I was wondering if any of you have read them, and what you think about grade level.  Online, I'm seeing from 5th grade up, some say 7th.  There was a lot of violence, but it was an important part of the plot and not too gory.  This first book in the trilogy made the New York Times Notable Children's Book and ALA Notable Children's Book Lists.  As well as ALA Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults and ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Readers lists.

 If you haven't read the books yet, here's what Publisher's Weekly has to say, "A gripping story set in a postapocalyptic world where a replacement for the United States demands a tribute from each of its territories: two children to be used as gladiators in a televised fight to the death.Katniss, from what was once Appalachia, offers to take the place of her sister in the Hunger Games, but after this ultimate sacrifice, she is entirely focused on survival at any cost. It is her teammate, Peeta, who recognizes the importance of holding on to one's humanity in such inhuman circumstances. It's a credit to Collins's skill at characterization that Katniss, like a new Theseus, is cold, calculating and still likable."

A Dragon's Child: The Story of Angel Island by Laurence Yep

This story is based on the transcripts from one family's immigration interviews with the United States immigration officials at Angel Island, off the coast of California. Parts of the story are fictional, but each chapter begins with one of the interegation questions that the main character, Gim Lew Yep, or his father were asked during their interviews. The interviews were very intense, and officials would ask very indepth questions about Gim's house, his family and their occupations, the neighbors and their homes, as well as the numbers of doors and windows within a home. Such questions were asked to ensure that another individual didn't enter into the US under false pretenses. This story was an eye-opener into Chinesse immigration.

All Stations Distress! by Don Brown

"THE "UNSINKABLE" MEETS THE UNTHINKABLE -- A gripping acount of the ill-fated maiden voyage of the Titanic. It took 4,000 men to build it, 23 tons of animal grease to slide it into the ocean, 100,000 people to wave bon voyage, but only one wrong move to tear the Titanic apart, sinking it into the pages of history. On a cold moonless night in April of 1912, 2,000 passengers--both the uber-rich enjoying a luxury cruise and the dirt-poor hoping to find a new life in America--struggled to survive. Only 700 suceeded. Lifeboats were launched half-full; women were forced to leave their husbands and sons behind; and even those who made it out alive were forever haunted, constantly wondering "why me?" Told through captivating prose and chilling first-hand accounts, Don Brown take the pieces of the broken Titanic and gives it such a vivid shape that you'd swear you've never heard the story before."--Mackin Educational Resources

Amazon.com Review.

The Maze of Bones (39 Clues- Book 1) by Rick Riordan

Amy and Dan, members of the powerful Cahill family, try to uncover the thirty-nine clues which will reveal the secrets of their lineage and find out what really happened to their parents. (From Follett)

Read the Amazon Book Review on this book.