5/21/2023 0 Comments The wild things eggersJavin says the events on the island are rendered meandering and “plotless” in Egger’s hands. When fleshed out, Max appears pesky and the monsters become unloveable. Like many others, he feels Eggers’ verbose writing style detracts rather than adds to Sendak’s much-beloved characters. He did not enjoy Egger’s detailed “deconstruction” of Sendak’s original. Timmy found Sendak’s version dark and evocative, allow your imagination to run wild and fill in the gaps. However, Eggers’ biggest crime, some say, is his failure to capture the gay subtext inherent in the original. Some members, such as Joshua and Gavin, felt the fleshing out of the characters and the “heavy-handed” commentary on war and violence killed the seemingly innocent charm of the original. On the whole, the book club felt that Eggers, while a good writer of prose, did not capture the vivid and magical world conjured by Sendak’s short children’s book. He’s lived with psychoanalyst Eugene Glynn for 50 years. Sendak is gay but made an official admission of his orientation in 2008. We discussed Maurice Sendak’s children’s classic Where The Wild Things Are, and Eggers’ novel adaptation of it titled The Wild Things. Attendees: Timmy, Alex, Alexius, Joshua, Gavin, Javin, Aaron.
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5/20/2023 0 Comments Son of Interflux by Gordon KormanHe also developed a whack of quirky schoolmates for the central characters – awkward, science-obsessed Elmer Drimsdale, snooty rich kid George Wexford Smith III, easily-annoyed gymnast Perry Elbert, and across the street at Miss Scrimmage’s Finishing School for Young Ladies, Bruno and Boots’ eager co-conspirators Cathy Burton and Diane Grant. Rounding out the main cast: Macdonald Hall headmaster (and taskmaster) William Sturgeon aka. Taking his track-turned-English-teacher up on his offer to “work on whatever we wanted for the rest of the year,” preteen Korman spent the next four months concocting the tale of Bruno and Boots and their campaign to remain roommates at the fictional Macdonald Hall despite their lengthy record of adolescent shenanigans. (This resonates with me because one of my earliest music teachers and my longest-serving piano instructor, Billy Digout, was a Phys Ed teacher who suddenly became a music teacher in the early ’80s because he happened to know how to play the piano.) During his seventh-grade year at German Mills Public School in Thornhill, Ontario, Korman didn’t have an actual English teacher – he had a track and field coach who, in early 1975, was suddenly thrust into teaching English. “Boots” O’Neal is the fact that, in a sense, it reached the rest of the world by accident. Now, to me, one of the most amazing things about the tale of trouble-making private-school buddies Bruno Walton and Melvin P. 5/20/2023 0 Comments Alex & Me by Irene M. PepperbergAn African Grey parrot, Alex had a brain the size of a shelled walnut, yet he could add, sound out words, understand concepts like bigger, smaller, more, fewer, and none, and he disproved the widely accepted idea that birds possess no potential for language or anything remotely comparable to human intelligence.Īlex & Me is the incredible story of an amazing, irascible parrot and his best friend who stayed together through thick and thin for thirty years-the astonishing, moving, and unforgettable story of a landmark scientific achievement and a beautiful relationship. I love you," were Alex's final words to his owner, research scientist Irene Pepperberg, before his premature death at age thirty-one on September 6, 2007. Pepperberg and Alex, an African Grey parrot who proved scientists and accepted wisdom wrong by demonstrating an astonishing ability to communicate and understand complex ideas. The remarkable true story of an extraordinary relationship between psychologist Irene M. 5/20/2023 0 Comments The art of memoir karrLouay told his story to Al Jazeera as part of a collection of profiles. When he was 11, the Islamic State group seized his town in Anbar province, forcing him to flee to Baghdad, stop his schooling, and sell corn from a street cart. troops killed his father, whose car was shot at en route to a medical appointment, and he was a toddler when American forces raided his house, looking for Al Qaeda fighters. Louay was born two months after the United States invaded Iraq in March 2003. troops – and deeply impacting a generation of Iraqis. aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln beneath a banner that declared “Mission Accomplished.” Of course, the war would drag on much longer, changing the lives of scores of U.S. Bush famously announced the end of major combat operations in Iraq aboard the U.S. Twenty years ago today, President George W. 5/20/2023 0 Comments The element robinson' The Element offers life-altering insights about the discovery of your true best self' Stephen R. Above all, he inspires us to reconnect with our true self - it could just change everything. With a wry sense of humour, Ken Robinson shows the urgent need to enhance creativity and innovation by thinking differently about ourselves. Through the stories of people like Vidal Sassoon, Arianna Huffington and Matt Groening, who have recognized their unique talents and made a successful living doing what they love, Robinson explains how every one of us can find ourselves in our Element, and achieve everything we're capable of. In this hugely influential book, world-renowned creativity expert Ken Robinson considers the child bored in class, the disillusioned employee and those of us who feel frustrated but can't quite explain why - and shows how we all need to reach our Element. The Element is the point at which natural talent meets personal passion. This analysis is an examination of Robinson’s. A significant portion of the arguments that Robinson discusses throughout the first half of his book, is that intelligence is a form of creativity. The groundbreaking international bestseller that will help you fulfil your true potential. Ken Robinson addresses a variety of different arguments that relate to finding one’s passion. 5/20/2023 0 Comments Elevation de stephen kingHe enlists Jake on an insane-and insanely possible-mission to try to prevent the Kennedy assassination. Not much later, Jake’s friend Al, who runs the local diner, divulges a secret: his storeroom is a portal to 1958. Harry escaped with a smashed leg, as evidenced by his crooked walk. He receives an essay from one of the students-a gruesome, harrowing first person story about the night 50 years ago when Harry Dunning’s father came home and killed his mother, his sister, and his brother with a hammer. Jake Epping is a thirty-five-year-old high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine, who makes extra money teaching adults in the GED program. And he introduces readers to a character who has the power to change the course of history. What if you could change it back? Stephen King’s heart-stoppingly dramatic new novel is about a man who travels back in time to prevent the JFK assassination-a thousand page tour de force.įollowing his massively successful novel Under the Dome, King sweeps readers back in time to another moment-a real life moment-when everything went wrong: the JFK assassination. On November 22, 1963, three shots rang out in Dallas, President Kennedy died, and the world changed. This chapter explores the work of Barbara Arrowsmith-Young, who struggled with severe learning disabilities as a child. Schiltz’s balance was restored using a device that stimulated her tongue, creating a new neural pathway that helped her regain her balance.Ĭhapter 2: Building Herself a Better Brain The story is used to introduce the concept of neuroplasticity and how the brain can change and adapt to new circumstances. The first chapter of the book tells the story of Cheryl Schiltz, a woman who had lost her vestibular system and was unable to maintain her balance. Part Two, titled “Practical Lessons”, explores the applications of neuroplasticity in various areas, from stroke rehabilitation to learning and addiction. Part One, titled “Soft-Wired”, provides an overview of neuroplasticity and how it challenges our traditional understanding of the brain. The book is divided into two parts, each with several chapters that delve into different aspects of neuroplasticity. It explores the concept of neuroplasticity, which is the brain’s ability to change and adapt throughout life. The book was published in 2007 and has since become a groundbreaking work in the field of neuroscience. “The Brain That Changes Itself” is a book written by Norman Doidge, a Canadian psychiatrist and psychoanalyst. 5/20/2023 0 Comments Stuff Matters by Mark MiodownikThe process takes about a week and requires constant attention from a team of four or five people, who make sure that the temperature of the fire is kept high enough by pumping air into the tatara using a manual bellows. Once fired, it is packed meticulously with layers of black sand and black charcoal, which are consumed in the ceramic furnace. The vessel is “fired”-hardened from molded clay into a ceramic-by lighting a fire inside it. This steel is made in a huge clay vessel four feet tall, four feet wide, and twelve feet long called a tatara. “These samurai swords were made from a special type of steel called tamahagane, which translates as “jewel steel,” made from the volcanic black sand of the Pacific (this consists mostly of an iron ore called magnetite, the original material for the needle of compasses). 5/20/2023 0 Comments The scarlet letter novelHe angrily exclaims that the child's father, the partner in the adulterous act, should also be punished and vows to find the man. When the husband sees Hester's shame, he asks a man in the crowd about her and is told the story of his wife's adultery. When demanded and cajoled to name the father of her child, Hester refuses.Īs Hester looks out over the crowd, she notices a small, misshapen man and recognizes him as her long-lost husband, who has been presumed lost at sea. As Hester approaches the scaffold, many of the women in the crowd are angered by her beauty and quiet dignity. Furthermore, she must stand on the scaffold for three hours, exposed to public humiliation. A young woman, Hester Prynne, has been found guilty of adultery and must wear a scarlet A on her dress as a sign of shame. In June 1642, in the Puritan town of Boston, a crowd gathers to witness an official punishment. 5/19/2023 0 Comments Sweetly by jackson pearceAll stories are seen from Gretchen’s point of view. Even though the two of them were still connected to the monstrous being, Fenris.Īnsel, Gretchen, Sophia and Sam are four important characters in this book. Sisters Red and Sweetly’s story stands alone. So for those who haven’t read Sisters Red, there’s no need to worry. However, Fenris’ hunting adventure this time brought me to new characters. Whereas in the previous book he chose Red Riding Hood, in Sweetly Jackson Pearce wrote a story based on the story of Hansel, Gretel and the witch complete with her gingerbread house.Īt first I thought I would find Scarlet, Rosie and Silas again. (goodreads) Not Everything Is As Sweet As It SeemsĪfter writing Sisters Red about sisters Scarlett and Rosie hunting a werewolf, Jackson Pearce is back with Sweetly. And he was sure of one thing: the monster would come again, and he would not leave until he was full. He wanted to know why it was his twin sister who disappeared while he survived. He said that witches were still hiding, lurking from the forest, preying on girls whenever Sophia held a chocolate festival. Gretchen and Ansel begin to forget their dark past, until Gretchen meets Samuel. The two live in the house of Sophia Kelly, the owner of a beautiful chocolate shop. A few years later, they moved to Live Oak, a town that was nearly abandoned by its inhabitants. |