Blog for 12-14-15

Prompt: Pretend you are the best friend of one of the characters.  Write them a letter.

Book: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Author: John Boyne

Page #: 1-85

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Disclaimer:  Bruno is a boy and in the story has no interest in girls, and only has friends that are boys.  Therefore, I changed my name to Evan.  Both Bruno and "Evan" are 10 years old so their writing isn't as formal as an adult's would be.  However, they do know some formal language.
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Letter:

1234 Oakley Avenue

 Berlin, Germany  98765
December 14th, 2015

Dear Bruno, 

     Berlin has been very boring without you here.  There is not much to do on our street anymore, it's just been quiet.  Lately, your house has been looking really empty, maybe it's because I'm used to it being full with life.  Anyway, how's Gretel?  Your sister was always weird, especially when she was with her friends!  One time they kept trying to force me to play dolls with them while you were in the bathroom.  Luckily you came out before they had they chance to even give me one!  Anyways, this letter isn't supposed to be about me, it's supposed to be about you.  

     I have had a few questions on my mind to ask you lately.  What's it like in your new house?  Is it bigger than your old house?  Do you have any new friends?  I hope you didn't replace either me, Daniel, Martin, or Karl! We're best friends and you can't replace us, we're simply irreplaceable.  Anyway, if you do have new friends, what are they like?  Surely they can't be as good as us but they must be nice.  I wonder what their names are.  Are you planning on coming back?  I'm starting to miss you at school.   However, there's a new student and his name is Adam.  He's really pleasant, yet not as much as you are.

     That has been the only exciting thing that happened since you left.  I'm telling you Bruno, you have have to come back!  It must be pretty nice over there if you haven't come back to your old house yet.  I hope you don't forget us.  So, how's school over there?  It must be completely different!  I wish you could've stayed.

     Sadly, I have to put this letter to an end because I have to go.  Mother says that we have to go to a friend's house for Schwarzwalder.  I hope you have time to write me back.  Wiedersehen!

                                                                                                          Sincerely, 

                                                                                                                            Evan








     

Blog for 11-30-15 : Non-Fiction Book

Book: Endangered Forest Animals

Author: Dave Taylor

Page #: 1-30 (Finished)

Summary:

Many forest animals have become endangered.  Two main reasons why they have become near to extinction is because of being hunted and deforestation.  The destruction of their habitat has occurred to make room for farms, cities, etc.  The animals have also been hunted abundantly and their population has been nearly wiped out because of their unique coats, threats, etc.  In order to preserve them there have been new laws preventing them from being hunted and national parks have taken in these animals to protect them.  All these endangered forest animals are different but still share the same problem, they're all close to extinction.

Interesting Passage:

There were many interesting passages in the whole entire story about certain animals, forests, and much more.  It was kind of hard to pick one, however I found a passage relating to the Asian elephant that caught my attention and stuck to my brain.  The passage reads, "The people who use elephants for labor do not want their elephants to have babies because that means the mother elephant cannot work for several years while she is looking after her youngster.  Instead of allowing the animals to have babies, the elephant owners catch new wild elephants to replace the aging ones.  This means that the wild herds keep getting smaller." (Page 22)  I found this passage interesting because it is shocking that people are using animals to their own benefit and aren't allowing them to repopulate.  Not letting them repopulate and capturing new elephants decrease the population, yet they are still forcing them into hard work.  I feel as if they should't be put to labor, be able to have babies, and maintain the population.

What I Learned:

I have learned many facts about the endangered forest animals.  Not only that but I learned how to identify specific forests, and how to save the animals living in them.  I learned that in our area we mostly have deciduous trees.  Their leaves turn different colors in fall and fall off when winter comes around.  I also learned about such animals like the lowland gorillas.  The gorillas' habitat are being destroyed and they're being hunted by poachers who have interest in taking their heads as trophies.  Lastly, I learned how to save the many forest animals who are endanger.  People, such as yourself and some friends, can buy an acre (43,560 sq. ft) of a forest and that piece of land cannot be cut down, unless authorized by the owners.  This will make sure the animals have a reliable home, safe from destruction.  Overall I learned a lot from this book because it supplied information about certain types of forests, animals, and solutions to help the animals. 

I commented on:

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