Blog Reflection

Over the past seven months or so, we have been writing our own blogs based on the books that we have read. I have found this experience very different because I have never written on a blog before or published my reviews online. I learnt that there are many ways to talk about a book. Before this year, I only expressed my thoughts on a book by retelling the story. But since looking at others' people's blogs and reviewing my posts, I have learnt that there are a lot of different ways to express your thoughts on a book such as, asking rhetorical questions and disagreeing with the author and finding ways to prove that your opinion is correct. It has benefitted me as a reader because I have been able to adjust my thinking based on what other people have said.

I think that writing on online is different from writing in a notebook because I feel that I can express my thoughts better. When writing in a notebook, I feel that my thoughts have to be 'to the point' however when writing online I feel that I can express my thoughts better as I know that a lot of people can see them. It personally helps me writing online because I can get feedback from others, whereas my notebook isn't a place where I write reviews that everyone else can see. Also writing online is more interesting because it makes you realise how much goes on online that we don't know about.

I think that teenagers sometimes do abuse the freedom on sites such as Facebook because they think that it is ok to post inappropriate epicures or send harsh/rude comments. These social media sites were designed so that people could stay in touch and share their experiences with each other. Not to share the hatred they have for people with each other. On the internet, people type things that they would never say to someone's face because the internet is a masked face. It hides you and you think that whats you say is a reflection of who you are but actually the internet can make you out to be someone that you are not.

I think that blogs are great ideas. When used with care, it lets you and your friends share thoughts/views that you may be having. It lets you make your own online diary which you can either keep private or open up to people. I think that I would make a blog in the future because I have learnt just how helpful writing down your thoughts and sharing it with your peers are.

"Rock the Vote" by Patricia Smith

I recently read the article "Rock the Vote" by Patricia Smith and I found it very interesting. The article is about the ongoing fight to change the voting age from 18 to 16. Although, it hasn't occurred yet, we are given many reasons to think that this age would be write. 16 year olds can pay taxes, work and drive but can't vote. Is that right? All throughout the article, this is the question that we constantly ask ourselves. Patricia Smith wants us to think that lowering the voting age to 16 would actually help many more people than you think and would benefit the nation.

Patricia Smith tries very hard to persuade us that this age is perfect. One way that she does this is by using 16 year olds to express their views on the voting age. It persuades us to think that they should lower the voting age, because we get to see what it is like for someone who can do many things, such as pay taxes, but can't got for their nation electives. Also, Patricia Smith gives many loopholes to the voting age. She tells us how 13 states allow 17 year olds to vote in primaries if they'll be 18 by Election Day. This shows that she is trying to comprehend what it would be like for 17 year olds to vote and that we should lower that to a 16 voting age. Lastly, Patricia Smith also takes what we think about adolescents and turns it into a positive. " The way that adolescents are not mature is that they are not good at making rapid, high stakes emotional decisions. But voting isn't like that." It is interesting how Patricia Smith writes this because it turns a double negative into a positive and persuades us even more to believe that lowering the voting age to 16 is the right thing to do.

I personally believe with Patricia Smith in that lowering the voting age is good for the nation. As was stated, the voters have decreased measurably in the past years and so I think with a younger generation in, not only would it increase the polls, but I also think it would encourage to people who aren't voting to vote. Lastly, I also think that if a person has to pay taxes then they have the right to vote. They are paying to see the production of their nation and so I think if they can do that, then they are allowed a say in their government.

A Work in Progress by Connor Franta

Over the past week, I've read the book 'A Work in Progress', which is a memoir written by Connor Franta. Connor Franta is a you tuber, who gained quick fame from his funny and inspirational vlogs (video blogs). The book is about how he grew up, and what obstacles he has faced in the past and present due to his desire to be a you tuber. Throughout the book we learn mostly about his development as a child, and him realising that he is gay and how he dealt with other peoples' views about it. One of the most interesting things is Connor's perspective on him 'coming out'.

In the middle of the book, Connor explains in detail about how he felt when he realised he was gay. He claims that when he finally admitted it, he already kind of knew and so the only hard part was truthfully admitting to himself how he felt. He then goes on to tell us how he told his family/ close friends. The interesting thing about this was that he said that he wasn't sure how everyone was going to react to the news as it is Minnesota. He goes on to explain that he has never met anyone that is gay because in Minnesota, generally people aren't. This then led me to think, is this what small town America is like? Are the majority of people homophobic? It seemed like a crazy thing at first, but then I looked and realised that there are many states that actually ban anti gay marriage. It is a horrible thought to see that people, like Connor Franta, have to even car how they will be judged because they are gay. We should live in a world where we are free to be who we want when we want, and if that means that you choose to be gay then so be it. It doesn't matter who you are sexually attracted to, that doesn't change the person that you are, and nor should it ever.

In conclusion, Connor Franta talks about how he struggles to deal with the views and judgement of his being gay. It made me think a whole deal about how degrading some people can be for not accepting people's choices in life. It is horrible to think that many people live in a society where they are not accepted for who they are and has made me want to do something about it. Connor's book was great and so inspirational and I would definitely recommend it to a lot of people!

Catcher in the rye

Over the last week, i have been reading the catcher in the rye by J D Salinger. At first i was very hesitant to read the book because i was afraid that it would be too challenging. However, now that i am in the process of reading it, it is a very simple yet interesting read. It is about the journey of a boy who gets kicked out of many schools and goes on an adventure in NYC before his parents find out about his expulsion. The book is a general and typical American classic, which many peope would agree with. What i found interesting was that many Americans consider this book a classic and yet it is so different to others. It is, no matter what people argue, a realistic fiction book, which was the first of its kind and that is what makes this book so special.

I think one reason why the book is viewed as a classic is because its writing is so unique. J D Salinger made such a great novel by writing in such a simple way. Yes, there are some very trucky words in the book, but most of them, unlike most other classics, are easy and common words that everybody knows the meaning of. The phrases and words arent out of anyones knowledge and the book could easily be read by 12 year olds. It is one of a kind. Adding on, another reason why i think this book is viewed with as much enthusiasm as it is, is because it speaks to the public. In many other classic novels, the writing is generally speaking to one class, either the rich or the poor. Whereas in the catcher in the rye, the writing is purposefully written to speak and make a message to age groups, young and old. It shows you that you can live a life and be different and try something spontaneous no matter your age. Anyone can relate to what the character goes through and that is why i think the book is considered a lifetime achievement.

In conclusion, i think that the catcher in the rye is an amzing book filled with such an interesting plot. I havent finished it yet but everything in the book just seems so simple and yet it is one of the best books that ive ever read. Being the first of its time, this realistic fiction book is so different but since i have been reading it, i now know why it is considered one of America's , if not the worlds , greatest book.

Wild by Cheryl Strayed

Over the past week, I have been reading the book, Wild by Cheryl Strayed. The book is about the author and her journey walking on the PCT, Pacific Crest Trail. It is a very inspirational filled with the details of not only Cheryl's life on the trail, but also her life before the trail and what started her enthusiasm and perseverance to do such a strenuous activity. The book has also been converted into a movie, but in my opinion the book was so much better. Cheryl really engaged her readers and made it seem as if the trail was not only the greatest thing she's accomplished, but that it was the hardest thing that she's accomplished. Even though I am only a quarter of the way into the book, I can already tell that the theme that Cheryl wants us to take away from the book is not to base your whole life on your past.

Throughout the book, we learn about the past experiences that Cheryl had to endure. From cheating on her husband several times, we find out that her relationship was ruined, however both her and her ex-husband still remain friends. One thing that stood out to me was that Cheryl was pretty much an ex-heroin addict. She went from trying it once in a small apartment in Portland, Oregon, to doing it everyday, in the span of two months. As we all know it is very hard to get rid of the influence and addictions that revolve around heroin, however she did. You would never picture an ex-heroin addict hiking the PCT, could you? Well, she did. It just shows that you shouldn't judge or base your whole life around what you've done or achieved in your past. You should live in the present and make choices around that lifetime.

Overall, Cheryl's book was very inspirational. It taught me that there are many things in my life that I shouldn't worry about in the future. Because they won't get me anyway, only my motivation will. Wild was a very charismatic book, which gave me insight into what the lives of young, poor adults is like for some people in the US. I would read this book over and over. In the book, nothing really happens, but what makes it so special is the constant threat that something is going to go wrong in Cheryl's path, however nothing really seems to. 

Critical Analysis- Are we running out of Chocolate?

In the article, "Are we running out of Chocolate" by Kathy Wilmore, we are asked the question: Is the amount of chocolate we consume too much? Kathy's article is about how our needs and wants for chocolate is raising, and this will have an affect on the price and scarcity of chocolate sooner than we think. The article explains how many people are eaten more and more chocolate everyday, and 'in 2013 alone, the world consumed about 77,000 tons more cocoa than was produced.' We can eat a chocolate bar within seconds, but a cocoa plant takes a very long time to grow, which proves that our high demand for chocolate, may have to stop rapidly. Chocolate is on many thing today, including pizza and pretzels, and this is affecting prices of chocolate where Hershey's had an 8% percent price increase, its first since 2011. As we consume more chocolate, the prices rise and the highly demanded food becomes much more of a shortage.

The author, Kathy Wilmore, uses many techniques to try to persuade us as readers that we need to think about and reduce the amount of chocolate we consume. One way that she persuades us is by speaking to us as if she was next to you. She says "The next time you eat a piece of chocolate, slow down and savour every bite." This is very persuasive because she makes us feel as if we are doing something wrong in our life and that we are the 'bad people'. It makes us rethink about how we consume chocolate, which then leads to us thinking about HOW much we consume chocolate, which is what she wants us to think. Another way that Kathy Wilmore persuades us to reduce our chocolate consumption is by talking about child labor and how chocolate is made in very harsh conditions. "An estimated 500,000 to 1.5 million children work on cocoa farms in West Africa, according to the International Cocoa Initiative. Some toil on their family farms, but many are trafficked into slavery." This is a very persuasive way of persuading us to reduce our intake of chocolate, because she isn't just making us thinking about ourselves and chocolate but she wants us to think about the actual production in many different way. I know for a fact that I felt awful when I read that quote, because it is a food that I take for granted and I had no idea that it was made in such terrible conditions.

I agree with the author, that we should be limiting our consumption of sugar because one it is very unhealthy and two it should be a luxury for everyone, and if everyone keeps on being greedy and eating a chocolate bar every day then soon enough there won't be any. Also, right now it is a very cheap product to buy, but if we keep up the high demand for a chocolate bar then it will only be available to the upper middle class or maybe just even upper class. It is a luxury that many people, including me, take advantage of and if we want to keep chocolate in the delis then we need to realise that there is a limit and other people's lives are being affected by our greediness.

The Absolute True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

The Absolute True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie is a great book, which describes the  achievements of a boy who successfully and willingly gets out of his hometown nature and rushes to go to school in a community, that no other Indian has gone to before. The book follows the journey of a boy and how he struggles to fit in with the 'common' people, because he has such a different background. All through the book, we feel sorry for the main character, while he struggles with money issues and social interaction with people at his new school.

The book is based around how the boy struggles with many issues in trying to fit in to society. He struggles with the way that he lives and the way of life of the 'common' people at the new school. Some struggles that the main character has to endure is; walking 20 miles to school everyday, his non-appreciative classmates and not having that much money for lunch or school activities, where everyone else has millions of dollars and their own cars. We feel sorry for the boy because he doesn't have the same upbringing or the same financial circumstances as the other people at his school.

I like how the author used pictures to annotate how the main character was dealing with the enrolment in his new school. It really gave me a visual and more in depth analysis of how he was feeling and dealing with the on-going problems at his school. Adding on, I also really liked how the author wrote the book because it wasn't just a 'regular' novel but an 'arty' book. Everything in the book wasn't common and the way that the author wrote the book was like a one on one with the reader. This really helped me when reading the book because I could connect with it a lot more.

In conclusion, I really enjoyed the book because it was a very original idea and the writing was very unique. I liked how the author's tone was very informal and it helped me read the book a lot better and connect to it more. I will definitely try to use this in my own writing in the future!

Re-Write of "The Girl with the Pearl Earring" by Tracy Chevalier

First Draft

The book "The girl with the pearl earring" by Tracy Chevalier is a historical fiction book about a girl and her journey of joining a family as a work girl. Griet is a hard-working girl who had to leave home because of her families' poverty struggle. She moves into a home where there are many obstacles such as, 6 children. Another obstacle that she has to endure, are the adults, many for different reasons. Throughout her work, she becomes part of a wider circle of the family but only one person accepts her for who she is, the master. The master understands her love for art and for that he lets her admire his paintings, which no one is allowed to do. This causes a jealous and unenthusiastic household, which brings much danger to the Griet, as she is only a maid. But one day, Griet has to step in to be the 'object' of the painting and this decides her future forever. The tory takes place at many different times, and we follow the stages of Griet’s life when she is at most danger or at her highest point. Throughout the story, we follow the path of Griet, and we are always aware of how her family and her persevere with her new job.  

One way in which Griet shows perseverance is when she reflects back on her old life and compares it to her new. "I had walked along that street all my life, but had never been so aware that my back was to my home." (Chevalier 68.) This quotation carefully shows the reflection and feelings in which Griet has. She is thinking about her worries and not only about her actions but also about her emotional intent. We can tell by her 'reflection tense' that she is feeling guilty of the way she is acting and that she thinks she is acting in a selfish way. She is reflecting on the present but also the past, as she makes it clear how her actions have changed for the worse. We can infer that she is mesmerized by the thought of the money of her working family but she isn't thinking about her actual family. She is so caught up in the ‘rich’ world that now she has some time to think, she realizes whom she had hurt by thinking about these things, including herself. This makes her believe that she is becoming unaware of her feelings for her real family and she is feeling ignorance and regret. 'My back' shows a very strong piece of her body that symbolizes how she is feeling, 'back-stabbing', ignorance and regret. It is a symbol for the emotion that Griet is feeling and the regret of not being loyal to her own family. It shows perseverance because it makes us realize how Griet has to become loyal to one family but not to the other, in order for everyone to benefit.

Another way in which Griet perseveres with her new life is by respecting her parents' wishes. “I felt as if my parents had pushed me into the street, that a deal had been made and I was being passed into the hands of a man. At least he is a good man, I thought, even if his hands are not as clean as they could be.” (Chevalier 52.) This quotation is very intriguing because not only does it tell us about her perseverance but also her previous attitude. It shows how Griet commonly reflects back on her life before working with the family and how her parent’s have sometimes influenced where she is now. Her previous attitude shows that she felt useless to her parents and that they were denying her happiness for money. But then as the story progresses and as the quote suggests, Griet looks at the positive and just tries to please her family. This shows perseverance because she is willing to sacrifice her own happiness to try and make the best out of the position that she is in. Griet has been thrown into a situation that has expected a lot from her, and she has tried to deal with the events in a realistic way, even if it means forgetting someone’s weaknesses and looking at the positivity.  The quote above suggests that Greit puts her parents’ happiness and well being before her own. It shows that she perseveres with her struggles in order to benefit even if it may hurt her along the way. She is portrayed as this strong woman but if you really look at everything she says, we can infer that her situation and the people who are influencing her are taking her happiness away.

Lastly, we learn how Griet's family perseveres with the 'new Griet' and the new girl that she has become.  “You know I don’t listen to market gossip,” she began, “but it is hard not to hear it when my daughter’s name is mentioned.” (Chevalier 134.) This shows us that Griet's mother, especially, is finding it hard to adapt to her new daughter's lifestyle. We are shown not just a way that Griet has to persevere with the new her and her lifestyle but also how other people in her family who are finding it hard to accept the new Griet. With Griet in a 'rich household', we can infer that her mother seems jealous and just wants her daughter back. She isn’t jealous of Griet being in a rich house and getting great care. Although it would seem that she would want this, we are more commonly shown that Griet’s mother is actually jealous of her daughter’s working family, and jealous of the fact that they get to see her everyday and be a ‘mother’ to Griet, where she feels like they are taking away her role as Griet’s mother. It seems as if Griet hasn't got time for her mother and therefore, her mother is learning about her through other people. We feel some sympathy for Griet here because it is showing how she is in the middle of all this emotion but unaware of everybody’s feelings. We feel sympathy for the mother because it just seems as if Griet disowns her mother and is taking her for granted, although this isn’t a common theme in the book. It shows how Griet’s mother has to persevere with the fact that Griet is growing up and supporting the family in ways that the mother isn’t, which is another reason for the jealously that Griet’s mother shows.

In conclusion, 'The girl with the pearl earring' by Tracy Chevalier, really shows the feelings of others and how they persevere with the new Griet. There are many different perspectives that are shown, with different sides and opinions, but in the end, everyone is debating how they are going to live there life with the new Griet, rather than the old one. It shows a connection that has been transformed just because of a reason to get out of poverty. The journey of Griet has changed from just being about poverty, but now it is about how people have to connect with each other in order to learn about the reality. This is the underlining topic of the book, and each person has to persevere while they find out how to stick by Griet and acknowledge her for who she has become and how she has changed. The book teaches us that there are many ways to persevere with things, but along the way you may upset people. It’s just common ground that you have to find and ways that you are similar to the person and you shouldn’t just dwell on the differences. In this case, this was Griet and each different one of her family members took the intuition differently.

If i Stay by Gayle Forman

Over the past two weeks, I decided to read the ever so popular realistic fiction book, If I Stay. The book is about the aftermath of a girl, Mia, who was in a tragic accident alongside her family. The whole book takes place over a couple of days, with Mia in the hospital, thinking about whether she should stay or not, henceforth the title, 'If I stay'. For the duration of the book, Mia has many different thoughts, "I should stay but maybe I shouldn't stay." There are a lot of things that influence her thoughts, such as her grandparents, her best friend Kim, but most importantly her boyfriend, Adam. The majority of the book are flashbacks with her boyfriend, which shows just how strong of an influence he has on Mia's decision, which I believe is the reason why the author chose to include these flashbacks.

One reason why I think the author included these flashbacks with Adam, was to show us as readers how strong the relationship is between Adam and Mia. Adam and Mia's relationship grew a lot from the beginning of the flashbacks and the end. At the beginning their relationship was very awkward but towards the end they both started to rely on each other and were more like best friends than a couple. These flashbacks really showed us how strong their relationship was and made us as readers connect a lot more with Mia's feelings and decisions.

Another reason why the author chose to have these strong flashbacks, was to show us how hard it was for Mia to make her decision. The author did this by writing an emotional connecting relationship between Mia and Adam. This relationship truly develops throughout the book and gives us a readers sympathy for the decision that Mia makes at the end of the story. Her emotional connection and history with Adam truly helps express the truth and respect of Mias decision whether to stay or to go. The author makes it seem that Adam is her link to the world and this is what makes the story so thrilling and emotional.

In conclusion, Gayle Forman doesn't just write in the present but also in the past, which helps entail the relationship and future of Mia and Adam. The book isn't just a portrayal of one girl but of everyone around her and how they struggle to deal with the sight of Mia after her devastating accident. This is why I loved the piece because it is about so many different things but a simple and romantic story.

I really liked the book and I definitely recommend it to the few people in the world who haven't read it. I thought that Gayle Forman's style of writing was very interesting and unique and I can't wait to read her sequel to If I Stay, Where she Went. And I am definitely going to watch the movie soon!

Moral Hazard- Kate Jennings

This week, I read a book called Moral Hazard by Kate Jennings. This book is about the life of a woman who has to persevere with her husband's struggle with Alzheimer's disease and her Wall Street job taking off. The book is written in an amazing way because you can really notice how this disease affects people but how they still have to carry on with their everyday lives. We are shown how your priorities change, and how people's life change and what they have to do to help others. Throughout the book, the main character was hurt a lot by her husband's image. He forgot her name, where he slept, and frankly anything in his normal routine. It was very interesting whilst reading it, because it showed that Alzheimer's disease could just make an experienced and developed person, a baby again. The way that the book was wrote made the reader, especially me, feel like they were going through the same dilemma as the main character was.

Throughout the book, the author kept on pointing out how the man with Alzheimer's was feeling. This was very clever because she took the main character, and even though she was a hero in everyone else's eyes, the victim sometimes didn't feel like that was true. It was interesting, because the whole time the author took two sides and it wasn't so 'biased' as every other book is. I have never read a book like this, but sometimes I found it frustrating because I was confused on who the victim or hero was. Although, I made my own decision, the text sometimes portrayed a confusing plot and therefore, it was hard to realize whom the antagonist and the protagonist were. 

I really enjoyed this book because it taught me a lot about not only the victims of Alzheimer's disease but also about the family and friends that witness it. I was taught that it is very hard to see a person everyday slowly deteriorate and that although we only think about the hardness of the victims, it is sometimes equally as hard for family and friends, physically and emotionally. Alzheimer’s disease is ‘a hidden killer’, as the book inferred. It doesn’t kill you but it basically makes you become a fragile baby again, where all your life accomplishments are gone and you can’t get them back.

Overall, Kate Jennings made an amazing account about the life of people involved with Alzheimer’s disease. I really enjoyed reading the book and I would definitely recommend it to people. It raises awareness to this disease and causes the reader to become so much more grateful. It also was a great read that portrayed “carry on and don’t stop”, which is the main message that the main character endures. Overall a great read!

Blog review on Nubia's blog post

After reading many blog posts, I felt that Nubia's was one of the most intriguing. Nubia's blog, super nubi's super blog, includes many great posts, but one of my favourites was her response to the Fault in Our Stars by John Green. First, Nubia really gives a great but brief introduction to show what she would be talking about. I felt that it was really helpful her doing this, because she started her effort to persuade us very quickly and didn't talk about a lot of random things that weren't needed.

One of the great things that I liked were that she really examined one major point and didn't just talk about many brief topics. For example, her whole essay is based on "the author used setting to show Gus and Hazel's love."And for this, her whole three body paragraphs are based on this point and she didn't change the topic at all. When I read other people's blogs they didn't really give an in-depth analysis, but Nubia really explained her thoughts and feelings about the claim that she highlighted.

I have also read the book and Nubia persuaded me to think about some points that I had never thought about. For example, when I read the book last year, i only thought about the issues with Gus and Hazel's relationship and the obstacles that they have to deal with. However, I never really thought about how the author tries to make us realise how strong their love is. It really showed me how I could read the book again and examine a whole different part. She made me agree with her because she really made a good point about how their love progresses throughout the story.

Lastly, I really liked how Nubia wrote her conclusion. She really put the whole essay into perspective and made a great comparison between real life and the story. She examined why the author chose to do this and she really makes a great reasoning for a tie-up of her essay. "Even if you aren’t in the best conditions, it doesn’t matter." This for me was the best quote in the essay because she just showed that to love someone you only need each other and nothing fancy. This was a great message to end her post on and this was how she made a great conclusion to her post.

In conclusion, Nubia's post was very good and she really examined the book well. I really liked everything that Nubia did and she made some great comparisons in her post. Her essay was very persuasive and the post made me change my opinion about what I thought. Overall, Nubia did a fantastic post and it was one of the best that I had read.