Eragon

This quarter I read the novel Eragon by Christopher Paolini. No, not Aragorn from The Lord of the Rings, but a young kid that lives in Alagesia. The two get mixed up a lot because their names are pronounced similarly but you can tell from the spelling alone that they are completely different. Now that we have that established, this novel takes us through the magical realm of Alagesia and shares the adventures of Eragon, a simple farm boy.

One day Eragon found a mysterious stone in the mountains. When he tried to trade this stone for goods in town no one would accept it because he found it on land owned by the king, Galbatorix. He ignored their many warnings and kept the stone, changing his life forever. Little did he know it was not a mere stone, but an egg, containing a creature of myth and times long ago, more peaceful and benevolent times. The egg hatches and Eragon is transformed from an innocent farm boy into a Dragon Rider accompanied by his new dragon, Saphira.

The novel follows these two unlikely companions throughout the world of Alagesia  as they evade Galbatorix, befriend new allis, and flee south to The Varden, the only place where they can feel safe. After many close calls and a long journey they arrive at The Varden exhausted and pursued by Galbatorix’s soldiers. They lose friends in the battle but come out victorious, continuing Eragon’s training and keeping the hope alive that dragon riders will soon return to Alagesia.

Christopher was 15 when he started this masterpiece and was still a very young adult when it was published. The novel intrigues the imagination of teenagers and adults alike, dedicating them to the lengthy novel that is Eragon.

Paolini wrote this novel being inspired by the works of J.R.R. Tolkien and Eric Rücker Eddison among others. He based the landscape of Alagesia off of his home state Montana and wrote the novel to explore his writing abilities and expand his ideas. Inadvertently at first he compared Eragon’s growth and maturation throughout the story to that of his own as a young writer. In the book he is able to show through Eragon’s and his own success that anything is possible if you put your mind to it and remain dedicated.

In this novel Paolini sticks to a third person limited view to describe the adventure. He is still a young writer and it is obvious in his following novels of his improvement. For example, in his third book Paolini adapts the novel to have multiple points of view and several different plot lines all occurring simultaneously, this demonstrates his maturity as a writer. Still evident though in Eragon is his skill and natural ability as a writer. He utilizes imagery to paint the setting in vivid descriptions and alludes often, foreboding to future dangers. Paolini even created his own “ancient language” in Eragon, basing it off of old Norse, German, Old English, and Russian myth.

The books starts off calm and climaxes when Eragon finds Saphira’s egg. After that it recedes back to a calmer tone, slowly increasing in excitement until Saphira hatches. After this event, the journey has begun, and the novel becomes an epic adventure similar to Lord of the Rings and contains excitement and twists on each page. This tone engrosses the reader’s amusement and throws them into the adventure with Eragon.

My rating system for this book is:

1: Farm Boy

2: Boy with a rock!

3: Boy with a big Lizard!

4: Dragon and Companion

5: Dragon Rider

I would say that this novel is at the Dragon and Companion stage in its development. It is well written and a fantastic read that I would recommend but Paolini is still developing as a writer and has yet to reach his full potential and become a true Dragon Rider.

The Devil in White City

When you hear the name Holmes you think of the fantastically brilliant Sherlock Holmes, aided by his steadfast Watson; possibly you even picture Robert Downy Jr. hurtling himself off a waterfall or riding a small, shaggy pony through the mountains. Sherlock, Robert, and Watson -- this is what you imagine when you hear Holmes, not H. H. Holmes, the charming and sophisticated but brutal murderer in Chicago during the World’s Fair.

This four part novel follows the two polar opposite yet intertwined lives of an architect and a serial killer during the Chicago World’s Fair. Larson has done his research and redefines Chicago during this time. He creates the two different plot lines to help fill in the gaps history missed, he follows Daniel Burnham through the creation of the fair while shadowing the destruction of life with Holmes.

Burnham receives the honor of designing the World’s Fair with his partner John Root. After a series of unfortunate events, Burnham struggles alone through the design and construction of the fair. He is able to successfully upstage the Eiffel Tower from the last World’s Fair with his idea of the Ferris Wheel. He unwittingly creates the perfect setting for Holmes, right on his door step.

Holmes moved to Chicago in 1886 to pursue his career as a doctor and pharmacist. He acquired a building near the future sight of the World’s Fair, Jackson Park. He used the bottom level as a store front and later turned the upper stories into the World’s Fair Hotel, the rooms riddled with secret passages, chutes to the basement, and a kiln for easy disposal of evidence. Holmes used his charm to lure in his victims, sometimes even through marriage... Holmes was a reaper in the fair, like a wolf amidst helpless sheep.

Both men start off rather successful in their respective areas. Burnham creates the Chicago World’s Fair to his design, and is almost complete with the Ferris Wheel when the fair opens in 1893. Holmes dolefully killed many people during his time in Chicago. Luckily for the lambs, the police were starting to catch on to Holmes because of his other illegal activities. Holmes fled Chicago and years later ended up getting caught and arrested for tax evasion, you could say he was like Al Capone before Capone was. 

Larson’s target audience is adults and young adults who enjoy reading and learning about historical events in an indirect manner. In this novel he is showing everyone that yin cannot exist without yang, evil without good. Through the characters, Holmes and Burnham, Larson is able to relate the decline and progression of society in the late 19th century. He utilizes prismatic diction to paint an image in the reader’s mind and give us a better feel for the characters personality. Here is an example of what I was talking about, this is how Burnham viewed the ship the R.M.S. Olympic, “ ... he admired the artistry in the iron scrollwork of the balustrades and the immense dome of iron and glass that flushed the ship's core with natural light" (4).  His word choice in this thought clearly shows Burnham's appreciation for architecture and it gives us an idea about his role in the novel, that of a well-educated architecture connoisseur. Larson continues to utilize this character specific diction throughout the book accompanied by direct quotes to engross us in his story. His descriptions and quotes make it possible for us to completely understand each character as if we had grown up with them.

Larson also successfully utilizes direct and complex sentences to enhance his imagery and create an apprehensive tone that shadows over the entire novel. He is able to foreshadow these events through his detailed descriptions. “He entered a world of clamor, smoke, and steam, refulgent with the scents of murdered cattle and pigs. He found it to his liking” (12). The first sentence describes the setting while the second direct sentence places one idea in our minds, he likes murder. From this thought we are able to come to the conclusion that Holmes will at some point in the novel kill because it brings him pleasure. This foreboding tone is present throughout the entire novel and gives us a premonition about what events are about to unfold.

Rating System: 1-5 (Evil to Great)

1: Moriarty

2: Lord Blackwood

3: Adler

4: Watson

5: Sherlcok

I give this book a Watson because it was able to represent historical information accurately in an unorthodox manner and it threw the reader into the shoes of the characters. It was written in a sophisticated manner and allowed the audience to connect to each character through given personal details and opinions.

Lone Survivor

Recently I read the novel Lone Survivor: the eyewitness account of operation redwing and the lost heroes of seal team 10 written by Marcus Luttrell with Patrick Robinson. This book outlined Marcus’ life as a navy seal. In the beginning you learn a little bit about his childhood, how he was inspired to become a Navy Seal and his preparation through middle and high school. From there he went to boot camp and became a US Marine with little difficulty, already having the training he did. Immediately after boot camp, he did not rest and went straight to Coronado to become a Navy Seal. He survived through Hell Week and all of the insane training of the Seals. Only the best even thought about being Seals, and only the best of them even showed up in Coronado to train. By the end of the training more than 80% of the class had dropped, so you could say only the best of the best of the best of the really awesome guys became Seals. After he received his trident and became a Seal, he kept training, going to sniper school, a medic, and an airborne Seal. He served in Iraq and after years of experience, was deployed to the mountains in Afghanistan as part of Seal Team 10.

For the first few weeks everything went well, then came Operation Red Wing on June 27, 2005. This was an important mission to take out a man high up in the Taliban command, it was critical they were not found so they formed a small team of four. This team was Marcus, Danny Dietz, Matthew Axelson, and Michael Murphy. The mission started smoothly but then it all went wrong. I will not go into specific details but the book is titled Lone Survivor for a reason, The day after they were deployed for Operation Redwing, Marcus was the only one left, surrounded and severely injured. About 10 days after he was left alone, he was saved, and he returned home. This book shows the dedication and supreme skill of the US Navy Seals, they truly are the best there is and this book tells an amazing story showing their true patriotism and ironclad will.

This novel was very well written and it was only enhanced by the first person account of the activities. There were times that the challenges overcome were so incredulous that I would have believed it was a work of fiction if I didn’t know better. This book put us into the mind, body, and soul of a great american warrior.

This book was written for teenagers and adults to share the heroic story and sacrifice of Seal Team 10. Marcus had to survive so everyone could hear the story of the heroics performed by the fallen, Danny, Axe, and Mikey. Without this novel, their heroic actions and sacrifices would have passed unnoticed.

Luttrell and Robinson used a lot of military vernacular throughout the book, such as ISLiD (image stabilization and light distribution unit), QRE (quick reaction force), and MRE (meals ready to eat). They also had a combined signature, asking a lot of questions, especially of themselves and the reader. Here is an example, “As long as it takes, was their obvious belief. In the end they assume they will rid their holy Muslim soil of the infidel invaders. After all, they always have, right? Sorry, nyet?” (Luttrell 177). These questions made us think about the ideas and take them farther than we would have normally. 

This book was written as if he was telling this story to a good buddy for the most part, but every now and then it got a little more serious, and at some times very sad.

I give this book 5 Mark 12s

Here is my rating system:

1 Mark 12: Couldn’t finish it...

2 Mark 12: Finished it, with a few naps in between chapters.

3 Mark 12: I read it, it was good but nothing special.

4 Mark 12: A good book, I would recommend it to everyone.

5 Mark 12: I could not put the book down! I couldn’t do anything until I finished this book.

Marcus Luttrell Receiving the Navy Cross 

from President Bush

School on Friday

We shouldn't go to school on Friday because it is only a half day, and the world is going to end! The Mayans predicted it a long time ago and they had the best measuring rocks around so it must be true! It's set in stone! We need to enjoy our last day.

PrObama

Election day is tomorrow! Many undecided voters are not sure who they will be voting for. Obama? Romney? Perhaps even Stein, Johnson, or Goode? I am here to change you from an undecided voter, to an informed voter. There are many reasons why you should vote for Obama, but here are some examples of one major one, foreign policy.

First, during Obama’s first presidential campaign in 2008, he promised that if he was elected, he would end the war in Iraq, and bring our troops home, reconnecting families. Obama kept this promise and ended the war in Iraq on December 15, 2011. He is now bringing troops home, bringing families together, bringing happiness back to children, and bringing relief to worried relatives. 

Do you remember what happened on September 11, 2001? When 3,000 innocent American lives were lost when airplanes cascaded from the sky colliding into The World Trade Center and causing it’s collapse. Do you remember the instant sense of shock, disbelief, and fear? Do you remember who the cause of this pain was? That’s right, terrorists. Obama, in just 4 years of being in office, managed to not only locate the leader of the most feared terrorist organization in the world, but he also took him out. With Osama Bin Laden dead, al-Qaeda has been catapulted back so many steps that an Olympic athlete would even hesitate traveling that far.

I could give you a bunch more facts, but I am just going to share two more things, both are quotes from the final presidential debate, 2012.

In the final debate, both candidates started off really strong, both living up to their reputations as master debaters, but after Obama made a few certain comments to Romney involving Russia and our navy, Romney got all clammed up and nervous, losing his usual finesse in debates. Here are the clever comments shared with us by Obama. Not only is he smart, but he can make us laugh.

“Governor Romney, I'm glad that you recognize that Al Qaida is a threat, because a few months ago when you were asked what's the biggest geopolitical threat facing America, you said Russia, not Al Qaida; you said Russia, in the 1980s, they're now calling to ask for their foreign policy back because, you know, the Cold War's been over for 20 years.”

Now that single quote shows you how much better Obama’s understanding is of foreign policy, and how much quicker he is able to think on his feet to prove a point.

If you enjoyed that quote, here is another by Obama after Romney says that our navy is the smallest it has been since 1916, we only have 285 ships, Romney will make sure we have enough to do missions properly. This is how Obama responded:

“But I think Governor Romney maybe hasn't spent enough time looking at how our military works. You mentioned the Navy, for example, and that we have fewer ships than we did in 1916. Well, Governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets, because the nature of our military's changed. We have these things called aircraft carriers, where planes land on them. We have these ships that go underwater, nuclear submarines.”

A vote for Obama, is a vote for reuniting families, and keeping our country safe. PrObama, 2013.

Disclaimer: This essay does not represent my political views. This is a persuasive essay for my english class, written on a candidate chosen by an online quiz asking about my views on certain topics.

War Child: A Child Soldier's Story

War Child by Emmanuel Jal  is an autobiography about Jal’s search for education and a better life in a time of war. In the 1980’s, the Islamic government of Sudan, based in Khartoum, was seizing tribal land for it’s resources, especially oil. The arab government soldiers and black muslims, murahleen, became one in Jal’s mind, jallabas. Jallabas were ruthless in their venture for wealth. They would kill everyone, men, women, and children, without hesitation or a moments remorse. They would burn down villages, some with the the village people still inside, rape women, and abduct the boys and oppress them into slavery. These actions infuriated the sudanese non-muslims. They retaliated. Tribes that had been fighting each other on and off for centuries joined together to create the Sudan People’s Liberation Army, or SPLA. The SPLA with their AK-47s fought the government soldiers with G3s and the murahleen with Mack 4s.

Jal’s father, Babba, joined the SPLA and eventually rose to the rank of Commander. During this time though, Jal’s family faced many hardships as they were forced to run from village to village doing their best to avoid the wake of destruction caused by the jallabas. Jal and his family remained intact for awhile, but it did end. After Jal’s mother was killed, him and his family were taken to a SPLA base in Luaal where they were safe. Shortly after they arrived, a soldier, sent from Babba, approached Jal and told him it was time he went to Ethiopia and got an education. Jal agreed to go, leaving his family behind, hoping to see them again. 

Little did Jal know was that the “education” in Ethiopia was him sitting in a refugee camp watching kids die every day from starvation and disease. Jal ended up joining the SPLA while at this camp and became a Jesh a Mer, child soldier. Jal’s hate for jallabas grew as he witnessed the ugliness of war. So many people died and the fighting just never ended, the SPLA even split into two separate factions causing even more death. A woman named Emma finally took Jal away from the war, to Kenya, where he could receive a proper education. 

After struggling through school after school, Jal got an education, not a complete one, but something he could work with. He formed an organization called Cassy which helped fund the education of other boys effected by the war in Sudan. Not being able to raise enough money for Cassy by himself, Jal turned to music to help fund it. After years of, “Who are you?” and, “You guys suck,” Jal made it. Today, Emmanuel Jal is one of the most popular Hip-Hop/Rap stars in Africa, and has inspired many with his Christian lyrics of freedom and forgiveness.

This book was released shortly after a documentary was made about his life, soon after the war had ended. The war in Sudan was all over the news and there weren’t many first person accounts of what happened because Sudan was so dangerous for outsiders. Jal’s novel and documentary gave people what they wanted, a view straight into the war from an interesting view, a child soldier. He wrote this book for teenagers and adults around the world to raise awareness of struggles in Africa and hopefully raise funds to help support Cassy. He wants us to who can to help those who need it in anyway possible. He is inspiring us to make a change and hopefully prevent the tragedies that happened to him from happening to others.

Throughout the novel Jal keeps us on our toes by switching between english words and the words he knew growing up. Here is an example, “Even our skin crawled with lice, and the worst were chiggers - mites that burrowed into our skin and laid their eggs” (Jal 59). White people were known as khawajas, houses were tukuls, and airplanes were nyanking. He constantly used these words over their english equivalents to give us a better connection to his culture. Jal  uses a lot of imagery through out his book, you are seeing exactly what he is seeing. I would give you an example but reminding you that it is a war book, I have decided to let you eat food later instead.

I give War Child 4.2 AK-47s

Here is my rating system:

1 AK-47: Couldn’t finish it...

2 AK-47: Finished it, with a few naps in between chapters.

3 AK-47: I read it, it was good but nothing special.

4 AK-47: A good book, I would recommend it to everyone.

5 AK-47: I could not put the book down! I couldn’t do anything until I finished this book.

One of My Favorites

One of my favorite novels is Murder on The Orient Express written by The Queen of Mystery, Agatha Christie. The plot unfolds as Hercule Poirot, a brilliant detective from Scotland Yard, boards a train called the Orient Express. On this luxurious locomotive one of the passengers was murdered in the night. Thankfully for the passengers, Mr. Poirot was onboard, who closes cases faster than a bullet train from Boston to New York.

Unfortunately for the killer, the train’s voyage was halted by a horrendous blizzard that stopped it in it’s tracks. This gave Mr. Poirot all the time he needed to solve the murder.

Poirot started by interviewing all the passengers and employees, then he followed leads from the interviews for further investigation. As Poirot dug deeper, he found the case to be highly improbable. Everyone had an alibi for the night in question confirmed by another passenger. How could this have been done? Poirot ruminated about the murder for a prolonged time, and then abruptly he had an epiphany. 

Why is the train completely full during this time of year? When almost no one is traveling.

How can such a variety of people ever come together in one place? An american assistant, british newly weds, an italian business man, a swedish maid, a russian princess, and many more.

The answer... it was all planned! In the past all of the passengers, excluding Poirot and his dear friend Mr. Bouc, who runs the train, had been involved in a murder case. The man who was murdered, Mr. Ratchett, was actually called Cassetti, a man who kidnapped and murdered a little girl named Daisy Armstrong, and got away with it. The rest of the passengers, and the wagon-lit conductor, worked for the Armstrongs or were family. They were appalled when Cassetti was declared innocent and free of all charges. They took it upon themselves to be the swift hand of justice, so they carefully planned out Cassetti’s murder.

Poirot realized all of this, revealed it to everyone, and then did something he has never done before. He let them all go because he realized through this ordeal who the “victim” truly was and the motives behind his death.

This novel is one of my favorites because it amazes me how Poirot deciphers these mysteries. He always starts with the basics, and pursues leads that others couldn’t surmise. When confronted by an extremely arduous task he remains calm, and utilizes his astonishing problem solving skills to discover the solution. I am inspired by this character to reinforce and enhance my own problem solving ability so that I can be more successful in future endeavors.

Another reason I loved this novel was because it feeds our own common biases. For example, The italian business man was the first suspect in the crime because many people accept italian stereotypes namely that they are fond of violence and unforgiving. Another bias in this book is fulfilled by the arrogant, haughty, condescending russian princess, who justifies most stereotypical behaviors of both princesses and russians.

Lastly, this book granted me with an increased understanding of the world around me. I learned that two wrongs do not make a right, but three rights make a left. To explain, when acts or people are viewed upon we all instantly form biases about them. If we take the time to inspect these acts and people more thoroughly, we can realize that maybe these acts are justified, or that these people are superior to our previous stereotypes. To summarize, “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover,” or in other words, don’t judge someone or something superficially or prematurely. 

I learned that strong writing consists of not only great ideas, but creating clear reference points and contextual visualization for the reader. It puts the reader in the moment and allows them to identify with the story. Good writing is when the reader cannot put the book down. When they need to keep reading. When they want to continue the experience.