Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

It is so cold; my hands are barely able to move!

I am teaching this book to my year 8s. I have just finished reading it and I love it!

Stargirl is about a girl, Stargirl, who is different to the mainstream (annoying) teenager. She sings happy birthday to people; she wears long skirts and no makeup. I think she is lovely. However, she is not admired by the schoolkids. Until she becomes a cheerleader, and she becomes popular. When SG is popular it is like the kids' eyes have opened and they are born again (and other cliches). They become nice to eachother! But then they think she does something wrong - she barracks for the other basketball team too, and the entire school shuns her!

Leo, the narrator, has a thing with Stargirl. They seem to have a very beautiful, natural, innocent love affair. But he gets shunned too, so he asks her to be normal. And she loves him so much she becomes normal.

This novel covers many themes. The publication my school has has a reading guide at the end. I have been devising some thought-provoking journal entries too. Throughout the book, there are several activities that SG does that I might get my students to do.

How to be a starperson:

• Get a jar (literal or metaphoric). Write down things that make you happy and put them in the jar. Write down things that make you unhappy and put them outside the jar. Try altering it each day.


• Observe somebody for a day. Write them a card that you think will mean a lot to them. Or get to know someone and write them a letter.


• Take photos of a friend or relative. Give them a little scrapbook to remind them of what they did (could be a long-term project for loved ones).

Reflections

1. Who are the 'star people' in your life (the people who are truly happy, "a little more in touch with our beginnings, a little more in touch with the stuff we're made of")?


2. How important is it to be liked by other people? To fit in? To belong? How would you feel if you weren't/didn't?


3. Are you a star person or a normal person? How do you know? Would you like to be a star person?


4. Archie says (41): "You'll learn more by your questions than her answers." What does he mean?


5. Stargirl seems in tune with nature. She even has an 'enchanted place.' Do you believe in enchanted places? Do you have one? Is it more a state of mind? How can it be created and what would you expect from it?


6. Would you change who you are for the person you love?


7. If you were Leo, how would you respond to Stargirl?


8. Search: find as many similes and metaphors as you can (the book is riddled with them!)

I recommend this book. Although it is written for teens, it is a quick, enjoyable read for all. 180+p. ****

I finished "Notes on a Scandal" by Zoe Heller

I finished the book. It was such a quick read. It only took me a few days. I enjoyed it. I think it is more about the character Barbara than the affair between Sheba and her student. How gross - an affair with a child. I can't fathom why or how. Maybe that is why I chose to concentrate on Barbara instead.

Barbara is insecure yet self righteous. She is old, staid and quite weird. She is obsessive, possessive and emotionally attached to her cat. She is lonely because she is not such a good friend. She is intriguing. I am not sure if she is a good person or not. I don't really like her. I sort of liked her...she's odd.

I recommend this read. It is different and enjoyable yet irksome. ***1/2

Some questions:

1. Do you admire Barbara? What are her good qualities?
2. Sheba is beautiful and lovely. Why does she choose to have an affair with Connolly?
3. Can we justify and forgive Sheba for her love for Connolly?
4. Is Barbara's cat, Portia, a metaphor for her relationship with Sheba?
5. What do you think happens to Sheba at the end of the novel?

Notes on a Scandal - novel

I picked this novel because I want to see the film and novels are always better. I have not read very much but I am already so engrossed in the text! It is written from the point of view of Barbara, a staid old maid who teaches at St George, where Sheba, a beautiful woman comes to work. Barbara has an unhealthy obsession with Sheba. Sheba has an inappropriate relationship with a young student. The 'notes' in this book are actually Barbara's account. I love the story. I feel that I can relate to the school setting and the relationships between staff members. It is not uncommon for teachers to marry their ex-students. I know a few who have. The relationships don't last though. Not often anyway. I can relate to the descriptions of students and classes and the school as a whole.

This novel is fascinating and I hate to put it down. It is not a very easy read because Barbara uses pretentious huge long words that I don't understand. I can't be bothered reading with my dictionary on hand, although Monte (DH) says I should. I might go back and highlight the big words to get a better understanding - but the point of the big words is to show how self-important Barbara is, I reckon.

Anyway, I recommend this novel. It is great (so far). ****

Anonymous Lawyer

Well good on me for actually finishing one of our set texts! I must admit that by halfway through this novel I was bored and very tired of the protagonist and his obsession with hierarchy and self importance. However, as the character started to face certain obstacles, I admired him a bit more (only a little bit).

My question is: Does Anonymous Lawyer deserve the final outcome? My answer is yes, most certainly. But I believe there is a twist in the final pages and the end might not be as it seems...

Writing style: Being a blogger, I liked this entertaining mode of delivery for a novel. What I liked most were the date stamps and related emails, which told the real parts of the story; for example, the true ending of the volleyball tournament vs the published version. I thought this was a different and refreshing way to write a book and I enjoyed it. I liked the technical references to things like Blackberries. I could relate to the comments about how technology means we are never really away from the office!

Plot: AL, a hiring partner, seeks to become chairman of his firm and plots ways to get there. Some subplots are: bring down The Jerk, make life a misery for The Suck Up, talk his neice into joining his firm and build a better relationship with his son. Oh, and write a blog without being found out.

Character: Every good jerk deserves to be brought down by his own impudence. I half liked AL because he shows some love towards his son (not his wife and daughter though) and he admires and supports his neice. I thought his treatment of subordinates was ludicrous yet rather hilarious at the same time. I couldn't understand how he could possibly think he was actually better than anybody, but I am not in the field of law and i don't know if that is really the case. I'd hate to work in that kind of office environment with that kind of politicking going on! Sometimes I felt sorry for AL because he has to put on a show every time he talks to anybody. He has to give off the impression that he is rich, successful and professional. He probably is all of these things to an extent, however, his bedside manner is atrocious!

Themes: power corrupts but absolute power corrupts absolutely. AL deserves his downfall. He has enough money to make it through the rest of his life.

Some questions about the novel:

• What are some examples of AL's attitude to women?
• Is working life really this difficult for women who are wives and mothers? Is there such thing as not being able to work part time? I'm thinking of Ellis Grey in 'Grey's Anatomy.' Look how she turned out.
• For what is his office/home/wife a metaphor?
• How would you feel if you were a) talking to Al, b) working for Al? c) hiring Al (ie a client)?
• Does this type of office hierarchy exist in real life? Give examples. How can we work around it/deal with it/embrace it?
• Is such office politics healthy?

Do I recommend this novel? Yes, because it is written in a different form. It is an eye-opener and my sister wants to be a lawyer so I thought she should read it. The book is based on an actual blog (see link to the left) but I think the book is better. Still, very entertaining. ***

Idea

I was wondering if you girls are interested in sharing recipes on this blog? The discussion today about vegetarian meals for Michele's mum got me thinking. We've mentioned this before. So let's come up with some dairy-free vegetarian meals for Mrs Michele.

If I move to Tassie, we can still keep this blog going.

Children of Men (film)

Err... as I said today, I am emotionally ambivalent towards this one! It was spooky seeing a possible outcome for the human race in 2027. It was interesting to contemplate a fertility famine (God's ultimate punishment, taking from us what we love most?). Imagine a world without children! For me, when I want so many of my own, this would be disastrous. So it was scary.

Anyway, the main character, Theo (Clive Owen), comes across this pregnant chick (Ki) and he has to save her from some Fujis (fugatives) who are after her baby or something, and help her get to a ship to the human project, or something (i'm foggy on the details). The ship was called "Tomorrow," which I thought was significant.

The film's lighting was dark and the soundtrack was filled with shooting. It is a violent film. The acting was acceptable; I like Julianne Moore and Michael Caine (his character, Jasper, is very entertaining).

I didn't like the ending. **

A Company of Fools

You may not believe this but I read this novel, by Deborah Ellis, in three nights (including one night during which I did not actually read because I was talking on the phone to Amanda for an hour).

This novel is set in the 1300s, just before the PLague. It is set in a monastery, St Luc's. The novel is written from the point of view of Henri, a young choirboy.

One day, Micah, an urchin and a pain-in-the-neck-kind-of-kid, is brought to the monastery by the adventurous and kindhearted Brother Bart. Micah has a wonderful voice, and turns out to be a gift for the Monastery (as do all of Bart's findings).

As the Plague hits Paris, the monks and choirboys form a 'compay of fools' that goes into the city to entertain the sick people. The laughter and happiness they bring to these people makes them feel so much better.

I cannot say what happens next, but this is a story about being a human being. It is about what is good and what is bad. The Prior is an ungodly man; ironic for his position, and in some ways I think he represents the negative aspects of the christian church. I think this is quite relevant to the current novel we are reading: "The Anonymous Lawyer," which highlights the futilty of society through satire.

This is a lovely book; an easy and beautiful read. ****