Readers Response 3

Maximum Ride
James Patterson
p.163-p.440(end)
1hr.15 min.
rating: 7.5/10

     This book continues with basically more of the same, and luckily "the same," is pretty good stuff. The book continues with the characters going to New York to investigate their origins while evading going back to the mutant "school" that engineered them.
     There are more set-of-the pants adventure moments, but the book left too  many questions unanswered for my taste. The book's ending feels out of place and somewhat rushed, although it does open the door for the sequel, which has already been released. Another thing that kind of ticked me off was, as it progressed towards the end, the book didn't get better. It started of great, and instead of picking it up from there and getting better, it kept a constant formula of chases and mystery, which isn't necessarily bad, but it is somewhat disappointing to read 400+ pages of a book and the story doesn't really go anywhere.
     The book still keeps it's great characters, it's sense of mystery and adventure, and it's action-packed sequences( LOL, I wrote this, then looked at the back cover and it said " Adventure, mystery, and suspense in big lettering)but this is just barely enough to bring it to the end without it being boring. Hopefully the author will bring something new to the table in the sequel, which I will be reading. Overall, this book was, a pleasant surprise at first, and kept the same formula which was good, but not great.

Readers Response 2 + vocabulary

Vocab: 
1.lexicography

def.-The writing or compiling of dictionaries; the editing or making of dictionaries.

2.hypnagogic

def.-Of, pertaining to, or occurring in the state of drowsiness preceding sleep.

3.bailiwick

def.-A person's specific area of knowledge, authority, interest, skill, or work.

 

Maximum Ride

James Patterson

p.1-p.163

45 min.

Rating: N/A

     

     I was iffy about this book at first, mainly because it belonged to the sci-fi genre, and there are tons of novels in that genre out there that are cold, lifeless reads. As I read though, I realized that this book was worth it, the writing was filled with a mix of futuristic action, but there is a nice emotional back story to help the book along. This book is about genetically engineered people with wings and other abilities that escape from a secret mutant school. The are pursued by the school's law enforcement "the erasers" as the struggle to find out about their path.

     This book is very fast-paced, and there are many action sequences that are described with detail. I like how even though there are many characters, the author gives them all distinct personalities, a trait not commonly found in books off this genre. This book really draws you in, and the only thing that frustrated me was how the book really got you involved and asking questions, but never really gave you the answers. It's not a bad strategy for writing, and it makes sure readers will read the rest of the book or series, but the Pendragon books did the same thing, and the last book in the that series failed to live up to the standards the other books set. I'm willing to give the author the benefit of the doubt, but he'd better not write a great series and then wimp out when he has to provide a great conclusion.

     Overall, this book had a great start that contained a great plot, good characters, and a great mix of both futuristic sci-fi and an emotional back story.

 

Readers Response

Animal Farm
George Orwell
p.1-p.140
30 min.
rating: 6.0/10.0

     After watching the movie in Mr.Thorton's class, I got this at the library following the basic principle of "the book is always better than the movie." In this case, the book was exactly like the movie. the only real noticeable difference was the ending, which in the book ends with a cruel, totalitarian government ruled by pigs that act like humans having control over the farm. The movie was a little less depressing, because it's from Hollywood, which lives off happy endings, and because by the time the movie was made, Soviet Russia had fallen. Anyway, in the movie the totalitarian government eventually bleeds itself dry, and the animals come back seeking a better future. Call me weird, but I actually liked the book's ending better, because it totally added to the nature of the book, which is really, really, creepy. It's weird because you'd think that a book that's demonstrates the cruelty of communism using a story about farm animals that form a communist government would just be weird, not scary, but after seeing the movie, some parts of the book really freak me out. Oh, fun fancy: In France, a pig may not be named napoleon. When i first saw this in a book, I thought it had something to do with Napoleon Bonaparte, but after reading this book( the dictator of the farm is a pig named napoleon), the law makes sense. I guess the French Government was creeped out as much as i was. : The thing that was really cool about this book is it gives you a really good sense of what communism is without making sit through a monotone history class. George Orwell had a really cool, unique, style of expressing his views of communism in a story about farm animals that turns out to be a giant metaphor of totalitarian government. With all that being said, it's still not exactly a book that has a sense of adventure, and there's not really any feeling of suspense, which is why I didn't find it as enjoyable as other books. I think, all Mr. Orwell wanted to do was tell a story that demonstrated the faults of communism, and as far as I'm concerned, he did what he set out to do.

Readers Response 3

My Teacher is an Alien series

Bruce Coville

p.1-p.458

1hr. 30 min.

 

     I used to love these books as a kid, and re-reading them i liked them but not as much as I did a few years ago. This book is actually 4 books in one that tell the story of aliens that investigate earth and are revealed to be making the decision whether to destroy it or not. A band of kids from earth originally stop their study, then later help them to realize that earth is a good place, but then see the planet's cruelties. Eventually they find the reason that humans have he biggest brains in the galaxy, but are the stupidest. This discovery, once revealed to the aliens, saves Earth. The big problem with the general plot is it's about aliens. Now, I love sci-fi and aliens, and am a big fan of books like war of the worlds and movies lie close encounters of the third kind. But, reading this in the 21st century, where every story written about aliens has written and aliens invading is an un-original, cliched idea, this books plot isn't the greatest. Of course, back in 3rd grade i could care less about cliches, but now this book brings on a strong "I've heard this before" feeling. Going on to the actual material, the book moves along at a decent pace. It can be a bit childish at times, but it is a children's book, so no complaints there. The last book is really where the good part happens, and is a big step above the other books. I guess it makes sense because the last book was released 4 years after the 1st, so the readers are mature enough to understand what happens in the last book, because some of the stuff in there is actually pretty deep. Reading all 4 in a row, the seriousness difference in the volumes really stands out. I mean the 1st has a lot about 6th grade playground drama, and the 4th talks about the cruelty of world hunger and babies that die because their mothers don't have enough milk. Anyway, the big message in this series, as in all of Mr. Coville's books, is that humans are idiotic, cruel creatures which are filled with hate. He did end it saying humans could get another chance, but he did literally say that humans were filled with hate( he said it was because there was only 1 human who split into little humans at impact on earth, and that separation made the hate, but we all know that's a bunch of sci-fi baloney.) Hmm, this sounds like something Rachel would like. :)

Readers Response 2 + Vocab

 Vocab:
1.solecism

def- Any error, impropriety, or inconsistency. 

2.blatherskite

def- a person given to voluble, empty talk.

3. billingsgate

def-coarsely or vulgarly abusive language.

The Alchemist
p.1-p.34
35 min.
rating: n/a (haven't fiinshed book yet)
I got this book as a present, and even though I'd never heard of it before, it's a big international bestseller. Note: This is not the Alchemist book that's about Nicholas Flamel and sorcery. This is totally different. The book starts with a short story about a boy who spends so much time admiring his reflection in a lake that he falls and drowns. When the lake is asked(yes, the lake talks, it's a fairy tale)about the boy, he says that he didn't notice the boy, he was looking at his beautiful reflection in the boys eyes. The story then proceeds to tell about a shepherd who has a dream about a treasure, and a old man encouraging him to go after it.   The book proceeds very slowly, but sets a great, lazy tone to the read. Even though the book wasn't originally written in English, it flows pretty smoothly. The writing is very vague an there are lots of times where the book starts to feel like a giant metaphor. There's a lot of philosophies that the author clearly believes in embedded in the core of this book, and the whole story revolves around them. For example, the plot as of now is about a shepherd trying to find a treasure, and basically trying to find the meaning of life. It's funny how the meaning of life for a shepherd is to find treasure and get rich. So far there isn't much that's actually happened in the story, because the proceedings are often interrupted by and giant metaphor on what life is, which doesn't bother me. I actually like philosophy, and this guy's ideals are somewhat interesting. I'm not sure this book will "change my life forever" as the back cover says, but for now it's definitely a intriguing read.

a

Readers Response

The Almighty Essay: The New York Times
Trip Gabriel

This article was about how personal essays are used to gain admission into college, and how they help colleges in some ways, but may not always be a relevant measurement on students success.  I thought this article was informative and well-written, providing statistics on why personal narratives are important. One of the things that shocked was the fact that one essay is more important than all of your grades in high school to get into some top colleges. I know writing is extremely important, but i definitely don't think it's reasonable that one essay takes first rein over your entire time at high school, especially if you take a job that doesn't require much writing. Another thing I was surprised by is the sheer cost of the online essay judging. I can't picture myself paying $2,500 for someone to look at my essay and tell me if it's good. I guess education is just another way to milk money off consumers to a lot of people. For example, it costs $50 to take the SAT, which is taken by people all around the world . There are roughly 4 million eleventh graders in the U.S alone, and if just 3 million took the SAT twice over the course of a school year, the School Board would make 200 mil. dollars, not including the cost for study and prep. I guess we've just got to be careful and buy the things that will actually help us with our careers, and I don't think a $2,500 essay judging session is one of them. One of the things I found funny was how personal essays are something not taught in High School. It's funny because in 4th grade we were put through a painful week long writing program because of the writing TAKS. It's a constant pattern throughout school: If there's a TAKS test on something, teachers will stress over it and drill the subject into us. So why put the test in 4th grade, when it doesn't matter. instead of high school where it be much more useful? Just saying. 

Readers Response

Digital Fortress
Dan Brown
p.1- end
1hr.
Rating: 6.5/10

     Digital Fortress is a story about the world of cryptography, and how one man tries to "protect peoples privacy" by shutting down the NSA's machine to intercept email's and texts.Although the plot is interesting, the whole book feels somewhat cliched. The story is prolonged, and the climax is overblown into a last second breaking of the code, which everybody knew was going to happen. It doesn't feel as if there's anything original and different about this book than others if its kind. That being said, it is still a thrilling read, and seldom gets too boring. This is one of the stories that puts a lot more focus on the plot than the characters, and that actually helps this book. Putting emphasis on the characters wouldn't have matched the feel of the book. Most of the characters are cliche secret agents, cold, merciless, and boring. Overall, this book was sort of dry, but the good plot and old-school sci-fi feel is enough to make it a decent read



   

Readers Response 2

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
p.1-312
2hrs.

J.k. Rowling
Harry Potter
Rating: 9.0/10

     This book, along with the Last Olympian, is a book I often pick up and reread, regardless of the fact that I've read it so many times I already know some pages by heart. This book is the start of a magnificent series that is filled with the vivid imagination of a brilliant author. The plot of this book centers on Harry Potter, a boy who finds out he is a great wizard who defeated the dark wizard who killed his parents when he was a baby.
Harry grows up and at the school of magic, Hogwarts, while playing quidditch (magical sport played on brooms), making friends and battling trolls. He discovers that that Voldermort, the dark wizard who killed his parents is seeking a stone which grants him eternal life, and stops him from regaining power. The thing that is so amazing about this book is that that Rowling includes every little detail in her writing so that the world in the story becomes a complex, exquisite journey with moving staircases, sports on broomsticks, and chocolate frogs. 
     What's even more amazing is that so much groundwork had to be laid out leading up to the 7th book, and a lot of it seen here, although 1st time readers don't know it. Another thing to admire about Rowling's stories is the depth of the characters. This is one of the few books that you feel that the characters are real because the personalities are so distinct and each of them has flaws just like real people. With all these great elemnts, the book comes together smoothly, and the words flow with a sense of purpose due to Rowling's delicate, elegant style of writing. Neatly transitioning from events, the ending is climactic and wonderful, but also makes clear that the story isn't over yet. Although I could go on for hours praising this amazing book, I'm just going end this saying that Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone is incredible book with an intricate and creative plot and characters.

Vocab

1.elide -To suppress; omit; ignore; pass over.

2. Rakish- Smart; jaunty; dashing.

3. Lollop - To move forward with a bounding, drooping motion.

Readers Response

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth
by Jeff Kinney
p.1- 217(end)
1hr15min.
Rating: 6.5/10

     Diary of A Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth is the fifth, and probably the last addition to the Wimpy Kid series. This book was a birthday gift for my brother, and I looked forward to reading after he went to bed, especially since this was the finale to the series that represented the best of the humor genre. I thought that Mr. Kinney could definitely pull off writing a conclusion to the series that was both hilarious and provided a satisfying ending because he pretty much did the same thing in the Last Straw, the third book of the series.  Unfortunately, this wasn't the same. Most of the books humor seemed that it was recycled from the older books and there was a feeling as if the book was something you had read before. It also had a plot that was one of the worst choices possible for a book read by 1st grade and up: puberty. I'm not sure which genius came up with this idea, but I know for a fact that this book will probably will be bought be elementary school goers all over the country(including my brother, who is in 1st grade.), and I'm not sure how their parents will react. On the good side, although this book had tons of recycled material, the original material was really good. Even though I didn't laugh as much as I did in the 1st 3 installments, the book still made me chuckle as it told the story of Greg's search to find a best friend, go to boy-girl parties that turned to be like prison, and deal with his insane family.The final problem I had with this book was the terrible ending. As the book and the series drew to a close what it should have done is have a ending that gave some emotional closure to the story that wasn't too serious maybe indicating that things go Greg's way. Instead, the book and the series end one a lame comic strip that has Greg and Rowley getting back together, and it isn't really explained why. In conclusion, I wouldn't really recommend this since the series would have been so much better if it had ended in three book. The ending just left too many loose ends.