Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard
Dear Book Club,
I have currently finished reading “Pretty Little Liars” by Sara Shepard. It is the first book in the series of five and is 286 pages long. It is about five best friends, Allison, Spencer, Aria, Hanna, and Emily. One night at a sleepover Allison goes missing. She disappears and no one hears from her again. Over the next three years things definitely change. The remaining four best friends don’t even speak to each other anymore. Arias family moved away to Iceland and has just returned back to Rosewood. Hannah has one best friend, Mona, and together they try everything they can to stay popular. Emily is a bit of a tomboy and is on the swimming team, but she isn’t sure who she really is. And Spencer is an overachiever, who is sick of living in her older sister’s shadow. Soon all of the four girls begin to get mysterious text messages from someone named A, and somehow this A person knows all of their deepest, darkest secrets.
My name is Spencer and I am one of the protagonists in “Pretty Little Liars”. I have long blonde hair and dark blue eyes. The antagonist is A. I am not sure who this person is, but they seem to know everything about my life. If I don’t do what A asks she could destroy everything I have worked so hard to achieve. I live in Rosewood, Pennsylvania. It is a perfect little town, or so it seems. The rising action was after Allison went missing and Aria, Hanna, Emily, and I began to get mysterious text messages a couple years later. The climax is when the new neighbors who live in Allison’s old house, find her body buried in the backyard. The police realized that she was murdered so they decided to reopen her case. The resolution is when Aria, Emily, Hannah, and I attend Allison’s funeral together. At her funeral we all started to talk to each other again and for a little while it seemed like old times when we all used to be friends.
In conclusion, I am somewhat satisfied with the ending of the book. I would have liked to find out who murdered Allison or who A was. I enjoyed this book and would mostly recommend it for girls who like mystery books.
Jourdan Tappeiner
The Odyssey by Homer translated by Fagles
Dear Book Club,
I am Odysseus. I have endured many hardships on my long journey home. I will tell you my story so that after I am dead my story will live on. I was held captive on the nymph Calypso’s island for seven years. They say her beauty is unmatched by any other woman, but my heart longed for my precious wife Penelope. If not for the messenger god, Hermes I would have been forced to live there for eternity. I built a sturdy raft and was given food and drink by Calypso. I sailed for seventeen days with no trouble, but on the eighteenth day, Poseidon, god of earthquakes, destroyed my raft and almost destroyed me. If it was not for Ino, an immortal being who was once mortal, I would have perished. She gave me a magic scarf of immortality to protect me from all dangers. Once I reached the dryness of a land I did not know, I threw the scarf back into the depths of the ocean, following Ino’s instructions. My exhaustion overwhelmed me but I was somehow able to make my way into the woods where I found a fine litter of dead leaves, enough to cover two, even three men. I surrendered myself to the soothing blanket of sleep. I was awakened by the laughter of the maids of princess Nausicaa. She gave me food and drink along with fine clothing and oil to rub myself with after I bathed in the cool river. She told me to come with her to town not caring what the Phaeacians might think of us coming in together. At the great palace of the Phaeacians, I through myself at the mercy of King Alcinous and Queen Arete, they did not ask of my name, but fed me and gave me a place of rest. When the great blind bard Demodocus sang of the Trojan War, I could not control my emotions. When I burst into tears the great king asked why, I told him it was I who Demodocus was singing about, I am Odysseus. They begged me to tell my story of great adventure. I told them of the raid on Ismaros, the Lotus-Eaters, the human eating Cyclops, Aeolus, the master of the winds, the cannibal Laestrygones, Circe, the witch-godess, going into House of Death, sailing past the many-headed monster Scylla and the whirlpool Charybdis, my crew eating the sacred cattle of the sun god Helios and landing at Calypso’s island where she kept me for seven years and how I had only now escaped. Having listened with rapt attention to my story, the Phaeacians, who were skilled mariners, agreed to sail me back home to Ithaca. They delivered me at night to a secret harbor on Ithaca. The godess Athena, who had been helping me throughout my journey home, disguised me as a withered old beggar so that I might gather information on the condition of my land. I made my way to my loyal swineherd Eumaeus where we told stories of our hardships all night long. The next day my son arrived at Eumaeus’ home. When Eumaeus left, Athena lifted my disguise, so I could meet my son face-to-face and tell him of my plan for killing the suitors that have been devouring my food and harassing my wife for over 10 years. Accompanied by Eumaeus, I returned to my own home, still disguised as a beggar and planned how to kill the suitors. Later that same day I met with my loving wife Penelope, who did not know me for I was still disguised. She told how she planned to deal with suitors and how faithful she had been to Odysseus for the last 20 years. She said was going to hold an archery competition. Whoever could string my bow and shoot an arrow through twelve axe rings in the great hall could have her hand in marriage. The next day every suitor tried his best but all failed to string the bow. Still appearing as a beggar, I strung the bow and shot the arrow threw each and every ring. Telemachus went off to fetch helmets, spears, swords and shields for himself, the swineherd, the cowherd and myself. The four of us, with the help of the goddess Athena, killed every suitor that had plagued our halls like locust. The dozen or so housemaids, that had been as guilty as the suitors, were hung. I killed the goatherd Melanthius, who had mocked and abused me when I was disguised as a beggar. After the gruesome battle I sent word to Penelope that Odysseus has arrived home. When she saw me, her heart melted and she flung herself into my arms. I finally had the reunion with Penelope I had longed for, for twenty years. The next day I went out to my fathers’ great house where he tended his plants. I told him that I was his loving son Odysseus, but he did not believe me. I showed him the scar of the wound I took from the boar’s white tusk on Mount Parnassus. He threw his arms around me and I was reunited with my father. We headed home to a great meal, but all was not well; the people of Ithaca were enraged with me (specifically the fathers of the suitors), for killing all of the suitors. Just as we were about to engage in battle, Athena intervened and stopped both sides in their tracks. A time of peace was put over the land. I now live out my days in Ithaca until I rest in peace for the last time. I am Odysseus and this is my story.
Preston Towers
Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne
Dear Book Club,
“Approximately 100 years ago, I, Phileas Fogg made and won a bet that I could go around the globe in 80 days with my valet and protagonist Passpartout. My wife Aouda accompanied us on the trip through jungles, on boats and even in hot air balloons. There were several antagonists during the journey including: a group of Hindu Brahmans; a bobby; and most of all, time which kept on going at our great displeasure.
The rising action began when our train’s track was only half built which caused us to miss our boat and find our own means of travel. It continued when Passpartout decided to look at a temple and before entering forgot to take off his shoes. The natives got very upset and drove him out. It turned out that it was illegal to disobey the Indian customs and we were both put in jail until I bailed us out with a good sum of money.
The climax of our adventure was when we had been traveling for 81 days and I arrived at the gentlemen’s club, ashamed that I had lost the wager. At that point I was informed that we had gained a day when we crossed the international date line and I won the money and married Aouda.
Sincerely,
Phileas Fogg”
I am very satisfied with the resolution of Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne. It made me give up hope about the wager and then surprised me when I read about the dateline and that he actually won the bet and the money.
It is doubtful that Philleas Fogg will return to his usual routinely boring ways and more likely that he will want to travel for the rest of his life. It is certain that Aouda will change his life a lot and the travels will have made an impact as well. In any case he will change. I enjoyed this classic novel and recommend it to all who are interested in travel and foreign countries.
Cheers,
Cody
East of Eden by John Steinbeck
Dear Book Club
I have currently finished reading “East of Eden”. It was written by John Steinbeck and was 691 pages long. “East of Eden” Starts of by introducing much different family’s including The Hamilton family the Trask family, and the Ames family. You learn about them get to know them and see there struggles and achievements. Towards the middle of the book they all connect and meet each other. Each of there life’s connect and interfere with all of there life’s. In this book you learn a lot of history with different wars and it helps you better understand what the people in that time period had to go through.
In “East of Eden” The main characters change through out the book. In the beginning the main characters are Samuel Hamilton who is the father of the huge Hamilton family and is defiantly a protagonist. I am always trying to give the best advice to my family, friends, and neighbors. Another main character is Cyrus Trask the father of the Trask family I am an antagonist and at first seem like a pretty good guy until I force one of my sons Adam to go into the army and then tell him I only love him. I don’t really like the other son that much. Adam Trask Cyrus’s son is a protagonist. I get into a marriage where my wife try’s to shoot me and run away. I have not made some great decisions. My wife Cathy Trask is an antagonist and has never really made good choices in her life she is very good at lieing and coming up with evil and dangerous plans to get her self higher in the world. Charles Trask Adam’s brother is a antagonist and a protagonist he kind of switches through out the story for I sometimes have anger management and hurt people but then I make very wise decisions in money because I have a hard time spending it. Lee a servant who works for Adam is a protagonist. And without me in the story I don’t think Adam would have ever survived, I feel like his mother and father put together. Caleb and Aaron sons of Adam are twins and are both protagonists. We change the family cycle and try to do good in the world. In East of Eden the rising action is when Cyrus Trask dies and leaves Adam and Charles with a lot of money that they think was stolen. Then when they find Cathy at there door step beaten and dieing they take her in and help her get well. Once she gets well Adam decides to get married and move to California with her. Charles gets mad and Adam and Charles never speak to each other ever again. Then Cathy gets pregnant with twins and once they are born she runs away and when Adam try’s to go after her she shoots him in the shoulder. The climax is when the boys find out how bad there mother was and that she really wasn’t dead she had her own business just out side of Salinas in King City. The resolution is when Caleb talks to her and shows her Aaron. She is so caught off guard she kills her self and Aaron joins the army because he is upset. Caleb helps his father so he can recover from all the shock and they start over and Caleb decides to change the Trask family name.
In conclusion, I am very satisfied with this book and am glad that Caleb has made peace with his father and is going to change the meaning of the family name Trask. I encourage every one to read this and hope that you enjoy it as much as I have.
Kori Gibson
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