December book blog 4-Feed

I hated and loved Feed.  The story was amazing and unpredictable.  Depressing and fun.  Weird, yet exciting.  Different, but in a good way.  From a dystopian book I would expect life-changing  rebellion, loss, long-lasting love, and a bad guy and good guy, always the good guy winning.

 In this novel I did find rebellion; Violet resisting the feed.  But her resisting the feed was not something that changed the world.  Violet and Titus did have fun messing around with the feed, though from the small act of rebellion, Violet died.  The feed couldn’t find a sort of “self-style” for Violet, so nobody would accept Violet to get her feed fixed.  Instead, she lay on her death bed, immobile, probably thinking of all the things she could have done, had she lived her whole life.

As far as loss goes, she’s the only person who died in this book.  AND SHE WAS A MAIN CHARACTER.  A main character should not die.  That just never happens.    

Long-lasting love?  Yeah, right!  Once Violet KNEW SHE WAS GOING TO DIE she shared memories, thoughts, and her bucket list to Titus.  What did Titus do?  Oh, well, that jerk-sorry Titus but that’s the best word I can use for you- complained about how long they were and then he throws the memories away, and doesn’t read all her messages.  And let’s not forget about him BREAKING UP WITH HER, then going out with Quendy.  The last words Violet says before she loses her ability to speak is “Tell Titus I’m sorry.”  The poor, dying girl was still in love him and he practically through her away before she dies.

In this novel there is no “super-hero” or “villain.”  I really don’t see the government as a “villain” because feeds are your choice to get.  They’re not forcing you to get one.  This is what I love about this book, no one is that perfect person and no one is that evil person.  It’s normal; we can relate to the characters, and certain events. 

 This book is perfect in an un-perfect way.

December book blog 3-Feed

VIOLET

I saw Violet as an interesting person.  Violet is a different kind of character from everyone else in this book.  All she wishes is to be “normal” like everybody else.   All of Titus’ friends see her as a strange character.  Most of Titus’ friends thought she was trying to show off with her vocabulary that was a higher level from others.  They thought she was strange that she thought about how society was drowning in modern advancements.  But the truth is, Violet’s thoughts were in the right place, because her world was falling apart when nobody else realized it.  Violet wanted to live life to the fullest and just be normal.  She saw Titus and his friends having fun on the moon and she thought about how much fun it would be to hang out around that crowd.  They seemed to have the most fun they could, and she wanted that.  After the incident and Titus and her started going out, she had fun; she enjoyed her time with Titus.  Then she starts dying because of the feed incident.  Her life is clock ticking away until her life ends so she hangs on to Titus for support and love.  She wanted to fit everything she wanted to do in her life into only the few weeks she had left.  She scared Titus a bit with her depressing tales about dying and with all the memories and notes she sent to him.  It was too much for Titus so he ended the relationship.   Violet died her heart crushed by the man she loved the most, but with a strong soul.

December book blog 2-Feed

SUMMARY

The boy’s name is Titus.  He went to the moon with his friends “to have fun, but the moon turned out to completely suck. “  But then he saw her, drinking her juice.  She was beautiful.  The girl’s name was Violet.  She went to the nightclub with Titus and his friends.  There a man touches them and they all start to say We enter a time of calamity!  “We’re going to have to shut you off now.  We’re going to have to shut you off,” says one of the policemen that have come.  The world goes black.  They all awake in a hospital, with no feed.  Their feeds get repaired and Titus and Violet start to go out.  She was different; she read depressing stuff, she thought about the downfall of society, and her vocabulary was of a high level.  But all she wanted was to be normal like everyone and live life to the fullest.  She and Titus resist the feed and have fun doing it.  Titus learns that Violet is dying, that her feed didn’t get fully repaired since it was implanted at a later age.  Nobody will try to help her get better because no one will accept her to get help since her feed is so “scattered;” a result of resisting the feed.  When it gets really bad, she gets depressing to be around.  She sends Titus memories, messages, and a bucket list.  They go to the mountains and Titus backs off, because Violet wants to take the relationship far too early, like showing up at the hotel and calling themselves Mr. and Mrs. Smith.  They have a huge fight and break up.  Titus starts to go back out with his ex-girlfriend.  A few months later Titus finds out Violet is on her deathbed.  He goes to visit her and she’s completely immobilized.  Her dad says he blames everything on Titus.  Titus leaves and comes back another day.  He looks at Violet, holds her hand, and with tears streaming down his face he tells her the “story” of them.  He brings her hand to his lips, and “on a screen, her heart was barely beating.”

December Book Blog 1-Feed

THE FEED

The feed feeds people with entertainment and ads.  It’s a microchip placed in your brain.  The feed is your T.V., internet, dictionary, phone, everything!  The feed is full of ads, and they only provide you with ads that catch your attention.  When you walk into a store, advertisements flood into your mind.  They pull you in figuratively and physically in the advertisements.  For example, when Titus goes looking for a new car, they put him in an advertisement of him driving the car with violet to show him he really should get this particular car that it’ll be an amazing experience to have.  That he just HAS to get it!!!!  The feed knows you better than anyone because it reads you.  It can tell what your interests are and what product you’d like the best.  It’s like a stalker, it knows everything about you.  The feed has replaced so many things like even getting drunk!  Getting “drunk” in this society is going in malfunction or “mal.”  You even get side affects like when someone would get drunk.  The feed is EVERYTHING, the feed is IMPORTANT, the feed KNOWS you, the feed is DANGEROUS.  “You don’t have the feed! You are the feed.”- Violet, pg 202. 

WARNING: FEEDS CAN CAUSE TEMPORARY OR PERMANENT DAMAGE TO THE BODY IF DAMAGED.  FEEDS IMPLANTED AFTER THE BRAIN IS DEVELOPED, IS DANGEROUS.  FEEDS CAN BE FATAL IF IT STARTS TO RUST OR GETS DAMAGED.  (REPORT ANY PROBLEMS WITH YOUR FEED TO A SPECIALISED ASSISTANT!)   

Extra Credit unit 4, Question #1

It’s a very hard to see if either the African or Asian elephant seems most likely to survive in our world.  The Asian elephant is very pliant and talented.  People might want to keep them around for this reason.  That’s why I see this elephant species’ population increasing, not decreasing.  I think people will breed them instead of kill them.  Yet, for a Poacher it wouldn’t matter to them.  But, still, People are incinerating elephant tusks to help both species.  The African elephants, though, are vulnerable since their population is increasing too rapidly; people want to decrease the population, not let the population get out of control.  There is a national agency to protect Asian elephants.  So, while the African elephants’ population is increasing more than the Asian elephants’, it seems more likely that the African elephants are fated to become victims, not saved.  The Asian elephant’s talent and lower population number makes them known and loved so that people will want to save them, and then they’ll forget about the African elephants, leaving them to poachers and campaigns to reduce their herds.   

September book blog 4-Insurgent by Veronica Roth

 

MAIN CHARACTERS: THE PROTAGONIST AND ANTAGONIST

Tris: Tris is the main character.  She struggles mentally a lot in this book.  (See my last book blog.)  She deals a lot with loss, guilt, love, and pain.  Tris’ love interest is Tobias, better known as Four.  Tris is Divergent; she could fit into Erudite, Abnegation, and Dauntless.  Last time she went through her fear landscape, she had seven fears.  Those seven fears were mainly about no escape and feeling guilt and hopelessness.  Tris is described as not exactly pretty, but not ugly.  She is teased much because of how small she is.  She originally came from Abnegation, then changed to Dauntless.

Tobias (Four): Tobias is mainly known as Four.  He received that nickname since he has the lowest amount of fears in Dauntless which is, well…four fears.  He was the instructor for the group of initiatives in Tris’ group.  He starts falling for Tris and soon the both of them start a relationship.  (That is in book one.)  Tris describes him as handsome, though he his nose curves.  Tobias’ original faction is Abnegation and then he changed to Dauntless to escape the physical abuse of his father, Marcus.

Eric: Eric is the leader of Dauntless.  A lot has changed since he became leader of Dauntless; the initiations have become extremely brutal and he sees suicide as “brave.”  He is a Dauntless traitor, though.  He teamed up with Jeanine, and put innocent people of his faction under Jeanine’s simulation to make them kill even more innocent, kind Abnegation members. 

Jeanine: Jeanine is an evil person.  She tried to kill Tris by putting her in a glass box, and having it fill up with water to drown Tris.  Jeanine doesn’t care about people, just her scientific research.  She’ll do anything to get what she wants.  She doesn’t care about killing innocent people to get what she wants.  She rebelled against the government (Abnegation), by killing as many Abnegation as she could.  Though, unlike any other dystopian books, it’s not the protagonist rebelling, this time it’s the antagonist rebelling because Jeanine wanted to keep what she had; she didn’t want things to change because chaos was happening outside the fence.  To her it was, “Who cares?  I’m safe and that’s what matters.  Now, let me have power and control everyone!  Let me continue my so amazing scientific research!”

November book blog 3-Insurgent by Veronica Roth

I love that how in Insurgent, Veronica Roth puts so much emotion into her characters.   It’s not only about the war that’s going on, but also about how Tris is actually doing.  Despite the rebellion, she’s hurting, fighting, loving and hating.  Tris goes through a state of depression after killing Will to save herself.  She hides things from everybody, including Tobias.  She and Tobias struggle with their relationship, fighting a lot of times.  They don’t have that kind of perfect relationship where they tell each other everything, and love each other all the time, never fighting.  Through everything, Tris tries to find herself, who she really is.  She goes through a lot in this book, mainly sorrow and despair.  I mean, her parents died for her, she killed her friend, and now her relationship is going downhill.  Obviously, she’s not only thinking about trying to take over what Jeanine has created, but also about her own self.  And ironically, she came from Abnegation, ha. 

November book blog 2-Insugent by Veronica Roth

Insurgent is the second book in the "Divergent" trilogy. It follows the story of intrepid, sixteen-year-old, Tris. In this book Tris has to save classified information-that Jeanine has killed many innocent people to keep away from the public for-before the factionless and Dauntless destroy it when coming by to attack the Erudite. Tobias thinks Tris is a traitor and doesn't acknowledge her. Soon he finds out she was right; the information needed to be shown to everyone. He puts on the video and everybody sees for themselves what is outside the fence. Gruesome pictures of tortured and dead people are shown, and then a lady comes on screen. She says her name is and says she will take on a new identity and life as: . That is Tris' mom and Tris realizes why they have been kept in a city surrounded by a fence. So that they wouldn't know what was happening in the "real word"; so that they wouldn't do anything, like try to intervene. It was better to keep them here, safe. Away from chaos and anarchy. After the video is over, "the screaming starts."

November book blog 1- Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Factions

Insurgent is the second book in the "Divergent" trilogy. The "Divergent" trilogy is set in futuristic Chicago, where everyone is sorted into one of five factions. Abnegation, the selfless; Candor, the honest; Amity, the peaceful; Erudite, the intelligent; and Dauntless, the brave. Each of these factions has their own ways of living, and qualities.

ABNEGATION

What they blamed for a warring world: Selfish people.

Values: Selflessness

Appearance: Plain gray clothes; nothing attractive. Girls' hair is always up.

What they are taught: No one should want for themselves, but only for others. They should never, ever do anything to please or help themselves.

Notes: Simple things such as wearing a hair bow are considered selfish. Self defense is prohibited since it's considered selfish. The Abnegation provides food and clothing for the factionless. (Fractionless reference below in *Extras*.)

CANDOR

What they blamed for a warring world: Duplicity

Values: Complete and utter honesty

Appearance: The Candor sees the truth as black and white, so they dress in white and black. Something like a buttoned up white shirt and black slacks, would be an everyday outfit.

What they are taught: The Candor are taught how to see when somebody is lying. Body language, ect. (It's practically impossible to lie to a Candor; they can always tell if you're lying.) They are taught to be honest about everything, no matter what situation. For example, they're honest about what they think about you, whether negative or positive.

Notes: The Candor are seen as smart-mouths who are annoying, by other factions, though many people learn to deal with the Candor's honesty. They realize that they can't hold anything against them, since that is what they were taught.

AMITY

What they blamed for a warring world: No peace among people.
Values: The Amity value peace and prosperity.
Appearance: The Amity wears bright colors, mainly red and yellow.
What they are taught: The Amity is taught how to be peaceful and kind. They are told that to solve a situation, they must do it peacefully not violently.
Notes: There is no leader of Amity. They make decisions for their faction by what the majority of the population agrees with. Violence is illegal; they'd rather walk into war with no weapons and try to make people start fighting with their own words, than to use violence.

ERUDITE
What they blamed for a warring world: Ignorance; stupidity

Values: Intelligence
Appearance: People of Erudite wear blue.
What they are taught: These people are taught as much as can be crammed in their minds. They learn to thirst for knowledge.
Notes: Erudite provide people who become doctors and scientists. They have a strong rivalry with Abnegation.

DAUNTLESS
What they blamed for a warring world: Cowardice
Values: Intrepid behavior
Appearance: The Dauntless wear black and have tattoos and piercings.
What they are taught: They are taught to be daring, risk takers, but also to use common sense. Jumping off a cliff is dumb, not brave.
Notes: The Dauntless manifesto has changed over the years with the new leader, Eric. With Eric, he considers suicide brave, and initiation has become very brutal.

*Extras*
FACTIONLESS- The factionless belong to no faction. This is usually because they have failed initiation upon entering their chosen factions at sixteen.

Satire

    It’s cold outside; it’s been snowing all day here in New York City.  The flight’s been delayed two hours.  So bored, so tired.  Ah, look over there!  See, that magazine stand; over at there at that travel store!  What juicy stuff do we have here?
   

People magazine!  A picture of Kristen Stewart kissing a man that’s not Rob!  What?  No way!  She cheated with Rupert Sanders,-who is twice her age-the one who directed the movie Kristen was just in, Snow White and The Huntsman!  oh, and his wife was also in that movie!  How scandalous!  

I should get this one, but wait!  Look, Star magazine!  Suri wants to stay with daddy, Tom Cruise.  But nooooo, mommy Katie Holmes wants Suri to stay with her.  Suri needs to go to Catholic school, NOT Scientology school!  Yup, I’ll get this one instead-but look!

Glamour magazine, Emma Watson on the cover.  Who is she dating, what is she wearing?  I have to know, I have to know!  So many magazines!  Justin Bieber on one!  Is that acne on his so perfect face?  How has the party girl, Snooki’s life changed with her baby?  Paul Ryan’s photo shoot; his muscles bulging out, and right before an election!  Brad Pitt’s new commercial with Chanel: “Wherever I go, you go....”  Taylor Swift stalking the Kennedys?  Princess Kate wears the SAME dress and shoes again?!  The inside scoop on One Direction, ooooh!  

   

So much, so much, so much!  I want to get them all!  It is a loooooong flight to London, UK.  I’ll get this one, and this one, that one of course, that one, and just one more.  That should last me the flight.  “That’ll be twelve dollars and thirty-nine cents,”  the cashier says.  I moan and hand over my money.  What’ll I eat on the plane now?

Dystopian Literature Essay

All dystopian literature has one thing about its world in common: that the government has rule over everyone.  They obsessively control people of these societies, restricting their freedom, practically stalking them making sure they don’t do anything rebellious.  The worst part is the people of these societies are completely fine with it because they believe that the government is right, though there is always somebody who thinks the complete different.  In the film Antz, the short story “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., and the novel Anthem by Ayn Rand there is always one who breaks free of the chains the government has put on them, and stops trying to kid themselves that the government is great when all their lives they knew that all the government itself was really like a dictator; only now do they take action. 

In “Harrison Bergeron” everyone goes about their lives, trusting their government and being equal.   Exactly equal; the government makes sure of that.  Everyone must be the same weight, must be equally strong, equally fast, equally smart, equally good-looking.  And if somebody tried to hide the fact that they weren’t-wait…nobody would because the government knows this stuff.  In this society Albert Einstein, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Michael Phelps would all be considered handicapped.

 Albert Einstein was amazingly intelligent, Leonardo DiCaprio was in the Titanic, and nominated for many awards including the Oscars, and Michael Phelps is the Olympian with the most medals won by a person.  The problem with these three people?  They are smart and talented; they rise above others and they are dangerous.  This is what the government doesn’t want.  They want no competition, no inequality that could lead to rebellion.  And that way they make sure everyone is equal.  These three would each have to wear a handicap, which makes a new and surprising noise every twenty seconds to get their thoughts off track.  Leonardo DiCaprio would have to also wear an ugly mask because let’s face it: he’s another one of Hollywood’s examples of good-looking.  Then Michael Phelps would have to wear extra weights to slow down his swimming speed and Einstein would have to wear a headset instead of an earpiece since he is was so incredibly intelligent.   See, the government watches people like this.  And it’s as though they can read a person’s thoughts because whether twenty seconds or not have passed and someone who is handicapped starts to think I wonder if the government controls the weather, instantly a new sound will explode in their ear and just as quickly they would forget. 

Harrison Bergeron is one person.  To the government he is a threat.  He might as well be Einstein and Leonardo DiCaprio mixed into one.  A lot of weights to slow him down, big ugly glasses to make his amazing vision not so amazing, and a huge headset to re-fry his incredible brain.  Though he is still the only one who rebelled.  Somehow he overcame the noises; somehow he did what he did.  He saw what they were doing as wrong, and tried to overtake them.  Yet somehow he lost.  He lost because the government is powerful.  It didn’t matter what he did or that it was shown on live television.  No, because the average forgot and the smart were interrupted by a brand new sound. 

Antz is a film in which every ant works and lives for their society.  Nobody questions anything and they learn to like their life. The whole colony itself seems to be the government and the soldiers and admiral are just there to keep it that way.   Ants even have the same dance routine, and if one is dancing out of the routine a soldier is there to make sure that they start to.  Only as newborns, the ants are assigned a job.  Therefore their freedom is limited, seeing they get no say or choice in what they do with their entire life.  They either become a worker or a soldier.  The ants never think for themselves for they are brainwashed into believing that they are alive for their colony and if it came to it they would rather die for it.  The colony is so into what they are, and what they do, and they are desperate to keep it that way, that they never see what really is going on.  The last thing colony the wants is change. 

Z is the only ant that feels different.  Who wants to be more than a simple ant being forced to enjoy his job and his life.  He thinks about himself, though tries to think for his colony instead.  Because he simply wants to be different the colony believes this is strange and Z is seen with a therapist at the beginning of the film.  He wants to leave the colony and go to Insectopia; he wants something different.

In Anthem things are a lot more complex.  Equality is taken so far it seems as though the people in Anthem are robots.  They are assigned a name that is a word and a number.  The government or The Home of Leaders make sure their jobs are also assigned.  Like in Antz, everybody lives for their brothers, and more like “Harrison Bergeron” the government fears the smart ones.  They go as far as separating the genders only to meet in The Home of Eugenics.  All the people in this society have a routine.  When to eat, talk, work, sleep, wake, bathe, everything!  People make no choices for themselves.  And nobody is allowed to be alone, and all decisions take a lot of time.  It’s as though they are stuck back in time.

When they see that Equality 7-2521 has potential and is full of questions he is given a job that will make him useless: a street sweeper.  He breaks the rule of being alone and the worst part is that he feels no remorse and actually enjoys spending some time in solitude.  When he makes his invention the scholars are disgusted to find out he did it alone and despise him.  Still, Equality 7-2521 is the only to learn the damage The Home of Leaders have caused to people’s individuality.

Everything the government has done in each of these societies including propaganda leads the people to believe that they are right, and that anything anyone believes besides that are wrong.  But the truth is that the government is wrong.  They don’t allow inequality, don’t allow people to make their own choices, and to make sure it stays that way they watch people, they restrict their freedom.  However there is always somebody who breaks free of his or her chains.  A lesson is taught to us of the modern world telling us, urging us what our world is becoming.  But truly, this is serious.  Do you think authors write dystopian literature for fun or entertainment?  No, because this could really be us in the future for we human beings are unpredictable.  So, would you break free of your chains; would you stand up for what’s right?  Because honestly, who wants their government stalking them?

 

September Book Blog 4 Everlost/Everwild- Neal Shusterman

     I finished the book "Everlost" last Friday and got the second book in the Skinjacker trilogy, "Everwild," that same day.  After I finished "Everlost" I was left speechless, and just HAD to know what happened next?  I also had so many questions left, so the only thing I could do was to get "Everwild."  I finished "Everwild" yesterday evening and I'm already starting the third book in the trilogy, "Everfound." 

     I see a lot of similarities between Neal Shusterman's Skinjacker trilogy and his UnWind trilogy.  As I said in my post before this one, there are special definitions that need to be known for both trilogies. 

So far I have only read the first two books in both trilogies, and in both second books there's a list of the definitions that you need to know.  Also in each second book in each trilogy he always adds characters that are not only new, and loved by readers, but characters that can critically change the story. 

     In other words the story is no longer predictable.  In the first book I have my theories, my predictions.  I think "Oh, that's defiantly going to happen because this happened."  Though by the time I start the second book I think to myself, "Uhhh, because of this new character that's never going to happen now..." and I can't really predict anything by that time because from there, everything changes.  That's exactly what keeps me attached to his books because they are...unpredictable.  And that's what keeps my attention.  I'm glued to the book. 

September Book Blog 3 Everlost- Neal Shusterman

    

     The chapters in "Everlost" are set up as normal chapters with the name of the chapter and the number.  The book is told in second person point of veiw; the narrator knows each of the characters’ feelings.  I like it this way because then I'm not limited to one's emotions and thoughts, but to all of the character's emotions and thoughts.  The book is also split into four parts.  "Everlost" is very much set up like Neal Shusterman's other two books from the UnWind trilogy: "UnWind" and "UnWholly."  (Everlost is part of the Skinjacker trilogy; this is the first book.)  Both trilogies are told in first person point of view and both trilogies have their own vocabulary that you need to know. 

        A few words that you need to know for the Skinjacker trilogy are: skinjack, vapors, fleshies and Afterlights.  Afterlights are the souls that cross into Everlost; living humans call them ghosts.  Vapors, are a group of Afterlights.  Skinjack is the term that is used in Everlost for possesing a living being, though only few posses the power of skinjacking.  A fleshie is a skinjacker slang term for a living human being.       

September Book Blog 2 Everlost- Neal Shusterman

     The reason I chose this book is because Neal Shusterman wrote it.  I read his book "UnWind" in February, then read the second book in the trilogy called "UnWholly" when it was released last month.  I have to wait until next year for the last book to come out, so I needed something to occupy my time until book three.  I had already planned to read "Everlost" after I read "UnWind" though, I never did get to it.  But now that I love the "UnWind" trilogy so far, I told myself that I'd better chose "Everlost" because I want to know what Neal Shusterman has up his sleeve in this book. 

     Of course, with only one hundred pages left for me to read, Shusterman, for the third time has wowed me again!  Shusterman explores the topics not any author I've seen does.  In "Everlost," life, death, and everything in between are questioned. 

     We all have questions about life and death; what's beyond it?  We all have our beliefs, though, we still have questions.  I'm Christian and believe in Heaven and down below.  I believe we go one place or the other.  But I still have questions.  What happens the exact moment I die?  Who will I see?  Will we all be Angels waiting for Armageddon, to fight on God's side?  Are there cases were some souls simply don't make it up above or down below, stuck in our human world?

     I don't know any of the answers; no human does.  But, Shusterman explores this topic, and just gives us questions about our questions, and think far beyond.
   

September Book Blog 1 Everlost- Neal Shusterman

   

  I chose the novel, "Everlost," by Neal Shusterman.  This book is centered on two main people: Allie, and Nick.  They’re both fourteen years old; both live separate lives, and don't know each other...until one fateful day.  Both their cars get into an accident, and Allie and Nick die.   Though, their souls don't make it to where they're going.  Instead their souls are trapped between the living and the dead, in a place called Everlost. 

     Everlost is a place for "Afterlights" (the ones who don't make it to were they're going), where still in the living world, is very dangerous, though it can be a safe haven.  No, adults get into Everlost, only children and young teens.  As an Afterlight, if you stay in one place to long, you sink.  Though, it can be a place where sad things were once lost are now back, like the Twin Towers of New York, their ghosts stand tall and proud, only seen by Afterlights.  This is where Mary Hightower keeps her safe haven of children.  They all live in the magnificent towers, each day a routine for each one; and that's how it'll be for eternity for these kids; they find their niche and that's what they do. 

     When Nick and Allie find her, Nick's satisfied and wants to stay, though Allie wants to get to where she was supposed be going.  Allie decides even though the living can't see them, she'll force her family to see her.  That's why Allie decides to learn the arts of haunting, but then everything goes wrong.

Practice Post

     Right now, I'm reading an amazing book by Neal Shusterman called, "UnWholly."  This year in  February, I read the first book called "UnWind."  I read it, and fell in love with it!  "It wasn't originally suppoed to be made into a trilogy," qouted Shusterman, but soon on amazon.com, it said that Shusterman's second book in the trilogy of "UnWind" was going to come out on August 28, 2012.  I couldn't wait to get my hands on "UnWholly!" 
     
     The UnWind trilogy takes place in a futuristic society.  A long time ago a war, called the Heartland War, was fought.  There were two sides.  The pro-life and the pro-choice; the pro-life side fought for abortions to be stopped, while the pro-choice side fought for abortions to be kept legall.  Finally both sides came to an agreement.  If a mother didn't want a baby, they still have to give birth to the baby, then they are allowed to put the baby on a person's doorstep, and by law the person who recieved the baby has to take he or she in and raise them as their own child.  This process is called storking.  But, that was not the only law made.  Through the ages thirteen to eighteen, you are allowed to unwind your child.  This happens when a parent no longer can stand their child, they are allowed to send their child to a harvesting camp, to have them unwound.

Summary: Sold by Patricia McCormick

I think that Mumtaz is lying to Lakshmi about letting her live.  I believe that Mumtaz will lock Lakshmi's door, corner her, then threaten to kill her with an object, and then Lakshmi will be forced to be with men.  I think after this she will be with as many men as possible until she has been payed enough money to leave Happiness House.  I believe this is what will happen because Mumtaz seems to cruel to let Lakshmi go.  Also I believe Lakshmi will be with as many men as possible because she is a determined girl and will do anything just to see Ama again.

Sold by Patricia McCormick Pgs 52-84; Graphic Designer

This picture is supposed to be Auntie.  This is when Lakshmi asked her if she were a movie star and Auntie just smiled showing her black teeth.  When this happened Lakshmi started to feel unsure about Auntie.

http://lucychristopher.blogspot.com/2011/06/alright-everyone-line-up-alphabetically.html                                        

This is the one thousand rupees Lakshmi's stepfather asked Auntie to give him for Lakshmi.  At this time Lakshmi becomes confused because she hasn't even done any work as a maid in the city yet.  This foreshadows what will soon learn is that she has been sold into prostitution.
http://myclipta.blogspot.com/2010_10_01_archive.html

This is the Train that Lakshmi gets on with Uncle.  This is where she sees the girl who head had just been shaved on the floor crying with her "husband" throwing a cigarette butt at her while Uncle just stared and called her stupid.  When he says that Lakshmi does not understand this cruelty and her Uncle's unconcerned. 

http://www.treehugger.com/cars/celebrate-national-train-day-on-may-10th.html

Sold by Patricia McCormick Pgs 51-84;Critic

Lakshmi's stepfather takes her to Bajai sita's store and lets the woman Lakshmi saw at the Festival of Lights-Auntie-to look at her and find a price to pay for Lakshmi to work in the city as a maid.  Her stepfather asks for 1000 rupees for Lakshmi.  However Auntie says she has no hips and "is as plain as porridge" and gives Lakshmi's stepfather 500 rupees instead.  Lakshmi doesn't understand since her looks doesn't matter for working as a maid.  Auntie and Lakshmi leave passing many villages.  Soon they stop and get a ride with two men.  When they reach a city they take a bus from there.  They get of a bus and go in a hut.  There, Auntie makes Lakshmi change into a "long flowing gown with tight shoes" as described by Lakshmi.  Then she is sold over again to a man who auntie says will be her "Uncle," but she has to pretend he's her husband to cross the border.  After crossing the border they take a train.  When Lakshmi needs to use the bathroom she has to go to the back with a lot of other women, squats down like the rest and lift her dress and relieves herself right there in the open.  As she walks back she sees a horrible scene.  A girl who's head had just been shaved was crouched down on the floor weeping with men around her.  Lakshmi's Uncle, Husband was among them.  A fat man was throwing gravel and cigarette butts and spitting at her.  Lakshmi's Uncle, Husband said "That's what she gets for running away from her husband.  Stupid girl."  Lakshmi doesn't understand any of this and is confused.