I finished a book!

Finishing a book

Arhama Ahmed

I just completed a book called, just Ella, by, Margaret Peterson Haddix. The main character of this book is a girl named Ella. The story is a twist on the original Cinderella tale. Now, as I have mentioned before, I am a fairytale fanatic so, this book really drew me in. Ella is also a dynamic character, so she changes throughout the text.



Ella started out as a young girl, whose parents' had both died, and was now being raised by her stepmother with two stepsisters. Ella was a quiet girl who got pushed around by her "family". She got teased by her stepsisters, who called her "Cinders Ella" because they made her work in the ashes of the fire to make her beautiful face, dirty. One night, Ella's entire household, including herself, were invited to a ball. However, Ella's stepmother would not allow her to go. This is where you witness the first change in Ella's character.

Ella disobeys her stepmother and begins to work on a dress to wear to the ball, and tricks a shoemaker into making her glass slippers. This is when she goes to the ball and gets a ride from a coachman who had to leave at midnight and agreed to give Ella a ride home. Ella gets introduced, and although she wanted the announcer to say,"Cinders Ella" so that her family knew she had arrived, the man said "Cinderella". Ella dances with the prince who finds her very intriguing and beautiful. The next day, the prince finds Ella with the help of her lost slipper. They are set to be married and Ella becomes very excited. She is happy to have left her horrible life behind and be married to her love. 

However, as the story continues, you begin to witness a change in Ella's demeanor, she does not look forward to meeting the prince as often, and finds palace life boring. Eventually, she makes a drastic decision, which leads to her final change in character. Ella realizes that you do not need beauty or riches to be happy, because real happiness is found within you and the things that you love.

The central idea of my memoir

The Central Idea of my Memoir

Arhama A.

  The central idea that I came across while I read the memoir, The Hiding Place , was the power of unity.

  In my memoir, Corrie was a Christian, middle aged woman who lived a simple life with her family. They all helped who they could, and even being a small watchmaker, Corrie's father was a very respected man in the small and calm town. However, this tranquil lifestyle was disturbed with the arrival of German soldiers who worked for the Nazi organization. The people of Haarlem banded together to hear this news, as a sign of unity. This was seen on page 64, where the author writes, "And suddenly all of Haarlem was in the streets. Even Father, whose daily stroll was as predictable as his own clock chimes, broke his routine to go walking at the unheard heard of 10:00 A.M. It was as though we wanted to face what was coming together, the whole city united, as though each would draw strength from each other Hollander."

  The Germans quickly started to round up the Jewish people of Haarlem, where Corrie and her family resided. This led to an inner turmoil within Corrie, in which she decided to help all the Jewish people she could, with the help of other people I Haarlem. This again showed a strong sense of unity.

 

 An event that shows unity in our world today is the protests of people who want to stop Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).  These people are those who do not want to tolerate low wages any longer, and are willing to fight against this injustice. People from all over, even those who do not know one another, are coming together to stand up against the TPP, and work to right this wrong. This shows a strong sense of unity throughout the world, and how people can come together and gain strength to fight for what they believe in.



Starting a new book

Starting a new book

Arhama A.

    I just began a book called, Mindspeak, by Heather Sunseri. The setting takes place in the present, however, it is a book that shows a bit of an alternate universe. This is because the characters seem to be capable of abilities that we are not. The story takes place in a school called Wellington Boarding School, in Midland, Kentucky. Wellington is a high school, where the main character, Lexi Matthews, is a senior.

 

    A line in the book which shows good example of imagery is, “I looked out across the school’s front lawn. A perfect mid-September day in Midland, Kentucky. The leaves on the trees had begun to change a little—a mix of red and gold among mostly green. A good day to walk around campus and introduce fresh eyes to Wellington, I supposed(Sunseri, 9).” This allows the reader to picture a vivid scene of an autumn day. I really enjoy how the author can incorporate such little details throughout the story. I believe that the plot of this story is very intriguing, and I cannot wait to read more.

The book I finished

The book I finished

Arhama A.

   I just recently finished the book called, Saving Wishes, by G.J. Walker-Smith. The main character of this story is named Charlotte "Charli" Blake. She lives in Austrailia, in a small place called Pipers Cove. In the beginning of the book, Charli is considered a very mysterious character who prefers solitude and causes trouble. She appears to only have one friend, Nicole, who is the complete opposite of Charli. Nicole is very bubbly and optimistic. Together they get into a lot of trouble, usually because of Charlotte's outrageous ideas.

  In the book, you find out that Charlotte lives with her older brother, Alex, who owns a café. The reader knows very little of their parents. Charli can never hold a job, but still has big dreams of traveling all over the world with Nicole. In the book, a mysterious new boy, named Adam comes to Pipers Cove. He doesn't know exactly why he came there, but after Charli and Adam begin to feel infatuated with each other, Charli thinks it's because of fate.As the two fall deeply in love, Charli's past comes back to haunt her, and she learns of a secret that she could never imagine.

  I believe that people who enjoy a story with relatable characters would enjoy this story. However, I would recommend it only to young adult readers because it has some mature-but appropriate-content. The author adds good dialogue and detail to the story to make a vivid picture in the reader's mind. Based on this, I would give this story a 4 out of 5. I would also recommend the sequel, Second Hearts.