Journal Entry: Scouts Perspective (Chapter 2)

Today was Jem and I's first day at school. I was so happy that Jem showed me where my class was. I was offended when Jem told me I couldn't talk to him until after school. I understood I was to leave him alone which made me sad.

When I entered the class I was pleased to meet my teacher Miss Caroline. I would be surprised to hear if she liked me though. She started to become very mean and cruel. She hit me with a ruler made me stand in the corner. She was having fun picking on me. Miss Caroline even accused me of lying about knowing how to read. She should get more information. She even told me to tell Atticus to stop showing me how to write. I could not wait to tell Atticus and Jem. Hopefully tomorrow will go better than today. I can't believe that she treats people this way!

Bud Not Buddy

Bud, Not Buddy Book Review
Written by Christopher Paul Curtis
Reviewed by Isabella Martin

The book I read, Bud, Not Buddy, written by Christopher Paul Curtis, was surprisingly great. It was very sad and emotional, but hilarious at the same time. The book is set in the time of the Depression (around the 1930s) in the United States. Most people during the Depression were unemployed, and the people who were employed did not have much. Most people who were employed were white. The main character, Bud, is a poor African-American orphaned boy who recently lost his mother. He is forced to live in a horrible orphanage, then sent to a foster home, which proves to be even worse.
Poor Bud lives in the town of Flint, in Michigan. He has never met his dad, so he is determined to use the only clue he has--a flyer advertising a jazz band performance--to find his father. He takes a journey to another city to find him, and faces many obstacles and hardships along the way.
My favorite part of this book is the way the author (Christopher Paul Curtis) writes about the Depression. He makes me feel like I am living in Flint, Michigan during the 1930’s. He really brings this story alive, and illustrates what happened during the Depression. The Depression forced the people in America to change their lifestyles in a big way, and Curtis paints a good picture of this change. He describes the poverty that people lived in in detail. He also describes specific aspects of people’s daily lives, like the freight train-hopping (which people did to get to different places for free), and the long lines in the city that families waited in to get free (spoiled) food, because they could not afford to buy food.
Throughout the book, Buddy faces many obstacles, such as being taken in as a foster child by the Amos family, an evil family that blames him for everything. He eventually escapes the Amos family and begins the adventure of finding his father.
The main thing I didn’t like about the book is that I was confused by certain parts. I was confused about how Buddy knew that the flyer he found at his mother’s house was a clue to finding his father. Also, at the beginning of the book, it seemed boring and slow, but eventually it got better and more interesting. Once I got into the book, it was hard to put this book down. I give this book a four-star review, because it was very descriptive and interesting.

Bud Not Buddy

Name____Isabella___Date_____2/11/2011____
Title__Bud, Not Buddy______ Time_3___Hours
Author__Christopher Paul Curtis___Pages_37-243___
Total Pages This Week _89____Start Finish

What in the book upsets you or bothers you? Why?

The way that Bud (the main character in the book Bud, not Buddy) talks really bothers me. The book is written in first person, and Bud is the narrator. Some of the language and spelling he uses is confusing. For example, toward the end of the book Buddy says (as he narrates): “Man! Ever since he heard me call my momma’s name Herman E. Calloway had locked hisself up in his room and wouldn’t come out.” (p. 214).


What has surprised you in the book? Why?

It surprised me when Bud found out that Herman E. Calloway was his father, not his grandfather. Bud thought that he was his father from the beginning, and he went on a journey to find him. He found him by following clues given by his mother. One of these clues was a flier advertising Herman E. Calloway’s band, the Dusky Devastators of the Depression. Once he found him, Herman told him that he was actually Bud’s grandfather. Bud was shocked, and never found out who his father actually was.


If you could change one thing in the book, what would it be? Why would you change it?

The one thing I would have changed about the book Bud, Not Buddy is I would not have written the part about Bud living with the Amos family, because it was so sad. Bud was only 10 years old when he went to live with the Amos family, and he did not deserve to be mistreated. They made him live in a shed, and they didn’t let him come inside the house. Their son punched him all the time, and the Amos parents did not believe Bud when he told them what was happening.

BUd Not Buddy

Name____Isabella___Date_____2/11/2011____
Title__Bud Not Buddy______ Time_3___Hours
Author__Christopher Paul Curtis___Pages_37-126___
Total Pages This Week _89____Start Finish

1.What advice would you give to a character?
I would tell the main Character of the Book Bud Not Buddy (Bud) to stay cautious but positive at the same time.I am getting the feeling that Bud’s plan may not work out for him but something positive will come out of it.I hope Bud does find his father and will have a place to live that’s not like the Amos family or an orphanage. I hope Bud will find a family of his own and hopefully that will be his father.

2.How does the author create suspense in the book?
Christopher Paul Curtis (the author of the book Bud Not Buddy) uses Bud’s emotions to create suspense in the book. Earlier in the book the author made Bud have feelings of wanting to kill the Amos family he even grabbed a rifle which most definitely created suspense. Things like that make you want to read more you start to feel sorry for Bud almost like he’s an actually person.

3.Would you read another book by this author?
I would most definitely read another book by the author ( Christopher Paul Curtis). Bud Not Buddy is the only book I’ve ever read by this author and I really enjoy it! Bud Not Buddy (the book I am reading) is filled with suspense it’s very creative and it keeps you on the edge of your chair. The book Bud not buddy changes in all different directions. I hope I have an opportunity to read another book by this author!

Post

Long posts are not working for me so I may write one tonight or write on here it depends!!!

Bud Not Buddy

I have started a new book it's called Bud Not buddy.

Do you relate to the main character?
I am total opposites of the main character (Bud) the only way I see us being alike is that Bud is very determined. I am a very determined person. Bud is determined to find his father. He will do anything.

What are you confused about?
I am little confused about the flyer Buddy found. I wonder how Buddy knows that the flyer relates to finding his father. The flyer shows a Jazz band. Buddy keeps the flyer in his suitcase full of special things.

Which character would you like to be like? In what way? Why?
I would not like to be any of the characters. Bud ( The main Character) is an orphan and all of the other characters are struggling because the book takes place in the great depression. The great depression was hard for everyone rich or poor.

How did what you read today make you feel? Why?
I feel really bad for buddy. His mom died four years ago. He just wants to find his father but the only clue he has is a flyer. The band is in Grand Rapids. The only way to get there is to walk from Flint to Grand Rapids Michigan.

Book Review

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime
Reviewed by: Isabella Martin


The book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon is well-written and inspiring. It is written in the first-person perspective of a fifteen-year-old autistic boy named Christopher. He is the main character and the protagonist in the book, and is extremely smart.
There are many characters in this book, but the two major characters are Christopher and his dad, Ed. Ed loves Christopher very much, and he shows his love for his son in different ways. One way he shows his love for Christopher is by trying to understand him. Ed is a shy man, and seems to be hiding something from Christopher throughout most of the book.
The storyline is all about Christopher trying to find out who killed Wellington, their neighbor’s (Mrs. Shears’) poodle. When Christopher finds Wellington dead on Mrs. Shears’ lawn, he knows he must do something about it--he must find out who did this. When the police arrived at Mrs. Shears’ house, one of them touches Christopher. He responds by hitting the policeman, and this leads to Christopher’s arrest. Ed later comes and gets Christopher out of jail. As soon as Christoper gets home, he starts to investigate Wellington’s murder. During the investigation, he creates a murder mystery novel where he records everything that he does, sees, and hears. As he investigates, Christopher finds things that were never supposed to be found--things that did not even have to do with his investigation.
In The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime we see Christopher and his father’s relationship tested, broken apart, and put together again slowly. I think this illustrates the theme of forgiving and forgetting. When Christopher finds out what has been going on with his father, he has to forgive and forget eventually.
This book’s writing style is descriptive and emotional, and it is poetic. I love the math that is included throughout the book, because it shows what Christopher is thinking. It is a story of love and bravery, and is moving, and I recommend it for ages eleven and up. I would read this book again because it’s a great story to read with others or by yourself. It’s flawless, and has you on the edge of your chair the whole way through.
The best part of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime is that Christopher knows who he is, and is proud of himself and who he is despite every problem he has. He constantly rises above difficult times, and it is inspiring. Christopher is an extraordinary boy, and the fact that he has Autism does not overpower him. Even though he does things differently, like screaming when he is touched and only eating food that is a certain color, he is comfortable with who he is. These things make him who he is, and that is what I love about this book. I give it a five-star rating, and I think it deserves more awards than it has received. I looked at different reviews on the book, and I was sad to see how many people did not like it because of the way Haddon portrayed Christopher’s Autism. I think a lot of people don’t understand that there are a lot of different forms of Autism--Christopher just has full-blown Autism. I think that is a bad reason to dislike this book.