Leah+Kinworthy

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Novel Assignments:

Please post your book assignments below. It will be easiest to compose them in a word processor and then copy and paste them into your wikispace.


Name: Leah Kinworthy

1. Book Title (1pt): What Happened to Goodbye

2. Genre: Contemporary Realistic Fiction

3. Author (1pt.): Sarah Dessen

4. Date of Publication (1pt.): 2011

5. Give a brief summary of the book. Do NOT give the ending away. (3 pts.)

An 18 year old girl, named Mclean has divorced parents. She lives with her dad whose job moves them to a new town and a new school every few months. At each school Mclean faces challenges of adapting to a new life and trying out a new persona. The book takes place in the town of Lakeview, South Carolina. This is the first time since her parents’ divorce that Mclean decides to use her real name and be herself. Mclean finds a friend in her neighbor Dave. This new relationship with Dave helps Mclean decide that she wants to once again put down some roots and learn to be herself, Mclean Sweet.

6. What did you like about the book? What did you dislike? (3 pts.)

My favorite thing about this book was Sarah Dessens writing style. I really liked the “emotional roller-coaster” of Mclean Sweets life. She did a really good job of not only making her seem like a real teenager, but also captured what she must be feeling and going through with having divorced parents.

I also really liked Deb, the quirky sidekick. She kept the book really interesting!

There isn’t really much that I disliked about this book. I thought it was an interesting read that held my attention. The only thing that I somewhat disliked was the predictability of Opal. I knew from the moment that she was introduced that there would be a connection made to Mclean’s father. I wished that it wouldn’t have been so obvious from the very beginning that Opal would be Mclean’s father’s new love interest.

7. Write three essential (higher level thinking) questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book. (6 pts)

1. How do you feel about Mclean’s relationship (or lack thereof) with her mother? Do you feel that she has a right to be upset or angry with her, or should the anger go towards both of her parents? Do you feel that Mclean's relationship with her mother evolves throughout the book? How so? You will need to provide 3 specific examples from the book to support your answer.

2. Who is Mclean's "two a.m."? Do you have a "two a.m."? Why is it important for you to have a "two a.m." in your life? Are there any similarities between the person who is your "two a.m." and Mclean's "two a.m."? What makes a person a good "two a.m.?" Provide a minimum of 4 examples from the book comparing and contrasting your "two a.m." to Mcleans "two a.m."

3. Do you feel that the title of the book accurately describes the relationships that Mclean has throughout the book? Why?

Comprehension Activity:

Create a “FakeBook: (not Facebook) page for the main character or one of the main characters from your Contemporary Realistic Fiction Book. Use the instructions provided in a separate attachment to help you. When you’ve finished your work online, copy and paste the URL for your Fakebook page below (15 points).

I created a FakeBook page for Mclean Sweet, the main character in the book "What Happened to Goodbye". Please click on the link below to see my FakeBook page.

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Name: Leah Kinworthy

1. Book Title: (1 pt.) Just Listen

2. Genre: (Adventure-Survival or Mystery) (1 pt) Contemporary Realistic Fiction*


 * This week I read Sarah Dessen’s book, “Just Listen.” Sarah Dessen only writes contemporary realistic fiction, so since I’m most familiar with reading mystery books I decided to replace the mystery section with another of her books, so I could fulfill my requirement of reading two books by our chosen author.**

3. Author: (1 pt.) Sarah Dessen

4. Date of Publication: (1 pt) 2006

5. What did you like about the book? What did you dislike? (5 pts.)

I liked the element of surprise in the book. I had a good suspicion as to what happened to Annabel that caused her and Sophie to stop being friends, but this book had a small amount of suspense in it that made it a good read. I also thought that the character Owen was really well written. The life of a high school boy having to deal with a broken home and anger issues made this book not so “girly” and more relatable to teenage boys as well.

Honestly, there wasn’t anything that I disliked. I thought it was a really good book for young adults. It brings up several issues that teenage kids are faced with such as divorce, depression, making and losing friends, anorexia, and of course what happens to Annabel. It’s a great read!

6. Write three essential (higher level thinking) questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book. (6 pts)

1. Why do you think that Annabel remains silent about what happened to her the night she and Sophie stopped being friends? Would you react the same way if you were in Annabel's shoes? Why or why not?

2. Throughout the book Annabel has to deal with a rocky home life. Her sister Whitney gets diagnosed with an eating disorder. Discuss how Whitney’s eating disorder affects Annabel’s life and her own self-esteem. Provide quotes or examples from the book to back up your statements.

3. Annabel’s grandmother dies in the story, as a result of this, Annabel's mother becomes depressed. How does this affect how Annabel deals with her own emotions? Provide 3 specific examples from the book.

Comprehension Activity: (15 pts).

Choose five artifacts that you believe represent the main character of your novel (or one of the main characters in your novel) and provide an explanation for choosing each. Avoid making all obvious choices, but instead, get creative and think outside the box! So based on the story, what objects would you choose that would tell us something about your character and what she has been through, etc.

Artifact #1 – Pink Sequined Shirt



I chose this because... Annabel was wearing her pink sequined shirt the night “the incident” happened. When her mom asks her to wear it again for a photo shoot, it takes her right back to that night and she just can’t ever wear that shirt again. That shirt symbolizes what happened to her.

Artifact #2 – Lunch bag

I chose this because... Owen and Annabel become friends during their lunch break at school. Annabel ends up sharing her lunch with Owen every day and they become friends. Owen is an outcast that nobody likes and now Annabel is also a loner. She brings her lunch to school and now looks forward to her lunch time and having a friend.

Artifact #3 – Stack of 10 cd’s



I chose this because... Owen is a die-hard music lover. He hates silence and loves to listen to all types of music. “As long as I had something to listen to, I could blur the things I didn’t want to think about, if not block them out completely.” Page 310 Owen takes it upon himself to educate Annabel in different music styles and burns 10 cd’s for her to listen to. The last cd that he makes for her is entitled, "Just Listen."

Artifact #4 – Tissue packet



I chose this because... Annabel always sees Clarke with a packet of tissues. Clarke (Annabel’s former best friend) has allergy problems and has a nasal sounding voice and constantly sneezes, so she is always carrying around a packet of tissues. Later in high school she either grows out of this or gets her allergies under control, but I thought that packet of tissues could symbolize the friendship they had for so many years.

Artifact #5 – Girls Family Portrait



I chose this because... each time Annabel enters their house, the giant portrait on the wall in the foyer, catches her eye. At the beginning of the book, she sees how her and her two sisters are gathered around her mom in the portrait, almost protecting and shielding her. By the end of the book Annabel’s perception of the portrait has changed and she realizes, “that was just one day, one shot. In the time since, we have arranged and rearranged ourselves so many times.” Page 353
 * Whitney needed shelter and protection during her struggle with anorexia
 * Kirsten needed help and support during her decision to quit modeling and go to college.
 * Annabel needed support during the aftermath of “the incident.”



Name_ Leah Kinworthy _

 1. Book Title (1 pt.): Bruiser

2. Genre: Fantasy

3. Author (1 pt.): Neal Shusterman

4. Date of Publication (1 pt.): 2010

5. Write a brief summary of the book you read without giving away the ending! (3 pts.) Tennyson is upset and embarrassed when his twin sister Bronte starts to date Brewster Rawlins (aka, Bruiser), he was voted “most likely to receive the death penalty”. What Bronte doesn’t know is that there is a reason that Bruiser is a loner. Bronte likes to help those in need (stray dogs or people). Bruiser has to avoid caring for anyone because things start happening to himself and to those he cares about. It’s the reason that his mother left when he was young, why his uncle is abusive and drinks, and why is little brother is a dare devil with no concerns for the consequences of his actions. But Bronte won’t give up and him and soon Bronte, Tennyson and Bruiser start paying the consequences.

6. What did you like about the book? What did you dislike? (3 pts.) I liked that the book was told mostly from the viewpoint of Bronte and Tennyson, generally alternating back and forth. The reader gets to experience Bruiser’s life from different points of views. Bruiser's brother Cody is also the narrator every once in awhile. I didn’t like the occasional times how the book was written when Bruiser was the “narrator”. The book was told from in an almost poetic format. I know that Bruiser loves to read poetry, so I get why Neal Shusterman told his story in that form, but I just didn’t enjoy reading it that way, it just seemed to take away from the flow of the book.

7. Write three essential (higher level thinking) questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book. (6 pts)

1. Analyze how Bruiser’s life changes from the beginning to the end of the book (his home life, his school life, his friends or lack thereof, etc)? Provide 3-5 examples from the book to support your answer.

2. Compare and contrast Tennyson and his twin sister Bronte. How are they similar and different? How do you feel about why they want a relationship with Bruiser? What would you do in their situation? Why?

3. If you were a character in the book, who would you most identify with? Why? Provide supporting evidence from the book to back up your decision.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Comprehension Activity:

<span style="color: #020101; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Write a newspaper article about someone or something that happened in the story. NOTE: this is NOT a book report! Review a few newspaper articles to get the "feel" of the format. What would the headline say? Was anyone interviewed for the story? Who are the sources of information? Are there quotes from characters? Be creative! (15 pts).

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“Conundrum”

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Leah’s Mailbox:

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dear Leah, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I’m so confused and undecided on what I should do. My life is so crazy right now, my parents marriage is falling apart and my twin sister started dating the guy in our high school voted “most likely to get the death penalty.” <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“He looks like a vagrant in training. I hate him. I hate the concept of him. He’s a freight train of bad news barreling at my sister.” <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After awhile (and after a bonding experience involving a bull) I’ve come to realize that “I’m angry at myself for having bullied him in the first place.” I feel bad that I misjudged him and his intentions. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I’ve come to care about Bruiser and my relationship with him. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“Bronte finds it amazing that I can just accept Brewster’s ability without question…Truth is, I don’t have room in my skull to spend endless hours obsessing over what Brewster can do. I have enough to deal with, between school, lacrosse, and the fact that Dad sleeps on a foldout and Mom’s having lunch with the Missing Link. What’s worse is that Mom and Dad won’t talk about what’s going on. In my book that’s far more surreal than anything Brew can do.” <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Does it make me a horrible person that I want to enjoy the benefits of my relationship with Brew without worrying about the consequences? I like the fact that my lacrosse skills improve with Bruiser around, and that my home life can improve if he lives with us. Can’t I just leave things alone and not worrying about anyone else? Does this make me a bad person for just wanting a life without controversy? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Sincerely, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Perplexed Teen

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dear Perplexed, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“Its strange how we always want other people to feel what we feel. It must be a basic human drive. Misery loves company, right? Or when you see a movie that you love, don’t you want to drag all your friends to see it as well? Because it’s only good the second time if it’s the first time for somebody else – as if their experience somehow resonates inside of you. The power of shared experiences. Maybe it’s a way to remind ourselves that on some level we’re all connected.” <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Your problems will be there whether you choose to face them now or in the future, denial is not something that will help you solve your problems. “What you don’t know can’t hurt you. Let sleeping dogs lie. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.” All these things just help you put off the inevitable. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“If your heart tells you something but your mind tells you something else, which do you believe? Both are just as apt to lie. In fact, they play at deceit all the time. Mostly they balance each other, giving us that crucial reality check. But what happens on the rare occasions when they conspire together?” <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“But we all have a fail-safe, don’t we? When our heart and mind fail us, we have our gut.” <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“You think you want to know the secrets of the universe. You think you want to see the way things all fit together. You believe in your heart of hearts that enlightenment will save the world and set you free. Maybe it will. But the path to enlightenment is rarely a pleasant one.” <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Sometimes life is hard and you have to make choices and decisions that aren’t easy. Being a teen is difficult, but you still have a responsibility to those around you. You can’t just think about yourself no matter who you are. If you care about someone, truly care about them, then you need to think about them and their feelings, not just your own.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Good luck! <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Leah



Name_Leah Kinworthy

1. Book Title (1 pt.): Matched

2. Genre: Science Fiction

3. Author (1 pt.): Ally Condie

4. Date of Publication (1 pt.): 2010

5. Write a brief summary of the book you read without giving away the ending! (3 pts.)

Cassia believes in the Society. The Society tells her what to eat, what to wear, what job she will do and who she will marry. The book starts off with Cassia attending her “Matching” ceremony, where she will find out who the Society has matched her with (or who she will marry). Her match turns out to be her good friend Xander (it’s very rare to be matched with someone you know). She is given a data card to be able to read more information about her match, but when she puts it in the data port someone else’s face appears instead of Xanders. This boy is also someone else she knows, a boy named Ky. Now Cassia is confused and doesn’t know what to do. An official from the Society tracks her down and tells her to ignore the glitch in the system and that she should go on planning a life with Xander. At first Cassia is relieved, then she starts wondering…what if?? Cassia’s grandfather passes away in the story and before he dies he secretly gives her a piece of paper that has a Dylan Thomas poem on it. Part of the poem says “Do not go gentle into that good night…Rage, rage against the dying of the light.” Cassia feels like her Grandfather is speaking to her and telling her that maybe, just maybe she should rebel against the Society and start making her own choices. Does she have the courage to do it though…?

6. What did you like about the book? What did you dislike? (3 pts.)

- I thought the book was really good. It was a fast read that kept me reading and wanting to find out what happens next. The dystopian world that Ally Condie created was really well written, I could visualize the hill that Ky and Cassia have to climb for their class, the air trains that they ride, the plain brown uniforms they wear, etc. She wrote the book and gave so many descriptions it was easy for me to picture the world that Cassia lives in.

- I realize that this book is written for Young Adults, but I kind of thought there would be more to the “love triangle” between Cassia, Xander and Ky. Cassia kept stating over and over how Xander is her best friend and how she loves him, but she doesn’t really ever show that, I think they hold hands and share a quick kiss in one part of the book. It’s hard to really “pull” for Xander to win Cassia when it seems like she is really drawn to Ky and is in love with him. I just would have preferred if Condie would have written a little more to the back story of Cassia and Xander actually having a “romance” before delving into the Cassia and Ky relationship. I think it would have made Cassia’s indecision and the love triangle a little more believable.

7. Write three essential (higher level thinking) questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book. (6 pts)

1. What makes the book Matched a “dystopian” society? Provide 3-5 specific examples from the book to support your answer.

2. In the book Cassia is given the job of a “sorter”. If you were given a job in the Society what would it be? Why would you be given this job?

3. Cassia’s Grandfather gives her a copy of the poem “Do Not Go Gentle Into that Good Night” by Dylan Thomas. How do you think her understanding of the poem changes throughout the story? Provide examples or quotes from the book to support your answer.

No comprehension assignment this week. You deserve a little bit of a break J



__Name___Leah Kinworthy_

1. Book Title (1 pt.): Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

2. Genre: Historical Fiction

3. Author (1 pt.): Jamie Ford

4. Date of Publication (1 pt.): 2009

5. Write a brief summary of the book you read without giving away the ending! (4 pts.)

Henry Lee is a Chinese-American. This book flips between current time, the 1980’s, and Henry’s life growing up in Seattle during the 1940’s, WWII. At the beginning of the book we find out that Henry has just lost his wife, Ethel, to cancer. He is kind of unsure what to do with the rest of his life because he is retired and spent so much time of the past few years taking care of his wife. He then hears that people restoring the Panama Hotel have uncovered tons of Japanese Americans belongings that they stored there while they were taken to internment camps during the war. Throughout the story Henry flashes back to his life during the war with his friend Keiko Okabe, a Japanese American, and back to his current life where he is desperate to find Keiko’s possessions in the basement of the Panama Hotel.

Throughout the story we find out much about what life was like for non-white people during WWII in Seattle. Henry and Keiko, fall in love but have to hide the relationship because of Henry’s father who is anti-Japanese. They become separated when Keiko’s family is moved to an internment camp. Henry finds a way to visit her and they promise to always stay in touch through letters and wait for each other, no matter how long it takes. As the years go by and letters get fewer and fewer, Henry starts to question what his future will hold.

6. What did you like about the book? What did you dislike? (4 pts).

- I thought the author wrote a really descriptive novel. It was easy to picture the setting of what Seattle must have looked like and sounded like, with all the jazz music, during the time of WWII. I’ve never read a book from this point of view before and I thought Jamie Ford did a really good job of portraying the lives of Chinese-Americans and Japanese-Americans during the war time.

- I didn’t really liked how the author wrote the book using “flashbacks” to Henry’s life during the war. There were correlations between the two stories, such as, how he was raised by a very non-communicative father and Henry’s own relationship with his son but overall I thought the flashbacks made the story somewhat disjointed. I would have really preferred to have just read the story from Henry’s point of view as a 12 year old boy and continued with his story up to adulthood.

7. Write three essential (higher level thinking) questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book. (6 pts)

1. Compare and contrast Marty’s relationship with Samantha and Henry’s relationship with Keiko. Provide 5-6 examples from the book to support your answer.

2. Henry’s father knew that Keiko was the love of Henry’s life, yet he interfered anyways because Keiko was Japanese. At the end of the book we find out the extent of Henry’s father’s betrayal. What was this betrayal? Do you think that Henry should forgive his father? Why or why not? If you were Henry what would you do in his shoes?

3. Henry’s mother was raised to be subservient to her husband. Throughout the book Henry’s mother sides with her husband. Do you think or feel that Henry’s mother could have done more to help Henry with the strained relationship he had with his father? How so? Who do you think Henry’s mother should be loyal to? Why?

Comprehension Activity: Choose Your Own Activity – Choose one of the four project ideas below (15 points).

2. Go to Shutterfly ([|http://shutterfly.com]) and create a photo album that represents the events in the story. Pictures you use will most likely need to be saved in a .jpg form – most pictures from the Internet are, but if you’re having trouble uploading a picture, you might want to check the format of the picture you’re trying to upload. You could also do this using Power Point if you don’t want to hassle with the technology. Your album should be at least 6 pages as a minimum. Text must accompany the pictures on each page. If you create your album using Shutterfly, make sure to “Share” it with me. If you do it using Power Point, you can attach your project to the wiki.


 * I chose to do the Shutterfly project and will email the completed project to you.**



Name: Leah Kinworthy

1. Book Title: (1 pt.) Just Listen

2. Genre: (1 pt) Contemporary Realistic Fiction

3. Author: (1 pt.) Sarah Dessen

4. Date of Publication: (1 pt) 2006


 * I went to record my book talk and realized after trying to record it that the speakers on my computer are no longer working!! :( I timed myself doing the book talk and it was 3 min 46 seconds. Sorry, I won't be able to upload it to YouTube.**


 * Book Talk Script:**

Book Talk – “Just Listen” by Sarah Dessen


 * Introduction:**


 * PROP**: CD player playing music softly in the background for the entire book talk

Secrets…Don’t you just love secrets. When someone tells you a secret and then immediately says, “Don’t tell anyone!” Doesn’t that just make you squirm??? No matter who you are, you have a secret that you haven’t told anybody. Everybody has secrets and Annabel Greene in the book **“Just Listen” by Sarah Dessen (SHOW THE BOOK)** has a secret! A secret that she has never told anyone…it’s a secret that she is afraid of and ashamed of....


 * Middle:**

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Here’s a little bit about the book:

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Last year, Annabel was "the girl who has everything"—at least that’s the part she played in the television commercial for Kopf ’s Department Store. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">But all that changed on the night that she and her best friend Sophie stopped being friends!

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">This year, she’s the girl who has nothing: <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">No best friend because mean-but-exciting Sophie dropped her, no peace at home since her older sister became anorexic, and no one to sit with at lunch, that is until she meets Owen Armstrong. Tall, dark, and music-obsessed, Owen is a reformed bad boy with a commitment to truth-telling. (Barnes and Noble Book Summary)

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">When life gets tough, Owen turns to music for comfort and a chance for solitude. He burns 10 cd’s for Annabel to listen to and to broaden her taste in music.


 * (Page 310-311 - show book while reading)** “As long as I had something to listen to, I could blur the things I didn’t want to think about, if not block them out completely. It took a lot of music to do this, though, and after a few weeks, I’d burned through my entire collection multiple times. Which was why, on a recent Saturday night, I’d broken down and pulled out the stack that Owen had burned me…For the past few weeks I’d been working my way through the discs, song by song, listening to every single track until I knew them all by heart. Each time I finished with one, I felt sad, knowing there were only that many more left before this, too, was over. Because of this, I was planning to save the one that said JUST LISTEN…Still I pulled it out every once in a while, just turning it in my hands before sliding it back to the bottom of the stack and leaving it there.”

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Throughout the year, Annabel faces many struggles with her relationships at school and at home.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Annabel suddenly realizes she is ready to hear what is on the cd that Owen made her and titled, JUST LISTEN. With Owen’s help, maybe Annabel can face what happened the night she and Sophie stopped being friends.


 * (Page 338-339 - show book while reading)** “My heart was pounding. Something was happening I didn’t, or couldn’t, understand. I sat up, kicking off the covers; I needed something to calm me down, or just even take way these thoughts, if only for a little while. Reaching over to my bedside drawer, I grabbed my headphones and plugged them into my CD player, then went to my desk. In the bottom drawer, after digging through all the CDs Owen had made me, I finally found it: the yellow disc that said JUST LISTEN. When I hit the PLAY button, all I could hear was….” **(dramatic pause)**


 * End: **

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">In this impossible-to-put-down book, **"Just Listen" by Sarah Dessen** **(SHOW THE BOOK AGAIN)** tells the story of a year in the life of a family coming to terms with the imperfections beneath its perfect facade. Pick up the book and find out why Annabel keeps hearing the words, “Shhh, Annabel. It’s just me.” over and over in her head, what happens to Annabel on the night that she and Sophie stopped being friends **AND** what is on the CD that Owen made for Annabel and titled JUST LISTEN!!! I hope you all enjoy the book as much as I did!!!!!!



Name__Leah Kinworthy___

1. Book Title (1 pt.): Chelsey

2. Genre: (1pt): Autobiography

3. Author (1 pt.): Chelsey Shannon

4. Date of Publication (1 pt.): 2009

5. Write a brief summary of the book you read without giving away the ending! (4 pts.)

In the first few pages of this book you find out that Chelsey’s life she has gone from one tragedy to the next. Her mother dies from cancer and then her Dad is killed while on a business trip. Fourteen year old, Chelsey, has to put her life back together while dealing with moving, going to a new school and adjusting to life as an orphan.

6. What did you like about the book? What did you dislike? (4 pts).

-I liked the “diary” entries in the book. I think this made the book and her life seem “real”. You could really get a sense of her life and the struggles that she went through by reading those parts of the book. I also liked that the book ends on a high note in Chelsey’s life, since it begins in such a dark place in her life.

-When the book first started and you find out so much information right away, I was kind of taken aback. I kept thinking to myself, are you just going to tell your whole story in one chapter??? But as the book went on I think the story got better, Chelsey’s writing got better and in the end, I did enjoy reading the book. I think I would just add a little more backstory to the beginning. I think I would like an introduction to the book, and then start with chapter 1.

7. Write three essential (higher level thinking) questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book. This week, I want you to write questions strictly //for discussion// here – not project ideas (you’ll see why below). (6 pts)

1. Throughout the book, Chelsey develops a sort of “relationship” with the ocean. What do you think the ocean symbolizes for her and why?

2. On page 39 of the book, Chelsey reads a letter to her father at the funeral. Do you think that reading this letter was a step in the healing process? How do you think this affected Chelsey’s self-image?

3. Chelsey chose not to live in California but instead to come back to Ohio and go the School for Creative and Performing Arts. How do you think this decision changed her life? Provide at least 3 ways to back up your statement.

Comprehension Activity: Create your own project that you could assign for the book you read. Your project should be appropriate for middle or high school students. Make sure that you give specific instructions and provide whatever they might need in terms of graphic organizers, etc. Give me an idea of what you would expect from kids. You can do this by providing an example or writing a paragraph that describes what you would be looking for. I do not intend for you to spend a ton of time creating an example. If it is simple to do, provide one. If not, do the explanation.

Throughout the book Chelsey includes many poems. Pick one poem that you relate to the most. Pick out one piece of large sized colored construction paper or poster paper, recopy the poem onto the paper. Then you will need to go through several magazines and cut out descriptive words that you think relate to the poem, whether that is the tone of the poem, the feeling of the poem, or even words that describe how you think Chelsey felt while writing the poem. You will need a minimum of 12 words cut from magazines. (If you can’t find the actual word you are looking for you can cut out letters and spell the word yourself.) Please, do not just take words verbatim, from the actual poem. You will need to think of other words, not just copying and pasting words from the poem itself. If you would like, you can also include pictures that you feel relate to the poem.

You will then present your “poster” to the class. You will first read the poem that you selected and then you will need to explain why you chose the magazine words and how they relate to the poem.

Here is an example:

Page 51: “Flying”

When I was younger I was never afraid to fly. With Dad sitting beside me, I was confident that we would arrive safely- In fact, no other possibility ever crossed my mind and if we hit a patch of turbulence, I’d cling to his arm for a moment and I would be safe and it would be over and we would be fine.

Now, I act brave, like flying doesn’t bother me, when in truth, it does a bit. Gazing out the window so far from the security of ground and of him I feel unstable, baseless and when we hit a patch of turbulence, I have no arm to cling to, just false bravado and broke reassurances.

Here are some of the words that I might choose: (I would then explain to the class, why I chose those words).


 * Groundless
 * Cleave
 * Sorrow
 * Refuge
 * Sanctuary
 * Turmoil
 * Safety-net
 * Father
 * Change
 * Leap of faith
 * Premonition
 * Fear
 * dread



Name___Leah Kinworthy__


 * 1. Book Title (1 pt.):** This Family is Driving Me Crazy


 * 2. Genre (1pt):** Short Stories


 * 3. Author (1 pt.):** (edited by) M. Jerry Weiss and Helen S. Weiss


 * 4. Date of Publication (1 pt.):** 2009


 * 5. Write a brief summary of the book you read without giving away the ending! If you are writing about a collection of stories or poems, you need to talk specifically about 2-3 of the selections in the book. (4 pts.)**

This book include's ten stories about how the different author's families drive them crazy. There are stories about a boy's family who are dare devils, a father who is a preacher at a mall, a sister who makes her brother dress up in mauve Victorian era clothing for her wedding, and a grandpa who is wanted by the law in at least 3 different states. One of the short stories I really enjoyed was “Wimp of Sparta”. I thought this short story was really well written. It grabbed my attention from the first sentence and included exciting exploits about shark attacks, air planes crashing, and hospital visits. I thought this was a great first story in the book. The other short story that I really enjoyed was “The Most Mauve There Is”. This short story was about a boy whose sister has always wanted a real Victorian wedding complete with ensembles. The young boy is supposed to wear a mauve colored outfit and he is not pleased about that prospect and what his friends will think of him. He ends up bonding with his soon to be brother in law during the wedding planning process. This is just a really cute short story and an enjoyable read!


 * 6. What did you like about the book? What did you dislike? (4 pts.)**

There is only one section out of the ten that I didn't really enjoy. This section was entitled "American Teen" and it was about how many teens across the country are dealing with the same issues and not getting along with their families. I thought the first few pages were really good and then the short stories (almost seemed like poems) got really redundant. But other than this one section the other nine short stories were really enjoyable!

This book obviously all had the theme of family issues, but I liked how each of the other 9 short stories (other than the “American Teen” section) all seemed greatly different from each other. I was a little apprehensive going into this book, thinking that it could be a long, slow read but was happily surprised at how quickly I finished the book. I have never a whole book of short stories before and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I actually enjoyed it and the variety of stories the book held!


 * 7. Write three essential (higher level thinking) questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book. This week, I want you to write questions strictly //for discussion// here – not project ideas(you’ll see why below). (6 pts)**

1. Marlene Douglas (Marli) is the main character in the short story “Another Chance”. How does Marli’s feelings change towards her father from the beginning to end of the story? How would you feel if you were Marli? Would your feelings stay the same or change? Why?

2. In the “American Teen” section what one short story/poem do you most relate to? How so / Why?

3. Compare and contrast Gracie from “Listen” to Marli from “Another Chance”. How are they similar and different? Use at least 3 examples from your text to support your answer.


 * 8. How can you see this book being used in the curriculum? For what grade level would it be most appropriate? Give a specific example of how you as a teacher might use the book as part of the taught curriculum. What specifically would you use it to teach and what would you have students do with it? (7 pts.)**

I would use this book for a 9-12 grade English Lit. class. Obviously, this book would be used for a short story unit. I think I would use this book to show the students that they can choose one theme for a book of short stories and read several stories about that theme. To show them this I would have them do a project. I would have each student choose one character from the book (Peter from Tunnel Vision, Avery from The Most Mauve There Is, Peter from Wimp of Sparta, etc) and have them write a brief description of that character (what are some of the characters attributes, what makes them “real”, etc). Then I would have them compare and contrast that character with themselves (how are they similar, different, what would you do in their situation, etc). Then as a culminating activity I would have them use a piece of poster board and make two columns, one column using key words describing the character and the other column using words describing themselves. Each student would present their poster to the class, give a description of the story they read and then show their poster. I think this project would help the students relate to the people they are reading about in the short story and show that most of the characters in the book have similar stories.