Mar Adentro

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Screen Shot 2013-01-07 at 11.18.11 PM

“Libertad de Los Mares”


La película, Mar Adentro, se trata de un tetrapléjico, Ramón Sampedro. Después veinte y ocho años de sufriendo, Ramón fue listo a morir, sin embargo quitando tu vida es ilegal en España. Muchas personas en España no están de acuerdo con el deseo de Ramón, pero Ramón fue determinó cambiar los mentes del gobierno. Antes del accidente, Ramón fue un marinero y disfrutó viajando el mundo a aprender las culturas y toma fotografías. Su relación con su familia fue fuerte pero él fue muy independiente. La accidente cambia la vida de Ramón drásticamente. Es un tragedia que fue inesperado. Ahora, su cuerpo no función entonces él depende en los seres queridos, especialmente Manuel, la esposa de su hermano. Ella cuida de Ramón todos los días porque él es inamovible. Lo único Ramón todavía ha es un imaginación brillante. Este caso provocó un debate feroz en referencia a los derechos humanos. Con todos sus desafíos, Ramón siempre tuvo esperanza.


En este película, hay muchas temas y preguntas. Por ejemplo, una tema que es la importancia de los derechos humanos. España tiene un gobierno democracia, por lo tanto están en contra de eutanasia. El gobierno cree es inmoral entonces es ilegal en la sociedad de España. Las personas de España juzgó el deseo de Ramón porque creen que vida tiene valor. Esto le lleva la pregunta esencial “¿Qué significa vivir en una sociedad libre?” Si Ramón no pudiera morir con dignidad entonces como esto es libertad. Aunque Ramón no puede mover, él tuvo la habilidad a influir las mentes de otras personas. Les enseñaba el significado y valor de vida. Por ejemplo, Rosa y Julia fueron inspirado a lograr cosas nunca pensaron fueron posible. Por un lado, hay específicamente organizaciones que apoyan y están de acuerdo con Ramón y por otro lado hay otros grupos que no respeta su deseo. Por ejemplo, la iglesia esta en contra de eutanasia y trata convencer Ramón cambiar su opinión. El cura va a la casa de Ramón porque él quiere ayudar Ramón hace la decisión correcta. El cura entendía la situación de Ramón porque él fue hándicap y necesita ayudar de otras persona.


Para mi, los temas que son muy importantes en la película es digna, cariña, y inspiración. Javier Bardem hace un trabajo perfecto en demostrando la lucha de Ramón. Yo creo que Ramón debe tener el derecho a morir porque este es su vida. Estoy de acuerdo con eutanasia porque la persona es en dólar y quieres a morir. El gobierno tiene el derecho a quita su vida de la pena de muerte, pero no puedes te quitar tu vida. Eso es ridículo porque es tu vida y no la vida del gobierno. No creo que eutanasia es un crimen porque es un muerte sin dolor de una persona que tiene una enfermedad incurable. La persona no debería tener que sufrir en este condición porque no esta contenta con su vida. Además, eutanasia necesita estar legal porque si el tribunal puede quitarse tu vida entonces por qué no te puedes quitarse tu vida.


Mi parte favorito en Mar Adentro es cuando Javi es leyendo la carta de Ramón. Este parte fue muy emocional, fuerte, muy sentido. Su relación es muy apasionado y me recuerdo de la relación tuvo con mi tía. Ella fue similar una madre para mí porque ella cuida sobre mis sentimientos y mi vida. Mi tía sufrió con diabetes y dejó a su inestable. Sin embargo, ella siempre tuvo un sonrisa en su cara y se aseguró estuve contenta. Mi tía es igual a Ramón porque ellos dependen en sus miembros de la familias para ayudar y apoyar. También, los situaciones ellos encontrados son muy similares, pero estuvieron agradecido para sus vidas. La relación con Javi y Ramón tocó mi corazón porque era fácil a relacionar y entender sus dificultad. En adición, tuve la oportunidad recordar los recuerdos con mi tía y lo importante ella fue a mí. A fin de cuentas, esta película fue fantástica y importante porque lo discutió un problema controvertido. No me gusta el fin de la película porque yo creo que Julia fue va a volver y ver Ramón antes murió. Al principio, ella respeta su decisión, pero tiempo progresó ella no esta de acuerdo con opinión. En general, yo pienso que la película fue conmovedora y hizo darse cuenta de es importante a escuchar y respetar las opiniones de otras. No me gusta el fin de la película porque yo creo que Julia fue va a volver y ver Ramón antes murió. Al principio, ella respeta su decisión, pero tiempo progresó ella no esta de acuerdo con opinión. En general, yo pienso que la película fue conmovedora y hizo darse cuenta de es importante a escucha y respeta las opiniones de otros.

¿Qué es la vida?

Sinópsis:

La película se trata de un hombre llamado Ramón Sampedro. Se ocurre en España. Un dia, sus amigos y Ramón fueron a mar adentro para divertirse. Pero, él se queda con una tragedia. Se convertía a un tetrapléjico. No se podía mover nada pero su cabeza. La película es realmente y tiene una historia verdad. Él convertía en un tetrapléjico cuando él era viente cinco años porque de un buceo accidente. Antes del accidente, él era un marinero muy activo, independiente y le gustaba viajar. Cinco años antes del accidente, él viajó a Europa, China, y más países. Él estaba en forma, atractivo y por supuesto, tenía una novia guapa. Sin embargo, después del accidente, él es deprimido, obstinado y autoritario. Él quería morir porque él piensa que no hay más remedio. Su hermano apoya la decisión de Ramón y no le gusta a ayudar pero no hay más remedio porque de la esposa de hermano y él hijo, quieren a cuidar. En la película, él atrae dos mujeres; Julia y Rosa. Julia fue un abogado y ella trabajaba para él en la cancha y Rosa estaba soltera con dos niños. Julia ayudó Ramón escribir y publicar su historia y Rosa se casó con él. Sin embargo, él decidió quitarse la vida por su propia voluntad.



Los Temas:

La película es controvertida porque presenta unas preguntas polémicas tales como ¿Qué es “la dignidad”? o ¿qué es la vida? o ¿Cuantos de apoyo se considera suficiente?, ¿qué es ‘amor’? y ¿Cómo se puede encontrar esperanza? También, la película presenta temas sobre la vida tales como el significado de la vida, la muerte y la familia.

Para la sociedad, estas preguntas abren debates feroces porque todo el mundo tiene opiniones diferentes para cada situación diferente. Estas preguntas son profundas y no se puede explicar con una frase en el debate.


Tu posición:

Para mi, tú tienes la dignidad cuando tú respetas tu mismo y cuando crees en tu mismo. Lo más importantes es creer a tu mismo y tener confianza para tener tu dignidad. La vida es complicado sino lo vives. Hay muchos obstáculos para tener éxito pero no se  puede renunciar. Si te rindes, todo será gris. Será deprimente. Cuando te quedas contento a través de las luchas, usted tendrá éxito. Cuando alguien decide a quitarse la vida, no se dan cuenta de cuántas cosas grandes están esperando. Desde mi punto de vista, cualquier apoyo es considerado suficiente, porque no siempre se puede depender de los demás y todo lo que hacen por ti, deberías estar agradecido. Porque tengo un estado independiente en mente, creo que se puede encontrar esperanza en su interior. A pesar de que están a punto de darse por vencido, tienes que pensar que es la decisión correcta y cómo puedo lidiar con él. Hay optimista cuando usted está tratando de encontrar la esperanza. Como lo veo yo, amor es que cuando una persona está enferma y no puede pensar por sí mismo, la otra persona ayuda y dice que todo está bien y era ahí todo el tiempo por la persona.


La película
Me gusta la película. Para mi esta película de Alejandro Amenábar es deprimente, realista y controvertido. Abrió sus puertas debates feroz. Pienso que la actuación del reparto eran muy bien. También, la muerte parecía muy realista aunque estaba triste. Por un lado, pienso que Ramón es muy triste pero por un otro lado, él parece feliz y querido por los seres queridos.  
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Mar Adentro

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Mar Adentro es una película que se trata de un hombre quién es un tetrapléjico, Ramón Sampedro. Su discapacidad es un resultado de un accidente nadando cuando era joven mecánico marino. Antes del accidente, él viajaba por el mundo en busca de vida. Sin embargo, un día él decidió a brincar en el océano. Después de ese momento, la vida de Ramón Sampedro cambió por siempre. Hay un parte del cerebro que controla la función del cuerpo. Cuando ese parte del cerebro tiene daña, no puede moverse el cuerpo - sólo la cabeza. Los seres queridos ayudaban Ramón Sampedro funcionar todo día. Ramón tuvo deseo, quitarse la vida. Su familia tuvieron respetar la decisión pero no apoyaron. El deseo de Ramón Sampedro era el comienzo de un debate feroz sobre la eutanasia.

           La película es controvertida porque presenta unas preguntas polémicas tales como la eutanasia, los derechos de humanos, y el significado de amor/ la dignidad. Las temas son un debate feroz para el gobierno. ¿Si no puede moverse sin ayuda y no hay esperanza, tiene el derecho a morir? La definición de la vida digna es más importante para la persona viviendo en este condición. Asesinato es polémico cuando la gente no piensan sobre el deseo de la persona. Además, el gobierno debe respetar la decisión y los derechos de la sociedad. En particular a la película, hay preguntas de:
¿La ley eutanasia es moral? Si o No.

¿El derecho a vivir es el mismo para morir?
¿El gobierno tiene el derecho a decir quien puede vivir y morir?
¿Todos tienen el derecho a la vida digna?
¿Qué es ‘la vida digna’?
¿Es el mismo por todos?
¿Qué son las limitas de amor?
¿Como puede esa cambia en le ocurrió de emergencia?
¿Que es más importante, morales o la ley?

 

Para mi, la ley (eutanasia) es para la protección de la gente, pero impedir el derecho a morir. Morales son más importante en comparación a pena o el gobierno en general. Los derechos de humanos deber igual, porque nadie sabe lo que es correcto. No todos creen el mismo cosa. La definición de ‘vida digna’ depende a la person. La intervención del gobierno en la vida de gente en general es terriblé. Lo que es justa para una persona puede ser diferente para alguien otra. Suicidio es legal, porque no puede hacer nada sobre eso. En este situación, la persona puede hacer que él/ella piense es correcto. Si sabe una persona es suicida, y tu no haces nada, eso es como la eutanasia. No hay esperanza para los tetrapléjicos si quieren a morir en su propia voluntad. Los seres queridos no pueden ayuda, ni el gobierno legalmente. Eso situación es polémico - porque si viviendo es como la muerte, ¿que es el objetivo a vida? Es un crimen a vivir tristemente pero a morir contento, vale la pena.

¡La cinematografía de Mar Adentro es impecable! El foco fue sobre la vida de Ramón Sampedro, y la filme mostrar los sentimientos de los personajes en detalle. Usted puede relacionar con los situaciónes, y entender personalmente porque la actuación del reparto es perfecto. Si alguien impuso sus creencias en usted, o no esta de acuerdo con leyes del gobierno - este película es para usted. Como lo veo yo, Alejandro Amenábar tiene un mente creativo, y sólo él puede retratar Ramón en una manera lúcida. Para la gente mirando a la filme, eso fue verosímil - como si usted fue allí cuando le paso. En general, creo que esa película es un base para los derechos de humanos. Cuando no tiene la habilidad a controlar el cuerpo, pero mentalmente lúcido - tiene el derecho que hacer todo quiere sin la aprobación del gobierno. Los derechos de humanos debe igual por todo mentalmente estable. Para personas con incapacidades mentales, es diferente porque del proceso de pensar. Antes la película, yo nunca pensé sobre derechos de humanos en la opuesto punta de vista. Eso es importante que hacer esa porque en cuatro meses puedo votar - y mi vota puede cambiar el mundo.

 

Mar Adentro

La película se trata de un tetrapléjico llamado Ramón Sampedro. Ramón era mecánico marinero quien viajaba por todo el mundo. Pero un día, Ramón fue nadar y se rompió el cuello en el piso del mar. Lo dejó sin mover nada pero estaba lúcido. Por 28 años, Ramón fue un tetrapléjico y confió en sus seres queridos a apoyarlo. Ramón creyó que ser un tetrapléjico no fue digno y quiso morir. En el gobierno de España, la eutanasia fue ilegal, por lo tanto Ramón no podría morir como quería. La película se trata de la lucha de Ramón de morir con dignidad y la gente quien lo apoyaba.

La película es controvertida porque tiene los temas polémicos tales como: la religión y el gobierno, el significado de la vida, y la ley y las morales. El tema de la religión y el gobierno es un tema polémico porque muchas personas creen que la religión es más importante del gobierno y otras personas creen que el gobierno es más importante de la religión. El tema del significado de la vida es un tema polémico porque todas las personas tienen opiniones diferentes sobre el valor de la vida y cómo una persona vive su vida. Algunas personas creen que la vida es un derecho pero otros creen que la vida es un privilegio y morir por su propia voluntad es mal. El tema de la ley y las morales es un tema polémico porque alguno gente creen que las morales son más importante de la ley, por lo tanto una persona romperá una ley realizar sus morales aunque la cosa es ilegal. Pero hay otras personas que están en contra de sus morales obedecer las leyes en el gobierno.
Para la sociedad, estas preguntas abren debates feroces porque todos tienen sus opiniones diferentes y nadie están de acuerdo. La gente no sabe si creería en el gobierno o si creería en sus morales o la religión. A mi me parece que religión y el gobierno son dos cosas diferentes. Todos tienen que obedecer las leyes del gobierno pero la gente tiene muchos religiones diferentes y todas las religiones tienen morales diferentes. Si dejaríamos religión influir temas legales, algun gente tendría que respetar las temas que no está de acuerdo.


Como lo veo yo, el significado de una persona es una decisión de este persona. Si la persona quiere vivir, viviría y si la persona quiere morir, moriría. La decisión de la persona vivir o morir es la elección de la persona. La decisión de Ramón no fue inmoral porque él quiso morir. Era lúcido e inteligente y él no vio la dignidad en su vida mientras fue en el estado de un tetrapléjico. Sin embargo, la pena de muerte no es justa pero no es un crimen también. La persona no tiene una decisión sobre su vida pero es el gobierno que quiere la persona morir.

Me gusta la película. Para mi, la película de Alejandro Amenábar es dramática, interesante y importante. La actuación del reparto fue muy bien. Me encanta la actuación de Javier Bardem. Él tuve emoción muy bien y realista; desde mi punto de vista, él representó su papel muy bien. Pienso que la premisa de la película fue importante a sociedad y el gobierno. Aunque la tema de eutanasia y la muerte no es el centro de debate en el mundo, hay personas quién se sientan que la tema es importante en sus vidas. Muchos personas no piensan sobre este tema y es importante que la gente sabe lo que es en su mundo. Me gusta la cinematografía en la película, especialmente el marco del dormitorio de Ramón. El dormitorio fue desordenado y tuve muchas cosas aunque Ramón no pude mover. El dormitorio simboliza el estado de mente de Ramón. La mente de Ramón es lúcida y Ramón puede hacer muchos cosas aunque él es un tetrapléjico. Me encanta los flashbacks porque dijeron el cuento sin palabras.

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Mis Seres Queridos

Los Seres Queridos en Mi Vida
Guión(Script)
Inrtoduction
¡Hola y bienvenido a mi increíblemente video! Voy a hablar sobre los seres queridos en mi vida. ¡Disfruta!
Yo
Me llamo Lauren. Yo tengo pelo café y muy rizado. Cuando tengo tiemp libre, me gusta leer y ver la tele. Me encanta “Twilight” y comida. Soy alemána y polaca.
Ella
Esta es mi mejor amiga, Lauren. Tiene catorce años y su cumpleaños es el diecinueve de enero. Lauren le fascina leer y ve Dr. Who. Ella es boba y algo baja. La quiero porque ella es mi mejor amiga.
Ellos
Esto es mi mama y papa. De vez en cuando, son tienen antipáticos pero ellos son casi siempre súper simpáticos y cómicos. Mi mama es muy alta y mi padre es algo bajo. Ellos gustan ver el tele y estar de vago con mi familia. Son importante para mi porque somos mi familia.
Ellas
Mi amigas Dillon y Anna. Tienen el pelo rizados y largos. Dillon y Anna tienen gatos y les gusta unicornios y arco iris. Tienen más o menos locas. Me caen bien porque tienen bastante extrañas y bien amigas.
Nosotros
Esto es mi hermano David y yo. Somos gemelos y es por eso que nuestros cumpleaños somos el dieciocho de marzo. Nos de Filadelfia y tenemos un perro loco. Nos llevamos bien porque somos hermano y hermana o familia.
Conclusion
Gracias por tu atención. ¡Esto es el fin de el video!

La reseña de Mar Adentro (:

Películas como Mar Adentro tienen un increíble giro a los personajes. Da a el público la oportunidad de conectar con cada personaje. La película Mar Adentro se trata de una persona tetrapléjico español que se llama Ramón Sampedro. Esta es una historia de la vida real donde Ramón Sampredo  interpreta a un personaje muy seguro y fuerte. Durante casi 25 años, ha solicitado a favor que las personas le permitan morir en por su propia voluntad. Él esta convencido de que "una vida en esta condición no tiene dignidad" y se enfrenta a los tribunales por el derecho a suicidarse. Esta película no es sobre la muerte, se trata de la vida. 

Esta película en particular muestra el tema del derecho de libertad, de expresión y que realmente te ama. Después de 25 años de estar en la cama y no poder sentir un pellizco, se convenció a sí mismo que no vale la pena vivir. Aunque él no quiere vivir, sus seres queridos lo quieren ver vivo. Ramón y su familia siempre tienen confrontaciónes acerca de por qué se debe o no suicidar. La Constitución nos da el derecho de libertad y de expresión. Durante 25 años, Ramón no era capaz de hablar con la corte o conseguir alguien que le ayude a morir. Cuando llegó una abogads llamada Julia, estaba muy feliz. Por fin alguien que lo entienda y que lo pueda ayudar a morir con dignidad. Entonces el va al tribunal y trata de convencer a los juezas que lo dejen morir. Pero no lo dejan pasar porque es contra la ley y no están de acuerdo con esto. ¿Dónde está la libertad de hablar? 

Ramon dijo “Si me has amado, usted me ayudaría morir.” Esta cita plantea las cejas porque sus seres queridos lo aman pero no pueden ayudarle a morir. Tenemos que sacrificar nuestras necesidades y queremos que alguien que nos encanta? Por un lado, tiene una conexión de amor con Julia, pero por otro lado, tiene algunos amores con Rosa. Quieren ayudarlo, pero sólo Rosa quiere hacer realidad su deseo. Julia tiene un marido, pero ella empieza a enamorarse de Ramon más y más cada día. Por otro lado, Rosa está celosa de Julia porque ella ama Ramon. Definitivamente hay un triángulo de amor en esta película y es muy interesante. 

En mi opinión, creo que no hay nada malo con él deseo de morir porque él ha estado en la cama durante 25 años sin no poder hacer nada. Él está paralizado por el resto de su vida y le duele mentalmente. Cuando estaba viendo la película, me sentí tan triste. Hubo momentos donde quería llorar. Empeze a sentir simpatía por él. Escribió con su boca. Todo lo que podía hacer, lo hizo con su boca. Fue tan indefenso. Entiendo que es contra la ley quitarse la vida, pero la gente comete suicidio todo el tiempo. No es un crimen si no quieres vivir más. Creo que siempre en el respeto de las decisiones y creo que la gente respeta susdeseos.Creo que le deberían dejar morir porque moriría también. Después de 25 años, me habría cansado de mirar la ventana. Ramón es muy extrovertido y sé que él no se quiere sentar en la cama para el resto de su vida. Él sueña con volar casi cada noche. Apoyo a él y a sus deseos. ¿Qué más puede perder? Es mejor para él y su familia. Nosotros no podemos juzgar a las personas porque no es algo normal. Pero, de nuevo, este es un tema muy controvertido, por lo que todo el mundo tiene una opinión diferente.


La película es realmente buena. Ángulos de cámara se estaba moviendo. Y la música lo hace mejor. Los personajes mostraban muchas conexiones y los ángulos de cámara hace más íntimo. La música y las emociones que el retratar de el reparto es muy conmovedora y casi me hizo llorar. Aunque mucha gente no está de acuerdo con el deseo de Ramón, usted no puede detenerlo. En general, la película fue fabuloso y me ha gustado mucho.

 

 

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Veronica Nocella- Media Fluency

At first, I thought creating a slide that easily depicts who I am would be easy. It shouldn't be too difficult just listing my interests and finding images to depict them, right? That was actually my first idea, though if I were to follow through with that, it wouldn't be visually captivating. 
So, I decided to find one thing that I think represents who I am the most, which is music. Music has been very much apart of my life ever since I was a child, and it's something that will probably stay with me for the rest of my life. My father always played his guitar around me, and my uncle always took me to classical concerts. 
I wrote the word "music" in a large font, in order to draw attention to it. I've also attempted the rule of thirds by adding a picture as well as a brief saying. I tried to create this slide in such a way so that you'd really only have to glance at it once to know the purpose of it. Not too much information; just enough to catch the eye. I've only stuck to a black and white color scheme.

Media Fluency slide





Reflection:

The only changes I made visually to the slide is making the word "music" and the picture slightly larger to make up for the extra, unnecessary space. From creating this slide and watching my classmates present their slides, I've learned about the possible mistakes I could make, as well as the minor things that could make a slide more visually appealing. 


Veronica Nocella Slide- Revised
 

Q2 Benchmark: (Make Lemonade by Virginia Euwer Wolff)

Isabella Blackwell

The Best Independent Reading Project Ever!!

Book Review of Make Lemonade by Virginia Euwer Wolff 

What do you do when life gives you lemons? Make lemonade. Award Winning author, Virginia Euwer Wolff, makes this exact point in her intriguing novel “Make Lemonade”. This book is a must read for young girls (and boys) learning to make the right choices for a good life in the future. 

This empowering story was honored as “Top of the List” on Booklist.com. It was also named as a School Library Journal’s Best Book. In addition, the American Library Association tags it as “A best book for young adults.” and Publishers Weekly reviews the book as “Radiant with hope.” while Kirkus Reviews calls it “Powerfully moving.”

The novel explores the life of 14 year old LaVaughn. As a hardworking student, LaVaughn is excited about experiencing college life and anxious about how she is going to get there. Her mother tells her that her ticket to college is money, and that she needs to make it herself. She gets started right away, and takes a job as a babysitter for seventeen year-old Jolly. Not knowing what she was getting herself into, LaVaughn goes to see Jolly and her two kids Jeremy and Jilly. As soon as she walks into the house she is amazed and disgusted at the same time. Cockroaches, messy floors and tables, and kids with food all over themselves were only a few of the things she sees that are a complete opposite of the life she is used to.

As the story evolves, LaVaughn creates a very strong bond with the children and surprisingly develops a unique friendship with Jolly too. She learns that Jolly is even less stable than most seventeen year olds because of the route her life has taken. LaVaughn is shocked and truly affected by Jolly’s struggle to provide for her kids and herself. She struggles herself as the relationship she has formed with them begins to affect her personal and academic life. Does she stay and continue to help them or does cut ties in order to make herself and her studies her priorities?

LaVaughn is strong in character and is confident in the decisions she makes. She is the star in this journey and can inspire young people to be empathetic, caring, and smart decision makers. She is bright and smart enough to learn the lessons around her.

I relate to LaVaughn in that I have learned difficult life lessons by seeing the choices made by others around me. In my personal life, there is a person who has chosen to inflict pain and physical injury to themselves in order to deal with difficult situations or problems in their life. Unfortunately their choices continue to lead them to a future with few opportunities and unhappiness. LaVaughn reminds me to think independently and to use my experiences and the experiences of others to make positive life choices.

This book was a pleasure to read. It is for sure a new favorite and I found it enjoyable and hard to put down. The messages and life lessons that I came away with will be memorable to say the least. Young people will appreciate the flow of this book written in poetic form. It is relatable and inspiring. 

Before I Fall Q2 Benchmark Project

Before I Fall



By Lauren Oliver

Reviewed by Amelia Stuart



Before I Fall was Lauren Oliver’s first novel, she followed the book with Delirium the first book in a trilogy. The other books in the series include Pandemonium and soon to be published  Requiem. Before I Fall has been thought of as a movie for quite some time, and according to Lauren Oliver’s blog, the film finally has a director and will most likely be released in 2013 or 2014.

The book starts with Samantha Kingston waking up for school on February 12 better known as “Cupid Day” at her school where everyone sends their friends or boyfriend/girlfriend roses. Throughout her daily routine the reader is given snippets of her social life, like the fact that in just a few hours she will lose her virginity to her boyfriend Rob. Two new characters are introduced in the next couple of pages, one is Sam’s best friend Lindsay Edgecombe, the other is Sam’s friend Elody, her third friend Ally comes in later at school. The girls attend school and get their flowers, after school they learn that there is to be a party that night hosted by Kent, a not so popular boy who is in love with Sam. The girls get ready for the party and head over, Sam has the agreement with Rob that they will go to the party and stay for awhile before they leave. At the end of the night Rob becomes completely drunk and falls asleep on the couch, making Sam leave the party with her friends. The girls are driving down the road when it happens, a white flash comes in front of the car and Lindsay screams “shit”, “sight”, or “sit” Sam can’t tell. What she can remember is a horrible sound of metal on metal, the car folding in two. She wakes up the next day, confused to find that it’s February 12th again. This continues for seven days, each day Sam gets closer to finding out why her death happened, who was responsible, and she discovers the true value of everything she is in danger of losing. My favorite character is Izzy Kingston, Sam’s little sister. She is so unaware of social life and doesn’t care what people think of her, I like that, and I wonder why we shed that as we get older. I can’t relate to many of the characters in this story, I can kinda relate to Kent, I’ve sat around and watched people I care about become complete strangers. I’ve watched people I was friends with turn their personality around and become friends with the mean girl.

In my opinion I really liked this book, it was a little predictable but it kept me  going. I wanted to know what would happen to her and all the characters even though I already knew. It was a very unique way of writing a book. I appreciated Lauren Oliver’s view on teenagers and how realistic it was, it had drugs and cheating, but it also had love and friendship. The friendship was what really stood out to me, it showed what it really was, you and your fight sometimes you hate them, but when something happens you see that they care. If I could change one thing, I would change the romance between Sam and Kent, so that it didn’t exist. I think it was sweet but it was so predictable, and I think that they should have become friends not in love. I do recommend this book, it has a nice balance of literature but it can keep a teenager who hates reading involved in the book, and they might enjoy it, and they might not, but at least they will read it and have a good perspective on it.



Creative Portion



For my creative portion I decided to do an Album. I chose five songs that would be perfect for five certain scenes. I used the songs in my itunes account so its limited.



Bruno Mars- The Other Side: I thought this song would be good for a credits scene. The starting line is “Truth is I’m complicated, You’re as straight as they come” I thought this perfectly described Sam and Kent. It also has a good beat and if it was used in movies as a credit song and if I heard it, I would dance!



Cher Lloyd- Oath: I think this song is perfectly describing the friendship of Lindsay and Sam. It could be used in a scene where the girls are in a yogurt shop arguing then when they make up they get into a huge yogurt fight, throwing yogurt and just having the best time. The song also has a nice upbeat tempo but also has a sort of childish ring to it, which I think perfectly describes the scene.  


Coldplay- Fix You: I think this song is perfect for the scene where she has her dream for the last time and when she figures that she had her eyes closed and opens them and finds that she she has been flying the chorus will burst in and will mention guiding you home, igniting bones, and trying to “Fix You” Its a slow song so when that scene does come on it should be in slow motion, but continuing the song she begins flying around and the song is really perfect because it talks about high up above or down below.


Demi Lovato- Catch Me: I think this song is great for when she’s staying in his house and they're just staring at each other, because the song says don’t catch me for most of the song which represents Sam being unsure and how “my stomach screams whenever I look at you” Sam always talks about how nervous she gets around Kent. I think it perfectly fits their love story and what soundtrack doesn’t have a love song.


Bruno Mars- Just The Way You Are: This song is perfect for when she and Izzy are exploring Sam’s old hideout and they’re lying on the rock just watching the clouds and Sam is wondering what Izzy will grow up to be. This song is like Sam singing to Izzy almost telling her not to change and not to end up like her, the mean girl who everyone is afraid of. Basically telling to hang on to her youth because it will be gone in a flash.

Q2 Benchmark (Black City)

The book I’m currently reading is Black City by Elizabeth Richards. The book was just released recently. It hit the shelves on November 15, 2012. The paperback copy will be available sometime in 2013. The book has been rated a 3.78 (which can be rounded to 4) out of 5 on goodreads.com. The author, Elizabeth Richards, is an award winning journalist. She spent her early years reviewing video games. She’s been to many parts of the world and back. She even has her own website up for teenage girls. The book Black City is her first ever novel. She also has another installment for Black City called Phoenix, the release date of this installment is still unconfirmed. Elizabeth is currently residing at Buckinghamshire, England.  
The story, to me, is a mix between Twilight and The Hunger Games. My reason behind this is because the story involves “vampires” and fighting. There are two races in the book. You have the Darklings and the Humans. Darklings are basically human like beings who suck blood from humans for their survival, without the blood they’d die. The story is told in a way I haven’t heard of, till now of course. Instead of having your regular stories where, if it was first person, the story is only told from one person’s point of view.   In this book, each chapter is told through different people’s points of view. For example, one chapter may be told in Ash’s (who is one of the main characters)  point of view and in the next chapter it may be told in Natalie’s (also a main character) point of view.
The story is basically about a high schooler named Ash falling in love with a girl named Natalie. One of the problems with this is that Ash is a half-blood, which is a mix between Darklings and Humans. The other problem is Natalie’s mother is in the government that prosecutes anyone that has any ties with the Darklings or half-bloods. If you were a human and you had a relationship with a Darkling or half-blood, you and the person would most likely be publicly executed. The government says this is to protect the people (humans) from the Darklings because they are horrible creatures. The government has also put a huge wall to separate the two races. Ash is able to live in human society since he is a half-blood and not a full Darkling. There are many other conflicts that occur throughout the story that I do not want to spoil for the future readers. What I will tell you is that the conflicts in the book are three types. The types of conflicts in the book are person vs. person, person vs. society, and person vs. self.
My favorite character in the story would be Ash. My reason behind this is that Ash is one of those “bad guys”. He doesn’t care about whatever he’s doing whether it’s illegal or not, but he also has a strong sense of family. He takes the little friends and family he has and cherishes them. He is very protective of those he admires. Ash is like me in some ways. The things he does in certain situations is the same thing I would’ve probably done. The way Ash and I think are similar in many ways.
Something I think readers should take away from this book is don’t let anything interfere with your love. You shouldn’t let anyone tell you who to love. It’s your life and your decision, don’t let something as small as race, color, or even looks change your mind. You’ve got be like Ash and Natalie in the book. Ash didn’t care if he was a half-blood and Natalie was a human. He still loved her, regardless of the consequences he would have to face if he was caught.
I can’t really relate to the characters in the story because the story is very different compared to the lives we live today. This book is set in a future-like environment and there are vampire-like beings. I haven’t had anything that restricted me to love a certain person as of yet. My family is pretty open, so they would be fine with me going out with any race. It’s very different compared to Ash and Natalie’s situation, where they are separated by beings.
In my opinion, I think this book is great! I tremendously enjoyed the book. I’ve never read anything of it’s kind. It is certainly a unique book, from its formatting to the actual plot, everything was amazing! Some strengths of the book is its deep plot. After every chapter, I had to keep reading. The book had me wrapped up so much that at one point I started reading the book at 5:00pm and didn’t finish till 11:00pm. A weakness of the book is the author’s ability to explain. What I mean by this is in the beginning of the book, the author began talking about the setting/environment and how the city worked. I didn’t quite understand it until I reread the chapter a few times. It’s a unique plot so I suppose it may be a little confusing at first since I’ve never encountered a book like this before. Something that I would change, if I could, would be the ending. The reason I would change the ending is because the author left me with a huge cliffhanger. A cliffhanger is basically a scene or event at the end of a book or show that keeps you wanting to know more, so you’d want to see the next book or show.

I would most definitely recommend this book to anyone who has a sense of adventure and wants to read something like never before. This book is absolutely stunning! I’d give this book a 5/5. There’s no way I’m not getting the next installment! This book gives you a new way to look at life. You can relate to some of the characters in the book since it shows the good and the bad. The book is a lot like reality in some ways. It’s not all a happy tale about love. You have many complications throughout the book which keep the readers wanting for more. If you ever get a chance, pick this book up.  



Creative Component: Ash’s I.D. Bracelet

In Black City, anyone who’s a Darkling or Half-Blood is required, by law, to wear an I.D. bracelet. This bracelet contains the name of the person, an ID number, the person they belong to, and where he/she lives. If you didn’t wear this bracelet the punishment would be death. Ash didn’t like the idea of wearing this and showing that he’d go with the governments idea and be their property, but for the sake of not causing his father anymore trouble, he wore it.
Photo on 1-8-13 at 9.36 AM #2
Photo on 1-8-13 at 9.36 AM #2
Photo on 1-8-13 at 9.36 AM #3
Photo on 1-8-13 at 9.36 AM #3
Photo on 1-8-13 at 9.36 AM
Photo on 1-8-13 at 9.36 AM

Q2 Benchmark ( The Skin I'm In by : Sharon G. Flake )

Brittany Cooper 01/08/13

Over the past two months I was given an assignment to read a independent reading book. In the beginning of the process I was struggling to find a book. My English 1 teacher Mrs. Dunn suggested that I read a book called “The Skin I’m In“ by Sharon G. Flake. Considering I don’t like to read she said this would be a adjustment for me.

 This book is about a girl name Maleeka Madison III. She attends McClenton Middle School, she in the seventh grade. This girl is verbally being bullied. As a child going through the stage of puberty being so that she is thirteen and in middle school. Children tend to be more sensitive to what others have to say. This character in the book was captured. I think there could have been more detail about her childhood life.

 A weakness in this book would be that there are thirty-two chapters. The chapters are only six or seven pages to each chapter. This could be both an advantage and disadvantage. A advantage because the shortens some of the book considering it has thirty-two chapters. The disadvantage is that the less pages some people what say the book could possible lack bits and pieces of each chapter.

This book is to prove that you can be something. You work form the bottom and make your way up. In the fifth grade black girl was being bullied by a white girl.  The white girl did not like her simply because she was smart and the teacher favored her. Throughout the black girl’s fifth grade year this girl would be called names & even would get in trouble with the because she would try to stop the another girl from messing with her. It got to the point where there had to be a parent teacher principal conference with that girl and her mother. She was then removed from the school. The girl who was being bullied had no more worries. Being verbally abused or bullied is serious. Known from experience , you should think before you say.

Overall I would give this book 4.5 stars out of 5. I say this considering I do not like to read this was adjustment to me because at first the number of chapters scared me. But then as I began to read the book I adjusted to the amount of pages. I would recommend that middle schoolers such as seventh and eighth graders to read this book. To better insure their knowledge about bullying.











Starter For Ten Editorial+Poster

Starter For Ten 


In the book “Starter for Ten”, by David Nicholls, you read about a student in  college that has still to find him self. The students name Brian Jackson. He grew up in a small town in England with his mother. On his day of departure you see how close she wanted to be to him and he being a typical teenager wanted nothing to do with her. You meet his three best friends. The different part about them and Brian is that, he is going to University and they are not. The town they grew up in is not very rich and not many go to college (or University, as they call it through out the book). 

Once he got to University he felt slightly out of place seeing as the rest of the students came from high end families with much more experience and he was the top of his class but with lower standards. His room mates were aggressive athletes, the opposite of Brian. He distanced himself from them. Which isn’t entirely his fault seeing as he is different the rest of them, considering his background. Not saying he shouldn’t or didn’t try, but that was to come later. 

When he did decided to walk around campus he ended up in the commons where he saw the flyer for University challenge. It was like it had his name written on it. He had been watching the show for years. He had gotten really good at answering the questions in a timely and correct fashion.  That’s where the story begins. 

University Challenge is a real show in England. It is exactly what it is in the book, a variation on decathlon team on national television. The show has University students answering questions about different subjects in their own categories. It is show on BBC. 

I think the story is a rather quick read. I wouldn’t call it a teen novel, but more of a realistic fiction about a young man trying to find himself in a world full of places to fill. Though it is not completely realistic sometimes that little bit of fantasy is what we need to make a book more relatable. When he thinks he found his place he doesn’t hesitate to fill the possession. He finds his place in University Challenge. 

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a easy but fun read. It has every component, it has romance, conflict, and drama. This book would get a 4 out of 5 star rating from me. It has some parts that could have been better written, but that is to be expected with any writing that isn’t world renown. 

Author David Nicholls, born 30th of November, 1996 in Eastleigh, Hampshire is also the author of the novels The Understudy (2005)  and One Day (2009). He is also a Screenwriter and Theater play writer.  His screen plays included a nomination for a British Academy Television Craft Award, in the category Best New Writer (Fiction). He was most well known in England. Where at least Starter for Ten takes place there. 

This is a great book by an amazing writer and I suggest to almost anyone and everyone read it. It is a quick, upbeat, funny book, with a good story that I think everyone could enjoy. 

Q2 Benchmark English pdf.

By The Time you Read This I'll Be Dead Book Review

Relationships and words all lead up to a decision Daelyn Rice wanted to make. The choice between life or death rest in her hands. At a very young age these two choices circled throughout her mind everyday. In the book By the Time you Read This I’ll Be Dead by Julie Anne Peters, a difficult decision is being made by a young girl because of bullying. My name is Milahn Shurelds and chose this book to read for an independent reading project.This book has received a couple of awards : ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults Nomination in 2011, ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adults Readers 2011, ALA Popular Paperback for YA: Sticks and Stones category, and Chicago Public Library’s Best of the Best List 2010. 

Ten... The number that started it all. Bullying... A main theme. Decision... Some had to be made. Death... A longing. Life... A choice. www.through-the-light.com...A website used to countdown to the date of determination. In Daelyn Rices’ daily life these were everyday words. At the age of ten Daelyn began her first attempt of death. The number one reason being bullying.  With many attempts of death Daelyn Rice is hoping to get it right this time. She visits a website, www.through-the-light.com. After setting up an account she now has twenty-three days left until her Date of Determination(DOD). Death seems to be the only option but there is one thing that may change her mind, a boy. Santana is her only hope to live. Daelyn feels as though it’s too late to start letting people into her life. By the Time you Read This I’ll Be Dead is a book about bullying. Pushing people to the edge could result in death. Bullying is not good and it needs to be stop. 

My favorite character is Daelyn. You may be wondering why a girl who believes death is the only option is my favorite. She is my favorite because she is strong. She went through many years of bullying even though throughout those years she attempted many trials of death. She hid bullying from her parents for a long time. Taking on a big emotional issue was really hard. After reading this book you should get a sense of what it is like to be bullied. Take a leap and walk in the shoes of Daelyn Rice. Begin to fully understand what bullying is. Also what some people go through if you haven’t already gone through it yourself. 

Relating to this story was very challenging. I couldn’t seem to relate. Death isn’t in my vocabulary. I know someday it will come but I enjoy life. Life is something I treasure. I see life as a gift. A gift given to me to live to the fullest. Life is too short for unnecessary drama. I want to do all that I can do. I have never been bullied. I’m not sure what excludes me from the type of people picked on.  I think bullying is a sign of jealousy. I agree that bullying isn’t right and it needs to be stopped.

As you may or may not know I am not a big fan of reading. I DON’T like it. Reading this book was a challenge but once I was done I felt as though I had accomplished something. When I finished the book I didn’t find reading so bad. I really enjoyed reading this book. It was well written and the plot was interesting. This book took me into a whole new world. Even though the book was fiction I learned a lot. If I could change anything about the book I would have a variety of people going through the same thing as Daelyn. Have the book be from different point of views and situations.There weren’t many weaknesses to this book. The major weakness would be the transitions. Sometimes the transitions between past and present were confusing. 

I would recommend this book to people because it shows awareness to a very huge issue in a numerous amount of lives of kids these days. Julie Anne Roberts takes you on a journey that is powerful and important. I don’t recommend this book to people who aren’t in Daelyns’ situation. I say this because some of the content isn’t good for people who are deciding between life and death. Ways of death are given in the story. This story wasn’t written for people to get ideas of death, it was written to let people know the results of bullying. Also why bullying isn’t right and why it needs to stop. 



"Born at Midnight" Book Review


Born at Midnight is a teenage fantasy series by C.C. Hunter. It is on the first page of Barnes and Nobles best selling teen fiction page. This book is not planned on being made into a movie although a lot of fans think it should. On IMDb there is even a should be cast for the Movie that is not being made. The series consists of 5 book now but a 6th is planned to come out April 30th, 2013.

This book was pretty good considering I continued to read the next two books so far and I plan on reading the rest of the series as well. I feel like I really connected with the main character Kylie Galen with the exception of speaking to ghosts or being supernatural. I feel this way because in the book, it describes that Kylie and her friend Sara never really fit in with a specific group of people. I usually do the same thing and ‘float’ between groups of people. We also both seem to get overwhelmed fairly easily and we are always trying to please and help other people which sometimes make us even more overwhelmed. Kylie has felt things in her life to be inconceivable and scary, as have I; for Kylie believing in supernatural beings and me believing that there are malicious people in the world that can and will hurt anyone or anything. Especially when my neighbors house was robbed. 

This book was good but it did have a flaw or two. Some strengths in this book are that it has good story quality and how it is fairly easy to depict the characters. Also, that the storyline has twists and turns when you need there to be so it rarely gets that boring and keeps you sucked in. A weakness this book has is that it is a little bit choppy so it shifts a little bit more often than I would have wanted it to. It also chops out some of the details that you would want to know more about but other than that. As a result of that, one thing I would do to change this book is put more detail in some sections and I think that would help people understand the book, characters and events even more which would make Born at Midnight even better.

In the end, I felt Born at Midnight was a really good book and has been a great series. I am also looking forward to reading the rest of the series and I do wish that it would come out as a movie. I hope you decide to read this book and like it as much as I did or even more.


Here is a shortened book review video to accompany my written book review.

The Mark of Athena book review

The Mark of Athena is the third installment in the Heroes of Olympus series written by Rick Riordan. The Heroes of a Olympus is a continuation of Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. It takes place about six months after the final Titan War in The Last Olympian, book five of Percy Jackson. Rick was an english teacher who started Percy as a bedtime story for his dyslexic child. Percy and all the demigods are dyslexic and have a form of ADHD, making the story some-what realistic and relatable - a fictional world to escape to. 


To understand the concepts of The Lost Hero, The Son of Neptune and The Mark of Athena (the books in The Heroes of Olympus series) it is almost imperative to read the Percy Jackson books. The series is about children who are half mortal and half god: a demigod. Any god or goddess has the ability to create offspring with a human. The godly parent does contribute some traits that goes towards the child’s physical features; however, there is much more unseen, such as special talents and powers. Poseidon, the Greek god of the seas, is Percy’s father; therefore, Percy has black hair and blue eyes - traits he shares with his father. Percy also can breathe under water along with controlling it. Each child has specific abilities depending on their godly parent.


In The Mark of Athena, the seven children of the prophecy, both Greek and Roman, must unite to stop Gaea from not only destroying Olympus, but also the world. The demigods embark on a journey that starts in the western United States and ends in Rome. The purpose of going to Rome is to save the Athena Parthenos which will aid the seven in uniting the Roman and Greek gods and demigods. The four separate worlds must work together to save the world from Gaea destroying it. The only people who are allowed to find the Athena Parthenos are children of Athena. Athena chooses a few of her daughters or sons at a time to find the statue but they always went missing. 


The children of the prophecy are either Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter. Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon; Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena; Piper McLean, daughter of Aphrodite; and Leo Valdez, son of Hephaestus, are all from the Greek Camp Half-Blood. Jason Grace, son of Jupiter; Hazel Levesque, daughter of Pluto; and Frank Zhang, son of Mars, are from the Roman Camp Jupiter. My favorite character in the book is Percy. Percy can breathe underwater, but he has a fear of suffocation. This shows that no matter how strong you are, you have a weakness and Percy knows about his weakness and he accepts it. Percy’s fatal flaw is personal loyalty, which means he would sacrifice the world to save the people close to him. Percy Jackson is a character I can relate to, which is another realistic aspect of Riordan’s books. 


This is a great, well-written book and Riordan’s writing abilities have matured. I have read all the books Riordan has written and you can tell he has improved. The Mark of Athena has an interesting plot and sub-plots which keeps the book structured. I enjoy reading the book from different character’s points of view as well. Reading from the different view points allows you to look deeper into a character’s personality and you’re even able to view their weaknesses and what keeps them grounded. I felt there is some holes in the book when switching between the points of view, but they are subtle. If I had the ability, I don’t think I would change anything in this book. I love Rick Riordan’s book and I look forward to the fourth book in the Heroes of Olympus series, The House of Hades. 


Ultimately, I would recommend this book to other people. I started reading Percy Jackson in fourth grade and I loved Greek Mythology, so this book was great for me. However, you don’t have to have a love of mythology to read these books. The Mark of Athena is adventurous, suspenseful, and humorous. The plot lines and character interactions are great and well established which makes this book a great read. You don’t need a knowledge of mythology to enjoy this book. You can even learn a lot of mythology from just these books! 


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SAM_2289

For the creative portion:

I decided to create a canvas painting on the seven children of the prophecy. Because the main reason of the Mark of Athena is to unite all four worlds - demigod, god, Roman and Greek - I decided to unite them in my painting. I painted each character and their parent in a person-shaped totem. Here is a description of each totem, left to right, and why it is symbolized that way:

 

The Greeks

  • Aphrodite, the goddess of beauty and love, and her daughter Piper. Pink and a dove are some of the things associated with the goddess Aphrodite. 
  • Hephaestus, the god of metalworking, masonry and fire, and his son Leo. I used the hues of fire and a tool to depict the two.
  • Athena, the goddess of wisdom and battle strategy, and her daughter Annabeth. I used the three items found on the Mark of Athena coin which is what Athena gave to Annabeth.
  • Poseidon, the god of the sea and earthquakes, and his son Percy. I used the hues of the ocean, waves and a triton, which are all things associated with Percy and Poseidon. 


The Romans

  • Jupiter, the of the sky and thunder, and his son Jason. I used thunderclouds and thunderbolts to symbolize them.
  • Pluto, the ruler of the underworld and god of precious metals and gems, and his daughter Hazel. Because Hazel has the talent to sense precious metals and summon them, I used them on their totem along with a skull to symbolize death.
  • Mars, the god of war, and his son Frank. I used weapons to symbolize the two, especially the bow and arrow because that is what Frank is trained to use. 


I painted the background as green and brown tones because they represent Gaea, their main foe. What I wrote on the canvas says “Greek & Roman, demigod & god... must unite.”


The Orchard by Theresa Weirs

Theresa Weir, the author of The Orchard, begins her novel with a local legend from her town, Illinois. This book was a 2011 Oprah Magazine Fall Pick, Number Two on the Indie Next list, a featured in a B+ review in Entertainment Weekly, and was presented Librarians’ Best Books of 2011. The novel follows the life of a woman named Theresa that lives with her uncle in a bar because her parents were out of her life early on. She works at the bar, and one day chances to meet a man named Adrian Curtis with a supposedly cursed farm. The two talk and eventually get married at the local courthouse, and begin a new life on the farm. No one except the couple agree with the marriage, which poses a problem along the course of the story.

I believe my favorite character would have to be Adrian Curtis, because he can be very unpredictable, and you can’t really understand what he’s thinking throughout the book. It gives the text a lot of suspense and makes the reader feel like somewhat of a sleuth. I think an important thing that you could take from the book would be that even if Theresa made a risky decision to marry someone she didn’t necessarily know, if you follow your heart, you’ll know the way. She made uncertain choices throughout her life, and it’s what crafted her lifestyle and who she is.

Relating to the characters is a fairly easy task. I believe that I am most like Theresa, because sometimes I don’t think very much about the things I decide to do. She didn’t really think about what it would mean to be married to someone she hardly knew that is bound to a farm for their entire life to carry the family tradition.

I definitely thouroughly enjoyed the book, and I think that it was great how every other chapter explained a memory she had from when she was little, and then somehow connected it to the next chapter of the present. I don’t think I would change anything, especially because the author has their own style of writing, and I wouldn’t want to damage the great balance it has.

I would recommend this book to a more mature audience, because there are some scenes that contain some parts that a younger audience wouldn’t understand, or wouldn’t be able to handle. 


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Click HERE for a cool movie trailer!

Lord Of The Flies Book Review and Movie Teaser

Serge Mass


The book “Lord Of The Flies” by William Golding is by far one of the best books I have read in a while. Its it in the top 100 books in the American Library Association’s top read books. William Golding is a Noble Prize winner which is an extraordinary thing. Lord Of The Flies is his first book, but rated by far the best by numerous sources. There was a movie made, but I have not watched it and I am hoping to over the next few days.


The story is mainly about a bunch of kids stranded on an island. Now you’re thinking right now, “hey it’s going to end up like every other story ”, but you are wrong. The main characters are Ralph, Piggy, Jack, Rodger, Sam, and Eric. The group gets divided early on into the story. Ralph and Piggy are on one side and the rest on the other. They become crazy about a conch shell. The conch was the only way to communicate throughout the island and being that; it was essential to have. Later into the story the shell gets destroyed. From there on the story opens out to a huge fiasco. Blood is in the water and tears are shed.......


This book has some great ideas and lessons to learn. The most important one is do not burn bridges. Burning bridges means when you have had enough, you snap and go off on someone and when you come back for something because you need help; they don’t help you. In the book, the same kind of thing happens. It a helpful lesson to use in life when changing jobs because everyone is connected and some how knows each other. 


I can in a way relate to the story, but my situation wasn’t as serious of course. When I was in 4th grade I went to an Ice Hockey and Ice Skating camp and we had an over-night lock-in. Which means we sleep in the Ice rink over night. It was a ton of fun and we played ultimate man hunt/capture the flag on and off ice. We were playing for who gets first dibs on the pizza. It was the best game I have ever played.

In my opinion I think this is the best book I have ever written. The way the author builds the suspense in the book is very creative. Through out the book, the author sprinkles in a little bit of action here and there. At the end of the book it is very thrilling and leaves you thinking what will happen next. Then is ends very abruptly. That is the only thing I don’t like. I think it should of finished with more of a defined ending.


I would recommend this book to anyone that like thrilling books. It has a great mix of action and adventure. It a great easy read and more of a teen/adult book. It has a great undefined genre so anyone could like it. I walked into the book thinking it would be bad, but it turned out to be the best book I have read. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a thriller of a book.





VIDEO LINK 

Book review on MAUS

MAUS by Art Spiegelman is a  interesting and a sad book about how a Jewish family
tried to survive the Holocaust from the beginning to the end. Its a true story, a graphic novel and
a winner of the Pulitzer  prize.MAUS its based on a true story of Vladek Spiegelman who is the father of Artie Spiegelman was being interviewed at his house or outside his living area, this story was acted in animals types for example the Jews were mice, the Natzis were cats and the
pigs were Christians or Catholics and dogs were Atheist or characters that weren’t important or that they only had a few comments to say. This story was told was told by Vladek Spiegelman through the eyes of mice.

MAUS is about a Vladek Spiegelman and he tells his live to his son Artie Spiegelman

which is trying to make a book about the holocaust, this book talks about how Vladek Spiegelman lives and how his life was before, during and after the holocaust, Vladek Spiegelman  life takes  place in poland were Vladek is married to Anja and together over the time they saw what the nazis were doing to poland day by day, their life and family was
being destroyed little by little every week, every week the nazis were taking over poland and killing more jewish people so that made them horrified so they had to move from where they actually lived to other houses and so on, their family also was  being broken apart because the nazis would shoot them if they tried to ran away or if they got caught selling something’s  that  they  weren’t allowed to like sugar or bread, and most of the times they would either be  send to the camps or they would get sent to the ovens, Vladek and his family were losing money and their house were the rest of the family was living in which it was about 10 to 13 people until vladek and Anja got capture by the Nazis and then sent to the camps but their families didn’t  make it alive because they died trying  to survive or they got sent straight to the gas chambers, Vladek and Anja after they got capture they were sent to different camps
but Vladek managed to talk to Anja by sending her letters trough a lady friends with Vladek and Anja, almost by the end of the year the americans fought the nazis allowing Vladek and Anja free to run off to the city, but Vladek went with the other jews that were in the camp then they went to
the ran into this farms were the americans were in and they helped Vladek and the others to get back home, then Vladek went to get Anja at their seconds dads house who died in the ovens , later on Anja  died because she wasn’t strong enough after the camps.
This book is not related to me at all because this situation where they are is not cant
really connect with me because they got captured by nazis but if i was them i would
choose the same things they did to survive because its basically a guide in how to
survive in a nazi attack.but if i was in this situation i would need to do what Vladek did in this situations, like knowing lots of people that you could trust paying off guards also knowing about how to fix shoes because Vladek need it to fix a guards shoes and when he did that he had a less chance of getting killed also knowing the surroundings of the cities. i think this book was really good on how they showed and tell
what was going on in their life’s and how they reacted to this problems and also the outcome
of this situation. I really liked this book because of the intensity of how the story was told and
what was going on, the only weakness of the it would to explain the types of characters like the
dogs and pigs and something that i would change would be the types of animals and what religion were they  

Book Article: 1984

When I first opened the time capsule that apparently was buried in ‘1948’ I thought, what this might be, I turned to this first page and was immediately intrigued.  I wondered, ‘What could this ‘George Orwell’ person be talking about, then I read the first chapter and instantly thought that this man’s prediction is more prevalent this day and age (Year 2048), rather than 100 years ago. It appears as if he was curious about the Soviet Union, and their society, since that were a dictatorship. The book took place in London of 1984, the character “Winston” worked for the government, he had terrible life that was controlled by ‘Big Brother’ he was not allowed to love anyone, have close friends, or even think. The government had a thought police that would come and make you work on a camp if you appeared to be becoming curious as to why the government wanted control over its citizens, and any other thoughts that the government would find as a threat. In the novel Winston meets a woman named Julia. She likes having sex and has had many affairs with men high in the government. One day Julia slips Winston a note that says “I Love You” on it. Since Winston has already been infatuated with her, this immediately blows him away! They then begin to have an affair in the wilderness so that the government will not catch them, because this would result in death. They soon then meet with another man that Winston was interested with, O’Brien, they meet and he convinces Winston to that he is a rebel just like him and Julia. He gives him a book that O’Brien says “All rebels should read”, he takes it and reads it. Since “Big Brother” is always watching they catch Winston and take him and Julia to be tortured, they get everything that they can out of Julia. In the last few moments of torture Winston encounters, they then make him endure his worst fear which is rats. The government’s torturers threaten that they will let the rats eat through his face. Winston then tells them to do it to Julia, the government, identifying this betrayal, then let’s them go, but, prior to doing so they O’Brien explained to Winston why the government is the way it is, and why rebels like Winston and Julia are a threat, a now terrified and brain-washed Winston now believes whatever the government tells him and when released him and Julia are separated, they see each other, but Julia goes the other way, and Winston just sits in a café watching government news and smiling. 


This novel is very prevalent today because it discusses other aspects of George Orwell’s prediction, it has discusses how they government destroyed all of the original documents and replaced them so that the citizens of London at that time would not know the truth. It also discusses how the movies will be filled with sex and not based off of classic literature, which is true due. Both of these points are true, I believe that our government has altered documents and made us believe that they are true, and it appears that every film that is nominated for an Academy Award has some type of sex scene, but to me, the most prevalent point made was discussed throughout the novel, and that is “Big Brother is always watching” , that is very prevalent today because now I believe that Big Brother has video cameras in our computers watching us as we type and look through our screens. Overall, I just pray that we don’t have a ‘Thought Police’ or forced into a Totalitarian Society as drastic as that the one described in the novel. 

1984