Holly+Barton


 * [|drug addictions] May 22, 2011.**


 * Characters:**
 * Harry Potter- He is the title character. In the beginning of the book, Harry doesn't know that he is a wizard so he has to put up with the virtual abuse his aunt and uncle inflict upon him without any hope of a way out. Harry is famous in the wizarding world because his is the only one to defeat Lord Voldemort and he was only a baby when he did it. He takes to the magical world quickly by learning to fly a broom. It's obvious that he seeks justice and is brave, although sometimes stubborn in his convictions.
 * Ron Weasley- Ron is Harry's first and best friend . He comes from a wizard family so he knows about as much about muggles (non-magical people) as Harry knows about wizards. Ron has five brothers and one sister so it's not really a surprise that money is somewhat tight in his family, but his family is an example of how the amount of money a person has doesn't determine what kind of person they are. Ron is goofy and not always the smartest when it comes to school work. He often has good intentions but does not always show restraint when he's angry. Ron occasionally gets jealous of being in Harry's shadow.
 * Hermione Granger- At first, Harry and Ron don't like Hermione because she can be a goody-two-shoes know-it-all. The three of them become friends when Harry and Ron save her from a troll and she lies to a teacher to keep the two boys out of trouble. Hermione is a muggle-born, but she is the smartest witch in their class. She helps Ron and Harry with their work but doesn't let them copy. She loves to read and study but she doesn't like to break the rules and is a bit hesitant when Ron and Harry want to roam the halls at night in search of answers. However, she does break a few rules to get the truth and without her logic and smarts, Ron and Harry would never solve the puzzle.
 * Draco Malfoy- Almost from the moment we are introduced to Draco (generally referred to as "Malfoy" in the book) it's obvious that he is the antagonist. He is snotty and stuck up because he is rich, therefore he thinks he is better than less rich people. He often mocks Ron and his family because they are poor and often have hand-me-downs instead of brand new materials. Malfoy tries to befriend Harry because he is famous and he says that some wizards are better than others. Because of that, Harry decides not to be Malfoy's friend and from then on they are enemies. Malfoy takes pleasure in other people's embarrassment and pain. He smirks when Harry gets yelled at for no reason by Professor Snape, who favors Slytherin because that is his house.


 * Summary:**
 * //Harry// //Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone// begins by introducing that Dursleys as a normal, no-nonsense kind of family. When Vernon Dursley notices odd people running around in cloaks, he gets very upset even though they are not bothering him. That night, Dumbledore, a wizard, drops off baby Harry to live with his aunt and uncle, the Dursleys, because his parents have just been killed by Lord Voldemort. Over the next eleven years, Harry is raised without knowing anything about wizards or magic because the Dursleys hate anything of that sort. Petunia Dursley's sister was Lily Potter, Harry's mother, who was a witch. Petunia was jealous of the attention that Lily got as a child, so she always hated her. Vernon and Petunia virtually abuse Harry by making him live in the broom closet, barely feeding him enough to eat, and letting Dudely, their son, beat Harry up as he pleases. When Harry starts getting letters from a mysterious source, the Dursleys do anything to avoid him from opening the letter. When the house gets flooded with letters, Vernon makes the whole family pack up in ten minutes and move to a shack on a rock in the middle of the sea. But that doesn't stop the message from getting through. On Harry's eleventh birthday, Hagrid, the grounds keeper at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, busts into the shack and tells Harry all about how he is a wizard and he been accepted into Hogwarts. From there, Harry's life has changed for the better. He goes off to school, nervous because he knows nothing about being a wizard, but excited because he has friends and doesn't have to live with the Dursleys. Soon, odd things are happening at the school and around the wizarding community and regarding something called the sorcerer's stone. Eventually, Harry, Ron, and Hermione find out that the stone creates the elixir of life which makes anyone who drinks it immortal. The three of them also find out that it's hidden in the school and someone is trying to steal it. As first years, they try to solve who is trying to steal the stone and take matters into their one hands


 * Rating:**
 * 5- I may be biased because I have always loved this book since I first read it when I was about ten and back then I couldn't properly analyze its content. However, this book is easy to read, well-written, and fun. The storyline is creative and solid. I find virtually no holes in the plot. The characters are well developed and multidimensional. There is a reason that the //Harry Potter// series is a hit and that's because it's fantastic.


 * Discussions of Classmates' Reading:**
 * I'm interested in //The Notebook,// which is the book that Stephanie Braun read. I've heard of this book before and have been interested in it slightly. But Stephanie's blog makes me want to read the book because it shows that there are going to be a bunch of different elements to the plot than I originally thought. Also, I've heard that Nicholas Sparks is a very good author and I love any well written book.


 * Wiki Reflections:**
 * I liked using Wiki spaces as a way to discuss our reading. First, I think typing is easier that writing and doesn't hurt my hands as much. Second, I like how easy is it to access this site anywhere I am. Also, it's nice to have all of our thoughts in one place so we don't have to read through a bunch of reports to know what other students are reading about. Lastly, I like how independent we get to be when it comes to actually doing the work. We are not confined to our desk to write a structured summary of the book we read. Wiki spaces is a good idea.


 * April 29, 2011.** Since I finished //Go Ask Alice,// I started a new book this week. I've decided to reread //Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone// by J.K. Rowling. I've just started it so I have only read thirty pages. At this point, the book is still in the exposition and still introducing main characters. So far, we know that Harry lives with his aunt and uncle, who don't like him because they didn't like his parents. His cousin, Dudley, is a spoiled brat who likes to beat on Harry in his free time. Harry sleeps under the stairs in a dusty closet. It wouldn't surprise me if he often went without a meal because the Dursleys got mad at him. It's been awhile since I last read this book, so I'm realizing new things about it. My case in point, the Dursleys are very //very// guilty of child abuse. Also, they seem to overreact about the whole wizard issue. However, if the authorities got involved, or the Dursleys went with the flow, there wouldn't be much of a story.

swings as most teenagers would, but hers are mostly dictated by her drugs habit. When "Alice" is not on drugs, she is clear-headed and makes good decisions and is happy about life. When she is using, she is basically the opposite. Throughout her diary she has quite a few relapses, whether they from her own weakness or she unknowingly ingests the drugs. She soon finds that it's harder to quit the drug scene than it is to quit the drugs.
 * April 18, 2011.** I finished //Go Ask Alice// this week. This means I read about one hundred and thirty pages. "Alice", the narrator, has mood


 * April 1, 2011**. I have read fifty pages in //Go Ask Alice// this week. My favorite quote in this book so far is "Oh it's good to be home! I guess Mom was right, Chris and I used to dwell on the negative things. But not anymore!" This is right after the narrator and Chris got back from California. It's also Christmas eve. I love this quote because it shows how much her point of view changes by just coming home. It's also one of the times when the main character is being smart and not angst-ridden about her life.


 * March 24, 2011.** For the second quarter, I'm reading //Go Ask Alice// by Anonymous. It's a real diary (however the names and dates have been changed) so the author doesn't want her identity revealed. I got this book for my birthday from a friend. I decided to read it because it's one of the few books that I haven't packed up, yet. This is a diary that tells the true story of a teenager's struggle with drug addiction. It's unedited when it comes to her thoughts and feelings. I'm excited to read this because nothing about her battle with drugs is going to be sugar-coated.


 * Final Blog: March 4, 2011.**


 * Characters:**
 * Bianca de Nevada- She is the main character, her name translates into "White of Snow" or Snow White. She is around seven years old when the story begins. As young as she is, she's described as beautiful with pale skin and long, black hair. She's a good child who behaves her father's wishes. Bianca's mother died while giving birth, so she is very close to her father, Vicente de Nevada. When Vicente is sent away on the Borgia's errand, she is heartbroken. As she grows up with Lucrezia Borgia watching over her, she is polite, however never forgets who her enemies are. Bianca is a your typical protagonist.
 * Don Vicente de Nevada- He is the father of the main character, Bianca. Bianca is everything to him, especially since her mother is not alive. He's rich enough to own the land they live on and employ many workers. He is honest and kind, but also stern and serious. Vicente is a good father, always doing the best he can for Bianca, even though he's not always around. When Cesare Borgia sends him on the ridiculous quest to find the apples from the Tree of Knowledge, Vicente only goes because if he refuses, he knows the Borgias will have Bianca killed.
 * Cesare Borgia- Originally, he is presented as the main antagonist. Cesare is the illegitimate child of Pope Alexander and the sister of Lucrezia Borgia. He is portrayed as an evil conqueror with a powerful army. Lucrezia seems to do anything Cesare says and is under his influence constantly. His power comes from the status of his father. When Alexander is no longer the pope, Cesare loses his power and become his influence on Lucrezia is lost.
 * Lucrezia Borgia- She is the daughter of Pope Alexander and sister to Cesare. At first, she seems second in command to her brother. But when their father dies and Cesare is no longer powerful, Lucrezia is the dominant sibling. She is the typical heartless antagonist. Lucrezia hates children, is obsessed with image and power, and does not care what happens to others as long as she gets what she wants. By the time she is twenty-one, she has been married three times.


 * Plot:**
 * The story begins with Don Vicente de Nevada as the owner of a manor and the single father to seven-year-old Bianca. There are many servants to help around the land, including Primavera, the cook, and Fra Ludocivo, the cleric. These two are the main people who help look after Bianca. One day, Bianca finds a mirror in Lago Verde (the green lake). No one knew how it got in the lake, but Vicente had it cleaned, put a frame on it, and hung it in his house. A while later, Cesare and Lucrezia Borgia come to pay Vicente a visit. Cesare reveals that he has a quest for Vicente to find apples that came from the Tree of Knowledge from the Garden of Eden. Vicente says that this is an impossible mission and he will never find such apples, but Cesare insists that if Vicente refuses to go, Bianca will be killed. So Vicente asks Lucrezia to watch over Bianca while he's away. Many years pass and Bianca is now eleven and there has been no sign of her father. Cesare has fallen from power and Lucrezia still stops by to check on Bianca. There is a suggested romance between the Borgia siblings and Lucrezia becomes jealous when Cesare shows interest in the young Bianca. Lucrezia throws a vase at Cesare, but it misses and hits the mirror. The vase shatters, but the mirror is not damaged. In her jealousy and rage, Lucrezia hires Primavera's only grandchild, a hunter, to kill Bianca. The hunter takes Bianca into the woods, but doesn't kill her. Instead he abandons her and takes a lamb's heart back to Lucrezia as "proof" that Bianca was dead. Bianca passes out in the woods and seven dwarfs, who aremore like part of the earth, watch over her as she sleeps for years. When she wakes up, she thinks she must be at least seventeen-years-old. As Bianca gets to know the dwarfs, she finds out that they are missing their eighth brother who left to find their mirror.


 * Rating:**
 * 4.5- The book is extremely well written and entertaining, especially for not being an original plot. The characters are well developed and believable. Gregory Maguire showed me a whole new way to think about the 1500's through this book. The only reason the book is not a 5 is because at times the plot can drag. Also it was occasionally to follow because the point of view switched from third person to first person of one character to first person of another and up, down, and all around. Otherwise, I enjoyed this book because it was somewhat of a challenge to read, which I like, and I like the different take on a children's story it shows.


 * Reactions to another blog:**
 * Based on the blogs of my classmates, I may read //19 Minutes// by Jodi Picoult, read by Kelli Greiner. Even though I have a certain unpleasant disposition towards Jodi Picoult, (I don't exactly know why, however) //19 Minutes// seems like a good book because it has many main characters that develop throughout the story. I enjoy books that start with the ending and then go back and explain how things got to be that way. Also, I'm somewhat curious about the "very big surprising twist" at the end.

away. Don Vicente de Nevada is Bianca's father. He's beginning to play a more prominent role in the story, which is probably because Bianca is still only seven. Primavera is Vicente's cook, she and the cleric, Fra Ludovico, are who watch over and take care of Bianca when Vicente is away. Lucrezia and Cesare Borgia are the son and daughter of the pope. They have come to Don Vicente because Cesare wants to find apples that are supposedly from the Tree of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden, and he thinks that Vicente can find them. I'm unsure, but I think that Lucrezia wants to marry Don Vicente, even though she already has a husband. Lucrezia doesn't like children and the Borgias are not the most moral people, so I believe that something will happen to Don Vicente and a //Snow White-//esque story will unfold. The best part of this book is that it's a challenging read and it's not what I expected. It's a very creative take on the old story. The worst part of the story is that it keeps changing the point of view from third person to first person of various characters. It makes it very confusing to keep up with. Also the plot is off to a rather slow start. For another review of this book, click [|here].
 * February 10, 2011.** //Mirror, Mirror// introduces many characters right


 * January 27, 2011.** I'm reading //Mirror Mirror// by Gregory Maguire, who is the author of //Wicked.// I received this book as a gift for Christmas from my aunt and uncle. I decided to read it because I needed a novel for my blogging entries and it was sitting on my dresser when I was looking for a book. The main character is Bianca de Nevada, who is seven at this point, but I have a feeling that she'll grow up throughout the story. She acts like a typical seven-year-old would in 1502, which is when the story is taking place right now. Bianca loves her father very much, more than a child usually would, but this is because her mother died while giving birth to her. At this point, Bianca doesn't have many thrilling problems, but I'm willing to guess as that as she gets older and the story continues, a problem will arise. However, right now, she does have a problem with her father not letting her leave their land and all the female servants do not like her and treat her mean, even though she is just five. I do like this book so far, I haven't gotten very far so I don't think I'm allowed to comment on the pace of the story line. I would say I like it mostly out of anticipation of a great conflict occurring. Fingers are crossed.


 * January 13, 2011.** Today I created my Wikispace account, joined this Wiki, and thus, created this page.