Post 7: Why is Looking For Alaska so popular? Whats the hype?

The book that has many reading, and thousands of copies flying off shelves, Looking For Alaska. I decided to create my 7th blog post dedicated to the hype of Looking For Alaska. With countless friends recommending it to me, and telling me it's the best book they have read all year, I knew that I had to pick this book up for myself.

As I started reading I noticed at the beginning that the plot was very slow and would often find myself going back and reading paragraphs because I daydreaming about other things. It seemed that they would just be repeating the same activities; going to school, coming home, hanging in others room. There would occasionally be interesting parts where they would get in trouble but it defiantly wasn't the climax. The beginning made me very disappointed and not what I expected from an author like John Green. I was very confused as to why my friends would recommend this to me. 

Nevertheless the slow beginning I really did enjoy the structure of the book. I found it very cool how the book started by saying one hundred and thirty- six days before and ended in one hundred and thirty- six days after. The counting down leads up to a big event.  Every 4 to 5 pages it would count down and then say one hundred and thirty three days before and start a new section of the book; almost like chapters. I personally loved this technique and thought it was very nice how it was split up into smaller sections compared to chapters. I hate reading books that have big chapters because when I sit down and read I feel like I have to finish those chapters or else I will forget where I left off. Where as Looking For Alaska you can read a few sections here and a few there and not worry about stopping right in the middle.

I feel as if the hype came from the plot, structure and the overall uniqueness of the book. John Green is a very interesting and entertaining writer and makes his stories interesting to read. He always is adding or creating a new technique into his stories to engage the reader. They are never getting boring and they always seem to be different- unlike all of Nicholas Sparks book where they all almost follow the same story plot and find yourself mixing up the stories. Like all of his books, there are great lines that remind you as to why you picked up the book, Pudge's signature line is a good example, "I go to seek a Great Perhaps." If you've read the book you know the great meaning of it.  Green's books are all very different in their own way; the characters have different personalities, the settings take place in different locations, and the problem the characters are facing is different. And Looking For Alaska differently was one to excel in all those categories. 

In addition, John Green's books have become such a hype because he writes what teens want to read, and when he does they are very well written. Looking For Alaska deserves all the awards it gets because of the important message it help portrays; self-discovery and loss. Looking For Alaska explains what teenage life is all about, love, stupid things you can do to impress someone, and what bad things can happen when you go off to college. 

I would 100% recommend this book! At the beginning I was very iffy and wasn't even sure I could finish it. (Yes, books have to be very fast pace in order to keep me entertained.) However, I stuck with it and found the plot very different from anything I had ever read. I will for sure be recommending this to all my friends, family, and hopefully to anyone reading this! 

In my book 4 I was also to look up reviews on Looking For Alaska. Below I provided the sites. 

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/99561.Looking_for_Alaska

http://www.amazon.com/Looking-Alaska-John-Green/dp/0142402516

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/looking-for-alaska-john-green/1100255278?ean=9780142402511

https://books.google.com/books/about/Looking_For_Alaska.html?id=gqNh4EbiFh0C&hl=en

Post 9: Reading Wishlist

Books I want to read....

1. American Sniper by: Chris Kyle

2. The Longest Ride by: Nicholas Sparks

3. Room by: Emma Donoghue

4. Paper Towns by: John Green

5. Unbroken by: Laura Hillenbrand

6. An Abundance of Katherines by: John Green

Book 5 I plan to read - Paper Towns by: John Green

Post 8: Book Talk Presentation

5 Resons Rex from The Glass Castle is unique

While reading the memoir of Jennette Walls; The Glass Castle. Jeannette would always described her father as an acholic. However, throughout the book Rex was very unique, and had many impacts to Jeannette. Allowing her to have faith and still believe in him.


1. Christmas
For Christmas one year the parents were unable to afford any toys. Rex, Jennette father, decided to let the children pick out a star in the sky. The significance of this moment overshadows the families financial struggles. "Those shining stars, he like to point out, were one of the special treats for people like us who lived out in the wilderness." Rex makes each of his children feel special, taking each out one by one. "Dad took each of us kids out into the desert night one by one."

2. Rex drowning Jennette
When Jenette first learned to swim, Rex dropped her into the pool. Being Jeannette and always finding the positive in a situation, she found that drowning was a way or inspiring her. "Dad kept telling me that he loved me, that he never would let me drown, but you can't cling to the side your whole life." To some this  may seem like an unforgivable situation. However to Jeannette she has so much faith in her father she can't. She even stated "Once I got my breath back, I figured he must be right. There was no way to explain it."


3. Rex climbing into a lions cage
Rex being an animal and nature lover decided it would be a good idea to go to the local zoo and climb into the cage with the lions. "We climbed under the chain fence and knelt around Dad while he petted the cheetah. The cheetah turned his head and put his moist nose up against my hand." No one would decide to climb in with a lion, knowing they can be dangerous and a threat. Jennette thought this was an absolutely amazing experience. "None of them had ever had their hand licked by a cheetah."


4. Rex not realizing Jeanette fell out of the car
As Jeannette and her family were on their way traveling to Las Vegas a freak accident happened. Or to her family it was normal. Going around a corner and hitting some railroad tracks allowed the doors to fly open and resulting in Jeanette flying our of the car and rolling several yard. And even worse her parents didn't even notice she was gone. And she watched the Green Caboose disappear in the distance. "I rolled several yards along the embankment, and when I came to stop, I was too shocked to cry, with my breath knocked out and grit and pebbles in my eyes. I lifted my head in time to watch the Green Caboose get smaller and smaller and then disappear around a bend. After a little bit the Green Cabbose returned. Rex being funny said "Damn, honey, you busted your snot locker pretty good." (Jeanette nose wouldn't stop bleeding) The family found a laughable moment and turned a scary incident into something funny.


5. Through his alcohol addiction he still magnates to keep a family 
Rex had a major addiction to alcohol through the book and always keeping his family desperate for money. Mary didn't work and you could always find her painting, leading to no income. Jeannette and Lori put their money from babysitting, tutoring, poster making, into there piggy bank. Then one day Rex broke open there accumulated money from 6 months (this was for this journey to NYC) to go buy cigarets and alcohol. Lori lost all faith in her dad, wouldn't speak to him, and was in absolute disgust. While Jeannette on the other hand still believed in her day. She would continue to lend him money when he was in need of alcohol. "I swear, honey, there are times when I think you're the only one around who still has faith in me." He said. "I don't know what I would do if I ever lost you." I told him that I would never lose faith in him. And I promised myself I never would.  He would always say "Have I ever let you down?" And she would always answer it the same way, no. Through all of Rex troubles he still maintains to have a special bond between Jeannette and allow people to still find hope in him.

Rexs Wells was not the ordinary alcoholic father that was never around for his children's childhood. However, Rex was a very unique individually that truly did impact his kids in many ways. Not only does he climb into a cage with a lion, not knowing that his daughter fell out of the car, he manages to keep his family going through his strong alcohol addiction and no income. Rex is one to inspire many.

Post #5

I believe there should be a line between genres. I think a memoir has to be at least 98% true to be considered non- fiction. Since an author is specifically writing a memoir- about one’s life, it should be true. You should be basing you memoir off your life and the adventures you have experienced. Therefore, an author shouldn't be making up events or story that hasn’t happened in their life. I also think that when using false information it can take away the meaning of the book.  I do believe that they can include a few details that are false; however there has to be very little and they are not included in major parts of the book.

I think its okay to add half- truths into a story to make it better, more interesting, and to hook the reader. However there is a limit with half- truths; the author shouldn’t be adding them everywhere and maybe 4-7 throughout the book. They also shouldn’t be exaggerated a ton. It could possibly upset the reader.

James Frey, author of A Million Little Pieces, book was published as a memoir but later was marketed as semi- fictional due to using false information. I believe its okay that James used half- truths and some false information. However, because of the change of a memoir to a semi- fictional proves that James Frey used excessive amount of untruthful and dishonest material. This can make many readers upset and sad possibly to know that the story they just read they believed be true is false in parts.

Yes, I think David Shields is right, there needs to be a line between genres. There should be a strict line between fiction and non-fictional. It might even become where there shouldn’t be any false information at all. However as of now I believe in a non-fictional book there can be a few lies told. There should be a line between genres to help readers know what they are going to be reading. It will help prepare them and not upset them when told they were reading a memoir and later found is full of lies. 

Post 4: Adapting The Maze Runner

There are many important decisions that would have to be made in order for the book Maze Runner By James Dashner  to be a good adaptation. The best adaptation for this book would be a TV show, since this is a very action packed book an every page is always keep you at the edge of your chair the producers would have to split a very important, action scene one night. And the other have another scene. Since there is always something interesting happening, everyone would always want to come back and see more. There are other books following the Maze Runner including The Scorch Trials and Death Cure, so the TV show would still continue for a decent amount of time. When it comes down to the scenes and which ones to include the most important one I can think of is when Thomas arrives at the glade in a lift crank, almost described as an "elevator". It's what really kicks off the story and gets it started. You are also able to tell what type of environment and place the book is set in. The next important scene I would include is when Thomas adventures out at night into the maze, seeing what it would really be like to be a runner. When he starts hearing branches cracking, and twigs moving he begins to panic and get worried. Then he sees this huge flash of white come at him, and before he knows the sick child named Ben, who was attacked by a Griever, was clawing at Thomas, eating chunks out of him and more. Then Alby, the one who insures the maze is ran properly shot Ben who was then instantly killed. It would be a good adaptation to the movie and would really get viewers hooked. The final scene I would add is when the girl gets delivered to the Glade, everyone was in complete shock. The glade is completely full of boys, and never once has anyone seen a girl. It became very skeptical when Thomas was delivered and two days later so was a girl, everyone was questioning Thomas if he has every seen or talked to her. As first when they raised her from the crank, she was dead. This scene is one to include, with a plot twist and became very engaging as the reader. As for casting and who would be the best fit for this adaptation I would consider people that participated in The Hunger Games. I would consider Jennifer Lawrence, as she has played in three Hunger Games movies. Since The Maze Runner is very comparable she would get the gist and be familiar with what the producers would be asking. The best sound track for this adaption would have to be up beat, loud, and lots of sounds; drums. A song that very well represented this song is called Circle by Machineheat feat Vanic. There are tons of different beats and reminded me a lot of The Maze Runner. Overall, if the adaptation of The Maze Runner was done correctly if would a very popular be a show to watch.

Post #3: Book 1 Project: Fan Experience

Do you want to feel the Great Sadness Mackenzie Phillips felt during The Shack? Come to the deep Oregon wilderness to find the shack! This will be our first annual opening to the public. You will get to feel the touching of Saryu on your eyes and have a one on one talk with God! You might even find Missy frolicking around the garden. Papa makes wonderful meals that you just can’t get enough of. Spots are filling up fast so make sure you reserve yours today! This real life experience of visiting The Shack is a remarkable opportunity to connect with the characters and have a real life experience!

Mackenzie decided it would be a good idea to take his children camping however things took a spin for the worse when his two other children canoe tipped and Mack went diving in for both. He went back to get Missy where he left he. But there was no Missy all he found was a ladybug pin. Mack found out that the ladybug had initials on the back, which represented the murderer, and black dots represented a murdered girl. Mack becomes extremely sad over the death of his daughter, which he calls The Great Sadness. He is unable to cope himself and was limiting his life. "Shortly after the summer that Missy vanished, The Great Sadness had draped itself around Mack' shoulders like some invisible but almost tangibly heavy quilt. At times he could feel it slowly tightening around his chest and heart like the crushing coils of a constrictor." Then four years later, God, or as Mackenzie likes to call him, Papa, sends him a letter and tells him to go to The Shack. Mackenzie is very skeptical and isn’t sure if it’s the right thing to do not knowing what to expect. When he arrives he finds nothing and sees no one except the large red bloodstain on the wood, the spot Missy was murdered. Mack was planning to leave when right before his eyes everything changes; the dark woods suddenly turned bright, flowers bloomed. “Mack stopped and watched as all around him the white covering dissolved and was replaced by emerging and radiant growth. Three weeks of spring unfurled before him in thirty seconds.” Mackenzie made his way back to the shack and as he proceeded to turn the knob the door swung open and there was Papa with opens arms greeting Mackenzie. Jesus, God, and Saryu took very good care of Mack, making him delicious food, long walks discussing how to find happiness and escape the great sadness that wouldn’t leave him. On the last day of Mack’s stay God said he would like to take him on a hike. They approached a large rock, God directed Mack to these large rocks where Missy’s dead body was hidden. “It only took them a few minutes to find their treasure. On a small rock outcropping, Mack saw the body of what he assumed was his Missy; face up, her body covered by a dirty and decaying sheet.” When Mack left The Shack he headed home and was excited to tell everyone the news about the visiting of God and the findings of his Missy, even though he thought no one would believe him. However, on his way home Mack go into a car crash, and lost majority of his memory. 

The real life opportunity to visit The Shack and connect with character allows readers to dig down deeper into their favorite book.  When you visit you’ll be put into the shoes of Mack, and follow the same steps Mack took while watching the shack transform. You’ll talk to Papa about the great sadness that won’t leave you and the sadness that confines you and your happiness. You’ll be able to express to Papa all your feelings and ask him many questions about the death of your Missy. You’ll get to feel the touching of Sayru on your eyes and then be placed into the visions of God. You will get to end your remarkable trip with finding the body of Missy. It’s an unforgettable trip that will last a lifetime.