Book Review

What would you do if you received tapes of a dead girl explaining how you were part of the reason shes dead? This is exactly what happened to a young boy named Clay Jensen, along with 12 other people that contributed. By Jay Asher, this book is possibly the best book in the world.
This book is very powerful. It just goes to show that you really should watch what you say and do to people, even if it's not a big deal. If you think it would hurt their feelings, just don't say it. It's very simple, actually. Think of it this way, by biting your tongue and not saying it, you could save some one's life. The mean things you say just might push them over the edge.
Jay Asher is an incredible writer. One of the reasons I love this book is that he organizes the story so well. He keeps the events in order but puts a little twist on things so you later find out how everything ties together. Hannah Baker, the narrator and main character of this book just adds sprinkles on the cupcake. When the book starts she is dead but the whole time your reading what is on the tapes and listening to her explain her story, so it's like shes alive the whole time. Asher gets so into it with her character, you begin to feel like you start to know her as a real person. Which bring real emotion when she's explaining how all of these people hurt her in so many different ways.The setting of this book doesn't exactly take place in any certain place. I guess you could think of it as inside Hannah's thoughts. This book relates to me because I'm a teenage girl and the things that she describes some of her "friends" doing, happens to everyone at some point in their lives.
I recommend this book to girls, boys, adults, elderly, teachers, doctors, anyone! Set aside some time because once you get to reading, you won't be able to put it down.

Essay on my duty as an American Citizen

“You are the future. No pressure, but your generation determines how the world is going to be when you all are adults.” This is a lecture my United States History teacher began the class with. Hearing this and his further explanation on this topic made me realize that he’s right. It made me worry that my generation will never accomplish the responsibilities we need to keep our country alive as adults.

Being responsible to my nation includes many, many things you should on a day-to-day basis. I'm going to give only two that everyone, American Citizen or not, should be doing out of respect for the people around them. Being kind and treating people equally as you would want them to treat you is, in my opinion, the most important thing everyone should do every day. Tomas Jefferson, the 3rd president of the United States of America, happens to agree with me. "We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their CREATOR, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." Sometime before slavery was abolished, if someone had said that you should treat everyone, men AND women the same, they most likely would have laughed in your face. Women had no rights whatsoever. They were not allowed to vote, own land, and they even had to listen to everything their husband or father told them. If their husband told them to do a chore or cook and they refused, they would either have been beaten, or possibly even killed. "we observe today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom--symbolizing an end as well as a beginning--signifying renewal as well as change." John F. Kennedy was a very smart man, who is very correct. Unlike all those years ago, today we are free. Men and women have the exact same rights as the other. Women can vote and it's not okay for a man to beat his wife if she chooses not to listen to what he has to say. This is obviously A huge change from how the world used to be, which is good. I agree with John F. Kennedy that this was a positive and necessary change.

Being kind and treating someone how you'd like to be treated can take you a long way. I mean, look how far we've come since slavery.

The second thing that is needed to be a responsible citizen to my nation is having at least an idea on what is going on in the political parts of the world. In the Declaration of the Independence, Thomas Jefferson states that "..it is their Right, it is their Duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future Security." In this quote, he is basically saying that if the government is doing something the people don't agree with, it is our responsibility to solve the problem. Seeing how our government is a democracy and the people of our nation have the right to vote for whomever is running it, it is our responsibility to know enough about each running candidate to be able to vote against what they think would be a bad president, or for the president that would give our nation just what it needs. If we, the people who decide who is going to run our country, has no idea about any of the people running, were obviously in big trouble.

So, everyone, kind or not, should have at least an idea of what is going on in the political region. So that our country can stay alive and healthy!

These things we need to practice. Everyone- young or old, boy or girl. We all need to realize that our responsibilities are what determine the future, our future.

 

Addie's Reading Bucket List

1. Speak- by Laurie Anderson: I've heard about this book once from a friend, my best friend since I could remember, a few years ago but was too young to care what it was about. It sort of caught my eye when my English 11 teacher, Mrs. Gillmore, started giving a book talk about it. She started off by saying that she had read the book already and it made her want to read it over and over. As soon as she started describing the book to our class, I was interested. Later that day I checked it out from her and I am currently on page 132.
2. Thirteen Reasons Why- by Jay Asher: As soon as I heard what this book was about, I knew that I had to read it. Mrs. Gillmore, my English 11 teacher, told us that this book had to do with a teen girl that took her own life because of what people had done to her. I feel that I would be stuck to this book because it's a drama about a teen girl and that is something that I can relate to. Also, I love books with emotion in them and this book seems to be full of it.
3. The Princess Bride- by William Golding: I heard about this book from my little brother, someone who I hardly listen to, and I seem to be drawn to it for some reason. Love stories are my thing, except for the unhappy ones. You know, the ones that make the love story a love story dies? This book seems to be some sort of very sad love/horror/action book. All of these things are what I look for in books so I thought I'd give it a go.
4. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children- by Ransom Riggs: I was immediately drawn to this book, no questions asked. When I heard this book was about kids with unnatural talents, I had to get it. It seemed sort of scary and interesting at the same time. Plus, I have a few weird talents myself, so I knew I'd have something in this book to relate to.
5. The Fault In Our Stars- by John Green: Mrs. Gillmore, my English 11 teacher, let us watch a book trailer online that told us about this book. The information that I gathered was that it is about two children that are cancer patients. They meet each other and stay friends and help each other through the hard times, if I'm not mistaken. I love books that I know are going to be good just hearing what their about and I think this is one of them. This book seems to be full of emotion and surprise. I'm more than excited to get started on this book!
6. Paper Towns- by John Green: For the most part, I picked this book because The Fault In Our Starts seemed like such a well put together story. I figured if it's by the same author, maybe it'll be just as good. From what I hear about this book, it's going to be a love story/mystery.. Exciting! I also heard that this book is super easy to get hooked onto, which is even more exciting. I very much dislike slow books.
7. Looking For Alaska- by John Green: I was attracted to this book because it's about a boy, Myles Halter, that just sort of plays it safe at his house and isn't very adventures.. Until he decides to go off to boarding school and meets this girl named "Alaska". I heard about this book from my mom, another John Green fan. She told me that once she started this book, she couldn't put it down. Which tells me a lot because shes not that much of a reader. I hope to read this book very soon and be done with it just as fast.
8. The Perks of Being A Wallflower- by Stephen Chbosky: We, my English 11 class and I, watched a book trailer on this book. I think it's an important book to read because it's about A kid going from being bullied in high school and having no friends, to finding two people that accept him for who he is. They are crazy and outgoing and that's okay with them. They seemed to not care what other people (bullies in their school) have to say about them and I think that's a good lesson we should all learn. I also understand that this book is currently being made into a movie. Of course, everyone knows that the book is always better, so I have to read the book before the movie comes out.
9. Along For The Ride- by Sarah Dessen: The two things that brought this book to my attention was that it's about a teen age girl and that it's by Sarah Dessen. I have read Just Listen by Sarah Dessen and I just love it. I actually went to buy the book after I read it the first time because I knew that I'd want to read it over again.
10. Lock And Key- by Sarah Dessen: I'm a big Sarah Dessen fan and I would love to read Lock and Key by her. All of her book are well put together and organized. Her stories are always fun and exciting and something I can always relate to.

Sinking Titanic

If only Captain Smith would have told us that it happened when it did. We could have had more time to help the people that needed us. How could Captain Stanley just ignore the men drowning and freezing to death when he was only nineteen miles away?
My father was one of those men. I heard him calling out my name but the men that was rowing just wouldn't turn around.
Five years have passed and I don't know how it's possible for me but I think I have finally forgave the men that did wrong that day.

Does he deserve forgiveness?

"He sought my pity, but had he any right to pity?" I believe the answer to this question is no. "I wanted to go home to my mother. I knew what my father would say in his inflexible severity. But my mother.. She would look at me with other eye." This is the words from the selfish soldier. Did he ever think about how the Jew felt when these words were coming out of his mouth? Did he think of the fact that the Jew he's talking to most likely hasn't seen his mom or dad in a very long time, not knowing if their even alive anymore.
"Look, those Jews died quickly, they did not suffer as i do- though they were not as guilty as I am." How could he have the nerve to say the Jews didn't suffer? Their suffering was through their everyday life. The Jews suffered a lot more than this soldier could even imagine: not eating for days, working until their bodies literaly quit, being beat by the soldiers if they did anything wrong, and the scariest of all, being shot or gassed when they least expected it. The Jew deffantly suffered.

Forgiveness?

"For over 20 years, a warlord kidnaps children, forcing them to be soldiers or sex slaves." In my openion, a situation such as this one should not be forgiven. A person in power for such a long time over so many people, most likely won't be asking for forgiveness any time soon. A man name Koney is a perfect example of this. He has kidnapped millions of kids and to this day is still capturing more. He has been doing this for years and is showing no signs of repenting his sins anytime soon.

THE FAIR!:D

The sound of babies crying from all the loud noise, little kids fussing and rushing to the next line, and teenagers yelling and pumping each other up to see who was "man enough" to not chicken out. The sound of rides zooming by and the wind from them, so strong it could knock a kid down. The smell of cotten candy and fresh cooked food. Tasking the food, the hyping candy, and the coldand so refreshing soda. Feeling the soft, sweet cotten candy melt in your mouth like an ice cube in a pile of hot coles. Feeling foamy, plastic plates and the condensation falling from your cup because of the amazing summer weather. Feeling the rusty metal as you stand against it, unpatiently in line for your turn. The crazy, egar feeling you get right as your going up the stairs. Feeling the sweat from the last body that was in your current seat. Seeing little kids running around, chasing each other and laughing their heads off. Seeing couples hold each other close under all the bright lights from the slow, popular farris wheel. Seeing all kinds of people just pooring into the fair grounds is the most exciting thing all summer. This event- the fair, is my most favorite town event possible!