Things Change by Patrick Jones Entry #2

Things Change by Partrick Jones was a great book. While reading this book, I felt so bad for Johanna and her encounters with Paul. When she started fighting with her parents, the words that came out of her mouth was unbelievable. I would of never thought, she could be so mean.

In the end, Johanna did lose everything especially her life because Paul had abused and bruised her so much that she was able to survive barely. Sher friend Pam, but made some new ones like Kara. But throughout the book, Pam was with her the whole time even though she did not feel like talking to Johanna.

I really thought the cover of the book told the whole story. It showed the rose petals and the blood. This is both a good and bad thing. The blood shows how Paul abused and tore Johanna's heart. But, the rose symbolize the happiness that both of them shared.

I was kind of confused in Paul's last letter to his dead father, he promised to change one last time. But, when I read the epilogue, it showed that this girl, Sarah that Paul liked was seen with a black eye. So, in the end he never did change.

I was so moved and interested in this book. I read it the whole time and could not stop reading. This book was so interesting that I even felt the emotions that Johanna had. I would rate this book with a nine out of ten. I strongly recommend anyone to read this book especially if you like fiction.

Things Change by Patrick Jones (Blog Share)

Things Change by Patrick Jones is an amazing book that I read. It is a teen fiction book. The story is about this girl named Johanna and how her life changes when she meets Paul. So, before she met Paul, she was perfect. She got straight As, she respected her parents and spend a lot of time with her friend, Pam. Paul is this abusive student-body president. At school, Paul and Johanna started becoming great friends. As their friendship grew, Johanna learns that she has to make Paul happy all the time because if she doesn't she will end up with having these bruises. And as she spends more time with him, she loses everything from her past. This includes her grades, her best friend Pam, and her relationship with her parents. Most of the time, she starts getting into intense fights with her parents. Johanna starts considering Paul's happiness to be more important than her family, her friends, her grades, and her safety.

This book is mainly about change and chances. And how people promise to change, but never really does. Johanna gave many chances for Paul to change and he never did. He was very abusive to her and many other people.

One interesting part of the book is when Paul writes a letter to his dead father saying "I know you; I know everything about you. I listen to your music and I live your life, but I will be better than you, I will change, and Johanna will take me back". (Pg. 210) This quote tells how Paul finally sees his mistake and decides to change.

The title of the book is called Things Change. Its kind of ironic because in the end of the book, Paul never does change. The cover of the book is very creative. The red circles are supposed to be blood and rose petals. These are two things are considered to be symbolic and is seen throughout the book.

This book is a easy read and is easy to understand what is happening throughout the text. I suggest people who like fiction, to read this book. This book is found in the Independent reading list under teen fiction.

Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs Entry #1

Running with Scissors, by Augusten Burroughs, is a memoir book. It is a true story about a boy named Augusten Burroughs, whose mother gave him away, so that he can be raised by her psychiatrist. He was very odd and strange. At the age of twelve, he was living in a dilapidated Victorian, which is a quiet house. Throughout the time, the doctor/psychiatrist, Mr. Finch, showed disturbing feeling towards Augusten. There, he didn't go to school and lived without rules. For example, the Christmas tree stayed there until the summer. Basically, this story is telling how a boy struggled to survive in extraordinary circumstances.

The story starts out with Augusten's parents arguing every single day. So, their parents went for counseling with Mr. Finch. Since, his parents were fighting more often, they eventually got divorced. So, his mother went to Mr. Finch to discuss her emotions and how she should act around Augusten. Throughout, the time, he met Hope, Mr. Finch's daughter. They had a few conversations and all. Then, they visited Mr. Finch's house. So, far the book is great.

My reaction to the main character:

I really feel bad that Augusten ( the author and the main character) who went through this childhood where his parents argued, divorced, and how he never really had friends because his mother pulled him away from all of it. I suggest anyone who likes memoirs to read this good book because it will tell how a boy with no one around him faced life.

Glass by Ellen Hopkins The end (pg 400-680) Entry #3

This week, I finished reading Ellen Hopkins's book, Glass. This book is written well in telling the story of this girl Bree. This book is a sequel to Crank. All her life, Bree was really Kristen. The name changed because she could not recognize herself anymore. Before, Kristen used to be this straight A student, who loved her family, and had a shy personality. But, after her visit with her dad, she met new people and started making unhealthy choices. She started following drugs. Later on, she had a baby named Hunter. She lived with her mother the whole time. After a while, her mother realized that Kristen is acting different. She never eats, and never sleeps or anything. She found out she was on drugs. She told Kristen to change, but she would not. Her mother took care of Hunter because Bree never did. Then, her mother disowned her and . She didn't even let Bree take Hunter. So, she had to live on her own. While on her own, she meets up with Trey( her friend). When Trey went to college, she went to Trey's cousins house, Brad. Throughout, that time, she depended on drugs more in her life. She had money problems, which made her steal from her mother's own house. She stole a huge load of checks. In the last part of the story, she and Trey both went to jail. Bree realized she wasted her life, and finally decides to change her behavior.

Reading Progress:
Personally, I enjoyed this book. I have read it everyday. It had a good, true story behind it. But, it was way to long, and started getting a little boring. This book was not a struggle for me to read. It was fairly easy. I chose to read this because I already read the first book and I wanted to finish her story. Both books are by Ellen Hopkins.

Recommendations:
I recommend anyone to read this book. But particularly, people who like poetry and fiction. This is a story based on someones life. I know that when you start reading this book, you wont stop reading. The point of Hopkins's writing this book is to tell that the "monster" does affect people's life and those around them. This story is based on the author's daughter's life. I know that you find as much enjoyment in the book like I did.

Glass by Ellen Hopkins Entry #2

Glass has been an excellent book to read so far. The story is getting better and better each time. Also, Bree's actions are hurting herself and Hunter (her baby) more and more. So far in the book, her family is celebrating her birthday and is having a baptism for Hunter. Her father and his girlfriend, Linda, flew home to visit them. But, Bree's mother does not really like her father that much. In the story, she has some secretive encounters with her dad that she does not have with any one else from the book. After that, she meets Brendon again. The way she encounters him, is very interesting. She tries to ignore him as much as possible and tries not to make direct contact with him.

I thought one of the important things that happened so far is that she is telling her dad things about herself that her mother or anyone else in her family doesn't know about. Her dad tells her "Can you spare some" "I have a little I can share," I admit. "But only about half a gram." "If I give you some cash, can you score some more?" "I'll try. But just so you know, this was the first time I've done any since Hunter was born." The conversation that Bree has with her dad reveals that she trusts her dad more than anyone else. She can talk to him about her needs, which in this case is drugs. This is a little ironic because her mother is the one who is trying to protect Bree and keep her safe. She is trying to get into Bree's life, but Bree is just leaving her out of it, which is why can't talk to her mother about anything. Overall, the book is very interesting and entertaining. I hope to read more and give more information about the book in the next blog.

Glass by Ellen Hopkins (The beginning)

Glass is a sequel to Crank by Ellen Hopkins. These books are narrating the life of Bree/Kristen. So far in Glass, it tells Bree's continued tricky life in Nevada with her mother and family. Bree just had a baby named Hunter. She is surrounded by the same people and substances in her life like Crank. She has the choice to either follow the path where she uses the "crank" or to save her family especially Hunter. In the last scenario, she tries to give herself a break and decides to visit Robyn, her former friend. There she did some drugs to cool herself down. Also, she met Trey, this guy who she finds interesting. When she came home, she lied to her mother telling her she went to a college fair instead. Although, her mothers buys it, she is only hurting herself and Hunter. She has the responsibility, now as a mother, to take care of her child.

In the book, it shows herself listening to Bree's thoughts and then he other half of herself listening to Kristen's thoughts. For example, "The small part, the Kristina part, keeps whispering what a fool the other, Bree part, is. "Not only were you stupid to sneak back to the monster,"she mumbles, "but ten to one you're going to get caught. Mom and Scott will know. " "The Bree part just stares contentedly at the ceiling..." This quote reveals the difficulty she has to go through, either she listens to Bree or to Kristen opinions. I know for a fact, that she will be mentally damaged, if she keeps on doing this drug and having double thoughts.

I really enjoy reading this book. The beginning of it, is very entertaining to read. It really does make the authors point come across. I will recommend anyone who likes poetic books and works of fiction to read it. Since, this book is based on a true story, I understand how the character's are feeling a bit better. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I do.

To buy Glass by Ellen Hopkins:
http://www.amazon.com/Glass-Ellen-Hopkins/dp/1416940901

A book review:
http://www.commonsensemedia.org/book-reviews/Glass.html

Other books by Ellen Hopkins:
- Crank
-Burned
-Impulse

Blog Reviews and Goals

Review of my past blogs:
Looking back at my past blogs, I see good and bad in my blog writing. There is a common focus in all my blogs. In the first couple of them, I provided a short summary to make the reader understand what is going on. Also, I answered a bunch of questions from this sheet that tells some suggestions for writing a blog. I tried to include my opinions in my writing. In my blogs, I noticed that I write my reading progress, tell the difficulty of the book, a suggestions for who should read the book. Also, I tell my likes and dislikes of that particular book, my favorite quote, and my reactions to the characters. Lastly, I noticed that for each blog, I state the internal or external problem going on with the character. Overall, I think the blogging experience is very beneficial because each week it helps me write my thoughts and opinions about the book. Also, it helps me connect with the book in a better way.

My goal for the second quarter:
After writing the blogs for the first quarter, there are several things I want to improve. For the blogs, I tend to write about the same story plot repeatedly because I feel that no one will look at the past week's blog and understand it. So, I repeat things over. But, for the next quarter, I will try to generalize my ideas. Another thing, I will improve is to get further involved in the book. I could do this my reading more per week and giving more details about it to make my blogs more interesting and exciting. Also, I should give more opinions with examples from the text to make it is more clear and detailed. If I accomplish these goals, my blogs will give more interest to people.