noellemullin8

The Glass Castle: A Memoir | Jeannette Walls

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If you enjoy reading unparalleled memoirs, The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is the perfect book for you! In this novel we tag along on Jeannette‘s childhood adventures with her more than slightly dysfunctional family. Together, they travel all-over-the-map from the Arizona desert to the mountains of West Virginia, and everywhere in between.

noellemullin8 Rex and Rose Mary Walls are constantly picking up the lives of their four children in search of employment‒ or more often than not‒ to outrun their own demons. Jeannette grows up not knowing where she stood in the world because she never stayed in one place long enough to feel at home. 2y

noellemullin8 There were only a few spots where she felt like she truly belonged; in the desert, sleeping under Venus or in the town of Battle Mountain, before they had to do the “skedaddle”. Jeannette is forced to grow up more rapidly than other kids her age stemming from her parents and the chaos that is their life. 2y

noellemullin8 Jeannette‘s first core memory is from when she was only three years old and was already cooking hotdogs on the stove all by herself. The pink dress she inherited from her grandmother caught the flame of the burner and grilled her alive. This traumatic event leads to her strange fascination with fire which then follows her throughout her childhood. 2y

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noellemullin8 This fiery motif being representative of one of the scarce constants in her disordered life and the one thing she has full control over. In 1973, the Wall Family found themselves in a position that had no escape, with the only option left being to move in with Rex‘s parents in Welch, West Virginia. Jeannette is now in fifth grade, where she faces bullies at her new elementary school and the horrible family life that Rex grew up surrounded by. 2y

noellemullin8 The situation at Erma‘s house was less than ideal for all members involved and only worsens when Rex and Rose Mary take off back to Arizona leaving their children behind. (that‘s as far as I got). One major theme in this book is education. Even though the Walls were constantly moving from town to town their parents educated them quite well. 2y

noellemullin8 So much so that when they arrived in Battle Mountain Jeannette and Brian both got put into reading groups for “gifted children”. Rex and Rose Mary may not have believed in the school system, but they believed in knowledge and their kids learnt a lot of important life lessons throughout their adventures. 2y

noellemullin8 The importance of education is highlighted when Lori brings a book with her from Battle Mountain as her one item rather than a geod like her younger sister.
2y

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noellemullin8

Reached | Ally Condie

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f you like books about going against all odds to be with the people you love most, Reached by Ally Condie is the perfect book for you. This is an action packed finale book of a dystopian romance trilogy that will truly blow you away. A plague has spread throughout society which is seen as the beginning of the end, or the start of the Rising against society.

noellemullin8 Cassia, Xander and Ky are all part of the Rising, they all hold very different but key roles. Cassia is stuck in Central with her “society job” of sorting, but she will come in handy when the time comes to delay the matching ceremonies. Xander is located in Camas as a physic who has been working on switching out the society pills for those of the Rising and will one day administer the vaccines to those that have fallen ill. 3y

noellemullin8 Whereas Ky has been training with the rest of the pilots for when the crucial point arrives to deliver the vaccines to all the cities affected by the Plague. A lot has changed in recent months and the society is failing to contain the disease. It is happening slowly but surly and the result will be that the society will crumble to it‘s knees. 3y

noellemullin8 First with the downfall of the Matching ceremonies and finally losing all control to the Rising‘s powerful takeover in the big cities. Camas was the first city to fall under the new found control of the Pilot but it definitely won‘t be the last. With the Plague spreading rapidly, Cassia once again finds herself separate from Ky with no way to get to him, yet. 3y

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noellemullin8 The only way they have been communicating, as of recent, has been through letters transported by the Archivists but even they have become severely delayed due to the Plague. Ky is determined to be reunited with Cassia but he knows that he has to wait for the perfect time to escape the Rising and reconnect with her and her family. 3y

noellemullin8 He has played a major role in changing the entire structure of society just to be with Cassia and all that‘s left is their reunion to finish off their epic love story. One major theme present in this book is limitation, mainly in the structure of society. Even though their is a new type of government present after the Rising‘s takeover Ky and Cassia are still struggling to be reunited. 3y

noellemullin8 As different as the Rising is from the old society there are still many rules put in place that are stopping the two lovers from being together. Certain things will die off with the society such as the matching ceremonies, old society jobs and limitations on their freedoms but there will always be that sense of authority over everyone. 3y

noellemullin8 Ky knows that he will never be in full control over his life when there is someone always in charge of everything he does. He hopes that will this social change, he will finally be able to love and be with Cassia forever but it isn‘t guaranteed. Matched was written in first person point of view because the characters all use pronouns such as “I, We, Us, etc.” throughout the story. 3y

noellemullin8 There is lots of emotion included in the writing because we get to see the inner thoughts and feelings of the three main characters, Xander Carrow, Ky Markham and Cassia Reyes. They all narrate their own personal experiences which makes this book so interesting. Even though the characters aren‘t all together we can still see what they are experiencing simultaneously. 3y

MissYaremcio I'm so glad that you have been enjoying this series Noelle! 6/6 3y

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noellemullin8

Matched | Ally Condie

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If you love dystopian romance novels, Matched, written by Ally Condie, is the perfect book for you. Similar to The Hunger Games or The Giver, Matched is an exciting romance book that challenges dystopian societies‘ unique structure. Matched is the first of an amazing fiction trilogy all about following your heart even when society is trying to tell you otherwise.

noellemullin8 This theme is present all throughout the book but is specifically highlighted when Cassia has been matched with her childhood best friend, Xander. Confusion arises when Cassia checks her micro-card for more info on her match and Ky Markham‘s face flashes across the screen instead of Xander‘s. 3y

noellemullin8 An official reassures Cassia that it was simply a malfunction of the system and that she shouldn‘t worry because her match is and will always be Xander Carrow. However, Cassia can‘t help but feel conflicted because she‘s been told that she should love Xander but she‘s curious about Ky and she can‘t but wonder if Ky really is her match even though he is an Aberration. 3y

noellemullin8 Xander and Ky are complete opposites, Markham is a complete mystery to the society because he‘s been adopted from the outer provinces but this intrigues C because he is a creator rather than a sorter. Everything in society has developed to the point where nothing is made anymore but Cassia wants to be able to create and write, read poetry that isn‘t apart of The Hundred Poems and Ky knows how to do all of those things. 3y

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noellemullin8 Everything is different in the outer provinces and Ky has knowledge that Cassia only dreams of learning about one day. She wants to know more than the society will allow her and she wants to learn more about the world outside of Mapletree Borough. Cassia‘s and Ky‘s relationship develops through their shared love for hiking and secrets they have discovered about each other. 3y

noellemullin8 Cassia must make a decision about who she is going to love because she is starting to feel stretched between the two guys, like she‘s living two completely different lives. Xander is the only acceptable option, he‘s everything Cassia could want and more but he‘s not Ky Markham. Ky is special, he‘s interesting and there‘s more to him then the eye depicts and Cassia knows this. 3y

noellemullin8 Will C accept the choice that the society has made for her or will she follow her heart? 3y

MissYaremcio Thank you for the review Noelle! I just wanted a little bit more of the identification of the theme (you told me how it was established but not what it was). 5/6 3y

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