April Monthly Review

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks is about two people who fall in love in a month. John Tyree is a man in the army, about to be sent to post in Germany. Savannah Lynn Curtis is a girl building houses for her club Habitat for Humanity. It is a novel in which the two are separated, and promise to marry each other when John comes back. When John comes back, 9/11 splits the two apart. John chooses to serve his country for a few more years. After two years, John comes home, and finds out Savannah loves another man.

6) When John goes back to back to Germany after his furlough, he and Savannah vow to stay in touch and to marry when he returns. Do you think it's possible to stay in love with someone without seeing them for months or years at a time? How does being apart affect Savannah and John's relationship?

10) After John's father dies, he goes to visit Savannah. How has their relationship changed at this point? Is Savannah different from who she was in the beginning of the novel? Do you think Savannah is still in love with John?

12) What do you make of John's actions at the very end of the novel? Would you have done what he did if you were in his position?

When John goes to Germany, Savannah becomes very depressed. It's hard on Savannah to keep her promise to marry John because she rarely sees him. People in the military are sent in year-long missions and can't return back. All they are allowed to do is write letters to their family and loved ones. Being apart from your "fiancee" (John hasn't actually proposed) is hard. After a while, the relationship just loses its meaning, and question why it happened. Letters aren't the same as seeing somebody in person. You can communicate, but you can't see. It's like talking on a phone; you can talk, but you can't see.

I could talk about my long distant relationship, but I rather not post it in public. Instead, I will talk about Phoebe's long distant relationship from the TV show Friends. Phoebe met a guy in a coffeehouse, after embarrassing him in public. She dated him for about two episodes, so about two weeks in the show. After, the guy was given an opportunity to go to Moscow to do a science experiment. He chooses physics over Phoebe, because Phoebe wants him to take the opportunity. She lets him go because he may never have the chance again, and if he succeeds, he will become rich and famous. After 3 years, he finally comes back. She finds out he was unsuccessful. He calls Phoebe to go to dinner with him. After a while, she realizes it's wrong to have dinner with him, because she's dating another guy named Mike.

After John returns for the first time, John and Savannah lose their ability to talk about themselves. It was just plain awkward, and they couldn't think of anything to talk about. They haven't seen each other in a long time. John could have told about his friends in the army, and Savannah could have talked about college. Time has drifted the two apart, now they don't know what to do now that they're back together. Even though they didn't talk that much, they still kept their promise to marry each other. Savannah and John had only known each other for one month, and they were in love. It was too fast, and they didn't even really get to know each other that well. The only part I don't get myself is why Savannah and John didn't get married during the time John came back from Germany. He could have taken Savannah, but he didn't. Instead, he just goes back to Germany after the incident of 9/11. John chooses to serve his country over his relationship. He could have had the life he wanted, a life with Savannah.

John comes back the second time on an emergency leave. His dad just recently died, and he wants to see Savannah. She just told John in a letter that "...I didn't mean to fall in love with someone else." John probably wants to see who he is. She tells him they lost their "magical bond" that kept them together. After some months, she began to fall in love with another man. She can't be waiting for John forever. Now, their relationship went from awkward to just good friends. She is now married to Tim. Even though Savannah is married, she still has feelings for John. Tim is in the hospital, dying from cancer. They don't have the money for an operation Tim needs to survive. The whole town gave money for the operation, but it's still not enough. She starts losing hope, and needs somebody to talk to. When she offers to write letters to John, he immediately realizes that she still has feelings for him, and kindly declines her offer.

Savannah has definitely changed since John left. She has matured into a woman. She drinks wine, talks more maturely, and sounds more calm. In the beginning of the story, she's more talkative, and talks about her past. She always liked talking about where she grew up, her dreams, etc. Now, all she can talk about is Tim in the hospital and the operation. The only good thing is that they can actually talk without an awkward silence. At the hospital, Tim makes John promise "...promise that you'll always treasure her the same way I do."

John realizes Savannah will not be able to raise enough money for the experimental treatment Tim needs to survive. And so, John takes action. He has to raise money for the operation. John realizes that Tim loves Savannah even more than he does. Tim had loved Savannah since he was twelve. John willingly sold his dad's treasured coin collection; the only thing John had to remember his dad. He sold all of the coins, except for one. Most of them he sold underpriced, but John needed to sell the money fast. John feels like he has to earn enough money for his ex-fiancee because he doesn't want Savannah to be lonely. He doesn't want her to be stuck with Alan, Tim's younger brother for the rest of her life. John quickly donated all the money to Savannah, and saved Tim's life.

If I were in John's position. I probably would have sold only half of his dad's coin collection. It's all that he has left to remember his dad by. I think half of the coin collection would have gotten enough money. John shouldn't have sold all of his dad's coin collection, his hard work, all the years he spent collecting. If it still wasn't enough money, I could sell more coins. I'd at least keep more than one coin. I'd feel as if I had a duty to keep Tim alive. I couldn't just let him die knowing that I could have prevented his death. I would be forced to get the money, even though it's not my problem.

April Literature Circle Letter #3

This week, I have read the third part of Dear John, the end of this heartbreaking novel. In Part III, Savannah had just told John she loved another man. It was pretty predictable since John hasn't been back in a year. Savannah would have to get over John and find somebody else. She couldn't be waiting for John forever. Except, John's dad just had a heart attack. Later on, John looked after his dad, recently being released from the hospital. John's dad's last words were to John was "I love you, too, John." Seven weeks later, John's dad died. John went to visit his dad under emergency leave. A visitor came by after, telling about John's dad's will. He gave all the coins to John, everything in his possession. John's dad prepaid already for the funeral, it's like he knew he was going to die.

After a while, John decides to visit Savannah. She was in a barn, and the second she saw John, she just froze instantly. When they start talking to each other, John notices a ring on Savannah's left hand. John began asking if he can meet Savannah's husband. But, then she tells him "It's Tim." When John was away, Savannah had a hard time. She needed somebody to comfort her. And that person? It was Tim. Tim was always there to support her. It turns out that Tim has cancer. Savannah and the whole town started getting money for Tim's operation. It still wasn't enough. Tim told John to make Savannah happy after he's gone. Tim feels hopeless because there isn't enough money for the operation. Alan, Tim's brother, has always clung to Tim. Alan needed special attention, and Savannah would have to take care of Alan if Tim passes away. After realizing how much Savannah loves Tim, John sells his possessions. He sells his dad's coin collection, except for one coin. John sells them for less than what they are worth, in time before Tim dies. John makes a donation to Savannah, but anonymously. John decides he shouldn't tell Savannah he donated his dad's coin collection money for Tim's operation. Tim survives, although it is not certain if he will live to an old age.

Spring Break

This Spring Break I went to Anaheim to go to Disneyland. We went three times. It got boring after the second time. We went on all the big rides, like Big Thunder Mountain and Space Mountain. My family went on Monday. I got so bored I read my English reading book, Dear John. I had nothing to do for eight hours. We were stuck in traffic for a very long time. I brought my Itouch, and Nintendo DS to play. I started playing Pokemon, but I got bored after I got to Lake of Rage. I had other games, like Cooking Mama. It reminded me of Biology Class because we played Cooking Mama after finals. On my Itouch I started playing Zenonia 2. The first game was pretty fun, so I got the second. Zenonia 2 is an RPG game that has basically better graphics and a better story plot than the first. We took about 3 breaks for coffee at Starbucks, lunch at In-N-Out, and a bathroom break.

When we finally arrived at the hotel, the Sheraton Park & Resort, I immediately stood up. My legs were falling asleep. Usually when my feet fall asleep, I take a hot shower for ten minutes. Anyways, I even got my own key card, well it was my dad's. He let me have it since my sister got a room key, and I didn't. The hotel was pretty nice. It had two beds, an OLD TV, and a separate sink from the bathroom. It was pretty good since my sister takes a long time in the shower, and at the same time I can brush my teeth. I'm pretty picky about where I stay, and how nice the hotels are. I hate really disgusting hotels with unclean glasses. We stayed there from Monday to Friday. Every single day, we went out for lunch and dinner. We ate in our room, usually cereal or bread. I was surprised, there was a 7/11 and ABC store there. It probably isn't part of the ABC stores in Hawaii because the things they have are different. They don't have those calendars of women or men in the ABC store in Anaheim. My dad and I bought milk from 7/11. We bought whole milk for my dad and I, and two percent milk for my mom and sister.

Anyways, we stayed at Disneyland from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. We usually ate at a fast food place, or somewhere at Downtown Disney. Afterwards, we'd take a break and eat dinner. One day we ate at Kagura. The food was delicious, Japanese food. It was sort of Americanized, the walls were really pretty cool. I ate Kobe beef for an appetizer, it was really tender. It looked like it wasn't cooked, but my parents said it was fine because Kobe beef was supposed to be tender. This particular Japanese restaurant had no noodles, or ramen. I was surprised because I usually order ramen or udon, so I ate teriyaki chicken. On Tuesday, we went to Disneyland, and eventually hopped over to California Adventure. It sort of got boring...and it was really hot. We decided to get frozen yogurt from the soft serve place. I asked for a strawberry swirl, they said they ran out. I asked for an orange swirl, they also said they ran out. I got really mad so I just ordered plain vanilla. Later, I got really hot again so I ate another soft serve. Their ice cream tasted so good, their ice cream tasted like they added whole milk. It was pretty thick, and was the best soft serve ice cream I ever had.

April Literature Circle Letter #1 & 2

For these two weeks, I have not annotated the book at all. It does not improve my reading skills. I feel as a waste of time and lead. I do not read over the book a second time. If I needed more information on a specific part, I will simply just find it in the book. In the first part, I liked how John and Savannah met. Savannah's friend knocked over her purse, and didn't want to get it back. It was sinking in the ocean, away from the dock. Savannah was about to jump, but John jumps in the ocean to save her sinking purse. John was a "hero" and was invited to a party Savannah was going to. John gets to know Savannah, and vice versa. They begin to understand each other, and go on dates. They never ran out of things to talk about, like their past, family, what they do for a living. John works in the army, and has to leave in one month. Savannah is building houses. After the month, they fall in love. Unfortunately, John has to go to Germany. Savannah writes letters to John, hence the title, Dear John.

Another part of Dear John that I liked was when John came back for a week. Things become...rather awkward between the two. John and Savannah lost their interest in each other, and have basically nothing to talk about. It becomes so awkward that they go talk to John's dad. Savannah studies John's dad to see if he had a disorder. John gets offended and gets mad at Savannah. Savannah also wrote letters after, about how she loved somebody else. John became very upset.

For the monthly review, I plan on writing #2, 4, and 8. They are the same questions I answered for Bastard Out of Carolina. I like these questions because they are very open. I will continue with these questions until the school year ends. I would probably recommend this book to anybody. This book is a very easy-read book, and it goes by quickly. It's a love story, so some guys may not want to read it. I was debating over reading it, and during my trip to Disneyland, I decided to read the book. (I was stuck in the car with nothing to do for eight hours.) Dear John is a love story, for guys too. I loved this book, and the ending made me cry...sort of. The author does use the words "Like I said," a lot. I found it quite annoying, as I read the book in two days. I will probably write about Savannah or John, the main characters of the book. Or maybe John's dad, he only likes to talk about coins, possibly having a disorder.

One question I have is why Savannah falls in love with somebody else. Why doesn't John quit the army to live with Savannah if he loves her so much? Didn't John "propose" to her? How did she fall in love with somebody else? John should be going back to ruin the couple, and get back with Savannah.

I predicted that Savannah and John's relationship wouldn't last. It seemed a little to perfect. In the beginning, it was an adventure, learning about each other. They spent the entire month together, learning about their past, goals, etc. If they kept talking and talking, they would have run out of topics sooner or later. Nobody can keep talking to the same person everyday, and not run out of topics. In Part Two, it becomes very awkward. Although, they do it. It creates a better chance of John and Savannah getting married, but it's very slim.

4th Quarter Statement of Purpose

This quarter, I want to write about something new. Something that I have never written or thought about. Some things I would improve on my blog posts would be proofreading. I usually always blog, and never look at it again. I will just stop writing after 500 words, sometimes I go over. My current goals as a writer have constantly changed. I like to write about anything I feel like writing about. This week, if this blog weren't assigned, I'd write about Percy Jackson and the Olympians. I read all 5 books. I read the 5th book yesterday. It was an accomplishment for me, I read a book in one day. The ONLY book I read in one day. This quarter, I might write about events happening now, instead of writing about the history of things, or a summary. I want to write about something I have never known before. Also, I write blogs for myself, nobody reads them usually. Except sometimes Elaine or Michelle leave a comment rarely.

Next year, I will be taking 0 Period Current Life Issues, AP U.S. History, AP Environmental Science, AP Calculus AB, Multimedia Art I, Physiology, and English 3. I want to take these AP classes because I really enjoy these subjects. They are my better subjects, except for maybe math. Math has always been easy, well up to 7th grade. Geometry in 8th grade killed my math skills. It challenged me, learning about angles, postulates, theorems, it was hard. I have always had a passion for history. I got really interested in 8th grade, learning about the U.S., the Civil and Revolutionary War. Although, my teacher Ms. Jacob didn't make history that interesting. I even read the history textbook on my own. My freshman year I had Mr. Wilson for Biology. It was the best class ever. I loved that class, and it was so easy. The homework only took 5 minutes, and the worst grade I got on a test was a B. Now that he is teaching Physiology, I really want his class again. He's a great teacher. I want to take APES because I heard it was the easiest AP class to take, although it was because Dr. Griffith wasn't there for half the year. I decided to take Multimedia Art this year because I heard about the budget cuts. I want to take all the electives I want now, before they get shut down. Zero period Current Life Issues is ideal for me, Multimedia Art lasts a whole year. If I were not able to take 0 period, then I would have to cut out an elective. If English were not required, I probably wouldn't take it. I really hate writing during class, or in-class essays. I have already prepared my senior year schedule on Blogger. It's a draft for now, but I plan to post it just because. I like to know what I want to take, and I spent a great deal of time planning. I'm assuming the parcel tax will not pass, and taking all the classes I want will be difficult. I will have to be flexible and may have to take regular classes since Encinal High may be coming to AHS.

March Monthly Review

Bastard out of Carolina is one of Dorothy Allison's older books about a young girl living with her mom's newly wedded husband. In the book, Bone grows up to be a Boatwright woman, with the abuse of her step-dad. Bone was a gracious girl who could make stories that everybody enjoyed to hear. When her mother gets married, Glen, the step-dad, isn't so great as he seems. He appears very nice, but after a death, he becomes very different. He treats Bone very abusively, and changes her life forever. She is not the sweet girl who could tell great stories, but becomes moody. She doesn't get along with her sister Reese, and ultimately ends up breaking her coccyx from her step-dad's abuse. Bone, however becomes very sad in the end for a certain reason. I have mixed feelings about the book. However, I would recommend this book to an adult audience, as there is lots of cursing, and people can not understand what the author is writing if they are not old enough.

2) For what audience(s) is this book intended, and how can you tell? (In other words, for whom would you recommend this book?)

I would recommend this book to a person who has lived a life in luxury or a rich family to show that everybody does not have a good life. People struggle throughout life constantly. People in Alameda are fortunate to have generally a good life. Virtually, I would recommend this book at anybody to learn about the hardships of Bone. She has endured sexual assault and abuse from her father, saw a girl die in flames, and her mother leaving with her husband to California. Bone has to now live with her Aunt Raylene, because Bone's mother is afraid of Bone hating her. Almost nobody has ever had this experience, and people should know what it's like to be in Bone's situation.

This book is generally focused for young adults. It's a book about a poor family's life, and their daily routines, and their "special" events. Bone's family is not any ordinary family. Bone faces abuse from her step-dad, Reese is a tomboy, and her family is constantly being called poor. This book also contains raping, racism, and a daughter's love for her mother. The book is quite slow in the beginning, but it gets better after the first few chapters. It's sort of like Harry Potter books, slow in the beginning, and gets better when he goes to Hogwarts. Dorothy Allison shows affection, courage, and love in the book Bastard out of Carolina.

One person I would recommend this book to is my dad. He enjoys reading, and collects many books. Reading is one of my family's favorite hobby to do. I don't get why my family likes to read, I hate reading. I recommend this only to my dad because this book contains many sex scenes. (Most of my relatives are girls, and I don't think they'd read it.) Bastard Out of Carolina is a national bestseller, and has been out for over ten years.

3) What are the weaknesses of this book, in your opinion?

One weakness is going back from family, to Glen. A major part of the books is about Glen, a new member to the family that marries Anney, Bone and Reese's mother. Allison repeatedly goes back and forth between family and Glen. It gets confusing and hard to understand. First, they start out talking about family, then Glen raping Bone, family, Glen raped Bone again, family, and then Glen raped Bone for the third time. Finally, Anney (Bone's mother) runs away with Glen. I think it's sort of a bad story line.

Although, some parts of the book were enjoyable. Allison can write a fascinating description of a suicide, Shannon's suicide. She played with a flammable liquid, and basically burned herself alive. She didn't' scream, didn't run, she just stayed in one spot, and died.

Another weakness was just trying to read the book. Usually, when I read a good book, I can read for hours. This book to me was a struggle to get through. Reading about Bone's family isn't as exciting as it seems. The only interesting part I learned about her family was that Auth Ruth dies. I like characters dying, it makes the book better. Aunt Ruth however was not a main character. It was just like "Oh, Aunt Ruth died.", no big deal. She was mentioned, but I just didn't feel sad for the family.

This book had too many characters in it. In the beginning of the book, I got very confused, with the story plot. I had to read it over several times to remember. Only five characters only stood out to me. They were Bone, Reese, Anney, Glen, and Aunt Raylene. There had to be over ten characters in this book. It made me bored of the book, and not want to read it. (I read the book up to the paperclip right before the Lit Circles was due.) If the book had less characters, I might have been more interested. Too many characters just ruins the book, and makes the book hard to read.

8) Pick a character that interested you and write about them in depth.

Glen Waddell, is Anney's second husband. They met in a diner, and have been in love ever since. After two years, Glen and Anney decide to get married. All of a sudden, Anney finds out she is pregnant. When Anney is in labor, the baby comes out stilborn. She is no longer able to have kids. They name the dead baby Glen Junior. Right before Anney gave birth, Glen raped Bone. Right now, she is only about eleven or so. She doesn't even know what's going on, and tells Glen to stop, but he keeps going. Glen appears to be bipolar. He is nice at first, but then ends up raping Bone. When Anney finds out, Glen asks for her forgiveness, saying he loves Bone, and he would never do it again...

Glen sort of disappears for a while until he rapes Bone for the second time. This time, he broke Bone's coccyx. Glen asks for Anney's forgiveness once again, after she finds out that Bone has a broken bone. Glen starts saying things like "Don't trust your grandma." to Bone and Reese. Glen disappears yet again, and Bone go to her relatives.

Glen appears for the last time when he rapes Bone again. This time, Anney walks in while they're doing it. Glen tells them to shoot him, he can't live without Anney. Anney decideds to take back Glen again. But this time, she runs away with him to California or Florida. Anney leaves behind Bone and Reese to their Aunt Raylene.

Glen to my opinion, is bipolar. He acts mean when Anney isn't around, and when Anney catches him having sex with Bone, he asks for her forgiveness. Glen is a horrible man, and I don't get how Anney forgives him. If I were her, I would run away with Bone and Reese and move to a different country. Glen was never the same man after his stillborn child.

March Literature Circle Letter #3

This week, I have not annotated the book. I never annotate because I never read the book again. Annotating to me ruins the book's resale value. I hated many parts of this book. They change between Glen and Bone's relatives too much. They rarely talk about Glen after he rapes Bone for the second time. Then, Bone's aunt Raylene finds out that Glen raped her, and then her whole family wants to kill Glen. It turns out her mother knew, but was afraid to tell someone, and if Glen were to find out, then something would happen. When Glen finally comes back, he rapes Bone AGAIN, making it the third time. This time, the mother, Anney, catches them. Anney takes Bone to the car, and Glen follows them saying "Kill me!". But, Bone goes to the hospital, and Anney goes back to Glen. Anney still loves Glen, even though Glen raped her daughter three times. Glen and Anney run away to California or Florida, leaving Bone and Reese with their Aunt Raylene for the rest of their life.

I dislike this part because I think that Bone's mom should of run away from Glen, and continue to support Bone and Reese. Aunt Raylene should have not let Glen and Anney to run away together. I wonder why Anney CHOSE to run away with Glen, than to stay with her children. Doesn't family come first? Why does she care so much about Glen? Can't she find another person to marry? Does she love Glen more than Bone and Reese? I'm also thinking of writing #2, 3, and 8 for my Book Review.

I see no connection in this book to my own life, except for having a big caring family. My grandparents had a lot of children, six in total. In this book, she has 3 aunts and 3 uncles. Her family is very supportive and loving, just like my own. They'll support themselves if they're ever in need.