Blog Post #5: Adapting The Book Thief

 Some challenges that a film maker would have when adapting my book is that they would have to have a different perspective on the book since it is told by death or the story would partly be narrated in a way. I think it would be difficult because people wouldn't understand that death is telling the story unless they read the book and it would be difficult for them. 3 scenes that are essential to keep are when Liesel is riding in the car to go live with her new foster parents Hans and Rosa Hubberman. They would have to keep this scene because it is the start of the story and how she meets her new parents is important because she doesn't have her real parents and this is where the plot starts in the book . Another scene that they would have to keep is when Max comes to live with them and when Hans Hubberman has a flash back and is telling the story on how he got his accordion and how Max's father saved his life. The reason they would have to keep this scene because this is when the conflict in the book starts because they are trying to hide a Jew in their house which is against the law at the time and is very dangerous. And how he is telling a little background on Max so people know how he connects to Hans Hubberman. A third scene that they would have to keep is when she has her first Christmas with her foster parents and gets 2 books from her papa. This is important to keep because this is one of my favorite scenes in the book and I love the reaction that she has when she opens the books. She wasn't even expecting too much from them but getting a gift from them shows how much they love her and how she has adapted to living with them. 2 parts in the book that I would get rid of when adapting the film is when Liesel and Rudy join this gang to steal food for the group. I would get rid of this scene because it is not very important and also the stealing doesn't really last that long. The leader of group ends up leaving them so its not too important.  Another scene that I would get rid of is when Liesel is delivering laundry to Rosa's customers and Rudy comes alone and they find a coin on the group. They end up spending the coin on candy. The reason I would get rid of this scene is because  the coin didn't really symbolize anything and it was just a little detail in the story not too big.

Book project #1: Divergent

Book project #1: Divergent Faction test!

Have you ever read the book Divergent? Have you ever wanted to get the pure fan experience? Well here is the right place for you! Come on down to Chicago and test your skills to see which faction chooses your faith. When you come you must sign up and write your name down so we can organize the fan ceremony. Just like Tris you will take the faction test and will be pared up with someone to help you take your test. But there are a few rules for this test. First you have to be 16 years old; we will not accept anyone younger or older. Next you must answer all the questions that you are faced with during the test and have to give your most honest answer on the questions. There will be many different situations.  Lastly when you are done with the test you have to come to the fan ceremony to choose you faction. There are 5 factions that you can be put in.

“The aptitude test will tell me- Abnegation, Candor, Erudite, Amity or Dauntless?” said Tris.  The first one is Abnegation which is meant to uphold selflessness and to serve others before you. The second one is Amity which meant for the peaceful and trying to create harmony between others. Next is Candor, meant for the honest and telling the truth at all costs. After that is Dauntless which is meant for the brave and fearless. Not being afraid of anything. Lastly is Erudite which is intended for the knowledgeable and intelligent. Or be faced with being put as factionless which means you failed to complete the test. If you are faction less you will not come to the fan ceremony. In your test you will be tested on your personality, how you react to certain situations, and will have to make choices on how you handle them. During the test you will be asked many questions and there will be different choices that are given to you to choose. At the end of the test you will receive your test results and an invitation to the fan ceremony where you will choose your faction. Choose carefully “Faction before blood”, but remember you don’t have to choose the same faction that your results told you too, even though it would fit you the best but it is recommended to you. At the ceremony you will be called up and will choose. What you will do is write your name on a piece of paper and there will be 5 bowls of fire. “My eyes shifted to the bowls in the center of the room.” Each one represents each faction. You will drop your name in one of the bowls and then you will join your new faction. After everyone is sorted into their new faction you will get a fan pack of your factions’ new clothes to go with you. In each pack it contains a fully new outfit that fits the faction. For the Amity fan pack you will get red and yellow clothing. “Dressed comfortably, in red in yellow, representing loving, kind and free.” For the Candor fan pack you will get black and white clothing. “values honestly and sees the truth as black and white so that is what they wear.” For the Abnegation fan pack you will get all grey clothing and a watch. “Hides one’s beauty, gray clothes (gray robes, gray shirts, gray slacks), plain hairstyle” “only adornment allowed is a watch, because it is practical”. For the dauntless fan pack you will receive all black clothes. “I see only black-clothed shoulders.” For the Erudite fan pack you will receive “at least one blue article of clothing, which causes the body to release calming chemicals.”

Divergent by Veronica Roth

 

For my first book, I read Divergent. I though this book went above and beyond my expectations. I really loved this book and I very much would recommend reading this book to anyone. At the beginning of the book I was confused and didn't really understand what was going on until I started to read more of the book as the story unfolded. This book had many foreshadowing in it but sometimes I didn't realize it was foreshadowing until now. I can't wait to read the second book.






After I read that book I started to reading Mocking Jay. Many people have already read this book but I am just starting. When I finished Divergent which was recommended by a friend, I wanted to finish the hunger games series. I think this book is alright but I'm only starting but I hope the ending will be alright.

Post 2: What is a book?

What is a book? A book is a place that is created by the story with characters. Whether the story is good or bad it still creates a different world for each person. It might vary between each person depending on whom they are. There isn't just one perspective that a person can take from the book, there are many different ways like I said just depends on the person. It creates an escape from reality for someone when they are having a bad day or just need something to take their mind off. It can help when they are having stress or just need to relax. Through the story it creates a place that you can imagine, dream about, or even stay up late thinking about. Like your own little world or what some people call it La la land. It's a time when you don't have to pay attention much and can just read and relax. There are many ways that you can read the story, through a kindle, an ipad, a nook or a hard paperback book. Personally I think the best way that you can a read a book is from the actually book not through an electronic device. You get a better feel for the book while having right in your hands than looking at a screen. It makes the story feel more alive. For a electronic device basically they all look the same, no texture, equal weight, around the same sizes and no different perspectives. But for a book they come in different thicknesses, different covers, sizes, shapes and colors. It is important that a book creates a place for us to think about because it helps our imagination and creativity in a way. Otherwise what is the point of reading it if we don't think about it or even question something that occurs in the book? Many people value books differently like how authors who write books have a bigger value because they might have spent days, months, and years and maybe even their life time trying to write a book that creates a place for someone to think. As of to a regular people who is just taking time out of their lives to read. There are many differences of getting infomation through a book than getting it online. In a book the person dedicated a lot of time trying to inform someone. But online a person could have just looked through books to get their information not finding it on their own which shows how they just threw away the time and effort spent by the author who was trying to inform us.

 

Why I read?

There are many reasons why people read. They can become bored and have nothing to do for their time, they are forced to read by their teacher, they can read for pleasure, they can read to gain knowledge about the world, they can randomly pick a book up at the library for a project, they can read because a friend recommended the book to them, they can read to be inspired and many more reasons. But the reason why I read is because well, to be honest I just really like to read for the pleasure. I love the feeling of not wanting to put a book down and wanting to finish it. I get motivated to read from looking at books that are similar to a book that I am reading or just hearing recommendations from others. When I was younger I hated reading with a burning passion. Mostly because I was really bad at it, was very slow and also because I never could find a book in my interest. I would never volunteer to read in front of the class since I would get nervous. I would always question why is reading so important? Will I ever need to read on a day to day basis? I would always see reading as a punishment of torture and thought it was pointless. In 4th grade we had these reading logs we had to fill out and had to finish a certain amount of books by the end of the trimester. I was always one of the few people that never finished my reading goals. I had to go to this special class to help my reading skills. When around 5th grade my class read this book called Because of Winn Dixie. It was probably one of the best books that I thought that I had ever read in my life. I loved the book so much. I ended up finishing the book before the class did. I felt accomplished that I could finish a book without being behind my class. Because of that book it inspired to go find other books that I liked. I started to open up to reading and discover many books like the Hunger Games, Gone with the wind and the city of Ember. To this day I will always be searching for new books to read.