Readers Journal - realistic fiction

#4                                                 Readers Journal                                     9/19/11                                             Dear Mrs. Zrihen,                                                                                                                                                      I just finished a book called The Bad Beginning, or Orphans! This book was written by Lemony Snicket an imaginative writer. This book really engaged me in what was going on in the book. When I was reading I found a passage that really interested me. That passage was:                                                        We have to cook for 10 people tonight because Count Olaf has a lot to do. Which meant he is so lazy he leaves us to do chores.                                                                                                                               That passage interested me because it show the readers that in the worst of events they still keep there manner and work through it. This passage is significant to this book because it shows the readers that Violet, Klaus and Sunny are smart and use what they have. I used many different strategies before, during and after reading this book. One strategy that I used before reading this book was t o skim and scan through the book to see if there were any text features, like pictures. Another strategy that I used before reading this book was to make predictions. I predicted that the kids on the cover of the book are orphans because of the title. One strategy that I used during reading this book was to visualize the most intense and important parts of the book. Another during reading strategy that I used was to ask questions. One after reading strategy that I used was to reflect on what I just read. Another during reading strategy that I used was to answer the questions I asked when I was reading the book.                                                                                                                         There were many literary elements in this book that I was able to find. The genre of this book is realistic fiction because the events in this book can happen in real life. The main characters of this book are Violet, Klaus and Sunny and they are all the protagonists. Violet is a fourteen year old girl who loves to invent things, you can tell when she is thinking of building something because when she is thinking really hard puts her hair in a bun away from her eyes and puts her head down. She has long black hair. Her motive was to take care of herself and her siblings. She is a round and dynamic character. Klaus is a is a twelve year old boy who loves to read, he has short black hair and wears glasses. His motive was to get through losing his parents and help his sisters. He is a round and dynamic character. Sunny is an infant who has incredible strong teeth. She is a round and dynamic character. Another main character that was in this book was Count Olaf, he is a mean old main that is lazy and greedy. His motive was to get the money from the death of the Baudelaires children’s parents. He is the antagonist of this book and he is a round and dynamic character. The weather is sometimes foggy but most of the times clear skied. The social conditions of this book in the beginning were high class and towards the end of the book was middle class.                                                                                                                                                 The plot structure of this book was very exciting. The exposition of this book was when all of the main characters of this book were introduced. The rising action of this book was when the Baudelaires parents were killed in a fire. The climax was when the Baudelaires kids went to live with there nearest relative Count Olaf and he made them do horrible chores and wanted to marry Violet because then he would get the money of her parents. The falling actions of this book was when Klaus finds out about the scheme and tries to stop it from happening until Count Olaf kidnapped Sunny and said if you want her back then Violet must marry me. The solution of this book was when Violet signed the wedding contract with the wrong hand and it was illegal and then Klaus rescued Sunny. The conflict of this book was man vs. man and nature vs. man. The tone of this book was uncertain. The mood of this book was scared and sad. The moral of this book was to not be so greedy. The point of view was third person. The patterns of organization were chronological order. The authors purpose was to entertain and share. The authors perspective was subjective. The figurative language in this book was simile, metaphor, idiom, and hyperbole and oxymoron.                                                                                                                         Over all I enjoyed this book. I would rate this book a ten out of ten. I would recommend this book to boys and girl twelve and up. I thought this book was really amusing and exciting. I look forward to reading another book by Lemony Snicket.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Sincerely,                                                                                                                                                Roxanne Fine