Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick

       Towards the end of the book Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick, the main character, thirteen year old Steven Alper, comes to realize how much he cares about his brother Jeffrey, five.
       In the beginning of Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie, Steven writes a long account of his hatred for Jeffrey in class. He talks about how annoying he is, and how all the grown ups including his parents cared about Jeffrey more.
       When Steven finds out Jeffrey has leukemia, he suddenly realizes he could lose Jeffrey at any moment, and he begins to worry about him. This is a sudden change from wishing he was an only child, and it shows the beginning of his change of feelings. Steven keeps thinking his cancer is his own fault, and that he should do something about it.
       Towards the end, Steven begins to make huge personal sacrifices for Jeffrey. He sees that he is not just an annoying older brother to Jeffrey, but that he can guide him through his sudden tragedy. Steven saves Jeffrey from getting sick by not letting his crush, Renee Albert, inside his house, skipping out on his Band Concert to go with Jeffrey to the hospital, and almost stopping his drum lessons, the most important thing in his life.
       In conclusion, Steven realizes how important Jeffrey is to his life, when he sees how easily he could lose him. This proves the saying "you don't know the worth of the water 'til the well is dry." All people should appreciate the worth of their family members, friends and others while they can.

Memoir

      I opened the door. The cold air struck me- I could feel it passing through me in the strangest way. The dark, cold sound of nighttime, the quiet drone of city lights and slowly passing cars were suddenly all around me. I could smell the rain, the streetlight flooded sidewalks, daunting and unfamiliar. Ana stepped into the doorway, tears streaming and mascara running down her face. "Hi," I said, and brought her inside.

      My house was quickly comforting again, the late night discussion of politics from my dad, the soft spices and hot soup boiling on the stove. We stepped down the hall and into my room. I could feel myself shaking uncontrollably, and I tried to stabilize myself. We sat down on my sister's bed like we had so many other times. But this time was different. My mind was racing like a flip book, with all the possibilities to why she had come over flashing by. I couldn't help but imagine the worst, and I knew I needed to help her but had no idea how to. That was probably the worst part. She smelled like strong perfume. It felt stupid, but I asked her what was wrong.

       Ana never makes any sense. Literally. It's like all the words are mixed up in her head like a kindergarten scribble and she can never say what she really wants to. She's an impulse person, always going with her gut feeling. Ana's unique in that way; since she never over thinks anything, she's the realest person I know. 

      She exploded with everything at once. Her depression. Her problems at school. Everything was happening so fast, and I had no control. She looked guilty for coming over so late with little notice, but I felt bad for worrying about my own dumb little problems. Ana had contemplating suicide. How did this happen? She wasn't one of those attention seekers either. Her life was far from perfect, and it terrified me. I thought stuff like this happened in books, or at least to people older. I kept thinking about what could've happened to her, what still could, because her life was escalating so quickly. But I had no idea. All I could do was sit there and listen. And for then, that was what she needed.

      She cried and told me how happy she was when I said she didn't have to go home, that she could stay at my house. I should be there for her more often, I realized. Maybe my friends needed me. Not just Ana.  Everyone else. Why had I been sitting back and waiting for something bad to happen? So I started paying more attention to how my friends were acting. Because everyone needs help. I just hadn't seen it yet.

Go Ask Alice

      After only the first few pages of "Go Ask Alice",  I could tell I was being sucked into something big.
      The book was published in the 70s, supposedly based on the true diary of a 15 year old girl's life at the time. Even though I've only read about the first few pages of "Go Ask Alice",  I can feel myself being dragged down into a depressing but intense and interesting look into the tragic life of a drug addicted 15-year old.
      The most exciting part about the book is that I feel like I'm there with her, and whenever I know something bad is going to happen, I'll get that terrible feeling inside like you're driving midway off a cliff and you can't do anything but watch. But nevertheless it's exciting and I'm glad I'm reading something slightly depressing because it's a life lesson, and reading it will I think, make me realize a lot about how easily things could go south in anyone's life.

Book Similarities

      So far in "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky, I am noticing a lot of similarities between the book and "The Mysterious Incident of The Dog in The Nighttime".
      For example, the main character in "The Perks of Being a Wallflower", Charlie, is an outcast from everyone he knows. He is both categorized into certain boxes and shoved off to the side, much like Christopher in "The Mysterious Incident".
      Also in "The Perks Of Being a Wallflower", Charlie loses a dear friend, Michael. In "The Mysterious Incident",  Christopher loses his mother. The books follow how the characters react to their losses, and change and develop because of them. So far I love the book and I'm really excited to read more!

This I Believe Essay

          I believe that everyone makes mistakes, but you have to be optimistic. When you get to the point where you're sitting in your room, not wanting to think about your insane family, your friends who you think hate you, or how how you never seem to get a good grade even though you try so hard, you only have one option; knowing things will get better.

          A few weeks ago, I decided to take the subway to school without my sister's help for the first time. Yes. This legitimately was a big deal for me. Mostly because I've lived in the same neighborhood all my life and barely know what street I live on, much less how to get to school. It's a problem. Anyway, I walked to the subway (ran, actually- I had to see Mr. Goldstein and was terrified that I'd be late) and ran down the steps. I knew exactly what to do- get the F or the G until you reach 4th Avenue 9th Street. But after I got on, something was wrong. It had been like five stops already! I stood there in anxious anticipation for about five minutes until I finally tapped a woman on the shoulder and asked if this train went to where I was going. "4th Avenue… 9th Street?" she said. I nodded. "That's in Brooklyn, honey. We're in Manhattan." I looked at her. "Oh." And bounded out of the train, sobbing. 

          After getting out, crying hysterically, watching hundreds of New Yorkers pass me by with strange looks of pity, I called everyone I knew until finally my friend picked up and I was directed back to Brooklyn. My point is, I didn't stop there. I asked the tired lady at the information desk how to get back and (after receiving an appalled glance) got on the train headed to M.S. 51. I was tear streaked and feeling not only tired but stupid. How did I make such a dumb mistake? But I realized. Everyone had stories like this. Some were much worse! This was what made me unique. Maybe a little absent minded, too, but my mistake showed me that I was really a New York City girl now. I could ride around on trains anywhere I wanted (even if it was by mistake). But it wasn't a mistake really, it showed me there was a world outside of what I knew. This kind of thing didn't just happen in books. There was a lot more for me to experience, and I wanted to. After my dramatic revelation, my friends were all excited to see me. They seemed to think I had died or something. But it made me feel better, and I eventually did get to see Mr. Goldstein (who told me I was really dumb) and finish all my homework on time.

          In conclusion, everybody makes mistakes. Not everyone is who you think they are. Accidents are adventures. Mishaps become stories. To live is not to dwell over past errors, but to think about how they serve you in the future.

Character Relationship

      In the book "The Curious Incident of The Dog in The Night-Time" which i'm almost finished with,   the main character Christopher and his father have a distant relationship.
      One reason why I think this is because they never discuss their feelings or emotions about any topic. After Christopher's mother's death, although they are both obviously troubled by it, they can never seem to get rid of the looming sadness it caused. I think they would be able to move on better if they talked about memories of her; or some other shared feeling about her to help them realize they could move past her death but still remember her.
      They also don't tell each other what's going on in their life. Communication is key in most relationships, and Christopher and his dad never seem to tell each other where they've been or what they've been doing. When Christopher goes out looking for clues as to who killed the neighbor's dog, he keeps it from his father. When he finds out about a secret about his father from one of his neighbors, he doesn't tell him that he knows.
      I think if Christopher and his dad; or anyone, is having trouble in their relationship, they should talk about it, because then at least you won't have to play the guessing game at what each other's thinking.

"Revolt Of The Evil Fairies" by Ted Poston

      Ted Poston illustrates themes of justice and determination in his short story "The Revolt of The Evil Fairies", about a young boy at a colored school in the early 1900s.

      Determination was shown when the protagonist and narrator, a young boy, wishes to be Prince Charming in his school play but can't because he is too dark skinned. He realizes this, but still he says "I went out for the Prince Charming role with all my heart." This goes to show not just that the protagonist feels a strong determination to obtain the role, but that he thinks there is a possibility things will change for his community, and that he will open up new opportunities for others.

      Another way determination was shown was when the protagonist said "If I had declaimed boldly in previous contests, I was matchless now. If I had bothered mama with rehearsals at home before, I pestered her to death this time." At this point, the protagonist will stop at nothing to be Prince Charming, and it shows how angry discrimination made him, which led to his desperation.

      The theme of justice came about after the play ends after being cast once again as the Head Evil Fairy. He becomes angry at Leonardius, the boy playing Prince Charming, and punches him onstage. Post play, he says "They wouldn't let me appear in the Grand Dramatic Offering at all next year. But I didn't care. I couldn't have been Prince Charming anyway." I think this shows the protagonist feels that although he never got to be Prince Charming, he defied discrimination and did himself and his school justice.

      All in all, after reading "The Revolt of The Evil Fairies" I can conclude that Ted Poston wrote about themes of determination and justice in his story. I think this story, although fiction, makes you realize how hard it was for anyone who was discriminated against, and how depressing it must have been to grow up feeling like you don't belong in your own hometown. I think "The Revolt of The Evil Fairies" is a great mentor text for writers and readers wanting to learn about that issue.