My Sister's Keeper

Because I have already finished Gathering Blue, I started to read My Sister's Keeper. 

Q: "I want to sue them for the rights to my own body."

Q: Why does she want to put herself, her sister, and her family in all the pain that she is about to start for all of them by suing her parents?

C: I think that even though she is still young, she has a say in everything that happens in her life.  As of right now she has been there for her sister every time she needed something from her, from advice to bone marrow.  As Anna is growing up she loves her sister, but doesn't want to have to go through what she has to everyday.  She wants her parents to love her for who she is, not for what she is doing to save her sister Kate.  Kate has cancer and Anna was created as an exact match to donate blood, bone marrow, and a kidney to her.  Anna doesn't want this anymore and decides that she is going to sue her parents, and this book is about the journey she takes in life. 

Gathering Blue

I just started a new book called Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry.  So far it is about a girl who was crippled from birth.  Her dad was killed by beasts in the forest during a hunting trip and her mother just passed away from an illness.  Because she is crippled a women of her village named Vandara wanted to use her land for a place to keep their children.  Because Vandara wants her to be banned from the village she takes her in front of the Council of Guardians.  The Council of Guardians decided that she will be able to stay and has the job of weaving for them.  

Q: "She was imperfect. And fatherless as well. She should not have been kept."

Q: Why do the people of the community decide to kill those who are crippled or those who can not help as much in the community?

C: I think that in this community they kill those who are crippled or cannot help as much because they are not as useful in the community.  Even though they are just as valuable as us, because of their disability, they decide to kill them.  I think this is very wrong, but it is their way of life and it is their custom, so they will continue to do it unless someone steps up to change the way things are. 

She's Come Undone

Q:"Forget it. I shouldn't bug you. I'm the one whose sorry."
Q:What gives people the urge to rape kids that are younger than you?
C:I really have no idea how to answer this question. But in this story Jack gets too comfortable with Dolores and starts to "tickle" her and touch her and she gets really scared. Then one day he did it, he raped her and now she is lost and confused and doesn't know what to do.

Cyrano De Bergerac

This is the play that I am reading in class. So far it is about a man who isn't very attractive who falls in love with his cousin.
Q:"Magdeleine Robin, your cousin?"
"Yes, Roxane."
Q: Why does he fall in love with her cousin?
C: He falls in love with a beautiful woman that he can actually talk to. The twist to this is that she is her cousin. He also doesn't think that she would ever fall in love with him, so he uses his friend to talk to him while he tells him everything to say.

She's Come Undone

Summary of the book so far- From what I have read so far is that there is a girl named Dolores whose parents are divorced after her mom lost a baby because of a miscarriage. She never gets over this and creates her "angel" that she always talks to. After a couple of years she should be over it, but she's not. Then a new couple moves to the apartment above them, and the whole family loved them. After Dolores becomes friends with the guy Jack he starts taking her home from school everyday. One day he made a detour and ended up rapping her, and now she doesn't know what to do.

She's Come Undone

Q:"Grandma shot me a brief look of alarm, then lowered her voice."
Q:Why is her mom so confused and unable to take care of herself?
C:I think that her mom needs to get over what happened in the past and learn to live with what happened. She should be strong and set a good example for her daughter. I think that she should also go to her mom for help and take her advice on finding a job. This part of the book is not as realistic as the other parts, but it could still happen and that is why it is so interesting because you can relate to it.

She's Come Undone

Q: "He gets angry when he feels unhappy."
Q: Why do people feel like they have to beat their wife or their children when they feel unhappy?
C: I think that this book is realistic to some point for some people. I also think that people who beat their family members don't know how to control their anger. They just take it all out on the first thing they see including people. I think that even if you are abused you should tell someone and not hold it in, because it could only get worse and by that time it could be too late.

A Walk to Remember

Introduction- a guy is pressured into jumping off a diving board and ends up hitting his head on a pipe in the water, Landen gets caught but gets away, first day of school they compliment Jamie.

Rising Action- Landen has to be in drama and asks Jamie to help him with his lines

Climax- there are two options, either the opening night of the play where they share their first kiss and he realizes he loves her, or when Jamie tells Landen that she has cancer.

Falling Action- once he realizes that he loves her he does everything he can to make sure that she can complete everything on her "list" that she wants to accomplish before she dies.

Resolution- depending on how you see it, you can have a happy ending, or a tragedy. One way you can see the ending is that Landen and Jamie found true love in each other and he went off to medical school and fulfilled his dreams.  Another way to see it is when she dies.  That could be taken as a tragedy. 

If Your Reading This, It's Too Late ..

Sequel to The Name of this Book is Secret, this book dove deeper into the secret of the magician and his brother.  I was able to finish this book in the span of two days because it was so good, and I would recommend this book and The Name of this Book is Secret to anyone who is interested in a good read.  A quote from this book that I liked was actually at the very beginning of the book where it asked us to sign a contract.  The contract said this, "I, the Reader of this Book, certify that I am reading this book for entertainment only. Or to avoid cleaning my bedroom or doing my homework. I will not try to uncover the true identities or locations of the people described in this book. Nor will I try to contact any secret society mentioned in this book. Although the story may concern an ancient and powerful secret, I hereby deny any knowledge of this so-called secret. If I am ever asked about it, I will run from the room. Unless I am on an airplane, in which case I will close my eyes and ignore the person speaking to me.And if all else fails, I'll scream. I will not repeat a word of this book under any circumstances. Unless I just can't help it." This quote goes along so well with this book because of the secret that the book contains.  One question that I have is why is the author so protective of this secret?  I think the answer to this depends on the reader itself because no one really knows the correct answer to this.  It all depends on who the reader looks at this story.  I really enjoyed these two books because of the mystery it holds and if I say anymore, I will give the book away.. 

The Name of this Book Is .. secret

Q: Cass cracked the door-then stepped back in fright: the room behind the door was occupied by hundreds of people. 

Q: What is the point of all the mirrors in Ms. Mauvias's office?

C: I don't think there really is a point to all the mirrors other than to maybe confuse people.  I think this whole book is really confusing but it is also very good.  As you read you are always wondering what is gonna happen next, and it keeps you into the book.  I would recommend this book to anyone really especially those of you who like mysteries. 

The Name of this Book Is .. secret

This book is very interesting and VERY confusing all at the same time.  It is about a dead magician and a secret, and that is all I can say about this book, and apparently that is all the book can tell me as well.  While I was reading this book, I could think of a lot of questions like what is the name of this book? or who are the real characters? or what really happened to the magician? but none of these things can be answered right now, and I'm not even sure if it will be answered by the end of the book.  One quote that I really liked from this book was 

"Please be SILENT and LISTEN

I am the SCHOOLMASTER

and you are in THE CLASSROOM

Just like ELEVEN PLUS TWO equals

TWELVE PLUS ONE,

And even a FUNERAL can be REAL FUN,

You will find my DICTIONARY

is quite INDICATORY

If you want to read my story, just look. . .

THEN UNREAD"

I like this quote because it is a riddle that the magician left behind when he died.  The two main characters Cass and Max-Earnest(even though that is not really their names) found this riddle and had to solve it to get the next clue.  Once they solved it, Cass had to leave and leave their task unfinished.  This book is a real mystery, and although it can be really confusing at times I like the story so far and I can't wait to finish the book!

Chicken Soup

Continuing to read this book, I skipped around and read different stories from different sections. The story that I liked was Get Over it and Move On. I liked two quotes from this story a lot, because it impacted me and left its mark on me. They are, "I just know that life keeps changing, but we have to go on anyway-with or without the people that we love." The second quote that I really liked was, "You just have to get over it and go on." Some questions that I have after reading this story is why do bad things happen to good people? and What goes through the minds of those who know they are doing something wrong? I think that you can never know what will happen in your life, but it's the way you look at the situation. Like this girl, Christina Zucal, even though she went through a lot in her life, like loosing her parents and her sister and then her foster parents getting a divorce, she looked at it with a positive attitude and believed that she just had to get over it and move on. As for my second question, I really can't say because everybody thinks differently, but why would people do things that can get themselves and the others around them in trouble? Like Christina's mom. She had decided to drive while she was drunk causing herself to get broken bones, her oldest daughter broken bones, and her younger daughter a broken back. It also caused her to loose custodity of her children. All of this because she decided to drive while she was drunk. I really liked this story because even though all of these bad things were going on in her life, Christina never gave up and just moved foward in her life, waiting for the things that will make up for all the bad in her life.

Chicken Soup

At the moment I am reading short stories from the book Chicken Soup for the Preteen Soul 2 and I just finished all of the stories on friends.  One quote that I liked from this section of the book is..

"A friend will not talk bad about you and will never lie.  Friends are always there for you if you need to cry.  Friends will be there for you through thick and through thin.  When the rest of the world walks out on you, a friend will walk in."  This was written by a thirteen year old girl named Nicole Johnson.  Couple of questions that I have after reading this section is what is a true friend to you? and what is a true friend to me?  I really like all of the Chicken Soup books because they are real stories written by real people that are our age, that everyone can relate to no matter how old you are.  We can turn to these books when we are going through a hard time and know that other people are going through similar hardships and you are not alone. 

Media

Media to me is a way of communication or advertisement. When I hear the word media, I think of television, or the internet, or the news, or something along those lines. But media can be found everywhere. In brand names, in music, in people. A way to spread news to people quickly and efficiently. To me that is what media is.