My Left Foot
by Christy Brown
Christy Brown's autobiography My Left Foot, tells us about his condition of cerebral palsy. This condition is a muscle disorder. When he was young, he could not control his speech or movement, other than his left foot. He taught his left foot to paint, write and type.
Born in 1932, Chirsty Brown was one of the 22 children of a Dulin bricklayer. He played with his brothers like any other child, but at the age of ten, he noticed he was crippled. He hid away from everyone in his room and painted his feelings with a box of watercolour paints he traded for soldiers at Christmas. He then fell in love with a neighbourhood girl. There you should read on!
This book is written so well you will feel sympathetic for Christy because it's like you him so well!!
Rating: 3.5/5
Friday, July 27, 2007
Friday, June 15, 2007
Title: The Life of PiAuthor: Yann Martel
The story is about a guy named Piscine. He believes in three different religions, Christianity, Hinduism and Islam. Pi grew up in a zoo located in India. At one part of his life, Pi and his parents decides to go to Canada through the cargo ship. At this event, Pi was orphaned. He was left alone with one creature with him; a tiger. It was really sad for Pi. At the beginning of the novel Pi didn’t know what to do with an animal. However, as the story develops Pi and the tiger got along and started liking each other. The both helped each other at times of need.
From this book I learned many lessons. Firstly, I go to know that if you want to live life then you need to continue on. Pi was left all alone in a sea with a tiger. His parents and brother is dead and he doesn’t have anyone except a tiger. It was a sad moment, for many of us we wouldn’t go near a tiger, but I learned that anything can happen at anytime and you just need to make the best out of the situations. You achieve something through the struggles you go through. Also, I find it interesting how Pi believes in three different religions. Even though some society members disagree with him, Pi still continues on. Overall I liked this book for all the themes and lessons that I got to know and learn. I also liked the part of how it took in India, in Pondicherry where I visited which I found interesting.
Vol. Hrs: 27 hrs
Macbeth by William ShakepeareMacbeth is another Shakespearean story that I have read. Macbeth goes against his moral values. To gain more power and to maintain his power Macbeth started committing cruel crimes. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth was normal, and was satisfied with what he had, however Lady Macbeth is the one who questioned his manhood, and encouraged Macbeth to start his quest for power. The first murder he did was the murder of the king who is also his cousin. After that Macbeth started planning and murdering other noblemen of Scotland. The noblemen include his best friend. As the story continues on, Lady Macbeth feels bad and guilty that she was part of killing the King. This makes her mad and soon she dies of her guiltiness. Also, Macbeth loses love to his wife as because of the overload of respect he has and the power he has. At the end, Macbeth dies.
From reading this play, I learned that gaining power with violence and immoral actions, the power wouldn’t last long, and something disastrous will follow it.
From reading this play, I learned that gaining power with violence and immoral actions, the power wouldn’t last long, and something disastrous will follow it.
This was an okay play too. It was short and was little easy to understand.
VOl. HRS. 24 hrs.
Title:The Watcher
Author: James Howe
The Watcher is a short read but has a lot of in depth meaning to it. The story takes place in a beach setting. There three main characters; Margaret who is an outsider, who just comes to the beach and sit and just watch people. What she intently watches is families, “perfect” families. The other character’s name is Chris. He is a life guard at the beach. He can’t concentrate on his work or anything else, since he is missing his older brother. He wants his older brother to be alive and hang around with him. Therefore the thought of his brother being dead makes Chris not to be in a normal state. The last character is Evan. Even though Margaret and Chris think that Evan’s family is the perfect one, but inside the family is breaking apart. The story continues on Margaret being kept on staring at Chris and Evan. They also find it awkward that she is always watching them. Margaret wants Chris to be her guiding angel and Evan to be her brother. The reason why Margaret wants another family is revealed at the end. Also at the end, Chris and Evan are the one that rescue Margaret from a risky situation.
You might be thinking that the watcher refers to Margaret, but it actually refers to us. How many, individuals are in our society, how we all watch wrongful activities, and see people who have emotional problems, and how we continue watching every day and the way we don’t do anything about it, we continue to ignore it. continue making fun of it, and continue watching . So, overall we are watchers in this world, where the code of silence is rarely broken.
I will reccommend this book for all of you. Even though it was a little boring, the themes and the connections in our book makes it more interesting.
Author: James Howe
The Watcher is a short read but has a lot of in depth meaning to it. The story takes place in a beach setting. There three main characters; Margaret who is an outsider, who just comes to the beach and sit and just watch people. What she intently watches is families, “perfect” families. The other character’s name is Chris. He is a life guard at the beach. He can’t concentrate on his work or anything else, since he is missing his older brother. He wants his older brother to be alive and hang around with him. Therefore the thought of his brother being dead makes Chris not to be in a normal state. The last character is Evan. Even though Margaret and Chris think that Evan’s family is the perfect one, but inside the family is breaking apart. The story continues on Margaret being kept on staring at Chris and Evan. They also find it awkward that she is always watching them. Margaret wants Chris to be her guiding angel and Evan to be her brother. The reason why Margaret wants another family is revealed at the end. Also at the end, Chris and Evan are the one that rescue Margaret from a risky situation.
You might be thinking that the watcher refers to Margaret, but it actually refers to us. How many, individuals are in our society, how we all watch wrongful activities, and see people who have emotional problems, and how we continue watching every day and the way we don’t do anything about it, we continue to ignore it. continue making fun of it, and continue watching . So, overall we are watchers in this world, where the code of silence is rarely broken.
I will reccommend this book for all of you. Even though it was a little boring, the themes and the connections in our book makes it more interesting.
Vol. Hrs. 21 hrs
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
The Nanny Diaries
By: Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus
Pages:306
Nanny is a student at NYU who is working to afford the rent for her studio apartment. Her job may seem simple; how hard can being a nanny to a 4-year-old boy get? But when the employer is a filthy rich family living in Manhattan, and she’s in charge of their only spoiled son – Grayer X, this job can get a little bit out of hand. Apart from taking care of the X’es well-pampered son (which comes with the responsibility of feeding him, taking him to all his classes, and just generally be his second mother), Nanny also has to run ridiculous errands for Mrs. X herself. An example is getting “Lavender Water” for her parties. Along with her extremely high expectations, she never seems to get off Nanny’s case. Mrs. X has long gone crossed the line and has even called Nan on Christmas in the morning to see if she was available to work. But soon, the situation worsens when the marriage of the X’es begins deteriorating and Nanny is in the midst of it all. During this troubling time, Nanny tries to hold on to her sanity, all the while making sure Grayer is alright.
All in all, this is a great novel to read; it has an interesting story line and is mixed with witty humour from Nan, the adorableness of Grayer, and a small touch of romance. Although the beginning was downright boring, the story started picking pace by the first quarter. I especially enjoyed the moments where Nanny and Mrs. X exchanged dialogue. Unfortunately, all the buildup led to a very disappointing ending; I guessed it’s just what the authors planned, but if I was writer, I wouldn’t want it to end like that…it’s just a bit sad…Anyways, I won’t spoil the ending, so if you want to find out what it is, read it for yourself. Oh, and the movie is coming out in September!!!
Rating: 8/10
Volunteer hours: 3 hrs (total – 49 ½)
s.t.e.p.h.i.e.
By: Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus
Pages:306
Nanny is a student at NYU who is working to afford the rent for her studio apartment. Her job may seem simple; how hard can being a nanny to a 4-year-old boy get? But when the employer is a filthy rich family living in Manhattan, and she’s in charge of their only spoiled son – Grayer X, this job can get a little bit out of hand. Apart from taking care of the X’es well-pampered son (which comes with the responsibility of feeding him, taking him to all his classes, and just generally be his second mother), Nanny also has to run ridiculous errands for Mrs. X herself. An example is getting “Lavender Water” for her parties. Along with her extremely high expectations, she never seems to get off Nanny’s case. Mrs. X has long gone crossed the line and has even called Nan on Christmas in the morning to see if she was available to work. But soon, the situation worsens when the marriage of the X’es begins deteriorating and Nanny is in the midst of it all. During this troubling time, Nanny tries to hold on to her sanity, all the while making sure Grayer is alright.
All in all, this is a great novel to read; it has an interesting story line and is mixed with witty humour from Nan, the adorableness of Grayer, and a small touch of romance. Although the beginning was downright boring, the story started picking pace by the first quarter. I especially enjoyed the moments where Nanny and Mrs. X exchanged dialogue. Unfortunately, all the buildup led to a very disappointing ending; I guessed it’s just what the authors planned, but if I was writer, I wouldn’t want it to end like that…it’s just a bit sad…Anyways, I won’t spoil the ending, so if you want to find out what it is, read it for yourself. Oh, and the movie is coming out in September!!!
Rating: 8/10
Volunteer hours: 3 hrs (total – 49 ½)
s.t.e.p.h.i.e.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Title: How I Live Now
Number of Pages: 196
This book is a story about a fifteen year old, Daisy. Daisy's family life is messed up, her mother died when giving birth to her, and her step mom is driving her nuts. Because of the fear that her step mom might poison her, Daisy eats as little as possible. Due to this reason, her dad decides to send her to England to live with her cousins whom she never ever met before. When she comes to England she is very shocked because her 14-year old cousin drives and smokes! She likes her cousins immediately and her and Edmond fall in love immediately. Soon a war starts and Daisy's mom has to go to the city for some peacekeeping work. The kids have the house to themselves, something they loved. Because of several bombings and attacks, all flights were cancelled and electricity was disconnected. The kids enjoyed living by themselves with no one to look after them. But good times never last long. Soon, the government took over their house to keep the troops in their. Osbert, the sixteen year old cousin, joins the army and all the cousins need to split up. Daisy didn't want to split up with Edmond but she had no choice, she and piper, Daisy's nine year old cousin, are sent to live with this old lady. From then on their journey begins; they work in the farms just to help the war and are determined to find Edmond and Isaac, the two twin cousins. After running away from the old lady they travel to the farm where Edmond and Isaac were, their journey wasn’t easy they lived in the forest and wilderness trying to find the food and necessities. But, unfortunately this journey wasn’t worth it. They spent so long, apparently a month, but when they reached their destiny all they found was dead bodies. From then on, the book talks about how the two girls coped with this disappointment. Eventually, Daisy gets deported and Piper is left alone. Six years later the book shows how the war had affected some people. Edmond, who was alive, was a completely different person. He blamed himself for the death of several people. He wouldn’t talk and couldn’t live and enjoy his life for he has seen the death of many. On the other hand, Isaac was able to escape the war and come back home; he had to ditch his own brother because Edmond didn’t agree to leave. He wanted to live and help the others in pain. So as you can see Edmond was suffering six years later and Isaac was himself. Osbert was the same and Piper too. Different people deal with the war differently. Upon reuniting with Edmond, Daisy was quite disappointed. This was because Edmond wouldn’t talk to Daisy. After days and days of explanation, Daisy and Edmond got together. That’s where Daisy decided to live the rest of her life. That’s “how she lives now”.
I actually loved this book, it was so sad:(………very emotional too. I’d suggest everyone to read this book. I would rate this book 4.8 out of 5. This is because the part where they are travelling kind of gets boring but other then that the book is Great!!!!
I actually loved this book, it was so sad:(………very emotional too. I’d suggest everyone to read this book. I would rate this book 4.8 out of 5. This is because the part where they are travelling kind of gets boring but other then that the book is Great!!!!
Total Hours: 12 hrs and 30 mins
Friday, May 11, 2007
Title: Swede Dreams
Author: Eva Apelqvist
# of pages: 202
Plot Summary:
Calista Swanson longs to be away from her annoying twin sister and reunite with her Swedish boyfriend, Jonas, who visited her community in Wisconsin as an exchange student a few months ago. She therefore seizes the opportunity to become an exchange student to Stockholm this semester, and is determined to learn the language and culture of Sweden.
She meets very friendly people on her way there: Lena on the plane to Stockholm, her host family, and her neighbours. Much as her experience has been perfect, Jonas hasn't replied to any of her e-mails for a while now, and despite his promise that he would guide her throughout the city, they have not seen each other in Stockholm. Later on, she discovers that he doesn't want to go out together anymore, but she moves on and has a wonderful time learning about the Swedish culture and language, and meeting extraordinary people.
Through her e-mails back home in Wisconsin, she also realizes that she and her sister ought to be closer, and that she should always make choices for herself instead of relying on others' opinions.
Opinion:
I enjoyed learning more about tourist destinations in Stockholm, and discovered that even though it may not be renowned for its tourism, it has a lot to offer to visitors. Apelqvist includes thorough descriptions of the scenery there. Her comments encourage readers to learning about other cultures, about other people, and trying new things, a major recurring theme in the novel. Calista is always meeting new people and learning more about Sweden every day.
As for the actual storyline, I found it a bit dull. There is no suspense as Calista is always surrounded by warm people who would never do any harm to her. She faces almost no challenges. We do not develop any feelings for Jonas because he never appears in person, only through Calista's memories and a single phone call. We only seriously understand the sentiments of Calista and Hakan (her neighbour's friend, who would later become Calista's boyfriend) because of their heart-to-heart conversations - everyone else is a perfect family member, a perfect friend.
Swede Dreams was a good read for its descriptions of tourism in Sweden, but the plot itself was otherwise monotonous.
Main themes and subjects:
Target audience: Teenage girls
Genre: Chick lit
Rating: 3/5
Book review by Fiona T.
* 69 hours so far
Can be published in the Teen Newsletter
Author: Eva Apelqvist
# of pages: 202
Plot Summary:
Calista Swanson longs to be away from her annoying twin sister and reunite with her Swedish boyfriend, Jonas, who visited her community in Wisconsin as an exchange student a few months ago. She therefore seizes the opportunity to become an exchange student to Stockholm this semester, and is determined to learn the language and culture of Sweden.
She meets very friendly people on her way there: Lena on the plane to Stockholm, her host family, and her neighbours. Much as her experience has been perfect, Jonas hasn't replied to any of her e-mails for a while now, and despite his promise that he would guide her throughout the city, they have not seen each other in Stockholm. Later on, she discovers that he doesn't want to go out together anymore, but she moves on and has a wonderful time learning about the Swedish culture and language, and meeting extraordinary people.
Through her e-mails back home in Wisconsin, she also realizes that she and her sister ought to be closer, and that she should always make choices for herself instead of relying on others' opinions.
Opinion:
I enjoyed learning more about tourist destinations in Stockholm, and discovered that even though it may not be renowned for its tourism, it has a lot to offer to visitors. Apelqvist includes thorough descriptions of the scenery there. Her comments encourage readers to learning about other cultures, about other people, and trying new things, a major recurring theme in the novel. Calista is always meeting new people and learning more about Sweden every day.
As for the actual storyline, I found it a bit dull. There is no suspense as Calista is always surrounded by warm people who would never do any harm to her. She faces almost no challenges. We do not develop any feelings for Jonas because he never appears in person, only through Calista's memories and a single phone call. We only seriously understand the sentiments of Calista and Hakan (her neighbour's friend, who would later become Calista's boyfriend) because of their heart-to-heart conversations - everyone else is a perfect family member, a perfect friend.
Swede Dreams was a good read for its descriptions of tourism in Sweden, but the plot itself was otherwise monotonous.
Main themes and subjects:
- Learning about other cultures and languages
- Meeting new people and building social relationships
- Tourism in Sweden
- Swedish history
- Romance
Target audience: Teenage girls
Genre: Chick lit
Rating: 3/5
Book review by Fiona T.
* 69 hours so far
Can be published in the Teen Newsletter
Monday, May 07, 2007
The Murder of Bindy Mackenzie
By: Jaclyn Moriarty
Pages:491
This book is a companion to “The Year of Secret Assignments” – although there really is no connection to it. The reader is introduce to Bindy Mackenzie, the nerd girl at Ashbury High. She excels in all her classes and earns and average of 99.9%, sadly she is not one of the most loved people at her school. Recently, she enrolled in a new course being offered – the Friendship and Development Project. Apparently, this class (consisted of 6 other students) is supposed to be a “life raft” for each other, and a place where they will provide support and chat about issues facing adolescents. Bindy sees no reason for her to join such a group and finds it all rubbish. She starts bad-talking about the members in her FAD group, and soon got everyone to turn against her. Then, all life starts falling apart; she begins to have hallucinations, fail exams, skip classes – and she doesn’t care at all. (Okay, here is the part that is a little weird, you will have to read the story to get it). So back to the plot synopsis about her life falling apart, theses are all signs showing that she is slowly dying. How could she be dying? Who would want to kill her? Why are they killing her?
I was a bit confused about the relation between the title and the story in the first place. It wasn’t until I read 3/4 of the book did I finally got the meaning. This is because the title makes it sound like it is a mystery book with detectives and all that, but the writing sounded like a regular high school fiction with a nerd girl cast for the main role. Like the first book the author wrote, this is not told in narrative perspective. Presented in the form of letters, transcripts, diary entries, emails, and other documents, this story has a plot line which matches that of “The Year of the Secret Assignments”. A definite excellent read!
Rating: 8.5/10
s.t.e.p.h.i.e.
volunteer hours: 3 (total – 46 ½ )
By: Jaclyn Moriarty
Pages:491
This book is a companion to “The Year of Secret Assignments” – although there really is no connection to it. The reader is introduce to Bindy Mackenzie, the nerd girl at Ashbury High. She excels in all her classes and earns and average of 99.9%, sadly she is not one of the most loved people at her school. Recently, she enrolled in a new course being offered – the Friendship and Development Project. Apparently, this class (consisted of 6 other students) is supposed to be a “life raft” for each other, and a place where they will provide support and chat about issues facing adolescents. Bindy sees no reason for her to join such a group and finds it all rubbish. She starts bad-talking about the members in her FAD group, and soon got everyone to turn against her. Then, all life starts falling apart; she begins to have hallucinations, fail exams, skip classes – and she doesn’t care at all. (Okay, here is the part that is a little weird, you will have to read the story to get it). So back to the plot synopsis about her life falling apart, theses are all signs showing that she is slowly dying. How could she be dying? Who would want to kill her? Why are they killing her?
I was a bit confused about the relation between the title and the story in the first place. It wasn’t until I read 3/4 of the book did I finally got the meaning. This is because the title makes it sound like it is a mystery book with detectives and all that, but the writing sounded like a regular high school fiction with a nerd girl cast for the main role. Like the first book the author wrote, this is not told in narrative perspective. Presented in the form of letters, transcripts, diary entries, emails, and other documents, this story has a plot line which matches that of “The Year of the Secret Assignments”. A definite excellent read!
Rating: 8.5/10
s.t.e.p.h.i.e.
volunteer hours: 3 (total – 46 ½ )
Title: EVIL HAS A NEW DOMAIN...ANGEL
# of pages: 307
Angel is a vampire who has a human soul. He has commited innumerous amount of crimes and now wants to become good and repay to the community. To make sure that all his sins are forgiven he goes to Los Angeles and opens up a detective agency. It's called "Angel Investigations" and their motive is "To help the helpless". His agency has only two more workers, a girl named Cordelia and a half-demon and half-human guy Doyle.
Wierd things have been happening in Los Angeles, something is killing people in a wierd way, leaving behind only the skin and powder of the bones. Who could possibly do this? Well...there are these demons living in the city, their victims are usually from different parts of the city. These demons are able to read the mind of the person in front of them. This way they are able to transform in to the love of the person in front of them. This makes it easier for them to kill people. But why is it killing certain specific people only? Well...he needs to kill one person from each sunsign to complete his cycle. After this cycle is completed, he will be immortal. Immortal, meaning he will be able to eat ANYONE he wants to eat ANYWHERE he wants to eat.
The police department doesn't believe there is such thing as demons living in this city. They are looking for human culprit in the city. The only person that can do the job now is Angel. He doesn't only need to destroy the demon, he also has to make sure that the cult that is after the demon doesn't get there before them. The cult is after the demon so that they can bind the demon to their will.
This is not only a hard task but also an emotional one for Angel. This is because when ever Angel sees the Demon, he sees his love, his x-girlfriend. This form of demon makes it harder for Angel to attack him.
I LOVED reading this book. It has sooo many twists and surprises in it. It's like the unexpected is alwayz happening in this book. I suggest everyone to read this book.
Total Hours: 9 hrs and 30 mins
Friday, May 04, 2007
Title: Shopaholic & Baby
Author: Sophie Kinsella
# of pages: 359
Plot Summary:
Becky Bloomwood is now working at The Look, a new department store that has been dubbed the "biggest retail disaster in British history". The spare time gained from the lack of customers to serve is used to ponder her preparations for her baby due in December, including finding a new family-friendly home to move into.
However, once again, life is in ruins when she discovers that her new obstetrician is, in fact, her husband Luke's ex-girlfriend. She attempts to find out whether Luke and Venetia are in a relationship, while struggling to find the perfect home, and buying essentials for the baby.
Opinion:
Once again, this Shopaholic sequel was a thrilling read and was one of those novels I simply couldn't put down. There were quite a few twists in the plot, and it was hilarious to constantly see Becky trying to make things better for herself when she is really only making it worse - a theme that is difficult to be tired of. Another repeated concept, seen in the prequels, was that Becky was faced with an impossible array of challenges in her life and she was obliged to find a solution to them. The fact that every time, she manages to have a happy ending reduces the tension, but I suppose that's a general feature of most chick lit novels.
Overall, I would highly recommend this novel to all chick lit enthusiasts, especially those with an interest in fashion and simply a sense of humour.
Main themes and subjects:
Genre: Chick lit
Book Review by Fiona T.
* 66 hours so far
Can be published in the Teen Newsletter
Author: Sophie Kinsella
# of pages: 359
Plot Summary:
Becky Bloomwood is now working at The Look, a new department store that has been dubbed the "biggest retail disaster in British history". The spare time gained from the lack of customers to serve is used to ponder her preparations for her baby due in December, including finding a new family-friendly home to move into.
However, once again, life is in ruins when she discovers that her new obstetrician is, in fact, her husband Luke's ex-girlfriend. She attempts to find out whether Luke and Venetia are in a relationship, while struggling to find the perfect home, and buying essentials for the baby.
Opinion:
Once again, this Shopaholic sequel was a thrilling read and was one of those novels I simply couldn't put down. There were quite a few twists in the plot, and it was hilarious to constantly see Becky trying to make things better for herself when she is really only making it worse - a theme that is difficult to be tired of. Another repeated concept, seen in the prequels, was that Becky was faced with an impossible array of challenges in her life and she was obliged to find a solution to them. The fact that every time, she manages to have a happy ending reduces the tension, but I suppose that's a general feature of most chick lit novels.
Overall, I would highly recommend this novel to all chick lit enthusiasts, especially those with an interest in fashion and simply a sense of humour.
Main themes and subjects:
- Romance
- Shopping
- Fashion
- Marriage/ Separation/ Childbirth
Genre: Chick lit
Book Review by Fiona T.
* 66 hours so far
Can be published in the Teen Newsletter
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Bowling for Columbine
Documentary Film by Micheal Moore
Won 5 awards
Although you think this film is about bowling, you're wrong. This film is much more than bowling, it's talks about guns and violence in the states. You know South Park? Well, guess where Matt Stone got the idea? Colorado of course! They're gun nuts! (or are they just nuts?) Micheal Moore also compare U.S.A to Canada. There are a lot of guns lying around here,....but our gun death rates are twice as low as the state's! He also blames the media, the government and the NRA (National Rifle Association). He takes a serious problem and turns it into an unboring film to teach those who watch it. Even the director of The Inconvenient Truth used Micheal Moore's way of expressing global warming (you should watch that film too!) This is a very serious, but funny enough to suck you into the story. There is also some language that is inappropriate. I love this film a lot. There are some parts that are a bit boring, Very good documentary!
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
See it!
Rachel
Documentary Film by Micheal Moore
Won 5 awards
Although you think this film is about bowling, you're wrong. This film is much more than bowling, it's talks about guns and violence in the states. You know South Park? Well, guess where Matt Stone got the idea? Colorado of course! They're gun nuts! (or are they just nuts?) Micheal Moore also compare U.S.A to Canada. There are a lot of guns lying around here,....but our gun death rates are twice as low as the state's! He also blames the media, the government and the NRA (National Rifle Association). He takes a serious problem and turns it into an unboring film to teach those who watch it. Even the director of The Inconvenient Truth used Micheal Moore's way of expressing global warming (you should watch that film too!) This is a very serious, but funny enough to suck you into the story. There is also some language that is inappropriate. I love this film a lot. There are some parts that are a bit boring, Very good documentary!
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
See it!
Rachel
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Princess in Love
By Meg Cabot
229 Pages
4.5/5
I found this book better than the first two. For some reason.
It may not seem like it, but Mia has it harder than anyone thinks. She is a princess, and is on covers of Teen People and everything, with everyone wanting to take pictures of her everywhere. But she says she's "five foot nine inches tall, with no visible breasts, feet the size of snowshoes". Many people think she's all perfect, but actually, she is just an average teen with her own insecurities, and a royal title to go with it.
Mia could not believe she didn't figure it out. All along, Kenny, her lab partner for bio, had been her secret admirer. How did Mia not figure it out? I mean, he always does his homework for her and stuff. But when Mia found out, she was a little dissapointed. She had been thinking it was Michael. Okay, she was hoping it was Michael, but still. She couldn't believe it! In the beginning of this book, Kenny is Mia's "boyfriend", which Mia is pretty happy about, but she isn't totally satisfied. She would much prefer Michael Moscovitz at any given time. But.. she's not letting herself believe that.
Mia isn't really in love.. is she? Well, she doesn't think so, cuz Kenny STILL hasn't asked her to the dance, which is in a few days.. she actually really wants to go with Michael, but still. Shouldn't her boyfriend be first to ask her?
*Would have been 114
*Can Be Published In A Newsletter
*Jessica
By Meg Cabot
229 Pages
4.5/5
I found this book better than the first two. For some reason.
It may not seem like it, but Mia has it harder than anyone thinks. She is a princess, and is on covers of Teen People and everything, with everyone wanting to take pictures of her everywhere. But she says she's "five foot nine inches tall, with no visible breasts, feet the size of snowshoes". Many people think she's all perfect, but actually, she is just an average teen with her own insecurities, and a royal title to go with it.
Mia could not believe she didn't figure it out. All along, Kenny, her lab partner for bio, had been her secret admirer. How did Mia not figure it out? I mean, he always does his homework for her and stuff. But when Mia found out, she was a little dissapointed. She had been thinking it was Michael. Okay, she was hoping it was Michael, but still. She couldn't believe it! In the beginning of this book, Kenny is Mia's "boyfriend", which Mia is pretty happy about, but she isn't totally satisfied. She would much prefer Michael Moscovitz at any given time. But.. she's not letting herself believe that.
Mia isn't really in love.. is she? Well, she doesn't think so, cuz Kenny STILL hasn't asked her to the dance, which is in a few days.. she actually really wants to go with Michael, but still. Shouldn't her boyfriend be first to ask her?
*Would have been 114
*Can Be Published In A Newsletter
*Jessica
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Title: Locked In Time
Author: Lois Duncan
The main character in this book is Nore, a teenager, who was trying to get over her mom's death and her dad's sudden remarriage. what really enrages her is the fact that her dad's new wife is very pretty without a single line or blemish. How is it possible for a forty year old to be that pretty? Her step brother and step sister are very quirky. The strangest thing of all, she sees her mother in her dreams who tells her to leave that place right away, she ignores the warning and continues to live at her step mother's house.
Author: Lois Duncan
The main character in this book is Nore, a teenager, who was trying to get over her mom's death and her dad's sudden remarriage. what really enrages her is the fact that her dad's new wife is very pretty without a single line or blemish. How is it possible for a forty year old to be that pretty? Her step brother and step sister are very quirky. The strangest thing of all, she sees her mother in her dreams who tells her to leave that place right away, she ignores the warning and continues to live at her step mother's house.
Her step family seems awkward, they barely speak, seems like they have known each other for more then a 1oo years and are able to understand what each other has to say without speaking. Nore hears her step mom, and her step brother planning and discussing regarding Nore. This really enrages her and soon she discovers the reason behind her step mom's beauty: Magic:Voodoo.
Her step mom has used magic to remain the same age for the rest of her life, and they have been living for more then 200 years!!! This isn't it, there are more problems coming up for Nore.
This book is very interesting and full of twists, the author used a lot of creativity and I loved this book!!I would rate it 4.5 out of 5........I suggest everyone to read it.
Total Hours: 6 hrs and 30 mins
Princess in the Spotlight
By Meg Cabot
223 Pages
4/5
This is the second book in the series, after The Princess Diaries. I have to say, this series isn't really that good, like, the plot isn't really intense and the climax isn't really all that evident, but there's something about them that just keeps you reading.
In the first book, Mia Thermopolis' mother was dating Mia's algebra teacher, Mr Gianni. In the beginning of this book, Mia gets some.. uhh.. exciting news. Her mother is pregnant with her Algebra teacher's baby! She doesn't know whether she should be shocked or happy. Soon after, Mia's mom tells Mia that they're also getting married. Which is kind of a lot for Mia. She's been living with her mom for her whole life, and all of the sudden, she's going to have a stepbrother and her algebra teacher is about to become her stepfather.
Meanwhile, while her mother is pregnant, Mia still has to endure her painful Princess Lessons, led by Grandmère. Being the princess of Genovia is not that simple, I must say. On top of that, she is getting these anonymous emails from.. someone. She has no idea who. But.. she strongly suspects that her secret admirer is her best friend Lilly's, big brother. Well.. strongly wishes, I mean. She has had a crush on his since.. forever.
Princess Mia has a lot to figure out other than the stuff i talked about.. I read this so long ago, I can't remember :)
would have been 111
can be published
*Jessica
By Meg Cabot
223 Pages
4/5
This is the second book in the series, after The Princess Diaries. I have to say, this series isn't really that good, like, the plot isn't really intense and the climax isn't really all that evident, but there's something about them that just keeps you reading.
In the first book, Mia Thermopolis' mother was dating Mia's algebra teacher, Mr Gianni. In the beginning of this book, Mia gets some.. uhh.. exciting news. Her mother is pregnant with her Algebra teacher's baby! She doesn't know whether she should be shocked or happy. Soon after, Mia's mom tells Mia that they're also getting married. Which is kind of a lot for Mia. She's been living with her mom for her whole life, and all of the sudden, she's going to have a stepbrother and her algebra teacher is about to become her stepfather.
Meanwhile, while her mother is pregnant, Mia still has to endure her painful Princess Lessons, led by Grandmère. Being the princess of Genovia is not that simple, I must say. On top of that, she is getting these anonymous emails from.. someone. She has no idea who. But.. she strongly suspects that her secret admirer is her best friend Lilly's, big brother. Well.. strongly wishes, I mean. She has had a crush on his since.. forever.
Princess Mia has a lot to figure out other than the stuff i talked about.. I read this so long ago, I can't remember :)
would have been 111
can be published
*Jessica
Friday, April 27, 2007
Reminder: June 15th deadline for volunteer Hours
There will be no more posting after June 15th. For those of you who need to finish volunteer hours, that will be your last chance.
I archive the postings so I can still see how many hours you have but if you want forms filled in, please start sending them to me.
Summer Blog will start July 3rd. Again, there are no volunteer hours for this blog.
Catherine
There will be no more posting after June 15th. For those of you who need to finish volunteer hours, that will be your last chance.
I archive the postings so I can still see how many hours you have but if you want forms filled in, please start sending them to me.
Summer Blog will start July 3rd. Again, there are no volunteer hours for this blog.
Catherine
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Angus Glen Teen Department
In preparation for summer, we are trying to make the collection more appealing.
We have not needed to make room on the shelves because we were building.
Now, it is time for us to go through and take a look at the books. Some of them, especially the paperbacks have been overused and abused.
Our goal is to have things in wonderful shape by the time school finishes.
We are also going to go through the cd and dvd collection.
Angus Glen and our other branches get new materials in, regularly. We hope you like the changes.
Catherine and Andrea
In preparation for summer, we are trying to make the collection more appealing.
We have not needed to make room on the shelves because we were building.
Now, it is time for us to go through and take a look at the books. Some of them, especially the paperbacks have been overused and abused.
Our goal is to have things in wonderful shape by the time school finishes.
We are also going to go through the cd and dvd collection.
Angus Glen and our other branches get new materials in, regularly. We hope you like the changes.
Catherine and Andrea
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Title:Julius Caesar
Author: Shakespeare
Julius Caesar is a tragedy written by the well-known playwright Shakespeare. To cut a long story short, Julius Caesar, the ruler of Rome is assassinated by one of his best friends, Brutus and other Roman Generals. The intent of many of these conspirators was to save Rome from falling. In a series of events, Anthony-one of Caesar’s loyal friends turns the crowd against the conspirators, persuading the Plebeians that Caesar was not ambitious. Eventually, most of the conspirators kill themselves through misunderstanding. It is said that, “Ambition and pride caused Caesar’s downfall”.
Some people are so into Shakespeare and can understand what he is saying without any help but some can't. I am not really interested in Shahkespeare writing, I find it sometimes boring. However this book has helped me a little to understand Shakespeare.
Many of you might have read this book. If you are interesed in Shakespeare literature, then go ahead read the book, but for me it took a while to understand phrases.
Vol. Hours. 18 hrs.
Name: Grave Secrets
Author:Sylvia McNicoll
The book that I’ve read is called Grave Secrets and is written by Sylvia McNicoll. Reading this book is worthwhile reading it because there are valuable themes and lessons to be learned. This book teaches lessons that have great significance to it. The lessons that can be learned from this book can be used for future life and can allow you to confront success in life.
To start off with, the central theme of this book discusses about how if you are determined to change something, you will be able to achieve it. To be more specific, this book is based on a flashback. Years before Nicholas moved into his house, his house was used as a Boys Age Home and nearby it was a swimming pool. Unfortunately, history says that a young, innocent five year old Corey drowned into the pool, as he was not skilled at swimming and no one was there to help him at the time. After this horrible incident, the pool was buried and the Boys Age Home was redeveloped into a normal house. Even after a few days into the house, Nicholas kept hearing voices. He heard a ghostly voice staying to stop, but he did not know exactly what to stop. However, Nick was more determined and confident as time passed by and he eventually stopped history from reoccurring. Another theme of this book is how believing in yourselves can allow you to achieve success.
To start off with, the central theme of this book discusses about how if you are determined to change something, you will be able to achieve it. To be more specific, this book is based on a flashback. Years before Nicholas moved into his house, his house was used as a Boys Age Home and nearby it was a swimming pool. Unfortunately, history says that a young, innocent five year old Corey drowned into the pool, as he was not skilled at swimming and no one was there to help him at the time. After this horrible incident, the pool was buried and the Boys Age Home was redeveloped into a normal house. Even after a few days into the house, Nicholas kept hearing voices. He heard a ghostly voice staying to stop, but he did not know exactly what to stop. However, Nick was more determined and confident as time passed by and he eventually stopped history from reoccurring. Another theme of this book is how believing in yourselves can allow you to achieve success.
I didn't find this book as interesting I have as for other books. I will give it a 3/5.
Vol. hrs. 15 hrs
Name:Rudy
Director:David Anspaugh
Cast:Sean Austin, John favreau, Ned Beatty, Greta Bend
Rudy Ruettiger has overcome many obstacles before becoming a victorious football player at Notre Dame. To be more specific, Rudy has always wanted to become a football player at Notre Dame at a very young age; his family members, whom he relied on for support to achieving his dream, were rather discouraging him; they were always telling him that he was too small to be a player at Notre Dame. Rudy did not allow his weaknesses overtake him. He was discouraged and depressed also because of his low academic records. His academic marks weren’t high enough to be accepted by the administrators of Notre Dame. All throughout his life, people have been saying that he can’t become a football player in Notre Dame, except for his friend Pete. Pete has always motivated and encouraged Rudy. Without Pete, it might have been impossible for Rudy to accomplish his dream. In fact, it was only after Pete’s funeral where Rudy finally decided to qualify for Notre Dame. Rudy struggled to show people that he was capable of achieving what he wanted; in fact, Rudy was finally able to accomplish his dream after many trials.
As every athlete, Rudy had to prevail over physical obstacles. Rudy was quite small to be a football player; he was small in height and in weight (he weighed 100 pounds less than an average football player in Notre Dame). This yet didn’t stop him from trying. To elaborate more, when he was chosen as one of the unofficial players of the team, he was injured numerous times. This was because he didn’t have much strength and didn’t follow the criteria of an average football player (he was too small in size). However, this didn’t prevent him from playing as an unofficial player in the team. As a matter of fact, the team members wanted Rudy to dress in one of the seasons because they were fully aware of the effort he put into football and how hard he valued the football team in Notre Dame.
Another obstacle that Rudy had to overcome was his low academic records. This was an obstacle because Rudy’s academic marks were too low and in order to be accepted by the administrators of Notre Dame, the marks needed to be higher than a certain percentage; however, Rudy’s marks did not reach the expectations. As of this, it became really difficult for Rudy to get into Notre Dame. With the help of Father Cavanaugh, he was able to attend a few semesters (four semesters) in a college where his marks increased. Though his marks highly increased, he was rejected three times by Notre Dame. He still tried and at last, he was accepted at the end of the fourth semester. It is evident that he gave his best shot in the college he later attended. For instance, even though everything the professor/ lecturer said to the class was written in the textbook, he wrote everything down on a piece of paper; this shows that he really cares about his education and wants to know everything the lecturer happened to mention. As well, earlier on this movie, the director happens to show how Rudy was in his earlier years of studying. He never seemed to pay attention to what the teacher ever said. When the teacher asked Rudy a question about what they’ve discussed so far in class, he came up with a respond that proved he wasn’t paying attention to class; it was rather a silly and uneducated guess.
Not only that, but Rudy suffered from dyslexia, a learning disorder in which someone is unable to read and comprehend written words. Even after aware of this, Rudy still continued to work hard in college. Many students would often quit after knowing they have a learning disorder; yet, Rudy continued to make attempts in studying harder. In fact, Rudy did not see his learning disorder as something that could possibly prevent him from achieving his dreams; instead, he saw his learning disorder as a motivation to achieving his dream as quickly as he can.
More importantly, Rudy, before leaving to Notre Dame, left behind his girlfriend. He thought she will wait for his arrival for marriage, but she, rather impatient, cheated on him with his brother. His girlfriend, who he relied on for support and for understanding his problems, did not see him as he saw her. Seeing his girlfriend in the hands of his brother only motivated him to show what she missed. Therefore, it is evident that Rudy has a strong heart because he continued to strive for excellence.
In conclusion, the movie Rudy Ruettiger should be recognized to promote physical activity. This movie reveals the true qualities of a sports hero and shows what can happen if you are determined to achieve something. I strongly recommend this movie to everyone to understand the true meaning of a sports hero and what it needs to be an actual sports hero. I am determined that whoever watches this movie will definitely benefit and get something useful out of this movie.
Definately reccommended.
VOL. HRS. 12 hrs
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