Ned Vizzini’s It’s Kind of a Funny Story is a deft, eloquent, and riotously funny novel about a not so humorous topic – the crippling effects of depression.  Inspired by the author’s own experience during his five-day stay in a New York psychiatric hospital, this book was published in 2006.  He was only twenty-five.  A major Hollywood film of the same name staring Keir Gilchrist, Dana DeVestern, and Zach Galifianakis was released four years later.

            It’s Kind of a Funny Story tells the story of Craig Gilner, a driven teenage growing up in Manhattan.  Ever since he was young child, he knew exactly what he wanted to be - he was going to be the president of America.  He is a conscientious worker; and because of his ambition and this hard work he is able to get admitted into Manhattan’s most exclusive school and labor intensive, the Executive Pre-Professional High School, which is full of some of the most precocious children of his age.  Even though Craig convinces himself that this was what he wants, he finds that in this new school he is struggling to just keep up with the rest of the pack.  His best friend, Aaron, on the other hand, got into the school without even trying.  

            Craig feels anguish as everything starts to pile up on him - schoolwork, extracurriculars needed to get into a decent college, social obligations, and guilt because of what he is putting his family through.  Could he possibly get into a decent college or even make it through high school?  This anxiety continues to grow in cycles until his life  gets turbulent and it becomes to be too much to bear.  Craig becomes suicidal.  Fortunately, Craig has the good sense to check himself into a psychiatric hospital before it is too late.  Here he finally feels safe.  There is a sense of stability here that anchors him to reality, something he was unable to find in the outside world.  He feels in control.  The hospital is his bulwark against his depression.  In this environment he is finally able to piece everything together, to brood constructively.  He connects to the others in the ward because even though they are of all different ages and have different troubles in their pasts they are all going through rough times and are able to help each other get through them.  

            In the hospital he meets many people who proved to be true friends, the most prominent of which is Noel.  Noel has the same problem as Craig, which is revealed to us by the scars on her cheek. Both Craig and Noel are teenagers struggling under the weight of adolescence and the expectations and labels that society has placed on them.  This is a bond that cannot be broken.  It is what makes this story so powerful in addition to being witty.

             This is an excellent book for teenage readers trying to make sense out of what it means to be a unique and complex individual and how we can navigate between our expectations and reality.  Life can be fraught with danger and pretty scary at times, but if Craig Gilner can tame his pernicious demons, I think that we, too, should be able give it a good shot. If we can accomplish this self-discovery with half the humor of the narrator, we will be doubly successful.  The novel feels like a genuine rendition of a teenager’s experience. This made the characters and emotions relatable giving the book an extremely powerful message. Other than modifying some annoying colloquial phrases that seem forced, I wouldn’t change a thing.  If you like heavy topics dealt with in a light-hearted and witty way It’s Kind of a Funny Story  is a must read.  I for one strongly recommend it.

For my last Independent Reading Project for Mrs. Dunn I read Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. This book was first published in 1999. Laurie Halse Anderson was awarded many awards for her books and this book as well. The awards were Printz Honor Book Award, a National Book Award nomination, Golden Kite award, the Edgar Allan Poe Award, and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.Speak touches on many problems in a teenagers life. Struggles with school, friends, parents and pernicious rumors. Throughout Speak you find that being an outcast isn’t good nor is it healthy. It makes you feel unwanted and most times makes you go into a deep depression. 

Melinda Sordino, the main characters, struggles with being an outcast. Speak is about her life, her story, but it’s all up to her if she wants to tell it. It all began at a party when she called the cops at the end. The reason is because she didn't feel secure when she was with Andy Evans. The beginning of high school her friend circle was desolate.This made her fraught with anger which sent her down into a spiral. But she had art. She could express herself in Art and that was the only class she received an A in. The project she received for the year was a tree. This tree later symbolizes Melinda's growth to over come her fears and speak up about the night of the party. 

I could relate to this story because I know how important socializing is to a high schooler.   It may not be important to all kids but to most it is. Feeling wanted it is the best feeling. To know that someone actually cares about you besides your family and God. Being accepted, knowing people, going places, and having friends feels perfect. But you have the pick the correct people and you also have to learn for yourself who people are and how they affect you. 

I liked Speak because it touched upon a serious topic that young woman and woman go through. I also liked the book because it was structured well and written well. It’s suspenseful and makes it easy to read and want to read the whole book in one day. For me reading a book in one day seems boring but this book made it easy to complete the task. Like any other book Speak had some weaknesses. The biggest weakness was the way the book was sectioned. I understand each marking period to show growth but it wasn’t necessary. There was a strength also. The strength of the book was the way it was written. Laurie Halse Anderson gave a lot of details that helped understand the situation Melinda was in. 

I recommend this book for teens who want a good story to read.Speak  is a very interesting book. It's not a typical book about a girl in high school. It's not about treachery, or jealousy. It's about a normal girl who is hiding a secret because she can't tell anyone. Speak is a sapid and genuine novel. It touches upon topics that people don’t like talking about. This book is easy to get attached to and you can begin to feel how Melinda feels. 

 In the future depicted in the book the world is in bad shape. The people have been going through this disease called the flare. When the governments found out about the Flare and how rapidly it was spreading they joined forces to create an organization named WICKED. WICKED collects a group of  “test subjects” into a place called the maze. In the maze there is a glade where “the subjects” are sent through an elevator. The walls of the maze changes every night with the walls to the maze from the glade closed every night. In the first book there is a code that is revealed through the maze. The code is the key to the next book. 

The books are narrated by an unknown person who knows everything. Thomas the main character’s head is the one that this unknown narrator knows most about. Then there is Teresa the only girl Glader. Newt the "nice" guy and Minho the tough one. Teresa, Newt, and Minho are Thomas’ only friends for a while and they are by his side for the most part. Thomas goes through some crazy things and the conflicts he has are with everyone. James Dashner made sure to put in person vs. person, person vs. society, person vs. self evenly through the series. Thomas has so much conflict he ends up expecting it by the end. My favorite character is Teresa because she is the good best friend she is always there for Thomas even before Thomas knows it and everything she does is to protect him no matter how much it hurts her doing those things. The series is about survival, readers should understand that through surviving something you may lose something else and all you can do is pick up where you left off because if you look back you won’t be able to handle it.

The series is hard to relate to situation wise but when you look at the thematic content you realize that you might have done the same things. These kids go through so much by the end of the series I can barely remember how they got there and I think that was the point. I think James Dashner wanted to make the point that as long as the ones you love are around you then you will be all right and that is what I believe to be true every day. I cannot relate to any specific character yet because they go through so many changes so quickly that when I start to relate they do something that I don’t understand again. I have felt the way every “glader” felt when they were a “shuck greenie” because you feel alone in a new place and you don’t know where you fit it you just know you better start to because right now you are the odd one out. 

The series is wonderfully and skillfully crafted a story that takes you through a train that you want to be an express one with only stops are for the 3:00 am coffee breaks and end of book potty breaks. James Dashner remains what the future might look like and shows you the imagery of the maze in the first book and the world in the second and third books. Throughout the three books Dashner is consistent with the amount of suspense and tension he gives through each book. The series has so many strengths and I think that the biggest strength is how James Dashner creates this world for you and he doesn’t drag it along with details about the smallest of things like other writers might have if they had this subject. I would change very little in this book only the deaths because all my favorite characters go for Thomas. I would recommend these books just based on the writing style and speed because it is very hard to make a person want to read a story so bad that they have to put it down to get through the ending. Dashner gives you these characters that you want to get to know and through the situations they are put through they reveal themselves increasingly to you.

PAYBACK TIME BY CARL DEUKER

   This book is primarily about sports but not fully. This book is also about uncovering a secret and making a great story out of that secret. The main character in this book Daniel (Mitch) True is getting ready to go college and plans on uncovering the biggest story of his life in his senior year of high school. This book PAYBACK TIME received a one star review from Booklist that said “ Definitely one for the top shelf ”. The book PAYBACK TIME received A JUNIOR LIBRARY GUILD SELECTION.      

The book PAYBACK TIME is a book about a high school journalist named Daniel (Mitch) True who wants to be the editor of his school newspaper and he wants go to Columbia University to study journalism. An important character in the book is Kimi Yon. She is the sports photographer for the school newspaper and is Mitch's newspaper partner. Mitch and Kimi worked on the sports section of the newspaper together throughout the school year. Another important character in this book is Angel Marchial. Angel is a football player who is a new kid at Lincoln High school and new to the football team at the school. The conflict in this story is Mitch and Kimi are trying to uncover a secret about Angel Marchial who transferred from a different high school. My favorite character in this book is Daniel (Mitch) True. The reason being is Mitch grew throughout the book. Mitch did not have things go his way all of the time but that did not stop him from continuing to try to uncover this story. Furthermore Mitch had a weight problem and throughout the book he lost a lot of weight because he did not give up or let anyone stop him. I believe that readers should take self motivation away from this book. I believe that this book gives good examples about self motivation. Furthermore readers should take away hope from this book. The reason being is that Mitch did not always have the answer to all of the questions that he had about Angel but he knew that at the end of the football season he would have some information to write a story.

I could relate to Angel Marichal. One reason is I have been in his situation about starting on the bench and eventually starting in the starting lineup. The second way I could relate to Angel is because of his quiet leadership. I understand at first why he did not want to be one that talked a lot. Furthermore I can relate to Angel being the one to sit at the end of the bench and not be getting into the game. The mindset that Angel had was remarkable because he played well but he only played a little and would not be warmed up when he was put into the game. This gave him a disadvantage because he was not warmed up and was not prepared to be in the games.  

I did like the book. The book was great and had very interesting themes. One strength of the book was the imagery. When I was reading the book I could imagine the football field and I could imagine the energy from the sports fans in the stadium. Another strength from the book was the action in the book. This book had a lot of football play by play detail and kept the reader interested throughout the book. One weakness from this book was the ending. The ending did not close the book properly. The ending could have been better. Another weakness in this book was the detail of certain places in the book. For example where Mitch had gone running was not described well and was hard to imagine what it would look like in real life. I would change the ending of the book. The reason being is the ending was not what I expected and could have closed the book better. The author left it up to the readers imagination but I would have liked to have a clear ending at the end of the book.

for everyone and that probably could take something away from this book. I  

definitely recommend this book to sports fans. This book has great play by

play detail and really makes the reader feel like they are at the game. Another

thing that this book has is a theme about self motivation. In this book the main 

character Daniel (Mitch) True deals with a weight problem and he tells 

himself that he must get into better shape so he could be healthy. At first 

Mitch was losing weight to impress Kimi Yon but at the end he realizes that 

he was doing it for himself.        

Treasure Island is a novel published in 1883 by Robert Louis Stevenson. The book was meant to just be stories that he told to his stepson, and ended up being published into a great story that has been famous and told for generations. The movie “Pirates of the Caribbean” was based off of the well-known novel, and for that I have based my creative portion of the individual reading book project on the movie’s ‘theme song.’ “He’s a Pirate” was composed by Hans Zimmer and Klaus Badelt and is used in the movie as the background and occasional ambient music. I think it goes perfectly with the book beccause I couldn’t help but imagine that music playing while I was reading. The song has an epic feel, and for that I decided to play it on piano and use it as my creative piece.

Billy Bones leaves a chest at the Admiral Benbow for safekeeping, and stays there along with it. He dies from a fatal stroke. Jim Hawkins, the protagonist, finds a treasure map in the chest, and with the help of characters that were introduced earlier in the novel, he goes in search of Treasure Island with the crew. The treasure is from the already deceased Captain Flint. Will the treasure be found? Read the rest to figure out what happens in the rest of the gripping story.

The main character is Jim Hawkins, the narrator, and son of the owner of the Admiral Benbow. Jim tells about his adventures with the pirate crew, and his experience in his “coming of age.” He uses his feelings and emotions to portray the story in his own way, explaining everything that happens in good detail.

The main conflict is getting along with Captain Flint’s old crew, and getting to Treasure Island. It isn’t until they get there that they all realize something has happened, which could change the entire story from the expected outcome.

My favorite character is Jim Hawkins. I think this because first of all, his name is pretty darn epic and awesome. Also, he has a sort of mysterious nature. It’s hard to explain, but when he explains the story from the narration point of view, he tells it in his own way, unlike any other books that I have read previously. He also has a sense of adventure, and I like his personality. It really fits the story.

I think the reader should take away the fact that even if the book is old and a little challenging, it can still be a treasureable story. The words and lingo used are a little more traditional, and adding the fact that it contains a lot of vocabulary that I’m not used to, it was a challenge to read. There were words like “dubloons” that I have never really heard as part of a story before. It was interesting to see how pirates would have talked, too. I think one huge theme is how when you “come of age” you can prove how heroic or gallant you can be.

I don’t think I can relate to anyone in the book, considering the setting was in the eighteenth century, and most of the characters were pirates, but I still enjoyed the book either way. I don’t think books need to cater to the reader and have to be relatable to be enjoyable. Adding to this, I haven’t had any similar experiences to the characters in the book either, because, well... The characters are fantastical pirates from the eighteenth century that go on adventures in search of treasure!

Overall, I enjoyed the book very much because it was a challenge to read and comprehend, and I’m not usually a fan of old fiction. I think it’s something that I wouldn’t pick up first if I were given a pile of books to choose from, but I’m very happy that I did pick it up to read, because it’s a very enthralling novel.

I think a major strength of the book is the ability for the writer to change perspectives. It was very interesting to read when Jim Hawkins traded in telling the story with Doctor Livesey, who had a more accurate version of the story, while Jim included what he felt like. Also, the reader is painted a picture of exactly what every staggering detail is. Without the visualization in a fiction book, the book easily becomes boring, and it’s not as fun to imagine or think about the plot.

I don’t think I would change such a classic book, but if I had to, I would change the beginning. I find it very confusing on how the events take place, and I had to reread a lot of parts, just to understand what was going on. Once I did understand it, it was really worth it, and I was glad that I had gone through again to read it. 

I think I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys suspense and adventure. I often times found myself wondering where something that had happened in the beginning of the book would come back. It made me wonder if it was foreshadowing, or if it was going to eventually tie into the later plot.

I enjoyed the book, and am proud of my creative portion that I have created. I don’t think I would change a single thing about it. Please watch my video of me playing “He’s a Pirate” on piano. 

Click this link.

The main character’s name is Charlie. He is the youngest of three kids, with a mother and father. They have a pretty normal family from the outside, but once you go on the inside you realize they have as many problems as the rest of the world. One day at a football, game Charlie meets his new friends that he will be with until they graduate. The two kids introduce him to an entirely new group of kids that he had never known before. They call themselves the wall flowers. Charlie is a complicated person on the inside. He can’t always control his mind and that can get him in trouble, not with anyone in particular but mostly himself. He has to see a psychiatrist. There are many things that can trigger him to become wary or emotional. 

This is a common thing that can often be linked with anxiety. It is a normal thing to have going through high school with projects or tests or even friends, but this is not the same thing. I have sometimes experienced something of the sort. It has a lot to do with being able to control your mind and wanting it to stay calm, but while doing that, all you do is think about what is bothering you more. For Charlie, this issue comes up when he is thinking about the past (if you read the book you will know what I mean). 

I think this book, though could be debated with others, is actually a really good book. I read it and it made me think about how I was feeling more deeply and how I could relate to this book. Being a teenager in the same time period that this book was written, I can relate to most of the things that happened in the book, whether it is me personally or via someone else. 

I would recommend this book to mostly young-adults and the grown-up that likes to relive their child hood through a book. I think it gives a lot of truths that some books like to gloss over because of trying to paint teenagers as their stereotype, or even trying to go too far the opposite way. For example, I think Perks does a very good job as telling the life as it is, at least through the way  I have seen it so far. Over all I thought this was a really truthful book with a very well detailed story. 

My Creative Portion  

For my creative portion of this project, I chose to show the main character Charlie’s development throughout the story through the books that he reads. Throughout the book, Charlie reads 12 different books. Each one he reads at a different point in the story. For each one I wrote one word the described how he was feeling while reading that book. I wrote it on the back of a book that I put paper over and wrote the title and author of the book on to give it the affect that it was actually the book that he had read. Below is a picture of the books he read all stacked in order of when he read them. 

Sarah Dessen is #1 on the New York Times Bestselling Author, School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, 1998, A YALSA Best Book for Young Adults, 1999, New York Public Library Book for the Teenage, 2001, and Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist, 2003. She has written many books two of which I have already read. All her books focus on teenage girls and she usually will tie in different characters that have a small role in one book, but a large role in another. The book I chose Keeping the Moon was published September 1st, 1999 it was her third novel she now has ten books, one novella, and the current book she is writing. In 2003 the film how to deal with Mandy Moore was based off of Someone like you and That summer both written by Sarah Dessen.

Keeping the Moon, also released as Last Chance is about fifteen year old Nicole Sparks or Colie. This books narrates her summer that she spends her Aunt Mira in fictional Colby,a small beach town presumably in North Carolina. Each Sarah Dessen book has some sort of theme, some are simple and some can be more complex. This book is a very simple theme, friendship, a theme that evolves to be very complex. Colie was once overweight so was her mother, however her mother started aerobics and they both became very skinny, Colie evolving into a small case of anorexia.

When she arrives in Colbie she is very hesitant to make friends, she always had been however when she starts work at The Last Chance burger joint she makes new friends.

Her main best friends are two girls who have graduated from high school, it is never made clear how old they are however. Morgan is very tall and very welcoming of Colie, Isabel however is very rude and difficult towards Colie. The two only become friends when Isabel meets one of Colie’s arch enemies, who calls her a slut and a bitch.

Norman is the young man, probably seventeen or sixteen who lives in Aunt Mira’s basement, he is the cook at the Last Chance and takes an interest in Colie, the two start out as friends but become involved near the end.

Aunt Mira is very eccentric and reminds Colie of who she used to be, more of what she and her mother used to look like. Colie is somewhat afraid of Mira in the beginning but the two become good friends while talking. Colie learns that Mira’s life is very difficult, she is made fun of all over Colby but when Colie confronts Mira with this, she learns how strong Mira is.