Dear Aunty Jude,
I am reading the book Eragon right now. It is a fantastic 497 page book that will keep you reading. I am not done with it right now, but I hope to be done by the end of this week. This book is by a teenager, Christopher Paolini. He has just made the fourth and last book to this series. All of them are fantasy.
The book has an mysterious beginning. It starts in a forest at night. It starts off as a shade (Not a real creature. Most of the fictional creature's names will sound weird.) is waiting to ambush two elves and another elf that was a female. She had a pouch that she constantly looked at. The shade has a few creatures called urgals(Once again, it will seem weird) to help him. Once they attack, the two elves die quickly but the female one escapes. The shade then used magic and set the surrounding area on fire. When the female comes back and tries to find to find a escape route, the shade jumps and kills her. Right before that thought, in the pouch, she took out a stone and made it teleport away with magic. The shade is mad.
One day a boy named Eragon is hunting for his family. He is fifteen years old. He has to hunt for his family in a feared mountain range called the Spine. Very few people go into the Spine. They fear this because one time the king sent a whole army of soldiers into the Spine and they never came back. Eragon was about to shoot his arrow to end a life of a deer, but suddenly, the was a huge crash and the deer fled. Eragon went to see where the sound has originated. He found a stone in a creator. Since he couldn't find food for his family, he decided to sell the stone and use the money to buy the meat him and his family. He went to the butcher, Sloan. Eragon never liked Sloan, but he still went to buy meat from him. Sloan asked him if he had money. Eragon said no and tried to explain but Sloan said if you have no money no meat. Eragon then said he had a stone that can be substituted as money. Sloan asked where he got it then rejected it when Eragon told him. They started yelling but Sloan's daughter Katrina, a sixteen year old girl, with the town smith, Horst. Horst was a big bulky man that could intimidate many people if he wanted to. Even though he could he was nice to a lot of people except Sloan. He got the the fight to stop, and he payed for the meat Eragon needed to buy. Eragon said thank you and wanted to repay back anything he could. Once home at his uncles house with his cousin, Eragon started to explain why had had the packaged meat and how he got the stone. They said that when the traders came they would see if they could give how much money the stone is.
The family waited many days for the traders to come. That year, the traders came very late. They would come if the weather was right, as if it was not snowing too much, and if the roads were passable. When they came they were already a month or two late. The next day, the family left the house and started their journey to the town where the traders are. When they arrived, they saw that their was many people there. Eragon's uncle, Garrow, gave some money to Roran, Eragon's cousin. Roran left to do the things he wanted and Eragon and Garrow went to see a merchant who specialized in odd antiques. Once they found the merchant, Merlock, they wanted to talk to him privately, and so he brought them to inside his tent. Eragon brought out the stone and he the merchant took out some tools. One was to measure the weight, another a jeweler's glass, and the last tool was for how hard it was, a mallet and point. When he was done he said he didn't know what the stone is. He said that the stone was harder than a diamond and that it was hollow. He took out a dagger and used the flat and tapped the stone. It made a echo like a large bell. He then showed them that it did not have and scratches on it and believed that it would not break even if he used a hammer and hit it. After all of this, he did not know the price on the stone.
When everybody was back home, they went to bed. Near dawn, Eragon heard a squeaking sound. He quickly took out his dagger and looked around for a while. After a few moments, he went back to sleep. Then there was the same sound and the stone was rocking on the shelf he put in on. The stone fell and it it started squeaking and rocking more. The egg started to crack and out came a dragon. It was deep sapphire blue, the same colour as the stone, and the sized of Eragon's forearm. It has spikes going down the head to its end of the tail. The wing span was several times the size of its body. Eragon touched it,b ut he felt a shock that sent him on the floor paralyzed. It felt like hours until he could move again. He looked at the hand he touched the dragon with and he saw a white oval. He got back on his bed and the dragon started to rub against him like a cat. then Eragon felt a tingling feeling and felt hungry. He was not hungry but he knew that this feeling came from the dragon. He got two strips of meat and cut it into little squares. When he was done feeding the dragon its belly was bulging. Eragon decided that he was not going to tell his family about the dragon until it got older. When he woke up he quickly went outside and made a tree house for the dragon. It was mostly made out of leather. Everyday Eragon went to see the dragon and feed it. It got really big, fast. It then out grown the house Eragon made for him. When Roran and Eragon went to town to get something. When Eragon and Roran were going back home Roran told Eragon the he was going to apply for a job away from here in another town. Eragon asked why and he said he wanted to marry Katrina. When it was supper, Roran told Garrow, and Gorrow was not surprised. He wanted Roran to have a wife. When Roran left, Eragon followed to say goodbye. Horst then told him to come outside and informed him that he quickly should get rid of the stone. That two mysterious people in black robes were looking for it. Instead of going home Eragon took a detour and tried to look for the robed men. He the saw them in Sloan's shop and Sloan told them everything. When they came out the shop they saw Eragon but the storyteller, Brom, came out and looked for him. When Eragon's gloves came off, Brom saw the white oval and Eragon rushed away. Eragon told Saphire, the name of his dragon( it was a girl), about the men and with Eragon on her she got mad and flew away. She flew to where Eragon found her egg and Eragon found that most of his legs' skin was peeled of from the ride. Eragon convince Sphira to leave the next day.
Once home Eragon found his home in flames he found Garrow and Saphira hoisted them up but she didn't have enough energy to go all the way to town. Eragon had to drag Garrow, but luckily Brom saw them and when he arrived Eragon fainted. That was what I read up to so far.
My favorite part of the book was when Eragon found out the stone was an egg. this is my favorite part so far because it was a suspenseful moment. My least favorite part of the book was when the house was on fire. It was a very sad moment. I would recommend this book the anybody and would rate it 5/5 stars.
Your friend,
Alexander Yan
Monday, November 28, 2011
Monday, November 21, 2011
RJ #12 11-21-11
Dear Ethan,
I have finished reading the book I Survived the Bombing of Pearl Harbor, 1941 by Lauren Tarshis. This book is a memoir that Mrs. Zhrihen let me read. It is about a boy named Dave who came from New York and settled in Hawaii. His mom made them come here because she wanted Dave to get away from all the crime happening in the city.
One morning, Dave said bye to his mom going to work at the hospital as a nurse near one of the airfields, Hickam. Once she left, Dave heard a rustling outside; he grabbed a bat and went out. Once outside he saw a little Japanese kid with a little boar in his hand. The kid said puppy, puppy and Dave knew he was talking about the boar. He didn't want to hurt his feelings by telling him that was not a puppy, but then a bigger boar came out. He made the kid put down the baby boar before he hurt, and he picked up the now crying kid back into his house.
Once inside he saw the boar go away and the kid's mother come shouting, Aki, her child's name. Dave invited her in and they started to talk about, Aki. She then invited Dave to her house. Then he started to get "emotional" because he started to remember about New York.
The day after that, he woke up to the sound of planes. Aki came shouting planes up the hill separating their houses. Aki's mother came out and told Dave to come into the house and hide, but Dave said no and went to look for his mom. During the time he tried to get to where his mom is, the planes were bombing the harbor and destroying the airplanes before they even started up the engine. They also fired at civilians and bombed the whole area. The whole island was surprised. When Dave got to the hospital where his mom worked, he was relieved to see her. She put him to work instantly. The whole hospital was filled with injured people from the attack. Even the kitchen was filled with people. It took three days until they were done.
In the end all of the main characters survived, but all their lives has changed.
Your friend,
Alexander Yan
I have finished reading the book I Survived the Bombing of Pearl Harbor, 1941 by Lauren Tarshis. This book is a memoir that Mrs. Zhrihen let me read. It is about a boy named Dave who came from New York and settled in Hawaii. His mom made them come here because she wanted Dave to get away from all the crime happening in the city.
One morning, Dave said bye to his mom going to work at the hospital as a nurse near one of the airfields, Hickam. Once she left, Dave heard a rustling outside; he grabbed a bat and went out. Once outside he saw a little Japanese kid with a little boar in his hand. The kid said puppy, puppy and Dave knew he was talking about the boar. He didn't want to hurt his feelings by telling him that was not a puppy, but then a bigger boar came out. He made the kid put down the baby boar before he hurt, and he picked up the now crying kid back into his house.
Once inside he saw the boar go away and the kid's mother come shouting, Aki, her child's name. Dave invited her in and they started to talk about, Aki. She then invited Dave to her house. Then he started to get "emotional" because he started to remember about New York.
The day after that, he woke up to the sound of planes. Aki came shouting planes up the hill separating their houses. Aki's mother came out and told Dave to come into the house and hide, but Dave said no and went to look for his mom. During the time he tried to get to where his mom is, the planes were bombing the harbor and destroying the airplanes before they even started up the engine. They also fired at civilians and bombed the whole area. The whole island was surprised. When Dave got to the hospital where his mom worked, he was relieved to see her. She put him to work instantly. The whole hospital was filled with injured people from the attack. Even the kitchen was filled with people. It took three days until they were done.
In the end all of the main characters survived, but all their lives has changed.
Your friend,
Alexander Yan
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
RJ #11 11-15-11
Dear Julio,
I have finished reading the book The Real Benedict Arnold. It seems more like a biography than a memoir, but the library told me it was a memoir. Benedict Arnold was a American Rebel leader during the Revolutionary War. He then became a traitor. Historians think this because Congress nor almost all of his coworkers during the war disliked him or discredited him.
Benedict Arnold was born on 1741. He was born to a rich family with a honorable family name. His only living sibling was his sister, Hannah. He attended school, and his plan was to go to a good school like Yale. There has always been uncertainty how Benedict looked or acted like.
In 1754, The French and Indian War started. This war between the French and English. This caused his father, a sailor, to have troubles trading. This stopped Arnold from going to school. After his mother died in 1759 by an unknown illness. After that, Benedict's father was arrested for being drunk. That was a big deal during this time because the main religion was Christianity. That means that drinking was illegal. If you did drink you would have to go to the church.
During this time, the Arnold family was in a financial crisis. Benedict had to sell his property and start off new. He opened a store. It was called B. Arnold Druggist Book Seller, Ect. From London Sibi Totique. Sibi totquw in latin means for himself and for all. When he started to earn a profit he was rising in the ranks of the town. A person he knew invited him to the Freemasons. This organization was to bring peace to the world. It was a very secretive group.
In the 1760s, Great Britain kept making acts that made the American people pay extra taxes for The French and Indian War. This made colonists mad, and some started a rebellion. On one day there were protesters in the street that were harassing British troops. The British troops then opened fire and killed several people. This became known as the Boston Massacre.
After that the war for independence really started. First the British wanted to take a weapons area but people from the militia made them retreat. Benedict then joined the war to glorify his family name again after what had happened to his dad. Even though he wanted to do this, he was very kind to the troops he commanded. If they were running out of food, he would use his own money to buy food for them. He would also encourage his troops to fight and would walk next to them during hard times. Even though he does this many other commanders took credit form him. Many historians believe they did this because they were jealous of his success. The add to that, they even told Congress lies that he doesn't fight, but he charges into battle unlike mast of them. Congress believed them and disliked Benedict. After many years of battling and lies about him, Benedict decided to join the British instead. He thought that the British would respect him more.
He died on June 14, 1801. Many Americans despised him for being a traitor, but no could say he wasn't a great commander.
Your friend,
Alexander Yan
I have finished reading the book The Real Benedict Arnold. It seems more like a biography than a memoir, but the library told me it was a memoir. Benedict Arnold was a American Rebel leader during the Revolutionary War. He then became a traitor. Historians think this because Congress nor almost all of his coworkers during the war disliked him or discredited him.
Benedict Arnold was born on 1741. He was born to a rich family with a honorable family name. His only living sibling was his sister, Hannah. He attended school, and his plan was to go to a good school like Yale. There has always been uncertainty how Benedict looked or acted like.
In 1754, The French and Indian War started. This war between the French and English. This caused his father, a sailor, to have troubles trading. This stopped Arnold from going to school. After his mother died in 1759 by an unknown illness. After that, Benedict's father was arrested for being drunk. That was a big deal during this time because the main religion was Christianity. That means that drinking was illegal. If you did drink you would have to go to the church.
During this time, the Arnold family was in a financial crisis. Benedict had to sell his property and start off new. He opened a store. It was called B. Arnold Druggist Book Seller, Ect. From London Sibi Totique. Sibi totquw in latin means for himself and for all. When he started to earn a profit he was rising in the ranks of the town. A person he knew invited him to the Freemasons. This organization was to bring peace to the world. It was a very secretive group.
In the 1760s, Great Britain kept making acts that made the American people pay extra taxes for The French and Indian War. This made colonists mad, and some started a rebellion. On one day there were protesters in the street that were harassing British troops. The British troops then opened fire and killed several people. This became known as the Boston Massacre.
After that the war for independence really started. First the British wanted to take a weapons area but people from the militia made them retreat. Benedict then joined the war to glorify his family name again after what had happened to his dad. Even though he wanted to do this, he was very kind to the troops he commanded. If they were running out of food, he would use his own money to buy food for them. He would also encourage his troops to fight and would walk next to them during hard times. Even though he does this many other commanders took credit form him. Many historians believe they did this because they were jealous of his success. The add to that, they even told Congress lies that he doesn't fight, but he charges into battle unlike mast of them. Congress believed them and disliked Benedict. After many years of battling and lies about him, Benedict decided to join the British instead. He thought that the British would respect him more.
He died on June 14, 1801. Many Americans despised him for being a traitor, but no could say he wasn't a great commander.
Your friend,
Alexander Yan
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Current Event #2
Date: 11-12-11
Name:Alexander Yan
Current Events Journal #2
Title:A legacy of service: Three generations of Pines family have served in military
Author: Perry Stein
Source: The Miami Herald
The topic of the article is Bolivar Perez-Rio's family has three generations of service men.
The main idea of the article is: that Bolivar's grandchildren and children have served in the armed forces. This is stated.(implied/stated)
The author’s purpose for writing this article is to inform the reader about Bolivar's military roots and why his children are or were in the military.
The author’s perspective in this article is objective/subjective (biased) because he talks about Bolivar's history in the military.
The pattern of organization of the article is in chronological order.
The reason the author chose this pattern for the article is because he is talking about Bolivar today on Veterans Day. He then explains his military career.
The text features included in the article are:Pictures. Pictures helps by showing how Bolivar looks like. Quotes, these help by telling how Bolivar feels.Lastly, are captions for the picture. This helps by telling what the picture is showing.
This article is about (a summary in your own words) Bolivar Perez-Rios is a army veteran. He was in service during WWII through 1941-1949. In France, he deactivated mines but one blew up. He was injured. His son's and there son's are now in the military, too. Bolivar is now 92 years old.
The significance (importance) of this article is that it was Veterans Day yesterday, and Bolivar a military roots.
What I learned from this article is that there is a person named Bolivar Perez-Rios. He is a WWII veteran, and he was injured by a landmine. His children and grandchildren were in the military, too.
What I liked about this article is that it is very informative and fits well for Veterans Day. Especially the Bolivar's successor's were in the army, too.
What I did not like about it is that it does not talk more about Bolivar's sons.
Who should read this article and why Anybody who respects veterans or service men or women should read this article. I think this because it is about a veteran and his son and his grandson that are also veterans.
This article reminds me of (text-to-self)my grandfather and grandmother. They are both worked in the army. My grandfather was a missile operator. My grandmother made submarines.
(text-to-text) This reminds me of the book Scat. In the book a boy has a injured dad who was a soldier in Iraq. His arm was hurt very badly while he was in a HUMVEE that was hit by a RPG.
(text-to-world)This reminds me of my dad's barber. He was a veteran in WWII, too. He works in Miami and just turned 90 years old. His shop is called Barons.
New vocabulary I learned
Word Context Clues Meaning
1. isthmus- a narrow strip of land connecting two pieces of land
2.mementos- a reminder
3.patriarch- a father or founder
Name:Alexander Yan
Current Events Journal #2
Title:A legacy of service: Three generations of Pines family have served in military
Author: Perry Stein
Source: The Miami Herald
The topic of the article is Bolivar Perez-Rio's family has three generations of service men.
The main idea of the article is: that Bolivar's grandchildren and children have served in the armed forces. This is stated.(implied/stated)
The author’s purpose for writing this article is to inform the reader about Bolivar's military roots and why his children are or were in the military.
The author’s perspective in this article is objective/subjective (biased) because he talks about Bolivar's history in the military.
The pattern of organization of the article is in chronological order.
The reason the author chose this pattern for the article is because he is talking about Bolivar today on Veterans Day. He then explains his military career.
The text features included in the article are:Pictures. Pictures helps by showing how Bolivar looks like. Quotes, these help by telling how Bolivar feels.Lastly, are captions for the picture. This helps by telling what the picture is showing.
This article is about (a summary in your own words) Bolivar Perez-Rios is a army veteran. He was in service during WWII through 1941-1949. In France, he deactivated mines but one blew up. He was injured. His son's and there son's are now in the military, too. Bolivar is now 92 years old.
The significance (importance) of this article is that it was Veterans Day yesterday, and Bolivar a military roots.
What I learned from this article is that there is a person named Bolivar Perez-Rios. He is a WWII veteran, and he was injured by a landmine. His children and grandchildren were in the military, too.
What I liked about this article is that it is very informative and fits well for Veterans Day. Especially the Bolivar's successor's were in the army, too.
What I did not like about it is that it does not talk more about Bolivar's sons.
Who should read this article and why Anybody who respects veterans or service men or women should read this article. I think this because it is about a veteran and his son and his grandson that are also veterans.
This article reminds me of (text-to-self)my grandfather and grandmother. They are both worked in the army. My grandfather was a missile operator. My grandmother made submarines.
(text-to-text) This reminds me of the book Scat. In the book a boy has a injured dad who was a soldier in Iraq. His arm was hurt very badly while he was in a HUMVEE that was hit by a RPG.
(text-to-world)This reminds me of my dad's barber. He was a veteran in WWII, too. He works in Miami and just turned 90 years old. His shop is called Barons.
New vocabulary I learned
Word Context Clues Meaning
1. isthmus- a narrow strip of land connecting two pieces of land
2.mementos- a reminder
3.patriarch- a father or founder
Monday, November 7, 2011
RJ # 10 11-7-11
Dear Madison,
I have finished reading the short story, Split Cherry Tree. It is about a boy named Dave. He is a high school student and is the first one in his family to reach high school. The story doesn't say, but I think it is in the south because of the accent used.
He has to go to get a lizard for a project, but five other kids see it one all of them including Dave and go up a Cherry tree and it brakes. The farmer makes them pay a dollar each, but Dave doesn't have a dollar. His teacher, Professor Herbert, makes him work in school like sweeping the floors and cleaning the windows to make him pay for the money owed. An hour a quarter for two days. Dave says no. He says that he has to help his father at the farm. He asks if there is a quicker punishment. Professor Herbert says no.
After two hours of cleaning, Dave rushes home to help his dad. Dave's dad is a farmer with a southern accent and wears wore out clothes. He is tall and has a really dark tan from working in the sun. When Dave gets home he sees his dad doing his work. He quickly tells his dad to let him do it. His dad asks him where he has been and Dave tells the whole story. His dad decides to go to school with him tomorrow and give the teacher a piece of his mind. He thinks just because the other kids had the money but Dave didn't, he has to work is not fair. Dave's dad did not have to learn about bugs or animals in the time when he went to school. He thinks that it is weird.
When Dave and his dad arrive at school, they go to Professor Herbert's office. Then Dave's dad pulls out a gun and points it at the professor while on the table. The professor gets nervous and he starts to explain why Dave stayed late. They continued chatting until class has to start. Dave's dad puts away the gun and they start to become friendly with each other. When the professor talked about germs, Dave;s dad didn't believe him because he never saw one. Professor Herbert told him that he will show him some. They are even in the scum in his teeth. Dave's dad follows him to all his classes and when they were in biology class or Professor Herbert's subject he shows Dave's dad germs in the microscope from a sample of dirt from his teeth. Dave's dad is amazed.
When school is over Dave starts to clean but the professor says he closed the dept. He goes to his dad and he asks why isn't he doing the work. Dave tells him and the go see Professor Herbert. Dave's dad insists because he believes in earning things. They work an hour each totaling in two hours and go home.
At home, Dave's dad tells his wife about everything he has learned today. He says that things have changed so much from the time he was in school to now.
I think the moral of this story is that things don't stay the same all the time. I would rate it 5 out of 5 stars but it says "I says" a lot which isn't correct grammar. With that said, I would rate it 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Your friend,
Alexander Yan
I have finished reading the short story, Split Cherry Tree. It is about a boy named Dave. He is a high school student and is the first one in his family to reach high school. The story doesn't say, but I think it is in the south because of the accent used.
He has to go to get a lizard for a project, but five other kids see it one all of them including Dave and go up a Cherry tree and it brakes. The farmer makes them pay a dollar each, but Dave doesn't have a dollar. His teacher, Professor Herbert, makes him work in school like sweeping the floors and cleaning the windows to make him pay for the money owed. An hour a quarter for two days. Dave says no. He says that he has to help his father at the farm. He asks if there is a quicker punishment. Professor Herbert says no.
After two hours of cleaning, Dave rushes home to help his dad. Dave's dad is a farmer with a southern accent and wears wore out clothes. He is tall and has a really dark tan from working in the sun. When Dave gets home he sees his dad doing his work. He quickly tells his dad to let him do it. His dad asks him where he has been and Dave tells the whole story. His dad decides to go to school with him tomorrow and give the teacher a piece of his mind. He thinks just because the other kids had the money but Dave didn't, he has to work is not fair. Dave's dad did not have to learn about bugs or animals in the time when he went to school. He thinks that it is weird.
When Dave and his dad arrive at school, they go to Professor Herbert's office. Then Dave's dad pulls out a gun and points it at the professor while on the table. The professor gets nervous and he starts to explain why Dave stayed late. They continued chatting until class has to start. Dave's dad puts away the gun and they start to become friendly with each other. When the professor talked about germs, Dave;s dad didn't believe him because he never saw one. Professor Herbert told him that he will show him some. They are even in the scum in his teeth. Dave's dad follows him to all his classes and when they were in biology class or Professor Herbert's subject he shows Dave's dad germs in the microscope from a sample of dirt from his teeth. Dave's dad is amazed.
When school is over Dave starts to clean but the professor says he closed the dept. He goes to his dad and he asks why isn't he doing the work. Dave tells him and the go see Professor Herbert. Dave's dad insists because he believes in earning things. They work an hour each totaling in two hours and go home.
At home, Dave's dad tells his wife about everything he has learned today. He says that things have changed so much from the time he was in school to now.
I think the moral of this story is that things don't stay the same all the time. I would rate it 5 out of 5 stars but it says "I says" a lot which isn't correct grammar. With that said, I would rate it 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Your friend,
Alexander Yan
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)