Characters: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Harry Potter from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling  would be best described as a dynamic character considering the difference the reader sees in his personality over the course of the book.

• He and his closest friends Hermione and Ron are faced with the conflict of finding the missing Sorcerer's Stone which Harry has been framed of stealing. At first they are doubtful they can fix anything or help Harry, but when they realize just how strong they can be as wizards, they start to gain the courage to try and find the Sorcerer's stone. 
• At first Harry was a shy misfit who hated his life, but now since then, he has come a long way and we can see he has made friends and gained more of an outgoing personality in order to face the conflict presented upon him. 
• Harry is unlike any other character I have ever come across because of his change in human nature over the course of the book as it is completely unlike any other character. 
• I've always wondered why Harry always would get in trouble at school, because at the beginning of the book it seemed as if he was really nice and was not mischievous enough to get into any trouble, but this inference proved wrong as I read the book because his original personality changed as soon as he realized his capability being a wizard.
• Book Summary for clarity on plot of the story.

Book Recommendation: The Red Pyramid

Carter and Sadie on one
of their many adventures

               In my personal opinion, The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan puts all other Mythology books to shame. However, I enjoyed The Lightning Thief more as I thought The Lightning Thief was more brief but also portrayed a great story. This story, however, comes a close second as it has a clear statement of theme we can all apply to our own lives and there is a mountain plot that seemingly never ends and there are several ups and downs that keep the reader glued to the story.
               In the book, we meet Carter who travels across the world with his dad. His sister, Sadie, lives in England and they only get to see one another for one day in an entire year. When Carter and his dad visit England to see Sadie, Dad has to leave after something crucial happens. Carter and Sadie stay in England with their grandparents when there Uncle Amos shows up to take the two with him to New York. In New York, Carter and Sadie learn that they have secret powers from Egyptian gods through the necklaces their dad gave them.. Anxious to find their dad, Carter and Sadie sneak off without Amos' consent to try and rescue their dad. Will they succeed? Read this book to find out whether or not they succeed and learn about the many adventures they have to face.

Book Recommendation: Kingdom Keepers

               Kingdom Keepers by Ridley Pearson is a tremendous novel about 5 specially selected teenagers who get to watch over the Disney amusement parks at night. They were chosen to be holographic characters, or DHI's who watch over the park to make sure the villains do not take over the attitude of the park. Among the chosen is Finn, an ordinary teen who has lived in Orlando all of his life and he is willing to help protect the park with 5 close friends. He meets Wayne, an imagineer who is in charge of keeping the secrets of Walt Disney secret. When Wayne disappears, the DHI crew know they are in trouble because they do not want the secrets of Walt Disney to be released by the villains. As they venture to save the park, they find the main villain behind the madness, Maleficent. Maleficent's main goal is to leak the secrets of Walt Disney and become the face of Disney, knocking the iconic Mickey Mouse off of his throne. This book might sound like it is for a younger age group, but I think it is for all young adults and is great to read. If you like stories about adventure, you will probably enjoy this book because the crew of DHI's have to venture through the park to defeat Maleficent and restore happiness to the amusement park.

Reading Skills: The Hunger Games

Katniss is calming her sister, Prim.

               In The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, I found that I made several predictions over the course of the story since there is a cliff-hanger at the end of every chapter. It is a suspenseful book because around every page there is action and you are on the edge of your seat waiting to see what will happen next. In the book, there is a small nation divided into 13 districts and a capital that rules over the rest of the districts. Every year, a boy and a girl from 12 of the districts are chosen to compete in a fight to the death event called "The Hunger Games." The main character, Katniss Everdeen, keeps the reader guessing what will happen and that is one of the main reasons I enjoyed reading this book.
               This book is a lot like the book The Lightning Thief because in both novels teamwork is a concept that is utilized in the theme. In The Lightning Thief, Percy Jackson is forced to team up with two of his closest friends in order to succeed in a mission to return Zeus' missing lightning bolt. This is similar to The Hunger Games in that in order to succeed in the hunger games, you need to form a team with other foes in order to take out your enemy and win the games.
               This book can also be applied to my own life because when I find I am in a difficult situation, I always use my friends to help me out of the tough situation I am engaged in. This is similar to the Hunger Games because in the story Katniss is slightly frightened that her life could be ended during the games but she has friends to help her feel safer even when she is in an extremely difficult situation.
               This book can also be applied to real world activities because all over the world there are professional sports teams that are formed by groups of people who rely on each other. This is like the Hunger Games because Katniss relies on her friend Gale to protect her frail mother and her younger sister Prim who is scared that Katniss will be hurt.
               I found that I asked a lot of questions over the course of the story because Katniss seems to be on an emotional roller coaster in the arena. She is constantly worrying about her little sister, Prim, and it is haunting her ever since she left home. A question I asked was, "Why is Katniss so worried about her sister?" Katniss always worried about her sister and it gave a premonition to the reader that something might happen to Prim that will traumatize Katniss for her entire life.
               I also made several inferences while reading this book in that one of Katniss' allies was Rue. Rue was a small and emotionally unstable 12-year old that reminded Katniss a lot of her younger sister. Rue being so young put her at a disadvantage in the arena with much more mature and stronger young adults, so I predicted that she would be killed or injured at some point in the book. My prediction proved correct as Rue was killed halfway through the book, and it was a depressing moment because of the appeal to emotion the author uses.        
               Overall, this was a great book and I would recommend it to action seekers who love a good cliff-hanger. This is also a great book to make predictions since you are on the edge of your seat at the turn of each page.

Characters: The Lightning Thief

This is the alliance of three that prove that
friendship can accomplish any mission.
(From left to Right, Annabeth, Percy, and
Grover)

               In Rick Riordan's, The Lightning Thief, Percy Jackson is a complex dynamic character that the reader may be able to connect with. The following paragraphs are my interpretation of why Percy Jackson is a dynamic character.
               In the beginning of the story, we learn that Percy is challenged with disorders such as dyslexia and ADHD. He is constantly changing schools due to his lack of focus, and he seems to always get himself into trouble. At first, he seems shy and lonely and the only person he cares genuinely about is his mom, and his best friend Grover. Percy does not know anything about his past when one day at school, something incredibly unusual occurs. Percy's teacher turns into a Greek monster and Percy is nearly a victim of her wrath. After he escapes the pandemonium, Grover takes Percy home and Percy's mother starts to drive somewhere Percy does not know about. In this phase of the book, Percy is really scared and doubts himself. He is also frustrated with himself because he feels like he screwed up at school again.

               During their drive, a large unknown monster appears and destroys their car. Percy and Grover run away and pass through a force field, leaving Percy's mom behind. Percy is petrified and angry because he did nothing to save his mother. He fears the worst and thinks his mother is dead. When Grover and Percy venture further into the woods, they come across Camp Half-Blood. A Greek camp of so-called demigods, or children of gods and mortals. Percy finds out he is the son of Poseidon and his whole life changes. The power he feels in this moment makes him become courageous and he tries to set out and save his mother.

               At the camp, Grover and Percy meet Chiron, the camp counselor. They also meet Annabeth, daughter of Athena. Percy, Grover, and Annabeth form an alliance to try and save Percy's mother and ask Chiron for permission. Chiron allows them to go on the mission as long as they agree to one other term. They must find Zeus' missing lightning bolt, and find the thief who stole it. Percy is disheartened and angry when he hears this, because all he wanted to do was save his mother, but now he must also take on a bigger task. This characterization of Percy advances the plot because it is leading to the climax of when they try to save Percy's mother.

               When the three set off on a mission, Grover reveals he is a satyr, and his sole purpose is to protect Percy. Annabeth wants to save Percy's mother, because she had experienced a similar moment in her life when she lost her father. This characterization of Annabeth in relation to Percy creates a theme in that friendship creates strong bonds between people that can help accomplish any mission no matter the difficulty of the situation at hand.

Book Recommendation: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

               If you have not yet read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, I believe it is a must read. I would rate the book a perfect 10/10 as it is a great trilogy beginner and the level of detail in the book is outstanding. In the book, we meet a somewhat mistreated child named Harry. We are given background info that Harry's parents were killed by an evil doer in the beginning of the story. Now he is forced to live with the Dursley's, his aunt's family. The author, J.K. Rowling uses appeals to emotion to make us feel bad for Harry, and our sympathy is answered. When Harry receives an envelope to go to Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry, he gladly accepts and is psyched to find out he is a wizard. Along the way, he meets Ron Weasley and they immediately become friends. On the first day of class, the antagonist, Draco Malfoy is introduced and Ron and Harry meet an annoying know-it-all named Hermione Granger. As they adventure through Hogwarts, they befriend Hermione and go on an adventure to find the sorcerer stone, which had mysteriously disappeared. In my opinion, I thought this was a great book because it offered a lot of action and suspense and there was also a mystery to be solved. There is also a movie recreation of the book, which is a good remake as well. I hope you all take my recommendation into consideration, because this is a great book that leads into a magnificent series.
J.K. Rowling with her book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

Reading Skills: Middle School Book 1

In the first book of the Middle School Trilogy by James Patterson I found myself making many connections to the text and making predictions because it is a suspenseful story but is also relatable as it has to do with school, a subject we are all familiar with.

I think this book is very similar to Diary of a Wimpy Kid as both are first person accounts of a middle school story. Also, both of the main characters view themselves as outcasts and neither one thinks they are at the top of the social chain in middle school. The only difference I can clearly see in the two books is that Rafe, the main character of the middle school trilogy is a trouble-maker, whereas Greg from Diary of a Wimpy Kid is more of an introvert and is not always wreaking havoc. Also, the Middle School trilogy is pointed toward an older audience while Diary of a Wimpy Kid is for younger readers as it contains more cartoons and has a lot more pictures

A text to world connection I made is that I think a lot of teenagers in our world today can relate to Rafe since nobody really sees themselves as the coolest kid in school. Rafe knows he is not popular, but he feels desperate to be just like the other kids. Lots of teenagers can also relate to this because we all want to fit in and will do whatever it takes to fit in just like Rafe does.

A text to self connection I made with Rafe is that we both have similar viewpoints towards school. Like Rafe, I do not want to wake up early in the morning and go to school. However, when the time comes, we both know when it is time to have fun and when it is time to learn. I can also relate to Rafe because we are both nervous around new people and are not comfortable when something changes.

A prediction I made that turned out to be true in the story is that I predicted that Rafe's friend Leo was imaginary. I predicted this because we never actually met Leo in the book, he never said anything among the whole story, and finally, he would never be mentioned at school, but at home instead.

I asked several questions over the course of this book. One to be mentioned is: What happened to Rafe's dad? Rafe lives with his mom and his sister Georgia but in the story it is unclear what happened to his dad. We know he is gone, we just do not have the full picture of what happened as readers. Another question I had was: Why does Rafe have an imaginary friend? Usually there is a purpose for having an imaginary friend, and when I found out that Leo is imaginary, I wanted to know why Rafe wanted to have an imaginary friend. This question was answered though when it was revealed that Leo was based off of Rafe's younger brother, Leonardo, who died from illness at age 3.

Theme and Summary: The Red Pyramid

I think the theme of The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan is that you should never doubt yourself because it is the only thing that can halt your perseverance. This is true in The Red Pyramid because Carter and Sadie Kane are siblings that never seem to get along. When there dad disappears and leaves them with their uncle Amos, they are scared and feel that they can't rely on each other. They have already lost their mother so they doubted they could do anything to save their father.

In the beginning when they realize that they have powers, they become stronger and realize that maybe if they put their minds together and help each other when the other is in doubt, they might be able to find their father. When they find out uncle Amos is going to be gone for a few days, they decide to begin their mission to find their dad. As soon as Amos leaves, they break into the library and find a shabti, an Egyptian figurine that was used to serve for the deceased. The shabti is tired of working for the deceased so he decides to help out Carter and Sadie instead. Together, they have no doubts and work together to find Mr. Kane. As the book progresses, Carter and Sadie are starting to gain hope and they start to have less doubts along the road despite all the bumps. At one point in the book, Sadie feels like giving up on the mission because she feels like the group is not making progress. Her perseverance halts and stops the group, but Carter helps get Sadie on the right track and all of a sudden their doubts are washed away and they go on a campaign to save Carter and Sadie's dad.

In the end, the theme is obvious because it shows the negativity of a bad situation and then provides the solution that helps the group move forward, which is the theme.

This is what a shabti would've looked like in ancient Egypt