Category: Independent Reading

The Magicians Nephew is one of the seven books in the Chronicles of Narnia. Including The Magicians Nephew, which I have just read, I have read five of the seven books. I really enjoy these fantasy adventure books and I like how the author writes. I can always picture in my head what’s happening whilst reading. In this book, The Magicians Nephew, Digory (the nephew) and Polly become friends in London when Digory’s uncle (the magician which he does not realise yet) gives them magic rings which sends them into the ‘Wood between the Worlds’. In this wood, they can use the rings to travel to different world by jumping into one of the many ponds. When they enter one, they find themselves in a new world. They come across an old room in an abandoned stone courtyard with broken walls and pillars, and thought there were lots of people in the room at first, but they were portraits hung on the walls. The furthest left portraits looked like nice and friendly people, but the further they moved down the wall, the nastier the people were. At the very end, there was an image of a woman. She looked beautiful, but fierce. Digory and Polly determined that she was the queen. And beyond her, there were empty chairs as if there were meant to be more people. In the middle of the room, there was a table which they went over to inspect. Some foreign language was engraved on the stone which they could not understand at first. This is when I came across this passage of the book.

If only Digory had remembered what he himself had said a few minutes ago, that this was an enchanted room, he might have guessed that the enchantment was beginning to work. But he was too wild with curiosity to think about that. He was longer more and more to know what was written on the pillar. And very soon they both knew. What it said was something like this – at least this is the sense of it through the poetry, when you read it there, was better:

Make your choice adventurous Stranger;

Strike the bell and bide the danger,

Or wonder, till it drives you mad,

What would have followed if you had (p. 35)

After reading this, they got into a quarrel because Polly did not with to continue but Digory did. At last, Digory hit the bell with the hammer, which was the choice they had to make to find out what would happen, and it were like a mini earthquake had happened. The room was filled with such loud noise and rumbling. Once it had stopped, at the end of the room where the image of the cruel woman had been, had come alive.

I chose this passage because I find it an important part of the story to learn how the queen came to be which will start Narnia and give readers a better understanding of how the story starts. Because of what happened here, they entered (unknowingly) into the land of Narnia by entering the wrong pond and then they got to watch it be created by Aslan which will be the start of the real adventures for anyone who comes across Narnia by mistake, which will be in the other books.

Reading To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Hen, I was able to reconnect to the somber feeling of when I first watched the cringe love story of Lara Jean and Peter Kavinsky that faithful night in seventh grade. Thinking of all the books I could possibly read throughout the winter break, I stumbled across the one imaginative love story I’ve re-watched over and over again but have never been able to read.

“So, love and dating? I love to read about it, and it’s fun to write about and to think about in my head, but when it’s real…”

”Peter: “What, it’s scary?”

Lara Jean: “Yeah.”

Peter: “Why? Why is that scary?”

Lara Jean: “’Cause the more people you let into your life, the more that can just walk right out.” (p.176)

Needless to say, I completely expect every surprise waiting for me as I flip to the next chapter. I understand that’s completely also how countless writers have dreaded to read as they have gotten their books adapted into films for Netflix to profit off of. I don’t recommend this process of watching whatever book adaption before reading the hard-cover original. Nonetheless, if you have truly loved a storyline as I have with this basic love story after years upon years then read at your own risk of boredom.

The Wicked King, by Holly Black is the second book of The Cruel Prince trilogy. In this book. Jude has bound the Wicked King, cardan, to her, and made herself the power behind the throne. Navigating the constantly shifting political alliances of Faerie is difficult enough if cardan were biddable. But he does everything in his power to humiliate and undermine her. When it comes all too clear that someone close to Jude means to betray her, Jude must uncover the traitor, to maintain control as a mortal in Faerie world.

“I have learned that I cannot trust anyone in Faerie. I have learned that the price of power is not just a crown, but a heart that beats in the cold. I have learned that even the most well-laid plans can fall apart, and that the best way to keep control is to never show fear, even if you are terrified.”

This quote shows Jude’s realization that power in Faerie comes with mistrust, emotional sacrifices, and fear of losing the ones you love or yourself. She understands that to maintain control, she needs to hide her vulnerabilities and adapt to the ruthless world around her. This is where Jude starts growing into the person that will rule Faerie and will one day become the queen of Elfhame even as a mortal girl.

”Night” by Elie Wiesel, is a wonderful book detailing his experiences as a Jewish teenage boy during the Holocaust. He describes his experiences through his time in concentration camps, particularly in Auschwitz and Buchenwald most famous for its horrible sights.

“Never shall I forget that night, the first night in the camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke.”

Through his suffering and loss, Elie Wiesel overcame his past experiences creating a book that had won the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. This book has changed countless people’s lives across the world providing a new never-seen perspective that will never be forgotten.

The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife is about Frederick, who is an old man very a very kind heart and is always willing to help others out. He was still grieving about the loss of his beloved wife named Dawn. Frederick was getting evicted from his apartment. Nothing ever seems to be going well for him. He ends up getting mistaken as another old man named Bernard Fred (who his dead because of an accident), and decides to borrow his life.

‘Would you mind terribly, old boy, if I borrowed the rest of your life? I promise I’ll take excellent care of it.’

As he continues his life he learns to move on and meets a new girl named Hannah.

As Fred gazed upon young love and old love side by side, his heart felt fuller than it had in a very long time. If only he had a loved one to share it with. Yet to his surprise, this time, instead of Dawn, it was Hannah who came to mind (Page 159).

This quote indicates how far Frederick (or should I say Bernard) has come with this new chapter of his life. He didn’t expect his life to have such a sudden turn like this one, especially at his age; he thought that he was nearly done his last chapter before these series of unpredictable events. I honestly didn’t enjoy this book as much as I had thought I would in the start. Hearing about this book I was really excited to start reading it, but quickly changed my mind after reading a bit of it. This book may be interesting for those who like ‘dark’ humour (you’ll instantly understand what I’m talking about once you start reading it) and those who do not mind a disgusting amount of detail.

In The Reptile Room, Lemony Snicket continues the Baudelaire orphans briefly find hope living with their kind, eccentric, relative, Dr. Montgomery, in his fascinating home filled with exotic reptiles. However, this sense of safety is  shattered when Count Olaf, disguised as Stephano, reappears with another sinister plan. A central theme of the book is the obvious dangers, forcing the siblings to rely on their own intelligence and courage. My favourite quote from the book being;

Dear Reader,

If you have picked up this book with the hope of finding a simple and cheery tale. I’m afraid you have picker up the wrong book altogether…

..I am bound to record these tragic events, but you are free to put this book back on the shelf and seek something lighter.” (Blurb)

This is because it sets the tone for the entire series. Dark, honest, and unapologetically tragic. This quote resonates because it prepares readers for the challenges the Baudelaire face and highlights their resilience despite endless misfortune.

 

The Kill Order is a novel written by James Dashner, the same man that wrote The Maze Runner books. If you have read the first 3 Maze Runner books then you would know that the entire world is slowly being killed off and turned into a dystopian wasteland by a virus called “The Flare”. The virus feeds off of the victims brain and drives them to the brink of insanity, soon enough turning into bloodthirsty monsters which are soon referred to as “Cranks”. In the quotation I’m about to show, it has an old friend, the Toad, returning but seems to have gone crazy and in need of help.

The Toad dropped to his knees and held the lit match closer to his face. He looked gaunt, and his eyes were moist and haunted.

“Are… You okay?” Mark asked, hoping his friend was just tired.

“I’m not,” the Toad answered, his face quivering as if he were about to cry. “I’m not, Mark. I’m not okay at all, There are things living inside my skull.” (p.81)

And

“I have things in my skull. I need help getting them out of there. Before they eat my brain and start heading for my heart” (p.82)

Both of these quotations show the character the Toad, experiencing symptoms of The Flare, having it thrive on his brain. Later in the story he proceeds to do inhuman screeches and wails, and he gets violent and angry. The whole reason I showed this is because it gives us good insight on the mutating process the virus has on the brain, driving someone mentally ill. And a little theory of mine is that the violent intentions to soon come might have been from the voices in his head, maybe telling him to.

 

My Side of The Mountain, by Jean Craighead George. This book, published in 1959, is a tale focusing on 15-year-old Sam Gribley, who decided to run away from his home in New York to go off and attempt to survive in the wilderness on his great-grandfather Gribley’s farm.

“By April I was no longer living off of my storehouse. There were bulbs, tubers, and greens to be had. Meals were varied once more. There were frogs’ legs, eggs, and turtle soup on my table. I took my baths in the spring again rather than in the turtle shell with warmed over snow.” (pg. 161)

In this quote, we see Sam discussing the end of winter up in the mountain. He was finally able to have more varied meals since animals were coming out of hibernation, berries and plants were starting to grow, and the weather was finally becoming warmer. Sam is no longer restricted to the small surface area of his hollowed out tree because of the cold weather, and he is now able to explore more of his local area.

In the book called “Kitchen”, we are Introduced to a young lady named Mikage Sakurai, who, after the loss of all her relatives, may not afford to live at the family house, and so her days there are numbered. Fortunately for her, she meets a young man, Yuichi Tanabe, with whom she bonds pretty quickly over her families tragedy. Her Grandmother has an unfortunate passing, and since it was her last relative, she was really sad, however, when she looked at Yuichi, she started to to think herself that her love for her grandmother was nothing compared to his;

…his eyes were swollen, from crying. When he saw my grandmother’s picture on the altar, again his tears fell like rain. My first thought when I saw that was that my love for my own grandmother was nothing compared to this boy’s, whoever he was, he looked sad. (p.7)

Overall, this mutual trauma helped bond these two characters together. Yuichi later invited her to stay at his house for as long as she likes, even proposing for her to move in with him and his mom. This excerpt perfectly outlines the kind and passionate character of Yuichi Tanabe.

The Thief is a Japanese book written by Fuminori Nakamura, published in 2012. The story follows Nishimura, an experienced pickpocket as he steals from the people of Tokyo. Nishimura receives an incredible job offer from an ex-crime partner of his, and pulls off his greatest heist.  Nishimura manages to pickpocket sensitive documents from a pocket that is completely sown on every side and resides on the inside of the jacket of the target. Along the way he meets a child with a good-for-nothing mother. He teaches the child the ways of pickpocketing in order to save him from getting caught. 

“A wallet shows a person’s personality and lifestyle. Just like a cell phone, it is at the center, forming the nucleus of the owner’s secrets, everything he carries on him.”(p. 7)

I chose this quote because I think it’s interesting to see such a personal take on wallets, I don’t think that’s something that most people even think about. Seeing it from the eyes of an experienced pickpocket makes wallets which are ordinarily dull seem like interesting objects full of personality.

In Coco Mellors’ Blue Sisters, the story follows four sisters whose lives are deeply intertwined, even as they navigate their own challenges and struggles. The book begins with a powerful quotation on the nature of sisterhood:

A sister is not a friend. Who can explain the urge to take a relationship as primal and complex as a sibling and reduce it to something as replaceable, as banal as a friend? Yet this status is used again and again to connote the highest intimacy. My mother is my best friend. My husband is my best friend. No. True sisterhood, the kind where you grew fingernails in the same womb, were pushed screaming through identical birth canals, is not the same as friendship. You don’t choose each other, and there’s no furtive period of getting to know the other. You’re part of each other, right from the start. Look at an umbilical cord—tough, sinuous, unlovely, yet essential—and compare it to a friendship bracelet of brightly woven thread. That is the difference between a sister and a friend. (p. 3)

This opening resonated with me profoundly, especially in moments like these, when I truly miss my oldest brother. It made me realize how essential he is in my life. How he’s not just a sibling but a part of who I am. Unlike friendships or romantic relationships, which are formed by choice, the bond between siblings is something you’re born into. You don’t get to pick your sibling, but despite, or maybe because of this, the connection feels deeper and more enduring. Even though the book focuses on the relationship between sisters, its reflection on the unique, unchosen connection of siblings perfectly aligns with me. My brother is irreplaceable and will grow with me, and has seen me grow my whole life. Reading this book has allowed me to reflect on the importance of siblings and how much they shape us, no matter where life takes us.

I started the book “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini yesterday, and I am completely fascinated and in love with it. The book follows the protagonist Amir, who is the son of a wealthy Kabul (The capital of Afghanistan) merchant. He grows up together with his servant´s son, Hassan, who is a Hazara, a large Afghan ethnicity. Hazaras have been looked down on, and treated like less, by their fellow afghans for centuries, but nonetheless, Amir shares a deep connection with his friend. Until one day, one small, fateful choice he makes changes their relationship and his life forever. After the Russian´s invasion in his country, Amir and his father flee through Pakistan to America, the country of hope and new beginnings. He starts a new life there, and seems to have forgotten all about his past. Until one day, many years later, he is forced to travel back to the country he left behind many decades ago, and confront what he should have faced a long time ago, seeing his changed country under the Taliban´s power.

” – nothing left for the children.”

“We’re hungry but we’re not savages! He is a guest! What was I supposed to do?” He said in a strained voice.

” – to find something tomorrow.” She sounded near tears.”What do I feed – ”

I tiptoed away. I understood now why the boys hadn’t paid any attention to the watch. They hadn’t been staring at the watch at all. They ´d been staring at my food.

This was a glimpse of the conversation Amir heard when he returned to Afghanistan and stayed over at his driver´s house for a night. He had had a beautiful meal the day before, and had noticed three little boys staring at his watch while he was eating. He wanted to thank his host and gave it as a present to the sad-looking kids. After hearing this, he now realised that the watch is the last thing they wanted. I think this passage was very interesting, because it shows what the author teaches the readers all the way through the book: the Afghan culture, and how being polite and respectful is worth more than anything else. Even in the worst possible case, when you struggle to find enough food to serve your children, not even then would they reject a stranger at their door. Amir realises when he goes back that the life he lead as a kid under his father´s wealth was never the life of all Afghans, and he is even more determined to repair at least a small peace of the pain he caused long ago. The whole book is an extraordinary insight to life on the other side of the world, with a beautifully written plot, it is a perfect eye-opening story to the terror experienced by a whole nation everyday.

Tally and Shay are now officially specials. Dr. Cable had them do the operation at the end of the book, Pretties. In this book, Specials, so far it follows Tally as a special, who is trying to find the source of where the pills are coming from which apparently turn people back to thinking for themselves again. She and Shay find their friend who they haven’t seen since their new operations, and he looks completely different to them now in a bad way, even though he has not changed, they have. After he leaves, I came across this paragraph which is a private conversation between Shay and Tally.

“What did Dr. Cable do to us, Shay? Do we have some kind of special lesions in our brains? Something that makes everything else look pathetic? Like we’re better than them?” “We are better than them, Tally-wa!” Shay’s eyes shone like coins, reflecting the lights of New Pretty Town. “The operation gives us the clarity to see that. That’s why everyone else looks confused and pitiful, because that’s how most people are.” (p. 92-93)

(…) “But you and I can smell an unwashed human from a kilometre away, a burnt-out campfire from ten. We can see in the dark and hear better than bats.” Her sneak suit flickered to night black. “We can make ourselves invisible and move without a sound. Think about it, Tally-wa.” (p. 98)

Tally seems to be the only one who thinks something happened during the operation that changed how special’s view people, which I think is true as well. Whereas Shay believes that specials are better than everyone. She backs this up with evidence when acknowledging how much better their senses are now. I chose this because I find it an important part for the readers to understand how different specials are from everyone else.

The book I’ve been reading is the first book of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, “The lightning Thief” where the whole plot of the book goes around the missing “Lightning” a powerful weapon used by Zeus, the point is that weapon disappeared making Zeus really angry and vengeful.

“Zeus’s master bolt,” Chiron said, getting worked up now. “The symbol of his power, from which all other lightning bolts are patterned. The first weapon made by the Cyclopes for the war against the Titans, the bolt that sheered the top off Mount Etna and hurled Kronos from his throne; the master bolt, which packs enough power to make mortal hydrogen bombs look like firecrackers.”

I chose this quote because it emphasizes the importance of the “Master Bolt” and how it symbolizes the power of Zeus and what reason that weapon was created to which makes it even more important. I am enjoying this book a lot, I already read this book 3 times counting this one, and I always like it a lot.

The book I’ve been reading is Good Girl, Bad Blood, and it’s a fascinating piece of fiction by Holly Jackson. This book is a sequel to Good Girls Guide to Murder, which I read last summer. The sequel is really interesting, and the characters and plot have hooked me since the beginning. Even if it’s not a relatable book but a murder mystery I found some quotes really funny and relatable.

“But sometimes my mouth starts saying words without checking with my brain first.” (p.120)

This quote made me laugh because this is something that happens a lot to me. I constantly find myself saying things which I later regret and I end up wondering why I said it in the first place. Even though the book is about mystery and crime, the characters often have these moments that make the story feel real and relatable. Because of this, I enjoy reading this book and I cant wait until I finish it and continue to the next book in the sequel.

 

 

The book Specials by Scott Westerfeld is the third book in a series of four. IRJE #1 was about the second book, and now I have moved onto reading the third book. I have just started reading this book and haven’t even finished the first chapter but so far, the key event that I clued into was that Tally is now a Special, or Special Circumstance. Specials are a modified ‘superhuman’ version of a pretty who can resist the effects of the lesions. Most Pretties who were very tricky in their ugly life became specials. Tally is feeling better, and her memories are sharp and can be remembered now. Tally isn’t a regular special though, she is part of a group of 16 with her best friend Shay, called the Cutters. They are separated from the rest of the specials and prefer to do missions alone. The Cutters went to an uglies party to try and find a Smokie (city Uglies who escaped the operation). This is when I found this paragraph.

The crowd parted easily, everyone sliding out of her way. However zitty and uneven their faces, the uglies’ eyes were sharp, full of nervous stabs of awareness. They were smart enough to sense that the three Cutters were different. No one stared for too long at Tally or realized what she was behind her smart-plastic mask, but bodies moved aside at her lightest touch, shivers playing across their shoulders as she passed, as if the uglies sensed something dangerous in the air.

It was easy seeing the thoughts ripple across their faces. Tally could watch the jealousies and hatreds, rivalry and attraction, all of it written on their expressions and in the way they moved. Now that she was a special, everything was laid out clearly, like looking down on a forest path from above. (p. 9)

This quotation shows that now Tally is a Special, she can think much clearer than ever before. She seems to enjoy being part of the Special Circumstances now, even though she didn’t want to become one in the first place. It probably helps that Shay is there as well and that they formed their own tight group of 16 called the Cutters. When I read this section, it seems to me that Tally, as well as the other Specials, have very keen and sharp senses now. They are starting to see their life around them in a different way. Before when they were Pretties, they found it hard to remember and think for themselves because they couldn’t. The lesions that the operation puts in their brains stopped them from doing what makes you human. But when Tally managed to brake away from that state of mind and think for herself all by herself, the Special Circumstances noticed and knew that Tally should become one of them. Because no one should be able to resist the effects of the lesions, which made Tally special.

Life for sale is a Japanese novel written by Yukio Mishima, published in 1968. The story follows Hanio, who at the beginning of the novel attempts to kill himself for no reason. After his attempt fails, he has nothing left to fear and feels that life is now meaningless. For this reason, he puts an ad in the newspaper announcing his life is for sale. He will do any job or task that is asked of him for any price, including death. The rest of the novel follows him and the strange adventures he embarks on after being hired by various abnormal people. 

“He was a man who had already died once. There was no reason why he should feel any sense of responsibility or attachment to the world. To him, it was nothing more than a sheet of newspaper covered in the scribblings of cockroaches.” (p. 33 ) 

I chose this quote because the author repeats similar sentiments throughout the book, and each sentiment sums up Hanio as a person, as well as give us the reason for his irrational, life threatening decisions.

In the Novel “The Overstory“, by Richard Powers, we are introduced to a couple (and later a family) which has moved out into the Rural area of Prospect Hill, Brooklyn. The Head of the Family, Jorgen Hoel, plants 6 chestnut trees; These trees provide people with not only wood but also a food source. It is mentioned that if the ground were to shake a bit the food would come to the ground “..by the shovelful”, (p.5). This gives us a feel for the importance of these trees. These trees, however, seem to have a tie with the main character’s lives. For example, when the first new born dies during infancy:

“Their Firstborn dies in infancy..”

“One of the six chestnuts fails to sprout.” (p. 7)

After these devastating blows we are informed that Jorgen does not give up, and he keeps them up to prevent this source to be taken away from them. Overall the beginning of this book shoes true power of will, where after such seemingly hard hits the father does not give up. It is also pretty interesting and symbolic to see the nature aspect tie in with the humans. One last interesting part that I noticed would be the way they all depend on this tree. This shows how dependent we are on nature as well as raises questions based on how close are tied to nature today.

My Side of The Mountain, by Jean Craighead George. This book, published in 1959, is a tale focusing on 15-year-old Sam Gribley, who decided to run away from home to go and live in the wilderness on his great-grandfather Gribley’s farm.

“Five notches into June, my house was done. I could stand in it, lie down in it, and there was room left over for a stump to sit on. On warm evenings I would lie on my stomach and look out the door, listen to the frogs and nighthawks, and hope it would storm so that I could climb into my tree and be dry.” (p. 35)

In this quote, Sam Gribley is reflecting on his achievement of completing his house in the wilderness, which was a tree that he hollowed out with the usage of fire. He had completed this house just in time for winter, and he installed a fireplace in the front of the house to keep him, as well as his pet falcon Frightful, warm during the cold winter months. The beginning of this quote where Sam is talking about ‘five notches into June’ is simply referring to days into the month.

 

It, a sprawling epic of horror by Stephen King, combines terrifying terror with nostalgic childhood memories. In the novel, a group of misfit friends known as the Losers’ Club face a shape-shifting creature that feeds off their worst anxieties. King skillfully conveys the brittleness and tenacity of youth, crafting a story that is as much about maturing and friendship as it is about facing evil. Derry, Maine, turns into a character in and of itself, its eerie past and dark alleys adding to the sense of dread. The encounter between young Georgie and Pennywise the Dancing Clown in a storm drain early in the book is among the most terrifying:

“‘Hiya, Georgie!’ the clown said brightly. ‘Aren’t you gonna say hello?’ Georgie stared into the clown’s blue eyes, and it smiled. No, he thought, that’s not right. Its eyes should be dancing, but instead they were dead, like the eyes of a shark. He felt the smile grip his insides and twist them.”

King’s creativity is perfectly captured in this passage, which layers the scene with a sense of creeping inevitability while transforming an apparently innocent character into the stuff of nightmares.

Black Beauty by Anna Sewell is a novel told from the perspective of a horse. It follows Black Beauty’s life, from a happy colt on a country estate to his time in London where he experiences both kind and cruel owners. Through his story, the book highlights the mistreatment of horses and advocates for compassion, and humane treatment. It became a key work in the animal rights movement.

“We call them dumb animals, and so they are, for they cannot tell us how they feel, but they do not suffer less because they have no words.” (pg.101)

I chose this quote because I think it is a pivotal moment in the book where Black Beauty, reflects on the suffering of animals and the misunderstanding from humans who often do not care about their pain. After all, animals cannot express themselves in words so we sometimes treat them as lesser. I think the author is trying to tell readers to understand that the absence of speaking does not lessen an animal’s ability to suffer. It brings attention to how humans treat those who are unable to speak their pain which makes this book making it a very real reflection on basic human empathy, compassion, and responsibility toward other living beings.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas follows Celaena Sardothien, an infamous assassin who is freed from a brutal prison in exchange  for entering a competition to become the king’s  champion. As she goes through the deadly trails, Celaena uncovers dark secrets about the kingdom, it’s rulers, and her own mysterious past. With the stakes growing higher, she has to choose between loyalty, love, and survival.

One of my favourite quote from the books is:

“Libraries were full of ideas—perhaps the most dangerous and powerful of all weapons.”

I picked this quote because it highlights the power of knowledge, even in a world full of physical battles and magic, ideas and information can be just as potent.

In ”Coraline” by Nell Galman, is a wonderful book with a great storyline that incases the reader in it’s wonderful realistic world, which made me and countless others never want to stop reading. First written in the early 2000’s, it follows the story of a young girl who has to find her way out of a mysterious, clone, copy of her original life. I truly loved reading this book and I would recommon it to anyone who loves a quick read.

That night Coraline lay in bed, all bathed, teeth cleaned, with her eyes open, staring up at the ceiling.

It was warm enough that, now that the hand was gone, she had opened her bedroom window wide. She had insisted to her father that the curtains not be entirely closed.

Her new school clothes were laid out carefully on her chair for to put on when she woke.

Normally, on the night before the first day of term, Coraline was apprehensive and nervous. But, she realized, there was noth left about school that could scare her anymore.

This quotation is significant to say the least, because it shows the progression of Coraline’s character for the first to the very last page of this book. At the beginning of this book Coraline is a stubborn yet nervous girl, always fearful for the future. However, as we reach closer and closer to the last page we see how drastically she changes to a stronger, more well-rounded person. This I believe can signify many different irrelevent events that can happen in a person’s life to change them. Nonethless, it most certainly can be irrelevent to my age group as it is a clear example of how even one event can change a person forver.

In “The Cruel prince” By Holly Black, the first book in a trilogy. Holly Black tells us the story of a young woman named Jude Duarte. Jude was seven when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later Jude wants nothing more than to belong there- but many of the fey despise humans. Especially the wickedest son of the High king. To win a place at the court, Jude must defy him-and face the consequences.

“I want to win, I want to climb up and up and up. And then I want to reach down and tell everyone who’s ever doubted me that they were wrong.  I don’t want to be a pawn in someone else’s game; I want to make my own moves. I want to be someone to fear. A blade to cut. A force to be reckoned with. I want power, and I am not ashamed of it.”

This quote captures Jude’s determination to forge her own path in a world that constantly underestimates her.  She rejects the idea of being controlled and instead embraces her ambition for authority, it shows her development from being a vulnerable human girl that depends on the murderer of her parents for protection into a fierce woman with strategic force, showing us her search for power becoming the force of her purpose and challenges in the Faerie realm.

Allies By Allan Gratz, was recommended to me by my brother (the one time he is actually useful). This book was actually quite interesting. At first, my main purpose was to make fun of my brother’s taste, but I ended up loving it! I never really thought I enjoyed books about wars until I read this master piece. This book is about the Allied invasion of France opposing Nazi Germany. The main protagonist in this book is a 16 year old kid named Dietrich Zimmermann, except everyone formally knows him as Douglas Carpenter, but call him Dee (as a nickname). Dee is under this guise because he is actually German.

Would Sid care that Dee’s parents had disagreed with Hitler? Would Sid care that they had run away to America so Dee wouldn’t be brainwashed to hate everyone who wasn’t a ‘pure’ German? That Dee had been in America for almost his whole life, so long that he had lost any trace of his German accent? (page 18)

This quotation highlights Dee’s anxiousness as he thinks over Sid’s attitude towards him if his friend discovers his ancestry. He knows very well that Sid hates the Germans with every bone in his body (Sid is Jewish and is made fun of that often). Dee is a very close friend of Sid, but he feels guilty the more he lies. I could really understand Dee on an emotional level when the narrator mentions how anxious Dee feels about his background. He feels like an outsider. Which can be the situation for many people as I’ve seen in my life. He wants to tell people about his ancestry and be able to explain why he is there. Yet, at the same time, he finds a need of lying.

I started “The long exile” by Melanie McGrath a couple of days ago, and have found this book to be very interesting. The Plot takes place in 1923, when the Government forcibly removes Inuit people from their homes in Hudson Bay to  the artic landscape of Ellesmere Island. The story follows “white” man Robert Flaherty, who has lived in the middle of the Inuit people for a couple of years, working on his mission to make a sellable movie of the life in the Artic. He finds a lover there, and soon he has a half-Inuit son, Josephie Flaherty, son to him and to Maggie Nujarluktuk. Josephie takes over as the main character, but I have yet to find out how his story continues.

“Displays of rage, frustration or depression are so disapproved of among the Inuit that many grow up without any conscious sense of having these feelings. “

I chose this sentence because I think it represents well what the book has mostly been about: to teach about the different and alternative lives that the population far up in the north leads. Between the fur trades with the southern Canadians, their main contact to southern civilisation, the Inuit people live very differently from other nations, living with unique and unusual nature conditions. They have adapted to that live style, but as Robert found out when he was living with them and experiencing their way of life; what makes people stay alive in harsh times and conditions is learning to live together, all as one, caring as much for your neighbour as you would for you.

I must say that I’ve really loved this book. Mr. MacKnight, thank you for sharing this book with me it has been a great one. Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger is about a guy, Holden, he’s an adult although seems to be disconnected from the adulthood world. He struggles academically, struggles with being social, struggles with being normal altogether. I have two quotes, one on his social awkwardness and another on his sadness or depression.

When I opened the door, this prostitute was standing there… “You the guy Maurice said?” she asked me… “Yes, I am. Come in, won’t you?” I said…

She put down the menu and looked at me. “Let’s go, hey. I haven’t got all-”

“Look” I said. “I don’t feel very much like myself tonight. I’ve had a rough night. Honest to God. I’ll pay you and all, but do you mind very much if we don’t do it? Do you mind very much?”

This quotation has Holden getting in contact with a prostitute but instead of doing what any normal guy would do he asks if they can just talk. it show his distance with adulthood, fear of being vulnerable, and his desire for connection and attention (hiring a prostitute to only have a conversation to connect).

Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody.

In this quotation it shows Holden’s bad habit of isolation, pushing everybody away to protect himself from emotional damage, which basically means that the odd regrets of having memories with people makes him vulnerable and easily hurt. It also showed a little character development, I think, because despite all the bad memories, arguments, and what not that Holden had with everyone, he still remains sad, and missing them, showing his development in viewing the positive side of things at the end of his story.

 

House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski is a rather mysterious, psychological book that defies the name of narrative, and breaks the standards most books have (and any that I’ve personally read). It is, in short terms, a book within a book within another book (the actual book), though it goes much deeper than that… it focuses on multiple narratives at once: The Navidson Record (journal entries and video recordings that log a family’s move in to a new house), and Johnny Truant (a man who writes about an old man who made an essay, or a book, on The Navidson Record… which doesn’t exist, by the way). In short: the Navidsons move into a new house, that seems normal at first, but then basically deletes all laws of… everything and anything, whenever it wants, and does whatever it wants, causing the family to slowly deteriorate into a soft madness.

Oddly enough, a slight draft keeps easing one of the closet doors shut. It has an eerie effect because each time the door closes we lose sight of the children.

“Hey, would you mind propping that open with something?” Navid-son asks his brother.

Tom turns to Karen’s shelves and reaches for the largest volume he can find. A novel. Just as with Karen, its removal causes an immediate domino effect. Only this time, as the books topple into each other, the last few do not stop at the wall as they had previously done but fall instead to the floor, revealing at least a foot between the end of the shelf and the plaster.

Tom thinks nothing of it.

“Sorry.” he mumbled and leans over to pick up the scattered books. Which is exactly when Karen screams.

I really like this quote because it has some sort of connection to us as humans: how even the smallest, most inconvenient thing can hold everything together. For example, let’s put this quote into context. This is when the house first starts changing, the signs being that the inside is bigger than the outside, hence why they are so confused and not too rattled yet on the whole situation: their minds have yet to fully grasp it. When Karen first placed down that bookshelf, it was pressed to the side of the wall, and the first time the books fell, the wall had stopped it because it was close to the shelf. Karen is trying to distract herself, and bring peace to herself, trying to trick her mind into thinking nothing is strange, nothing is wrong, however, when the books fall a second time, they fall to the floor, revealing a foot of space where the wall had previously occupied, therefore proving the room is growing big on the inside. This sends Karen into distress, snapping her calm state into pieces once she is reminded that nothing, is in fact, okay. You can put this to real life situations as well. Ex. Some children are calm when given a favorite toy during stressful moments or interactions, this keeps them in a state of tranquility. If you take that toy away, they are then stripped of their means of protection, rendering them feeling bare and terrified as now there is nothing to protect and hold them together, nothing to look over the person.

“Tuesdays with Morrie” is a memoir by Mitch Albom that tells the story of his genuine relationship with his old college professor, Morrie. After separating, a while later Mitch finds out that Morrie is dying and thus they reconnect and visit every Tuesday. During these nice visits, they discuss simple but deep topics like love, death, family and work. Morrie passes on his wisdom to Mitch about how to be grateful and the meaning of life.

When the ceremony is over, we threw our caps in the air and we are officially graduated from college, the senior class of Brandeis University in the city of Waltham, Massachusetts. For many of us, the curtain had just come down on childhood.

I think the saying “the curtain had just come down on childhood.” means that it feels like Mitch has officially ended his child like self after having graduated from college.

The book Coraline by Neil Gaiman is about a girl who moves into a new flat with her parents. Secrets are hidden in the walls of the building, and she uncovers a mystical world similar to her own. She has to go through an adventure of evils and triumphs to set free souls and even her real parents who have been trapped by the evil Beldam.

“She will take your life and all you are and all you care’st for, and she will leave you with nothing but mist and fog. She’ll take your joy. And one day you’ll awake and your heart and your soul will have gone.” — The Ghost Children (Chapter 7, Page 49)

I chose this quote because I think it conveys how evil and cruel the beldam really is, she stole the soul and whole life and youth of these children. I see the beldam a lot like a predator just using these children’s souls for food as if they are prey. She slowly reels in these children with promises of love and happiness and in the end, deceives you and snatches your happiness back along with your soul.

In Donna Tartt’s “The Secret History,” a group of college students at a prestigious Vermont college become captivated by the allure and aesthetic of Greek philosophy with the guidance of their professor. Drawn to ancient ideals of beauty, intelligence, and the pursuit of superiority, these students form an exclusive circle that isolates them from everyone. The narrator reflects on beauty’s intense and terrifying pull, delivering a quote that I found incredibly beautiful and perfectly captures the book’s unsettling appeal:

“Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful, we quiver before it. And what could be more terrifying and beautiful, to souls like the Greeks or our own, than to lose control completely? To throw off the chains of being for an instant, to shatter the accident of our mortal selves?” (p. 45)

I am fascinated by how well this quote captures the danger of pursuing ideals to the point of obsession, demonstrating how beauty is not just an aesthetic but something powerful that can become destructive and can make people cross moral and legal boundaries in search of something perfect or divine, which is exactly what happens in the book.

The book: The Man Who Was Poe, written by Avi, is a story about the main character, Edmund attempting to search for his missing Aunt, Sister and Mother. When he bumps into a man whose name is Dupin; feeling sympathetic for Edmund, he offers his guidance to him. As Edmund and Dupin are working to discover what happened, Edmund realizes that the most likely scenarios are that they all died. 

“Story of a search . . . boy searching for vanished sister . . . wants her to be alive . . . of course . . . no tension there . . . to be effective must be a puzzle . . . is she alive? . . . Enter Dupin . . . Who took her? . . . much confusion . . . but then, boy finds that . . . One can find life only through death. I know. My sis is dead too. (PG. 80) 

This quote on page 80 serves as a sort of recap of the plot of this story. This quote has two lines which I find very intriguing. the first being “To be effective must be a puzzle.”. I believe that this small section of text means in plain language that in order to succeed you must solve all the problems you are faced with. I believe that this is the most likely meaning of this sentence, but there is a large possibility that it could be conveying other messages Aswell. The second line which I found interesting, was “One can find life only through death”. My interpretation of this quote is that one can only strive after going through what feels like death. but there are many other explanations of this. Another interpretation of this quote is the possibility that “death” in this sense could mean the death of your old self. So, one can only find change by killing their old self. Overall, I think this quote was remarkably interesting and was a puzzle in of itself. 

In Tony Hillerman’s The Shape Shifter, we are introduced to a now retired police officer of the Navajo Tribal Police Department – Joe Leaphorn – who is called upon to investigate a crime scene with a so-called Mr. Totter, involving a presumably Burned Rug, which shows up on a magazine Joe looked at. Later, he goes to see his coworkers, – whom have just arrived from their honeymoon-. He soon realized they were no help, as in the end this was his own personal case which went unsolved.

“To tell the truth, we think we know what happened to Mr. Totter, but we never could have proved it

“I’ll bet this is going to be interesting”

“…I’ve got to start it way back by reminding you both of our origin stories… One version translates into English as Skinwalkers. Another version comes out as shapeshifters.”

“Fits better sometimes. The last time someone told me about seeing a skinwalker bothering her sheep, she said when she went into the hogan to get a rifle.. it turned into an owl. Flew away”

“Well, keep that in mind when I tell you about Totter, and so forth.”

“Okay”

“For me it started about the time when you two were enjoying yourselves in Hawaii. I had a call telling me I had mail down at the office.. I went down to see what it was…” (pp. 5-11)

Next, the book transitions into a first person perspective, where Joe opens a envelope with a page from the magazine called Luxury Life, where he saw old furniture by a fireplace, which had antlers and a rug hanging beside a fireplace – one which reminded him of the one from his previous case, 

This dialogue outlines the way that Leaphorn is intrigued into solving this crime, as well as showcasing the mystery within. 

The Plague by Albert Camus is an absurdist novel. It depicts the spread of a fictional plague. Dr. Bernard Rieux acting as the narrator of the story. The story takes place in Oran, Northern Algeria. Rats begin showing up in the rather boring town, which raises a bit of concern from the people who live there. Before long, piles of thousands of rats come out to die daily. They are found everywhere, in cafes, hotels, houses, hallways, streets, and rooms. M. Michel, the concierge of the building in which Rieux lives, contracts an odd illness and dies within a week. Experiencing incredibly high fever, difficulty breathing, and fatal buboes. He is the first victim of the plague. After this, many people in the town begin to fall to the same illness. In no time at all, the number of deaths becomes staggering. Hundreds by the day. The town makes the decision to gate Oran and quarantine. 

“How hard it must be to live only with what one knows and what one remembers, cut off from what one hopes for!” (pg.33) 

 

“They knew now that if there is one thing one can always yearn for, and sometimes attain, it is human love.” (pg.271) 

I chose these two quotes because they tell us about exile and isolation as well as yearning and longing for absent loved ones. Things which become the main focus in the novel as the story progresses. The story focuses on the effects of the plague on the townspeople. As the plague’s death toll increases, people become more afraid and begin to stay away from other people in fear of contracting the plague. The narrator dwells on the feelings of isolation and suffering and portrays  a lot of the townspeople as jumbled messes full of “futile” emotions.  Many people consider this novel to be a war allegory of the French resistance to the Nazis in WW1. Relating to how the story “points out the futility of human aspirations and inevitability of suffering.”  (study.com)

The novel perfectly tackles the topic of estrangement. The book has become somewhat relatable when talking about isolation and quarantine. 

The book that I am currently reading is called Twisted Games, this is the 3rd book of the Twisted series. This book is a romance book. I really enjoy this book particularly out of the whole series so far. I enjoy reading this book because seeing the characters grow and change through their relationships is something that I think can relate to real life. I also like reading this book because the story feels extremely real and the way the author wrote this book described the feelings of the people in the book extremely well. In the quote I chose the boy Ryhs Larsan is talking to his girlfriend Bridget.

“You filled a part of my soul I always thought would be empty, and you healed scars I never knew existed. And I realized… it’s not that I didn’t believe in love before. It’s that I was saving it all for you.”(pg. 410)

I chose this quote because the guy who said this was a very mean and cold person before and he didn’t like people but he changed for a girl that he loved and he became a better person for her. I think that after reading most of the book and than coming to that quote explains that a person can change how someone is as a person.

In black boy Richard wright describes his life history, since he was a little kid to get to become a full grow adult, sharing diverse histories about his life development and experiences that show how was the life of a black boy in the 1900s. The quote I chose has the context about it show because the main character has an uncle that goes to work in his saloon during late hours each day to support his family.

“One morning I awakened to learn that Uncle Hoskins had not come home from the salon. Aunt Maggie fretted and worried. She wanted to visit the salon, but Uncle Hoskins had forbidden her to come to the place.”

That quote got me thinking because i know that after that incident they discover that uncle Hoskins is actually dead by a bullet shot from a white man, what got me reflecting that Hoskins actually knew that the could get killed there and that if his wife go there she would get killed also, and anyways going to the salon knowing that he was in danger.

The School For Good and Evil, by Soman Chainani, is this fictional story about two best friends. One by the name of Sophie and the other Agatha, in this small village called Gavaldon. In this village laid a mythical (or known to be) story of The School For Good and Evil. Sophie dreamt of going to The School For Good and Evil (S.G.E.), meanwhile Agatha thought of it being as real as Cinderella or Snow White. People around them had a pretty… interesting perspective about them. They believed that Agatha is a witch since she lives near a cemetery, she wears black, and is weird (in addition to that her mom is a ‘witch’). Agatha knows she is weird, but she doesn’t really mind what others have to say about her. Though, at times she did want to be ‘normal.’

Agatha said nothing for a while. Then she touched Sophie’s hand. “Why do you want to leave here so badly? That you’d believe stories that aren’t true?”
Sophie met Agatha’s big sincere eyes. For the first time, she let in the tides of doubt.
“Because I can’t live here,” Sophie said, voice catching. “I can’t live an ordinary life.”
“Funny,” said Agatha. “That’s why I like you.”
Sophie smiled. “Because you can’t either?”
“Because you make me feel ordinary,” Agatha said. “And that’s the only thing I’ve ever wanted.” (Soman Chainani 16-18)

This scene in the book truly describes and shows us that the two girls really just wanted to feel whole. Like a completed puzzle and not feel as if there was a piece missing. If they weren’t enough. Little did they know they already did. When they were with each other. In my opinion, Sophie in the beginning of the story treats Agatha like a charity case just so she can somehow manage to get into the School For Good. At times I found Sophie being the most ignorant person on this planet and that really made me feel like slapping her. Other times I could feel some what empathy for her and could actually see where she was coming from. Many would disagree with me when I say she wasn’t all bad. She was just dedicated and wanted to reach her goal. Like any one of us. She just wanted to reach it no matter what, even if the cost was big. She really wanted her mother to be right about her being special. She lost her mother, the only person who truly got her, so she tried to patch it up in a way by trying to find The School For Good and Evil and have her happily ever after. At least that’s the way I saw it. In the end she found herself once more and that helped me humanize her better.

The moment Agatha was introduced I found her very relatable. I had a quite similar background to her. Being weird and an outcast. The quote above just really tied the knot. Everyone in the story differentiated the word ‘good’ and the word ‘evil.’ So much so that it became their reality. She didn’t believe that everyone’s perspective was right. She doesn’t believe that anyone is truly good or truly evil. The moment that she put that in my head, the moment my point of view began to change. Sometimes we tend to get distracted by everything and everyone around us that we start believing the act and lose sight of where we are or who we are. Agatha was backstabbed, used, and even felt disincluded at times along with being dumbfounded because of Sophie. Yet she still remained loyal to her. That makes me really look up to her character.

The book The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson is a book about realizing that sometimes, you care way to much over something that you can’t control or doesn’t even matter; Therefore, the title of the book. One of the things this book will teach you is to become unflinchingly honest with yourself and accept who you are. For example (taken from the book), Bukowski, a writer and a loser. He knew he was a loser, accepted it and then wrote about it in the Post Office, one of his books. And he never tried to be something other than what he was; And on his tombstone, it writes, “Don’t try”, because he never did and became successful. So, in short. Accept who you are move forward.

The desire for more positive experience is itself a negative experience. And, paradoxically, the acceptance of one’s negative experience is itself a positive experience. (Pg.9)

That there is my favourite quote, this is later in the book, in the section The Feedback Loop from Hell. Which talks about how wanting to experience something positive make you think about how you aren’t experiencing it. And therefore it turn negative. Simple accepting a negative experience instead of overthinking because of it and thinking up ways you could’ve avoided it and now you’re giving way to much of an F. SO, by just moving forward and accepting it, you’ve now accepted it and feel so much freely than before. Turning it into a positive experience.

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson is nothing short of a masterpiece in psychological horror. It’s not just a haunted house story—it’s an intricate exploration of the human mind, wrapped in a creeping, atmospheric narrative that lingers long after you’ve closed the book. Jackson’s writing is profoundly unsettling, creating tension through subtleties and leaving much to the reader’s imagination, which makes the horror even more effective.

The true genius of this novel lies in its ambiguity. Hill House itself feels alive, but is it truly haunted, or are the characters’ minds warping under its sinister influence? Eleanor, the protagonist, is a fascinatingly unreliable character, and watching her unravel as the story progresses is both heartbreaking and terrifying. Jackson masterfully blurs the lines between reality and madness, leaving you questioning what is truly real.

The house, with its distorted architecture and eerie atmosphere, becomes a character in its own right, amplifying the fear and claustrophobia. Jackson’s prose is elegant and chilling, creating a palpable sense of dread without resorting to overt shocks or gore. She understands that true horror often lies in the unknown, in what we cannot see or fully understand.

The Haunting of Hill House is a brilliant, slow-burn psychological thriller that taps into deep, primal fears—loneliness, loss, and the fragility of the human psyche. It’s an intelligent, sophisticated horror novel that continues to influence and inspire the genre. Whether you’re a fan of horror or just great literature, this book is a must-read. Jackson’s ability to evoke terror while simultaneously crafting a poignant character study is simply incredible.

House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski is a complicated and psychological, imaginative book that plays around with the concept of narrative. House of Leaves is actually about a book inside of a book, written by an elderly man named Zampanò who had strangely passed away in his boarded up bedroom. This book was found by a man named Johnny Truant, who reads it and then describes to us his slow and painful deterioration (in multiple ways), which he explains will happen to us (the readers) when we read the book, too.

Then no matter where you are, in a crowded restaurant or on some desolate street or even in the comforts of your own home, you’ll watch yourself dismantle every assurance you ever lived by. You’ll stand aside as a great complexity intrudes, tearing apart, piece by piece, all of your carefully conceived denials, whether deliberate or unconscious. And then for better or worse you’ll turn, unable to resist, though try to resist you still will, fighting with everything you’ve got not to face the thing you most dread, what is now, what will be, what has always come before, the creature you truly are, the creature we all are, buried in the nameless black of a name.

I really like this quote because you can interpret it however you want, because Johnny Truant never actually explains what this deterioration was even about, or specifically cause by. I choose to believe this quote really digs into what actually makes us humans, what we are built by and around and most importantly, what we build. Denial. It goes to show how, we are so built up of our denials, we become a different person, we change in some sort of way, and when we are stripped of that, we are back to what we truly are: a creature, without a name because none of us even know who we are anymore. Then, you’ll watch, and realize, and try to stop the shredding of your skin, of your identity, the one that never really belonged to you. And you’ll fight and resist the grab in which your belongings and your walls are torn apart by, but you can never truly stop it, because in the end, you are still denying yourself.

The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes is the first book of a trilogy series. In this book Avery Kylie Grambs a 17 year old High school student that was extremely poor. From living her life as a no one she was unexpectedly shoved into the spot light as the heiress of billionaire Tobias Hawthorne a man she never met. Before the Hawthorne fortune and mysteries that came with it, Avery was living a modest, overlooked life trying to keep low profile. But when Tobias Hawthorne left her his entire fortune everything changed in her life. She’s constantly in the spotlight of people who wants answers, why her? A total stranger to the Hawthorne family, who had been disinherited by Tobias Hawthorne after his death, the inheritance was tied with riddles upon riddles, danger and mysteries.

I had spent so much of my life trying to blend in, to go unnoticed, to avoid the kind of attention that could make me vulnerable. But now, in this world, blending in wasn’t an option. I was someone. I had to be someone. And for the first time, I had to figure out who that someone was.

Avery knows she have to grow up to handle the responsibilities and challenges she will encounter in the world of wealth, mysteries and danger. With this Averys character grows to adapt into her new reality, she realizes she has to be careful with the spotlight on her and living in a house full of a resentful family.

You is a book made by Caroline Kepnes. She made I believe four books on this series and it got changed into a show on Netflix as well! That’s where I got the idea to read it. I recently finished the book as well and I hope to find the second, called Hidden Bodies. This book is about a guy named Joe Goldberg, Joe is a psychopath and he stalks and woman he is into.

You are dead.

I dig. I have never been and will never be as alone as I am while I dig… I, alone, sweat and shiver and prepare to put you into the dirt… I am breathing normally now and the revelers are doing the Electric Slide and would we have had a wedding like this? (p. 415-416)

In this quotation (or his thoughts), he is obsessing over a woman named Guinevere Beck, his first love obsession. Earlier on, Beck found out that Joe had been stalking her, and killing people around her (friends, ex’s, etc), and even found out that some of her “lost” possessions were taken by him. Joe put her in a cage not knowing what to do with her because she would most likely go to the police if she got out. At one point she manipulated Joe into thinking she loved him, and she tried to escape but Joe stopped her. Not wanting to risk anything, he killed her. Then in the quotation you can find how his emotions of his words are describing his actions as if he was forced to kill her, not by choice.

The Sun Also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway. This novel explores the “Lost Generation”, which is also referred to as the post WWI generation. The main story revolves around a group of British and American expatriates from the 1920s.

“Oh Jake,” Brett said, “We could have had such a damned good time together.” Ahead was a mounted policeman in khaki directing traffic. He raised his baton. The car slowed suddenly, pressing Brett against me. Yes,” I said. “Isn’t it pretty to think so? (pg. 246)”

This quote reflects the significant moment that Jake and Brett reflect on their lost love and the passing of time. Both of these characters are heavily affected by the war, and each of them are constantly searching for meaning in their lives. For most of the story, all of the characters are in a state of disillusionment as they search for this light. It really shows how deep certain feelings and emotions go when you hear about them on the surface.

The book “Tuesdays with Morrie” was written by Mitch Albom, a Free Press sportswriter who’s career took a turn when he (after 16 years) reunited with his old and sick college professor; Morrie. In the book, Mitch describes his beautiful relationship with his professor and shares everything he learned on his weekly visits with him. In the majority of the book, we get to see how Morrie thinks of death and we read about the lessons Morrie gave Mitch about life. Even thought I think of all of the lessons as important, the one I most cherish is this one;

So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they’re busy doing things they think are important. This is because they’re chasing the wrong things. The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.(p.43)

Because I am a teenager and still have not quite decide what to do with my life, I found this message really help-full. I think It really relates with me because it makes me think about what’s truly important in life. It reminds me to focus in my relationships and things Im really interested about. As I try to figure out what I enjoy, I’d like to remember this message  so I can found my passion and not “walk around with a meaningless life”.

In Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, the story is set in the dystopian society of Gilead, a totalitarian regime that has overthrown the United States government. Gilead enforces strict social hierarchies and severely restricts women’s rights, reducing them to their one and only purpose: bearing children.  The protagonist, Offred, is a ‘Handmaid’ whose sole purpose is to bear children for the ruling class. Through her eyes, we witness the oppressive nature of the regime and how her mentality is slowly manipulated by the conservative views and laws. In one moment, Aunt Lydia speaks to the Handmaids, explaining Gilead’s view on freedom and control. Offred reflects on Aunt Lydia’s teachings about how society has shifted from one of dangerous choices to one of supposed safety.

I remember the rules, rules that were never spelled out but that every woman knew: don’t open your door to a stranger, even if he says he is the police. Make him slide his ID under the door. Don’t stop on the road to help a motorist pretending to be in trouble. Keep the locks on and keep going. If anyone whistles, don’t turn to look. Don’t go into a laundromat, by yourself, at night. (…)

Now we walk along the same street, in red pairs, and no man shouts obscenities at us, speaks to us, touches us. No one whistles. There is more than one kind of freedom, said Aunt Lydia. Freedom to and freedom from. In the days of anarchy, it was freedom to. Now you are being given freedom from. Don’t underrate it.  (p.27-28)

This quotation really stands out to me because it shows how Gilead twists the idea of freedom. Aunt Lydia’s words make it seem like the strict rules are for women’s protection, but they really take away their choices and freedom. She thinks that in the past the ”freedom to” act and make choices based on ones own interests/desires led to chaos and that the current ”freedom from” focuses on the absence of threats against women and makes everybody feel safe and protected. In ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’, Gilead promotes this ”freedom from” danger as a justification for its oppressive rules (trying to get rid of the ‘freedom to make personal choices’ mindset, that women used to have).

This passage highlights how the regime uses fear to control people, but they hide it behind a guise of supposed ‘safety’ and a strict set of laws which everybody has to follow. This passage really emphasizes the idea that when safety comes at the cost of freedom, it isn’t true safety at all.

In Lying by Sam Harris, he details the countless wrongs that go along with any single lie we tell one another in our daily lives. From casual white lies, we swear that do no wrong, to massively impactful lies that can change the course of our relationships forever.

Honesty can force any dysfunction in your life to the surface. Are you in an abusive relationship? A refusal to lie to others – How did you get that bruise? – would oblige you to come to grips with this situation very quickly. Do you have a problem with drugs or alcohol? Lying is the lifeblood of addiction. If we have no recourse to lies, our lives can unravel only as far without other’s noticing, (p.10).

Although this quotation is almost at the very beginning of this book, I believe it is very impactful, to say the least. Sam Harris throughout the whole of this book makes it very clear there is no room in a happy life for excuses which if you do not know I very much agree with. Lying and excuses we give ourselves allow us to deprive our relationships of full honesty, which depletes us from creating more genuine connections. While many might disagree with mine and Sam Harris’s statement on how there is no room for lying in a life living the happiest it can be, I loved reading this book and I would recommend it to anyone who has ever told a single lie in their life!

I started a new book today called le garçon d ´ encre by Marie-Christine Chartier, an Author from Quebec. The title of the book translates into the ink boy, although I have not yet come to the part where the book title makes sense. The book is fictional and the plot is about a young women, Maxine, who finds out that her dad has passed away and now has to come back to her childhood village for the funeral, the village she so desperately fled all those years ago. She is forced to face all the awful memories she connects to her home, also thinking of her depressed mother who suicided herself when Maxine was only 17. But coming there, she hears about the strange conditions of her fathers will: In order for her to access the fortune he left behind, she has to live for two months in her childhood home with a man she has never seen before, a man was who was apparently very close to her father before he passed away. The book is written in a mix of her present life, and in flashbacks of her youth.

” I think that the problem is spending your life thinking you are incomplete. Instead of hoping to meet one person who’s going to be everything for us, I think it is more important to develop relationships with more than one person, to assemble all of that affection to steady yourself. For me, loving is not needing someone to complete me. Love is the glue that makes sure that the already complete person that I am can be happy.”

This is a quote, translated by me, from Alex, the mysterious man her father knew and she now has to live with, when she opens up to him about the feeling that she is incapable of truly loving someone, in part also because of the lack of love she received from her parents. I think it is an interesting paragraph, mostly because it shows the modern point of view the author has about love and self-identification, which she transfers to her characters. You can tell that the whole book was written recently and that the author is relatively young by the words and expressions she uses, but also in the way she makes her characters think. I also think this paragraph is beautifully honest and true, romanticising in a poetic way that you don´t need to “wait for your second half”, but rather recognise that you are already complete by yourself.