1/15:Holly W.
1/15:Will K.
1/15:Quinn D.
1/15:Matt C.
1/15:Kelly T.
1/15:Laura W.
1/15:Quinn D.
1/15:Tess R.
1/15:Quinn D.
1/15:Laura W.
These are the people who's blogs I commented on.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Blog #10 Quarter 2
There's one point in "Nineteen Minutes", by Jodi Picoult, where Lacy Houghton finds her husband visiting the graves of all the children that their son killed and putting a rose on each one. She realizes that he has been doing this every week instead of visiting their son in jail. This poses a tough ethical dilemma, should Louis be apologizing to the children that Peter killed? Or visiting Peter in jail? The circumstances change because they are family. So far in the book, it seems like Lacy has chosen to take Peter's side, feeling that it's mostly her fault and Peter's taking the blame for her. Louis also feels like it's his fault but also Peter's and is afraid to face Peter because he feels like his fears might be confirmed. He might find out that Peter blames him as much as he blames himself.
I'm excited for the big courtroom scene because I have a feeling that there'll be some emotions going. I really want to see what happens when Peter and Josie see each other. Everyone who knows Peter feels that it's their own fault. Peter himself thinks it's their fault too. Even the parents of the deceased blame both Peter and his parents. Nobody puts the blame solely on Peter, so maybe it's really not his fault. This book is full of ethical dilemmas and I have a feeling I haven't gotten to the bulk of them yet.
Picoult, Jodi. Nineteen Minutes. New York: Washington Square Press, 2007.
I'm excited for the big courtroom scene because I have a feeling that there'll be some emotions going. I really want to see what happens when Peter and Josie see each other. Everyone who knows Peter feels that it's their own fault. Peter himself thinks it's their fault too. Even the parents of the deceased blame both Peter and his parents. Nobody puts the blame solely on Peter, so maybe it's really not his fault. This book is full of ethical dilemmas and I have a feeling I haven't gotten to the bulk of them yet.
Picoult, Jodi. Nineteen Minutes. New York: Washington Square Press, 2007.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Blog #9 Quarter 2
"You could patch up whatever was broken, but if you were the one who had fixed it, you'd always know where the fault lines lay" (184). This is a passage from Jodi Picoult's "Nineteen Minutes" which illustrates the idea the everyone who was affected by the shooting will never be the same. Even though, eventually, things will get back to normal for future generations, everybody who had to, in some way, fix an aspect of their lives will know and feel exactly how it used to be broken. I read a book once that compared that idea to a vase falling and shattering. Even if I was to glue the pieces back together, I could still see the cracks, and more importantly, I could feel how broken it really is when I run my hands over it.
For Peter Houghton, he might feel as though he is the one to fix something that had been broken for a long time, instead of breaking it. In reality, he glued together one vase but knocked another one over in the process. Instead of putting the vase of their school back together, with everyone equal, he simply threw a few pieces out before trying to glue it back together. But without those pieces, the vase wouldn't reassemble. He miscalculated because he couldn't fix the school by taking out some of it's most important parts. Now he'll see the shattered vase forever, but is unable to fix it.
Alex feels that she has to fix the situation seeing as she is the judge assigned to the case. I haven't gotten that far in the book yet but I imagine she'll do her best to fix it, but she'll also be the only one to uncover every secret and know the absolute and entire story. She'll be the only one who can see every single crack left in the vase.
Picoult, Jodi. Nineteen Minutes. New York: Washington Square Press, 2007.
For Peter Houghton, he might feel as though he is the one to fix something that had been broken for a long time, instead of breaking it. In reality, he glued together one vase but knocked another one over in the process. Instead of putting the vase of their school back together, with everyone equal, he simply threw a few pieces out before trying to glue it back together. But without those pieces, the vase wouldn't reassemble. He miscalculated because he couldn't fix the school by taking out some of it's most important parts. Now he'll see the shattered vase forever, but is unable to fix it.
Alex feels that she has to fix the situation seeing as she is the judge assigned to the case. I haven't gotten that far in the book yet but I imagine she'll do her best to fix it, but she'll also be the only one to uncover every secret and know the absolute and entire story. She'll be the only one who can see every single crack left in the vase.
Picoult, Jodi. Nineteen Minutes. New York: Washington Square Press, 2007.
Blog #8 Quarter 2
In Jodi Picoult's "Nineteen Minutes," her writing style changes a lot from "My Sister's Keeper." The first difference that I noticed was the change from first person to third person. I've always liked books in first person that stay from the point of view of one specific character and doesn't change. I think these are my favorite because it's easy to fall inside the story where the reader is placed in the exact same position with all the knowledge and feelings of one character.The reader only has one angle to consider and whatever the protagonist feels is immediately transmitted to the reader. Third person becomes more complex because the reader is taken out of the story and put on the sidelines to watch. It makes it harder to read because the emotions are not provided for the readers, but rather they are left to decide how they feel about the unfolding events. The immediate reaction to the fact that Peter killed people is to feel sorry for the survivors and to condemn Peter. However, since it is in third person, the reader sees Peter's perspective and we're forced to understand why he committed his crime. One of the most confusing things about Picoult's book is while I'm reading it, I'm not sure what to feel. I still haven't made up my mind as to whether or not I want Peter to get thrown in jail. It comes back to ethics. He tried to settle things the right way but nothing worked. The other kids were truly monsters to him so why should he be any better? I'm excited to see how Alex, and all the other characters find Peter, seeing as they only have their own perspective, and are not enlightened to Peter's as well like I am.
Picoult, Jodi. Nineteen Minutes. New York: Washington Square Press, 2007.
Picoult, Jodi. Nineteen Minutes. New York: Washington Square Press, 2007.
Blog #7 Quarter 2
I've decided that I've finally run out of things to discuss with "My Sister's Keeper" and have moved on to reading another book by Jodi Picoult titled "Nineteen Minutes." I'm not done with this book yet but I've read about two thirds of it and I like it a lot. It's interesting the way that the characters' lives all spin together in a way that "My Sister's Keeper" never achieved. One of the things I find most interesting about this book is how almost every chapter is from a different point in time, until the chapters concerning the court assemblies occur. In the first few chapters, Picoult gives a general overview of a few characters and tells the reader what they are like. After that, more towards the middle of the book, Picoult goes on to show us flashes into their lives to explain why they are that way. One of the first things we learn about Peter Houghton is that he kills 10 of his classmates. After we learn this, we slowly start to piece together all the possible reasons that have driven him to this point.
Another thing that caught my eye was how Alex, the supreme court judge, kept making allusions to the fairytale, "The Emperor's New Clothes" in which an emperor was tricked by two crooks. The crooks pretended to make him a beautiful robe out of thread that only the smartest of people could see. Of course, there really wasn't such a thread but when the emperor saw himself in only his underwear, he didn't want to tell anyone that he couldn't see the robe. All of the townspeople were too intimidated by him to tell him that he was naked. Alex could compare herself to the emperor because nobody was ever real with her considering her status, even outside of the courtroom. Alex's daughter, Josie, or her "popular" friends, are the same way without realizing it. Every other kid in the school follows them blindly just because of who they are. Maybe Peter thought he was the one brave person to tell them that they really aren't wearing a magical robe, to tell them that they aren't so special at all.
Picoult, Jodi. Nineteen Minutes. New York: Washington Square Press, 2007.
Another thing that caught my eye was how Alex, the supreme court judge, kept making allusions to the fairytale, "The Emperor's New Clothes" in which an emperor was tricked by two crooks. The crooks pretended to make him a beautiful robe out of thread that only the smartest of people could see. Of course, there really wasn't such a thread but when the emperor saw himself in only his underwear, he didn't want to tell anyone that he couldn't see the robe. All of the townspeople were too intimidated by him to tell him that he was naked. Alex could compare herself to the emperor because nobody was ever real with her considering her status, even outside of the courtroom. Alex's daughter, Josie, or her "popular" friends, are the same way without realizing it. Every other kid in the school follows them blindly just because of who they are. Maybe Peter thought he was the one brave person to tell them that they really aren't wearing a magical robe, to tell them that they aren't so special at all.
Picoult, Jodi. Nineteen Minutes. New York: Washington Square Press, 2007.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Blog #6, Quarter 2
I was having trouble thinking about another topic to blog about for "My Sister's Keeper" so I decided to go back and re-read the part that I couldn't focus on the first time that I read through it. During the end, I was so desperate to finish and have a nice cry that the words didn't register as much as they should have. Jodi Picoult has this style in her writing where she throws in these small comments which are actually huge concepts. This is what makes her books so interesting to read, the reader always ends up thinking deeper than normal.
The first comment that caught my eye in the epilogue was an observation of their mother. Kate notices, "she began to look for signs - plants that bloomed too early, eggs with double yolks, salt spilled in the shape of letters" (421). When the reader first reads this, they think the mother desperate and kind of pitiful. But if they think about it, what mother would be able to see anything as mundane as it used to be. Everything would be filled with their daughter's face and mind. After the sudden, random death of a daughter, the miracle recovery of another daughter, and the troubled son graduating from the police academy, is it really insane to think Anna might be hiding in that morning's eggs? From the outside perspective, yes, it is insane. But if was happening to me, I don't know if I could remain sane without that shred of hope. The mother will spend the rest of her life waiting for the next "interaction" with Anna, but that might be better than the alternatives.
The next thought provoking comment is, "Grief is a curious think, when it happens unexpectedly. It is a Band-Aid being ripped away, taking the top layer off a family" (422). I really liked that metaphor because on the outside, skin is soft and smooth but if you take off the first layer, if you rip a Band-Aid off, it becomes blotchy and less smooth and stingy. A family is like that, in the way that it has many layers, built up for protection. When one gets ripped off, the strongest layer of protection is gone. The strongest layer is always in the front, like with skin, or with chess. The pawns are in front because they have the strongest defense. If all the pawns are lost, the game gets harder.
As it turned out, the epilogue was full of impressive thoughts that I had missed the first time. That might have been a good thing, however, because at the time it probably would have brought on a new wave of tears. I'm glad I went back and re-read it because I would have missed out on one of the best parts of the book.
Picoult, Jodi. My Sister's Keeper. New York: Washington Square Press, 2004.
The first comment that caught my eye in the epilogue was an observation of their mother. Kate notices, "she began to look for signs - plants that bloomed too early, eggs with double yolks, salt spilled in the shape of letters" (421). When the reader first reads this, they think the mother desperate and kind of pitiful. But if they think about it, what mother would be able to see anything as mundane as it used to be. Everything would be filled with their daughter's face and mind. After the sudden, random death of a daughter, the miracle recovery of another daughter, and the troubled son graduating from the police academy, is it really insane to think Anna might be hiding in that morning's eggs? From the outside perspective, yes, it is insane. But if was happening to me, I don't know if I could remain sane without that shred of hope. The mother will spend the rest of her life waiting for the next "interaction" with Anna, but that might be better than the alternatives.
The next thought provoking comment is, "Grief is a curious think, when it happens unexpectedly. It is a Band-Aid being ripped away, taking the top layer off a family" (422). I really liked that metaphor because on the outside, skin is soft and smooth but if you take off the first layer, if you rip a Band-Aid off, it becomes blotchy and less smooth and stingy. A family is like that, in the way that it has many layers, built up for protection. When one gets ripped off, the strongest layer of protection is gone. The strongest layer is always in the front, like with skin, or with chess. The pawns are in front because they have the strongest defense. If all the pawns are lost, the game gets harder.
As it turned out, the epilogue was full of impressive thoughts that I had missed the first time. That might have been a good thing, however, because at the time it probably would have brought on a new wave of tears. I'm glad I went back and re-read it because I would have missed out on one of the best parts of the book.
Picoult, Jodi. My Sister's Keeper. New York: Washington Square Press, 2004.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Blog...5 Quarter 2
SPOILERS
Earlier today, I got distracted skimming a book that was buried in the piles of books in my closet. The book is Peaches by Jodi Lynn Anderson. The book is mostly a teenage girl book that I read with a friend of mine a few years ago. My mom would probably refer to it as trash but I still enjoyed reading it, stupid as it may be. The basic story is about three girls who come from completely different worlds who meet on a peach orchard and become unlikely friends. Murphy is the first girl introduced and was consequently my favorite. Her mom didn't really care about her along with some other hardships. The quote in the book that I took notice of is a thought of Murphy's. The passage goes, "He was the same as anybody else. Murphy breathed a sigh of relief. It felt good to be let down" (183). When I read this, I thought back to My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult and how that line sort of summarized most of the characters.
I'll start with Jesse, because he's always been a favorite of mine. He's been let down so much in his life that he starts to get uncomfortable when things are going his way. That's why he tries to rebel, to minimize the amount of time spent exceeding his expectations. He tries to get on his families nerves and flirt with Julia because he expects that they will be angry with him, or ignore him. And when he's isolated, he's in his most comfortable element.
With Anna, she keeps expecting her mother to care more about her and not ask for the donations. Every time she has to donate something new to her sister, she feels let down. This doesn't hurt her though because if she wasn't let down, she would be in unmarked territory and wouldn't know how to proceed. Would she actually not donate to her sister? It's easier for her when her mother lets her down.
Kate gets disappointed by her sickness. Whenever it comes back, she might feel a little more mentally stable, because she knows what's going on and knows what her body is doing. When the Leukemia disappeared for a while, she was nervous because of the unknown. Although getting sick again was a let down, in some ways, it might be the better option. For everybody, there's an aspect in their lives that is stable and doesn't knock us off our feet or raise our hopes. In a way, everyone needs something like that to ground us. Change is good, but if everything changes, the result wouldn't resemble the components.
Anderson, Jodi L. Peaches. New York: Alloy Entertainment, 2005.
Picoult, Jodi. My Sister's Keeper. New York: Washington Square Press, 2004.
Earlier today, I got distracted skimming a book that was buried in the piles of books in my closet. The book is Peaches by Jodi Lynn Anderson. The book is mostly a teenage girl book that I read with a friend of mine a few years ago. My mom would probably refer to it as trash but I still enjoyed reading it, stupid as it may be. The basic story is about three girls who come from completely different worlds who meet on a peach orchard and become unlikely friends. Murphy is the first girl introduced and was consequently my favorite. Her mom didn't really care about her along with some other hardships. The quote in the book that I took notice of is a thought of Murphy's. The passage goes, "He was the same as anybody else. Murphy breathed a sigh of relief. It felt good to be let down" (183). When I read this, I thought back to My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult and how that line sort of summarized most of the characters.
I'll start with Jesse, because he's always been a favorite of mine. He's been let down so much in his life that he starts to get uncomfortable when things are going his way. That's why he tries to rebel, to minimize the amount of time spent exceeding his expectations. He tries to get on his families nerves and flirt with Julia because he expects that they will be angry with him, or ignore him. And when he's isolated, he's in his most comfortable element.
With Anna, she keeps expecting her mother to care more about her and not ask for the donations. Every time she has to donate something new to her sister, she feels let down. This doesn't hurt her though because if she wasn't let down, she would be in unmarked territory and wouldn't know how to proceed. Would she actually not donate to her sister? It's easier for her when her mother lets her down.
Kate gets disappointed by her sickness. Whenever it comes back, she might feel a little more mentally stable, because she knows what's going on and knows what her body is doing. When the Leukemia disappeared for a while, she was nervous because of the unknown. Although getting sick again was a let down, in some ways, it might be the better option. For everybody, there's an aspect in their lives that is stable and doesn't knock us off our feet or raise our hopes. In a way, everyone needs something like that to ground us. Change is good, but if everything changes, the result wouldn't resemble the components.
Anderson, Jodi L. Peaches. New York: Alloy Entertainment, 2005.
Picoult, Jodi. My Sister's Keeper. New York: Washington Square Press, 2004.
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