Stephanie DavisC&I 306

Book Talk

ANIMORPHS: THE INVASIONK.A. APPLEGATE

Jake was just a normal boy. He liked playing video games with his friends and playing sports with his brother. Then, everything got weird. After Jake and his four friends (Marco, Tobias, Cassie, and Rachel) experience a UFO landing on Earth, they are given the amazing power to transform into animals. With this new power, the five teens are left to save humanity as evil aliens begin to take over the world.

CHARACTERS. Jake: The narrator of the novel,

Jake is an average boy. He idolizes his older brother, Tom, and shows qualities of being a good leader.

Marco: Jake’s jokester best friend who enjoys a good video game. Marco loves goofing off, and when he is faced with the seriousness of the Yeerk invasion, all he wants is out.

CHARACTERS CONT. Rachel: Rachel is the ultimate girl!

She’s athletic, beautiful, and loves to shop. But don’t get her wrong, Rachel is smart and adventurous. She loves a good competition!

Cassie: Cassie is a level headed animal lover. Her mother and father are veterinarians, so Cassie has grown up loving animals. Cassie is good at making rational decisions and keeping tension low between her and her friends.

CHARACTERS CONT.

Tobias: Tobias is shy and nerdy, he often gets picked on. He is thankful that Jake has always been such a good friend to him and sees Jake’s leadership qualities. Tobias lives with his uncle, who prefers to ignore him.

K.A. APPLEGATE. K.A. Applegate was born in

Mississippi, but currently lives here in Illinois.

Growing up, she had several dogs, cats and gerbils. She always had an interest in animals.

When writing the Animorphs books, Applegate uses a myriad of sources; including books, zoologists, and zoo curators.

"Biography: K.A. Applegate." Scholastic Teachers. Scholastic, n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2013. <http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/k-applegate>.

PASSAGES FROM THE BOOK. “They leaped from the ship, whirling and

thrusting and slicing the air- creatures that looked like walking weapons. They stood on two bent back legs and had two very long arms. On each arm there were curved horn-blades growing out of the wrist and elbow. There were other blades at their bent-back knees, and two more blades at the end of their tales. They had feet like a Tyrannosaurus rex.” (29)

PASSAGES FROM THE BOOK CONT.

“He hesitated. “Geez Jake, don’t you understand? I know what I can do and what I can’t do. I can’t make plans and tell people what to do. I’m not the leader, you are.’” (58)