What did you think of the play A Christmas Carol?

On the last day of school before Christmas vacation, we thought it would be wonderful timing to have a professional acting company come into Bulger theater and perform A Christmas Carol. I truly hope we will enjoy this experience! I am so curious to hear your thoughts, so please share your opinions freely or answer some of the questions I have here.

- Did the play show your favorite scene from the book?
- Did the play depict the ghosts the way you thought they should look?
- Did the play change a lot of lines or did you hear some of the quotes we looked at during our reading?
-Did the play delete scenes that you wished they had kept?
-Did the play add any scenes that are not in the original version by Charles Dickens?
-Were there any scenes that you thought were better in the play or better in the book?

Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

Literature Circle Assignment: F Block

For three weeks you have discussed your book in your literature circle groups, but for your final assignment, you will be working on your own. Please post a comment about the book you read for class. Post a brief paragraph of 50-100 words about what you liked about the book or didn't like. Be specific. Did you like the main character, did you like the conflict he had to deal with, did you like the style of how the book was written? Be sure to explain why. If you didn't like something about the book, please explain that too. Don't give away the entire plot of the story or too many secrets, but tell enough so that it will inspire someone else to pick up this book or not. All F Block students should post a comment by Wednesday, November 10th.

Literature Circle Assignment: E Block

For three weeks you have discussed your book in your literature circle groups, but for your final assignment, you will be working on your own. Please post a comment about the book you read for class. Post a brief paragraph of 50-100 words about what you liked about the book or didn't like. Be specific. Did you like the main character, did you like the conflict he had to deal with, did you like the style of how the book was written? Be sure to explain why. If you didn't like something about the book, please explain that too. Don't give away the entire plot of the story or too many secrets, but tell enough so that it will inspire someone else to pick up this book or not. All E Block students should post a comment by Wednesday, November 10th.

Finally Here!

I pre-ordered my copy of Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins and it arrived today while I was setting up my classroom! I haven't been this excited about a book coming out since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows! If it's as good as I hope, I should be done with it soon and will write a review. Until then, hope you are getting your copies. Happy reading!

If you're interested in meeting Suzanne Collins, she will be signing books in Braintree this coming Monday.

Borders Book Store:Special Event
Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay (The Final Book of The Hunger Games)

Monday, August 30, 2010 • 7:00 PM
>>Borders – Braintree
255 Grossman Drive | Braintree, MA | 781.356.5111

Next on My list:

All the Broken Pieces by Ann E. Burg - so excited to read this story of an adopted boy from war torn Vietnam. What excited me most is that it is written in poetry verse!

The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien- This I am a little skeptical about, but Mr. Shaw is pushing it on me! I love the Lord of the Rings movies (okay loved is a strong word- I cried that says something, right?) So out of respect for Mr. Shaw and all the boys who love Lord of the Rings I am taking on the Hobbit. I'm thinking it might be a good read-aloud for my two young nephews who are joining me down the Cape next week! Two birds-one stone- book for them and book for me- check!

Like it...Love it...Hate it...?

Trouble by Gary D. Schmidt- Really Liked it (but can't commit to love with this one)

Passage from Trouble (page 40)

"Fine?" said Henry.

"Well, what should I tell her?" his mother said quickly. "That I sat in my son's hospital room for six hours and he didn't move once? That when Dr. Giles opened his eyelids and flashed a light into his eyes, the pupils didn't dialate enough to measure? That the sounds my son makes...are like none that any boy should ever make? You want me to tell her that the bloody stump is still oozing? You want me to tell her that the nurses come in every two hours to change him because he can't even use a bedpan? What do you want me to tell her, Henry?"

"That he woke up and said, "Katahdin." Henry laid his head heavily against the window, his heart would not believe that "Katahdin" didn't mean anything. The heart knows what it knows. -

The very first sentence of Trouble had me hooked: "Henry Smith's father told him that if you build your house far enough away from Trouble, then Trouble will never find you." The story goes on from there to describe Henry's perfect family, his kind mom & sensitive dad, his super -jock brother Franklin, and his easy going sister Louisa. But it all comes crashing down around them when "Trouble" most definitely comes into their lives. Henry's brother gets hit by a car in the first chapter and the circumstances around this allegeded accident are murky at best throughout much of the story. The boy accused of causing the accident is a Cambodian refugee and has suffered numerous attacks from Henry's brother and his friends at their prep school. His story becomes intertwined with Henry's adventure to climb Mt. Katahdin in Maine. Henry's desire to climb this mountain came from his brother and he wants to carry on this adventure without him.

I rated this as liked it, not loved it because of the random twists of plot. I didn't always get where the author was going with this story and much like Peak, I just wanted him to go up the mountain, but kept having to wait and wait and wait. It is not an exciting page turner, but so many passages are simply beautifully written. This is a great read, if you enjoyed Peak or Touching Spirit Bear, I think you will like this as well. It is a survival story of a different kind. Henry must survive the trouble that has taken over his family and the only way he can think to do that is to climb a mountain that will show him that trouble can give you perspective on the real moments of grace and beauty in life.

LIke it...Love it...Hate it...?

Hope everyone is enjoying summer and reading lots of books! I have been reading like crazy and each time I check a book off my list, I add another that I want to read...

Graceling by Kristin Cashore- Liked it!

Passage from Graceling (page 11):

"She practiced every day. She learned her own speed and her own explosive force. She learned the angle, position, and intensity of a killing blow versus a maiming blow. She learned how to disarm a man and how to break his leg, and how to twist his arm so severely that he would stop struggling and beg for release. She learned to fight with a sword and with knives and daggers. She was so fast and focused, so creative, she could find a way to beat a man senseless with both arms tied to her sides. Such was her Grace."

Graceling is an action packed and fairly fast paced novel about a young woman who is "graced" with a special power. "Graced" is what people call those who have two different colored eyes and possess specific gifts. Some gifts that graced ones could have are cooking, sewing, running, fighting, and in Katsa's case-killing! The story centers around Katsa and Po(a graced fighter -with a secret) trying to discover the truths behind a kidnapped grandfather, animals that have be tortured, and a king who seems a little too good to be true. I liked this book and found the action kept me engrossed in the story. I wanted to see what would happen next.

Interestingly, though, I didn't love the main character of Katsa. I much preferred the supporting character of Po- he was much more interesting and you want a happy ending to his story. Katsa was sort of boring after awhile- for she said the same things, felt the same things, and acted the same way throughout the story. It was Po that had me questioning what would happen next with him!

Warning: This is a love story- which totally took me by surprise! By page 50, the author, not so subtly, implies that Katsa is romantically intersted in Po. Let me quote rising 9th grader, JC Brassard with his summary of this book, "It's a romance with a lot of kiling." That about sums it up! I give it a B (JC gave it a B+)

If you liked Hunger Games, you will probably like Graceling (but I liked Hunger Games much better!)