Reading: An Adventure

Learning to read is one of the most important skills a person can be taught. The old saying “knowledge is power” is incredibly true. A person cannot gain knowledge without first being able to read. It doesn’t matter if one reads nonfiction, fiction, magazines, etc. Reading helps not only obtain a larger vocabulary, but also gain an understanding of the mysteries of the world. Reading also exercises the imagination and opens up the mind. Within the pages of a novel one can learn new life lessons and discover new ideals. Books can become a challenge for a persons mind. When one reads they are usually trying to figure out what will happen next in the plot line, or how the book will end. This helps improve vital problem solving skills as well as thinking analytically.

I realize there are people out there that do not take pleasure in reading. My theory is if a person does not like reading than they just have not found the right book yet. When I was a kid my mom used to read my sister and me bedtime stories. Other than that though you could not pay me to touch a book. Thankfully the school system had the accelerated reading program. AR does have its drawbacks; such as not having a large enough selection for advanced readers and having standardized tests over book content. All of this aside, I will always be grateful to the AR program. Without it I may never have found “my book.” I will not ever forget the day I picked it up. I was 10 years old and in 4^th grade. I went to the library and there on display was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Its shiny plastic cover and wonderful cover illustration drew me in. I know they say never judge a book buy its cover, but in this case the cover was only the beginning. I was in love from page one! I had never been so excited about reading before! I had it finished within a few days, which was an accomplishment for me at the time. After I finished Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory I could not believe the adventure that I had been on. The people I’d met and the places that I had been. It was from that moment on that I loved books.

For me, and I think most people, reading is an escape. Whenever I’ve had a tough day I can come home, open a book, and enter a whole new world. One moment I am sitting in my tiny apartment and the next I might be helping Harry Potter fight Lord Voldemort or I may be running from the Silent Brothers with Clary and Jace. Coming home to my book is one of the best feelings in the world. I love the way they smell, the way the pages feel against my fingers, and the sound they make as I turn them. I love getting a hold of a book that takes me so far from reality I can’t even put it down. Whatever the story may be it is always new and exciting!

An adventure really is the only way to describe reading. When a person first starts out it is difficult figuring out all kinds of new words and sounds. As they become more advanced the books lose their fun colorful pictures in favor of length and chapters. The more a person reads the more characters they come to know. Some can even be counted as companions and friends. For me Jace Wayland and Clary Fray from the Mortal Instruments series are some of my dearest friends. Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley are kids I grew up with. I feel like I know them better then kids I graduated with. Leaving them behind or watching characters die can feel so real. Another obstacle one encounters is the evolution of personality. The books I loved as a kid are completely different from the books that I love as a young adult. I am sure throughout my life my reading styles will change. It just takes practice finding the books one enjoys. It isn’t always an easy task. A person may read through many book before they find the right niche, but once they do it is worth it!

Good luck and happy reading to you all!

V for Vendetta

“Remember, remember the 5^th of November. The gunpowder treason and plot. I know of no reason the gunpowder treason should ever be forgot.”

-V for Vendetta

James McTeigue director of V for Vendetta creates in the viewers mind something of masterpiece. He brings to life the beautiful graphic novel by Alan Moore and David Lloyd. Essentially, V for Vendetta tells what is wrong with the world and what the solution might be. Some parts of the solution may be cut and dry and are to be taken at face value. Where as others it is up to the viewer to interrupt. 

The story is set in a futuristic London. A time in the future when England prevails and the former super power USA is reduced to a leper colony. The irony of situation is that England has come to resemble the present government of USA. There are several more rough regulations put into place. The government keeps the people under control by the stories of impending terrors. The people don't care or they don't dare speak out, as the media keeps on feeding them the sensationalized terror stories. At this time Chancellor Adam Stutler the stereotypical bad guy rules England. Minorities are treated without any sympathy. Homosexuals, Muslims, people who dare to voice their opinion are gone before they can even begin to defend themselves.  

Evey Hammond is the female lead in the movie; played by Natalie Portman. She is an employee at a premier telecasting company. The spectator first meets Evey when she walks out after curfew and is assaulted by two policemen. From the shadows emerges the hero - man in the mask – V Hugo Weaving. After an impressive and easy-looking fight the policemen are reduced to a bundle and the heroine is rescued. V further impresses her and the viewers with his chivalry and Shakespearean dialogues. His way with words has captivated audiences since the films release in 2005. 

V invites Evey to a music concert at the end of which the London court explodes in a fabulous firework. Confused and horrified, Evey parts ways with V. Her resistance not withstanding, Evey's life takes a non-returning journey forced by V as he finds a Protégée in her. 

The viewer come to learn in bits and pieces that V is a victim of some experiment that the government secretly carried out which distorted him beyond recognition, along with thousands of other people, on a 5th of November.

V has a simple and daring plan. On November 5th he will blow Westminster Abbey as wakeup call for the sleeping citizens of England. An act that will pull at least a few roots of the dictatorship. In his journey to this finale he eliminates a few high ranking official personnel. He is called a terrorist by the government and popular media. Even in the present world isn't the normal definition of a terrorist a horribly one-sided? 

This film has a fairly star studded cast. Natalie Portman shows such dedication to her role in the movie that she shaves her head for a few of the more intense scenes in the movie. Though Hugo Weavings face is not seen the whole movie his ability to carry out lines with the right voice inflection gives him so much personality. It almost gives the impression that the mask moves, when in reality it is the very same. The cinematography in V for Vendetta holds true to the comic book. The fight scenes have a graphic novel feel. Giving comic book readers exactly what they are looking for. 

V for Vendetta is full of political statements and ethical codes. It teaches the viewer that one shouldn’t allow themselves to be oppressed just because the government is seemingly omnipresent. One of the most famous quotes from the movie, “People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people.”, is something that the viewer should take into consideration after watching this film. This movie may be radical and dramatized, but it is there to show people that turning a blind eye does not actually make things better. 

This movie can be extraordinarily eye opening if one remains open minded while watching it. Here in the Ozarks people tend to be closed off from abstract ideas. One of the themes in V for Vendetta is that people of different religious backgrounds or sexual orientation is against the law and not tolerated. When looking around this area one gets the same picture. There are several people around this area who are either fiery and out spoken about oppressing groups that are unlike them, or there are those that just pretend nothing is wrong. V for Vendetta could really show people that just because someone is different doesn’t mean they are unworthy of your attention. 

Overall, I would give this movie 4.7 out of 5 stars. While it is wonderfully directed, the spectator needs to reserve two and a half hours in order to watch this movie. In today’s society people want something that will entertain them and keep their very short attention spans. Also, the story of V’s life is spread out through the whole movie. It may take watching the movie more than once before the viewer grasps exactly who V is. Given that I can quote the whole movie I didn’t have a hard time watching this film again. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did. 

The Instruments of Good Writing

Cassandra Clare author of City of Bones, book one of the Mortal Instruments series, creates a world that activates the imagination of people young and old.  City of Bones takes place in modern time New York City. It follows the adventures of a young teenager named Clary and her friends Jace, Isabelle, and Alec.            

It all begins when Clary witness’s a murder at a nightclub in the city. Clary’s courageous attitude sends her running after the group of murders. When she finally confronts them, kids not much older then herself, the boldest of the group Jace tells her that the “boy” they killed was actually a demon. Jace goes on to tell her that they are shadow hunters.  Their task is to kill demons and send them back to the shadow world.             

From there the plot escalates when Clary receives a frantic call from her mother ordering her not to come home. Ignoring her Clary races home to find her mother gone and a demon lurking in the shadows. With the help of Jace they kill the demon. Clary who is injured during the fight is then taken to an old cathedral that the shadow hunters call “the institute”. 

Clary later learns that her mother and father were shadow hunters as well and that with the proper training she too could be a demon hunter. She also learns her father is not dead, but the leader of treasonous group in Idris, the city where the shadow hunters come from. Clary, Jace, Isabelle, and Alec work together to help find Clary’s mother and in the process look for the mortal cup, which has the power to create a demon army. The cup that Clary’s dad wants in order to create a multitude to take over the shadow Idris.

            By the end of the book Clary has gone on a whirlwind adventure, making tough decisions that shape the person she will become.  

            Cassandra Clare’s work produces a world that one can only dream of. While fantasy books have not always been the most popular genre of books Clare’s writing style takes the reader away from reality placing them in a new world; a world where demons, angels and shadow hunters roam the earth.            

            In her series Clare brings to life all kinds of characters. Within the first few pages the reader feels as though they are with Clary and the others fighting the war between good and evil. The vibrancy with which she paints each and every character puts the reader in the very heart of the action. Clare makes every character seem important, even ones that are only alluded to.  It is here that things can become confusing. With each new character she creates the reader may not be sure which characters are important to keep up with and which ones are just passing through.

            While reading City of Bones one will go not only on an journey with their imagination, but a personal adventure as well. Clare writes of individual triumphs and self-confidence. She writes a story of over coming fears and coming to terms with the things we cannot change.  

            Using daring plot twists and incredible descriptions Clare’s world comes to life from page one.  In the final chapters of book one the reader will be stunned by turn of events and gripped by the final scene making the wait for book two seem almost unbearable!