101 Objects that Made America...

     
      Who carries political magazines with them in school? Well apparently Kamala does.  She pulled out a huge stack of 'intellectually stimulating' magazines and dropped them on the table. I just sat there staring. Of all things, magazines? Well I flipped though a few of them and one seemed actually really interesting. It was from the Smithsonian and was titled "101 Objects That Made America". There were actually some pretty unique things in the magazine and, from what I read, it is a really good read.The United States of America is often hailed as one of the most powerful and influential countries in the world. The U.S. has definately made a myriad amount of long lasting contributions to the world. What are a few of these objects that really made history and defined the U.S. to be what it is today?

       1). Lewis and Clark's Compass: Meriwether Lewis paid only $5 for a typical 3 and a half inch, silver compass that would eventually lead his crew to documenting the rest of the country that we live in today. It's hard to imagine that this small little piece of simple equipment could be such a huge key in pretty much everything that we know now about our country. From the flora and the fauna to the rivers that stretch across a half dozen states, this little compass really did make a huge difference in how we see the country.

 

       2). Polio Vaccine: Jonas Salk did the world a huge favor by developing a mixure that was able to dramatically slow down, if not almost halt, the devastating spread of the polio disease. This sickness has damaged and taken so many innocent lives. It is a huge blessing to mankind that we had someone who was capable enough and bold enough to take on the challenge to conquer this disease. He had grown the virus in monkey kidneys and killed it with formaldehyde. He had injected already infected children, his wife, 3 sons, and himself with his vaccine. Fortuneatly, his vaccine, did not lead to unwanted side effects but was able to provide beneficial results that decimated this disease.
   


  3). As a bloody war that turned sons against fathers and brothers against brothers, the Civil War wrecked double havoc on the United States for it was a country fighting against itself. Hundreds of thousands of lives were lost in this war and it tore the country apart. Both the Union and Confederate sides had something to fight for and both believed that they were making the right decision by fighting this war. However, when all was said and done, the last 'official' battle of the Civil War resulted with Ulysses S. Grant demolishing Rober E. Lee's army. When the battle was over, both generals decided to call an end to Civil War by meeting at Wilmer McLean's living room (in Appomattox Court House, Virginia). Grant sat down in an everyday leatherback chair and made history that day. He and Lee were able to reach the compromse that stated Lee and his army would drop their arms and go peacefully back to the south.

The Fall of Five!!!!!!!!

      Ok. I have legit been waiting for this book for 2 months- to the day. Well I finally got it on my Nook and I just finished reading page 20 like 2 minutes ago and I just had to write about it. First off, it's AMAZING. I'm pretty sure anyone who has read the Lorien Legacy series would agree that the series in general is AMAZING because it is. The plot is so well thought out and unique. There is enough action in it to keep you on the edge of your chair and yet not too much so that everything you read is just blood and gore. It is at a perfect equilibrium. Anyways, about the book itself...

       Finally!!! There is Sam's perspective in the book!! He finally narrates part of the book!This totally made my day. Sam is this shy, mundane, totally normal human teenager who got thrust into this mythical world of aliens and Mogadorians. From the second I first read his name and the first description of him in I am Number Four, I knew he would be a special character for me. And indeed, as the pages flew by, he was. I just find that he is exactly what the phrase "the average Joe" entails. He's in high school, feels a little out of step at times, makes okay grades, doesn't talk much, and has this one obsession that pretty much dominates his life. However, in one moment, one sentence followed by one action changes everything. One second he is just a normal teen and the next he's traveling the world recruiting powerful aliens and battling creatures who are trying to destroy humanity. Kinda a big change in life style if you ask me...

      In the rest of the books, he definitely plays a big part in the plot, but he's sort of just the main character's best friend. He sometimes gets overshadowed in my opinion. He sacrificed so much of his life and doesn't get much of the spotlight when the time comes. I never got a glimpse into his view about the things happening in his life, but I always had this unexplained instinct that he feels small and inferior when compared to the people he interacts with. They have powers to wield a sword with inhuman accuracy, to turn invisible, and to move things with their minds. While he just has the knowledge of extra terrestrial life and the motivation of his missing father to push him forward through life. They're never scared to face death and to kill other creatures, and he shakes in fear at the presence of a dangerous situation. They are pretty much all on the same boat and can understand each other perfectly, and he still has troubles dealing with his feelings for a girl. All of these characteristics make Sam just that much more realistic and relatable. I'm sure at some point in life, we've all felt inadequate or lost or small, much like Sam probably does. We've all felt like we're not good enough by comparison to a certain other person.

      Well, continuing, so far this book is going great. Sam meets his father for the first time in a decade, he escapes from the prison he's been kept in for weeks, and finally might get reunited with his friends. Definitely going to go back to reading now :)

Book trailer:

Great Expectations.... Continued...

      So to start off with.... I haven't blogged about, or read for that matter, much of Great Expectations. The main reason being that my Nook died about a week ago and I, conveniently, lost the charger... I do have this book on my google account, so I have tried reading it on my laptop, but it just isn't as natural...

      Anyways, Miss Havisham has just given Pip's family some money in case of her decease... AKA a part of her will. This takes Pip's sister (Mrs. Joe) OVER the moon. Her normal stoic and mechanical nature has changed to the point where she actually laughs. This makes Pip's family happy for a while, but soon, Mr. Pumblechook has it set that Pip will be apprenticed to Mr. Joe (Pip's father figure). Previously stated in the book, Pip is completely and utterly ashamed of his upbringing and family. Once apprenticed, Pip would be tied to this kind of lifestyle for forever. What's worse is that he was getting by so well with Miss Havisham that he had this little seed of possiblility planted in his heart that Miss Havisham might agree to raise him and care for him. Then out of nowhere, she one day tells Pip that he must be apprenticed to his uncle. This crushes poor Pip's heart because it shows that Miss Havisham never meant to help him be successful and wealthy in life.

      So the rest of this part of the book literally just goes on and talks about his disappointment and shamefulness. What I've noticed about classics, or at least this one, is that it is VERY redundant. A chapter will literally emphasize the same idea or concept like 10 times....

      P.S... Had to return The Book Thief because there was a hold on it in the library.
      P.S.S... Anyone else ALWAYS thinks 'Thief' is spelled Theif'? For sure I do.... :P

Well this is a picture of Miss Havisham, and since it's almost Halloween, this is a great time to post this pic... You'll understand :)

Blogging....

       Well had a really busy weekend.... had to help out with my sister's birthday party. And for anyone who has younger siblings, you know how difficult it is to keep 10 first graders from burning the house down... or at least keeping them from making the floor of your living room into the collection pile for empty juice boxes, popsicle sticks, and miscellaneous food. Kids.... gotta love them.

       So, I did not get much reading done :( So I was in my pj's and all ready for bed... and then this horrible feeling sinks in. I HAVE TO POST MY SECOND BLOG!! So it's like 11 at night and now I'm racking my brain for something to talk about. Don't get me wrong... normally I can fill this page with ANYTHING but at this hour, that's really not an option.

      How about some random things I happened to read over the weekend? Cleaning the house can really turn up some pretty unique findings...

1). I found this old science book lying around the house (so old it literally had dust on every page) and I flipped it open and saw this really cool picture of the Stonehenge at sunset. So inevitably, my eyes glided over to the words corresponding to it. According to this page, science started with astronomy. Apparently when our ancestors looked towards the sky and saw the different glistening lights in the dark sky, 'science' was born. They saw the changing moon from night to night, the sun's systematic setting and rising, and the numerous wandering planets visible with a glimpse through a telescope.

2). Awkwardly picked up a copy of Little Women from the bookshelf- the book was so tiny that the cover was probably the size of my hand, so undoubtedly was it thick. It was a very strangely shaped book... Anyways I read the back cover and it said that this was about 4 sisters growing up in New England during the Civil War and how they share everything with each other. From happiness to gloom, love to hate, they're always there for each other. I found this strangely relatable. Besides living in a different society, I can totally understand how and why they'd share so much with each other..

      Well it was just one of those weekends... Too sleepy to add pictures... Sorry!!

Romeo and Juliet

      

       What's your first impression of this play? Personally, I kind of like it. A lot of the ancient language gets kind of confusing, but I get the general gist of it. The different activities we do in class really does help with the understanding... I think that it was quite ingenious of Shakespeare to combine romance and tragedy with such eloquency. The plot of the story is also very innovative. It had to be something special for it to be still talked about so vividly and frequently in the 21st century. I mean it is the basis of SO many modern day media, such as Gnomeo and Juliet.

       Whenever there's a huge problem in a book, I always try to trace it back to who's fault it is.... Maybe that's weird... I don't know.... For Romeo and Juliet, I feel like there are 2 main people who contribute to the tragedy of the play. First off, Benvolio decides that it would be such a good idea to go crash their enemy's party. Ok, I'll admit, he had good intentions in mind- he wanted to help Romeo get over Rosalind, but still... If he never suggested that Romeo go to the Capulet's party, Romeo and Juliet probably never would have met because they are such mortal enemies. It's not like they visit each other so often, or talk all the time.

      Also, Juliet's dad ignored Tybalt's advice to kick Romeo out of the party. Tybalt knew of Romeo's lineage, so he knew that Romeo was not welcome. Yet, Juliet's father decided that it would be fine for Romeo to stay. If Romeo's father had kicked Romeo out, Juliet and Romeo would have never spoken or kissed, and thus wouldn't have 'fallen in love'.

     I know that it probably was destiny that these two lovers met and that it was destiny that caused their lives to end so tragically So, one probably can't pinpoint all their misfortunes on people. However, I'm sure that there could've been a small action that would've, at least, postpone the catastrophe that took place.

NEW BOOK!!!!!

       Just started The Book Thief today. I chose this book mainly because I have read so many good reviews of this book on Blogger. I read that this book was narrated by Death. This stumped me for a second. Could this whole book literally be a personification of the idea of death? Does Death talk? Does it move? Does it have a mind of its own? The answer to all the above questions is yes.It starts off with Death telling the reader of his observations of the world. It says that all the different colors in the world that he gets to see is what keeps hims sane. In a way, this spirit kind of follows around this girl named Liesel- aka the book thief. He is with her during her bad times and her good. I am really not that far into the book, but I have learned that Liesel has a little brother who dies. She is also a foster child, and thus is moved around from place to place.

       Another reason I chose this book is because it takes place around WWII in Germany. I really like reading historical fiction because doing so brings me into another world and time period. It's written so realistically that I feel as if I was actually alive during the time period and experienced all the book talks about. I especially find this time period to be exceptionally interesting. It baffles me that there are actually people in this world who could act in such a soulless and harsh manner. How can they just persecute and kill of thousands of people just because they believed different things? I know they probably had their reasons of acting the way they did, but in my eyes its still inexcusable.

       After reading Night By Elie Wiesel last year for language arts, I gained a more deeper understanding of the pain and trouble that Jews had to suffer. I have a feeling that little Liesel will have to go through similar obstacles.

       The last reason I chose to read this book is because I saw it on the YALSA/Alex awards list as I was searching for a summer reading book. I read the summary and it looked really interesting so I put it on my 'Maybe' list, but never actually got to read it. I guess now is the time that this will all change...I look forward to reading the rest of this book.

     

What Did I Just Read?!?

 Just a heads up- this is a very analytically written post, so if analyzing stuff bores you then I suggest you don't continue reading this blog... But otherwise.... Read on!!

        So many times, I'd be reading a book and just suddenly zone out. I'd look at the last 5 pages I read and have absolutely NO idea what happened. In fact, I don't even remember ever setting eyes on those pages. This happens A LOT. Especially when I'm reading my history book. But with Great Expectations, I try really hard to stay focused on what I'm reading. Still there are passages that I reread like 5 times and still have no clue what it's saying. Here's an example.

        "I have reason to think that Joe's intellects were brightened by the encounter they had passed, through, and that on our way to Pumblechook's he invented a subtle and deep design. My reason is to be found in what took place in Mr. Pumblechook's parlor: where, on our presenting ourselves, my sister in conference with that detested seedsman.(127)"

       Anyways, I'm going to try to break this passage down in this blog and try to get the general gist of this paragraph. A little background info: 'the encounter' is when Pip's brother in law (Joe) goes to visit a rich, financially stable old women. Having very little money, this is a brand new experience for Pip's brother in law. Pumplechook is Pip's uncle.

       So pretty much I interpret this to mean that visiting someone living by different standards of himself was an enlightening experience for Pip's brother in law. He inevitable became more experienced and thus 'smarter'. by "a subtle and deep design", I believe the narrator means that along the journey, Joe took on a very scholarly appearance and attitude.Whether this was to impress his host or just to fit in with his surroundings is open to interpretation.

       Well, I had heard of the word 'parlor' before and imagined a petite little room decorated with fine china and little stone statues. The curtains would be tied back with sophisticated ribbons. There'd be a soft velvet couch planted in the middle and sunlight would radiate from the side windows. This was the beautiful picture I had invented. And then I looked it up in the dictionary and...... it was not all I set it out to be. Turns out, a parlor is, simply put, an antique looking living room...

       Continuing, the narrator wanted to know what will happen in Pumblechook's living room where, upon their entering, Pip sees his sister is engaging in conversation with the strongly disliked 'sower of seeds', who I take to be Mr. Pumblechook. Wow, the word 'seedsman' is really quite literal....

       Although a trivial passage, it has helped me improve my understanding of the syntax of the book.

Another book please!!

      
       Personally, I REALLY dislike starting a book and not finishing it. It makes me feel so unaccomplished and it feels like a waste of time. I don't really know why I'm blogging about this topic as to I haven't 'quit' a book lately. I guess this just sort of crossed my mind and after posting about books I LOVED, I guess this is kind of going the opposite way. So here is a list of books that I have read and did not really like.

1). The Red Badge of Courage- This book takes place during the Civil War in the midst of a battle. It is about a young man- Henry Fleming- who signed up to fight for the Union Army, he is very scared and ran from one of the first battle he fought in. As he is escaping through the woods, he cannot help but feel ashamed of how he acts. After a while of wandering, he encounters a column of soldiers and he is envious that all these men have wounds that symbolize their bravery (or as he calls them, they have red badges of courage). Here he meets a wounded man close to dying and leaves him to die in the woods because the injured soldier keeps asking where Henry got shot. Later, Henry gets hit by a gun on his head by accident. When he returns to camp ground, all his other companions treat him like royalty because they believe he got shot. In the end, Henry feels bad that he fled from battle, but he felt worse that he left a poor, defenseless man in the woods to die.
***This book didn't suit me because I didn't understand a lot of the military terms, so it was confusing. But, if you find stories about war interesting, then this would be a great book for you.


2). Nothing But the Truth- This book revolves around a ninth grader, named Philip Malloy, who wants to get transferred from a mean teacher's class to another. He does so by ignoring the school's policy of observing "The Star Spangled Banner", and hums along with it. This small action makes national media and becomes a hot topic of debate of whether Philip did anything wrong.
*** The plot of this book was very well thought out but it was written in play format. So it had only dialogue. So every page was like this- (Someone's name): "[Dialogue]".This made the book so not descriptive and was quite bland to read.


3). Johnny Tremain- Johnny Tremain is a gifted, but arrogant, silversmith apprentice who bullies his peers. He starts off in a wonderful status with a roof over his head, food on the table, and a family who cared for him. However, after a prank turns bad, Johnny's hand is burned and he no longer can work as a silversmith. He has proof that he is related to the wealthy Boston merchant Mr. Lyte. After a huge amount of unfortunate circumstances, he finds a job delivering newspapers and befriends Rab. Rab later dies in the Battle of Lexington, and Johnny vows to avenge his friends death. He finds a doctor who says that his hand can be fixed to the point where Johnny can fire a musket and that is what he decides to do.
   *** Just not enough action for my liking....

       Well, still reading Great Expectations, but I'm progressing at a much slower pace than I would like because at this point, it is more of the desire to finish the book than the excitement of the book that propels me to read it. Don't get me wrong, the book is really good, but it's just not as action packed as some of the other books I've blogged about in my blog. Anyways, if you guys have any suggestions for books I can read along side Great Expectations, I'd be really grateful!!

Book Wishlist!!

Personally, I am a very "series" oriented person when it comes to reading- meaning that I really like reading books that are part of a series. Thus, inevitably, it is a HUGE pet peeve of mine when I finish a book and the next book is scheduled to come out... 2 years later. By then I would've forgotten everything that happened in the series and I would have to reread the old books to jog my memory before I start the new one, and it just gets really annoying... Anyways... just a little background info that kind of explains the books I really want to read in the future:

1). Fall of Five (Lorien Legacies) By Pitticus Lore: I started reading this series last year and instantly fell in love with it. I read the first book and immediately bought the next 2 on my Nook. The plot seemed so distant and far- fetched, yet so close to home. The whole "creatures from another planet with super powers" kind of made the book sound very fictional. However the fact that John (main character) had to move a lot to hide his identity, lost his foster dad, and had to go through so much pain to save something he cared for deeply made this book seem like it could very much happen in reality.

2). City of Heavenly Fire (The Mortal Instruments) By Cassandra Clare: The majority of my posts on my blog is about the prequels to this book. The ending of the book before this one ended on such a cliff hanger that I REALLY want to know what happened. Also, I feel like in this series, everytime a happy even occurs, it somehow always turns bad. The ending of the 5th book was rather happy and I have a feeling that something horrible is going to happen in the next book.

3). Allegiant (Divergent) By Veronica Roth: The first 2 books really grabbed my attention because ALL of the characters were so relatable- even the antagonists. Also, the fact that this book is set in such dystopian society really made me feel much more appreciative of the world we live in today. I couldn't help constantly thinking, "Is this what our world could turn into one day?".

Now time for some books that aren't part of a series:


4). The Book Thief By Markus Zusak: I have read so many good reviews (esp on Blogger.com) on this book. I also considered reading this book for my summer reading project so I have already read the short synopsis about the book. It sounded so interesting and is set during the Holocaust which is such a sad, yet captivating time period.

5). The Perks of Being a Wallflower By Stephen Chbosky: This was my language arts teacher's favorite book last year, so it has definitely been the top "want to read". Also the idea for the story sounds really well thought out and unique. (And also I have read really good reviews of this book on Blogger.com too...)