Fahrenheit 451 (Checkpoint 6)

I was blown away from this novel. Ray Bradbury's book Fahrenheit 451 is a intruiging and thought provoking novel. It is set in the future, which is really today because the book was written in the 1950s. The story is set in a world where everything is the same; conformity is the rule. Education has been limited to just basic necessities; people are not encouraged to think independently or meaningfully, everyone lives in gray houses with no porches, and most importantly: books are burned. Books are considered horrible, nonsensical objects filled with useless information that could tip over the carefully preserved balanced that took two nuclear wars to create. Therefore, people called "firemen" go to houses that are rumored to be hiding books, and burn them down. Firemen no longer put out fires, but instead start them.

The book is centered around a particular fireman, number 451, Guy Montag. One night, after coming home from a successful night of burning hundreds of priceless novels, he meets a young girl who opens his eyes to just how empty and meaningless his life is. He starts questioning the meaning of burning books, and over the next few days goes through a series of disturbing events. Then, Guy Montag knows what he has to do.

The theme of this novel is it is better to be knowledgeable and sad than ignorant and happy. In the beginning, Guy Montag was content to just do his job of burning books.
 "Do you ever read any of the books you burn?"
He laughed. "That's against the law!"
"Oh. Of course"(Bradbury 8). 
Guy didn't question anything, so he lived comfortably in ignorance. But very early on in the novel, he meets a special girl who leads him to start questioning the world he lives in. I believe this because one of quotes from Fahrenheit 451 is "I sometimes think drivers don’t know what grass is, or flowers, because they never see them slowly. If you showed a driver a green blur, Oh yes! he’d say, that’s grass! A pink blur! That’s a rose garden! White blurs are houses. Brown blurs are cows. My uncle drove slowly on a highway once. He drove forty miles per hour and they jailed him for two days. Isn’t that funny, and sad, too"(Bradbury 10).
The main character, Guy Montag, is starting to question how drivers go see so many places and new things, yet all they see are blurs, and never question more about the blurs, or stop to see the blurs more clearly. He is beginning to open up. Midway through the book, he opens up even more, by starting to hide books that he finds, instead of burning them. One night, he cannot stand it any longer and starts reading one.
"Montag picked a single small volume from the floor.
"'Where do we begin?" He opened the book halfway and peered at it. "We begin by beginning, I guess'" (Bradbury 68).
He starts reading, and soon realizes what he has done by burning thousands of books everyday. He has gotten rid of all knowledge in the world, and he realizes how wrong that is. The novel ends with him doing something momentous that overturns the balance of his ignorant world, but the knowledge he earned, even though it created extreme difficulty for him, made him, in the end, truly happy.

The Last Dragon

"The Last Dragon," by is a fantasy novel centered around a young elf named Yorsh finds himself the last elf in the world. He soon realizes however, that he is part of a prophecy that foretells that how he and a dragon will save the world from its endless rain and darkness. Yorsh must travel around the world to find the last dragon and together they must break the seal on their world. The book is full of humor, sadness, adventure, and excitement. I rate it 3 out of 5. If you enjoy fantasy novels with a heart wrenching plot, then I suggest you read this novel.

Ella Enchanted

This comical book is a twist on many classic fairy tales. It's about a teenager who has no choice but to obey every command given to her. Whether it be "Put on a scarf," or "Kill yourself," Ella has to obey it. Instead of becoming docile and obedient, the curse, put on her by a foolish fairy, made her into a rebellious, humorous main character. I really enjoyed how Gail Carson Levine portrayed Ella. Instead of the childish, ignorant princesses we usually read about in fairy tales, Ella is headstrong, intelligent, brave, and sarcastic. The story is basically about her trying to break the curse. Along the way, however, she has to battle ogres, horrible commands, foolish fairies, and her stepsisters.

I can clearly see why this book won a Newberry Honor. It's such a great book to read, and it's right for all ages. It's fantastic to read on any day. Levine's sarcasm is timed perfectly, and I actually found myself chuckle a few times.

The Girl of Fire and Thorns

I am currently reading the book "The Girl of Fire and Thorns," by Rae Carson. The book is about a princess who is the chosen one. She secretly marries a king who needs her help to save his country in turmoil. But enemies want her too. Can she help the world, or will she die young, as most of the chosen do?

I am only in the very beginning, but already the book has hooked me in. From the very first page I was intrigued. Rae Carson's writing style is very well done. She is very detailed and vivid, so you can clearly see the setting or the character/scene she is describing. This novel is a fantasy book, so it's a nice change of pace of genres. I have just finished reading a historical fiction novel, so this book is a nice change. The book has won the WIlliam Morris Debut Award, and has rave reviews from many distinguished critics. I can't wait to read this book and find out what happens to Elisa, the princess, and see if she can live to fulfill the prophecy.

Dragonwings

Parents tell their  children to follow their dreams, but sometimes parents have unfulfilled dreams of their own.

"Dragonwings," by Laurence Yep is a personal favorite of mine that I have read countless times. The story is set in the early 1900s, and begins in China. A young boy named Moonshadow lives with his mother and grandmother, and his father works all the way in America, where he sends his family money. They struggle along without him for seven years, when one day a letter arrives. It is from Moonshadow's father, inviting him to go to America to work alongside him. Although Moonshadow knows he will not see his mother for a long time, he agrees and sets out on the difficult journey to America, which, back then, took several weeks, not including the intensive questioning he had to go through. But once he was finally in America, a whole new set of challenges arise. He must fight through the prejudice of American people not ready to accept Chinese people, the hardwork that never seemed to end, and learn an entirely new culture and language. But all this is nothing compared to the hardest challenge of all: Understanding his father, who is a complete stranger to Moonshadow, and helping his father achieve his goal: earning his wings and soaring through the air.

The story touches on many historical moments in history. The San Franciso Earthquake of 1906, the Wright Brothers' first flight, and many other important aspects to Chinese and American culture. The whole story centers around his father's desire to fly, and in the book the Wright Brothers play a huge part in it.

The Wright Brothers

 

Chinese people believe that the dragon is one of the most powerful and wise creatures on earth. In Dragonwings, Moonshadow and his father's flying contraption is christened Dragonwings, and his father has a dream about the Dragon Kingdom, which leads them to build the airplane. Airplanes back then were very skeletal looking and were controlled very simply, so Moonshadow's father's airplane probably looked similar to this:

All in all, "Dragonwings" is a fantstaic book of poetry and adventure, and I highly recommend it to all young adults who appreciate hisotry, beauty, and adventure.

 

 

The Secret Garden

"The Secret Garden" is a treasured classic about a sour, selfish young girl who goes to live with her hunchbacked uncle in the moorlands. In the beginning, she hates it, but gradually she becomes more immersed in the beauty of the moor and the secret her uncle has kept hidden for 10 years. The secret garden changes her into a beautiful, happy, healthy young girl. But can the secret garden help other people who are even more damaged than her?

I can't believe I haven't read this book sooner. It has been in my house all my life, and I just got around to reading it now. It's a great book. Some people may say it sounds cheesy, but in reality, once you read the book you'll find there's nothing cheesy about it. It's very well-written. But the sensory language is what really stood out to me. You have to be a fantastic author to be able to accurately describe the beauty of the moors of Yorkshire, and I think Frances Hodgson Burnett does just that. His descriptions of the garden, the moor, the main character, and the mansion are so vivd and clear you feel like you are stepping into another world when you read it. To show you what I experienced through reading, here are a few pictures of the gorgeous moors of London.

Keeper of the Night

Can you imagine having to take care of your entire family with no one to help you?

That's what Isabel has to do in the novel "Keeper of the Night," by Kimberly Willis Holt. The book is very unique. Here is a brief summary of the book.

Isabel, a young teenager around my age, lives on the small island of Guam with her single father, brother, and younger sister. Her mother killed herself and died on her knees praying. Isabel is left all alone with her grieving father, who gradually becomes more and more distant and spends all his time on the beach. Her brother has changed from the lighthearted, talented boy to a silent, depressed man who cuts himself and the wall of his bedroom. Her sister hasn't stopped wetting the bed ever since her mother died. Isabel is left to deal with the pressures of school, life, family, and grief all by herself. It is up to her to help her family deal with pain and sadness. 

The book was quite interesting. I live in a happy home. None of my family members have ever been harmed, luckily. So it was very different to read from a perspective of a girl my age whose life is completely opposite of mine. Isabel is a powerful character. She has flaws like any person, but the strength she shows when going through tragedy is very moving. 

Kimberly Willis Holt is an American writer of children literature. Some of her books include: "When Zachary Beaver Came to Town"(Which I have read), "The Water Seeker," and "Part of Me."

The Silver Star

If you were a young kid, would you be courageous enough to defy the adult world?

"The Silver Star" by Jeannette Walls asks that question. As you may know already, Jeannette Walls is also the author of "The Glass Castle," so I had high hopes about this book. I was not disappointed. The novel is about a young girl and sister whose mother is a flighty, unstable woman who cannot take care of them. So they save up enough money to travel to their uncle's house, where they take jobs working for a "nice" man. The man does something to the older sister, which changes their lives forever. "The Silver Star" is all about a young optimistic girl trying to fight against the injustices and unfairness of the adult world. The love the sisters have for each other is very apparent throughout the entire novel and they are willing to do anything for each other. I think Jeannette Walls based this relationship off of her own relationship with her sisters. I am very glad I read "The Glass Castle" before I read this because I was able to make connections from "The Silver Star" to Jeannette Walls's life and "The Glass Castle."
The book is suspenseful and you find yourself rooting for the courageous girls, wanting them to succeed. I would recommend this book for young teenagers/young adults

To read another review on Jeannette Walls's book "The Silver Star," click here.

The Secret Life of Bees (Checkpoint #4)

I rate "The Secret Life of Bees" 5 out of 5 stars.

The book is about a teenager, Lily, who is living in one of the most racial discriminating states in the 1960s  ever: Georgia. She lives with her abusive father and affectionate African American maid, but is haunted by the memory of her four year old self accidentally killing her mother. She leaves her father after her maid gets beaten fore wanting to vote and together they travel all the way to a bee keeper's house, where she learns that the bee keepers there have a history with her mother and may just help Lily find peace within herself.

This book kept me hooked until the very end. I thought it was amazing. Not only is the plot unique and extremely interesting, but the writing by Sue Monk Kidd is absolutely gorgeous and vivid. The book is unlike anything I've ever read before. In the beginning, I was unsure about this book because it seemed so different and strange. But now at the end, it is one of my favorite books of all time. This book is just so powerful. It covers some many topics: Racial discrimination, religion, politics, relationships, and parental abuse. The language is very advanced. Sue Monk Kidd uses very strong diction and has a way with words. I would recommend th
is book for teenagers/young adults because there is some violence and swearing. All in all, I recommend that everyone read "A Secret Life of Bees."

Want to learn more about bees? Click here.

There's also a movie about "The Secret Life of Bees." Check the trailer out below!