Feed

The language in Feed is one thing that really stuck out to me. It makes a lot of sense, since the story is set so far in the future, that the language would be different and that they would have different slang. Although most of it could be translated through context clues, I found myself unsure of what some of the words meant, since they were used in different situations and contexts, which I actually thought was more impressive than just substituting words in for other words. It meant that the author had a good grasp on this fictional language that he had created, and it made the story that much more believable. I also noticed that language seemed to be linked to intelligence, which is something that is also very true today; people tend to judge the intelligence of others based on the way they speak, and whether they use a lot of slang versus bigger and more varied words. Most of the characters speak almost exclusively using slang or informal language- even the narration is incredibly informal, like we are simply seeing the feed of Titus's thoughts, which is likely the point. We see many comparisons between the characters in the novel who we are supposed to see as more intelligent and the characters we are supposed to see as less so. For example, Titus's father speaks like a teenager, frequently using words like "dude" and "like," in contrast with Violet's father, who studies and teaches dead languages. Violet tells Titus that he is "only one of them [his friends] that uses metaphor" the way she also does. We see a lot of Titus summarizing other people's conversation by replacing words and phrases with "da da da," as if what they are saying isn't important enough to bear repeating. The girls' favorite feed show is called "Oh? Wow! Thing!", a very vague and simplistic title that could refer to anything and that sounds childlike. Many of the slang words used in this futuristic language are just words that we have now, but shortened to sound more informal and to become easier to say. Even the doctor says things like "Could we like get a thingie?" This is normal and common vernacular for the time period shown in the novel, even among people we assume to be very intelligent, like doctors. Even if we don't agree with the idea that the language a person uses necessarily correlates to how intelligent they are, the book seems to be trying to use that assumption to make a point or to get us to feel one way or the other about these characters, or perhaps even the society as a whole. Titus at one point mentions that everyone is super smart now because they can look up anything in their heads, but I wonder if the author is trying to show the opposite: that having any knowledge in your head without having to retain any of it requires less intelligence.

Harriet the Spy

Going into this story, I thought it was going to be more of Harriet solving mysteries using her spy skills. I didn't expect it to be so much about Harriet's daily life and relationships, but I am thoroughly enjoying seeing how she interacts with the people around her, as well as how she thinks about them and what she says about them in her notebook. She seems to love to learn about as much as she can, and she seems very intelligent for her age in a lot of ways. She loves to learn; we see her skipping into school singing about how she wants to learn everything in the world, and the book says at one point while talking to Sport that "she never minded admitting she didn't know something. So what, she thought, I could always learn." The very nature of her self-proclaimed spy career forces her to pay close attention to everything and learn about the people around her. Harriet seems to be very perceptive of what is going on around her, as you would expect from someone who make it her business to learn and take notes on everything she sees, but it's interesting that, despite how much she notices, she doesn't understand much of it. She notes while watching Ole Golly and Mr. Waldenstein interact that "Life is a great mystery. Is everybody a different person when they are with somebody else?" It is very clear to her that Ole Golly is acting unusual, but she doesn't understand why. She knows that it has to do with Ole Golly's boyfriend, but it doesn't make sense to her that someone would act a different way around a boy than they do normally. When she suddenly asks her mom a bunch of questions about marriage, she doesn't understand why her mom would would ask Harriet if that was something she was thinking about, and says that "adults are getting sillier every year-" when, as adults, we know that Harriet's mother was just trying to humor her, and that it isn't necessarily unusual for a child to want grown-up things (like marriage) even if they don't understand them. It's just so fun to watch Harriet react to things as if adults are the ridiculous ones and she is the only rational person trying to deal with their antics.

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

It's interesting and heartbreaking to see Cassie discovering the extent of racism in this book. We see many instances where she encounters it, but the first time she experiences it for herself is when they go to Strawberry. We know she already knows that there is some separation in her society between white and black people: in the same chapter, we see her complaining that they can't put their cart with the white people's carts and saying that she likes Mr. Jamison because "he was the only white man I had ever heard address Mama and Big Ma as 'Missus.'" But she doesn't seem to make the connection when they go into the store and Mr. Barnett stops filling T.J.'s order multiple times to fill white people's orders. She keeps asking her brother and T.J. what he's doing, and they keep telling her to hush and that he would be back, as though they understand perfectly what's happening and are more resigned to it, much like many the adults in the novel seem to be to "the way things are." Cassie is so confused and enraged, as opposed to the calm resignation of Stacey and T.J., and seeing this scene, especially from Cassie's point of view, makes you feel that same rage she feels. You want to yell at Mr. Barnett too, and you want make Stacey and T.J. stand up for themselves. This seems to be the first time she is personally targeted as well, and experiences physical violence: being pushed into the road when Lillian Jean demands an apology from her. You get so much more of a sense of the injustice of what's happening when not only seeing it from the point of view of the victim, but seeing her experience this for the first time. The last line of the chapter is "No day in all my life had ever been as cruel as this one," and the bluntness of it leaves you feeling even more terrible for Cassie. You can see in this chapter especially that she is not one to take injustice lying down, even if it hurts her, and this is where you really start both feel glad that she stands up for herself and also worried when she does that she is going to get herself into bigger trouble sometime than she can get herself out of.

The Birchbark House

Something that stuck out to me while reading The Birchbark House was the respect with which the characters treat animals and nature. When Omakayas's grandmother has to use the tree bark to build their house, she says "Old Sister, we need your skin for our shelter" and gives the tree an offering in return. She seems to do this by way of apology and gratitude, which are not emotions we are used to thinking of feeling towards trees. When Omakayas has her encounter with the mother bear, where you would imagine most people to either flee or attack, Omakayas explains her intentions to the bear and apologizes for the misunderstanding and for frightening her. She tells that bear that her scissors "are nothing compared to your teeth and claws," which shows a respect for how much stronger the bear is and shows that she means her no harm. She calls the bear grandmother, remembering how her own grandmother had instructed her to treat bears with "the greatest respect;" the same reason that, despite using bear pelts and meat for their survival, the Ojibwe people still bury their bones. This encounter also means a great deal to Omakayas, so much that it becomes the most important event in the book for a while. Another thing I found interesting were the parallels between Old Tallow, who found and rescued Omakayas, and Omakayas's father. They are both described as being over six feet tall, quickly wearing through their makazins (an indication of physical labor), and being sharp of tongue and someone that people don't generally like to mess with. They both have a fondness for Omakayas; Mikwam because she is his daughter, and Old Tallow because she has a respect for Omakayas's mother and grandmother, although, more than likely, it also has something to do with the fact that Old Tallow is the one who brought Omakayas into the tribe as a baby. Although Old Tallow is a woman, she takes on many of the responsibilities that men would usually have: she hunts, and shares her spoils with Omakayas's mother while Mikwam is away. She seems to be a provider and protector, filling in for Mikwam while he is away, in a sense.

Little House on the Prairie

I never thought that the Little House books sounded very interesting, and when I saw this book on the syllabus, despite the couple of people in class who named this as one of their favorite children's books, I was less than enthusiastic. Even my sister, who rarely reads, telling me that they were really good didn't quite convince me. But I was pleasantly surprised when I finally sat down to start reading it and found myself actually becoming invested in the plot and characters. I was heartbroken when I thought Jack had died, I was nervous during every mention of wolves, and I cringed when Caroline's foot got crushed under a log. I also found myself dancing along excitedly when Pa was playing his fiddle. I somehow forgot about how sure I was that I wouldn't enjoy the book, and although I still wouldn't consider myself a huge fan of the genre itself, this story is a testament to how a well-written book, even with a subject matter you don't think you'll like, can captivate you. It's also another lesson that I'm still learning, even after nearly twenty years of reading like crazy: don't judge a book by its cover (or by its genre).

Black Beauty

I find it funny that Black Beauty was not written for children, given that it is written from the point of view of a horse. Using non-human protagonists or narrators is something that seems to be associated almost entirely with children's fiction, especially today. You would have a hard time finding an adult book written from the point of view of an animal, but that is very common in children's literature, as well as movies or TV shows. It also seems to be written in a quite simple and easy-to-understand way, similar to the way children's books are written. The chapters are very short and to the point, and the narrative focuses more on plot and the horse's relationship to the other characters more than it does on detail, which makes it easier for children to read and stay interested in. The plot, however, includes some material that might be tough for children to read, and it was in fact not meant specifically for them. I think that contrast is really interesting, and it reminds me of the fairy tales we read: not meant for children, and with material that may seem too violent or inappropriate for children, but largely read and enjoyed by them.

It's Real For Us

Reflect on a book from your childhood or teenage years, explaining why it is so important to you. Detail the memories associated with the text, its influence on you, and if applicable, your changing attitudes toward it. If you have no favourite book or memory, discuss another childhood entertainment artefact or educational experience.

Harry Potter hasn't always been as important to me as it is now, but I still remember the first time I discovered it. It must have been the Christmas of 1999, because my dad had seen Chamber of Secrets in a shop and given it to me as a gift that year. I'd never heard of it before that point, and neither had he, apparently; he was unpleasantly surprised to find out that it was the second book in a series about magic. That didn't stop me from being excited about the book. I was a very early and very dedicated reader, and a story about a boy wizard was a perfect way to keep myself occupied, which is mostly what it was for the next eleven years. But on May 2, 2010 (the day of the Battle of Hogwarts, funnily enough), I read Deathly Hallows in one sitting. From that day it stopped being a hobby and became a sort of way of life. I became part of the Potter fandom, I joined a Harry Potter-themed charity organization and met some of my best friends, I started listening to wizard rock, I started going to conventions and midnight showings of the movies and reading the books in my spare time. This made-up story became a huge part of my life in a very real way. Harry's world is real for those of us in the fandom. It's a way for all of us to connect and share in the same experience, a way for us to escape from the real world into something much more exciting and fun, a base for many other creative projects (music, fanfiction, charity organizations, documentaries, musicals, etc.) within the community. It isn't the first work of fiction to have a community of fans form around it, of course, but I think the Harry Potter fandom is the first to go to this extent, and I think it's blazing the trail for other fiction to go the same route. These books are so important to me not only because they are enjoyable but also because they have affected my life in so many different ways. They're part of the reason why I get so invested in stories, which has changed the way I will view fiction for the rest of my life.