Readers Journal - realistic fiction

#2                                                 Readers Journal                                                9/07/11                                                                                                                                    Dear,Mrs.Zrihen,                                                                                                                                    I just finished an amazing book called The Most Beautiful Place in the World by Ann Cameron. I would have never guessed that a simple book like this would be so interesting and descriptive. One passage that really stood out mean was:                                                                                                                                                            A lot of kids don’t go to school because their parents want them to work. The law is, they are supposed to go to school until they are twelve. But the school doesn’t really have space for everyone, so nobody makes them go. (page. 24)                                                                                                                                                                                                            I picked this passage because this passage describes how small the town is because the passage says that the school doesn’t really have space for everyone. This passage is sagnificent to the text because this passage shows the readers that the laws in Guatemala was not very strict because the laws required children to go to school until they were twelve but nobody went to school because their parents needed them to work and nobody really made them go to school. I used many strategies before, during, and after I read this book. One strategy that I used before I read this book was to skim and scan the book for text features. Another strategy that I used before reading this book was to make predictions. Based on the synopsis of this book I predict that this book is about a boy named Juan who lives in a small town and has to work instead of going to school because his grandmother and him are poor. One strategy that I used while I was reading this book was to ask questions. One question that I want to now is were did this story take place. Another during reading strategy that I used was to reread confussing parts of the book so when I read it again maybe I would comprehend what that part of the book meant. One strategy that I used after I read this book was to identify the authors purpose. The authors purpose for writing this book was to entertain and share. Another after reading strategy was to reread the parts of the book that I enjoyed the most.                                                                                                                                                 I was able to find many literary elements in this book. The genre of this book is realistic fiction because this story can happen in real life. There were a few characters in this book. The main character of this book is Juan. Juan is a seven and a half year old boy, brown skinned, who shines shoes for work. His motive is to go to school. Juan is the protagonist of this book and he is a round and dynamic character. Another main character of this story is Juan’s grandmother. His grandmother is a confident, hard working women who takes care of Juan. Her motive was to take care of Juan and make money. She is the protagonist of this story and she is a round and dynamic character. Juan’s mother is a eighteen year old who is poor and abandoned Juan at her mothers place to start a new life with another guy. Her motive was to start a new life and get money because she was really poor. She is the antagonist of this book and she is a round and dynamic character. The last character that was presented in this book was Juan’s father who was the caretaker of a rich mans house until he left Juan and his mother and went to the capital. His motive was t o go out at nights with his friends to have fun. He is a foil character and he is a flat and static character. The main setting of were this story took place was San Pablo, Guatemala. There was not a specific date. The weather conditions in this book were hot. The social conditions were very poor.                                                                                     I found this plot structure interesting. The exposition of this book was when the author introduced all of the characters and were the book took place. The rising action of this book is when Juan’s father left them and went to the capital. The climax of this book was when Juan’s mother abandoned him to marry a guy she met on the street. The falling action was when Juan had no were to go and started to cry. The resolution of this book was when Juan’s grandmother  took him in and took care of him. The main proplem was that Juan’s father and mother abandoned him. This prplem is external and the conflict in this book were man vs. man. The tone of this book was sad and happy at the end of the story. The mood of this book is unhappy and happy. the theme of this book is never give up. The moral of this book is no matter what has happened in your life never give up. This book is told in first person. The pattern of organization of this book is chronological. The authors perspective was subjective. Unfortunately I was not able to find any figurative launguage.                                                                                                                                                             All in all I really enjoyed reading this book, I would rate this book a eight out of ten. I recommend this book to boys and girls the ages of 10-12. I look forward  to read more of Ann Cameron’s novels.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Sincerely,                                                                                                                                             Roxanne Fine