5/6/16
Freeze Tag
Caroline B. Cooney
What if you had the ability to completely freeze someone with just the touch of your finger?
Freeze Tag takes the game to the next level.
Meghan Moore was a normal, happy, sweet girl who was kind to everyone, even her strange neighbor Lannie. As kids, the two of them would play the classic game, freeze tag, along with their other neighbor, West. However, Lannie possessed the special ability to actually freeze people when she touched them.
Years later, Meghan and West are happily dating, worries gone. In comes Lannie. She threatens to freeze Meghan forever unless West promised to love her the best, forever. Terrified, West agrees, and so begins the cycle of twists and surprising character changes that are seen in the novel, Freeze Tag.
When beginning to read this book, I was a little spectacle, because the idea seemed extremely lame, and to be honest, a bit stupid. It seemed so far-fetched that I could hardly finish the first chapter. However, as I kept reading, I realized the concept was much more complicated than I had originally thought.
The novel focuses heavily on the characters themselves. Gradually, through Meghan's point of view, the author shows background and experiences of each character, to show us how they got to be that way.
Characters that you would never expect to turn evil, do, breaking many cliches told through other stories. The story also has an extremely surprising ending, also breaking the overly-used cliche of happily ever after.
I liked the book because it through many twists and turns at the reader, leaving them to wonder what would happen next, or how relationships would end. I was able to see characters affect one another, and the changes that they were forced to go through, whether it was good changes or bad changes.
The characters were well developed, and I could tell where they came from, and how they got to where they were today. I admire the author for being able to take a story, which may seem cheesy at first, to an original and interesting piece of work.
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
Monday, April 6, 2015
4/6/15
Divergent
Veronica Roth
Over spring break, I decided to go back and revisit one of my favorite books, Divergent. I loved this book for many reasons:
1. There was a strong, dynamic female lead who was both relatable and likable.
2. The plot was well thought out throughout the entire series.
3. There was something in it for everyone to enjoy; action, romance, science fiction, etc.
Divergent is set in a dystopian world in future Chicago, where the society is split into five factions based on a single personality trait, to be able to keep the peace. Everyone has a place in the society, and everyone knows where they belong. Except for Tris. She takes a test to discover which faction she belongs in, but it takes an unexpected turn. She tests positive for three different factions. They call it Divergent.
Before I go on, I took the time to define the factions for you. You're welcome.
Amity- the friendly, happy, farming faction.
Erudite- the smart faction,
Abnegation- the selfless, helping faction.
Candor- the honest, truthful faction.
Dauntless- the brave, daring faction.
Since Divergents are a threat to the government, that makes Tris a target. She is told to keep her Divergence a secret and to hide in a faction. Surprising everyone, she chooses Dauntless.
Tris is forced to leave her family behind in Abnegation, and join her new faction; her new home. She is faced with many obstacles her first day there (jumping off a moving train, being called a "stiff" because she is the only one from Abnegation, etc.), however, she is determined to make it in Dauntless after hearing that if she doesn't do well during training, she would be cut.
Pain.
Fatigue.
Pride.
Strength.
Tris is forced to endure extreme agony to be able to "face her fears".
Along the way, however, she meets a guy who calls himself Four, and with his help, she passes through the first stage of training, however, with much difficulty. They develop a unique relationship and grow closer, as Tris continues in her training.
A few scares, fights, and friend betrayals later, Tris somehow finds herself in the midst of a government rebellion.
What happens next? Read to find out.
Buy the book!!
Divergent
Veronica Roth
Over spring break, I decided to go back and revisit one of my favorite books, Divergent. I loved this book for many reasons:
1. There was a strong, dynamic female lead who was both relatable and likable.
2. The plot was well thought out throughout the entire series.
3. There was something in it for everyone to enjoy; action, romance, science fiction, etc.
Divergent is set in a dystopian world in future Chicago, where the society is split into five factions based on a single personality trait, to be able to keep the peace. Everyone has a place in the society, and everyone knows where they belong. Except for Tris. She takes a test to discover which faction she belongs in, but it takes an unexpected turn. She tests positive for three different factions. They call it Divergent.
Before I go on, I took the time to define the factions for you. You're welcome.
Amity- the friendly, happy, farming faction.
Erudite- the smart faction,
Abnegation- the selfless, helping faction.
Candor- the honest, truthful faction.
Dauntless- the brave, daring faction.
Since Divergents are a threat to the government, that makes Tris a target. She is told to keep her Divergence a secret and to hide in a faction. Surprising everyone, she chooses Dauntless.
Tris is forced to leave her family behind in Abnegation, and join her new faction; her new home. She is faced with many obstacles her first day there (jumping off a moving train, being called a "stiff" because she is the only one from Abnegation, etc.), however, she is determined to make it in Dauntless after hearing that if she doesn't do well during training, she would be cut.
Pain.
Fatigue.
Pride.
Strength.
Tris is forced to endure extreme agony to be able to "face her fears".
Along the way, however, she meets a guy who calls himself Four, and with his help, she passes through the first stage of training, however, with much difficulty. They develop a unique relationship and grow closer, as Tris continues in her training.
A few scares, fights, and friend betrayals later, Tris somehow finds herself in the midst of a government rebellion.
What happens next? Read to find out.
Buy the book!!
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Vicious
Sara Shepard
Vicious is the last book of the sixteen total books of the Pretty Little Liars series. Although I am sad to be letting go of yet another series, I can't help but feel relieved. Following these books for about the last two years has been exciting and stressful. I loved reading more about the characters' journey, however, I felt as if the plot was extremely redundant and repetitive. They go through a horrible experience which they try to forget, A threatens them, they suspect someone is A, they go on a dangerous trip to try to prove this person is A, it turns out that person is not A, someone dies, etc.
This book, however, was different, which I greatly appreciate.
The Liars are suspected of killing Ali, and are awaiting their court date. Each of them go through their own stage of depression, all contemplating running away, suicide, or disappearing. They -once again- suspect that someone is A, so, going against the court, go on a secret mission to another country trying to prove that that person is A. However, their lead, once again, turns out to be a false lead, and the girls are left feeling defeated. Emily, who had never been very stable minded, walks out into a raging storm and drowns. The other three girls are left depressed (even more than they already are), and Aria runs away to Europe, Spencer continues on her plan of "disappearing", and Hana makes a rash decision to get married before meeting her inevitable fate-going to jail.
The police end up catching Aria, and she is quickly flown back home. In a surprising (not really) turn of events, Emily managed to survive the storm and find Ali on the way. It turns out that she saw Ali living at her mother's old house, and the two get into a huge brawl. Just kidding. Emily calls the cops and they arrest Ali. All charges are then dropped on the girls and they end up living happily ever after.
The ending doesn't really surprise me, since I know that the author would never kill any of the main girls; the fans would have an uproar. The "I pretend to be dead but am not really dead because I am going off to save you all" plot line is one that is often used, and I feel as if though it was sort of predictable, it was a nice change from the previous repetitive plots of the books.
This book was amazing, as was the series, and I recommend it to anyone looking for an adventure, mystery, and romance book all mixed into one. :)
Check out the wiki!
Thursday, March 12, 2015
3/12/15
Individual self-expression can be seen in our modern-day society when we look at the tv show “Modern Family” when individual characters such as how Cam chooses to express himself by trying to go back into teaching again, this is important to the theme by showing it in a modern contexts.
Fahrenheit 451 Theme Handout
Theme statement: Individual Self-Expression Is Important
Group Members: Marina Walters, Rebecca Shu, MacKenzie Miller, Grannt Epstein, and Anthony Lev
Bell 4
Three specific textual examples from the book that show how this theme is developing:
- “‘ It doesn’t think anything we don’t want it to think.’”
Bradbury, Ray. "The Hearth and the Salamander." Fahrenheit 451. New York: Del Rey Book, 1991. 27. Print.
2. "‘ Nobody listens anymore. I can’t talk to the walls because they’re yelling at me. I can’t talk to my wife; she listens to the walls. I just want someone to hear what I have to say. And maybe if I talk long enough, it’ll make sense. ‘“ (pg. 82)
Bradbury, Ray. "The Sieve and the Sand." Fahrenheit 451. New York: Del Rey Book, 1991.
82. Print.
3. “...and if the men were silent it was because there was everything to think about and much to remember. Perhaps later… when the sun was up and had warmed them, they would begin to talk, or just say the things they remember...’” (pg.164-165)
Bradbury, Ray. "Burning Bright." Fahrenheit 451. New York: Del Rey Book, 1991. 164-65. Print.
Timeline of Theme
Part 1:
- Montag, in the beginning showed his patch to others to show that he was a fireman. (Firemen were those at the time lit fires instead of extinguish fires) The salamander was had thought to have lived in fire and wasn't affected by it. This was also given to the name of the firetrucks to “show the flame.”
- A woman in the book burnt herself with her books to symbolize that she would rather die than let firemen burn them. It states, “The woman's hand twitched on the single matchstick. The fumes of kerosene bloomed up about her.” (Page 49) Guy also shows his curiosity (his true self) by stealing a book and hiding it in his coat to read later.
Part 2:
- Towards the middle of the book Montag had started to be more open with his thoughts about the burning of books. He was standing up for them and putting himself out there to try to save the books to show the society how important they really are. He believes that if he starts to show his feelings for the books then he could possibly make a change in making a more perfect society.
Part 3:
- Into the end of the book the people will now begin communicating with each other instead of keeping to themselves by doing this is demonstrating them expressing themselves through collaboration and communication which was not heard of before. One example of this would be when Clarisse says that they actually use their family room for spending time together and communicating which shocks everyone. By the end of the book though seeing this communication and the people enjoying themselves demonstrates the importance of self expression. This can be seen on page 164-165.
Individual self expression allows Montag to make changes to the world and create a different way of thinking for the people in the city, by the end of the book people are memorizing whole books about self expression without the self expression nothing would have changed.
Individual self-expression can be seen in our modern-day society when we look at the tv show “Modern Family” when individual characters such as how Cam chooses to express himself by trying to go back into teaching again, this is important to the theme by showing it in a modern contexts.
Sunday, March 8, 2015
3/8/15
Some people may say that playing too many video games causes one to become anti-social, or to not have any friends. However, "More than 70 percent of gamers play with a friend and millions of people worldwide participate in massive virtual worlds through video games such as "Farmville" and "World of Warcraft"..." Through multiplayer games, players are able to make friends online, and learn to cooperate with others through interactive games. This can prevent social awkwardness, which may result from people who don't have any opportunities to interact with others.
Video games aren't necessarily a bad influence on children. They can help improve people's moods, problem solving skills, as well as social skills. Video games aren't only harmful, but can help children in many different areas of their life.
Fahrenheit 451: Technology
In this article, authors discuss how technology, mainly video games, are a good influence on many kids, instead of the popular belief that they are bad for children.
Technology used for entertainment isn't always bad for children. Studies have shown that video games can actually help kids learn and enhance their abilities. Video games aren't only harmful, but can help children in many different areas of their life.
Video games can help improve people's moods. Studies show that, "Simple games that are easy to access and can be played quickly, such as "Angry Birds," can improve players' moods, promote relaxation and ward off anxiety." This may help people who are feeling stressed or depressed to feel happier, and can cause their actions to be friendlier. As a result of this, people could end up working harder, and new ideas and advancements in technology could be developed. Video games could also help improve children's problem-solving skills. Studies also show that, "The more adolescents reported playing strategic video games... the more they improved in problem solving and school grades the following year." Playing these types of video games could actually help children's performances in school, instead of hurting them. They could also help to develop important problem solving skills that can help them later in life.
Video games aren't necessarily a bad influence on children. They can help improve people's moods, problem solving skills, as well as social skills. Video games aren't only harmful, but can help children in many different areas of their life.
Thursday, January 15, 2015
1/15/15
Hush, Hush
Becca Fitzpatrick
Hush, Hush is a hardcore fantasy, mainly directed towards people who like to fangirl over things. In my opinion, it is a mix between Twilight and Maximum Ride.
The main characters name is Nora, and she is just an average sophomore living in Maine. But, of course, like all girly books, there is something so special about this average girl that she immediately draws the attention of Patch Cipriano, an older boy in her class who has failed biology many times. She is immediately drawn to him (like Bella) and can't stop thinking about him.
"Coincidentally", their separate groups of friends run into each other at the local fair, and she somehow "ends up" next to Patch just as they are about to ride the Archangel, a giant roller coaster. That's when things start getting suspicious. She has, almost an out-of-body experience, where she feels like she's falling off the roller coaster, only to end up back in the seat next to Patch.
After being "abandoned" by both of their friends, Nora is forced to let Patch drive her home. She invites him in, and he immediately starts to make tacos. Yes. Tacos. She becomes scared as she sees the knife in his hand grow in size, but immediately dismisses it as her mind playing tricks on her.
Many other strange events occur, but she keeps coming up with explanations as to why they are happening.
As her and Patch grow closer, he reveals to her that Jules, her best friend, is actually another fallen angel who wants revenge on Patch.
Stuff happens, blah blah blah, and somehow, when Nora accidentally touches the scars on Patch's back, he ends up explaining everything to her.
Apparently, Patch is actually a fallen angel from heaven who was trying to kill her, in order to have a real human body, which pretty much explains all of the strange things that have been happening to her. She becomes afraid, but, like always, he claims that he's fallen in love with her (-_-), and that he will never hurt her. Many other people, who either are in love with Patch or hate him, try to kill Nora but obviously, he saves her every time.
Eventually, it is revealed that Jules is actually the bad guy, and he tries to kill Nora. Patch (obviously), comes to the rescue and the two have a whole manly showdown, resulting in Patch coming out victorious and Jules dying.
The two kiss and make up, and they live happily ever after. Just kidding. There are three other books to the series, so be warned.
Overall, I thought the book was pretty good, though cheesy and cliche, and having many plot similarities to Twilight. However, the book was very well written, and the author really builds the suspense up nicely. It was an interesting book, so if your bored and looking for a good fantasy book, be sure to check it out.
Click here to read the full summary!!!!!
Hush, Hush
Becca Fitzpatrick
Hush, Hush is a hardcore fantasy, mainly directed towards people who like to fangirl over things. In my opinion, it is a mix between Twilight and Maximum Ride.
The main characters name is Nora, and she is just an average sophomore living in Maine. But, of course, like all girly books, there is something so special about this average girl that she immediately draws the attention of Patch Cipriano, an older boy in her class who has failed biology many times. She is immediately drawn to him (like Bella) and can't stop thinking about him.
"Coincidentally", their separate groups of friends run into each other at the local fair, and she somehow "ends up" next to Patch just as they are about to ride the Archangel, a giant roller coaster. That's when things start getting suspicious. She has, almost an out-of-body experience, where she feels like she's falling off the roller coaster, only to end up back in the seat next to Patch.
After being "abandoned" by both of their friends, Nora is forced to let Patch drive her home. She invites him in, and he immediately starts to make tacos. Yes. Tacos. She becomes scared as she sees the knife in his hand grow in size, but immediately dismisses it as her mind playing tricks on her.
Many other strange events occur, but she keeps coming up with explanations as to why they are happening.
As her and Patch grow closer, he reveals to her that Jules, her best friend, is actually another fallen angel who wants revenge on Patch.
Stuff happens, blah blah blah, and somehow, when Nora accidentally touches the scars on Patch's back, he ends up explaining everything to her.
Apparently, Patch is actually a fallen angel from heaven who was trying to kill her, in order to have a real human body, which pretty much explains all of the strange things that have been happening to her. She becomes afraid, but, like always, he claims that he's fallen in love with her (-_-), and that he will never hurt her. Many other people, who either are in love with Patch or hate him, try to kill Nora but obviously, he saves her every time.
Eventually, it is revealed that Jules is actually the bad guy, and he tries to kill Nora. Patch (obviously), comes to the rescue and the two have a whole manly showdown, resulting in Patch coming out victorious and Jules dying.
The two kiss and make up, and they live happily ever after. Just kidding. There are three other books to the series, so be warned.
Overall, I thought the book was pretty good, though cheesy and cliche, and having many plot similarities to Twilight. However, the book was very well written, and the author really builds the suspense up nicely. It was an interesting book, so if your bored and looking for a good fantasy book, be sure to check it out.
Click here to read the full summary!!!!!
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
11/20/14
Sixth Grade Secrets
Louis Sachar
Yes, I am a freshman reading a book about sixth graders. Deal with it.
Sixth Grade Secrets has many different plot lines. However, the main problem revolves about Laura and her club, Pig City, facing off with her enemy, Gabriel's club, Monkey Town. Yes. Those are, the real names of their clubs. Remember, they are only sixth graders.
Pig City is a secret club (since clubs are banned at their school) started by Laura and her friends, based on the words written on the hat that she bought from a garage sale. After initially inviting Gabriel to join her club, they meet up, but immediately don't get along. After angrily leaving her house, he decides to form his own club, inviting all the people that Laura hates. The two clubs go to war (prank wars), lives are lost (shirts are ruined), and lines are crossed (someone gets an illegal haircut).
However, like all sixth grade problems, they eventually come to an end, after about a month.
Dynamic Character- Laura
Laura has extremely long hair, due to the fact that when she was very young, her father promised to let her not cut her hair, if she never lied. And she never did (which is pretty ridiculous, if you ask me). However, towards the end of the book, she realizes that she was only telling half truths most of the time, which, in her case, still counted as lies.
At the beginning, Laura is very rebellious, forming a secret club, and opinionated towards other people. She forces others to give her "insurance", something embarrassing for her to keep in a box, in order to join the club, so that if they ever betray her, she will expose that embarrassing thing to the world. Personally, I think that she is being very selfish and immature about the whole club thing, but I guess she thinks she's being cool.
Her secret is that she is in love with her teacher, Mr. Doyle. This quickly changes after he punishes her for pulling pranks that he had no proof that she pulled (even though she did). This change is also due to the fact that she falls for someone else, someone else her own age, a boy whose name starts with a G... hint hint.
Sixth Grade Secrets
Louis Sachar
Yes, I am a freshman reading a book about sixth graders. Deal with it.
Sixth Grade Secrets has many different plot lines. However, the main problem revolves about Laura and her club, Pig City, facing off with her enemy, Gabriel's club, Monkey Town. Yes. Those are, the real names of their clubs. Remember, they are only sixth graders.
Pig City is a secret club (since clubs are banned at their school) started by Laura and her friends, based on the words written on the hat that she bought from a garage sale. After initially inviting Gabriel to join her club, they meet up, but immediately don't get along. After angrily leaving her house, he decides to form his own club, inviting all the people that Laura hates. The two clubs go to war (prank wars), lives are lost (shirts are ruined), and lines are crossed (someone gets an illegal haircut).
However, like all sixth grade problems, they eventually come to an end, after about a month.
Dynamic Character- Laura
Laura has extremely long hair, due to the fact that when she was very young, her father promised to let her not cut her hair, if she never lied. And she never did (which is pretty ridiculous, if you ask me). However, towards the end of the book, she realizes that she was only telling half truths most of the time, which, in her case, still counted as lies.
At the beginning, Laura is very rebellious, forming a secret club, and opinionated towards other people. She forces others to give her "insurance", something embarrassing for her to keep in a box, in order to join the club, so that if they ever betray her, she will expose that embarrassing thing to the world. Personally, I think that she is being very selfish and immature about the whole club thing, but I guess she thinks she's being cool.
Her secret is that she is in love with her teacher, Mr. Doyle. This quickly changes after he punishes her for pulling pranks that he had no proof that she pulled (even though she did). This change is also due to the fact that she falls for someone else, someone else her own age, a boy whose name starts with a G... hint hint.
I honestly first read this book when I was in fifth grade, but when you really like a book, it never gets old. As I got older, I realized I had different thoughts towards the book. For example, when I first read it as a fifth grader, I thought it was the coolest book ever, and even wanted to start my own secret club. Now, however, as an older freshman, I can't help but think how stupid their problems are, or how everyone seems to blow everything way out of proportion. I find it quite childish and hilarious when reading it now, but even as a high-schooler, I can't help but think that their sixth grade secrets are nothing like what I have to deal with today.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)