I am currently reading The Twelve Kingdoms : Skies of Dawn by Fuyumi Ono. This is the fourth and last book of the Twelve Kingdoms series. This book draws you in with three main characters. Yoko, the star of the first book, returns. She is now the King of Kei (yes, all leaders are "kings", even if they're female...).

In the book, two new main characters are introduced, Shoukei and Suzu.

Shoukei is the former princess of Kei, and her parents were murdered by Kei's governer. She hates Yoko because she is now living the life she should have had.

Suzu, on the other hand, adores Yoko.They've never met, but they are both kaikyaku, people who magically and unintentionally cross the Void Sea from Japan to the Twelve Kingdoms. She believes that, since they've both been through the hatred of civilians, Yoko will pity her and punish Riyou for causing her emotional harm.

I think that once Suzu actually meets Yoko, she will be upset because Yoko may not be the kind of person she expected her to be. Then, for Shoukei, she will meet Yoko and she will realize she was wrong about her.

In Emil and Karl, so many horrible things are happening in the text.
Karl's mother is taken away from him by the Nazi regime and his father died long before because he fought for rights; he was a Socialist.

Emil's mother is also taken away because she is very ill. His father was killed by the Nazi regime and sent to Emil and his mother, cremated.

It's easy to see there is no justice in Emil and Karl. It's like a little kid version of showing racism and the Holocaust. It's not really for little kids though, you wouldn't read this to elementary school kids.
It's especially amazing that this book was written DURING the Holocaust, not after.

Also, I think that in this text, Emil and Karl's point of views are missing. Karl just doesn't understand WHY Hitler wants to get rid of Jews and others if they're not Aryan. I'm not sure he and Emil actually understand WHY though. It's just that they're parents told they Hitler was bad. Emil is sort of like the person who doesn't know what to do. He might WANT to be different because he's hated so much. He might think "Why did I have to be like this? Why couldn't I be RIGHT and not HORRIBLE as they say I am?"

This book is very serious and that it needs to be read with an open mind.

Religion is useless. Countries all over the world are prejudice against other religions. It is also the same with government ideas on economy and gay rights. In Persepolis, these two issues come up.

In Persepolis, at the beginning of the book, a fundamentalist man was saying that bilingual schools had to be closed down because "they are symbols of capitalism". But later in the book, it speaks of how Marji's grandfather became a communist and he was tortured.
Since capitalism is religious compared to communism and Iran was religious, I think that's probably why they prosecuted communists. Even though people have different views, it's not that bad.

Marji's family's friends were whipped because they were homosexuals. Even though the government can't do that here, lots of people still use hate crimes towards gays, like in the short story Am I Blue?

People shouldn't hate on people just because of differences. Imagine if everyone had blond hair, blue eyes, were all obese and everyone's name Frank. There would be no differences between anyone and nobody would no anybody. It's also like this with school uniforms, I think, to make it be as if everyone's equal.

Princess Academy

"What really hard things are happening in the text?"

Well, at the Princess Academy, the girls under 18 from Mount Eskel compete to be the Academy Princess, and to take a shot at winning the Prince of Danland's heart. I could say that the Princess Academy is a nice place where the girls get along and help each other during recess, and that their tutor is a kind, moon-faced woman who gives out gumdrops on test days. Yet I can't. It's not true. In fact, I could say it's quite the opposite.

The Princess Academy's tutor, Tutor Olana, locks children in a closet with rats. The top students, Miri (the main character) and Katar are in major competition. Well, at least, so Katar thinks. Miri doesn't seem to be snooty and stuck up, like Katar thinks she is. Honestly, Katar is the one who is snooty and stuck up.

So far, the whole book is an issue. The lowlanders and mountaineers hate each other (lowlander traders cheat the mountaineers of their earnings) and the lowlanders are dumbfounded that the new princess will be from Mount Eskel, since it's only a territory.

In short, this tale of kingdoms, princesses and princes is not a happyfairy tale.

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The Shapeshifter - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

In The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, Edmund is the Shapeshifter. Edmund is the shapeshifter because he does what will (or he THINKS will) be good for him. He is a greedy little pig who dislikes his so-called bossy siblings and will do anything for himself. In The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, Edmund helps to lead the White Witch to his siblings so he can have Turkish Delight. He did not know that the White Witch (or, as he met her, the Queen of Narnia) was going to dispose of him, but he decided to bring his siblings to her because she promised he could be a prince. Although later his little sister told him she was evil, Edmund didn't take notice and went along to help the witch.

Although he didn't know that the White Witch was going to kill him and his siblings, I can't understand how Edmund could be so STUPID. He found out that she was evil, but he didn't care because all he wanted was to become Prince of Narnia and eat more Turkish Delight. Perhaps he also decided not to listen to Lucy because the Witch said lots of Narnians hate her and say bad things about her, but I don't think that's true. I think Edmund is a spoiled brat who will do anything to get anything he wants.

Even though he returns to the "side" with his siblings and Aslan, I still really despise Edmund and I think I always will.

The Shapeshifter - Charlotte's Web

In Charlotte's Web, the shape-shifter is Templeton. Templeton never does anything for anyone else- unless he gets something out of it.

For example, when Wilbur needed to get Charlotte's egg sac so he could be her children to the old barn, Templeton wouldn't help to get it for Wilbur. On for a couple pages, Wilbur had to beg and plead Templeton to help. Templeton finally gave in when Wilbur offered Templeton as much food from the trough that he wanted before Wilbur ate. In turn, Templeton turned into a huge, fat rat who looks like he might explode or die of a heart attack at any second.

When Templeton didn't want to go to the county fair, the old sheep had to bribe him with all the "tempting" descriptions of dropped food. In the end, he went to the fair and had a wonderful night. He was still a bit grumpy from being ordered around to find a good, last word for Charlotte to write in her web.

The Shape-shifter is the person who changes sides, depending on bribes, also like in Star Wars, which Han Solo is the Shape-shifter.

Connecting - Charlotte's Web

Page 3 - The kitchen table was set for breakfast, and the room smelled of coffee, bacon, damp plaster, and wood smoke from the stove.
Page 49 - "Well, I don't like to spread bad news," said the sheep, "but they're fattening you up because they're going to kill you, that's why."
"They're going to what?" screamed Wilbur. Fern grew rigid in her chair

When I read page 3, I thought "Does Fern EAT bacon?" It would be sort of weird if she did, and if not, that's good. Although in the book it sort of seems like it's evil to eat bacon, outside of the book, lots of people eat bacon. If Fern DOES eat bacon, maybe she doesn't understand that bacon comes from pigs.

And on page 49, did Fern KNOW that Wilbur was going to be killed and eaten? If so, wouldn't she have complained to her father about it, like she did when she saved Wilbur's life? Or has she grown up more and decided it didn't matter and things should just take their "natural course"? If she didn't know, she would've just found out. But would she be "rigid"? Or was she rigid from the fact that Wilbur was finally finding out for himself what might happen? I wonder if there was a conversation with between Fern and her parents. It would have been easier if White had just simply written a chapter of it, if there was one, but maybe he's just leaving a little mystery behind...

Expanding Entry - Charlotte's Web

In Charlotte's Web, the mother role plays a very important part. By saying "the mother role", I mean the role of a kind, caring woman who acts as a mother to someone, whether they're related or not.
On page 8, I could already get the sense that Fern was like a mother figure to Wilbur.

Fern loved Wilbur more than anything. She loved to stroke him, to feed him, to put him to bed. Every morning, as soon as she got up, she warmed his milk, tied his bib on, and held the bottle for him.

Fern cares so much for him, she ties a BIB on him! She is truly playing the motherly role here.

Wilbur loved his milk, and he was never happier then when Fern was warming up a bottle for him. He would stand and gaze up at her with adoring eyes.

Later in the book, Charlotte becomes more of a mother figure to Wilbur. She's strict and sharp sometimes, but always caring.

"You're terrific as far as I'm concerned," replied Charlotte, sweetly, "and that's what counts. You're my best friend, and I think you're sensational. Now stop arguing and go get some sleep!"

Fern's mother is also a good mother. Even though we may think she's mean for not believing Fern about animals talking, we have to admit that it's true animals don't talk. Ms. Arable went to see a doctor just to make sure Fern was okay. She's still taking care of her, she's just doing her best to try to help Fern realize that animals don't talk. Although, in the book, they do.

Weekly Reading Entry-Sweet Dreams, Eurythmics

One of my favourite songs, Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics can sorta of scary sounding and like a song that's just made because the writers need something to sing. My friend Marina says this, adding on about how the music video on Youtube® helps her statement with Annie Lennox raising her arms, looking like she's sacrificing something to a god, while standing in a meadow with a swarm of cows. Of course, I could agree if she was talking about Marilyn Manson's version of the song, but I enjoy Sweet Dreams. If I had to point out a life lesson to the song, I would say, "Sweet Dreams are made of the years." Many of the lyrics online say "Sweet Dreams are made of this", but I think it's "Sweet Dreams are made of the years."

Sweet dreams ARE made of the years, with hard work (ugh) and little pay. Until you get your dream.

Sweet dreams are made of the years
Who am I to disagree?
Travel the world and the seven seas
Everybody's looking for something

But you don't have to travel the world or the seven seas or anything. If you REALLY want to have a bunch of cows, buy or rent some land, and work hard to keep crops and animals alive.

I, personally, would like to be a clothing designer, or a lawyer, or a gardener. I sketch ideas for clothes and sew, like to fight for people and have my opinion heard, and to take care of plants. The farthest I've ever been is to Paris (it's farther than London... right?) and I think there are a few more than seven seas... maybe.

Weekly Reading Entry-The Twelve Kingdoms: Sea of Shadow

Have you ever been to a magical land no one's ever heard of before? Betcha haven't! But Yoko Nakajima has.

In The Twelve Kingdoms, Yoko arrives in Kou, one of the kingdoms, and she is chased and captured several times. Luckily, to the help of a blue healing gem, her trusty sword, and the hinman Joyu, she is able to fend of her foes and the demons that attack her.

Yoko is followed by a blue, pessimistic monkey. This monkey tries to tell Yoko what to do, saying how it would be so much quicker if she killed herself.

I think that the blue monkey is like a creature of Yoko's bad thoughts, like a hallucination. It's like how in cartoons, there's an angel on one of the character's shoulders and a devil on the other. The monkey sort of represents the devil, and Yoko is trying to be optimistic and be the angel, wanting to find some way back to Japan. Yoko often quarrels with the monkey and slashes her sword at him, missing. She is losing hope. But then, Yoko meets a kind beastling, who she actually starts trusting, regardless the two other times she was deceived by people of Kou. One night, Yoko and the monkey are talking while Rakushun, the beastling, is hurt. The monkey tells her to run, and she does, but then realizes she shouldn't have because she trusts Rakushun. The monkey starts taunting her, and, frustrated, Yoko swings her sword. The monkey is gone. After that, Yoko meets up with Rakushun and stops doubting his help entirely.

Weekly Reading Entry~Ouran High School Host Club

Ouran High School Host Club is a very funny anime and manga. It's about a group of teenagers who form a club to entertain girls. In this Host Club, there is a pair of twins, Hikaru and Kaoru. They are identical, and nearly always speaking in unison, or finishing each others sentences. It's like they can read each others minds or something.

I always thought that being a single child would be nice since I'd get more attention and my brother wouldn't be there. But then I might get lonely, so after I watched OHSHC, I began to think what it wold be like to have a twin EXACTLY like me.

When I told my mother, "I wish I had a twin exactly like me, like Hikaru and Kaoru," not knowing who they were, replied,

"I'm glad you don't have a twin, 'cuz I can barely stand one of you."

That still didn't put an end to my dreams. I still want a twin, even though it's impossible.

Weekly Reading Entry~Farewell To Manzanar

My grandfather was an immigrant, like Jeanne, the author and main character in Farewell To Manzanar, and her family. My grandfather came to America a few years after Jeanne Wakatsuki and her family had to board Manzanar, and my mother never told me if he had to go to a camp like Manzanar, but I don't think he did. Maybe it was just that Jeanne Wakatsuki had to go to Manzanar because she was Japanese and her story takes place during World War II.
But, then again, in a book called Esperanza Rising, the main character leaves her home to go to a camp. But in that, I suppose it was just because Esperanza and her mother were running away. And maybe it was during a war.

I forgot.

Farewell To Manzanar is "As haunting as the Diary of Anne Frank," says the back of the book. And now that I'm half way through the book, I can see that it is really quite sad. It's one of those autobiographies that makes you think "Holy crap, this seriously happened to someone?" Or like the movie Les Choristes, (which I love, by the way) the frightening French film. And whose music I'm listening to right now.
So, the next time you think "My life is so terrible" "Boring" "BLAHHHHH", think about how truely horrible OTHER people's lives are or have been.

Weekly Reading Entry~Ash

I know this may seem like a very strange way to start a response to a book, but I LOVE BREAD! To me, bread and starchy stuff like pasta and rice is the most delicious food EVER! It's basically all I ever eat.

In Ash, Ash's mother passes away. When this happens, Ash can't taste the bread she's eating. I don't ever remember not being able to taste anything. Maybe it's not even possible, not to be able to taste something... unless it's water. Maybe it's just a form of speech, and I will never know. I think about things like that a lot. Like, "It happens to other people, not me. Am I THAT different, or is it ALL A LIE?" Stuff like that. Like sugar rushes. I fake those, for people who are thinking, "I just saw her all hyper the other day."

When my aunt died, I don't remember not being able to taste anything. Maybe it's different, though, since my aunt and I didn't really know each other.

Losing family and loved ones is very hard, so authors exaggerate with food? I don't understand that at all, except that it's CONFUSING. Do you?

Weekly Reading Entry-Fox

Many old fashioned children's picture books start off with the phrase " Once upon a time", like Cinderella, or Snow White. But nowadays, picture books are becoming more than just books that a small child would read. Instead of carrying the moral "If you find a man to take care of you, your life will be complete", there are morals and themes that are more meaningful.

In the beginning of the picture book Fox, one-eyed Dog is carrying Magpie in between his big yet gentle jaws the cave he calls home. Magpie's wing had gotten burnt, and she couldn't fly anymore. In despair of not being to fly, Magpie faints. When she awakes days later, Dog takes Magpie to a lake nearby, and tells her to tell him what she sees. Of course, Magpie sees the reflection of herself on Dog's back. They are together and always will be.

"You will be my wings and I will be your missing eye." This sentence rings out multiple times in Fox.

Soon, Fox is acquainted with Dog and Magpie. He says them running looks extraordinary. Dog welcomes Fox to live in his cave with Magpie. But Magpie is scared of Fox. To her, his stench of envy and loneliness fills the cave at night. Then one night while Dog is asleep, Fox tells Magpie to go with him, that Dog's running is nothing compared to his. Magpie replies, "Dog is my wings and I am his missing eye." Fox repeats his question twice more, once while Dog was at a pond, then again that night. That time, since that morning she hadn't felt like she was flying, Magpie replied "I am ready."

Fox ran so fast it DID feel like Magpie was running! But then, in a cave in the desert, Fox left Magpie there, he said

"Now you and Dog will know what it is like to be alone."

Usually, Fox would be considered the "bad guy" but I feel bad for him. No one knows what his life story was. He could of had a loving family that suddenly died from disease and he, for some reason, didn't get it, or his family was killed by humans or something. It's Fox's fault for having so much envy, but no one knows what happened to him to be like that.

Weekly Reading Entry-Snail Mail No More

Everybody has a problem with something; people they can't understand, things that happen to them, etc,. Elizabeth has family problems- recently, her father became addicted to alcohol, an alcoholic. He is ruining everything for Elizabeth, her little sister and her mother. Luckily, Elizabeth has a friend who she writes to a lot, now e-mails, though.
I also have a few friends who live somewhere else in the world. We send letters to each other and have fun. But we aren't really as close as Elizabeth and her friend Tara are. They talk to each other ALL the time. They also see each other a lot. I've never met my friends, they live in South Korea and Japan. Even though it's a bit strange talking to someone you don't know from meeting them, it's fun to have a connection when you HAVEN'T met them, too, because lots of things are different and you get to learn about their culture and how they live.
I also feel bad for Elizabeth and her family. It must be really hard to have your father become an alcoholic all off a sudden, then pass away from getting into a car crash. I hope (and I don't doubt) that will not happen to any of my parents anytime soon.

Weekly Reading Entry-Death Note

Isn't the world such a terrible place? When you think about it, it is. There's war, poverty, etc. Every 2.2 seconds, a child becomes an orphan. Meaning, when I'm finished typing this, about...a lot of children will be orphans. Imagine if one day, you're in school, dreaming off and you see a black notebook lying on the sidewalk in the sun. When you get outside and pick it up, you read the cover- Death Note. Of course it's just a prank, like those chain texts that say if you don't pass it on you'll get cancer or something. Or is it?
This happens to Light Yagami, a serious, straight-A high school student. But the Death Note isn't a game or a prank. It's for real.
Five days later, Light is visited by a shinigami, a God of Death, Ryuk.
Ryuk says that if Light succeeds in getting rid of the Earth's criminals, he will be the only evil one left. And that left me thinking. Light is doing a good deed in getting rid of the world's most dangerous criminals, but he is also being terribly bad. He's murdering criminals with the Death Note, using only heart attacks so everyone could realize someone was tipping off the bad guys. If he succeeds in his scheme, he WILL be the only criminal left. But what WILL happen?

Weekly Reading Entry- The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

IF YOU FAIL, ALL IS LOST. These are the words Mr. Benedict says to the children of The Mysterious Benedict Society. What a beautiful, great way to try and reassure one, don't you agree? These words are printed in bold on the front extension of the cover, along with a blurb and another sentence: IS THIS THE END OF THE MYSTERIOUS BENEDICT SOCIETY? Once again, reassuring. But, these sentences bring the reader deeper into the book. These sentences also made me more alert.

In The Mysterious Benedict Society, Reynie, Sticky, Kate and Constance "embark on a daring new adventure" and encounter many foes. The ones you meet the most are Ten Men. Ten Men are men dressed in suits and carry briefcases, like normal buisnessmen might. But, in the briefcases are weapons like no other. Pencils as sharp as daggers, laser pointers that can cut off your ears, and eight more ways to hurt you. That is why they are called Ten Men; they have ten ways of hurting you. Which pleads the question- HOW DO YOU SPOT A TEN MAN? Simply smell out their expensive cologne, see their pale faces and briefcases, and run.