Author: Roland Smith

Reviewer: Keenan Torres (age 14)

Summary:  Peak, a 14 year old boy who was caught trying to scale skyscrapers, attempts to be the youngest person ever to summit Everest.  Taken into custody by his mountain-climbing father, Peak jumps at the idea of climbing the highest mountain in the world.  However, as time wears on, he wonders if his father had other motives to take him in rather than just to spend time with him.

Response:  Peak was one of the more interesting books that I have read in the past year.  I’ve never really read a book centering on a climb up Mt. Everest, and this book thoroughly described the most difficult climb in the world.  It educated me on Everest through the plot in an intriguing way, and in no way dragged on at all.  From a strict literary standpoint, I have to say that I’m surprised that Peak did not win an award.  It seemed like a book that the  judges would have liked.  I’m not saying that it deserved an award, as I often disagree with the judges who give out them.  However, Peak was a very good book.

            Peak, the main character and namesake of the title, was a greatly crafted character by the author.  I could easily relate to him, thinking that I would react to certain situations in a similar way.  Saying any more would give away the plot’s climax, so I’ll keep my mouth shut.  Overall, Peak was an entertaining read that kept me awake for hours struggling to find out what would happen.  The book is incredibly intense at some points, and the slow parts are few and far between.

Grades: (with 1 being low and 5 being high)

            Violence: 3/5  Climbing a mountain may sound like a fun way to exercise, but this book centers on the cold, harsh reality of what scaling massive peaks is really like.  People die on the climbs, and this is shown clearly in the novel.  Frostbite, sickness, and extreme cold are all conditions the climbers must deal with.  References are also made to the Chinese’s harsh treatment of the Tibetans.

            Sexual Content: 2/5  In a completely unnecessary line in the book, Peak overhears a climber saying this about his father, “Josh is so cute!  What do you think he’d do if I snuck into his tent one night?”  Nothing more is made of this through the rest of the book, but this is a prime example of the things that we Christians have to deal with in all forms of entertainment – unnecessary sexuality thrown in for no reason at all.

            Language: 2/5  A** and Jacka** are used briefly, and a subtle reference is made to showing the middle finger.

            Anti-Christian Elements: 3/5  One of the major characters is a Buddhist monk.  He makes all of the climbers participate in Buddhist prayer ceremonies, in which they make flags and hang them on a pole.  He also uncannily predicts the weather perfectly.  A statement that he makes is repeated throughout the book, “You never know who the mountain will allow and who it will not.”  This is blatantly untrue, as we know that only God has the power to decide such things.

            Christian Themes: 0/5  Buddhism is the only religion mentioned in this book.

            Torres Family Recommendation:  I can recommend this book from ages 13 and up, but with a warning to watch out for the places where this book slips up and recognize them.  If you can do that, Peak will be an entertaining read for you and will keep you up for hours, just like it did for me.

Author: Kenneth Oppel

Reviewer:  Keenan Torres (age 14)

Summary:  A young chiropter (bat-like gliding creature) in prehistoric times deals with his differences, death, and migration.

Response:  Kenneth Oppel created an absolute masterpiece with his “bat series” of Silverwing, Sunwing, and Firewing.  Each book left me stunned and speechless.  When I first caught a glimpse of Darkwing at a bookstore, I became very excited.  I assumed it to be a fourth book in the series.  When I picked it up, however, I realized that it was not actually connected to the series, but a story of how bats began.  Yet again, I thought that another author had written a cheap unnecessary prequel.  I set it back down and didn’t give it much thought…

…until I actually picked it up about a year later to read it.  I was hooked from the moment I read the prologue.  Kenneth Oppel did not write a poorly written prequel, as I had expected, but had created a completely original story that was filled with adventure, deep characters, and sorrow.  I left my chair and was immersed in a prehistoric realm that was thoroughly researched by the author and realistic.  When I finished it, I felt I wanted more, not in a regretful way, but a “that book was so good I didn’t want it to end” way.  Believe me, if you enjoy any sort of animal fiction, or like Kenneth Oppel’s books, you will absolutely love this one.  In my opinion, this book was the best he has ever written.

Grades: (with 1 being low and 5 being high)

            Violence: 4/5  Being a prehistoric story, this book contains some intense violence.  The bat-like creatures are attacked numerous times by carnivorous predators, and bloody mayhem follows.  However gruesome the violence is, it is never centered on humans, who never appear in this novel.

            Sexual Content: 1/5  Mates are referred to, but there is nothing sexual in this books as it deals only with animals.

            Language: 0/5

            Anti-Christian Elements: 3/5  The downfall of this book, if it has one, is the fact that it promotes evolution.  It is the major theme in the novel, as the main character deals with the fact that he is more evolved than his friends and family.

            Christian Themes: 0/5

            Torres Recommendation:  Because of the violence in this novel, I can only recommend it from ages 14 and up. 

Director:  Conrad Vernon and Rob Letterman

Reviewer:  Keenan Torres (age 14)

Summary:  Susan (Reese Witherspoon) is hit by a meteor on her wedding day and grows to an enormous size and has incredible strength.  She is taken to a top secret facility where she meets four monsters: Link, supposedly the “missing link”, an amphibious creature, Insectosaurus, a giant grub-like creature bigger than Susan, Dr. Cockroach, a mad scientist who turned himself into a cockroach, and Bob, an indestructible blob of goo that has no brain and provides most of the comedic lines in the film.  Meanwhile, hostile aliens land on Earth.  The head of the monster facility meets with the president and asks him to release the monsters to fight the aliens.  The president agrees and this sets up the battle of the Monsters vs. the Aliens.

Response:  Overall, this was an incredibly cheesy movie.  It had none of the humor of Shrek, Madagascar, or any of its predecessors made by DreamWorks.  Instead, it was a boring movie that was hardly worth the time it took to watch.  None of the characters were particularly humorous, except for Bob, and even he was not that funny.  Most of the humor was based on Bob doing stupid things.

            When it comes to plot, this film was even worse.  It involved nothing more than an incredibly basic cheaply written screenplay that even the youngest child could predict.  I’ll add an example to show how stupid the script was.  The monsters had been shut up in the facility for over 50 years, so when they first get out, Link says “Wow, has it gotten warmer since I’ve been out here?  I could get used to this!”  This is an obvious unnecessary pointer towards global warming.  This movie would probably entertain only the youngest of children.  See Battle for Terra instead.

Grades: (with 1 being low and 5 being high)

            Violence: 3/5  Most of the violence in this film is not very intense.  There is not really anything to get offended by.  The title clearly states that the main plot involves violence.

            Sexual Content: 2/5  Bob makes some strange comments, and says that he at least deserves a chance to be with Derek, Susan’s fiancé.  This might make you think that Bob is homosexual, but he really isn’t male or female.  Also, when he first sees Susan, he says that she is a boy.  Link says she is a girl, and Bob reemphasizes his statement by saying “Look, he has boobies!”  Link stares at him and says, “We need to talk”.

            Language:  0/5

            Anti Christian Elements: 0/5

            Christian Themes:  0/5

            Torres Recommendation:  There really isn’t that much offensive content in this film, so it is not a bad movie to show your seven year old if you want to keep him or her busy.  However, if you are any older and want to try it out for yourself, go right ahead and post a comment with your thoughts.  Thanks!

Author: C.S. Lewis

Reviewer:  Keenan Torres (age 14)

Summary:  Out of the Silent Planet chronicles the adventures of the remarkable Dr. Ransom, who simply wanted to take a walk through England, but found himself in the clutches of two evil men hurtling through space towards a distant planet of which he knows nothing.  Once there, he escapes from his captors, and is alone to fend for himself on the alien planet.

Response:  Let me just say something right away so that it is quick and painless.  This book will be disliked by all diehard Narnia fans.  By no means am I trying to say that this book is inferior in any way to that beloved series, but it is geared toward a much older audience.  This does little to interfere with the main plot and story, however, as C.S. Lewis takes us on a marvelous adventure through space to visit an unknown and alien planet. 

            I first picked up this book several years ago, expecting it to be alike to the Narnia series.  Sadly to say, it was not.  I put down the book in frustration after the first thirty or so pages, the writing style too advanced for me to comprehend.  I had bought the entire trilogy, expecting it to be exactly like one of my favorite series, the Chronicles of Narnia.  It was not, however, and I put it down to read at a later date.

            It seems that I picked it up again at the right age, for C.S. Lewis’s writing style for this series now greatly appealed to me.  The plot was very thought provoking, and nothing was as it seemed.  This book, having been written by a Christian author, leaves practically nothing to be concerned about.  However, there are a few misunderstandings that could occur that have to do with the content of the book.

Grades: (with 1 being low and 5 being high)

Violence: 3/5 The only real issue overprotective parents might have with this book is its content concerning violence.  A character is shot, and Ransom goes on an expedition to kill a monster-like fish called a hnakra.  However, the planet on which the story takes place is an incredibly peaceful planet, and the killing is regarded as horrifying.  In other words, the book clearly states that killing is wrong, and does not glorify it in any way.

Sexual Content: 2/5 In the spaceship the men walk around naked because of the conditions, but absolutely nothing is made of this in a perverted way.

Language: 2/5 D**n and h**l are used a couple of times, but only by the bad guys.

Anti-Christian Elements: 0/5 This is where it can get a little confusing.  On the planet Malacandra, there are eldil, or spirit-type creatures.  The leader of the planet who is immortal is named Oyarsa, and their god is named Maleldil.  Readers who do not go very deep into the story may find this extremely offensive.  I could not disagree more.  They refer to Earth as “The Silent Planet” (hence the title), because “The Dark One” broke off from Maleldil and took control of it (sound familiar, anyone?).  Also, a character briefly mentions Maleldil making decisions that he did not understand, such as choosing to wrestle with the Dark One on the Silent Planet (sending Jesus to Earth).  C.S. Lewis clearly means for Maleldil to signify God, and not some sort of false god.

Christian themes: 4/5(All listed above)

Torres Recommendation:  I can easily recommend this book, but only from the ages of 14 up,  because of the advanced writing style

Title: Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Last Olympian (Book 5)

Author: Rick Riordan

Reviewer: Shane Torres (age 10)

Summary:  The Last Olympian is about a boy named Percy Jackson whose mom was  married to Poseidon.  This means Percy is half “god,” half human.  This book focuses on the Greek gods, not the true God.   It is the fifth in the series, so I suggest reading the first four first.

Response:  I was waiting for this book to come out!  This book had my adrenaline pumping through my body.   It had adventure, action, and mystery popping out on every page I read. 

This book is well written and is one of the most exciting  four- in- one book  that I have read.  It has adventure, action, mystery, and romance  and it all fits into one novel for kids.  With 381 pages, this book kept me wondering what was going to happen next for the few days it took me to read it.

Grades: (with 1 being low and 5 being high)

Violence (2 out of 5) :  Most of the violence in this book deals with killing mythical monsters, these turn into dust when killed.  There is the occasional demigod getting hurt.

Sexual Content (3 out of 5):  At the end there is kissing between Percy and a girl, but otherwise there is nothing.

Language (0): There is no bad language in this book.

 Christian themes (0): No Christian themes.

Anti-Christian elements (2 out of 5):  They worship fake gods, and throughout the book they say, “Oh my Gods!” or “Oh gods.”

Torres Recommendation:  On behalf of the Torres family, I recommend this book to kids age 11+.

Name of Game: Fracture

Company: LucasArts

Reviewer: Shane Torres, Age 10

ESRB rating: T for teen

Recommended Player Age: 12 years old and up

Summary:

By the 22^nd Century, mankind had passed the point of no return.  Global climate was irreversible. The melting polar ice caps changed the lives of millions.  Although the development of terrain deformation to protect the East and the West Coasts from the rising oceans succeeded, the central states weren’t so lucky.  The rising sea level flooded them, dividing  the United States into two parts. In the west, the “Pacificans” started messing around with DNA to withstand the pressures of the changing world. That’s when things got way out of control.  The Atlantic Alliance chose a different path.  They chose cybernetics.   The Pacificans turned their back on America.  Now, the Alliance must fight to stop the Pacificans and keep them from destroying mankind.  You play as Jet Brody as you fight to stop the Pacifican Army in this futuristic war game.

Response:

As a LucasArts fan myself, I hoped for a great game.  Well, I got what I wanted.  Fracture is one of the most unique and fun games I have ever played.  The game is like a movie.  Great graphics and great game play.  Also, there are great weapons.  Who knew there was a sticky-bomb gun?  Who knew that a grenade could turn into a tornado and suck up everything near it, then explode and shoot everything out the top?  Who knew?

The graphics are AMAZING.  Fully interactable environments.  You can also create hills  and ditches and change the environment with your Entrencher.  I loved this game. Great game.  Now here’s my review.

Grades: (with one being low and five being high)

Violence:  ( 4/5 heavy)

The violence in this game is somewhat heavy.  When you shoot a Pacifican, green blood flies out of him.  You can shoot them in the head and a splash of green goop will fly out. When you kill one particular enemy, he explodes and enough blood to fill a small pond goes flying out.  You can knock people in the head with your gun, killing them.  The good thing is, when your own character dies, there is no blood.  The blood may be high but it isn’t offensive because the people you shoot are barely human.  And, no dismemberment happens.

 Language:  ( 3/5 some caution )

D—n and H—l is used throughout the game.  Also My G-d is used a couple of times. Surprisingly, many of the curse words used in most army games are not present.

Sexual Content: ( 2/5 barely any )

One lady is wearing a skin tight suit, but that is all.

Christian Themes: (none)

God isn’t mentioned in this game.

Anti-Christian Elements: ( 2/5  barely any )

My G-d is used a couple of times, but that’s it.

Torres Recommendation:  

On behalf of the Torres family, I recommend this game to kids 12 + as the violence is heavy in most parts.

Title: The Edge Chronicles Book 1: Beyond the Deepwoods

Author: Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell

Reviewer: Josiah Torres (age 12)

Recommended reader age: 14 years old and up

Summary:      The intriguing Edge Chronicles series was released in the United States in 1998. Since then it has been a smash hit. I first discovered this fairly interesting series in a small country library where I picked up a copy and borrowed it.  From cover to cover this book is a great novel.  It is engrossing, interesting, heart-pounding and all together smashing. Good job, authors!! The story takes up in a world on the side of a huge cliff, called “The Edge.” It is filled with vast lands, colorful creatures and people – all fantastically expressed by Mr. Riddell. The art is just absolutely outstanding and so is the story line. It invites the reader to listen to the tale of boy named Twig, who was raised by woodtrolls, never knowing his family. One day, after being beaten up by young woodtrolls for straying off “the path” and called an “outsider,” Twig goes on a quest to find his real descent.

Response:       Ever since I started reading this book, I loved the series. It is a great new take on fantasy – as you know present day fantasy is all about spell-casting wizards, bloodthirsty vampires, and other harmful things like that. “The Edge Chronicles” shows that you don’t have to include all that gross stuff to make a best seller. There were some things that I read in this book that could be harmful to some children, but I’ll get to that later.

Grades: (with 1 being low and 5 being high)

               Violence: 4/5(Some unsuitable content)  Now I come to the down fall. As good as this book is, it does have some flaws. The violence in this book is pretty strong. A hoverworm tries to kill Twig, who stabs it with a knife, resulting in a bang. A really gruesome part is when a caterbird saves Twig and kills a skullpelt. The dead skullpelt is then shown on the next page in a detailed illustration, dead with blood dripping out of its mouth in large quantities. A banderbear is eaten by wig-wigs, carnivorous hairballs hungry for flesh. A bloodoak tries to kill Twig, but Twig makes a narrow escape, which I can not tell you about because it will ruin the story for you. During the trog bloodoak ceremony, a girl drinks blood, and then is showered in it and then turned into a huge, lumbering, female trog. 

              Sexual Content: 0/5(none) No Sexual Content.

              Language: 0/5(none) No Language.

              Christian Themes: 3/5 (slightly inappropriate) There is a demon-like creature at the end.  He is expressed in stunning detail in one Mr. Riddell’s illustrations.  His encounter is about tempting Twig, who then gives in only to find himself falling off the Edge.  He is then rescued and learns a lesson as well.

             Anti-Christian Themes: 3/5 (slightly inappropriate) The same issue as above.

          Torres Family Recommendations: Due to the violent elements and the encounter with the demon, or “gloamglozer,” I am forced to recommend this book for ages 14 and up. 

Title: Larklight

Author: Philip Reeve

Reviewer: Shane Torres (age 10)

Recommended reader age – 10 years old and up

Summary:

Larklight is about British Aethernauts in the mid-1800s.  Larklight is a house that orbits around the moon.  Arthur Mumby and Miss Myrtle Mumby (his annoying sister) are the main characters and they live with their father.  Suddenly spiders attack (giant, clever, humanlike spiders) and devour their poor father. Art and Myrtle escape and this book is about their adventures in The Great Aether.

Response:

This book is quite a good book.  Having it finished just today, I am dying to read the sequel Starcross. I had never heard of the author up until now.  The book is quite unrealistic.  The book’s main characters are from Great Britain.  It is kind of weird that a book that is placed in the 1800s could have space travel, when back then that kind of technology was thought to be impossible.

The book is written very well, with adventures popping out of every corner.  I loved this book, and it is in my Top 10 list of favorite books.  It took me over a month to read, because I’ve not been doing a lot of reading lately. But I finally finished it, and the memories are still floating about in my head.

Grades: (with one being low and five being high.)

Violence (2/5, not much.)

  If you call spiders being squashed and cactus men being sliced apart with green sap pouring out as heavy violence, then this would probably get a 5/5 violence rating in your opinion.  The violence is not very offensive in this book.

Sexual content (2/5 not much):

  Other than a little kissing, there’s no sexual content.

Language (3/5 some caution):

The only swear word in this is D**n and D****d and they are used 5 or 6 times, but it is written like D—n and D—-d with the middle left out.( not technically swearing )

Christian themes (1/5 none):

God is their Lord, no fake Zeus or Poseidon or other fake gods.

Anti-Christian elements (none):

No anti-Christian elements.

Torres recommendation:

 On behalf of the Torres Family, I recommend this book to kids 10 and up, as it is a cleanly written story.  Thank you Philip Reeve for your wonderful, exciting and enchanting children’s novel.

BOOK

Title: Into the Mist

Author: Patrick Carman

Reviewer: Keenan Torres (age 14) 

Summary:         In this predecessor to the popular series, The Land of Elyon, two orphans, Thomas and Roland, travel their world from corner to corner, following signs and adventure at every turn. 

Response:         Having read and enjoyed The Land of Elyon series, I looked at this book as a prelude to the series, an explanation of loose ends in the trilogy, making them meet.  Basically, it seemed to me that the author (whom had already started a new series once finishing this series) was just in too much in love with the world he had created in Elyon to end it with the third book of the trilogy.

I was somewhat surprised to see the story begin with the main characters of the trilogy where they left off at the end of the third book.  After a chapter on them, a story is begun, told by an older character.  Thus marks the beginning of Into the Mist. 

It turned out not to be a weak and poorly written prelude to the series, but rather a story of its own.  If not for the chapters of the trilogy’s characters, someone with no prior knowledge of the series could pick this book up, read it, and walk away satisfied with the story and unconfused. 

For readers like me, the book did tie up some loose ends, and was a satisfying addition to the series.  The book was well written with excellent characters and minor characters, who were almost as enjoyable as the main characters themselves. 

Grades: (with 1 being low and 5 being high)

            Violence: 2/5(not much)  Aside from major bee stings  and skinned knees, the only major (if it can be called that) violence was at the beginning of the book.  This happens by means of threatening at the cruel orphanage where children were forced to work for an evil old lady and her son.  They both  threatened the children mercilessly with their two large dogs, but the dogs were never described as hurting anyone.  The woman threatens to whip Roland and Thomas, but they avoid it.  .

            Sexual Content: 1/5(completely clean)  There was absolutely no sexual content in this book

            Language: 1/5(none) No language either.

            Christian Themes:  2/5(barely present)  A character in the book says he was guided by a force in his actions.  Readers familiar with the series will recognize this force as Elyon, the series’s “god”.  It can be somewhat comparable to Christianity, but unlike the trilogy, this book contained no more than that small fact about Elyon.

            Anti-Christian Elements:  2/5(barely present)  Some people may find the references to Elyon as offensive, but I don’t think it is all that big of a deal. 

            Torres Family Recommendation:  On behalf of the Torres Family, I can recommend this book to kids 11 and older, as it is a clean story that is well written.   

I am Debbie Torres and this is my first entry onto our family blog.  I am a little nervous as I write, unsure of all the new words and functions I am finding on my “dashboard,” my “avatar” and my “tags.”  But, I am thinking  that the only way to get wet is to take the plunge – right?  My boys have been itching to blog, so, aside from editing  their copy and writing our own reviews, Michael and I will hand it over to them. 

This blog is intended to be a helpful resource for Christian families who are concerned about the influence the media has on their children. 

We will review books – look out if you have teen and preteen boys – the Torres boys are whipping through books. Every time I turn around, they’ve completed another one. 

We  will review video games – Blood and graphic scenes don’t go over well in my book.  My boys will tell you what their experiences have been with individual games.

And we will review movies – every weekend our family sits down with a new title from Netflix.  Hear what we had to say about our last family movie night!

Soon, we will sit down as a family and develop our criteria for the reviews.   Once this is complete  — let the reveiws begin!