Blog #2: Frusterating

After Mel has been captured and humiliated in front of court, she is locked in a dungeon where she receives unexpected and certainly secret gifts. Such as food and blankets and water. The Marquis of Shavraeth obviously granted Mel these secret gifts and wished that she surrender so she is not killed. (Out of love. I just know it.) Of course Mel escapes and spends the majority of the reading hiding from horseback. It is so obvious that the Marquis loves her! Mel is so stubborn and so ignorant to notice, however, how much effort he gives to keep her from being caught! One time he even looks into her eyes when he and others are searching a building, smiles slightly, but does not say a word to the other searchers. Mel, of course, does not understand his behaviour and thinks it is because the Marquis wishes to finish her off himself. (She has to be wrong. I just know it.) I am getting a little annoyed at how much she analyzes other people's reaction toward her. She believes that every person on the planet has something against her. She believes that there is an undercurrent, secret meanings, to everything people say to her. And it frusterates me that she always wishes to escape when, clearly, the Marquis is helping her! Mel thought, "All right, defeat so far, I thought as I winced and gritted my way through arranging my leg much as it had been on the previous ride. All I have to do is catch him in a single unwary moment... He mounted behind me and we started off, while I indulged myself with the image of grabbing that stick and conking him right across his smiling face." (Another sign of an unspoken love!)

Blog #1: A great beginning?

Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith begins with Countess Meliara and her brother Branaric mourning their father's death. It seems that this book never really had an exposition, chapter, or even a paragraph describing the setting. The reader is thrown straight into a war. I started reading this and was confused and bored right away. I cannot read about war strategies, my mind just wanders so the beginning of Crown Duel was difficult to get through. But the information Sherwood Smith was giving seemed important for the rest of the book, so I did not let myself get discouraged. I found out, however, that Crown Duel is not just a story about war strategies: it is one of suspense and action. By page 43, Mel falls into a trap, a literal trap that badly injures her leg. She is captured by the Court Shmuck a Marquis, Varandic Shevraeth. I did not understand or even like the beginning of this book! But now that Mel has been captured, it all of a sudden has wonderful suspense and action. Sherwood Smith ends almost every chapter with a sentence such as, "And then I was captured." Or, "And then everything went black." Wonderful supsense. The action is plentiful as well. Mel can fight with and without a sword, on horseback and off. Even the snobby Marquis can fight. He does, in fact save Mel's life more than once. And I think it is because he fancies her. And despite her intense hatred toward him, she, as well, fancies him. Ah, so much to talk about!

Introduction to Outside Reading

“A fast-moving tale of adventure, intrigue, and honor, with Mel a likable heroine and a lively narrator,” Booklist described. The Horn Book also commented, “A delightful read.” Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith is a story of war, deceit and intrigue. The reviews and the synopsis on the back cover draw me to this book. “A realm in trouble, a spirited female hero with magic to surround her, mystery, romance, an enigmatic marquis, court etiquette and secret messages- this is the stuff of dreams!” Tamora Pierce wrote.

Blog #2: A Culture Different From Your Own

"Shortly before parliamentary elections in December, foremen fanned out across the sprawling GAZ vehicle factory here, pulling aside assembly-line workers and giving them an order: vote for President Vladimir V. Putin’s party or else," Clifford J . Levy wrote. I can not believe people still do that. Ordering people to vote for a certain party just shows how insecure the people of the party really are. But, I supposed, where ever you go bribery and threats will follow. This article goes on about how Vladimir Putin is turning into a dictator, ruling with an autocracy. That is how Hitler got elected to office; by democratic vote. So, what if Vladimir is the next Hitler? Hopefully he won't put people in concentration camps or anything extreme like that, but people did not really expect that from Hitler, either. What if Obama turns into a Hitler character? Gaining millions of supporters and love; he could turn on us at any second... But he won't. I think Vladimir Putin is just a stickler and will only have things his way and people like that scare the rest of us. But, maybe we, the people, the supporters and voters, maybe we need to just have a little faith in our leaders. Putin may look rough and stern on the outside, but he did get elected by the people so the people should trust in the decisions they have made; not go back on their word.

Levy, Clifford J. "Putin’s Iron Grip on Russia Suffocates Opponents." New York Times. Feb 24, 2008. March 4, 2008.

Blog #1: Natural Disaster

An earthquake in China a little over a year ago left 80,000 people dead or missing. A
four-year-old reservoir, the Zipingpu Reservoir, built close to the fault line at the center of the earthquake is speculated to have been the trigger. With that piece of information alone, one can only suspect how the Chinese government is faring. We all understand that dams and reservoirs are funded and owned by the government, so saying government property has caused one of the most terrible natural disasters in Chinese history can be a huge blow and set back. But aren't natural disasters, well, natural? Natural meaning not being caused or triggered by human behaviour? A natural disaster is related to land and wind and air. But then again, that is the question; did the government cause this earthquake? Or was it destined to happen? Based on the information given in the article, I find it hard to believe a reservoir could cause seismic waves in the earth's crust. Honestly, if the Earth wants to have an earthquake, the earth wants to have an earthquake. It's not one of those things that can be created by water pressure in a corrupt country. And, really, the government wanted to help it's country by creating a dam, not to trigger a terrible "natural disaster".


Lafraniere, Sharon. "In China Quake, a Man-Made or Natural Disaster?" International Herald Tribune. Feb 6 2009. Feb 16 2009. < http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/02/06/asia/06quake.php>

Smooth Out That Worry Brow

"Ileana doesn't direct the course of affairs; that's not our way. She believes in letting folk make their own errors. If that results in disaster, so be it" (Knopp 112)
Jena and her four sisters find a secret portal in their castle and find that it leads them do the Wildwood. Long ago, back when only Tati and Jena were alive, they found this other world and have been going there every full moon since. This world is a magical one, filled with dancing, dwarfs, faeries, witches and vampires. It is a huge risk traveling there every full moon, but the girls insist on it. Tati, the eldest sister, falls in lust with one of the Night People, a vampire. Jena shows great concern and asks the Ileana, the queen of faeries, when the Night People are leaving (the Night People are nomads).
Ileana's response is unusual; if someone you love is in great danger, you help to rescue them. But not her. Ileana wants everyone to understand that the chips will fall where they may and that no one should disrupt that process. Jena, being the outspoken-I'm-always-right kind of girl, keeps trying to convince Ileana of the danger Tati is in. But Ileana is also very stubborn and will only see her way.

Lady-Like

"This isn't fair!" I snapped, realizing with horror that from Cezar's point of view, his action was perfectly logical. "You cannot just take over our funds and expect to decide what we can and can't spend money on. I'm a grown woman, I can deal with this!" ( Knopp 97).
When Jena's father leaves to peruse his business needs, she is left to deal with the accounting on the house and the servants. Jena finds this task quite easy for she has helped her father with it for years. Unfortunately, her father's extended absence worries her cousin, Cezar, who's father has just died and is managing his own estate. Jena is a very outspoken girl; she wants things done her way or the highway, not a very lady-like virtue in this time period. Cezar finds it embarrassing when she picks fights with him when they're around other people (but secretly he's in love with her. I can tell). Cezar also thinks it not lady-like for a young woman to be so involved with the funds of estate so he intervenes. He takes it upon himself to look over Jena and her four sisters, not as a man managing their estate, but as a father. And that aggrivates Jena more than anything.