Reading-
Every night for Homework, Margaret, my humanities teacher assigns us to read 30 minutes a night for two weeks.
This semester, Ive read a couple books that I loved and some, not so much. Below is a list of books Ive read and some I would like to read in the future.
Books Ive read-
If I say by Gayle Forman
"If I Stay" is about a girl named Mia who had everything in life. A loving family, a gorgeous boyfriend, and a bright future full of music and full of choices. In an instant, almost all of that is taken from her. In this book, she has to choose between life and death, between a happy past and an unknowable future. Mia spends one day making the most important decision she’ll ever make. All at once, this book is a tragic, hopeful, romantic, riveting and ultimately uplifting story about memory, music, living, dying, loving. This is yound-adult fiction and I rate this book a 4 because it was written really well but just somethings in the book I wish Gayle Forman could change. |
An Abundance Of Katherines by John Green
When it comes to relationships, everyone has a type. Especially Colin Singleton. His type is girls that are named "Katherine". He has dated and been dumped by 19 Katherines. Colin, an anagram obsessed washed up child prodigy, heads out on a road trip with his best friend, Hassan Harbish. With $10,000 in his pocket and a feral hog on his trail, Colin is on a mission to prove a mathematical theory he hopes will predict the future of any relationship. This John Green book is another young-adult fiction book but I rate this a 5 because its absolutly perfect. Its full of comedy and an amazing adventure. |
Blink by Malcolm Gladwell
I started to read this book but couldn't get into it so I dropped the book. Because I couldnt get hooked to this book, I rate this sorda History fitction book a 2. Only because I had a hard time getting attacthed to it. Maybe sometime in the future I can/will get into this book again... Blink is a book about how we think without thinking, about choices that seem to be made in an instantin the blink of an eye-that actually aren’t as simple as they seem. Why are some people brilliant decision makers, while others are consistently inept? Why do some people follow their instincts and win, while others end up stumbling into error? How do our brains really work-in the office, in the classroom, in the kitchen, and in the bedroom? And why are the best decisions often those that are impossible to explain to others? In Blink we meet the psychologist who has learned to predict whether a marriage will last, based on a few minutes of observing a couple; the tennis coach who knows when a player will double-fault before the racket even makes contact with the ball; the antiquities experts who recognize a fake at a glance. Here, too, are great failures of “blink”: the election of Warren Harding; “New Coke”; and the shooting of Amadou Diallo by police. |
Message In a Bottle by Nicholas Sparks
This was another book that I dropped. For some reason, I wasnt feeling this book. Trust me, Nicholas sparks is a great writer it just this book wasnt for me. Ive read his other books in the past like "The last song", "The Notebook", "Dear John", "The Lucky One", and "The best of me". Just for some reason, I became too lazy to get into. Insted of me reading for fun on my own time, it began to become a chore for me. I didnt like that so I dropped and rated this romantic fiction novel a 3. Theresa Osborne, divorced and the mother of a twelve-year-old son, discovers a message in a bottle during a seaside vacation from her job as a Boston newspaper columnist. Inside is a letter that opens with, “My Dearest Catherine, I miss you my darling, as I always do, but today is particularly hard because the ocean has been singing to me, and the song is that of our life together…” For Garrett, the message is the only way he knows to express his undying love for a woman he has lost. For Theresa, wary of romance since her husband shattered her trust, the message raises questions that intrigue her. Challenged by the mystery, and driven to find Garrett by emotions she does not fully understand, Theresa begins a search that takes her to a sunlit coastal town and an unexpected confrontation. Brought together either by chance or something more powerful, Theresa and Garrett’s lives come together in a tale that resonates with our deepest hopes for finding everlasting love. |
Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
This Historical Fiction, is about a Penobscot Indian, Molly Ayer. This girl is close to “aging out” of the foster care system. A community service position helping an elderly woman clean out her home is the only thing keeping Molly out of juvie. As she helps Vivian sort through her old possessions and memories, Molly learns that she and Vivian aren’t as different as they seem to be. A young Irish immigrant orphaned in New York City, Vivian was put on a train to the Midwest with hundreds of other children whose destinies would be determined by luck and chance. Molly discovers that she has the power to help Vivian find answers to mysteries that have haunted her for her entire life. Answers that will ultimately free them both. This powerful novel of upheaval and resilience, of unexpected friendship of the secrets we carry that keep us from finding out who we are. I rated this book a 4 because at times, this book got alittle boring but then pulled me in with suprises. |
Books I want to read-
Throuout the semester, Margret had us keep a list of books we would like to read. A way to help us add books to that list was every friday, we would have book talks. What we did was stand infront og the class and talk about a book we read. The title, author, what we rated it(0-5), genre and alittle summary of the book without spoilers. My list of books I want to read is REALLY long so below I added a small list of books that I wish to read.
Books I want to read...
Throuout the semester, Margret had us keep a list of books we would like to read. A way to help us add books to that list was every friday, we would have book talks. What we did was stand infront og the class and talk about a book we read. The title, author, what we rated it(0-5), genre and alittle summary of the book without spoilers. My list of books I want to read is REALLY long so below I added a small list of books that I wish to read.
Books I want to read...
"Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet Francois Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young. Clever, funny, screwed-up, and dead sexy, Alaska will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps."
-John Greens website. I want to read this book because Ive heard it's better than "The Fault in our stars" and its writen by one of my fave writers. Alot of people have recomended this book to me but the person who told me about it first and wont stop telling me about it is my best friend Rylan. |
"Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life–dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge–he follows. After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues–and they’re for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees of the girl he thought he knew." -John Green's website.
This is another book writen by John Green that I want to read. This is a young-adult fiction and a Mystery book and as you can tell by the genres of the books I read and want to read, most are young-adult fiction which shows that those kind of books are my favorite. Anyways, since young-adult fiction books are my favorite, this is a book I thought I would enjoy. Nobody exactly recommened this book, I just saw it on John Green's website. |
"Now a major Lifetime movie event—the classic story of forbidden love that captured the world’s imagination and earned V.C. Andrews a fiercely devoted fanbase. Book One of the Dollanganger family saga. At the top of the stairs there are four secrets hidden. Blond, beautiful, innocent, and struggling to stay alive ... They were a perfect family, golden and carefree—until a heartbreaking tragedy shattered their happiness. Now, for the sake of an inheritance that will ensure their future, the children must be hidden away out of sight, as if they never existed. Kept on the top floor of their grandmother’s vast mansion, their loving mother assures them it will be just for a little while. But as brutal days swell into agonizing months and years, Cathy, Chris, and twins Cory and Carrie, realize their survival is at the mercy of their cruel and superstitious grandmother ... and this cramped and helpless world may be the only one they ever know."
-Barnes and Noble website. Margaret, my first semester hummanities teacher suggested the class to read it in a book talk if your into young-adult fiction, Novel, Family saga, Gothic fiction, Speculative fiction. Im really into young-adult fiction and Novels. |
"Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker—his classmate and crush—who committed suicide two weeks earlier. On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out how he made the list. Through Hannah and Clay’s dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers." -Jay Asher's website.
This book is another yound-adult fiction book. It was rocommened also by Margaret. From what I heard about it, it's changed alot of lives and different schools to pay more attention to the bullying thats happening there. |
"Like many ambitious New York City teenagers, Craig Gilner sees entry into Manhattan's Executive Pre-Professional High School as the ticket to his future. Determined to succeed at life-which means getting into the right high school to get into the right college to get the right job-Craig studies night and day to ace the entrance exam, and does. That's when things start to get crazy. At his new school, Craig realizes that he isn't brilliant compared to the other kids; he's just average, and maybe not even that. He soon sees his once-perfect future crumbling away. The stress becomes unbearable and Craig stops eating and sleeping-until, one night, he nearly kills himself. Craig's suicidal episode gets him checked into a mental hospital, where his new neighbors include a transsexual sex addict, a girl who has scarred her own face with scissors, and the self-elected President Armelio. There, isolated from the crushing pressures of school and friends, Craig is finally able to confront the sources of his anxiety. Ned Vizzini, who himself spent time in a psychiatric hospital, has created a remarkably moving tale about the sometimes unexpected road to happiness. For a novel about depression, it's definitely a funny story" -Barnes and Noble website.
My friend Isabel read this book last year and told me to read it. Also a internet friend I met on Tumblr, recommened this book and said it inspired her to write her own book. This book is a young-adult fiction book so if your into these type of books, then this is a book you should also read. |
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Book club critiques-
For the past couple months, Erin had us read a book a month and below are the ones I have read...
Dear Zoe by Phillip Bear
On September 11, 2001, Tess DeNunzio loses her three year-old sister to a hit-and-run driver. Tess's becomes trapped in perceive as an impenetrable silence. Dear Zoe is about Tess attempting to break that silence. Throughout the novel, she is writing letters to her little sister Zoe, While writing these letters, she starts to grow and start to learn who she truly is. Tess's letters lets us eavesdrop in on the confidential conversations that force her to express her loss, confront her guilt and confirm the healing power of love. Tess will bring you to tears and break you heart but then make you smile, laugh and then put your heart back together again. Normally when I am assigned a book to read for a book club, I never enjoy that book and its a dread to read it. This time around, when I read this Dear Zoe, I enjoyed reading it and it was never a chore to do. When it was time to read in class, I actually was excited to read because I wanted to learn more about the main character Tess. I loved reading this story because I got a chance to watch a girl around my age, learn to deal with her grief and grow as a person. |
Another reason was because I loved reading about the struggles that she deals with after he sisters death. Some of the struggles Tess went through, I feel like how she handled them could give me an idea of what I could do if I was ever in her situation. It's hard to deal with grief at a young age and I would know because I'm about the same age as Tess in the story and I've dealed with it before. I connected with her alot which made me want to read it some more to find out what else we had in conman. This is a heart-wrenching novel that put me next to Tess and made me feel like I'm going through her experience and because of that, I did cry a couple times. Phillip Bear writes in a way to show that pain and grief is never an easy thing to go through. Throughout life everyone had to deal with loss, suffering, pain, at some time and in this book, you will experience the pain and grief Tess goes through. This book taught me how to find myself and overcome the things that are holding me down from achieving anything I desire to complete in life. Dear Zoe is a great book and I would recommend it for anyone.
Dorthy Must Die by Danielle Paige
We all know the Story "Wizard of Oz" where a girl named Dorothy and her dog, Toto, are whisked away by a tornado, in Kansas, in their house to the magical land of Oz and while they follow the yellow path, they both meet friends on the way to Emerald City to meet the Wizard. Well in my latest book club book, "Dorthy Must die", its based on that movie/book. Danielle Paige shows the readers what happened after Dorthy goes back home to her family from a wild adventure.
Amy Gumm is a high school student in Kansas with a prescription addicted single mother and is bullied by her classmates, A tornado hits her trailer, she finds herself in a different world. When she arrives in the land of Oz, its not like she remembered it in the movies. The land is normally full of color, happiness and magic. The land she didn't reconize had giant black holes marking the land, draining the magic out of Oz and filtering it into the now dictatorial Dorothy. Those Munchkins who were full of life, were now slaves for Glinda who makes them destroy the land they love by draining the magic. Now the Good Witch and Dorothy rules Oz with an iron fist. Oz has been twisted into a dark scary place to be. Even the lovable characters, Cowardly Lion, Scarecrow, and the Tin Woodsman have been changed into horrible things. When Amy is sent to Dorthy's prison in the castle, Amy is rescued by a group of witches calling themselves the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked. Four witches are in this group, Glinda's twin sister Glamora, Gert, Nox and Mombi. They tell her that she has to kill Dorothy,
When we first started the the second round of book clubs, I was assigned to read another book but I changed it because my other book was boring me. I get bored of books real quick and when I read my old one, I use to dread having to read it every night. so I decided to go to Costco and look for a new book. I found one and its called Dorthy must die by Danielle Paige. The title is a little creepy and intriguing but that made me want to read it more. One of my favorite movies is The wizard of Oz so I thought this book would expand my love for the movie and honestly it kind of did. The thing I liked about this book the most is I had no idea where the story was going to go and had no idea on who to trust. It left a mystery for me to try to solve as I read it. Every twist and turn was super exciting. It had me desperate to continue to finish the book when I stopped reading. Dorthy tricked everyone into thinking she was a sweet innocent girl from Kansas and this book made her the opposite. I love when writers re-create a classic story and twist the whole story. This book did have alot of action in it like violence which I'm not a huge fan of in books. This book also had some "colorful language" in it. The author used these words in a way where they weren't even necessary. I did like this book but I wouldn't have my oldest younger sister read it. Shes 10 and is a huge bookworm and is dying to read Dorthy Must Die but I think this book is more for highschoolers because some of the things that happen in this book isn't meant for children. Overall this was a good book. It could have been better. This book is a series so the ending of the book is a cliff hanger.
Amy Gumm is a high school student in Kansas with a prescription addicted single mother and is bullied by her classmates, A tornado hits her trailer, she finds herself in a different world. When she arrives in the land of Oz, its not like she remembered it in the movies. The land is normally full of color, happiness and magic. The land she didn't reconize had giant black holes marking the land, draining the magic out of Oz and filtering it into the now dictatorial Dorothy. Those Munchkins who were full of life, were now slaves for Glinda who makes them destroy the land they love by draining the magic. Now the Good Witch and Dorothy rules Oz with an iron fist. Oz has been twisted into a dark scary place to be. Even the lovable characters, Cowardly Lion, Scarecrow, and the Tin Woodsman have been changed into horrible things. When Amy is sent to Dorthy's prison in the castle, Amy is rescued by a group of witches calling themselves the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked. Four witches are in this group, Glinda's twin sister Glamora, Gert, Nox and Mombi. They tell her that she has to kill Dorothy,
When we first started the the second round of book clubs, I was assigned to read another book but I changed it because my other book was boring me. I get bored of books real quick and when I read my old one, I use to dread having to read it every night. so I decided to go to Costco and look for a new book. I found one and its called Dorthy must die by Danielle Paige. The title is a little creepy and intriguing but that made me want to read it more. One of my favorite movies is The wizard of Oz so I thought this book would expand my love for the movie and honestly it kind of did. The thing I liked about this book the most is I had no idea where the story was going to go and had no idea on who to trust. It left a mystery for me to try to solve as I read it. Every twist and turn was super exciting. It had me desperate to continue to finish the book when I stopped reading. Dorthy tricked everyone into thinking she was a sweet innocent girl from Kansas and this book made her the opposite. I love when writers re-create a classic story and twist the whole story. This book did have alot of action in it like violence which I'm not a huge fan of in books. This book also had some "colorful language" in it. The author used these words in a way where they weren't even necessary. I did like this book but I wouldn't have my oldest younger sister read it. Shes 10 and is a huge bookworm and is dying to read Dorthy Must Die but I think this book is more for highschoolers because some of the things that happen in this book isn't meant for children. Overall this was a good book. It could have been better. This book is a series so the ending of the book is a cliff hanger.
Antigone by Sophocles
Antigone is a Greek Tragedy based on one girl named Antigone whos the daughter of Oedipus. Antigone's father just passed away in Colonus and Antigone and her sister make the decision to return to Thebes. They want to go back to help their brothers, Eteocles and Polyneices and help them to stay away from a prophecy. The prophecy expects that the two brothers will kill each other because they are in a fight about who will take over the throne. When Antigone reaches Thebes, she is then devastated about the death of her brothers. Eteocles was given a proper burial while Antigone's other brother Polyneices was issued a royal edict. Antigone's uncle Creon took over the throne and banned Polyneice's burial because Creon believed Polyneices was a traitor. Antigone ignores the law her uncle made and buries her brother. She is then caught in the act so Creon sends her to prison. A blind prophet Teiresias, begs his father Creon to release his fiancé Antigone. A Chorus pleaded with the Prophet to Creon to release her and then Creon finally agrees he should. When they go retrieve her, They are too ate. They all find her dead in her jail cell. After the news goes around, Haemon and Creons wife also killed themselves and leave Creon in distress and sorrow.
I don't have much to say about this play except that It was a okay play. It was my first Greek tragedy I've read. It was a great play to read to start off the play project. It was different but I liked it. At first I thought it was strange how hey had all these different things like before scene one, there was prologue and then chorus and then scene 1 then another chorus and then scene 2 and so on. It took me awhile to get use to these names and after awhile, I started to like the way these plays worked. Honestly, the plot was predictable but only because of the name of the type of play it was, Greek Tragedy. You knew that something really bad was going to happen like someone was going to die from the beginning and as the story went on, you kind of got the idea that Antigone was going to kill herself. But the ending I guess did get me by surprise that two other people killed themselves because of Antigone.
I don't have much to say about this play except that It was a okay play. It was my first Greek tragedy I've read. It was a great play to read to start off the play project. It was different but I liked it. At first I thought it was strange how hey had all these different things like before scene one, there was prologue and then chorus and then scene 1 then another chorus and then scene 2 and so on. It took me awhile to get use to these names and after awhile, I started to like the way these plays worked. Honestly, the plot was predictable but only because of the name of the type of play it was, Greek Tragedy. You knew that something really bad was going to happen like someone was going to die from the beginning and as the story went on, you kind of got the idea that Antigone was going to kill herself. But the ending I guess did get me by surprise that two other people killed themselves because of Antigone.
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Books I Want to Read...(pt2)
Paper Towns by John Green
I still haven't read this book yet and I've been dying to read it but I'm always busy reading other books. I love John green books. Hes a great writer and also, alot of people have been telling me to read it. Plus the movie is coming out and I'm the type of person to read the book before the movie.
I still haven't read this book yet and I've been dying to read it but I'm always busy reading other books. I love John green books. Hes a great writer and also, alot of people have been telling me to read it. Plus the movie is coming out and I'm the type of person to read the book before the movie.
A Work in Progress by Connor Franta
I REALLY want to read this book because it's written by my favorite YouTuber, Connor Franta. He has always been an inspiration for me and is always there to make me smile. A Work in Progress comes out on April 21st, 2015 and I pre-ordered it so now I'm just waiting for it to come out and come into the mail so I can read it.
I REALLY want to read this book because it's written by my favorite YouTuber, Connor Franta. He has always been an inspiration for me and is always there to make me smile. A Work in Progress comes out on April 21st, 2015 and I pre-ordered it so now I'm just waiting for it to come out and come into the mail so I can read it.
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House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
The House on Mango Street is consisted of 44 short stories, called vignettes. Each "Chapter" is narrated by a young girl, Esperanza Cordero who just moved with her family to Mango Street, in the barrio. This book tells the readers about Esperanza's life growing up in Chicago with Chicanos and Puerto Ricans.
In my Opinion, I really did like this book. This book told stores that had a lot of meaning behind them. The House on Mango Street had 44 small chapters that are called Vignettes.
Each chapter was really short but I don't like books with long chapters. I get bored with books easily and I drop them real quick but The House on Mango Street, I was never bored. Each chapter made me want to read more. The chapters were like they tell you a story an in order to finish that story, you had to finish the chapter after that, it was like Esperanza told you a story and that was one chapter then the next chapter was a different story. I just really liked the stories she told. I though they were cute and funny.
In my Opinion, I really did like this book. This book told stores that had a lot of meaning behind them. The House on Mango Street had 44 small chapters that are called Vignettes.
Each chapter was really short but I don't like books with long chapters. I get bored with books easily and I drop them real quick but The House on Mango Street, I was never bored. Each chapter made me want to read more. The chapters were like they tell you a story an in order to finish that story, you had to finish the chapter after that, it was like Esperanza told you a story and that was one chapter then the next chapter was a different story. I just really liked the stories she told. I though they were cute and funny.