Reading Response on "Just Listen"

In the book “Just Listen” by Sarah Dessen the theme is that “you’ve got so many do overs in your life, if you can’t change your past, alter your future.”  “Just listen” is a story about a girl named Annabel in high school, when she’s modeling her picture is perfect, but her real life is not near perfect.  Annabel’s got her friend Owen, he’s nice, music-obsessed, and always tells the truth.

For Annabel, being friends with one person can change your life in a whole new way.  In the beginning of the school year she stopped talking to her friends, and people in general because over the summer her best friend Sophie and her had a nasty fight, they aren’t friends anymore.  Annabel sits next to Owen every day at lunch silently, and one day when she needs him most he talks to her, this is the start of their friendship.  They end up falling in love.  Owen makes Annabel a better person.  For example, Owen influences Annabel in liking to listen to Music. Owen states “music is a total constant.  That’s why we have such a strong visceral connection to it, you know?  Because a song can take you back instantly to a moment, or a place, or even a person.”  Also Owen courages Annabel to tell the truth.  Annabel states “the truth sometimes hurts.  I just don’t like to hurt people.  So sometimes you know, I won’t say exactly what I think, to spare them that.” Lastly Owen makes Annabel do what she believes in, and he helps her be herself instead of being someone else.

For Owen,  Annabel is beautiful, and too nice.  Annabel influences him to realize that it doesn’t matter what anybody thinks of you.  Annabel shows him that he can be brave, and tough.  He loves to criticize Annabel in any way.  Annabel helps Owen be calm and deal with is anger issues.  Owen states “anger is inevitable.  Anger Management is just what it sounds like: it’s supposed to help you deal with it.”  Owen cares for Annabel so much that when she told him she was raped by this boy named Will Cash, Owen punched him in the face.  He got grounded for Annabel, and he didn’t care.   Owen loves Annabel the way she is, they are such a  nice match. As you can see Annabel makes Owen less intense as a person.

In the book “Just Listen” by Sarah Dessen it’s about this teenage girl named Annabel who looks like she has everything, but her life is far from complete.  Owen is Annabel’s best friend, he’s caring, passionate about music,  and loves Annabel.  Owen gave Annabel a song called Just Listen, this song symbolizes Owen and Annabel’s lovely relationship.  The theme in this book is that you have so many chances in your life,  that if you can’t modify the past, you should change your future.  In conclusion be careful of your actions, one choice alters your life in so many ways.

Argument Essay

Should We Be Prepared For Ebola In Our Country, The U.S.?

                   Ebola is a nasty virus.  The largest Ebola outbreak in history was this year in West Africa.  People are getting nervous, but here in the United States, you shouldn’t be.  The virus Ebola doesn’t travel through the air, in order, to get infected you have to come into contact with fluids from an infected person.  Ebola virus particles attack the immune system, kidneys, the cells that line blood vessels, and the liver when they are inside a person.  We should be prepared for Ebola in the U.S. because its deadly and spreads quickly.  Therefore, if Ebola keeps on spreading and there is an outbreak in the U.S. we’ll be prepared.

                   The first reason we should be prepared for Ebola in this country is because people are scared of the virus.  In the article “The deadly  Ebola virus is ravaging West Africa - and alarming the rest of the world” by Patricia Smith states “healthcare workers have faced an additional hurdle: fear.  Blamed by panicked and superstitious populations for spreading the virus.”  The health workers are scared because they’ve been threatened in some places with knives, stones, machetes, and angry mobs.  According to the article “there’s no silver - bullet medicine that kills the Ebola virus.”  People have “fled in fear.”  The article “Ebola Explained: What You Should and Shouldn’t Worry About” by Nadia Drake states that Ebola is scary because “it is unknown and has a high fatality rate and requires isolation.”  Another reason why we should be prepare for Ebola is because people worry about it and there are a lot of symptoms of Ebola.  The article “The deadly Ebola Virus is ravaging West Africa - and alarming the rest of the world” states that “doctors worry that deaths from malaria, dysentery, and other treatable diseases will shoot up in West Africa.”  Ebola is causing “widespread panic” and disruption.  In the article “Signs and Symptoms” by Center for Disease Control and Prevention it states the symptoms of Ebola include “fever greater than 101.5°F, severe headaches, muscle pain, weakness, diarrhea, abdominal (stomach) pain, and unexplained hemorrhage (bleeding or bruising).  Lastly we should be prepared for Ebola is because “it can’t spread through the air and it isn’t contagious before symptoms first show up, when a person might unknowingly be a walking disease distributor.”  As you can see, Ebola is dangerous and we should be prepared.

                  However, many experts think that we barely have a chance of having an outbreak of Ebola in the United States and it doesn’t matter if we’re prepared.  For example in the article “the deadly Ebola Virus is ravaging West Africa - and alarming the rest of the world” by Patricia Smith states “experts say the chances of an outbreak is very slim.  As a precaution, health officials are monitoring a total of 20 airports and border crossings.  Another example is that “even if someone with Ebola were to end up in the U.S., standard hospital prevent transmission on the scale being seen in Africa.”  The last example is that it says we are prepared for Ebola, “though many healthcare workers have fled in fear, there have also been many heroes: doctors and nurses who continue to treat the sick despite the risks; janitors who clean up lethal pools of vomit and waste so health centers can stay open; drivers who venture into villages overcome Ebola to retrieve patients; and body handlers charged with the dangerous task of safety burying infectious corpses.”  All in all, most experts think there is a slim chance of an outbreak of Ebola in the U.S.

                  Ebola is fatal and spreads quickly and we should be ready for an outbreak in the U.S.  Ebola has taken many lives this year in West Africa. Even though medical doctors should be prepared for a situation like this we should be concerned due to the fact that we don’t have a proven vaccine.  In conclusion, I think that Ebola should be taken seriously and we should prepare as much as possible.

Faithful Elephants Reading Response

                   In the story "Faithful Elephants" by Yukio Tsuchiya the theme is that just because you believe something is going to happen it doesn't mean that it is.  "Faithful Elephants" is a depressed tale about these three elephants John, Tonky,  and Wanly being killed.  The zookeepers had starved John, Tonky, and Wanly because they thought the elephants were going to die by bombs dropping from the war.  
                   For the zookeepers at the zoo they believed that since there was a war going on that the three elephants and the other animals weren't safe, though that might not be true.  The story states "what would happen if bombs hit the zoo?  If the cages were broken and dangerous animals escaped to run wild through the city, it would be terrible!  Therefore by command of the Army, all of the lions, tigers, leopards, bears, and big snakes were poisoned to death."  The zookeepers were compassionate and showing pity to the animals in the zoo.  Lastly the story states "as it seems no other way, we must inject poison directly into his body."  As you can see the zookeepers went a little too far on thinking that they had to kill all the animals for the city to be safe.
                    For the elephant trainer if the three elephants were killed he would be lonely, miserable, and empty.  They starved the elephant John first.   John passed away 17 days later.    Then they zookeepers started starving Tonky and Wanly.  In the story it says "the elephant keepers stopped feeding Tonky and Wanly.  As the days passed, the elephants became thinner, weaker and weaker."  The elephants ears seemed too big for their bodies and the elephants were sad and hungry.  "All this while, the elephants ' trainer loved them as if they were his own children."  The elephant trainer was loving, caring, and joyful around the elephants.  The story states "the trainer could stand it no longer.  Oh, Tonky!  Oh, Wanly! he wailed, and dished to the food shed.  He carried food and pails of water to them and threw it at their feet.  Here!  he said, sobbing, and clung to their thin legs.  Eat your food!  Please drink.  Drink your water!"  Also "at last, Tonky and Wanly could no longer move.  Seeing his beloved elephants dying this way, the elephant trainer felt as if his heart would break. '  The elephants are dead! ' screamed the elephant trainer as he ran into the office.  He buried his head in his arms and cried, beating the desk top with his fist."  The elephant trainer thought he couldn't stop the zookeepers from starving his elephants and when they died he was very depressed.
                     The "Faithful Elephants" tells the story about three elephants John, Tonky, and Wanly that were put to death by the zookeepers.  The message in this story is that just because you think something is going to occur, you can't predict the future.  In conclusion don't do something because you think its going to happen, do what you think is best.

Burn For Burn By: Jenny Han

       Burn For Burn by: Jenny han, is an intriguing book.  It is about three girls Mary, Lillia, and Kat who each want to get revenge on a person at their community high school.  Mary, Lillia, and Kat all live on Jar island with their families.  Lillia and Kat used to be best friends 4 years ago, but then they had grown apart when they were at high school.  Mary used to live off Jar Island, but she just moved back this year. Once Mary, Lillia, and Kat had done their revenge on those three people they felt guilty, but they couldn’t go back!  I love this book because there is so much suspense and it's adventurous.  I enjoy, that at the end of this book Mary, Lillia, and Kat end up being friends.  They realize that friends support you when you are not feeling well and when you are going through a rough time.  This book represents friendship.  I would recommend this book to people who like to read books about friends and drama.