Book 47: The Great Gatsby.
F. Scott Fitzgerald
1925
Charles Scribner's Sons
Rating:
3.5
Amazon.com Review
In 1922, F. Scott Fitzgerald announced his decision to write "something new--something extraordinary and beautiful and simple + intricately patterned." That extraordinary, beautiful, intricately patterned, and above all, simple novel became The Great Gatsby, arguably Fitzgerald's finest work and certainly the book for which he is best known. A portrait of the Jazz Age in all of its decadence and excess, Gatsby captured the spirit of the author's generation and earned itself a permanent place in American mythology. Self-made, self-invented millionaire Jay Gatsby embodies some of Fitzgerald's--and his country's--most abiding obsessions: money, ambition, greed, and the promise of new beginnings. "Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter--tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther.... And one fine morning--" Gatsby's rise to glory and eventual fall from grace becomes a kind of cautionary tale about the American Dream.
It's also a love story, of sorts, the narrative of Gatsby's quixotic passion for Daisy Buchanan. The pair meet five years before the novel begins, when Daisy is a legendary young Louisville beauty and Gatsby an impoverished officer. They fall in love, but while Gatsby serves overseas, Daisy marries the brutal, bullying, but extremely rich Tom Buchanan. After the war, Gatsby devotes himself blindly to the pursuit of wealth by whatever means--and to the pursuit of Daisy, which amounts to the same thing. "Her voice is full of money," Gatsby says admiringly, in one of the novel's more famous descriptions. His millions made, Gatsby buys a mansion across Long Island Sound from Daisy's patrician East Egg address, throws lavish parties, and waits for her to appear. When she does, events unfold with all the tragic inevitability of a Greek drama, with detached, cynical neighbor Nick Carraway acting as chorus throughout. Spare, elegantly plotted, and written in crystalline prose, The Great Gatsby is as perfectly satisfying as the best kind of poem.
What Do I Think?
Surprisingly, I liked this novel. I tried to read it earlier on this year and ended up putting it down. I read Gatsby for English class. Iliked it more than I thought I would, and may reread it again in th future.
By the way: The eyes symbolize God.
Sidenote: I can't stand when teachers shove symbolism onto students. Especially when they have a different opinion as to what a certain object stands for.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Book 46: Comeback by Vicki Grant
Book 46: Comeback
Vicki Grant
2010
Orca Books Publisher.
Rating:
2
From Booklist
Ria is angry enough when her mother separates from her dad, but after he disappears while piloting his own plane, she decides to start a completely new life. With her five-year-old brother in tow, she runs away from home. When the realities of being on her own sink in, though, she soon realizes her folly, but she refuses to return to a home and town where, she has discovered, her dad scammed his clients out of millions in savings. Part of the Orca Soundings imprint targeted at reluctant readers, Grant's novel folds drama and suspense into a story that carries echoes of our country's current financial woes. Although the novel's brief length doesn't allow for in-depth characterization or an intricate plot or setting, its premise will quickly grab readers, who will empathize with Ria's disillusionment and split-second, bad decision making. Grades 6-10. --Frances Bradburn
What Do I Think?
The novels length does not give enough time to actually care for the characters like decent novels do. When Ria's dad goes missing, I couldn't care less. The only person I cared about was her little brother, who suffered through ria's poor sense of judgement when she runs away.
Vicki Grant
2010
Orca Books Publisher.
Rating:
2
From Booklist
Ria is angry enough when her mother separates from her dad, but after he disappears while piloting his own plane, she decides to start a completely new life. With her five-year-old brother in tow, she runs away from home. When the realities of being on her own sink in, though, she soon realizes her folly, but she refuses to return to a home and town where, she has discovered, her dad scammed his clients out of millions in savings. Part of the Orca Soundings imprint targeted at reluctant readers, Grant's novel folds drama and suspense into a story that carries echoes of our country's current financial woes. Although the novel's brief length doesn't allow for in-depth characterization or an intricate plot or setting, its premise will quickly grab readers, who will empathize with Ria's disillusionment and split-second, bad decision making. Grades 6-10. --Frances Bradburn
What Do I Think?
The novels length does not give enough time to actually care for the characters like decent novels do. When Ria's dad goes missing, I couldn't care less. The only person I cared about was her little brother, who suffered through ria's poor sense of judgement when she runs away.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Book 45: How To Build A House.
Book 45: How To Build A House
Dana Reinhardt
2008
Rating:
2.5
From Booklist
“When you live in California and have relatives in New York, everything in between feels like a big inconvenience,” says 17-year-old Harper. But even the middle of the country sounds better to Harper than her own home, which feels empty since her stepmother and stepsiblings moved out. Harper is also eager to leave Gabriel, her “sort-of boyfriend” behind, so she signs up as a summer volunteer to build houses for tornado victims in Bailey, Tennessee. In chapters that alternate between recollections of her past year and her Tennessee summer, Harper slowly reveals the events in L.A. that led to heartbreak and then the healing work, friendships, and romance she finds in Bailey. Reinhardt adds great depth to the familiar story of a teen changed by a summer escape with strong characters and perceptive, subtle explorations of love, family, sex, and friendship—all narrated in Harper’s believable voice. Teens, especially young women on the verge of independence, will see themselves in Harper, her questions, and her resilient heart. Grades 8-12. --Gillian Engberg --This text refers to the Hardcover edition
What Do I Think?
Well, it only took me a few days to read this book, and to be completely honest, I kind of liked it. Not as much as most other books, but it wasn't bad, like I expected. Now, I didn't connect with Harper like I wished I had and she was pretty whinny sometimes. But throughtout the book, it was interesting to watch her grow and care about other people.
Dana Reinhardt
2008
Rating:
2.5
From Booklist
“When you live in California and have relatives in New York, everything in between feels like a big inconvenience,” says 17-year-old Harper. But even the middle of the country sounds better to Harper than her own home, which feels empty since her stepmother and stepsiblings moved out. Harper is also eager to leave Gabriel, her “sort-of boyfriend” behind, so she signs up as a summer volunteer to build houses for tornado victims in Bailey, Tennessee. In chapters that alternate between recollections of her past year and her Tennessee summer, Harper slowly reveals the events in L.A. that led to heartbreak and then the healing work, friendships, and romance she finds in Bailey. Reinhardt adds great depth to the familiar story of a teen changed by a summer escape with strong characters and perceptive, subtle explorations of love, family, sex, and friendship—all narrated in Harper’s believable voice. Teens, especially young women on the verge of independence, will see themselves in Harper, her questions, and her resilient heart. Grades 8-12. --Gillian Engberg --This text refers to the Hardcover edition
What Do I Think?
Well, it only took me a few days to read this book, and to be completely honest, I kind of liked it. Not as much as most other books, but it wasn't bad, like I expected. Now, I didn't connect with Harper like I wished I had and she was pretty whinny sometimes. But throughtout the book, it was interesting to watch her grow and care about other people.
Book 44: The Outsiders
Book 44: The Ousiders
S.E. Hinton
1967
Rating:
3
Amazon.com Review
According to Ponyboy, there are two kinds of people in the world: greasers and socs. A soc (short for "social") has money, can get away with just about anything, and has an attitude longer than a limousine. A greaser, on the other hand, always lives on the outside and needs to watch his back. Ponyboy is a greaser, and he's always been proud of it, even willing to rumble against a gang of socs for the sake of his fellow greasers--until one terrible night when his friend Johnny kills a soc. The murder gets under Ponyboy's skin, causing his bifurcated world to crumble and teaching him that pain feels the same whether a soc or a greaser. This classic, written by S. E. Hinton when she was 16 years old, is as profound today as it was when it was first published in 1967.
What Do I Think?
I first read this book back in Eighth grade, and I didn't much like it then. To be completely honest, I still don't like it. I mean, yeah, it's all right, but the plot is really strange and it's almost as if Hinton said 'I want them to do this. No, I change my mind, now they're going to do this.' They start out in their town, Johnny and Ponyboy get beat up, on faithful night, and Johnny kills a Soc. They need to run away, so they do, and they go to a church a few towns away. They live there for a few chapters until Dally (Darry? Confusing character names are confusing.) comes to the town and they decide to leave with him. The church is on fire and there are kids inside. They get the kids out, but Johnny breaks his back. They go back into town in an ambulance. Then there is a big fight and all the Greasers win. Hurray. Johnny dies, then someone else kills himself, and they all watch. Darn.
I mean, it's good for a sixteen-year-old and is quite relateable, the plot is just a little wibbily-wobbily.
S.E. Hinton
1967
Rating:
3
Amazon.com Review
According to Ponyboy, there are two kinds of people in the world: greasers and socs. A soc (short for "social") has money, can get away with just about anything, and has an attitude longer than a limousine. A greaser, on the other hand, always lives on the outside and needs to watch his back. Ponyboy is a greaser, and he's always been proud of it, even willing to rumble against a gang of socs for the sake of his fellow greasers--until one terrible night when his friend Johnny kills a soc. The murder gets under Ponyboy's skin, causing his bifurcated world to crumble and teaching him that pain feels the same whether a soc or a greaser. This classic, written by S. E. Hinton when she was 16 years old, is as profound today as it was when it was first published in 1967.
What Do I Think?
I first read this book back in Eighth grade, and I didn't much like it then. To be completely honest, I still don't like it. I mean, yeah, it's all right, but the plot is really strange and it's almost as if Hinton said 'I want them to do this. No, I change my mind, now they're going to do this.' They start out in their town, Johnny and Ponyboy get beat up, on faithful night, and Johnny kills a Soc. They need to run away, so they do, and they go to a church a few towns away. They live there for a few chapters until Dally (Darry? Confusing character names are confusing.) comes to the town and they decide to leave with him. The church is on fire and there are kids inside. They get the kids out, but Johnny breaks his back. They go back into town in an ambulance. Then there is a big fight and all the Greasers win. Hurray. Johnny dies, then someone else kills himself, and they all watch. Darn.
I mean, it's good for a sixteen-year-old and is quite relateable, the plot is just a little wibbily-wobbily.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Book 43: Dawn
Book 43: Dawn
Kevin Brooks.
2009
Rating:
2.5
From BookistShortly after we meet 15-year-old Dawn, she states her agenda: And tomorrow I’m going to start killing God. It’s not often a young-adult protagonist is so openly hostile to religion, and it gives Brooks’ story enough edge to steer us through moments of floundering. Thankfully, Dawn’s ire at Christianity is given a satisfying origin: two years ago, her wayward father moved from drugs and alcohol to religious zealotry, and it was with that fervor that he committed an atrocity. Dawn has mostly blocked it out and now lives alone with her boozy mom and twin dachshunds, Jesus and Mary. Brooks uses a halting, repetitious, and sometimes poetic prose that shifts into self-interrogation when things get too intense: Q. And the gun? Did you keep the gun? A. Yes. It’s a simultaneously gruff and anxious approach that wonderfully depicts Dawn’s confusion when two bad girls begin to ply her with unsolicited vodka and cajole her with makeovers. Though rushed, the climax is undoubtedly dramatic and pulls together puzzle pieces many readers may not have even noticed. Grades 9-12. --Daniel Kraus
What Do I Think?
Almost the same as Mr. Daniel Kraus above. The exposition took over 200 pages and the climate took about 20 pages. There was never really a resolution or end to the story. The exposition was excellent, but incredibly long. After about page 175, I started wondering when the plot was coming in. Q: What about the plot? When do we get a plot? A: Never.
Kevin Brooks.
2009
Rating:
2.5
From BookistShortly after we meet 15-year-old Dawn, she states her agenda: And tomorrow I’m going to start killing God. It’s not often a young-adult protagonist is so openly hostile to religion, and it gives Brooks’ story enough edge to steer us through moments of floundering. Thankfully, Dawn’s ire at Christianity is given a satisfying origin: two years ago, her wayward father moved from drugs and alcohol to religious zealotry, and it was with that fervor that he committed an atrocity. Dawn has mostly blocked it out and now lives alone with her boozy mom and twin dachshunds, Jesus and Mary. Brooks uses a halting, repetitious, and sometimes poetic prose that shifts into self-interrogation when things get too intense: Q. And the gun? Did you keep the gun? A. Yes. It’s a simultaneously gruff and anxious approach that wonderfully depicts Dawn’s confusion when two bad girls begin to ply her with unsolicited vodka and cajole her with makeovers. Though rushed, the climax is undoubtedly dramatic and pulls together puzzle pieces many readers may not have even noticed. Grades 9-12. --Daniel Kraus
What Do I Think?
Almost the same as Mr. Daniel Kraus above. The exposition took over 200 pages and the climate took about 20 pages. There was never really a resolution or end to the story. The exposition was excellent, but incredibly long. After about page 175, I started wondering when the plot was coming in. Q: What about the plot? When do we get a plot? A: Never.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Book 42: Hamlet
Book 42: Hamlet
Shakespeare.
Believed to be written in the early 1600's
Rating:
4
Kind of a synopsis
Hamlet, young prince of Denmark, is still shaken by the recent death of his idolized father and by the marriage, scarcely a month later, of his widowed mother, Queen Gertrude, to his uncle, the present King Claudius, whom he despises. He tells of his despair in soliloquy:
"O that this too, too solid flesh would melt,
That and resolve itself into a dew!
Or that the Everlasting had not fix'd
His canon 'gainst self-slaughter! O God! God!...
But break, my heart, for I must hold my tongue!"
What Do I Think?
I read Hamlet for class, but have owned it for quite a long time. Thus far, Hamlet has been my favorite Shakespeare tragedy. Quite excellent, captivating.
Shakespeare.
Believed to be written in the early 1600's
Rating:
4
Kind of a synopsis
Hamlet, young prince of Denmark, is still shaken by the recent death of his idolized father and by the marriage, scarcely a month later, of his widowed mother, Queen Gertrude, to his uncle, the present King Claudius, whom he despises. He tells of his despair in soliloquy:
"O that this too, too solid flesh would melt,
That and resolve itself into a dew!
Or that the Everlasting had not fix'd
His canon 'gainst self-slaughter! O God! God!...
But break, my heart, for I must hold my tongue!"
What Do I Think?
I read Hamlet for class, but have owned it for quite a long time. Thus far, Hamlet has been my favorite Shakespeare tragedy. Quite excellent, captivating.
Book 41: Green Angel
Book 41: Green Angel
Alice Hoffman
Scholastic.
2003
Rating:
2
Synopsis
Left on her own when her family dies in a terrible disaster, fifteen-year-old Green is haunted by loss and by the past. Struggling to survive physically and emotionally in a place where nothing seems to grow and ashes are everywhere, Green retreats into the ruined realm of her garden. But in destroying her feelings, she also begins to destroy herself, erasing the girl she'd once been as she inks darkness into her skin. It is only through a series of mysterious encounters that Green can relearn the lessons of love and begin to heal enough to tell her story.
What Do I Think?
I read this book in about a day; It was very quick. There was no plot line, really. It was kind of like a bad fan-fiction, as in: "First I did this, then I did this. Then I did this." So on and so forth. Honestl, I wouldn't read this book again, and don't plan on reading Green Witch. Sorry, Alice Hoffman.
Alice Hoffman
Scholastic.
2003
Rating:
2
Synopsis
Left on her own when her family dies in a terrible disaster, fifteen-year-old Green is haunted by loss and by the past. Struggling to survive physically and emotionally in a place where nothing seems to grow and ashes are everywhere, Green retreats into the ruined realm of her garden. But in destroying her feelings, she also begins to destroy herself, erasing the girl she'd once been as she inks darkness into her skin. It is only through a series of mysterious encounters that Green can relearn the lessons of love and begin to heal enough to tell her story.
What Do I Think?
I read this book in about a day; It was very quick. There was no plot line, really. It was kind of like a bad fan-fiction, as in: "First I did this, then I did this. Then I did this." So on and so forth. Honestl, I wouldn't read this book again, and don't plan on reading Green Witch. Sorry, Alice Hoffman.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Book 40: So Yesterday.
Book 40: So Yesterday
Scott Westerfeld
Penguin Books.
2004
Rating:
2.5
From School Library Journal
Grade 7-10–New York City is the backdrop for this trendy, often surreal novel with a message about the down-and-dirty business of inventing and marketing pop-cultural fads. Hunter Braque, 17, is part of a focus group that views advertisements for shoes. A product gets the nod if it is "skate," but it is more important to point out what might be "uncool." When the teen brings Jen to the next meeting, she spots uncool right away and lets Hunter's boss, Mandy, know. The next day, the woman tells Hunter that the client appreciated Jen's original thinking, and that their help is needed for a "big deal." Jen and Hunter quickly find themselves caught up in a strange turn of events when Mandy disappears. Their search for her begins in an abandoned building in Chinatown and leads to a wild, drunken party at the Museum of Natural History where people are viewing advertisements for a new shampoo. This is a somewhat entertaining story, but awkward phrasing throughout defeats the "coolness," and the scenes involving Hunter's epidemiologist dad slow down the plot. Readers will better appreciate the satire and humor about the consumer world in M. T. Anderson's Feed (Candlewick, 2002), in which the characters are far more realistic.–Kelly Czarnecki, Bloomington Public Library, IL
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
What Do I Think?
Way to have an exposition. I mean, it was all right, but we never get to really know the characters. There is a wall that should have been broken in the very beginning. I guess it can be explained with a single passage from the book:
"You've probably seen the show yourself if you've kept your eyes on the ground, but only in pieces. It's easy to recognize, on the client's products and a dozen knockoffs and bootlegs- that part of any show the rewires your brain,makes you think for a moment that you can fly. But you'll never hold the whole thing in your hand. It went up in smoke.
Still, you can't blame the client for following the first rule of consumerism: Never give us what we really want. Cut the dream into pieces and scatter them like ashes. Dole out the empty promises. Package our aspirations and sell them to us, cheaply made enough to fall apart."
We will never get the perfect novel we want, only the small scattered pieces of what could be.
Scott Westerfeld
Penguin Books.
2004
Rating:
2.5
From School Library Journal
Grade 7-10–New York City is the backdrop for this trendy, often surreal novel with a message about the down-and-dirty business of inventing and marketing pop-cultural fads. Hunter Braque, 17, is part of a focus group that views advertisements for shoes. A product gets the nod if it is "skate," but it is more important to point out what might be "uncool." When the teen brings Jen to the next meeting, she spots uncool right away and lets Hunter's boss, Mandy, know. The next day, the woman tells Hunter that the client appreciated Jen's original thinking, and that their help is needed for a "big deal." Jen and Hunter quickly find themselves caught up in a strange turn of events when Mandy disappears. Their search for her begins in an abandoned building in Chinatown and leads to a wild, drunken party at the Museum of Natural History where people are viewing advertisements for a new shampoo. This is a somewhat entertaining story, but awkward phrasing throughout defeats the "coolness," and the scenes involving Hunter's epidemiologist dad slow down the plot. Readers will better appreciate the satire and humor about the consumer world in M. T. Anderson's Feed (Candlewick, 2002), in which the characters are far more realistic.–Kelly Czarnecki, Bloomington Public Library, IL
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
What Do I Think?
Way to have an exposition. I mean, it was all right, but we never get to really know the characters. There is a wall that should have been broken in the very beginning. I guess it can be explained with a single passage from the book:
"You've probably seen the show yourself if you've kept your eyes on the ground, but only in pieces. It's easy to recognize, on the client's products and a dozen knockoffs and bootlegs- that part of any show the rewires your brain,makes you think for a moment that you can fly. But you'll never hold the whole thing in your hand. It went up in smoke.
Still, you can't blame the client for following the first rule of consumerism: Never give us what we really want. Cut the dream into pieces and scatter them like ashes. Dole out the empty promises. Package our aspirations and sell them to us, cheaply made enough to fall apart."
We will never get the perfect novel we want, only the small scattered pieces of what could be.
Book 39: Catching Fire.
Book 39: Catching Fire
Suzanne Collins.
Scolastic
2009
Rating:
3.5
From School Library Journal
Starred Review. Gr 7 Up--
Every year in Panem, the dystopic nation that exists where the U.S. used to be, the Capitol holds a televised tournament in which two teen "tributes" from each of the surrounding districts fight a gruesome battle to the death. In The Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, the tributes from impoverished District Twelve, thwarted the Gamemakers, forcing them to let both teens survive. In this rabidly anticipated sequel, Katniss, again the narrator, returns home to find herself more the center of attention than ever. The sinister President Snow surprises her with a visit, and Katniss’s fear when Snow meets with her alone is both palpable and justified. Catching Fire is divided into three parts: Katniss and Peeta’s mandatory Victory Tour through the districts, preparations for the 75th Annual Hunger Games, and a truncated version of the Games themselves. Slower paced than its predecessor, this sequel explores the nation of Panem: its power structure, rumors of a secret district, and a spreading rebellion, ignited by Katniss and Peeta’s subversive victory. Katniss also deepens as a character. Though initially bewildered by the attention paid to her, she comes almost to embrace her status as the rebels’ symbolic leader. Though more of the story takes place outside the arena than within, this sequel has enough action to please Hunger Games fans and leaves enough questions tantalizingly unanswered for readers to be desperate for the next installment.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
What Do I Think?
Catching Fire -sequel to The Hunger Games- was, well, not as good as I suspected. The exposition seemed to go on forever, and the conflict didn't start soon enough. Sure, we knew of the uprising in the other districts and there were police more and more in District 12, but it never really goes deep into it. I would like to hear the story from Gale's point of view.
My heart sunk when the news of the Quell came out; it was obviously planned. Before that year, there wouldn't have been a female victor from District 12. (Opinions?) The Games were all kind of blur and didn't really make sence a lot of the time.
Eh. Not as good as the first. I don't know if I'll read Mockingjay.
Suzanne Collins.
Scolastic
2009
Rating:
3.5
From School Library Journal
Starred Review. Gr 7 Up--
Every year in Panem, the dystopic nation that exists where the U.S. used to be, the Capitol holds a televised tournament in which two teen "tributes" from each of the surrounding districts fight a gruesome battle to the death. In The Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, the tributes from impoverished District Twelve, thwarted the Gamemakers, forcing them to let both teens survive. In this rabidly anticipated sequel, Katniss, again the narrator, returns home to find herself more the center of attention than ever. The sinister President Snow surprises her with a visit, and Katniss’s fear when Snow meets with her alone is both palpable and justified. Catching Fire is divided into three parts: Katniss and Peeta’s mandatory Victory Tour through the districts, preparations for the 75th Annual Hunger Games, and a truncated version of the Games themselves. Slower paced than its predecessor, this sequel explores the nation of Panem: its power structure, rumors of a secret district, and a spreading rebellion, ignited by Katniss and Peeta’s subversive victory. Katniss also deepens as a character. Though initially bewildered by the attention paid to her, she comes almost to embrace her status as the rebels’ symbolic leader. Though more of the story takes place outside the arena than within, this sequel has enough action to please Hunger Games fans and leaves enough questions tantalizingly unanswered for readers to be desperate for the next installment.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
What Do I Think?
Catching Fire -sequel to The Hunger Games- was, well, not as good as I suspected. The exposition seemed to go on forever, and the conflict didn't start soon enough. Sure, we knew of the uprising in the other districts and there were police more and more in District 12, but it never really goes deep into it. I would like to hear the story from Gale's point of view.
My heart sunk when the news of the Quell came out; it was obviously planned. Before that year, there wouldn't have been a female victor from District 12. (Opinions?) The Games were all kind of blur and didn't really make sence a lot of the time.
Eh. Not as good as the first. I don't know if I'll read Mockingjay.
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