I have just finished the book Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. It is about Katniss going back into the arena with former hunger game winners. It started with another way to show that the capital is still in charge. In then however turns into the start of a rebellion which is stated at the end of the book.

One thing I was thinking about throughout the story was that the games were harder then the first one for katniss. There were many ways that the games were harder then the first. One thing was that former winners were going into the arena which meant that all of those people had killed at least one person before and were not afraid to kill again. One other thing is that in the first arena Katniss was familiar with some plants and the type of place they were in while in the second one Katniss does not know the biome or the type of animals or food that are edible in there.

I think this was not the smartest idea for the capital to make. However I understand that the capital was making a point that they are in charge and that no one should challenge them. Everyone in the capital grew to love the champions. It would be hard for the people to see the champions they grew to love die.

In the book Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins Katniss a former winner of the hunger games goes back into the ring with her “Lover” Peeta. Since it was that 3rd quarter quell one female and one male victor from the past games would be chosen to go back into the arena.  She makes allies with former victors and goes into the arena prepared but she find horrors waiting inside the arena.

It is sad what the capital does to all the tributes that are in the arena. They suffer both emotional and physically before and after they are in the arena. Katniss was harmed emotionally because she was ready to say goodbye to all her friends and family members but instead she was hurried away and never said anything to her loved ones. That was harsh because she knows that she will never return to her family and she never made peace with her friend Gale. Also when they are in the arena they use close friends and family voices to hurt them. This was probably devastating to them. It would have been for me. Just imagine yourself in a place full of horrors not knowing what is going to come and then you hear the voices of people you know in pain that you care about.

It was shocking that a lot of people risked their lives in order to save Peeta. First of all when Peeta hit the force field he died but then Finnick saved him by started his heart up again. Also when Katniss and her group was attacked by the vicious monkeys another tribute jumped in front of Peeta which saved him but cost the tributes life. One last thing is that Finnick blocked a spear that would have impaled Peeta, because he did that he got stabbed in his thigh by his enemy.

Reading Response

In the book Black Beauty by Anna Sewell  the story is narrated by a horse named black beauty. He is constantly moving from home to home because he is a horse. He has lived in horrible places and wonderful places. He never loses hope and always tries his best. He prefers people who are gently towards him and know how to ride a horse.

A common issue throughout the book are the relationships. The book is about horses and they have a hard time trusting humans because they are scared of them. A horse named Ginger was raised in a bad home. She was ill used and therefore she does not trust humans. Since she was ill used she would bite and kick people because she did not trust them. Eventually she grows better because she is treated nicely and better when she goes to a new home. What this means that the only way for a relationship to grow and develop is to show that you care for the person/animal. You have to earn that persons trust. Also many horses in the book do not trust humans because of this. Since they were ill used and not congratulated they lose trust and the only way for them to regain it is if they are treated nicely by other humans.

This can connect to the real world in a lot of ways. If you get into a fight with your friend your friendship will be broken. The only way to fix it is if you work together and be nice to each other. If you don’t they will not be friends with you because they don’t trust you. Also if you are a mean friend people wont trust you because you are not nice to them. If you talk nice to them and care for them they will gain you trust. In other words the only way to start or regain a friendship is to be nice to each other.

Be Grateful

Many people don’t appreciate what they have when they have it. They will only appreciate it when you don’t or barley have it. In the book The Lake of Souls by Darren Shan the main character and his friend Harkat get teleported into a different world then the one they are used to. They get there through a portal that Mr.Tiny made in order to find out who Harkat was originally before he was created again. They need to figure it out because Harkat has nightmares and will eventually go mad and die.

When they are there they are grateful for everything. They are teleported into a desert so water is rare and precious. They are grateful every time they find water and they preserve it. They only drink sips at a time because it is that rare. When they were in the real world they didn't have to worry about not having enough water most of the time. Also when they are in the other world there is basically almost no food. They could only survive on the lizards they could find and eat. This made them very grateful when they met Evanna and she had set up a great meal for them.

This can connect to the real world in so many ways. People are ungrateful for the food they have. Some kids in the world go hungry every night. Also we have a roof and clothes to wear while other kids live in cardboard boxes or out in the open and have ripped or no clothes at all. Also during Christmas some kids are mad because they didn't get what they wanted but they should realize that there are actually kids who don’t even get something on Christmas. Hopefully this made you realize that you are lucky to have water, food, shelter and clothes.

We Might Not Know Ourselves

David Morales 809
Am I Blue? by Bruce Coville.  
In the short story Vince is trying to figure himself out. He is not sure if he is gay or not. It all starts when Butch Carrigan decided to bully him. A fairy godfather comes to him to help him out and find the right path for him so he can get his priorities straight. An example of this is when Vince meets his fairy godfather and describes him as”kind of handsome-almost pretty”. I thought it was worth mentioning this because handsome usually describes a boy while pretty describes a girl. I thought this meant he wasn’t sure if he was looking for a girl or a man.
          
Another example is when Vince realizes he is slightly tinted blue. Blue means that you are gay or had a gay experience. He asked Melvin (his fairy godfather) what this meant. Melvin told Vince that it meant that he was still trying to figure himself out. Melvin described him as a confused puppy. This meant that he was still trying to figure himself out and it would come to him in a while.

Another example that happens at the very last story is when Vince says “and my third wish? I’ve decided to save it for when I really need it-maybe when I meet the girl of my dreams Or Prince Charming. Whichever.” I thought that this was important to include because it shows that he has not figured himself out. He is still wondering if he is gay or not and that is why he is waiting for the right person to come into his life, either Prince Charming or the girl of his dreams.

A way this can connect to the world is that a lot of people do things because they are trying to figure themselves out. Sometimes people will do weird and strange things in order for them to figure themselves out. I think this means that we shouldn't judge people because they might be going through a complicated phase in their lives and they are confused about who they are. This has taught me that i shouldn't judge people because they might appear weird or different on the outside but i don't know if anything complicated is going on their lives.  I think that a lot of people can learn from this short story if they read it.

      The conflict in the story  The Drummer Boy Of Shiloh by Ray Bradbury resolved itself when the general of the army spoke to Joby. Joby was the drummer boy. He was feeling weak and defenseless because he had 2 sticks and a drum instead of a weapon to protect himself with. He was feeling down because he did not think he was an important part of the army. The general told Joby that he was the heart of the army and controlled how the army felt. He explained to Joby that If he beat his drum with a slow rhythm the soldiers would get lazy, tired, and sluggish. However if he played a fast, steady rhythm the soldier’s blood would travel through their body. They would hold their head up high and proud and march step after step. Joby then realized he was important.
       The themes I thought presented themselves were that no matter what you do you are not worthless. The other theme I thought presented itself was that even a small role can make a big difference.
       I thought this connects to the world because some people think that they are worthless because they cant find anything that they are good at. However if they kept on looking they would have eventually found something they are good at and finally realize that they are not worthless.

I am currently reading the book I AM A SEAL TEAM SIX WARRIOR by Howard E. Wasdin and Stephen Templin. One of the conflicts of the book was that the main character would be abused as a child. His father would beat him every time he did something wrong or did not work hard enough at his job. He would be beat if there were seeds on the driveway because of the trees they had. The problem resolves itself by the main character becoming a marine to escape his life. His whole childhood had prepared him for that. He could endure huge amounts of pain. Also he became a sniper and to do that you need to pay close attention to detail to do that. Picking up the seeds from the driveway helped him with that. The theme that revealed itself was that you should not give up no matter what even if you think you cant take it anymore. Another theme i thought was presented was that you should do anything even if it is pointless because in the future it might help you out.