The Year of Sharing

 "I'm falling asleep while I speak. I drank Mother's milk. I'm lying with Baby next to Mother and it's very warm. I don't feel lonely. Good night. (p.13 l. 11~13)

   I introduce The Year of Sharing.  This is a story about future. People live in a village and there is a great nature. In the village, there is no car. Therefore, people use bicycle. The main character is Richard. He is 12 years old, so he has to do Year of Sharing. It is a rule in the village. He live with animals. It is very dangerous and he can not eat a lot and wear warm clothes. He feels lonely. However, he fight for his family. The family is animal. Richard is a very kind and clever boy.

   Can you fight for animal even if you are suffered from danger? This book tells us kindness of a boy and the warm of family. 

 

William Shakespeare

 "During the next few years the plague was always with us. Some years it was bad, other years not so bad." (p.37 l.1)

   I introduce "William Shakespeare". This book is about William's life. For example, his marriage, family, works, plays and so on. 

   He grew up in Stratford-upon-Avon and touched the nature. Surprisingly, he get married with elder woman when he was 18 years old. Then he he wrote his play and the play was success. However, at that time, terrible plague expanded and many people died. William overcame a lot of hardships and he is famous for his works even now. If you are interested in William Shakespeare and his works, please read this book. 

The Piano

" At night, while he slept, his mind was still full of music. Small black notes danced in front of his eyes. When he woke up the music was still there. Tony lived in a world of music. "

   I introduce "The Piano". The main character is a young boy, Tony. He is not good at studying and is quiet and slow person. He did not have special good points, but one day, his talent was found. Tony has to leave his school and work at shop or factory for money, but he could not get a job. Then, his mother recommend him work at farm. Tony started to work at farm and worked very hard. Because of his effect, his friends were also interested in a job as a farmer. 

   One day, he found a piano in a garage. He had never played the piano, but he was very good at playing the piano. He really enjoyed and loved music. Also, he practiced hard for music competition. 

   He changed his life. I think it is important to find what I like and make an effort to fulfill my life. I want to realize my happy life. 

Matty Doolin

 "Remember, if you want something in this life, you have to work to get it." (p.30 l.22)

    I introduce "Matty Doolin". The main character is Matty. He is fifteen and wants to work with animals. He really loves animals. However, his father disagree with his opinion and wants Matty get a job in ship-building. Matty has a dog, Nelson. Nelson always barks and eats Matty's father's shoes, so the father doesn't like Nelson. One day, Nelson has an accident and died. Matty was very sad, but this incident changes Matty. 

   I was impressed by the sentence, "if you want something in this life, you have to work to get it." In this story, Matty always could not tell his opinions. I understand him and I am not good at telling my opinion. However, I think saying my hope is very important because I can raise motivation for the hope. We have many kinds of difficulty and worry in our lives, but thinking deeply and acting lead to success, I think.

 

Henry VIII and His Six Wives

"'But you have a mother and father who are alive,' I said quickly. 'You don't have enemies who watch you all the time, or who want to send you far away to marry a stranger..." (p.18 l.7)

  I introduce Henry VIII and His Six Wives. The main characters are King Henry and his six wives. He repeated marriage again and again. There was a reason for his marriage. In this story, we can see the letters from his wives. They have various feelings for him. The king of the country has a lot of conditions and restrictions, so it it not easy to get married and live together for a long time. In this story, I was interested in the character of king's wives and the relationships between king and his wives. If you are interested the romance of king, I recommend you read this book.

 

The Children of the New Forest

 

"He saved us from the flames of Arnwood and he has looked after us since then in his cottage. We must now look after ourselves, and try to be happy together." (p.28 l.1~4)

 I introduce The Children of the New Forest. In this story, the main characters are the four Beverley children. They have no parents and their house was burnt. In this difficulties, they help each other and cooperate with each other to live. This book teaches the importance of helping each other and thinking how to improve the situation. I felt this story was very active and positive. Also, I thought thinking about someone for a long time is meaningful through this story. If you are interested in the children's life and romance, please read this book.

The Love of a King

 I could have anything that I wanted. But I wasn't happy because my heart was empty. (p.37 l.4~6)

  I' m going to tell you about The Love of a King. This is a love story. The main characters are Edward and Wallis. They are in love. 

  What do you imagine when you hear a love story? In this story, the main characters have some difficulties and they have to overcome them. Edward is a king of many countries, so it is not easy to marry a woman. He has to think of the country as most important. He understands his situation, but he really needs Wallis in his life. They love each other, but there are many people who do not agree with their marriage. Edward has to decide a lot of things. If he decides to get married Wallis, he lost other things. What is his decision?

  I was moved by this story. Especially, I was impressed by the end of the story. Also, I thought what is my happiness. There are many types of happiness and they depend on how people feel. There is not answer about happiness, but I want to seek what I really want in my life. 

 

The Red-headed League

 

I'm going to introduce The Red-headed League. This book is about mystery story.

The main character is Sherlock Holmes. One day, he met Jabez Wilson. Holmes passed interview of the Red-headed League and started to work. However, suddenly something strange happened. Holmes tries to investigate real things.

I was excited to read this story. If you are interested in mystery story, I recommend you read this book.

David and the Great Detective

 He thinks of the Great Detective. He always gets into trouble in David's stories - but he always wins. (p.41 l.7)

 
This week, I read David and the Great Detective written by Martyn Hobbs. The main character is David. He always dreams of  becoming a hero. He likes thinking about hero story. One day, his friend lost his bicycle, so David tried to find his bicycle. David faced a lot of difficulties, but he did never give up and fought for his friend. David is a very kind, brave and active boy. I want to be a person like him. If you are interested in his character and mind, please read this book!

Parallel

 "Our decisions make a difference to our lives." (p.15 l.10)

 Today, I'm going to talk about Parallel. This book is about parallel world. In this book, there are some impressive sentences. It is "Our decisions make a difference to our lives". In our lives, we always make decisions. We have to decide not only big things, but also small things. Our decisions lead to our future, so I think all decisions and experiences from the decisions are meaningful. In the future, I want to decide a lot of things by myself and fulfill my life. 

 Do you believe parallel world? If you are interested in it, please read this book!

Zadie's Big Day

 　

I read Zadie's Big Day this week. This book gave me encourage. The story is about a girl who plays football. The name of the girl is Zadie. 

 Zadie is hard worker and she has a confidence in herself. Even though she is not good at something, she makes an effort hard and try to be able to do that. I was attracted by her characteristic and respects her. It is not easy to overcome difficulties, but she always has desire to improve herself and tries a lot of things without being afraid of failure. As the result of her effort, she achieved various things and she finds new aim. 

It is difficult for me to try new things all the time and have confidence in myself. However, after I read this book, I had positive feeling and thought I want to make an effort to fulfill my life. 

This book was very good to motivate myself!

Stories of Mermaids

Dad was in love with Coral, but he'd seen how sad she was on land. (p.46)

 This is a book in the Usborne Young Readers series. This is composed of three chapters about mermaids.
 My favorite story is in chapter 3. In the chapter, the main character is Coral. She loves living under the sea, but she has a secret wish. The wish is that she wants to dance on the land. She asked king to change her tail to legs. At first, he refused the hope, but finally, he gave her one week to live with legs. He used magical power and changed her tail to legs. Then she stood on the land and went to the dance hall. She met Dan and danced with him. She fell in love with him, so she wanted to be together with him more and more. However, she found she loves living under the sea more than on the land. After one week passed, king said "Legs or tail?" to her. What is her decision? Which choices does she choose? Also, what is Dan's opinion?

 I was attracted by the pictures in this book, because they are colorful and cute. If you have time, please read this book. You will be excited!

One Day

 

I read One Day, a book in the Cambridge English Readers series. In this book, 4 stories are included. It is a normal Friday evening.

 In the first story, the main character is Jason. He hopes to go to art school in the autumn and he has a girlfriend. One day, he was going to her house, but she called him about something. What is the phone call...?

 Each story in this book is different, but I could find something in the end. I learned that my life may change by small thing in normal life. I can't imagine what happens in the future, so it is important to do what I can do now.

 I recommend you read this book!

Superbird

He lived in the hospital and this was the first time he had been in the desert in twenty years. ( p.42)

I introduce Superbird, a book in the Cambridge English Readers Level 2 series.This genre is Science Fiction.

Superbird is the name of a spaceship. The spaceship crashed on a planet and a lot of people died. However, there was only one person who was alive. Her name is Mary. Mary answered to interview and we can see the situation about her experience through her interview.

I think the interesting points in this book are interview style and pictures. Some pictures are a little bit strange, but thanks to the pictures, we can imagine the situation.

If you are interested in this book, please try it!

Martin Luther King

Equality, peace, and love are in the hearts and minds of many people today. (p.40)

  Do you have a dream?
  I introduce "Martin Luther King", a book in the Penguin Readers Level 3 series. This is a book about Martin Luther King's life. As you know, he is famous for a phrase,  "I have a dream". He fight for black people and overcame a lot of difficult things. Then many people are influenced by him.

 There is my favorite phrase in this book. It is "The color of a person's skin did not matter. Only a person's heart and mind were important." This is King's speech. King taught me the importance of equality and having a fare mind.

 In the world, there are many people and they have different appearances, ideas and points of view. It is not bad thing and all people are the same human. I think it is important to accept and respect each other.

Through this book, I learned having goals or dreams give us a vitality. I want to clarify my goal and make an effort to realize the goal. Never give up!!!

Matilda Roald Dahl

Matilda  began to feel something strange. It was mostly in her eyes. A sort of electricity seemed to be inside them. A strong feeling... and her eyes were beginning to get hot...(p.26)

  Today, I talk about "Matilda Roald Dahl". This is a book in Penguin Readers Level 3 series. The main character is Matilda, a very clever little girl. Second main character is Miss Honey, Matilda's teacher. In the middle of story, we find she has a suprising fact. Third main character is Miss Trunchbull, head teacher at school. She is always violent and every students are afraid of her.

 Matilda is a very clever girl. She could read books at the age of four. She read all of books for children and started to read some famous books by English writter. However, her parents are not clever.They didn't cherish their children and stole car and sold it. Miss Honey was very surprised at Matilda's cleverness.

 In the middle of story, I found Miss Honey's past and she has a surprising fact. One day, she invited Matilda to her house. Then, she talked about the fact to Matilda. Matilda was surprised, but she understood her and came up with an idea for her. I thought the distance between Miss Honey and Matilda was closed.

 After I read this book, I was happy. Also, I got encourage from character of Matilda. If you are interested in it, please try it!

Things Are What You Make of Them Life Advice for Creatives

 This week, I talk about a book I bought in The Philippines. The book title is “Things are What You Make of Them Life advice for Creatives”. This book is written about some important things and tips for our lives. Contents are divided into 12 parts. For example, “ How to Be Happier”, “How to Be Yourself”, “Simple Tips For Success” and so on. If you read this book, you will may have positive feeling and motivation. I recommend you that read this book when you can’t be positive and don’t know what you should do for success.

 

 Now, I introduce some phrases I was interested in.  

 First, “Just be nice”.  

In this part, it is written that we are not in competition with everybody else. After I read this phrase, I thought it is not needed to compare to other people and me.

 Second, “Create and meet goals”. 

I understood it is essential to have some goals in my life, because I can grow and improve my skills by setting goals. I want to have my goals and make an effort to achieve it. 

 Like this, this book has some tips for our good life. If you are interested in it, please try! 

Too Old to Rock and Roll

She wanted to be like other people just for once, so she asked a friend home for tea. (p.29 l.20)

 This is a book in Oxford Bookworms Library 2 series. This book has three stories and it tells us life, love and friendship. It was a little bit difficult for me to understand the stories, because the contents of stories were dark and serious.

 The most impressive story for me was second story. It is about friendship and economic situation in family. Main characters are two girls. A girl wanted her friend to come to her house and have tea together, so they went. However, her friend was surprised at the house, because it is too old and has no light. Her family don't have much money and can't live comfortably. Her friend thought she doesn't want to go there again. It is a very serious issue, I think. She can't change the family situation easily, even if she wants to change. It is related to parents. As I wrote at the top of this page, she wanted to change herself, but it was difficult. What do you think about this situation?

 After I read this book, I thought about some problems in our lives. Also, I thought there are a lot of different lives. If you are interested in it, please try this book.

The Death of Karen Silkwood

Somebody has to do something. Why not me? I care about you, about Susan, about everyone who has ever worked at that factory. (p.33 l.2~3)

 This is a book in OBW 2 series and a true story about Karen's death.  I was surprised the ending because I didn't expect it. I wanted to know a true thing, but we can't know about that. I thought this is a fictional story because it is really like drama, but this is a real story. It is very interesting.

One day, Karen starts new job. At first the job was good for her, but gradually, she found the factory was danger. She wanted to change the danger situation and save all people who work at the factory. In order to help them, she struggle with danger things. She couldn't talk with anyone about that, so she was suffering too much. Could she change the factory and save workers? Why did she die? Was it accident or not?

 I think Karen was a very brave and kind woman. It is not easy for me to struggle with difficult and danger things. However, after I read this book, I found that situation may change if I act. I want to be a woman who has courage and makes people around me happy.

 

A Stranger at Green Knowe

'Ping, go and find the Keeper. He's the only person who can help Hanno now.' (p.38 l.5)

 What do you think about this picture? When I saw this picture for the first time, I thought this book is about a scary story because a gorilla is big and looks strange. However, this is not a scary story.  I read "A Stranger at Green Knowe". This is a serice in OBW2. Main characters are Ping and Hanno. Ping is a young boy and he is from China. He is a refugee who lives in England. Then, Hanno is a big gorilla. In the past, he lived with his family, but they were killed by a man. Now, he is in a zoo. One day, Ping and Hanno meet and understand their feeling because they have a similar experience. Hanno doesn't like living in a cage, so he escaped from the zoo. Ping understand Hanno's feeling, so Ping was happy that Hanno was free. On the other hand, many people are afraid of the big gorilla because it is difficult for human to live with gorilla. They look for hiim. Ping goes to Green Knowe, a old house during the holidays and lived with Mrs Oldknow. He enjoys his holidays in the forest. One day, he sees Hanno in the forest and talk with him. Hanno has two choices, to go back to zoo and live in a cage or to be found by human and killed. Both of the choises are not good for him. Which choises does he choose? Or other choises? After I read this book, I felt painful. If you are interested in the end of this story, please read it! 

Stories from the Five Towns

 I read Stories from the Five Towns, a level 2 book in Oxford Bookworms Library series. There are four stories in this book. First, News of the Engagement. Second, The Burglary. Third, Begging the New Year. Then finally, The Silent Brothers.
 In the story of News of the Engagement, the main character is a man who is thinking about marrying Agnes. They love each other. He was planning to tell the marriage to his mother when he goes to mother’s town, but he was disturbed by Mr Nixon. Mr Nixon was an old friend of the family. Mr Nixon said that he wants to talk with a man about an important thing. What is that? I was worried if a man can marry Agnes, but after I read the end of this story I thought this is a warm story.
 In the final story, The silent Brothers, the main characters are two men. They are Robert and John. Ten years before, they had a quarrel and they didn’t speak. They lived together without words. One day, they knew the existence of their sister’s will. She left messages to them. After they read the message, elder brother went to see a woman. They loved the woman. They had to talk each other, but could they speak for the first time in a long time?
 You can enjoy some stories in this book. If you are interested in this book, please read it!