Outside Reading #1

I've been reading Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell and I've read about 85 pages. So far, I've noticed that the protagonist, Scarlett O'Hara has a very vivid personality. For one, Scarlett seems to think she can get anything she wants since she grew up in a rich family where she was very spoiled. Also, she is much more outspoken and opinionated than the other girls. At the time, girls were just supposed to do what they were told but Scarlett has an argument for everything. She's also much more flirtatious when it comes to guys. All the other girls are timid, but Scarlett plays around with them and teases them. Scarlett seems to take people and material possessions for granted and I think that things are going to change for her soon.

In the book Animal Dreams two sisters, Codi and Hallie, are different in many ways. Codi always has felt that people preferred Hallie over her for her entire life. Hallie and Codi are different in many ways and toward the end of the story Codi realizes that Hallie isn't superior to her. She also realizes that she has her own unique qualities. Codi has always thought that when her and Hallie were younger that Hallie was the one who was always protective of animals. When she's older, Codi talks to an old friend and his told that it was always Codi who was the one who wanted to save the animals. Hallie was the one who always followed in Codi's footsteps when they were little. A difference between Hallie and Codi is that Codi seems to never be at home when Hallie can make home anywhere she goes. When Hallie left for Nicaragua, Codi was a little envious that she could just make a home there right away. Also, Codi always felt that Homero liked Hallie better. Towards the end of the story when Codi took care of Homero, she realized that he might have always preferred Codi over Hallie. In one of Codi's letter to Hallie, she described Hallie as being Godlike. This apparently upset Hallie because she didn't see herself that way at all. Codi thought that Hallie was Godlike because she always wanted to save things and bring peace to the world. Even though Hallie and Codi were very close as they grew up, they both are very different and have their own good qualities about them.

I recently read...

A book I read recently was The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. A patient in a mental hospital tells his story of traveling around New York City and discovering that no one will catch and save the youth, but they have to develop and suffer on their own. The author proved this thesis by having the main character, Holden, talk constantly about how he wants to be the one who saves children from falling of the edge of a cliff while their playing. Holden realizes that he can't always be the one who saves them and they have to take care of themselves. I agree with the author's position how children need to learn some things on their own and that adults aren't going to be able to teach them everything. I really liked this peice because it always was interesting and I wouldn't be able to stop reading it.

Adjective Paragraph

Since I could remember, I have always been shy and my family moving around a lot made school difficult for me. With every new school came new classmates, but I feel very uncomfortable talking to new people so it took a while for me to make friends in each new place. Of course, when I did make friends we would move and I would have to start the process all over again. Fortunately, moving to Edina a couple years ago was my family’s final move. Knowing that we were staying longer than in past places made it a little easier for me to make friends. I know that I am still going to be a shy person but I think recently I have managed to come out of my shell.