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TOPIC:
books about gender and sexuality

WHY I PICKED IT:
Recently, I have found myself fascinated by these centrally important forces that often impact our social, work, and legal interactions. In our current environment, the topics have become increasingly important, and I would like to further educate myself about these fields. Additionally, I look forward to seeing how authors portray the depth and intensity of these experiences.

TEXTS:

Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Black

I Wish You All The Best by Mason Deaver

Heartstopper by Alice Oseman

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

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TOPIC: Horror Books

WHY I PICKED IT: I picked horror books because I think they will excite me and actually give me an interest to read.  I've always been interested by horror movies and how the movies always have a twist that changes the whole movie, so the reason I picked horror books is because I think they will be interesting.

TEXTS:

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

Penpal by Dathan Auerbach

Cujo by Stephen King

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TOPIC:
Romance novels

WHY I PICKED IT:
One of my idols that I watch has recently gotten into reading. It has been something I have wanted to do for a very long time, but I feel like I can never find the right books. After watching one of her videos where she recommended some novels I decided I would try some out since we both have similar interests, likings, and style.

TEXTS:

They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera

It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover

A Thousand Boy Kisses by Tillie Cole

November 9 by Colleen Hoover

*Recs from Nicole Laeno

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I chose legal thrillers because I love to read about them. I love to see how people can come up with such interesting arguments so quickly.

The Firm by John Grisham

The Anatomy of a Murder by Robert Traver

Presumed Innocent by Scott Turow

The Innocent Man by John Grisham

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TEXTS:

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

Blindsight by Peter Watts

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell

Story of Your Life by Ted Chiang

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Last year, we read the short story "Harrison Bergeron," and I enjoyed Kurt Vonnegut's ability to combine science fiction, dark humor, and social commentary. Vonnegut is one of my family's favorite authors; we have a signed copy of Slaughterhouse Five. However, I've never had the time to read any of Vonnegut's books, so I'm excited to have that opportunity now.

TEXTS:

Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut

Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut

Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut

OTHER SOURCES:

Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library

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In your column to the right, add the following: 

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In your column to the right, add the following: 

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DEADLINES & REQUIREMENTS: (Note: Deadlines subject to change if needed.)

At the top of the column, type your topic and your list of texts. (Feel free to copy over from the proposal.)

Monday, 10/18: Book 1 finished and posted on IRP Padlet

In a video or in writing, give a summary and a book review for your first book.

Summary:

Who were the characters? What was the setting? What were the key events?

Be sure to avoid spoilers, or label them clearly so we can skip them if we want.

Review:

You MUST use at least 3 literary terms!

What was good about the book? What made it valuable? What did the author do well?

What could have been better?

What audience would enjoy this book? Try to make your review as precise and useful to a potential reader as possible.

Monday, 12/6: Book 2 finished and posted on IRP Padlet

Summary:

Who were the characters? What was the setting? What were the key events?

Be sure to avoid spoilers, or label them clearly so we can skip them if we want.

Review:

You MUST use at least 3 literary terms!

What was good about the book? What made it valuable? What did the author do well?

What could have been better?

What audience would enjoy this book? Try to make your review as precise and useful to a potential reader as possible.

Include comparison to your first book.

Monday, 2/21 -- 2/28: Book 3 finished and posted on IRP Padlet

Summary:

Who were the characters? What was the setting? What were the key events?

Be sure to avoid spoilers, or label them clearly so we can skip them if we want.

Review:

You MUST use at least 3 literary terms!

What was good about the book? What made it valuable? What did the author do well?

What could have been better?

What audience would enjoy this book? Try to make your review as precise and useful to a potential reader as possible.

Include comparison to your first two books.

Monday, 4/25 -- Due dated moved to 5/5 & 5/6: Book 4 finished and posted on IRP Padlet + Summative post finished

Summary:

Who were the characters? What was the setting? What were the key events?

Be sure to avoid spoilers, or label them clearly so we can skip them if we want.

Review:

You MUST use at least 3 literary terms!

What was good about the book? What made it valuable? What did the author do well?

What could have been better?

What audience would enjoy this book? Try to make your review as precise and useful to a potential reader as possible.

Include comparison to your first three books.

Project Wrap-Up:

Summarize what you learned, what you recommend, and what you'll read next. Wrap up any final overall thoughts about this project.

Will you read more on this subject? Do you have new opinions on your topic that you didn't have before

Would you recommend the texts that you read? Did you have a favorite?

Do you think this project was rewarding for you? If so, why? Should we continue to do this project in the future?

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Summary:
Ender's Game follows a young boy named Ender as he is recruited to defeat the impending invasion of an alien species. Ender is recruited for his empathy (a quality that is very important to me) and his resulting tactical wisdom. He is a master of anticipating what an "enemy" will do, in both physical wargames and video games. In the process of being groomed as a soldier, he is bullied and pushed in extreme ways that sometimes make the reader wonder if it's worth it. In the end, he does encounter the alien "enemy," and his skills pay off...at great cost.

Review:
I love this book. Orson Scott Card is a master of creating layered characters with whom the reader can identify, in the context of an adventure story, while still encouraging the reader to think through important questions about war and empathy. Ender uses his ability to put himself into the mind of other characters in order to anticipate their moves and ultimately defeat them -- but then, he is haunted by having destroyed a so-called enemy whose interests he understands and feels deeply. In fact, in its critique of war, Ender's Game is a nice companion to Slaughterhouse-Five and All Quiet on the Western Front -- two of the greatest anti-war novels of all time. While Card's book doesn't necessarily deserve the designation of "Classic," it is a pleasurable and thought-provoking leisure read.

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**Need more info about how to create your post? See my example in the far right column.**

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**Need more info about how to create your post? See my example in the far right column.**

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Stories of Your Life & Others by Ted Chiang

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Stories of Your Life & Others by Ted Chiang

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Summary:
This collection of short stories is an interesting mix of fantasy and sci fi. Some of the stories, like "Tower of Babylon," even have a sort of mythic or allegorical element. Others, like "Hell is the Absence of God," are hilariously satirical. Meanwhile, "Story of Your Life," the story for which I chose the collection, is fairly straightforward sci fi dealing with the challenge of communicating with an alien species, the interconnected nature of perception and language, and the associated concept of time.

Review:
This story collection, although celebrated by critics, is a little uneven in my opinion. Some of the stories are memorable classics, like "Hell is the Absence of God" and "Story of Your Life." Others, like "Seventy-Two Letters" and "Understand," were overly lengthy and largely forgettable. I enjoyed comparing "Story of Your Life" with Arrival, the movie based on the story. The complicated time-related premise (no spoilers!) is even more clearly elucidated in the film than in the story, but the story is more haunting. I appreciate that Chiang seems always to be delivering an ethical or humanist message in his stories, rather than simply playing out a futuristic sci fi premise. There is always a moral component to his stories, and they are remarkably varied in type and in tone. Despite some complaints, and despite that only one of the stories directly related to my theme, I did enjoy the collection, and I intend to read his other story collection Exhalation when I have some time.

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TOPIC:
Romance

WHY I PICKED IT:
I have always enjoyed reading romance novels because of my fascination with being able to follow characters through their quest for love. The way the audience experiences the highs and lows of someone's personal and emotional love journey is truly captivating. Reading romance novels fills me with exhilaration, thrill, and anticipation for more.

TEXTS:
- Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
- Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
- Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
- Ties That Tether by Jane Igharo
- Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman

OTHER SOURCES:
- Call Me By Your Name film by Lucas Guadagnino

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TOPIC:

Political Philosophies

WHY I PICKED IT:

I received an introduction to political philosophies when I read The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli. The Prince sparked an interest in seeing how philosophies control politics. I am interested in learning what philosophies successful empires employed and what philosophies caused their downfall. I want to dive into the origin of all politics and see what drives the political world today.

TEXTS:

The Republic by Plato

A Theory of Justice by John Rawls

Anarchy, State, and Utopia by Robert Nozick

Politics by Aristotle

The Art of War by Sun Tzu

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Anarchy, State, and Utopia by Robert Nozick

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Anarchy, State, and Utopia by Robert Nozick

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Summary:
Anarchy, State, and Utopia presents the libertarian ideals of Robert Nozick as the ultimate design for a state or nation. Nozick splits his book into three parts, one to justify the minimal state, another to argue that any state more powerful than the minimal state is unjustifiable, and the final part to show the utopia a minimal state provides. Part one begins with anarchy, which explains that all states violate individual rights and follow impermissible morals. Nozick argues that anarchy will inevitably develop into a minimal state without any violation of rights. He also provides extensive arguments as to why a minimal state may offer more benefit than anarchy, such as the argument that state absence rejects common morals and results in chaos and war. Part two focuses on responses to John Rawl’s book A Theory of Justice and proving that Rawl’s liberal ideals fall short of any permissible morals that would not infiltrate individual rights. Nozick argues that any state design other than the minimal state, a libertarian state, violates individual rights and eventually leads to anarchy. In part three, Nozick offers an optimistic view of the results of a libertarian state, a utopia for humankind that thrives off of migrations to other states and spreads new ideas across the world. He concludes Anarchy, State, and Utopia by expressing his hope for a minimal state utopia where individual rights are honored and preserved.

Review:
In complete honesty, I did not entirely enjoy reading this book. While the ideas in Anarchy, State, and Utopia are not complicated, Nozick describes them in difficult ways, often relying on previous knowledge of various texts. For example, nearly every chapter refers to A Theory of Justice by John Rawls or John Locke and his beliefs on state of nature theory. Unlike other philosophical works, he explains his philosophies after discussing examples and the products of his idea. Although his ideas, in many respects, illustrate utter brilliance, his writing style distracts from appreciation of those ideas. However, the way he uses logic to bolster his opinions completely captivates the reader into some degree of comprehension. His philosophies provoke deep thought into the boundaries of state influence in personal matters and the effects morals have on human existence and relations. Nozick’s ability to use complex logic to connect simple ideas and prove worldviews is the highlight of his work. Some may find his writing confusing, but it requires time and thought to grasp the enormity of his political philosophies. Once readers look past the rough exterior of his words, Nozick provides brilliant insight into the world of politics that deepens readers’ understanding of governments today. Anyone who enjoys complex logic, philosophy, and thought-provoking arguments would love Anarchy, State, and Utopia by Robert Nozick.

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WHY I PICKED IT:
I've always loved hip-hop music and have enjoyed the stories that rap artists tell in their music. I believe that understanding more about the artists life will help me connect them to the music that they make. The autobiographies will dig deeper in the story of their life making music and outside of it.

TEXTS:

The Autobiography of Gucci Mane by Gucci Mane

From Pieces to Weight: Once Upon a Time in Southside Queens by 50 Cent

Decoded by Jay-Z

Gone Til November: A Journal of Rikers by Lil Wayne

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Gone Til November: A Journal of Rikers by Lil Wayne

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Gone Til November: A Journal of Rikers by Lil Wayne

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Summary:
Gone Til November is a series of Dwayne Carter's thoughts during his time at Rikers Island jail in 2010. Dwayne Carter, also known as Lil Wayne, was sentenced for eight months for illegal gun position. To pass time in jail, Carter writes about what goes on around him and what goes on behind his music he is trying to release. His record label was not allowing him to release the music he wanted to, so he turned his journal into a book. Weezy writes down what each day is like from morning to night. He describes his encounters with his inmates and the relationship he has with them and the prison workers. Weezy tries to make the best out of the little he has while being incarcerated, by being optimistic. He paints a picture of his conflicts and encounters with suicide and jail life.

Review:
I came into this book expecting an autobiography about his entire life. Instead, I was surprised to learn about the time he spent in jail. I enjoyed that there is a mix of humor and touching moments. Because Lil Wayne had no idea that he was going to publish his journal into a book until he was out of jail, it was not formatted in the same way as most books are. I recommend this book for everyone but especially Lil Wayne fans.

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I chose a dystopian fiction because it is very cool to see characters in a book learn the truth about their reality. It is cool to read about this because as you're reading this, you could picture in your head if this could happen to you.

Maze Runner by James Dashner

The Scorch Trials by James Dashner

The Death Cure by James Dashner

The Kill Order by James Dashner

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Summary:

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Review:

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Summary:
Heartstopper follows fifteen year-old Charlie Spring as he and his love interest struggle against the heteronormative environment of the Truham academy. Following the establishment of the school's vertical form groups, Charlie and Nick Nelson are made to sit next to one another and the two begin to share an intimate relationship. Oseman recounts the boys' meaningful moments and episodes throughout their romance, detailing battles with love, life, and mental health while sharing the experiences of this marginalized community.

Review:
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Olsen expertly tells the teenage romance and properly develops each character, allowing the reader an escape from their everyday surroundings. The author portrays viewpoints of a group that have otherwise been neglected by the vast majority of media, and this graphic novel proves beneficial for all looking to educate themselves about the LGBTQ+ experience or for a casual read. Although the episodic style of the tale may not suit all readers, I personally enjoyed how the story was crafted and found the book to be worthwhile overall.

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TOPIC:

Graphic Novels

WHY I PICKED IT:

After we read American Born Chinese last year, I was fascinated by it and wished the rest of the year we were reading graphic novels. I love the style of how graphic novels are written. I’m curious about how the graphic novel writers and their style compare and contrast with each other.

TEXTS:

• Maus by Art Spiegelman
• Watchmen by Alan Moore
• They Called Us Enemy by George Takei
• This One Summer by Mariel Tamaki

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Summary:
Coraline follows an 11-year old girl named Coraline who moves with her family from Michigan to Oregon. Despite Coraline's objections, her parents switch careers to become co-authors of a gardening book, which causes them to move. While unpacking, Coraline meets her eccentric and odd neighbors, one of whom gives her a certain something to help prepare her for the dangers to come. There is a locked door in Coraline's house, unbeknownst to her or anyone else in Oregon, that holds a dark secret and an ancient evil.

Review:
This book was a page-turner that kept the reader on their toes and up to their neck in suspense. Neil Gaiman beautifully portrays the feeling of being trapped in an unknown location with limited resources. Unlike the movie, Coraline is much darker in nature. One of my favorite horror sequences from the book is when Coraline interrogates the Other Mother on whether she'll keep her word or not.

“How do I know you'll keep your word?" asked Coraline.
"I swear it," said the other mother. "I swear it on my own mother's grave."
"Does she have a grave?" asked Coraline.
"Oh yes," said the other mother. "I put her in there myself. And when I found her trying to crawl out, I put her back” (Gaiman 111).

Overall, Coraline was a well-written and nightmare inducing story. Even if you have watched the movie, the book has frightening changes to where, at times, it feels like you're experiencing a completely different story. While Coraline may not stand as one of "the greatest horror novels of all time," it has definitely signified itself as one of the most chilling stories ever told.

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They Both Die at the End - Summary and Review

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They Both Die at the End - Summary and Review 

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They Both Die at the End - Summary and Review 

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They Both Die at the End - Summary and Review

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Summary:
Maus follows the true experiences of Vladek Spiegelman, his dad, who was a Polish Jew, and how he went through the troubling time of World War II as a Jewish person. The story involves a deep perspective, with the Jewish as mice, along with the Germans as cats. It sets in around the 1980s, with a conversation between his son Artie. Vladek tells a story about his early life, which sets around 1935, right before World War II. Vladek’s brain is fulfilled with horrors, grievance, and fear, all from his younger life. His experiences in the Holocaust led to his stubborn but intelligent personality as an appreciable example for Artie.

Review: I love this novel. Art Spiegelman exhibits all of the graphic convention and dialogue immensely well, keeping the reader direct and in the moment. Nevertheless, the novel can be troubling to understand and read at some points, because Spiegelman incorporates a two-way perspective. He integrates two main narrators, both Vladek and himself. It could have materialized better if it focused on only the perspective of Vladek, with Artie being the side character. Maus occurs to be focused towards history seekers. Readers who desire both non-fiction and graphic novels will enjoy this splendid but remarkable novel.

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Summary: John Grisham's The Firm follows a young man named Mitchell and his career start at a firm. He and his new wife, Abby, move to Memphis for Mitchell's new career as a tax lawyer. As his employers show him around the firm, he starts to get very interested and invested in what his future could look like. As his life starts to fit together, a suspicious death in the firm causes tension. This suspicious death forces the FBI to arrive, and they start to question Mitchell. As the story goes on, Mitchell has to choose between his job or his integrity.

Review: I like this book, and I would recommend it to people looking for a thriller. This book covers the conflict of a young, inexperienced man, which makes it a hundred times better. This book would not be the same if Mitchell was an old, experienced man, rather than a young, inexperienced undergraduate. Putting a young man in the conflict between his job and the police makes the climax much more interesting. Overall, the book was very good, and I am glad I had the chance to read it!

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WHY I PICKED IT: If you want to be the best, you have to learn from the best. These books are going to give me an insight to the mind of the top athletes in the world. I have also been wanting to read these books for a little bit.

TEXTS:

How to Be a Footballer by Peter Crouch

The TB12 Method by Tom Brady

Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story by Arnold Schwarzenegger

When Nobody Was Watching: My Hard-Fought Journey to the Top of the Soccer World by Carli Lloyd

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When Nobody Was Watching: My Hard-Fought Journey to the Top of the Soccer World by Carli Lloyd 

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The Strange Case of Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson 

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The Strange Case of Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson 

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Summary:
The Strange Case of Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde follows a lawyer, by the name of, Mr. Utterson. He is struck with confusion by a will he gets from a client, Dr. Henry Jekyll. He is also struck with curiosity when a man named Edward Hyde tramples a young girl as he was passing by. This then causes him to approach Mr. Hyde who was a very mysterious man that little knew about. When he doesn't find much out by talking to Mr.Hyde, he goes to Dr.Lanyon for more insight. Dr.Lanyon is a life long friend of Dr.Hyde. From there the Strange Case of Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde kicks off.

Review:
I really enjoyed the book, would recommend it to anyone looking for a suspenseful quick read.The book covers a doctor who wants a change, his friend helps make that change. The start was a bit slow, but once all of the characters were introduced and the investigation started, I wanted to just keep reading. Robert Louis Stevenson does a great job of describing the characters. I had been wanting to read it for a while but I just never did, so I'm glad I finally read it because it is definitely a classic.

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Summary: Michael Lewis’s Moneyball follows around the Oakland Athletics baseball team and the general manager of the team Billy Beane. Billy Beane is a former Major League Baseball player who is now the general manager for the Oakland Athletics baseball team. The team is trying to find a way to win, when the A’s have one of the lowest payrolls in the MLB. The Oakland Athletics look at the statistics of players of who they would be selecting. The book follows how Billy Beane and the Oakland Athletics won games with just spending a small amount of money compared to most other baseball teams. While the A’s are winning, the A’s win 20 consecutive games, breaking the record for most games won in a row. Unfortunately though the A’s won 20 straight, the A’s didn’t win the World Series.

Review: I really enjoyed reading this book and I would definitely recommend this book for anybody who likes sports. The book shows the strategy of a baseball organization trying to find a way to win. Moneyball shows the strategy side of baseball. In all I would definitely recommend this book to any sports fan. I would also recommend this book to somebody who likes statistics.

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Author : David Maraniss

Summary : In this book David Maraniss covered the life of Vince Lombardi one of the most iconic figures in football history. His father was an Italian butcher who moved to the US at a young age. Lombardi had such an big influence on many people in his life. I really enjoyed reading this book because of how much of an impact he had on other peoples lives by working hard. Ive always heard of stories about Lombardis desire to win and his work ethic but in this book it really showed. For example sometimes he wouldn't speak to his family much on the weekdays. His family would express how much winning the super bowl meant to him.

Review: This book at the start was pretty slow and nothing really interesting was happening. But as I got further into the book more stuff started to happen and really wanted to keep reading. I personally found the book really fun to read and also learned a lot from this book about Vince Lombardis story.

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Summary:
Mark Adams is a transgender male with a slightly transphobic father. His father is a Congressman and still treats him like the daughter he had once had. However, in order to keep up his image he shoves his past down to act like the cis straight guy everyone naturally thinks he is. Then, at school, comes a student body president election. Mark knows from watching his father that political elections, of any kind, can dig up secrets. Even ones buried as deep as can be. While campaigning a few obstacles; a fashion makeover idea, a bully opponent and a potential new romance. When it comes down to it Mark has to decide weather or not his priorities lie with the truth or perception.

Review:
I enjoyed reading this book quite a lot. The representation of how unsupportive parents can be was showed well. I feel like a lot of times when thinking about the LGBTQIA+ community, no one thinks about the factor of not being supported by your close friends and family at first thought. The way how the book was written and formatted allowed any reader to be able to follow along well and without problem. The fact that this is about someone who is around my age really put it all in perspective for me. I recommend this book to anyone who would is interested in the transgender community and what they go through.

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TEXTS:

A wrinkle in time by Madeleine L'Engle

The giver by Lois Lowry

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Brave New world by Aldous Huxley

SUMMARY:

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle is about a teenager, Meg and her little brother, Charles who go on an adventure in search of their dad who has gone missing. They realize they can not complete this journey alone, so they turn to Calvin, a friend, and three celestial beings who will help lead them in the correct direction as they travel through many different dimensions. The antagonist in this novel who they call “it” constantly tries to mess with the characters minds by altering the way they view reality making their journey much more difficult.

REVIEW:

I definitely enjoyed reading A Wrinkle in Time, and it was very interesting to see the characters develop over the span of the novel. I loved the way the author portrayed the different characters to make their mindsets similar yet still different in many ways. This novel is definitely suitable for most audiences, although, it’s especially good for people who don’t like knowing exactly what will come next when reading a novel. Although it was a great book, I felt that the author could work on explaining settings more frequently, because the characters are moving around different dimensions for the span of the novel, sometimes it was hard to keep up.

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Summary: The Anatomy of a Murder takes place in a small town. Paul Biegler, a small lawyer, gets the case of the murder of a local barkeeper, named Barney Quill. The accused was a Lieutenant; Lieutenant Manion. Lieutenant admitted to killing Quill, but it was for a good reason. Quill had raped his wife. Although it is argued that Manion’s wife flirted with other men, it still does not hide the fact that Manion’s wife did get raped. Manion then is found not guilty by reason of insanity.

Review: I really enjoyed this book and the way it was fast paced. In books like these, I enjoy reading the cross examination to see how people can come up with questions and answers so quickly. I thought that this could have contained some brevity. I feel like this book was unnecessarily long, but overall, it was a great book.

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Summary: John Feinstein's A Season on the Brink follows around Bob Knight and the 1985-86 Indiana Men's basketball team. Bob Knight is the basketball coach at the university of Indiana. Feinstein was granted access to follow around the 1985-86 Indiana basketball team around the whole entire season. Bob Knight was coming off the 1984-85 season, which was one of his worst years for coaching ever. So the 1985-86 season was a sort of rebuilding year for the Indiana basketball program. This book goes through Bob Knights terrible behavior throughout the season. Bob Knight had a very bad temper throughout this season and also throughout the rest of his career as coach of Indiana. This book relates to my last book because it shows the leader of a team trying to find a way to win, after a not so good previous season.

Review: I really enjoyed reading this book and I would recommend this book to anybody who is a basketball fan or anyone who has played basketball on a team. This book shows the crazy ways Bob Knight had his success in the game of basketball. This book shows the good parts of the season and the bad parts of the season, for the 1985-86 Indiana basketball team. I recommend this book for anyone who had been apart of a team and for any sports fan.

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Summary:
In I Wish You All The Best, Author Mason Deaver follows Ben De Backer as they grapple against a society that still largely adheres to the rejectionist  ideologies of the past. After coming out as Nonbinary, Ben moves in with Hannah, their older sister, and attempts to navigate the world of gender identity otherwise unnoticed in the school environment. However, as the year progresses, Natan Allen - a fellow student - and Ben develop a close relationship with one another, allowing the protagonists a chance of a happier life where they are not only allowed, but encourage to express themselves.

Review:
Once again, I love this book. For many LGBTQ teenagers across the globe, the experience - to a dangerously dehumanizing extent - entails countless unknowns as well as the possibilities of physical and/or verbal abuse, or simply even ostracism from the cis-het community. Both Alice Olsen and Mason Deaver detail this experience through their portrayals of the minority group, and although neither book necessarily deserves the title 'Classic', they serve a larger purpose within modern heteronormativity and allow audiences to A) see a reflection of themselves in literature or B) educate themselves as to the hardships and judgement the community faces.

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TOPIC:

Dystopian novels

TEXTS:

A wrinkle in time by Madeleine L'Engle

The giver by Lois Lowry

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Brave New world by Aldous Huxley

SUMMARY:

The Giver by Lois Lowry is about a dystopian society, unbeknownst to the townsfolk. The weird thing about this town is that the elders' main goal is to make sure no differences are allowed, in order to make sure there is no division in the society. When the children of the town reach year 12, after the previous years of training, they get their permanent job assignments for the rest of their lives, until their release. Jonas, the main character is appointed to be the receiver of memory when the day comes. As he takes up this incredibly important position, he quickly realizes that his society is not as it seems. He learns many dark secrets about his town that changes his perspective forever.

REVIEW:

I definitely enjoyed reading this novel. Watching the characters slowly figure out the secrets of their society is very interesting because most times the reader can use context clues to learn the truth before the characters can. This novel was actually very similar to A Wrinkle in Time by Madelaine L'Engle, as both books have ideas of tightly controlled environments to minimize uniqueness. Many different audiences are suitable for this book, however after further research I learned that this book had been banned from many places, for a slightly graphic scene. My one main critique of this book is that I think it should be a bit longer, just to answer some of the questions that are left out there at the end. The author additionally wrote three other books using characters from this novel, but each book ends on a cliffhanger, causing Lowry to have to write a book to answer all of the unanswered questions from the novels.

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Author : Michael Lewis

Summary : Basically this book is about a kid named Michael Or who grew up very poor and lived in a not so nice neighborhood but was a very friendly kid. Michael was very gifted when it came to sports and was very good at all of them. He attended a school where majority of the students were white. He travelled to school on foot everyday and this one kids parents noticed him walking in the rain one night and asked what he's doing in the rain and ended up taking him home. The family encouraged him to play football and ended up adopting him. Michael was not good at first but then his new mom realized he had 98% on protection skills and told Michael that the quarter back was like family and you have to protect him. After this Michael was unstoppable and the coach was impressed and got many D1 offers.

I really enjoyed reading thinks book as it was very inspiring and enjoyable to read.

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The Scorch Trials by James Dashner Summary

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The Scorch Trials Review(The end got cut off so the review will end at 5:02)

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The Autobiography of Gucci Mane by Gucci Mane

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The Autobiography of Gucci Mane by Gucci Mane

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Summary:
The Autobiography of Gucci Mane reflects how Radric Davis's life turns around for the better. Similar to Gone Til November, Gucci Mane was locked up but wanted to become a better person. Where he came from and who he met as his music career grew, influenced his music and life in and out of prison. Lil Wayne's story was very similar to his because they both tried to stay optimistic and motivated while being incarnated. Gucci Mane's story begins with robbing, drugs, and, violence but fortunately turn into a successful and sober artist with over eighty projects.

Review:
Everything about this book was enjoyable. I loved how there were photos that match the text and that it was easy to read because the chapter were separated perfectly. Gucci Mane also included dialogue that made the story of his roots more visual. I was also able to take a lot away from the story. People become judged from the moment they do something that gets attention. This book is a pretty easy read, but I recommend it to older kids because it was visually explicit at some parts.

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Summary: Frankenstein starts off with letter from Captain Robert Walton. He addresses these letters to his sister, Mrs.Saville. In these letters he talks about his loneliness being on the sea with a crew who doesn't really understand him. But then he after he and his crew get out from ice after being stuck there for a long time, he finds a man who is weak and cold. His crewmates do no like the man but he takes him in and takes care of him. After the letters Dr.Frankenstein starts talking about him growing up. He was fascinated with natural philosophy. He gets a sister named Elizabeth and is told that she is his "gift", he took that as she was his to "protect, love, and cherish". At 17 his parents send him to Ingolstadt. But before he gets to Ingolstadt something happens that delays him for a bit. When he does get to Ingolstadt he is told by his philosophy teacher that all of the things he knew about philosophy was wrong and useless. After some time at university he makes a plan to bring back a body from the dead.

Review: I really enjoyed this book, I would recommend it to someone who is interested in a classic horror book. I thought Mary Shelley did really well at narrating from the perspective of Dr.Victor Frankenstein. I used to think that Frankenstein was the monster, not Dr. Victor Frankenstein. Like the Strange Case of Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde, I had a difficult time reading the book at first because there was not much going on, but once I got into it I really enjoyed. I think anyone who is interested in horror books, and want to read one of the books that influenced the horror genre should read this book.

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Summary: Tom Brady takes the reader through his journey of being a kid with a dream to a professional quarterback. Tom Brady has been an underdog his whole life, and nobody would have guessed that Tom was going to go down as the greatest football player ever. He takes us through his journey, while also telling us how he did it and his method. Tom Brady puts so much time and effort into his body to make sure he gets proper sleep, hydration, nutrition, and even does brain exercises. He calls it the TB12 method, and wants to spread his knowledge to everyone else.

Review: This book was one of the most insightful books I have read, while also telling the very interesting life story of one of the greatest athletes of all time. Tom not only wrote it in a way to force you to keep reading, but he also taught you a lot throughout the whole book. I liked this book more than my first book by Carli Lloyd because I feel like this book gave you a step by step plan to help you reach the level that Tom Brady tells you about throughout his book. I have also seen a trend in both my books that I have read about these unbelievable athletes. I have found that both of these athletes had "underdog" stories and were never expected to make it to the top. This book by Tom Brady taught, but also motivated, me to work hard and be discipline in every aspect of my life.

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SUMMARY:

The Republic by Plato strives to define justice, explore human nature, and construct the ideal state through a dialogue between Socrates, a famous philosopher, and his students. Plato splits his work into ten separate books, grouped into sections concerning different topics like justice, government, and communal ownership. Book one depicts a conversation between Socrates and his students as they try to define justice. They discuss that it could be helping one’s friends, personal advantage, or paying debts. Socrates uses this discussion to refute the proposed definitions, leading into books two through four which pursue a collective definition concerning the ideal state. Eventually, the group decides justice includes balance and harmony in individuals and the collective state. With this definition in mind, the group moves to the details of the ideal state. Socrates promotes the idea of “Guardians” which guide the population and protect the interests of the people in the ideal state. Book five includes a discussion in which Socrates supports the idea of women in government and promotes them as “Guardians of the state,” a rare opinion in his time. Books six and seven depict Socrates proving, through many analogies, that a philosopher should rule the ideal state because they can see truths others cannot. He famously used the allegory of the cave, and the divided line in these sections, which highlight the knowledge philosophers seek to give others. Books eight and nine discuss Socrates’ views of government, including his despise of democracy, as he feels the people do not know how to rule a state. With a sharp turn, book ten discusses poetry instead of justice or the state and ends with the discussion of immortality. Although Plato may be representing his own ideals through Socrates, he creates a clear picture of his beliefs in philosophers and guardians in The Republic.

REVIEW:

Philosophy and Plato’s style of dialogue exhausts me, and I feel as though I had no clue what Plato meant throughout The Republic. Plato uses indirect wording to construct his view, hindering readers from understanding his views. Often, The Republic feels like it includes the fiction work depicting a conversation among friends and the non-fiction work of complicated political philosophy. Socratic dialogue may interest readers, but Plato includes distracting comments from side characters while explaining a difficult concept. Many readers may feel overloaded by how much Plato attempts to pack into The Republic and confused as no clear answers or philosophies emerge from the text. Aside from the overwhelming amount of information in The Republic, readers can appreciate Plato’s allegories in books six and seven, which offer relatively easy-to-read language and understandable lessons surrounding Plato’s views. Readers who enjoy metaphors, fables, or intelligent conversations would enjoy The Republic and may gain knowledge of Plato’s despise of democracy and love of philosophers. In comparison to Anarchy, State, and Utopia by Robert Nozick, Plato’s explanations and logic seem to fall short of modern standards. While Nozick also utilized complicated language and distracting stories, he also bolstered his views with well-written logic and explanations, an element Plato lacks in his writing. Plato far exceeds Nozick in his use of metaphors and allegories, which make up the majority of The Republic. Overall, Plato’s language, while captivating, exhausts readers while they try to understand his complicated philosophies, which ultimately reject democracy and tyranny and embrace a future led by philosophers.

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It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover-Book #2 Summary and Review

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Summary:
Watchmen follows a symbol of a smiley face splashed with blood covering its left eye. This symbolism suggests that there exists to have more to it than what meets the eye. It also contributes as when in daily life society, humans try to find happiness, but later on notice that perfect happiness is unobtainable. Alan Moore sets the story around the 1940s, and goes after superheroes in the US that are retired or are still working for the government. It seems to represent how the US is latching on WWIII, while a group of superheroes like Doctor Manhattan, Rorschach, the Nite Owl, and others. They originally retired, but decided to come out of retirement to deal with the murder of the Comedian, Edward Blake, another superhero.

Review: I liked this novel. Alan Moore displays the panels and dialogue exceptionally well. In my opinion, Watchmen has to be in the top five ranking out of all the DC Comics published. The setting can be confusing to understand at first, and also the symbolism as well. The symbolism of the smiley face is well-integrated smoothly and fits in perfectly with the story. Readers who desire both DC and graphic novels will enjoy this magnificent novel. All in all, as a graphic novel lover, Watchmen is definitely one of the best graphic novels I have read so far.

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The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth

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The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth

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TW: talk of suicide and self-harm
Summary:
Cameron Post becomes an orphan at the age of 12 after her parents died in a car accident. While this was happening, Cameron had been going around town with her friend Irene Klauson shoplifting and kissing. Kissing Irene that is. After hearing about her parent's death, Cameron resulted in near isolation, which included Irene, while living with her conservative grandmother. Cameron starts to date a guy after one kiss even though she has feelings for another girl. Cameron proceeds to lose her virginity to this girl after starting to date and go through tragedies of friends attempting suicide through self-harm, investigations, and closure on her parent's death.

Review:
I thought this book was quite good. The plot was developed well. It is a representation of a young girl trying to come to terms with her sexuality and the many questions that come with that time. I recomed it to any person who is interested in an insight into this period of time.

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Summary:
They Called Us Enemy follows Takei's childhood experience in Japanese internment camps during World War II. The novel first takes place in Los Angeles, where armed soldiers force Takei's family out of the house. Shortly after, the family relocates to a camp in Arkansas, where most of his childhood adventure and memories came from. As Takei grows older, his family is forced to relocate to another camp with harsher conditions. All in all, They Called Us Enemy contributes to themes of racism, justice, loyalty, and isolationism.

Review:
The novel was very enjoyable to read because both the illustrations and narration made it a significant page-turner. The delivery of an incredibly important message made the novel valuable. The author did well in making sure that the narration was clear and understandable. I think that the author could have made it better by adding color because all of the illustrations were grayscale. People who go for graphic novels, autobiographies, and non-fiction comics would enjoy this informational memoir. I liked this novel more than my first two novels because I learned a lot about how corrupt everything was back then. I could really grab on to the themes and motifs of this novel compared to my first two novels.

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SUMMARY:
The Politics by Aristotle discusses the functions of the polis, or how the state should organize to ensure its citizens live virtuously and happily. Divided into eight books, Aristotle first describes man as a political animal, suggesting that politics and political community lies inherent in human existence. In book one, Aristotle defines the state as a political partnership striving towards the happiness and virtue of its respective members and separates the different kinds of rule into political, kingly, and household rule. His primary focus in this book is the justification of slavery and the patriarchy by suggesting that women, children, and slaves all have different virtues and, therefore, only a male’s rule of the home can ensure they all live virtuous lives. In book two, Aristotle weighs common political structures and analyzes Plato’s The Republic, arguing that communal property leads to greater unrest and further grappling with the optimal state organization. Books three and four discuss the definition of citizenship and different types of governments, including monarchy, democracy, and oligarchy, deeming the latter two unfit for the virtuous living of citizens. He also decides that the optimal state includes a ruling group as groups cannot easily be corrupted and offer more sound judgment than a single ruler. Books five and six focus on the causes of revolution in different types of government and why each kind of government fails. More specifically, Aristotle discusses why democracy fails and agrees with Plato that common people do not know how to rule themselves. Book seven primarily focuses on Aristotle’s virtue ethics and eudaimonia, where he argues that the key to a “good life” lies in virtue and what state promotes virtue best. He argues that the optimal state has no merchants and a balance of communal and private property. Finally, book eight centers on education and music in the ideal state and the benefits they have on society, including proper spending of free time, furthering intelligence, and focus on things that lead to a more virtuous life and, therefore, the virtuous ideal state. Aristotle’s The Politics centers around finding the optimal state which will promote the happiness of its citizens and communities, which man’s nature craves.

REVIEW:
Although I believe Aristotle has some sound doctrine regarding the state, his views on women and their place in politics constantly made me angry throughout The Politics. He believed that women were inherently inferior to men and that men should rule over women in the house and the state. This view never fails to anger me as he justifies it with the idea that a woman’s optimal happiness can only be achieved under a man and not by themselves. The repetition of this idea throughout The Politics was upsetting and deterred from the other political discussions occurring. Aside from his angering views on women, Aristotle uses clear language throughout The Politics, making it easy to comprehend his arguments and views and follow his logic. His utilization of stating his logic and goals outright make it easy for readers to form their opinions on his work and think about what he proposes. Aristotle also includes helpful metaphors which do not overshadow his argument but add depth to his views instead. People who would like to research political philosophy would find it easy to start with The Politics, as would those who strive to learn more about governments today.

COMPARISONS:
Aristotle uses significantly fewer metaphors than Plato and outright states his logic and beliefs instead of having characters disguise them. Aristotle and Robert Nozick both avoid Socratic Dialogue in their works, which generally makes them both easier for readers to follow. The primary difference between Anarchy, State, and Utopia and The Politics was the explanation of logic patterns and the economy of language between the two authors. Nozick opted for a drawn-out explanation of ideas which Aristotle was more concise. Plato, of course, was more drawn-out than both, making Nozick and Aristotle much easier to comprehend. In regards to their specific ideas, Aristotle and Plato both despised democracy, but only Aristotle believed that women have no place in government. Aristotle more clearly defines types of government as either “good” or “bad” than Plato did, and Nozick primarily focused on proving why a libertarian state should exist. Nozick follows Aristotle in his presentation but focuses less on debunking other governments and more on proving why a libertarian state is both optimal and inevitable. Readers new to political philosophy would find Aristotle easy to read and a solid foundation for other political philosophy works. Robert Nozick’s work would follow Aristotle’s nicely as an introduction to other forms of political philosophy, and readers who know political philosophy well should read The Republic as they most likely will find it easier to understand.

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Summary: Presumed Innocent by Scott Turow follows Rusty Sabich, a prosecuting attorney in Kindle County who works for Raymond Horgan. One of Rusty's colleagues, Carolyn Polhemus, is found dead in her apartment. Although Rusty is a close friend of hers and had an affair with her, he still gets assigned the case. He remains worried that going on this case will bring the truth to light. Rusty wants to keep his affair a secret, for his family and for his ruthless boss. He fears that if Raymond does not get re-elected, he will lose his job. Unfortunately, for Raymond, he loses the campaign against someone who worked for Raymond, an ex-employee. Rusty continues to work for the sake of his job and receives forensic help from his police friend, Lip. After the forensics came back, all the evidence ties Rusty to the murder of Carolyn. As the case progresses, it reveals that Raymond had also had an affair with Carolyn. During the trial, to Rusty's surprise, Raymond testifies against him, and this forces Rusty to hire one of his enemies, Sandy Stern. During the trial, it reveals that the judge had also had an affair with Carolyn and that both Raymond and the judge took bribes from the real suspects of the crime. In court, Sandy proves that there remains doubt in the forensic evidence, and that, since a piece of evidence has gone missing, this case may no longer continue. There remains both good and bad news for Rusty. Good, that he remains free, but bad because people think that he got away with murder. After the trial, he then learns that the murder was revenge. His wife killed Carolyn because of the affair.

Review: I really enjoyed this book because it is was very well written, and the numerous amount of plot twists with the people who had affairs with Carolyn, and the Raymond testimony against Rusty was just fascinating. The author did well on the plot. This book was a page-turner, and it had very key plot components and very well-implemented plot twists. I don't know anything that could be changed. I liked everything about his book, except the longevity of it. Maybe that could be changed, but in these types of books, I feel it is necessary. I think that people who enjoy page-turners, plot twists, and thrillers would enjoy this book.

Comparison: This book is definitely my favorite of the three. I really enjoyed the number of plot twists and it just felt like a better read.

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The end cut off for suspense. If I said what the not said, it would ruin the book.

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The Death Cure Review

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I Think Therefore I Play by Andrea Pirlo 

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I Think Therefore I Play by Andrea Pirlo 

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Summary: Andrea Pirlo allows the reader to embark on his journey through the professional game. He focuses on his time in AC Milan and Juventus. He tells of his struggles of being a young professional and starting to play professionally when he was 15 years old. He was judged and mocked by his young teammates and their parents because of his playing style. He realizes that he was blessed with talent and he had to use it. He also tells the reader about the pressure and everything else that went into signing for a new team along with leaving teams. He also talks about racism in the game and his hate for it. Pirlo has won a world cup and tells the story of that in his book, also.

Review: I really enjoyed the book because while Pirlo is teaching and telling stories, he also adds humor to it and his uncensored reaction to everything that happened in his career and how it unfolded. Comparing it to the Tom Brady and the Carli Lloyd book, this book was funnier and easier to read but did not offer as much wisdom about professional sports, but still gave insight that could not be given by anyone else. Pirlo's book was a little less edited and I found some misspellings than Tom Brady's book. Carli Lloyd and Pirlo's books are pretty similar, however, Carli Lloyd covered her whole life, while Pirlo just covered his professional career.

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Summary: The Blind Side by Michael Lewis is the story of Michael Oher a 17 year old who is in foster care. His mother is a drug addict. He does not know where his father is. Michael is accepted into Wingate Christian School because the football coach sees his potential and thinks he can be good. He gets accepted even though his grades are very bad. He is struggling at his new school but there is a teacher who understands the way he learns. Leigh Anne Tuohy invites Michael to stay at their house for a night. Which turns into many nights where he stays at their house and he becomes very close with their family.

Review: I definitely enjoyed reading this book and I would recommend it for sure. The book really shows how is life really changed for the better, which I really enjoyed seeing. I would recommend this book to and football fan or really any sports fan. Although I really liked this book, I liked Moneyball and A Season on the Brink a little better. Just because I am a bigger basketball and baseball fan then football. But I did think the story in The Blind Side was very good.

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Girl Made of Stars by Ashley herring Black

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Girl Made of Stars by Ashley herring Black

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TW: Mentions of Sexual Assault

Summary:
After a traumatic experience, Bisexual high school junior, Mara begins self isolating from both family and friends alike, only drawn out from her reclusive state by twin sibling Owen. However, when Owen's girlfriend, Hannah- who shares a close relationship with Mara as well- accuses her brother of rape and other nonconsensual sexual activity, Mara begins reflecting on her own experiences with assault while additionally struggling with the internal conflict of who to believe. As the founder of her school's feminist club, Mara has remained steadfast in her conviction to always believe survivors, although she is unsure her twin is capable of committing  such crimes. Upon their return to school, the debate polarizes the student body, only reinforcing that Mara must soon make a choice: to publicly side with her friend or her family, while coming to terms with her own past.

Review:
In A Girl Made of Stars, Black mades a broader commentary as to rape culture within the united states and outlines victims difficulty in deciding whether or not to come forward with their experiences. The author's perspective focuses a majority on Mara's innermost thoughts and conveys difficult decisions and personal growth and development through simple, yet touching phrases that allow the book a wider reach. Personally, I enjoyed that the author went beyond a typical retelling of a survivor's story and certainly believe that she presents a novel of substance with vividly realized character. However, much like the previous books, I understand that the fast-paced nature of the work may not be prevalent to all audiences and that the atmosphere within several sections will not be everyone's favorite. Connecting to my prior readings, Black's A Girl Made of Stars serves a larger purpose in American literature and allows audiences moments of reflection upon the hardships detailed. Furthermore, similar to both Olsen and Deaver, Her portrayal of such cases is both nuanced and necessary as vulnerable and minority populations continue to face discriminatory violence.

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Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit by Jaye Robin Brown

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Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit by Jaye Robin Brown

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Summary:
The story follows a young Joanna Gordon who is out and proud and moves to a place where it is not acceptable to do so; Rome, Georgia. Her father asks her to stay low during her senior year which she understandingly agrees to. Everything is going fine till she starts to fall for a classmate, while still trying to keep up with her dad's promise. Mary Carlson is a classmate who Jo is not sure is gay, but definitely likes. Is it worth it to betray her dad?

Review:
I liked this a lot, the plot is very natural and relatable. Being in a conservative town or environment can definitely affect a person who isn't heterosexual. I think this book is a lot like The Miseducation of Cameron Post in the terms of the setting. Both teenage girls in a school or social setting with falling for a friend. The main difference is that Cameron is in denial of her sexuality which is a common thing for many people in the LGBTQ+ community and Jo is out and proud. I think if you read The Miscommunication of Cameron Post and like it, you should definitely try this.

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A Thousand Boy Kisses by Tillie Cole-Book #3 Summary and Review

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A Thousand Boy Kisses by Tillie Cole-Book #3 Summary and Review

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Topic:
Horror

Summary:
The Shining by Stephen King follows Jack Torrence, a failed writer who struggles with his crippling alcohol addiction. He subsequently loses his job as a teacher after breaking the arm of his son, Danny. To pass the time after these turmoils, Jack decides to become the caretaker of a hotel for the winter. Jack develops an ability known as "the shining," which gives Jack the ability to read minds and have premonitions. The hotel, however, has a somber and bleak past. The death of guests, and the previous caretaker, Delbert Grady, who murdered his family after experiencing an episode of cabin fever (irritability, listlessness, and similar symptoms resulting from long confinement or isolation indoors during the winter). The hotel has dark secrets, and almost has a life of its own.

Review:
I really enjoyed this page-turning thriller novel. Its views on human nature and controversial takes on redemption leaves the reader with a lot of substance to think over. The character dynamics, for example, between Jack and Danny are really well written and captivating. I would give it a 10/10 and a horror classic, and would recommend any Stephen King novel to any horror enthusiasts.

<<SPOILERS AHEAD>>
The turning point in the novel, when the hotel's influence completely takes over Jack's conscious and manipulates his actions was really captivating. Definitely the high point of the novel, with his actions paralleling to one of the previously established characters (Delbert Grady). Dick Hallorann, the chef at the hotel, and Jack's friendship dynamic alongside Hallorann and Danny's father figure & son figure dynamic was really interesting to see unfold.
<<SPOILERS ABOVE>>

Comparisons to It and Coraline:
Compared to It and Coraline, "The Shining" was more small scale. Its main setting was The Overlook hotel. Coraline has more intense moments that hinge on the development of previously established narrative plot points, and It has a larger cast of main characters with more settings. However, what I think The Shining shines in (pun intended) was the ending, which was far more satisfying and easier to understand than It, and more cemented and concise than Coraline.

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TOPIC: Dystopian novels

TEXTS:

A wrinkle in time by Madeleine L'Engle

The giver by Lois Lowry

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Brave New world by Aldous Huxley

SUMMARY:

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is a dystopian fiction novel where the society is deprived of knowledge and the access to books. All books are ordered to be burned by people called "firefighters". The firefighters go along with their job, but without realizing the disturbing problem with it. Although one firefighter, Guy, starts reading and learns that reading isn't as bad as his society may think.

REVIEW:

I liked the ideas in this book, although I felt like some aspects like characterization could have been executed a little better. Similar to L’Engle, who wrote A Wrinkle in Time, I thought that Bradbury was really good at building the setting with the plot. I think that more mature audiences would like this book, such as teens or young adults. I found it interesting that this book is banned in some districts. I noticed that The Giver was also banned in some places, although I felt that was slightly more justified as there were a few unsettling scenes.

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Title : The Mamba Mentality - How I Play Kobe Bryant. 

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Title : The Mamba Mentality - How I Play Kobe Bryant. 

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Summary : Pretty much in this book Kobe summarizes what having a "mamba mentality" means in his opinion. Kobe going into the NBA was an eighteen year old kid with the world at his feet. Going into the NBA at such a young age as Kobe did with already being a high school superstar came with immense pressure. One of Kobe's pillars for Mamba mentality was relentlessness. He came into the league as if he's been in the league for 10+ years as he would talk back to his veteran teammates and demanded more from himself and his teammates at such a young age. Kobe believed there were 5 pillars to having a mamba mentality.

Review: The legacy Kobe left is arguably one of the most influential in sports history. He took working hard to an extreme and demanding more from himself every day to another level. I think this book is good as its inside the mind of one of the greatest athletes of all time and I would recommend to any sports fans.

Comparison - I think all these books were amazing to reed. They all had their resemblances and their differences. I think it was cool to read about and to see the difference between players and coaches mentality and how they both work.

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Summary:

Cujo is a book about a sweet dog turned violent due to rabies. The book starts with tensions between the Trentons(Donna the mother,Tad the son, and Vic the father). But then goes to Joe who is an abusive mechanic, and Charity his wife. Charity wins the lottery and wants to go on a trip and uses the money to convince Joe to let them go on a trip. Then Cujo their dog chases a rabbit in a field but ends up sticking his nose into a cave and getting bit by a rabid bat. The disease then overtakes him and causes havoc on the city of Castle Rock, Maine.  Like in Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde, and Frankenstein, Cujo is turned into a monster and was not a monster originally he was a sweet boy who just wanted to please his owners but was overtaken by the disease. Eventually Donna and Tad take their car to get repaired and the engine overheats on the way there. As Donna   gets out to look at the engine she is attacked by Cujo. Her and Tad then stay in the car for a while to wait out the attacks. As this is happening Vic is unable to reach them and is told by the sheriff that someone who Donna had an affair with is suspected of kidnapping them. The Sheriff then starts investigating.

Review: I enjoyed this book, and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in reading a good Stephen King book. One of the main ideas is ordinary fears, like Cujo just being bit by a rabid bat and then turning into a monstrous beast. I think King did a good job of showing that anything could happen at anytime. It started of kind of slow with the world building. But once it got to where Cujo is circling Donna and Tad it got interesting.

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Summary:
Decoded by Jay-Z entails Jay-Z's life story of growing up in a rough area. It explores how he dealt with violence and drugs. He grew up during the crack epidemic, so Jay-Z reflects on how it shaped his future career. Jay-Z also goes in detail about his personal views on politics, world problems, and of course music. He also goes in depth with what it took him to become a billionaire. His music sales as well as his businessing created his legendary status. In Jay-Z's childhood's he is constantly met with decisions he has to make that will effect his future. He sees life as not about just getting an average job. Instead he believes that people should hustle for even more.

Review:
I found Jay-Z's Decoded to be an enjoying but a fairly confusing read. I liked how Jay-Z included more than just his beginnings unlike in The Autobiography of Gucci Mane and Gone Til November. I thought that the structure of the book made it a little clunky because of the differences of Jay-Z's perspective and age were mixed. On the other hand, I learned more than I expected on what made Jay-Z legacy. Decoded and The Autobiography of Gucci Mane shared so many similarities that I almost thought r it felt like I was reading the same book. If I were to rate Decoded out of five, I would give it a three because it was descriptive and inspiring, but was also confusing at times.

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Topic:
Horror

Summary of chapter 1:
Uzumaki by Junji Ito follows Kirie Goshima, an 18 year old woman who lives in the town of Kurôzu-Cho with her parents, little brother, and her boyfriend Shuichi.

Things of note in the setting that are very important:

In the middle of the town, there is a pond that is referred to as dragonfly pond.

At 5'0 clock pm, loud sirens play.

There are abandoned row houses next to the modern houses

The town is semi-separated, with hills and the sea on all sides and only two exits, a road tunnel/train station.

Summary of Chapter 1:

One late night, as Kirie is leaving school, she notices Shuichi's father (Referred to as Saito since that is the family name) transfixed by a snail shell. However, he is not interested in the shell itself. He is interested in the spiral pattern that lays upon it. She tries to call out to him but fails due to his fixation on the shell, so she leaves.

She meets up with Shuichi in the park, who is crestfallen due to his father's erratic behavior concerning spirals. It is there we learn that Saito has covered his entire study with spirals, on the walls, as objects, art pieces, everywhere in his study is a spiral. He even refuses to eat food unless it has a spiral pattern somewhere on it. Kirie laughs off Shuichi's worries, saying that it can't be that bad, and Shuichi tells her to come the next day to see how erratic his father truly is.

<<SPOILERS AHEAD FOR CH. ONE!!!!>>

She obliges, and the next day she sees Saito's erratic behavior during dinner, yelling at his wife for not adding spiral-fishcakes to the soup. She is bewildered by this, and goes home. The next day, Kirie delivers a package to Saito. While she is walking past to Saito residence, Shuichi's father is standing outside waiting for her. She tries to give the package to Saito, but he says that he no longer needs it. Then the first horrific imagery is shown.

<<TW: Violence, death, body amalgamation>>

Saito sticks out his tongue and in a horrific display of amalgamation, it twists and curls into a spiral. He turns his eyes into spiral patterns, with his eyes moving independently and in opposite directions. She screams and leaves, passing a mailman who gives Saito a strange large package. She runs home, passing Shuichi, who notices her expression and runs home with his mom. They get home, and it's eerily silent. They go into the study and see a large closed tub in the middle of the room. Shuichi's mom opens the tub, and screams.

Saito's bones were all crushed, and his body was stuffed in the tub in a spiral pattern. Saito killed himself by crushing all of his bones and overlapping his body. And that is where the chapter ends.

<<TW ABOVE: Death, violence, body amalgamation>>

<<SPOILERS ABOVE!!!>>

Review of Chapter 1:

As an opening to the setting of Kurôzu-Cho and the main cast, chapter 1 is beautifully written with great visuals to portray the town. We are introduced to the "antagonists" of the story, which are spirals, and what power they have to transfix their victims into an unhealthy obsession, even to the point of death. At this point in the story, we don't know exactly what the spiral is, where it is, where it came from or why it appeared.  There are 20 chapters in total, 19 canonical ones and an extra "lost" chapter that takes place in an alternate universe (that may have some connection to the canon universe but that comes later). All in all, chapter 1 was incredible, a page turner without being too fast paced and had natural progression on Saito's spiral (pun intended) into madness. In this one chapter alone I have felt more disturbed than the 3 previous books I've read combined.

Summary of chapter 2:

While cremating Saito's body, the smoke billows high into the air. Suddenly, Shuichi's mother screams and goes into hysteria. Everyone tries to console her, and she screams to look up at the sky. Saito's ashes, mixed with the smoke, have raised high into the air and created a spiral of smoke, cloud, and ashes. Suddenly, it begins to spiral down into dragonfly pond. While it spirals down, Shuichi's mother screams again. There, in the sky, in the spiral, is the same face that Saito had in the closed tub. Shuichi's mother goes into a crazed hysteria, while Shuichi and Kirie alert an ambulance. Shuichi's mother is put into the hospital, where she develops an extreme phobia to spirals.

<<SPOILERS BELOW!!!!>>

<<TW!! - Self Harm Imagery Below!>>

Due to her extreme phobia of spirals, she shaves her head so her hair doesn't coil, and when she noticed her fingertips were in a spiral pattern, she cuts off the skin off of her fingertips and her toe tips off.

To her, every spiral looks like Saito's corpse that was in the tub.

<<TW!! - Self Harm Above!>>

While taking her to rehab, Shuichi notices something on the medical chart in the office. There is one spiral in the human body, one that Shuichi's mother does not know about, in the human ear. Shuichi knows that if his mother finds out, she will try to remove it and accidentally kill herself in the process.

(I love the bit of foreshadowing that Junji Ito adds into the story by making the ear canal area that has the spiral into a pronounced shape of a snail, foreshadowing an event that will take place later on, and it makes sense realistically because it does sorta look like a snail in real life).

While sleeping, a centipede crawls into Shuichi's mother's ear. She wakes up and screams, flinging the centipede away. It curls up into a spiral, and Saito's face appears in it. Saito tells her that there is still a spiral on her body, and says how he wishes to crawl into her ears.

In the morning, much to Shuichi and Kirie's dismay, she tries to get back into the medical rehab ward to see the medical chart and check if there's a spiral in her ear. The doctor, predicting this, had taken the chart down after her first visit.

<<TW Below - Self Harm, Suicide>>

That night, she grabs a pair of scissors and stabs herself in the ears. She fatally hurts herself, and is in a state of constant of vertigo until she dies.

Her body is cremated, and another black spiral cloud forms above Kurôzu-Cho, before spiraling down into dragonfly pond.

<<TW Above - Self Harm, Suicide>>

Conjoined review of the first two chapters:

Uzumaki draws you in with its fantastic visuals and intriguing characters before it hits you like a truck and reminds you, "This is a horror story." It may be hard to believe but the first two chapters are arguably the most tame out of the entire 20-chapter series. It gets much worse from here, fast. Shuichi's mental state starts to show signs of deterioration, and he becomes depressed and a recluse.

First two chapters rating: 10/10
Overall series (1-19) rating: 9/10

Comparisons to Coraline, It, and The Shining:

Uzumaki is far more gorey and disturbing than all 3 of the previous novels combined. While Stephen King and Neil Gaiman use shock horror and suspense perfectly, Uzumaki hits you in the face with the dark reality that this is not a happy story and it sticks to that. The book version of Coraline comes close to the imagery that Uzumaki portrays, but the major difference is that Junji Ito draws the visuals out so there is little left to the imagination in terms of scaling down the horrific imagery. The suspense and tension in Uzumaki leaves the reader with a chill shiver down their spine as each page shows a new amalgamation or descent into madness.

Unlike the other authors, Junji Ito does not explain his creatures or where they came from, like Beldam in Coraline, Pennywise in It, or the Overlook Hotel in The Shining. Ito leaves the interpretation of his creatures to the audience, and does not explain the origins, goal, or anything beyond the surface level information of the Spiral entity, whether its an entity or a concept at all is never confirmed nor denied. This works wonderfully for Ito's work because if you can explain or figure out the enemy, then you can figure out its weaknesses in order to overcome it. This is not the case for Ito's works, as the monsters are never explained which only adds to the horror aspect.

Critiques:
<<MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE ENTIRE SERIES>>

A major critique I have is at the turning point of the series, chapter 12, when the pattern of amalgamation-to-amalgamation death is broken and replaced with the hurricane arc. In this arc, Kurôzu-Cho is nothing but a wasteland at this point and any fast movement, loud noise, etc. will cause a hurricane to form from the person. This breaks the immersive and disturbing environment created by the previous chapters by replacing the monsters with a natural force that in all honesty is nowhere near as chilling as the previous chapters. The hurricanes are used more as a plot device to slow down the characters' progression and speed up the serialization of the series as a whole and reach its conclusion. The hurricane arc is also where the climax reaches its end pretty speedily, with each remaining cast character dying in some way (with Mitsuo becoming a snail-person and his last appearance being when Kirie told him to run down the sea cliffside).

It's unfortunate that each character had their character arc cut short, especially seen in Chie who was someone who originated from outside of Kurôzu-Cho coming to the inside. She's mainly a plot device to show that once you step into Kurôzu-Cho after the spiral's onslaught has started, you can no longer leave. As per plot devices, Chie is a flat character that is unchanging from her debut to her eventual death at the hands of the spiral-tangled people in the row houses. The ending is a little bit unsatisfying with <<ENDING SPOILERS>> instead of unveiling the truth about what the spiral is, Kirie and Shuichi (the last two surviving characters outside of Mr. Tanazaki, who arrived in Kurôzu-Cho at the same time as Chie and is presumed dead but is never explicitly shown to be dead) descending into Dragonfly Pond, which has dried up and revealed a spiraling staircase into the underground. Shuichi gets attacked by a spiral-person and falls all the way down the staircase and breaks his leg when he hits the ground, which is made up of spiral-people corpses.

Kirie rushes down and we are revealed the city made of spirals, elaborate ruins with spiral-people corpses as the floor. It's revealed that the city has a will of its own, which is why it has been terrorizing the city of Kurôzu-Cho at irregular intervals, spanning from once every thousands of years or hundreds of years. We never get to see the inner-city though, because Kirie decides to stay with the injured Shuichi who can no longer walk, and they become one with the spiral city. The spiral staircase ascends to the base of Dragonfly Pond, and Kurôzu-Cho's upperlevel (the actual city of Kurôzu-Cho, not the spiral city) becomes a spiral-like city, with each house contributing to become a spiral-formation. We are left to assume by the ending words that time is frozen in the city of spirals, so Kirie and Shuichi don't age or die but instead are trapped in the same spot of the spiral city for all eternity alongside all the citizens of Kurôzu-Cho. And that's how the final [canon] chapter ends. Chapter 20, the "lost" chapter is only 1 chapter and takes place in an alternate universe that is connected to the canon one but doesn't add that much significance to the story overall besides revealing that the spiral has far more influence than just the small city of Kurôzu-Cho, but extends out into the universe and has corrupted full galaxies at an unfathomably fast rate.

Closing notes/thoughts that didn't fit anywhere else:

The 5 PM alarm always blares whenever someone thinks or talks about leaving Kurôzu-Cho, and the character talking about leaving always responds to the alarm with "I hate that noise! It's like it's piercing my ears!" This ties back directly with the cochlea, the spiral in the human ear, showing that the entity can use sound to affect the people.

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Summary: John Grisham's The Innocent Man follows a baseball star, Ron Williamson. After failing to become a baseball pro due to injury, drugs, and women, he heads back to his home town in Ada, Oklahoma. Ron remains in a bad, mental state. He has emotional instability, strange behavior, and is socially awkward. This leads the police to believe that he killed twenty-one-year-old Debbie Carter, a famous cocktail waitress. They also catch his friend, Dennis Fritz. Dennis Fritz did nothing wrong and was only accused because he was friends with Ron. After years and years of going in and out of trials, and staying in jail for what he did not do, he catches a break. As the state declared execution for Ron, the judge that Ron had found many constitutional wrongs in his trial, so he got another one. Dennis, on the other hand, also caught a break. Dennis finds out about a organization that uses DNA testing to help innocent people. This organization proved that Dennis was innocent. Ron's cases also uses DNA testing, and the court finds both of them innocent.
Review: This book was really intriguing because of the plot. It was also very well written. It was very interesting that the police will do anything just to find the perp, even if it is the wrong suspect. This book got me quite angry sometimes because Ron and Dennis got prosecuted even though they did not do it. It proves that there still is a problem with the legal system and that it needs to be fixed.
Wrapping up the project: I think that the project was worthwhile. I really enjoyed the books that I read. I would recommend these texts to anybody that enjoys legal thrillers or enjoys liking thrillers in general. I do have a favorite book. I think Presumed Innocent comes in first, and The Innocent Man comes in second. I think that reading these books helped me a lot. It got me to enjoy books more and helped me learn more about the justice system in the United States and how there are many problems regarding it today.

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Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

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Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

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Summary : This book was basically about the come up of the well known brand today "Nike". Phil Knight basically explains his journey and how he started off the company. Phil started off selling shoes out of his car trunk. He explained how he loved running when he was younger which is what inspired him to make a shoe company. Although Phil was struggling at the time he knew what he wanted to do and that was to sell shoes and make a company. Phil Knight explains in his story that doing what you love will always overcome the stress and anxiety in your life as he started selling Nike shoes out of his car and now he's the owner of the biggest brand in the world.

I liked reading this book and seeing the perspective of the founder of Nike. This book was different but also similar to the other books I read as the other two were players and coaches. This book was also similar to those books even though Phil wasn't a player or coach he still had the same drive, passion and mindset of the people in the books before. Overall I thought this was a fun book to read as I never knew the founder of nike started his business from his car trunk.

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Summary:
This story is about a girl named, Fallon. She is an up-and-coming famous actor. Just as she was about to make it big around the age of 16, she was in a fire. The fire, caused by her dad, left scars on her face and ultimately ruined her acting career. Ever since the fire, major insecurities have developed around Fallon's scars. The book begins in a restaurant, where we see her and her dad having a discussion. Fallon tells her father that she will be moving to New York that same night to hopefully pursue her dreams of acting on Broadway. Her dad is very unsupportive and begins to ridicule her for her nonexistent love life due to her insecurities. A guy, Ben, sitting near them overhears, then joins them at their booth, posing as Fallon's boyfriend. Fallon and Ben end up hitting it off and they have a great day together, but they both are not in circumstances where they are ready to date. They create a pact that every year on November 9th, they will meet at the same restaurant and the same time, with zero contact any other time throughout the year. They plan to carry out this plan for five years, until they are 23, and see if they are finally ready for a relationship.

Review and Comparisons:
This book practically stabbed me in the heart. Colleen Hoover is such an amazing author, I don't even know how she gets these ideas, but they are the best things to ever exist. I recommend this book to every single person because it is simply just that good. I would say this and It Ends with Us are tied for first place among my favorite IRP books. They are just both so good, I can't decide. I overall loved the IRP so much because I was able to explore so much about romance novels and get a sense of which books and authors I liked best. This project helped introduce me to my favorite author, Colleen Hoover, and I can't wait to read all of her other pieces and pieces soon to come.

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Summary: The Natural by Bernard Malamud is the story of Roy Hobbs a great young pitcher who is going to try out for the cubs. While he is on the train he meets a women. This women eventually shoots him, but he doesn't die from the shot. Roy comes back 15 years later to play for the Knights. The Nights are a very bad team and the manager will not even play Roy for the first part of the season. He is finally let into the game and he ends up hitting the cover off the baseball. The team gets better because of Roy playing in the games. Roy goes through ups and downs throughout the book. His hitting is good sometimes and sometimes it is bad. Roy ends up having a kid, which he finds out on a big game. Roy was not paid a lot of money at all but before this big game he is offered a lot of money and he excepted it. He strikes out and is very sad and he throws the money back at the person who gave it to him.

Review: I enjoyed reading this book and I would recommend this book to anyone who likes sports or is a baseball fan. This book was probably my least favorite of the four books I read, even though I did really like this book. I tried to read a phew books about different sports which I really enjoyed. The Natural was probably the least realistic of the books I read. The other three book I read about were all true stories and this one is not exactly a true story. But I would definitely recommend this book.

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Summary:
This One Summer follows Windy and Rose, two young friends, who go on a summer vacation in a beach town named Awago. Tamaki unfolds this novel as a coming of age novel, for the fact of both Windy and Rose who try to discover the meaning of adult life. The beach town is full of adults that have already ran out of hope in life, which makes them insignificant role models for Windy and Rose.

Review + Comparison:
Tamaki makes this novel unique from others because of its color scheme and layout. It uses the different contrasts of blue, purple, and white which in my opinion, symbolizes the beach and the ocean water.   The illustrations in the novel are surprisingly superior and stood out from all of the other graphic novels I have analyzed because it digs pictures into the brain easily. Comparing this novel to They Called Us Enemy they are both significant examples for coming of age novels. Tamaki's prominent dialogue and graphic convention makes this one the same level or if not better than the first book I analyzed by Art Spiegelman. Although it uses fine layers of dialogue, it still does not compete with Watchmen, which uses an innovative, multi-layered dialogue. All in all, throughout this whole project, I learned that there are many different ways to exhibit graphic convention and descriptive dialogue. I recommend all of the novels I analyzed and they are a great collection of graphic novels. I think I will read more of Takei's graphic novels, because I learned a lot from They Called Us Enemy.

Final Thoughts About This Project:
The IRP was actually one of the most worthwhile projects I have ever done, because I learned a lot along the way. I will most definitely read more on this subject and even try to put together my first graphic novel. I would recommend all of the texts that I read because of how much I learned. Reading these graphic novels made it turn into my new favorite set of texts. I now have new opinions on my topic that I did not have before. For example, at first, almost all of the graphic novels I read were not so descriptive, but after I analyzed this set of novels, it shows that once one dives deeper into the symbolism and context it shows a lot of description. Reading about graphic novels was definitely rewarding for me, because I learned the techniques of the authors and how they make graphic novels a significantly supported genre.

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Summary:

Penpal is from the perspective of an unnamed boy, the reason the boy is called Penpal is because as an assignment in kindergarten the students tied notes to balloons and let them go, the notes requested that whoever found the note became a penpal for the child and wrote back. Everyone got one except for our storyteller. At the end of the school year strange things start to happen to the boy, pictures of him and his mother doing various activities were sent to him. He wakes up one night in the woods with no memory of how he got there with a note left for his mom at home, but the person spelt his name wrong so they moved.

Spoiler alert: Not long after they move into their house the cat disappears so Josh, the best friend, and the storyteller grab walkie talkies to go look for their cat. The storyteller then finds a crawl space with old clothes and pictures of him, along with some cat food. During this Josh loses his walkie talkie and meowing can be heard through the walkie talkie, the storyteller soon realises that his stalker is living in his old house. Not long after the storyteller had a birthday party, Josh attended but was not himself and the storyteller never saw him again. Years later the storyteller starts dating Veronica, Josh's older sister, one night he left her side for a little and she became the victim of a hit-and-run. While in the hospital Veronica tells him that Josh left a couple years ago leaving a note similar to the note found by the storyteller's mother.  Veronica and the storyteller communicated back and forth through text so from his understanding she had been released and was going to go to the movies with him. She did not show up and a man sat next to him instead. He then got a text saying "See you again, soon", weeks later he learns Veronica died in the hospital and her phone was never found. Then Josh's dad was hired onto a landscaping job to fill holes, but to his horror he dug up a coffin with his son and the man who had hired him in it. The guy apparently kidnapped Josh 2 years earlier and changed him to look like the storyteller. Josh's dad unknowingly buried him and when Josh woke up from being knocked out in the coffin he bit the other guys neck which caused him to bleed out and not long after Josh died too.

Review :

I thought this book was really good. Full of suspense and plot twists. The book is somewhat like Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde and Cujo in the sense that there are twists that you don't see coming at all. The mystery of the whole book made you want to keep reading and each clue dropped made the book more and more interesting. The most interesting part to me is the name of the narrator is ever actually said and same with the stalker. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who wants a good horror story.

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SUMMARY:

The Art of War explores the key facets of war that Sun Tzu claims will not fail any leader in a real conflict. Sun Tzu divides his work into 13 chapters, each corresponding with a key aspect of warfare. In the first two chapters, Sun Tzu repeats the importance of preparation for war and introduces the five key elements of war, which include moral law, heaven, earth, commander, and method or discipline. Each element represents a key part of the military, such as “Commander” corresponding to the virtue of wisdom. Chapter three outlines five ways guaranteed to bring victory: the leader doesn’t cloud judgment, the leader can unify the ranks, the leader knows their troop, the leader can work with forces of all sizes, and the leader has their complete focus on their troops and war. Chapters four through nine discuss the tactics of a successful military, such as looking disorganized to trick the opposition and arriving early on the battlefield. The impact of different terrains on warfare, discussed in chapters ten and eleven, varies based on location. For example, battles far inside enemy lands can be beneficial, while troops should avoid battles near swift rivers. The final two chapters contain some of Sun Tzu’s most revolutionary ideas still in use today, which are the ideas of using fire and spies, respectively. Sun Tzu was the first to really suggest the use of spies and warfare, which governments rely on daily today, highlighting one of the many ways The Art of War changed the modern world.

REVIEW:

I enjoyed The Art of War because of its simplicity and advice without the use of excessive metaphors or stories. In terms of strategy and military tactics, Sun Tzu offers advice I found both highly intelligent and, again, easy to comprehend. Although language use can often be an issue in philosophical texts, The Art of War has no issue using effective language to explain somewhat complex ideas. That simple language makes The Art of War an incredible book to read and allows for its rich content to be fully appreciated. Beginners to philosophy would find it easy to understand The Art of War, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a small taste of political philosophy.

COMPARISONS/FINAL THOUGHTS:

In contrast to the other books I read, The Art of War uses significantly less complex language and ultimately argues its points better. While Sun Tzu writes more metaphors than Aristotle in The Politics, he includes significantly fewer and easier metaphors than Plato in The Republic. In regard to the use of language, Sun Tzu remains unrivaled by Plato, Aristotle, and, especially, Robert Nozick. Overall, The Art of War utilizes more simple language that conveys Sun Tzu’s ideas in a more effective and intriguing way than Aristotle, Plato, and Robert Nozick. Political philosophy interested me from the beginning of this project, and I found that my interest in it has only grown with time. Contrary to when I began reading, I feel like I have a better understanding of recurring concepts and the approaches different authors take. However, I still think my favorite book in the political philosophy genre is The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli. These books are classics in the worlds of both philosophy and history, and I believe that it is beneficial to read at least Aristotle and Plato as their ideas truly shaped a large portion of culture and philosophy today. Other modern philosophers like Robert Nozick and John Rawls are also interesting and beneficial to read. I love reading political philosophy and highly recommend it to anyone who finds it even remotely interesting to understand how governments and states work.

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Summary: Peter Crouch takes the reader through his career telling stories of bus rides, parties, locker rooms and just about anything that relates to professional soccer. He tells stories of him starting at Spurs academy and then playing for some of the most elite clubs and the England National team. He also lets the reader in on scoring droughts and how players adapt to bad patches of playing and teaches the reader how to also. He writes about important people in his professional career from teammates to coaches to opponents who helped him succeed. He talks about being bullied because of his height and how he overcame it with humor.

Review/Comparison: I really enjoyed this book because I had always heard about Peter Crouch being funny, but I never really realized how funny he was until I read this book. Every chapter is filled with jokes and he seems to overcome things with humor. I really liked how he talked about things outside of soccer like cars and style. I feel like I learned a lot from this book and really enjoyed it. In comparison to my other books I would say it was my favorite book I read because it had the full package; it had comedy it had teaching points and it had stories. More than the other three books this booked focused on his professional career and how his perspective on things have change from now and from when he was playing. This book and the book by Andrea Pirlo both seem very similar in that they tell stories of professional soccer and what it is like to live in that environment.

Final Thoughts: I think this project was worthwhile because I learned that I really enjoy this autobiography genre and I enjoyed reading these books. I think I will read more on this subject and try to expand outside of just sports autobiographies. I would definitely recommend these texts especially to athletes because I learned a lot from these books that I will try to take and apply in my own life. I think my favorite text was the autobiography by Peter Crouch How to be a Footballer. I don't really have any new opinions on my topic besides the fact that I learned a lot from these texts. I think reading about this was rewarding for me because it gave me chance to find a genre I enjoyed and now try to expand on that genre.

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Summary
Cemetery Boys follows 16-year-old Yadreil as he struggles in receiving gender affirmation. In their community, females and males have differing roles in magic; while females are typically associated with the ability to heal, males hold to ability to send spirits to the afterlife. Therefore, determined to prove his identity as a brujo to his traditional Latinx family, Yadreil preforms a ritualistic summoning in order to find the ghost of his murdered cousin, Miguel. Although, this objective quickly strays from its course as he summons Julian Diaz, a seemingly restless, quick-temper 'tough guy'  whose death may possibily be linked to that of Miguel. As the timeline progresses, Julian's true colors are soon revealed as the two check on Julian's friends to assure their survival during the attack which had taken his life. Yadriel submits to Julian's whims, allowing him a final day to do whatever he wanted before he was to release his spirit. Quickly afterwards, Yadriel realizes that he doesnt want Julian to return to the spirits. But in the end, Yadreil's uncles attempts to rise Bahlam using both Julian and Miguel in order to prove his worth and shed his outcast rank. And the boys learn about Julians status.

Review:
Cemetery Boys depicts the rich, enthralling tradition and culture of latinx communities while incorporating high fantasy elements into such an intricately create world. Not only does Thomas offer LGBTQ+ representation, but includes numerous ethnicities such as Mexican, Columbian, and Cuban and reflects upon topics of transphobia, gang violence, and feelings of isolation. Similar to my past readings, he portrays themes of acceptance when choosing to express your true identity and allows readers into moments of hardships for minority communities. Overall, this experience has been a positive one. I think that having insight into LGBTQ+ perspectives will allow me to be a more introspective individual and examen the privileges that I am afforded. Overall, my chosen authors have provided diversity within their texts and I am glad to have been able to support their works.

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TEXTS:

A wrinkle in time by Madeleine L'Engle

The giver by Lois Lowry

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

SUMMARY:

Brave New World is about another dystopian society that attempts to perfect humanity. The scientists start with all identical embryos, then put them in different castes and train them so they have certain behavioral traits.

REVIEW:
I really liked this book and the way the author built up the setting. Since dystopian novels can critique the way society could be in the future, the authors of all the books I read this year did a great job at building up the world in a way that the plot was less confusing. Although, after reading this book I was left wondering about a few of the author's choices of characterization, similar to in Fahrenheit 451. I really enjoyed all of the books I read this year, and I loved   reading some of the most well known dystopian novels.

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Summary:
Aideen deals with many problems in her life. Her mom is an alcoholic, she is losing her best friend and she is trying to stay above the water while all of this. Amidst all of this her know-it-all nemesis, Meabh Kowalski, is having a meltdown, interrupted by Aideen walking in. The pressure of Meabh's schedule is too weighing with extra circulars and Aideen sees the opportunity to help someone else with their problems.  She pushes Meabh down a flight of stairs, resulting in Meabh spraining her ankle. This is a good thing after all, due to the injury Meabh is able to take time to herself now. News gets around about the "favor" that Aideen did, and people want it too. Among these shenanigans, she'll find an opportunity for queer love too. If she can help others maybe it can help her start helping herself.

Review:
I really liked this book, it was really different than the other books I had read for this project. All of the other books I had chosen for this project were more focused on overcoming self-identity issues while this one is much different.  "Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit" was similar to this, as the LGBTQIA+ aspect kind of sneaks up on the main character. I really enjoyed this project, I loved being able to discover more books about this topic. All of these books are amazing, I suggest all of these books to everyone.