Second Quarter Outside Reading Book Review
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher Genre: Non-Fiction
Thirteen Reasons Why is about a girl who commits suicide. Before she did she created a set of tapes that each was based on a person who was one of the thirteen reasons why she killed herself. The book takes place as Clay Jensen’s perspective as he listens to the tapes. Also it shows the effect of the tapes on him as he reads them even though in most of them he isn’t mentioned.
“A brilliant and mesmerizing debut from a gifted new author.” Says the book jacket.
Thirteen Reasons Why is a fairly depressing book in my opinion. The books I normally read are more positive. Some get a little dark but this is a subject I almost never delve into. Also the writing style is different than what I am used to. The books I normally read are very descriptive and are difficult to understand by most people. In this book there was very little tough vocabulary. This book though puts you in the eyes of a depressed and troubled teen. This book makes you almost experience the feeling yourself. Also it gives you a peek at the mind of a suicidal person. I liked the writing style of this book. Jay Asher did a good job writing this even if it was an extremely dark subject. This book well grasps in my opinion though the things that happen in a teens life. A lot of this stuff makes sense and could easily happen. Most the painful things that happen to Hannah in this book can easily happen to any teenager.
“I tear the blades of grass out of the gutter and stand up to leave. As I start walking, I rub the blades between my fingers till they fall away.” (40)
This book left me with a strange feeling. I liked it but I also didn’t like it. I didn’t like the depressing attitude of it. I didn’t like the though of someone who killed themselves then is giving people tapes to torment them. I know if this happened to me I would be a total wreck. I also liked it because it was well thought out. I liked how it switched between Clay and Hannah. I overall disliked it more than liked it. It just changed your mood when you read it. Just the stuff that seems little that affects people in a small way.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Breaking the Silence Value Essay
Nathaniel Mish
Mr. B-G
Block E
10/14/09
Breaking the Silence by: Nathaniel Mish
Today in society you mean nothing without wealth. Everyone focuses on becoming wealthy and will do anything to get it. With this constant goal of becoming rich, people forget the little things. They tend to skip over these things and not consider what is truly valuable. For me its the priceless moments that never leave your mind and have a huge impact in your life. So, what is truly valuable?
School is finally over, and yet my day of hard work is not yet over. I get on the bus and sit. Before I know it im at Tailgate. My work day begins, I do the trash, stock items, seems simple but it can get annoying. After countless hours working I finally have the money to get the one thing ive been saving for.
On my day off and I have a ride, my eyes shine. Filled with joy and sheer excitement I sprint to my mom. In the most pleasant tone I ask, "Can you take me to the mall?" When I get there I bust out my wallet and snatch my ATM card out. I feed it to the magical machine that gives me these pieces of paper and I can trade them for my ipod. I punch in my pin number and tell the machine to give me $200. It then spits out $200 in 20 dollar bills. Then it spits out my card. Greedily I snatch the money and card and stuff it in my wallet. It was then difficult to close my wallet.
I get into the Apple store and pounce on the ipod. Greedily I snatch a case for it not realizing I have mas a mistake and gad grabbed the case for the iphone. I give my greenbacks to the man and he hands me my treasure. As I walk out of the store and into the car I hold tight to the bag. Finally the ipod touch is mine! I got the lowest memory version because thats all I could afford at that time. I think the 8 gigabytes will be enough for me.
Now everyday Ii get done with a day of school, sitting through grueling class after class, I unload my backpack full of books and binders and homework. I sit down make myself comfortable and whip out my ipod. I unravel the neatly coiled pearl white ear buds and firmly position them in my ear. I quickly type in my lock code and im in. My home screen is full of apps but im not here for them. I click on the music icon and im exposed to the huge library of song after song. I quickly scroll down to my favorite local band that is from Northampton ,MA, Killswitch Engage. I look through my songs and find what I was looking for. I break the silence with a song coincidentally names "Break the Silence".
My family is very close. When were in trouble theres always someone to get your back. Theres always someone to help you solve a problem. Me and my brother Matt are especially close. We share our deepest thoughts with each other. Also we express our inner most problems and help each other solve them.
I walk out the door, I can hear my brother's metallic keys clanging against each other as he walks. He puts the key in the ignition and were ready. He turns the key and the engine comes alive. We back out of our driveway and start out journey. We putter down our street then head towards Plains School. At the intersection we turn, going to Chicopee. On this particular cold night we happened to go and get some Dunkin' Doughnuts white hot chocolates. We pull up to the window and get our delectable treat. We turn into a parking space and sip at our cups. As we sit in the car we talk about whats been troubling us. My brother asks me how the high school is going. I exclaim "GREAT". After sometime sitting in the car drinking the hot chocolate we decide that it is time to end our drive and go home. As we drive we talk more and decide to drive around more. Then after a prolonged ride we go home and go and do what we were doing before we left.
Mr. B-G
Block E
10/14/09
Breaking the Silence by: Nathaniel Mish
Today in society you mean nothing without wealth. Everyone focuses on becoming wealthy and will do anything to get it. With this constant goal of becoming rich, people forget the little things. They tend to skip over these things and not consider what is truly valuable. For me its the priceless moments that never leave your mind and have a huge impact in your life. So, what is truly valuable?
School is finally over, and yet my day of hard work is not yet over. I get on the bus and sit. Before I know it im at Tailgate. My work day begins, I do the trash, stock items, seems simple but it can get annoying. After countless hours working I finally have the money to get the one thing ive been saving for.
On my day off and I have a ride, my eyes shine. Filled with joy and sheer excitement I sprint to my mom. In the most pleasant tone I ask, "Can you take me to the mall?" When I get there I bust out my wallet and snatch my ATM card out. I feed it to the magical machine that gives me these pieces of paper and I can trade them for my ipod. I punch in my pin number and tell the machine to give me $200. It then spits out $200 in 20 dollar bills. Then it spits out my card. Greedily I snatch the money and card and stuff it in my wallet. It was then difficult to close my wallet.
I get into the Apple store and pounce on the ipod. Greedily I snatch a case for it not realizing I have mas a mistake and gad grabbed the case for the iphone. I give my greenbacks to the man and he hands me my treasure. As I walk out of the store and into the car I hold tight to the bag. Finally the ipod touch is mine! I got the lowest memory version because thats all I could afford at that time. I think the 8 gigabytes will be enough for me.
Now everyday Ii get done with a day of school, sitting through grueling class after class, I unload my backpack full of books and binders and homework. I sit down make myself comfortable and whip out my ipod. I unravel the neatly coiled pearl white ear buds and firmly position them in my ear. I quickly type in my lock code and im in. My home screen is full of apps but im not here for them. I click on the music icon and im exposed to the huge library of song after song. I quickly scroll down to my favorite local band that is from Northampton ,MA, Killswitch Engage. I look through my songs and find what I was looking for. I break the silence with a song coincidentally names "Break the Silence".
My family is very close. When were in trouble theres always someone to get your back. Theres always someone to help you solve a problem. Me and my brother Matt are especially close. We share our deepest thoughts with each other. Also we express our inner most problems and help each other solve them.
I walk out the door, I can hear my brother's metallic keys clanging against each other as he walks. He puts the key in the ignition and were ready. He turns the key and the engine comes alive. We back out of our driveway and start out journey. We putter down our street then head towards Plains School. At the intersection we turn, going to Chicopee. On this particular cold night we happened to go and get some Dunkin' Doughnuts white hot chocolates. We pull up to the window and get our delectable treat. We turn into a parking space and sip at our cups. As we sit in the car we talk about whats been troubling us. My brother asks me how the high school is going. I exclaim "GREAT". After sometime sitting in the car drinking the hot chocolate we decide that it is time to end our drive and go home. As we drive we talk more and decide to drive around more. Then after a prolonged ride we go home and go and do what we were doing before we left.
These two things are completely different but they are the same in some ways. They both are extremely valuable to me. They are different because they are valuable in different ways. My ipod helps me to relax after a long day. It also is used when im angry and I just blare my music. The "Midnight Drive" is valuable in the fact that it brings me closer to my brother and helps me vent my problems. The drive has most likely saved me from insanity. With all the people in my house it gets pretty hectic. Also my parents are constantly yelling at me so it lets me vent out so I dont bottle it up until I burst. Also I understand the effect of stress and bottled up problems. My brother suffers from a mental disorder and ive seen when stress can do. Stress to me is a very strong force. The drive helps to soothe that and help to keep me and my brother sane. Both are very valuable and I wouldn't give them up for anything in the world. Theres nothing like going on a drive with my brother and turning the radio to 106.9 and here the sounds of Killswitch Engage, and to rock out with my brother in a car.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Book Review Project(school recommendation)
Nathaniel Mish
Mr. B-G
Block E
7. School counselor’s recommendation letter
Dear Dean of Administration,
Jeremy Stone is a very intelligent individual. I believe he would be an excellent addition to your college. He’s very committed to his study of science and has a brilliant mind. He’s a straight A student and is very mature. He asks lots of questions and sometimes asks questions that baffle the teachers. He’s extremely independent and he doesn’t fool around. He takes his studying very seriously. He doesn’t do anything crazy; he’s never missed a class or been late. Neither has he missed homework. When he puts his mind to one thing he is dedicated to it he will finish it at all costs. He thinks out of the box and is capable to solve extremely difficult problems. He tends to be able to solve problems that even our teachers can’t solve. We hope that in college he can learn because we feel like he absorbs the information we teach so fast there’s almost no point. I believe that he will be challenged in college and he will put his best effort into his studies. He is dedicated to science and he is extremely well-suited for college. He’s a great student and he is very good at multitasking. I believe that he will be a very great addition and he will impress you and your administrators.
Sincerely,
Counselor Mish
Mr. B-G
Block E
7. School counselor’s recommendation letter
Dear Dean of Administration,
Jeremy Stone is a very intelligent individual. I believe he would be an excellent addition to your college. He’s very committed to his study of science and has a brilliant mind. He’s a straight A student and is very mature. He asks lots of questions and sometimes asks questions that baffle the teachers. He’s extremely independent and he doesn’t fool around. He takes his studying very seriously. He doesn’t do anything crazy; he’s never missed a class or been late. Neither has he missed homework. When he puts his mind to one thing he is dedicated to it he will finish it at all costs. He thinks out of the box and is capable to solve extremely difficult problems. He tends to be able to solve problems that even our teachers can’t solve. We hope that in college he can learn because we feel like he absorbs the information we teach so fast there’s almost no point. I believe that he will be challenged in college and he will put his best effort into his studies. He is dedicated to science and he is extremely well-suited for college. He’s a great student and he is very good at multitasking. I believe that he will be a very great addition and he will impress you and your administrators.
Sincerely,
Counselor Mish
Book Review
Nathaniel Mish
Mr. B-G
Block E
First Quarter Outside Reading Book Review
Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton. Avon Books, 1969 Genre: Fiction
In Andromeda Strain a satellite crashes down in a small town named Piedmont, Arizona. The residents of the town open the satellite and inadvertently release a deadly virus. Now the best minded scientists have to cure this virus, they discover this virus is like nothing they’ve ever seen, or studied. Its spreading fast and they have to rush to stop it. The leader Jeremy Stone is a very intelligent scientist that has won multiple medals for his finding.
“One of the great storytellers of our age… Gripping… edifying… what an amazing imagination” quoted from the Orlando Sentinel.
I personally loved this book. Michael Crichton is an amazing author. He writes with such detail, such emotion you feel like you’re in the book. When I read this book I actually felt like this was actually happening, I almost got a sense of fear because I felt like this was happening in real life. This book was written with great detail, the action in it is gripping. I read it all night because I just couldn’t put the book down. Michael Crichton uses a lot of sophisticated words and concepts but he puts it in a way that its easy to understand.
Michael Crichton also wrote “Jurassic Park” which is also a very well selling book and was made into a movie. All of his work is detailed and puts you into the place of the characters. His writing style is very appealing and it draws you into the book.
“All these projects were highly theoretical, and all were staffed by prestigious scientists. Admission to the ARPL (Advanced Research Projects List) was a mark of considerable status, and it ensured future funds for implementation and development.” (50)
In my opinion Michael Crichton is one of the best writers I’ve read. He keeps you into the story with constant action and holds his grip on you with interested vocabulary. This book relates to one of my favorite subjects: science. That’s most likely why I love it so much but it was written in such a great way. When it got into the technical wording and science terms you still were interested because it explained what was happening so you felt like you were learning while reading the book. I would give to two thumbs up. The worst part of it is when the book ends and there’s nothing left to read. I myself had to watch the 2 part series of the Andromeda Strain. That completely brought this to life. I also checked out the website whathappenedinpiedmont.com this made the series come alive.
Mr. B-G
Block E
First Quarter Outside Reading Book Review
Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton. Avon Books, 1969 Genre: Fiction
In Andromeda Strain a satellite crashes down in a small town named Piedmont, Arizona. The residents of the town open the satellite and inadvertently release a deadly virus. Now the best minded scientists have to cure this virus, they discover this virus is like nothing they’ve ever seen, or studied. Its spreading fast and they have to rush to stop it. The leader Jeremy Stone is a very intelligent scientist that has won multiple medals for his finding.
“One of the great storytellers of our age… Gripping… edifying… what an amazing imagination” quoted from the Orlando Sentinel.
I personally loved this book. Michael Crichton is an amazing author. He writes with such detail, such emotion you feel like you’re in the book. When I read this book I actually felt like this was actually happening, I almost got a sense of fear because I felt like this was happening in real life. This book was written with great detail, the action in it is gripping. I read it all night because I just couldn’t put the book down. Michael Crichton uses a lot of sophisticated words and concepts but he puts it in a way that its easy to understand.
Michael Crichton also wrote “Jurassic Park” which is also a very well selling book and was made into a movie. All of his work is detailed and puts you into the place of the characters. His writing style is very appealing and it draws you into the book.
“All these projects were highly theoretical, and all were staffed by prestigious scientists. Admission to the ARPL (Advanced Research Projects List) was a mark of considerable status, and it ensured future funds for implementation and development.” (50)
In my opinion Michael Crichton is one of the best writers I’ve read. He keeps you into the story with constant action and holds his grip on you with interested vocabulary. This book relates to one of my favorite subjects: science. That’s most likely why I love it so much but it was written in such a great way. When it got into the technical wording and science terms you still were interested because it explained what was happening so you felt like you were learning while reading the book. I would give to two thumbs up. The worst part of it is when the book ends and there’s nothing left to read. I myself had to watch the 2 part series of the Andromeda Strain. That completely brought this to life. I also checked out the website whathappenedinpiedmont.com this made the series come alive.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Albert and Rebecca
Summer Reading Essay
“7…..8…..9…10 Knockout!” the referee said, “Winner Alfred Brooks in the white trunks”. Alfred stepped out of the ring his eye bleeding a little bit, but he had won. Donatelli walked over and slapped some ice on his eye. He started walking to the locker room.
“Alfred Brooks? Hi, this is Rebecca from the Advocate I would like to ask you a few questions” said Rebecca.
“Okay. What about?” asked Alfred
“Just about your climb to success as a boxer and about your past” said Rebecca. They both walked into the locker room. Rebecca pulled out her pad and pen. “So what was your life like before you rose to contender then to champion?” probed Rebecca
“Well I lived in Harlem, I didn’t have a lot of money and I was raised by my aunt. I worked at a little market, didn’t pull in that much money. My friends started to get into drugs and I didn’t want to get into it.” Alfred explained.
“So how did you pull yourself out of this bad neighborhood?” asked Rebecca.
“We’ll my friend Henry has been working at this gym just helping around with the owner and trainer Mr. Donatelli. One day I thought about it and I realized what I wanted to be. I wanted to be a contender. So I went up to the gym, stumbled up those stairs, hmm I wonder if he fixed those? Well whatever I went up and asked Mr. Donatelli if he could train me. He accepted and I just kept working, I ran everyday and just kept working at it. Sure I had some slip-ups but I came back and worked hard to fix my mistakes.” said Alfred.
“Well I don’t want to waste your time. You probably want to tend to that eye.” said Rebecca. Rebecca starts to get up and leave.
“Wait a sec. You came to ask me some questions but I want to know a little bit about you.” Alfred said. Rebecca comes back and sits down. “I’ve read the Advocate before I read that story you had. It was pretty interesting I was hoping to meet you so I could have some more details I was intrigued by everything that happened.” said Alfred.
“Well Poland is an interesting place, lots of things, horrible things happened back in those times. Hitler had done some demented things. Those extermination camps people today are still gloomy about what happened. You can sense the anguish of the people. Some of the stories I heard where pretty crazy. I like you was intrigued though, also I had made a commitment to my grandmother before she died. Everybody in my family thought I was crazy for doing this. I kept pursuing though I wanted to know what happened, but come on I didn’t even know my grandmothers real name or last name. Too many unanswered questions. I had to know. The people I talked to that were in the camps and survived where extremely brave and were a big help when it came to helping me unravel this mystery. I learned also what my own grandmother had gone through, to see her love, my grandfather die in a hail of gunfire. Must have been scary for her.” Rebecca explained.
“Wow that’s so interesting, it a scary way. I can’t believe what happened either; I’ve read what happened to the people there, the Jews, the Jehovah’s Witnesses. They went through a lot and they hadn’t even done anything to Hitler.” Alfred said. Alfred stands up. “Thank you for telling me about your adventure. Sadly I have to go before my eye swells up. Goodbye.” Both of them chuckle to themselves.
“Goodbye and thank you for your time.” Rebecca exclaimed. Both stand up and part in different directions.
“7…..8…..9…10 Knockout!” the referee said, “Winner Alfred Brooks in the white trunks”. Alfred stepped out of the ring his eye bleeding a little bit, but he had won. Donatelli walked over and slapped some ice on his eye. He started walking to the locker room.
“Alfred Brooks? Hi, this is Rebecca from the Advocate I would like to ask you a few questions” said Rebecca.
“Okay. What about?” asked Alfred
“Just about your climb to success as a boxer and about your past” said Rebecca. They both walked into the locker room. Rebecca pulled out her pad and pen. “So what was your life like before you rose to contender then to champion?” probed Rebecca
“Well I lived in Harlem, I didn’t have a lot of money and I was raised by my aunt. I worked at a little market, didn’t pull in that much money. My friends started to get into drugs and I didn’t want to get into it.” Alfred explained.
“So how did you pull yourself out of this bad neighborhood?” asked Rebecca.
“We’ll my friend Henry has been working at this gym just helping around with the owner and trainer Mr. Donatelli. One day I thought about it and I realized what I wanted to be. I wanted to be a contender. So I went up to the gym, stumbled up those stairs, hmm I wonder if he fixed those? Well whatever I went up and asked Mr. Donatelli if he could train me. He accepted and I just kept working, I ran everyday and just kept working at it. Sure I had some slip-ups but I came back and worked hard to fix my mistakes.” said Alfred.
“Well I don’t want to waste your time. You probably want to tend to that eye.” said Rebecca. Rebecca starts to get up and leave.
“Wait a sec. You came to ask me some questions but I want to know a little bit about you.” Alfred said. Rebecca comes back and sits down. “I’ve read the Advocate before I read that story you had. It was pretty interesting I was hoping to meet you so I could have some more details I was intrigued by everything that happened.” said Alfred.
“Well Poland is an interesting place, lots of things, horrible things happened back in those times. Hitler had done some demented things. Those extermination camps people today are still gloomy about what happened. You can sense the anguish of the people. Some of the stories I heard where pretty crazy. I like you was intrigued though, also I had made a commitment to my grandmother before she died. Everybody in my family thought I was crazy for doing this. I kept pursuing though I wanted to know what happened, but come on I didn’t even know my grandmothers real name or last name. Too many unanswered questions. I had to know. The people I talked to that were in the camps and survived where extremely brave and were a big help when it came to helping me unravel this mystery. I learned also what my own grandmother had gone through, to see her love, my grandfather die in a hail of gunfire. Must have been scary for her.” Rebecca explained.
“Wow that’s so interesting, it a scary way. I can’t believe what happened either; I’ve read what happened to the people there, the Jews, the Jehovah’s Witnesses. They went through a lot and they hadn’t even done anything to Hitler.” Alfred said. Alfred stands up. “Thank you for telling me about your adventure. Sadly I have to go before my eye swells up. Goodbye.” Both of them chuckle to themselves.
“Goodbye and thank you for your time.” Rebecca exclaimed. Both stand up and part in different directions.
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