The book is about Edward and Alfonse Elric who are both alchemists. They work for the government and are considered guardians of the people. Their goal is to find the Philosopher's stone so they can bring back their ruined bodies and their mother.

This is probably the best manga I have read so far. I love the facial expressions and my favorite part was when Edward was freaking out over the fact that he's short. He strongly reminded me of some of my shorter friends.

I would recommend this book to really anybody. If you kind of like the magical component of Harry Potter and are into semi war stories, then this book is perfect for you.

Analise, 12

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Sets in the fictional city of Janloon, Jade City is an Asia-inspired fantasy novel revolves around the No Peak clan, an organization that is similar to the crime/mafia families, in the conflicting war with their rivalry, the Mountain Clan. It is a story of family, honor, greed, wealth, power, and loyalty.

I loved it! It was one of the best novels I have ever read. The biggest highlight for me in this book is the relationships in the family, specifically the No Peak Clan. I would compare their dynamics to the Corleone family in The Godfather, where you see how much they love the others and how important loyalty are to them. Every single character feels like they have a lot of history with each other, you will never feel bog down by their interactions. The plot is intriguing and suspenseful, there's twists and turns that will leave your mouth open, but they feel earned and not out of nowhere. There's barely any action, but when the action hits, it hits hard. Fonda Lee wrote the action scenes in the veins of martial arts films or wuxia films. The magic system, it is a fantasy novel, is unique and visually appealing but not well developed but I think the readers could understand what is going on when the magic comes in. The worldbuilding is well crafted, the atmosphere and the social aspects are inspired by Hong Kong in the 20th century and you can feel it. It was a fantastic read for me.

I highly recommend Jade City to fans of The Godfather and have interests in martial arts or Hong Kong. This is an adult fantasy novel, so there are some vulgar languages and scenes that might not appealing to you but they are a small part of the book. Also if you enjoy a good and loyal family, well-developed sibling relationships, you would devour this book.

Minh, 16

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Gabi's high school life life is stressful. She faces many external struggles like her father's meth addiction, a friend's pregnancy, another friend's sexuality struggles, and her own body image issues, all the while helping or hurting her relationships.

I loved Gabi's personality from her vulnerability, her loyalism, and her fierceness. I also loved the author's interpretation of Gabi's bilingualism. Gabi's fluency goes so far so that she feels confident in it. When she paraphrases a meaning or expands upon a sentence in different languages, it adds an extra layer of authenticity to her character.

I would recommend this book to anyone who has any form of doubts surrounding their relationships, whether it be with with family, friends, or lovers. Gabi shares her vulnerable parts, so it doesn't make one feel uncomfortable for having their own intrusive thoughts or insecurities. For me, it made me feel validated to have second thoughts or "what if" moments. Definitely worth a second read!

Lucia, 14

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Regretting You goes back and forth between the mother’s point of view and the daughter’s point of view. It shows them going through love and loss.

Regretting You is a good book because it shows that no matter at what age or how much time has passed you can still relate to your parents or a parent figure. The book has many sad moments but also caring loving moments.

I recommend people that are close to a parent figures and share things with them. The book also explains how it feels to deal with grief for someone you’ve loved so much but has betrayed you.

Nadia, 16

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House on Mango Street is a coming-of-age story that shares one year in the life of Esperanza Cordero, a young Chicana struggling with questions of identity. Living in a Latinx neighborhood, Esperanza attempts to come to terms with her surroundings.

It was okay, some of the chapters were a bit weird and some were sad. Each chapter talked about a certain person in Esperanza's neighborhood struggling with different problems. Overall it was great not a bad book.

If you like reading, this book uses simple wording to convey powerful feelings and emotions, all of which I felt as I read it for myself both the first and second times through. This book teaches you that you always belong even if you don't feel like you do.

Jacqueline, 15

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In this dystopian novel, one girl decides to break away from her family's faction when she comes of age. She enters into a world of secrets and bravery as she tries to hide the fact that she's different from society.

I loved the novel Divergent. It was a real page-turner. This book makes you think of the true characteristics that people have and that message is given in such a creative way in which is easy to understand.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone that loves dystopian stories. Readers of The Hunger Games would definitely love this book because of the style and concepts that are written.

Gavin, 15

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