Shake off the mid winter blues with... A STORY CHALLENGE!

Writing Challenge!

Write or tell a short story involving some or all of these words.

Be creative and crazy and most of all HAVE FUN! :)

Descriptions

"The windows were ajar and gleaming white against the fresh grass outside that seemed to grow a little way into the house. A breeze blew through the room, blew curtains in at one end and out the other like pale flags, twisting them up toward the frosted wedding cake of the ceiling--and then rippled over the wine-colored rug, making a shadow on it as wind does on the sea" (The Great Gatsby).

Isn't this a beautifully descriptive passage? When writing it can be difficult to describe a house or the setting in a creative, original way, but this quote from the Great Gatsby does an excellent job. From "the frosted wedding cake of the ceiling" to grass... that seemed to grow a little way into the house" the room is vividly and imaginatively painted in a way that readers can connect with.

"the frosted wedding cake of the ceiling" Doesn't that perfectly describe the ornate white ceiling of a Victorian house? Wonderful.

Inkheart

Creativity. Love. Adventure. Suspense. This original fantasy novel written by Cornelia Funke has got it all. Readers meet Meggie, a charming, imaginitive 12 year old who experiences some fantastic adventures. Life is never dull when characters leap out of  the pages as your father reads.

Pros: This book is skillfully written. The first few chapters beautifully describe Meggie's love for books. The entire novel is a true page turner, without a boring moment. 

The book a contains many positive themes such as Meggie's love and loyalty to her father and her bravery. This book can be enjoyed by 10 year olds to one hundred year olds.

Cons: While the book demonstrates many positive morals, Meggie, her father, and the other characters often lie and practice deception. Meggie tells readers that she feels bad about lying to her father, she feels it is necessary to do so. Meggie's father also believes he needs to lie to protect her from danger. Throughout the book, lying and deception are portrayed as necessary in some situations. Parents would do well to discuss this with their children, before and after they read the book.

Also, many of the scenes in this book are suspenseful, violent, and out right scary. The "bad guys" are really bad. Parents should use caution when determining whether or not this book is appropriate for their child.

On that note, Inkheart lovers may consider watching the movie which was made a few years ago. Once again, use caution when making the decision to see the movie. In the movie, the heartwarming, imaginative elements from the book were overshadowed by the violent dramatization of the suspenseful scenes. The movie are full of bad guys with disturbing appearances, dark foggy settings, and gruesome creatures. Overall, I found that the movie took away some of the warm feelings I had after reading the book. My advice would be enjoy the book, skip the movie.

*Also see the Plugged in Online movie review: 

http://www.pluggedin.com/videos/2009/Q2/Inkheart.aspx

In conclusion, this beautifully written fantasy novel is a work of art, that will be enjoyed by a wide audience of all ages.

Escape to Warsaw by Ian Serraillier

Escape from Warsaw by Ian Serraillier is a riveting book about the German occupation of Poland during WWII. This book gives the reader a picture of what it was like to live in Poland in WWII from various perspectives: a prisoner in a concentration camp, his children, an army officer.

Pros: This book is impossible to put down. You have to find out what happens to the Polish family. Will they ever be reunited? Te content is not as mature as in many WWII accounts. Many middle schoolers (and even some younger children if they could handle the vocabulary) would enjoy reading it.

Cons: While Escape from Warsaw is suspenseful, it is not written in an extremely entertaining way. It definitely would be the most interesting history book in the world, but not the most interesting historical novel. It is a bit dry, lacking some warmth and life.

However it is a great educational read. I read it in one sitting because I could not put it down!

The First Writing Challenge

The kid stood in the middle of the mud puddle, laughing like crazy.

Answer these questions by writing a story or short, creative biography.

1) Who is this kid? Name, age, personality?

2) Why is s/he in a mud puddle? Did s/he jump in? Was s/he pushed? Is s/he taking a bath?!

3)Why is the kid laughing? Does the mud tickle, does the kid like the mud?

4) Any other details you want.

Type your story into the comments for this post. (or just let me know that you wrote something.) The best story will be featured in the next post. You'll be famous! And the chances of winning are very good. At this point there is no deadline! 

Happy writing! Have fun!

(The first book review is coming soon!)

Movie Reviews

Although not every child enjoys reading and writing, I have yet to meet a kid who does not like to watch movies. While I will not be writing movie reviews, I can recommend a wonderful website that writes excellent reviews on movies, music, and more. This website, called Plugged in Online, is run by Focus on the Family and provides detailed, family oriented reviews. It has been invaluable for deciding which movie to buy a ticket to and which to skip. Click on the post title to go to the site. I will include it below as well.

http://www.pluggedinonline.com/

Welcome! Please bear with me!

I am so excited about this blog! I hope it will be a helpful and valuable tool for kids and parents. It is difficult to know what to read and what books will be enjoyable. Since I was very young, I have loved reading and writing stories. I have noticed that, unfortunately, many children do not share this love. They regard these forms of entertainment (and valuable life skills) as a chore. Other kids like to read, but do not know what to read, or they are reading literature of questionable content. If this blog, helps even one child grow in his love for reading and writing and make wise choices on which books to read, I will have succeeded.

However, this blog is under construction. The first reviews will be coming soon. Thank you for your patience.