Saturday, June 6, 2009

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, Whale Talk

I don't think I have done to bad for my first 48 hour challenge. My schedule has been as follows:
Friday Morning: Begin

11:30a.m.-2:00p.m Full Tilt
2:00 - 2:15 Break
2:15 - 5:30 Downsiders
5:30 - 6:30 Dinner
6:30 - 7:25 Finish Downsiders
7:30-8:00 Post
8:00 - 10:30 Shadow Club
10:30 - 2:00 Shadow Club Rising
2:00 - 2:16 Heart of a Shepherd
2:16 - 2:20 Post and then Bed
2:20 - 6:50 Slept

Saturday Morning:

7:00 - 9:00 Finished Heart of a Shepherd
9:00 - 9:30 Breakfast
9:30 - 1:30 The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
1:30 -5:00 Whale Talk
5:00 - 6:00 Post and dinner

It seems the last few books I have read have been real tear jerkers. Heart of a Shepherd brought me to tears.
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas brought me to tears. I felt sorry for Bruno who made a friend of a boy on the otherside of the fence and yet didn't know his father was partially responsible for the conditions Schmuel lived in. The outcome was not what I expected. It had a very strong message. Since the holocaust is taught in eighth grade this is a great addition to my growing collection of books on the subject. I make it a personal mission to inform my students of the injustices done in the past so that as our future they may help prevent these atrocities.

Whale Talk by Chris Crutcher is a book that I have put a sticky note on with the names of several students I want to recommend it to. It is the story of a boy who learns to survive in an unjust world and at the same time takes several others along on his ride and shows them that they are important and that what they do does matter and make a difference. He learns in a very "tear jerker of an ending" that revenge eats away at you and is never the answer.l



1 comment:

  1. Keep up the good job! I can't take tearjerkers, that's why I've been trying to read only light hearted stories.

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