Assignment: #9 of ten narratives
Author: Terry Trueman
Publisher: New York: Harper Collins, 2000
Date: 03/24/07
Format/Genre: Realistic Fiction
Recommended Grade Level: 5-10th grade
Summary: Fourteen-year old Shawn McDaniels suffers from cerebral palsy. Shawn is wheel chair bound and unable to verbally or physically communicate with anyone. His family has been torn apart by his illness. His father has even left the home because he can no longer handle Shawn's condition. Throughout the story Shawn recollects what life was like before his father left them and now what his fathers ultimate plan is for his son.
Comments: This story was one that kept you reading from start to finish. You quickly find out that Shawn's father has so much love for his son that the disease has driven him away. The story helped me to realize what it must feel like being able to hear and see but not being able to communicate . I cannot even imagine how difficult it must be. The other compelling aspect is how the author leaves the reader suspended after each paragraph. He does this up till the end when Shawn and his father are alone. In the end it seems as if Shawn's father has decided to put his son out of his misery but one will never know because the author ends the book with a seizure. I was upset that the author left it open at the end but I believe that he did this for a purpose. Throughout the story Shawn continually goes back to how he believes his father will kill him but then at the end it is as if when Shawn's eyes meets his fathers that his father realizes that Shawn can really communicate. This book is depressing but at the same time enlightening.
VOYA: 3Q 3P
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Cage of Stars by JacQuelyn Mitchard
Assignment: #2 of 3 popular author (Adult book with YA appeal)
Author: Jacquelyn Mitchard
Publisher:New York: Time Warner Book Group, 2006
Date: 03/25/07
Format/Genre: Contemparary Fiction
Recommended Grade Level: 10th grade- adulthood
Summary: Twelve-year-old Veronica Swan is living an ideal life in her small Mormon community until tragedy strikes her family. Veronica's two younger sisters, Ruthie and Becky, are brutally murdered by the neighbor , Scott Early. Scott Early has schizophrenic and ends up only spending a short time in a mental hospital. Veronica's family puts there pain and anger into there faith where they forgive. Veronica continues into adulthood with her anger. Ronnie becomes a nanny for Scott Early's daughter and her plans for revenge begin to unfold.
Comments: This book was a page turner. I couldn't put in down once I started. The author has an amazing way of showing Ronnie's character. Mitchard shows the true feelings of an individual who has gone through such a tragic event and wrestles with the feelings of vengeance and mercy.
Voya: 4Q 4P
Author: Jacquelyn Mitchard
Publisher:New York: Time Warner Book Group, 2006
Date: 03/25/07
Format/Genre: Contemparary Fiction
Recommended Grade Level: 10th grade- adulthood
Summary: Twelve-year-old Veronica Swan is living an ideal life in her small Mormon community until tragedy strikes her family. Veronica's two younger sisters, Ruthie and Becky, are brutally murdered by the neighbor , Scott Early. Scott Early has schizophrenic and ends up only spending a short time in a mental hospital. Veronica's family puts there pain and anger into there faith where they forgive. Veronica continues into adulthood with her anger. Ronnie becomes a nanny for Scott Early's daughter and her plans for revenge begin to unfold.
Comments: This book was a page turner. I couldn't put in down once I started. The author has an amazing way of showing Ronnie's character. Mitchard shows the true feelings of an individual who has gone through such a tragic event and wrestles with the feelings of vengeance and mercy.
Voya: 4Q 4P
The Girls by Lori Lansens
Assignment: #1 of 3 popular author(Adult book with YA appeal)
Author: Lori Lansens
Publisher: New York:Little Brown and Company, 2006
Date: 03/21/07
Format/Genre: Realistic Fiction
Recommended Grade Level: 10th grade-adult
Summary: Rose and Ruby Darlen are craniopagus twins that live in Baldoon County, New York. Craniopagus twins are very rare. The twins heads are joined together and they share blood vessels in their brain.Their mother abandoned them after giving birth. The twins were taken in by Aunt Lovey and Uncle Stash. They are not related but Aunt Lovey delivered the two girls. Throughout this book both Ruby and Rose tell their stories from birth to the age of twenty-nine. In their twenty-nine years they learn about love, laughter, hardships of being connected and the hate that can be imposed on others who are different.
Comments: I enjoyed reading the book but it was not one of my favorites . The book was a little wordy in the sense that it continued on long drawn out stories. I did find it to be a moving story because of its accounts on a persons differences. Ruby and Rose are able to find out that life has not just been lemons but a sweet glass of lemonade. The only problem was the ending left the reader hanging. I was expecting the author to end the book with the girls death and instead it ends with Rose finally finding the perfect title for the book. This book would be a great read for a young girl that is wanting to find her own identity.
Voya: 3Q 3P
Author: Lori Lansens
Publisher: New York:Little Brown and Company, 2006
Date: 03/21/07
Format/Genre: Realistic Fiction
Recommended Grade Level: 10th grade-adult
Summary: Rose and Ruby Darlen are craniopagus twins that live in Baldoon County, New York. Craniopagus twins are very rare. The twins heads are joined together and they share blood vessels in their brain.Their mother abandoned them after giving birth. The twins were taken in by Aunt Lovey and Uncle Stash. They are not related but Aunt Lovey delivered the two girls. Throughout this book both Ruby and Rose tell their stories from birth to the age of twenty-nine. In their twenty-nine years they learn about love, laughter, hardships of being connected and the hate that can be imposed on others who are different.
Comments: I enjoyed reading the book but it was not one of my favorites . The book was a little wordy in the sense that it continued on long drawn out stories. I did find it to be a moving story because of its accounts on a persons differences. Ruby and Rose are able to find out that life has not just been lemons but a sweet glass of lemonade. The only problem was the ending left the reader hanging. I was expecting the author to end the book with the girls death and instead it ends with Rose finally finding the perfect title for the book. This book would be a great read for a young girl that is wanting to find her own identity.
Voya: 3Q 3P
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