Looking For Alaska Entry Four

                From all the books on the list, I chose Looking for Alaska because John Green always has something very unexpected in his books. I also saw the movie for The Fault in Our Stars over the summer and loved it, so I figured his other books may be similar. I also liked his writing style. Instead of using chapters like every other book, he uses “one hundred days before” or “one hundred days after.” This built up suspense leading to the climax which was a total surprise. Also, it showed how all the characters acted so many days after. A connection I saw between myself and the novel after reading was questioning why Alaska’s death happened, just like Pudge and the Colonel. The boys found evidence supporting whether it was suicide or an accident. Also I wonder what would be different if the boys would have stopped her from going out so late and they feel the same way. Pudge and Alaska’s relationship could have gone further as well as building more memories with each other. The connection is nobody will ever know what happened for sure.

                I recommend this book to anybody who likes solving mysteries. If you like to pick your own ending to novels, then this book is for you! It is your decision as to why Alaska went out after several drinks and if hitting the police car on the high way was an accident or suicide. The mystery of not knowing Alaska’s death is what makes this book so unique. When leaving at the spur of the moment for something that probably could’ve waited until the next day makes me think that it was suicide by certain clues also show an accident. Looking for Alaska has several twists not only related to Alaska’s car accident and will keep you questioning what will happen next.

Looking For Alaska Entry Three

As I have began to read further into Looking for Alaska by John Green I am starting to see the action unfold. This book is much more than just a love story between two characters. The drama involved in this novel is always around Alaska, the beautiful girl who is always getting herself into trouble. One day Alaska goes out onto the highway late at night after several drinks and doesn’t return. Pudge and the Colonel were curious as to what had happened to her considering she wasn’t in class the next day. The Eagle gives the awful news to the class that Alaska was killed in a car accident that night. “For a moment, it was so quiet that you could hear the sound of not-breathing, the vacuum created by 190 students shocked out of air. I thought: It’s all my fault. I thought: I don’t feel very good. I thought: I’m going to throw up.”

This section hooked me as a reader because you can literally feel sorrow that filled the room after such horrifying news was given. Nobody knew what to say or do except question what happened and Pudge and the Colonel weren’t even certain of the situation. This made them wonder was it something they did. Or did it relate to Jake, Alaska’s boyfriend?  The boys as well as some of Alaska’s friends did all they could do investigate what could of happened. Every clue they found did not tell them whether it was suicide or just an accident. Throughout the rest of the book they have this horrible gut feeling in them as to why they didn’t stop her or why this situation could wait. Pudge admits that he was beginning to fall in love with her and everything he seems to do relate back to old memories he shared with Alaska which haunt him forever.

Tulips were found in the passenger seat of Alaska’s car. Nobody knows if the flowers were for Jake or for her mom’s grave.

Looking For Alaska Entry Two

Throughout the story I am beginning to notice that Pudge’s character is the most dynamic. At the start of the book Pudge just went along with everybody else did and didn’t really make decisions for himself. He never stood up for himself either.  All Pudge wants is to be accepted at Culver Creek and make new friends. Unfortunately, Colonel is the opposite. He has plenty of friends who are always getting into trouble. Colonel is more of a static character because it seems like all he does in the story is go out and party with friends. He hasn’t had any major changes yet because he has gone to this boarding school for a long time; while Pudge is brand new to the boarding school setting. I also feel like Alaska is used to the setting but I see a major change that would occur later on in the story. Her charming look insures she has many friends to be around. Alaska also wants to learn more about Pudge since their first date went so well.

A common theme that is beginning to appear is One must choose their friends wisely because many consequences may occur with the wrong people. For example Pudge was duct taped and thrown into a river by a group of boys. He tried to speak up for himself but it didn’t matter, it was too late. These boys were all of Colonel’s friends and thinks he was definitely behind all of it. When he asked him Colonel said that it happens to all the new kids. This leaves Pudge confused because if he knew they were planning that why wouldn’t he warn him or even stop the boys from doing it. Instead of using chapters in-between days, John Green uses the number of days before, “one hundred thirty-six days before.” This makes the book interesting because he doesn’t tell you what this event that they are counting down to is.

Looking For Alaska Entry One

I started the book Looking For Alaska by John Green and I am excited to read more. This book is about a boy named Miles who goes off to boarding school in Culver Creek and he meets some pretty interesting people throughout his journey. Miles is shy, tall and skinny, and somewhat nerdy. However his roommate Chip (Colonel) is the total opposite. Throughout the book Chip calls Miles “Pudge” for his lanky body. Down the hall from these boys is the beautiful Alaska. Colonel introduces Pudge to her and he automatically fell in love with what he saw. Alaska and Pudge went out for one night and they learned more about each other and the common love they share for history. So far the major conflict in the story is Miles’ struggle to make new friends at school. Everyone has been picking on him because he is the “new kid” who seems unpopular.

I predict that later on in the book Alaska and Pudge will date and Colonel will be jealous because he has known her longer. Alaska seems to be very troublesome and I can see them making bad choices together which could lead to them getting kicked out of school. I also predict that something tragic will happen to Alaska or Pudge near the end of the story because John Green’s books never seem to end happily. One question I have is Why did Miles’ parents send him to boarding school? Did he do something that maybe got him kicked out of his old school? Lastly, this book has so far reminded me of the movie Pitch Perfect. They both have a new kid at school who always is getting picked on and have a harder time making new friends without staying out of trouble.

Most important line

This week I read more in the Hugar Games and I am really starting to see the character's personallity unfold. All of a sudden Peeta is there for Katniss and in the beginning it seemed like he never wanted to be with her. They are helping each other out by taking sleeping shifts and trying to fix each others health. At this point in the game everybody left is physically and mentally exhausted. They are always thinking because they don't know when the next twist that the game makers create will come. Near the middle of the story Peeta is injured and Katniss does all she can to take care of him. Peeta is greatful that she is helping but it was hard to understand if he really liked her back. Considering that there is not many people left, I believe that it is important for them to stay togeteher because two is always better than one. If somebody is alone there is a good chance that they will have a harder time because they have nobody there to support them. In the end, I see Katniss and Peeta coming together as one, and bringing home the victory to District twelve!

While reading, I have found an important quote that shows Katniss and Peeta are truly falling in love. At this point in the story they are talking about their future if they make it out of the arena. "Our lips neither burning with fever or icy cold. This is the first kiss where I actually feel stirring inside my chest." This shows that even though there were hints earlier on in the story that Katniss was falling for Peeta she truly feels it now. The way the author talks about the temperature of how their kiss felt lets you kow that it was just right. Katniss says she wants another because she loves the feeling inside she gets. It is amazing to see how far the pair of them have came from the beginning. From complete strangers to star-crossed lovers. They alaways have each others back from now on and I feel like since their relationship grew stronger the will be unstoppable in the end.

Author's Tone

I have started reading farther into The Hungar Games and I have really started to see the love Katniss and Peeta actually have for each other. Peeta decides to share that he has like Katniss ever since kindergarten. It all started when his dad had a crush on Katniss's mom. As time went on, Katniss was more and in love with Gail and she didn't really know who Peeta was, besides the guy who worked at the bakery. Peeta believed that it was truly luck that his name was drawn at the ceremony and Katniss volunteered instead for her sister. I think that this is strange that he has liked her for so long because in the beginning he was really awkward about getting to know Katniss, he didn't even want to train with her at one point in the story. Also if they would have felt this love for each other in the beginning, they would have been much stronger together later on in the games. As the games are coming closer to an end, there is a higher chance that one of them will go and the other one will be heartbroken.

I have also realized that the tone of the story is lighthearted but fearful at the same time. Katniss and Peeta are constantly living in fear wondering if their is a plot for one of them to be killed, but the way Katniss and Peeta interact with each other makes you feel lighthearted because you know that they are there for each other. For example in the book it says, "And while I was talking, the idea of actually losing Peeta hit me again and I realized how much I don't want him to die. And it's not about the sponsors. I do not want to lose the boy with the bread." When the author keeps repeating the word "and" and the beginning of every sentence shows that there are so many reasons why Katniss would be totally alone without him. All the times they spent together trying to save each other during the games would go away and she didn't want to risk losing that. The author does a good job of expressing two types of tone while still keeping a storyline throughout the book.

Blog reflection

As I am analyzing my voice in the blogs I have posted, I have noticed that I seem to make many predictions about what is to come and sometimes asking questions near the end of the blog. Some specific phrases I use to show my voice as a writer is when I said “I have realized throughout the story Katniss and Peeta’s love may only be for crowd appeal.” This shows that I am expressing my opinion about their feelings towards each other. I have seen many examples throughout the story to prove that this is true. Such as during the games when they pretended to care for each other so they can get sponsers to help them further on in the game. Another example where my voice is showed in this blog is where it says, “Throughout the story, Peeta gets harder and harder to read. Such as being awkward on the way to the games, wanting to train alone, being in an alliance with other people, and never being there for Katniss when she is in danger.” My voice is showed by analyzing Peeta’s character and how it affects Katniss during the story. By saying that Peeta is hard to read I am saying that his personality seems to change depending on who he is around. This makes him difficult to understand because you never know what he could do. These words and phrases show that my writing personality is more predicting what will happen in the future and how their choices and decisions now can affect them later.

            Another way I have enhanced my writing in my blog posts is by adding diction and syntax. An example of Diction in this post is where it says, “I remember the importance of sustaining two star-crossed lover routine and I lean over and give Peeta a long lingering kiss.” Words such as long lingering and star-crossed really let you know Katniss’s feelings towards Peeta. Even if you don’t know how Peeta is feeling about the situation, it makes it much easier to understand what kind of person Katniss is. She believes that it is so important to stay together to get things accomplished. Also, an example of syntax I used in this post is, “Unfortunately, Peeta was back in the cave resting while Katniss was almost being killed.” By starting off the sentence with unfortunately, I am setting the tone for what is to come. If I wouldn’t of started out with that, you would never know how my feelings toward their relationship. My voice is used by analyzing characterization toward the characters and also by predicting how important decisions made now can greatly affect their life together later.