Girl, Interrupted Review By Caitlin Scarpa

Girl, Interrupted Review

By Caitlin Scarpa

Girl, Interrupted was an amazing book.  I read this for my group memoir podcast, and I am so glad that I did.  This book was about the time Susanna Kaysen spent in the McLean mental hospital.  She told the stories of all of her friends she made while there.  There was Polly, who tried to commit suicide by lighting herself on fire; Lisa, who was an anorexic, sociopath, with insomnia; and Daisy, who would only eat chicken and laxatives. These were just a few of the young women she had met while there, but they were definitely some of the most interesting ones.

She spent two years in the hospital after being diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder.   Borderline Personality Disorder is a mental disorder that causes depression, anxiety, an unstable sense of self, etc.  I’m not going to spoil the story here but I would really suggest that you read it if you are interested.  I really enjoyed seeing Kaysen’s view on being in the hospital and how she dealt with her illness.  She told the story in a bunch of really short chapters.  Each chapter showed a different experience in her life in, or around the time she was in McLean.  Sometimes she would talk about her life before the hospital, and all of the troubles she had.  Other times she would talk about her life after the hospital, and how she moved on and recovered from her illness.  She would explain how she felt about certain people in the hospital, including patients and staff, and how they affected her life.

*SPOILERS BELOW*

There were many parts of the book that I really enjoyed.  My favorite part was when Susanna became unsure of if she had any bones in her hand.  She was concerned that she wasn't entirely real, and started to dig into her hand until she found her bones.  I found this really interesting, because up until now, she has seemed fairly sane; she didn’t have outbursts like Lisa or any of the other patients.   She also hadn’t showed any self destructive actions since she tried to commit suicide.  I found this scene very interesting.  

Another interesting event was when a new girl, named Alice, came in.  She didn’t look like there was anything wrong with her, until one day when she snapped.  One day, she was taken off to the High Security Ward, where the most dangerous patients were kept.   She was in a room, where she smeared feces on the walls, and was huddled in the corner.  The other girls, including Susanna, decided to never let each other get that bad.  They had realized what could happen to them if they let it.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and I may read it again just to see what else I can get out of it.  

What is Oak Island? - Joseph Dempsey

So I haven't really read an independent reading book because I have been reading Lord of the Flies, but now that we have started the play Macbeth, and it isn't that long, I hope to start reading the book The Secret Treasure of Oak Island. So I assume a lot of you probably don't know what Oak Island is I figured I would explain it for my blog post.

Geographically, Oak Island is a 140 acre island just off the cost of Nova Scotia. However this simple island has brought death and irreversible financial ruin to many. This is because in 1795 a teenager named Daniel McGinnis was on a boat late at night and saw strange lights coming from the island. He quickly gathered up two of his friends (John Smith and Anthony Vaughan) and headed over to the island. There they found a huge oak tree with a pulley hanging from it. Beneath the pulley they found a circular depression. They began to dig and every 10 feet they found a platform of round oak logs (remember this because it will be important). The kids got to about 25 feet before they gave up. This spot became known as the Money Pit.

The next attempt to find the treasure believed to be there was by the Onslow Company. They continued the digging of Daniel McGinnis down to 90 feet where they found something of great importance. Resting on the log platform at 90 feet they supposedly found a stone with strange symbols on it. These symbols would later translate to "Forty feet below, two million pounds are buried". However, this stone has since gone missing and there is no proof it actually existed. Furthermore, on removal of the stone, a "flood tunnel" ended up flooding the shaft, ending the operation.

What Is A "Flood Tunnel"?
So I thought I would quickly interject here as to what a "flood tunnel" is. They are tunnels believed to exist throughout the island that are there to protect the buried treasure by funneling seawater to wherever the tunnel is breached. To date, people have an understanding of where the seawater pours into the tunnels but we have yet to actually stop it.

The next very significant expedition took place in 1897 by William Chappell. And here it is important to interject that 2 people have died in accidents in the quest for the treasure and the legend that "Seven men must die before the treasure can be found" is starting to come about. Furthermore, several curious things have been excavated at this point such as a piece of parchment. However, something much more intriguing was about to be discovered. In a drilling expedition they discovered a box like structure underground that was made of a mix of concrete and wood. This is VERY significant because that was the deepest anyone had excavated and they found THAT. 

The next significant excavation is VERY significant, but not in a good way. This expedition led by Robert Dunfield hoped to get to the bottom of the mystery once and for all. Dunfield launched an all out attack on the money pit, in hopes to get to the "Chappell Vault" (The structure William Chappell discovered). However, eventually he hit one of the flood tunnels and overnight the excavation was ruined. He then ordered that the pit be filled in. Since then, the location of the Money Pit is STILL unknown because in this all out attack, Dunfield destroyed everything.

Finally, there is the most recent and most successful attempt to find the treasure. It is currently being led by Rick and Marty Lagina. They have reignite the passion for Oak Island and it mystery with their tv show "The Curse of Oak Island". They have recently potentially rediscovered the location of the original Money Pit as well as discovered some new places of interest. On top of that, they have discovered for strange carvings, strange pieces of wood deep underground, and coins. Furthermore, they have also narrowed down some of the theories behind who put the treasure there. So far the leading theories are the Knight's Templar took sacred treasures and hid them during the Crusades, it is pirate treasure, or it is the lost treasure of the Inca's that the conquistadors took when they conquered South America. Only time will tell when they treasure will be found.

Books You Should Read Before You Die

By Cynthia Loh 

Harry Potter Series

This fictitious book series follows the journey and adventure of Harry Potter, a young wizard, and his friends Ron and Hermione. The characters attend the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and while enhancing their magical skills, they overcome enemies and obstacles along the way. The story mainly revolves around Harry's fight against Lord Voldemort, a wizard who tries to displace the Ministry of Magic, the governing body for wizards.

Falling under many genres, such as fantasy, drama, coming-of-age, mystery, thriller, fiction, and young adult, Harry Potter is on of the most widely known novels and one of the most successful. The Harry Potter franchise is valued at about $25 million. The seven books in the series were turned into an eight-part film series which is the second highest-grossing film series of all time.

The Harry Potter books in order:

1. The Philosopher's Stone
2. The Chamber of Secrets
3. The Prisoner of Azkaban
4. The Goblet of Fire
5. The Oder of the Phoenix
6. The Half-Blood Prince
7. The Deathly Hallows

Caitlin Scarpa- "Harry Potter has a lot of childish adventures and you grow up with the books as you read them."

Claire Riley- "Its good" 

Of Mice and Men 

A greatly distinguished novel written by John Steinbeck and often regarded as a classic. The main characters are George Milton and Lennie Small, an odd and seemingly incompatible characters. George is small and smart but is uneducated, on the other hand, Lennie is big and lumbering but had a mental disability. They are migrant workers with the American Dream of settling their own land. However, Lennie's mental disability leads commit many blunders, some more consequential than the others, and George takes his role as Lennie's guardian and does his best to keep Lennie safe. 

Of Mice and Men is a required piece of reading in many schools but is often challenged and argued that it should not be required to be read in schools. Contested for it's vulgar and offensive language, this book falls into the American Library Association's  list of the Most Challenged Books in the 21st Century.

Caitlin Scarpa- " It's an amazing classic that will be enjoyed for many more generations to come."

The Notebook 

Written by Nicholas Sparks, a novselist, screenwriter, and producer, most famously known as being a romanctic novelist. The Notebook is described as a story of miracles and an aching story about the power of love. Narrated by an elderly man in a nursing home who tells this story to another patient from his notebook. The main characters Noah and Allie who spend a summer together and fall in love. However, Allie's parents disagreed with her seeing a lower-class man and ban her from seeing him. 14 years later, Noah has returned from fighting in the war and Allie is know engaged to a rich lawyer. These two are able to rekindle their love and end up together in the end. 

To Kill a Mockingbird

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee published in 1960 is a Pulitzer Prize winning novel and a classic in modern literature. The novel is in the perspective of a young girl, called Scout, and follows her as she grows up and the plot unfolds. As a young child, Scout, her brother Jem, and their friend Dill, had a fascination with Arthur "Boo" Radley but were terrified of him at the same time. Boo has never been seen by anyone for year and the rumor and stories of Boo made him out as a wild animal. Atticus, Scout's father, defends a black man, who is innocent, from a rape allegation on a white girl. This being the climax of the novel discusses the issue of rape and racial inequality. 

The characters and the plot of this novel was based off the author's own observations of living in her hometown and her family and her neighbors. Although the book's lesson denounces prejudice and racism, it is challenged to be taken out of public schools due to it's racist epithets. It was even ranked, by British librarians, above the Bible in the list of books "every adult should read before they die".  

Ender's Game

A futuristic, military science novel written by Orson Scott Card presents a conflict between humans and aliens known as "buggers". Ender Wiggen, a genius-like boy is recruited to go to Battle School, a facility in space that prepares kids to fight in an appending war against the buggers and to protect humanity. The teachers at Battle School see Ender as their last chance for a commander who can defeat the buggers and push him through the school process leaving Ender mentally and socially strained. Disguised as a battle simulation, a game, Ender battles against Mazer Rackham in what is thought to be a simulated fight that gets progressively harder with each battle. What Ender doesn't know is that he is actually in control of human lives and is actually fighting the war. 

Ender's Game is a series with sequels: Speaker for the Dead, Xenocide, Children of the Mind, and Ender in Exile. There are later novels that come out that take place in the same time period as Ender's Game. I recommend Ender's Shadow.    

The Song of Achilles 

Madeline Miller spent ten years writing her debut novel novel, The Song of Achilles. Set in Greece, the novel tells the story of Achilles, the demi-god and Greek hero of the Trojan War, and Patroclus, Achilles best friend. These characters were take from Homer's Iliad and told as a love affair between Achilles and Patroclus. Like many others, Miller wondered what the relationship between these two friends actually was and tells how she interprets their relationship in her book. Miller saw their relationship not as best friends b, but rather as lovers.

The Song of Achilles is a winner of the Orange Prize for fiction and was shortlisted for the 2013 Chautauqua Prize.  

The Five People You Meet In Heaven 

The Five People You Meet In Heaven, a novel by Mitch Albom, shows the life and death of Eddie, a maintenance man. After dying trying to save a girl from a failing amusement park ride, Eddie is sent to heaven. From there he meets five people who had a significant impact on Eddie when he was alive, the Blue Man, The Captain, Ruby, Marguerite, and Tala. Each person he meets becomes a theme for the book. The Blue man shows that everything happens for a reason, the Captain explains how sacrifices are a part of life, Ruby teaches the importance of forgiveness and that there are two sides to every story, Marguerite shows the power of love after death, and Tala expresses that there is a purpose life.     

And A Bunch More...

Caitlin Scarpa

The Maze Runner summary and review

*WARNING SPOILERS*

The Maze runner, by James Dashner, is a book about a young man named Thomas who is thrown into a confusing world full of unfamiliar people and monstrous creatures.  These people are all boys of around the same age, and they all have no memory of who they really are; all they know is their name.  All of these young men were placed into a giant maze full of terrifying creatures, called Grievers, and they have to find a way to get out.  The only way out is through the maze.  The Grievers: giant slug like creatures with mechanical spikes jutting out in every direction, are what's keeping them from escaping.  The maze doors open every morning and the grievers leave, but every night the maze doors close and the grievers come out to play with anyone who didn’t make it to the door in time.  The only ones who are brave enough to go in the maze are “the runners.”  The runners are the people who run through the maze and try to track its movements to find a way out.  The maze itself moves every night and forms a new shape, making it harder to track and map out.  The boys aren't making any new progress until Thomas shows up, and everything changes.

The book The Maze Runner was heavily inspired by The Lord of the Flies, which we are going to read later in the year, so there will most likely be many similarities.  The boys who are sent to the maze were sent there by a government group called WICKED.  WICKED is trying to study them to find a cure for a disease, called the Flare, which is plaguing the rest of the world, making them into zombie like creatures.  Almost all of the boys in the maze are immune to the disease, which is why they are being studied, they want to see what makes them immune and try to replicate it in others. Every month, one boy is sent into the maze by WICKED, and when Thomas shows up, the whole maze starts to change.  Only a few days after Thomas arrives, a girl, named Teresa, is dropped off by WICKED, she is the only female to ever be sent to this maze.  This is what triggers the “end of the trials.”  The whole maze is sent into dire situations and deadly circumstances.  All of the kids are now facing the clock to find a way out of the maze, and Thomas is the only one who has been able to make any progress in the escape.  

Thomas gets help from a few other people trapped in the Maze including, Minho, Newt, Alby, Chuck, Frypan, and Teresa.  With all of their separate strengths and abilities, they are able to solve the puzzle and find a way out.  

The book series is full of adventure and excitement that really keeps you on the edge of your seat. There are five books in the series so far, The Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials, The Death Cure, The Kill Order, and The Fever code. All of the books help to elaborate on the story and really make the world feel real.  The Kill Order and The Fever Code are both Prequels, which help to shine some light on what the world is facing and why WICKED is experimenting on children to cure the disease. It also helps to give different points of view for the story, and what different people living in the world might think of WICKED and what they are doing.   The Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials, and The Death Cure are all part of the main story, following Thomas and his friends through the trails and their escape from WICKED.   While reading the books myself, I came to love the characters and the story, which fascinated me and made me want to keep reading.  As with any good book, this one contains lots of very happy and very sad moments which send the reader on a roller coaster of emotions, which only makes the reader more immersed in the story.

Even though the book series was phenomenal, the movies were disappointing for anyone who is a fan of the books, for various reasons.  Many scenes and events of the story were cut out in order to make it have more action scenes, which ruined elements of the story.  If this series seems interesting to you, then I suggest giving the books a try first, and holding off on the movies until later.  I would suggest this book to anyone who is a fan of non-stop adventure, suspense, mystery, and action.  

Work Cited

Dashner, James. The maze runner. New York: Delacorte Press, 2009. Print.

American Sniper Book Review Beck Gozdenovich

Summary:
American Sniper is an autobiography written the most lethal sniper in U.S. history, Chris Kyle. He guides us along his life before, during, and after his time spent as a navy SEAL in the military. He gives a brief background about his childhood and what it was like growing up in Texas. Then he moves on to his motives for joining the military. He describes his training and boot camp in extreme detail and it is very eye-opening. Then he extensively describes his life in active service. He dives deep into each category of military life, the combat, the missions, the gear, the stress, and even the downtime. After he finishes his duty, he then describes how his life was after his service and how he was effected by the war both positively and negatively.

Recommendation:
I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading. It highlights the sacrifices soldiers make to keep their country safe, and their incentives for doing so. It is a very eye-opening read, even to those with little to no interest in war-style books. Even if you don't read the book, the movie is a great alternative.

Overall Rating:
I would give this book a 4.5 out of 5 because the great life lessons this book teaches and because of how intriguing the whole book is

What's the Deal with Harry Potter? by Claire Riley

I know that i'm pretty late to the Harry Potter series, as they have blown up YEARS ago. But, I just recently found the time to read them, and I am SO INTRIGUED. I just got sucked in, and now I can't stop. I actually finished the first book the same day I started it, and within only a week I have read 3 of the books and 1/3 of the 4th book. So as it is clear is see, it is a pretty great series. The question I want to answer is why. What makes these books so attractive and precious, that there are now two entire real, life sized WORLDS made to reflect the book? J.K Rowling, the now famous author, has been known change the modern world of literature, and there must be distinct reasons.

You can spot a Harry Potter lover from a mile away. I have many friends who are fans, wearing shirts with quotes from the books and they fact that like to brag how many times they have re-read the series. I asked a Hogwarts loving friend, Caitlin Scarpa, as to why she loved the books so much to see if we had similarities. She stated, "I really like the sense of childish wonder and adventure that you get while reading these books. I have read the entire series twice!" I believe that Harry Potter has been a book that was originally directed to a younger audience, so Caitlin had read them earlier on. This is why she gets a sense of childhood when reading them, and gives her a good thought to look back on.

Sadly for me, I am just now picking up the books, so I can't have a nice sense of nostalgia when reading. ALTHOUGH, I am still a kid! Perhaps I can still read over these books again, and relive the wondrous world of Harry Potter. The way J.K Rowling writes has opened up to all audiences, and have gone from silly kids books to life-changing experiences everyone has heard of.

" 'I'm Thinking of Ending Things' ... What's the hype about?" By Liz Ukstins

During one of our weekly book chats, Mrs. Kopp began describing a book entitled I'm Thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid. Immediately, hands shot into the air calling "dibs" on the next copy. Countless students wanted a copy of this book, including myself. But what's the hype about? Why is this book so appealing? What is it about and what makes it special?

I'm Thinking of Ending Things bounces between a fading love story and excerpts from a conversation over a suicide. A man and his girlfriend go on a road trip to a farm after being together for a short period of time. The girlfriend becomes paranoid and starts to question the position she was in. She wonders, "Is there any escape?" "Am I going to die?" The development of this story left me (and other readers) with chills and an inexplicable eerie feeling. Reid took such a unique take on the saying, "I'm thinking of ending things", which is was what appealed to me. The book was so interesting and scary. I had numerous questions about the end. Other readers say that the twist at the end was so unexpected that this book required a second read in order to full understand it.  In order to preserve the masterpiece that this novel is, I cannot say much about it, but what I can say is this:

Read it.

 

Collected Opinions (Other than my own) from http://afterthingsend.com/

 

Oedipus The King and the Oedipus Complex
by Cynthia Loh

                                                 
Oedipus The King by Sophocles is definitely one of the most disturbing and frightening plays I have ever read. Despite it's creepiness and unsettling plot, this was my favorite play I have read for school.

(Basically my spark notes version of Oedipus the King)
Oedipus is the king of a land who is faced with a plague and the only way to end the disease is to banish or kill the man who murdered the former king. Oedipus calls for the blind oracle Teiresias to figure out who the killer is to make an end to plague in his land. Refusing to answer Oedipus' question of who the killer is, claiming how it will only cause Oedipus grief and pain, Oedipus becomes enraged. Initiating an argument with Teiresias, Oedipus learns from the blind oracle that he is the slayer of the former king. After lots of insults and assumptions, Teiresias leaves Oedipus believing that Teiresias lied to him and that the oracle is working with Creon, Oedipus' brother-in-law, in order to take the throne. However, this is false. In a conversation with Jocasta, it is made known to the readers that in the past, Oedipus learns that he is fated to kill his father and sleep with his mother. After hearing of his horrible destiny, Oedipus runs away from Corinth, his home country, and ends up in Thebes. He does admit when he arrived he was attacked by a group of people and killed them all but he is doubtful that it was the former king. After a series of meetings and interrogations, Oedipus finds out that he is adopted and that the people who raised him are not his birth parents. Oedipus was given away when he was a baby and was given to a herdsman who was instructed to kill him. The herdsman then continues to say that he received the baby from Jocasta. Oedipus learns that Jocasta and her former husband who was the former king is his parents. Jocasta overhears the conversation and kills herself. When Oedipus finds her body he gauges out his eyeballs with his bare hands. He says goodbye to the four children he created with his own mother and banishes himself away to live in solitude.

This book proposes the Oedipus Complex, also known as the Electra Complex, which state that a child unconsciously has sexual desires toward their parent of the opposite sex. As ridiculous as this sounds, many psychologists believe this to be true. After searching the web, I have found forums where people with this complex can post about their situations. Once I finished laughing my head off, I noticed that so many more people actually have and admit to having the Oedipus complex. Although the psychologists call for very young children to go through this, many people in a range of ages has this complex. I found people from their teens all the way to people in their sixties having the Oedipus Complex. There are many different scenarios and feelings each person has. One teenage girl ranted about how much she hated her mother because she loved her father. Another person in their forties talked about how she recently in an affair with her godfather who is about 20 years older than her and married. Many talked about how they gained romantic feelings for an absentee parent or when their parents were divorced. However, they all were very grossly disturbing.

A Is for Alibi Book Review- By Abraham LaBelle

The summer reading book that I chose was A Is for Alibi by Sue Grafton. The page gave a brief summary and described it as a mystery novel, and I just so happened to have been interested in the mystery genre over the summer.



The title of the book refers to the alphabet, with the mystery-related word starting with the letter of the alphabet. As you may have guessed, the next book in the series is B Is for Burglar. Sue Grafton continued this unique pattern for the whole series, and the last current book in the series is the letter "X". But, the book is simply titled X, and I would assume there is no word that starts with "X" and relates to mystery. (I personally think "X Is for Xylophone-wielding Murderer" would be cool)

Summary and Review

The main character is a private investigator named Kinsey Millhone. The story begins when Nikki Fife goes to Kinsey and asks her to find who really murdered her husband. This is interesting as Nikki was convicted of murdering her husband 8 years ago. All of this is explained in the beginning, and it is just now that Nikki is released from prison. Nikki claimed she was framed and was not the real murderer, and so Kinsey must find out who the true killer was. (I'm not going to say who)

Kinsey herself is very independent and trusts no one, as one should be as a private investigator. A majority of the book is Kinsey questioning family members, and acquaintances of the other previous murder victims. This in turn adds a lot of characters to the book, and I often found it difficult to remember who was who, and what part they played.

I also think the beginning of the book is a bit slow, and there isn't much action. But, about three quarters of the way in, a certain "event" happens which sparks action and began to engage me to the book.

A very fun part of this book, or any mystery book for that matter, is trying to figure out who the murderer is. In A Is for Alibi, I had a hard time making guesses as Sue Grafton does a very good job of tricking your mind. If you enjoy mystery books or if you want to find out who the killer is in A Is for Alibi, I would recommend you read this book.

Shadow Divers Book Review By: Joseph Dempsey

For my summer reading book, I chose to read Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson. Because I really enjoyed it, I decided to talk about it.


Not many secrets remain about World War II. However, in 1991 Bob Nagle and John Chatterton discover an unknown sunken U-Boat 60-miles off the coast of New Jersey. This book takes you on their and their team's adventure of giving the U-Boat a name. However this was easier said than done for many reasons. One of these is there was no record of a U-Boat sunken there.

I am not going to say anymore because I don't want to ruin anything.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgjlbQtlT6Q

Above is a video of a dive on the U-Boat. I recommend having the volume off because they say the U-Boat's name.