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The Empyrean series review

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By: Teagan Mack

The Empyrean book series, written by Rebecca Yarros, is one of the most popular, and spoken of, fantasy book series since 2023. This series is a blend of fantasy, romance, and military adventures, capturing the attention of millions of readers worldwide. This story follows a young woman named Violet Sorrengail, who was forced to join an elite dragon-riding military war college, even though she was never trained for it.

This article may contain spoilers so read at your own risk.

The first book, ‘Fourth Wing’, was released in May 2023 and made its way up the charts quickly. It follows Violet’s journey into Basgiath War College, where she has to train hard to become a dragon rider, or die trying. Violet made friends and found old ones, found love, and with that came secrets and enemies. Her friends are amazing and really loyal, and she also became friends with the marked ones (they are basically the children of the enemies from a previous war, it’s kind of hard to explain) who are feared throughout Basgiath.

From the words of Ms. Pischke “It sucks you in the first 2 pages, then it sends you on this wild journey of heartbreak and there’s tears and a lot of emotion. I’m impatiently waiting for the 4th book.” The book has a mix of high end battles, magical dragons, and forbidden romance, going viral and selling over 2.7 million copies in its first week.

The second book, ‘Iron Flame’, came out just a few months later in November of 2023, continuing Violet’s story at the war college. In this book, Violet faces new enemies, more secrets, and amazing character development. Every rider is bonded to one dragon and earns powers from their dragons called signets. Violet has a different story though, she bonded with not one but two dragons, and has one of the most powerful signets that hasn’t been seen in centuries.

Throughout ‘Iron Flame’ Violet finds out more about her dragons, bonds, signets, and about how special the marked ones are. Evie Beetle says “I really like how the author writes the plot and action and the characters. The bonds. The writing makes the readers seem engaged. I feel connected to the characters which are different for me. I never read a fantasy book before this and it changed my perspective. There’s a good balance of action and emotion and character development.”

The third book, ‘Onyx Storm’, is the most recent book, coming out January 21, 2025. Even though this book series focuses on Violet and her journey, it also shows more about side characters like Violet’s friends, Xaden Riorson (her boyfriend) and their dragons. This book follows more of her second bonded dragon Andarna, and the history of the dragons. In the first book it is known that everyone gains one signet, and there are 6 breeds/colors of dragons, black being the rarest. Not only did Violet bond with the second biggest black dragon on the continent, but she also bonded with a mysterious little black dragon, who we later find out is a 7th breed of dragon who can basically camouflage and select their scale colors.

Readers are shaken by every plot twist and surprise these books bring, and after Rebecca Yarros announced that it was made to be a 5 book series. There are many theories about what the 4th book brings.

Rebecca Yarros, the author, is an amazing writer, getting readers hooked on the plot and each and every character, whether we like them or not. Yarros has a plan for every character and isn’t afraid to get rid of them, like we experience in the first book. Yarros has experience as a military spouse and lives with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a chronic illness that inspired parts of Violet’s character. In the acknowledgments at the back of ‘Onyx Storm’ she thanks her husband, because while writing this book she was struggling a lot, and he helped her through everything.

During her ‘Onyx Storm’ book tour she stated: “Someone you love won’t make it in book 4.” Every reader is speculating who it could be and we’re all scared. In the first book she got us hooked into a side character (one of Violet’s friends) who played a great role in her life. At the end of the book she killed him off saying it was because he was perfect and there was nothing to change about him or add to him. Readers are convinced the next victim is one of her best friends, because he is a big piece in Violet’s life and is perfect in every way.

In 2023 the Empyrean series was selected by Amazon MGM Studios to be turned into a TV show. With help from Michael B. Jordan’s production company, and Outlier Society with the adaptation, Emmy-winning writer Moira Walley-Beckett will be the showrunner. There have been many fan cast picks but nothing is official. To play the main male role fans want Josh Heuston, and for the main female role fans want Mackenzie Foy (from Twilight). I personally agree with these fancast options.

Books/Art, Editorials/Student Voice, Movies/TV/Theaters

Reasons why books are better than their movie adaptations

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By: Fletcher Pike

Image created with ChatGPT

If you’ve ever watched a movie adaptation of a book, like ‘The Hunger Games’ or ‘Divergent’, you might wonder about the differences or similarities between the book and its movie adaptation. In this article, I will list several reasons as to why books are better than their movie counterparts.

For one, reading a book allows your mind to create your own interpretation of the story. Your brain creates your own version of the characters using descriptive words within the book that seems to make it more personal and creative. However, most movies might not correlate to your personal interpretation of what you thought characters or places looked like. This can lead to some dissatisfaction as some things might not seem as familiar to you.

Another reason is that movie adaptations usually leave out details from the book. As reading a book can usually take longer than watching a movie, the movies might leave out some interesting details or information about the plot or characters. The average film is only about 2 hours long, but books can have hundreds or even thousands of pages of descriptive words and details that can take several hours to read.

Another reason is that books help build your vocabulary. When you read a book, your brain is actively progressing in grammar and spelling. Reading several books makes you an overall smarter person as you are continuing to build your reading level and vocabulary.

Some might think that movies are more interesting than books, but books allow you to immerse yourself further into your own interpretation of the story.

Overall, I think that books are much better than movies as they provide a creative outlet for the endless stories that books contain.

Books/Art

‘Chaly Goes to See the Doctor’ by Dr. Chee Vang: Book review

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By: Jooney Freddieson & Aalovely Lor

Before we start with the story, let’s talk about the author— Dr. Chee Vang.

Dr. Chee Vang is not only an author, but a family practicing physician in the Hmong community. He graduated from Highland Park Senior High, soon pursuing his career in medicine.

He made history as the first to write a bilingual children’s book in both Hmong and English about health for children. This helps reflect his passion and commitment to medicine and preserving the Hmong language.

Through the book, Dr. Chee Vang offers medical guidance, as well as bridging cultures and generations.

He serves his community by providing both medical care and helping young Hmong children/teens reconnect with the language that’s beginning to get lost.

This book is more than the first Hmong/English bilingual children’s book, but also a meaningful way to contribute to health education and preservation of culture.

At the beginning of the book we’re introduced to Chaly, a young boy who expresses his nervous feeling about visiting the Doctor for a checkup.

It’s a relatable opening that helps capture the reader’s attention, especially children who have similar experiences when going to the doctor’s.

As the story progresses, we follow Chaly through all the different steps of his medical examination.

He’s first introduced to the nurse who takes his vital signs, and that includes multiple steps like taking his temperature and blood pressure.

The nurse makes sure to explain each step carefully to give Chaly and the reader a sense of understanding.

Eventually, Chaly meets Dr. Chee Vang who performs a physical examination. Through the examination, Dr. Chee Vang takes time to answer Chaly’s questions and builds both trust and communication.

He uses models and diagrams as an easy-to-understand method to help Chaly learn how the body works. This is not only helpful to Chaly, but it also can provide a way for young readers to follow along.

At the end, Chaly realizes his outlook on visiting the doctor’s has changed completely. His fear from the beginning ended with confidence and he understands that it doesn’t have to be scary because the doctors are supporting them, not hurting them.

Chaly’s journey educates and prepares the readers for what to expect during a medical visit, breaking down each step and introducing medical roles in a memorable way.

This also teaches young people to advocate for themselves and communicate openly with their healthcare professional. These lessons are important for children, especially those with language barriers or cultural differences.

Although this book was designed for readers between the ages of 5 and 18, its education goes beyond the age range.

It includes Hmong translations on each page, becoming a language learning tool for everyone as well. This is important for Hmong families because younger generations begin to lose their fluency in the language they speak.

As a Hmong teenager, I (Aalovley) continue to struggle with losing touch within the language I grew up speaking. Reading this book had an unexpected impact on my vocabulary when speaking Hmong. The words helped me reconnect with my culture, and more importantly, I was able to share this book with my younger siblings. I taught them what I learned, and that helped reinforce the vocabulary/language in all of us.

We highly recommend this book for Hmong families who are seeking help with their language/further education on health knowledge because these aren’t everyday things we learn.

‘Chaly Goes to See the Doctor’ is more than just a children’s book, but also a tool for learning and reconnection. It builds relationships between doctors/patients, between cultural generations, and for kids or teenagers like us. It gives us a path back to parts of our culture we may have lost along the way.

If you or someone you know might be interested in the book, here are resources where you can find it and support Dr. Chee Vang:

Libraries in Minnesota:

  • Hennepin Public Library System
  • Saint Paul Public Library system
  • Washington County Public Library system

Libraries in Wisconsin:

  • Marathon County Public Library of Wausau
  • Appleton Public Library of Appleton

It also can be purchased on Amazon: (includes paperback, hardback, and ebook)

Books/Art

’Made in Korea’ book review

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By: Maggie Hong

‘Made in Korea’ is a romance novel by Sarah Suk. It follows the stories of Valerie Kwon and Wes Jung, high school seniors who run competing K-beauty brands at their school.

Valerie has been running her business since sophomore year, and it’s the most successful student run business at the school so far. Together with her cousin/business partner Charlie, she carefully stocks face masks, toners, and lip balms to cater to her customers.

When Wes Jung moves to town and begins selling limited edition k-pop merch, Valerie’s business is threatened. Not only that, but she needs the profits to pay for a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Paris with her grandmother, whose health is declining by the day. She immediately goes into overdrive, advertising on Instagram and giving special deals to loyal customers.

Wes didn’t intend to start selling k-pop merch, but when his mom, a PR rep for a popular group, has some lip balms left over, he can’t turn down the opportunity to make some money. He needs the money to repair his broken saxophone, and to pay application fees to music schools across the country. So, even as Valerie tries to intimidate him and warn him off her customers, Wes keeps going.

Valerie and Wes are bitter rivals. But as they compete so closely together, they start to realize one another’s situation. This book was both fun and heartwarming to read, and I felt connected to my culture and represented in a genre I don’t usually read. The characters are loveable and nuanced, and the story is engaging and fast paced. This is a great read if you like romance, or if you’re looking for a lighter read and a change of scenery from more serious books.

I would give this book a 9/10.

Books/Art

‘As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow’ review

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By: Maggie Hong

‘As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow’ is a historical fiction novel by Zoulfa Katouh. It takes place during the Syrian Revolution, following the main character Salama as she fights for love, peace, and a way out of her wartorn country.

Salama is 18 years old and has only one year of pharmacy training, but she works every day as a surgeon at the hospital in Old Homs. She treats bombing victims, people caught in sniper fire, and children who had the misfortune of playing on a street set to be the next site of revolution. As these experiences shape Salama’s worldview, they also skew her perception of reality. She wants to escape Syria, but can’t bring herself to abandon her family, her history, and her country.

Katouh’s writing is lyrical and vivid, lacing the story with the scents of lemons and smoke on every page. Characters are strong and nuanced, speaking with unique voices and formed by pasts which are slowly revealed throughout the novel. As Salama survives war and tragedy, her relationships with Layla, her best friend, and Kenan, a boy she was almost engaged to, deepen and twist in expert form.

I cried, laughed, and learned as I read this book. Its final plot twist left me at a loss for words, and the book as a whole renewed my hope in the world and the ability of humans to survive.

This book is especially relevant now, as Syria enters a new phase of its revolution. With the fall of the Assad regime in December, the world is watching a victory for freedom.

‘As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow’ is an enthralling and beautiful reminder of how far we’ve come, and why it matters.

This book is definitely a favorite of mine, and I’d recommend it to anyone who loves historical fiction or a chance to slip into a new world. I would give this book a 9/10.

Books/Art

Book recommendation: ‘Tender is the Flesh’

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By: Munira Ahmadad

*Warning: This book contains graphic descriptions of violence, includes depictions of sexual assault, and contains characters that may be considered to represent anti-semitic stereotypes.

‘Tender is the Flesh’ is a horror novel by Agustina Bazterrica. The story takes place in a dystopian society where a disease causes humans to be unable to consume animal products or flesh anymore. Not that long after the event, the human population turned to cannibalism for an industrialized replacement of animal meat. This is referred to as “the Transition”.

Humans are bred for consumption identical to how animals were and are referred to as “heads”. The majority of the human product in first world countries is advertised as “special meat”, and the Transition is easier on those who have the privilege to not have to think about where and how they got their meat.

The protagonist is a man named Marcos who works directly in the industry who struggles with his relationship with his wife after the death of their baby. At his job, Marcos was given a first generation pure female head as a gift.

The novel aims to comment on the bleakness of real life society with how the Transition impacted marginalized groups first and the hardest. The message wasn’t that eating meat is bad, but it prompts the readers to consider their own internal ethical conflict and how we oftentimes think around discomforting knowledge and try to disregard it.

The story parallels the real life horrendous aspects in the meat processing industry. Not only do slaughterhouse workers operate in physically dangerous environments, the mental toll of having to constantly disconnect with what they are doing leads to emotional dissonance, and the abusive workplace causes slaughterhouse workers to often turn to maladaptive coping mechanisms according to the National Library of Medicine. The majority of slaughterhouse workers are people of color both in the book and in real life. Slaughterhouse employees are mostly migrants in real life, making up 70% of the workforce in the UK.

I recommend Bazterrica’s novel to anyone who enjoys splatterpunk horror in particular, but I would say that it’s relatively grotesque with its descriptions, and some readers might find it excessive enough for the book to be put down.

Books/Art

‘Thunderhead’ review

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By: Samson Belihu

*Warning: This article contains minor spoilers

The book ‘Thunderhead’ was made by Neal Shusterman and is a sequel to ‘Scythe’.

To help better understand this review, if you haven’t read ‘Scythe’, it is important to know that in this book, they don’t say “kill,” they say “glean”.

Thunderhead is an advanced AI and a perfect ruler of a perfect world; it has its own agenda, which is to protect humanity and ensure their well-being, but it has no control over the Scythedom (in another word, Scythes).

This book is set in the future, where death is conquered. They cured all illnesses, so now they’re immortal, but to keep the population in control, they created Scythes. Scythes are an order of individuals who are responsible for killing, or should I say gleaning, to keep the world’s population in check; once gleaned, they’re unable to be revived by the law. 

In the last book we learned Citra became a Scythe and goes by the name of Scythe Anastasia who is trying to be a good Scythe but Rowan, on the other hand, has taken a dark path. He is now known as Scythe Lucifer, and he embraces a more ruthless method. He believes that the system is corrupted, that he needs to take extreme measures to bring about change, and he is willing to do everything that it takes to accomplish his goal. 

As the story unfolds, we can see conflict ruin the traditional sides and the rise of a new group called the New Order. This group of people believe in a harsher approach to gleaning, and their plan is to maintain control over humanity so they may be feared and have power over anything, which goes against Citra’s ideals of mercy and empathy. Scythes who disagree with their method face dangers and challenges.

Scythe Anastasia and Scythe Lucifer, who were once friends, find themselves in conflict with their different ideals. But as the New Order rises, their power poses a direct threat to traditional sides as they implement harsher methods of gleaning.

Will the New Order have full control over Scythes, or will Citra and Rowan fight back in their own way that we are not sure of as they left us on a cliffhanger?

I personally am invested in what’s going to happen in the next book and in my personal opinion, I give this book 8.75/10.

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‘Scythe’ book review

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By: Kimberly Mascote Rangel

‘Scythe’ is a novel set in a future where humanity has conquered death. Disease, war and misery are things of the past and people can live forever. However, to control the population a group of people called Scythes are tasked with gleaning or killing others.

The story is about two teenagers Citra and Rowan, who are chosen to be Scythes. They must learn the art of killing and understand the weight of their responsibilities. Throughout their journey they do intense training.

Neal Shusterman creates a fascinating world with complex characters and thought-provoking themes. The book explores the value of life, and the nature of power, and the characters make their struggles feel real.

The plot is fast paced and full of twists, keeping readers intrigued. The writing is clear and engaging, making it easy to follow the story. Shusterman’s world building is detailed and imaginative, giving a vivid backdrop for the characters’ adventures.

Overall, ‘Scythe’ is a thrilling and thought provoking read that raises important questions about humanity and mortality. It’s a must read for fans of dystopian fiction and anyone looking for a story that challenges the way we think about life and death. I give this book an 8/10.

Books/Art

Donna Tartt’s ‘The Secret History’

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By: Baarika Suresh

Donna Tartt is an absolute genius. Her use of the English language is absolutely extraordinary. She can write about the most profane subjects without the reader even realizing as her diction blooms over the darkness of her writing. Reading one of her books such as ‘The Goldfinch’ or ‘The Secret History’ is like entering into a world of its own.

She published her first and most famous book, ‘The Secret History’ in September of 1992. It is told from the perspective of Richard Papen, a transfer college student to a liberal arts college in Vermont. He befriends Bunny, Camilla, Charles, Henry and Francis, the only others in his classics class as well as the teacher, Julian, and finds out that they are more than meets the eye.

Henry and his gang live in a world in their heads away from the mundaneness of their lives. Richard is a shell of a man who, like a chameleon, fits in with his surroundings yet he struggles to fit in with this group. He tries to prove himself, but in the end falls into their trap.

‘The Secret History’ is 544 pages divided into only 8 chapters. I think this makes the story flow more smoothly. The characters develop so beautifully and are described so realistically that I could tell you all about my good friend Richard. Tartt gives her characters such humanistic characteristics, and they are so easy to empathize with.

The book is a masterpiece and you should definitely read it. To really understand Tartt’s mastermind, you must read at least one of her books. My first recommendation is obviously ‘The Secret History’ but ‘The Goldfinch’ is also a gem. ‘The Goldfinch’ was also scheduled to become a movie but never became one because the producer Tartt was working with passed away. It is about a boy who comes into possession of a painting after a terrorist attack in an art museum that killed his mum.

I would give ‘The Secret History’ a 10/10.

Books/Art

A review of ‘Wonder’ finding courage and kindness

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By: Kimberly Mascote Rangel

‘Wonder’ by R.J. Palacio is a touching and inspiring book. It’s about a boy named August Pullman, who is starting school for the first time. Auggi, as he is called, has a facial difference that makes him look different from the other kids. The story follows his experiences as he begins fifth grade at Beecher Prep a private school and his experiences with bullying and getting called names. 

One of the best parts of ‘Wonder’ is how the story is told from different points of view. We get to hear not just from Auggie but also from his sister Via and some of his friends and classmates. This helps us understand how Auggie’s condition affects everyone around him and it makes it interesting and a good book to read that keeps you intrigued to finish reading it.

Auggie is a wonderful character. Even though he faces many challenges he stays positive and brave. His kindness and strength make him a role model for everyone. The book’s main messages are about being kind and accepting others and also seeing the good in people. These lessons are important and make the book very meaningful.

In ‘Wonder’ the conversations between characters feel real and the emotions are genuine. The book talks about topics like bullying but it also shows the power of friendship and support. It also shows the power of having kind people around you that make you feel better and are nice to you.

Overall, ‘Wonder’ is a beautiful book that teaches us to look beyond appearances and value everyone for who they are. It reminds us that kindness and understanding can make a big difference in people’s lives. This book is a must read for anyone who wants a story that is both heartwarming and thought provoking. I would give it a 9/10.