Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario

    This week I read the novel Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario. This book was interesting and even more different from what we have read in the past. I thought it was interesting because of everything that has been going on with immigrants in America. I have never read a book that was based on a journalist following the main character around and writing about their story. Though Enrique seemed like a very complex character because of all the hardships that he suffered in his life. The main theme in this novel seemed to be family. I felt it was this because the whole plot of the story was about how Enrique’s mother had gone to America for the benefit f her children and that Enrique felt that he needed to reunite with his mother to become whole once again. Though at the same time in the novel he was creating his own family with his girlfriend who ended up getting pregnant before he left on his journey to find his mother. I felt that the character that developed the most was the main character Enrique. This is because he started out as a kid missing his mom and getting into drugs. Then grew up on his journey to find his mother and got his act together to help get money for his child that his girlfriend was caring for in Honduras. 

     I felt that it included most things that should be brought up in this type of novel. This novel has opened my eyes to what is actually happening with all these immigrants that are coming into the United States secretly. I never truly understood how they got into America and what they had to go through to get here. I also did not know most of the reasoning behind why all of them want to come to America. Though it makes sense since most countries think that everyone in America has it better. One thing that I felt was a stereotype in this novel was the fact that without his mother in his life he rebelled, got into drugs, and got his girlfriend pregnant. This seems like the stereotype of many people in South America ins stories you hear. I get that it is based off a true story and these stories are true, but I just feel that these are stereotypes that you will hear many times in stories similar to this. Though if it is true I guess it belongs in the story. 

     I feel that this text appeals to adolescents because some children reading his can probably relate to the struggles that Enrique goes through when his mom leaves just so she can support her children. A lot of children have single mothers who have to work all day to support their children. They may not be in a different country, but are still rarely seen by their children. I feel that it would also appeal to adolescents because it will help them more understand some of the issues that we are facing in out country and have a better position on it. 

Rating: D

My most excellent year by Steve Kluger

     For this week I read the novel My most excellent year by Steve Kluger. This was a very interesting and somewhat different from the other books that I have been reading in my young adult literature class. Though I kind of loved the diversity of this novel. I felt that the main theme in this novel was family. This is because T.C. addresses his letter to a family member. T.C. addresses his to his mother who passed away when he was 6. It makes it seem as this is his way to somewhat still say connected to his mother who is no longer with him. Though I loved that you find out that around the same time is when he actually met Augie. Augie is like his brother separated at birth, at least that is how they treat each other. They even have bedrooms ate each others houses and the parents treat each as their own child. Augie is the person that has kept him grounded all the years that they have been friends. The character that I felt developed the most was Augies, this is because of everything that he had to go through before he finally realized he was gay. It seems that most men and even women have this struggle when having the inner battle with their sexuality. Though it seems that once he finally realizes that he is gay that everyone around him already knew that he was gay and accept him for who he is. 

     I feel that this text is very thorough and not leaving anyone or anything out. This is because they cover things from race to sexuality. This diversity s what made the story so good. Without this I felt that it would have been a very mediocre and boring novel. The characters personalities also helped make all of the story, especially the bond that T.C. and Augie shared throughout the story. This novel definitely helped break down stereotype barriers about things such as sexuality. I love when authors include things like this because it helps inform me as a reader better on the topic. One of the reasons why I love reading is that while doing so you learn so much that you would have not known previously to reading that particular book. I have learned so much over the years while primarily reading young adult fiction novels. 

     I feel that this text could appeal to any and all adolescents. this is because the novel is so diverse and seems to be attempting to target every group of adolescents. By doing this the author is not being biased to any particular group of adolescents. There are a lot of authors out there who do not do this and are judged by certain readers because they are using the typical stereotypes and this can anger certain readers. So when these stereotype boundaries are broken down more adolescents can relate better and enjoy what they are reading. 

Rating: A

Almost Perfect Part 1

***For some reason this didn't post last Thursday. Sorry!!

     This week I was able to choose a book from a a list of five different books. I chose to read Almost Perfect by Brian Katcher which is about someone who is transgender and trying to make the transition from a man to a woman. The theme of this book was definitely LGBTQ (if that can be counted as a theme). Throughout the first half of the novel that I have read once you find out Sage is a transgender you get to more know some of the background. It helps gives more insight into exactly what a transgender is and what exactly leads them to this point. Personally I was not very informed about transgenders. All I knew was what I had head about Caitlyn Jenner and a friend of my dads that has recently decided to make the transition. I did not know many of the details of the decision making process and how the person making the transition actually feels. I feel that it is a very serious issue that does not get as much attention as it needs, people will judge them without first knowing their reasoning. The character that has developed the most throughout the first half of the novel was Logan. When he first discovered that Sage was a transgender he acted harshly and wanted to never see her again. Though once he actually realizes that was a rash decision on his end when Sage tried to stay away from seeing him other than just a friend, he was trying to push the romantic parts of the relationship on her. Once he does this it can be seen that he is actually trying to be a good friend to her and help in other aspects pf her life. He attempts to encourage both her parents to give her more social freedom. An example of this is when her mom will not even let her visit the Mizzou campus which is where she wishes to attend college in the fall. Then Logan talks to her mom about a program to visit for the weekend while chaperoned and her mom starts to sway towards letting her go. So, he attempts to be the best friend he can be after acting harshly about the news of her gender identity. 

     This novel reveals a lot about gender. Honestly most people are not informed about other genders besides themselves. Recently things such as trans gender have somewhat come into the light of social media, but this is only because of Caitlyn Jenner and the two transgender shows on TLC. Without these we would be just as much in the dark as we were a year ago. I think that the younger generations should be informed more about these situations at a younger time in their life. If we had this we would not be so surprised when someone reveals information such as this and would be more prepared and actually know what is being talked about.

     This text positions adolescents such as Logan bad because of the way he reacts when he first finds out that Sage is actually transgender. People reading this would think he is mean and rude to her even though she did nothing wrong. I feel that this would appeal to adolescents since most of the are very misinformed about any sexuality besides the general one which is straight. It should be included in sexual education when people are younger. At least there are books such as this to help them better understand things such as transgender. 

Rating: A

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

     The book that I read this week was Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson. This was a very interesting read and much different from the young adult novels that I typically read, which are science fiction. This novel focuses on girls who decide to compete on who can become the skinniest of the two. One of the main themes in this novel was the idea of friendship. This is particularly taking into account the two main girls, Lia and Cassie, that make the pact to become the skinniest girls. The book starts with the pact between the two girls and right off the bat you realize that this is not a normal friendship, but a messed up one that is focused on the outward appearance of each other. True friends would not care what each other look like, but think that the other is beautiful no matter what other people think. So it can be seen that these two girls ideas of friendship has been blurred by societal standards and how things such as magazines represent girls. Also the fact that they entered in a competition (pact) to who could becomes skinnier just shows that they don’t even ponder how this could effect the opposites health in the long run. 

     The character who showed the most development throughout the novel was Lia. She started out as someone who in a way encouraged her friend Cassie to stay bulimic until the point of no return leading to her death. There is also a possibility that her friend would not have died if Lia had answered just one of the 33 calls that she received from Cassie before her death. When she starts seeing Cassie’s ghost she seems to go to an even deeper place eventually leading to her to almost bleeding out. Though when she was in the motel and on the brink of death she decided that the reasons to live far out weighed why she was wanting to die. One of the major reasons was that she needed to stay alive for her little sister Emma who looked up to her. She looked up to her so much that she also rarely ate, so she decided for the betterment of Emma’s health that she needed to slowly recover from the long rode of anorexia that she had lived on for a very long time. 

     I feel that it could have included some perspectives of eating disorders from a male perspective. It seems that everyone thinks that eating disorders only pertain the females. Though in reality this could effect both genders. I feel that this novel shows one side of young adults that most authors would never think about addressing because it can be a touchy subject. If no author ever writes on this subject young adults would never be educated enough to know exactly what they are doing to their lives. I feel that this text would appeal highly to many high school students that have gone through what these characters do with their lives or even thought about doing these things. This book would help them become more educated on what exactly the repercussion of the actions are on young adults. 

Rating:B

unwind by Neal Shusterman

     This week I read the book Unwind by Neal Shusterman. The concept of this book was very interesting. The idea that abortions would not be aloud, but between the ages of 13 to 18 you could unwind your child’s body is mind blowing. How could you ever sign away your child to be torn apart and given out to various people. I mean at least people’s lives are being saved. Though when you think about it they are just taking away one life to save another. Is that really any better? The main theme is this novel is the idea of pro life and pro choice. This is show since the parents are given the option to unwind their children to help save lives. Some people even have kids for the sole purpose of being unwound once they turn 13. This is seen in the character Lev, he was the tenth child in his family and was born just to be unwound. Though his parents did not keep the fact that he would be unwound a secret, because of this Lev made it seem as if it was an honor that he was going to be unwound and was gladly going to go. 

     I felt all of the character developed in their own ways throughout the novel. Connor developed because he started out as somewhat of a problem child because he was getting into fights and because of this was signed off to be unwound. Then on his journey of running away from being unwound he found his true purpose, this was to help those that were like him and become the admiral for the graveyard (where those who were going to be unwound stayed until they were 18). Risa developed from a girl that was always trying hard enough to be the bottom bunch of children so that she would not be given up to be unwound. After her journey she also found her purpose at the graveyard and also refused to be given new body parts when she became paralyzed because she stuck up for what she believed in. Lev developed from being expected to be unwound to turning into someone with explosive fluid in him thus not allowing him to be unwound. The brain washing that his parents had thrust upon him slowly leaves him. 

     This can reveal that in the future the world can take a weird turn that could never be expected. If this became a reality no one would be safe until they were 18, making everyone trying to act on their best behavior then going crazy and revealing their true selves once they turned 18. Though the idea that a parent would sign away their child’s life seems unthinkable. 

     This appeals to adolescents since it targets their age group. Thinking that their parents could sign away their life after one fight they had is a game changer. They would literally be in control of your life and if you would go on living this way or in multiple people. I feel that this would appeal to them since it is a serious issue that is an alternative to abortion and this is the age group where you start thinking about these issues.

Rating: B+

Feed by M.T. Anderson

     I read the book Feed by M.T. Anderson and I just want to start by saying this is by far one of the weirder of all the dystopian young adult novels that I have read over the years. One of the most confusing things can be the language that the kids use in the novel. Though this is to be expected in a novel based in the future because even since the 1980’s our slang has drastically changed. I mean it’s not everyday that you will hear someone say “gag me with a spoon.” A main theme in this novel is technology because technology has a large impact on the world then and even current day. Feed is a form of technology that is put into a human when they are born. It is the newest technology and like things such as an iPhone if you don’t have one then you are seen as a social pariah. Though not everyone can afford to have the feed put into their children when they are born. This is what happened with Violet and because of her parents not having a lot of money when she did get a feed it wasn’t the best one you could get and had problems. 

     The character who developed the most was Titus, this is because he started as a stuck up guy who dated a lot of girls and was very rich. His family was wealthy and you could see this through is top line feed, trips whenever and wherever he wanted, and his multiple up-cars. Though he meets violet the rebel of the story who is all against things pertaining to the feed and government in general. She opens his eyes to what is truly going on in the world. The fact that she is different mesmerizes him and he falls for her. They later get into a fight and he doesn’t talk to her again until she is almost dead and this is where you can see that he truly a changed person from the beginning of the book. I feel that besides Violet the females in this book are not portrayed how they should be. In the beginning Titus seems to talk about all the women he has been with and in a way he makes them sound more as objects than as girlfriends. Making it sound as if there is always a new one around the corner if needed. Then the girls that travel with him don’t make the situation any better because they are the stereotypical girls. 

     The text positions adolescents as being buried deep in the current technology. There are many adolescents like that today, but there are also those who come from very traditionalist families. Though I feel that we don’t judge as much by what technology you don’t have as much as they judge in the book if you didn’t have a feed. I feel that this text would mainly appeal to adolescents who prefer science fiction novels. This is because it focuses on the technology named feed and the background that goes with the feed.

Rating:D