Book One Project

 Room Museum Exhibit

(CAUTION SPOILERS)

Room

This will be an exciting simulation of Room. It will feature Wardrobe, Bed, TV, skylight, the hole, and more. This will be a life size room where people can walk in and imagine what it would feel like in Jack and his Mother’s position. They will be able to enter Wardrobe and imagine sleeping in there every night for five years. What would you do if you had to eat the same things every week? See their daily meals and weekly list. What would you do every day for 24 hours?  See their daily schedule and how they past their time.

Jack’s Vision

“I walk on flowers by accident, there’s hundreds not a bunch like the crazies send us in the mail, they’re growing right in the ground like hair on my head.” Jack is only five and has a different interpretation of things. When reading this book it is sometimes hard to understand why he thinks or does something the way that he does. In this part of the exhibit you will be able to look at the things in the book as Jack sees them. What seems normal to someone like you and I, is completely different to Jack. You will be able to look through a series of glasses to see several different scenarios that Jack encounters throughout this story. Look at Jack’s Vision of Old Nick, Police Officers, The City, and more.

The Brown Truck

The Brown Truck is a big part of the book. In one scene when Jack and his Mother plan their escape, Jack must play dead until he is in the truck. This is Jack’s first time out of Room and the first time in a car. Jack is very scared and confused about what is happening. He must time the cars stopping to indicate when to jump. “There’s another beep but a different. A rattling like all metals. Up again, then crash, on my face, ow ow ow. Bang. Then she starts to shake and throb and roar under my front, its an earthquake…” In this section of the exhibit you will be able to sit in a simulator where you have to decide when to jump. When you make the decision there will be a surprise waiting for you – a whole new world that you’ve never seen before.

Drawing Station

Draw what you think Jack and the other characters would look like. If you don’t enjoy drawing but you want to share our own opinion of the way they look we will provide a professional artist for a small charge. After your drawing is complete give it to the front desk for a competition on the closest look alike to Jack and his Friends. All drawing will be given to the author and compared to her thoughts of the way she imagined them while writing the book.

Children’s Corner

Can’t make it to the exhibit because you can’t find a babysitter.  Bring the kids with you, they can play in the children’s corner. Your children can play the way Jack did. They can make their own eggsnake, play the number game, and have Physical Education. “Eggsnake is more longer than all around Room, we’ve been making him since I was three, he lives in Under Bed all coiled up keeping us safe… His tongue is a needle, that keeps red thread going right through him.” They can even make their own Sunday treat list. There will also be a small truck simulator where they can pretend that they have to escape from the Room. Your children can read Jacks favorite books, Alice in Wonderland, Here’s Dylan’s’ and more. Let them watch his favorite shows, Barney, Dora, The Wonder Pets, and more. So they will have to jump out of the truck when the time is right. When they leave they can have an orange sucker, Jacks favorite.

 

 

  

What is a book?

A book is a blanket. A book is a blanket that you can curl up with and read for hours and hours a day. A book is like a blanket because it starts cold until you warm up to it. You can curl up with a blanket on Sunday night and feel its warmth. Once you are warm under the blanket you never want to get up. After you get up all you want to do is get warm again. A blanket can help you through hard times. You can cry into the blanket or you can cough in to it too. It has a laundry smell that makes you smile. It has a fuzzy feeling that never goes away.

A book is better than a kindle or an electronic book. An eBook doesn’t have a scent and it doesn’t have the same feel as a hard copy.  You can only read it for so long before your eyes begin to hurt and you become sick from looking at a screen. It’s the feeling of flipping the page instead of clicking a button. A page is a page unlike the eBook which turns one page into several pages just so you can see the font. You have to click the button several times to get from page one to page two.

When reading an eBook there isn’t a sense of accomplishment after finishing a book.  When you read an actual book you can see how large it looks and you know the weight of the book. When you are half way through you can see the line that your bookmark makes in the book. It’s like a half way mark in a race; once your half way through you can tell yourself that your half way there.  When you’re reading an eBook it’s like just seeing that you are 13.2 miles into the race. How far in the race is that? It doesn’t say half way, only 13.2 miles. There is no sense of accomplishment.

Being able to pass down a book to family and tell them how good it was it great. What if it is passed down generations and all of your family ends up reading it. So what do you do when you have an eBook and you can only share to so many relatives because they don’t all have eReader’s. 

Oh no I lost my kindle! So now I don’t have any of my books! If I had hard copies of the books I would a lot smaller chance of losing them all at once. It may be nice to be able to carry all of your books around at once but if you lose your device then you have to buy a new one and restore all of your books. If you lose the one book you’re reading it is easier and a lot cheaper to replace it.

MIss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

The main character in this book is Jake. In the begining of the book Jake tells the reader about his job. He tells the reader that he is trying to get fired from his job which runs through his family. Most people would react to this as a good thing; he has a long lasting job that is hard to lose. But Jake takes advantage of this and he tries to proove that its possible for him to get fired. In the book Jake tells the reader " ". This tells us that...

Jake also shows the reader that he is different and reacts differently than other characters to certain situations. In the book when his Grandfather runs off into the woods behind his house, Jake does something crazy that worries the characters and the reader. One of Jake's friends ran back to the car to grab something and told Jake to stay there so they could go into the woods together. But instead of waiting Jake went into the woods alone. When Jake found his Grandfather dead he was suprisingly pretty calm. But when his friend found him he was in shock and was freaking out.

This all shows how different characters deal with conflict.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

So far in my book the setting is the Smart Aid store and the woods behind Grandpa Portman's house. But becasue of the title I predict that the setting will be a house. The woods were described as dark and creepy and when Jake found his grandfather in a pool of blood, dying it made the setting a lot scarier. Not to mention Jake thinks he saw some kind of creature that he described as a scary man with tenticles coming out of his mouth waiting for someone to grab. In the book it says " ".

The best thing about my book is how it leaves you with questions and suspicion. Its the kind of book that you dont ever want to put down. The book that constantly has turning pages because you tell yourself that you will stop after you finish the chapter. But when you do finish the chapter you cant help reading the next page. I like how its in the perspective of a teenage boy so sometimes its relatable. The worst thing about my book is how it is pretty skippy. It skips around alot between things and I feel like it is making certain parts of the books seemed rushed. But at the same time I feel like they are taking a really long time to get to conflict and the main setting. So far my book isnt the best but its OK.

Prompt #1 (Best Sellers)

I read because it brings me to another world. It makes me feel like I'm in the fantasies that I always wish I could be a part of. When you watch a movie or a T.V. show you always wish that it was possible that it could be your story. But when you read a book you feel like it is your story. My favorite part about reading is when I find a good book and I can curl up and read for hours on end. When you sit in a comfortable chair and bring along a box of tissues for the sad moments and I cup of coffee that warms your lap. I also love being able to create the characters the way I think they would look or act. When create your characters it is easier to feel what they feel. You become the character and when something good or bad happens to them it’s like it’s happening to you. I also like the feeling of accomplishment that you get after finishing a book. You want to shout it to the world how good the book was that you read. When you want to share how good it was to as many people as possible. Or even when you have a special feeling that it is your book and it is only your story.  

And watch the movie trailier at this link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH-n39PCXp8

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children(English 1B)

So I am also in a Best Sellers class and my teacher showed our class a book trailer for this book. I liked the trailer so I thought it looked like a good book. I couldnt decide between this book and Room. But since I have to read an independent novel in this class and best sellers I am going to read both. So far all I know is that this is  in the perspective of a person that is talking about hearing stories from his/her grandpa. She/He is saying that her grandpa loved to tell tall tlaes and as she/he got older she/he realized that they couldnt be true. But she/he started to believe him again when he showed her/him picture of "peculiar children". These children were invisible, they had super strength and one could even levitate.

The author of Miss Perigrine's Home For Peculiar Children is Ransom Riggs. Ransom Riggs was born on a very old farm in Maryland. He grew up in Flordia and attended gifted schools. He studied film and wrote The Sherlock Holmes Handbook. This book was tied to the Sherlock Holmes movie that came out in 2009. After this he starred on the New York Times Best sellers list and became very popular. He then wrote Miss Perigrine's Home For Peculiar Children which also made to the Best Sellers list.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ransom_Riggs

Final Blogger Reflection

Click her to view my best blog post.

I believe that this Characterization post best exemplifies my ability to analyze complex characters. In the rubric it states that I must “analyze[s] in detail how complex characters develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme”. To complete 1st part of the requirement I write "Suzie changes throughout the story. She begins by being angry and upset... But throughout the story she knows that the best thing to do is to help her family find him. She also isn't as angry and upset. She instead is more acceptant of where she is." Later in the blog for the next part of the requirement I write “She can’t interact with the people on Earth by talking. She has to give them signs.” Lastly for my final requirement I write “I think that the main characters that keep the story moving are Susie, Lindsey, and Mr. Harvey. Susie keeps the story going by narrating and sharing her opinions and feelings. Lindsey keeps it going by search for clues about the killer and looking into Mr. Harvey. Mr. Harvey keeps the story moving because Susie explains how he seems to be feeling and how he is dealing with killing her.” This all shows the three requirements that are shown in the rubric.

 

Choice #2

One thing that I struggled with while using blogger would probably be keeping up with my reading. It was kind of hard to do the posts when I hadn’t finished the book. To get through this I would write in my planner how many pages I would have to read that night to make sure I would finish it. I also had a hard time coming up with things to write about in my free post. So to get through this I would annotate certain things as I read and then I would talk about my annotations and ask questions. A strength that I had with blogger was finding the things I needed to have in posts. For examples I did well with finding relationship and connections I my book.

Reading Skills

In the Lovely Bones I predict that Lindsay will be a big part of the police finding Mr. Harvey. A text to text connection would be how Lindsay finds ways to keep her mind off her sisters death by doing things like running and isolating herself form questions about Susie. This is like how Susie always tries to make her situation the best possible. A text to self connection would be how Lindsay is suspicious of Mr. Harvey and she is going to figure out what is up with him and I am the same way I always want to know what is going on and I will do almost anything to figure it out. Lastly a text to world connection would be like a police case that is dropped and then is brought back up later. The police case in Susies death is dropped but I thuink that Lindsay is going to find something that will cause it to get brought up again.

 

The Lovely Bones

So I read an article in the NY Times and I really liked it. It talks breaks down some of the things that the author writes and finds the deeper meaning of the text. It also talks about Mr. Harvey and asks some of the questions that I have been asking.

http://www.nytimes.com/2002/07/14/books/what-remains.html

The Lovely Bones

I am really happy that Susie has followed through and hasn't given up on trying to help her family find he killer. She cant speak to anyone on Earth so she has been trying to give the signs. She also doesn't know what their thinking so she doesn't know if they understand her messages. It would be so hard to talk without being heard.

Book Recommendations

Susie is a 14 year old girl that is killed by her neighbor Mr. Harvey. She has her own heaven and she can create anything she wants.
So far I love this book because I can almost relate to the way she feels I havent been killed so I cant relate to that. But I do relate to the way she feels about her family. The first thing she thinks about is her family.

Tone and Mood

The tone of my novel is very serious. She talks about her life very seriously throughout the book. The mood of the book is sad and depressing and even kind of scary. She talks about her death and how she feels about loosing her ffamily. This can make the reader feel very depressed and sad for her. There was a part in my book where she was talking to her friend about how she felt about loosing her family and her friend tried to cheer her up and turn it into a positive conversation. But she helped persuade her into understanding the seriousness of the subject.

The Lovely Bones

So I watched the movie again and it was like really scary. It was so scary when Mr. Harvey abducted her. I really like the book but the movie is actually kind of cool I really like her heaven scene. Obviously the movie is different and the book is better. For example in the movie she talks about her crush in the very beginning but she hasn't really talked about it very much in the book yet.

Characterization ReDo

Suzie changes throughout the story. She begins by being angry and upset. She wishes that Mr. Harvey dead. But throughout the story she knows that the best thing to do is to help her family find him. She also isn't as angry and upset. She instead is more acceptant of where she is. She is actually enjoying her Heaven. She has friends and dances with her neighbors. What ever she can think of that she wants she gets. She cant interact with the people on Earth by talking. She has to give them signs. For example she blows out her fathers candle and appears in the window to communicate. She can communicate easily with the souls in her Heaven though, although they don't talk much. So the other characters don't help describe her personality very much. I think that the main characters that keep the story moving are Susie, Lindsey, and Mr. Harvey. Susie keeps the story going by narrating and sharing her opinions and feelings. Lindsey keeps it going by search for clues about the killer and looking into Mr. Harvey. Mr. Harvey keeps the story moving because Susie explains how he seems to be feeling and how he is dealing with killing her.

The Lovely Bones

I read an article about this book and I thought it did a good job of talking about the family love. Susie had a perfect family she loved her parents and she got along with her sister. It hurt her family the most when they found out about her death. They are determined to find her killer.
http://www.sheknows.com/entertainment/articles/812511/the-lovely-bones-book-review

Theme and Summary

Susie right now is focusing on her sister, Lindsey. Susie feels bad that she cant be there to help Lindsey get through the hard time. She talks about how strong her sister is and how she wont break. Lindsey doesn't like attention and likes to be alone. She hates when people feel pity for her and when they try to help.  Susie wants to talk to Susie and make her feel better but the more she tries the more she feels no one can hear her. I still think that Susie wants Mr. Harvey dead but she is starting to focus more on her family. Susie is also starting to adjust and like her heaven. She dances with her neighbors and plays with her friends. I think that the theme so far in the book is that if you accept a situation and move on life will be more fun. If Susie doesn't fully accept her new situation she wont be able to be happy again.

The Lovely Bones

I feel really bad for Susie. All she wants to do is help her family and friends get over her death. She wishes that she could be there to comfort them or talk to them. But they cant hear her. No one can hear her. She also feels lonely. She has met a new friend and she has her Grandmother I her heaven with her but she wants more. She wants the warmth of her friends and family. I hope that she can find a way to communicate with her family.

Analysis

In the book "The Lovely Bones" Susie is killed and has to discover new ways of doing things in Heaven. Susie is accepting, she is accepting that she is dead and that everything is different. I know this because in the book Susie says "...I had accepted that I would never be with them again;"(Sebold 27). I also believe that Susie is very benevolent. Susie wants to help her friends and family but she cant. In the book Susie says "All I could do was talk, but no one on Earth could hear me"(Sebold 32). She says this because she wants to tell her family things to help them get over her death.

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

What I would like to know is more about Mr. Harvey. Why did he want Susie? Did he attack more girls? How long did it take him to prepare for this? Did he plan on killing her? Does he feel guilty? How did he know that she was going to take the shortcut that day? I bet that it would have happened eventually though. He created a big den underground with cokes and lights. So he had to have been planning this forever. Is there any evidence that can be held against him? I think its going to have something to do with her charm bracelet. Susie said that her mom knew about all the charms on her bracelet.

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

Susie Salmon was an average teenager girl in the 1970's, until she is murdered by her neighbor. She is now learning about her heaven and she is trying to find a way to expose her killer. At first she is regretful and angry that she was killed. But throughout the first couple chapters she becomes very accepting of the fact that she is dead. At the beginning she also wishes that her killer would be dead instead of her. Now she is more focused on exposing him and get closure for her parents and sister. This shows characterization because she changes her attitude throughout the story.

The Kite Runner

The theme of The Kite Runner is that the hardest person to forgive is yourself. Hassan, a Hazara (slave) boy was always very loyal to Amir, but Amir wasn’t always loyal to Hassan. Amir would tease Hassan about not being able to read and right. Amir was embarrassed to call Hassan a friend, when Amir was approached by the question “what does he mean to you?” Amir said “He’s my Hazara’s son”. Hassan still stayed loyal to Amir by not giving up Amir’s kite when asked by a bully, Assef. Hassan instead was raped and badly injured. Amir watched Hassan get attacked but didn’t step in, he only ran. He never told anyone what he encountered. Amir felt guilt for the rest of his life, and took every chance he could get to redeem himself. In the book it says “I opened my mouth and almost told her how I’d betrayed Hassan, lied, driven him out , and destroyed a forty-year relationship between Baba and Ali. But I didn’t. I suspected there were many ways that Soryara Taheri was a better person than me"(Hosseini 165). Amir goes back to Afghanistan to find that Hassan was killed and that Hassan's son was in an orphanage. He decides to find him and find the right care that he needs. Amir became less selfish and started caring for others.                                                                  

 

The Kite Runner Article

This article explained the book really well. It talked about all of the main events in the book like, how Amir wants his dad's attention. It also talks about the details and imagery that Khaled Hosseini uses in the book.