Matt's Column

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=100 BGCOLOR="#999933" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="03900700ddwnfv.gif"> <div> <B><IMG SRC="38e251e0.jpg" border=0 width="293" height="30" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#FFFFCC" FACE="Arial" ><B><IMG SRC="38d011e0.jpg" border=0 width="257" height="30" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></FONT></div> <div> <A HREF="mailto:Bluesette3@aol.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:Bluesette3@aol.com"><U>E-Mail Matt, the Webmaster</U></A> Read a Book? 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I may go crazy, or I a many not. Time will tell. This website will chronicle my insanity. You will recieve news from the frontline of the BBYA, what's hot this year, and my personal reviews and thoughts on a day by day basis.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>The Outcast of 19 Schuyler Place - E.L. Konigsburg</B><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Garamond" ><B><IMG SRC="1c552670.gif" border=0 width="82" height="103" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></FONT></div> <div> The summer she's twelve -- the same year that Cabbage Patch dolls are popular, that Sally Ride becomes the first American woman in space, that El Niño affects weather patterns worldwide and causes disasters on almost every continent of the planet Earth -- Margaret Rose Kane must confront a catastrophe brewing in her own backyard. Freshly rescued from a miserable experience at Camp Talequa, where she was housed with seven cruel cabin mates, Margaret is looking forward to spending the rest of her summer with her beloved great-uncles, Morris and Alexander. Little does she know, the Uncles themselves are in need of a rescue. </div> <div> For the last forty-five years, the Uncles have been building three giant towers in their backyard from scrap metal and shards of glass and porcelain. But now, bowing to pressures from some powerful home owners, the towers have been declared a blight on the neighborhood. Even worse, the city council has voted to have them destroyed. Margaret Rose is outraged. She knows the towers for what they truly are: irreplaceable works of art. To Margaret, the towers sing. They sing of the joy of making something big and beautiful out of bits and pieces; of integrity; but perhaps most important of all, they sing of history. And Margaret Rose is determined to make sure they always will. </div> <bR> <div> Genre: <IMG SRC="5d732320.gif" border=0 width="50" height="50" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Age Appeal: <IMG SRC="57a384e0.jpg" border=0 width="56" height="78" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Reviewed by: Matt</div> <div> Age: 17</div> <div> Rating: 8.93</div> <bR> <div> Overall this book was very excellent. The characters were a real strength in this novel from the quirky uncles to the incorrigible narrator. The setting was very well described, and the three towers seemed to add a lot of life to the novel. However, the novel lacks quite a bit of plot. The entire thing eventually turns into a large legal case. While I enjoyed that aspect of it, it really was not that exciting. Additionally, the foreshadowing element in this novel tended to ruin the ending for me, which was unfortunate. Also, everything seemed to wrap up too "nicely" in the end. Overall, though it was a very excellent read with strong characters and a detailed setting.</div> <bR> <div> <B>February 10th, 2004</B></div> <div> Alright, I finished my first book for the BBYA, <U>The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place,</U> and my review is as follows.</div> <bR> <div> <B>February 4th, 2004</B></div> <div> I have begun placing titles on hold. This journal will continue when some of the titles come in.</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>