Post your annotated bibliography extended paragraph here before 6pm on February 11, 2008. Carefully proofread your paragraph for content and grammar before you publish. Use the following format to compose your paragraph:
Format for composing an Annotated Bibliography Paragraph:
1) Compose a topic sentence that states the author and title of the novel and explains whether you liked or disliked the novel.
2) Compose 6-8 sentences that:
a) detail the main plot events (remember the paragraph should not be entirely plot summary).
b) detail how the author uses one literary device to develop the plot (characterization, theme, conflict, setting, point of view, etc.)
c) include transitions between your detail of the main plot events and your detail of the literary device.
3) Finish you paragraph with a summation sentence that restates the topic sentence by explaining why you liked or disliked the novel.
DO NOT USE "I"PHRASES ANY WHERE IN YOUR PARAGRAPH AND REMEMBER TO ITALICIZE BOOK TITLES AND THE TITLES OF PLAYS.
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90 comments:
The Adventures of Sherlock Homes by Conan Dyle was a very intriguing and mysterious story. The king of Bohemia is in danger of losing the trust of his subjects and his marriage. The king whose name is Wilhelm Gottsreich Sigmond Von Ormstien had a secret affair with Irene Adler. Irene Adler now has some picture of her and the king together. She has started blackmailing him and asking for money. She has somehow duplicated the king’s seal. He came to Sherlock Homes and Mr. Watson to help out with the problem.
The setting in this novel is very properly placed in the home of Sherlock Home’s apartment was very tightly packed but neatly organized. There was a dull but pulling atmosphere in the air. The mysterious and intriguing way the story was put out really captured my interest. I recommend this book to readers who love mystery books. The mystery that surrounds this book just makes me want to read it.
Reuben Gunasingh
B-Block
1/14/07
The Lost Boy by David Pelzer is an emotional and intriguing true story novel that touches the lives of many people. This compelling novel, about one child’s will to survive, has a clear setting in Daly California. David, a strong willed boy who has been beater brutally for years, finally flees from his alcoholic mother. From the stabbings of his mother, David, nearly dead is found by police men who help him see that he wants to live in foster care. His foster care is great, but he doesn’t realize it yet. Conflict comes into the novel on account of hid abusive mother and the will to fit in and make new friends. With ragged clothes and shoes three years old David has a hard time living in this situation. As the year goes on, David gets caught up in the “bad” crew. He begins stealing and fighting just to fit in. His foster family becomes worried, and David is sent to Juvenile school. Characterization allows the reader to be enticed into the novel. In fact, the purpose of this book is to let children know about abuse and how it is the darker side for some peoples lives.The Lost Boy really entices the reader to be thankful for what they have. This poignant and affecting novel absolutely shows what passion David had.
Marissa Mule.
A- Block.
1-15-08
Face On The Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney is a moving and exciting novel. Fifteen year olf Janie Johnson attends school in Connecticut with her two best friends Sara and Adair. Janie is lactose intolerant, so she stays away from dairy products. One day at lunch, she decided to pick up Saraha's milk carton and read the missing child panel. She sees a young girl who is wearing a red collard dress she used to own. She continues to read the information, and examines the photograph more closely. Janie is shocked to recongize it is her on the milk carton. She has been going through so much, with schoolwork, boyfriend problems, worried about passing her road test, and now this. Her friends continued to tell her it couldn't be her, but Janie is convinced it is. After school, she rushes home and heads straight towards the attic, where pictures of the family and what not were stored in dusty old boxes. After searching high and low, she finds the same exact photo that was on the milk carton. Miranda her 'Mother' comes up and questions Janie what she was doing, but Janie did not wish to speak about it right now. Janie just wanted some time to herself, and time to think. This book is so alluring and really captured my interest. I like the fact it is about a fifteen year old girl's life, where I can realte to her in some ways. Unlike some boring books, which do not capture my attention my attention. The author, Caroline Cooney, speaks to the reader in first person. This novel is also based on a true story. So far, Im not so far into the book, but I really enoy reading it. I would recommend this book to any highschool student, or just anybody who enjoys a good, fascinating, overwhelming novel.
Ally Beals
G Block
1/14/08
The Penny written by Joyce Meyer and Deborah Bedford is an astonishing story for readers in search of an inspiring book. Pacted with uplifting events that occurred in one girl’s St. Louis life, The Penny illustrates how the smallest things in life can change into something extraordinary. Living in a decent apartment with three other family members, and little income, Jenny Blake’s life is full of experiences, some great and others regretful. Growing up with a hardworking mother who barely notices her, an older sister who wants to get away from her family, and a child-molesting father, Jenny seems to be isolated from the rest of the world with little change in her life. However, one ordinary summer day Jenny picks up a penny from off on the ground, and little does Jenny know that one moment in time, would be the turning point for her life. Throughout the story, internal conflict illustrates Jenny’s struggle to forget the past and painful memories in life from her father’s awful actions. The conflicts that Jenny faces from within herself turn out to be for her own good, because it allows her to build up her strength and self-esteem, from years of feeling low and worthless. Symbolism is also used in this story because like the penny, Jenny was seen as a small, almost valueless, good for little or nothing type of person. Still the penny stood as a sign for Jenny to show that even though the entire world may look at someone, and walk on by, no matter who a person is, they’re more valuable than what anyone else may think, or say. The Penny is an outstanding read that proves to the reader special changing events can happen in a person’s life no matter what hurts or pains the past might hold.
Racquel Wood
B-Block
1/15/08
Reading the novel Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling was definetely enjoyable and exciting. There was a lot of magical fantasy and suspense in the book. In the beginning of the book, Harry was told not to go back to Hogwarts because it wasn't safe for him. Of course, Harry did not take the warning and while riding on the Hogwarts express, Harry was attacked by dementors which are black hooded spirits who suck the life and happiness out of you. When Harry arrived at Hogwarts,mysterious events took place. One of the students at Hogwarts was murdered and at night, Harry had nightmares of Lord Voldemort entering the school,causing his scar to burn. Toward the end of the book, Harry found a blank notebook and mysteriously someone wrote to him. Curious, Harry wrote back, and he finds out the person who is writing goes by the name of Tom Riddle. While Harry entered the bathroom, he found the secret of chambers behind the sink. Harry fell into the hole leading to the chamber and to his surprise, he saw Tom. Tom then turns into Voldemort and Harry and Voldemort battle. In the end, Harry defeated Voldemort. One literary device the author uses is setting. For example, in the beginning she hinted to the reader that there was something strange about the bathroom sink which later on in the story, developed a huge portion of the plot because that led to Harry finding the hidden chamber. Also she described the chamber as dark and scary which the battle of Harry and Voldemort took place. This book was really enjoyable and fun to read. It was full of magical things and there was a lot of dark arts. This book was straight up awesome!
Twilight is a wonderful, page turning book, by Stephanie Meyer. Isabella Swan temporarily moves to Forks, Washington, from Phoenix, to escape going on vacation with her mom and her new boyfriend. Bella, her nickname, goes to live with her father whose Sheriff of Forks; he enters Bella into the high school in the town which isn’t too far from his home. There she met an amazingly beautiful boy by the name of Edward Cullen. Eventually they both become more than friends and Bella starts to notice something strange about Edward and his family; they’re vampires. Edward’s family accepts Bella as part of the family and brings her out to play baseball in a forest away from Forks. Then another group of vampires smell Bella’s blood while passing through the forest. The leader, Laurent, wants to drink her blood, leaving her and the Cullen’s to run away back to her hometown to keep her safe. Laurent finds out where they’re hiding, and he has Bella’s mother captured. Meyer uses many literary devices in Twilight, such as setting, to make this book have a certain mood. In Forks, where most of the story takes place, it’s dark and gloomy. Also, in Forks, it rains almost every day. This dismal atmosphere is a perfect place for vampires to live in because the sun rarely comes out. Since Forks is a small town, it lets the Cullen’s to live more relaxed and peacefully. Though, even if this is a perfect place for vampires to live in, Bella Swan will always hate its cloudy weather.
Allison Lee
G Block
1-16-08
The novel, It's Not the End of the World, by Judy Blume was an excellent story. The story involved a lot of conflict in the life of a young girl who is trying to manage through life easily. The main character, Karen Newman, is twelve years old. She lives with her mother and father, her older brother Jeff, and her younger sister Amy. Karen has a normal life and a normal family, or at least that's what she thought. She thought everything was perfect until her parents began fighting constantly. They fought almost every night. Eventually over time, her parents decided that they must get a divorce. Karen had never been through something so horrible like this before and she didn't know how to react to it. She didn't know how to feel or how to act. Karen had many emotions running through her mind and she was confused. The main plot/conflict in this novel was that Karen's parents were getting divorced. In the novel, the author Judy Blume uses a great deal of characterization, sensory details, and theme to make the novel explode with greatness. The author uses characterization in the novel because she describes each character in the novel throughly. The author also uses sensory details because she describes throughly everything the main character sees, hears, smells, touches, and tastes. Judy Blume also uses them in the book. She uses theme as a way of making her point across for this novel to the reader. The point of the novel is that when something knocks you down, to just get back up again and keep on trying, because it's not the end of the world. This novel was very good and can teach kids today a valuable lesson in life. It's Not the End of the World by Judy Blume, was also spectacular because it had a good story line and kept me hooked on it the whole time.
by angela matrone
A Block
1/16/08
The novel Palestine by Joe Sacco was a good read and a book that really keeps the readers attention. The main events that occurred in the book were Joe Sacco going to Palestine to record events going on there. Therefore he goes on to meet many people who live in occupied territories and in their homes. He learns from their stories of brutality and the people that he meets take Joe to places throughout Palestine. These places are heavily affected by Israeli’s. A literary device that Sacco uses in his book is conflict. The book is based on events that happened in real life. Sacco is making a text to world connection by telling the reader what it is like to live in the occupied territories. The book Palestine is enjoyable because it makes a connection to the world and addresses serious issues that are going on in the world today
Joseph Piazza
B-Block
Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers was a very captivating book. Richard (Richie) Perry is on his way to the Vietnam War. On the way he meets several other characters who are all there for different reasons. He becomes best friends with Peewee Gates and they stay together through the war. Richie has decided to go in to the army because he wants to get out of Harlem. While Richie was trying to get in to the army, he sustained a knee injury, but his medical records were lost, hiding the fact that he was injured. The army is unorganized while they are over there, and this causes many problems. Helicopters were late for pickups, and platoons didn’t know their missions. There are sensory details used in the book to show what the war is like and what Richie is going through. One of the characters dies, Carroll, and the men in the platoon think that it is their fault for the death of the soldier. They find pictures in Carroll’s pocket of his family and friend’s, and Walter Dean Myers uses sight to make you feel the pain of the soldiers and what they are seeing. Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers was a very captivating book and it was interesting to see how a soldier or platoon must deal with problems while at war.
Connor Chatterton
A Block
Fahrenheit 451 written by Ray Bradbury is a novel I immensely enjoyed reading. In this great novel, Guy Montag is a fireman but not like one that a person normally hears about. He starts fires rather than putting them out. In Montag’s society, books are not read but instead they are burned. People do not think independently. They view television excessively on sets mounted on the wall and listen to the radio every minute of the day. In one part of the novel, Montag answers an alarm to check an old woman who reportedly has a large number of hidden books. He is surprised when the woman chooses to be burned alive with her books. At the same time, Montag begins to realize that he is dissatisfied with his life and looks for happiness by reading the books he has stolen from many of his fires. This conflict in the novel is not only a story line but also a literary device. Montag’s conflict is that he must choose between saving the books he finds to read or burning them. If you are caught reading in this society, you could face horrible consequences. The novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury was a very strange yet enjoyable book because it was a paradox of the real world. Instead of being encouraged to read and to think independently, people were forbidden to read books and to think freely
. Louis Ferrara
1/17/08
A-block
The book Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone by J.K Rowling is an interesting read. The novel takes many sudden twists and turns throughout with barely any pauses. Harry just learns of his new wizard like powers and is sent to Hogwarts for witchcraft and wizardry. While at Hogwarts Harry learns of a secret stone that has many powers and abilities. Harry learns more about his tragic past when an evil wizard named Voldemort tries to take the Sorcerers Stone to give him immortality. Also J.K Rowling uses characterization to bring out characters that are usually looked over. J.K Rowling characters fit their personality’s well giving hero the bold but foolish kind of personality. This makes the reader actually feel like they are actually in Harry’s shoes. Harry Potter was a great novel and an excellent book series from start to end.
Shawn Cybulska
block- G
1/17/08
The novel a A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer is a very compelling story about a young boy's struggle for survival. The story was very depressing because Dave is an outcast of his family. Dave's mother abuses him, and everyday is another journey for Dave. At one point in the story Dave's mother locks him in the bathroom with a bucket full of ammonia and clorox leaving him to die. Dave's mother failed which would only lead her to becoming more angry. Since Dave's mother has a drinking problem, because of it, she eventually overpowers the entire family. As time passes and school progresses Dave's condition and behavior becomes worst and worst. Eventually Dave's mother is arrested and Dave is arrested from his prisoner of war like state. Besides the extraodinary use of details, Dave Pelzer uses suspense in his autobiography. The suspense in the story makes the days drag out. By dragging the day out it gives the reader a felling of anxiety to findout what kind of torture Dave awaits. The suspense and details in A Child Called It, by Dave Pelzer is what makes the story compelling as well as his cry for help.
Laurel Haim
B Block
1-17-08
A Child Called It is exemplary novel written b Dave Pelzer. In this novel a little boy, Dave, is abused by his mother. She does the wicked things to him, and it doesn’t faze her in the least. Dave’s mother burns him with the stove, made him eat the most grotesque things, stabbed him, withheld food from him, and more horrid things. Although, his mother does all these horrid things, stabbing him was an accident. She had been drinking, waving a knife, fell on him, and the knife jabbed into him. Even though stabbing him was an accident it doesn’t make up for the other things she does to him. Burning him is just as bad as stabbing him, and she did it to torture him so it wasn’t an accident. Dave used many sensory details to explain the types of abuse that is mother put him threw. The plot is built up with sensory detail in order to intensify what his mother really but him through. He wanted the reader to smell every smell, taste every taste, fell everything he felt, think like he thought, hear what he heard, and see what he saw. Dave wanted the people reading to be there and experience these things just like he did. He wants people to see how bad people’s lives can really be so to be grateful for what they have. A Child Called It shows why people should be grateful for what they have, and realize the struggles other sometimes have endured.
Brianne Hannafey
January 17, 2008
B Block
A Child Called It is exemplary novel written by Dave Pelzer. In this novel a little boy, Dave, is abused by his mother. She does the wicked things to him, and it doesn’t faze her in the least. Dave’s mother burns him with the stove, made him eat the most grotesque things, stabbed him, withheld food from him, and more horrid things. Although, his mother does all these horrid things, stabbing him was an accident. She had been drinking, waving a knife, fell on him, and the knife jabbed into him. Even though stabbing him was an accident it doesn’t make up for the other things she does to him. Burning him is just as bad as stabbing him, and she did it to torture him so it wasn’t an accident. Dave used many sensory details to explain the types of abuse that is mother put him threw. The plot is built up with sensory detail in order to intensify what his mother really but him through. He wanted the reader to smell every smell, taste every taste, fell everything he felt, think like he thought, hear what he heard, and see what he saw. Dave wanted the people reading to be there and experience these things just like he did. He wants people to see how bad people’s lives can really be so to be grateful for what they have. A Child Called It shows why people should be grateful for what they have, and realize the struggles other sometimes have endured.
Brianne Hannafey
January 17, 2008
B Block
Estrella’s Quinceanera by Malin Alegria is a great book. The main plot of the book was when Estrella didn’t want a quinceanera but her mother was still throwing her one. Her mother was planning the party without asking Estrella if it’s what she wanted to go on during the party. While all the party planning was happening Estrella was dealing with her friends and a boy that she likes. A literary device that was used in the book was sensory details. Malin Alegria details the atmosphere around Estrella whenever she was in a different place. She used the sensory details and would have a person feeling as if they were next to Estrella in the scorching sun. Another example would be how Alegria described the food that was being consumed or how the parties were. Alegria also used literary devices to show how mad Estrella’s parents were when they were disrespected. She also used the literary devices to express people’s emotions.Estrella’s Quinceanera by Malin Alegria relates to girls because it shows how many girls fight with their mother about things that they want or don’t want. The book also teaches others that they should talk about something instead of fight. Also that people shouldn’t leave their old friends for new ones.
Estrella’s Quinceanera by Malin Alegria is a great book. The main plot of the book was when Estrella didn’t want a quinceanera but her mother was still throwing her one. Her mother was planning the party without asking Estrella if it’s what she wanted to go on during the party. While all the party planning was happening Estrella was dealing with her friends and a boy that she likes. A literary device that was used in the book was sensory details. Malin Alegria details the atmosphere around Estrella whenever she was in a different place. She used the sensory details and would have a person feeling as if they were next to Estrella in the scorching sun. Another example would be how Alegria described the food that was being consumed or how the parties were. Alegria also used literary devices to show how mad Estrella’s parents were when they were disrespected. She also used the literary devices to express people’s emotions.Estrella’s Quinceanera by Malin Alegria relates to girls because it shows how many girls fight with their mother about things that they want or don’t want. The book also teaches others that they should talk about something instead of fight. Also that people shouldn’t leave their old friends for new ones.
Art Spiegelman. Maus I: My father bleeds history. New York City: Pantheon books, 1986. Maus is a true story that portrays a male protagonist’s experience during the Holocaust. The main character “Vladek” is a young Jewish man living in Poland, Vladek marries a wealthy woman named Anja, and together they have one son named Richelieu. World War Two starts when Vladek is drafted in the polish army, and during combat is captured by German Soldiers. Vladek manages to escape and return home. Later, while trying to smuggle out of Poland Vladek, and his family is caught and placed in prison. In the novel the Spigelman using a great deal of sensory details to make the story seem realistic. The illustrations contribute to visualizing in the readers mind because the reader obtains an image of the events that occur in the story. Spiegelman uses the illustrations as a map to guide the readers sequentially throughout the whole story. Furthermore, along with the illustrations the words themselves are extremely detailed even the smallest events, like when the main character’s food, every bite he takes is portrayed. This helps the readers to experience the emotions of the protagonist in the story. Through the sensory details the reader can picture him/herself inside the story, and profoundly understand the entire novel. Overall, the sensory details make plot unique, and the plot suspenseful. Maus is a great read for those who want a story with a meaning.
Simit Christian
A blcok
1/17/07
The novel, When My Name Was Keoko by Linda Sue Park, was a very powerful and exciting story that kept me reading on and on. The story is about two siblings named Sun-hee and Tae-yul that live under the oppression of the Japanese. Though they were proud of their Korean heritage, they have to obey very strict laws. The children must write and read Japanese at all times, and also learn about the culture and history. They become controlled under the Japanese government, and life becomes harder when Tae-yul is sent to the military, after volunteering to serve in the war with the Imperial Army. Throughout the novel, Linda Sue Park uses emotion and suspense to tell the powerful and riveting tale. The book gives readers insight on what life was like in Korean during the war, and Tae-yul's experience in the military. The experiences help readers to make connections and visualize the events that occured. This exciting novel was very enjoyable because it helps people relate with diversity and to take a stand for their race, gender, and even religion. The book brought about a new definition of power.
The novel Monster by Walter Dean Myers is a great story about a mysterious murder trial. The novel is a screenplay written by, Steve Harmon. Steve Harmon is writing his story of how life is like in jail and how he ended up there. Walter Dean Myers uses flashback mostly in this novel. All of the witnesses have to think back to the day of the robbery, and then Steve is having flashbacks and starts to think, “Why did this happen to me?” He was accused of robbing a drug store and killing the owner of the store with his gun. The owner was just trying to protect himself and his property. The jury is just disgusted that he would murder to steal. The novel Monster by Walter Dean Myers is a great story on a mysterious murder trial because murder trials always leave a little mystery of who did it or why they did it.
Cory Moser
B-Block
A Child Called "It" by Dave Pelzer was a very intriguing novel to read.Reading the book was very tense, and sad. Written in first person narrative, this story took place on March 5th, 1973 in Daly City, California. Throughout the stroy David was abused numerous amounts of time by his mother, Catherine Pelzer. David was a total outcast in his family and barely spent time with them. Everyday of David's life was just another struggle for survival. It was clear to all that Catherine had an alochol problem.David looked to his dad as a hero and savior because when his father was home, David would not be beaten. Mother did everything from locking David in the bathroom with bleach and ammonia to even slamming his face against the stove.Durring dinner David would have to sit in the basement until his family was done. Eventually, police came and took him from his family. While reading this story it came very obvious that the conflict was David being abused. However, similes and metaphors are also used when the author compares David's beatings to other things that happen in the world. A Child Called "It" was an outstanding novel that shows readers that, even though children and teens in the world today might think their lives are terrible when they argue with their parents, that there are other children out in the world who are being beat and struggle everyday to survie.
Rosa Carucci
A-Block
1-17-08
Animal Farm written by Geroge Orwell is a wondeful suspenseful book. Animal Farm is a novel in which two different animals fight over who will run the farm. It shows how people or animlas with too much power can do very bad things ,but they can also do very good things. the animals are in a farm in france. The two pigs are Napoleon and Snowball. There lives are filled with suspence were some of the older animals die or are killed. The elements used are setting in which they show how the farm is cold. The whole book is a metaphor how the animals are like the humans. It also has symbolism in which the animals are symbolized like humans.Animal farm is an amazing book which i think everyone should read. It also teaches about types of goverments.
Animal Farm written by George Orwell is a wonderful suspenseful book. Animal Farm is a novel in which two different animals fight over who will run the farm. It shows how people or animals with too much power can do very bad things, but they can also do very good things. The animals are in a farm in France. The two pigs are Napoleon and Snowball. There lives are filled with suspense were some of the older animals die or are killed. The elements used are setting in which they show how the farm is cold. The whole book is a metaphor how the animals are like the humans. It also has symbolism in which the animals are symbolized like humans. Animal farm is an amazing book which i think everyone should read. It also teaches about types of governments.
Jon Weiss
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is a difficult, yet enjoyable book to read. The novel is about a traveling banker named Jarvis Lorry who works for a company known as Tellson’s Bank. Mr. Lorry soon becomes involved with a woman named Miss Manette, who used to be a lone, little girl Mr. Lorry looked after for a short while, and her search for the truth about her parents and their whereabouts. The setting of the story takes place in France during the French Revolution, and was written around that time. Dickens used many beautiful sensory details to describe the settings and feelings of the characters; as a result, many of the settings can be easily visualized, and the feelings of the characters can be understood. The sensory detail was also used for characterization, too. The sensory detail is one device that is used very well in this novel. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens was a difficult book to read, but the book was enjoyable because of its use of literary devices such as sensory details.
Michael Appelgate
B block
1/17/08
Their eyes were watching God by Zora Neale Hurston was a very intriguing novel about a woman named Janie trying to find spiritual enlightenment and herself as well. In the beginning of the novel, Janie meets and marries a man named Jody. However, Janie soon finds out that Jody is not what he seems and ends up rejoicing when he dies. Soon after, Janie meets a young man Tea Cake who is twelve years younger than her. Despite criticism, Janie marries him and the two are very happy with each other. Soon, things change for the worst when Tea cake gets bit by a rabid dog. Tea cake soon goes crazy and Janie has to kill him when he tries to shoot her. After this, Janie returns to her old home and finally finds peace. One of the literary devices used in this novel is allegory. The allegory in this book is Janie’s hair Janie’s hair represents her freedom and power as a woman. Jody took away all this and made Janie tie up her hair at all times. Janie is freed and keeps her hair down all the time after Jody’s death. The novel Their eyes were watching God by Zora Neale Hurston was a very enjoyable novel and makes people think about the person they are.
The novel, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants , by Ann Brashares is a brilliant novel about friendship. The themes of this book are the search for love, difficulties growing older and growing up. The main point of this book is that four girls, Carmen, Lena, Tibby, and Bridget, are going to different places in the summer. In addition to keeping in touch with each other and staying close in the summer, the four girls pass a pair of pants around to each other. These pants are special to each girl because it fits them all. Since the pants are special, the girls call them the "Traveling Pants." Afterwards, the girls realized how close they were and called each other sisters. The author, Ann Brashares, used conflict in the making of her books. Conflict is the struggle or main difficulty in the story. The sisters learn how struggle through their experiences during their first summer apart. Brashares details that every girl in the story has a separate problem. The other problem is that each girl shares is keeping in touch and staying close. During the summer, each sister is going to be doing different things and far away. All of the girls are getting older. At that time, getting older was difficult for them because they had to realize what life is actually like. All in all, the novel, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares, was moving and attention grabbing for the reader.
Dana Pistilli
B-Block
1/17/08
Khaled Hosseini, Kite Runner. New York: Riverhead Books, 2003. Kite Runner is a novel about a boy Amir telling the reader his own story about he unique relationship that he has with Hassan, his best friend that touches the lives of many people. His is overwhelmed with the guilt when he allowed Hassan to be beaten and raped on the day Amir wins the Kite flying competition. He lied to Hassan so that he would leave their home and Amir could try to forgot his guilty. Finally, Amir and his father flee Afghanistan after Russians invaded. Amir took his sorrow memories to America and start a new life. Although they went to America, Amir still have to pay Hassan back due to he owns him. Therefore, he returned to his country to fins Hassan and rescue him. The theme of Kite Runner is loyalty and trust. The relationship between Amir and Hassan shows that :even though Hassan is the victim of discrimination, he is completely honest and loyal to Amir. Both as a friend and as a servant. But Amir betrayed him. Therefore, it took many years for Amir to make up for how terrible he treated Hassan while Hassan love and trust their friendship. Kite Runner is a really sorrow and sad story; it could lead us into the incident that Amir experience by using sensory detail and imagery. Therefore, it’s a really good novel.
Wing Sum Winsome Cheung
F block
1/19/2008
“Nothing but the Truth” by Avi was a very bland book. It sounded like a play. Nothing but the truth is about a boy named Philip Malloy who gets in trouble because he sings along to the national anthem “The Star Spangled Banner”. Phillip is a very athletic kid who is on the track team at the Harrison School District. It all starts when Philip gets a home room change from Mr Lunser to Ms Margaret Narwins home room. Ms Margaret Narwin is the English teacher at the high school. Philip gets kicked off the track team because he got a D during the winter semester in English. One day during home room Philip starts to hum to the national anthem and gets told to stop. Philip argues and does the same thing the next day but gets sent to the principles office. There he gets suspended for two days. His father Mr Malloy then talks to the neighbor Ted Griffen because he is going to be on the school board which is a big thing. The catch is Mr Malloy brings his son over to Ted’s house and a reporter for the Manchester Record interviews Philip. The interview of the incident of singing the national anthem goes in the Manchester Record news paper and Ms Margaret Narwin gets phone calls from people who were watching the news and reading the news paper. This goes on for two months with Ms Margaret Narwin getting phone calls from retired soldiers and many other jobs/businesses that have to do with supporting our country by wanting kids to sing the national anthem . This stops when Philip goes to a new school called Washington Academy. Here they start the day off by singing the national anthem. Miss Rooney Philip’s home room teacher aks him to help start the national anthem but he says he doesn’t know the words. This book was okay if you wanted to make a play but not good for reading because it was a dialogue through out the book.
Derik A-Block
Nothing But the Truth by Avi is an astonishing example of how teenagers can take a stand and make a change. The book tells how when a high school studentiscaughthumming along to the national anthem he gets in trouble with his global teacher. truley taking away from his
-Alexandra Crimmins
The story book Dawn written by Elie Wiesel is a satisfactory novel written about a man and his connection to a begger.Written in first person narritive the story expresses a vibe of anger as the main character struggles through situations.During the beginning of the novel the narrator uses flashback to go back to the memories he had when he was a little boy. Going back to the day he met a beggar,he remembers trying to help the beggar even though the beggar never chose to take the help he offered.Later a twist happens when the main character changes his attitudes to one that is extremely evil. All of a sudden the narrator wants to kill someone, but he doesn't know who do kill. Using many details, the narrator talks about a man he wants to kill man, but just can’t picture him in his mind. Due to the issues that happened to the narrator over time, his actions change from better to worst. Dawn is a book for those interested in stories about how life's situations can affect a person's actions.
Dana Lizak Block B
Night by Elie Wiesel was a very Interesting and emotional book. The book is all about the author’s own personal experience during the Holocaust and how it felt to be torn away from his family. He was only a teenager when he was taken from his home in Sighet, Transylvannia and sent to a concentration camp. While he was in the camp he shows how every day was a struggle to survive and that there was no value for human life. Wiesel depicts the tragedy in such a personal way that you almost feel like you are watching it happen before you. To illustrate his experience the author used point of view to really show the reader how important things were in his situation. If he hadn’t of used his emotions at certain points of the story to describe how important something was to him the reader wouldn’t of really understood his view of it. Like when he talks about waiting on line in front of the fire pit wondering whether he should commit suicide or have a slow and painful death in the fire it is obvious that he is in a highly stressful situation. If he had spoken about the man in front of him and what he looked like you wouldn’t really understand the condition as much so his point of view was a very important part of the story. Overall the book was a good and really showed how horrible concentration camps were without being graphic.
-Josephine Barone
D block
Mrs. Kaplan
2/9/08
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden is a captivating novel about the reality of a young girl. This novel about a young girl named Chiyo, takes place in Japan. At a young age Chiyos mother was on her death bed, her and her older sister[Satsu] were put up for adoption. As excited as Chiyo was, she was unaware of the dangers outside of her little town. Chiyo was put into an okiya which is a house of geishas. In that particular okiya was a geisha named Hatsumomo. Hatsumomo planned attacks on Chiyo, because Chiyo was looked at by men even at her young age because of her beauty. Although Chiyo thought she had it bad in her okiya, Satsu was put into a prostitution home,which she later ran away from. This novel is based on reality of geishas in Japan who are being trained or training more to become a new geisha. This book is very mind taking and is the first novel I cannot wait to hear the ending of.
Jackie King
H block
Feb. 10th
Briana Kohm
D-block
2/10/08
The novel Black Boy by Richard Wright is an intriguing novel about a young black boy growing up with many conflicts such as racism and striving to be better than others. When only four years old, he burnt his house down causing him to be beaten. With such a religious, violent and strict family growing up was hard. His father abandons the family leaving the mother to take care of her two sons alone. Having the troubles Richard had as a child traumatized his life. This made him trust no one and do everything on his own hoping to be successful one day. As Richard grew older he finds more struggles like trying to find a job with the color of his skin he had. Even hunger became a familiar thing to him and his family. With struggling for a job, he raises enough money to send himself and his aunt to Chicago were he gets money to send for the rest of the family to come over. With the whole family in Chicago was the happiest thing for them another problem occurred. Richards mother grows sick causing her to have a stroke and become cripple for the rest of her life. This all lead Richard into reading and writing which his family felt was a sin but ended up being his talent and newfound career that only his mother supported him in. However, Richard Wright learned to better himself by having others strengthen him as a child. Instead of having things handed to him he was put through a beaten that made him stronger as a person to not let people judge him for his color, personality and knowledge. Not only did whites citizen him but also other blacks try to bring down a man looking for success. This book truly opened my eyes to the fact that we should all do what he did and learn to become stronger from past experiences without letting them bring us down.
Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers is an excellent written book telling a story of a solider in Nam.(Perry). Perry enrolls in the military after finishing high school as a excellent student, and decides to go to the military instead of collage. He looks back at his choices and his life when he enters the military and get into his first battle. When Perry landed at the airport Nam. he made friends with two guys, Peewee and Jenkins. While on patrol with his unit, the narrator feels frightened and thinks of home; nothing big went on during that patrol until they started headed back to the HQ hooch. Jenkins stepped on a mine and the mine blow Jenkins up, Perry couldn't believe what happen and couldn't move, as if his legs were made of stone; he was scared out of his mind. The setting of this story is mainly in Nam. where the
soidlers are fighting communism to free the South Vietnamese from the North Vietnamese. This story of Vietnam was amazing, and it can give you the feel of how it really was this Nam. i recommend this book to all war story lovers and anyone who loves to read about conflict and massacre.
Rob Green
D-Block
2/10/08
The book Maus 1 and Maus 2 by Art Spiegelman is a very well written book series. The book is written for the reader to view the holocaust through the eyes of the Jewish people. The book uses mousses, cats, and dogs to make the book fell less dramatic and more comical. Spiegelman revolves the book around his father and what he did to survive. Spiegelman uses personification to give human like quality’s to animals. The book pushes the reader into this evil place and makes them stay their until the book ends. The characters are well drawn making the Nazis look like soulless beings and the Americans look like battle ready heroes. Overall this book deserves an eight out of ten for being such a dramatic reenactment of what happened during those times.
Shawn Cybulska
Block-B
2/10/08
The novel Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows by J.K. Rowling is one of my favorite books of all time. One of the reasons that this book is one of my favorites is because of its extraordinary ending. The ending of this book is when Harry Potter kills the evil Lord Voldemort. This ending was so interesting to me because of the way that J.K. Rowling was able to plan it out; with Harry finally being able to overcome evil after all of that time he spent trying to destroy it. Another reason hat the ending was so special is that it was really clear to me what Harry Potter was thinking before, during, and after he killed Lord Voldemort. J.K. Rowling’s use of characterization was so great in this story that it was always clear to me what the characters were thinking. Another reason that this novel is one of my favorites was the beginning when all of the wizards were trying to relocate Harry out of England. It was very amusing to me to hear how the wizards were planning to escape Voldemort. All of these components have helped to make the novel Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows by J.K. Rowling one of my favorite books of all time.
Joseph Santangelo
A-Block
2/10/08
The literature novel Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah was an emotion-filled book. The novel is about a little girl, Adeline, growing up in twenieth century China in a family that doesn't care about her. When Adeline was born, her mother died and her siblings blame her for the loss of their mother. Her aunt Baba and grandfather Yeye seemed to show the most affection to Adeline in her family. Adeline had a pet mouse named PLT, who was very dear to her and possibly one of her closest friends. Adeline's father had remarried to her stepmother, Niang, who was very abusive physically and mentally. Adeline felt alone after PLT was killed by their dog, leaving her with no other friends to talk to when she was depressed. Even though Adeline had a sad and miserable childhood, when she became an adult, she moved to the United States in California and made a happier life. Chinese Cinderella was very emotional, but also a very enjoyable and easy to read novel.
Bethany Greenman
D Block
William Golding. Lord of the Flies. New York:Penguin Group, 2006. Lord of the Flies is a story that portrays humans', particularly childrens', cruelty to other individuals, which is a great topic to be read about. The book is set in the middle of World War II, and descriibes how a plane full of evacuating school boys is shot down thus marooning the group of boys on a deserted island. At first the boys live life full of fun and carelessness where their biggest concern was keeping up a fire that would signal a passing ship. Eventaully, fears of a mosnter and boys exerting their power leads to a power struggle that results in bloodshed and cruelty. The author uses characterization to move the plot towards its overwhelming conclusion. Each character in the book is described vividly and the thoughts of the boys reflect their nature. The boys commit horrendous crimes against each other, but in a strange ( if not sadistic) way one can understand why the boys acted in the way they did due to the authors language. The reader realizes how cuel and unrational humans can be, expecially when he/she realizes that there is no punishment for their crime. William Golding uses characterization so well that one can emphasize or feel the fear that the characters felt. The book, Lord of the Flies was a greatly enjoyed book, that is recomended to be read by others if they wish to confirm their hatred/dislike of humanity.
Sense and Sensibility, a difficult read, yet marvelous work written by renown writer Jane Austen, is a love story revolving around two strikingly different sisters. The eldest sister, Elinor is a calm, thoughtful, considerate and clever, while her younger sister Marianne is highly emotional and wildly romantic. Both sisters are on a search to find themselves a husband, but neither of them are able to do so, despite Elinor's very reasonable personality and Marianne's enthusiastic and passionate nature. Both sisters fall for the wrong men and are unable to find true love, and lasting happiness. Austen's skilled use of satirical wit and complex characterization in her work teaches an important lesson to all of us. It teaches us that true, lasting happiness and love can only exist and be obtained through the delicate balance between rationality and emotion. Sense and Sensibility is definitely a work worth reading due to it's ability to bewitch you into it's charming and twisting plot!
-Rebecca Utkin
-Block B
-02/10/08
Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights has been a greatly appreciated and shared classic of the past two centuries. Set in the late eighteenth century by Yorkshire, the book is classified as a brooding tale of a love that is stronger than death between the two protagonists. Heathcliffe and Catherine, opposites in every way they are perceived, love each other irrevocably. Yet, both deny to admit the truth in the face of the other. They lead separate lives with a strong desire to forget of the other. Yet, even when their paths cross, they refuse to admit their love to the face of the other. Instead, they confide the single remaining link between them- Nelly, the housekeeper. Because the book is told mainly from Nelly’s point of view, it is found to be very intriguing. Unlike books that are told from a unknown and omniscient narrator, Nelly’s interpretation of the circling events provide Wuthering Heights with a depth that no other book as yet been able to match. Nelly comments on what the other characters think and feel, and on what their motivations are, but these comments are all based on her own interpretations of the other characters. As the only link between them both, she alone was able to see the tension and love between them. Because the story is told from the point of view of such a character, the reader is able to imagine themselves within the situation and not only simply sympathize with the characters from an impersonal distance. In conclusion, Emily Bronte's Withering Heigths was not only a great books because of the powerful plot, but it was also strengthened by the point of view it presented the story in.
-Aleksandra Makowska
-Block B
Animal Farm written by George Orwell is a wonderful suspenseful book. Animal Farm is a novel in which two different animals fight over who will run the farm. It shows how people or animals with too much power can do very bad things, but they can also do very good things. The animals are in a farm in France. The two pigs are Napoleon and Snowball. There lives are filled with suspense were some of the older animals die or are killed. The elements used are setting in which they show how the farm is cold. The whole book is a metaphor how the animals are like the humans. It also has symbolism in which the animals are symbolized like humans. Animal farm is an amazing book which i think everyone should read. It also teaches about types of governments.The literary device in the book is mostly conflict because the two animals fight to run the farm. When they fight it is because they want to be in power just like most people want to be. These are the reasons i read Animal Farm
Jon Weiss
Shabanu by Suzanne Fisher Staples is a stunning novel set in India. The novels main focus has to do with a young woman Shabanu. She unfortunately has to have an arranged marriage to Murad. Which of course this is a conflict. Shabanu is frightened and another unfortunate fact, this Marriage will take place next year. Shabanu has a sister Phulan. to there benefit since Phulan is suppose to leave for the winter and it starts to rain. So now Phulan doesn't have to go. Shabanu,Phulan and Mama are of course very happy. As this novel continues I will learn what obstacles Shabanu has to overcome through this Journey of a betrothal.
Jazmin Roman
B-Block
2/12/08
First They Killed My Father was written by Loung Ung. The little girl's family lived in the middle of Phnom Penh. Customs in Cambodia were of coursevery different than America. Parents also acted differently. Ma was considered to be "famous" amongst other Cambonian woman. She was considered to be very gracious as she walked, she was much taller than other woman. She was very strict in many ways. Therefore, when the little girl would do something that Ma didn't approve of, she would get scolded. On the other hand, Pa would try to get the little girl out of trouble when she did something wrong. He always tried to calm Ma down. Ma was Cambodian and Chinese. Therefore, so was the little girl. Loung is very descriptive on every single page. Even when he says that Ma's soup is clear broth with some noodles in it. Reading this book won't leave people bored, it will actually feel like they're sitting at the table with the family.
-Amanda Palladino B Block
Robert Keller
Block H
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi is an autobiographical graphic novel. The book is set in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. At the time, Iran was run by a king, The Shah. The main character Marjane wants to become a prophet. She reads books written by revolutionaries. Her parents constantly protest against the Shah. Marjane always wants to go with them, but they won’t let her go. The police would shoot the protesters, making protesting very dangerous. Marjane’s grandfather was the prince of Iran, however his family was overthrown. Eventually, The Shah stepped down. Those accused of crimes against the Shah, were released from prison. Marjane’s father had friends who were released. His friend Anoosh came to stay with the family. Marjane asked him many questions about his experiences. Persepolis provides a vivid description of life in the Middle East.
The book I am reading for my independent reading choice is Harry Potter and The Chamber Of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. I chose this book because I had to. Also because it has a mysterious plot to it. I love reading books with mysterious plots. The book is about a boy named Harry Potter who, only a year ago, discovered he was a wizard. He went to a school for magic called "Hogwarts School of Magic." Now he is back for another year. His second year starts off as normal, but little does he know its not going to be normal.Harry returns for his second year at Hogwarts, disaster will strike. And strike it does. In Harry's second year he struggles with many problems such as, a stuck up new proffesor named Gilderoy Lockhart,and a spirit named Moaning Murtle who hunts the girls' bathroom.But each of these are minor annoyances but when the real trouble begins, and someone or something starts turning students to stone. the question that lies is who or what is the cause of it?
Angela Soliman B-Block
A Child Called It by Dave Peltzer was both an inspiring and controversial story. A child is severly abused by his unstable, emotional, and alcoholic mother. At first the child named Dave had a Brady Bunch family and was happy as can be, but things soon would change dramatically. Out of nowhere an emotionally unstable mother took out her drunken rages onto Dave and him only. She would "play" torturous games that were a nightmare but fun to her. In one "game" Dave's mother mixed ammonia and clorox cleaning chemicals and set it in the bathroom with dave inside; therefore nearly choking him to death as if he were in a gas chamber. This disgusting behavior continued for treacherous months at an interminable pace. But Daves prayers were later answered when at a normal day at school he was taken to a police station and promised to never return back to the abusive life he has known for such a long time. Daves drunken mother was later arrested for battery of a young child and was put in jail for a long time. When Dave grew up he later wrote A Child Called It and it is a Newberry honor.
anthony Nival
H-block
2-11-08
Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane is an autobiography set in South Africa during apartheid. The book describes the sturggles of growing up black in a South African ghetto and how he survived to make it out and continue on to play professional tennis. From a very young age, Mathabane is taught to fear and hate white people.However, this changes when visits other cities out side of his own. He even begins to interact with them when he is in high school and learns that not all white people are bad.An important literary device used in this book is point-of-view. The point-of-view used is first person narrative. This is important because not only do we know all of Mathabane's thoughts,but we understand the pain he felt growing up. Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane is a very compelling read and I can't wait to finish.
The Motorcycle Diaries is an exciting novel about the author, Ernesto Che Guevara, and his friend's journey throughout South America, starting at Argentina and making their way up to Venezuela. Ernesto and his friend, Alberto Granado, meet many different kinds of people and find themselves in many various predicaments. At one point, Ernesto and Alberto find themselves in a small village full of people who are extremely ill, where they must decide whether to help them or not. Some life lessons are found in Ernesto's novel. Ernesto writes about these life lessons from a first-person point of view. The novel makes good use of sensory details; however, the literary device that caught my attention was Che's use of personification. In the beginning, he used personification to describe the sea, stating that the sea is "a friend that listens to everyone's secrets and keeps them to itself." The use of personification hooks me into the story and allows me to understand the author's feelings much more clearly. Therefore, The Motorcycle Diaries by Ernesto Che Guevara is a superb novel for the life lessons the story brings to view and its use of personification.
Michael Appelgate
H block
Haveli by Suzanne Fisher Staples is an inspiring novel that takes place in India. This book is mainly about the struggles that Shabanu is facing having gone through with the forced arranged marriage that was mentioned in the original book Shabanu” Daughter of the wind. Out of Rahim’s four wives Shabanu is the youngest. Rahim adores Shabanu and her daughter Mumtaz which makes his other older wives very jealous. The jealous attacks made by Rahim’s other wives encourage Shabanu to move to Rahim’s old family home in the city named Haveli. Shabanu spends as much time as she can with her daughter Mumtaz knowing that some day the same thing will happen to Mumtaz that happened to her so many years ago. Although I am just in the beginning of Haveli it already inspires me to make use of the time that I have now and not to waste a split second. If you are into a romance drama type of thing then you would like this novel. So far I like this novel because Shabanu has good morals and it is a nice story in general.
Kristin A.R-Martin
February 11,2008
D- Block
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden is a thrilling and touching novel set in Japan in the 1930’s. The book is about a young girl, Chiyo Sakamoto, who lives in a small fishing village in Yoroido. Her mother is dying from bone cancer, and her father is very old. He can’t afford to pay to take care of his wife’s sickness due to the fact that this was the time of Japan’s Great Depression. To try to gain money, he sells Chiyo and her 15-year old sister Satsu.Her sister is sold as a prostitute. Chiyo is sold to a geisha house in the geisha district of Gion.
Chiyo is training to become a geisha, but is constantly bothered by another geisha working there named Hatsumomo. This is one of Chiyo’s biggest conflicts because Hatsumomo ends up getting Chiyo kicked out of the geisha house. Jealousy drives her to do everything she can to ruin the career of Chiyo. Hatsumomo and her friend force Chiyo to ruin an expensive kimono that had been stolen. Chiyo did this with the promise of information of where her older sister was located. After she ruins the kimono, Hasumomo tells her where her sister is. Later when Chiyo finds her sister, she convinces her sister to runaway together. As both of them were trying to escape from the roof of the geisha house, Chiyo falls off the roof, and ends up breaking her arm. This causes her to get caught. She later receives a letter saying that her sister was able to successfully escape, and that she had eloped with her boyfriend. The letter also informs her that both of her parents had passed away. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden is a great novel. With many plot twists, and great characters, this is a great young adult book that should be read by all teenagers.
Lianne Julian
H Block
2/15/08
The novel Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is a really realistic and toughful novel about a boy Amir telling the reader his own story about his unique relationship that he has with Hassan, his best friend that touches the lives of many people. His is overwhelmed with the guilt when he allowed Hassan to be beaten and raped on the day Amir wins the Kite flying competition. He lied to Hassan so that he would leave their home and Amir could try to forgot his guilty. Finally, Amir and his father flee Afghanistan after Russians invaded. Amir took his sorrow memories to America and start a new life. Although they went to America, Amir still have to pay Hassan back due to he owns him. Therefore, he returned to his country to fins Hassan and rescue him. The theme of Kite Runner is loyalty and trust. Moreover, the relationship between Amir and Hassan that, even though Hassan is the victim of discrimination; he is completely honest and loyal to Amir. Not matter as a friend or as a servant. However, in the middle of the novel, Amir betrayed him. Therefore, it took many years for Amir to make up for how terrible he treated Hassan while Hassan love and trust their friendship. Eventually, Kite Runner is a really sorrow and touch story; it could lead us into the incident that Amir experience by using sensory and imagery details. Therefore, it’s a great novel to read.
Wing Sum Cheung
F block
2/15/2008
Fallen Angels, by Walter Dean Myers displays a good image of what it was like during the vietnam war. The Northern vietnamese people were the ones that America was fighting at the time. The southern vietnamese were our allies. Based on a regular soldiers point of view named Perry. Perry meets many new friends that are in his platoon and learns a lot of life lessons. Perry has never killed a cong before. He doesnt know what it is like to defeat his enemy yet like all of his other friends do. Walter Dean Myers defines the word "imagery" in this great novel. His living habits are terrible in his barracks, he is always getting sick from various diseases from nam. Perry and his platoon survive through many attacks and traps. This novel shows me in detail of what it was like to be in the Vietnam war.
The novel One Day in the life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenisten is an excellent book. The story puts the reader in a third person omnicient point of view. Ivan Denisovich Shukhov is a Russian soldier that was caught, captured, and thrown into a Stalinist camp. He has been sentenced to ten years of work. The workers must survive the bitter cold, each other, and the harsh people that run the camp. Third Person Omniscient is a point of view that allows the reader to know what each character is thinking. This can be confusing at times; however, it leads to a deeper understanding of living in a camp during World War II. The novel One Day in the life of Ivan Denisovich was an amazing read that is highly recommended. It is not recommended for new readers because it can become confusing at some points. Overallit gets a ten out of ten.
Joseph Piazza
A-Block
Walter Dean Myers. Fallen Angels: New York, Scholastic, 1988. Fallen Angels is a fiction war story. Fallen Angels is about a boy who got drafted in to a war. It is during the Vietnam War and many people are getting drafted. When
Richie first got drafted he was very scared. When he could he wrote letters to his mom. Richie
Perry, the main character makes friends with Lobel, Johnson, Brunner, and Pewee. They become very close through out the story. Near the end he ends up getting hit by something, and he went to the hospital. While he was at the hospital he got surgery and they took the bullet out. Richie ended up staying in the hospital for a long time, and after all of that he got to go home.
Vanessa Cucuzza
A: Block
Ms. Prevosti
The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke was a very intriguing and misterious story.the magical underworld of venice of italy.the hidden canals and crumbling rooftops shelter runaways and children with incredible secrets.after the children escaping fron their aunt and uncle the orphans prosper and bo meet a my sterious boy who calls himself the theif lord.the theif lord leeds a band of street children who enjoys making mischief but the thief lord also has a dark secret and suddenly prosper and bo find themsleves on a fantastical journey to a forgotten place.they discover there will change the course of their destiny.
Jake Anderson
Ms. Prevosti
A Block
2/15/08
In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez describes the life of four sisters who are the symbols of hope in a country of dictatorship.The girls,Minerva, Maria Teresa, Patrica, and Dede describe their lives in a series of short stories. Their lives are under the dictatorship of Trujillo and they describe the misfortunes and troubles they face everyday under his cruel rule. The stories they tell illustrates how political oppression affects human lives. Julia Alvarez uses imagery to describes everyday events. For example the author states how the moon was "a thin, bright machete cutting its way through patches of clouds." This literary device helps move the plot along as to better illustrate the hard lives the girls led.
Samantha Grasso
B Block
The book Animal Fram By George Owell.
Old Major, a prize-winning boar, gathers the animals of the Manor Farm for a meeting in the big barn. He tells them of a dream he has had in which all animals live together with no human beings to oppress or control them. All the animals wnated him stop,and make someone else in charge. When he propsed that he was out ragerous.So they desided that the only way to get pease is the only thing left is to kill him. When he dies only three nights after the meeting, three younger pigs—Snowball, Napoleon, and Squealer—formulate his main principles into a philosophy called Animalism. Late one night, the animals manage to defeat the farmer Mr. Jones in a battle, running him off the land. They rename the property Animal Farm and dedicate themselves to achieving Major’s dream.
The book I was assigned to is called Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers. The book begins when the plane was on its way to vietnam, on board were people in the army. Judy was a medical student, then there was Perry, he had a bad knee at one point. Perry bought some soulvenirs for his mom and his brother kenny. Perry and Judy talked about what they wanted to be when they were little. The sergeant told them they were going to the land soon so get ready to live up. Perry was fasinated by the helicopters and everyone walking around with rifles and guns. They all just waited around until they got assigned. This guy Gates wanted to be called peewee. They all look back at what they did back at home.
George Orwell's use of extensive details is greatly shown in the book 1984 . The main character, Winston, describes the life and rules of his negative utopia. His negative utopia is called Oceania. He uses setting to desribe the backwards world that he lives in. Indeed, this world is very unrealistic and based on three quotes, "War is Peace, Freedom is slavery, Ignorance is Strength." These three qoutes are completely opposite of the modern world. In present day, many people dislike President Bush because he started a war. Even though, Winston is apart of the Ministry of Truth he still has to hide what he really thinks about the government and "Big Brother". In this utopia there is Two Minutes of Hate. During, this Two Minutes of Hate they scream and shout while watching a tv screen with Goldstein on it. This is in contrast with modern world's moment of silence. Winston did some illegal things like buying and writing in a diary. Orwell uses setting to descibe his negative utopia through his descriptive wors and sensory details.
The Shabanu Daughter of the wind by Suzanne Fisher Staples was a good book to read I liked it very much. A main plot of the book was how the family starves to survive when there was a big sand storm. It was one of the worst sand storms they had and the family couldn't find there grandfather. They family was a mess they didn't know what to do. They were scared to go look for him because the storm was so bad. Therefore they had to wait till after the storm was over. A literary device that the author used was figurative lanungue, the way he describe the sand storm was very detailed. The book was very good and this is the type of book you could read over and over again.
A child called "it" by Dave Pelzer was an autobiographical story of an inspiring boy who survived child abuse. The novel was intriguing and touched my soul. Dave's mother was a raging alcoholic whose most favorite hobby was to abuse Dave. She always had new dangerous tactics for Dave to perform once he came home from school. The child lived in fear not knowing whether or not there would even be a tomorrow. Dave's mother would starve him and smack him spontaneously for his wrong doings or as she would say "being a bad boy". If she thought that Dave even had the slightest bit of food she would stick her fingers down his throat to force him to vomit the food. Dave's struggle to survive grew harder and harder by the day. Eventually his father stopped coming home and the abuse even worsened. The author describes the novel in vivid details. He tells the story of his life and tells how he was practically almost killed and close to being beaten to death. He described the situations so well that he made me feel the pain he felt and see what he saw. The novel even brought tears to my eyes. This novel is a must read! Shows children that they really don't have it as bad as they think. The story really captured my interest and touched my heart. I extremely recommend this novel to readers who like to read books about real life stories. This book is a great inspiring novel everyone must read!
andrea borsic
b block
'Animal Farm' written by George Orwell is a fascinating story that will catch everyone in a daze. This novel shows how quickly the leaders against tyranny can turn their revolutionary ideas towards totalittarianism. corrupted by the humans, a farm is taken over by its overworked, mistreated animals. With outstanding idealism, and stirring sogans, they set out to create a paradise of progress, justice and equality. The animals join together to start their own type of government, a more humane esablishment than that of their previous master Mr. Jones. The animal in charge of the farm animal's revolution is old major, and throughout his last days in the animal farm, he is seen as a symbolic figure by all the other farm animals. When old major dies, Napoleon takes his place as a revolutionary leader and corrupts old major ideal of a farm run only by animals. His rules were the seven commandment's for the animals to follow, in those seven commandmrnts, Napoleon strictly pointed out that two legs were the enemy's and four legs were good. He soon became power hungry, and established a new type of government, leaving him total control over the farm. 'George O rwell' uses charatercterization, and personifcation to explain how politcal leaders can act like animals, and vice verse. In 'George Orwell' novel Boxer represents the working classes, which are always fighting for the dream that the politcal leader illustrated for them. The conflict is when the politcal leader always addresses that he/she will provide equality and freedom among all; but yet the working class like Boxer ends up fighting for the causes that their leaders falsely promised them. The authors purpose is to explain how people with too much power can act like animals and destroy there own creation with their power. Overall too much power can only cause chaos to yourself and your follwers.
Mario Lucero
D-BLOCK
2/10/08
The story Kaffir Boy written by Mark Mathabane is an extraordinary book of a young African boy and his struggling through everyday situations. Growing up in the suburbs of South Africa, Mark tells his personal experience of encountering with violence in the streets. Mark began his young journey in life living in poor areas, and gangs, as well as losing hope. The author uses internal conflict to portray his personal emotions of living in lack of self confidence. Although he was schooled, his education wasn't of high standards because he lived in the slums of Africa. This story lets the reader to realization of how little financial income can lead to difficult lives for many in faced with poverty. This story is a well written book, because it teaches the reader that certain things in life shouldn't be taken for granted.
Maus 1 and Maus 2 written by Art Spiegelman, is a comic,that uses animals such as dogs, cats, and mice ,instead of humans, to make the book seem less intense then the situation really was. These books tell a story of a Jewish[Spiegelmans father and how he survived in such bad times] mans experience in the holocaust. The main character “Vladek”, gets married to a young wealthy women “Anja”, and has a son names “Richelieu”. The family, who lived in Poland, tried to sneak out of the country, after Vladek escaping from the army, run by the Germans, Later being caught and put into jail. One of the many literary devices that spiegelman uses in his book, is illustration. He uses the images to portray and give a better understanding and feeling of what was really going on in such horrific times.
Kat Mitilineos
D-Block
2/15/08
The novel Black Boy by Richard Wright is a very interesting story of an African American autobiography. Richard is learnng how it is to be growing up an African American child. Richard lived with his brother, father, mother, and weak grandma in Roxie, Mississippi. Since there grandma was very ill him and his brother had to be quite all the times. The two boys were very bored and decided to put the curtains on fire, and that nearly burnt the house down. When his mom found him she beat him servely bad. After the fire destroyed there house they were force to move to Memphis. The boy really know his father so he consider him a stranger. One night his father was tring to sleep and a little kitten was meowing and he couldn't sleep. Richard saw that the his father couldn't sleep so he killed the kitten by hanging it on a rope on a nail. The brother told the mom and when she saw the kitten she beat him again ,and make him bury the kitten. Richard and his brother were hungry ,but they couldn't eat because the father wasn't coming home and he is the person who brings all the food home. Since, the father wasn't coming home so the mom was force to work and leave the children home by there self. Since, they were force to do this Richard had to go grocery shopping. Everytime he tried to go to the store he would get beat up by a group of boys. His mom didn't let him back into the house because until he got the grocies, so she gave him a stick to protect himself. Finally, he came home with the grocies because he beat the kids with the stick and sent them home crying. The coal man brought coalto his house to keep it warm, and the coal man thought him how to read and say numbers. The mother went to court and she tried to get support from the father but the judges toook the father side. In a genorous offer to help the family the neighbor would sent money and food in the mail. The mom had no choice but to put the kids in an orphan home. Richard ran away from the orphan but he was found by the police and taking but there. The mom took the children from the orphan and they moved to Elaine, Arkansas with there aunt. After a while they moved back with the grandma. They moved again to west Helena because the mom got tired of the strict religious routine in the grandma house. Now he is realizing what is is like growing up as a African American.
The novel Shabanu Daughter of the Wind written by Suzanne Fisher staples is so far intriguing. The novel takes place in the Cholistan desert. In the desert were the main character Shabanu lives it didn’t rain for nearly two years. The author uses indirect characterization and imagery to draw the reader’s attention. The author uses indirect characterization when describing the characters. The author provides the characters names, but doesn’t give vivid detail about them. The description of the characters is not even close to the description of the animal and what they went through. Therefore, that’s where the imagery comes in at. For example, in the novel a camel was giving birth while at the same time dying from receiving a poisonous snake bit. This grabbed my attention and allowed me to picture exactly what was going on. That part even allowed me to picture more than what the novel actually mentions. This novel would be interesting for anyone to read.
By Ashley Jones
Block H
In The Time Of The Butterflies by Julia Alvarez was a very inspirational novel to many young girls who might have had a hard life. The book talks about four sisters who experienced very crucial lives under the dictatorship of the Dominican dictator, Trujillo. These four sisters had to just depend on themselves and the love that they had for each other. They did not have any independence. They were not allowed to anything on their own. The sisters always had to ask permission, they never had a chance to just do what they wanted. Even if they wanted to walk to the fields to see the tobacco filling out, or the lagoon to dip their feet in on a hot day, or even to pet a horse in front of a store as men loaded up their wagon with supplies. The author used symbolism because the four sisters symbolize power and they stayed strong for each other. I recommend this book to anyone who just likes to learn about new things and people lives. Especially to young girls who might have a hard life at times. This book may reassure them that at the end everything will be okay.
Victoria Palladino
B Block
Maus I by Art Spiegelman is an intriguing novel filled with romance that will catch the reader’s intentions due to the organized and animated way Spiegelman wrote the novel. This novel tells a story about one man and his life during WWI. The plot of this novel is about Vladek, a man who is now a grandfather. His struggle to get out of the crisis the world was facing while he was still young. His son, Artie, comes to his house and asks Vladek to tell him the story about his life and WWII. While Vladek is telling the story, the author brings up many other characters along with many fun filled facts about WWII. Also, while the author is introducing the new characters, Art Speigelman tells about their story and how everyone is related. The main characters in the story are Vladek who is a strong man and has lived his life through WWI. Artie, Vladek’s son who writes biographies. He now wants to write a novel about his fathers’ life. Nonetheless, Anja is the love of Vladek’s life. They both struggle through a hard time, but get through it. The author, Art Spiegelman, uses imagery to reflect on what is happening throughout the novel while Vladek is telling the story. The reader can picture what is going on in the story very clearly thanks to the way Art Spiegelman uses imagery. This novel is good for readers who love history. It is filled with action, Romance, and many detailed facts about WWII.
Tirath Singh
B Block
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a first-class, suspenseful book. Hester Prynne, a Puritan settler in Boston, is condemned to wear a scarlet letter “A” on her chest because she has committed adultery and had a daughter named Pearl with an unknown man. Hester was sent to Boston by her husband who was supposedly lost at sea, and now has secretly returned with the name Roger Chillingworth, under the alias of a doctor. With the intent of revenge, Chillingworth cares for the sick minister, Arthur Dimmesdale, who torments himself. While caring for Dimmesdale, who seems to have a psychological pain, Chillingworth finds something seared into his chest resembling an “A”. Before leaving to Europe with Pearl and Hester to start a new life, Dimmesdale stands on the town scaffold and confesses being Hester’s sinful partner in adultery, and suddenly drops dead. Throughout the The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses the literary device of symbolism. Some of the symbols include the letter “A” symbolizing adultery and the scaffold symbolizing shame and sin. The Scarlet Letter is a thrilling novel because of the unknown identity of Pearl’s father.
Oscar Lee
B Block
The book Maus by Art Spiegelman was a very informative story that may have made readers annoyed with the story at the end. Maus told the story of a holocaust survivor named Vlad Spiegelman and his wife Anja. Vlad was shown telling the story to his son about how he and his wife survived the holocaust. Vlad and Anja were both Jewish Germans who were being hunted down by the German Nazis to be put into concentration camps. Both of them fled all over Germany to try to escape the Nazis. All around Vlad and Anja, people were dying. Eventually one of the people that Vlad and Anja gave them both away to the Germans and they were both holed off to concentration camps. The ending of the book was annoying because the book ended and you had to purchase Maus II to read the end of the story. Maus by Art Spiegelman was a very informative story that made people annoyed at the ending
Joseph Santangelo
A Block
Nightby Elie Wiesel was a sad but strangely interesting book. The author who actually was a victim of the holocaust was separated from his family at age fifteen and sent to a concentration camp. He tells his story in this book in the most understandable way possible and really try’s to show the reader what was going through his mind when something happened. Throughout the story he recounts watching all the horrible things that took place in the camp and shows how the camp took away any innocence or happiness he had in his life. For instance the author used point of view as a literary device to show how it affected him. He tells the story using his first hand experience with the holocaust and really makes the story more interesting by telling the reader what he was thinking during the various conflicts throughout the story. Without his personal experience influencing the story it wouldn’t be the same and it would seem more like a history book then a novel. The book was very depressing but hearing what happened from someone who experienced the tragedy was very interesting.
Josephine Barone
D block
3/1/08
The blog above was a mistake this is the correct one..
Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini was a very interesting book. It is about a man, Amir, who lived in Pakistan as a child but then moves to the U. S. . When he is told that a man that he was very close to as a child was killed he goes back to Pakistan to find the man’s son. When he gets there he must deal with all the memories of his life and seeing how violent his country has become. Throughout the book the author uses conflict as a literary device. Without the conflicts in the story everything would be very dull since the characters wouldn’t be challenged and wouldn’t change during the story. The conflict with Amir trying to find his half brothers child made the book develop even more and just created more realistic emotions coming from the characters. The book was very original and while reading it the book seemed very realistic so overall it was very interesting.
Josephine Barone
D-block
The book I have just read is called Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer, it was published by Little brown and Company. The book eclipse is about a eight teen year old girl name Bella Swan, her boyfriend Edward Cullen, and her best friend Jacob Black. As bella finds herself in a life threatening situation Edward and Jacob have to put their differences aside and join together to save the girl that they both love. The literary element used in this book is conflict, this conflict is self conflict with Bella herself. Her conflict is that she is in love with Edward but she is also at the same time in love Jacob. Bella tries to push away her feelings for Jacob but realized in the end that she was in love with him, maybe she didn’t love him as much as she loved Edward but she admitted to herself that she did love him. She had another self conflict which was her trying to bring the two parts of herself , the part that loves Jacob and the part of her that loves Edward. Bella had trouble admitting that she had been in love with Jacob even though she also loved Edward. Also she had to realize that there were to parts of herself that would never and could never be apart of each other.
-Katie McSherry
-Block: F
-Ms. P
Ryan Mclean
A Block
The mists of Avalon is a gripping tale that expresses the womans views of King arthors triumph. Marion Zimmer Bradley did a tremendous job of showing the stuggle of the woman. Ingraine is Arthurs Mom and she is very buissy raising a family and being a good wife. Moraine lives in avalon she follows socary under her aunt vivane. She is Arthors brother and and Ingraines daughter. She loves magisc and the earth. i AM LOVING THIS BOOK SO FAR
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer is a very enticing and compelling read. This novel is about Isabella Swan, a regular girl from Phoenix, Arizona whose life changes when she moves to Forks, Washington to go live with her dad, Charlie. After a week of her new life out in Forks, she meets Edward Cullen, a junior in high school and as mysterious as they come. Edward and Bella start out on a bumpy road, looking at each other never knowing what to say. When Edward and Bella meet officially for the first time, they have an astronomical connection to each other. They have mostly everything in common with each other except for that tiny little problem that Edward has. Edward is a vampire. Bella doesn’t care about Edward’s major crisis. Edward winds up always having to save Bella’s life, and that is a problem for him, because he is the most dangerous thing in the world for her and he cannot always be around her. Edward knows that the greatest danger that Bella puts herself is befriending Edward, and she would be a lot safer if she stayed away. Twilight is a very compelling read because Stephenie Meyer leaves questions unanswered and always leaves you wanting more.
So, so far in my book Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers Peewee (Gates)had a problem with the way he talked to people. He had no regard for anyones feelings. Perry wrote home about peewee. Perry missed his brother Kenny. He was younger than Perry. Perry joined the army right out of high school. He figured the army would be better for him, because being home with hardly any money in his neighborhood would be cause in trouble. Peewee also grew up poor. They both started meeting a lot of other guys from other barracks, playing ping-pong and checkers. A few of the guys were assigned to the 196th in Chulai, thats were Judy Duncan was assigned. Thats the girl perry kind of likes. Perry was scared of fighting a war, but had no choice. Peewee just told him to kill them all. They made a packed and spit on their own hands and high fived eachothers hands to make sure they have eachothers backs.
Chris Gallo
B-Block
X-Rated Bloodsuckers by Mario Acevedo gives a funny twist on old vampire folklore. It is the second of currently two books. Currently, Felix's investigation in the jungle called L.A. is turning into a nightmare with sleazy movie producers and politicians, hot chicks and a secret vampire society underground Felix has more than enough work on his hands. The book is still in the first person point of view of Felix and is getting better and better the more I read it.
Bryan Rivell
A Block
Night by Elie wisel was a very emotional book. after all the struggle that he went through tryiing escape you would think that he would be happy to finally be free but in the end. he was nothing but scard. when he looked in the mirror all he pictured was a corpse.If he hadnt used his emotions at certain points of the novel to describe how important life was to him the reader wouldn't have really understood his view of life. although he goes through a rollercoaster of emotions the book was amazing
Samantha wong A block
Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers was a very interesting book. Richard (Richie)& Perry are both serving in the Vietnam War. While serving in the war Richie meets many people and also makes a couple friends. He meets PeeWee and Gates, and they stay together throughout the war. Richie was suppose to be doing deskwork due to a previous knee injury, but there was a mistake made with his papers and he was accidentally put in the warzone. There are many sensory details utilized in the novel to describe how the war is like and what troubling situations Richie is dealing with. Carroll, One of the soldiers gets killed in action and, the men serving with him believe that they are responsible for his death. The author uses sight and emotion to make the reader feel how the soldiers are feeling.
Brian E. Lopez
Almost A Woman by Esmeralda Santiago was a very detailed and intriguing book. This particular book is the sequel of When I Was Puerto Rican in which is the story of Esmeralda's childhood in her native Puerto Rico.This book discusses Esmeralda's migration from Puerto Rico to New York City during her teenage years and the challenges and obstacles in which she faced. The main literary device used through out the book is conflict, in which Esmeralda uses her troubles in New York and the balance between being American and Puerto Rican. In Result, The Challenges and Obstacles in which Esmeralda faced throughout her teenager years help make the book more intriguing and appealing to the readers eye.
Falling Leaves by Adeline Yen Mah is a very emotional, but apathatic novel which made reading the book very distasteful.Falling Leaves is an auto-bibliography about a young Chinese girl who was born in Beijing, and is blamed for everything that goes wrong. This book has an interesting conflict set in motion right at the beggining of the book, which ties the reader into a close bond with Adeline's struggle. When Adeline was born, her mother died giving birth to her. Natrually, from that moment on, Adeline was the left-out child of the family. Adeline grew up with her father Hian, and her aunt Niang. Afterwards, while Adeline was in her childhood, Niang was very strict and cruel to her, forbidding any sort of fun activities with her, and excluding her from family events. Adeline's brothers James, Gregory, and Edgar disliked Adeline very much also, so they would exclude her from playing with them. Eventually, through all of her struggles, Adeline uses her courage to step up to her horrid family, and loosen her connection with her family by attending a school in Shanghai. Afterwards, Adeline finishes high school, and goes to America to become what she always wanted to be: a nurse. Leading a succesful life ever since she left her family, Adeline decides not to be in contact with them anymore, and went on to write this novel. The author uses profound similies in the story to compare everyone to everything that she thought was suitable. Also, the mood in the story set the tone pretty well, giving the reading an insight to exactly how Adeline felt at times in her life. Overall, the book was actually boring, apatathic, and too dramatic for my taste.
Vincent Arcello
January Blog
The book i finished reading is called Bone By Jeff Smith. The story follows the main character named Bone. Bone is in search of his two brothers. Bone and his brothers got seperated after they were ran out of home their town. Bone stumbled into and huge forest.
At the beggining of winter and is now stuck there untill spring, But he has time to search for his family. The literaly device i found while reading this novel is the use of presonification. While in the forest Bone talkes to the animals to see if they have seen his brothers.
Michael Morawed
The Nartual by Berandad Muilnaded
Nineteen-year-old Roy Hobbs, a country bumpkin with a great pitching arm, is on his way to Chicago to try out for the Chicago Cubs. He is on the train with the Cubs' scout, Sam Simpson. While on the train, Roy meets a woman named Harriet Bird, for whom he immediately develops a crush. He also meets a sports journalist, Max Mercy, who is on the train with a famous baseball hitter, the Whammer.
The train stops at a carnival, and Roy and the Whammer both show off their skills at games. Sam bets that Roy can strike out the Whammer, and Roy does. In the process, however, Roy accidentally hurts Sam, who dies later that day from the injury. When they reach Chicago, Harriet invites Roy to her room. After Roy tells her he will be "the greatest in the game," she shoots him.
Fifteen years later, Pop Fisher, the manager of the New York Knights, discovers he has a new "rookie" for his team—a thirty-four-year-old man named Roy Hobbs, whom the team's owner, the stingy Judge Banner, has signed for a paltry $3,000. The Knights are doing very poorly; even their playing field is dried up from a long drought.
Pop is skeptical of Roy. When Roy refuses to join the hypnotist sessions to which Pop subjects the team, Pop benches Roy for three weeks. In the meantime, Roy falls for Pop's niece, Memo Paris, but she is already the girlfriend of the team's star player, Bump Baily. Roy also meets Max Mercy, the sports journalist, again, but Mercy does not recognize him.
Finally, Pop sends Roy into a game one day to pinch-hit. Roy smashes the cover off the ball on his first at-bat, and at the same time a downpour begins that lasts for three days. Soon, the field is green again and Roy is hitting regularly, wowing everyone with his amazing talent. Bump Baily takes offense at Roy's rise, and he tries so hard to outdo Roy that he accidentally cracks his skull against the wall. Bump later dies from his injuries; ultimately, Roy tries to move in on Memo. She is cold and indifferent to him, but he cannot stop thinking about her.
When the Knights begin to rise in the standings due to Roy's amazing performance, Roy asks the Judge for a raise, but the Judge refuses. Roy runs into Max Mercy, who takes him out to a club owned by Gus Sands, the "Supreme Bookie"—a millionaire tycoon of the betting circuit. Gus and Memo are sitting together when Roy and Max arrive. Gus wins some significant money from Roy, and Roy pays him back in the form of parlor tricks.
A few weeks later, the fans hold "Roy's Day," in which they shower him with cheers and gifts after hearing how poorly the Judge has been treating him. Roy even gets a car and takes Memo on a date. The date goes poorly, however, and Roy ends up crashing the car into a ditch. Neither of them are injured, but it is clear that Memo is not very interested in Roy. Nevertheless, he cannot stop obsessing over her.
Shortly thereafter, Roy enters a slump, unable to get a single hit. He tries everything he can to end the slump, from superstitious tricks to meeting a fortuneteller. Pop tells Roy to stop using his bat, Wonderboy, and to try a different one, but Roy refuses. Just before a game in Chicago, a fan begs Roy to hit a home run; the fan told his son, who is fighting for his life in the hospital, that Roy said he would. Pop lets Roy bat, and Roy immediately goes through two strikes. Then Roy notices a woman standing up in the crowd for him. The woman gives him a kind of strength, and he nails a home run on the next hit.
Roy decides to meet the woman. Her name is Iris Lemon. The two go on a date, and Iris seems to understand Roy very well. Unfortunately, Roy does not seem to understand Iris or what she is trying to tell him. They go swimming and then make love, but Roy is shocked to discover that Iris, at age thirty-three, is already a grandmother. He soon tries to forget about her, focusing once more on Memo, who has ignored him for weeks.
Suddenly, as Roy is hitting well again, Memo begins to pay attention to him, making him hunger for her even more. But he also hungers for vast amounts of food, and he begins to eat and eat. Memo holds a great banquet for all the players before an important three-game series, promising Roy sex after the banquet. But when Roy goes to her, he gets an enormous stomachache and winds up in the hospital.
Meanwhile, the Knights lose their next three games, tying the Pirates for first place. Memo visits Roy at the hospital. He asks her to marry him, but she tells him she cannot do so unless he is sufficiently rich and can "take care of her." Shortly thereafter, Judge Banner visits Roy and offers him $35,000 to throw the next game, which will decide who wins the pennant. Roy reluctantly agrees, and the next day at the game, he does not play his best.
However, Roy slowly begins to change his mind. At one at-bat, he is viciously booed by a dwarf named Otto P. Zipp. Roy tries to foul off several pitches toward the dwarf; one finally hits the dwarf, but caroms off the dwarf's skull and hits a woman that had stood up in the stands—Iris Lemon. Iris tells Roy that she is pregnant with his child, and that he must win the game for both the child and the two of them. Roy agrees and goes back to the plate ready to crack one. But as he does so, his bat, Wonderboy, splits in half.
In his next at-bat, Roy is once again ready to conquer, though not with Wonderboy. The opposing team's pitcher is so terrified of Roy that he faints dead away. The other team sends out a young phenom pitcher instead. Roy suddenly finds himself in the place of the Whammer, striking out against a young, fantastic pitcher. Distraught after the game, Roy visits the Judge and beats him up, along with Gus Sands. Roy throws the Judge's money at him and calls Memo a whore. Memo tells him that she has hated him ever since he "murdered Bump." Roy leaves and sees a newspaper: Max Mercy has discovered Roy's sellout. A boy asks Roy, "Say it ain't so, Roy." Roy can only weep in response.
I am Legend by Richard Matheson is dark sci fi novel about a man named Dr.Robert Neville. In the story Dr.Neville is the only survivor of a catastrophic plague that has turned every human to a vampire. So thinking he is the last person alive he scavenges for food carelessly but he doesn't know what awaits him in the darkness and beyond.So he lives every day searching for anybody out there just anybody.The setting of the story is a lonely,sad,and dark.Because as soon as you read this book you can sense the saddness as soon as you read it. I think that Richard Matherson put this story in such a intriguing placing of the outcome of a extreme epidemic for the reader. For a example when Dr. Neville goes to Sears to get lathe he sees the infected lying around and, relizes he finds anything funny at this point in his life. I would totally recommend this book to anyone because I think this book is better than the movie.
Night by Elie Wiesel, is an emotional story about a Jewish teenager named Eleizer, who encounters horrific events, along with his family, during the Holocaust. In the spring of 1944, the Nazis move into Hungary and all the Jewish people in Eleizer’s town are forced into ghettos. Upon their arrival at the concentration camp, Eleizer and his father are separated from his mother and sisters. Eleizer and his father were allowed to live, but the terrible things they saw would scar them for life. Eleizer had to watch Jews being treated worse than animals. He had to watch other prisoners being killed, being hung, being tortured, and babies being burned in furnaces. Eleizer is sent to a work camp, where he works in an electrical-fitting factory. At first everyone in the camp took care of each other, but cruelty takes over and everyone begins to lose their humanity. After the Nazis evacuate the camp due to the fact that the Russians were advancing, the Jews are forced to run to another concentration camp. Hundreds died, including Eleizer’s father, but Eleizer survived until April 11, 1945, the day that the American Army liberated the camp.
Elie Wiesel uses many literary devices to develop the plot of Night , and symbolism was one that was frequently used. Fire appears throughout the novel symbolizing the Nazis cruel power. For example, Madame Schachter, a prophet from Eleizer’s town, receives visions of fire. Also, Eleizer sees babies being thrown into furnaces and the crematoria was the main agent of destruction. The use of fire as a symbol of destruction and cruelty is very ironic, being that fire is associated with G-d and the Jewish believe that the wicked are punished with fire. But in the novel, the wicked [Nazis] are using fire to punish the innocent. This confuses Eleizer and his whole perspective of the universe and of G-d, which determine his character. Night was a very intense novel that really shows the reader how much Jewish people suffered during the Holocaust and how cruel a person can be.
-Angela Tsetsakos
-D Block
In Maus 1&2 Art Spiegelmen uses indirect characterization to show how the characters deal with the conflicts of the Holocaust. Maus 1 begins with Artie (the main character/ Protagonist) asking his father about his life during the holocaust. In the holocaust so many people were captured and forced to work for the Nazi’s. In these stories Vladek (Artie’s father, another protagonist) retells his personal experiences during the Holocaust. During this time Vladek and his wife Anja had their first son, named Richieu. Richieu was drafted into the war at an early age and died. Also, Vladek once made plans with a smuggler to take he and his wife to Hungary where they were caught, captured, and taken to a concentration camp. They suffered hard times there, but they eventually escaped. Vladek dies in Maus 2 due to an illness and old age. His death causes Artie to feel guilt and misery at the same time. He is therefore unable to focus his mind on work. Artie survived through his mother’s and father’s death. Just like Vladek and Anja survived through the holocaust. This book taught me that in life you will face many problems, but everyone has the strength to overcome it. Spiegelmen uses indirect characterization to let the readers draw their own conclusions about the characters. He shows how the characters act, and talk, and threw that the reader could decide for themselves what the characters are like. “ It was many, many such stories-synagogues burned, Jews beaten with no reason, whole towns pushing out all Jews-each story worse than the other.” (Spiegelmen 33). By describing the characters indirectly, Spiegelmen leaves you to decide what these characters are like and how they handle the problems they face.
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