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Spring 2005 Review:

Book Cover Counting Stars

David Almod

Dell Laurel-Leaf Books

© 2004

Counting the Stars by David Almond is a collection of short stories that are loosely based on the author's childhood experiences. The stories are basically all science-fiction, and I do not understand how they can be based on the author's life. The only decently good story in the whole entire book is called "The Baby". It was actually the only remotely good story in the book, and the only one that actually made any sense. For me, none of the stories made a deep connection with me; probably because my least-favorite genre is science-fiction.

I would recommend this book for high school students because I think that it is so advanced, confusing, and without a plot, that only students of this caliber (maybe not even them) would even begin to understand the meaning of this story. At first, the book sounded like I would really enjoy it, but I struggled trying to finish it. I wanted to stop reading it but I didn't. When it was over, I couldn't believe how utterly meaningless it was in my mind. It made absolutely no sense to me, and I am still puzzled by it.
 

~ Jon Gluckner, grade 8, Boardman Center Middle School

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