Laura Medhurst
Smith, 2nd
The Secret Life of Bees
The most important thing for one little girl is love and female divinity.
This book is about four beekeeping sisters and their care of Miss Lily Owens, who ran away from her peach farm in South Carolina during the confusing times of racism during the . Her Father, known as T. Ray, is someone who she can’t call “daddy” and someone in which she realizes that his poor treatment of her has made her come to the realization that she has played a horrible part in her mother’s death. After Rosaleen Davis, her black careteaker is affronted by a group of racists because of her tendency to speak her mind and defend herself gets her into trouble, Lily rescues her from the hospital, intending to flee to Tiburon, a place written on the back of one of her mother’s belongings, a picture of a black Mary carved on a piece of wood. Lily and Rosaleen go to town to find a source of food when they find a couple jars have that picture of the same black Mary, and investigate the store and ask the store-owner who makes these jars of honey. They find out it is a beekeeper named August Boatwright, a unique black woman. Lily comes to love them and accept herself for who she really is after her experience there and the death of May, one of the four sisters and through the support of a new found friend and love-interest, Zach Taylor. At the end, she even confronts her father, becomes who she always wanted to be, a writer, and learns that true love and the search for one’s place among others is the most important thing in life.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
The Secret Life of Bees. Book Review
Monday, January 12, 2009
The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen
Have you ever had everything? Your life seeming perfect? Perfect boyfriend, perfect grades, perfect everything. Until one day, you lose one of those and everything else falls with it! Now you are stuck with nothing. You now feel the need to change everything. Starting completely over.
This is what happens to Macy one summer while her boyfriend Jason, goes to brain camp. After deciding he isn't sure he wants to be with Macy anymore, she decides it's time for a change.
Finding an extremely crazy new job with wish catering after an accident at one of her mom's engagements. This is just what she needs, something new and very unorganized.
Not to mention the hot guy she now works with. The complete and total opposite of her latest ex. Macy's stomach flips everytime they are in the same room. But will she ever get a chance with this mysterious guy or will she return to her normal perfect existance at the end of one hot summer? Find out in Sarah Dessen's book, "The Truth About Forever."
This is what happens to Macy one summer while her boyfriend Jason, goes to brain camp. After deciding he isn't sure he wants to be with Macy anymore, she decides it's time for a change.
Finding an extremely crazy new job with wish catering after an accident at one of her mom's engagements. This is just what she needs, something new and very unorganized.
Not to mention the hot guy she now works with. The complete and total opposite of her latest ex. Macy's stomach flips everytime they are in the same room. But will she ever get a chance with this mysterious guy or will she return to her normal perfect existance at the end of one hot summer? Find out in Sarah Dessen's book, "The Truth About Forever."
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Lessons of life
Albom, Mitch
Tuesdays with Morrie
Broadway Books
New York, 1997
Heart
Friend’s personal library
Autobiographical documentary
This book Tuesdays with Morrie is a great book about the author Mitch Albom and his old professor Morrie Schwartz. Morrie is dying, he has a terminal disease. And after Mitch graduated he hadn’t talked to Morrie in many years and finds out that he is dieing when he sees the special about Morrie on TV.There’s 14 Tuesdays that they meet, each time talking about a different topic of life. Basically the whole book is about Morrie re-teaching Mitch about life and all the great things that he should appreciate about it.
I would recommend this book to anyone. I think this book was intended for people of all ages because there are a lot of great lessons to be learned from this book. This book is an easy read so if your looking for a book that you and pick up and finish in a short amount of time than this is a good book for you. The language he uses in this book is pretty easy for the most part but every once in a while you’ll come across a big word. The chances of you losing interest in this book are slim and none, because like I said it’s a good book.
There are really only two main characters in the book. One is Morrie who is the professor that grew up in Brooklyn and has a terminal disease, and is the one that teaches all the lessons to Mitch. The other main character in the story is Mitch who is a business man that tries to fill his life with work and material possessions to compensate for his unhappiness.
In my opinion I think that this is a great book for anyone to read. It is especially good for people who do not enjoy reading, because it is one of those books that keep you awake. It’s a good book to read if you just need a book to read and this book would be good for both genders.
So in conclusion I think that this book would be good for everyone and the characters are great the theme and genre are great and this whole book is great. So go get this book and learn some lessons on life.
Tuesdays with Morrie
Broadway Books
New York, 1997
Heart
Friend’s personal library
Autobiographical documentary
This book Tuesdays with Morrie is a great book about the author Mitch Albom and his old professor Morrie Schwartz. Morrie is dying, he has a terminal disease. And after Mitch graduated he hadn’t talked to Morrie in many years and finds out that he is dieing when he sees the special about Morrie on TV.There’s 14 Tuesdays that they meet, each time talking about a different topic of life. Basically the whole book is about Morrie re-teaching Mitch about life and all the great things that he should appreciate about it.
I would recommend this book to anyone. I think this book was intended for people of all ages because there are a lot of great lessons to be learned from this book. This book is an easy read so if your looking for a book that you and pick up and finish in a short amount of time than this is a good book for you. The language he uses in this book is pretty easy for the most part but every once in a while you’ll come across a big word. The chances of you losing interest in this book are slim and none, because like I said it’s a good book.
There are really only two main characters in the book. One is Morrie who is the professor that grew up in Brooklyn and has a terminal disease, and is the one that teaches all the lessons to Mitch. The other main character in the story is Mitch who is a business man that tries to fill his life with work and material possessions to compensate for his unhappiness.
In my opinion I think that this is a great book for anyone to read. It is especially good for people who do not enjoy reading, because it is one of those books that keep you awake. It’s a good book to read if you just need a book to read and this book would be good for both genders.
So in conclusion I think that this book would be good for everyone and the characters are great the theme and genre are great and this whole book is great. So go get this book and learn some lessons on life.
JLANGAN
Street farm
I read the book street farm, it is a book that is in this era and takes place some where in a bad city in the U.S. it is all about a young man that is probably 17 or 16 still in high school. He is very rich because he took over his dads business. His dad has been in jail most of his life and the reason is because his dad was a big drug dealer he was a king pin drug dealer for the drug dealers he thought his son everything he knows before he went to jail he gave his sons all of his clients and connections. There is a lot of action in this book shooting fights cops arrest it is type in slang just how every teen would talk. I personally do not like reading but I couldn’t put this book down soon as I started to read it. The thing that interested me in this book is how he didn’t get caught for so long is the main character never spends his money he saves it to by a real business as a cover he never let people know he was a dealer he just look like a average high school student but deep down inside he had hundreds of thousands of dollars in his room. I recommend this book to mostly guys or people that don’t like reading this book will get you hooked to soon as you start to read it.
I read the book street farm, it is a book that is in this era and takes place some where in a bad city in the U.S. it is all about a young man that is probably 17 or 16 still in high school. He is very rich because he took over his dads business. His dad has been in jail most of his life and the reason is because his dad was a big drug dealer he was a king pin drug dealer for the drug dealers he thought his son everything he knows before he went to jail he gave his sons all of his clients and connections. There is a lot of action in this book shooting fights cops arrest it is type in slang just how every teen would talk. I personally do not like reading but I couldn’t put this book down soon as I started to read it. The thing that interested me in this book is how he didn’t get caught for so long is the main character never spends his money he saves it to by a real business as a cover he never let people know he was a dealer he just look like a average high school student but deep down inside he had hundreds of thousands of dollars in his room. I recommend this book to mostly guys or people that don’t like reading this book will get you hooked to soon as you start to read it.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Book Review on Resident Evil: Apocalypse
Victor Corsi
Mrs. Smith
Resident Evil: Apocalypse
DeCandido, Keith.
Resident Evil: Apocalypse
Pocket Books, 2004
277 Pages
Summary:
After the aftermath of the deadly T-virus being unleashed from within the under ground complex, called the Hive (The prequel Resident Evil: Genesis). The deadly virus was not contained within the Hive and is now spreading in streets of Raccoon City. The T-virus causes dead to be reanimated and have a thirst for living flesh also if the virus also if injected with this virus will cause the victim to die and later to be reanimated. Due to the outbreak of this infection Umbrella plans to test out there new prototype monster called Nemesis that is programmed to kill anything.
Jill Valentine and several others now must fight for their lives if they are determined to escape the nightmarish city of Raccoon alive. Though they must overcome the city’s legions of undead, the brutal onslaughts of Nemesis, and the Umbrella’s well armed forces. Their only chance of escape rests with a young woman named Alice, who has a greater connection then anyone, including herself, knows about. Along with a treacherous rescue mission from Umbrella’s higher, that must be accomplished before sunrise.
Characters:
•Major Timothy “Able” Cain: One of many corporate leaders in the maniacal Umbrella Corporation. He is the supervisor of the Nemesis Project. He also opened the Hive causing the dead to roam Raccoon City’s streets.
•Alice Abernathy: An ex-head of the Hive’s security used to work for Umbrella and now is doing all she can to take down this evil Corporation. The Umbrella Corporation experimented on her making her into a bio-weapon.
•Matt Addison: Pretended to be an RCPD (Raccoon City Police Dispatch) to infiltrate the Hive, an underground complex controlled by Umbrella. A creature called a licker infected him, and was placed into the Nemesis Project.
•Terri Morales: An ex-news reporter who has been demoted to weather girl for showing false information about a city council man taking bribes. She is also a pacifist who takes drugs to keep herself rational and sane.
•Jill Valentine: She was suspended from S.T.A.R.S. (Special Tactics and Rescue Squad) for spreading “false” rumors about monsters killing people in the Arklay Mountains lining to the Umbrella corporation.
•Dr. Charles Ashford: A member of the Umbrella’s Science Division and a part of the NEMESIS project, and creator of the T-virus which causes the dead to come alive and go on a feeding frenzy. He is crippled. He is willing to help Alice and the other survivors escape if they can save his daughter.
•Angela Ashford: The nine-year-old daughter of Dr. Charles Ashford. She used to be crippled like her father, but her father did something to prevent her from becoming crippled. She is the only way Alice and the other survivors can escape.
•Carlos Olivera: A member of the Umbrella security division, who was left for dead in Raccoon City by the Umbrella Corporation. Now he is against the Umbrella Corporation for being left for dead, and the death of his comrades.
•Nemesis: An eight-foot tall biological super soldier created by the Umbrella Corporation, to serve Umbrella. He is able to see heat signatures, and is also able to carry a rail gun in one hand and a seven-foot rocket launcher in the other.
Setting:
In the novel Resident Evil: Apocalypse the setting takes place in a place called Raccoon City. Within this city there are many places where major events occur. These seven settings are the most important, as well as having great symbolism contained in that particular setting.
•Raven’s Gate: At Raven’s Gate The Umbrella Corporation performs a sadistic action against the Raccoon civilians. Umbrella authorizes the use of live ammunition to drive back the citizens of Raccoon City. This is significant because it show that the Umbrella Corporation has the authority to do what it wants.
•Church: When Jill Valentine and two other survivors notice that there are creatures that are capable of severing a human in two, are in the church, a stain glass window begins to glow. This is no ordinary stain glass window it is the image of Lucifer-goes-to-hell. This image grows even brighter once one of these eerie creatures smash into Jill. However the stain glass window shatters as Alice breaks though the window and takes down all the creatures. The symbolism that is display when thing are getting worse for Jill the stain glass window begins to glow brighter, and when help arrives the stain glass window is shattered.
•Raccoon City’s streets: This is where the most of the action takes place since the character do not have that much use for automobiles because the undead legions of zombies are traveling through the streets.
•Hospital: Within the hospital there is a part that is owned by the Umbrella Corporation. In that part of the building are unsightly plants as well as large weapon cases. This is ironic since a hospital is supposed to be a happy, peaceful place, but the Umbrella Corporation is anything but a happy, and peaceful place.
•City Hall: This is where the climax occurs, also at the same time the final battle. Similar to the way the Journey Motif is setup.
•Arklay Mountains: This is the be considered the Birth and Home positions on the Journey Motif for Jill Valentine because it is the place where problems of the zombies occurred for her, and it is where she ends up in the end of the story with the elixir to fight Umbrella.
Comments on the author:
The novel Resident Evil: Apocalypse by Keith R.A. DeCandido was a great novel that I have read. The author uses the style of Surrealism throughout the story. The surrealistic events are easy to notice. In the first chapter a surreal event occurs. “The four hundred ninety-two employees who lived and worked in the Hive were all dead. And, based on the fact that this was not stopping them from wandering around the Hive, they had been killed by the T-virus.”(DeCandido, page 12-13) This opening of the surrealistic event defines the style in the rest of novel.
When reading the novel it was not difficult to read. The novel did not use any difficult word, so that the meaning was not hard to get out of the sentence. The font of the novel was large enough to clearly make out the words. If you are looking for a good book to read that has a lot of fast action, and also enjoy horrific science fiction events Resident Evil: Apocalypse is the novel that you would want to read.
Mrs. Smith
Resident Evil: Apocalypse
DeCandido, Keith.
Resident Evil: Apocalypse
Pocket Books, 2004
277 Pages
Summary:
After the aftermath of the deadly T-virus being unleashed from within the under ground complex, called the Hive (The prequel Resident Evil: Genesis). The deadly virus was not contained within the Hive and is now spreading in streets of Raccoon City. The T-virus causes dead to be reanimated and have a thirst for living flesh also if the virus also if injected with this virus will cause the victim to die and later to be reanimated. Due to the outbreak of this infection Umbrella plans to test out there new prototype monster called Nemesis that is programmed to kill anything.
Jill Valentine and several others now must fight for their lives if they are determined to escape the nightmarish city of Raccoon alive. Though they must overcome the city’s legions of undead, the brutal onslaughts of Nemesis, and the Umbrella’s well armed forces. Their only chance of escape rests with a young woman named Alice, who has a greater connection then anyone, including herself, knows about. Along with a treacherous rescue mission from Umbrella’s higher, that must be accomplished before sunrise.
Characters:
•Major Timothy “Able” Cain: One of many corporate leaders in the maniacal Umbrella Corporation. He is the supervisor of the Nemesis Project. He also opened the Hive causing the dead to roam Raccoon City’s streets.
•Alice Abernathy: An ex-head of the Hive’s security used to work for Umbrella and now is doing all she can to take down this evil Corporation. The Umbrella Corporation experimented on her making her into a bio-weapon.
•Matt Addison: Pretended to be an RCPD (Raccoon City Police Dispatch) to infiltrate the Hive, an underground complex controlled by Umbrella. A creature called a licker infected him, and was placed into the Nemesis Project.
•Terri Morales: An ex-news reporter who has been demoted to weather girl for showing false information about a city council man taking bribes. She is also a pacifist who takes drugs to keep herself rational and sane.
•Jill Valentine: She was suspended from S.T.A.R.S. (Special Tactics and Rescue Squad) for spreading “false” rumors about monsters killing people in the Arklay Mountains lining to the Umbrella corporation.
•Dr. Charles Ashford: A member of the Umbrella’s Science Division and a part of the NEMESIS project, and creator of the T-virus which causes the dead to come alive and go on a feeding frenzy. He is crippled. He is willing to help Alice and the other survivors escape if they can save his daughter.
•Angela Ashford: The nine-year-old daughter of Dr. Charles Ashford. She used to be crippled like her father, but her father did something to prevent her from becoming crippled. She is the only way Alice and the other survivors can escape.
•Carlos Olivera: A member of the Umbrella security division, who was left for dead in Raccoon City by the Umbrella Corporation. Now he is against the Umbrella Corporation for being left for dead, and the death of his comrades.
•Nemesis: An eight-foot tall biological super soldier created by the Umbrella Corporation, to serve Umbrella. He is able to see heat signatures, and is also able to carry a rail gun in one hand and a seven-foot rocket launcher in the other.
Setting:
In the novel Resident Evil: Apocalypse the setting takes place in a place called Raccoon City. Within this city there are many places where major events occur. These seven settings are the most important, as well as having great symbolism contained in that particular setting.
•Raven’s Gate: At Raven’s Gate The Umbrella Corporation performs a sadistic action against the Raccoon civilians. Umbrella authorizes the use of live ammunition to drive back the citizens of Raccoon City. This is significant because it show that the Umbrella Corporation has the authority to do what it wants.
•Church: When Jill Valentine and two other survivors notice that there are creatures that are capable of severing a human in two, are in the church, a stain glass window begins to glow. This is no ordinary stain glass window it is the image of Lucifer-goes-to-hell. This image grows even brighter once one of these eerie creatures smash into Jill. However the stain glass window shatters as Alice breaks though the window and takes down all the creatures. The symbolism that is display when thing are getting worse for Jill the stain glass window begins to glow brighter, and when help arrives the stain glass window is shattered.
•Raccoon City’s streets: This is where the most of the action takes place since the character do not have that much use for automobiles because the undead legions of zombies are traveling through the streets.
•Hospital: Within the hospital there is a part that is owned by the Umbrella Corporation. In that part of the building are unsightly plants as well as large weapon cases. This is ironic since a hospital is supposed to be a happy, peaceful place, but the Umbrella Corporation is anything but a happy, and peaceful place.
•City Hall: This is where the climax occurs, also at the same time the final battle. Similar to the way the Journey Motif is setup.
•Arklay Mountains: This is the be considered the Birth and Home positions on the Journey Motif for Jill Valentine because it is the place where problems of the zombies occurred for her, and it is where she ends up in the end of the story with the elixir to fight Umbrella.
Comments on the author:
The novel Resident Evil: Apocalypse by Keith R.A. DeCandido was a great novel that I have read. The author uses the style of Surrealism throughout the story. The surrealistic events are easy to notice. In the first chapter a surreal event occurs. “The four hundred ninety-two employees who lived and worked in the Hive were all dead. And, based on the fact that this was not stopping them from wandering around the Hive, they had been killed by the T-virus.”(DeCandido, page 12-13) This opening of the surrealistic event defines the style in the rest of novel.
When reading the novel it was not difficult to read. The novel did not use any difficult word, so that the meaning was not hard to get out of the sentence. The font of the novel was large enough to clearly make out the words. If you are looking for a good book to read that has a lot of fast action, and also enjoy horrific science fiction events Resident Evil: Apocalypse is the novel that you would want to read.
Michael Pristera, Tuesdays With Morrie
Per. 2
1-5-09
Book Review
Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays With Morrie
Heart
Personal Library
Non-Fiction
Live Life to the Last Breath
Mitch Albom’s Tuesdays With Morrie is both a depressing and uplifting novel about a man named Morrie and how he lives with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease). The reader experiences Morrie’s life stories and lessons through the eyes of Mitch Albom. Albom was Morries former student at Brandies University. After college, Mitch wanted and dreamed about being a famous musician. However, not achieving his dream and becoming obsessed with material wealth, Albom decides to visit his old professor Morrie Shwartz. Tuesdays With Morrie occurs in Massachusetts which is where Morrie lives during the 1980's. It is here that Albom realizes the true meaning of life.
Tuesdays With Morrie is and good and simple read for all ages. The language is easy to follow and the plot line is predictable as well as spontaneous. I would not recommend this book to anyone that is not in high school or older. This book is slow and detailed, which requires a long attention span. Anyone in middle school or below won’t have the attention span to read the novel and take away its important messages. Even as a high school student, I found myself wondering off at some parts. The word usage is very important in a novel like this where there are flashbacks and stories because Albom wants to show what is happening rather than tell. Descriptive words and clear thoughts must be presented in a way that the reader can take away what Albom wants. This novel is presented in a way that everyone can understand what is happening.
The genre of this novel is a memoir. There are several key elements that create a non fiction novel. The main element is the truth. The author must have factual evidence that an event, or events occurred. Fortunately for Albom he recorded all of his conversations with Morrie. By doing this, the reader knows that what is being said is the complete truth.
Mitch Albom wrote Tuesdays With Morrie as a way to show that life is a sacred thing, and that you should live until your last breath. It is also a tribute to his unfortunate friend Morrie Shwartz that did because of ALS.
I enjoyed reading this book because it proves that life is enjoyable and worth living to the fullest. Also that it is never too late to do what you love. I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys a simple yet meaningful novel.
1-5-09
Book Review
Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays With Morrie
Heart
Personal Library
Non-Fiction
Live Life to the Last Breath
Mitch Albom’s Tuesdays With Morrie is both a depressing and uplifting novel about a man named Morrie and how he lives with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease). The reader experiences Morrie’s life stories and lessons through the eyes of Mitch Albom. Albom was Morries former student at Brandies University. After college, Mitch wanted and dreamed about being a famous musician. However, not achieving his dream and becoming obsessed with material wealth, Albom decides to visit his old professor Morrie Shwartz. Tuesdays With Morrie occurs in Massachusetts which is where Morrie lives during the 1980's. It is here that Albom realizes the true meaning of life.
Tuesdays With Morrie is and good and simple read for all ages. The language is easy to follow and the plot line is predictable as well as spontaneous. I would not recommend this book to anyone that is not in high school or older. This book is slow and detailed, which requires a long attention span. Anyone in middle school or below won’t have the attention span to read the novel and take away its important messages. Even as a high school student, I found myself wondering off at some parts. The word usage is very important in a novel like this where there are flashbacks and stories because Albom wants to show what is happening rather than tell. Descriptive words and clear thoughts must be presented in a way that the reader can take away what Albom wants. This novel is presented in a way that everyone can understand what is happening.
The genre of this novel is a memoir. There are several key elements that create a non fiction novel. The main element is the truth. The author must have factual evidence that an event, or events occurred. Fortunately for Albom he recorded all of his conversations with Morrie. By doing this, the reader knows that what is being said is the complete truth.
Mitch Albom wrote Tuesdays With Morrie as a way to show that life is a sacred thing, and that you should live until your last breath. It is also a tribute to his unfortunate friend Morrie Shwartz that did because of ALS.
I enjoyed reading this book because it proves that life is enjoyable and worth living to the fullest. Also that it is never too late to do what you love. I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys a simple yet meaningful novel.
The Secret Life of Bees REVIEW
Poor Lily Owens, living a life shaped around the scarred memory of the afternoon her mother was killed. Since, the death of her mother, lily lives with her abusive father T. Ray and her stand-in mother Rosaleen, just outside Sylvan, South Carolina.
At the age of fourteen, lily makes a life changing decision, and finally stands up for herself; her and Rosallen escape to Tiburon, South Carolina. She knows nothing about this town, yet I knows all about her; here she discovers her mother’s past as well as herself. In Tiburon, they take in three unconventional black beekeeping sisters, who introduce Lilly to a world that will inspire her- the world or bees, honey and the Black Madonna.
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd is an absolute joy to read. As each pages turn, the reader’s mind stays more and more involved in the novel. Kidd’s beautiful language, and profound story, keeps the reader’s attention at all times. This remarkable novel about real-to-life female power and the power of love, ensure this is not just a novel but an inspiration message for women of all ages. I would recommend this book to any women, and I bet you will fall in love with it!
At the age of fourteen, lily makes a life changing decision, and finally stands up for herself; her and Rosallen escape to Tiburon, South Carolina. She knows nothing about this town, yet I knows all about her; here she discovers her mother’s past as well as herself. In Tiburon, they take in three unconventional black beekeeping sisters, who introduce Lilly to a world that will inspire her- the world or bees, honey and the Black Madonna.
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd is an absolute joy to read. As each pages turn, the reader’s mind stays more and more involved in the novel. Kidd’s beautiful language, and profound story, keeps the reader’s attention at all times. This remarkable novel about real-to-life female power and the power of love, ensure this is not just a novel but an inspiration message for women of all ages. I would recommend this book to any women, and I bet you will fall in love with it!
TheLastLecture
Ian Sanford
Smith
The Last Lecture
Randy Pausch. The Last Lecture
Hyperion Books: 2008.
Heart
Own collection
Motivational, All Ages
206 pg.
There is a tradition at Carnegie Mellon University, where a selected professor gives a speech with a “Last Lecture” format (if they were to die what would they tell people, that they believe is most important to succeed in life). This truly was Randy Pausch’s last lecture. Randy was a Professor at Carnegie Mellon who had previously been diagnosed with a terminal cancer and was told he only had a few months to live. His lecture titled “Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams” had nothing to do with his condition. His lecture was about achieving your childhood dreams, enabling the dreams of others and how to achieve your dreams.
Randy Pausch, the main character is a “husband, father, teacher, brother, friend and mentor to his students”. Randy was a professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University. From 1988 to 1997 he taught at the University of Virginia. His teaching and research has earned him several awards and accolades. He has worked with Google, Adobe, Google, Electronic Arts Walt Disney Imagineering, and Alice (he pioneered (Alice)). Throughout the book his humorous, intelligent and very intellectual ways help the reader understand him and can easily relate to him and his journey through life. His wife Jai and children, Logan, Chloe and Dylan are his inspiration in his “Last Lecture”.
For the most part the setting of the book takes place in a packed Carnegie Mellon classroom where Randy gives his speech. The setting holds little importance and is greatly overshadowed by the message being told by Randy Pausch.
Pausch’s writing style is extremely easy to comprehend and relate to. The way he explains things really sucks you into the book and you won’t want to put it down. Some of the wordage is scholarly but not difficult to say the most.
This book is a must read to all, it is truly inspirational and not to sound to cliché but it changed the way I look at life.
Smith
The Last Lecture
Randy Pausch. The Last Lecture
Hyperion Books: 2008.
Heart
Own collection
Motivational, All Ages
206 pg.
There is a tradition at Carnegie Mellon University, where a selected professor gives a speech with a “Last Lecture” format (if they were to die what would they tell people, that they believe is most important to succeed in life). This truly was Randy Pausch’s last lecture. Randy was a Professor at Carnegie Mellon who had previously been diagnosed with a terminal cancer and was told he only had a few months to live. His lecture titled “Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams” had nothing to do with his condition. His lecture was about achieving your childhood dreams, enabling the dreams of others and how to achieve your dreams.
Randy Pausch, the main character is a “husband, father, teacher, brother, friend and mentor to his students”. Randy was a professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University. From 1988 to 1997 he taught at the University of Virginia. His teaching and research has earned him several awards and accolades. He has worked with Google, Adobe, Google, Electronic Arts Walt Disney Imagineering, and Alice (he pioneered (Alice)). Throughout the book his humorous, intelligent and very intellectual ways help the reader understand him and can easily relate to him and his journey through life. His wife Jai and children, Logan, Chloe and Dylan are his inspiration in his “Last Lecture”.
For the most part the setting of the book takes place in a packed Carnegie Mellon classroom where Randy gives his speech. The setting holds little importance and is greatly overshadowed by the message being told by Randy Pausch.
Pausch’s writing style is extremely easy to comprehend and relate to. The way he explains things really sucks you into the book and you won’t want to put it down. Some of the wordage is scholarly but not difficult to say the most.
This book is a must read to all, it is truly inspirational and not to sound to cliché but it changed the way I look at life.
Andrew Wallace
Smith 2nd period
Salinger, J.D. The Catcher in the Rye
Little, Brown And Company, 1979
Heart
Teenage Fiction
277 pg.
The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, is a relatively old novel that takes place in the 1950’s. It is narrated by a teenage boy named Holden Caulfield, who is portrayed as a troubling adolescent living in New York. Unlike most novels in which the story’s timeline takes years to unfold, this narrative’s events all happen within one weekend. Salinger’s writing displays a smooth transition from thoughts actions, which hides the difficulty of this piece. Furthermore, he captures the essence of teen spirit back when New York City was notorious for its night life. His symbolic use of motifs and themes creates a story that requires much thought in order to explore its depth.
Holden's story begins on the Saturday following the end of classes at the Pencey prep school in Agerstown, Pennsylvania. This is his fourth school; he failed out of his previous three. Due to his poor academic performance at Pencey, he has received a notice that he is being expelled, but he doesn’t wait to be kicked out. Instead of going back to school, he decides to take a train to Manhattan and stay in a hotel for the weekend before going to his parent’s house. As he gets in a cab on the way to his hotel, he asks the cab driver where the ducks in Central Park go when the lagoon freezes, but his question annoys the driver. Once in Manhattan, Holden attempts to explore his sexual life as he tries to mature into an adult by visiting many different women, all who reject him. Throughout the novel, Holden has flashbacks of his old girlfriend Jane Gallagher, one who he truly claimed to "love." Every time he thinks about her he becomes depressed, mainly because she is now dating his old roommate back at Pencey. One day he decides to sneak into his old apartment building where his sister Phoebe lives. Again, he asks the cab driver where the ducks in Central Park go in the winter, and this cabbie is even more irritable than the first one. Once he tells his sister that he flunked out of school, she gets upset with him and claims she never wants to see him again. Quite drunk, Holden heads back to his hotel in shame. Then he goes to the lagoon in Central Park, where he used to watch the ducks as a child. It takes him a long time to find it, and by the time he does, he is freezing cold. Holden’s life eventually takes a turning point when he and his sister finally get together, and he takes her to a carousel in Central Park. It starts to rain heavily, but Holden is so happy watching his sister ride the carousel that he is close to tears.
I thought this book was very symbolic, and although the plot may seem degrading, it is one of the best books I have ever read. As the novel progresses, we begin to perceive that Holden's alienation is his way of protecting himself. He uses his isolation as proof that he is better than everyone else and therefore above interacting with them. He desperately needs human contact and love, but his protective wall of bitterness prevents him from looking for such interaction. Overall, Holden’s alienation is his source of his strength and the source of his problems. For example, his loneliness propels him into one of his dates with Sally Hayes, but his need for isolation causes him to insult her and drive her away. Holden's curiosity about where the ducks go during the winter reveals a genuine, more youthful side to his character. Throughout the story he acts like a grumpy old man, but his search for the ducks displays his curiosity and youthfulness. Holden is also terrified of disappearance, partly due to his brother’s death. The ducks vanish every winter, but they return every spring, thus symbolizing change that isn't permanent, but cyclical. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to read between the lines, and wanting to discover hidden messages within its pages.
Smith 2nd period
Salinger, J.D. The Catcher in the Rye
Little, Brown And Company, 1979
Heart
Teenage Fiction
277 pg.
The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, is a relatively old novel that takes place in the 1950’s. It is narrated by a teenage boy named Holden Caulfield, who is portrayed as a troubling adolescent living in New York. Unlike most novels in which the story’s timeline takes years to unfold, this narrative’s events all happen within one weekend. Salinger’s writing displays a smooth transition from thoughts actions, which hides the difficulty of this piece. Furthermore, he captures the essence of teen spirit back when New York City was notorious for its night life. His symbolic use of motifs and themes creates a story that requires much thought in order to explore its depth.
Holden's story begins on the Saturday following the end of classes at the Pencey prep school in Agerstown, Pennsylvania. This is his fourth school; he failed out of his previous three. Due to his poor academic performance at Pencey, he has received a notice that he is being expelled, but he doesn’t wait to be kicked out. Instead of going back to school, he decides to take a train to Manhattan and stay in a hotel for the weekend before going to his parent’s house. As he gets in a cab on the way to his hotel, he asks the cab driver where the ducks in Central Park go when the lagoon freezes, but his question annoys the driver. Once in Manhattan, Holden attempts to explore his sexual life as he tries to mature into an adult by visiting many different women, all who reject him. Throughout the novel, Holden has flashbacks of his old girlfriend Jane Gallagher, one who he truly claimed to "love." Every time he thinks about her he becomes depressed, mainly because she is now dating his old roommate back at Pencey. One day he decides to sneak into his old apartment building where his sister Phoebe lives. Again, he asks the cab driver where the ducks in Central Park go in the winter, and this cabbie is even more irritable than the first one. Once he tells his sister that he flunked out of school, she gets upset with him and claims she never wants to see him again. Quite drunk, Holden heads back to his hotel in shame. Then he goes to the lagoon in Central Park, where he used to watch the ducks as a child. It takes him a long time to find it, and by the time he does, he is freezing cold. Holden’s life eventually takes a turning point when he and his sister finally get together, and he takes her to a carousel in Central Park. It starts to rain heavily, but Holden is so happy watching his sister ride the carousel that he is close to tears.
I thought this book was very symbolic, and although the plot may seem degrading, it is one of the best books I have ever read. As the novel progresses, we begin to perceive that Holden's alienation is his way of protecting himself. He uses his isolation as proof that he is better than everyone else and therefore above interacting with them. He desperately needs human contact and love, but his protective wall of bitterness prevents him from looking for such interaction. Overall, Holden’s alienation is his source of his strength and the source of his problems. For example, his loneliness propels him into one of his dates with Sally Hayes, but his need for isolation causes him to insult her and drive her away. Holden's curiosity about where the ducks go during the winter reveals a genuine, more youthful side to his character. Throughout the story he acts like a grumpy old man, but his search for the ducks displays his curiosity and youthfulness. Holden is also terrified of disappearance, partly due to his brother’s death. The ducks vanish every winter, but they return every spring, thus symbolizing change that isn't permanent, but cyclical. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to read between the lines, and wanting to discover hidden messages within its pages.
Marley and Me - AHoover
Alaina Hoover
Smith
Marley and Me
Gorgan, John. Marley and Me. 2005.
Heart
Home library
Romance/ comedy
304 pages
Heart
Home library
Romance/ comedy
304 pages
Just recently over break the movie of Marley and Me came out. The movie is good but the book is way better. Marley and Me is about a new family with a crazy dag named Marley. John and Jenny are newly weds in Palm Beach. They are both writers for different newspapers. John decides to buy Jenny a puppy for her birthday. The dog that they picked out had a lot more energy than they intended. Marley crashed through screen doors, chewed drywall, destroyed carpet, and much more. The couple decides they should take they’re wild dog to obedience school where it then was kicked out from behavioral issues. As time passes the couple begins a family and stress gets too Jenny with 3 young children and a really bad dog. The book goes through almost every emotion, from the comedy of the dog, to the heart break over a miscarriage. This book will have to laughing out loud one moment then crying the next. Marley and Me was an easy read, it was written in journal form. You don’t necessarily have to be a dog lover to enjoy this book, if you enjoy a romantic comedy that is easy to read you will enjoy Marley and Me.
Smashed: story of a drunken girlhood
Zailckas, Koren. Smashed: story a drunken girlhood. The Penguin Group: USA
2006
Heart
Aurora Public Library
Teen Angst
343 Pages
Every teenager has problems. They can have family issues, boyfriend or girlfriend problems, and of course peer pressure. This book is about a girl named Koren Zailckas and her cathartic problem with alcoholism. She has her first drink at a party when she was only 14 years old. It only grows from there. She has a friend that isn’t a very good influence on her. When she gets to college things only get worse. The only problem is, she doesn’t realize that she has a problem. She faces of the issues of girl from friends, to college, to boys, to drugs, and especially alcohol. This is an amazing story of a girl growing up as one of the thousands of girls who routinely use alcohol as a shortcut.
The story is told from Koren’s point of view. She grows up in a small town in the northeast where everybody knows everybody. She has friends but is a shy girl. She uses alcohol to loosen up. When a good party goes terribly wrong for her, she finds herself waking up from a small coma with many bumps and bruises, This is only the beginning though, Zailckas is telling her life story and she is very good a painting the picture. She can describe everything that was in her sight the first time she drank. Throughout the story, there are some facts that are footnoted and you can see where theses studies come from. Some of them are how many girls have sex before college and how many high school students abuse alcohol. For Koren, her drinking became ambiguous.
This is a story that would be geared towards any person who has or is struggling with binge drinking, or drinking in general. College kids would especially like this story, It takes place while Koren is mostly in college and describes lots of problems college students deal with, Koren goes to Syracuse University, She thinks about having a disease in the story, but repeatedly gives reasons why she cannot have one.
I really liked this story. It was very interesting because almost everyone in high school has had an experience with alcohol. She has many stories in the interim of a teenager to graduating college that can make someone not want to experience being drunk. She has written about almost dying, maybe being raped, loosing valuables, getting lost, and many nights hugging the toilet bowl. She describes herself as an alcohol abuser rather than an alcoholic. She might be just that, just an alcohol abuser. I guess it’s your opinion. Does she drink so much that she needs alcohol, or is she just another alcohol abuser?
2006
Heart
Aurora Public Library
Teen Angst
343 Pages
Every teenager has problems. They can have family issues, boyfriend or girlfriend problems, and of course peer pressure. This book is about a girl named Koren Zailckas and her cathartic problem with alcoholism. She has her first drink at a party when she was only 14 years old. It only grows from there. She has a friend that isn’t a very good influence on her. When she gets to college things only get worse. The only problem is, she doesn’t realize that she has a problem. She faces of the issues of girl from friends, to college, to boys, to drugs, and especially alcohol. This is an amazing story of a girl growing up as one of the thousands of girls who routinely use alcohol as a shortcut.
The story is told from Koren’s point of view. She grows up in a small town in the northeast where everybody knows everybody. She has friends but is a shy girl. She uses alcohol to loosen up. When a good party goes terribly wrong for her, she finds herself waking up from a small coma with many bumps and bruises, This is only the beginning though, Zailckas is telling her life story and she is very good a painting the picture. She can describe everything that was in her sight the first time she drank. Throughout the story, there are some facts that are footnoted and you can see where theses studies come from. Some of them are how many girls have sex before college and how many high school students abuse alcohol. For Koren, her drinking became ambiguous.
This is a story that would be geared towards any person who has or is struggling with binge drinking, or drinking in general. College kids would especially like this story, It takes place while Koren is mostly in college and describes lots of problems college students deal with, Koren goes to Syracuse University, She thinks about having a disease in the story, but repeatedly gives reasons why she cannot have one.
I really liked this story. It was very interesting because almost everyone in high school has had an experience with alcohol. She has many stories in the interim of a teenager to graduating college that can make someone not want to experience being drunk. She has written about almost dying, maybe being raped, loosing valuables, getting lost, and many nights hugging the toilet bowl. She describes herself as an alcohol abuser rather than an alcoholic. She might be just that, just an alcohol abuser. I guess it’s your opinion. Does she drink so much that she needs alcohol, or is she just another alcohol abuser?
Charlie Haney, Twisted
Book review
By: Charlie Haney
Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson High school can be hard on everyone more on some than others. This book is about an everyday kid who goes through the gauntlet of life of being picked on everyday at school. Being picked on can do many things to you and make you want to harm yourself or others around you. This kid by the name of Tyler went about being picked on a totally different way than most his trajectory was to try and become popular and loved by his class mates. Becoming angry he gets in trouble and gets arrested getting off with community service. Doing the community service he gets ripped and tough when people start to notice that he’s growing up. Class mates begin to hate him even more because his appearance changed along with his attitude. Having a great connection with his sister, who is a good kid that has a good head on her shoulders keeping her out of trouble? She is also a great person for Tyler to have around to keep him out of trouble. The parents notice that he is growing up much quicker than they could ever imagine. Being not only stressed about kids at school he is also dealing with problems at home. His father who works for one of the most known companies in the city and is also a meticulous person is taking out his frustration on them at home by yelling for his respect. His boss’s daughter starts to show some interest in him landing him in even more trouble.
By: Charlie Haney
Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson High school can be hard on everyone more on some than others. This book is about an everyday kid who goes through the gauntlet of life of being picked on everyday at school. Being picked on can do many things to you and make you want to harm yourself or others around you. This kid by the name of Tyler went about being picked on a totally different way than most his trajectory was to try and become popular and loved by his class mates. Becoming angry he gets in trouble and gets arrested getting off with community service. Doing the community service he gets ripped and tough when people start to notice that he’s growing up. Class mates begin to hate him even more because his appearance changed along with his attitude. Having a great connection with his sister, who is a good kid that has a good head on her shoulders keeping her out of trouble? She is also a great person for Tyler to have around to keep him out of trouble. The parents notice that he is growing up much quicker than they could ever imagine. Being not only stressed about kids at school he is also dealing with problems at home. His father who works for one of the most known companies in the city and is also a meticulous person is taking out his frustration on them at home by yelling for his respect. His boss’s daughter starts to show some interest in him landing him in even more trouble.
Invisible Monsters
Chuck Palahniuk
Invisible Monsters
W.W. Norton & company, 1999.
Heart.
Borders $13.95.
Fiction.
297 Pages.
Mrs.Smith
Birds Ate My Face
by Bradley Kaiser
You’re driving down a highway on your way to work, window half way down, then you get shot in the face, weird huh? That is just the beginning. After getting to the hospital, parts of your face start to fall off, people missing limbs are letting you go ahead of them, genuflecting because they think that your needs are worse than theirs. A nurse vomits because she can see you’re missing the lower part of your jaw, all just corpus lying on the floor. And after all of this all the doctors can do after years and years of plastic surgery and physical therapy all you can do is babble like baby. This is just the beginning of the life of Shannon McFarland. Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk is another great book, but not for the gentle and squeamish.
Although Invisible Monsters is a fantastic book, the style is a little confusing. The whole story is told from first person of a mute nobody detached freak. In the beginning of the story the narrator tells you that “This story is like a Vogue magazine” how everything is continued on page X. This is most certainly shown in this book. The book is bound to cause some confusion, once you realize what’s happening, the story flattens out and only has the occasional flashback or foreshadow. This is a terrific book if you can understand what’s happening. If you don’t, then just read a little farther, the author is really good to try to explain things out.
Chuck Palahniuk is an erudite author with wide variety of works from his well known Fight Club to his lesser known books like Snuff. I myself am a big fan of these books. Most of his books are fictional and just describe the strange lives of (mostly) normal people. Most of the characters in his books are mentally ill, suicidal people, or in this case, deformed and mute. His books are usually targeted to people in college level people, I would say.
There are some things you should know before you read this book. For one, be prepared for some things that won’t be explained until later on in the book, be patient. This whole book is about the life of a supermodel whose face gets deformed from a freak gunshot, and how she goes through the rest of her life with two friends. Although through this whole review I’ve been talking about this book and how it must seem depressing, it’s actually pretty funny.
In conclusion I would recommend this book to no ends. It’s funny, enlightening, and overall a terrific read, I could not put this book down when I was reading it. Give it a try and if you don’t like it, then you don’t have to read it! But at least give it a chance. Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk is another great book, but not for the gentle and squeamish.
Invisible Monsters
W.W. Norton & company, 1999.
Heart.
Borders $13.95.
Fiction.
297 Pages.
Mrs.Smith
Birds Ate My Face
by Bradley Kaiser
You’re driving down a highway on your way to work, window half way down, then you get shot in the face, weird huh? That is just the beginning. After getting to the hospital, parts of your face start to fall off, people missing limbs are letting you go ahead of them, genuflecting because they think that your needs are worse than theirs. A nurse vomits because she can see you’re missing the lower part of your jaw, all just corpus lying on the floor. And after all of this all the doctors can do after years and years of plastic surgery and physical therapy all you can do is babble like baby. This is just the beginning of the life of Shannon McFarland. Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk is another great book, but not for the gentle and squeamish.
Although Invisible Monsters is a fantastic book, the style is a little confusing. The whole story is told from first person of a mute nobody detached freak. In the beginning of the story the narrator tells you that “This story is like a Vogue magazine” how everything is continued on page X. This is most certainly shown in this book. The book is bound to cause some confusion, once you realize what’s happening, the story flattens out and only has the occasional flashback or foreshadow. This is a terrific book if you can understand what’s happening. If you don’t, then just read a little farther, the author is really good to try to explain things out.
Chuck Palahniuk is an erudite author with wide variety of works from his well known Fight Club to his lesser known books like Snuff. I myself am a big fan of these books. Most of his books are fictional and just describe the strange lives of (mostly) normal people. Most of the characters in his books are mentally ill, suicidal people, or in this case, deformed and mute. His books are usually targeted to people in college level people, I would say.
There are some things you should know before you read this book. For one, be prepared for some things that won’t be explained until later on in the book, be patient. This whole book is about the life of a supermodel whose face gets deformed from a freak gunshot, and how she goes through the rest of her life with two friends. Although through this whole review I’ve been talking about this book and how it must seem depressing, it’s actually pretty funny.
In conclusion I would recommend this book to no ends. It’s funny, enlightening, and overall a terrific read, I could not put this book down when I was reading it. Give it a try and if you don’t like it, then you don’t have to read it! But at least give it a chance. Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk is another great book, but not for the gentle and squeamish.
Dragon Battles Anyone? Book Review of Brisingr By Christopher Paolini
Brisingr, the third installment of Christopher Paolini's inheritance cycle, admittedly may not be for everyone. The reader must have a certain, how can i say this, nerd quality that allows them to immerse themselves into a different world filled with intelligent dragons, realistic magic, and fierce rebellion. I, personally, deeply enjoy this series especially its most recent installment. The story picks up with Eragon, the dragon rider and shade slayer, during a daring attempt to save his cousin's wife-to-be from a huge dark fortress in a city with the foreboding name of Helgrind. It starts off with a ton of action and really doesn't let up throughout the entire novel. It is filled with guerilla warfare, political struggles, and of course love interests. The story truly catches its stride when an assassination attempt is made on Eragon, thus causing a great deal of political turmoil and harsh vengeance. It is not however a generic and simplistic fantasy novel. Eragon struggles with the usual right versus wrong but also with a deeper struggle between how he fits in with his newfound power and responsibility. The story is told between two perspectives, Eragon’s and his cousin’s Roran. This adds a twist to the plot and changes between pure fantasy in Eragon’s case to nearly realism through Roran’s eyes. I strongly suggest that if you are willing to read a pretty heavily fantasy laden novel than this is for sure a book that you would enjoy. However if you’re not a big fan of the fantasy genre I would suggest a different book.
david moore Warrior of the Light
David Moore
Smith
Warrior of the Light
Coelho , Paulo
Warrior of the Light, HarperCollins in 2002
Boarders book $11.95
The Warrior of the Light is not like anything that has been written before; it's not like the Alchemist which is another one of Paulo Coelho books. through Coelho's writing he shows readers how to embark upon the way of the Warrior: the one who aprreciates the miracle of being alive, the one who accepts failure, and the one whose quest leads him to become the person he wants to be. If your looking for something new and different from a normal book than this would be your other choice., Coelho constructs this in short notes in a manual form to show you waht and how you become who you are. Every short passage invites you to live out your dreams, to embrace the uncertainty of life, and to rise to your own unqiue destiny. Reading this will show you how things will sstop you from becoming what you should do and what it takes to get past it. "The Warrior knows that he is free to choose his disires, and he makes these decisions with courage, detachment, and-sometimes-with just a touch of madness"
Smith
Warrior of the Light
Coelho , Paulo
Warrior of the Light, HarperCollins in 2002
Boarders book $11.95
The Warrior of the Light is not like anything that has been written before; it's not like the Alchemist which is another one of Paulo Coelho books. through Coelho's writing he shows readers how to embark upon the way of the Warrior: the one who aprreciates the miracle of being alive, the one who accepts failure, and the one whose quest leads him to become the person he wants to be. If your looking for something new and different from a normal book than this would be your other choice., Coelho constructs this in short notes in a manual form to show you waht and how you become who you are. Every short passage invites you to live out your dreams, to embrace the uncertainty of life, and to rise to your own unqiue destiny. Reading this will show you how things will sstop you from becoming what you should do and what it takes to get past it. "The Warrior knows that he is free to choose his disires, and he makes these decisions with courage, detachment, and-sometimes-with just a touch of madness"
Danny Myers, Twisted
Danny Myers
Smith
Twisted
Anderson, Laurie Halse.
Twisted.Penguin Group, 2007
Heart
Borders Book, $9.99
Teenage Drama
Tyler Miller is a high school sell-out. The highlight of his life so far was in the third grade when he won the homerun contest on field day. Since then his life hasn't really been too exciting. Finally he decides he wants to be remembered, so he decided to spray paint the school with obscene words. He got so flustered he left his wallet and was busted. After being taken away by cops, kids began noticing him. After a long summer of community service and a growth spurt, the girls started to notice him too. Even Bethany Milbury, school goddess starts to be attracted to him. Bethany is his long time crush, but as well as the sister of the kid who has made his life a living hell. Also with his dad's struggle to impress his boss who is also Bethany's father, he seems to put Tyler behind him. After tragic events at a party, Tyler quickly becomes the most hated kid in school, once again.
Laurie Halse Anderson wrote in a style comfortable for a high school student. The vocabulary is not particularly challenging, and slang is used often. It really lets you see inside the life of an outcast in school. I would recommend this book to anybody in high school or even college. It made me think about how all your actions can effect what people think of you and how you make others feel about themselves. I think it is a must read, I couldn’t put the book down for three straight days. You always want to know what happens next and how Tyler is going to cope with everything in his life.
Smith
Twisted
Anderson, Laurie Halse.
Twisted.Penguin Group, 2007
Heart
Borders Book, $9.99
Teenage Drama
Tyler Miller is a high school sell-out. The highlight of his life so far was in the third grade when he won the homerun contest on field day. Since then his life hasn't really been too exciting. Finally he decides he wants to be remembered, so he decided to spray paint the school with obscene words. He got so flustered he left his wallet and was busted. After being taken away by cops, kids began noticing him. After a long summer of community service and a growth spurt, the girls started to notice him too. Even Bethany Milbury, school goddess starts to be attracted to him. Bethany is his long time crush, but as well as the sister of the kid who has made his life a living hell. Also with his dad's struggle to impress his boss who is also Bethany's father, he seems to put Tyler behind him. After tragic events at a party, Tyler quickly becomes the most hated kid in school, once again.
Laurie Halse Anderson wrote in a style comfortable for a high school student. The vocabulary is not particularly challenging, and slang is used often. It really lets you see inside the life of an outcast in school. I would recommend this book to anybody in high school or even college. It made me think about how all your actions can effect what people think of you and how you make others feel about themselves. I think it is a must read, I couldn’t put the book down for three straight days. You always want to know what happens next and how Tyler is going to cope with everything in his life.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
K Brasher
Mrs. Smith
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Chbosky, Stephen The Perks of Being a Wallflower
MTV Books: 1999
Heart
Borders $11.20
Fiction
213 pages
Does high school ever seem tough? Well nothing can be compared to a young freshman named Charlie. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is the story of a boy living in the early 1990’s. The story is written in the form of letters to an anonymous person, who he considers a friend and the only one who will listen. Charlie, the main character, begins high school completely friendless after the death of his best friend. He becomes just like the title of the book suggests a wallflower. He observes others and is the witness to what is going on in the school. After roaming the halls alone for weeks he meets his future best friends Sam and her stepbrother Patrick. They introduce him to many new things including drugs, alcohol, girls and even the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When his past catches up to him, he learns an unsettling truth about his Aunt Helen. This truth even ends up putting Charlie in the hospital
The setting of this story is really of no importance. He tells the person he is writing to that everyone must be kept anonymous. The only place of any significance is the Big Boy where they hang out a lot. Given the clues and places they go it appears they live in the city somewhere in the Midwest.
The readability of this story is good. Chbosky does an excellent job of revealing Charlie’s thoughts and emotions in a style that’s not confusing. The plot is kept interesting because the story is written through letters telling the story of Charlie with no other side plots.
I think it is a very good and interesting book. Charlie’s life is very much relatable to our own. Although he makes some decisions most of us wouldn’t, we can all relate to the pressure he gets from home school and friends.
Mrs. Smith
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Chbosky, Stephen The Perks of Being a Wallflower
MTV Books: 1999
Heart
Borders $11.20
Fiction
213 pages
Does high school ever seem tough? Well nothing can be compared to a young freshman named Charlie. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is the story of a boy living in the early 1990’s. The story is written in the form of letters to an anonymous person, who he considers a friend and the only one who will listen. Charlie, the main character, begins high school completely friendless after the death of his best friend. He becomes just like the title of the book suggests a wallflower. He observes others and is the witness to what is going on in the school. After roaming the halls alone for weeks he meets his future best friends Sam and her stepbrother Patrick. They introduce him to many new things including drugs, alcohol, girls and even the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When his past catches up to him, he learns an unsettling truth about his Aunt Helen. This truth even ends up putting Charlie in the hospital
The setting of this story is really of no importance. He tells the person he is writing to that everyone must be kept anonymous. The only place of any significance is the Big Boy where they hang out a lot. Given the clues and places they go it appears they live in the city somewhere in the Midwest.
The readability of this story is good. Chbosky does an excellent job of revealing Charlie’s thoughts and emotions in a style that’s not confusing. The plot is kept interesting because the story is written through letters telling the story of Charlie with no other side plots.
I think it is a very good and interesting book. Charlie’s life is very much relatable to our own. Although he makes some decisions most of us wouldn’t, we can all relate to the pressure he gets from home school and friends.
Randy Chmielewski, Fat Kid Rules the World
Randy Chmielewski,
Smith, Period Two
Fat Kid Rules the World
Smith, Period Two
Fat Kid Rules the World
Going, K. L. Fat Kid Rules the World
Penguin Group: 2004
Heart
Personal Collection
Young Adult
192 Pages.
Sure, everyone has times of being depressed and feeling lonely. Troy Billings, was 296 pounds and 6'1". He feels lonely and disclosed from his family, and has no close friends. One day he was walking around town, thinking about suicide and what he could do. Troy meets Curt MacCrae (a young version of Kurt Cobain) Curt was a drug-addict dropout, sometimes homeless, guitar punk. He is a legend at Troy's school, everyone knows who he is. Curt saves Troy's life when he tries to commit suicide, and so he tells Troy that he owes him lunch.
Troy buys Curt lunch and realizes that he is not an ordinary person. He could tell something is seriously wrong with Curt. Throughout the book, Troy becomes close with Curt and develops a strong and solid relationship with him. Troy has no self esteem, and talks about how bad his life is and how much he hates himself. Since Curt plays guitar and sings, he decides to teach Troy to play drums. Troy picks up the drums pretty well, and they end up playing a show. Everyone at the club is amazed at Curt's talent. But then Curt's drug problems take over him, and he ends up getting himself into a lot of trouble, and becomes very ill. Troy's father and Troy's brother also learn to care for Curt, because his parents are not very good role models and do not care for him very much. He becomes a part of their family, and Troy's father feeds Curt and lets him shower there and gives him a place to stay when he needs it.
The story takes place in New York City, near Manhattan. The setting of this story is very important to the story because Manhattan is a place for lots of clubs and music. The setting allowed Curt and Troy to play shows with their band, and explore themselves as individuals. The setting allowed the teenagers to get involved in their music scene, and always gave them places to go and learn about the world.
The Author's style was very precise and very easy to read. The level of readability is young adult. It is a very easy read, but that does not take away from how great the story is. I would recommend this story to any teenager who loves music, drama stories, and any teenager who wants to explore the life of two troubled teenagers.
Penguin Group: 2004
Heart
Personal Collection
Young Adult
192 Pages.
Sure, everyone has times of being depressed and feeling lonely. Troy Billings, was 296 pounds and 6'1". He feels lonely and disclosed from his family, and has no close friends. One day he was walking around town, thinking about suicide and what he could do. Troy meets Curt MacCrae (a young version of Kurt Cobain) Curt was a drug-addict dropout, sometimes homeless, guitar punk. He is a legend at Troy's school, everyone knows who he is. Curt saves Troy's life when he tries to commit suicide, and so he tells Troy that he owes him lunch.
Troy buys Curt lunch and realizes that he is not an ordinary person. He could tell something is seriously wrong with Curt. Throughout the book, Troy becomes close with Curt and develops a strong and solid relationship with him. Troy has no self esteem, and talks about how bad his life is and how much he hates himself. Since Curt plays guitar and sings, he decides to teach Troy to play drums. Troy picks up the drums pretty well, and they end up playing a show. Everyone at the club is amazed at Curt's talent. But then Curt's drug problems take over him, and he ends up getting himself into a lot of trouble, and becomes very ill. Troy's father and Troy's brother also learn to care for Curt, because his parents are not very good role models and do not care for him very much. He becomes a part of their family, and Troy's father feeds Curt and lets him shower there and gives him a place to stay when he needs it.
The story takes place in New York City, near Manhattan. The setting of this story is very important to the story because Manhattan is a place for lots of clubs and music. The setting allowed Curt and Troy to play shows with their band, and explore themselves as individuals. The setting allowed the teenagers to get involved in their music scene, and always gave them places to go and learn about the world.
The Author's style was very precise and very easy to read. The level of readability is young adult. It is a very easy read, but that does not take away from how great the story is. I would recommend this story to any teenager who loves music, drama stories, and any teenager who wants to explore the life of two troubled teenagers.
S.Yung, Deadline
Steven Yung
Smith
Deadline
Crutcher, Chris. Deadline
Harper Collins: 2007.
Heart
Own collection
Teenage life, sports
316 pg.
What would you do if you were told you only had one year to live? That’s how it is for Ben Wolf. It’s his senior year in high school and the only thing he wants is to be normal, no medicine no treatment. The problem is, is that he doesn’t want people to know, but it’ll have a harder impact if his death is sudden. With all of this in mind, Ben tries to fulfill his dreams on the football field and with his long time crush. But does he have enough time? Or will his secret eventually catch up to him?
Ben Wolf is the main character in the book. He has a terminal blood illness, and denies treatment because he wants to be normal. His brother Cody is his best friend, and the teams quarterback. Their mom has many anxiety attacks and isn’t a factor in their life because she’s always in her room. Unfortunately for their father he has to take care of her all the time, and many times lacks the father figure that the boys need. Because of that, the football coach is always there for Ben whenever he needs to talk. His long time crush, Dallas Suzuki finally starts talking to Ben and they become something special, but
Ben lives in a very small city called Trout,
I loved this book; I definitely recommend it to everyone. Chris Crutcher uses the vocabulary of a high school student and sometimes it’s bad but it makes the book seem real. I liked the way he built up the ending, because I was never bored and something was always happening. It’s actually an easy read and one of the best books I’ve ever read. I wasn’t going to read it because it’s over 300 pages but it get’s you hooked and is easy to read. If you’ve got a big heart, and like football, then you’ll love the book Deadline.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)