Book Recommendation: Hugo Cabret

     I would highly recommend this book to anybody who enjoys a story with suspense. The plot of Hugo Cabret is easy to follow through pictures and the vocabulary is modern, casual diction that is easy to understand.
     The amount of pages in this book is misleading because in reality there are a lot of pictures in the book and only about 500 pages of actual reading. I liked the usage of pictures in the book because some of the imagery was hard to follow and when I would turn the page there would always be an image for clarity. This in my opinion is a great characteristic of an author because it shows that the author is aware that some of the book is hard to follow and he wants to make sure the reader has a full understanding of the book. There was never a situation in this book where there was a pointless page, every page mattered in deciphering the plot and story line.
     In the book, we meet a young boy named Hugo who lives behind the walls in a train station located in Paris. Hugo's dad dedicated his life to making a human-like machine with a peculiar keyhole located on its chest. When Hugo's dad tragically passes away, it is up to him to find the key and finish what his father started. I think because of this plot, the author uses so many pictures in the novel because it is not a relatable subject and the pictures help the reader step into Hugo's shoes. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I hope you will read it too as I would rate it a 10/10.

Columnist Unit Post

The column I chose to read was "The very poor case for arming teachers" by Krista Ramsey. (1) To give a brief overview of the column, Krista Ramsey does not believe it is wise to give teachers firearms despite past school shootings and other forms of violence in schools around the country. (2) The hyperlink for this column is given here. (3) I felt that the best line in the text was, "But sending weapons into schools - the vast majority of which have not been and will not be the scene of violence - is the most unwise of solutions." This line impacts the reader in that it drives home Ramsey's point about arming school staff using a definite tone to ensure the reader her point is logical and correct. An example of syntax would be the use of the dash throughout the quote because it provides a pause of emphasis to show that Ramsey is trying to portray an important point or thought and wants the reader to be engaged. (4) Ramsey's style of writing is intimidating and confident. She uses cold hard facts and rhetorical questions to make the reader consider her point of view. We can see these rhetorical questions in the article such as, "Does an armed teacher leave his class to respond elsewhere?" and "Will incoming police know a staff member from an assailant?" These questions are used to intimidate the reader into looking at a subject with a new perspective. (5) Are you trying to rally support for your own argument or shoot down the arguments of others? As a columnist, are you allowed to be neutral on a subject and write about it, or do you have to choose a side before pen touches paper? What is the hardest topic to cover being a columnist?

Book Recommendation: The Giver

     If you remember back to when I did my review on The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, you probably remembered how I did not recommend the book instead of wanting everybody to read it. I would like to do the same on not recommending the book The Giver by Lois Lowry as it the hardest plot to follow compared to any other book I have ever read.
     I did not like this book because the society in the book was utopian and hard to follow and there was absolutely no resolution in the book. In fact, the book ended with him riding his bike and then the book just ended. This frustrated me because I wanted to know what would happen to the main character, Jonas. The whole plot was hard to follow as their was not much explanation and description throughout the entire book.
     No offense, but do yourself a favor and do not read this book because there was no theme, a confusing plot, and there was no point in reading because there was not a resolution. When I read a book, I like to have a nice resolution so I can reflect upon reading. In this book however, no resolution was present so the book left me confused and puzzled on what I had just read. In conclusion, I would rate this book a 2/10 so I hope you take my review into consideration.