The Cuckoos Calling

The main character of the Cuckoos Calling, Comoran Strike, is a man struggling to deal with the stress that is his life. He goes about things in a casual manner and tends to ignore the fact that his too good to be true fiancée has left him. He is practically homeless now and living in his office. He is also investigating the suicide of Lula Landry a work renound supermodel. While investigating this case we begin to learn more and more about Strike, and how he isn't as carefree or oblivious as he says. Strike has proven to be fully involved in this case and goes to many lengths to discover the truth of what actually happened to Lula. In the beginning of the story, Strike seemed to be nothing more than an uncaring and unqualified oaf, who couldn't keep up with his bills. However, as the story continued Strike has proven to be extremely intelligent and has an abundance of random facts at hand. In one part of the story he told his friend/assistant, Robin, that most people tend to use names starting with the letter A when making up a fake name on the spot. This was after she made up a fake name (Annabell) when calling an office. We also learn that Strikes childhood had been anything but stable, his father was a famous musician who was known to have many children with many different women. Strike had an abundance of siblings, who all had different father, and his mother was a drug addict who moved around very often. This could be a probable reason as to why Strike struggles to be put into a stable lifestyle. Even after he left home he went to Afghanistan and ended up losing a limb, he is a private detective and gets engage to in earth shatteringly beautiful woman who admits only went out with him ( Strike will constantly tell us that he looks more like an ox than a man) as a way to punish her ex boyfriend. It is safe to say that Strike is not one for a stable life. Which is shown when he goes on to his sisters sons birthday party. Surrounded by parents and housewives curious about his prosthetic limb Strike isn't one for social pleasentries as he awkwardly tries to be investigated in these conversations. The catalyst for Strike's changes had been when Mr.Bristow, the brother of the deceased Lula Landry, was ready to walk out and find another investigator. That's when   We began to see what makes Strike tick, who he is, what are his goals. It's then he begins to actually try and discover what actually happened to Lula Landry. It's when his true characteristics come out like determination, intelligence, and a need to stimulate the brain. Strike is not your average hero who believes in good triumphs all, he has a more analytical view on life and frankly he isn't anywhere near perfect. Which makes him so much more relatable and easier to understand.

Lone Survivor Update #2

Pgs 75-169

The main character in Lone Survivor, Marcus, is a Navy SEAL who has been giving us the story of his life and training before Operation Redwing, the current mission he is on. In his story of training and how he had to struggle to get through it Marcus changes from a skilled Navy soldier to a member of one of the world's most elite fighting forces, the United States Navy SEALs. When learning the skills of the trade as a special forces operator, Marcus is pushed to his limits by ruthless men who have the job of judging if you can become a Navy SEAL. Through this process, Marcus is forced to complete incredible physical feats on little to no sleep and enormous mental stress. The worst of these    cycles that must be completed is Hell Week. "Students will demonstrate the qualities and personal characteristics of determination, courage, self-sacrifice, teamwork, leadership, and a never-quit attitude, under adverse environmental conditions, fatigue, and stress throughout Hell Week" (130). Hell Week is when the weak get separated from strong, when the instructors see how soldiers react during dangerous situations. This is when it is determined if you could endanger your teammates during a firefight. This cycle determines if you can be a Navy SEAL or should return to the Navy.

11-26 Update

While reading the book, Lone Survivor, by Marcus Luttrell, it is clear that Marcus is writing this book in the perspective of himself as a Navy SEAL. He often reminds the reader of the state-of-mind a Navy SEAL has, and the way a Navy SEAL would deal with a situation. For example, he says, "SEALs react somewhat differently and generally look for a faster solution" (29) to show the differences of a Navy SEAL from everyone else in the world. It is clear that he is very proud of what he accomplished while being a Navy SEAL and has the mindset of one to this day.  Also, I can understand what his values are as a person. He always looks out for the person to his left and right before he thinks of himself, always. He says, "In the SEALs, it's always your teammates. No exceptions" (27). It is also clear that he is a determined person, and will never give up on what he's doing, no matter what the circumstances are, because that is the mindset of a Navy SEAL. I think that the way he writes this book, in the voice of him as a Navy SEAL, will be a major part in this book, and the way I experience it. By writing this book in the voice of a Navy SEAL, I will feel like I am actually there, and I will know exactly what he was thinking and feeling while he was in Iraq as a Navy SEAL. Right now, he is on his way to Afghanistan. He is traveling with a group of strong and fearless Navy SEALs. To him, they are like brothers. He explained his early years of being a Navy SEAL and the types of things he did before Operation Red Wings. One thing he would do was he would sweep the streets during the night and capture terrorist. He explained the mind-set he had while completing those missions and the crazy stuff that went on. So far, Marcus has not changed, but he does have very distinct character. If you had no clue he was a Navy SEAL or what the book was about, you could read two pages and tell that he was a Navy SEAL, or someone in the armed forces, just by the way he talks and his values. So far, I am really enjoying this book and can't wait to read more and get to the part where he actually carries out the operation.

My current understanding of the main charatacter, Pofessor Langdon, is that he's very intelligent and dedicated to his work. As the, DaVinci Code dives deeper into the strange murder of an innocent man, Langdon uses his knowledge to decode hidden messages and symbolism. He's able to so easily figure out the meaning of things that would otherwise completely confuse anyone else. He looks at things differently, and thus knows almost everything about anything. It is clear that he has studied symbolism and conpsiracies for a great deal of time and that he is smarter than most.

    In the beginning of the story, when asked to assess a muder case, Langdon doesn't seem too extatic. He teaches people about symbolism, but he very rarely takes on murders, and events that challenge the political world, and the Catholic Church. These things are so very contreversial, and he knows that not everyone accepts his views. He proceeds to take the case, and he later learns things he had never known before. He learns about things that are hidden from the public. This case makes him even wiser on the things he so loves to study. The reason he is accumulating more knowledge during this case, is that he is being shown things that are very private, and could change overall views of issues in the world today. He is exposed to a world of new knowledge that he wouldv'e never faced if he hadn't taken the case in the first place.

Update of Lone Surviver

Jack Hoelzer
Period 6
11/26/14

    So far in the story, I can see that Marcus is incredibly determined, hard working and will not give up no matter what task stands in his way.  From the begining to the point that I am t now, Marcus had faced so many obstacles and even entered the most brutal military training in the world, yet he fought through the pain and near-death situations.  He has no other ambitions but to serve his nation, protect his country, and become the best Navy Seal he could possibly be.  Wheather it is completeing tasks that are given to him, or getting extra voluntary work in at the hospitals, Marcus puts forth his greates effort nd strives to reach perfection.  At the point where I am now, Marcus is proving to be a great Seal and is a trustworthy partener in battle.  The conditions which they face in the middle east are attrocious and the plentiful laws that restrict their war tactics constantly get in theit way.  Each Seal has to know everything about the laws and regulations of battle, what to do in every possible situation and how to work under pressure and do as you are told.  Marcus emulates each and every one of these characteristics and has proven to be an incredible Navy Seal.  

    In the begining of the book, Marcus was still a very determined young man and was hopefull to become a navy seal some day.  He was ambitious, put in hard work and tried hard, but was not nearly as well educated or aware of war conditions as he is now.  He showed that he was determined in the begining of the book by working with his neighbor, Billy Shelton, to get stronger and bigger in order to prepre for the training.  He worked as hard as he could, completing intense workouts and working for an insane amount of time.  However, inbetween these hard work hours, Marcus had time to go for a leisurely swin with his brother or help around the house.  However, by the point I am at now, Marcus has managed to become more determined, harder working and more educated.  Now, Marcus has vertually no down time and when he isn't finishing his duties in the field, he is putting in extra time at the local hospital to become a better team medic.  Marcus has evolved from being a once ambitious kid to fulfilling his dreams and growing up to be a hard working and determined Navy Seal

Response to Question:

So far in my book, my chapters switches from main character Jefferson, to the other character Donna. Jefferson is a courageous and outgoing on the outside, just is scared and trimmed on the inside. But, he only shows himself like this because he has a crush on Donna. Jefferson is the leader of the tribe. He leads them to the best of his abilities. For example, when the clan arrive at Grand Central, a trading grounds for food, guns, ammo, and lectures for a person like book and cloths. To get the tribe more money to get food and ammo, Jefferson enters a fight. He gets the snot beaten out of him for the better of the tribe. It says, " He head-butts me, and I turn my face just to avoid getting my nose broken, with the result that he hits me on my left eyebrow. I feel the skin split open, and blood start to trickle down into my eyes"(184). Jefferson, although he takes a few good shots, he beats this kid. What he does with his money, he goes and buys what the tribe needs, not what he wants. He wanted a new gun for himself, but he saw how they were struggling, so he gave up the gun, and bought food, water, and ammo for everyone else. Jefferson shows us how a leader should lead, and how to put others in front of himself . He has grown from the kid in the beginning, who's brother was the leader, and he was the kid in the corner, to the leader of a tribe. The other main character in the book is Donna. She was the town nurse when the tribe was still at 'The Village'. But now that they are gone, she is the caring person in the group. She feels that everything should be good in there lives. She takes everything one step at a time. She is pure innocents. For example, after the fight, this little kid they met named Ratso showed them to the only bar left in Manhatten still up and running. Another kid in the tribe by the name of Peter likes to drink, so he buys everyone a round. Being Donna, she has never drinker before. So, when Peter comes back with martins for everyone, she tried it. She said, " Gross. Is this what it's support to be like?"(191). Donna had no idea what this drink is support to taste like. But, when she tried it, because she always wants to try new things, she ends up hating it. She has grown from a girl who wanted to stay in her room all day and read, to a girl who never wants to be locked up again in her room.

Shutter Island- Character Changes

Shutter Island-Teddy Daniels Character Change

In my semester reading book, Shutter Island, we meet a U.S. marshal named Teddy Daniels. He is described to be tall, good looking, and very aggressive in his manner when he is aggravated. A distinct detail about him is that he frequently gets head-splitting migraines that pretty much immobilize him until he either passes out from the pain, or takes a large amount of pills to help ease the pain. The cause of these migraines seem to be from the constant pressure he and others around him put onto himself, but mostly from the tragic death of his wife that occurred three years prior.

In the beginning of the story, Teddy constantly relates every movement of the day to something Dolores used to do. He blames himself for her death because while he was at work, their apartment complex caught on fire from a pyromaniac's flame, and killed her. Later in the book, we find out the name of the man, which leads to Teddy traveling to Shutter Island, where the criminal is locked up to be experimented on.

As time progresses, Teddy begins to have dreams about Dolores, that turn into nightmares. She is always being embraced by her husband when she says that it's time to let her go and for him to wake up. He is deeply in love with Dolores and refuses to let go of her. This is a metaphor because he cannot actually feel her in the flesh, but rather mentally, he doesn't want to let go. For him, this would mean he has given up on her and doesn't love her anymore. Teddy is terrified of losing their connection as he comments on forgetting small things about her, such as her scent, how she said certain words, and so on.

Divergent Update for Nov. 26, 2014

Throughout the story so far, the main character, Beatrice, has undergone many minor transformations as the events of the story have unfolded. At this point in the story, the main character has had to choose between 4 to 5 different factions, each one representing a different kind of person, who all share the same character traits. She chose to stray from her home "faction" and went to a faction known as "dauntless", so named because they have no fear and are expected to be able to act quickly, while still regarding their safety. This is a transformation as she thought she was going to stay in her original faction for her life, much like her mother and father, and that is what her father expected her to do, even though she seemed unhappy in the faction. By choosing to join the dauntless, she went against what her mother had thought, something she had never done before. After this, she had to go through the dauntless initiation which involves jumping on and off of a moving train, jumping down into the capital of the dauntless and surviving the training, which includes shooting, and hand-to-hand combat so far. The first step, which was to shoot a gun, was something completely new to her as she had never even held a gun before because her faction felt that guns were only used for personal gain, which was against its morals. Even so, she knew that her mother and father would not approve of her holding a gun, let alone shooting it. Next came the fighting in hand to hand combat, which again she was never allowed to do as it was still considered to be done only for personal gain. She noticed the same feelings of knowing her mother and father would not approve of what she is doing, and she even started to miss home for a little bit, and kept thinking back to her mother and father a lot, especially the first couple of nights when she was trying to get to sleep. However, through the friends she makes from the other factions who chose to switch to dauntless, she develops less of a longing for home, and has become better at living in the moment, with the fact that she is for the first time, away from her home and the restrictions that accompany that. I think the biggest transformation was caused by her friends taking her to get rid of the clothes she was given from her old faction, which were very conservative, and buying her new clothes that make her more "noticeable". By doing this, the friends are cutting her off from something from her old faction, which is helping her change and assimilate into the new one. Also, she changes her name from Beatrice to Tris, once again something which cuts off her connection to her home. 

In the book Lone Survivor, by Marcus Luttrell you can see the change happening from the vary beginning.  From the very beginning Marcus who is the main charicter is in his perspective of when he was a Navy Seal.  This is going to be critical for the whole book, because you get to actually be there when the events are unfolding.  Of course not physically but mentally.  He is beginning his tour in Iraq and narrating himself as he does so.  He has been a Seal for quite some time now with his brother Morgan.  He has a closly knit group of fearless men he who are completing his missions with.   All of them have been fighting for years togather.  The story begain when they were on there flight over to an Iraq air strip in there "flying wearhouse" as they called it but in all reality it was just a big military plane.  The first changes you see is when he is reflecting back to his childhood.  His brother morgan is a little better than he is it seems at everything.  Weather it be swimmjng running whatever. But when he is on this plane he seems really confidint, almost non submisive to anyone.  I think that the catalist for this was when they were in highschool.  He and his brother morgan both new that they wanted to be Seals because of there family legasy, so they decited to meet and train with a former Seal.  This man really hardend Marcus and tought him to dig deep and beleve in himself.

- Weston S

Paper Towns: Q and his new attitude

I am almost halfway through Paper Towns by John Green and Q has changed drasticaly compared to the beginning. At the start of the book, Q is kind of quiet and shy. The thought of skipping school was completly ridiculous to old Q. But after Margo makes him go out for a night on the town and for her to never return, Q lets himself crawl out of his shell. He is constantly wondering about Margo, and he needs to find her. Q quickly becomes this rebelious kid who decides to skip school and drive an hour away from their hometown, to this abandoned mall where Margo said she was. He stopped being this small, weak science kid and because a tough, rebelious, can-break-doors-down-with-his-fist kid. Ever since Margo popped into Q's life, he completly changed. He became more passionate in life after that night with Margo. Before it, he was focused mainly on school and didn't really have a lot of fun in his life, but now he is searching for an adventure. And, of course, Margo.

While reading the book, Mexican White boy, by Matt De La Pena. We notice that the main character Danny has changed a lot over the time that he has been in National City. We first start off seeing that Danny is a solitary, lonely, and a outcast for the usual type of people that are found in the slums of the  city. To get to know Danny first you need to know the type of people from national city and how they act. In National City, most of the people in national city are usually poor, urban, and very hard working. However, some of the people come from these types of backgrounds that leads them to not be economically stable. Danny however,  comes from a more wealthy, well off town where he could wear vans, kakis, and a button down shirt and look like everybody else. 

Another thing that leads Danny to become more open in National City is the affect that his friends have no him. One example is his best friend Uno, at first, Uno beats up Danny due to problems in a baseball game. However, Uno sees how Danny can pitch and that brings the two together.   

Gone Girl

          In Gone Girl, there are two main characters, Nick and Amy. The story is told from both of thier points of view and as Nick investigates the sudden dissaparence of Amy, we read excepts from Amy's diary from further back-- leading up to her dissaparence. By telling the story this way, we (the reader) solve the mystery with both the direct clues (Nick's story,) and the internal clues (Amy's diary.) By exploring how Nick copes with his wife's absence, and seeing how Amy felt during this marrige, we see both of the main character's at their best and worst, learning a lot about them.
          NICK: We were introudeced to him as a shy, relatable, innocent person. But as I read on, I notice how he is not who you keep thinking he is/wanting him to be. Nick is cheating on Amy, lying to the poliece, and manipuliting his family. The reader keeps assuming that Nick is innocent, the perfect husband, and the way the story is told, you excuse everything he does by holding onto the character you were first introduced to. I began thinking that there was no way Nick could be a suspect, but now he is high on my list.
          AMY: Amy is introduced in many different ways, her real personality is the actual mystery of the book. She is seen as the bitch, the perfect girl, the mess, the innocent victim, and the not innocent victim. Amy is an enigima and through her diary entries, we have no way of getting any clues about her dissaparence at all. She is infatuated with her love for nick in once instance, and extermley unhappy with her marrige the next.
          There are still many mysteries in my book, and the plot based one is the least important. While the poliece search for clues about Amy going missing, the reader serches for clues about who Amy actually is. While the poleiece search for clues to help Nick, the reader searches for clues about Nick. I am excited to keep reading to solve the many questions I have in Gone Girl.

Semester Reading 11-26 Update

After reading multiple chapters in the novel, The Third Rail, I can understand Harkness even more now. He is even more troubled by his past as I believed before, and as the book has progressed, he seems to not have the ability to let go of those mistakes. He is constantly getting into trouble and getting drunk which is only hurting him in the present. He thinks this will get him to forget the mistakes he made in the past but this is clearly not true. People are taking advantage of him in his poor mental state as they did things like steal his gun or other such hooligans. It seems he really has made no change since prior to the beginning of the book when he made that huge mistake as a cop. This would be seen as the only catalyst but it isn't really even in the book. Hopefully he is able to change in move on later in the story.

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand- 11/26/14

Currently, the main character, Louis, is struggling with the danger that comes with war because he has just been deployed to Hawaii as an Air Force bomber. He has witnessed many close friends die in planes and realized the danger that comes with flying these planes. Although, he is eager to support America, he also fears he will not return home. When the story began, Louis was only a child growing up in a small town in California. He was mischievous and could be caught stealing food from various neighbors and shops around town. Eventually, he became known for his fast getaways and numerous heists. Meanwhile, Louis was also doing poorly in school and did not have many friends that were good influences on him. When his brother discovered he had a talent for running, it completely transformed Louis' life. He began focusing on excelling on the track instead of stealing from his neighbors. His determination on the track transferred to school were he improved his grades and became quite popular among his classmates. Louis' brother refocussing Louis' attention to running gave him a purpose and made him want to work harder in all aspects of his life.

       Jimmy Stanley

       Third Rail

       11/26/014

          So far, I have had the opportunity to explore the totally unoriginal world of crime-drama "Third Rail." The main character is named Harkness, and he is not a good person. He was once a beloved cop success story, until he made a huge mistake that ruined his life. Now he has lost his gun because he got drunk and can't remember where he lost it, and a new group of drug lords in town are using the gun against him to do things.

           Since the beginning of the story, Harkness was like an arrogant and reckless lying cop with a knack for finding hidden stuff. The thing is, Harkness is no hero, he is an idiot. But his great eyes help him have the talent of busting drug raids and stuff. Otherwise, he is just another dumb cop. Throughout the story, I have not seen any changes in the character. My understanding is that he does not care about anyone else, he just wants to look good on paper, and have a good reputation. 

           I do not think the author did a good job trying to make a likable character, so that is my take SO FAR on Harkness. He may mature once he finds his gun, so this is absolutely not permanent. 

Enders game through Chapter 10

I have been reading Ender's Game over the last few weeks. I have noticed the main character Ender. He started out very sad and ungreatful. He was chosen for his powers to be used to fight buggers. He's being treated terribly and school is boring him. He meets Peter and they become enemies. Peter is very mean to Ender even though Ender approaches him nicely. After being bullied and getting in fights he makes a friend named Graff. Graff admires Ender's intelligence.bLater in the book he gains respect by showcasing his skill. He is put in charge of a bad army. Although they finally gave him respect they are not making it any easier on him. He is happy but will soon be overwhelmed because he has a bad army. Being a commander is a hard job although Ender has proved ready. At the beggining he was ashamed of his extrodinary abilities but now he is greatful and always uses them to his advantage.

Update on Semester Reading

At this point, some of you have finished several books while others have finished a few chapters.  It's time to step up the reading, as you will need to be finished reading your book on December 16th.  In light of that, we will be reading today and tomorrow and one day a week up until the Holiday Break in December.  Each week, you will also have a blog post to think about what is happening in your novel to help you prepare for the final assignment.  

This week’s question:  What understanding do you have of the main character so far?  Who is s/he when the story began?  What changes in character have occurred?  What have been the catalysts for these changes so far? 

Moving forward, your blog posts will be assessed using the following rubric:

95+	85+	75+	65+	55+
·       Insightful and perceptive response addresses the question ·       Examples and details from the text strongly support purpose ·       Language is highly effective and has an engaging tone ·       No errors are present in grammar, usage or mechanics	·       Completely addresses the question ·       Examples and details from the text fully support purpose ·       Language is effective and has an appropriate tone ·       Minor errors in SWE don’t distract the reader	·     Broad and generalized response to the question ·     Some examples and/or details may be used or may be superficially related to purpose ·     Language is inconsistent in its effectiveness ·     Errors are present and may obscure meaning	·     Vague response or oversimplified response to the question ·     Limited to no examples or details used  or are disconnected from purpose ·     Language is mostly ineffective ·     Errors obscure meaning	·     Response does not answer the question ·     No examples or details are used in response ·     Errors prevent the communication of ideas ·     Grammatical errors prohibit communication of ideas