Book review(Gathering the Pearl)

        "Gathering the Pearl" is the second novel I read in English. Before this, I finish a graphic novel. These two novels run good for me. Especially  for "Gathering the Pearl", the story in "Gathering the Pearl" seems very closed to me. Because I am also a international student from another country and came to America to study. I had so many things to talk about this book. It is also one of my most favorite books in all English reading. I love the story, and I love the main character in the book named Sookan, she is a Korean girl who study in America.  

         I love this story for many reasons. First, this story seems very realistic to me, the story is about a Korean girl went to America to study for a better education. It is same as my own experience. I am a student who comes from China and goes to America to study. I decided to come to America when I was in 9th grade, which is a little bit earlier than Sookan. But same as Sookan, when I first arrived America, I was so nervous at that time, I had a lot of questions appeared in my head, "Would I able to make friends in America?", " Would my life runs good in America?", " Would my grade be good or bad in America?". I had so many question and so many things that I was worried about. But after one year, everything is good in here. I really appreciate how Sookan did in the book, she was a scholarship student, so she needed to do many scholarship work in school, she also did some job during weekend to get some money to spend. Everything she did in her first year is so amazing, she did a lot more than me and I can't imagine those things were done by a international student who just came to America for her first year. The plot in the book is also good, there are two important characters in the book, one is Sookan's mother, another one is Sookan's sister. They are two really different characters. Sookan's mom support Sookan do what she want to do, but Sookan's sister always want Sookan do in her(Sookan's sister) order. In the end of the book, Sookan's mom died, she was one of my favorite characters in the book, I was sad when I read that part, the book influence my emotion. I think this is one of the reason why I love this book. I love the book that can affect my emotion. 

        I love this book, so I also recommend other to read this book. This book can show you how is a international student first come to America to study. It show you the true life of an international student. Also, This is not a hard book to read, so student will confident to keep reading the book. I will be a good chose for other international students to read this book. After all, I love reading "Gathering the Pearl", it become one of most favorite English reading books.

Do now Nov 16

          I think the ending is not bad but also not a 100% good ending. The good things is chapter hook was died, so the Pirates won't disturb the boys who live in Neverland anymore, and also Wendy and Peter Pan were both safe in the end, and they became a very good friends to each other. These things are all good, but there are also some bad thing is that Peter Pan and Wendy couldn't stay together, Peter Pan will come to Wendy's house to see her every year, because Peter Pan is belong to Neverland, his home is there so he must go back. Just like Wendy went back to her house and not staying in the Neverland with Peter Pan.  Everyone has their own life,, they just return to their life like how they live before. This is not perfect, but in China there is a proverb called "There is no never-ending feast." Everything in the world has ending, nobody can stay together for a whole life, they will finally leave each other. At least Wendy and Peter Pan became friend, so the ending is not perfect but it is not bad.  

Peter Pan review

        In Nov 15, 2015, I went to black box in Cheshire academy to watch a play did by the drama group from our school. The play is name Peter Pan. Peter Pan was a boy who never grows up, he always stay as the looking of a boy. He likes going to Mrs. Darling home, but he loses his shadow in there too, so he tried to find his shadow back. When he went into Mrs. Darling's house to find his shadow, he talked so loud that Mrs. Darling's children were awake. Mrs. Darling has three children, Wendy, John, and Michael. Wendy was awake first, she found that Peter Pan sat on the chair and had problem with his shadow, so Wendy helped Peter Pan to sew his shadow. For return, Peter Pan decided taught Wendy how to fly, and also taught John and Michael. Peter Pan brought them to Neverland where Peter Pan lived in. In Neverland, they met many things. But they all came over them, such as they defeat the Pirates, they healed Wendy from get hurt by a arrow. At first, Peter Pan wanted Wendy to come Neverland because he wanted Wendy can be a mom for them, because they are all boys, they want the love from a mom. In the end of the play,  Wendy went back to her home, and Peter Pan promises her that he will come year very to see her. 

           I hadn't watch the Disney version before, so I didn't really know the different between these two versions. But I think our school drama team did a really good job in this play. Everyone in the drama act very well and show me what are each characters' characteristics. I love how John act Mr. Darling, his sound is loud enough that everyone in the stage can heard what he is talking about in the play, I think this is very important for a play actor. Also I think Erin also did well in acting Peter Pan. I think I will be hard to act with laser point, you need to talk to it naturally and make audiences know that the laser is tinkle bell is alive. After all I think everyone did a great job in the play, I was surprised that the play looks so professional.  

           After I finished watching the play, one character leave me the most impression. That character is the dog Nana act by William. I think he did very well in this part, the dog sound he made is perfectly just like the sound makes by a real dog. I also see he pay a lot of effort in acting this character. It is a small part in the play, but he make me think about the poster in our English classroom, on the poster it is there are no small part in the play. It is exact what Willian show me in the play. I learn a lot in from the play, this play worth more than what is looks to me. 

Vocabulary set #3

A small, black velvet purse hung on the shoulder of the mannequin(n.)

a woman who wears clothes to display fashions

To save money, I had purchased second-hand(adj.)

previously used or owned by another textbooks from upperclassmen at a fraction of the original price.

Many of our classmates were there, with drinks in hand, talking animatedly(adv.) in an animated manner.

Flustered, I faltered(v.)speak haltingly, then hurriedly responded

She would acknowledge that I had done something impulsive(adj.)proceeding from natural feeling or impulse without external stimulus, but would say that it was okay.

But maybe that was why I had wanted to leave home for a while; I had always felt constrained(adj.)lacking spontaneity; not natura there.

A Gregorian chant(n.)a liturgical chant of the Roman Catholic Church program is scheduled for June, and students will be coming from around the world.

The pearl(n.)a smooth lustrous round structure inside the shell of a clam or oyster; much valued as a jewel necklace and wishbone pin would really stand out against the black velvet.

She handed me an envelope(n.) a flat rectangular paper container for papers.

I would write to each of my taciturn(adj.)habitually reserved and uncommunicative brothers

"I am not going to subject Kyle to them. They have been horribly mean," sobbed(n.)weep convulsively Ellen.

In a silk pouch(n.)a small or medium size container for holding or carrying things that Mother had made was her thin, white gold wedding band.

As I stared forward listlessly(adv.)in a listless manner, little Sarah snuggled up against me, and whispered into my ear

I was comforted by their high-pitched hymns(n.)a song of praise (to God or to a saint or to a nation) reverberating in the domed chapel.

You fainted(adj.)deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc two days ago and you've been here ever since.

Artist respond

        On Thursday, some artist came to our shchool for a photo exhibition. My favorite one is Gary Richards. Gary Richards is a photographer, he grew up in Cheshire. In this photo exhibition, all the photos are about an old derelict factor in Cheshire. According to Gary Richards, " I received an invitation to photograph the inside of the factory, with camera in hand I began to explore." I can imagine that when he walked in the factor, use his camera to take photos of the factor, he imagined what happened in the past, what did the worker do in the past in this factory. I think photo is a magic thing that can make you imagine many things. When I look back the photo I took before, I can alway remember the event that happen that day, it can remind me the every detail in the event. My favorite photo on the photo exhibition was he took a picture of a corner of the factory. There are two big windows of the both side of the corner, and there is a puddle of water it reflect the shadow of two windows which I think is very cool to me. From the photo, I can see the color of the sky is red and blue, the photographer use some special effects to make it looks dim, and let the whole photo looks fantasy. I couldn't tell it is good or bad to use special effects on the photo. But for me, I would prefer the photo without special effects. Because I think it show what is the real looking for that thing, when I looking at a photo, I want to see the truth of the thing in the photo. Sometime, special effects make things seem fake to me, I don't really like that feeling.  As the technology become higher now, many people would like to use special effects to make photo look different, and special. I would say different things suit for different people, a photo looks good or not depend of the taste and person opinion of a person. 

Blog Nov 5

        Now I had read "Gathering of Pearls" for few weeks, I feel like this is an interesting and realistic story to me, it talks about a girl named Sookan from Korea came to America to study in her college age. Since now, I had read that Sookan had been in America for three months. She was in the Christmas vacation right now. When she first arrived America, she felt really nervous which was the same situation when I first arrived America last year. Sookan had a good roommate name Ellen, Ellen was a outgoing girl  and she is one of Sookan's best friends in the school. Another Sookan's best friend was a girl live in a single room cross Sookan's room name Marci, Marci was a girl had a really different characteristic then Ellen , she loved reading and photography also she was really quiet person. These two people are Sookan's two best friends in America, they really helped Sookan a lot in her first three months in America.

          In America, Sookan used letter to communicate with her family in Korea. Her mother and her sister usually send letters to Sookan, but the letter from her mother and her sister were really different. Though the letter from her mother, I known that her mother loved Sookan very much, and her mother always supported her children, she wanted her children to do what ever they like to do, also she was a self-sacrificing person, she wanted to leave all the good things for her children not use by herself. But Sookan sister was really different from her mother, her sister always wanted to control Sookan and made Sookan did things by her order. Sookan's sister didn't really like Sookan to go to America to study, she wanted Sookan to be a nun like her. These things are what I had read till now, I think what will happen in the next part of the story is Sookan will do better then what she did in the first three months. Sookan had done a good job in her first three month, everyone is proud of her, and Sookan is a hard working girl, so I believe she will do a better job next.

       Sookan missed her family very much in America, but I don't think she will go back to Korea because she miss home. Because she wanted her family could be proud of her, she didn't want her family to be disappointed on her, so she would push her even more harder than before, and let everyone around her to be proud of her, she loves that feeling, and also because her family was not that rich so it may be hard for her to buy a plane ticket to go back to Korea now. Since Sookan had already made two best friends, I think her relationship with Ellen and Marci will become better, as the time goes on, their relationship will be more stable. And I think they are all kind to each other's and love each other. Sookan's sister was mad at her right now, but I think Sookan will solve the problem between her sister and herself. She didn't want to have a bad relationship with her sister, her sister did those things because she loved Sookan very much, she wanted Sookan to be good, and I believe Sookan could feel that. 

         Since I had read part of the book, I really like Sookan in the story, she was a strong girl, who tries to everything perfect, she wanted to give a respond to herself and her family for chosen study in America. Also I believe everything will be better in the rest of the book, and Sookan should succeed in the US, she had did a really good job in her first three months. Also because I was an international student in my school too, so I felt this story is very close to me and makes me think of my first year in America. I am good in America now, and I believe Sookan will be good in America in the rest of the story too.