The Chocolate War Post #5

The story has now reached a stage in which Brother Leon has reached complete frustration. By now he notices that the chocolate sales are getting lower and lower with every student, only a few students have met or exceeded their quota of 50 boxes. Many are within the 40 and 30's range. The rest of the students however have sold very little. Then there is Jerry Renault. Brother Leon believes that Jerry is the one to blame for the slow  
deterioration of the chocolate sales due to his refusal to sell the chocolate.
I was shocked to read that Leon believes that he could just blame the result of the sale on one student. It is still too early for many of the students to be influenced by his decision, and i doubt that one child who refuses to sell the chocolate could cause a sudden huge decrease on the amount of chocolate sold. The reason to why the chocolates are not selling might have to do with the fact that the chocolate sales are twice what they were last year (amount of boxes that is.) Or maybe it;s the fact that the chocolates cost more than last year.

Quote: "The boys have been infected by a disease we call apathy. A terrible disease difficult to cure" (Cormier 155)

This quote shows Brother Leon's reaction towards the decrease in chocolate sales. Leon refers to Jerry's negative influence on the other boys as a "disease."

Chocolate War-(Civil Disobedience?) Roar post 4

While i read the book, I found that i could relate some of the things i have read to the things we learned in English class. In this case, Civil Disobedience. In the book Jerry has refused to sell the chocolates in the Trinity fund raiser. This has been a tradition that people have never refused, or messed around with. So Jerry's sudden refusal to selling the chocolates could be described as Civil Disobedience.
I am still unsure if he is making the right decision, i thought that he was doing this because he felt depresses, and was losing interest in his life, but the real reason to why he is refusing to sell the chocolates is not clearly described in the book so far. Perhaps it will be clear once we get to the ending of the story.
Even though many people think that Jerry has completely lost his mind, two students believe that he is making the right decision, because they have also grown tired of selling the chocolates every year. Once i read this, i thought that those two boys could foreshadow Jerry being accepted by his peers in school.

Favorite Quote: "Know what? I think the Renault kid is right about the chocolates.'
"I'm not going to sell them anymore either."

I was surprised at the fact that there were some people that accepted Jerry's rebellious ideas because of the reaction that was received when he made his first decision to refuse to participate in the fund-raiser. These two boys could foreshadow later acceptance for Jerry.

Post 3 Chapter 13-20

By now, I have reached the climax of the story, in which Jerry REFUSED to sell chocolates at the Trinty School Fundraiser. This has always been a tradition at Trinty, and no one has ever refused to do so. The way I read it made me feel like Jerry was fooling around with forces beyond his understanding. Everyone was shocked, they were thinking, 'what? did he just refuse? he's dead!!!.'
In order for us to understand why Jerry has refused to sell the chocolates is because he is losing his interest in the world. His mother just died, and his father seems to be living a "dead life" all in all Jerry has alot of family issues at home. I got to understand that Leon is very hopeful of the chocolate sale, and every time he calls Jerry's name to see if he sold any chocolates, Jerry replies with a cold "No."

Quotes: "Adamo?"
"three"
"Beau vis"
"Five"
"Renault"
"No"
This is the way Leon figures out who is selling chocolates, and how much. The fact that Jerry refused to sell the chocolates shocked everyone. I was waiting for Leon to explode and let Jerry know how important the sale really is. When I read the details used to describe Leon's reaction to Jerry's refusal I felt really sorry for him because the sale is very important to him.

The Chocolate War (chapter 4-8)

Summary: The story leaves Jerry's character in this section. The new characters that become the center of attention are Archie, who assigns fund raising assignments to students. Carter, who is head of the Vigils, the most feared group in the school. Brother Leon, a strict teacher at Trinty School, and Emile, the "bad boy" of the school.
Throughout the story, the reader is exposed to many different relationships. The first was between Coach, and Jerry. The second was between Archie and Obie (Who assign fund raiser roles) and the most common one in this section was between Brother Leon, and Archie. They had a very tough talk on the school state, and how the fund raiser was very important part in the school's earnings. Another relationship is between Brother Leon and his students. Leon is the kind of teacher that usually puts his students through tests to see who is loyal, and who is not. Leon placed a student named Bailey on the spot by accusing him of cheating. When Bailey denied the accusation, Leon asked him to justify his straight A's. This confused Bailey, he thought that he was just a hard worker, he did not answer Leon, he was afraid. Leon then used this silence as an advantage to prove that Bailey is guilty. At this point I was beginning to doubt Bailey, but when Leon saw that no one stood up to him to defend Bailey, he explained that this was another test to see who in the class was actually loyal. He explained to Bailey that he knew he was not cheating, and that he passed, while telling the class that they have failed.

Quote: "Your classmates out there. They're the cheaters. They cheated you today. They're the ones who doubted you- I never did."

Reaction:  I began to doubt Bailey, and I was shocked to see that it was all a test by Brother Leon. I tried to imagine myself in that class. If I was Bailey, I wonder. Would my friends do the same? Or would they stand up to Brother Leon in order to help me?

The Chocolate War (chapter 1-4)

So far, this book has been pretty interesting. There has been a shift in characters between chapter 2 and chapter 3 as the story goes from Jerry Renault, a high school student who is struggling to make it into the football team, to Archie and Obie, who eventually assign him to sell boxes of chocolate for the school's fundraiser. Jerry has a very strong will, and is ferociously determined to achieve his goals. This is proved in the very first chapter of the story, in which he is repeatedly tackled, and slammed into the ground during football practice. Despite being in such pain, and difficulty, Jerry gets up, and wipes the dirt off his uniform in order to try again and make the team. The football coach realizes that Jerry is not making any progress but respects his will, and asks him to try again the next day. After practice, Jerry seems to have lost his strength since he threw up in the school bathroom.

Quote: "what the hell you want to play quarterback for? you would make a better end, maybe." "alright show up tomorrow or your through before you start"

Reaction: This is the quote that show how others admire Jerry's will to go on and achieve his goal. The coach sees strength in his determination and gives him another opportunity to make the team. It's obvious that coach admires his will because it's not like Jerry will gain magical football talent overnight. Coach sees something in him that makes him give Jerry a second chance. This is a very admirable trait.      

Three Weeks With My Brother Post #5

Summary: Throughout the book the reader would get the chance to explore the personal lives of Nick and Micah Sparks. Usually there are flashbacks that take the reader back to a time in which the brothers were very young. The flashbacks usually demonstrate the realtionships between the boys, and their sister Dana. However in this section of the book, we begin to see the children's relationship with their parents. We also see a little bit of the daily lives of their parents, as the story shifts from one character to another. I realized that Nicholas feels somwhat inferior to his brothers because Micah gets special attention because he is the eldest. While Dana also gets special attention because she is the only girl in the family. Infact, i remember reading a certain part of the story in which Dana got away with getting a bad grade. When Nicholas asked his mother why Dana got away with that, she told him it's because Dana is a girl. This small paragraph in the book made me think of both today's and the previous generations. Women and Men have had differences since the beginning of time. And the conflict regarding women's rights is still in affect. I was surprised when i read this book because it does not only show the adventures of the major characters, as they travel around the world. The book can also be a lesson that is relevant to today's society, and the many cultures of the world. I learned things that I never knew before while reading this book. Most of the new things I learned had to do with culture of the different countries that Micah, and Nicholas traveled to.

Quote: " you have been depressed, huh? Well i'm pretty sure you have animal spirits between your ears. i think we have to dig them out." "okay chief as long as you knowwhat youre doing" "of course I know what I'm doing. havent you seen our jars and bowls? Were an advanced civilization. Now had me that jaguar bone, lean over that rock and let me dig in." "okeydockey"

This quote is what Nicholas was thinking of when he realized that they were stepping into an area in which the Incas have preformed surgery. I think that he interperated it in this way because he is foreign to ancient forms of medical treatment. This quote demonstrates one of the many ways that we can learn about culture as we follow the Sparks Brothers around the world.

Three weeks with my brother: post # 4

Summary: In this section of the book, the reader realizes that things were not always what they seem. Despite the fact that Micah and Nicholas are very "tight" and caring of one another, there were times in their childhood in which they had some conflict. It was very surprising when I saw how far they would get carried away, and the only way to resolve their conflicts is by fighting. And I don't mean regular sibling pushing, and kicking. I mean fists were going around. Both of them were on the floor. The fight was very shocking, and im their parents felt the same way because they were shocked too. Their mother had to drag  them apart, and they were still kicking and screaming when their mother stopped the fight. Then after the reader has lost all hope of the brothers ever being friends again, one of them decided to become the bigger man and apoligize for what they had done. Then the other would apoligize, and Dana (the youner sister) would ask them if "that was so hard?"

Favorite Quotes: "Nicky?" "What?" "Im sorry about punching you today." "It's okay, im sorry i pushed over your bike." "that's okay." "now was that so hard?" said Dana

This quote gives the reader an even better view of how close these two were. After i read the part with the fight I thought that these two would never look at eachother again. But then (after 2 pages) the love for eachother forces them to apoligize.

Three weeks with my brother post #3

The book is now focusing on the present as the time for the trip draws closer and closer. By page 60 Nicholas and Micah are in Fort Lauder dale for a few days before their trip officially begins. I am beginning to wonder whether the trip will be a good memory because every now and then Nicholas finds a reason to be ready for disappointment. Micah, on the other hand is a very optimistic person, who is very intelligent, and tries to talk some sense into Nicholas by telling him that life is full of surprises and that he must open his eyes to the rest of the world if he would like to enjoy their trip around the world. However Nick seems to be depressed and in denial, which would make the trip pointless since it was meant for fun with that special person in your life. I hope that the trip does not end up being a disaster.

quote: "You're making a choice. and if it's your choice then accept it, but do not let it control you. In the same way, you can choose to be excited about the trip, that is entirely up to you."

this quote is very inspiring. it really made me stop and think for a second. when I tried to put it in other words I realized that when a person makes a choice, they have to honor that choice, and if it is a tough one you can't let it control you. although this quote is very impressive (coming  from Micah, who is a very loud, and seemingly ignorant person) it did not affect Nick the way it did me. That makes me wonder, how he is going to enjoy the trip if he is still so serious?

Three Weeks With My Brother (2) Pages 20-43

in this section of the book, the setting seems to shift a couple of times. usually we go from the present, in which Nick is doubting whether he would like to go on the trip with his brother Micah, to their childhood. while i read this book, i laughed, and i felt sad at certain points. but what i really liked in the reading, was the closeness between the two brothers. they seemed inseperable as children, and they still talk to each other all the time, as if they were best friends. i am amazed by this because the same could not be said for the realtionship between me and my siblings. my younger brother and sister can get very frustrating at times. and i always try to remind myself that if they were gone, i would not have the same life, so i tolerate their ignorance, but it's always useful to give them the evil stare every once in a while. i am really  impressed by the strong realtionship between Micah and Nick.
throughout the story, there were times when Nick was jealous of Micah's accomplishments. and that might show some foreshadowing, since they are about to go on a long journey together. perhaps rivalry will appear between them. i cant wait to see what would happen through their journey.

Favorite quote: "on those days in which i wasn't tagging with my brother, my sister became my best friend. like me she loved the johnny west side, and at night we would play together for hours." (SPARKS 42)

Reaction: this quote gives me a better understanding of the family backgrounds. apparantley Nick did not only enjoy spending time with his brother, but with his sister as well. this also tells me that their parents raise them to belive that their siblings could also be their best friends. and i am really impressed at the level of friendship there is going on between the kids. (i need to learn how to be friends with my siblings, and this is a good example of what the relationship should be like.)

Three Weeks With My Brother (Nick and Micah Sparks) pages 1-20

Summary: Three weeks with my brother is a funny, and sad autobiography of the Sparks brothers, Nicholas, and Micah. The story shifts it's time from the present to many years back, to when the brothers were children. the brothers did not come from a wealthy family, infact they lived in a small farmhouse in the edge of town. the father was a man who could not "hang on to a job" as nick would say. the family had little money, and more than enough children.
so far, i am impressed at the relationship between the brothers. they seem to take care of eachother, keep eachother happy, and even get into trouble with eachother. and now they are going to travel the world together. i predict that their relationship will get them out of alot of trouble in their adventures.

Quotes: "even at three years old, he helped feed, and entertain me and our sister, he bathed us, and watched us toddle across the yard." this quote shows that Micah is a very caring person, who enjoys taking care of his siblings.

Sparks (14-15)