Consistency

I am currently reading the book, "An Abundance of Katherines" by John Green.  This book is about a boy named Colin who has had nineteen girlfriends when the book starts-- and all of them had been named Katherine.  Colin only dates Katherines.  He refuses to go out with a Catherine, a Katy, Cat, or any variation.  Only Katherine with a K. He is very set on this consistency.  His relationships always go basically the same, and the Katherines always break up with him after some time.  

In the book, Colin goes on a road trip with his friend Hassan. While on the trip, they meet a girl named Lindsey and they stay with her and her mother.  Right away, I made a prediction about this book.  I think that by the end, Lindsey and Colin will get together and break Colin's rule about Katherine's.  I think that a main part of this book is that Colin is changing his ways.  He is taking new chances and trying new things.  I predict that by the end of the book, Colin will learn that consistency is not always the best, and even though it might be more difficult, sometimes he needs to take a chance

Symmetry

I recently read the book"The Butterfly Clues" by Kate Ellison.  This book is about a girl named Lo.  For Lo,  everything is in 3s, 6s, and 9s. Whenever she is nervous or worried she'll tap her thigh nine times, then another nine, then another six, on her right leg, repeating the whole thing again on her left, then again on her right, to make it three reps. Whenever she enters or exits a place, she has to tap three times and whisper "banana", because banana is special. She says it is to "make it even. The universe wanted it that way." She has been doing this ever since her brother Oren died. I think that she has to do this to find a strength in consistency, since she has lost strength so many times before.

When we are young, I think we need this to make sense in the world. When I was little, everything had to be even. If I scratched one leg, I had to scratch the other. At some points, even if my mom brushed past my side, I'd have to do it to the other side, too. I think I did this to find safety in... symmetry. Knowing that whatever happened to one arm would happen to the other, I think I felt a kind of solidarity, if that makes any sense. Like an inner peace thing that one half of me wouldn't just abandon the other half. But once I got older, I realized that I wasn't going to part of myself, but more importantly, people weren't going to leave me either. But Lo doesn't know that yet. She has no one to trust, to talk to, only herself. And she's worried that she'll leave herself, just like everyone else did.

I think that Lo has to tap because she has lost so much after Oren died, she had no more stability. Tapping is something she knows she can always count on, and she can't let herself down. But she has to realize that people like her mom and dad do love her, they just don't know how to show it. And kids at school do care about her, but she has to reach them half way. She has been tapping for so long, she doesn't know that there is another way. But I think that unless she opens her eyes and realizes that there are loving people surrounding her, she's never going to get better.

Searching

 I recently reread the book, "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" by Jonathan Safran Foer.  This is a fictional book about 11 year old Oskar Schell who lost his father on 9/11. Soon after his father's death, Oskar finds a key in his father's office and immediately decides to look for the lock. But there are thousands and thousands of locks in NYC, and his chances of finding the right lock is extremely low. Something I was thinking about throughout was why Oskar was so set on finding the lock.

 The most obvious reason that he would do this would be curiosity, because a key is a key, and it opens something. How could you not wonder what that something is? But I don't think simple curiosity would drive Oskar to spend months walking around the city and talking to strangers (he isn't even very comfortable with that at all). Oskar is a really, really smart kid--he's not the kind of person who'd do something this big just to satisfy his curiosity.

 Then, I came up with a different idea. Oskar was very close to his dad, and I think he was going on this "journey" because he had to do something to remember his dad. He felt closer to his dad when on the journey. I think he didn't really, really cared about what he found at the end. Maybe after he got an answer he could tuck his dad away.  He might have just needed closure about his dad's death.  During his walks through the city he could feel like his dad was still here and that he was doing it all for his dad. Or, maybe he wanted his dad to be proud that he was doing this.

 At the end, the discovery wasn't as "big" as you'd think, but it was still the end of the path. Oskar got his answers and completed what he'd sought out to do. In a way, all his devotion had payed off. But even though Oskar found a lock, I don't think it wasn't the lock he wished for. In a way, even though he himself wouldn't really believe it, I think Oskar just wanted his dad. Like a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, he wanted his father to be there after all his hard work. But what Oskar learned was that he had to accept that his dad was really gone. Not forget him, of course, but put him in the past. The author gave the reader a sort of harsh reality, that the answers you find might not be the ones you wanted.

Support Group

I recently reread the book, "The Fault in Our Stars," by John Green. This book is about a teenage girl named Hazel who has thyroid caner, and how she falls in love with a boy named Augustus Waters, who also used to have a type of cancer. The author does a great job capturing the voice of a teenage girl, and making it very apparent, through details, the way she thinks and feels.  Something that is interesting about Hazel is that she does not pity herself for being diagnosed with cancer, but at the same time she knows that it does impact her life greatly, and the way people think of her. For example, when she first notices Augustus, she automatically assumes that he feels sorry for her because of the physical features she has, showing that she has cancer.

In the beginning of the book, Hazel goes to a “Support Group” for kids and teenagers who have or are survivors of cancer, which is where she meets Augustus. At first, Hazel is very doubtful about this group and does not think it will be any help. She is reluctant to go, and when she gets there she does not want to talk. But she did mention that she thought she could make friends with some of people in this group. Because Hazel does not attend a regular high school, she is much less socially active and does not have as many chances to make new friends. So, this will be a very good experience for her to meet and talk with other people who may be going through similar issues with her.

I think that Hazel might not have been so thrilled about the support group because she was afraid that if she got too close to someone there, she could lose them because they are all at risk of cancer. Based on what Hazel has described, after she was diagnosed with cancer she lost everything—her friends, attending school, and many of her abilities were limited. I can understand why Hazel would be reluctant to start over with her friendships and make connections, as many of her old ones ended poorly.  I also think that her cancer is something she tries to avoid and not think about too much, so when she goes to this group which revolves mostly around cancer, Hazel would be facing a huge obstacle in her life, which she will have to overcome.

Volunteering

I recently re-read the book The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. This is a well written and world famous book about what North America had turned into in the very far future. In this book, 16 year old girl named Katnis Everdeen has to fight in the “hunger games” in the place of her younger sister. The hunger games are games designed by the capitol in which one boy and one girl are recruited from each of the 12 districts. Each district is different. Some are very wealthy, while others like district 12, the district Katnis is from, are extremely poor and treated the worst by the Capital. The hunger game requires the 24 contestants to be placed in an area and kill each other until only one remains. The remaining person will get all the money, food, housing, and anything else they would need for the rest of their lives. Katniss overcomes many obstacles, both physical and mental before and during the hunger games. She has to get past the competition while making a few friends along the way. What she goes through is probably unspeakably hard, but her main goal throughout the whole book is to make it home to her sister.

            I admire Katniss very much. I think that she is a very noble and a brave person for volunteering to fight. She was the 1^st ever volunteer for district 12, as not that many people want to be put in an arena and kill others their age. She must have also loved her sister very much. At the beginning of the book, it is made clear that she is some-what of a mother figure for her younger sister who is only 12 years old. To have the lingering thought that any minute she could be slaughtered by a complete stranger must be an awful feeling and also quite terrifying, so that shows just how brave Katniss really is.

            In the end, I think that Katniss is a really admirable person and I think that she is a good person and cares a lot about other people’s well-being. If there were more people like Katniss in the world, I’m sure it would be a much better place. In the book, it states that Katniss was the 1^st ever volunteer from district 12. This just shows that she is a very caring person, but there weren't many like her. 

Difficulties

I recently read the book Teen Angst? Nahh… by Ned Vizzini.  This is a book about a teenage boy, Ned Vizzini, growing up in New York City in the late 90’s. Vizzini narrates his story, telling stories about his past experiences and funny moments throughout his teenage years. He faces everyday problems like any other teenager would, which he learns to overcome, and move on from. One main problem that he faces throughout the book is his academics. He is a strong student, but from the very beginning of the book the stress is difficult for him to deal with.

            At the very beginning of the book, Ned Vizzini describes the New York City high school process to the reader, and explains how difficult and competitive it is. He says that there is one test, (the SHSAT) which the students must take, and if they pass that, they are able to go to some of the best high schools in the city, and even country. He ends up passing the exam, and getting into Stuyvesant—which is considered the hardest place to get into. Vizzini tells how he studied for 4 months straight in order to get into Stuyvesant, and pass the test.

            Once he is in the school he has to deal with the immense difficulty and advanced workload that the students are expected to do. He even recalls his own teacher telling him, “You can have a personal life, good grades and sleep in Stuyvesant, but you can only choose two of them.” This shows just how difficult his school must have been, for the teacher to have to tell this to the students. Vizzini ends up telling the reader how he chose “sleep and good grades.” He must have been devoted enough to work this hard considering he was giving up any social plans he would later have.

            In a slight way I can relate to the author because of what he has gone through in his life. I also have to do this high school process and will probably have to deal with the problems, stress, and worry that comes with going to high school and growing up. Ned Vizzini seems like a really dedicated person and it continues to amaze me how devoted he must have to go to such a hard school still get good grades and stay on track throughout his life. He even gave up his whole social life for this.  This tells me that anyone can do whatever they want, as long as they have enough determination and they want it enough.