Reading Response on Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

       In Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult there are many different characters that have not yet connected with each other, and there perspectives on their lives.  This makes summarizing the story so far a little difficult.  Therefore I have decided to describe the theme and lessons from one of the characters and her point-of-view.  This girl's name is Josie.  She is everything everybody wants, pretty, straight-A student, popular, and has a popular and hot boyfriend.  Though she knows that this girl that everyone sees on the outside is not who she really is.  She is afraid that no one will accept or like her if they find out the true her.  So she pretends.  Her days are full of fake smiles and fake looks.  Josie wants to let the world know who the real Josie is, but just can't bring herself to do it.
       I think that this is an important lesson that the author is trying to bring attention to the reader.  Many people, most all people actually, especially in high school are afraid to let there true self be exposed.  I think that this is because not many people can handle there true personality and looks being judged and criticized like they will in today's society.  It is easier to be fake and be what other people want or envy.  I believe that this is taking the easy way out.  Life would be more enjoyable if everyone was their true selves one hundred percent of the time.  Unfortunately, this is impossible.  I think Josie is already more advanced then most because she recognizes her true self and knows that what she is acting like is not it.  She understands that it is easier to be what people want then what you want.
       I hope that Josie will find the strength to show everyone who she really is.  This is a brave thing to do and requires a lot of courage.  I hope she will overcome her fear of being judged and criticized so therefore she can appreciate life more and not hid anything.  This book is inspiring.  It teaches us the values of the simple goal, "to just be yourself."

Literary Essay on the Theme "Lack of Voice" in Martín Espada's Poems

        The idea that many racially diverse people have a lack of voice compared to powerful, usually white, people is displayed in all three of Martín Espada’s poems that we read in class, “Revolutionary Spanish Lesson”, “Two Mexicanos Lynched in Santa Cruz, California, May 3, 1877”, and “The New Bathroom Policy at English High School.”  I feel that this theme slowly advances and grows stronger as the reader advances from one poem to the next.  In “Revolutionary Spanish Lesson” Martín Espada talks about what he wants to do when someone does something as simple as pronounce his name.  This poem never states how he actually does anything about the mispronunciation; it just talks about how it makes him feel.  In “The New Bathroom Policy at English High School” Hispanic kids are banned from speaking their native language (Spanish) in the bathrooms.  Here they both figuratively and literally don’t have a voice.  Then finally in “Two Mexicanos Lynched in Santa Cruz, California, May, 3, 1877” shows how to Mexicans were murdered for being racially different.  This theme of lacking a voice grows more intense through each of those three poems.

            In the first poem by Martín Espada, “Revolutionary Spanish Lesson”, he describes in detail what he wishes he could do when people mispronounce his name.  He never says that he actually does anything about it.  Espada shows that he feels disrespected when people do this, and therefore he wants to disrespect them by hijacking “a busload of Republican tourists from Wisconsin, force them to chant anti-American slogans in Spanish, and wait for the bilingual SWAT team to helicopter overhead, begging me to be reasonable.”  He wants to force people to feel like their culture and native country is being put down by forcing the Republican tourists to chant anti-American slogans in Spanish.  Though the reader is unsure if he actually says anything or just lets it go by.  I think Martín Espada wanted us to infer this.  I think that he is trying to prove that even though he might have said something about his name and the correct pronunciation, many others don’t and they need to gain their voice against “authority” again.

            The second poem, “The New Bathroom Policy at English High School”, shows the theme of a lack of voice for diverse people a little stronger.  Here the reader doesn’t have to guess whether the victim stood up for himself or not.  It is obvious that the Hispanic kids got their voice taken away, literally.  The principal banned them from talking in Spanish in the bathrooms.  This all occurred just because the principal was uncomfortable hearing them talk in this foreign language to him while he was in there.  This shows how selfish people of authority can be and how they can overuse their power and overstep their boundaries.  This is taking away some people’s basic rights, such as freedom of speech.  There is no good reason to take away this freedom in the first place.  This makes these people feel uncomfortable and unwanted, and it makes them feel like people are being ignorant against their culture, because they are.  These kids need a voice against power, because right now they are lacking one.

            The final poem, “Two Mexicanos Lynched in Santa Cruz, California, May 3, 1877”, shows how two Mexicanos may have had a voice, but now they very forcefully have had it taken away from them.  These two people most likely were hung because they spoke out against society.  They have realized that they were being mistreated and tried to get their voice back, but were killed for it.  Though hopefully Martín Espada meant to tell as many people about this event as he could to inspire people to take a stand because they deserve to be treated equally as everyone else.  People should not have their life, and voice, taken away from them for their culture.  This is such a terrible thing that happened and I infer that Espada wanted us to remember that there are risks when trying to speak out, but it’s possible to have some big advantages and improvements of treatment come out of it. 

            Many racially diverse people’s voices were lacking in this time period against the authorities.  This was shown numerous times throughout Martín Espada’s poems, especially these three that we read in class.  His ideas and opinions on this theme grew and developed throughout them.  I think that he first was just stating his personal feelings, then he used some small evidence such as a change of a bathroom policy at a random high school, then he used some intense evidence that two people were murdered for either speaking out or their culture.

Reading Response #2 to Stolen by Lucy Christopher

       Stolen by Lucy Christopher shows how people are not always what they seem.  Gemma met this nice, cute guy looking at the airport.  He bought her a coffee and was very smooth and charming.  Though when Gemma wasn't looking he drugged her coffee.  She became unaware of what was happening and ended up in the middle of a barren desert in Australia with no sign of society for miles and miles.  She has no where to run or go to.  No one will be able to find her, who would suspect that she would be in this desert where apparently "no one" is?
       This story shows how easy kidnapping is.  Gemma wasn't doing anything stupid to get herself stolen, she was simply buying a coffee and on her way back to her parents.  She did nothing to get herself into this.  Bad people like that guy can take you so far away from everything before anyone even realizes you are missing.  This shows how we need to be able to fend for ourselves.  I don't yet know what will happen to Gemma but hopefully she will either be rescued or escape.  The panic and depression she must be going through is truly insane.  A lot of kids are kidnapped every year.  I think this issue needs to be addressed further then it already is.  Gemma wasn't raped or anything but she still has almost zero chance of getting back to her life.  This story shows how you don't always have to talk to the wrong person, be walking down the wrong streets late at night, or follow someone into a van to be stolen.  It happens to undeserving, innocent children.

Reading Response for Stolen by Lucy Christopher

       This book is very intriguing.  It draws the reader's attention in just by reading the first paragraph.  It is written in first person.  There are no names yet, just you and I.  I think the very first part of the book is a flashback.  I always find it interesting when an author starts off a book with a snippet from the past. It gives background information in a more creative way then a prologue.  I have only read 8 pages so far, but I can already tell it is very well written.
       The topic of this book is love at first sight.  I think this is a very controversial belief.  I personally believe that love at first sight is possible, but doesn't occur very often.  I think believing that you will have an instant connection with your soul mate is setting your standards too high and will most likely disappoint you.  Though this makes for a great story plot.  It is fun to imagine that this could happen to you.  It helps the reader connect and fantasize along side the characters.  I can't wait to read the rest of this book and find out if love at first sight works out for the main character.