Archive for April 14th, 2009
Question 1: What book would you recommend to readers?
Norman: I highly recommend Eragon, by Christopher Paolini.
Question 2: What did you like about this book?
Norman: The book was “magical” and I’m really into fantasy.
Question 3: Do you read a lot of books by this same author?
Norman: Yes, because Eragon is book one of a trilogy. I have read the other two books also (Eldest, and Brisinger).
Question 4: Do you think others will like this book as much as you did, even though they have different interests than you do?
Norman: Yes, because this book is filled with action and interesting events.
Question 5: What made you read this book?
Norman: I was bored and I picked out any book from the shelf.
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Question 1: What book would you recommend to readers?
Alexandra: I would recommend Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen.
Question 2: What did you like about this book?
Alexandra: I liked the general writing style of the author.
Question 3: Do you read a lot of books by this same author?
Alexandra: No, I read a lot of books by a lot of different authors in order to get a different flavor each time I read a book.
Question 4: Do you think others will like this book as much as you did, even though they have different interests than you do?
Alexandra: Yes, because all types of people can relate to this book.
Question 5: What made you read this book?
Alexandra: I read this book because it’s a classic.
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Question 1: What book would you recommend to readers?
Angel: I would recommend The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien.
Question 2: What did you like about this book?
Angel: Tim O’Brien fills this book with an interesting plot and makes it exciting by telling many mini stories in the book.
Question 3: Do you read a lot of books by this same author?
Angel: No, I haven’t but I want to in the future.
Question 4: Do you think others will like this book as much as you did, even though they have different interests than you do?
Angel: Yes, because this book brings the reader to a different time and setting, so when he/she reads this book, he/she won’t even think about his/her own interests.
Question 5: What made you read this book?
Angel: I had to read it for class.
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Question 1: What book would you recommend to readers?
Andrew: I really liked Domain by Steve Alten.
Question 2: What did you like about this book?
Andrew: The book used Mayan folklore and the storyline was kind of apocalyptical. I like that fantastical/another world stuff sometimes. Also, it was at times sexual, so that helped.
Question 3: Do you read a lot of books by this same author?
Andrew: Well, it does help, like I read his other book, Meg, and it was really cool.
Question 4: Do you think others will like this book as much as you did, even though they have different interests than you do?
Andrew: Depends on the person, I guess. Sometimes I don’t get why people read certain books…like Twilight.
Question 5: What made you read this book?
Andrew: It was on the new young adults books section/shelf.
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Question 1: What book would you recommend to readers?
Krystal: My favorite book is A Ring of Endless Light, by Madeleine Lengle.
Question 2: What did you like about this book?
Krystal: I liked the storyline itself. It was about death for the most part, but it wasn’t like a depressing book. I guess it sort of opened my eyes to that topic for the first time. For example, one of the character’s mother died and he froze her so that they could clone her in the future. I thought that was just nasty. Also, I really liked the protagonist and her connection with the dolphins, and one of the boys, Adam Eddington. He was my favorite.
Question 3: Do you read a lot of books by this same author?
Krystal: YES! She’s my favorite. A Wrinkle in Time, Troubling a Star, Arm of a Starfish. Oh my God! I LOVE HER.
Question 4: Do you think others will like this book as much as you did, even though they have different interests than you do?
Krystal: I think everyone can relate to these characters. It’s not like a chick book about romance or whatever. It’s about life and death and living beyond. It’s about self-discovery in a way. I think everyone can understand and they would probably like it too.
Question 5: What made you read this book?
Krystal: I read A Wrinkle in Time in the second grade. Then in middle school, I saw it on the library bookshelf and recognized the name of the author (because I loved the other book) and I stole it from the library. I read it and loved it.
What’s one book you’d recommend and why?
Candide! It’s insanely sarcastic and hilarious.
Any non-school books you’d recommend?
Oh. I am the Messenger. It’s about a dude who receives a card in the mail from this random person and he follows the instructions on the cards and starts doing like, well, really nice things to help out people and their problems like a lonely old lady or like a wife and kids getting abused by her husband. And it’s pretty cool.
What was the first book you read?
The dictionary! Hahaha! Just kidding.
Did you ever have trouble reading when you were younger?
No, reading wasn’t a problem for me. Analysis in English class with uninteresting books was.
How are books like songs?
They are?! I never looked at it that way.
Do you enjoy reading?
I used to, when I had the time but now, with all my other work, procrastination and just the drama of college/teenage life I just don’t have the time.
What’s your favorite book?
I honestly don’t have one. I guess it b/c the books i like, I read them too fast and then when I want to remember them months later, I can’t really. But now, I’d like to say Twilight. I read that in August. Still fresh, sort of.
How do you pick out books?
Their covers, reputation (is it a classic vs. trashy airport book), recommendations, if i find an author i like, I’ll go with that, in that order, and sometimes, its level of personal apparent relevance to my own life also adds an appeal.
Like Twilight?
Not initially. I didn’t think my life had anything to do with vampires. that one came strictly off of cover appeal and recommendation. Personal relevance became maybe more of a factor as I continued to read the series as I was more familiar with the characters and could recognize similar situations in my own life, minus the vampires. I wish.
Twilight is bad?
No. Twilight is great.
Did you ever steal a book?
Yes. Once when I was like in second grade I took out a book from the library and I thought it was so great. But then the return date was coming up so I decided to copy the book word for word, picture for picture. It took awhile and I thought it was all worth it but now I don’t even know what happened.
What about a real book?
Yes. I stole The House of the Scorpion or something like that in like the sixth grade for the same reason. I’m trying to get my brother to read it, actually.
Do you ever judge a book by its cover?
Of course; I think that’s why covers exist. They advertise the books and it’s up to the book makers to make it look appealing to the eye first, then the mind. A single banana on a black background will catch my attention more than a garble of browns and blues.
How often do you go to the library?
I used to go a lot when I was twelve but not so much anymore. I don’t have the time nor do I have the drive to go to the library to take out a new book to read.
What changed that?
I don’t know, I guess high school happened to me. And so did the analyses of boring books. Really, that’s no excuse; it’s just that I think that I have better things to do than read books.
What was the last book you read for fun?
Korean picture books cuz I’m learning Korean right now. I feel like I’m in kindergarten again. It’s mad fun.
What other books could you recommend?
Okay let me tell you about the other books. Um, classics? Like The Three Musketeers? With Porthos and them.
Why the classics? Why not contemporary stuff?
Cuz the classics have a reputation for being good. They didn’t become classics because they were bad. Well maybe they were but they were at least interesting. And maybe good. You can’t go wrong with classics. Most of the time.
What would you recommend to read?
Recently, I have been reading The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas. It kicks ass. I loved the Count of Monte Cristo, so I thought that I should read Dumas’ other works. I was right. It kicks ass.
What’s your relationship with libraries?
I owe them money. I also go to the library once a month. I don’t have the time to frequent the bookshelves of my local library.
Do you not like Stephanie Meyer?
LOL. STEPHANIE MEYER IS PHAIL.
Do you like Stephanie Meyer?
I wish I could’ve read more books by Stephenie Meyer but I haven’t have time to read the sequels and etc but i really wanna read them because I wanna see how each character goes through different changes. I recommend the book to anyone who wants a page turner and an easy read and anyone whos a “sucker” for a vampire. Haha get it?
Doo Hyun Lee Ms. Chan Pd.2 / Late British Literature 4/9/09
Interview Questions:
1. What about this novel makes you want to recommend it?
2. Is it a dense novel or is it easy to read?
3. Are there unique techniques (or gimmicks) the author employs?
4. What was the least favorite aspect of the novel?
5. What would you recommend the reader have in mind before he or she begins to read?
Dawn Chen: Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
A1. It makes you sad but it also makes you think about science and ethics and love and friendships.
A2. In the beginning, it’s hard to understand the speech because the narrator is retarded. In the middle, it’s hard to understand the speech because the narrator is a genius. In the end, he’s retarded again.
A3. The whole book is a diary of the protagonist, and when he begins the diary, all of his words are spelled wrong. As the diary as well as the plot continues, the words are spelled right and the sentence structure is increasingly complicated.
A4. Nothing.
A5. You should think about which characters you really feel sorry for.
Andrew Labunka: The Portable Charles W. Chesnutt by Charles W. Chesnutt
A1. It can help readers find out a little bit more about relationships between black and white people nearly a century ago.
A2. The stories are short, although the ebonics might throw you off.
A3. Besides the dialect, all the stories have twist endings, which sort of makes them mysteries, I guess.
A4. Nothing.
A5. Chesnutt was a mulatto, meaning he was of both black and white ancestry, so you should focus on the identity crisis some of his characters face.
Michael La Hogue: The Metamorphoses by Ovid
A1. I just found it interesting how Ovid manages to deal with the theme of change.
A2. Having read Mythology by Edith Hamilton, I can say that the Metamorphoses is ten times easier and less boring to read if you have to deal with myths.
A3. All of the different myths are somehow connected to one another by an intertwining character.
A4. Because it is translated from Latin and it is a poem, the English can be funky sometimes.
A5. When Ovid deals with change, he doesn’t only deal with the body.
Doo Hyun Lee: Life of Pi by Yann Martel
A1. The whole idea of a boy trying to survive on a life raft with a Bengal tiger is thrilling in itself, but what affected me more was how the novel dealt with religion. In the beginning of the novel, the protagonist Pi Patel finds himself conflicted over the desire to love God through Islam, Christianity, and Hinduism.
A2. The narrator uses simple vocabulary so the novel is easy to get through.
A3. The novel is mainly constructed of two parallel stories, one involving Pi and zoo animals, the other involving Pi and other humans.
A4. My least favorite aspect is the narrator getting too descriptive with the food, although the author does mention that the book’s inspiration came from hunger.
A5. The novel emphasizes the importance of stories, especially in religions, and it deals with which stories might be true and which might be false.
Oscar Liu: Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
A1. The main character is ridiculous.
A2. It is an easy read only because the protagonist gets into so many different, sometimes hilarious situations.
A3. I don’t think so.
A4. It’s a good novel overall.
A5. The narrator is a kid so you could probably relate to half of the crazy things he does.
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