Reading

I did not grow in the way I expected to as a reader this year. I didn't read more books or become faster at reading, but instead, I became more perceptive by learning how to annotate. Annotating had never occurred to me as helpful when I was reading before this year. This was probably because I never knew how to annotate. Annotating was never more evident than in Lord of the Flies. I had attempted to read this book before, but it never made any sense to me. When I annotated, the plot became more clear and I was able to enjoy the book. I grew in a few other areas in reading like learning about rhetorical situations and the author's point of the story.

Books that I finished this year
- Split
- Boys in the Boat
- Lord of the Flies
- The Living
- Shaken
- ATDPI
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
- Purple Hibiscus
- Highly Illogical Behavior

Pieces of evidence

LOTF Scene Response
- To me, the most important scene in The Lord of the Flies is Piggy's death scene. This would be a significant scene in the story if it was just about the death of a beloved character in Piggy. But, it is much more than just significant. It symbolizes everything that is chaotic and crazy on the island. Piggy was the super ego in our story which means that he can be annoying sometimes, but he is the one that keeps a level of sanity on the island.

On page 180, we see the battle of good and evil play out right before our eyes. "By him stood Piggy still holding out the talisman, the fragile, shining beauty of the shell. The storm of sound beat at them, in incantation of hatred. High overhead, Roger, with a sense of delirious abandonment leaned his weight on the lever." This imagery shows Piggy holding the conch, which is everything normal and civilized on the island, and Roger physically destroying it. Piggy and the conch soon die, and all their ideals die along with them. Savagery takes over when Roger finally has no sense of his previous life, and he drops a boulder on Piggy.

Page 139 Reading Response in Purple Hibiscus

- The plot speed of Purple Hibiscus has increased dramatically over the last seventy pages. With the arrival of Aunty Ifeoma and her family, Jaja and Kambili’s eyes have been opened to the real world. I am not saying that they have finally taken the leap of faith and rebelled against their father, but it seems as if the book is leading toward that moment. Kambili leaves us with thoughts of happiness and laughter at the end of the chapter when she falls asleep, and although she doesn’t actually smile or laugh, I think it is a sign of good things to come. The dark side to the children leaving to go to Aunty Ifeoma’s house is that Papa is sure to find out what they have been exposed to. My last thoughts on this section are about Father Amadi. He could be a crucial character in the story because he is religious, but he is also the opposite of Papa, and this could lead Jaja and Kambili to a different understanding about the world.