Hunger games
Author: Suzanne Collins
Text Type: Dystopian
Date Read: 25th September
In what was once North America, the Capitol of Panem maintains its hold on its 12 districts by forcing them each to pick a boy and a woman (Tributes) to compete during a nationally televised event called the Hunger Games. Every citizen must watch because the youths fight to the death until just one remains. When District 12’s Tribute Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) is chosen, she has little to believe aside from her hunting skills and sharp instincts when she is forced into an arena where she must weigh survival against love. The character I found interesting was the male tribute from District 12 Peeta Mellark. Peeta is crazy with Katniss and becomes her main ally and romantic interest during the Games. Peeta is best characterized by his love for Katniss and willingness to sacrifice himself for her. Katniss’s first memory of him, as an example , is from an event years before the Games during which Peeta willingly risked a beating to assist her. Katniss was starving and checking out food behind Peeta’s family’s bakery, and Peeta apparently burned two loaves of bread deliberately therefore the bakery couldn’t use them, then gave those loaves to Katniss. Peeta’s mother hit him for burning the bread, and Katniss believes Peeta must have known he would be punished for it. During the Games, he’s similarly selfless when he saves Katniss after she comes back to retrieve the bow but finds herself suddenly stunned by the tracker jacker stings. He shouts at Katniss to undertake and obtain her to flee “Go Katniss Go! Run! Get out of here.” to offer her enough time he then fights a courier from district 2 Cato and suffers a significant injury but manages to urge away. i assumed this was truth testament of affection because he’s willing to sacrifice himself to assist Katniss. This made me feel compassion toward Peeta because this is able to be the type of act that i might do if I loved someone then I connected to him on a private level. A message that I took from the Hunger Games was the sustaining power of affection . Love proves essential to keeping Katniss alive. Her love for her sister is what keeps her strong and helped her become the most provider for her family after her father’s death. She also wouldn’t have survived within the arena if it wasn’t for Petta and their love, the foremost obvious way of this was encouraging Haymitch to send her gifts. Well, hunger may be a main a part of stage , most of the people die from hunger or lack of water, so you would like to understand your resources. Even from the beginning , the entire book has references to hunger, when Katniss talks about being hungry and hunting and before Peeta gave her the bread. How District 12, you’ll starve in safety. How she notices all the food within the Capitol on her thanks to the games. How she notices food in her backpack and is relieved. How she gets food for Peeta when he’s injured, and them having a touch feast. How they appear for food after the thunderstorm. The Hunger Games isn’t almost stage , it’s about survival for hunger within the districts. this is often something I could never relate to as I sleep in a developed country where food isn’t a problem and that i am incredibly grateful as a result. I would recommend this book to young adults from ages 12-18 this is often because I feel that the younger audience would be disturbed by the book and doubtless won’t be ready to sleep in the dark . I also think that adults would enjoy reading this book but not the maximum amount because the younger audience. “May the chances be ever in your favour”
The Cry of the Icemark
Author: Stuart Hill
Text type: Fantasy Adventure
Date Read: 17/6/2020
The Icemark is a kingdom in grave danger. Its king has been killed in battle, its enemy lies in wait, and its fate of the dominion rests on the shoulders of 1 girl. Thirrin Freer Strong-in-the-Arm Lindenshield, a princess and a warrior, must find how to guard her land from a terrible invasion. She will forge a unprecedented alliance of noble Snow Leopards, ancient Vampires, and ferocious Wolf-folk. She will find unexpected strength in her friendship with a young warlock. And she will lead her allies to victory together with her fierce battle cry: “Blood! Blast! And Fire!”
The character that I found interesting was Queen Thirrin. Thirrin is that the heir of the ruling house of Lindenshield. Although her father wishes for her to be well-learned, she hates the classroom, and would often preferably be out training with the Housecarls. She has wild red hair like her father and bright green eyes. At the start of the story, she is thirteen years old; shortly after the novel begins she turns fourteen at Yule, and is proclaimed the heir of the throne of Icemark. I really like Thirrin because we have a lot in common for e.g I would much rather be up skiing than in a classroom. She also has the attributes of a true Queen and never gives up hope for her country. Thirrin is additionally a bad-ass warrior and faces down an enormous ounce while saying “Small of not, Master Pussy Cat, i will be able to not return , unless in fact , I take your head as a trophy for my wall!” and then proceeds to slice off his whiskers. This was one among my favourite moments from the book.
The main message I took from this book was the courage, bravery, perseverance and determination it took for Thirrin to run her entire country in time of a crisis. I personally think that the majority people would break under the position that Trirrin has been forced into but not Thirrin. Thirrin never gives up and is decided to offer her country the simplest chance it’s . This was very impressive and added to her infamous character.
When Icemark heard the news that the infamous Polypontian Empire is coming to invade them, the country decides to sacrifice their entire army to delay the empire and provides Princess Thirrin time to collect as many allies before the empire sends a second army. Thirrin, a mere girl of 13 is left alone to run a whole nation by herself. Thirrin then makes it her mission to form as many allies as she will before her time is up. Throughout this point she travels wide and much and does everything in her power to assist her desperate country. The Cry of the Icemark was an appropriate title because this might be the top of the tiny fierce country within the north
I recommend this book for anybody between ages 10-16. This has been my favourite book ever since I’ve read it and I’ve read it 6 times. It is extremely captivating and hard to put down because every page has a new story.
Alone on a wide, wide sea
Author: Michael Morpugo
Text Type: Fiction
Date Read: 1/2/2020
When orphaned Arthur Hobhouse is shipped to Australia after WWII, he loses his sister, his country and everything he knows. the approaching years test him to his limits, as he endures mistreatment, neglect and made labour within the Australian outback. But, Arthur is saved, again and again, by his love of the ocean . The character that I found interesting was Arthur Hobbhouse, this is often because through his life he was faced with numerous adversities and grief, an outsized portion of the book is about Arthur handling his grief. At the beginning of the book, he talks about saying goodbye to his sister and handling the grief of being on their lonesome and also about who he really is.
“I should begin at the start . i do know that. But the difficulty is that I don’t know the start . I wish I did. I do know my name, Arthur Hobhouse. Arthur Hobhouse had a beginning, that’s surely . I had a father and a mother too, but God only knows who they were, and perhaps even he doesn’t know needless to say . I mean, God can’t be looking everywhere all directly , can he? So where the name Arthur Hobhouse comes from and who gave it to me I even have no idea. I don’t even know if it’s my real name. I don’t know the date and place of my birth either, only that it had been probably in Bermondsey, London, sometime in about 1940.” This highlights the utter difference between my life and Arthur’s. Grief wasn’t distant when he witnessed the death of Wes “Death, I discovered that day, isn’t frightening, because it’s utterly still. And it’s still because death when it comes, is usually over. There’s only terror in it if you fear it and ever since my first death, Wes’ death, I even have never feared it. it’s simply the top of a story, and if you’ve loved the story then it’s sad. And sometimes, because it was with Wes, it’s an agony of sadness.”
He makes friends with a boy named Marty. afterward within the book, he talks about Marty dying and therefore the challenges he faces when he loses his ally.The messages I took from this book were the enduring power of affection and survival and the way Arthur faced his grief above anything . Arthur is continually faced with extreme circumstances from a really young age. He has no choice in most of the items that happen to him and as a result, had to become very resilient and resourceful. “If I learned anything during this life, I’ve learned that you simply can’t cling on. Triumph and survival. When Authur and every one the opposite orphans were shipped off to Australia to figure for who the youngsters called “piggy bacon”. I assumed that this was extremely cruel because the youngsters were working for absolutely nothing and were being treated very poorly. “We were the slaves that attempted to carve his paradise out of the wilderness for him.” This made me feel sad but also very grateful for that incontrovertible fact that I’m growing up during a loving and supportive environment today At the beginning of the book, Arthur has lost everything and everybody he loves and is shipped off by himself to the opposite side of the planet . During this point he’s always meeting people and forming relationships but within the end, something goes wrong and he finishes up alone. At the top of the book, his daughter Allie decides to be by herself and sail all the thanks to England so as to seek out her dad’s long lost sister. I assumed this title was appropriate because it started with the challenge of being alone as he crossed the ocean to a replacement life and therefore the book ends together with his daughter alone on the ocean facing her own grief and demons in her quest to seek out Arthur’s sister in England. The main challenge that Allie faced during this book was when she was on their lonesome sailing from Australia to England, she felt helpless and very lonely. Throughout this point she was stretched to the bounds , emotionally, mentally and physically. She had a very tough time when she realised she had killed her Albatros. This was a really sad moment within the book because she talks about not just killing the bird but killing her dad too. “It’s not just the albatross whose wings I’ve stilled. I feel deep in my heart that I’ve stilled dad’s spirit too.” This was extremely sad and reduced me to tears. This book requires a deeper level of thinking than most children’s books due to the events that Arthur has got to undergo but i feel this book would be suitable for anyone above the age of 11. In fact, i might recommend it to adults. My Mum read the book and loved it.
Divergent
Author: Veronica Roth
Text type: Dystopian
Date Read: 15/7/2020
Divergent is about within the future dystopian version of Chicago that has been divided into five factions: Abnegation, Candor, Amity, Dauntless, and Erudite. The book is told from a 16-year old girl perspective from Abnegation and the way one decision will shape the remainder of her future.
The character that I found interesting was Betris Prior (tris), one among my favourite scenes was when she arrives together with her family at the choosing ceremony and is basically anxious about what she is going to choose. Her father is relying on her and her brother to settle on Abnegation. But when it’s her turn, she knows that choosing Abnegation would require an act of selflessness, but choosing Dauntless would require an act of bravery, therefore proving she belongs in either one. And her choice not only surprised her family but herself, by choosing to spill her blood on the recent coals rather than the rocks, therefore, choosing Dauntless. i assumed this was really cool because she went against everything she has known and decided to leap within the deep end.
The big message I took from the book was fear. Courage could also be what the Dauntless are known for, but actually , they’re more focused on fear. Throughout the book, we see Tris questioning the character of bravery and fear: Is true courage fighting someone or stepping up to guard someone? Is fear something you’ll leave behind or something you’ve got to beat every time? Eventually Tris involves realize that bravery isn’t about getting tattoos it’s about standing up for what she believes in “ordinary acts of bravery”. And because of the Dauntless initiation method which involves many “facing your fears” I need to see tons of what Tris is scared of .
The title of this book was appropriate because divergent isn’t a really commonly used word and it shows depth and mystery thereto which make the reader want to read more. The definition of divergent is “tending to vary or develop in several directions”
Throughout the book Tris is consistently faced with the challenge that her secret goes to be revealed. When she goes through the physical training stages she is merely faced with the challenge of getting through where as when she enters the mind and fear stages her risk goes to be hard to hide . i assumed that how she concealed her secret by getting help from Four (her lover/trainer) was very clever and it helped focus.
For me, this book was quite intense and required tons of concentration to remain focused but at an equivalent time was very captivating and interesting. i might recommend this book from ages 12-18 because it does involve violence and things that the younger audience wouldn’t understand.
The Power of One
Author: Byrce Courtenay
Text type: Historical Fiction
Date Read: 3/2/2020
It’s 1939 in South Africa, the country is in shambles and is divided by racism and hatred. One day a 6-year-old boy called Peekay learns that small can beat big. Armed with this knowledge he sets off on a journey to resolve the injustices and of his country and become the welterweight champion of the world. ‘The power of one is in particular things the facility to believe yourself, often well beyond any latent ability you’ll have previously demonstrated. The mind is that the athlete, the body is just the means it uses to run faster or longer, jump higher, shoot straighter, kick better, swim harder, hit further, or box better.’ Bryce Courtney
For me the characters that I found interesting were Peekay and Hoppie. The author identifies “Peekay” as a regard to his earlier nickname “Pisskop”: Afrikaans for “Pisshead.”, early after he wets his bed at private school . He takes back his power by using the name Peekay after a pleasant man shortened his name. I like that he started out as a victim of an ugly name but in an act of independence, he adopts the name and makes it his own, empowering himself to define his identity and his future
Hoppie: Hoppie is the champion boxer of the railroads. Hoppie inspires Peekay to become a boxer himself. Even though he only spends at some point with Peekay, he modifies his life by giving him hope and a goal, when he was at a coffee point in his life and needed direction.
The hope is that the concept “little can beat big.” Hoppie beats massive Jackhammer Smit after a tough fight, and it inspires Peekay to believe that he could someday beat the Judge and therefore the jury, and every one the mean kids who torture him at college .Peekay’s goal is to become the welterweight champion of the planet , and this is often a task that Hoppie inspires Peekay to try to to from almost the primary minute he meets him. Peekay takes the task very seriously and dedicates subsequent several years of his life to following Hoppie’s orders, with Hoppie’s famous advice, “First with the top , then with the heart” . Hoppie was a positive influence and came into Peekay’s life at a time when he had lost faith and Hoppie restored it. Hoppie showed him that amidst the injustice and prejudice, there’s hope. This resonates with me as I have been taught to always be grateful and see the good in people
Throughout the book, the lessons that Peekay is taught the most are that of race and prejudice and downright injustice. When he crosses paths with many of the characters in the book they almost always used his race against him. “What is a rooinek?” “I am English” “Yes, I know man! But how do you know you’re a rooinek?” “I–I just know. Sir.” Peekay. Peekay, deals with some horrible violence and racism during his childhood in South Africa within the mid-20th century. Sometimes it can be hard to figure out how to deal with really-big-deal injustice, like when a whole system is designed unfairly or someone who is in power uses their position to hurt the people around them. And for a kid, it is virtually impossible to really make a difference in those situations. But Peekay is a trooper. Through tons of thoughtful observation and reflection, and also through meeting very special folks that teach him great lessons, Peekay finds how to think for himself and to not give in, even when the odds are against him. I admire this enormously.
The Power of 1 may be a good title because the thought of “the power of one” may be a recurring theme within the novel, and Peekay brings it up several times as he grows up. The first time he comes across it’s when he has got to return to“Hoppie had given me the facility of one—one idea, one heart, one mind, one plan, one determination.” Doc also will give Peekay some superpowers: “Doc had taught me the worth of being the odd man out. The power of 1 was supported the courage to stay separate, to think through to the reality , and to not be overcome by convention or the persuasive arguments of those who expect to maintain power. It’s interesting that Peekay learns the facility of 1 only through his relationships with people . It’s like you need more than one to have the power of one.
The novel is narrated by the most character Peekay reflecting on his life from the ages of 5 until 17. His childhood is extremely traumatic due to bullying and a difference in race between him and his peers. This leaves him with both emotional and physical scarring which he battles for the remainder of the novel. Although Peekay rarely passes judgment on others unlike many around him and loves all people no matter their race, which may be a reflection of his many mentors. I try to do this in my life. I admire Peekay because he always rises above and uses his trials as strength to grow. His resilience is amazing. Peekay is supported and mentored by those around him especially Hoppie, Doc and Geel Piet. His mentors are all of different races and each face prejudice due to their individuality. The political background of the facility of 1 is unmistakably war II and therefore the beginning of the apartheid era in South Africa . This book really made me think how far South Africa has come in terms of apartheid and racism, but in the world, we have a long way to go as it keeps rearing its head. Read below:
I was only 11 when I first read this book and I did not fully understand the complexities of the theme of racism. I understood its full meaning once I read it again earlier this year. Racism and prejudice were highlighted in New Zealand with the Christchurch attacks. Although the term ‘apartheid’ was only formed in 1948, white supremacy existed on a wide scale in South Africa long before. It is rearing its head in New Zealand.
Eragon
Author: Christopher Paolini
Text Type: Fantasy
Date Read: 16/1/2020
A boy named Eragon finds a dragon egg within the wilderness at some point , and once his dragon hatches, it sets him off on a journey which will take him across the land of Alagaesia and beyond. Eragon acquires magical powers and an educator named Brom, but he becomes wanted by the king for his powers as a Dragon Rider. Eragon and Saphira travel outside the boundaries of their land to fight on the side of the Varden, the enemies of the king. Eragon is in a position to kill a strong wizard, the Shade named Durza, and save the Varden and therefore the dwarves.
The character that I found interesting was Saphiria, she could also be a dragon, i feel she’s one among the foremost important characters within the book. In fact, although this book is named Eragon, without Saphira there’d be no Eragon. He would still be in Carvahall, hunting within the spine and living off scraps. i assumed it had been very interesting when Sapira chose Eragon as her rider, she obviously saw something in Eragon that no-one else did and she or he wasn’t wrong. once they visited battle within the Uru’baen they were formidable and that they took on a shade and won. But the most reason Saphira is my favourite character is because she may be a dragon, i really like dragons and once I was reading the book i could not await Saphira to stay growing and obtain bigger.
My favorite message from the book was the friendships that Eragon formed through the book. This showed me that albeit Eragon may be a Dragon Rider he must depend upto the support of his closest friends. My favorite relationship was the one between Eragon and Bron. In his younger days Brom was a Rider himself and when he learns that Eragon may be a Dragon Rider he instantly makes it his mission to coach him and teach him everything he knows. During this point the pair do regular training sessions and Bron begins to show Eragon magic but Eragon isn’t very patient and needs to be ready to roll in the hay immediately . An example of this is often when Eragon first tries to lift a stone using magic, “Eragon looked back at him, confused. “I don’t understand.” “Of course you do not ,” said Brom impatiently. “That’s why I’m teaching you and not the opposite way around.
The title of this text doesn’t really signify much, it only shows the name of the most character. Although saying this Eragon isn’t a really common name and invokes mystery. A submission from Georgia, us says the name Eragon means “Dragon rider” and is of Unknown origin. consistent with a user from Italy, the name Eragon is of Albanian origin and means “Morning wind”. A user from Australia says the name Eragon is of Unknown origin and means “Stone of water”.
Throughout the book Eragon faces many challenges but my favourite was once they were being chased to the supposed rebel stronghold. These couple chapters were very tense and always kept me captivated. The scene starts with Eragon, Saphira and Murtagh rescuing Arya Dröttningu from Druza in Gil’ead then fleeing as fast as they will . Druza then retaliates and sends an elite army of urgal after them as they race to urge to Uru’baen. This was a challenge because Eragon was having to cater for not just himself but an unconscious elf, 2 horses and Murtagh also as trying to outrun the fastest army in Alagaesia. During this point Eragon remembers a bit of data that Bronn told him once they were training“The greatest enemy is one that has nothing to lose.”
Although Eragon is additionally a movie i feel the books are far better and have tons more depth to them. Eragon is additionally the primary book during a series of 4 and every book you read, the higher they get and that i wouldn’t put the last one down until I’d finished it (it took 9 hours). Saying that i might still recommend this book to anyone who features a love for dragons and adventure.