Looking For Alaska

I recently finished Looking for Alaska by John Green. I'd say it is very unlike anything I have read in the past. The basic plot of the story tells of a high school boy who leaves his public school in Florida to attend a boarding school in Alabama in hope of finding adventure. What he does find is a promiscuous, intelligent, and good-looking girl named Alaska. He finds new friends named the Colonel, Takumi, and Laura, all whom plot with him mischievous adventures and help him pass Pre-Calc. He finds the excitement he is looking for, but ultimately experiences an event that will change him forever.
   First, the things I like about the book: The themes of teenage freedom and finding oneself are my favorite parts of the story. The book addresses the issues of growing up, the effects of the past on the present, and the popular teenage theme of "fitting in." I like that the characters are highly intelligent, yet know how to have fun and take risks for the sake of an adventure. I like how the story is such a carefully laid out combination of comedy and drama and mystery, all coming down to the most wonderfully written conclusion.
  Next, the cons: Well, UGH. There was a pretty large section in the book where a mystery was laid out. This mystery, although completely unsolvable to all of the characters involved, had a very obvious solution. I found myself wanting to scream at the page of fictional characters, each and every time they found a fairly obvious clue and STILL could not figure out the answer to their little mystery. But its a good possibility that this issue I came across will not occur with other readers, so maybe disregard this.The only other con I can think of is that their were some...well...inappropriate scenes. But I'm almost positive that these will not be on the con list for most readers....
   So, I'd definitely say that the pros outweigh the cons. This is a well-written novel that has a fantastic perspective on the ideas of teenage spirit and "the great unknown." I think its a great piece of literature for anyone, but especially teenagers, to read. So...yeah...read it.

-Aimee Erickson

Pieces of You by Daniel Armand Lee

I just finished reading the book, Pieces of You, which is a collection of short stories that have their sources from the personal experiences of the author.

First off let me start off by introducing Tablo (stage name) also known as Daniel Armand Lee. Tablo, a Korean American, graduated from Stanford with emphasis in creative writing. Later Tablo debuted in Korea through a rap group called Epik High.

The novel is a collection of fictional short stories which symbolize the harsh experiences of the author while growing up in America, and the experiences of being ostracized by society and even his parents. 

His collection of short stories have a straightforward writing style which portrays a much more modern writing style than those of writers in the 20th or 19th century. This novel was an easy read, however, the novel is very profound in meaning, symbolism, and irony. It is hard to summarize all of the stories in the novel, but the key concept that I found Lee trying to show is that life does not always go the way you want it, and no one can be considered the center of the universe. It may have been because of his personal experiences in his younger stage of life, but what I could see in his words were sincerity and empathy for the fictional characters he chose to put in to the novel.

A best seller in Korea, Pieces of You by Daniel Armand Lee, brings a new style of text which make you think and take another look at life. Lee a creative writer, composer, and a musician, he has blended all of these qualities to write a unique novel definitely worth reading.

Kenny J.

1984 George Orwell

For my novel I just finished 1984 by George Orwell. For me to offer any sort of spoiler or summary of the novel would be make the experience of reading the novel that less interesting. However, what I can say is the 1984 is one of the few books that has made me think and go beyond the simple literal translation of the text. A novel that portrays the nature of innate human characteristics, effects of propaganda and oppression, 1984 is a great read for those who want to know what "really" happened in 1984.

Kenny J.