Frightful's Mountain: Week Three

Good news! I have read a good chunk of my book and I am able to summarize for you. Just to let some of  you know, this is my last post for November. Anyway, here's what has happened: Unfortunately, my prediction from my last post was incorrect. Sam has been feeding his beautiful bird regularly. And, Frightful has been brooding three chicks. Two of them were captured by illegal bird salesmen, but the police caught them red-handed, but the chicks can't go back to Frightful because the Feds have been watching them. So now, Sam is stuck without Frightful's two chicks, but it's not a total loss. Frightful and her old mate have been taking care of Oski, who was with Sam when the other two chicks were captured. Also, migration season is coming, and Sam won't see Frightful until season's end. She is currently making it to South America with a group of birds of prey and her old son, Drum.

Why do I like this book? It teaches the reader a lot about falcons in general, like how they have a special gland to oil their flight feathers, or the special call chicks use when they're hungry, how they fly through these things called thermals, etc. Not only does this book tell a story of friendship, but it's also very educational. Well played, Mrs. George.

Frightful's Mountain: Week Two

Finally!

As a side plot in my book, Frightful has been trying to locate Sam, her original owner. After eight chapters, we finally found him! Apparently, he's been doing pretty well for himself. He's doing odd jobs for a neighbor and making Adirondack furniture with an old friend of his. Of course, Frightful shouldn't really be there at all considering Sam's too young to have a falconer's license, but it's been a while since Sam has seen her, so it's appropriate.

We now know that Frightful has a place for food and shelter, much better than Chup's cliff or Jon Wood's log cabin. But, there's somewhere even better. When Frightful is frightened by Alice, (complete accident) she flies away from Sam's hemlock and towards the city-which makes no sense considering she just found Sam-she finds a gigantic bridge.

When she lands, something strange happens. The bridge feels more and more like her home. Forget the hemlock, this place is calm. There's food all around, nobody to worry about her whatsoever. She's at peace. Except of course for her eyas Lady, who has a bad case of DDT poisoning from South America, which is sad, but I guess notable.

I predict that Frightful will leave Sam once she gets used to the bridge. If I were a bird, I would want a quiet place once and a while. Maybe she'll come back to Sam for food or during rainstorms but I think she'll stay there. At least for now.

Frigthful's Mounatin: Week One

Well, it's time for a new book, friends. The book I chose for the month of November is Frightful's Mountain.

(image from Better World Books)

 

 

 

 The reason I chose this book is because a) my mother told me to read it and b) I've already read "My Side of the Mountain," this book being the second prequel to it. What I have read so far I'm liking. In the beginning, Frightful had been taken away by these illegal bird salesman and was nearly dead, until her original trainer's (Sam, of course) sister came and...well, Sam's sister didn't really do anything except release her. And Frightful was hungry, so she was practically neglected a second time. Until she met a worn-out dog named Mole, who helped her scare up game for dinner. Then, she met Chup, a male peregrine falcon, called a tiercel, who led her to his aerie after his last mate didn't return from a hunting trip. But, after being with Sam for so long, she has forgotten all peregrine instinct, and her surroundings must teach her. Finally, she learns how to care for the young when winter hits and again, she is ill-equipped. After many days without food, our heroine decides to seek out new life from atop a electric transformer. Bad idea. She nearly dies, forcing a falconer living nearby to tour a bunch of schools telling children about the dangers of electricity wires and how it affects endangered species. More of that will come later in the book, when I'm able to post again. See you soon! 

Car Trouble: The Last Week

Greatest of news!

As I mentioned in my last post, Duff had lost his job and was heading to his dad's friend's house to stay until he found a new job. All of a sudden, he got a call from Bonnie! Bonnie had written a special song for Duff about his trip. That comforted Duff very much, and it all led up to a satisfied reader in the end.

Next month: Frightful's Mountain (George)

Car Trouble: Week Three

Aw man.

It's been a bad week for Duff. The villains have caught up to our heroes, luckily without the dough, but then Duff soon realizes he lost his job. I feel bad for Duff because the reason he started this nutty road trip in the first place was because of the job offer. He must've worked so hard to get it, and he would've been perfect man for the job. I wonder what will happen next when he gets to his dad's friend's place.

Car Trouble: Week Two

I'm really liking this book! It's very suspenseful and well-written. It tends to add more twists and turns, which are  fine, but extremely frequent. I would suggest this book to those who have gone on long car rides with many problems. Or, for those younger than 16, I would persuade them to read this book because it teaches a lesson (theme to some) about the long road ahead. (Get it?) More updates soon...

Car Trouble: Week One

Okay, I know this isn't the first week I've been reading this book, but I meant just the first week of the month! Anyway, here's some general information on the book for those who haven't been following:

A computer geek named Duff heads out on a road trip after getting a job offer in Silicon Valley. After much unwanted delays, his car breaks down in a Podunk, and must stay in a crummy motel for the night. Then, he uses his laptop to find a way to get to California in time. It works. After much waiting, Duff heads over to the gas station across the street and meets Stu. Currently, Duff and Stu have met Bonnie and are staying at her aunt's house.

Anyway, what's happening as I read is Duff finds some suspicion in Stu's ways and accuses him of being a con artist. Stu admits to this, and Duff threatens to call the cops. I think I'm seeing that the purpose of this scene is to show that people are always not as they seem. Much like Duff, I to was suspicious of Stu. He seemed OK in the beginning, then he gets kind of annoying, and then finally ditches Duff at a park. Duff finds something suspicious when Stu says he found some stolen money in the trunk of their last car. Apparently, it wasn't Stu's, but Bonnie's mother's. a con artist by trade. Stu had used the stolen money to pay for a Toyota to get them the rest of the way. If I was Duff, I would definitively had called the cops when Stu wasn't looking.

Welcome readers!

Hello, fellow bloggers out there! The name's PJW, and 'round these parts, we READ BOOKS!! Basically, this weblog is an archive of how my book is going, what the characters are doing, how they're handling it, etc. So enjoy this blog as though your life depended on it! Heck, go read the books yourself! This month, we'll be examining Car Trouble by Jeanne DuPrau...

Let the fun begin...