Last Choice Book Report!! :) - Theme

Part 2!

     I read the book Models Don’t Eat Chocolate Cookies by Erin Dionne.  I chose to do the theme to write about on this book. I chose to do the theme because I thought this book had many different lessons the ready can learn as well as lessons Celeste has learned. I thought Celeste had learned many things/ lessons.

           I thought one theme from this book was that you should never give up.  Celeste was entered in the HuskyPeach Modeling Challenge by her aunt and mother.  They wanted her to do this because it was a great opportunity and she was a little shy so they thought this was a great way to make some new friends.  Celeste didn’t want to have anything to do with the modeling challenge.  She eventually learned that it wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be and definitely wasn’t that bad looking back on it so she decided not to quit.  Celeste had won 2^nd place in the challenge. If she would have given up, she would not have won 2^nd.  This is one example of the “never give up” theme. 

Another example of this is when she decided to loose weight.  As many people know, loosing weight is not that easy. It takes lots of time and patience.  Celeste worked hard at loosing weight because she didn’t want people to keep picking on her for her size.  She never gave up at trying to loose weight so, eventually she did shave off a few pounds from her original weight. 

          Another theme from this book is to treat others the way you wish to be treated.  Celeste wants people to know that people are unique and that you need to accept other’s differences.  Some people can be very mean and rude towards Celeste but she just “kills them with kindness”.  Because she is nice to them, they eventually are nice to her.  It might take them a while to realize that she is showing respect to them, but eventually they do and they treat her differently than they use to; they show her respect.

           Lastly, I think Celeste learned if you aren’t so shy and you open up a little more towards people, you may be treated differently.  When she started talking to more people and wasn’t so shy, people talked to her to and she got to know more people and make new friends.  People got to know the true Celeste.  I think Celeste learned people will like you for who you are so don’t be afraid to show who you really are.

These were three themes that I found from the book Models Don’t Eat Chocolate Cookies.

Quarter 4 Choice Book Report- Celeste

            I read the book Models Don't Eat Chocolate Cookies by Erin Dionne.  I really like this book.  The main character is Celeste Harris.  Celeste Harris was a plus sized girl and she never wore make up.  Celeste would always dress into her favorite, comfortable outfit: a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt.  She often called this her track outfit but she absolutely hates track and anything to do with running!  By the end of the book, Celeste has more self confidence and feels more beautiful on the inside and out.  She now wears make-up and dresses into clothes other than her "track outfit". 

            I think Celeste Harris has many characteristics that describe her.  One characteristic is that she is determined.  In elementary school, Celeste said she still had her "baby fat".  While many people had lost their "baby fat" when they started middle school, Celeste Harris had not.  Celeste was determined to loose some weight so people at school would stop calling her names.  She first tries this drink she had read about in a magazine.  After that had not worked, she still didn't give up.  She was still determined to loose weight.  She ended up eating healthier and for exercise, she would often walk her friend's dog.  Celeste learned through determination that if you work hard and don't give up, you will achieve your goals.

            Another characteristic that describes Celeste is that she is kind.  Celeste's mother and aunt are both supporting the fact that Celeste joins the HuskyPeach Modeling Challenge.  Celeste really doesn't want to do the modeling challenge but if would please her family, she would do it.  She goes to the first round of the challenge and absolutely hated it!  She decides again to go through one more round of the challenge thinking that this round may be better.  Again she hates it and refuses to go to the last round.  She hears many encouraging words from her family including her cousin who was a former model.  Celeste again doesn't want to disappoint her mother and doesn't know how to say "no", so she ends up doing the last round of the challenge.  The encouraging words also helped her make up her mind that she was going to participate in the last section of the HuskyPeach Modeling Challenge.  I think this shows that Celeste is kind because she doesn't want let her family down.  She wants them to be happy with her decisions.  Another reason I think Celeste is kind is because she never tries to be mean to anyone.  She never tries to cause any trouble towards anyone. 

            Lastly, I would say Celeste is confident.  In the beginning she wasn't as confident as she was in the end. In the end she began to feel the most confident. I think she felt more confident because she had just received awards from the modeling challenge and that maybe that had boosted her confidence.  Also, in the end more people are nice to her and she feels like she is getting more positive attention.  I believe that is why she feels more confident in the end.  Celeste is proud of who she is and what she has accomplished.

            These are the characteristics that I believe describe Celeste Harris!!

Quater 3 Book Report

       Part 1

             The book I read was called Something Like Fate by Susane Colasanti.  The main characters name is Lani.  She goes to a small school in New Jersey. Lani is a junior in the beginning of the book and at the end, she is a senior. The size of her class is around 73 people so everyone knows each other. Lani is a 16 year old who loves nature, seeks comfort and pleasure, connects with the Earth, desires serenity, stubborn, passionate, and nurturing.  Lani has hazel blue eyes. She also has long, strait black hair and a scar on her forehead which is covered by her bangs.  Lani is president of One World (the schools environment club). Her love for the Earth is “genetic”.  Her mother loves the Earth just about as much as Lani. They love gardening (unless it is a scorching hot day) and recycle anything that is recyclable.  Lani would say she is not popular but she isn’t unpopular. She isn’t a jock but she isn’t inept at sports. She isn’t a nerd but she isn’t a slacker either. But she also says she isn’t “average”. Lani isn’t really good at art; she’s only good at making posters.

             One thing I think describes Lani is very Earth friendly. She recycles everything. One day while at school, she saw Erin’s (Lani’s best friend) boyfriend throw recycling in the trash can. Lani doesn’t understand why someone would just throw recycling in the trash can. She goes over to him, tells him what he just did and makes him dig it out of the trash and put it where it belongs. She gardens and plants as well.

            Lani is very determined as well. She never gives up. One example of this would be like when she makes a promise to her best friend, Erin.  Erin tells her to never talk to Jason. She tells her this because she is mad at Lani and feels this is a good way to get back at her. Lani doesn’t talk to him. In the end, Erin feels bad about what she did and agrees to let her talk to him. She was determined not to let her best friend down.  Another example would be when she decides she wants to learn to swim.  Ever since the “accident” she has been afraid of water. She doesn’t mind rain but when it comes to swimming, she is very scared! She doesn’t even like to put her feet in the pool and sit along side the edge.  She decides she wants swimming lessons so when she goes to Hawaii, she will know how to swim. In the end of the book, she isn’t afraid of water anymore and she can swim in oceans and lakes, etc.

            Lani is mad others talk about her in mean ways. She tries not to let that get to her. Lani tries to look for the positives in things. She is always giving her friends advice.  Many people would be upset and angry, but she tries not to show her emotions.

            I think Earth friendly, determined, and always keeps a positive attitude are three things that really describe Lani!

            Part 2- Consider Point of View

I think there are several reasons the author chose this point of view. Something Like Fate by Susan Colasanti was told in the 1^st person point of view.  I think maybe Susan Colasanti chose this point of view because you could really tell the emotions of what was being brought out by Lani.  Also, Lani did a lot of thinking in her head in the book so that makes it easier for the author to write and the reader to read.  I think it was easier to connect to Lani because it was written in the style of first person. I prefer to read books that are in 1^st person. One example of why it would be important to write in first point of view would be when Lani has two big secrets she doesn’t want to tell anyone. When she talks about the secret with the few people that know about it, she just calls it “the accident”. She brings it up a lot in the book but she never really talks about it to anyone, she just thinks about it.  To find out what both secrets are… you will have to read the book!!! Because this book is something that could really happen, it seems like it should be told in this point of view. I don’t however think this book was based on a true story… it’s just something that could happen.

I would recommend this book to almost anyone! Like me, I’m sure many people like novels written in the first person point of view. I feel this is a way that you can deeply connect with the main character.

                                           

                                                                            Susan Colasanti

2nd Quater Book Report

Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks

By: Lauren Myracle

I read the book Peace, Love and Baby Ducks by Lauren Myracle.  The main character in this book was named Carly. Carly is the oldest child in her family; she has a younger sister named Anna. Carly is a sophomore at Holy Redeemers High School. Holy Redeemers is a private Christian Preparatory school for boys and girls. Carly sometimes wears her Dashiki a “cute” shirt to school to try and impress Cole (the new guy that all the girls dream to date) and a casual pair of pants.

I think Carly is brave because she dives off the highest diving board at her school. Although it is required for her gym class, some girls are a little hesitant- including her sister. Carly makes it seem like no big deal so her sister will dive off the board. Carly even shows her it is no big deal by showing her how to do over and over again.

I also think Carly is brave for more than one reason and likes to give people chances. I think this because when Carly goes in to get her haircut, she accepts the offer to let the new graduate Jerr, who just completed the stage of, “cutting the hair of the wigs and dolls”, do her hair. This time she doesn’t want any old haircut, she wants it to be like the girl that just walked out of the store- an auburn under layer with a lot of blonde highlights that cover her whole head, sky blue highlights on top and bangs. This new hairstyle is way different from the dark brown long hair she had originally. In the back of her mind, Carly new something bad may turn out of this situation, and it did. The blonde highlights turned out to be a yellow, the auburn underlayer turned out as she had said, “ as bright as a fire engine,” and her bangs turned out way to uneven and she had said they were an entire inch above her eyebrows.

I also think Carly is a little unique because she doesn’t care about what others think about her as most people do care. She went to a camp over the summer and she didn’t care what people thought about her choice of clothing, work habits and how she smelled. She listens to the 60’s and 70’s music which is also different from the others she hangs around. When she picks out clothing, it doesn’t matter what the price tag says, unlike the rest of her elegant, upper-class family. She would rather pay less and have a unique inexpensive design of clothing.

Part 2- Discuss Conflicts and How They are Resolved

In the book Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks by Lauren Myracle, there were many conflicts. One of the first obstacles Carly had faced was her new haircut. In a few days, school was about to start for the year and Carly’s hair was a disaster. With a hair as red as a fire engine and yellow highlights with wacky bangs, she had to do something! The next day she went back to the hair salon to get it fixed back to her original hair style, but since Jerr had put so many chemicals in her hair before, they couldn’t do much about it except lighten the color a little. I’m not so sure I would have let the new graduate do my hair and if I did I probably would have chosen a more simple hair cut. Carly was furious and I would have been too. I thought this was an external conflict.

            Another issue that occurred was when Carly’s parents went out of town and they had a babysitter that wasn’t very responsible. Carly was a little uncertain at first but eventually Anna convinced her to have a party at their house. Carly and her friend Vonzelle are dropped off by the babysitter Tracy at a nail salon but after Tracy gets drunk and falls asleep on Carly’s parents’ bed, and the girls are stuck at the salon. When they finally get home, the girls look at each other in disgrace… all of her parents’ liquor us out and most of the people are drunk. Anna and Carly get angry with each other and Anna knows Carly will get mad if she starts drinking so she does. Carly knows when her parents get home she will be in big trouble. Carly and Vonzelle clean everything up, everyone out of the house and get everything back in its place.  If I was Carly I would have been mad at my sister but I would have tried to stay calm and just clean everything up. I thought this was an internal conflict.

I enjoyed reading this book!

 

           A dashiki

    

  Author Lauren Myracle

Choice Book Report Quarter 1

Cupcake Queen

       The book I read was called the Cupcake Queen. The main character’s name was Penelope but everyone called her Penny. Penny is fourteen years old, a year older than me. Penny had just moved to a small town called Hog’s Hollow from the big New York City. She had to start at a new school. Like anyone, Penny was a little nervous and shy to a start a new year there.

       I think Penny is very talented. When Penny and her mom moved to Hog’s Hollow, they decided to open a bakery. Not just a bakery any bakery… a cupcake bakery. They named to cupcake shop the Cupcake Queen. Penny of course wanted to help out at the cupcake store. They made cupcakes of every color, shape, and size. They made them for birthdays, baby showers, and holidays such as Christmas, Fourth of July, and any other holiday or celebration you could think of. Penny had always said each cupcake would take a while to make because of how much detail she put into each and every cupcake. Penny also said she would have to make designs on the cupcakes that could be very complicated. 

                                                          

       I also think Penny is very responsible because her mom leaves her in charge of the cupcake shop a lot when she has to leave and run errands. Penny’s mom leaves her in charge of making the batter, decorating the cupcakes, and sometimes helping deliver the cupcakes. Most people at the age of fourteen wouldn’t want to or would not be capable of having the responsibility Penny has.

       Another characteristic I think Penny has is that she is very creative. I think Penny is creative because it takes a lot of creativity to put such detail on each cupcake and to think of what kind of detail or image you are going to decorate on each cupcake. Not only is Penny creative when it comes to cupcakes but she was going to enter a contest to design a float for the parade in the Hog’s Hollow annual parade. Unfortunately she didn’t win the contest but she tried and others liked her ideas.

        I thought Penny was a very responsible, creative, talented, etc. girl. She always tried to do her hardest in everything she did and even though not everyone was nice to her, she still tried to be nice to them. She was very successful in school and she was dedicated to her cupcake making. Penny was the Cupcake Queen.

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Part 2

       For my second “Choice” book entry I chose to comment on whether or not I liked or disliked the book the Cupcake Queen. I really enjoyed this book. I really enjoyed the Cupcake Queen because I could relate to the main character and because the author did a really great job at describing each point of the story and the author used excellent describing words. I also enjoyed reading this story because something was always happening whether Penny and her friend Tally were fighting or sometimes Penny would get angry if she knew one of her friends or her parents were hiding something from her. You would wonder when they were ever going to tell Penny what they had to say or if Tally and Penny were going to be friends again. I had a lot of questions throughout the story but they were all answered. The author always had you on the edge of your chair.

       I can relate to Penny in many ways. Some may include, the fact that me and Penny are both teenagers (I’m thirteen and Penny is fourteen) and we both go to a junior high. We also both take a class in school that teaches us a different language. I take Spanish and Penny takes French. Penny likes to bake just like I do. Penny makes cupcakes and I enjoy making not just cupcakes but cookies, brownies, cakes, and other desserts. I am not talented in the way Penny is- by baking cupcakes, but I play two instruments. I play the piano and the violin. I have been playing the piano for seven years now and I am on my fourth year of playing the violin.

         

      I would recommend this book to someone who likes to bake and someone who is around the age Penny is (fourteen). I also would probably recommend this book to girls but that doesn’t mean other people can’t read the Cupcake Queen. I would mainly recommend this book to girls because they talk a lot about baking which girls usually enjoy more than boys. Also it is told from a girl’s point of view. At the end and a little bit in the middle of the book Penny and her friends talk a lot about the Hog’s Hollow Queen contest, a contest a guy would not usually enter in.

       I absolutely enjoyed reading the book the Cupcake Queen!

　

　

 

Memoir 2

             This summer some of my neighbors and my family went to the Wisconsin Dells. We stayed in a hotel called the Wilderness.

             There were about seven water parks, indoors and outdoors that we went to with water slides including an indoor wave pool. I loved all of the water parks but the ones that I enjoyed the most were the wave pool and one of the water rides. Right when I saw it I was so anxious to get in the water and ride the waves. :)  The waves would go for about 5 minutes and then it would stop for 5 minutes and it would keep going. We would sit in an inner tube and it was like the ocean. The waves would come and the waves would be really tall and you could choose to go far out (about six feet deep) or you could wait for the waves to come to "shore". Some people wanted wanted to be brave and go without the inner tube and eventually me and my sister tried that too!  That was really scary at first but after that I never wanted to go back to the inner tube! Another water park had a waters slide called the Black Hole. The line took forever to get through and there weren't even that many people in line! I was really nervous at first. I was scared I would get to dizzy or that I would fall off my tube in the middle of the ride. It turned out to be a really crazy, but exciting ride! It was really dark at first and there would be little drops or turns but then I entered the "black hole". In the black hole, it is very bright and you spin around two or three times and it would suck you into the slide again and it would lead you out.

              The weather was beautiful which made our stay a lot more enjoyable. I would love to go back Wisconsin and explore what I didn't get to see. I will never forget what an amazing time we had in the Wisconsin Dells.