Needing a New Book

Hey guys, I'm in desperate need for a new book and I don't know what to read! I like all kinds of genres; from mysteries, romance anything! So if you have a book that you like and think that it was really good, please, please PLEASE comment. Or you could go to my good reads and i have all the books I've read and I like so friend me on there if you want. I don't bite :) Okay that's all this week! See ya next week with my new book

Romeo & Juliet

Heyyyyy. So today in English we finished Romeo and Juliet and guess what? I was Juliet! Moi! Me! The ending is really depressing but in a way romantic. I think that it's a tragedy because of all the deaths. It goes from Tybalt, to Mercutio then Paris, Romeo, Juliet and Lady Capulet! Phew. Lots of dying. I don't think it's a comedy because it's not really funny at all. Two families that hate each other cause their children to kill themselves because they're in love! I swear if my family and my boyfriend's family hated each other I would go crazy too! Maybe not crazy enough to take my life but it's hard not seeing the one you love.

Tragedy is defined as

a play dealing with tragic events and having an unhappy ending or one concerning the downfall of the main character (hint hint wink wink Romeo and Juliet!). I really enjoyed reading, watching, and acting Romeo & Juliet. the play is really tragic but romantic. I think that everyone should read this! The language may be confusing but i don't think it'll be that hard to figure out. After all I am a blond here and I figured it out so I think you could. If you do read it, pay a LOT of attention to some of the events that happen because there's a lot of important things that happen. Happy reading! Au revoir!

 

 

 

 

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner

Hey guys! I started a new book. It's pretty amazing. It's called The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner as you can tell by the title. The book is part of the Twilight Saga, hopefully you know what that is, and it's a novella of Eclipse. Bree Tanner has just started her new life as a newborn vampire. As she begins to realize why she was created and what she was created to do, she starts to get suspicious. The first night that she goes out hunting, she meets a new friend Diego which has been with Riley, the leader type person, for about a year now. Bree doesn't remember much of her old life and she wishes she did. As her and Diego get into a closer relationship, she actually begins to trust some people.

I'm about 2/3 of the way finished with this book and I really like it. I've read all of the other Twilights and I mean if you don't read the others, you might not get the jist of the story. A newborn is a vampire that has just been born into the vampire life. When I say hunt, I mean going into the city and drinking people's blood. Bree experiences a burn on her throat if she doesn't hunt.. I really enjoy this book because it's very descriptive and the characters are very round and developed. Stephanie Meyer does a really great job at this novella.
. This is the cover of the book. The hourglass symbolizes a short time span, I think it was a good idea to put that on the cover.

This is the author, Stephenie Meyer, on the Ellen Show talking about her Twilight Books.

New Book!

Bonjour! Hey guys, its once again that time a week.. New blog post! So I finished The Shining by Stephen King. I liked a lot and I think the book is WAY better than the movie but whatever! Read it! I definitely reccomend it! Anyway, that's not what today is gonna be about. I'm reading a new book and I literally cant put it down! It's called Dirty Little Secrets by C.J. Omololu. It's a great book so far! The details are amazing and the imagery is great. For example: "On the otherside of the livingroom was the fireplace mantle, which held a brown, spindly potted plant that had been dead for years.." This book is about a girl named Lucy who has a mom who hoards everything she gets.I did some research on hoarding and doctors call it a mental disorder. The feeling of hoarding is normally like a comfort food for the people who do it. When someone trys to come in and clean their house, they feel threatened and disrespected. Lucy doesnt like the way she lives and wants to change the way she lives. This book is really good and is really interesting. I finished this book like 3 days after i started it. Lucy burns down the house instead of  cleaning it up when her mom dies. I recommend this book to anyone who likes crazy outbursts of events.

My Final Blog Post

Well, it's that time again only... My last one for the trimester. I struggled with a few things over the trimester with blogging and I think one of my biggest ones was making the post interesting or really put my opinion into the post.  I overcame that struggle when I found out I could really just talk to the audience instead of just telling them the information. Just make conversation with them.  I never knew it was so easy to just talk like myself through the post. Although I did struggle with some things, I think I did some good things too. I believe that I did well on putting a lot of information into the posts and making the viewer actually read it.  My strength was definitely that I could put interest in them.

One blog post I think that has good textual evidence is my post about LGBT. http://torielisesblog.blogspot.com/2013/10/glaad-program-at-mason-high.html  I chose this blog post because a couple of reasons. One (1) because Mrs. Palmer commented on it and if she likes it, I’m guessing it’s pretty good. And two (2) because I think my quote from a former student provides evidence and supports my opinion and analysis of the post.

I think overall I did pretty well with blog posting but I do think I can do better. Next trimester I’m going to try to read a range of genres so my blog posts aren’t all about suspense or teen drama.  For my writing goals, I plan to write more often and with more information in a less boring fashion. Next trimester I’m definitely going to work on reading a bigger range of books. In my writing, I want to work on using more word choice and to be more interesting. Thanks everyone for reading my posts and putting your opinions on them. Bye until next tri! J

Teachers Make Mistakes Too

Hey! What time is it? Blog post time! So this post is from The Chronicle again and it's about treating our teachers like humans too. All humans make mistakes and students take that opportunity to pounce at the teachers when they have done something wrong or made an honest mistake. In the article, it says that when a teacher misspells a word or says something incorrectly, students are all over them! But we do expect teachers to have all the answers and be right all the time so we feel let down if a teacher makes a mistake.

 A girl says she doesn't normally tell the teacher they've made a mistake because it's kind of a let down. But I agree with them and I believe that when a teacher has made a mistake, they should be notified but if it's inappropriate and down right wrong then they should just keep their mouths sealed!
I believe that teachers should know when they make a mistake but they shouldnt be put down for it. Everyone makes mistakes and it's totally okay! Most kids dont want to say anything because they expect the teachers to know and to always be right.                                                                                                

GLAAD Program at Mason High

  Hey everyone! Today is going to be a little different from any of my other posts. This one isn't about a book. It's about an article i read in our school newspaper "The Chronicle". The article is about GLAAD which stands for Gay and Lesbians Alliance Against Defamation. When i read this article i could relate to it a lot in my personal life and social life too. I am bisexual and I have a lot of bisexual and lesbian friends. My aunt is a lesbian and i mean she isn't rude or mean and she gets a lot of hate. Like, why? Because she's not a barbie? Because she's not the same as you? No. That's no reason to be rude to people. In the article, when a sophomore came out and told her friends about her sexual orientation, she lost a lot of her friends. Why? because she's different. On October 17th it was gay pride day and they wore purple.
     
      Another thing they talked about was the placement in the word "Gay". "When kids say those words they dont even mean homosexual, they mean 'stupid' or ignorant. But hearing those things damages someone's self esteem whether they're in or out of the closet." Tyler Walton, a 2011 Mason graduate, says in reply to the placement of "gay".Most people believe it's used to call something dumb or stupid but hearing it damages the self esteems of the people who are in or out of the closet. One girl actually commented that her pastor could "fix" the girl who was lesbian. Nobody really thinks about how comments like that could hurt someone's self esteem on a high level.

 Some kids who get negitave comments a lot usually try to commit suicide or they harm themselves to make themselves feel better about who they are and that's not what should be happening. It's awful and a terrible thing to do. Everyone deserves a life and deserves to life it the way they want to and in a way that makes them happy. Overall I believe that people should be who they want to be and be whatever/whoever makes them happy. Nobody deserves to be bullied [physically or emotionally] for who they are.

Characters of The Shining

Ughh. I know, I know. Dang Tori, You're still on that shining book? Yeesss I am. It's really  long but I love it! So I know last time I was really boring and all but now I'm definitely more interesting. Today, I'm going to characterize the characters! Ha. Characterize the characters.. Anyywaayy. So there's 3 main characters in the shining: Jack, Danny and Wendy. As you know from the last post, Jack is the man who is taking care of the Overlook and the other two are his family.

 Danny, his son, is a five year old boy who doesn't really talk much and likes to ride around on his tricycle. Wendy, his wife, cleans and cooks a lot and watches out for Danny most of the time. and then there's Jack. You know Jack. The sober drunk, the caretaker, the dad. I believe all characters are round. They change a lot throughout the book and overcome obstacles. They are fully develped with lots of details. So they're both round and dynamic characters. I recommend this book to anyone who likes to be thrilled. So have you read it yet? NO?! Well when you do, comment what you think about it and if you liked it! (:

The Shining Part 2

Hey! So you know how I was on The Shining in my last post? well I'm still working on it. Page 30 something to be specific. Well now that I'm about 1/100 the way through the book I have a few questions. Okay so like you know how i said the older caretaker slaughtered his family? Well I'm still wondering why the heck Jack still took it!! Oops.. told you what happened.. my bad. But anyway, what in the world are you thinking,Jack?? Oh my gosh. I think Jack will be fine and not go berzerk and kill his family.. Maybe but I don't think so considering the old caretaker was a drunk and Jack has been sober for about 5 moths now. Also, How does Mr.Ullman (the job interviewer) expect Jack to cope with being isolated for half a year?!? Like are you crazy? I would DIE without social interaction. I think you would too though. Am I right? Yeah I know I am. I guess we can all connect to Jack and his family in some way. Like in my life Jack and his wife have that relationship like my mom and dad used to have. They don't really talk much, Wendy blames everything on Jack, etc. Welp that's really all for this post. Maybe next time I'll be more interesting. Byee!

The Shining

Hey guys! It's me once again posting about my book. Well I have switched from Teen Idol to The Shining by Stephen King. Heard of the famous movie? No?? Well let me tell you about it. Jack Torrance is a school teacher with a wife; Wendy and a son; Danny that has been offered a job to be the caretaker of the Overlook hotel. Before he takes the job, he's faced with a terrible horror story from the old caretakers of the hotel. The last caretaker slaughtered his family and shot himself afterward. Now I know if I was Jack I would be a little suspicious, wouldn't you? But I don't blame the poor man after hearing about Delbert Grady (old caretaker). I would definently be a little freaked out. Grady was isolated from the outside world in the bitter cold of Northern Colorado for 5 months straight! I think that would drive anyone insane, right? After Jack was told about the Overlook murder, he decided to take the job anyway considering Grady was a drunk and he wasn't.

I definitely recommend this book for anyone who likes thrillers. Even though I've seen the 1980's movie the book definitely tops the movie. Read it! You'll love it! And even though I don't read that much, this book is 500 something pages and it's got me hooked. If you read it, comment if you like it or not.. Because if you don't.. You're not normal. This book will make you wince at your own thoughts and shiver with chills. Read the book then watch the movie. It might seem a little cheesy but its the 80's whatya expect? WATCH.IT.

The Shining (1980)

Teen Idol #2

Recently, I have been stuck on this one book; Teen Idol. I absolutely love the book! Now, Jen has pop star Luke Striker coming to her high school to research a role of a normal high school student. Jen has been personally asked to escort him around and make sure that nobody knows. Even though Jen herself isn't very fond of Luke, her best friend Trina is very "in love" with him. Now that Luke has created chaos, Jen doesn't know if she can fix it like she can anyone else's problems.

The theme has changed over the course of the book and the character known as Luke Striker is the one who changes this theme. I believe that now the theme is secretive or trying to keep secrets but also in a sense, it's help as Jen tries to fix this chaotic situation that Luke has created. The theme goes from one end of the spectrum to the next, creating situations everywhere.

Teen Idol

I have recently changed my independent reading book. Currently, i have been reading Teen Idol by Meg Cabot. Jen is a junior in high school and the editor for the school newspaper. It's almost the end of the year and the abduction of a doll brings Jen to a screeching halt. It's modern time and everyone knows what happens to tattletells in high school.

So far, the details that Cabot puts into making jen a more round character, makes Jen pop out more. Even though Jen is a secret person named "Annie" that helps people with their problems, she still treats the anonymous person as she would anyone else.  I belive the theme is sense of self because Jen finds power to tell her teacher who stole the doll.

Question and answer with Meg Cabot.  This is a video with meg cabot, awnsering all questions.

Go Ask Alice Review

I am currently reading "Go Ask Alice" by anonymous and i really like it so far. Alice has changed so much during the entire book. She goes from a straight A student to doing drugs and getting in trouble. To start it all off, she goes to visit her grandparents when she meets an old friend that invites her to a party. There, she experiments with drugs and alcohol. Bill, a boy at the party, is now Alice's dealer. While she is at her grandparent's house, she  begins to see this boy and get hits off of him. This is what Alice has changed into.

In the beginning of the book, Alice starts off as a straight A student, studying every night and not worrying about boys. i believe the theme of this book is change. Alice helps develop the theme because of the big change she goes through. Her parents don't notice that she's changed but to other people around her, it sticks out like a sore thumb.

The setting of this book is about everywhere; her house, Oregon, California, school, work etc. what really helps develop the setting is the detail that "Alice" gives about every location she explores. When she takes the different substances, her detailed description of everything makes you wonder and see it in your mind.

"Go Ask Alice" is a thrilling, true story diary that will keep you entertained until the end. This diary proves that anything could happen when you're introduced to the wrong people. I recommend this book to anyone who likes autobiographies. to be honest, I don't really like autobiographies much but this book captured my attention quite quickly.

My Summer Reading Book

Project X

In Project X, Hanratty and Flake are the two main characters. Hanratty changes greatly over the course of the book. One day he's at one end of the spectrum and then the next he's at the other end. Hanratty is a shy, not so talkative boy at his school. He gets bullied constantly and never does much about it. His friend Flake, on the other hand is a rowdy, sarcastic kinda guy.

 He also gets bullied alot and he gets sick of it. The way these two boys interact with the other characters help the plot evolve. Since these boys were bullied most of their life, they decide its time for a change. As Flake gears up the ammo and draws out a plan for revenge, it might take a turn for the worst. Overall, these characters change in the book. From quiet, bullieed 8th graders to weapon crazed, revenge fools.

 

 

This article is a review of the book and has many good discussion points within the article. This article also provides a summary of the book and a description of characters. Project X

This is a video of Jim Shepard talking about ther way he likes to write and why he likes to write.