Book Reviews INT_2013

Book Reviews by I1ยบE, I1ยบF and 1ยบG1ยบstudents Classroom 22- May2013

IN THE SHADOW OF THE MOUNTAIN

AUTHOR: HELEN NAYLOR KIND OF BOOK: MYSTERY

Plot Clare was spending a day with her brother Andrew and her mother Marjorie when they received a call saying that the Edward´s body, her grandfather, had appeared in the Matterhorn, a Switzerland mountain.

Marjorie knew this news before this call but she had decided not to say anything to Clare and Andrew about this story but in this moment she changed this decision and showed some letters of her father. This day Clare and Andrew discovered that their grandfather didn´t want to stay with Agatha in London. He wanted to life in Zermatt, Switzerland, a place that the family, included Marjorie, had visited twice.

Clare decided to travel and did alone all the paperwork, but really she wanted to discover the real story about her grandparents and forgot her recent divorced and her job for a few days.

She likes her profession but she really hates her job in a sensationalist newspaper and her editor. He wished to have the story about Clare´s grandfather in his newspaper but Clare couldn ´t agree.

When she arrived to Zermatt she discovered that the guide of her grandfather was alive but he didn´t want to talk with her. Meanwhile she was preparing the journey back with the grandsparent´s body and was enjoying in a ski classes. Her instructor ski called Bruno and they passed good times together.

The Clare´s investigation became really difficult. The only things she knew is that Ulrich Grunwalder was the grandfather´s guide when he died and they were with Gordon Younger when the accident happened. She decided to tell the story to Bruno and then he will be able to help her. He wanted and talked with Ulrich to fix a date.

This day Clare discovered that Bruno was Ulrich´s grandson and was a reason for Ulrich to talk with her. He told her that her sister Marianne and Edward fell in love although he was married.

Edward didn´t want to return with Agatha and his little child Marjorie. In a climbing between Ulrich, Edward and Gordon, Gordon told to Edward that he was in Zermatt to convince him to return to London and Edward saw in his face that really Gordon was in love with his wife, but Agatha didn´t like Gordon. They continued with the climbing and when they were coming back, Gordon and Edward had the accident. Ulrich wasn´t able to say to Clare if it was a real accident or if Gordon pushed Edward.

For Clare was an incredible discovered and the story helped to begin a better relationship with Bruno. Then she wrote the story for her newspaper although she didn´t put all of the information. When she returned to London she discovered that her editor changed all the story and her family was a bit angry with her. At least she can begin a possible relationship with Bruno.

Characters

Main characters: • Edward Crowe: He is a main character although he is dead. He was an adventure man and a good person although he left his family.

• Marjorie Newton: She is homely and good cook. Now she feels a bit sad and alone because her husband died one year ago.

• Andrew Newton: He is quite and an indecisive person. In Clare´s opinion he is easily led specially by his wife Jan. • Clare Newton: She is the most important character in this story. She is in her mid-forties and like a leader, efficient and organizer. Maybe now she is sad and tired because she divorced recently and her job doesn´t like very much so she feels that her life is empty.

• Ulrich Grunwaler: He was the best mountain guide in Zermatt. Now he is 94 years old, good-looking and I think he lived his life with a big blame.

• Bruno Grunwalder: He is in his early forties, handsome and self-confident. He is a ski instructor and mountain guide.

Other information / Conclusion I like the story because you can´t imagine all the things that happen next when you are reading the book. In my opinion the best part of the book was in the middle because it is the most interesting and mysterious. I didn´t feel something special or different with this story. Only I felt sadness with Agatha and Marianne. The first because her husband left her and her little daughter for other woman. The second because she fell in love with a married man, he died a few months later and she felt that her brother killed him. One thing that I learn from this book is that you need to feel happy with all of the things around you (yourself, your family, friends and job).

I recommend this book for the people that usually read mystery books. When you start the book, you can´t stop so I would read other books by Helen Naylor.

Arancha_INT1ºG

BOOK REVIEW STRUCTURE INTRODUCTION: Title: The Sugar Glider Author: Rod Neilsen Genre: Adventure

PLOT: A pilot, Don Radcliffe, comes back to Australia because he wants to spend more time with his daughter and to fix the mistakes he had done on his marriage. But the same day he arrives, his best friend offers him an important cargo flight in an old DC4 airplane called "The Sugar Glider" from Brisbane to Melbourne. In that flight, they have to stop on their way in a mine to pick up some strange things for the Government. Don doesn't want to leave his daughter alone after his back, so he asks her to flight with them.

After the stop in the mine, the plane crashes in the Australian Outback where Paul, Don's copilot, dies. Then, Don and his daughter start to think the crash wasn't an accident, so they need to return to Brisbane before the people, who has put that bizarre things on the plane, found them. Unfortunately, during this time, they might have more problems.

CHARACTERS: •

Don Radcliffe: The main character. He is a pilot who returns to Australia trying to recover his marriage and to spend more time with his daughter. He has been working in the Pacific Islands for one year.

•

Judy Radcliffe: Is the fourteen year old daughter of Don. She lives in Australia with her mother in a farm.

•

Sylvia: Don's ex-wife and Judy's mother. She lives in Australia in a farm and now she has a new relationship with a business man called Patrick Forsha.

•

Paul Copeman: Don's best friend and he accepted the job to fly "the Sugar Glider" form Brisbane to Melbourne because he wants the money to open a flying school with Don.

•

Beulah Copeman: Is Paul's wife.

•

Patrick Forsha: A businessman who has a relationship with Sylvia.

•

John Fittock: A sheep farmer in Tarong.

•

Joe: A Murri boy who have seen Judy in the mine.

•

Carl Petersen: The man who offers the job to Paul. He says he is from the Government.

•

Noel Hogan: He is a government agent.

OTHER INFORMATION: I really enjoyed the book. It was an exciting and entertaining story. The best part of it, I think it was the moment after the plane crashes in the mountains, because Don and his daughter, a fourteen year old girl, need to survive and they try to come back to the city without any help.

The story makes you suspect of any of the characters as the possible person who has manipulated the plane engines. They have to give up the death body of their friend Paul, and keep searching the way to come back home without knowing if the rescuers, that they see, are going to help them and if they are reliable . That kind of things makes you keep reading the story and see what will happen at the end.

CONCLUSION: I recommend the book because apart from exciting and entertaining it is a nice story that I read without many difficulties except some vocabulary. A good thing is that many of the “new” words I learned in this book are repeated during all the chapters, and this is helpful to remember and recognize them much easier.

I haven’t read other books from this author, Rod Neilsen, but I wouldn’t mind to read another one.

Ramón_INT1ºF

IN THE SHADOW OF THE MOUNTAIN “In the shadow of the mountain”, written by Helen Naylor, is a mystery book based on the strange death of Edward Crowe. The title refers a mountain, specifically The Matterhorn, in Zermatt, the mountain where Edward died seventy-four years ago.

The story is mostly about the mysterious death of Edward Crowe, in a mountain in Zermatt. Seventy-four years later, his body appears. His grandchildren, Clare Newton, an important British journalist, will go to see the body of his grandfather to bring him back home.

When she arrives to Zermatt, she discovers that there are a strange things in the death of Edward. She investigates and knows details that she couldn’t imagine.

She knows Bruno, an attractive ski instructor and mountain guide in Zermatt, and Ulrich Grunwalder, an old mountain guide. They will help her in the research.

Besides, with Bruno, Clare will have a special love relationship.

At the end, she come back to England with the body of his grandfather. With her mother Marjorie (the daughter of Edward), and her brother Andrew, bury Edward.

Personally, I really liked the story. It’s very interesting, because the mystery is maintained almost to the end. Besides, it is very unpredictable. The middle of the book, is the best part of the novel, and we discovered many surprising details that help us understand the story.

I felt good reading the book, because the author, Helen Naylor, get that I was into the story and really intrigued. Besides, if you read this book, you will discover that nothing is what it seems.

I definitely recommend that you add this to your collection. If you like mystery and love histories, you will love this book. It’s well worth reading.

Jessica_INT1ºE

Title: The African Queen.

Author: C.S. Forester.

Kind of Book: Romance.

The history begins in the First World War, in Africa. Two brothers were a missionary in Africa. The Germanys arrested all people except the brothers.

The men, made ill, and died. Men arrived to town, with his ship. The name was The African Queen. The men bury a body. She went in the boat to civilization.

The down the river, they had a lot of problems. During the trip, they fall in love. They obtain arrived to Victoria Lake. In the lake there was a German warship. She tried vengeance his brother, sink the boat. They made a torpedo.

When they attacked the boat, the boat sinks. Because, there was a storm. The German arrested the couple. The solders thought that they were spy. When they were going to be hanged, they demanded was married. When they were married, the boat had an accident with explosives. The warship sink, but the couple, survive.

I like this book. It was entertaining. The best part was when they descent the river.

I would like recommend this book. It is entertaining. The history is good told. You can imagine the situation.

David_INT1ยบG

IN THE SHADOW OF THE MOUNTAIN WRITTER : HELEN NAYLOR

CHARACTERS Clare Newton: She is forty- six years old, she is divorced, and works like a journalist in London Andrew Newton: is the younger brother of Clare. He is married to Jan Marjorie newton: Is in her late seventies; Is the mother of Clare and Andrew, and she was married to Thomas Newton, who died a year before the story begins Edward Crowe: Is the father of Marjorie and grandfather of Clare and Andrew. He was married to Agatha.

Bruno: Is in his early forties. He is sky instructor and mountain guide in Zermatt Ulrich Grunwalder: Ninety-four year old mountain guide. He lives in Zermatt Marianne: Ulrich's sister, and also the girl he was in love with Edward Crowe Gordon Younger: Edward was the friend who also died in the crash. Supposedly love with Agatha STORY In April 1998, a body appears in a small mountain town called Zermatt.

The body belongs to Edward Crowe, who had been a former climber who had had an accident with a friend 74 years ago, and was never able to recover the body.

Edward was married to Agatha, and their marriage was born Marjorie, who in turn had two children, Clare and Andrew.

When you hear the news the brothers begin to ask questions as the story of his grandfather is full of secrets. And then is responsible Clare went to identify the body of Edward and make arrangements to repatriate.

Clare is a journalist in a London newspaper and your boss asks you to write the article on your stay in Zermatt and about his grandfather.

When Clare comes to Zermatt realizes that people look strangely and realizes that something terrible has happened for many years. Meanwhile she hires the services of an instructor named Bruno sky. Little by little they are intimating more and realize that love them.

One day she and Bruno discover they have something in common, and that is that Bruno's grandfather called Grunwalder Ulrich was the guide who had accompanied Edward and a friend the day the accident happened. Then Clare Ulrich tells the circumstances surrounding the accident, and tells him that Edward was in love with Marianne who was the sister of Ulrich, and planned to leave Agatha to go with it.

On the other hand Edward and his friend Gordon Younger, who climbed with him, was in love with Agatha and they had a great match.

The feelings between Clare and Bruno are growing, and conversations with Grandpa Bruno van bearing fruit, Clare realizes that Ulrich could not see well what happened right at the time of the accident, and the death of Gordon and Edward will never allow the truth to come to light. But Clare is excited every time you remember how brave he was his grandfather to uncover their feelings, and she can identify with him.

At the end Clare quits his job at the newspaper and that he feels very sad because of the few scruples of his boss, and agrees to be with Bruno.

OPINION In my opinion is a very entertaining book and easy to read.

The story it tells is very interesting and also exciting, because it is quite murky and intriguing. I really like the part of the flash backs where the old guide, a reminder of what happened over 70 years ago, and I also find it interesting as Clare vary feelings about his grandfather and how she feels identified with him, and inspires him to overcome the difficult moments of his life.

David_INT1ยบF

Review: The Amsterdam Connection “The Amsterdam Connection” is a murder mystery book which relates football and crime. It was written by Sue Leather and published by Cambridge University Press.

Kate is a news reporter on the daily Echo. One day, Kate is visited by Max. Max is her friend and ex-boss. He invites her to visit Holland. She doubts whether to accept the invitation but days after the meeting, Kate receives the notice that Max has been murdered in Amsterdam.

Then, she decides travel to Amsterdam to investigate why Max had been murdered.

In Amsterdam, Kate will realize that the murder is related to football.

She will have to fight to discover the truth. Elly, a policewoman will help Kate in the investigation. Kate will meet Jos Van Esser, a retired football player; Raúl Sanchez, the goalkeeper of Rotterdam FC; Tom Carson and Martijn Christiaans, owners of the Rotterdam FC. They know many things that could help her to discover the truth.

With this history we can see what people can do for money and how important is the friendship between two persons.

I liked this history because, in all moments, it makes you to think about what will happen on the following chapters; this encourages you to continue reading. I think the best part of the story is when Kate starts to investigate the murder and discovers what is hidden behind the murder. I dislike that the end is predictable, before the end we know what is going to happen.

I would recommend it because it’s a highly entertaining read and it's a thrilling and enjoyable history. I wouldn’t doubt to read another book by this author.

Francisco_INT1ºE

BOOK REVIEW

BY JONATAN_INT1ºG

INTRODUCTION: • Title: He knows too much • Author: Alan Maley • Genre: Mystery • Level: Intermediate, Cambridge English Readers Level 6.

PLOT: The book tells us the history of Dirk Sterling, the general manager of a multinational company, who was dismissed because he knows too much about the illegal business of others workmate. After that, he fell in a deep depression with very bad habits, which made him broke his marriage.

When he wakes of this nightmare, he starts to research for more information that gives him the revenge that he needs. While he´s researching for the true, he meets the love again and discovers that the revenge isn´t the best way of proceed. Usually the punishment of God is enough.

CHARACTERS: • Dirk Sterling: He´s the main character. He´s the general manager of Trakton, a multinational manufacturing company, in Madras. He´s in his last forties, he´s tall, slim and muscular.

• Sally Sterling: She´s Dirk´s wife. She belongs to a rich, upper-class family. She´s very independent and enjoys helping needs children.

• Keith Lennox: He´s Dirk´s boss at Trakton. He´s unreliable and liar.

• Barbara Lennox: She´s Keith´s wife. She looks fresh and bright, she ´s a “comfortable” woman and a good wife.

• Vishvanathan (vish): He´s the office manager at Trakton. He´s small and fat. He has small eyes like a snake. He could be very dangerous if you are against him.

• Molly: She´s Vish´s wife. She works at Trakton. She´s attractive but very liar and unreliable.

• Nagarajan: He´s an account at Trakton. Dirk helps him when his wife dead. He was dismissed as the same way as Dirk.

• Lakshmi: She´s Nagarajan´s daughter. She´s in her early thirties, she has long, jet-black hair and very dark skin. Dirk feels something special when knows her.

• John Verghese: He´s Keith´s and Molly´s son. He´s tall and athletic, he has light-brown skin colour because of his anglo-indian parentage.

CONCLUSION: It´s a highly entertaining read because in each chapter you can discover some clues that help you to resolve the mystery.

The book is more exciting and unpredictable when you read more and more, and it has a very surprising finish. Al the end you might think that the revenge isn´t the best way to proceed.

Finally, I would recommend it because it´s very easy to read with a right vocabulary.

Jonatan-INT1ºG

The Amsterdam Connection

TITLE: The Amsterdam Connection AUTHOR: Sue Leather KIND OF BOOK: Detective and mystery

PLOT: The reporter Kate Jensen travelled to Amsterdam when her friend was found dead there. The police thought that Max was killed by a mugger but Kate didn’t believe. She investigated by herself and started asking questions at the Football Club which he was owner.

She discovered that a man was cheating on bets to win money and whit this money he was buying shares of the Football Club. Max wanted to go to the police and the cheat man killed him.

Finally, the man was arrested and Kate returned to London.

CHARACTERS: - The main character is Kate Jensen: She is a reporter on the Daily Echo in London an Max’s friend, who is the man that was found dead in Amsterdam.

- Rick: Kate’s friend, also a news reporter.

- Dave Balzano: the editor of the Daily Echo.

- Elly van Praage: a policewoman in the Amsterdam police and Kate’s friend.

- Tom Carson: Max’s brother, owner of Rotterdam City Football Club.

- Martijn Christiaans: a Dutch businessman.

- Jos van Essen: a retired footballer.

- Raúl Sanchez : goalkeeper at Rotterdam City Football Club.

- Joop de Vries : an inspector in the Amsterdam police.

- Bert : a criminal.

I like Kate’s Jensen character because she is self-confident and seeks the murderer of her friend.

OTHER INFORMATION: - The best part of the book is the end because I realized who was the murderer.

- The history has made me feel intrigued.

- I learnt new words that I didnt’t know.

CONCLUSION: I recommend this book because it’s exciting and entertaining. The plot is good and the friendship betwen Kate and Max is very nice.

I think that this summer I’ll read others books of Cambridge English Readers because I liked The Amsterdam Connection very much.

Ariadna_INT1ºG

“Death In The Dojo” by Sue Leather is a mystery book about a reporter who is investigating the death of a famous karate teacher and a crime committed thirty years earlier.

Kate Jensen is a London newspaper´s journalist. She is a thirty-year-old girl who used to train karate so she has contact with some police man at the main office of the city and with some people from karate´s world.

Kawaguchi-sensei is a great karate teacher who was killed by a single punch but nobody can imagine why he couldn’t stop it.

Although Kate was assaulted and the investigation not seemed easy, she decided to continue with it, so she travelled to Tokio to visit the Kawaguchi´s daughter to find more information about the death.

Jun Kawaguchi was in a wheelchair since thirty years ago when she and her boyfriend were attacked. The guy, Blakeston died that frightful day.

After much research, Kate guessed Kawaguchi-sensei didn´t like Jun´s boyfriend and he was worried about his daughter would get pregnant so he paid to a psychopath (Peter Benson) to frighten Blakeston but finally the boy was murdered.

An innocent, Brendan Murphy was hanged for the crime and his secret daughter, Brenda, who had been pupil of Kawaguchi-sensei, was the one who killed the great Karate Teacher, to clean her father´s name.

I recommend this book to my colleagues because is a entertaining read and it isn´t too difficult. They enjoy with it if they like thriller books.

Lydia_INT1ºE

The Amsterdam Connection is a book by the writer Sue Leather, is an entertaining detective story.

This is the story of a london journalist, Kate Jensen, who writes about crime that travels to Amsterdam to investigate the murder of his friend Max, who had seen two days before he was killed. Max Carson had offered her take a break in the newspaper and go to Holland to write the Rotterdam City Football club, his football´s team. When kate knows the news of the death of his friend is shocked and decided travelling to Amsterdam to know that happened, she owes.

In Amsterdam is helped by a policewoman, Elly, who met years earlier in the other work there.

Elly gives information about research, the Max´s body was in the Pijp district with many stabs and without wallet, it like a steal. In her investigation she meet a Jos van Essen, a great and retired football player, who talk about Max´s works in the football club and about partner´s brothers Carson, and days later is killed as Max. In her investigation also she meet Bert, a criminal who gives her many clues about the strange death of Max, he says that Max was abandoned there, he didn’t die where it was found. And she meet Tom Carson, brother ´s Max, In a visit of the club with the excuse of writing about the team ,who talked about the problems of the club.

Few days after her arrivals to Amsterdam and her investigation Kate knows the true reason why the team lost many games, the bets. This is when somebody tries to put her in a van.

After of all investigation Kate discovers that behind the betting is the tom´s partner, Martijn Christiaans, he used to the players to lose the matches and win a lot of money. Also is the murderer of Max and Jos. Kate, Elly and Raul (player of the club) want to discover him without help of the police and they kidnapped. Kate can go out there and call the police. So get solve the murder of his friend and go back to London.

Kate Jensen: is a reporter on the Daily Echo in London, she tired of her work and friend of her friends.

Max Carson: he look like a good person because he helps to Kate any years ago.

Elly Van Praage: Policewoman in Amsterdam, is sportwoman and good look like.

Martijn chistiaans: a ducth businessman, is bad person that get a lot of money with bad manners.

I like very much this story because you are in suspense until the end. I would you recommend this book if you like stories of suspense.

Vanessa_INT1ºG

DEADLOCK 

INTRODUCTION

TITLE: Deadlock AUTOR: Sara Paretsky GENRE: Crime and Mystery PUBLISHER: Oxford Bookworms Library Series Editor: Jennifer Basset Founder Editor: Tricia Hedge Activities Editors: Jennifer Bassett and Alison Baxter LEVEL: Intermediate, stage 5



PLOT

Vic Warshawski works as a private detective and she has found out a lot of muders than happened in Chicago but in this case, she must investigate a special muder as the murder victim is her cousin, a hockey player called Boom Boom who appears floating close to the wharf. He had shattered his left ankle three years ago so he had to give up to play hockey and now, he was working in Eudora Grain Company which is engaged in transporting shipments.

At the begining of the story, people told her that Boom Boom had died in an accident but she suspects her cousin could not slip and fall into the water because he was young and strong. Other people die during the investigation, even Vic´s life is in danger when someone tries to kill her in a car crash and then in a yacht.Despite her sadness, finding out the killer is her biggest worry.

Therefore, she wants to ask people who know her cousin about Boom Boom´s life, so first of all, she goes to his apartament and drives to the Company where he worked to try to find answers.

In the apartament Vic knows Paig Carrington, is a ballet dancer and the Boom Boom's relationship. There, she is looking for love letters that she wrote him and she looks very affected by the loss of her boyfriend but finally she will be responsable for the Boom Boom´s death.

In the Eudora Grain Company she mets Niels Grafalk who is the owner of Grafalk Steamship Line and finally he will be involved in Boom Boom's death too. Martin Bledsoe owns the Pole Star Line, another Company dedicates to the transport of shipments. Clayton Phillips is vice-president of the Eudora grain and he will appear dead in the holds of the Martin Bledsoe's ship with a hole in his head because he was Grafalk´s accomplice for a long time but then

he wanted to call the police and say the truth about Grafalk. Mike Sheridan is a chief engineer on the Lucella Wieser. Janet is Boom Boom's secretary. Jeannine is the Clayton´s wife and the Paige´s sister, a miser woman who will be able to do anything to live with wealth and Claire the Niels´ wife, the only person whom Vic will said what happened in the Niel´s yatch and how her husband died.

Vic keeps in touch with Bobby Mallory who is a policeman and Murray Ryerson who is a newspaper reporter, she has Known them during her job as a private detective. Pierre and Howard Mattingly are ice hockey players and Boom Boom´s collegues. Howard Mattingly was hit by a car and carried to the park to die because he was involved in blowing up a ship.

On the other hand, Vic has to do a lot of researches thus she has even to hide herself as a stowaway on the Lucella when the ship blows up.

Finally, Vic puzzles out the murder. She discovers that Phillips kills her cousin due to the fact that Boom Boom had uncovered that Phillips and Grafalk cheated about the contracts and the invoices of the Companies. Grafalk paid Paige´s accounts, for this reason, she protected him and worked for him watching Boom Boom in order to tell him what Vic´s cousin was investigating.

My first point is that the best part of the book is when Vic finds out the truth and she has to go to Grafalk´s yacht to look for poors and while she is cutting a piece of the blooding carpet, Grafalk jumps into the boat and meets her.

Another important point is when Vic goes to speak to Clayton Phillips´ wife and she says that her husband has to cheat on the boss because she likes living in a wealthy house an wears expesive clothes. It shows the real life where there are people who are able to kill by power and greed.

The story makes me be intrigued until the end of the book. The murder inquiry was amusing for me because I was interested to know who had killed Boom Boom and why. 

CONCLUSION

As far as I am concerned this book is a entertaining read. I have learned from this book vocabulary about ships, sea and business.

I would like people to read this book so that they could spend a good time. In my opinion, reading this book is not a waste of time, while you read it you can learn grammatical expressions and vocabulary.

I will read another book by this author when I have not to attend class and to work.

Sandra_INT1ºF

Introduction: Title: Three men in a boat Author: Jerome K. Jerome

Plot: The book´s history is about four men and a dog. Four men think that they have several illness and they decide to organize a river trip as a holiday´s time. During the trip they know a lot of strange people and they have many adventures. The book includes short histories which are related with histories that happened in real time. George, Harris, the person who relates the history and Montmorency (the dog) have a great time during the boat trip but in some moments they have problems because they haven´t food and in rainy days they have to stay in the boat with all their clothes wet. Finally they come back to their houses and all of them forget their illness during the trip but, at the end they remember all of their problems and they get sad again.

Characters: Harris: he makes everything wrong. He is a completely disaster but he is a good man.

George: he works in a bank and he is the person who tells the histories along the book.

The person who relates the history: he don´t say his name. He is intelligent and he gives his opinion in all of circumstances.

Montmorency: he is the main character´s dog. He is very aggressive with cats.

Other information: I like the history although it is a bit strange. In some occasions you know is going to happen before it happens and this is bad for a book or film. The best parts of the book are George´s histories. They are very fun and a bit crazy in some occasions but these histories always make me laugh.

Conclusions: I don´t read any book of this author but I think that this book is interesting and you could be a great moments reading it. I recommended for all the people.

Félix_INT1ºE

The book that I have read was The Amsterdam Connection. It’s an intermediate level book and the genre is a criminal thriller.

It was written by Sue Leather and the edition was published in 2001 by Cambridge University Press.

The story starts when Max Carson is stabbed and Kate (his friend) goes to Amsterdam to investigate over the crime.

While Kate goes investigate, new crimes continue happening and Kate´s life is also in danger. Finally she discovers (with the help of a policewoman) that the crimes are related with a football team (the Rotterdam) and some fixed bets.

Kate enters in the world of football and she investigates by herself what is happened with Amsterdam Connection (a bet´s syndicate).

The book is easy to read and the story is also easy to understand. The story happens with little changes and you can follow it very well.

The only point that it doesn’t like me was the final of the book, in my opinion it was a bit fantastic and surrealist and it was predictable what was going to happen at the end.

From my point of view the author knew to tell a good criminal thriller with no many words and easy to understand for an intermediate level student.

I would recommend this book to the intermediate level students because is easy to read and it’s an interesting story.

I think that I will look for another book of this writer.

Juan Pablo_INT1ºE

BOOK REVIEW “The boys from Brazil” was written by Ira Levis in 1976. This is a mystery book about a man (Dr. Joseph Mengele) who wants to make Aryan people the rulers of the world. He clones children (boys with dark hair, a bony face and a sharp nose) using Adolf Hitler’s blood and he tries to make them new Hitlers. He gives them to different families but with some things in common (young mother, old father who is civil servant…). Mengele is trying to turn those kids into new Hitlers, reproducing Hitler’s life. On the other hand, another man (Yakov Liebermann) is going to stop Mengele. Finally, Mengele dies and the children continue with their lives.

The main characters are Dr. Joseph Mengele and Yakov Liebermann. Joseph Mengele is in his early sixties. He is German and he has short grey hair and brown eyes with a tidy, matching moustache. He is a doctor and he was called “the Doctor of Death” in the concentration camp when he did experiments for Nazis. He is selfish and evil. Yakov Liebermann is a Jewish man. He wanted to be a pianist but he started to catch many war criminals. He is friendly and he is a bit This story has made me feel a lot of things. I have realized that people can do everything to achieve what they want. For example, Mengele kills innocents because his only goal is make more Hitlers. In some way, other people can do incredible and stupid things to get everything they want, forgetting the consequences of their acts. It is important to fight for your dreams but you do not have to hurt people doing that.

I recommend this book because it is very interesting and you cannot find out what is going to happen until you finish it.

Gema_INT1ºE

Deadlock is a book of detective fiction and mystery-books and was written by Sara Parestsky.

CHARACTERS .Vic Warshawski:is a private investigator,she is smart,tough and beautiful.She never gives up no matter how much people tries to stop her. .Boom Boom:is a former ice-hockey star and has a lot of friends,he gets killed in a mysterious way. .Clayton Phillips:is the vice president of Eudora Grain company he was the one who had found Boom-Boom's body floating.He is in his early forties,with brown hair and eyes. .Niels Grafalk:is a owns of Eudora Grain company,tall man with a sun burned face and white hair.

SUMMARY Vic Warshawski is a private investigator,she taks the cas of the death of her cousin Boom Boom to hide from the police .She suspects that his death wasn't an accident,that her cousin was killed.

After many inquiries and attempted murder towards her,Vic has the truth,her cousin was killed becouse he had found a invoices of Grafalk Streamship Line to the Eudora Grain Company,showing loads by ship,date of departure and arrival,the bills were inflated,had been changed.The difference of money it was for vice president of Eudora called Phillips.

Clayton Phillips murders to Boom Boom to keep his job and also tries to kill Vic becouseshe was finding the truth.

Vic also finds out that the owner of the company Niels Grafalk was taking advantage of the insurance company of his ship,becouse he was having lost in his business,Grafalk also tries to kill Vic but also unsuccessfully.

In the end Vic Warshawski finds whole the truth about the murder of her cousin and makes the decision not to tell everything she knew to the police.

My opinion This book makes you think about the avaricie of the people for more and more money,this book is exciting,I recomned it becouse is difficult to stop after a few chapters each time ,I picked it up It's probably that I read another book of Sara Parelsky becouse she through the characters criticize the darker aspects of American society.

RocĂ­o_INT1ÂşE

Introduction The book I read is “He knows too much”, a mystery book of Alan Maley.

Plot The book is about Dick Sterling, a general manager, who is forced to take an early retirement for not tolerate the illegal activities of his coworkers, Vish and Molly. Dick loses the sense of his life and he doesn’t recover until a former colleague writes him confirming his suspicions. Dick decides to investigate.

After much research between England and India, Dick discovers that Molly has a child with Keith Lennox, Dick’s boss, and he discovers more about the corrupt activities of Vish and Molly.

Dick very angry and tired of all the threats and dangers that he suffers, faces Vish and Molly and he plans take revenge telling the whole truth to the world. When he tells Lakshmi, the woman who falls in love, what he will do, she asks him not to do anything because God will punish them in due time. He ignores her and when is about to tell all, he discovers that God has already begun to punish them.

A few years later, Dick and Lakshmi are happily married. Keith Lennox is in jail and Barbara and Vish were badly damaged in a car accident.

Characters Dick Sterling: Is the main character. He is the general manager in Madras of a multinational manufacturing company. He is a hard worker man and he doesn’t tolerate the injustice or the corruption. He is 48 years old. He is tall, slim and muscular, and his hair is grey.

Keith Lennox: Dick’s boss in Delhi. He is ambitious, hypocrite and a liar.

Visvanathan (Vish): The office manager of the factory. He is small and fat. He has an ugly smile and snake eyes. He does anything to get what he wants. It’s a very corrupt person.

Molly: Vish’s wife. She is in charge of the Personal Department. She has black eyes. She is attractive and more charm than her husband.

Lakshmi: She is in her early thirties. She has dark eyes and skin, and jet-black hair. She is a widow who takes care of his father in his retirement. Dick fall in love of her and she is a great support to him.

Other information and conclusion I liked the book because it is entertaining and mysterious. The best part of the book is the final, because it seems that Dick will revenge of his coworkers. But in the end, he doesn’t have to do anything because it's all discovered before.

The book is interesting because it makes you think about how to act against injustice and if revenge is the best way to solve things.

I would recommend this book because it leaves you in suspense until the end. I recommend too because the main history is easy to understand although the vocabulary of the descriptions is a little difficult to know in my level.

Ariana_INT1ÂşE

The boys from Brazil Ira Levin Introduction: The autor of this book, Ira levin was born in New York and now he lives there. His first novel was a crime story, ''A kiss before dying'', he wrote this book in 1952 and this book had got a great public success. ''The boys from Brazil'' was wrote in 1976 and this book had also a great succes in the international public and the kind of this book is a suspense book.

Summary: The book is about a Nazi hunter discovers a plot to kill 94 men who have characteristics in common. The Nazi hunter called Libermann started to investigate this action of a group of Nazis directed by Dr. Mengele, a Nazi who did horrific experiments with the Jews in a concentration camps. Libermann discover that Dr. Mengele want to kill these 94 men beacause they are the parents of the clones of Hitler that Mengele did in World War II. These 94 parents have between 64 and 66 years and this is the age that Hitler's father died.

The group of Nazis abandoned the plan because they fear the investigation of Libermann. Then Mengele going to kill Libermann but in the end Menegele dies. Libermann's ally wants to kill Hitler clones but Libermann not want to kill these clones because they are childrens so in the end they live.

Characters: Yakov Libermann (Main character): He is the main character .The most part of this book is written in his view, he is a Nazi hunter who investigate to hunt these persons.

Dr. Mengele: This ruthless person is a Nazi who works in a concentration camps where he did horrific experiments with jews. He plans to kill the parents of Hitler clones who he created.

Barry Koehler: Is a student who helped to Libermann giving information for his investigation about the Nazis.

Klaus von Palmen: Another student who helped Libermann in his investigation.

Rabbi Gorin: He is an ally of Libermann but he has another thought, he thinks that is necessary kill the Hitler Clones.

Other Information: I like very much the story of this book because it talks about conflicts of the Second World War and it is interesting. The part of the book that I like most is the end because I had wanted to know how it end.

Conclusion: I would recommend this book to people that are interesting in conflicts of the Second World War because this book has a very interesting history of this war.

David _INT1ยบE

"The Sugar Glider" By Rod Neisen. It´s a adventure´s book that takes place in Australia.

All begin when Rod decides to return home after spending a year away from his family. Paul offers a short job would make them earn enough money to start a project to create a flying school. It consisted of carrying on a DC4 a commodity for the government. Don decides to take his daughter on the trip because he had promised to spend time with her. On the way they were to make a stop at a mine, there,they would pick up the equipement and chemicals. After that, they continued his journey but soon the engines began to fail and the plane finally crashed and Paul died. At that time Don and his daughter discovered that the merchandise were carrying was uranium and that all of them had been lied. Here begins a hard road to find help before being found by men who wanted the material, where Judy shows her grat courage and finally she discovered who was behind it all was the new boyfriend of his mother.

Characters: Rod Radcliffe: A pilot who wants recover his family after his divorce Judy Radcliffe: Teenage daughter of Rod, clever and brave Silvia: Ex-wife of Rod Paul Copeman: Pilot and friend´s Rod. It has the illusion of creating a flying school in Brisbane Beulah Copeman: Paul woman who loves family´s Rod Patrick Forsha: A businessman. He has a relationship with Silvia since 6 months ago John Fittock: A man who lives on a farm in Tarong and Judy find him Joe: A Murri boy who wants to help Judy and Don Carl Petersen: The man who offers the job to Paul. He says he belongs to the government but it wasn´t true Noel Hogan: Real government agent who finally rescued Judy and Don Really, I think the story is entretaining and a bit precictable, the most remarkable of the book is the courage and bravery who a fourteen years old girl may have.

I definitely would recommend "The Sugar Glider" because it isn´t difficult to read and I would read other stories by the same Writer.

Lucía_INT1ºG

THE HOUSE OF STAIRS BARBARA VINE REVIEW

The House of Stairs is a book of suspense and crime written by Ruth Barbara Vine but under the pseudonym Barbara Vine.

Vine was born in 1930 in London and she became to work as journalist when she finish the high school. But , soon, she start writing novels and books about detectives and crime.

Now a day, she is one of the better English crime and mystery stories writer, some of her books have been made a films.

In this novel, Barbara, narrate us, two stories, about the past and present of the same people and with a dark event.

The principal characters are:

Cosette, who is generous and good-hearted, very tolerant and easy-going. She have live all her live married and now, she is widow she prefer to live different experiences, she want a boyfriend and relate with different kind of people

Lizzie, as Cosette, have good hearted, is quiet, she always telling the truth. Often she is not very reliable and interprets the situation in a wrong way. When she was a child her mother died to a fatal illness, this event make that the relationship between Lizzie and Cossete is like mother and daughter. She tries to guess the dark past of Bell and why she was in prison.

Bell, she is cold, uncaring and ambitious. She is clear about what she want and make everything to get it, she lie, use her charm, she invents histories and all kind of things. Like Lizzie, her mother is absent from her life and this situation makes that Bell change her behavior in the life.

At the beginning of the book Lizzie sees her old friend Bell, and follows her at a short distance, but she isn´t sure that really is her.

It gives her a sense of discomfort and a quiver of panic bringing back memories of earlier events that had resulted in Bell’s imprisonment for murder fourteen years ago.

After some calls and meeting both take up again her old friendship and go to live with Cosette in the House of Stairs, so called because it’s a big house on five floors with a staircase of 106 stairs.

Cosette had been married to Lizzie’s mother’s cousin and they came to view each other as mother and daughter.

Bell tries to come between their from the beginning because she want the heritage that Cossette would leave Lizzie if she died. And for this reason she doesn’t hesitate to lie and invent all kind of histories, as relationships to separate their.

At the beginning two woman believe all her lies, because they knew very little about her friend and her past. But gradually they are realize that she want kill Cosette and stay with Lizzie to inherit the house.

A part from this, Lizzie and Cosette discover the cause why Bell was in prison, she had killed her baby sister and some people said that she had tried to kill more people.

I choose this book, because I always love the mystery and dark investigation books.

I like the story but when you read the novel, you need to take too much attention, because the narrator jumps backwards and forwards in time making a bit difficult the reading some times.

At the same time the jumps, between future and past, makes that the reader are into that book from the beginning to finish, because this is the only way to know what happened in the past and the unexpected final.

Previously, I do not read nothing about this author, but now I expect to can read any more of her books. Personally, I recommended to read the House Of Stair because is a great history about crime and strange relationship that make hook up from the first page.

Sonia_INT1ºG

In the shadow of the mountain INTRODUCTION: I read a book titled “In the shadow of the mountain “. It was written by Helen Naylor and it’s a mixture of adventures, mystery and romance.

PLOT: The body of Edward Crowe has appeared 74 years after he had died climbing the Matterhorn, a mountain in Switzerland. His grandchildren Clare travelled to Zermatt to bring home the body. Clare’s mother ( Marjorie ) always believed it was an accident.

But Ulrich Grunwalder who was Edward’s guide told Clare that it’s possible Gordon Younger push him off the mountain. Edward had left his wife and his little Marjorie in England forever and he had a romance with Marianne who was Ulrich’s sister. It was a scandal in those ages and Gordon and Edward had been arguing minutes before they fell.

Finally Edward’s body came back to England with Claire who began a relationship with Bruno, Ulrich’s grandchildren.

CHARACTERS: Clare Newton: a journalist who lives in London. She likes the mystery and she always want to know everything. Clare is the main character.

Bruno: is a ski instructor and mountain guide in Zermatt.

Edward Crowe: he was an impulsive and adventurous man. He died in 1924.

Ulrich Grunwalder: the best mountain guide for forty years in Zermatt. He is 94 years old.

Andrew Newton: Clare’s brother. He is always looking after his family.

Marjorie: she is in her late seventies. She doesn’t remember anything about her father.

OTHER INFORMATION: It was the first time I read a book which it was written in English language. I think is an amusing and enjoyable book. It’s easy and funny. For me, the best part is when it describes how were past times in Zermatt. Also the book has a part of mystery and it makes the book very entertaining.

CONCLUSION: I would recommend it because it’s the perfect election if you want learnt English in an intermediate level but I won’t read another book of this author because I prefer to know others.

Óscar_INT1ºG

BOOK REVIEW TITLE: EVENING CLASS AUTHOR: Maeve Binchy FIRST PUBLISHED IN: 1996 PLOT: This novel takes place in Ireland, in the city of Dublin. The novel tells us the different lives of a number of characters who all agree evening classes in Italian. All classes attend for various reasons, Connie almost broken marriage, Lou problems with justice, Kathy has family problems, organizer professor Aidan had problems at work and Professor Nora having a difficult past. None is as it seems, thanks to the course we are seeing his true personality. The course helps them to organize their lives.

At the end of the year taking a trip to Italy in the same all the characters meet their dreams and find love. The book ends with a train ride where everyone sings.

PERSONAL OPINION: In my opinion, i didn´t like the novel, because it's not my style of reading. For other part, the novel teaches us how behind every person there is a story and we aren´t always what they seem.

CONCLUSION: This book is highly recommended for its easy reading, this is helpful for those who are starting.

Valentín_INT1ºE

IN THE SHADOW OF THE MOUNTAIN BOOK REVIEW

“In the Shadow of the Mountain” is the title of a book written by Helen Naylor. It’s difficult to say what kind of novel is it because the story passes through various genres, from adventure to romance. However and from my point of view, the book is mainly a mystery novel.

The story takes places between United Kingdom, more specifically in the northern part of England, where Newton’s family lives, and Switzerland, where Edward Crowe’s descendants passed their winter holydays enjoying the snow in a town named Zermatt. Clare Newton, Edward’s granddaughter, is a British journalist who standing with your mother and brother in Windermere receives a call from the Foreign Office of Switzerland reporting her that her grandfather’s body had been recovered from a glacier where he had disappeared on 1998 in a climbing accident. Once in Zermatt, where Clare travels to recover her grandfather’s body, she discovers the mystery surrounding the death of her grandfather Edward and she decides to investigate his death 74 years after.

When she arrives to Switzerland, very close of the mountains where she enjoyed and skiing during her holydays when she was younger, she remembers old times and meet people like Bruno and Ulrich Grunwalder who will help her to discover more about her grandfather’s death and his years in Zermatt. Bruno is the ski instructor and mountain guide of Zermatt ski station; he’s in his early forties. For his part, Ulrich is an old mountain guide of ninety four years old who lives in Zermatt and knows a lot about the story of her grandfather Edward. Marjorie and Andrew are her widowed mother and her younger brother respectively.

Personally, I like the story very much because mystery, main narrative genre as I said previously, is one of my favourites. In my opinion, “In the Shadow of the Mountain” is a great novel of intrigue and adventure that captures the readers with its unexpected narrative twists.

From my point of view, the best part of the book is undoubtedly the surprise ending, I encourage everyone to discover it. I learned of the book an interesting lesson that should be remembered: we never get to know the people around us as well as we think.

To finish, I recommend this book to all those who enjoy with the intrigue and adventure stories, I think they’ll like. I hope to read more books written by Helen Naylor. If these books are as this sure I will enjoy reading them.

Manuel Alejandro_INT1ºF

MURDER BY ART

BOOK REVIEW STRUCTURE General comments about the book: McGiffin, Janet, Murder by Art, Cambridge This book is a Mystery and detective book. I like very much this kind of books.

Brief summary: Maxine Cassidy is a doctor at the Mercy Hospital ER. One day, she was finishing working when Latoya, a Milwaukee gang leader’s neighbour, entered the ER and suddenly died of something she had eaten. Before that, two people had entered the ER with bullet wounds, and because of that Maxine couldn’t do anything for Latoya. After work, Maxine went to an art gallery, the Art Space, to see some new work from a very famous artist, Soren Berendorf, and, unfortunately, the masterpiece of the gallery, Musical Chairs, fell on Soren, killing him.

Detective Grabowski, a friend of Maxine (maybe more than a friend for her), was asked to do an investigation on Soren’s death. Finally, after analyzing the ropes which held Musical Chairs, he discovers that someone had cut the rope… And, more than that, he discovers that there’s a real connection between Soren’s murder, Latoya’s intoxication and the shooting of the two people who had been treated by Maxine. Of course, Maxine is going to help her friend doing whatever she has to do to discover the truth.

Characters: Dr. Maxine Cassidy: a doctor at Mercy Hospital ER Shirley: a nurse at Mercy Hospital ER Detective Grabowski: a police officer; Maxine’s friend, maybe more than a friend for Dr. Maxine Cassidy.

Dr. Leo Hochstedder: a specialist in lung diseases Lillian Hochstedder: Leo’s wife; an artist and co-owner of the Art Space.

Helen Mueller: the business manager and co-owner of the Art Space Louie: Maxine’s neighbor; the owner of Louie’s Antique Shop.

Soren Berendorf: a famous artist Wyoming Syzinski: an artist; Grabowski’s friend

Rolondo: a gang leader Rosa Jones: Rolondo’s girlfriend Latoya Thompson: Rolondo’s neighbor Officer Koranda: the night guard at the Police Crime Lab

My opinion: I think this book has a pretty nice because you can’t think of what is going to happen next. It usually surprises you, and it hooks you at the end of each chapter, so you can’t give up reading it. Sometimes it’s a bit difficult to follow the plot, but it’s very well planned. The only con I can give it is that the plot might look as if it had been copied from a police TV series. If you are a CSI fan, the plot won’t surprise you for sure.

I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a hooking murder story, or to anyone who wants to have a good time discovering a mystery like this.

Last month I read “Emergency murder”, a book of with the same main characters and also the same auto, I liked it very much too.

Dulce_INT1ºE

In the shadow of the mountain,

by Helen Naylor realistic book This book is about one English journalist who travels to Switzerland to check if a body which was discovered in a mountain is her dead grandfather´s body. Here in Switzerland starts to discover things about her grandfather´s live like he was a climber, he was in love with a local young girl and that he was going to left her grandmother for this girl. She falls in love with a ski monitor too and him helps her to investigate about her grandpa deft .Finally they started a relationship and she comes to London again, where she changes her life.

Main characters: Clare: She is a forty-six-year-old writer and journalist from England who is unpleasant with her job. She is independent and decided.

Bruno: He is a handsome ski monitor from Switzerland whose family are connected with Clare´s family. They finally felt in love.

Edward Crowe: He is Clare´s grandfather. He is a dreamer, with a family in England but a lover in Switzerland. He loved climbing and finally he died doing what he liked, climb. He is the body which was found in the mountain.

Marianne: She is a very beautiful young woman from Switzerland and Edward´s lover. She worked to the Edward´s family when they were in Switzerland. She is from Bruno´s family.

Ulrich Grundwalder: He is a very very old man from Switzerland and a very famous mountain guide in the past. He is Bruno´s grandfather and Marianne brother. He was working as a guide to Edward when he died and he knows a lot about the story.

I have liked this book, is an amusing story and is very easy to learn, it´s impossible that you can get bored with it. The only bad thing to say is that the final is so simple, so obviously.

I recommend this book to everyone because it hasn´t got a clear genre, it´s simply a nice book.

Pablo_INT1ºF

SUGAR GLIDER I read the book by Rod Nielsen whose title is “SUGAR GLIDER”. I am going to summarize and comment this adventure book: Supposedly, the government hire Paul and Don to do a trip to Melbourne in the “Sugar Glider”. They must make a stop at Warrangi Mine to pick up some equipment and chemicals. They have to do it on secret for a lot of money.

Paul and Don want retire and start a flying school in order to be closer to their families.

Don returned to Australia after a year working abroad. Don missed his daughter Judy and his ex-wife Sylvia too.

Don called Sylvia for Judy spend a few days with him and take a trip on plane, something that Judy loved. They met at the airport. Sylvia had a new boyfriend, Patrick, a businessman with she was very well. But when Don turned, Sylvia realize that had not forgotten him. Judy did not like Patrick although he gave her a horse. Judy learned to taming and riding it.

They went to the house of Paul and Beulah, his wife, to talk and prepare the travel. At night Sylvia called and became angry with Don because he was going to work and left Judy with Beulah. For this reason Don went travel with Judy but without telling Sylvia.

They landed on the dry plain of Warrangi Mine. While her father was speaking in the airport office, Judy met a Murri boy. The Murri were demanding the closure of the mine because those lands were very special for them. Judy told that she was by visit but she understood their reasons. The boy went pleased.

They took of towards Melbourne but Don changed the flight plan in order to arriving earlier. After a short time the engines failed and they crashed. Paul, before to die because of heart attack, told that they carried uranium, that the government did not hire them and that the crash did not was an accident.

In the cupboards of Sugar Glider had rope, knives, saw, other tools and cans of food.

They put everything on their backpacks and went to camp near the river. Next day they found wild horses and tamed a couple of them in only two hours. They called Kylie and Nicole.

Sylvia called Beulah to talk with Judy but Beulah told that she went with her father and the plane had not arrived in Melbourne. Later she saw Judy on television at Warrangi Mine and she alerted to rescue team. She could not lose any of them.

A bird scared Don and he kicked Nicole accidentally. The horse started to run and jump, until Don was thrown and broke a leg. Judy continued to seek help. She found a path and three hours later came to a farmhouse. John lent his bathroom and feed her but also he called a man which had asked by her those morning. Came the bad guys and locked them in a room. They wanted to find the plane for taking the uranium.

Later appeared Joe, the Murri boy, through a trapdoor on the floor. Joe was working for John and when he saw men with weapons he wanted help. They agreed that he went to attend Judy´s father and put him out of danger. Judy tried towin time before and during a trip to the plane for they did not find and kill her father.

In the crash site, when they was catching the uranium, appeared their boss Patrick. The boyfried of Sylvia was bankrupt and would want to sell uranium to a foreign country.

When arrived the Australian Air Force they tried to escape and they kill themselves.

At least Sylvia and Judy were in the hospital with Don, surprised but very happy to be together.

The book is a bit predictable but is entertaining and I liked the story and the characters, specially the courage of Judy and the good heart of Joe. By this, I recommend it. I have been identified with the Murri. For me, the land and the tradition are also important. The book has a happy end like a Hollywood film but in the real life not always triumph good over evil.

Jorge_INT1ÂşF

“THE BOYS FROM BRAZIL” INTRODUCTION The novel was first published in 1976.

Author: Ira Levin was born in 1929 in New York City. Levin was married and divorced twice, he has got three sons and died in Manhattan from a heart attack on November 12, 2007.

The Genre: It is a suspenseful thriller.

The story is placed around the time that it was published. The story takes place in Vienna, Brazil and the United States.

It was made into a movie of the same title in 1978.

PLOT “The Boys from Brazil” is about Josef Mengele, the Angel of Death. Dr. Mengele (a real historical person) is the Nazi doctor who did experiments on Jews in the prison camp Auschwitz in World War II. In this book Dr. Mengele is hiding out in Brazil and he hasn't given up his experiments. He has cloned Hitler 94 times and given the little babies to 94 couples who most look like Hitler's parents in several countries. Now when the boys are 13 he is going to kill the 94 fathers just like Hitler's dad.

The book begins with a secret meeting in Brazil, in the 1970s, by Nazis who have survived and are planning the Fourth Reich. They are led by Dr. Joseph Mengele. With 94 clones of Hitler throughout the world Mengele hopes, like Hitler, saving the Aryan nation from all others. A Nazi hunter, Yakov Liebermann (that hides a real character, the Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal), receives a phone call from a young man, Barry Koehler who listened to Mengele plotting to kill 94 civil servants of the same age, all with 13-year-old sons. All the deaths must look like accidents... While Barry is phoning Liebermann to tell him the story, the Nazi's murder him.

When Liebermann investigates, he finds a plan to recreate one of the world's most hated dictators.

CHARACTERS •

Josef Mengele, is a white man impeccable , handsome , aristocratic gestures and possessor of a strange power to decide who lives or dies. Mengele rarely demonstrates humanitarianism and he is particularly hard, cruel and fanatical.

•

Yakov Liebermann, he is middle-aged , tired and more a loser than a winner, his life has been filled with tragedy. He pursues Nazi-criminals, but he is not quite hard . He is lovely and to him moves the compassion. He is a person humanitarian and thinks that ordinary men will not give the Hitlers and Mengeles.

•

Rabbi Gorin, (on the real life Rabbi Meir Kahane) an ally to Liebermann. He believes that the solution to the problems posed by the Hitlers and Mengeles of this world is to fight them with their own weapons.

•

Barry Koehler, a man who records the initial meeting and warns Liebermann of the intended murders.

•

Klaus von Palmen, a student of Liebermann who helps him to investigate the murders.

•

Frieda Maloney, a German woman, once a guard in Ravensbrück concentration camp, and the person who founded the foster homes for all the boys who were being produced

by Mengele in Brazil.

OTHER INFORMATION I really loved the book because I am a big fan of history books and especially the Nazi era.

The best part of the book is the end when after a reading full of suspense and tension, Liebermann and Gorin have different opinions about they have to do. Gorin thinks all the boys should be killed to protect the world, but Liebermann cannot find it in his heart to do this. So he throws the list of names to the toilet. The novel ends with a description of one of the boys attracting a stadium full of people, enthusiastically cheering him, just like in the old Hitler-films. I totally agree with the ending, Liebermann made the right decision. He shouldn't become what Mengele was.

The novel makes you think if violence should be met with violence and to the question whether man is naturally inclined to evil, and if so, should this inclination be suppressed by force.

CONCLUSION I would recommend this novel because reading is quick and easy, does not require too much time and makes the reader to think about possible endings on ethics and morality, about the future and about science. Not grand literature, but an enjoyable read.

I perhaps would read others books by this author : A Kiss before Dying, Rosemary´s baby,This Perfect Day and The Stepford Wives.

Dioni_INT1ยบE

INTRODUCTION: Title: Staying together Author: Judith Wilson Genre: Romance

PLOT. Ikuko has never been in other place, she has never gone out of Japan, so she decides going to England for three months and learn English. She promises her boy friend, Hiroshi, come back and marry with him… but there, she meets an African student, Bernard, and begins to feel very close him. Finally, they fall in love and she travels to Africa for living with Bernard, although she won’t find her place there, either …

Many years later, Joyce Mutanga, a very famous media scientist, arrives at Cairo to speak in the Opening Ceremony of the new Red Sea Research. Many people were waiting to receive her, Taka was one of them. They know each other and they fall in love…

At the end, they discover a surprising notice: their grandparents, Bernard and Ikuko lived a love story in the past.

MAIN CHARACTERS IKUKO: She is a young girl who lives in Japan. She has a good job and a great boy friend. She is intelligent and independent; she wants travel, see things for herself to grow up a little more.

However she doesn’t find her place in the world and probably she finishes accepting the life that at beginning she doesn’t want; She comes back to Japan, she married, has got a son and leaves her job.

HIROSHI. He is the Ikuko’s boyfriend. He is gentleness and understanding. He had gone to do a computing course in America, but he hadn’t enjoyed life there and he decides instead to return to Tokyo. He thinks the most beautiful place and the people who matter most are the one in your own country in your own home. Although he can understand Ikuko, he loves her, and he can wait for her.

BERNARD CHILUBA: He is an African student. He is hardworking, responsible, understanding and quiet. He is teacher in Zambia, He got a scholarship from the government to pay to be in

Birmingham and do a teaching diploma. He meets Ikuko in a photography club. He was married and he has two children in Africa. He loves Ikuko but he understands, life in Africa isn’t easy for her, she must return Japan. Maybe, there, she finds what she looking for and she can be happy.

JOICE: She is an African media scientist. She is independent, shy and selfish.

She makes underwater films; she was interested in studying the life of the sea. She loves the see but she doesn’t like being with people too much. People think, Joyce might learn to be polite. When she knows Taka, she changes.

TAKA: He is a Japanese Researcher at the Centre. He is intelligent, sensible and extrovert. He is interested in Joyce’s work. He worries about her and helps her when she has an accident in the sea, he is going to visit at hospital, talks with her, and convinces her to dive with him into sea because he thinks she has to face her fear. He loves her.

OTHER INFORMATION In my opinion the most interesting of the book is the message the writer wants to send us.

Ikuko has dreams but she grows and she accepts a quiet life, Joyce and Taka has an opportunity to find a place where they can be happy, they can get it and living the life that their grandparents couldn’t have. I believe, much people have ever asked the same question that Ikuko about what we are looking for? What’s wrong with us? Why can’t we are happy with?

What we’ve got? This is a book to think about the life and the decisions we take in it.

CONCLUSION If you like love stories you should read it. I’d recommended read this book to practice English, it’s easy to read and you can learn some new words. In my opinion the story is some bored because the writer doesn’t deepens in the character of the mains so much.

Fedra_INT1ºE

HOUSE OF STAIRS.

BY BARBARA VINE. (But his true name is Ruth Rendell)

The book is a psychological thriller written in first person and whose main character is the narrator (Elizabeth). This book tells us about one old crime, inherits, people in love, family and money.

The house of the stairs is the place where people meet and where the last crime took place.

At the beginning of the story Elizabeth finds her old friend Bell.

Bell has been in jail because she killed her husband to get his inheritance and she never had a job.

They fall in love and decide to live into the house of stairs wich was owned of Cosette, that she was like a second mother of Liz. Towards the end, we are sure that Bell is planning to kill again because Elizabeth has received a superb inheritance on the death of his father.

The story does not have a continue timeline and comes back fourteen years ago, when they met each other. After a few chapters the story returns to the present time And these changes make difficult to read the book.

VĂ­ctor_INT1ÂşF

The Shadow of the Mountain is a mystery book.

Plot: There was a girl who was a periodist; she was living with her mother and her brother.One day they discovered that the body of her grandfather has been found in the mountain where he was climbing when he disappeared seventy years ago.

She must go to the village to recognize the body of her grandfather. When she was in the village she hired a ski guide, incredibly this guide was the grandson of her grandfather's guide when he disappeared. The girl took the opportunity and made numerous questions, and finally she discovered that her grandfather wanted to leave his wife, because he was in a relationship with the sister of his guide. Finally the girl and the ski guide had a relationship.

I like this book because the history is very interesting for me, the way an opinion or information of somebody changes your point of view and all the returns that can give your life are awesome.

Alejandro_INT1ยบF

Introduction:

The Amsterdam Connection is a mystery short story written by Sue Leather Plot: The journalist of the Daily Echo, Kate Jensen traveled from London to Holland when her friend Max Carson was found dead in an Amsterdam street. The police notified that Max had been stabbed by a pickpocket, but Kate didn´t believe it.

After ask her boss Bolzano, she decided to investigate the case herself on the pretext of doing a report about the Rotterdam City Football Club which owned Max and his brother Tom. Helped by her police friend Elly, Kate began the search in the street where the body of her friend had been found. She also knew that Jos van Essen, a former football player was the last person who Max had seen.

Later, she found in the hotel´s room an anonymous letter from a "freind" warning about the bets made the previous game. With Elly´s help, Kate discovered a large amount of money bet against the Rotterdam Citty F.C. by a syndicate called The Amsterdam Connection. The same night Kate was assaulted in the street, but because of her knowledge of karate she was able to escape, and her friend Jos was also found dead.

After that, Kate asked the Rotterdam´s goalkeeper Raúl, who admitted that he was being threatened to cheat in games. Raúl accepted to unmask the major shareholder of the club Martijn Christiaans wearing a secret tape recorder. But he realized and kidnapped Elly, Raúl and Kate.

At last, Kate managed to escape and told the police what had happened.

Characters: Kate Jensen: Daily Echo reporter in London. Main character. She is a smart, constant and hardworking journalist. Friend of his friends, as proved by going to investigate the death of Max Max Carson: friend and ex-boss of Kate. Owner of the Rotterdam City Football Club until his unexpected death. He was a kind and beloved person by his close friends.

Tom Carson: Max´s brother and co-owner of the Rotterdam City Football Club. He is worried about the Club and what happens to his brother.

Dave Balzano: editor and boss of Kate in the Daily Echo. He is very strict but at the same time understanding.

Jos Van Essen: former star of football who used to play in the Rotterdam City F.C. He is a good looking and rich. He retired quite young Elly van Praage: policewoman in Amsterdam and friend of Kate. She is is determined to help Kate, using the necessary favors to do it.

Martijn Chirstiaans: major shareholder of the Rotterdam City F.C. Raul Sanchez: goalkeeper at Rotterdam City F.C. and involved in match-fixing.

Other information I do like the story, I think it was very interesting and I really like books that make you introduce in the story. I enjoy the way things change and think about who could be the responsible.

I learn different words and expressions.

Conclusions: I would like to recommend this book to all those who are learning English because is easy to read and follow. The characters are simple and the extension of the book is not very long.

I´ll read more books by Sue Leather if it´s necessary to pass my English exams.

Óscar_INT1ºE

The ´African Queen´ Introduction: -Title: The African Queen -Author: C. S. Forester -Kind of book: Adventure Plot: The First World War has begun in the German East Africa. Charlie, a Canadian who is dedicated to transporting goods by river Ulanga with his old boat, called The African Queen, He arrive a village who regularly visit.

Charlie was met two missionaries, Rose and Samuel. His village was destroyed by the Germans and Samuel died when he saw destroyed his village Chalie returns to the village, rescues Rose. They begin their adventures by the river to avenge the death of his brother Samuel. They fall in love and manage to survive.

Character: Charlie: He is a simple man, your job is transport goods by river, is passionate. He is prudent.

Rose: She is a woman with initiative, she wants to avenge the death of her brother, she is impulsive, romantic and feisty.

Other Information: The story I like it, adventures with Rose and Samuel in the story are very interesting. I liked the part where Rose and Samuel get married thinking they were going to die.

I learned from this book, you never give up.

Conclusion: I recommend this book to all people who like adventure novels, based on historical themes.

Pablo_INT1ºE

DEATH IN THE DOJO INTRODUCTION:

Title: "Death in the Dojo".

Author: Sue Leather. genre: Black Nobel.

This is a book from publisher Cambridge University Press.

First published in 1999.

PLOT:

This novel stars with Kawaguchi-sensei death caused by a karate hit. A reporter Kate Jensen, was interested in this strange case and decided to investigate it. She went to Kawaguchi funeral's and asked to Ito about this death. The follow day, Ito was killed.

Kate travelled to Japan to ask to Naoko Kawaguchi (daughter of Kawaguchi-sensei) about his father death. Naoko was in a wheelchair because she was shot by a man, this man killed to boyfriend of Naoko. She thought that his father wanted to kill them because he didn't approve heir relationship. Kawaguchi-sensei said that a theft auto called Brendan was the murder but Naoko didn't think this but she said that yes.

Brendan was all his live in the jail and died there.

A day, Jonathom Bailei discovered in Police's station a bomb packet whit a signing of "The Avenger". Kate decided to set a trap of Kawaguchi-sensei and Ito murderer and she wrote an article in her newspaper. She wrote that she had a indication to know who is the murder. These night, the murderer try to kill her but the murderer was caught. The murderer was daughter of Brendan, she called Brenda. Brenda was a pupil of

Kawaguchi-sensei. She wanted to avenge his father death and everyone knew that his father was innocent.

CHARACTER:

Kate Jensen: she is the main character, she is a news reporter on The Daily Echo.

Kawaguchi-sensei: a famous karate teacher and owner of Zanshin dojo in London.

Naoko Kawaguchi: Kawaguchi's daughter.

Brendan Murphy: Murphy was accused of The London Road murder, over thirty years ago.

Brenda Murphy: Murphy's daughter.

OTHER INFORMATION:

I love this novel because I love this genre. This novel is a lot addictive from start to the end. It has nice plot and so much intrigue.

The end of this novel is very fast. In two chapters, you discover who is the murder and why.

CONCLUSION:

I recommend this black novel because it is very easy to read and when you start reading, you can´t stop it. It is exciting.

Diego_INT1ÂşF

I chose “When the summer comes” to read; a book whitch was written by Helen Naylor.

I was waiting for an adventure book -i don´t know why- but not a romance book like this. It was unexpected. I admit than i´m not used to read these books, i´d prefer read fantasy or science fiction instead.

In the book, a London couple -Anna and Stephen- stressed, take a summer holidays in a little fishing village called Polreath west of London. They drive there, then they meet Tristan -a good-looking local fisherman- who has a cottage near the harbor in rent, and they finally rent it.

Along the time they pass in Polreth, swiming in the sea, walking, sealing...our characters discover how much they need a change in their lifes. They fell better living in the village than in the city. So they try to buy Tristan´s cottage becouse it is perfect for them.

It sounds good, but there is a problem: Anna fall in love with Tristan and she has an love affaire with him. There´s a triangle love here, with an infidelity at end added.

The main characters are Anna, Stephen and Tristan. All are about thirty. Anna and Stephen are married for a long time, and Tristan is alone now -he broke with his girlfriend Jill time ago-.

Anna and Tristan are beautifull, sociable, atractive, active people. Stephen is different side, he is introvert, very stressed, silent.

In my opinion the best is the trip they get to Skelling island: very remarkable. It´s shocking the point of view characters have with changes they need in their lifes: Stephen want a new job and home, Anna and Tristan are waiting something new in their love relactionship. Althought Anna don´t want lose her marriage.

The worse is when Stephen call Anna for speak with her about something very important he knows. The book ends. Where is that conversation? I want to read it!

Jairo_INT1ºG