Most book reviews start with a headingthat includes all the basic information about the book, like:

Title.

Author.

Place of publication, publisher, date ofpublication.

Number of pages.

    Like most pieces of writing, the review usually begins with an introduction that lets your readers know what the review will say. The first paragraph usually includes the author and title again, so your readers don't have to look up to find this information. You should also include a very brief description of the contents of the book, the purpose or audience for the book, and your reaction and evaluation.

Then you move into a section of background information that helps place the book in context and discuss escriteria (准则）for judging the book. Next, the review gives a summary of the main points of the book, quoting and explaining key phrases from the author. Finally, you get tothe heart of your review – your evaluation of the book. In this section, you might discuss some of the following issues:

how well the book has achieved its goal

what possibilities are suggested by the book

what the book has left out

how the book compares with others on the subject

what specific points are not convincing

what personal experiences you've hadrelated to the subject.

    It is important to use labels to carefully distinguish your views from the author's, so that you don't confuse your reader.

    Then, like other essays, you can endwith a direct comment on the book, and tie together issues raised in the reviewin a conclusion.

    There is, of course, no set form, but ageneral rule is that the first one–half to two–thirds of the review should summarize the author's main ideas and at least one–third should evaluate thebook.

    If you want to be a volunteer, you have to answer the following typical questions. Do you want to work with people, animals or machines? Do you want to work indoors or outdoors, directly serve people in need or serve people behind the scenes? Every year, thousands of people in the west offer volunteer service. Volunteering greatly strengthens the community because it helps the old, the young, the weak, the sick, and the disabled and the injured to solve problems.

    Volunteers usually help in many different ways. They may give people advice, offer friendship to the young, drive the elderly to church (if up to the driving age), advise kids against drugs, work as assistants in schools or nursing homes, raise funds, plant trees, help out in local libraries and do many other things. Volunteering can be a few hours a week or a few hours a month. Anybody who wants to serve people in need can become a volunteer.

    In fact, the art of volunteering is a process of both giving and receiving. Volunteering allows volunteers to meet new people, make new friends and mix with people from all walks of life. Volunteering is an excellent way to experiment and try out new techniques and skills, discover your individual talents and explore career choice. Being a volunteer will take you on a wonderful journey and help you learn more than what you can get from books.

    Author Avi, winner of a Newbery Award, a Scott O'Dell Historical Fiction Award, and several Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards, may have seen his first children's book published in 1970, but that doesn't mean he's lost his talent for connecting with young fans.

    The American writer, born in 1937, agrees that getting involved with his readers is one of the key reasons he keeps writing, and that he's been fortunate enough to hear directly from readers about the impact (影响) his books have had. “I have been touched many times by readers who find some special connection between their lives and something I have written: the Danish girl who read something of mine in Danish, and struggled to communicate that in her poor English; the autistic (自闭症的) boy who somehow found something meaningful about my books that reached his own inner life; the women who have told me how important The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle was to them when growing up."

    Beyond his fans' questions about the characters he's created, the writer's most commonly heard question may be about his own use of the single name “Avi." “As a young adult, I was a reader of French literature, which has that one name tradition: Moliere, Racine, Anouilh, Gide, and so on," he explains. “Avi was given to me by my twin sister when we were very young children, and it stuck. Then my family discouraged me from taking up writing as a career because they considered my writing poor. By using Avi, I was showing my determination to them."

    Although he believes－and has the awards to show－that his writing skills have improved, writing still doesn't come easily to him, despite having over sixty books to his credit. “I never studied writing in any formal sense. I taught myself to write by reading, and by imitating what I was reading," he says.

    The writing task may be tough, but the payoff is big. “To create, share, and support the gift of reading and literature, is to give young people the gift of many worlds, within and without," Avi states.

    Hiking is a great way to get active and reduce stress while you are exploring the city. Visit our page to find some of the best free walking tours across New York City.

Greenbelt on the Go

Tuesday, August 14, 2018 10:00a.m.—11:30a.m.

    Join us for relaxing walks through our parks. Enjoy the pretty views of them, as we point out a few of the distinct features that make each park special. The length of each hike will be determined by the pace of the group. Considering the environment, your foods are not allowed. Registration is required. To register, please email naturecenter@sigreenbelt.org before August 14.

    Position: Greenbelt Nature Center in Blood Root Valley, 700 Rockland Avenue at Brielle Avenue Staten Island

    Event Organizer: Staten Island Greenbelt Conservancy, Greenbelt Environmental Education Department

    Phone Number: (718)351-3450

    Contact Email: naturecenter@sigreenbelt.org

    Adult Afternoon Hikes

Wednesday, October 10,2018 1:30p.m.—3:00p.m.

    Get familiar with the Greenbelt and local parks by hiking with other adults! You're encouraged to bring small meals and drinks for the break time.

    Position: Greenbelt Nature Center in Blood Root Valley, 700 Rockland Avenue at Brielle Avenue Staten Island

    Event Organizer: Staten Island Greenbelt Conservancy, Greenbelt Environmental Education Department

    Phone Number: (718)351-3450

    Contact Email: naturecenter@sigreenbelt.org

    The South Pole at Wards Point

Thursday ,November 15,2018 7:00a.m.—7:00p.m.

    The three miles of nearby natural shoreline are a sandy beach. Shells, rocks, and stones of every shape and size can be found here. Not to be missed are the park's other attractions: four galleries, and five historic houses!

    Position: Conference House Park Visitor Center in Conference House Park, 298     Satterlee Street, Staten Island

    Event Organizer: Conference House Park

    Contact  Email: john. kilcullen@parks. nyc.qov

    Community Days at Conference House Park

Wednesda, September 19, 2018 12:00p.m.—2:00p.m.

    Enjoy new gardens at the Visitor Center. Explore and help repair the three self-designed gardens: vegetable, native plant, and sculpture. Experience kids crafts, adult art programs, Tai Chi, Kung Fu, Peking Opera and more in this lovely setting.

    Position: Conference House Park, 298 Satterlee Street, Staten Island

    Event Organizer: Conference House Park

    Phone Number: (718)227-1463

    Contact Email: john.kilcullen@parks. nyc.qov

    There are excellent reasons for anyone to seek out the optimistic. Optimists experience better health outcomes, live longer and are more satisfied with their relationships. Optimism enables people to hold on in the face of difficulty, while pessimism leaves them depressed and even expecting failure.

    I want that hopeful, optimistic outlook for my children. But many times we may feel pessimistic. The result of negativity makes me worry that my kids' future will be uncertain. Fortunately, research suggests ways to help our children grow up with an optimistic attitude and maintain a happier outlook ourselves.

    Humanity has improved by many measures, but that success has become the water in which we swim, and like fish, we take the water for granted. While we fail to notice the positive, our brains naturally emphasize on the negative. With practice, we can help our brains to give the good stuff equal weight. Dr. Hanson's advice: when you hear a great story or achieve something in your own life, deliberately rest your mind on that experience and stay with it. Sink into that feeling as it sinks into you. Describe what you're doing to your kids, and encourage them to dwell on their joys and pleasures as well.

    Following the "big scary" news can leave us feeling helpless. Find something in your area that makes you feel hopeful, and make it a part of your family life. Researchers found that when people with a pessimistic outlook use positive language to describe situations they find upsetting, their feelings about the situation become more positive. That's something we can try at home.

    Raising optimistic kids is hard because it demands that parents abandon the pessimistic perspective that's the easiest response to pessimistic times. Put your energy into making sure you and your family are a part of the world around you. That might mean simply joining and being part of local clubs that feed our natural human need for connection (not of the digital kind).

    All across the nation, in Americans' backyards and garages and living rooms, wild animals kept as pets live side by side with their human owners. It's believed that more exotic animals live in American homes than are cared for in American zoos. The exotic-pet business has drawn criticism from animal welfare advocates and wildlife conservationists alike, who say it's not only dangerous to bring wildlife into households but it's cruel and criminal. Yet the issue is far from black or white.

    The term exotic pet has no firm definition. It can refer to any wildlife kept in human households or simply to a pet that's more unusual than the common dog or cat. Privately owning exotic animals is currently permitted in a handful of states with no restrictions in America. Adam Roberts of Born Free USA keeps a running database of deaths and injuries caused by exotic-pet ownership: In Connecticut a 55-year-old woman's face was permanently disfigured by her friend's lifelong pet monkey; in Ohio an 80-year-old man was attacked by a 200-pound kangaroo；in Nebraska a 34-year-old man was strangled(勒) to death by his pet snake. And that list does not include the number of people who become sick from coming into contact with zoonotic(动物传染的) diseases.

    Some people see wild animals as pets as a way to connect with the natural world. Other exotic-pet owners say they are motivated by a desire to preserve threatened species. They believe climate change and human population growth could wipe out a species in record time, so having a backup population is a good idea.

    But some groups like Born Free USA and the World Wildlife Fund say that captive breeding(圈养) of endangered species by private owners—whether for commercial, conservation, or educational reasons—serves only to continue a booming market for exotic animals. That, in turn, results in a greater risk to animals still living in their natural habitat.