Mrs. Schneider is starting Lit Circles today!
Pre-AP students will be reading:
- Every Falling Star by Sungju Lee, about his escape from North Korea
- Golden Boy by Tara Sullivan, about an albino boy running for his life in Tanzania
- Three Little Words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter, about her experiences in foster care and adoption.
English 1 students will be reading:
- Mexican Whiteboy by Matt de la Pena, about a mixed race boy dealing with issues of recial identity, family, and baseball
- Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin about 3 siblings trying to survive their abusive mother
- Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie based on his life growing up on a reservation in Washington state (my favorite YA book of all time!)
ReplyDeleteThree Little Words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Ashley Rhodes has had more than a dozen mothers in her life. Ashley was born to Lorraine Rhodes and was taken away, then lived with many foster moms, until she found someone who would love her unconditionally despite her flaws , Gay Courter. Before she was with Gay she struggled to find someone that would love her as a daughter. She struggled to find someone she could trust to not give her away at the drop of a hat. All the while, she clinged to the hope that her mother would come back for her. Because of this she would act out and be sent to different homes quite frequently. When she finally found her forever home she was able to speak out about the horrors and struggles the went through in the foster system.
This book is a wake up call to anyone who thinks the foster system is a safe thing for children. Reading this made my heart ache for poor Ashley. She was emotionally traumatized and physically abused. The foster system is brutal for kids ,especially when they are young like Ashley was. As you’re reading this you can’t help but to feel as though you need to help these unfortunate kids, and root for them to find a home where they no longer have to suffer. If you want an emotionally impacting book based off a true story, you may want to pick this up.
When Ashley and her little brother Luke get taken away from their parents they become orphans and have to struggle through all the obstacles that come their way. Everything gets taken away from them and they struggle to find a new family that actually loves them. She gets taken away from her brother and gets placed in such horrible homes that you’ll feel sorry for her.
ReplyDeleteShe started to feel like she would never find a permanent home and was starting to lose hope until she met Gay Courter. She so happy that she found her permanent home and found someone who loved her. When she knew she was there to stay she spoke out to everyone about the horrors of the foster care system.
To anyone who thinks that the foster care system is perfect and flaw free, read Three Little Words and you”ll find out that you could never have been more wrong. This book affected me so much. I felt so sad for Ashley and the more I read the more sad I became. I just wished that this never happened to her. If you ever do find yourself reading this book look out for the word “sunshine”. This is the motif in the story. Ashley’s mother always called her sunshine and it’s a key word in her life. This book really gives the reader an understanding of how bad the foster care system really is and it makes you wish you could help them. If you want to read a book on the foster care system and learn about the life of an unlucky child with a happy ending, this book is for you.
Golden Boy by Tara Sullivan
ReplyDeleteHabo is an not an ordinary african boy. He has yellow hair, golden skin and light blue eyes. Albino he is. He is the only one in his family that is albino. He lived in Arusha for most of his life until his family couldn’t afford to stay so they left and moved to Mwanza with his mother’s sister. There, something awful has happened. Scared for his life he leaves. He met an old man. Habo lived and worked for him in repay for a place to stay and something to eat. Will Habo ever connect with his family again? Will he ever be safe? Will Habo survive?
The suspense and action in the book will truly make you feel like you are Habo. You can feel the connection with all of the characters. If you relate or like to read about the life of an unordinary tweenager and the struggles they have, you will destroy this book.
Jordan Butler - Every Falling Star by Sungju Lee
ReplyDeleteNo one really hears about the personal lives of the people that live/survive in North Korea. It isn’t often that you hear a story about one person’s life as a homeless child in the “every man for himself” land that is outside of the Capital of the country, which is made to look beautiful and represents North Korea. This is one of those stories. Written by a survivor that got out, Every Falling Star portrays examples of fear, lust, pride, and determination. The boy in the story, which is Sungju, has many doubts and fears but overcomes them while consistently looking forward. What if he were to doubt himself so much that he didn’t move forward? What if he thought he wasn’t good enough? What if he thought his friends weren’t good enough?
This book is a great story of rising up from endless hopelessness and doubt. Sungju conquered his fear of the outside world, the lie he lived, and showed that hope is never lost. This book made me have hope for myself and shows me that there is always a way. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is feeling like there is no hope for them, because it shows that everyone can rise up from nothing. It has a great way of showing the feelings of the main characters, while only showing the inner thoughts and feelings of Sungju. It also made the characters their own, meaning that they all had individual stories, thoughts and feelings. Each individual could’ve been focused on for a different story.
George Bachour-
DeleteWonderful review 10/10 my dude.
Matthew, a teenage boy and his siblings who have to suffer through their mother's violent moods. He then tries to seek for help which he sees Murdoch, a guy protecting a child from his father. He wondered if he can do the same with his own family, later on their mom and Murdoch started dating.Everything was going well until the break up.Now Mathew has to seek for a savior to help their family, telling Murdoch to help them or does Matthew have to go through this on his own? Will he ever find anyone to help? Will he ever get him and his siblings away from their violent mood mother known as Nikki? Or will they have to stay with her forever?
ReplyDeleteA strang narrative voice from Matthew, this story is interesting. It has dramatic irony, conflict, and it concerns a family's crisis. I would recommend this book to people who would love this conflicting kind of book which will make you excited in some parts and probably feel bad in others or probably terrified.To me this story just made me like not wanna stop reading, it made my mind full intrested in it.So far in my reading, everything's going great and now some other stuff is happening which will make more conflict and probably more interests within you guys too.
This book is about Junior he has had a struggling life starting off with being born with hydrocephalus,living somewhere where there is no hope and little money a lot of alcoholics including his parents.He gets gets beaten up a lot by the way he looks weird i know does not sound like a happy life but he has some good things in his life such as being smart, good at drawing and loves to play basketball But when he decides to reach for more by going to a white school 22 miles away his burdens grow even faster.
ReplyDeleteI would recommend this book to you if you liked Eleanor & Park, War Dances or Indian Killer all these books have one thing in common they are talking about taking control of your life/ future while also hoping to “fit in”. Main character Junior leaves the old poor school to a school where he is the only non-white kid.He just wants what’s good for him but he also does not want to do so at the cost of his culture.
Matthew the main character of our book rules of survival i not here to spoil the book but it's about surviving through tough times and maybe getting out of a tough situation and standing up for yourself.
ReplyDeleteThis book made me feel like i was actually in the story to be honest i don't enjoy reading but at points i could visually what the characters looked like what murdoch looked like and what the house looked liked.
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
ReplyDeleteSummary: I wish I was magical, but I am really just a poor-ass reservation kid living with his poor-ass family on the poor-ass Spokane Indian Reservation. And sure, sometimes, my family misses a meal, and sleep is the only thing we have for dinner.
Personal Analysis: I’m a curious reader who loves enjoying another person's story and this book is very interesting because sports, drama, and relationship is involved in this book. This book is very sad in the beginning of the story, but I do recommend if you’re a person that’s been through like this teen boy or interested to know about this boy’s life. This Book is for you.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis is a story about a kid named Dany who can’t speak spanish like all the other Mexicans in his family. He grew up in San Diego. He loves to play baseball, even though he gets nervous when he gets on the mound. Danny is Half-Mexican. His mom has blonde hair and blue eyes. Danny thinks that his father left him to go to Mexico because of how white he is. This is why Danny will be spending the summer with his father’s family. Will he learn why his father really left? Will he see his father after all these years? Find out when you read the book!
ReplyDeleteThis book affected me in a good way and I really enjoyed the book. I recommend it to everyone because it is a book that everyone would enjoy in my opinion. Everyone can benefit from this book because they learn how much people struggle not being able to speak a language that their whole family speaks.
The absolutely true diary of a part-time Indian
ReplyDeleteJunior is a 14 year old Indian boy with hydrocephalus. Junior and his family live in the Spokane Indian Reservation in Washington. Juniors best friend is Rowdy and they both spend a lot of time together since Rowdy's’ family is abusive and Juniors family doesn’t really want him around the house. When school started Junior and Rowdy went to the same school but then Junior got suspended for hitting the teacher with a book, he had to move schools and leave his only friend. Well why was Rowdy his only friend? He got bullied in both his old school and new school.At his new school he meet Penelope (his semi-girlfriend ), tries out for basketball, and also make a new friend.
I really do recommend this book. It will get into it and not want to stop reading. This book is full with different emotions, sad, dramatic, and even funny. The main character, Junior, goes through a lot of different stages that it will get you a bit confused but overall it’s a great book.
ReplyDeleteJacob Gresham
This book Mexican Whiteboy is about a sixteen year old kid named Danny. Danny struggles finding his identity in which is now National City Mexico, this place is not far from the Mexican border. Dannys parents do not live together anymore, his mom is white and his dad is latino. Danny is also a very good baseball player, he has everything, he's very long and lengthy and can also throw a 95 mile per hour fastball. Him throwing a fastball that fast is crazy for his age. The only problem is that every time he steps up onto the mound he loses it. Most of the time the ball will end up out of the strike zone by far and hitting the backstop. Through baseball he tries to find himself, he's also trying to make friendships through the game he loves also. Dannys dad left him and his family and went back to Mexico. Danny thinks that the reason his dad left him and his family was because his dad was embarrassed of his whiteness. Although Danny would love to try and find his father and hope to learn more about him. And his history, Danny doesn't know much about it at all. Danny doesn't know how to find himself. When he visits that side of the family he is lost, he doesn't know which side he fits in on more, the white American side, or the mexican side. Another thing that makes him feel worse is that him going to a mostly white school makes him feel like it makes it harder for him to fit in. When Danny goes to visit his dad in Mexico during his summer break he automatically feels like he doesn't fit in, he can't speak one bit of spanish. Through his old family cousins he meets other kids that live in or around the neighborhood. He meants a kid names Uno. Danny and Uno being strangers quickly develops into a friendship. Throughout the summer the two boys start realizing that they have things in common. During the summer Danny and Uno would try to make money. The main thing that Uno and Danny have in common is their love for baseball. Another thing that they have in common is that they both live in situation when there parents aren't there. Danny's father left, and Uno’s parents are divorced, and Uno also doesn't know which one he wants/ should live with. While in Mexico Dannys mother calls him from where she lives, San Francisco where she lives with her boyfriend. Dannys mother begins to cry and while on the phone and says that she will be coming to pick him up in a few days so that the family will be reunited. Later the night which all this has happened Uno talks with Sophia, she was a cousin who danny had been staying with. Both of them start wondering what it would be like if they had been in Danny's shoes. Sofia goes on talking about stories. That is just a short summary on this amazing book Mexican Whiteboy. This book is amazing. It was hard for me to stop reading. I would recommend this book for almost anyone, It was great!
This book was very good. Some things that stood out to me was that I realized kids all over the world have problems. This is just one of them. Having parents divorced is very common, that's one way that the book really affected me. I would definitely recommend this book for a middle school or High School student. The reason I would recommend it for this age is because it gives you a understanding about life in general. On how things work. Like parent situation, sport situations, and life situations. That is why I would recommend this book. Some literary elements that I could point out are all of them. This book was great it had everything. It had strong narrative voice, symbolism, excellent characterization, irony, motif, conflict, etc. But one that stood out a lot was symbolism. I said that stood out a lot was because it was all over. I loved this book, it was very good.
The True Diary of A Part Time Indian
ReplyDeleteThe book is great! I would recommend it for people who are curious and caring.It has a great storyline to it and will really touch your heart once you read it. I was not able to put the book down without reading at least 5 pages just to make sure I am not behind in the book.
Ben Bubenchik-
ReplyDeleteThere is a teenage boy named danny. Danny loves to play baseball his father ran away to mexico and his mother found a new boyfriend named randy and they moved to san francisco but danny went down south to live with his aunt and uncle. There he meets his cousin and her friends. Danny is a very quiet boy but at he ends up having a really good friendship with the people he meets. The book affected me because I relate to it a lot the main character is thin and he plays baseball just like me. Thats a reason why I loved this book. I do recommend it to people who like the sport of baseball or just like books about sports.
ReplyDeleteJasmine Saechao
Three little words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Ashley Rhodes was a young girl who spent nine years in fourteen different foster homes. At the age of three she was taken from her mother. Her life was combined with caseworkers, being shuffled from school to school, and receiving humiliating treatment from a really abusive foster family.
This book made me emotional, reading about how her life was, was just so sad. I really recommend this book, I feel like any foster kid can relate to her in different ways. Also people can learn many lessons from her story.
Golden Boy By Tara Sullivan
ReplyDeleteA small boy whose family is falling into poverty must survive while being hunted down by a crazed poacher because he is different, He is white, albino. He faces many challenges since his skin is different and more sensitive than others around him, his skin is so sensitive that he must cover his skin so he doesn’t get burnt. When his family loses their land, they travel to a relatives, while on the way to their relative’s city they meet someone who changes them and will affect them throughout the book. Habo after first encountering his hunter runs away from home so he does not endanger his family.
Will he find shelter in this new place one hundred kilometers away from his family?
Will he encounter this poacher again?
How will he get help?
Reading Golden Boy was quite the experience, this book contains multiple tough situations for Habo. Golden Boy is so action packed and filled with twists that it has multiple climaxes. This book would be great for people who enjoy stories of people who struggle and face dire situations. It is somewhat hard to believe that things such as this really occur in places around the world.
Cindi gallegos,
ReplyDeleteEvery Falling star by Sung-ju Lee & Susan Mcclelland
Sung-ju Lee was a 10 year old boy in North Korea when his whole life changed and not in a good way he went through a lot from moving to different town to being separated from family. He quickly learns how to survive in a town of high poverty when he was separated from his family and left alone. Sung-ju meets more boys with alike situations and they form a gang,they grow so close that they considered each other brothers.They travel from town to town for four years.
What happens after the four years? Will his family reunite?How do think he survives?
What do you think they did traveling from town to town? Do you think Sung-ju experienced some things teenagers shouldn’t experience?
This Book has emotional parts.What makes this book more sad is when you realize this book is based on a true story. I think this book is an eye opener to some things we don’t hear or pay much attention to that happen in North Korea.If you like a book that takes you on a emotional roller coasters this is your book. I stoutly recommend this book it’s worth every minute you spend reading this book.
Ajaypal Purewal
ReplyDeleteGolden Boy by Tara Sullivan
Habo is a young normal kid, so why is everyone always teasing him? Habo and his family go to Mwanza so they can have a place to stay since they got kicked out of their farm for not paying their rent. Habo is an albino, and it is considered that all albinos are good luck. Habo manages to run away from Mwanza and on to Dar es Salaam, where he meets a man named Kweli who is blind. He lets Habo stay at his house until Habo can decide what to do next. One day Habo comes home and is shocked to see who is sitting with Kweli and having a cup of tea.What will Habo do next? Will he keep running from this wretched man? Will Habo stay and end this once in for all? Keep reading to find out what happens next.
This story is quite suspenseful and will make you want to keep reading. This story made me not want to put the book down. I don’t really like reading, but this book really affected me as I found myself engaged with all the characters. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes suspenseful stories or just anyone who wants to read for fun and find out about Habo’s adventures.
Every Falling Star by Sungju Lee
ReplyDeleteThis story is full of action, and drama, and is even a true story from the point of the author. Sungju Lee had a good life in Pyongyang his father was a Military general and he wanted to grow up to be just like him he ate good food attended good schools, and trained in taekwondo. But his life took a swift turn when he had to move and completely start a new life but instead of everything being great and dandy his life is now one of struggle one he has never had to deal with.
This book was a great read I would highly recommend this book for anyone that really like suspense action and eve==n drama you will see all kinds of motifs in this story one of the biggest that comes straight to mind is kotjebi and if you were to read this story you would know what this means. Give this book a read Every Falling Star get it and read it as soon as possible.
ReplyDeleteAshley was three years old when she is taken away from everything and everyone she loved or cared about. She was left with just one person and it was her brother,Luke. She was taken away from her mother and Luke’s father,Dusty, because of how they were treating the children. Ashley and her brother have been through plenty of foster homes including her grandfather’s and the Mosses’. Throughout her journey, Ashley will go through many emotions such as why can’t she be with her mother and that nobody would ever call her Sunshine expect her mother which makes her very sad.
When Ashley arrived at the Mosses’, she goes through many things that no child should ever go through or even have heard of. Marjorie Moss and her husband abuse her and other children that are in that household. She finally gets out of there to continue on to one more foster home until she reaches a place where she can finally have the chance to get adopted. Will she finally get adopted? Will she have misunderstandings with other people that are trying to help her? Will she ever see her mother, Dusty, and Luke again when she is adopted?
This book affected me in plenty of ways. It made me realize that even in the United States people, including children, can go through some of the most horrific things ever and that makes me feel powerless because I can’t do anything to help them out. I would recommend this book to everyone because of the powerful lesson and story they will learn about in Ashley’s story. The kind of person that I think that will benefit more from this book than anyone else is people that believe that their lives aren’t important because Ashley here sends this message all throughout this book and she has been through plenty of things but she still thinks that her life is important which it is.
Some literary elements that I can point out is a motif, which is something that continues to be brought up plenty of times, is that her mother keeps calling Ashley her “sunshine” in her thoughts and when she’s speaking to her over and over again. I like this because it shows a lot of personal details of Ashley’s relationship with her mother. Throughout the whole book I can also hear her voice telling me her story which I believe that is important for an author and symbolism because the book represents Ashley and her story and also everyone else that is also going through this.
Jenna Briggs
ReplyDeleteGolden Boy by Tara Sullivan
Habo has always been labeled as different. His own family can barely look at him yet alone talk to him. He is known as the zeruzeru- he´s an albino. For us, this may not seem like a big deal, but growing up on the African plains, it was very noticeable to all around him. After being forced out of their own house, Habo and his family are off to their relatives in a far away city, however on the way they meet a mysterious man and learn of this good luck charm. Soon to find out, the good luck charm is the body-parts of an albino.
Seeking refuge with their relatives may of once seemed like a good thing, but now it is incredibly dangerous for Habo. With nowhere to run, what are his options? In order to survive, you sometimes have to be creative, and that's just what he did. With Habo´s life in danger, he continues to do the unthinkable, leaving you clueless ´till the end.
Lastly,the title of this book gives us a little knowledge as well. We learn that something is different about the boy, for why is he called the Golden Boy? Without question there must be something special, that resides behind that incredibly mysterious name.
From a first look I did not want to read the book, I am known for being very picky with my literature readings but I'd definitely be sorry if I hadn't turned the first page. Never before had I, myself read a book in which I was so attached to… In many ways I could relate to Habo, his fear of showing people how he felt most specifically.
As Eliot Schrefer said, this book is definitely moving and a gorgeous account of what it means to feel profoundly different. I even praise the author for the strong figurative language within the pages, it truly adds compassion and seriousness to the main character. This is definitely a ten out of ten, and with that don´t wait any longer, go pick it up from your library immediately
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ReplyDeleteKayla Ybarra
ReplyDeleteGolden Boy by Tara Sullivan
Golden Boy. It’s what they call him. Habo is different than any boy in Tanzania. Habo is albino. Meaning he has white skin, blue eyes, and yellow hair. He doesn’t have the brown skin he wish he had like his family or the other people. He’s always been seen as different and has always been stared at his whole life by people who see him as different. But when something happens, Habo’s life changes forever. He and his family are evicted from their home and must depend on his Aunt to save and take them in. And when Habo learns that people like him, these albinos are hunted for the supposed luck their body parts bring, Habo must do something or he could potentially be killed. So what must Habo do?
This was a fascinating book that had me on the edge of my seat. I would be reading it and the author would out of nowhere just bring something into the story that brought such a twist. I do definitely feel that people who like adventure would enjoy this book. The author does a great job at giving each character their own unique personality and characteristics. The way the conflict was put into the book was just great as you think everything's going smooth when something happens that could ruin it all. I do recommend this book as it shows a great story of a thirteen year old boy trying to accept who is he and that he is different.
Every Falling Star by Lee Sung-Ju
ReplyDeleteReview by Arielle Talania
Based on the author’s experience, this is a true story about a boy from North Korea who faced many turmoils in life ever since he was a teenager. Sung-Ju went from being a studious son of a well-off family to a starving street rat with no parents in sight. Throughout his situation, however, he had comrades, or brothers as he called them. They helped one another through the toughest times, from being forced to steal just to eat-- to fighting other gangs to survive.
How did Sung-Ju escaped North Korea in order to write this book? How did the course of events changed him from being a naive child to a wise, hardened man?
I don’t often get emotional when reading a book, but this was one of the few that made me tear up. Seeing the brotherhood between the boys was heartwarming-- even if sometimes they fought and disagreed, they still supported each others’ backs nevertheless. Knowing that this actually happened to a real person made it more painful to read, personally speaking. I highly recommend this book, but it might not be for everyone because of serious themes in certain parts (mentions of sexual assault, brutality, and descriptive passages of executions). From how I saw it, this is parallel to Night by Elie Wiesel, because both books tell about the story of a boy belonging to a scapegoated group being heavily abused by people of higher positions. So if you like Night, you might like Every Falling Star. To close this review, I want to say that the author is brave for writing out his story. Not only is it difficult to open up about traumatic memories, he’s speaking out against a dictating government, which still has that risk especially since he was once a citizen there. I admire people who choose to tell their story to inform people who are unaware of what’s happening in the world, so that history will not repeat again. It shows true courage, and that’s what we should all strive for-- a voice that will not stay silent in the face of controversy.
Jesse Hernandez
ReplyDeleteEvery Falling Star By by Sungju Lee
A boy moves to a new town. For a long time, he doesn’t know why his small family of 3 left the wealthiest city, to a small broken down town. He went to school meeting new people that did not seem to be healthy. He slowly learned the truth, then things started to go downhill. The boy's name is Sungju, but in this book they call him Adule.He makes new friends that became his “brothers”. They have crazy encounters with gangs, and learned how to fight. They go through tough times together, leaving them with a broken heart from all the hardships they shared.
This book was an emotional rollercoaster. The characters reminded me of my family and how we have tough times. It really helped me let go of the past and move forward. People with problems can learn from this book if they chose to see what they want. All of the characters’ conflicts relate to each other in one way or another. There are words and phrases that keep on repeating throughout the book, like nightflower or brothers. It really adds something special for the book. The special names for certain things adds a good touch to the book. I would recommend this book to people so they can learn that their problems are not bad compared to what this person went through.
Savannah Melero
ReplyDeleteThree Little Words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Three Little Words is about a girl who grew up going through many foster homes. Ashley encountered very nice foster parents and some really bad ones. All throughout her childhood, Ashley kept holding on to the hope that she will be back with her mother. Eventually, she had to let that dream go.
I don’t normally ferel a lot of emotion when I am reading, but this book made me very sad. Seeing the pain that Ashley went through really opened my eyes about the real foster system. I recommend this book very much. It is sad, but at the same time really good. Anyone who loves to read would enjoy this book. This book draws the reader in, and also has a little suspense.
Ashten Calistro-Yazzie
ReplyDeleteThe Golden Boy by Tara Sullivan
Habo, the boy who was a disgrace to his family, a person who tries his hardest to stay humble while vigilant. Habo a young african boy has a secret that is well known but, if his secret gets into the wrong hands this could mean life or death. While traveling Habo meets a girl who he loves, but by mistake he accidentally tells her about his major secret, with his secret on the loose, he must chose his friends wisely.”Will she tell other people? What is the secret he holds?”.
The book The Golden Boy was one of the better books I have read. The book tells the suspenseful story of Habo from Western Africa and is known as a disgrace to his family and village. This book is highly recommended for people who love drama reads. While this story has a sweet yet violent out take, This book is made for the readers who like suspense and drama stories. If you have read ¨The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank¨ or ¨ Lost Boy” By Sassafras Lowrey¨ . Then you would love to read Tara Sullivan's The Golden Boy
Norma Barragan
ReplyDeleteThree Little Words by Ashley Rhodes Courter
Lorraine Rhodes is the mother of Ashley Rhodes who had Ashley’s baby brother, Luke, with her abusive boyfriend Dusty. The family had moved to Florida where Dusty had gotten into trouble with the law, which had caused the kids to be away.
Ashley didn’t know that she was never going to see her mother again and Luke was too young to even know what was happening. Ashley and Luke were put into the foster care system and were constantly moved foster home to foster homes. Their mother had tried to clean up her act but always hit rock bottom. Ashley had lost touch with her mother and had moved into a Children’s home. In the Children’s home, there were some opportunities where the kids can find parents who will adopt them, Ashley would see kids come and go and would be envious of the kids who leave. All thought, Ashley felt as if she will never find a connection with another woman like she had with her mother, she still wanted to be adopted. Will Ashley ever find a connection with another woman? Will Ashley ever get adopted?
Three Little Words will have an impact on children in the foster care system, and maybe they can relate to what she went through. When reading Three Little Words you can find yourself being in Ashley’s situation, and understand what is going on. This book is all about foster care and trying to find a family who will not abandon her but love and care for Ashley. If you like books that are based on true events this book is just for you!
Golden Boy
ReplyDeleteKayden Garrett
Have you ever felt alone? Like there could be no possible end to your loss. Habo is a young boy with neglect, blame, hardship, and hate brought upon him without choice. He is forced to put up with the path laid ahead, but Habo isn’t your typical boy with physical differences, he pushes the limits to know why he is like this, who he is to become, and why he is to blame for it all. All the while to finding himself he must find a way to survive for he is something despised and treasured by terrible people, but the worst part is that one of those terrible people is coming for him.
Roosmarie Van Der Weide
ReplyDeleteGolden Boy by Tara Sullivan
Dhahabo, or “Habo” for short, is a 13-year-old boy living in out in the country in Arusha. One day, his family’s landlords knock at their door and tell them that they can no longer live there. The family does not have enough money to stay. Habo’s mother, devastated by the inevitable situation, decides that they will move to Mwanza with Habo’s aunt, a journey of multiple days. Habo’s brother, Chui, ultimately blames Habo for having to move and abandon everything.
During long days of taking the bus and walking, Habo swims through his thoughts, sulking about how what Chui said is true. People believed Habo was a ghost. Some believed he was a demon. Everyone says he is a zeruzeru - that he is literally “nothing”; and his father, after seeing Habo born, left their family immediately.
Since Habo was a child, he always wanted people to see him different from his appearance. He always wanted to be good for something. Once in Mwanza, Habo would witness a new way people saw him - a way believed to be lucky.
Habo is an albino. Dhahabo means “gold.” His encounter of luck will cause him to move for his survival, as his goal remains the same: to seek purpose and redemption.
Will anyone ever accept Habo? Will Habo ever find a way to escape society? Will Habo ever accept himself?
This book is very powerful. It explains how all people are important, even when society goes as far as to punish them for their looks. The book really reflects on self doubt and redemption, and made me think about how we should be careful of what we say to others.
This book also has a lot of suspenseful and shocking moments, and really speaks to the heart. Overall, the plot had me riding a rollercoaster of emotions, from feeling joy to feeling fear, but leaving me ultimately satisfied at the end. I highly recommend this book to anyone who needs relief from negative views.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteJohn Navarro
ReplyDeleteEvery Falling Star By Sungju Lee
Sungju is a young boy whose dream was to join the army. But it changed. It changed after they moved. They moved to a place called Gyeong-Seong. Sungju had to go to a new school where he met his new friends, Young-bum and Chulho. Then all of a sudden the mom disappears. Sungju is all alone so he moves with Young-bum and his grandmother. But when the grandmother dies, they are forced to live like kobjeti kids. Young-bum, Chulho, and Sungju go get some more kobjeti kids to be in a gang. Sungju changes his name to Chang. As for him and his gang travel to different places will they be able to survive the hard life as a kobjeti kid?
This is an Autobiography story with a lot of symbolism and non-fiction. Well, it’s non-fiction because it talks about the hard life of being a homeless kid in North Korea and trying to survive between life and death. This book affected me because now I know what it’s like in other countries. One conflict in this book is them trying to survive all the disasters in North Korea. I would recommend this book to people that think that life is all about them and to kids 12 and up.
Every Falling Star by Lee Sung-Ju
ReplyDeleteHow would you ever survive in a poor, starving society in North Korea where you must steal food for your survival? Would you be tempted to stealing food, caused by the pressure and unbearable pain of starving? Or would you accept the fate that holds you and go with death as you suffer from hunger consuming you every minute of the day? While this would usually be associated with the poor and people that have below the minimum, it can also happen to those that have a good life. This had been the situation that Lee had experienced in the time that he had spent in North Korea.
Time passes and he must try to survive. This resulted to doing the one thing he despises, stealing food. Though he does not want to do this, he must do it or else he may suffer. Stealing food for him gets easier and easier, though it is not as easy for him when he is only stealing food from the same place. While he is stealing food from the same place, the food supply decreases. The people selling at the market have at least seen him a thousand times, stealing becomes harder.
With the merchants having seen him for so many times, what will he do in response to it? Will it be possible for Lee to ever rebound from this and get back up on his feet like he used to before? Will Lee ever be able to see his parents that he has not seen for so long?
Being the cynical, unimpressed reader that I am, I would usually not feel like a story is outstanding, but this book really took it. I feel like Lee had made his story feel like it was unreal and that it was not possible. It seems as if the whole story is fully fictional and of not too much significance, but then you see that it is all from the experiences that Lee had actually gone through. It goes through so many things that happen and this make you feel like suffering can really be something that is unpredictable. There’s nothing that’s impossible that can ever happen to a human. Lee portrays the suffering that he experienced as rather just something that had happened, while we, the readers, think that it is so outlandish to think that something like it could ever happen.
If you were to read books such as Hatchet then you may like this book. You will see how predictable real life is and how you just have to deal with it. It portrays hope as the one thing that keeps people alive and to keep going.
Every Falling Star by Sungju Lee and Susan McClelland
ReplyDeleteYou are one of the rich family’s living at the top of your class. Your father working in the army. Your mother doesn’t need a job. Then one day you're at the bottom. You're living in poverty. You have no food. You only have a house. Nothing left. Well that is what Adule is going through in Every Falling Star. He had a happy life. Food on his table every night. Dreams, big dreams. Then it was all taken away in an instant. His parents left trying to find food. Will they ever come back? He is all alone. How will he survive? He knows no one. A new place a new, poor place. People here have been at this game for years but Adule was just introduced.
You would never think that a third world country would treat there citizens like this. Well that is what I thought before I read Every Falling Star. This book is about a kid who was kicked out of the high life to be with most of the population he was ignorant to. The moves into poverty. He has no food. No nothing. Only a house and clothes on his back. We learn how a kid his age survives life in North Korea. His emotional story is heartbreaking. There are ups and downs. Happy moments and sad moments. Nothing ever seemed to be the same after he left home. This story broke my heart. Showing us the instinct of survival in children. How they want to survive even when they have nothing to live for. If you want to read an emotional heartbreaking and friendly book go and read Every Falling Star.
Raveena Dosanjh
ReplyDeleteThree Little Words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
This book follows the life of young Ashley as she struggles to find a home. Ashley and her brother, Luke, are taken to several homes after their mother and Luke’s father was arrested. This leads to Ashley having to move to fourteen different homes over the course of nine years. While at these homes, Ashley clings to the hope that one day her mother will take her back and continues to believe this even after several years of lying and manipulation. This causes her to make baseless relationships with others around her. These relationships often end with either her or the other person leaving, which makes Ashley paranoid to ever love again.
Does Ashley ever make a lasting relationship? Will Ashley’s mother somehow find a way to get Ashley and Luke back?
This book really opened my eyes. I already knew that children in foster care were often mistreated and abandoned but I didn’t know the full extent of it until I read this book. I didn’t want to read this book in the beginning because I thought that I wasn’t going to be able to connect to the story as I have never been in foster care. However, after reading this book I realized that this girl, although abused and abandoned, often faced the same challenges and dilemmas as any other child. These problems made me relate to the story and enjoy the book even more.
The continuously used phrase, “ You are my Sunshine “ was a motif in the book because I feel like it was often repeated when Ashley thought of her mother and it was the only special thing that Ashley had with her mother that couldn’t be taken away. Also, the symbolism that connected Ashley’s personal items getting taken away when she was getting taken to a different home was very heartbreaking because those items were often things important people had given her and they were taken in a matter of seconds.
I would absolutely and definitely recommend this book to others. I would recommend it for the wonderful writing and the beautifully sad story that is Ashley Rhodes-Counters life.
Every Falling Star by Sungju Lee & Susan Elizabeth McClelland
ReplyDeleteA 12 year-old kid named Sungju lived in a city known as Pyeongchang. He lived with his mother, father, and pet dog. Unfortunately over time, mishaps with the government caused Sungju and his family to transfer to a different city. This city is very low on money, food, and decent houses. This city was full of kotjebi a.k.a homeless kids, thieves, sick elders, and parents hunting for berries and animal meat with their children. Sungju had to suffer well over many years in this city. He was also transferred to another school...in where he met his new “brothers.”
Sungju’s father was the first to go to China in search of more wealth and luck for the family, then followed his mother, leaving Sungju all by himself in his house of emptiness. They’ve sold everything they had, except for his mother’s belongings. Sungju continued going to school for awhile, then he started hanging out with Young-bum more often, eventually, they both stopped going to school and sold their textbooks. Young-bum has stuck with Sungju ever since, sticking with other kotjebi, like Chulho, one kid who was very experienced in stealing and hunting. They all created a gang over time, with 4 other members, in the intense survival or racking up money to help buy food and other needed things like water, and clothing. But...you’ll never know when things turn.
This book affected me not too much nor too little. It was a very intimate story of a survivor in a very tough time, a case in which some of us may relate. It gives a lot of emotion to relate to, in fact. Family issues, money issues, hunger and thirst, the list goes on and on. It shows how much you can do with bonding and using teamwork, and how this boy got through hard times, even when he could’ve gave up long ago. I found myself shedding a few tears at certain areas, and internal screeching with joy at other areas. I recommend reading this book if you have a thing for survival books, and heart aching scenes. There’s many characteristics and expressions throughout this story, in which many people can relate to, as stated above in earlier sentences. Will you have a different reaction?...
Hemani Sharma
ReplyDeleteThree Little Words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
At the age of three, Ashley was separated from her biological mother by the
officers with the accusation of committing a crime. She lived in 14 different
foster houses in the span of 9 years. Ashley pays her mother a visit every
month. Her mother keeps telling her over and over that she will come home
soon. But nothing happens, and it just becomes a bunch of baloney. Yet
Ashley believes her and keeps on continuing with her life. She starts to face
a lot of problems and starts to give up. Despite giving up in life she tries to
not lose hope and keeps on believing that her mother will come. She learns
to not give-up and learns to speak for her own good.
What will happen to her? Will she be able to overcome these challenges and
find her own confident voice?
This book gives you a huge insight of foster families and tells you in detail
about how a foster child internally feels. This story symbolizes security and
love. I recommend this book to everyone and mostly social workers involved
in child welfare, foster care, or adoption, and offers great insight into the
mind of children in transition. I feel that this book has a strong narrative
voice, it may have a possibility to change the cruel, harsh foster system.
This book mostly emphasis on the words “soon” and “mother.” If you want
to know more about the true meaning behind the “three little words”, then
you should read it and recommend it to other people. You may help bring a
change in this cruel world.
Three Little Words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
ReplyDeleteAshley Rhodes was thrown into foster care at the ripe age of 3. Her mother losing custody after several run ins with the law. Cycling through several foster and group homes she never seemed to find her place, a sense of belonging. As Ashley matures she still longs for that feeling but it is soon coupled with a sense of uneasiness as she knows it might only be temporary. She’s constantly separated and reunited with her brother Luke, who also got pulled into the system adding more stress to her life. Her mother’s empty promises of reunion keep her suspended in limbo, relying on the memory of someone she thought she knew.
Giving insight to a world unknown to many Ashley leads with a strong narrative voice that really pulled me in. I picked this book out of curiosity and definitely don’t regret it. She recalls it with such vividness, it is truly fascinating. Anyone who loves a good heart wrenching novel would definitely enjoy this book. The seemly never ending turmoil keeps you on the edge of your seat. The motif usage of the words “sunshine”, “soon”, and “mama” make you really connect with Ashley and become invested in the outcome of her journey. If you’re curious whether or not Ashley will ever find a place of safety and belonging, pick up Three Little Words at your school library
Xavien Vera
ReplyDeleteEvery Falling Star-SungJu Lee
SungJu Lee was living a great life with his family and friends in Pyongyang. One day when SungJu came home he was told news from his father that they would have to leave their home to go on a “vacation”. This vacation turned into a long time. In this time SungJu had met new people that soon became his brothers and they had formed a gang. In this gang they had gone adventures, but the way they had to survive was to fight other gangs and steal to better themselves of survival, but some lives are lost. Towards the end SungJu will find someone that has been gone for a long time and find out some bad news. Everything will change.
Kristen Ya
ReplyDeleteEvery Falling Star by SungJu Lee & Susan McClelland
SungJu Lee thought that he had the best life living in Pyongyang until one move to a small town called Gyeong-seong changed his whole life. When SungJu makes this drastic move to Gyeong-seong, he spends most of his life living as a kotjebi, also known as a “street boy or homeless boy”. Along the journey of becoming a kotjebi he meets some new friends but immediately creates a strong bond to become brothers, which they later create a gang. SungJu and his gang spend their time fighting other gangs and stealing to fend for themselves. As time passes by, SungJu loses many important people in his life. Who could they be? And what would his life be like without this move?
Every Falling Star is a great book and I highly recommend it to all. This book creates many emotions because it put me to tears several times. SungJu Lee has been through so much and learned how to live on his own by the age of 12. The author shows that he suffers through so much pain, but still remains to be strong as the leader of his gang of 7.
Every Falling Star by SungJu Lee and Susan McClelland
ReplyDeleteEvery Falling Star is an autobiography by SungJu Lee. It is the story of how the author survived and escaped North Korea. It all starts off good, Living in a nice city, in a nice house with your nice family but one news changes all of that. Your father calls it a vacation and you know nothing about it until a few weeks later. Sooner or later you come to find that this is no vacation. You begin to lose all those nice things you ever had and you can’t do much about it.
It is a pretty emotional book. A lot of sad events occur. This book is like a rollercoaster because just when things are thought to be going good,something bad occurs and you’re just left there in shock. I feel like if you're into adventure stories this would be the book for you, his “brothers” and him are constantly moving around. You might be wondering why? Well, read the book and find out yourself.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThirteen year old Habo is different from all the other members of his family. He has light eyes, yellow hair, and white skin. His family, on the other hand, has the good brown skin that he’s always wanted. He doesn’t have the white skin of the tourists; no, it’s different. His father abandoned the family because he thought the mother cheated on him with a white man, but what he didn’t know is Habo is albino. He was unable to accept Habo for what he was. Habo feels alone and unwanted. His family looks at him different from all the rest of his siblings, if at all. His brothers are cruel to him, and the children at school won’t even bother to play with him or even look at him. His sister, on the other hand, loves him for who he is. Eventually, the family is forced away from their farm in a small Tanzanian village. Habo knows that he is to blame.
ReplyDeleteHaving nowhere else to go, Habo’s mother contacts her sister in a town called Mwanza. Habo and his family don’t have enough money for bus fare, so they travel half way with bus, then walk the remainder of the route. Once they get to Habo’s aunt’s house, she is surprised and afraid. People hunt albinos in Mwanza for their skin, as it is considered “lucky.” A man, known as Alasiri, comes after Habo with a machete so he could get rich for selling Habo’s body parts. Habo has to run away from his family, he has to go far, far away.
To survive his “unluckiness,” Habo has to learn to accept himself for who he really is and he has to learn not to worry about people that don’t love him even for the color of his skin. People need to understand that Habo just wants to be accepted for who he really is on the inside and not what’s on the outside.
Will Habo survive? Will people be able to accept him as time goes on? Will Habo learn to love himself for who he truly is?
This book affected me in a way that a book has never done so before. It made me sad that people actually have to go through what Habo does. People like Habo just want to be accepted for who they truly are on the inside, but people can’t see past what’s on the outside. I do recommend this book to anyone willing to read it. I would tell them that it’s a good read, and it has an amazing affect on you. The kind of person to benefit from this book is most likely an albino because they can relate. I feel that a literary element is a motif because of the term used “zeruzeru” which people referred Habo as.
Every Falling Star by Lee Sung-ju and Suzanne McClelland
ReplyDeleteA young boy from Pyongyang named Sung-ju lives the best life he will ever live. Nice school, clean clothes, always fed. ‘Till one day when his father tells him that they are moving, one valuable thing can be brought. From rich to poor, Sung-ju slowly realises that that is what he becomes. Day by day he learns to live and survive, even if becoming a kotjebi is what has to happen. Stealing, feeling guilt, learning, fighting, meeting new people is what his days turn into. Traveling from town to town and coming back to the original place where he became, someone who he’s been waiting for . . .
I highly recommend this book, especially if you are interested in Korea. The reason I read it was because it had to do with Korea. As I read I didn’t really think any of it but as I continued to, I got more into the book. I like the characters and the story line. The book overall is just really great, I cried and really enjoyed reading it.
Every Falling Star by Sung Ju Lee and Susan McClelland
ReplyDeleteA young boy named Sung Ju experiences the struggles of surviving in North Korea. Sung Ju once lived in a normal and modest household in the capital of North Korea. As a few months passed Sung Ju’s father told Sung Ju that they would go on vacation. Little did Sung Ju know that his life would be happiness into horrid. Sung Ju’s experience during the vacation was the worst vacation ever.
During the vacation, Sung Ju found out that his family had gotten kicked out of the capital. Sung Ju’s lifestyle was very poor after leaving the capital. Sung Ju’s family left him and they are nowhere to be found. Sung Ju was alone but he then created a gang in order to survive.
Can Sung Ju survive and live with the gang? What will happen in Sung Ju’s gang? Will he be able to find his parents?
This story has very intense and sad situations. Every Falling Star had a huge impact on me because the struggle of surviving in North Korea is something that I would never have to experience. This book gives people a sense of what the situation of survival can be like. The conditions of what Sung Ju had experience will impact people to understand that you should be grateful for what you have such as your family, friends, food, or shelter. I highly recommend Every Falling Star.
Golden Boy by Tara Sullivan
ReplyDeleteHabo has always stood out. Blonde hair, blue eyes, light skin. When you look like that in Tanzania people notice you. Habo grew up feeling different and being treated differently. Never continuing his schooling into secondary school, still herding goats as a thirteen year old and always feeling like an outcast in his own family changes you. Is this change for the good or the bad? And when Habos family loses their home...how will they cope? Follow Habo on his crazy adventure of traveling across the country and dodging the dangers ahead of him in the Golden Boy.
This excellent story teaches self-acceptance, self-respect, and independence. A huge part of the story was figuring out who Habo was. While reading you walk with Habo as he figures out who he is. Whenever trouble stands in Habo's path, whether deadly or just simple words, he overcomes them by believing in himself. This book teaches people who are different that it's okay and some people may try stopping you but as long as you keep trying you will succeed. The one thing that reoccurs throughout the book is that Habo may be different but different is good.
Parker Knutson
ReplyDeleteThree little words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Ashley Rhodes-Courter was just three years old when she, as well as her brother, were taken away from her family. Since that day she has been in nine different foster care homes, to finally end up with the Courter’s. She was born into an unhealthy family that was heavily into drugs. Not every foster care home was the greatest, most of them were far from great. Especially the Mosses, living with the Mosses was more like not living at all for Ashley and her brother Luke. When ashley was finally adopted she had to move away from her brother, and into a whole nother world. The Courter’s were nice people to Ashley and for some reason she always wanted to rebel. When one day she came into contact with her mother. Will the Courter’s be her last home? Or will Ashley find a way to see her mother after she finally thought that it was over?
Three little words is a very intense and emotional book about a girl's life through hurt eyes.This book makes you think about not just what is happening to her, but also her feelings and thoughts. I think this book is best for people who want to understand what others can be going through. It shows you laughter and sadness, heartbreak and love. Even though Ashley’s mother has hurt her so many times she can barely stay away. I recommend this book for people who want to read a book about true life. If you like the book Swallow the Ocean then I strongly recommend this book to you.
Golden Boy by Tara Sullivan
ReplyDeleteA thirteen year old named Habo was an odd boy, he didn’t have the white skin of tourists, nor the black skin his family had. His father abandoned the family and he is to blame. His mother looks at him strangely and shamefully and his brothers always make fun of him. His sister, Asu, loves and cares for him. They lived in a small town in Arusha and soon evicted due to shortage of money.
They leave and seek refuge in Mwanza where his aunt lives. His aunt is glad to open her house to them until she sees Habo and has worries. Habo has a new name for himself. Albino. People kill albinos for good luck, Habo in fear soon becomes hunted by a crazed lunatic with a machete he runs not knowing if he could ever stop.
This book was full of action and also lots of suspense. You go through a phase that puts you at the edge of your seat. I feel like the people who are patient and more mature will enjoy this. I recommend it big time because the build up was great and also the foreign language they use in this.
If you think you’re an outsider you should see Habo, but he handles these problems like a boss.
-Adrian Hernandez
Every Falling Star by Sungju Lee
ReplyDeleteThe main character is in a gang and is the leader, his parents left him and he had to survive with his friends, he has to go through lots of problems. Dealing with his friends for survival and making money. They will meet more gangs and even fight some of them, or they will either win and the gang is under their control, or they have to work for the gang. Is Sungju Lee and his friends going to live or are they going to die? Are Sunju’s parents coming back? Are his parents going to remember him?
This book wanted me to keep reading because it was really interesting and there was a lot of events happening in Sungju Lee’s life. I wonder if it was hard to deal with all those problems, because if I was in those situations I would be clueless. I would recommend this book if you like those type of books where they are in tough situations(mentally or physically) and survival. This book would be right for you if you like adventurous, survival, and challenging books because the main character has to deal with all those problems in his life. There was lots of conflict and the main character had to deal with it and was responsible for all of his and his gang’s actions. He struggled with all his problems, but made the right choices at the end.