The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

I have to admit that I have not read the whole book of the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, because of sheer lack of time (family issues). I have read some of it, so I get the gist, and I have been to class so I understand a bit more about the book, but I am afraid I am not quite as informed about this book as I am about the others. I got to page 80, when all of the children are in Narnia, and Edmund just left the beavers’ house.

I think this might not be the best book for young readers. Not specifically because of the story, but because of the language used. It is quite old, dare I say Modern English. It is however a book that takes place around the time of the second world war, so I do understand  why they chose this kind of language.

There are 7 books, and as I understand the White Witch is defeated in the first book. So I was quite curious what the other 6 books would have been about. After reading what the other books are about (prince Caspian, etc.) I must say that I think C.S. Lewis thought of this series just to be one book, The lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. It seems to me that the other books just originated from the success of the first book.

In the lesson we discussed the characteristics of The Quest. The call, the journey, the obstacles, the final ordeal and the goal. From what I know about the book now, it seems to me that:

–          The call: Mr. Tumnes disappeared because of his involvement with Humans. Lucy feels guilty because she was the human that caused him to be arrested. Edmund, wanting to become king of Narnia with his brother and sisters as servants, thinks it is his own fault. He is a criminal.

–          The Journey: On their way to defeat the white witch.

–          The obstacles: I think this must be Edmund. Surely the kids would not want to hurt their own brother?

–          The final ordeal: The fight between the white witch’ army and the army of Aslan.

–          The goal: To free Mr. Tumnes and Narnia from the evil reign of the White Witch.

A good novel is:

A distancing from the ordinary
This is most certainly true in the story. I have never read a similar story like this one. Though I have of course read books about leaving to another world (Harry Potter for instance), I have not read any along the lines of this one. And wouldn’t everyone want to spice up their (ordinary) lives by just leaving for a different world beyond anyone’s imagination?

Language
I think this might be a little off-putting for the children. Like I explained earlier: It is quite old, dare I say Modern English. It is however a book that takes place around the time of the second world war, so I do understand  why they chose this kind of language.

Convincing world – based on history or myth
Even though a world like this does clearly not exist, it is somewhat convincing. Just because it is an imagined world, they have real world problems. Like war, betrayal and standing up for what is right.

The Curious Incident of the Dog at Nighttime

The curious incident of the dog at nighttime, is a book that has been recommended to me a lot of times. I was pretty hesitant about it at first, because I thought it would just be another informational book about how a young boy gets through daily life with his ‘handicap’. But after I started reading the book I realized it was everything but that. This book is an exciting and thrilling book about a young boy, trying to solve a murder. The focus is not at all on his handicap, but it is cleverly integrated throughout the whole book. I must say I was pleasurably surprised by this fact.

One aspect stood out to me immediately and that was the fact that the book had a lot of pattern. This was noticeable in the way that all of the chapters were prime numbers and that 1 chapter was about the story, the following about his life and the way he thought about things. And that repeated throughout the whole story. It was slightly distracting though to be interrupted in the story so often, and I can see that children would get lost and disinterested because of this.

I already knew a lot about Asperger syndrome, because of my previous education (a teacher’s assistant, where I have to learn a lot about these sort of things). So I was pleasantly surprised with the way the writer brought this particular disorder to life. It was down to a T what I had learned about it. It was quite enjoyable to read and think: “I cannot believe how well he integrated that aspect of not being able to touch anyone. And the colour of food, amazing how he knows so much about this! ”. I really quite admire the research the writer must have done!

I think older children might not like this story very much but the younger children will. They will not understand some of the deeper meanings in the book (the mother, not being dead foreshadowing). So I think the adult reader will be quite interested in the book too. The younger children will see this as a murder mystery book, like Christopher meant it to be. The older generation will probably focus more on the actions and thoughts of Christopher. To see what it is like to live with a disorder like Asperger. They will also be able to see that a lot of the ‘surprises’ that children encounter (the affair, father killing the dog, mother still alive, etc.) have been foreshadowed in the book in some way. Of course we do not know exactly what will happen, but you do realize that something is not quite right when you read that they will not visit their mother in the hospital. And when she dies, without Christopher seeing her a last time, you know something is up with that story.

In class we discussed this book as a crossover book. I originally had a different idea with the word crossover, but the fact that it is both enjoyable of kids and adults seems like an appropriate description. I think this book is a great example for these crossover books because of what I stated earlier: I think older children might not like this story very much but the younger children will. They will not understand some of the deeper meanings in the book (the mother, not being dead foreshadowing). So I think the adult reader will be quite interested in the book too. The younger children will see this as a murder mystery book, like Christopher meant it to be. The older generation will probably focus more on the actions and thoughts of Christopher.

Tracey Beaker

The Story of Tracey Beaker used to be my favorite tv series when I was younger. The witty Tracey, who seemed like a really tough girl but actually was really insecure about herself and the rest of the gang on the dumping grounds.

I really liked that the book and the series are somewhat similar. The pictures that were used in the book are also used in the series.

The book is very visually attractive, and I think this would be a great book for kids who are easily distracted. This is because the pictures but also because of the lay out in the rest of the text. The way that letters to and from Tracy are in a different format as the rest of the text. You notice this when you first open up the book. It starts off with a chapter about herself, which looks like it has come from a journal or something. Later on we notice3 that it actually is a journal. The first chapter is a great way to introduce Tracey to the readers, so they can get a clear picture about her before they dive headfirst into the story.

Once the first chapter begins, I noticed it immediately kept up a steady pace, and there were hardly times I felt the story was lacking pace. This makes it quite an enjoyable book for young readers, because it is very difficult to get bored with a book like this one.

This lesson was about identity crisis. I think Tracey has an identity crisis and because of it tries to hide the fact that she is really insecure. If she pretends to be this tough as nails kids, then nobody can hurt her. Or nobody dares to try. I think she is even fooling herself, because she writes about it in her own journal. She pretends her mother is some sort of amazing super star, who will come and sweep her away from the miserable foster house to enjoy the rest of their life together. As a reader we know that the chance that this will happen is next to zero. But when she meets Cam, a scrubby writer, she is nothing like the fabulous mother Tracey always envisioned. But in the end she does turn out to be the best foster mother for Tracey, and even she is starting to realize that. You can see she has matured over the duration of the book, because when she is bidding her farewells to the other foster kids she shows them how much she has grown (slice of her own birthday cake for Peter, her Mickey Mouse pen for Justine, who used to be her arch nemesis).

I think this book is suitable for the younger readers, up to an age of 12 years old. Though I have to say I quite enjoyed reading the book myself.  This is obviously because I have watched the series and I was delighted to find that the series (at least the first 13 episodes) follow the books course.

Twilight

My thoughts about hyped up books (see Hunger Games) also account for the Twilight books. But since I decided I would get over my prejudges I also read the twilight book. Though I am definitely not a fan of the vampires that sparkle in the sun, I must say I do not hate this book as much as I thought I would. Did I love it? No. But did it make me want to gouge my eyes out? No. I am going to have to say that this was not a book I would read with the multitude of the Harry Potter series (10 times and counting), but it had its moments.

I have watched the film before I read this book, out of pure curiosity. This kind of ruined my whole take on the story. A socially awkward girl moving to the town of Forks, just to be swept of her feet by an impossible romance just seemed a little too simple for me. The fact that the main character (Isa)Bella Swan is portrayed by none other than Kirsten Steward did not really help the story grow on me. Kirsten Steward is the kind of actress I get annoyed with very easily. The nervous ticks, constant playing with her hair, stammering and mumbling all of her lines are just a few points that really threw the film off for me.

For this very reason I was surprised that the main character did not annoy me as much as she did. I liked the book-Bella a lot better as the film-Bella.  The idea of the story is not an original one, though it has included some surprising elements. The new girl idea who is fawned over by all guys in her new town is sort of a cliché.

Another thing I find very strange, is the fact that nobody ever seemed to notice something weird about the whole family. If they went through all four years of high school, how could nobody have noticed the whole family did not change one bit? How could they have not noticed how cold and hard they were? This really should have attracted some attention. Especially when the whole clan disappears when the sun is remotely shining. Which is another fact I find quite astonishing. Apparently the sun never as much as shimmers though the thick clouds that lay over Forks. Not one ray of sun, unless it is expected.

For the first half of the book I was also quite bored with the book. But the book started to spike my interest after the chapter ‘The Game’. After the baseball game the 1 of the 3 vampires (James, the tracker) really wants Bella. I found that this part of the book was actually very well written and was portrayed very badly in the film. This intrigued me and caused me to be more interested in the story. I do think the way Bella feels about Edward is the way young adults feel about their first (mutual) love. They cannot imagine being with anyone else and, literally, want to spend the rest of their lives with the object of their affection. Though I do think the delusion of actually doing so is actually quite a mistake. I think youth literature should not only be for entertainment purposes, but also for some practical life lessons. Kids should know they do not always get their happy ending, no matter how much they want to. I have seen some young girl who completely lost it because of this book. They actually started to believe in the existence of vampires, and are desperately hoping for one to sweep them of their feet and give them eternal life with them. This is insane! There are some positive messages in this book though, such as: Love conquers all, be loyal to your family and friends, etc. I guess you could say that sort of balances the book out, but I do not know if I am completely sold on this book…

But even so, after the ending on book one, I could not help but read the second book. After this I read the 3^rd and 4^th book to. I had the time to do so because I read this book during the summer break. As I mentioned before, I am not the biggest fan but I do find the books enjoyable. Just to read something different from my usual stuff.

In class we discussed the idea of the first love genre. We had to discuss if the first love described was realistic. I am quite divided on this subject. I find that the first love described is a lot like you very first love. Completely drawn to someone, thinking he is the one and you will always stay together, willing to give up anything for him… Sounds like a first romance to me! But on the other hand the story is as unnatural as can be. Bella does not have any choice in falling for him, because everybody does. Because ‘Everything about him invites her in’…

The Hunger Games

Whenever I hear about a book that is completely hyped up, I instantly decide I do not like the book. I do not know why I feel this way but I just do. So I decided I had to overcome this way of thinking, and what way would be better than to read them for a literary course? Since the Hunger Games and Twilight (two of the books in my top 5 of ‘DO NOT READ’) are both in the literary list, I decided to read them. I started reading the Hunger Games in the summer vacation, and was quite surprised to find that I actually liked the book. In fact, I liked it enough to buy the other two books from the trilogy and read them too!

I started of quite reluctant, because I thought I was just going to read some silly love story about a girl and a boy. It surprised me that this was not the main track of the story. From the first page I was hooked and did not put down the book until I turned the last page. The writing style really dragged me into the story and the tough Katniss kept me there. Even though it was quite clear from the beginning of the book what was going to happen at the end (who survives and who does not), it still managed to keep the suspense going. I could actually see a world like this in the future. What I really liked was the no-bullshit-attitude that Katniss Everdeen has. She does not take crap from anyone and is quite a role model for girls these days. She is the symbol of standing up for yourself, caring for other people and to not just do what you are told. The underdog from district 12, who is completely beautified by the team of stylists. While reading this part of the story, I felt like Suzanne Collins was actually mocking the society of today a little bit. Katniss thought it to be strange to want to be thin and look young, while in her district it was a good thing to be bigger and look older. The people who looked old, had made it through tough times and gained respect, and people who had a little more flesh on their bones where obviously rich enough to buy food or went hunting. In our society today it is also in fashion to be thin and look young, and I instantly felt as though this was a jab at this belief of beauty.
The chapters leading up to the games were just as entertaining to me as the games themselves, and I loved the aftermath too. I watched the film after reading the book, and I was quite impressed with it. The only thing I thought to be a shame was the fact that the aftermath was not as distinct in the film as in the books.

The ending of the story was a disappointment though, or rather quite puzzling. But it did make me buy the second and third book, so I guess they succeeded in their goal to keep their readers interested. The second book was also a joy to read, a very good sequel, but the third book really disappointed me. The whole book had a different feel to it and it was much too violent for my taste (even though they had to kill everyone in the first book, the third one seemed much more violent and horror-like).

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In class we discussed the idea of an imperfect world. One slide that really stuck with me was this one:
– Developing a sense of competence

– Discovering their world

– Face danger – and survive

– Simple

– Characters – good or bad

– Harmony/disharmony/harmony restored

– Adventure

The reason this slide stuck with me is because all of the mentioned aspects were present in the Hunger Games story. For instance, Face danger – and survive: When we start reading the book, we know how it is going to end. Katniss will obviously survive and somehow we all have a feeling Peeta will too. They face danger by going into the arena, to fight to the death, but somehow they both survive and go home as hero’s. Well… For a while.

But Harmony/disharmony/harmony restored: is something I could not easily find. Sure, there was ‘harmony’ in the beginning of the book, but even then it was not real harmony. The book started out with disharmony, after which it got worse, and the harmony did not restore afterwards. They were just in the same place as where they started, just a bit wiser and more damaged. The only harmony I can find, is at the end of the 3^rd book, when everything is supposed to be ‘Okay’ after Katniss kills Coin and Snow is dead too. She is ‘happy’ with Peeta, and has two kids. Though I still feel like she was only settling.

Whenever I hear about a book that is completely hyped up, I instantly decide I do not like the book. I do not know why I feel this way but I just do. So I decided I had to overcome this way of thinking, and what way would be better than to read them for a literary course? Since the Hunger Games and Twilight (two of the books in my top 5 of ‘DO NOT READ’) are both in the literary list, I decided to read them. I started reading the Hunger Games in the summer vacation, and was quite surprised to find that I actually liked the book. In fact, I liked it enough to buy the other two books from the trilogy and read them too!

I started of quite reluctant, because I thought I was just going to read some silly love story about a girl and a boy. It surprised me that this was not the main track of the story. From the first page I was hooked and did not put down the book until I turned the last page. The writing style really dragged me into the story and the tough Katniss kept me there. Even though it was quite clear from the beginning of the book what was going to happen at the end (who survives and who does not), it still managed to keep the suspense going. I could actually see a world like this in the future. What I really liked was the no-bullshit-attitude that Katniss Everdeen has. She does not take crap from anyone and is quite a role model for girls these days. She is the symbol of standing up for yourself, caring for other people and to not just do what you are told. The underdog from district 12, who is completely beautified by the team of stylists. While reading this part of the story, I felt like Suzanne Collins was actually mocking the society of today a little bit. Katniss thought it to be strange to want to be thin and look young, while in her district it was a good thing to be bigger and look older. The people who looked old, had made it through tough times and gained respect, and people who had a little more flesh on their bones where obviously rich enough to buy food or went hunting. In our society today it is also in fashion to be thin and look young, and I instantly felt as though this was a jab at this belief of beauty.
The chapters leading up to the games were just as entertaining to me as the games themselves, and I loved the aftermath too. I watched the film after reading the book, and I was quite impressed with it. The only thing I thought to be a shame was the fact that the aftermath was not as distinct in the film as in the books.

The ending of the story was a disappointment though, or rather quite puzzling. But it did make me buy the second and third book, so I guess they succeeded in their goal to keep their readers interested. The second book was also a joy to read, a very good sequel, but the third book really disappointed me. The whole book had a different feel to it and it was much too violent for my taste (even though they had to kill everyone in the first book, the third one seemed much more violent and horror-like).

In class we discussed the idea of an imperfect world. One slide that really stuck with me was this one:
– Developing a sense of competence

– Discovering their world

– Face danger – and survive

– Simple

– Characters – good or bad

– Harmony/disharmony/harmony restored

– Adventure

The reason this slide stuck with me is because all of the mentioned aspects were present in the Hunger Games story. For instance, Face danger – and survive: When we start reading the book, we know how it is going to end. Katniss will obviously survive and somehow we all have a feeling Peeta will too. They face danger by going into the arena, to fight to the death, but somehow they both survive and go home as hero’s. Well… For a while.

But Harmony/disharmony/harmony restored: is something I could not easily find. Sure, there was ‘harmony’ in the beginning of the book, but even then it was not real harmony. The book started out with disharmony, after which it got worse, and the harmony did not restore afterwards. They were just in the same place as where they started, just a bit wiser and more damaged. The only harmony I can find, is at the end of the 3^rd book, when everything is supposed to be ‘Okay’ after Katniss kills Coin and Snow is dead too. She is ‘happy’ with Peeta, and has two kids. Though I still feel like she was only settling.

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Alice in Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland was my favorite film when I was younger, so naturally I chose this book to read for the Classic Text assignment. It was to my great surprise that the book was not compliant with the Disney film at all. Though there certainly were basic and also specific elements which appeared in both the film and the book, I was shocked to find how drastically Disney changed the story. I was in fact quite irritated with the Alice in the book, while this has never happened with the film. I think the ‘Book-Alice’ is quite a bratty, know-it-all who quite easily begins to doubt her whole being, just because she changes in height a few times. I also think she interrupts the other characters quite often, to ask them questions about the most trivial things.

What I loved about the book was the absolute absurdness and the creativity. The writing style made it very easy to paint a picture is my head, which is something I can certainly appreciate in a book. I am also quite fond of the whole imaginary world kind of stories, because you can just let your imagination run wild with those stories.  In the end I found it quite a disappointment when I read about all of the sounds that actually where the sounds of things in the real world (the cow-bells, etc.). For me, this kind of burst the bubble of the unique imaginative world.

When I didn’t like about the book was the fact that Alice was kind of a passive heroine. She didn’t take any real action, she just went along with everything that happened to her. Though this could be the effect of being completely overwhelmed, it did not seem like she was overwhelmed at all. Whatever was presented to her, she just went along with it no matter how silly it was. The Duchess’ baby who slowly changed into in pig, the soldiers that were actually a deck of cards, a Cheshire cat which can pop in and out at any given time at any given place, etcetera.

When I thought of patterns in the book, I instantly thought of the shrinking and growing, but also of the rabbit. I think the rabbit is supposed to be a symbolic creature, for he is always late and time is running out. I struck to me that this might be a reference to Alice’s childhood. Maybe time was running out for her too, and the rabbit was a reminder that she had to grow up. This is connected to the other pattern, the shrinking and growing. She is growing up, but maybe she does not want to. This would explain the constant changes in her size, despite it being an entertaining obstacle in the story. This theory only started to form when I was forced to think of the book in a literary way, not just an entertaining one. Actually, it happened when I started writing this blog…

What puzzles me about the book is the ending. It was all a dream, another thing I do NOT like about this book, but at the end the older sister has the exact same dream Alice had. I do not quite understand why the author wanted to put this element in there, because it seems way to much of a stretch (even though the whole book is basically a stretch).

All in all, I quite enjoyed this book, even though it had its ups and downs. Alice in Wonderland will always be one of my favorite stories, but this book has changed my outlook on the film.

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After discussing this book in class I noticed I have made a slight mistake while reading. The ending of the book is not as confusing as I thought, because it appeared that Alice told her sister about her dream in Wonderland and this story triggered her sister to dream about this world too. This clarified a lot for me!

We also determined that, though most of the students thought Alice was in fact a bratty child, she was exactly that: A child. So we mustn’t look at her decisions and realizations as an adult, because when she was not capable of those kind of rationality.

When I heard the writer of this book was quite a bit too friendly towards little kids, I was appalled. The story lost its touch to me, and I think I can never read this book without judgment anymore.

We also discussed Peter Pan, the Secret Garden and The wizard of Oz, which are similar stories. The stories are similar, because they are all obviously children’s novels. There are a few characteristics that show this. For one, in all of the books the main character is traveling somewhere where there are no parents. They are free to do whatever they like, and growing up in the process. They learn they have responsibilities and start acting accordingly. All of these books have a very straightforward plot. There is no subtext hidden in the books, because that would be too difficult to figure out for young children. The scene in all of these books is an imaginary place. This means that the children reading it can let their imagination run wild, which is something they do in that age.