Title: Journey 2: The Mysterious Island
Director: Brad Peyton
Studio, Year: New Line Cinema, 2012
Actors: Josh Hutcherson, Dwayne Johnson, Vanessa Hudgens, Michael Caine

In a Nutshell: Sean Anderson is back, and he misses his adventure days. The trip to the centre of the earth with Trevor and Hannah seems like ages ago, and Sean is dying to go on another exploration. He finally gets his chance when he receives word from his missing grandfather about the mysterious island that Jules Verne wrote about. Sean sets off to find him and the island along with Hank, his stepfather, Kailani, a super pretty native, and Gabato, Kailani's crazy, funny dad.

The Good Stuff: The effects were awesome (especially in 3D!), and the actors portrayed their characters well. The movie had a good mix of adventure and humor.

The Not-So-Good Stuff: There were a few values in the characters that I didn't really agree with. Of course, there was kissing.


Viewer's Ratings:
Story: 3/5 - I liked it.
Execution (effects, etc.): 5/5 - It was amazing.
Characters: 4/5 - I loved it.
Character Values: 2/5 - It was okay.
Overall: 4/5 - I loved it.

Gathering Blue

Title: Gathering Blue
Author: Lois Lowry
First Published In: 2000
Reader's Rating: 2/5 - It was okay.

Excerpt: "Take pride in your pain; you are stronger than those who have none."

In a Nutshell: Kira is an orphan with a twisted leg. Living in a place where people who can't work are thrown out, she faces a dangerous situation. Fortunately, her extraordinary talent for weaving spares her from banishment. She is even provided with a new home, a new job, and a new friend. But as Kira learns more about her new surroundings, she discovers shocking truths about everything she, and everyone else, has ever believed in.

The Good Stuff: The author's writing style is quite good. The characters are pretty believable as well, and I love how Kira, Thomas and Jo are artists. I could relate to what they were going through. 

The Not-So-Good Stuff: The story ended too vaguely for me. I guess it would have been helpful to read The Giver beforehand (the first book in the series) but I didn't even know that Gathering Blue was part of a series.

Reader's Say: Gathering Blue was an okay book. Even though it's not one of my favorites, I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the titles written by Lois Lowry. She is definitely a talented author.