Three Day Road

1.
In my opinion the most important part in “Three Day Road”, written by Joseph Boyden, is when Elijah gets his first kill. Elijah’s first killing is an important part in the novel because it is the start of him becoming a different person. Elijah becomes deranged, and now Elijah and Xavier have both become more determined to kill the enemy, than before they got the thrill of killing and experiencing army life.

2.
“Thompson gives the nod and we set and throw the bombs in at the same time. They explode in a series of concussions. Men scream. Thompson takes Graves’s machine gun and crouches at the lip, sprays into the crater until all of the rounds are spent. I’m amazed at the little man’s actions. He kills with such ease. Let’s go, boys…
I replay it over and over in my head so that I don’t sleep all night, pulling the pin on my Mills bomb, throwing it and watching it arc until it disappears into the crater, the concussion and screams. I have killed someone now.” (75)

3.
The scene when Elijah gets his first kill connects with the rest of the book because this is when killing the enemy begins to intrigues him. Elijah is so fascinated by the thrill of killing the enemy, that he goes on his own little rampage. This part in the novel is when Elijah really takes in the military life and experience. He starts to bond with the men in his unit and the corporals. After Elijah gets his first kill he then realizes that he has taken someone’s life. It seems as though Elijah became more sympathetic when he was killing the enemy.

Independent Reading Blog (The Boy in the Moon)

Macallum Tepsich

A.

Ian went to L’Arche because he “wanted to see if there was a graceful, meaningful way for Walker to live in this world…not just an ad hoc solution to his needs, but a community and family he might call his own…a liberty and freedom he could claim.”(226) But Ian had his doubts. “I have to say, that struck me as a radical idea, even a gorgeous one. It also struck me a hopelessly unrealistic.” Before visiting L’Arche, Ian was concerned about how religion played such an important role in the community. He was relived to find that it was spiritual but not in a negative way. I think overall Ian was happy with what he saw at L’Arche. “I began to imagine this life for Walker after I was gone; I could imagine much worse ones.”(216) Ian knew that unfortunately the waiting list was twenty years long.

B.

After reading Brown’s book I realized that life can be very hard. Life should not be taken for granted because anything can happen in a matter of seconds. Having a disabled child does not only affect the parents and the child but it also has an affect on the other family members such as Hailey. “The money we spend on Olga, the $12,000 a year we spend on formula alone, the money we spend on diapers-all of it could be paying for Hailey’s university educations. She gamely says she’ll try to win a scholarship instead, but she is already an anxious child, the fallout of living in a house where something is always about to burst.”(88) Hailey suffers because Ian and Johanna are more focused on Walker’s health and his condition.

Reading Brown’s novel has made me realize that living with a disabled child can be extremely challenging it can also be very rewarding. Even when life gives you obstacles you have to find a way to get around them and when you do you will be stronger, wiser, more appreciative, and a better person. “I am grateful that my life had been touched by good fortune and grace.”(241) Brown appreciates what was given to him and makes the most of what he has.

C.

- You mention killing yourself and Walker (packing up ski gear and dying of hypothermia), were you worried about people judging negatively for having these feelings?

- Do you think that Hailey will want to take care of Walker later in life?

- During the course of writing the novel, were there any parts of yours and Walker’s life that you wanted to leave out?

The Great Gatsby Blog Post

Macallum Tepsich

A.

In the novel, “The Great Gatsby” Nick Carraway is the narrator and a character in the story. Nick is a nice man and would never do anything to hurt anybody unlike Daisy Buchanan, who hurt Gatsby by marrying Tom. He is silent but in the end makes all the pieces of the puzzle fall into place. Nick shows how outgoing he is when he allows Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan to see each other and have tea. He is a modest man and never tries to bring other people down. Nick is a very open-minded character, which makes the other characters in the novel want to talk to him. Nick uses this to his advantage when Gatsby and Daisy start seeing each other. Gatsby and Daisy trust Nick because he is keeping their love a secret from Tom.

“I lived at West Egg, the-well, the less fashionable of the two.” à In this passage Nick is being modest because even though he has a wonderful home he does not make a big deal of it.

“I called up Daisy from the office next morning, and invited her to come to tea.”

“Don’t bring Tom,” I warned her.

“What?”

“Don’t bring Tom.”

“Who is ‘Tom’?” she asked innocently.

à This is an example of Nick be a nice person and going out of his way to help Gatsby and Daisy.

“Good morning, old sport. You’re having lunch with me today and I thought we’d ride up together.” à This quote explains that Gatsby wants to talk to Nick. Nick is a character that others in the novel trust.

B.

“You mean to say you don’t know?” said Miss Baker, honestly surprised. “I thought everybody knew.” “I don’t.” “Why-“ she said hesitantly, “Tom’s got some woman in New York.” “Got some woman?” I repeated blankly. à This passage appeals to me and is effective because this is where the book really picks up. I found it interesting because we had to wait until later in the novel to see who Tom’s “girl” was.

“I want to get one of those dogs,” à In this quote we see that Tom is willing to buy varies items for Myrtle. I find this interesting because Tom bought Daisy 350,000$ pearls and then later buys Myrtle a dog. If you think about it, Tom must love Daisy more. The piece is effective because Nick is in the car while he is buying the dog for myrtle. This relates back to the fact the Tom trusts Nick and knows he won’t tell Daisy.

“She’s not leaving me.” Said Tom. à This passage appeals to me because Tom shows how confident he is when it comes to Daisy leaving him. This is effective because it makes Gatsby more and more mad every time he says it. This stikes and argument between Gatsby and Tom, which eventually leads to Daisy running out because she can’t take the fighting. This worked in Tom’s favour because he is not as confident as he thinks he is.

C.

- Why did Wilson shoot Gatsby if he did not have any evidence that Gatsby killed Myrtle?

- Why is Tom so confident throughout the story and why does he behave in such a way that makes the reader not like him?

Of Mice and Men

The novel, Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, is a moving and compelling story. The main characters, George and Lennie, share a unique friendship. Lennie is simple-minded and looks up to George like a brother. George looks out for Lennie and makes sure he doesn't get into trouble. George Milton and Lennie Small are two ranch hands who are trying to make a living by working on farms around California during the Great Depression. They had a dream to someday own a small farm together and live off the fat of the land. Until one day Lennie innocently finds himself in serious trouble and George is forced to make the hardest decision of his life in order to spare his best friend.

The characters in Of Mice and Men range from high society ranch owners to black slaves and the disabled. Steinbeck describes each character emotionally and physically. The detailed descriptions of characters and settings make the reader feel as though they are on the ranch as well. The author uses interesting diction and dialogue throughout the novel. For example, he uses repetition of phrases such as "living off the fat of the land''. The dialogue used in story is simple like many of the uneducated characters. Often the dialogue is grammatically incorrect, for example "Lennie never done it in meanness". This paints a vivid picture of who the characters are.

There are many important and significant quotes in the novel but these three quotes stand out to me. "A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody. Don't make no difference who the guy is, long's he's with you. I tell ya," he cried, "I tell ya a guys gets too lonely an' gets sick." This quote appeals to me because friendship is the most important thing in the novel. "Seems like they ain't none of them cares how I gotta live. I tell you I ain't used to livin' like this. I coulda made somethin' of myself." This quote is telling the reader that Curley's wife is lonely and resentful. Even the owners wife is lonely on the ranch. This shows that Lennie and George share the most special thing, friendship. "The hand shook violently, but his face set and his hand steadied. He pulled the trigger." This quote is so important because it shows how much George cared for Lennie. George put Lennie down the easy way instead of having farmers run after Lennie and shoot him.