Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Summer Reading

Over the summer, you were asked to read at least two novels of your choice.
1) Briefly tell me what you read, including the titles and authors.
2) I want to know what you liked about the books, what you learned and, more importantly, what matters to you about the book's content.
*Make sure to adhere to proper conventions and proofread your response. If, for some reason, you did not read two novels, tell me about two novels you have read and answer the above.

22 comments:

  1. Over the summer I read the Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins, these were my absolute favorite books of all time. I could not put them down, at points in the book I would read for three hours straight because they were so good. What I liked about the books is that they were so descriptive that I could imagine every moment like I was watching a movie. I also liked how much action was in the book. What I learned while reading the books is that family comes before yourself, because in the book the main character volunteers to take her sisters place in the games which is a fight to the death. This proves that she would give her life for her sister. What mattered to me in the books content is that the book made me compare it to everyday life. In one part of the book the characters talk about music and whenever I heard music I would think of that scene in the book.

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  2. The two novels i read over the summer where Suzanne Collins, Hunger Games and Catching Fire. These two books belong in the Hunger Games trilogy. The second I finished The Hunger Games I could not help but jump right into the next book. I would read 100 pages at a time. I loved it. Some of the events that took place sent intense chills throughout my body because it felt like it was happening to me. if the character got punched in the arm, my arm began to fell sore. Now I just can't wait to read the third book.

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  3. Over the summer we were asked by Mr. Booth to read two books. The two books i read were, the first book in the Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins and my second book was Worst Case by James Patterson. The Hunger games was a really great book which made it hard to set down and i just couldn't stop reading. During the book the main character is very good at hunting especially with a bow and arrow. This bow and arrow is a large part of the story and your almost hoping that it will just come out through parts of the book. A large thing that i learned about this book is when someone you think is just about to stab you in the back trust them and go along with what their doing because they might know just what to do in this situation to save you. The second book Worst Case was about a killer that killed for an almost good reason. What i liked about the book was that the detective was always just behind the killer and the killer always had an interesting way of disguising his kill to do with ash Wednesday. What mattered to me in the book was that the whole goal of the killer was to get rid of wealthy billionaires children unless the children really deserved the money and give it to cancer research and charities. Worst Case taught that some people will go to drastic measures to help others. Towards the end of the summer i was really glad i read these books because they both were just very well written.

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  4. A book i read over summer break was Al Capone Shines My Shoes by Gennifer Choldenko. I liked when there were alot of suspense like when they wondered why moose's sister hated her school. I also liked this book because it talked about Alcatraz alot and ive always been interested in going to Alcatraz.

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  6. I only got to read one book this summer. the book that i got to read was called jurake park. I don't know who was the Aunthor. the thing that the things i like in books is us history books. the reasons why i like history books is because it helps me learn a little of the us.

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  7. Over the summer I read Flags Of Our Fathers by James Bradley and The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. Flags Of Our Fathers was a very slow paced book. It takes place during, in my opinion, one the most interesting times(world war 2). I liked how it gave all the back ground knowledge, but it honestly spent to much time on it. I learned allot about military and the story behind most of the divisions. The Da Vinci code however was one of the best books I have ever read. It is a suspense which kept me reading and the author also didn't go to the other extreme with adding to much suspense. For the most part both books were very intriguing.

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  8. The Two books i read over the summer were The Thrawn Trilogy, Book 1 Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn and Vladimir Tod Twelfth Grade Kills by Heather Brewer. Heir to the Empire led you through a series of perspectives. I could not put this book down to save my life and i got through this books before i knew it. This book didnt lack anything in my opinion. it had mystery, action, it was well written and it was also a part of a long series of books written by Timothy Zahn. I would reccomend this book to anyone who is wanting to kill time. Vladimir Tod Twelfth Grade Kills was a little bit different than Heir to the Empire just because of the character traits along with the plot. But Twelfth Grade Kills didnt have too much of everything for me it was mixed just right. It laid chapter ater chapter of action on you and when u thought that you would be reading about another great fight it would lead you to the house of Vlad and it would mellow out. It had more twists then the Mind Eraser and i loved every second of it.

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  9. This summer I was asked to read two novels. The two novels I read were The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins. I really liked these books for different reasons. I liked Mockinjgay quite a bit because there was so much suspense throughout the entire book. The story takes place in the future, in a time of rebellion against the communist government. This book reminds me of things that have happened in our history and what is happening right now. This book is all about taking back the freedom that you and everybody else in the world deserves. No self-proclaiming ruler can say that he is more important than everyone else, we are all human beings -- no matter where, how, or why we live. In The Last Lecture, I learned how to live a happy and fulfilling life. Randy Pausch ,the author, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, but that did not deter him. Pausch did not want to waste any time complaining about his life because he decided to play the cards he was dealt. His message was loud and clear throughout the book: no matter what life throws at you, you can’t let that slow us down. You must keep moving forward. Walls are there to be temporary obstacles, to be climbed or broken through -- just like our problems.

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  10. Over the summer, i read two very interesting books. The first was named ''The Child Thief'' by Brom. It was Peter Pan recreated and put into the modern world in the streets of New York. Peter, the cunning, fast, ''hero,'' was taking abused or run away children to his so called hideout. In reality, he was simply using them to fight his battles and save his queen, the one who found him at the age of six, abandon and alone. Although the kids soon found out about what he was doing, they did not care. He remained their hero for taking them away from there terrible lives and bringing them to a new family. The book itself had no ''best part.'' It left me never wanting to put it down, always waiting to turn the page. The story, a mystery was the thought that made every page bring forth another answer and a new question. That wasn't it though. The speed of Peter always left him more than one step ahead of humans, which he is not, letting him take his simple knife and gutting anyone in his way, leaving battles and fights around every corner. It doesn't hurt the action when he trained and army of kids to fight almost as good as himself. The second book I read This summer was ''Shooter'' by Stephen Hunter. Although it was not as exciting as ''The Child Thief,'' it had its high points almost as good as ''The Child Thief.'' The planning of the story and bringing it all together was what was so great about ''Shooter.'' The complex story was just so good in the first 200 pages, they were able left lots of action for the rest. It just kept leaving the main character, Bob Lee Swagger, in more and more trouble every time.

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  11. Summer Reading

    I read Mind Gym by Gary Mack. The book is written in short story format. It tells a lesson with each story that focuses on the mental game in sports. I liked that it was not one long story, but rather interesting insights from many different athletes. I noticed that the athletes in different sports used the same analogies and mental training to be successful.

    I also read Mexican White Boy by Matt de la Pena. I liked that the book was about baseball. The main character loved baseball, like me. I learned about race, culture and how people are treated depending on where you live. The book showed a lot about living in the inner city how it is so different than any experience I have had.

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  12. Over the summer, I was asked to complete 2 books. Hatchet by: Gary Paulsen and To Kill A Mocking Bird by: Harper Lee were the two novels I embarked on to decipher the message and plot. Both were great reads, but I would prefer Hatchet over To Kill a Mockingbird. Basically because they are two totally different writting styles. Hatchet being the one that has a very thrilling plot, great for those who love adventure novels. Likewise, TKM is realistic fiction but is a mystery book of its own. But only one some degrees. At the same time it was also thrilling but VERY toned down for a more calm audience. I enjoyed these 2 novels so much that i might just read them again this year!

    I was very fascinated by Atticus in To Kill A Mockingbird when he bravely sat in front of the jail cell guarding Tom R. and defended him from many habitual drunkards that wanted to kill him. Many think that this novel is boring and pointless, but I strongly disagree. I think its valuable for all of us to not only learn about history but the orgins and roots of our language. I also enjoyed the whole plot of Hatchet and which all the events or actions had not only clarity in description. But also had limitless suspense and action. Brian basically experiences everything that could go wrong in the wilderness from tornadoes to moose attacks the adventure never stops in Hatchet. TKM and Hatchet were two excellent novels and I now understand why they would classics.

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  13. Over the summer I read a great book called I Know What You did Last Summer by Lois Duncan. The book was about 4 students who were driving home from a party when they hit some kid with their car but the kept driving and let nobody know about it. One year later they start receiving letters saying,"I know what you did last summer." After the notes one of them gets shot and someone fell out a window, other crazy things happen to them as well. This is a fantastic book and I would highly recommend it. The next book I read was Wild Man Island by Will Hobbs. This was also a wonderful adventure book. It was about a kid named Andy who went to Alaska by himself. One early morning he snuck out on a kayak to visit the place where his dad died. On his way back a big storm came up and blew him to a far away island where he meets the wild man!

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  14. Some of the books i read over the summer were Freak The Mighty by Rodman Philbrick and Band of Brothers by Stephen E. Ambrose. I choose these books because i wanted a range of reading so i could go from holding on to death to holding onto easy things like lets say holding onto special quests for King Arthur (Freak the Mighty Reference). One of my favorite parts in freak the mighty is when he Sprays that evil doer in the face with that soap, vinegar, and cayenne. I dont know if you've ever gotten soap in ur eye but it stings really bad!! Now i cant even begin to imagine how much soap + vinegar + cayenne would equal but my guess is that it = death. So a life lesson i learned in that book is 1. never get sprayed in the eye with death sauce, and 2 You may be weak without your friends or people around you but when you come together your very powerful! the second book i read was Band of Brothers. This was about the 506th regiment of the 101st Airborne units! I learned about so many things in this book their trail is so long too! they start of in Normandy and the story twists and twirls and they end up in Hitlers eagle nest! A life lesson i learned from this was No matter how hard a mission is you can always complete it, and always make new friends on the way there!

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  15. Over the summer, my homework was to read two books. The two books I chose to read were the first two books in The Hunger Games series The Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. One of my favorite parts of the two books is the games which are held each year. I like this part of the book because there is never a dull moment. At any second someone could jump out at you and kill you, with you having no idea what just happened. I also like the games because the kids have to live off the land and survive with no help from the outside world. There are no guns or any weapons like that. They have to use old fashion weapons like bows and arrows. The one important message was that we have the choice to live or die in our world. But in their world, they are sacrificed in an arena for people’s amusement ,which makes you realize how lucky you are.

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  16. This summer I read two books, one being Peak. Peak is the story of a boy who just turned 15 and has divorced parents. The thing different about peak is that he loves to climb and he loves it so much that he climbs skyscrapers. One day he got caught and had to either go to juvenile hall or move to Tibet with his dad. As most people would of he moved to Tibet with his dad and right when he got there his dad took him to Mt. Everest to be the youngest person to climb it. After a long, dangerous climb he finally made it to the top but let his friend get there first be the youngest person to climb the Mt. This is one of first books that I couldn’t actually put down, I finished it in about a week which is a record for me. This book also taught me a lot about patience because it takes a long time to get to the top of the mountain but Peak and his friends never gave up. The other book I read was Jacks Run, which is about a teenager who’s dad use to be a navy seal then a pilot for a notorious drug dealer. Before his dad could take out the drug dealer he got caught by the C.I.A and is now on probation. Now the drug dealer wants to kill Jack and his family and after Jack’s sister makes it onto American idol the drug dealer finds his family and kidnaps Jack and his sister. This book was action packed the whole way through with some weird humor and thrilling moments and that’s why I liked it so much.

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  17. The first book i read for the summer was Flags of Our Fathers. This book is a biography about the marines that raised the flag in Iwo JIma. In this book you get great details about what really happend in the war. If you like gory, intence, non-fictions. You will Love Flags of Our Fathers.
    The second book i read was Sherlock Holmes The Hound of the Baskervilles. I was extremly disappointed with this book because it was very hard to follow and in my opinion just too much talking and not enough action. The plot is about a man in the baskervilles family who is killed mysteriously in his own courtyard. Many people blame a demonic beast that killed him but Holmes thinks otherwise. If you like crime solving books you will love this book.

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  18. Summer Reading

    I read the books, Rangers Apprentice book 10 the Emperor of Nihon Ja by John Flanagan, and the Kane Series book 2 The Throne of Fire by Rick Rirodan.
    I really liked Rangers Apprentice because it had an amazing thrill to the story in it. It was also the last book so it was an amazing thrill to see how it finally ends.
    What I learned from this book is you cannot believe everything that you hear because it is not always right. How that fits into the book is because in Nihon Na the emperor is a nice and kind man but another evil man starts a rebellion saying that the emperor is trying to only support the lower classes by destroying the upper classes. The truth is that the emperor was just trying to make all people equal but one man lied and turned the whole country on its emperor.
    What is really important to me about this books content is it has everything you could imagine in it. It has amazing imagery on battle. The battle techniques are not made up they are based off of real types of ancient or middle aged sort of fighting. It has huge people who are like Bigfoot that are nine feet tall and have reddish brown hair all over their bodies. It had Knights and Samurais and Spartans in it. So what I loved about this book is it just had everything that I would think is cool in an action adventure book.
    I loved the Throne of Fire because it had an awesome twist in the story and just kept me on the edge of my seat.
    What I learned from this book is that you can’t give up on people. An example from the book is that Sadie and Carter the main characters in the story are trying to bring Ra the sun god back to his former state. All the other gods don’t want him back because he will have become weak and useless against Ra’s arch enemy Aposphis. But Sadie and carter do their best to bring Ra back and it is working it will just take time.
    What I loved about what was in this book is it a just all out war between Magicians, Gods, and Demons it was a perfect mix for this type of book. It also had real facts about ancient Egyptians and their culture.

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  19. Over the summer I read “Flush” by Carl Hiaasen and “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee. I liked both books and they were very interesting. “Flush” was about a casino boat putting sewage water into the lake, and a dad and his two kids to help him bust the casino. “To Kill a Mockingbird” was about life in the 1930s and how even after slavery ended that whites were racist against African Americans.

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  20. Over the summer I read two wonder full books. One of them was Dog song By Gary Paulsen. Dog song was a really good book because it taught me a good lesson. The other book I read was Percy Jackson Lightining thief by Rick Riordian. I liked tha book because it was really fun and not boring. I watched the movie and it really compliments the movie better.

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  21. Mockingjay
    Mockingjay is the third book in the hunger games series. It contiues after the second book Caching Fire. Mockingjay atarts off with here in the rebel base in the thought to be destroyed district 13. The rebels are in a fight against the capitol. The rebels are trying to save Peeta who was a contestant with here in both the hunger games. They sneak into the capitol and save him. But Peeta has been brainwashed into hating Katniss and tries to kill her when he comes to District 13.The rebels take control of the districts and finally begin an assault on the Capitol itself, which Katniss is a part of. But Katniss really wants to find and kill President Snow who is the leader of the capitol. Eventually, Katniss finds herself pressing on alone towards Snow's mansion. A bomb placed in supply packages kill Katniss' sister, Prim. Snow is found dead, having possibly choked . Peeta has largely recovered from his brainwashing.In the epilogue, Katniss speaks as an adult, more than fifteen years later. she is married to Peeta and they have two children. The Hunger Games are over, but she dosent want her kids to know what happened to there parents in the hunger games.

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  22. Between a rock and a hard place
    This book by Aron Ralston is about himself going canyonering in the Blue John canyon in the Utah canyonlands. He was hiking at 2:41 P.M. and he was eight miles from his truck. He was climbing deep and narrow slot canyons when he was climbing down from a wedged boulder and another boulder fell and pinned his right arm and hand against a rock wall. He didn't tell anybody he was going hiking there so know one knew he was stuck. He tried getting free but he couldent while he was stuck he was just thinking of cold beverages because he was so thirsty and old memories. Finally after six days he decided to cut of his arm with his mutitool knife but the blade was dull from trying to chip away at the rock to get free but he did it anyway. After he cut his arm off he wrapped it up and climbed out with his good arm and found some hikers who called for help. So he ended up staying alive.

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