2 quarter outside reading book review

New Boy by Julian Houston. Houghton Mifflin Books, 2005. Genre: Historical Fiction.

New Boy is about segregation and racism during the late 1950's in Virginia. The protagonist, Rob Garrett, is a fifteen-year-old boy who is enrolled by his parents into a private school called Draper in Connecticut. Few kids in his town have the special opportunity to get the education he is. In fact, he is the first and only African American student there and he overcomes many obstacles while students try to put segregation to an end in his hometown in Virginia.
"He looked at my ticket and then returned it to me. 'You know, when we get to Washington,'he said in a confidential tone, 'you'll have to move to the back of the train."
Rob Garret has always been dealing with segregation and racism and he is tired of it. When he comes back to his home town from his schooling in Connecticut, he attends meetings where many of his former classmates organize a sit-in at a lunch counter where blacks are not allowed. The entire book is in Rob's point of view and you experience what it is like to live in a southern state in the late 1950's.
"The first thing we saw was Albert, and then another student, seated on stools with their backs to us, lying face-down on the blood spattered lunch counter."
I really enjoyed this book and think that it sent out a good message about racism and treating people differently because of what they look like in general. I learned about how the blacks were treated during the 1950's and what they had to go through in order to accomplish simple things because of segregation.

Weekends and Boards

Is the meaning of value an expensive object that you own and cherish? Could it be a special moment that you experience every so often? In today's society, most people value something that they posses. It can be as simple as a piece of clothing or as complex as a car. However, would you know the difference between something that has value and something that doesn't?

On a Friday afternoon, the students are counting down the minutes until they are free. I sit in graphics class, as the clock races to two o' clock. We rush to write down our homework and gather up our backpacks, finishing up our projects on the computers.

The last bell of the day finally rings and the class is dismissed. We rush out of the school and in a good mood and I wait patiently for my brother to get outside and unlock his jeep, which towers over me. As we storm out of the parking lot, we try our best to avoid traffic and the music from his Ipod blares rap over the car stereo. I ride home with the whole weekend in front of me and I can finally relax, thinking about my plans for the next two days.

I grab my scratched up board by the plain black, sharp grip tape that has “Fat-Trax” in colorful letters on the bottom of the board as a graphic. Fat-Trax is a skateboarding, snowboarding, and biking shop. On the bottom also include trucks, wheels and bearings. Trucks are a metal component bolted to the board that is used for steering and the wheels are set to them. Wheels are what enable me to roll and bearings are circles that fit inside them, which lets them spin. Without all of these necessities, skateboarding would not be possible for me.
I walk outside and lay my board under me as I begin to roll down the street. I Pop and flip the board under my feet, and I land trick after trick just as a warm up. We are lucky enough to be granted a ride from one of our parents to the local skate park where we meet up with other friends.

We host a miniature contest for fun to see who can perform the best maneuvers. I go for my difficult trick that I have been practicing in front of all my friends. Surprisingly I come very close to pulling it off. My friend has his camera nearby and it influences me to try it again. I build up adrenaline and I drop in on the ramp. I gain speed and set up my feet on the nose. I pop the board and it flips between my legs, coming back around to the grip tape. My feet reunite with the board as I stomp on it, riding away and landing the trick perfectly making it look easy. My friends cheer and I review my trick filmed on the camera.

I value my Friday afternoons and my skateboard very much. These values both make me happy and they are ones I wouldn’t trade for anything. While I am on my way out the door after school on Friday, I feel a sense of freedom that is similar to when I am riding on my board. These values also let me relax. Even though skateboarding doesn’t sound relaxing, I feel that it is because I am not only riding and having fun, but I am spending time with my friends too.

However, I do see my two values differently too. For example, my skateboard lets me express my creativity and it gives me the opportunity to impress my peers. Friday afternoons are different because they just make me happy when I am out of school and I have the whole weekend to do what I please without having to worry about getting to bed early or if I have my gym clothes prepared for the next day.

In my opinion, value is what makes me happy and what matters to me the most regardless of the price because anyone can buy an object if they have enough money. You cannot put a price tag on a memory or a priceless moment. An object can be lost, stolen, or broken, but if a memory is special enough, it will stay with you forever.

First Quarter Outside Reading Book Review

The Life You Imagine By Derek Jeter and Jack Curry. Scholastic Books, 2000. Genre: Autobiography
This autobiography is about Derek Jeter's life from childhood to young adulthood. Derek was always a determined, talented athlete who was respected by his fellow students and his teachers. He was raised by biracial parents who had strict rules that kept him in line, but also kept them very close. Derek has a sister named Sharlee. Sharlee was four years younger and Derek was always trying to set good examples for her to follow. Derek overcomes many obstacles such as dealing with racial slurs but he also is always trying to improve in baseball.
"This year's most valuable player on the All-Star team and a shortstop for the New York Yankees, Jeter would seem to have the perfect life. His skills on the field are stellar, and he's already been compared to some of baseball's most legendary players. Teammates and fans respect and adore him. In this affable volume, Jeter, who says he hopes he can set a good example for young people, shares some of his personal history as he outlines the 10 principles that led to his success," Says Publishers Weekly.
Jack Curry explains Derek's life in very specific detail and uses important descriptions in his writing that motivates the reader by making Derek a role model. This book was written to give the reader life lessons and advice that anyone can relate to for achieving their dreams.
This book reminds me of The Contender because both Derek and Alfred are determined to reach their goals and become successful. Derek wants to become a professional baseball player for the New York Yankees and Alfred wants to become a contender in boxing.
"I'd usually get up a couple hours later and drag my grandmother out of bed and force her to play baseball with me. I didn't care how early it was and neither did she."(Page 72)
I really enjoyed this book because it was about Derek Jeter who has always been a huge fan of mine on my favorite baseball team, the New York Yankees, ever since I was little. I could relate everything that he was talking about to my life and the goals I want to set. I have even been to Yankee stadium to watch him play. I understood everything that he was talking about when he spoke about baseball , such as his batting average because it is my favorite sport.

Pearl Value Essay

Is the meaning of value an expensive object that you own and cherish? Could it be a special moment that you experience every so often? In today's society, most people value something that they posses. It can be as simple as a piece of clothing or as complex as a car. However, would you know the difference between something that has value and something that doesn't?

On a Friday afternoon, the students are counting down the minutes until they are free. I sit in graphics class, as the clock races to two o' clock. We rush to write down our homework and gather up our backpacks, finishing up our projects on the computers.

The last bell of the day finally rings and the class is dismissed. We rush out of the school and in a good mood and I wait patiently for my brother to get outside and unlock his jeep, which towers over me. As we storm out of the parking lot, we try our best to avoid traffic and the music from his I-pod blares over the car stereo. I ride home with the whole weekend in front of me and I can finally relax.
I grab my scratched up board and I begin to roll down the street. Popping and flipping the board under my feet, I land trick after trick just as a warm up. If we are lucky enough to be granted a ride from one of our parents to the local skate park where we met up with other friends.

We host a miniature contest for fun to see who can perform the best maneuvers. I go for my insane trick in front of all my friends. I surprisingly come very close to pulling it off. My friend has his camera nearby and it influences me to try it again. I drop in on the ramp and set up my feet. I pop the board and it flips between my legs, coming back around to the grip tape. My feet reunite with the board as I stomp on it, riding away and landing the trick perfectly. My friends cheer and I review my trick filmed on the camera.
I value my Friday afternoons and my skateboard very much. These values both make me happy and they are ones I wouldn’t trade for anything. While I am on my way out the door after school on Friday, I feel a sense of freedom that is similar to when I am riding on my board. These values also let me relax. Even though skateboarding doesn’t sound relaxing, I feel that it is because I am not only riding and having fun, but I am spending time with my friends too.
However, I do see my two values differently too. For example, my skateboard lets me express my creativity. Friday afternoons are different because they just make me happy when I am out of school and I have the whole weekend to do what I please.

In my opinion, value is what makes me happy and what matters to me the most regardless of the price because anyone can buy an object if they have enough money. You cannot put a price tag on a memory. But if one is special enough, a memory it will stay with you forever.