Journal 4 from Lexia Wilson

My active reading is going very well so far. I think the only thing that I am struggling with right now is that sometimes I am to into the reading that I forget what I am supposed to be looking for. While I am reading I write names and places in the margins. I also write what happened in that paragraph just so when I go back to look over it I know what has happened. I never had to do this before in any of my classes that I took in high school but I believe that this is a very helpful tool. If my high school teachers would have had me do this I think it would have help me out tremendously. Something that I marked in The House on Mango Street was on page 28 in the chapter called Those Who Don't. "All brown all around, we are safe. But watch us drive into a neighborhood of another color and our knees go shakity-shake and our car windows get rolled up tight and our eyes look straight. Yeah. That is how it goes and goes." I marked this part of the chapter because I found it interesting that in the beginning of the chapter it says "But we aren't afraid" but when they go into a different neighborhood they get scared and roll up their windows and don't look around.

I prefer the book A Long Way Gone right now because I like how its chapters are a little bit longer and it has more detail. I really just feel like I can get more into this book because it has a better story line than The House on Mango Street. I like all the action and craziness because you never know what could happen it gives me the feeling of suspense and makes me want to keep reading. Beah's writing makes me as if I am with the boys as they are on their journey to freedom from the war against the rebels. The theme that I think is the most important is survival. Beah has had to use his survival skills from the very beginning. From fleeing from Mattru Jong to wandering alone or with different groups of boys that he meets along the way from village to village. I believe that this theme is very important because if Beah never learned to survive on his own he wouldn't have been alive to write this book and tell the world his story.

Journal 4. Kayla Frea.

My active reading is going pretty decent. I sometimes forget to be looking for everything and just read but do not write anything. I struggle with remembering what I need to write about while I am reading. I really just write down my thoughts as I read. In The House on Mango Street, I had marked that the title of "There Was an Old Women She Had So Many Children She Didn't Know What To Do", I had marked that it reminded me of a nursery rhyme.

The book that I prefer right now is A Long Way Gone.   I prefer this book because the writing is much more descriptive. I can just imagine the story better when reading than I can when I am reading The House on Mango Street.  The theme that I believe is most important is family.  In the last chapter we read there were a lot of references to family. Beah told us about all the things he missed about his family. We learned back stories about how everyone in the new group escaped from the rebels, most of them included family. When Saidu passed away, Beah considered him family.  I can relate to this book because family is an important thing. I try to put myself in the shoes that the author was in but I never can it is just to much.

Jounal 4 from Zach

My active reading is going fairly well so far. I'm struggling with just trying to stay interested in
House on Mango Street , nothing really strikes interest in me. But other than the lack of interest in the first book my reading is going well. In the chapter " There Was an Old Woman She Had So Many Children She Didn't Know what to Do" pg.29 ( They are without respect for all things living,including themselves) I marked this down because it shows how important good parenting is and what happens if children aren't show discipline at a young age.

The book I prefer right now is A Long Way Gone. I really do enjoy it and enjoy reading, just for the the fact its like a suspenseful survival story . I also like the fact that when reading the book I can almost feel his suffering  and what he is going through. The theme that is important is "survival", doing what ever it takes to live. He talks of depression and loneliness but he he keeps pushing on with motivation from things his family told him.

Journal Four From Tristen Stover.

My active reading is going pretty good so far. I am doing pretty good on highlighting peoples names, place names, and also plot points. On the other hand though, I am struggling with writing in the margins. I am not to sure on what to write. I am better at highlighting things then I am actually writing things down in the book itself. Something I highlighted for today's reading assignment which was on "The House on Mango Street" was on page 28. "We know the guy with the crooked eye is Davey the baby's brother, and the tall one next to him in the straw brim, that's Rosa's Eddie V., and the big one that looks like a dumb grown man, he's fat boy, though he's not fat anymore nor a boy." I highlighted that quote because it is talking about people and describing them.

The book that I prefer right now is "A Long Way Gone" by Ishmael Beah because the chapters are not as short as they are in "The House On Mango Street" and the chapters are easier to understand. A theme I believe that is important in the book is how the narrator had to experience the tragedy of war at such a young age. For kids his age its like he was being forced to grow up quickly. A little too fast. He was like a grown man trying to run away from a war while being shot at then having his whole family ripped away from him. Another example is the woman carrying a baby on her back, leaving a trail of blood behind her. Those are examples of things a young boy should never have to go though at such a young age. To me this means that sometimes life isn't always easy. Life get's rough sometimes.

Journal 4: Hans

Hans, Ananya
hans.34@buckeyemail.osu.edu
Journal #4: Reading Response to The House On Mango Street


In my reading of The House On Mango Street, I actively read in the beginning but as we have advanced in the book I have made less active marks. I am struggling a little bit with the way Cisneros writes abstract, it has caused me problems to fully comprehend the reading. For active reading today I marked; "Close your eyes and they'll go away, her father says, or You're just imagining." I chose this because I felt like it is subtle hints at a problem that Alicia has with her father and it is compared to mice."Is afraid of nothing except four-legged fur. And fathers."

In the two books that I am currently reading I prefer A Long Way Gone By: Ismael Beah. This is so because in A Long Way Gone there is an exciting plot with a great storyline that keeps the reader hungry to read more. The way Beah tells his story it seems like he remembers every detail of when it was actually happening. The extreme subject of "boy soldiering" is so unique in itself and gives the reader perspective on something that is unimaginable.

Journal 4: Reading Response from Pernale Blake

Journal 4: Reading Response from Pernale Blake

I have never been an active reader, or much of a reader at all. I usually just read the book, and tried my hardest to remember most details. Actively reading has really helped me so far, I can easily find important details because they are right in front of my face. It has also made reading much more satisfying, mostly because I actually understand most of what I am reading now. A lot of the time I forget to do it though, because it is just not natural to me yet. I have been practicing actively reading throughout the book "The House on Mango Street" by Sandra Cisneros. An example is on page 28, I underlines a little passage saying "All brown all around we are safe. But watch us drive into a neighborhood of another color and our knees go shakity-shake and our car windows get rolled up tight and our eyes look straight.' I marked this passage because I could relate to it. Whenever my family and I would go to Detroit, Atalanta, or even Cincinnati here in Ohio, my father would always quadruple lock his car because he was paranoid that the "type" of people around there would break into his car and steal everything. I thought this peace of writing produced a lot of imagery towards me, I could imagine everything that was going on.

Between "A Long Way Gone" by Ishmael Beah and "The House on Mango Street" by Sandra Cisneros, the one I prefer right now is "The House on Mango Street". I enjoy this book a lot more because the chapters are like one to three pages long each and it makes me feel like I am reading a lot more than I actually am.  A theme that I believe is important is Hope. If these kids didn't have hope, or faith I honestly don't believe they could have survived. I know that during a workout or during football when I played I always used hope or faith to strive. Telling myself that I can get through this set or that I am strong enough. If Ishmael didn't have faith in himself or have hope he would have died during the war.

Journal 4: The House On Mango Street (Brittney Hanks)

Brittney Hanks

My active reading in The House on Mango Street is going very well. I find it very interesting how she tells the story of everyone who has or had lived on Mango Street. When reading I like how she tells the story as if you were right by her when the event are going on she gives you a picture of the family’s and what they were/are going through. What I don’t really care for when reading is the fact that the author Sandra Cisneros makes her stories so short and leaves you wanting to know more about the characters. What I marked in my reading was on page 30 last paragraph, when she was talking about the lady who had so many kids she didn’t know what to do with them. It made me picture all the things the kids are doing and how even if they would get hurt they would be okay. They never got in trouble it just made me laugh.  The author made you see that the kids are out of control.

The book that I enjoy reading right now is a long way gone.  It’s more of an intense reading about a boys struggles. Even though we are only on chapter 10 we have seen so much of this young man’s struggle on life and how he wants to overcome all odds and make it through it and become free. I feel like something bad may happen in the book how he is writing his chapters, that makes me want to read on and find out what will happen to Ishmael later on in the book.