A Midsummer Night's Dream Book Cover

 



 

This week, we have to choose a Book cover that we thinks best represents the novel, and his is the cover I like the best.

First of all, in the background, it is night time and the majority of the story happens at night hence the title “A Midsummer Night’s dream”. So, I would imagine A Midsummer Night happens during the night. All of the chaos that happens in this novel is in the forest at night. I don’t think the story line would be the same I it happened during the day. Probably no one would be sleeping, so it would be almost impossible to put the magic flower’s nectar on anyone’s eyes.

Second, the illustrator chose to put trees along the sides of the book to represent the forest. The forest is a pretty big part in the plot. Most of the events happen in the forest, and I could only imagine the characters trying to do the same in the middle of a town. Also, the forest is where the fairies live, and they probably would not be a part of the story if it all took place in the city.  

And lastly, in the middle of the page, with what I think are two fairies, is Nick Bottom. Bottom is a very important character in the book. He is a character that is pretty stupid and thinks highly of his self, and he is unaware of the donkey head that is now in place of his human head. He looks to be in a sort of rowdy mood which makes sense because he and his “crew” were practising a play and he tends to get a bit excited and loud because he wants to play all of the parts.

This is why I think this cover represents the book well. And on top of all of this, it does not look intimidating like the other covers with fine works of art on the front. A simple picture is all we need.



Connection to A Midsummer Night's Dream

                Once again I have changed novels from my last post, if you would like to read about it click the link below. It is “The boy in the Striped Pajamas” by John Boyne, and it is about a young boy living in the time of WW2.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boy_in_the_Striped_Pyjamas

 

            In my Novel, there is a character named Pavel who is greatly similar to Helena in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Pavel is a waiter who works in Bruno’s household, but has been forced to live in the concentration camp not far away from where Bruno’s family lives. Pavel was a doctor before the war, but has been forced to serve the family. Being in a concentration camp was very hard on him. He was weak, thin, hungry, and could barely do his job because of how little he was getting. Through all the pain and work, he still manages to do as he’s told, and respect everyone around him. Helena is not in this position but has the same type of personality that Pavel has. She is madly in love with Demetrius and it is very painful on her because he does not love her back. She would do anything for him and respects him greatly. As much as she wants to just throw herself at him, she does as she is told. If Demetrius told her to leave him alone for a while, she probably would despite how much it would hurt to.

            Both the characters are experiencing pain, one physically and one mentally, and they both hid it inside and follow their orders. Both of them have such strength not to break down and do what they really want, but they have too much respect and care. Both of them should be acknowledged more for all the trouble they are put through.  

My Spring Break

My spring break isn't really anyone's ideal break from school. Instead of sleeping in until noon every day and hanging out with friends, I will be working my butt off preparing for the Meridian Arts and dance festivals. The Meridian Arts festival is a music festival outside the city, and I will be performing three piano pieces. One of them happens to be a ten page version of Prince's "Bohemian Rhapsody" which takes six and a half minutes to perform, and the other two are classical pieces which I will have linked below. I will have to spend about three hours a day practising, and spending time performing in front of others so I will not feel as nervous on stage. Also, my dance company decided to run classes all throughout spring break so I will have all of my afternoons and evenings taken up. I am performing in three group dances (which are lyrical, hip-hop, and tap) and I may be possibly be bringing my tap solo to perform as well. On top of all this, my parents are going on a 5 day ski trip without any kids. I guess it’s not so bad having all these classes and practises, because at least I won’t be sleeping my whole break away. And it may be a lot of work to do, but it will pay off in the end.

This picture represents my spring break very well, although the festivals aren’t until mid-April. I get really bad stage fright and I hate being the centre of attention so of course performing or even thinking about it makes me really scared and nervous. Performing has never been easy for me, and I will try my best to conquer it before the festivals. In the picture, the boy is hiding behind the cutrain and that's basically what I will want to do instead of be on stage, but I guess this will be something I have to do

Bohemian Rhapsody (I can't find the exact cover I'm learning, but this one was pretty close)  
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1OaxzqXoY8

An Ancient Tale by Bohdana Filtz
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhITpt26RKw

Arietta by Evard Grieg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdrMCAymlfk



 

Connections From My Novel

Since my last blog post, I have started a new book called "It's Kind of a Funny Story" by Ned Vizzini. To read about the novel, click here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It's_Kind_of_a_Funny_Story

One of my friends can connect with the main carachter Craig. Craig suffers from depression and does not live the ideal life style of a typical teenager. He has struggles everyday by trying to keep his emotions together and deal with life. One day he gets so fed up and he feels as if suicide is his only way out of his struggles. He decides to phone his local Suicide hotline and they tell him to check into a hospital. My friend went through almost everything he went through. She has never been completely put together in her mind and her struggles sometimes overpower her thoughts. She does not feel good with her image and always questions her presence on this earth. And just like Craig, she keeps all of her pain bundled up inside herself. Both of them are so inspirational because they both manage to pull themselves together and take on the battle of a new day. The quote from the novel "I didn't want to wake up. I was having a much better time asleep. And that's really sad. It was almost like a reverse nightmare, like when you wake up from a nightmare you're so relieved. I woke up into a nightmare." proves how brave the two of them are. Nightmares are terrible experiences, imagine living them every day.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

 

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a book that you will either love, or hate. Personally I love it, although it took a lot of patience for me to begin and understand the novel. The book is about a teen boy in his freshman and sophomore years of high school who has a lot going on in his life and decides to write letters to an anonymous person to share his story. He goes by the name of Charlie, and lives a somewhat typical teenage life. Perfect grades, loving parents, and friends who are always by his side, his life seems absolutely wonderful. Charlie doesn't think like an average person. His mind is so complex and intelligent, and he treats everyday life with pure respect and honesty. He tries to figure out the way things work and why they happen, and is very sensitive towards many things. His new friends Sam and Patrick, who are both seniors in high school, and happen to be step siblings, help him understand the world around him and they accept his tend to over think. His friends introduce him to high school life like parties, relationships, drugs, and most of all how to have fun and be carefree. Charlie experiences all kinds of things he never thought he would, and even falls in love for the first time. He may not be mentally stable, but that doesn't stop him from going though the journeys he has.

The protagonist in this novel is Charlie, as the book is in his point of view. The book never made a very clear description of what he lookes like, but in the movie he is played by Logan Lerman so it is easier to picture him in the novel. Charlie's personality is kind of all over the place. You can tell that he has a mental disorder of some sort, but you never find out exactly what it is. He has a dicfferent view on things, and he is extraordinarily smart. His language and comprehending skills are what make him able to explain his life so well to the friend he decides to write to. He is a difficult over thinker and is very sensitive. Charlie is very strong with an opinion and is not afraid to share it or ask questions about another, but he tends to go with the flow and ask for help and advice from Sam and Patrick. He is not afraid to share an emotion, he even tells Sam how madly in love with her he is while he is in another relationship and he is always 100% honest. His modes are a little bipolar, but that's what make him so special and easily liked.

This novel takes place in the 1990's in Pittsburgh, U.S.A.. The slightly old fashioned talk in this novel is what made it a little more interesting and had me do a little research of some of their conversation topics. It seems to be in a suburb area where everyone knows everyone and reputations spread fast.
The town is very simple with there only being one or two high schools, one shopping mall, and limited recreation areas, but that doesn't stop Charlie and his friends from always looking for new things to do. His house seems very cozy, but not really updated, as for when he goes to Sam and Patrick's house he finds it really high end and put together. The town gets a variety of weather, lots of snow in the winter and very warm temperatures in the spring and summer. The weather seems to always be at an acceptable climate, because Charlie and his group. The setting reminds me of how my mom explained her situation growing up to me. In a small suburb just outside of Winnipeg, with her family of 5 (Charlie lives in a family of 5 as well) and not enough technology invented to keep kids and teenagers inside all day.

All About Me

Hello, my name is Kjersten I am in Mr. Toms's english class this semester. I am 15 years old and I've lived just outside of Winnipeg with my large family of 7 my whole life. I am your basic teenage girl with obsessions to facebook and instagram, a passion for boy bands (especially British ones) and I can never go anywhere without my phone. But, like most people, I have other details about me that define my character. I love music so much, I can't function properly with out it. I play the piano and flute, and I am absolutely in love with Ed Sheeran and Florence and the Machine. I enjoy all movies with humor like "Forrest Gump" and "The Benchwarmers", but for books something simple like "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" is what I reach for the most. I am very random and outgoing, but I can also be very shy and to myself. I love to make people smile, so you can always expect a joke or a complument from me. I have a lot of different personalities, but I guess that's what makes me unique.