Reading Response to The Street by Ann Petry

       I've begun to read The Street by Ann Petry, and so far it is a really interesting book.  I have barely gotten to the second chapter so there is not a huge conflict or anything, just a setting of the scene and stating the already existent problems, such as money and a child and its education.  These are common problems of most people in today's society so this makes the book more relatable to begin with.  This book though is a fictitious story about an African American family (a mother and a boy) who live in Harlem.  They lived with some family, but the mother decided that that was not a good environment for her young son, so she went looking for another apartment that they could move into.  This small life change would hopefully help her son grow into a prosperous young man instead of a drunk like some of his other family.
       The theme of doing what is best for your child and not for you is present here.  I think this is an important idea and difficult concept of parenthood because when you become a mother or father, it is no longer about you or what you want.  It is about what you child wants or needs.  The mother in this story knew that she had to get her son to a better home so she spent what she had worked for and saved to buy them an apartment.  She didn't think twice about it.  Even though this was her money and she would have been fine to stay living where they were living, she decided that the best thing to do for her child, rather then her, was to spend that money and move away.
       As I said, I have barely gotten to the second chapter so there is not much more in the story just yet. This book seems very good so far and is extremely descriptive of the setting.  I find that most stories lack a decent description of the setting, so that makes this book even better and fun to read.  I would recommend this book to anyone who likes historical fiction, especially that takes place in New York.

Reading Response to Harvesting the Heart by Jodi Picoult

       I just started reading the book Harvesting the Heart by Jodi Picoult.  This book is a little strange so far and I'm having a hard time getting into it.  I think that it is unlikely that I will finish reading it.  The story line confuses me and I am not completely sure what is happening right now in the book.  From what I can understand the main character, Paige, had a hard time living with her father once her mother left them.  She left home as soon as she turned eighteen to go make it on her own.  She was struggling and finally found a job at a diner where she met her future husband, who happened to be her first customer.  Paige dreamed of saving enough money to go to art school.  She was an extremely talented artist that had the ability to draw people's secrets into their portraits.  Paige drew portraits of the customers in the diner and the manager hung them up.  I am not very far in this book so no massive climax or problem has occurred other then the fact that she is on her own and barely making a living.
       A theme that seems pretty clear in this book is the people leaving their families to go do what makes them happy.  I support doing what you love and following your dreams, but I don't think you should have to completely abandon your family to do this.  Though there are some specific circumstances where you may want to get as far away from your family for whatever reason but overall I think the right thing to do is to include, or try to include your family in your life and goals and dreams.  They should be supportive of you no matter what.  That's what they are there for.  It is also a tad selfish to abandon your family for yourself.  They need you just as much as you need them.  There is no bond stronger than that of family and people need to keep that in mind.  You will always be connected to your family in some way whether you want to be or not.
       I find it sad that Paige ditched her father, whose wife had already left him.  Maybe when I get farther into the book I will discover the reason why the women in his life don't like him enough to want to get so far away from him.  Or it might possibly have nothing to do with him at all, just with their dreams.  I hope that Paige will be able to reconnect with her father at some point, and I am interested to find out what happens with her future customer and life as a diner waitress.

Reading Response to Cracked by K.M. Walton

       The book Cracked, by K.M. Walton, tells the story of a bully and the bully's victim and how the both end up in the same mental hospital.  This mental ward is specifically for children who have committed suicide.  They all have their different stories of why they thought it would be best if they weren't alive.  They work and support each other.  The bully, Bull, didn't actually try to kill himself.  He attempted at shooting his grandfather who was beating Bull, but somehow ended up shooting himself in the leg and played it off as suicide so he wouldn't go to jail.  The bully's victim, Victor, feels unwanted in the world.  He is a loner, and his parents hate him.  No one pays attention to Victor, except Bull.  Bull only pays attention to Victor when he is beating him up and abusing him.  Victor's only reason to not kill himself was his dog who he loved very much. But when his dog died, Victor saw no reason to keep him from ending his life.  This book shows the struggle of all of these kids and how Victor and Bull come to know each other better and work out their problems.
       Suicide in children is increasing rapidly nowadays.  I think this topic is just so depressing.  How can people possibly feel so bad about themselves that they don't want to live another second?  How can someone find joy in abusing someone to such an extent to where they no longer want to go on with life?  I simply do not understand.  Suicide is such a serious and depressing idea in our society today.  I personally like this book because these kids didn't attempt suicide for the most common reasons: bullying, cyber bullying, etc.  Those are common and terrible but I don't think people recognize that just not paying attention to your child can make them feel so unloved and terrible.   Most all of these kids in this ward were not given enough support to keep them from killing themselves.  This is so devastating I don't know how to comprehend it.  I am fortunate to have loving parents that have taught me so much.  But not everyone is as lucky.  I think that we need to find away to make everyone feel loved.  Everyone is special in their own way and no one deserves to think they are not good enough for this world.

Reading Response to Article 5 by Kristen Simmons

      I just finished reading a book called Article 5 by Kristen Simmons.  It is a dystopia about America after some HUGE war that changed everything.  The main character, Ember, was alive before the war and before the government drafted the only boy she had ever loved, Chase.  She remembers how everything used to be.  Though she hated the police (Moral Militia) she tolerated them being in her life. That was until they arrested her mother and executed her.  Her mother's "crime" did not deserve this at all.  The entire story describes Ember's journey back to her mother and how she is adjusting to the new Chase.  He told her that her mother was still alive to protect her feelings even though he knew she was dead.  Chase and Ember's love reignited after a lot of hardship and tragedy they experienced together.
       One element I found very interesting in this book is how all the sadness and anger has bonded so many people.  After the War a very strict government took over that hurt people every day.  Over time people started to stick together and form a resistance.  I think a main reason why people can bond over sadness is that there is just so much emotion and empathy that can be shared and related to.  People that have similar situations usually end up getting along, so if half the country all experienced the wrongdoing of the strict soldiers they were all able to form an alliance and friendship.  Everyone had lost so much and they needed people to be there for them.
       Another thing I found interesting was how even though someone can appear to have changed so much, they still are always going to be the same person deep down inside.  This was shown in the story when Chase was a sweet, kindhearted, protective guy who expressed his feelings before he was drafted.  Then after he met up with Ember again, which was to arrest her mom, he appeared to be a cold-hearted, empty-headed, soldier that didn't feel emotion or cared what happened to Ember.  Though throughout their journey and rebellion his old character began to show through again.  It started with the description of the pain in his eyes when he say Ember hurt.  Then it evolved to basically giving up his life to preserve hers.  This book had many different plot twists and I loved every minute of it.  I was never bored and looked forward to reading it.

Reading Response #3 to Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

       Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult is an incredible book.  It tells the story of a school shooter and how he is dealing with all of the pressure and realizing what he did.  This is such an interesting and conflicting element of the story.  I understand Peter's, the shooter's, side but also feel for all of the families that were either directly or indirectly affected by this terrible tragedy.  Peter doesn't feel what he did was wrong because he had no one.  All of the 'popular' had ruined his life so he believed he had the right to ruin theirs'.
       Another reason this book is so amazing is that there is a character for every reader to relate to, with their own problems.  The plot line is so intense that it is some times difficult to keep up with who is who.  There is everything from gay, to suicidal, to special ed, to popular, to nerd, to distressed mother.  I think it is interesting because all of these people are so different and have hardly anything in common. Though one thing that will bond them together for the rest of their lives, is the shooting.  This connects them in a way that nothing else can.  No one else, parents or police officers, can truly understand what they are going through.  The only people they can rely on to relate to is each other.  This is a really intense way for the author to bring all of the tons of characters with their different personalities together.
       Another issue in this book is gun violence.  I do not believe there is enough action against gun violence right now.  There have been too many school shootings, though gun violence doesn't just apply to this.  Though this is where the media stresses it.  This book truly touched me and made me realize just how hard it must be to go to school with people you know and love in the morning and then when you come home they will never be there again.  I really like this book and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone.

Reading Response #2 Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

       So far this book is really, really good.  I am so immersed in it and it is constantly exciting and shocking.  It is about a high school shooting.  An overprotected nerdy outcast, named Peter, decided to shoot as many people as he could in his high school.  He had been tormented and bullied and believed what he was doing was only fair.  Peter didn't see the wrong in what he was doing.  He thought that since the bullies never got in trouble for ruining his life, why was he getting in trouble for ruining theirs'?  He didn't see the difference.
       I think that this is a very important issue in today's society.  Gun violence is a very dangerous and terrible thing that needs to be stopped, but more importantly....the motives need to be stopped.  If Peter wasn't bullied and was actually helped by his teachers and parents than he wouldn't have found the need to murder people.  If people had treated him a tiny bit better, or if he had one single friend that could have talked him out of this.  Lots of kids would have still been alive.  I feel like this is a scary topic that is becoming more and more common because of the recent school shootings.  This is a common thing today that needs to be thoroughly addressed and stopped.

Sonnet: Fragile

All love is fragile, much like a mirror

Forcing you to see yourself much clearer

Though be careful, love tends to disappear

You should enjoy it, do not live in fear

When you drop a mirror, it will shatter

The pieces will never fit the same way

If you cut yourself it will not matter

The person you once loved has moved away

But these mirrors and loves have their upsides

They show you what you really want and need

To think of yourself for once and decide

If the best thing for both is to proceed

So I will leave it up to you to choose

Who you still want to keep, and who to lose