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Post by Patrick Wilson on Aug 15, 2013 17:04:54 GMT -5
My book is the hatchet by Gary paulsen it is a good story about a kid named brain who going to see some family and his mom gives him a hatchet before he goes and in the air the pilot has a heart attack and dies so brain has to land the plane in the water and he got on land and all he had was that hatchet so life goes on and one day brain went out to the lake and a moose ran at him and hit him he was beat up but was OK and he learned to live his life.
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Post by juliadciocca on Aug 15, 2013 18:19:32 GMT -5
For my final book I chose to read The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. I chose to read this book largely because I had heard a lot about it through media and English classes, which made me interested in reading it for myself. The book takes place in colonial Boston and centers around Hester Prynne, a young Puritan woman who has committed adultery, Roger Chillingworth, the town’s doctor and Hester’s unbeknownst husband, and Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, one of the town’s minsters and Hester’s secret lover. The book starts with Hester leaving her jail cell for the first time in months in order to stand on the scaffold for her punishment. On her dress is a scarlet A, and she has a baby in her arms. Despite the people’s demands, Hester refuses to give the name of her lover. As she stands on the scaffold, an older man enters town. One of the onlookers explains what she had done and that her husband was presumed to be lost at sea. Hester then returns to the jail. At the jail both Hester and Pearl began to get sick, so the town sends for a doctor. The old man comes to help her, and it is revealed that he is her husband who has been studying medicine while making his way to Boston. He makes her promise not to tell anyone who he is, which she agrees to. Hester is then released from prison and makes her living sewing clothes. By this time Pearl, her daughter, has reached the age of three and is known to be different than other children. Possibly due to her oddities, some people have begun to say that Pearl is the devil's child and should be taken away from Hester. Hester goes to the governor’s house to find out what they are going to do with the child. It is only due to Master Dimmesdale's intervention that Hester is allowed to keep her child as he reminds the other men that God sent the girl, and she is a blessing and a curse.
Over the last three years, Master Dimmesdale has become very ill. Chillingworth is assigned to take care of him and begins to believe that there is a connection between Dimmesdale’s illness and Hester’s sin. He devotes all his time to taking care of the minister, even moving in with him. Chillingworth begins to torture the minister mentally because he believes that this is Hester’s lover. He often discusses sin with the minister, and one night, while the minister was sleeping, Chillingowrth looks on the minister’s chest and finds a mark that assures him that the minister was Hester’s lover. The minister continues to punish himself in various ways in order to repent for his sin. One night, he stands on the scaffold where Hester had stood in order to punish himself. Hester and Pearl, who are returning from the late Governor’s house see him and join him on the scaffold. While they are standing there, Chillingworth frightens the minister and a meteor makes a red A in the sky.
Upon reflection, Hester decides that she can no longer keep her husband’s identity from the minister; she goes to meet Master Dimmesdale in the woods. There she tells him about Chillingworth, and the two make arrangements to leave Boston and go back to England. Hester makes arrangements for passage on a ship, but at the town festival the day before they are to leave the captain informs Hester that Chillingowrth will be joining them on the ship and that Chillingworth will take care of Master Dimmesdale’s passage so Hester only needs to worry about herself and her child. Hester is frightened, but the parade has now started. When the minister passes the steps of the scaffold he decides to stand upon it and confess his sin at last. Calling Hester and Pearl to join him, he uncovers his chest, which has a red A on it. Master Dimmesdale then dies. Because of his death, Chillingworth’s plans of revenge fail, and he dies a year later from despair, leaving his large fortune to Pearl. Pearl and Hester then disappear for a number of years. It is believed that they went to England where Pearl was raised and married. A few years later, Hester returns to Boston to live out the rest of her life with a scarlet A on her chest. When she dies, she is buried next to Master Dimmesdale, who shares a tombstone with her that is marked by a red A.
I enjoyed the story that The Scarlet Letter offered; however, I did not like the writing style. I felt like Hawthorne summarized too much of what was happening rather than letting the characters develop in a way that the readers could be engaged. For example, the beginning was very well written and a story was beginning to be introduced when Hawthorne skipped three years and summarized everything that had happened to the people and all their personality developments. He then began to develop the story again from another starting point, but he jumped another four years, which he also summarized for the reader. Then he began to develop the story again and it ended. While I liked the plot, I would have liked to have seen the characters develop for myself. I would have liked to have seen Hester become more reserved and cold through her conversations with other characters and her thoughts rather than just be told she had lost the natural softness of women. I would have liked to have seen Chillingworth’s turn towards the devil and to see what made him suspect the most beloved and revered man in Boston as Hester’s lover, and I would have liked to have seen Master Dimmesdale’s fall into illness and nervousness. I felt like while the plot was good, but the reader missed a lot and could not connect with the characters properly because Hawthorne spent most of the book summarizing what had happened and what they were like rather than letting the reader make their own conclusions. It took away a lot of the suspense; it made the book less interesting.
Another issue I had with the book was the intro, the Custom House. In my copy The Custom House took up forty of two hundred and sixteen pages, and had only a very little connection to the actual story itself. I think Hawthorne could have cut down the intro to at least ten pages that explained who the narrator was and how he found the notes and the A, which inspired the story. I think the thirty pages he spent on explaining the other people in the custom house was a little much and really put a strain on keeping the reader’s attention. While it wasn’t a bad intro I do think it was unnecessarily long and could have been edited down.
Despite the flaws I found in the writing, I did learn two very important lessons from the book. Master Dimmesdale claimed that once everyone knows that a person has committed a sin, they can no longer do any good and cannot be redeemed. However, Hester’s sin was known by everyone in Boston, yet she continued to do good deeds, and after a few years, people began to say that her A stood for able rather than adultery. So while no one ever forgot that she had sinned and used her sin as a deterrent from others sinning, she was still revered in society and she could do meaningful acts. Master Dimmesdale, on the other hand, wasted away because he was so afraid that someone would find out his secret. He was ill to such an extent that he probably couldn’t do much good. Confessing his sin required him giving up the position he currently held and being secluded for a little while, but eventually, he would have been able to do more good that way. The comparison between the two taught me that it’s better to confess to your sin and redeem yourself in the eyes of society and in the eyes of God rather than hold it in for so long that it becomes unhealthy. Master Dimmesdale’s sin taught me that no one is infallible, and we all make mistakes, the important part is what you learn and how you respond to the mistakes that you made. It was these lessons that really made The Scarlet Letter a good book.
This is a book I would recommend to someone who was at least fourteen. While I didn’t always appreciate the writing style, it was a good story with important lessons that could be learned from it. I would think it would be best for older readers even though the lessons are applicable at any age because the theme of the book is a more mature one even if the book is not graphic. I also believe that older readers have an easier time looking beyond the immediate story, which was a very important aspect of the book. While The Scarlet Letter is not my favorite book, I am glad I read it and would recommend others read it as well.
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Post by zachloflin on Aug 15, 2013 18:21:02 GMT -5
The third book I'm reviewing this summer is Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut.
This is a veryyyyy strange book. It is about a man/boy whose name is Billy Pilgrim. Billy lives a strange life. He doesn't live over time like the rest of us do. He is what you might call a time traveler. But he can't control when he travels and to what time he travels to. The two main points of time that Billy talks about in this book is when he was in World War 2 and when he was abducted by aliens. In the war story it is doesn't fight. it is often comical at times how Billy seems to want to just curl up and let the enemies find him. Eventually Billy and his comrades are captured by German patrol men. They are sent to a prison in Dresden where the American prisoners package nutrient rich syrup for pregnant ladies. The prisoners are only in the city for 62 days before the entire town is destroyed. All the prisoners survived and their German guards. The rest of the town was dead.
The time he was abducted by aliens is when it gets really weird. The aliens had a different perception on time. We see it in chronological order. They see it as a circle. They have already seen the end of the universe. Yet they keep on going. They also have a different opinion on death. They believe that a person is only dead in that particular moment in time. Another moment later and he will be alive. So when ever they see a dead person they simply say "So it goes". This is what Billy says after anyone dies in the book; "So it goes" The reason they abducted Billy is so they could present him in a zoo. Billy lives there for years on that planet but when he returns to earth it is the same day and year as when he left only a minute later.
I chose this book because the name sounded the most interesting to me out of all the AP level books.
Like I said before, this is a VERY weird book but it is also a very interesting tale that has some dark humor in it.
You might enjoy this book if you can get over how weird it is and can enjoy the hidden comedy.
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Post by Jordan Peters on Aug 15, 2013 19:45:47 GMT -5
the demon thief is an excellent way to follow up the first book of the demonata series. The story is about a boy who is lonely named Kernel Fleck. He sees lights and could never figure out what they really were. He disapears for awhile and reapears with a brother. They move to Pakinston and start a new life. Kernel lives a normal life with his brother until a demon comes and takes his brother away. He follows and kernel finds out what he really is who he is and what he has to do. And that is the second instalment to the demonata series.
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Post by John Paul Rischard on Aug 15, 2013 20:23:34 GMT -5
General Fiction- The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby tells the story of Nick Carraway, a young man from Yale, as he moves to 1920's New York, America's "main place to be" back then. He moves to the West Egg District of Long Island. Unlike most people from West Egg, Nick has a degree from Yale. Across the Harbor is where Nick's cousin, Daisy and her husband live, known as the East Egg District. They are very wealthy, and have a daughter. So far, Nick is enjoying living in New York being in the bond business, but something is very strange about his neighbor, Jay Gatsby. The "great" and "mysterious" is a wealthy man, who throws huge parties, but is never seen at them. Nobody knows how he became wealthy. Some say he stole it. Also, nobody knows who he is. Some say he is from overseas, others say he is from the Midwest. Some even say he killed a man.
One day, Nick is invited to one of Gatsby's parties. He goes there and meets Gatsby. It is revealed that Gatsby and Daisy have known each other before, and were in love. He put his house directly across the water to hers, and he throws these great parties in hope that she will turn up to one of them. Nick reunites them together after Gatsby had asked him, and He and Daisy begin an affair. But Tom becomes suspicious of the two's relationship, and plans to destroy it.
What will happen to Daisy and Gatsby? Will Tom break them up? Is Tom hiding something from Daisy as well? And will Gatsby's true identity be revealed? Read the book and find out!
I chose this book because it has gotten great reviews from critics and my friends, and also because I can admit I saw the movie before, and I actually liked it!
I really did like this book! I saw the movie first, and I liked it, but when I read the book, I thought it was a lot better!
I think my Mom would like to read this book. I do not believe she has read it before, and I think she would love it! I also think my sister Aimee would like it as well, because she also loves a good book, and The Great Gatsby is the face of American Literature, next to Tom Sawyer and The Catcher in the Rye!
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Post by jeniferlopez on Aug 15, 2013 21:23:06 GMT -5
The final book that I read, the AP level book, is The Great Gatsby. The Great Gatsby is written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This novel is about a man named Nick Carraway who moves from the middle West to New York in order to learn the bond business. He rented a house in the West Egg district of Long Island, one of the strangest communities in North America. His neighbor, Jay Gatsby, lived in a home that Nick described as a colossal affair by any standard.
One evening, Nick goes to East Egg for dinner with his cousin, Daisy, and her husband, Tom. Tom attended Yale with Nick. While at their home, he meets Jordan Baker and soon begins a relationship with her. He also discovers that Tom is involved with another woman, Myrtle Wilson.
Later on in the novel, Nick receives and invitation to one of the legendary parties hosted by Gatsby. At the party, Nick discovers that Jordan Baker is there as well. Gatsby speaks to Jordan and tells her that he knows Daisy Buchanan and is madly in love with her. Nick discovers that Gatsby's parties are all put on for Daisy in order to impress her and now Nick has been asked to reunite Daisy and Gatsby.
After Daisy and Gatsby reunite, their feelings for each other come back and they begin having an affair. Tom eventually becomes suspicious about Daisy's secret relationship. Tom soon finds out about his wife's affair and is furious, despite the fact that he is also involved in an affair.
Tom confronts them both about their relationship, but when Daisy realizes that she should really be with Tom, he refuses to take her back and he forces her to stay with Gatsby.
The end of The Great Gatsby includes multiple tragedies and a very surprising ending. If I included them in my summary, it would simply ruin the book. To say the least, multiple people were punished in a very cruel way and in ways that they did not deserve.
I chose to read this book because everyone who has read it had nothing but amazing thoughts about it, so I decided to see what all of the hype was about... I now understand what everyone was talking about.
I think that this novel is great. I feel as if it were a bit slow to get to the points, but still very good. It tells a great story about what some people are willing to sacrifice for love.
Anyone who enjoys a good love story would enjoy this book. You will get to experience the depths that a man will go to in order to win over the woman he loves.
The Great Gatsby is an overall good book and if you are willing to take the time to read it, I can promise you that you will like it.
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Post by Courtney on Aug 15, 2013 22:51:55 GMT -5
My final book to read this summer, an AP level book, was To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. This book is about the trials that people had to face back in the time of racism and discrimination. It starts off with Scout Finch, age five at the beginning, being carefree and naive to the cruel world around. As Scout grows up, however, she learns of the evil that is in the world-like prejudice and and hate. Scout lives with her brother, Jem, and her father, Atticus, in the town of Maycomb. One summer Scout and Jem meet a new kid in town, Dill. He wasn't like the others, he was adventurous. Soon the three of them go do crazy, kid like things. They even sneak onto Boo Radley's property (Boo Radley being a sort of introvert). On the other side of things in the book, Atticus, a lawyer, decides to defend a black man named Tom Robinson, who was accused of raping a white woman. This wouldn't be such a bad thing, the defending part, if they weren't in a very racist community. The result of Atticus taking on this case was that Scout and Jem started being abused by the other kids at their school. At the same time, Tom Robinson's case has gone to court and has started. Atticus proves that Bob Ewell is wrong by telling everyone in the court room, proving his defense case, what he knows to be the truth about what has happened between Mayella and Tom. I chose this book because I had heard from many people that it was a great read. I believe those people were right, this was an amazing book to read. I loved how they portrayed the innocence of Scout and Jem about the real world in the beginning and then slowly opened their eyes to how cruel and mean people can really be. I think everyone would enjoy this book; adults, kids, guys and girls, and anyone who likes eye opener type books! |
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Post by Jordan Peters on Aug 30, 2013 15:08:49 GMT -5
I have read the first three books of the demonata series and i have loved every minute of it. Thank you to whom ever recomended it. Anyways Slawghter! This book is about as you may have guessed slawghter. The book follows Grubbs Grady around again picking it up off where it ended last time with him being pranked by his uncle. Grubbs then starts to see that his uncle is going insane and he tries to help him but he can't because his uncle still thinks he's in the land of the demonata. If you wish to find out more read the third installment of the demonata series.
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