New Book!

     I know I have disappointed some with my recent actions. However, I am now back to enjoying my reading time. I just started "Fuse" by Julianna Baggot. She is a talented writer, this past summer I read the prequel to the series. "Pure" is a wonderful book that I couldn't stop

reading. Refer back to my first blog post for a quick review of that book.

     I am on page 15 of my new book. So far, we have learned that Pressia and Bradwell are in the basement of the OSR headquarters. El Capitan is trying to start a new army full of trained wretched to (I assume) fight the dome. 

     Pressia has taken the job of "mom" to the smaller children without families. She made a prosthetic arm for a little boy, Perlo. In the detonations Perlo's finger on is left hand were fused together. He is unable to use this hand and has a hard time completing everyday chores. El Capitan had snuck Pressia piles of scrap metal he was able to find for her to make the arm for Perlo's.

      As far as we know, Pressia and Bradwell have not gotten into an intiment relationship. In the last book, Pressia and Bradwell were beginning to get close and even shared a kiss. But nothing more, it seems tense between the two of them. Bradwell has tried to learn more about the past. He has found these black boxes that seem to be like little dogs, one even bit him! When Bradwell opened one of the boxes he found there were papers containing information about the past. He wants to find more so he can confirm his parents' theory about the Dome being evil. 

      For now, Bradwell and Pressia are living with many other wretches. Perhaps the families of the men that have come to El Capitan to be apart of the army. There are random children, but for the most part the camp has families of women and children. I am curious to see how Pressia and Bradwell recover more information about the past and how El Capitan plans on raising a powerful army. 

      

I had to bail...

     I apologize in advance... i broke one of most basic law of literature. I quit reading "Matched." by Allie Condrie. The book was not going anywhere, it seemed that the author was just writing fluff and unable to formulate what she wanted to say. I'm actually sort of depressed because I was so excited in the beginning of the book because I find that it is hard for me to find good books and now that I had found a (what I though was) good book. And it had two sequels! I wonder how she wrote two more books when the author had no plot-line. I may have given into temptation as well...
     Over the summer, I had to do Summer Reading which most people hate but I actually quite like it. I read, "Pure" by Julianna Baggot. I liked the book so much that I finshed reading it in two weeks! In the middle of summer I had gone to barnes and noble to find the sequel but had to order it because the book just came out last month. I had forgotten about it until three days ago when it arrived at my doorstep. I wasn't liking the book ever since I wrote about the plot-line plataeuing. It whisphered to me every time I passed it's resting place on my desk in my bedroom. it would say, " you know you want to read me, I am the sequel to one of your favorite books." I finally gave in.
    
Check out an awesome site called Good Reads to get book recomendations and chat with other book-lovers:
http://www.goodreads.com/

Have we Plateaued?

     The book has not progressed any further since the last time that we have talked. I read 20 more pages and the plot does not develop any further. It seems that cassia is waiting for something. Perhaps to tell her family about the poem that she found in the face compact her grandfather gave her. Xander is oblivious, cassia and him barely talk which is unusual for a match. Ever since their matching banquet, it has been extremely awkward between the two. I understand, imagine having to marry your best guy- friend. It might be a bit uncomfortable!
     When people die in the society (at age 80) they are required to swab their cheeks for DNA and give the sample to  family member to give to the society after their death. They do this because every person believes that one day the scientists will be able to bring back these people using their DNA. Cassia's father has lost the sample and when Cassia returns from her free rec-time there are official and people in whit lab coats in her house. They are trying to recover the sample that may be in the house. cassia is worried that they might find her poem that she had in the compact on her bookshelf. The officials leave and find nothing. Cassia is relieved but ashamed that her father could have been so careless. In the society, people don't make mistakes and every once in a while when they do, the others almost "shun" the wrong-doers. If you ask me, it's a pretty judgmental place to grow up in! 


Check out the author's fan page:
http://allycondie.com/

Update: Matched :)

     Remember how I told you I'd be back with an update? Well I've gotten further down the road with this book. I am not as enthusiastic but I admit it is an addicting read. As soon as I finished my last post I went up to my room and crawled into my bed with the windows open letting in a cool breeze. But, of course "nothing stays golden forever" and I had soccer in twenty minutes.
     The book has really progressed, Cassia has looked at the compact her grandfather gave her and the corner of a paper  was sticking out was a note! The author shows the audience Cassia's adventurous side when she decides to break the rules of the society and read the poem. The society has set rules about your own writing and ever since the council picked the 100 poems, the rules have gotten stricter. Cassia had chosen a hiking option for her recreation hours. The tour guide was not very helping and he exclaimed how he was an ex military personnel. Cassia had felt that the compact weighed her down as she sprinted up the mountain face. She found it in her pocket and sat down beneath the brush alone to read it, peacefully. The poem read:

" Do not gentle into that good night,
  Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
  Rage, rage against the dying of light.
  Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
  Because their words had forked no lightning they
  do not gentle into that good night. "     (Condie, Page 96)

    I first read this in the book, and was confused bout its meaning. But, now that I re-read it and now I  realize that it is about rebelling against the Society. Look! even the sequence of covers give the plot line away. It was bold for the author to do this but now I know that Cassia must be the leader of an uprising. I predict that the book will end with her having thoughts about a new society and maybe even telling Xander or her family.

Matched... The Most Intriguing Book I've Read This Year

     As you can probably tell from the title of this blog I have started a new series and am loving it so far!   "Matched" by: Ally Condie is about a society in the future. A higher power thought we were unfit to be living the way we were. They decided that they would start over with a new generation that would be conservative and intelligent. I really like that the novel isn't the same boring apocalypse plot. The author is creative with her writing style and loves to leave the reader questioning what will happen in the next chapter. 
     I have dedicated 1 chapter for every night before I go to sleep. So far I am on page 115. The main character, Cassia is a young lady who has recently been matched with her best friend Xander. In the society, you are rarely matched with someone that you know, let alone your next-door neighbor! It is quite an advantage because this way the two don't have to take time to get to know one another. Cassia is happy that she is matched with her best friend. The night of the matching banquet Cassia and Xander are both give flash drive like devices that they can plug into their computer for a full back ground check on the other person. But, when Cassia goes back to review Xavier's file she gets a different boy's file who is known to be a criminal. Later, Cassia goes with a group of friends to a gaming center where a city official pulls her aside and reassures her that the criminal is not her real match. In the society nobody ever makes mistakes. It is very difficult to make one because everything is set up so geniusly. The officer tells her that Xander is still her true match and that everything would proceed as planned.
     The studies showed that once the average human has reached the age of 80 they have lived a full life. So, in order to have a perfect life you must always die at 80. The medics give you certain medicines that slowly shut down your body so you can die quickly and peacefully. Cassia's grandfather just died 2 weeks ago. It still makes her sick to think that he is gone because they were so close. Before you die each person has their own "last banquet" this is when you invite your friends and family to celebrate your life. At his last banquet, each person in his son's family gives him a present. Bram, Cassia's younger brother gives him a rock from the Arboretum where their mother works. Cassia gives him a letter that has sentiments from the computer printed on. Grandfather tells Cassia that he loves it but also tells her that she needs to express her own originality and use her own words which is not allowed in the society. When the higher power killed off the old generation, they made a council that decided what poems, songs, games and other things they should keep. 100 of each category was kept so the citizens are not allowed to write their own words just print them off a computer program. Grandfather also gives a face compact to Cassia that was her Grandmothers but it has a note in it. 
     I haven't gotten up to the point in the book where she opens it and revels what the note says. I think it will be a letter containing secrets about the society from her Grandmother who was on the council. Or it might be from her Grandfather. As soon as I read up to that point I'll make sure that I report back! 

Book Review

     Over and Done with "Fat Boy Chronicles", it was a good book overall. I thought that it was a great opportunity that I got to read this book. If I didn't have to read it for school, I would  have never chosen to read it. My health teacher says, "In this class we will do things out of the ordinary and open up you guys to new experiences." I'm sure he means it in a different way but it fits perfectly in this situation. There was some inappropriate language within the text but I thought that was creative of the author to use it because in reality, that's the language that most teenagers use these days. 
     The format of the novel was one of the highlights for me. It was nice to step outside of the traditional format onto a creative new setting. I liked that the writing was personal and emotional. Not only was it realistic but also opened the audience up to a new type of life that some (most) have never experienced, firsthand.
     The characters were their own individuals, Sable was a gothic, rocker chick. She used to cut her wrists but after Jimmy encouraged her to get help, she stopped. This demonstrated his emotional side and also a new charistic, compassion. I know several individuals who would understand Sable's situation and never help her or ignore her completely. Not only did Sable stop but **spoiler alert** they fall in love! I was so happy for jimmy after he asked her out. He had so much more courage after dropping a few pounds. I think it an exceptional book everyone should take a look at "Fat Boy Chronicles" by Diane Lang. If you aren't a reader, there is also a movie based entirely off the the book.

http://www.amazon.com/Fat-Boy-Chronicles-Diane-Lang/dp/1585365432/ref=sr_sp-atf_image_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1378829560&sr=1-1&keywords=fatboy+chronicles

New Book: Fat Boy Chronicles

     I have recently started a new book, "Fat Boy Chronicles." The setting is actually in Mason, Ohio. It is about a young boy named Jimmy who is obese. Jimmy is bullied a lot and in the beginning doesn't know how to stand up for himself. He knows that if he doesn't loose the weight fast it will turn into diabetes and stay with him forever. The doctors have told Jimmy that his weight has also started to affect his mood, he is diagnosed with teen depression. At school, the teachers don't stand up for him and watch while he gets teased daily.
     His English teacher, Mrs. Pope has assigned the students to journal about their lives throughout freshman year and at the end of the year, they turn in the journals as a grade. Mrs. Pope encourages them to talk about their day-to-day lives and what influences them. Jimmy titles his journal, "The Fat Boy Chronicles" and journals about his experiences with bullying. Jimmy can choose to let her read the entries or start with a header of, Please Don't Read This Page. The layout of the book is his journal entries.
    Jimmy doesn't have many friends and the friends he does have aren't great. Paul, one of his friends is even more messed up then the rest. He is into drugs and drinking. Paul's parents fight a lot and abuse him. They lost their house to foreclosure and had to move into Paul's uncle's basement. Paul's only escape (like jimmy's) is youth group at church. They both go there to talk about their problems and a youth minister gives them advice. Youth group and church are the only places where Jimmy and Paul feel accepted. I understand, I can see how being obese in high school could be a recipe for disaster. So many cruel children without morals are typically what roam the halls.
    I am at the part in the book when Jimmy is just starting to loose weight. Him and his mom throw out all the junk food in his house so they can start off by not being tempted with unhealthy snacks. Every morning Jimmy runs 2.5 miles with his dad before he goes to school. After school, Jimmy comes home and works out on the Total Gym machine his dad bought the family for Christmas. He has lost 12 pounds so far and his goal is 45. Stay tuned to see what happens next in, "The Fat Boy Chronicles."



This is the trailer for the movie, "The Fat Boy Chronicles" :