No Book Left Behind

(Application) 11.R.2.2 Students can read fluently to comprehend grade-level text.

Follow me! :) http://jenna-nobookleftbehind.blogspot.com/

(Analysis) 11.R.4.1 Students can analyze a text within cultural, geographical, and historical context.
(Synthesis) 11.W.1.2 Students can write a document analyzing how a work of literature mirrors the themes and issues of its historical period.


Description: Hello! For my 20% Time project, I am taking on the stack of books in my room that haven't been read (even though some of them have been there for 2+ years).  The goal is to read as many as possible and I will blog about them as I please, whether it's a summary, how I feel, or just a random little side-note during the book. 

Journal 1: I'm starting out with Book Club's first tackle: The Help, by Kathryn Stockett.  I really like it so far and would recommend it to those of you that need something to read.  If you'd like to read my writing pieces for the project, click on my name and check it out.  For the first random blog about The Help, I wrote about the time period that this book takes place in: the 60s.  The 60s were a tough time for many African Americans and this book depicts that in various ways, mainly with how they were treated.  White people believed that African Americans would give them diseases just by using the same toilet!  Another factor of the 60s was how much knowledge many people didn't have about dangerous activities, such as smoking.  A character in the book had announced that she is pregnant, and pulled out a cigarette directly after telling her friends! These things that Stockett writes about really show the arrogance and lack of scientific knowledge many of these people had.

Journal 2: I finished The Help, and I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it.  It isn't my favorite book, but I am most definitely glad that I read it.  It very well depicts the life of maids living in the 60s, showing both the sides of the white women and their maids.  I would recommend this book to anyone who needs something to read, and now I just need to go see the movie!

Also throughout these weeks, I finished another book entitled Ten Things We Did (And Probably Shouldn't Have) by Sarah Mlynowski. I enjoyed this book, yet I didn't enjoy it at all.  Mlynowski kept a certain voice with her main character, April, and readers develop a certain sympathy for her as she lives with her best friend alone (without any parents) as a junior in high school.  I would still recommend this book to anyone our age, because I'm positive many girls can relate to this.  The bottom line learned is that we still need our parents - as much as we hate to admit that - and the structure we are given is indeed good for us.  To find out more details about the book, click on my link, read my posts, and follow me!



Journal 3: I am currently reading Fallen, by Lauren Kate. I'm on chapter 7 of the book, and I don't feel like there is enough to blog about regarding this book.  The story, so far, is about how a girl named Luce gets sent to Sword & Cross, a school for teenagers that have gotten into trouble.  We aren't exactly told what Luce did to get herself there, but we know that there are shadows that follow her around and make her feel uncomfortable or scared. There are also two boys that Luce is somehow drawn to and one of them she feels as if she has known before, but doesn't know how.  Bottom line is that there is a definite and obvious connection between the two, and it should be interesting to see how the story unravels itself. 

~~I'd like to continue doing our 20% Time projects, because I like having somewhat of the responsibility to write and read at the same time, rather than just doing it for English class - even though this is, in all actuality, a choice of mine.  However, if we decide not to continue 20% Time, I will still continue my blog.  Be sure to follow me and see what I've written about books I've read!

Journal 4: Lately it's been hard to keep up with all of my homework during basketball, reading, and blogging all at the same time! However, I am continuing to read and finish my homework (don't worry!), but I need to get better at blogging.  I think this probably partially is due to the fact that I am beginning to read more and much faster now! -Not mad about it. Therefore, for this blog post, I simply will put my followers up-to-date on what I am reading, and you can continue to look for new posts on my actual blog (see link above or below posts!).



I finished Water for Elephants by Sarah Gruen recently and I plan to blog about the lifestyle of the circus, discrimination of religion/language, and animal cruelty. This is a story of an old man living in a nursing home that basically is flashing back to his life when he worked with the circus. Readers discovery the drama he goes through and are put in suspense as to how it ends, because we can't tell if he is happy with the way his life turned out or not.  I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants something heartfelt, dramatic, and different at the same time! HOWEVER, read the book before you watch the movie, please :)



One book I am currently reading is for Human Body Systems, a class I am taking at CTE. It is called Surviving the Extremes: What Happens to the Body and Mind at the Limits of Human Endurance written by Kenneth Kamler, M.D. The book is immensely interesting so far, but I do not like having to take notes and answer questions about it, and saying the chapters are long is an understatement. However, it is interesting that he writes about things a body can endure in extreme environments.  Dr. Kamler decided to travel around the world and test not only his survival limits, but his doctoring abilities in the wild.  He visits a wide variety of immensely different habitats and also talks to others that have endured such adventures as well. Read it!



For English, I happen to be tackling The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.  I love reading this classic books, and I find it refreshing that Twain used a "different" language in the book, simply because he wrote how people actually spoke. It challenges myself to be a better reader and make sure I'm paying attention while I'm reading.  So while I read, I am focusing on the trait of love! Huck learns many things about love throughout his young life, and I will be analyzing the differences between what he learns of love on land and while he's on the river with Jim.



Ahh, this book isn't on my shelf either, but I am reading it anyway! Book Club's next book is The Memory Keeper's Daughter written by Kim Edwards.  Although I haven't started it yet, I plan to as soon as I can get organized with my classes, this blog, and everything else going on right now! I'm S-U-P-E-R-E-X-C-I-T-E-D super excited...to start this book (sometimes I just have to let the cheerleader out, sorry)! Four books at a time? Get ready to be dominated!

Follow me! :) http://jenna-nobookleftbehind.blogspot.com/