Fourth Quarter Outside Reading Book Review
Faithful, by Stephen King and Stewart O’ Nan. Scribner publishing. 2004. Genre nonfiction.
Faithful,was written by two Red Sox fans (King and O’ Nan) after the team had their first World Series victory in eighty six years. The book starts off with the Red Sox in spring training acquiring new players which King and O’ Nan, who went to watch the spring training critiqued. As the book goes on they tell about almost all of the games the Red Sox are in and there is dialogue of King and O’ Nan talking to each other.Also it tells what the two authors did that day that included the Sox.
“Two Red Sox addicts - notable authors Stephen King & Stewart O'Nan - cover the thrills of being Red Sox fans in this memorable season. With Boston's boys of summer entering the season under still new ownership, a fresh wunderkind General Manger, a new field manager, the additions of Curt Schilling & Keith Foulke, the memory of the heartbreaking '03 finish, and their ongoing and epic rivalry with the New York Yankees....Faithful had a lot of ground to cover.”
- bostonspastime.com.
In this book King and O’ Nan start the season by showing the Sox as the underdogs, but the way they wrote the story made it seem like they knew that it would be a very dramatic end to the season. While telling about the season game by game King and O’ Nan include their own dialogue and events that happned in their own lives.
“Tomorrow wev’e got Monster Seats,front row, and I call the Sox customer service line to see if I can bring my fishing net for BP. The woman who answers doesn’t know. She asks around the office; the consensus is that security will probably not let us in, but there’s no set policy. I tell her I’ll try. Got to make them make the play, right?” This book had affected me because it had made me think about the Red Sox organization in another way. What I liked about the story is that it is about the Red Sox, my favorite sports team.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
Fenway Faithful
The day was crisp; and the time was right,
For the Red Sox and Yankees to have their last fight,
One team in red, the other in blue,
The home team knows what they must do,
To reach the playoffs, they must win,
Neither team is willing to give in.
The Sox fans are screaming,
The Yankees knew their fate,
Because David Ortiz walked up to the plate.
With one mighty swing the ball flew,
Into right field, toward row twenty two.
The game was over, and the Sox had won,
They ran around the field chanting,
“Playoffs here we come!”
For the Red Sox and Yankees to have their last fight,
One team in red, the other in blue,
The home team knows what they must do,
To reach the playoffs, they must win,
Neither team is willing to give in.
The Sox fans are screaming,
The Yankees knew their fate,
Because David Ortiz walked up to the plate.
With one mighty swing the ball flew,
Into right field, toward row twenty two.
The game was over, and the Sox had won,
They ran around the field chanting,
“Playoffs here we come!”
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
The Life He Chose To Make
During the course of a human’s life they will always have to make decisions and live with the consequences. These consequences can have little to no affect, or they could completely change somebody’s life around. They can be for better or for worse, but they will affect somebody in some way. Santiago has many choices that affect him greatly, such as going out very far into the Gulf of Mexico, not bringing enough food and water for his voyage, and not bringing anybody with him in his boat.
A major choice that Santiago had during the book was going too far out into the Gulf of Mexico. A quote that describes this well is “I shouldn’t have gone out so far, fish, he said.”(110)This was a bad choice because then once Santiago finally did catch the fish, he was so far out that the voyage to shore took forever. The fish ended up getting eaten by sharks because of the long trip. Santiago should have either tried harder to catch the fish or have just given up on it after the third day. This way he would not have gotten into all that trouble.
Not bringing enough food was a very simple but critical mistake. Santiago was out in the ocean for six days total and the only thing he could eat was something he caught. Santiago precisely wishes for salt, more water and some lime. “He was thirsty too and he got down on his knees and, being careful not to jerk on the line, moved as far into the bow as he could get and reached the water bottle with one hand.”(78) Santiago did not have any luck so he would not be able to catch many fish. So you can see how this would be a problem. Now every day he doesn’t eat he is getting weaker and weaker. This could have easily led to him not catching the fish, or even worse it could have led to Santiago dyeing.
Santiago could have picked anybody to go with him on his voyage. The Old Man was lonely being by himself in the boat. The nights were cold and harsh and the days were hot, but Santiago had nobody to share his thoughts and opinion with. So the Old man began to talk to the fish that was on his line. In this section of the novella Ernest Hemingway was very descriptive and made Santiago seem very naïve. Also Santiago needed somebody to accompany him for his physical needs too. When his hand became tense and cramped, he wished that the benevolent and optimistic boy were there to rub and soothe it. “The speed of the line was cutting his hands badly but he had always known this would happen and he tried to keep the cutting across the calloused parts and not let the line slip into the palm nor cut the fingers. If the boy was here he would wet the coils of the line, he thought. Yes. If the boy were here. If the boy were here.”(83)
Although Santiago knew that his chances of catching the fish were bleak, he stayed strong and continued his fight with the noble marlin. As a matter-of-fact there wasn't a single instance where he was pessimistic. He knew that his objective was to catch the fish, and he was going to do anything in his power to do so. Before Santiago caught the great marlin he was thought of as unlucky by all of the other fisherman. Although his choices might not have been the best, everything worked out for him in the end, and he will forever be known as a godly fisherman.
A major choice that Santiago had during the book was going too far out into the Gulf of Mexico. A quote that describes this well is “I shouldn’t have gone out so far, fish, he said.”(110)This was a bad choice because then once Santiago finally did catch the fish, he was so far out that the voyage to shore took forever. The fish ended up getting eaten by sharks because of the long trip. Santiago should have either tried harder to catch the fish or have just given up on it after the third day. This way he would not have gotten into all that trouble.
Not bringing enough food was a very simple but critical mistake. Santiago was out in the ocean for six days total and the only thing he could eat was something he caught. Santiago precisely wishes for salt, more water and some lime. “He was thirsty too and he got down on his knees and, being careful not to jerk on the line, moved as far into the bow as he could get and reached the water bottle with one hand.”(78) Santiago did not have any luck so he would not be able to catch many fish. So you can see how this would be a problem. Now every day he doesn’t eat he is getting weaker and weaker. This could have easily led to him not catching the fish, or even worse it could have led to Santiago dyeing.
Santiago could have picked anybody to go with him on his voyage. The Old Man was lonely being by himself in the boat. The nights were cold and harsh and the days were hot, but Santiago had nobody to share his thoughts and opinion with. So the Old man began to talk to the fish that was on his line. In this section of the novella Ernest Hemingway was very descriptive and made Santiago seem very naïve. Also Santiago needed somebody to accompany him for his physical needs too. When his hand became tense and cramped, he wished that the benevolent and optimistic boy were there to rub and soothe it. “The speed of the line was cutting his hands badly but he had always known this would happen and he tried to keep the cutting across the calloused parts and not let the line slip into the palm nor cut the fingers. If the boy was here he would wet the coils of the line, he thought. Yes. If the boy were here. If the boy were here.”(83)
Although Santiago knew that his chances of catching the fish were bleak, he stayed strong and continued his fight with the noble marlin. As a matter-of-fact there wasn't a single instance where he was pessimistic. He knew that his objective was to catch the fish, and he was going to do anything in his power to do so. Before Santiago caught the great marlin he was thought of as unlucky by all of the other fisherman. Although his choices might not have been the best, everything worked out for him in the end, and he will forever be known as a godly fisherman.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
3rd Quarter Outside Reading Book Review
3rd Quarter Outside Reading Book Review
Watership Down by Richard Adams. Macmillan Publishing Company, 1972.
Genre: Fiction
Watership Down is a story about brother rabbits named fiver and Hazel who live in a warren. One day fiver senses that something horrible is going to happen, but the leader of the warren does not believe him. he brothers decide to leave the warren on their own. They are joined by a few other rabbits. This pack of rabbits travel through fields, woods and rivers in order to find the perfect location for a new warren. Along the way they meet new rabbits that join their adventure. There are many troubles on their quest but eventually they all settle down and make a new warren.
"I have learned that with creatures one loves, suffering is not the only thing for which one may pity them. A rabbit who does not know when a gift has made him safe is poorer than a slug, even though he may think otherwise himself."
This book shows how even in a group of people that all want the same thing, those people will still go through rough times. It shows how the rabbits perserveared and kept on fighting for what they wanted, to make a new warren and escape danger. In this story Richard Adams foreshadows what is going to happen by giving Fiver the ability to have visions about what is going to happen. This book is like any other adventure sory except it is much more realistic in the way that he ban of rabbits go thoruogh various problems.
“General Woundwort's body was never found. It could be that he still lives his fierce life somewhere else, but from that day on, mother rabbits would tell their kittens that if they did not do as they were told, the General would get them. Such was Woundwort's monument, and perhaps it would not have displeased him.”
In this story the rabbits think that war is bad and are trying to avoid it.
this made me think that that is what counties today should do and think. What I like about Richars Adams is that he foreshadows what is going to happen in the future.
Watership Down by Richard Adams. Macmillan Publishing Company, 1972.
Genre: Fiction
Watership Down is a story about brother rabbits named fiver and Hazel who live in a warren. One day fiver senses that something horrible is going to happen, but the leader of the warren does not believe him. he brothers decide to leave the warren on their own. They are joined by a few other rabbits. This pack of rabbits travel through fields, woods and rivers in order to find the perfect location for a new warren. Along the way they meet new rabbits that join their adventure. There are many troubles on their quest but eventually they all settle down and make a new warren.
"I have learned that with creatures one loves, suffering is not the only thing for which one may pity them. A rabbit who does not know when a gift has made him safe is poorer than a slug, even though he may think otherwise himself."
This book shows how even in a group of people that all want the same thing, those people will still go through rough times. It shows how the rabbits perserveared and kept on fighting for what they wanted, to make a new warren and escape danger. In this story Richard Adams foreshadows what is going to happen by giving Fiver the ability to have visions about what is going to happen. This book is like any other adventure sory except it is much more realistic in the way that he ban of rabbits go thoruogh various problems.
“General Woundwort's body was never found. It could be that he still lives his fierce life somewhere else, but from that day on, mother rabbits would tell their kittens that if they did not do as they were told, the General would get them. Such was Woundwort's monument, and perhaps it would not have displeased him.”
In this story the rabbits think that war is bad and are trying to avoid it.
this made me think that that is what counties today should do and think. What I like about Richars Adams is that he foreshadows what is going to happen in the future.
Friday, January 30, 2009
The Oceanic Adventure
It was 6:30 when Rob woke from his deep sleep on the planet of Zephalia. He got up out of bed, stretched, and walked over to his window. It was a bright and sunny day, perfect for being outdoors.
“I am going to go boating today.” he thought to himself. He quickly went over to his calendar that was hung up on the wall to check to see if he had anything else planned for that day. August 15, 2009 was the date, and their was nothing else planned for that day. Rob went outside and walked down to the beach to fetch his skiff. Inside the skiff was a gaff for catching fish, a fishing pole, and some bait. Rob tried to pull the boat into the ocean, but could not move it more than a couple of inches at a time. Rob was a gaunt man, who was very weak, but what he lacked in strength he made up for in kindness.Rob was a poor man, whose whole life relied on catching fish. He often caught much more than he needed. Because he was a very benevolent man, he donated the extra fish that he caught to the poor families of Hawaii.
Eventually Rob got the skiff into the ocean and jumped inside. He floated out getting farther and farther away from the shore. He was out there for a couple of hours when he realized he wasn't going to catch anything. He was about to turn his
skiff around when he saw the water around him turn darker than the rest. Rob started hyperventilating; he didn’t know what was going on. Suddenly an albacore jumped over the side of his boat and back into the water on the other side. Rob dug his paddles into the water hoping for an escape. It was of no use, the paddles were sucked into the water. It was a covey of albacore. They started swimming around him in a circle creating a whirlpool. Rob’s boat started spinning around and around until it was completely submerged by the water. Rob fell unconscious as he saw what he though would be his last sight of the phosphorescence sun.
He woke up a while later. Rob got up and stumbled around for a little while, trying to find out where he was. He was surprised that he was still alive. He then realized that he was in a huge area underwater with a glass covering to keep the water from coming into the building. He was then approached by two albacore. They told him how they thought he was one of the boaters dumping motor oil into the ocean. Rob couldn't believ it. He had heard that there was a secret lair for super intelligent fish, but thought nothing of it. They said they were sorry for their mistake. They then asked Rob to help them annul the boaters that were intoxicating their land.
“Well as long as I am here, I will help the best I can.” Rob groggily stated back. He walked over to his skiff where he picked up his gaff. Rob then realized how weak and tired he was.
“Do you think that I could rest for a little bit before, I am very tired?”
“Yes that would be acceptable.” “Thank you for helping us, you are truly altruistic” The fish men replied. “ We will take you to the spare quarters."
The fish men walked down a narrow hallway with glass windows. Rob looked out of them and noticed all the small hamlets scattered along the sea floor. They kept on walking until they reached a small cast iron door. Rob opened it and inside was an amazing room. There were maritime paintings, rugs, and even his bed was maritime themed. Rob occluded the door and was finally in silence. He tried to go to sleep, but because of everything that had gone on, he was too excited. After finally drifting off to sleep for a couple of minutes, a loud siren went off. The two fish men banged on Rob’s door until he opened it. They told him how the boaters were in their big skiff and they had barrels with them that were filled with oil. Rob got up and headed back to where his skiff and gaff were. He got inside his boat and clutched the gaff in his hand. The fish men pressed a button on the wall and his boat began to levitate toward the ceiling. Before he left they gave him an
anecdote of what to do once Rob confronted the evil boaters.
Once he got to the surface he felt a warm zephyr flow by his face. It was warm out, and there was a thin layer of fog surrounding the air. He tried to look for the boaters, but he couldn’t see anything. He tried to listen to see if he could hear them. He heard the clamor of the two men arguing. One of the sailors was inoculating the other on how to properly use a paddle to row the boat. They kept on fighting paying no attention to where they were going. Rob paddled closer making sure to keep out of the sight of the bickering men. This is where Rob had an idea of his own. He grabbed his gaff and dove into the water. He swam under the water until he was underneath the boaters skiff. As hard as he could he thrust the gaff into the bottom of the skiff. The gaff made a small hole, in the bottom of the boat. The men were so busy fighting that they didn’t notice the water spewing in until there feet were completely underwater. Once they did notice Rob jumped into the boat, to see the barrel the oil was in. The top of the barrel had not been opened yet. Rob grabbed the barrel and threw it to the side, making it fall out of the boat. The men jumped out of the boat also, and started chasing Rob. This is when the ocean around them became darker. The bevy of albacore had come to help Rob get rid of the barrel and the men. They once again circled around the men creating a whirlpool, that sucked everybody down into the fish men headquarters. The men were taken captive by the albacore men and were to be kept in the jail cell underwater for the next five years. Rob was about to finally go home when the albacore men came and bestowed a crown upon Rob.
“ Will you stay and be our king?” they asked
“ I would love to, but I am not a fish and it would not seem right to rule over you all.” Rob courageously said back. The fish men accepted his decision, and then abetted him on his way back home. They latched onto his skiff and swam him into shore. Rob got onto the beach and walked up to his house. Before he went inside he turned around to wave goodbye, but the fish men were already gone.
“I am going to go boating today.” he thought to himself. He quickly went over to his calendar that was hung up on the wall to check to see if he had anything else planned for that day. August 15, 2009 was the date, and their was nothing else planned for that day. Rob went outside and walked down to the beach to fetch his skiff. Inside the skiff was a gaff for catching fish, a fishing pole, and some bait. Rob tried to pull the boat into the ocean, but could not move it more than a couple of inches at a time. Rob was a gaunt man, who was very weak, but what he lacked in strength he made up for in kindness.Rob was a poor man, whose whole life relied on catching fish. He often caught much more than he needed. Because he was a very benevolent man, he donated the extra fish that he caught to the poor families of Hawaii.
Eventually Rob got the skiff into the ocean and jumped inside. He floated out getting farther and farther away from the shore. He was out there for a couple of hours when he realized he wasn't going to catch anything. He was about to turn his
skiff around when he saw the water around him turn darker than the rest. Rob started hyperventilating; he didn’t know what was going on. Suddenly an albacore jumped over the side of his boat and back into the water on the other side. Rob dug his paddles into the water hoping for an escape. It was of no use, the paddles were sucked into the water. It was a covey of albacore. They started swimming around him in a circle creating a whirlpool. Rob’s boat started spinning around and around until it was completely submerged by the water. Rob fell unconscious as he saw what he though would be his last sight of the phosphorescence sun.
He woke up a while later. Rob got up and stumbled around for a little while, trying to find out where he was. He was surprised that he was still alive. He then realized that he was in a huge area underwater with a glass covering to keep the water from coming into the building. He was then approached by two albacore. They told him how they thought he was one of the boaters dumping motor oil into the ocean. Rob couldn't believ it. He had heard that there was a secret lair for super intelligent fish, but thought nothing of it. They said they were sorry for their mistake. They then asked Rob to help them annul the boaters that were intoxicating their land.
“Well as long as I am here, I will help the best I can.” Rob groggily stated back. He walked over to his skiff where he picked up his gaff. Rob then realized how weak and tired he was.
“Do you think that I could rest for a little bit before, I am very tired?”
“Yes that would be acceptable.” “Thank you for helping us, you are truly altruistic” The fish men replied. “ We will take you to the spare quarters."
The fish men walked down a narrow hallway with glass windows. Rob looked out of them and noticed all the small hamlets scattered along the sea floor. They kept on walking until they reached a small cast iron door. Rob opened it and inside was an amazing room. There were maritime paintings, rugs, and even his bed was maritime themed. Rob occluded the door and was finally in silence. He tried to go to sleep, but because of everything that had gone on, he was too excited. After finally drifting off to sleep for a couple of minutes, a loud siren went off. The two fish men banged on Rob’s door until he opened it. They told him how the boaters were in their big skiff and they had barrels with them that were filled with oil. Rob got up and headed back to where his skiff and gaff were. He got inside his boat and clutched the gaff in his hand. The fish men pressed a button on the wall and his boat began to levitate toward the ceiling. Before he left they gave him an
anecdote of what to do once Rob confronted the evil boaters.
Once he got to the surface he felt a warm zephyr flow by his face. It was warm out, and there was a thin layer of fog surrounding the air. He tried to look for the boaters, but he couldn’t see anything. He tried to listen to see if he could hear them. He heard the clamor of the two men arguing. One of the sailors was inoculating the other on how to properly use a paddle to row the boat. They kept on fighting paying no attention to where they were going. Rob paddled closer making sure to keep out of the sight of the bickering men. This is where Rob had an idea of his own. He grabbed his gaff and dove into the water. He swam under the water until he was underneath the boaters skiff. As hard as he could he thrust the gaff into the bottom of the skiff. The gaff made a small hole, in the bottom of the boat. The men were so busy fighting that they didn’t notice the water spewing in until there feet were completely underwater. Once they did notice Rob jumped into the boat, to see the barrel the oil was in. The top of the barrel had not been opened yet. Rob grabbed the barrel and threw it to the side, making it fall out of the boat. The men jumped out of the boat also, and started chasing Rob. This is when the ocean around them became darker. The bevy of albacore had come to help Rob get rid of the barrel and the men. They once again circled around the men creating a whirlpool, that sucked everybody down into the fish men headquarters. The men were taken captive by the albacore men and were to be kept in the jail cell underwater for the next five years. Rob was about to finally go home when the albacore men came and bestowed a crown upon Rob.
“ Will you stay and be our king?” they asked
“ I would love to, but I am not a fish and it would not seem right to rule over you all.” Rob courageously said back. The fish men accepted his decision, and then abetted him on his way back home. They latched onto his skiff and swam him into shore. Rob got onto the beach and walked up to his house. Before he went inside he turned around to wave goodbye, but the fish men were already gone.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Second quarter Outside Reading Book Review
Second Quarter Outside Reading Book Review
The Thief Lord, Cornelia Funke, Chicken House Publishing, in German in 2000. Genre: Fiction
The Thief Lord, starts when two boys , Prosper and Bo’s mother dies so they go to live with their aunt ester and uncle Max. They only wanted Bo though so Prosper convinced Bo to run away to Venice with him. They were basically adopted by a group of orphan kids. The kids share many adventures during their times in Venice, trying to get away from a detective trying to bring them back to Ester and Max, and learning more about the thief lord who supplies all the orphans with food and clothes.
Barbarossa: Three hundred for the lot; most of it's rubbish.
Prosper: Eight.
Barbarossa: Four.
Prosper: Seven.
Barbarossa: Four seven-five.
Prosper: Six eight-seven and a half.
This quote shows me that Prosper is very smart and is able to get out of any sticky situation.
This book reminds me of the book Watership Down because prosper and Bo had to go out on their own with their friends, ad that is exactly what the rabbits had to do in Watership down.
In Thief Lord, Cornelia Funke shows how the orphan kids, Prosper, Bo, Hornet, Riccio, and Mosca grow up and change their bad habits throuout the course of the book.
“Do you know what happens here after dark? Things little eyes should never, ever see.” This makes you the reader want to keep reading to find out what they are talking about.
I really liked Cornelia Funke’s book, Thief Lord. I have her next book Inkheart, which I plan on reading. The book has affected me because it kind of made me think how even though people are young they can still do great things. What I didn’t like about the book was how it was so drawn out. I think the book could have ended up to 50 pages earlier.
The Thief Lord, Cornelia Funke, Chicken House Publishing, in German in 2000. Genre: Fiction
The Thief Lord, starts when two boys , Prosper and Bo’s mother dies so they go to live with their aunt ester and uncle Max. They only wanted Bo though so Prosper convinced Bo to run away to Venice with him. They were basically adopted by a group of orphan kids. The kids share many adventures during their times in Venice, trying to get away from a detective trying to bring them back to Ester and Max, and learning more about the thief lord who supplies all the orphans with food and clothes.
Barbarossa: Three hundred for the lot; most of it's rubbish.
Prosper: Eight.
Barbarossa: Four.
Prosper: Seven.
Barbarossa: Four seven-five.
Prosper: Six eight-seven and a half.
This quote shows me that Prosper is very smart and is able to get out of any sticky situation.
This book reminds me of the book Watership Down because prosper and Bo had to go out on their own with their friends, ad that is exactly what the rabbits had to do in Watership down.
In Thief Lord, Cornelia Funke shows how the orphan kids, Prosper, Bo, Hornet, Riccio, and Mosca grow up and change their bad habits throuout the course of the book.
“Do you know what happens here after dark? Things little eyes should never, ever see.” This makes you the reader want to keep reading to find out what they are talking about.
I really liked Cornelia Funke’s book, Thief Lord. I have her next book Inkheart, which I plan on reading. The book has affected me because it kind of made me think how even though people are young they can still do great things. What I didn’t like about the book was how it was so drawn out. I think the book could have ended up to 50 pages earlier.
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