Deliver Us From Evie

This book isn’t one of my favorites this semester, but I think it parallels real life well. I am only half way through at this point, so some of the things I am commenting on might have changed by the end. I really like the development of the brother/sister relationship between Parr and Evie. Even though Parr is the younger brother, he still looks out for and defends Evie, an example being when he snags the post card from the mail box and delivers it to her privately in an attempt to spare any questioning from their mother. I realize that this book takes place in a small midwestern town, and the mom is more of a city gal than a farmer’s wife, but I didn’t like the way she pressures Evie to be someone she's not. No matter what Evie does, the mother always has a suggestion as to how she could change it or do it better. The father, on the other hand, accepts Evie for who she is and is more understanding. He doesn’t ask a lot of questions and seems pretty laid back. There were a couple phrases in the book that I’d never heard before, which I assume are typical of the geographical area in which the story takes place, such as “Evie could always break him up” (35). When someone laughs hard, I’ve always heard it as “cracking up.” I also found Parr’s behavior towards girls unique. As oppose to most of the 16 year old boys I know, and have known, he’s very straight forward with both Toni (physically) and Angel (socially). That’s not to say there aren’t boys who act this way, I just found it a little different from what I’ve observed.

Coraline

Of all the books we’ve read this semester, Coraline is my absolute favorite. I read the entire book in one sitting wondering what would happen next. The suspense was most appealing to me as reader, as was the realistic and age appropriate dialogue. Her age, although not explicity stated, is displayed through her interactions with the other characters. For example, she shows her creativity and intelligence by challenging her “other mother” to the game. I was a bit confused when she then asks the other mother where she should start looking for her parents. Why would she do this? Was she trying to mislead her or did she actually think the mother would help her? Through the entire novel I was never sure what to expect and that kept me interested. Compared to Skellig, the characters in Coraline were better developed and easier to connect and sympathize with, making the reading more enjoyable. I found the talking animals very entertaining, especially the sarcastic and snotty cat and the sophisticated Scottish terriers. I did not like the illustrations, however. The first and last ones were alright, but the others were extremely creepy, especially pages 22 and 68. Certainly there were some scary parts in the book, but the illustrations were bizarre. I really think I could have done without them. While reading, I was thinking I wished I knew a kid who I could give this book to. I would have really enjoyed reading this as a child.

Skelig (first half)

I like this story it is very mysterious. No one knows if Michael's baby sister will get better and Dr. Death comes to check on her. When Michael finds Skelig he is not afraid. You get the feeling he is an angel when they talk about how he has wings, but I am not so sure. On page 38-39 there is an interesting passage about wings, "They say that shoulder blades are where your wings were, when you were an angel. They say they're where your wings will grow again one day." This is very interesting. I like this explanationa nd I think children would liek it too. I think Skelig is just what Michael may have needed because he was so depressed. So maybe Skelig is an angel to help Michael. What do you think?
I think this book is very enjoyable so far. There are many intriguing elements that make you want to keep reading. I think some older children would be able to relate somehow to the characters like Mina. She helps Michael to try and figure out what to do about Skelig. This book also has a good sense of family because they all stick together with everything going on with the baby. What do you think abou the book?

The Wizard of Oz

I'm not sure who's leading this one but I won't have access to internet later today so I have to get this up.
I did a little research about the History of The Wizard of Oz and how it was received in the schools across the US after publication. I was surprised to find that, like Harry Potter, this book has been banned in some educational setting for religious reasons. There is mention of “good” witches, which is seen as impossible, considering that witches are “bad” people, and animals are depicted with human qualities. I find it interesting that stories, such as fairy tales and the like, which are meant for children, are then banned from schools because people find them inappropriate. Children have vivid imaginations and enjoy creating alternate realities in their minds. These types of books allow them to transport themselves away from everyday life and indulge their imagination. Upon The Wizard of Oz’s first publication, it was removed from shelves because people felt that fantasy book were “too radical” for children’s minds. It was also said that the book was not well written. I would have to agree with this statement. The action in the book was anti-climactic and I had a difficult time paying attention. I even went online and found a podcast version of the book and tried to read along with that, thinking it would keep my attention. Here’s the link if anyone is interested: http://www.mamalisa.com/classics/blogoz/?p=6 Unfortunately, even that didn’t work. I felt that the characters were flat and lacked dimension. They didn’t seem realistic to me and I was unable to relate. As a child, I enjoyed reading books where I was able to put myself into the shoes of the characters. For example, my favorite childhood book is The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. I feel like the characters and their actions are more realistic and, as a child, I could easily relate. A lack of connection with any of the characters was definitely my biggest issue with The Wizard of Oz. It also didn’t help that the version I read, illustrated by Lisbeth Zwerger, portrayed the characters in a way that made them emotionless. What I have recently discovered is that illustrations do not always enhance a book’s enjoyment. In Alice and Wonderland, I found the illustrations to be helpful, but I didn’t think they were absolutely necessary, but in The Wizard of Oz, they took away from my overall enjoyment of the book.

Alice in Wonderland (first half)

OK I have no idea what I just did about ten minutes ago but this is the right way. God I hate computers . They aren't as easy as they seem. Couldn't we have done Myspace? OK anyway when I started reading this version of Alice and Wonderland I thought at first that it followed the Disney version (which is the only other I have heard of) pretty closely in terms of how Alice starts out. Then it got a little different. For example the mouse that Alice offends multiple times. Alice seemed a little dim to me in this version. I thought it might be obvious that she was offending people, or what would offend animals, but she would only notice after saying so. She seemed like a very little girl rather than the young lady I had pictured in my head. The way the story is told is also very odd, which I understand is supposed to be the whole point of the story. I guess I'm also turned off to Alice in Wonderland because I heard it was based of a drug high. I would like to know how people felt about Alice in this version and if they had any other versions to compare it to. Do you like the differences or is it hard to get past the Disney version? I would like to see how it turns out in the second half.

Hello

Briar Rose (ch. 11-24)

I finished Briar Rose and because I am supposed to be commenting on the middle part of the novel, I’ll be sure not to spoil the ending for those of you who have not made it there yet. Initially, I had trouble getting interested in the novel. The way the chapters are broken down, with the fairy tale retelling, and then the current day happenings, required me to pay close attention and, at some points I had to go back to see where the fairy tale had left off. The fairy tale retelling became repetitious and that started to bother me when I had to read the same thing again and again. Once Becca arrives in Poland, my interest was finally piqued and I felt like something intriguing might actually happen. Being as though Becca is the youngest of the women and still lives at home with her parents, I didn’t view her as the independent type, apt to travel to a foreign country alone with so very little facts about what she is actually looking for. Also, the people that Becca and Magda meet through their travels seem all too predictable and unrealistic. There are many people in Poland and the likelihood that these women are going to encounter the ones with the answers they are looking for is extremely slim, especially considering the amount of factual information they began their trip with. This book may have been intended for a younger audience, but I think that practicality is highly important to any story. Gemma’s story may have been a fairy tale, but is Becca’s search for answers a fairy tale also? So far, things have been working out all too easily in Becca’s favor and the remainder of the book continues along the same path. I will say that from chapter 25 on, Josef Potoki had my full attention.

Hansel and Gretel Varients

After reading all four varients of the story Hansel and Gretel the only one I had ever read was the original by the brothers Grimm. The others seemed odd to me. The only thing all four had in common was the fact that the poor children were abandoned by their parents. To me if I were young this would be scary to read. I would never want my parents to abandon me. In the story "Rose Tree" the song "My wicked mother slew me, My dear father ate me, My little brother whom I love, Sits below, and I sing above, Stick, stock, stone dead." would be very scary to read as a child. The "Rose Tree" and "Jupiter Tree" I found to be quite similar. These stories as Zipes would say were probably contaminated by a group of people. These varients of stories we have been reading have been passed down mostly through oral tradition so they have been contaminated by many generations of people. What do you think?

Zipes Reading

I think that Zipes has some very valid statements and claims about literature and children. Zipes explains that the main audience of children's literature happens to be adults, students, librarians, and professors who happen to be studying Children's Literature. This has led to the large audience of people who are taking children's literature more sertious than ever before. My question is why were the younger generation of children never exposed to children's literature. Zipes goes on to make some pretty bold statements. Zipes states, "There never has been a literature conceived by children for children, a literature that belongs to children, and there never will be (p.40, Zipes)." I beleieve that it is very big of the author to claim that there never will be literature that belongs to children.

Class Blog

This one of the class blogs for ENGL 342, Spring 07.