Thursday, September 11, 2014

Book One Project






For Twilight, there’s team Edward and team Jacob. So why not team Nick and team Amy merchandise. I was constantly torn between who I liked better. Nick, the cheater who is being framed by his psychotic wife. Or Amy, the crazy wife who is being cheated on by her unfaithful husband. I’m sure some people agree with what Amy did, and some people are taking Nick’s side, because they feel bad for him. I personally, think Amy is a psycho and should be locked up away from people forever, but that’s just me.

My idea is that we could have shirts, posters, stickers, etc. saying “Team Amy” or “Team Nick”. Amy’s merchandise could have a picture of her, holding the Punch and Judy dolls in her arms. It could have quotes from her fake diary in the background. Nick’s merchandise could have a picture of him in front of The Bar holding the 4 clues Amy gave him for the scavenger hunt.  Most people have probably chosen a side, Amy or Nick.  On page 142, Nick begins with "I have a mistress. Now is the part where I have to tell you I have a mistress and you stop liking me." That was a huge turning point in the book. We were all feeling so bad for Nick that his wife is gone and blah blah blah. But, now he's a cheating jerk who has a wife that's missing and a 23 year old mistress. So, team Nick or team Amy?  
Another huge turning point in the book is in part two, Boy Meets Girl. It’s the present now, and it begins with Amy’s diary entry. On page 219 she says “I’m so much happier now that I’m dead. Technically, missing. Soon to be presumed dead.” This part proves that Amy is faking her own death and it literally framing her husband. What a psycho, who does that? But, on the other hand, her husband was cheating on her and she needed to get the heck out of Dodge. Amy wrote a fake diary, cut herself and then cleaned up the blood, staged a fake fight in the living room, left without a trace. Some readers may not like Amy so much at this point. So, team Nick, or team Amy?
Close to the end of the book, in part three, is the biggest turning point in the book. It’s also where most readers decide if they want Amy dead, or alive. It’s when Nick tries to choke her, and possibly kill her. On page 394, the couple is arguing. Amy compares Nick to his dad which makes him angry, and the chapter ends with, “Then his hands are on my neck.” At the start of the next chapter, from Nick’s perspective, it begins, “Her pulse was finally throbbing between my fingers, the way that I’d imagined.” At this point, the reader either wants Nick to kill Amy, or for him to let her go. I personally wish he would’ve killed her, but that isn’t how it ended. However, this is a huge indication of who the reader likes more. Team Nick, or team Amy?

The funny part was, on page 410 Nick actually says, “So let everyone take sides. Team Nick, Team Amy. Turn it into even more of a game. Sell some f***ing T-Shirts.” Which is true, they absolutely should! Twilight was such a big hit, and people obviously were taking sides. Good and Evil. In this case it’s a little bit of both, but it could still work. It could spike conversations in book clubs. Families could discuss who they like better over the dinner table. Friends could argue about how crazy Amy is and how careless Nick is. In all of the name of fun, no one needs to be throwing punches over how much they love Nick or over how crazy Amy is.

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

What is a Book? (Finished)



A book is a place that is somewhere outside of reality. It is something that you get to picture and create in your own mind. A book is an escape from the real world. Something to spark your imagination. It is not a Kindle, or an iPad. It’s something with pages inside of it, with a message between the lines. A book has an old smell to it, like moth balls and dust. The pages are dog eared because it’s clearly been loved on, and has a coffee stain on the front cover of it. With maybe a few spider webs inside here and there. You can’t have any of those things with a Kindle or an iPad or a cell phone copy of the book. If you have to charge anything to read it, then it is not a book. Sure, it’s an alternative. But it’s nothing like going to the bookstore and sitting in a chair surrounded by old books wishing to be read. A book is nothing without its spine. I mean I own a kindle, but I never use it. It hurts my eyes when I look at it too long. Sure, it’s convenient being able to download a book at the push of a button, but the fact that we are making everything electronic makes me angry. Especially books. I actually enjoy going to the bookstore and hunting to find the book I’m looking for. It’s like a scavenger hunt, you never know what you’ll find. A book is also something you’re able to collect and pass down to your friends and family throughout the years. It’s not like you can pass a Kindle or iPad down. You can’t collect Kindles and iPads. Yes, you can have your own personal library on those devices, but it isn’t the same. A book to me, is something I can hold in two hands, not on some special, electronic device, with real paper and pages I can turn and enjoy.

 

Friday, September 5, 2014

Why I Read (Finished)


I read mostly to escape from the real world. I read because I get to think of how all the characters look and how everything around them looks. It's an escape from reality, and you plunge into your own little world of imagination. I also read because I get an adrenaline rush from it. I usually read mystery and suspense books. I find them most interesting. Once I get hooked on a book, I honestly can't put it down and will read for hours without even thinking about it. I usually read when I’m upset or angry, because it calms me down. I take a break from the real world and take the time and go to a different world inside a book. I also read to pass time, like in the car or on vacation. It gives me something to do, and it passes a lot of time, like sleeping. But reading is better. Another reason I read is to fall asleep. If I’m awake at night and can’t seem to fall asleep, I’ll pick up a book and read for a while until I feel drowsy, and I can usually fall right to sleep. I read for many different types of reasons, but mostly because I love it.