Quarter 4 Choice Book Report

Part 1:

I read “Hold Still” by Nina La Cour. They main character is Caitlin. If I had to describe Caitlin in one word it would be strong. Caitlin’s life turned completely upside down on her and she stuck through it all. Her best friend, the one who she shared everything with, Ingrid her best friend, killed herself by cutting herself till she bled to death. Caitlin is so strong and confident. She never cares what people think of her. Even when people at school stared and asked her questions about what happened to her best friend. Caitlin always kept her head up. It was hard going to school when all she really wanted to do was just lay in bed and cry.  Caitlin is very talented too. She is the best photographer in her school. Also she is an amazing builder. Caitlin built a huge tree house in her backyard, the biggest oak tree. That helped her get away from everything and release some anger and stress. Caitlin isn’t the type to give up she does what she puts her mind to, always. She has her mind set to go to Oregon for college. She wants to major in art. Ingrid has always told her how creative she was.

Caitlin was a very beautiful girl too, or at least that is what everyone else said. She was a 17 year old girl with straight auburn hair, a dozen small freckles on the bridge of her nose. She has a small mouth, and big brown eyes. Caitlin is also really skinny. Once Ingrid pasted Caitlin lost a lot of weight though, more than she probably should have.

Once Ingrid died Caitlin was still the same person but her attitude changed toward taking care of herself and toward other people. Caitlin started skipping classes and walking to the park near her school that was the place Ingrid would spend time together and just talk, that was there place.  Caitlin stopped caring so much about her school work too, she didn’t really care if she turned in an assignment or not, when normally she really would, she was a great student.

             Even though she didn’t always make the best choices after Ingrid had passed she learned after a while and meeting a new friend that also lost someone very close to her that it is okay. You can move on even though you will never forget that person for the rest of your life it doesn’t mean you can’t move on and make a new best friend.

I personally would think of Caitlin as someone to admire, she is a great role model. Caitlin is a great listener and won’t tell everyone what you just told her. She will keep your secret no matter what. She is a great advice giver too if you want some. She just always knows what to say. Caitlin made it through a hard time in her life, but she learned that its okay and you don’t have to hold on forever.

Part 2:

A symbol that really had meaning to “Hold Still” would by Ingrid’s journal. Ingrid hid her journal under Caitlin’s bed the night before she killed herself easily stuck out to me as a symbol. Ingrid wrote everything in that journal. It was everything about her, everyone or everything that made her happy, sad, or even like she didn’t want to live anymore. When Caitlin found her journal about a year several months later after she passed she made a promise to herself that she would only read one entry a day. Throughout the book Caitlin learned so much more about Ingrid than she ever knew before. She realized how much Ingrid kept from her. Days that Caitlin thought they had the best time and Ingrid was so happy Ingrid was really sad and depressed. Caitlin felt guilty that she didn’t notice that how her friend was really feeling inside and that she was hiding everything. Ingrid hides everything from everyone, not just Caitlin.

            Caitlin found out from Ingrid’s journal that she made some really stupid mistakes in life just before she died. Such as Ingrid called up two older boys that she barely knew and told them to meet to her at the near by park. She was going to give them her virginity because she didn’t want to die a virgin.  Later that day Caitlin and Ingrid hung out and she never even had any idea at all.

            Throughout out the book Caitlin learned so much more about Ingrid. Ingrid’s journal even helped Caitlin realize that she probably shouldn’t do something just because Ingrid made that mistake Caitlin never knew happened to her.

Ingrid’s journal made Caitlin’s day better everyday. Caitlin looked forward to reading her journal everyday just because she felt as if Ingrid was really telling her this. Even though it might hurt a bit depending on what it was she still loved hearing from her in her own little way. Caitlin knew it wasn’t really her of course, but it still helped. It helped her get through her day.  That journal helped Caitlin heal.

Quarter Three Choice Book Report

                                      Perfect Chemistry

I read Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles. The main character is Brittany Ellis. Brittany was perfect, her clothes were perfect, her family was perfect, her boy friend was perfect, and her car was perfect. Brittany’s life was perfect. At least that is what everyone thought at Fairfield High School. Brittany was the kind of girl who her appearance and what people thought of her was VERY important to her. Since her 20-year-old sister was “retarded” she felt she had to be even better to make up for her sister.  Her mother’s opinion also mattered a lot to her, considering she looked just like her, just a forty-year-old version. Even if Brittany didn’t get an A on a test, her mother would call the school and work something out, just so she could go to “the perfect college,” she wouldn’t want to have anything that wasn’t perfect on her permanent record. Brittany was the captain of the cheerleading squad and she was dating the captain of the football team, Colin Adams. They were the “Golden Couple.”

It is not that Brittany was full of her self, because she wasn’t. She didn’t try to make other girls jealous, or try to get attention. She never wanted the image of being “perfect.” Since everyone thought she was, she thought had to live up to it.  Brittany basically was just “perfect” at school. When she came home everyday after school she turned into a different person and helped her sister, she mothered her.    

Brittany is a dynamic character, above that is was she was, until she met Alex Fuentes. He completely changed her, she went to not caring if her eyeliner wasn’t perfect, or even if someone else thought she wasn’t perfect. She just kind of stopped caring. The thing was Alex was in a gang; he was a part of the Latino Bloods. Dating him, made her not perfect. Brittany still had a head on her shoulders; she still planed on going to Colorado State, and was majoring in Chemistry.

About half way through the book Brittany is her self. Not who everyone wanted her to be. She shows the rebellious side of her and learns a lot more about her self. She doesn’t need designer clothes, all A’s, and the perfect everything to have a good life. Brittany can look in the mirror and be confident that she doesn’t need to wear 5 pounds of make up to be pretty. She knows now that all it takes to be pretty is to be confident and be yourself, not who everyone wants you to be.

I did not like the book Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles, I loved the book. One of the reasons I liked it so much is because Brittany gives up so much for Alex, and Alex gives up so much more for Brittany. Such as Brittany gives up Colin, ever since he came back from being on vacation things are different so they pretend that everything is okay so they can be the “Golden Couple.”  She breaks it off with him and leaves her perfect image for the gang banger Alex. Hector, the head of the Blood wants Alex to do a very dangerous drug deal. Alex said from the beginning when he joined the Blood he would never do any drug deals. He had to do it to save his family though. Brittany hates the idea of this and says it will never work if he does it. If the end of that, he finds out he was set up. Thankfully he didn’t do the drug deal, or he would have been dead.

Ten months later after Alex shows up in her life again and tells her he never did the drug deal. I love the fact Alex gave up so much just to be with a girl. It shows how much he really loves her and wants to be with her forever. 

I also didn’t like things about the book Perfect Chemistry too. One thing would be that how Alex started going after Brittany. It all started with his friend Paco. Paco bet Alex he couldn’t get in Brittany’s pants before Thanksgiving. If Paco won the bet he got Alex’s motorcycle. If Alex won the bet he got Paco’s car. I think that is terrible, Alex was using Brittany to get a car. When Alex finally wins the bet it isn’t so funny anymore. Alex actually fell for Brittany and now if Brittany found out about the bet she most likely would not be in his life anymore.

I would recommend this book. I would recommend it to anyone who likes romance and a love story that doesn’t exactly end the way everyone wanted it to end. If you like surprise endings it is a great book to read. I think it is a great book to read in general personally. I couldn’t put it down.