Blog Reflection

     The quality of my writing has improved multiple ways over the course of the trimester. One way that my writing has improved would be that towards the end of the trimester I used a lot more textual evidence in my blog posts than I did in the beginning of the trimester. In the post from earlier in the trimester I connected two different texts and explained how they were similar. However, I didn’t use any quotes to support what I was saying. For example I was talking about how the characters in both novels are similar. I wrote, “The main characters in each book are a brother and sister pair who are very different from each other, both in personality and appearance.” I went on to explain the ways that they were alike but I never used any evidence from the book that showed their characterization. In my post from the end of the trimester I talked about the cliff hangers that ended each chapter in my book. I used actual quotes from the end of different chapters and explained how they were each a cliff hanger for me. For example I wrote, “The text says, ‘Tanya, Elizabeth Elvesden never came out of the asylum. She died in there when she was only twenty-three' (Harrison 108). Reading this gave me the chills. I had to keep reading on to figure out what other mysteries the house held.” Another way that my writing has improved would be that I was able to connect elements in my book to things other than different literature. In my older post I did make a connection from my book but it was with another book. My post said, “Currently I am reading The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan. This is the second book in the Kane Chronicles. As I have been reading this novel I have noticed it has many similarities to the book Children of The Lamp: The Akhenaten Adventure by P.B. Kerr. Both of these stories are centered around the element of magic.” Connecting a novel to another novel is fairly easy and I found that as the trimester went on, I was able to connect elements in my book to more things. In the post I wrote at the end of the trimester I talked about how cliff hangers are not only used in books such as my own but in other things such as the TV series Touch. I wrote, “Books aren't the only things that use cliff hangers to their advantage. Movies use them to get you to want to see the sequel and TV shows use them so you watch the next season. For example one of my favorite series Touch ended with the biggest cliff hanger.”

            One thing that I struggled with through the experience was the decision of what to blog about. There were some days where I had a perfect idea of what I wanted to write about and then there were other days where I had no clue. To overcome this I had to force myself to think outside of the box and come up with more than just your basic book topics. I began to write about other pieces of writing besides what I was reading and I came up with ideas such as how to pick out a good book. One strength I had with blogging would be my ability to write thorough posts. Whether I was summarizing or discussing a literary element in a book, I explained what I was talking about very clearly with great detail.  I did not meet my reading goal but I found goodreads.com to be a very beneficial sight. It was very useful for being able to get good book recommendations. I liked how you could see what your friends were reading and I enjoyed that I was able to rate books that I had read. Over the course of the trimester I would say that my reading has improved in the sense that I have learned to reflect more on my reading. I also have gotten better at paying attention to literary detail in the books. Before I read only to enjoy a good story, but now I have learned to read so that I can appreciate the effect an author’s style of writing has on the story.

Reading With Your Ears

     You may look at the title of this post and think to yourself ,"Kayla you cant read with your ears, duh!" Well I beg to differ. Ok so you may not be able to literally read with your ears but you sure can listen to a story. Audio books my friends: reading with your ears. I'm sure we all remember in kindergarten when our teacher would have story time. We would all run over and sit criss cross applesauce (doesn't anyone wonder why we say 'applesauce' at the end) on the carpet. Our teacher would read a small picture book written with a sentence on each page and show the picture to the whole class going in a semicircle motion. Do you ever think about why we loved this so much? Some of the slacker kids were probably just like "Yeah we get to zone out for 15 minutes!" Now that I think back on this common school activity I realize how relaxing it is to have a story read to you.

 

     Audio books are like a teacher reading to you only the more mature version. All you have to do is pop the CD into the stereo or press play on your device. Then you sit back, close your eyes, and listen. You don't have to worry about your eyes getting tired from reading line after line and you don't have the problem of the uncomfortable positions you have to read your book in. An audio book does the work for you, leaving you to the imagining. The images described to you can come alive, almost like a dream while your still awake! I have to say though that the voice the audio book is told in has to be engaging. We listened to some of the scenes in Romeo and Juliet on tape and lets just say the voices weren't the best. They were pretty bad, I mean I don't understand how the tape was published! Some voices made the class laugh and others were just plain annoying.

 

     I have made my point that audio books can be more relaxing than books but there's another reason they're good for. In some scenarios audio books are more logical when you want to read. For example when you go on vacation or have a long drive, you may want to read in the car. At least for me this is a problem; I get car sick if I read for too long while in a moving vehicle. Listening to an audio book  eliminates this issue. You still get to hear the story but with out staring down at a small font which leads to an icky feeling stomach. Then there's some strange people who may like to read while swimming or taking a bathe. Hey, I never said I was one of those people but trust me they're out there! A book would get ruined if you dropped it in the water. The pages would wrinkle up and the ink would smear. How about an audio book? No paper, no problem! And of course for those book worms who don't want to look like a nerd. If you put an audio book on your ipod or iphone you can put your headphones in and look like your jamming out to some tunes when really you're reading! Mind blowing right?!?

 

     So for all my avid readers out there, next time when your looking for a book, read with your ears not your eyes. You will be surprised what a difference it is. 

Books and Their Movies

 

     People always say that the books are better than the movies. In some cases this is true. However there are pros and cons to both. Personally I like to read the book, to get the story line in depth, and then watch the movie to see it come alive. There are those books that you would absolutely love to see in theaters and wonder why no director has taken the opportuunity to make it a movie. Whether or not your a book person or a movie person, there are reasons why you have your preference.

 

    Usually the books have way more detail than movies. This may seem like a bad thing but if a movie had all of the same details, you could spend 7 hours sitting on the couch, which would get boring. Books also give you a chance to picture the story however you want. You create the characters and the setting, well based off the authors description of course. We are the directors of the movie in our minds. I have had cases where I see a movie before reading and then I already have the images in my head that were created for me. There's a flip side to that coin. If you picture the characters or setting in a way different from the movie, you could be disappointed the film wasn't what you wanted.

 

     Movies are obviously good for being able to visually see a book come to life. You can see the conflict and chemistry between the characters more easily than if you were reading. The emotions/moods of a story engage you more when you're physically seeing what's going on. The "magic of the movies" as people say is used to enhance the plot and attract a viewer's attention. The stories in books you watch through your own eyes but stories in movies you watch through the eyes of someone else.

 

  I'm not trying to persuade you either way-books or movies. I love both for their own reasons. However I do have something you should think about. Books are pleasing to the mind, movies are pleasing to the eye. Which do you prefer?

Act 3 Scene 5

     Most of you probably know that we are reading Romeo and Juliet in English. Recently we were divided up into three groups and assigned a scene from Act 3. We have to teach the scene to the class as well as act it out. My group got Act 3 Scene 5. This scene definitely foreshadows events that will occur later on in the play. It also reveals a lot about some of the characters.

 

     The scene starts out with Romeo and Juliet. Romeo had just been banished to Mantau for killing Tybalt. The two lovers spend the last moments before sun rise together, then Romeo has to leave. Lady Capulet comes to deliver news to Juliet. The two women discuss their anger with the death of Tybalt and how they're going to make Romeo pay. Obviously Juliet is lying when she says this. The news that Lady Capulet brings does not make Juliet very happy. Her father had arranged for her to marry Paris in the upcoming week. Juliet refuses and when Capulet hears of this he is furious.

 

     Capulet goes on to yell at Juliet and tell her she has no choice but to marry Paris. He says that she is burden to the family and that she should be thrown out on the streets. Sounds like a loving father right? Juliet's Nurse stands up for her only to be criticized by Capulet. He calls her a gossip and a fool before leaving. Juliet begs her mother to postpone the wedding but Lady Capulet tells her she isn't going to say a thing. Juliet asks for comforting from the Nurse. The Nurse tells her that it would probably be in her best interest to marry Paris. Juliet pretends to agree and acts like she is going to confession. Really, Juliet is furious at the Nurse for telling her this. Instead she goes to see the Friar and ask him what she should do.

     At the very end of the scene Juliet says, "If all else fail, myself have power to die" (3.5 243). Here Juliet says that if worst comes to worse and she can't do anything about the wedding, than she can always kill herself. This foreshadows when she fakes her death later on in the play. It also shows her dedication to Romeo. Juliet isn't the only character we learn more about in this scene. Through Capulet's rage with Juliet we learn that he is a hot headed man who doesn't take no for an answer. We also come to know that Lady Capulet isn't really there for her daughter. When Juliet asks her to try and do something about the wedding she says, "Talk not to me, for I'll not speak a word: Do as thou wilt, for I have done with thee" (3.5 203-204). Only the Nurse seems to be some what on Juliet's side.

If you want to read Act 3 Scene 5 for your self click on the hyperlink!

Cliff Hangers

 

     As much as we hate when we are reading and are left with unanswered questions, what's a good book without cliff hangers? Yes we like to know what happens next, but when you think about it, cliff hangers are what keep you reading a book. I personally love when every chapter leaves me on edge. Of course then I never want to stop reading and thus the cliff hanger serves its purpose. I don't particularly like when entire books end in cliff hangers though, then you have to wait until the next book in the series comes out. But hey, you buy the next book don't you! For the authors that's a mission accomplished.

 

    The book I am currently reading (13 Wishes) does a good job in ending some of the chapters in suspense. For example, in chapter seven, Tanya first learns about the woman who was the original owner of her grandmother's mansion. It was said that her husband turned her into a mental hospital after she was accused of being a witch. The text says, "'Tanya, Elizabeth Elvesden never came out of the asylum. She died in there when she was only twenty-three'" (Harrison 108). Reading this gave me the chills. I had to keep reading on to figure out what other mysteries the house held. Later on in the story Tanya comes across a picture of the girl who went missing in Hangman's woods fifty years ago. Fabian tells her that she was her grandmother's best friend. After closely looking at the photo, the two realize that its the same girl they saw when they got lost in the woods earlier that week. Chapter nine ends like this, "They stared at the photograph. There was no doubt in Tanya's mind that the girl standing with her grandmother was the same girl they had seen in the woods... Fabian looked troubled. 'There's... there's something I have to tell you'" (Harrison 132). I wanted to know what he was going to tell her so to the next chapter I went.

 

    Books aren't the only things that use cliff hangers to their advantage. Movies use them to get you to want to see the sequel and TV shows use them so you watch the next season. For example one of my favorite series Touch ended with the biggest cliff hanger, The series was about a boy named Jake who knows how the future will plan out based off of numbers. He gave clues to his dad to make sure the future happened correctly. There is also a girl who has the same gift, Amelia. However, the company Astrocorps kidnaps her and fakes her death so they can use her to improve their business and gain money. Throughout the first series we get clues that Amelia is still alive and Jake and his dad learn that the same company wants to come after Jake. At the end of the last episode, Jake and his dad run into a woman after they go into hiding from Astrocorps. It just so happens that the woman is Amelia's mother! I mean what?!? I can assure you that I watched the next season.

Setting in 13 Treasures

 

     Being properly introduced to a setting is very important when reading a book. It sets the ground work where the whole story takes place. The setting can have a great impact on the plot and how the story unfolds. Depending on the location of the setting, a book can have certain tones and the characters can be affected. If the setting is unclear or not specific, it can be hard to get a grasp on things that occur in the story. Lucky for me, 13 Treasures  has a well explained setting that I have a good image of. I can also tell the impact it is having on the plot.

 

     The story takes place at Tanya's grandmothers huge property. The manor she lives in is old and full of fairies which causes conflict with Tanya. On page 20 the massive house is described, "There was no question that it would have been an impressive view when it was first built in the late eighteenth century. It had close to twenty bedrooms - not including the old servants' quarters - and almost as many parlors and sitting rooms, once decorated lavishly. Had it been properly maintained, it would probably still be beautiful." From this quote we can understand the size of the house and get a feel of its old worn down look. The inside of the house is described equally as well. Tanya's room is depicted on page 23, "The carpet was threadbare, and the walls were covered in lavender paper that was peeling off in some places." The reader can tell, from the many descriptions in the book, that Tanya's grandmother lives in a grand house that she has been unable to keep up.

 

     Hangman's Woods is the forest next to the house which is also an important part to the story. Many secrets lie with in these woods. A strange gypsy woman lives alone in the middle of the forest, and Tanya learns about a girl who went missing almost fifty years ago in there. Also Tanya's dog, Oberon, runs away so she and Fabian run after him into the collection of trees and end up getting lost. Warwick finds them and warns them about the dangers of the woods and that they are never to go back into there but the kids don't know why. Hangman's Woods is described on page 74, "Gradually the trees grew thicker, taller, and closer together. It was cool and dark between them, and small creatures rustled the undergrowth as passed through and disturbed them." From this we can already start to see why Tanya and Fabian aren't allowed into the woods. However, from the mystery about these woods, I feel like Tanya will venture back and uncover the secrets she is dying to figure out.

A+ on Vocab and Word Choice

 

     I have recently made a post about the book I just started, 13 Treasures  by Michelle Harrison. Nothing too action packed has happened yet. I am still in that introduction stage of the book where you meet all of the characters and are introduced to the setting. However there is one thing that I have noticed about the author's writing. She uses a very sophisticated vocabulary and I admire her for it. Instead of using basic adjectives or verbs, she spices it up. I will admit that some of the words I have come across I don't know. I like that it challenges me to use textual clues and previous knowledge to try and figure out their meanings.

    

     On page 4 the author shows her wide vocabulary range. The text says, "The incidents had become more vindictive of late." A synonym for vindictive is refengeful or resentful. In this part of the text the reader learns about the mean antics of the fairies when Tanya tries to tell people about them. This adjective is a perfect way to describe "the incidents". Instead of using a common word, Harrison reaches for lesser known vocab and impresses me.

 

     The author does this again when showing Tanya's anger with her mother for forcing her stay at her grandmother's. "Tanya shot her mother a venomous look and stared at the land outside the gates" (Harrison 19). Everybody knows what venomous means and that it can be a deadly thing. The use of the adjective in this quote is brilliant word choice. We can tell just how evil a look Tanya gave her mom. The use of adjectives like this benefit the book greatly. It also helps me to extend my own vocabulary. I am excited to conitinue reading this book and uncover the new words hidden in its pages!

I've Got A New Read!

 

     Yesterday I started reading the book 13 Treasures by Michelle Harrison. It is a pretty good book so far and has me asking a lot of questions. I am only four chapters in but here is what has happened; I have met Tanya a twelve year old girl who can see what others can not, fairies. These aren't your typical fairies either, these fairies are mean and won't leave Tanya alone. In the first chapter Tanya has another encounter with these mischievous creatures in the middle of the night. They pull her out of her bed and use magic so that she has to walk on the ceiling instead of the floor. Tanya has tried many times to tell people about the fairies and has written multiple journal entries about them. The fairies don't like this too much and come to punish her every time she does it. They came to warn her against trying again to reveal their secret and threaten to erase her memory. Tanya agrees and so the fairies send her crashing to the floor. Tanya's mom comes in (she is the only one Tanya lives with) and decides she can't take any more of Tanya's antics. Tanya's mother doesn't understand Tanya's unusual behavior and thinks it's her way of seeking attention. As a result she takes Tanya to spend a couple of weeks with her grandmother.

 

     Tanya isn't the closest to her grandmother and does not like that she has to spend so much time in her huge, aging house. One of the reasons Tanya doesn't like her grandmother's house is because of the mass amount of fairies that are there. Once they arrived at her house I met the creepy grounds keeper, Warwick, who isn't the warmest man on the earth. He is tall, dressed in dark dirty clothing and has skin that shows his long time spent in the sun. He takes Tanya to her room. After Tonya's mom  makes sure Tanya gets her belongings into the house, she leaves without a good bye. Then Tanya's grandmother shows up from the grocery. Tanya goes to help carry in her bags and finds a dead fairy on the car windshield. This makes Tanya uneasy so she has a proper funeral for the creature. She goes to the edge of Hangman's Woods by the house and buries the fairy. Once she is finished she runs into Fabian, Warwick's son. Fabian is a bit of a science geek and Tanya considers him nosy and annoying. He had been spying on Tanya and asked what she had buried. Tanya tells him a dead mouse, hoping that he believes her.

 

     Later Tanya heads to her room and finds that a usually locked room has its door open. Tanya sneaks inside following her curiosity. She finds a bunch of books-some with information on fairies-and she decides to keep one to take back to her room. She finds an old charm bracelet and an old news clipping. The news clipping is about a fourteen year old girl who went into Hangman's Woods and never returned fifty years ago. Tanya's grandmother finds her snooping but is strangely not upset. She lets Tanya keep the bracelet and takes her up on her offer to help clean out the room. Tanya figured it would be an easy way to do some more looking around.

  

     Aside from what is going on in Tanya's life, I learned about an old gypsy who lives alone in the middle of Hangman's Woods. She has a gift of "second-sight" and can see the future and past, however her powers have slowly begun to wear down. The gypsy has a vision where she sees a young baby girl taken from her crib and then sees the girl when she is twelve, sad and lonely. The woman knows this girls too has the power of a "second-sight"  and knows that their paths will soon cross. I know the girl that the gypsy saw has to be Tanya. I wonder what will happen if the gypsy and her meet. I also feel like Fabian and Tanya will get to be better friends and maybe he might find out about the fairies that Tanya sees. I guess I will have to keep reading to find out!



Siblings

 

     In The Throne of Fire the characters Sadie and Carter Kane are very relatable. Carter is the older brother who does not like it when his baby sister shows him up. Sadie is only two years younger but likes to act like she is four years older than Carter. The siblings are very different from each other, like most siblings are. Sadie is fiesty and rebelious where as Carter is a rule follower. The two Kane kids don't always get along but love each other unconditionally. In the book, they have to save each other multiple times and would risk anything to make sure the other is ok.

 

     This reminds me alot of me and my siblings. I'm the oldest of four and I am very protective of my little brother and sisters. This is just like how Carter is protective over Sadie (sometimes more than Sadie prefers). I know I would do anything for them. I might never have to run to their rescue from a killer baboon as Carter did for Sadie, but if I had to I would. My siblings and I don't always get along either. I have had my fair share of arguments with them but that doesn't mean I love them any less. I am with the Kane kids in saying that siblings stand by each other no matter what.

 

     I think that there is a special bond between siblings that can't be explained. We just understand each other and can tell when something is wrong. In The Throne of Fire Carter had a horrible vision one night about Apophis, god of chaos, beginning to rise back to power. Sadie could tell just from his expressions and manorisms that something was wrong. This is the same in my family. Siblings just have a connection that is more powerful than anything else and I am luycky enough to be able to experience a bond like this.



Finally Finished!

 

     If you have read some of my previous blog posts you would know that I have been reading The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan. I have finally finished the book and I am eager to read the next one in the series.

 

     This book was very action packed. Sadie and Carter Kane go on a quest to awaken the sun god, Ra, and prevent Chaos from taking over. In the beginning, Sadie, Carter, and their friends Walt and Jaz find the first scroll of three that must be used to awaken Ra. Later Sadie leaves the Brooklyn House (the place where she and Carter had been staying with their Uncle Amos and had been training other young magicians) to spend her birthday back in London with her grandparents and friends. When she gets there she finds her grandparents possessed by the gods Nekhbet and Babi who try to stop her from going on the quest. Sadie escapes with the help of Bes, the dwarf god, who was sent to protect the Kane kids. Carter meets back up with Sadie and Bes takes them to Russia where they find the second scroll in a famous palace that was turned into a museum. They find Vlad Menshikov (one of the most powerful magicians) trying to summon Set the god of fire and ask for his help to awaken Apophis, god of Chaos. Vlad sees the Kane kids and sets a demon on them. Set helps Sadie and Carter and also gives them the location of the third scroll. After that, Bes takes Carter and Sadie to Alexandria. Set had also given Sadie a clue to the location of Carter's friend Zia who had been hidden to keep her safe after she too had been possessed by a goddess. Carter knows he has to save her and so he and Bes go to find her. Meanwhile Sadie asks Walt to come and help her find the third scroll.

 

     Carter and Bes travel to the ruins of Zia's old village and find her buried in a chamber beneath the Nile River with the crook and flail of Ra. Sadie and Walt travel across a vast dessert and into an uncovered tomb of mummies. After escaping an army of the undead they succeed in retrieving the third scroll. They are teleported to the location of Carter and Bes only to find Vlad Menshikov and Desjardins (the Chief Lector of the House of Life who didn't exactly have the best history with the Kanes) trying to arrest Carter for stealing the symbols of Ra. Desjardins wants Carter to come in piece but Vlad insists on fighting to the death. Bes uses his powers to send the two men back to their home, but Vlad is sure to come after them. Bes and Zia return to the Brooklyn House to warn and assist Amos in the battle against the army Vlad had sent their way. Sadie and Carter enter the daut (the realm of the gods) and sail through the Twelve Houses of the Night where they come across many gods and use the three scrolls that make up the book of Ra to lead them on their journey. The Kane kids find Ra and awaken him, but he is not strong enough to battle Apophis. Vlad, who had been following Sadie and Carter on their journey, takes on the form of Apophis and tries to destroy Ra as well as the Kane kids. Desjardins shows up and uses his last bit of life to turn Apophis to dust. However this does not get rid of the Chaos god, but only buys Sadie and Carter time. Ra returns to the throne room of the gods where the other gods and goddesses pledge to look after him until he once again becomes strong.

 

     The theme of The Throne of Fire is that you shouldn't let others be the boss of you, in the end the only opinion that should matter is your own. Many of the gods didn't not want Sadie and Carter to continue on their quest to awaken Ra. They did not want a weak god placed in a position of power. Even Nekhbet and Babi tried to kill Sadie to prevent her from succeeding. Nekhbet says to Sadie, "You would place a weak pharaoh on the throne of the gods. It goes against nature!"(Riordan 102). Nekhbet is obviously trying to sway Sadie's decision but Sadie ignores her and does what she believes should be done. Another god named Horus also tries to change Carter's decision about waking Ra and convince him to take the throne for himself and lead the House of Life to victory. Horus says to Carter, "Claim the crook and flail for yourself. Take the throne. Together, we can defeat Apophis"(Riordan 306). Carter finds the offer tempting but he knows the smartest decision is to continue with his plan to awaken Ra. Neither Sadie or Carter let the gods' opinions interfere with what they believe they should do. This theme that I have explained is clearly stated on page 326. Zia tells Carter, "Promise me, if it comes to a choice, that you'll listen to your own heart, not the will of the gods."

The Language of Shakespeare

 

We are starting our Romio and Juliet unit in english class. I am sort of excited to read the story considering I have heard alot about it and know the general plot line. However I have yet to read the text itself. I am also I little nervous to read the book since I know the language can be difficult to decifer. However, there is a beauty to the old Elizibethan language. The way Shakespeare wrote dialogue was so poetic. The words are gentle to the ears and smoothly roll off the tongue. The dialect suits a romantic tragedy like Romio and Juliet very well.

 

We did an activity today in class where we had to read Shakespearean compliments to one another. The way he spoke must have made the girl he was talking to melt. Guys don't woo girls today the way the did back then. So many metaphors and similes were used to describe Shakespeare's love. Here are a few lines we read;

 

"You are a flame of beauty. Sweet and delicious as the feast of love" (The Arts of Wooing and Complementing, 185).

 

"The unblown rose, the crystal, nor the diamond, are not more pure than she" (The Arts of Wooing and Complimenting, 186).

 

"You are the star I reach at" (The Arts of Wooing and Complimenting, 187).

 

Wow. This is such fine language. I think we all need to appreciate the art these men used to speak with. For all those girls out there, who couldn't resist a guy who complimented them in such a way?

 

In my opinion romance is an ok genre. There are certain books with romance that I really enjoy. Then there's other books that are just to mushy gushy for my taste. Luckily there is comedy mixed in with Shakespeare's work. Now I really enjoy a good comedy story. I am not exactly sure how funny I am going to consider his work since humor is way different now than it was then. We also reviewed some Elizabethan insults in class too. I think the class mainly found them funny because they're so strange. Here's a few;

 

"Thou  infectuous, rump-fed, moldwarp!"

"Thou beslubbering, crook-patted, bugbear!"

"Thou warped, full-gorged, measle!"

 

If someone called me one of these nowadays I would probably be really confused, but if they said this to me way back when, I don't think I would be too happy. You can definately see a difference between language today and language back in Elizabethan times. The difference shows in both romance and comedy. My the times have changed!

Using Figurative Language

 

We recently shared personal narratives that we had wrote in English class. There was a lot of figurative language used. I was actually very impressed with the creative things my classmates came up with. It made me think what if there was no such thing as figurative language? Can you picture your self reading a book that had no similes or metaphors, no personification, no symbolism? How boring would literature be with out all of these writing elements? Figurative language is one of the things that draws me into a book. It allows me to picture the story and adds depth. You know that your a good writer if you use strong figurative language.

 

There are two ways to describe things: by blandly stating what something is or what's going on, or by painting a picture that appeals to the senses. For instance if you were describing a summer day you could say, "It was hot outside and the sun shined bright into my eyes" or you could say, "The sun beat down on me, its hot rays burning my skin and stinging my eyes. I felt as if I was going to melt away." I don't think there is a doubt that the second one was the better way to describe the scene. Figurative language is so important to literature. Without it we would be reading bland words with a blank mind.

My Favorite Type of Genre

 

     There are tons of different book genres out there; science fiction, mystery, historical fiction, etc. Don't get me wrong, all are interesting in their own way. However, there is one genre that I tend to pick from and enjoy the most. Fantasy! I know there are probably plenty of others who will agree with me that fantasy is their favorite book genre. I guess I just like to read books where I can escape the real world and go on an adventure that would have been otherwise impossible. The thought of magic or mythical creatures that are some where in the modern world excites me. Fantasy just adds an extra zing to your regular old fictional stories.

 

     Some of my favorite fantasy books are the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling and the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan. I think we all need to take a moment to just think about and appreciate the work these authors put in to come up with such elaborate ideas. They pracitcally created a whole new world that dwells with in the minds of the readers. Both of these series demonstrate the places you can escape to when reading a fantasy book. While reading Harry Potter I was able to leave the stress of my own life and go on journey with wizards who encounter dark magic from Voldemort and cross paths with many magical creatures such as Buckbeak the Hippogriff. As I had my nose stuck in the Percy Jackson books I forgot about my surroundings and joined the demigod campers at Camp Half-blood and met many Greek gods.

 

     The book I am almost finished reading is also fantasy. The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan is about two siblings who are related to the Egyptian Gods and use their magic powers to help awaken Ra the sun god and prevent Chaos from taking over. Again I was drawn to this book for its incorporation of magic in the modern world. Here is an exerpt displaying the engaging element of fantasy from my book, "The griffin stepped into full view. It was twice the size of a regular lion, its reddish-gold fur coated with limestone dust. Its tail was studded with spiky feathers that looked as hard and sharp as daggers.With a single flick , it pulverized the stone slab it had come from" (Riordan 16, 17). This is definately not an every day happening. This quote shows you how fantasy books allow you to escape reality. If you haven't lately, pick up a fantasy book and see where it takes you!



The Importance of an Interesting Exterior

 

 

     What draws you to a book? What makes you interested to read it? For some people it might just be good reviews or maybe they already saw the movie and want to read the book. I know that for me, it's the cover and the summary on the back. If I'm in a book store, a library or even browsing on Good Reads, and I see a book with an attention grabbing picture on the front, I begin to wonder what story lies within it. Nobody looks at a book with a solid or plain outside and says, "Wow! This book looks fantastic!" Sure, you might pick it up and flip through it just to see what it's about, but it doesn't capture your attention as much. The picture on the front of a book can reveal a lot and make you predict what the book's about. You are then forced to test your predictions and actually read the book.

 

Here are some perfect examples of intriguing book covers:

 

 

 

     These capture your attention don't they? They make you want to know what the story is about. That's when the second thing that draws me to a book comes into play; the summary. After I find an interesting cover, I flip over the book and read the back. If it doesn't interest me, then most likely I won't read the book. The summary on the back cover has to give just enough information about the story so that you're left with unanswered questions. It has to highlight the key points in the plot with out revealing the ending.

Here are a few quotes from the summaries of the books shown above:

Monster by Walter Dean Myers- "The film will be the story of my life. No, not my life, but of this experience. I'll call it what the lady prosecutor called me ... Monster."

Feed by Mira Grant- "We had cured cancer. We had beaten the common cold. But in doing so we created something new, something terrible that no one could stop."

Unwind by Neal Shusterman- "Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, parents can have their child "unwound," whereby all of the child's organs are transplanted into different donors, so life doesn't technically end."

You thought these books looked interesting when you only saw the cover! Now that you have read a bit about the book what do you think? You can see my point about how important the exterior of a book can be. They say not to judge a book by it's cover, but in this case how can you not?



I Wonder...

 

     I am about halfway through The Throne of Fire and it is getting very interesting. Sadie and Carter Kane just traveled to Russia in search of the second of three scrolls that will help them to awaken Ra the sun god. They have to sneak inside the Hermitage (a tsars palace that had been turned into a museum) and find the secret entrance to the Eigteenth Nome (a region in The House of Life whch is an organization of Egyptian magicians). Once Sadie and Carter find the Eighteenth Nome they stumble apon Vlad Menshikov and he is performing a ritual to summon Set, the god of evil. The Kane kids know they will find the scroll in Vlad's desk. After they get it and try to sneak out without being seen, Set gives away their disguise. Vlad unleashes a double headed demon snake on them and the only way for Sadie and Carter to survive is to unleash Set from Vlad's binding. They know this is a risky move since they have had trouble dealing with Set before. They release Set and, without much help from him, they escape. They have to immediately leave Russia since Vlad is on their tail. Before they leave, Set gives Sadie and Carter a clue on where the third and final scroll is. He does this only under the condition that Sadie gives up his secret name, releasing her power over him. Sadie hesitantly agrees and the Kane kids continue on their journey.

 

     Sadie had felt that getting the second scroll was entirely too easy. While Sadie is narrarating the story she says, "Where were the traps? The alarms? The exploding-donkey curses? I was certain we'd stolen the authentic scroll. I'd felt the same tingle in my fingers as when I'd taken the one from the Brooklyn Museum (without the fire, thankfully). So why hadn't the scroll been better protected?" (Riordan 177,178). You can tell from this quote that retrieving the first scroll had been much more difficult than retrieving the second. It had also involved many more protective curses and charms. This makes me think that Sadie will come across more challenges once she opens the scroll or she could be cursed after she reads it.

 

     Carter had met a girl named Zia in the previous book in the series and fallen in love with her. He then found out that she was only a shabti (an enchanted figure made from clay or wax that is used as a decoy) and that the real Zia had been hidden after she had been possessed by the goddess Nephthys. Ever since Carter learned about this he had made it his own duty to find her. In The Throne of Fire Carter hears a voice that tells him about Zia's where abouts. "You'll never find her, the spirit taunted. She sleeps in the Place of Red Sand, but she will die there if you follow your pointless quest" (Riordan 27). Later on, when Set talks to Sadie before they leave Russia he tells her, " 'And just because I like you so much, I have a free piece of information for your brother. Tell him Zia Rashid's village was called al-Hamrah Makan' " (Riordan 189). I predict that once Ra has been awakened, Carter is going to ask him to help find Zia and free her. I also predict that they will find the entrance to "the Place of Red Sand" hidden some where in Zia's old village. I can't wait to read on and see if I am right!

A Must Read!

 

 

     Recently I have finished the book Tiger Lily  by Jodi Lynn Anderson. You may recognize the name Tiger Lily from the Disney classic, Peter Pan . I was already a huge fan of Peter Pan and then I found this book and knew I had to read it. In the cartoon, Tiger Lily is a Native American princess who Peter saves from the clutches of Captain Hook. However, Anderson took a completely different take on the story. In the book, Tiger Lily is an outcast in her tribe. She is not a princess but in fact the daughter of a shaman. When Tiger Lily meets Peter Pan (the fearsome leader of the Lost Boys) it isn't long before the two start to fall in love. The couple is inseparable, that is until Wendy Darling shows up and changes everything. Usually I'm a fan of the Peter and Wendy duo, but this book got me rooting for Tiger Lily! 

 

     Tiger Lily features all of the same Disney characters you know and love from the cartoon; Captain Hook, Mr. Smee, the Lost Boys, Wendy Darling, Peter Pan, Tiger lily, and we can't forget Tinker Bell! In fact the entire story is told from the perspective of the little fairy who follows Tiger Lily on her journey. I thought this idea was amazing. Not many stories are told from the point of view of a girl that's only a few inches tall and has wings. There was never a dull moment in this book. The story had so much depth from the romance between Tiger Lily and Peter to the conflict between Hook's pirate crew and the Lost Boys to the internal struggles Tiger Lily faces with herself. This is definitely not your average fairy tale!

 

     I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves adventure, suspense, and romance. This book grabbed my heart and played with my emotions. I became attached to the characters that are described with so much detail I felt like they could have been my life long friends. I loved Tiger Lily so much that I literally couldn't put it down. I read for eight hours straight and finished the novel in a single day! The ending was shocking and totally unexpected. Can you say plot twist? If you think this book is anything like the Disney movie, guess again.  I dare you to take the trip to this re-imagined Neverland and experience a read that's unlike anything else.

 

 

 

 

Click here to see a book description, critical praise, a trailer and more for Tiger Lily.



A Look Into My Book

 

     Currently I am reading The Throne of Fire  by Rick Riordan. I just finished chapter 7 and 8 and they were action packed. Sadie Kane, a magician related to the gods of ancient Egypt, had gone back to her home town of London, England to spend her birthday with her grandparents and friends before she left on a difficult quest to awaken Ra the sun god. Sadie realizes that returning home by herself was a bad decision when she finds her grandmother possessed by Nekhbet the vulture goddess and her grandfather possessed by Babi the bear-sized baboon god. The two gods are determined to kill Sadie and prevent her from awakening Ra. Sadie flees and ends up running into her two friends Liz and Emma. Sadie knows that if she doesn't protect them, Nehkbet and Babi will most likely hurt them. Sadie brings her friends with her as she tries to escape the clutches of the gods. Sadie runs into Anubis, the god of death, who tells her that help is on the way.  The three girls hop on a subway and hoped that Nehkbet and Babi weren't close by.

 

     Liz and Emma, having no knowledge that real magicians, more than just illusionists, existed were extremely confused when they saw the giant chimp of a god chasing after them. Sadie fills them in on her experiences with magic and ancestry with the gods. The girls get off the subway at Waterloo Station. Unfortunately the gods have once again found them. Sadie know that battling them is the only way to protect her friends. Babi, with an enraged temper start to fling things around the station and civilians scatter. Soon Sadie, Liz, and Emma are the only ones facing the gods. A troop of Babi's baboon minions create chaos and Sadie quickly searches her magic bag to find something she can use to defend her self. Sadie drinks a potion so that she can channel the power of her patron god, Isis. Sadie successefully causes a diversion and delays Nehkbet and Babi in their chase. The three girls bolt outside of the station and find the help Anubis had told them about. A short, hairy man presented himself to the girls as Bes, god of dwarves. Bes drove the girls to Waterloo Bridge where battling the gods would be easier since the river would make it difficult for them to stay attached to the mortal world.

 

     Once they reach the river, Sadie, Liz and Emma run to the bridge. Bes tells the girls that he will be over in a bit to help. At the bridge, Sadie has Liz and Emma draw a protective circle around them that will deflect the power of the gods at least for a short while. Nehkbet and Babi approach the girls with the taste of victory in their mouths. Sadie was weakening and wasn't sure how much longer she could hold up. Bes arrives just in time. He wore nothing but a blue speedo that showed off his flabby, hairy skin. Bes threatens to scare his fellow gods away but they take it as a joke. Bes runs over to Babi, wrestling and head-butting him until he finally gave up and disappeared. Then Bes went over to Nehkbet. He disfigured his own face and roared at her, ripping away the essence of the goddess. All that remained was the worn bodies of Sadies grandparents. Sadie and her friends ran over to them and checked to see if they were ok. Both her grandfather and her grandmother were breathing and only needed rest. Bes told Sadie that she needed to get a move on her quest. He also said that her grandparents and her friends weren't allowed to come along because they were only mortals. Liz and Emma assure Sadie that they will take care of her grandparents and that they had a great adventure. Sadie agrees to go with Bes and start her new journey.

Connecting Texts

 

 

       Currently I am reading The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan. This is the second book in the Kane Chronicles. As I have been reading this novel I have noticed it has many similarities to the book Children of The Lamp: The Akhenaten Adventure by P.B. Kerr. Both of these stories are centered around the element of magic. The Throne of Fire is all about magicians and the power of the gods of Ancient Egypt.  Children of The Lamp: The Akhenaten Adventure is about the powers of genies, or djinn as they are referred to as in the story. These two novels also have similar main characters. The main characters in each book are a brother and sister pair who are very different from each other, both in personality and appearance. In Rick Riordan's book the main characters are named Sadie and Carter Kane. Sadie has blonde hair, blue eyes, and light skin. She has a rebellious personality and a sharp tongue. Carter has dark hair and dark skin. He is well-mannered and a problem solver. In P.B. Kerr's book the main characters are named Phillipa and John Guant. Phillipa is short, has red hair, and wears glasses. She is much more intellectual than her brother. John is tall and dark haired. He is the more athletic of the two. 

 

      Oddly enough, both sets of siblings are assisted with their first magical journey by their uncle. For Sadie and Carter it's their classy Uncle Amos and for Phillipa and John it's their eccentric Uncle Nimrod. Amos and Nimrod help train their niece and nephew and teach them how to use their newly found powers. In both books the main characters put their powers to use and go on a quest to overcome evil. Sadie and Carter have to awaken Ra the sun god so he can assist them in preventing Apophis the Chaos snake from breaking free of his prison and taking over. Phillipa and John have to locate the supposedly dead pharaoh named Akhenaten, and his tomb, which holds seventy lost souls. Meanwhile, they also have to outwit Iblis (the most evil djinn) before he gains too much power.

 

         I wonder if it's just a coincidence that The Throne of Fire and Children of The Lamp: The Akhenaten Adventure have so much in common? Is it possible that one of the authors was inspired by the other? Both books are great and if you have read and enjoyed one of them I guarantee you will love the other!

 

 





 

 

Complex Characters In The Reapers Are the Angels

 

        The protagonist in The Reapers Are The Angels is a fifteen year old girl named Temple. Temple is very independent and doesn't like it when other people get into her business. In the beginning of the book Temple is alone and keeps her secrets locked inside of her. By the end of the book Temple has made multiple new friends and has opened up to others. Temple is a dynamic character and shows significant change over the course of the book. Temple also helps to develop the theme of The Reapers Are the Angels. The main theme of this book is that  the right thing to do isn't always the easiest thing to do. Temple is forced to make many decisions between right and wrong in this book and the readers can clearly see her struggle to try and pick the correct choices. Through this the theme is explained. In the text one of Temple's new friends named James asked her to kill his father. James' father had been turned into a zombie but James' grandmother had been unwilling to let go of her son and kept him captive instead. James was done seeing his father suffer and that's why he asked Temple to kill him. Here is a quote where Temple explains that it doesn't feel right to kill her friend's father even though she knows it should be done. "It don't seem right, she continues, the destruction of what a family loves - or even what a family hates for that matter. A household's got its own spooks, and it ain't for strangers to come bullying in to exorcise them"(Bell 107).

 

        The antagonist of the story is named Moses. Moses is a very large and mysterious man who goes after Temple after she kills his brother, Abraham. When Moses is first introduced to the story he knows to watch out for Temple and that she can be just as dangerous as the zombies that have taken over. Once Moses finds out Temple killed his brother he is furious with her and vows that her death will be at his hand. Throughout the book, Temple and Moses cross paths multiple times and Temple always manages to escape. After each time they meet Moses gains a little more respect for Temple and eventually grows to be quite fond of her. However he doesn't abandon his mission to kill her. Temple is forced to be constantly on the run because of Moses coming after her. This propels the story forward and keeps the action going.  Here is a quote spoken to Temple by a woman she meets at a safety camp after she killed Abraham. "God help you, I'm sure [Abraham] deserved whatever you gave him. But now his brother Moses has you on his agenda, and that's a man without an ounce of foolishness to distract him from his set course. And that means we have to get you out of here" (Bell 42). This quote shows how Moses' determination to get Temple forced her on the run and assisted in getting the plot moving.



 Book Review

  
   I found a helpful book review of The Reapers Are The Angels. It includes a brief summary of the book, highlighting key elements to the story such as the main character and the setting. This review also quotes a couple peoples opinions of the book, commenting on its pacing and language. The author of this review also included a captivating quote from the book. I thought this to be a well written and positive review of The Reapers Are The Angels.

The Reapers Are The Angels Book Trailer