Literature
The House on Mango Street
By Sandra Cisneros
The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros takes place in the late 1960's in Chicago, Illinois. Each vignette is a new story told by the main character, Esperanza. She tells stories of the people she meets, her feelings on her house, and the lessons she learns in her barrio. In the novella, you can see Esperanza mature not only from aging, but from the advice she takes from the other woman in her neighborhood. In the end of the novella, it is revealed that the character of Esperanza is actually Sandra Cisneros as a young girl, and by writing, she is freeing the woman who could not free themselves. I personally enjoyed the novella because each vignette was so full of detail, but at the same time, empty enough that you could imagine the story yourself.
Sammy and Julianna in Hollywood
By Benjamin Alire Saenz
Sammy and Julianna in Hollywood by Benjamin Alire Saenz is about a boy named Sammy overcoming many challenges and becoming a mature young adult. In the beginning of the book, we learn that Sammy is in love with a girl in his barrio named Julianna. Julianna is thought of as crazy and rude, so everyone tells Sammy he should not love her, even though he does. Early on in the book, Julianna gets killed by her father, and the story follows Sammy's recovery. He reunites with friends and becomes closer to his family and himself. I did not like this book, but I did not dislike it. I think Sammy teaches people that no matter what challenges you face, you can always overcome them, and I think that is a very powerful message. But I also feel like the book became boring at parts, given that the climax in the story happens so early.
Antigone
By Sophocles
Antigone by Sophocles is a tragic play written in ancient Greece. The play, Antigone, picks up where the story of Oedipus leaves off. Oedipus has just passed away and Antigone and her sister decide to return to Thebes with the intention of helping their brothers, Eteocles and Polyneices, avoid a prophecy that predicts that they will kill each other in a battle. Upon her arrival in Thebes, Antigone finds out that the prophecy came true and both her brothers are dead. Her brother, Eteocles, has been given a proper burial, but Creon, Antigone's uncle who inherited the throne, has threatened to kill anyone who tries to bury her other brother, Polyneices, because Creon believes Polyneices was a traitor. Antigone defies the law and buries her brother, but she is caught. Realizing that he has been a bit harsh, Creon locks her away in a prison instead of killing her. However, after hearing from a prophet, Teiresias, about how he has still been too harsh, Creon rushes to the prison to release Antigone. However, in an instance of too-late-timing, Creon finds Antigone has hung herself, and his son (Antigone's fiancé) has stabbed himself out of despair. Creon also comes to find his wife has killed herself as well after learning of her son's death. The play ends with Creon left in distress and sorrow. I enjoyed reading this play, however, it was confusing in some parts. There were many characters and you had to know the story of Oedipus before reading Antigone's story which made it all a bit confusing. But, I did enjoy reading this very tragic play.
My Sister's Keeper
By Jodi Picoult
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult is about a girl named Anna who is suing her parents for the rights to her body. Anna was conceived for one reason, and one reason only; to be a donor for her sister, Kate. Kate has had Leukemia since she was two and can only receive blood, bone marrow, etc from an exact genetic match. Thus, Anna was born. Anna has been more than willing to donate for her sister for 13 years, but she has finally decided she's had enough. She seeks out a lawyer, Campbell Alexander, to help her with her case. Meanwhile, her brother, Jesse is in a defiant act of his own. He has begun setting fires all around their city that his dad, a fireman, seems to always be the one to put out. As Kate's condition gets worse, Anna's lawsuit grows. In the end, Anna wins the case, but dies in a car crash immediately after and her organs are all donated to Kate. I really enjoyed this story, but the ending raised many questions for me and I was pretty dissatisfied by it. I thought Anna dying in the car crash was very cliché and kind of ruined the book for me.
Of Mice and Men
By John Steinbeck
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is about two men, George and Lenny, who find work at a ranch after Lenny made a mistake that cost them their last job. They meet many interesting characters at the ranch, and strengthen their friendship. But when Lenny accidentally kills the owner of the ranch's son's wife, they must flee the ranch. In the end, George realizes his only way to succeed in life is to separate from Lenny, but he knows he can't leave Lenny on his own (because of his mental disabilities), so he kills him. I liked this story because of the fascinating characters and because of how great it was written.
The Art of Racing in the Rain
By Garth Stein
The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein is about the life of a man named Denny, the twist, the story is told from the perspective of his dog, Enzo. Enzo tells the ups and downs of his owner's life through his eyes, everything from Denny meeting his wife, to her passing, to the fight for custody of his daughter with his parents-in-law, and everything in between. Enzo's only wish, to be human. In the end, Denny ends up with custody of his daughter, Zoe, and he gets his dream job of testing cars in Italy for Ferrari because he maintained a kind and positive approach throughout all of the problems he faced. Also, after Enzo dies, Denny meets a child in Italy named Enzo whom he believes is his dog's soul, alas giving Enzo his wish. I enjoyed this book when it talked about Denny's life, but the chapters where Enzo compares life to racing bored me.
Romeo and Juliet
By William Shakespeare
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is about two teenagers (Romeo and Juliet), from rival families (Montague and Capulet), who fall in love. In the play, Romeo's best friend (Mercutio) and Juliet's cousin (Tybalt) get into a fight in the town square of Verona, Italy. In order to prevent fights and keep peace between the two families in the future, the king states that anyone who is disturbing the peace will be punished by death. Later, Romeo attends the Capulet's ball and falls in love with Juliet. Then, Mercutio and Tybalt get into a fight where Tybalt kills Mercutio and then out of anger, Romeo kills Tybalt. The king realizes he is being too harsh, so executing Romeo, he banishes him. Meanwhile, Juliet's parents are trying to arrange a marriage between her and Paris (their messenger to the king). In order to avoid marrying Paris, Juliet gets a sleeping potion from Friar Lawrence (in order to appear dead) and writes a letter explaining the whole thing to Romeo. Because Juliet and Paris's wedding is moved a day earlier, and Juliet takes the potion a day early, the letter does not get to Romeo in time, so he hears that Juliet is dead. He goes to visit her in the tomb and after killing Paris, he ultimately drinks poison so he can be with Juliet in heaven. Juliet wakes up to see the love of her life (Romeo) dead next to her, so she uses his dagger to stab herself. The play ends with the Capulet family and the Montague family finally agreeing to end their feud. I think the storyline of this play was very interesting, with it's shocking twists, but a lot of the time it was difficult to understand the Shakespearian language and became boring.
Dear Zoe
By Philip Beard
Dear Zoe by Philip Beard is a series of journal entries written by 15 year old Tess DeNunzio after the tragic death of her 2 year old sister, Zoe. Throughout the book, Tess explains how she feels guilty for her sister's death because she was supposed to be watching her outside, and instead ran inside to watch the news about 9/11 when her sister was hit by a car. In the story, Tess goes to live with her father in order to escape the memories of Zoe, only to realize that there is no way of escaping and instead she should try to remember her. I really enjoyed this book because I feel like it really grasped the feelings of a teenager and was written so well.