What's in store?

Authors Note: This is a retelling of the book series Maximum Ride written by James Patterson. I wrote this to demonstrate my understanding of the reading skill “retelling”.

6 kids are volunteered by their parents at a young age to be used for a secret government experiment. Once realizing this, they think they know what’s best for them, but they have no idea what’s in store. Once things get too crazy they go into hiding, every week somewhere different. But when the government catches up with them they have no choice but to protect themselves. They will do anything to stay together, but some of it might demand more than they expected.

Him (Practice Introduction)

Authors Note: This is a practice introduction to show descriptive detail. I also tried to use personification, and I tried to be really descriptive and show emotion in the piece.

The lightning cackles above me. The drops of rain run off the  leaves and splat in the mud. It’s so loud I don’t know if I hear him or not. “CRACK” the branches scream at me. I hear a scream and snap my neck around. There, through the trees I can see his silhouette. His gaze burns my pupils. He falls to his knees and starts to twitch. I frown as my feet start taking steps. I look down my feet are just walking, I turn and grab a nearby tree. My fingers one by one peel off the dripping branches. I have lost control of my body. I fight my body but I know  it's useless. Now only feet from him he stands slowly and looks me straight in the eye. He doesn't have to say anything I know what’s in store for me.

What I Think a Lemur Would Be Like

Authors Note: This is a point of view piece from the perspective of a lemur in a zoo. Reader’s should look for the funny descriptions of objects, but from what I think a lemur would think/ talk like, and the respectable word choice for a lemur! It also has some feeling that I think a lemur would have towards people.

 I  sit in the corner, wondering what life is like out of this metal box thing. I don’t know why but every day I am stuck in here and every single person that walks by here just watches me and smiles; sometimes they even have these horrible squares that makes a ridiculously bright flash that hurts my head. And one time one of the little people started to throw these tiny, oddly shaped balls at me; They taste salty and have a weird, thick liquid on them. They started to throw them at me and one hit me right between my eyes. It hurt, but the worst part was after he hit me he started to laugh and then he ran away!

I think the worst part about being in this box all day is those people with the brown shorts and hats, I like to call them “The Zoo Keepers”, because that’s what the little people call them when they come in my box. Whenever “Zoo Keepers” come in I run to the back of my box and try to not let their evil claws grab me. I desperately try to jump from branch to branch, and run between the slow one’s legs. But eventually they get frustrated and call for more of them, then they back me against a wall.

Whenever I get hungry “The Zoo Keepers” showed me how to hit this red part of the wall and then food comes out, I’m not sure how it works, but it gets them excited and then I get a orange slice! And when it’s really hot “Mary” the only good zoo keeper, brings out this amazing stringy thing that flings water at me, it really cools me down! When it’s really cold outside she brings in a warm, squishy square that I can sleep on. Sometimes when there isn’t a lot of people Mary brings me a toy that will keep me busy. Like one time she gave me a bouncy ball with holes in it and inside was apple and orange slices; It was so fun, but then she took it back before I could get all of them out!        

But the only thing that tops all of that is when at night Mary lets me hold her finger and walk around the zoo after the zoo is closed, but before I go to bed, of course. Then when we get to this big, gray building she picks me up and puts this shiny thing into a little box, then Mary pulls it down and out of a hole and opens the door. Inside we walk for a little bit and then she makes me go in this room with hay in it and a big round black thing with a blanket inside; That means it’s time for me to go to sleep. “Uh-Oh Mary’s calling me, so Goodnight”.

        

What could have happened

 Authors Note: This is a predicting piece. It is a short prediction of the ending of the story that we read in the reading lab. Readers should look for the descriptive detail and the dynamic word choice.

Cody went back to the house, clutching the hook so tightly his knuckles started to turn white. He burst through the door and ran to the kitchen, set the hook on the counter and crouched down on the ground over come with emotions. Cody stood up slowly and paced back in forth glaring at the worn gold hook that lay on the counter. Every time he paced he would get closer and closer to the hook as if it was slowly pulling him in. But when he got closer he became more determined and confident.

Once he finally got close enough he snatched the hook, stared at it with a look of fear. He was overcome with denial; he flung open the cupboard and grabbed a pot, he set it down next to some old newspapers. Quickly, but accurately he turned the stove on. Nothing happened at first; he tried, but nothing. So he walked to the shed where some extra oil was kept; on the way catching a glance of his mother in the living room. Cody got to the shed and grabbed the old can, and hurried out. When he started back towards the house, he saw something odd; there was smoke coming from the kitchen. He dropped the oil and sprinted in the house. He ran into the kitchen to find that the hook was missing and the newspapers were on fire.

He grabbed their dog’s water bowl and flung it towards the blaring fire. It didn’t do much; Cody looked around with a panic as the fire grew and raged around him. He bolted towards the door, grasped the handle and yanked as hard as he could but it didn’t move. He pulled harder and harder but nothing budged. He started to panic and his hand slipped off the handle and an overwhelming pain cut through his forearm. It was now to smoky too see anything but, he felt around the keyhole to feel that the key had been bent after it was locked so no one could leave. This was on purpose. He started for the window, when huge flame flew out of the floor and struck him in the face. He fell to the ground wailing. Suddenly a thought occurred to him; Why weren’t his parents here, he got up slowly and painfully. He stumbled into the living room, there was no head poking up from the back of the couch, he jogged as fast as his legs would carry him over to the couch, but there was nobody there.

With no other options he ran upstairs to all of the rooms and yanked on the windows but none of them would budge. He went as fast as he could back down stairs; then a thought occurred to him; what’s the point of rushing if I can’t get out? He walked slowly into the living room he sat on the couch and let god decide his fate. He sat there coughing and gasping as the air escaped from hos lungs. He lay down and quietly and calmly closed his eyes for the last time. That was the end of Cody. Nobody really understood what had happened to that family, but no one cared enough to investigate, yet there wasn’t anything to investigate. Everything had been burned to the ground. Slowly the story of the boy who wronged and then later paid the price grew old. And just like that the story of the mysterious family that still remains a mystery had been forgotten.

Never Give Up On What You Want

Authors Note: This is a “Theme Analysis” that is about the book “Divergent” by Veronica Roth. I think the theme in this story is Determination. Readers should look for the hints of highlights in the book and a book outline in the beginning.

                                                                   

Can you imagine your whole childhood being raised not to ask questions or be curious? Then one day having the opportunity to explore a different culture, would you do it? This is the problem that “Tris” faces in the book Divergent. All her life Tris was a curious child. It went against her nature not to ask questions or be curious about the world. She knew early on that she wouldn’t make it far in Abnegation, she didn't want to be there. Tris tried running away multiple times, but the authorities brought her back. She had no choice but to wait until she was 16, for the annual “Choosing Ceremony”. There she could either choose to stay in her home faction, the county she lived in, or she could transfer to a different faction and go through initiation, the process when you have to prove to the faction leaders that you belong there. The Theme in the book Divergent is to never give up on what you want, no matter what you have to do to get it.

In the beginning of the story Tris is always expected to be better than what she is. Because of her family she is expected to be something that she isn’t. Her dad is one of the Government figures in Abnegation. He especially enforces the rules of Abnegation. Tris never really had a problem with her father she always listened to him, cared for him, helped him there was no reason for her to go away because of her dad.       

Growing up in the Abnegation faction wasn’t always as simple and peaceful as it might seen. As a child you weren’t allowed to talk at the dinner table, you were forced to do anything possible to help somebody even if that meant giving up your rights.  There were many rules that Tris didn’t like, and she knew that she would have to make a choice. Therefore she was very determined to do her very best to get out of Abnegation. When the day finally came to choose her new home she chose Dauntless the faction of Fearlessness. The first task that she faced was overcoming her fear of heights by jumping off of a train over a deep trench and then jumping off the side of a building. She had to be trained to be a fighter. She was trained in hand to hand combat by fighting her classmates. She was taught how to shoot a gun and throw a knife. All of these she was determined to finish at a high rank.

She knew that if she didn’t finish within the top ten she would be factionless and live on the streets. For example Adolf Hitler is like the Abnegation government because, he was determined to kill all of the “Jews” and control Europe. And like any famous leader they all wanted something, whether it be power, strength, or just to be in control of people: they all were determined to get what they wanted; just like the Abnegation government is. like in the Hunger Games, Katniss is determined to win the games so she could see her sister again. Like these examples Tris is determined to do something with her life and to have somewhere where she’s accepted and looked up to.

We all want something in our lives. But most people think that their dream is impractical and they think that it won’t happen, so they don’t even go out and try. To be determined is to have some sort of drive to do something and want something so badly that they will go and get what they want. For most people the thing that they are striving for isn’t something too big it’s sometimes something like getting better grades, or a promotion, just little things like that. You always want something you just have to figure out what it is.

Percy Jackson (series) change

This is a Character Analysis piece. On the Percy Jackson book series. Readers should look for the lead-on's of the story and the good word choice. Readers should also look for the descriptive details. 

In the beginning of The Percy Jackson series  Percy, the main character is just a regular kid who has two huge secrets. They’re so big that he doesn’t even know about them. Until the day of truth Grover his best friend who is secretly a “Goat-man” has been watching over him making sure he’s in no harm’s way. Percy has an amazing gift, he can control the water. He can hold his breath while underwater for over 5 minutes and he can move the water anyway that his heart desires, but he doesn’t know that yet either. The other is his real dad is Poseidon or the "God of Water". You can understand why someone might want Percy dead, right. Being the son of one of the most important Roman gods, having control over any water that is in sight, and he is one of the top threats to the underworld gods.

When Percy eventually finds out who he actually is he becomes mad because nobody told him, yet they were doing the right thing because like it said in the book “A young demi-god who knows what he can do is very dangerous”.  Once he had some time to process that fact I guess it really clicked in his head about all of the sacrifices that his friends and family made. His attitude shifted and he became stronger than he was before he also became more considerate and caring. Once he decided that who he was, was ok he started to be a lot more confident and powerful. While at the camp he started to be nicer and more open to new ideas. His change kind of reminds me of The Maximum Ride series, because Max was kind of (well at least she thought she was) a regular kid and then a huge event happened and then she became a little too protective, but then after a while she started to loosen up in a similar way that Percy did. I think Percy made the biggest change in personality, he wasn’t just this ordinary kid that got pushed around by his stepdad anymore after he found out he became stronger and I think he finally felt as if he was important to the world. That change reminds me of the movie “Cyberbully” because Taylor Hillridge (a.k.a Emily Osmet) became stronger throughout the movie  and didn’t care what people thought of her.

At the end of the books it was obvious that Percy had become stronger and a lot more confident than he was before. You could tell that by the way he acted towards everyone he had a lot of confidence, he almost sounded like he knew exactly what was going to happen, where it was going to happen, and why. I wrote this because of the amazing change from a regular kid that got bullied in school to the hero to the world, son of a Roman god, and a kid with an extraordinary ability. 

My Day with the Founding Fathers

Me: Interviewer

Founding Fathers: “Interviewee”

Authors Note: This is an essay in the form of an interview. Readers should look for the hints of the Constitution and the different style of words.

Interviewer: Hello, today I will be sitting down with the Founding Fathers. We are going to ask them  some questions.

Interviewer: Well then let’s get started.

Interviewer: What do you think of our technology and electronics?

Interviewee: Your technology and information moves much too fast for us to understand.

Interviewer: Ha-ha. Now we have much more wireless technology then back them.

Interviewee: It’s magnificent how far your technology can travel, and how far it can go.

Interviewer: It is, it really is.

Interviewer: What do you have to say about how much we consume in comparison to 1776?

Interviewee: The generations of today definitely consume more and more each year, whether it be food, knowledge, or power.

Interviewer: Might I add that we now have more resources and opportunities than you had when you were growing up.  

Interviewee: That is true although the society of today is MUCH more wasteful, you have become a “throw-away” society. Back 1776 we didn’t have much, but when things broke we fixed them instead of throwing them away.

Interviewer: That’s true, now a days we get toys with our food. And even then we usually don’t even save them.

Interviewer: Ok let’s move on. How would you describe the pros and cons of society?

Interviewee: We can’t exactly describe what the goods and bads are about what the United States of America has become, that would create an uprising.

Interviewer: Ok we’ll move on then. What’s something today that you wish that you had when you were a boy?

Interviewee: We all agree that we would enjoy all of the new machines for farming, like tractors, milking machines, and heated farm houses.

Interviewer: That would’ve been helpful wouldn’t it, like instead of plowing the fields by hand you could have something to attach to the back of the tractor. 

Interviewee: Exactly.

Interviewer: Well that’s all the time we have for today, see you next time folks when I sit down with Martin Luther King Jr. Good night.