Week of October 19, through October 25, 2015

Final 2014 Posts for Summer Reading

Alexis Johnson: The President Calling

I listened to all of JFK's phone calls, and his assertiveness in equality towards the governors was very courageous in regards to Civil Rights Movement.. His frequent calls to Mississippi about their lack of cooperation in integration of schools is very inspiring, and very informative as to what states were opposed to change, and which wanted to embrace it. His sternness on the matter of the the riots in Mississippi towards Governor Barnett show his determination to create equality, starting in the schools. Ultimately, some were just opposed to change, and  President Kennedy's was cut short, leaving a lasting legacy in American History and the Civil Rights Movement.

Hunter Rogers- The President Calling

I chose to listen to the recording of JFK talking about the Mississippi Crisis. After listening to this recording i earned a lot of respect for JFK as a politician and as a person due to how he stuck up for James Meredith in the case and wouldn't give up until he was accepted into Ole' Miss. He also made sure that everyone that was watching the event in person would be safe and that Meredith himself would be protected by US marshalls and also the patrolman for the state. He spoke as both a politician but also
 kept many of the promises he made to the governor which makes him a very honorable man. In my opinion Meredith enrolling at the school should have never been an issue in the first place but I understand that it was such a big deal because of the time period that the event took place in.

Eli Lasley - We Were Soldiers Once... And Young

I read the book We Were Soldiers Once... And Young for my summer reading. This book addresses the battles fought in la Drang Valley in November of 1965, which was one of the first encounters between the American military and Vietnamese troops. Harold Moore and Joseph Galloway write with such solid authority and in-depth understanding of the conditions and suffering of the soldiers that engaged me into the action as if I were there. Not only did the authors illustrate the action of the battle, but also the actions taken place after the battle. The heart-breaking gathering of bodies and dog tags tore me apart as I read, and then the communication back to the families of those killed in action created a sense of melancholy, but also a sense of reality. All in all I really enjoyed this book.

Leah Hutchins: The Presidents Calling

I chose to listen to part of John F. Kennedy's Mississippi Crisis. I liked that Kennedy did all that he could to help Meredith be able to register for classes at Ole Miss. During that time period, there was still a lot of hate for African Americans and because that schools had recently become integrated, I feel that JFK was a very courageous man in supporting James Meredith's decision to be the first man of color in an all Caucasian university. Also, President Kennedy stood by his decision to help Meredith, despite all of the different ways that Governor Ross Barnett tried to trick Kennedy. I feel that the taped phone calls just show everyone how sneaky and underhanded or honest and dependable politicians really are.

Wayde Hall- The President Calling

 

 

I chose President Nixon Addressing Nation Regarding Scandal (Watergate Affair)

 

The Watergate scandal in general was when several burglars where caught breaking in to the Watergate building, Washington D.C., where they attempted tap phones and steal classified documents. Nixon claimed he had no knowledge of this yet he attempted to cover it up? Why would he cover up something that shouldn't involve him? Nixon

bugged his own offices as well as his colleagues, as said in the official “The President Calling” by Stephen Smith. He could simply be trying to help a friend or cover up some of his own actions. Either way due to this info I highly doubt he wasn't in some way, small or large, involved in the Watergate scandal.

Leah Hutchins: The Killer Angels

The Killer Angels, by Michael Shaara, is a novel telling the story of the well-known Battle of Gettysburg. I think that I have always been interested in a country going at war against itself, and since this book is about the turning point of a civil war, I was very interested in the subject matter. I like that Shaara tried to keep the information accurate and precise by using the primary sources found. whilst telling both sides of the story. Also, Shaara goes into great detail making me feel like I'm out there with the Generals in the war.

Round 2 Summer Reading Comments 2014

Alexis Johnson- The Killer Angels

The Killer Angels is the story of the four days of the Battle of Gettysburg, told from the different perspectives on each side of the war. As the story is told by different accounts you get to see personalities unfold and how eerily similar their tactics on winning the battle are. I love how we get such a dominant voice on the Union side by Colonel Chamberlain even though on the Confederate side we get General Lee and General Longstreet. I feel that by making Colonel Chamberlain a dominant character in the novel even though he's not a General like the others show's not only Shaara's, but America's admiration for him.

Wayde Hall - Wag the Dog

I chose the book Wag the Dog by  Larry Beinhart. Wag the Dog begins with a political scandal in the White House leading to the loss of votes to President Bush. To prevent the loss of an election advisers then hire a film director from Hollywood to distract and lead the voters toward Bush by fabricating a war. The ideas and schemes that weave between fiction and nonfiction used to get Bush back into the election will simply blow you away. Especially the use of Operation Desert Storm. The simple unexpected use of words and events captured my weakness for something new and exciting and pulled me in from the start.

Taylor Henley- Ragtime

After I searches through every single book on the summer reading list I chose
ragtime because it centers around a family who seem to have their own issues.
I chose this book because it uses historical fiction to convey ideas throughout
American History. The novel stuck out to me on the list of books because of its
uniqueness in characters and the way it evolves throughout the novel. The book is
narrated by the youngest son of the family and you see his evolve throughout the
story. The novel shows racism and poverty; several things that have a huge impact
on society. The novel is written to show a link between the fiction of the characters
and the historical significance of American Society as it was in the 1900s. It is also
set in New York City as WW1 approaches. The author does not use distinct names
for some of the characters which I found interesting the way he calls his mother only
be her title in the household. The novel has its twists and turns throughout the plot
which leads me to forget that it is a summer reading assignment.

Sarah Garven - The Last of the Mohicans

      I chose the book, The Last of the Mohicans partially at random, however after looking into it a bit I found that some concepts were very similar to another book I had just finished and really enjoyed. The book focuses on the story of two young women setting out to visit their father. They soon become involved in a conflict between the Mohican and Huron tribes, the former of which assists the women and their group and the latter of which attacks the group kidnapping the women and a few others. This book had a bit of a slow start as it was very descriptive in the beginning but I still enjoyed reading the book very much.

Paige Nicholson- Ragtime

I chose to read Ragtime by E.L. Doctorow. It takes place in New York. Ragtime is a novel about a normal family getting mixed up with several other not-so-normal individuals. Their story begins when Harry Houdini crashes in front of their home and begin an adventure with imagined characters.

Allyson Kuhn - Ragtime

I chose the book Ragtime because we had sang a song from the musical in chorus this year so it was the most familiar to me. I thought that this book was interesting because it gave me a better understanding of the musical and of the time and place. It was also interesting because this gave you a more in depth look at the storyline than just knowing the baseline of the musical. You got a more in depth look at the environment and at the characters, seeing their struggles and things like that. You were given a look at how in this time many people had a hard time accepting change and how many people were influenced by the ever changing technological advances. One of my favorite parts of the book was the anonymous characters because I had read another book like that before and it adds another sort of mysterious and different element. While having closure is something I like in books, this one gave it an element of change and suspense.  I thought this book overall was really cool because there was a kind of "book/movie" sort of thing (except it was book/musical), which is one of my favorite things to read.

Ty Wilson - Wag the Dog

This book was chosen because of a recommendation by a friend for this assignment. After a couple chapters, one can easily pick out the transition from one viewpoint to another, establishing a tie between fiction and historical reality. That makes for an interesting story of Bush's election and the plots behind it. The fictional side provides an enriching of the historical plot, and a deeper look into the social side of the U.S Government and it's branches during that time.

Kyla Anderson - The Killer Angels

I chose Killer Angels by Michael Shaara because I had no idea what to read for the assignment and a friend recommended it due to them thinking it sounded interesting. I also really liked the title as people don't describe angels as killers normally, unless you've watched Supernatural, so I thought that was pretty cool. The book definitely is interesting just as I was told and I loved the imagery used to set the scenes and how they showed the thoughts and actions from the view points of both sides of the battle. I can't wait to see the movie and I hope it isn't changed too drastically.

Lauren Stander - Wag the Dog

For my summer reading assignment I chose the book Wag the Dog, which talks about a conspiracy story that is entirely plausible. It shows what lengths people have or could go to in order to achieve what they want in politics. As a member of the generation which often hears about Operation Desert Storm, it's interesting to see how incorrectly it's history is told. The author integrates facts into this fictional past where Operation Desert Storm was actually a ploy, set up by a movie dirrecter. This forces the reader to question what we are told really happened.

Stephanie Williams-The Last of the Mohicans

I read The Last of the Mohicans and I thought it was an interesting history story. I remember watching the movie in middle school so I thought I should read the book as well. I thought it was interesting to see how different the Hurons and the Mohicans were. Magua was very deceitful and vengeful while the Mohicans were very kind and protective to Munro's daughters. I think that Magua just wanted to marry Cora as a way of angering Munro because Munro had tried to convert Magua which angered him. I also thought it was interesting how Magua continued to escape through every ambush and reappeared to capture Munro's daughters again. My favorite part was in the end where they treated Uncas' death and Cora's death with equal respect. It was appropriate considering all that Uncas had done for Munro's family throughout the novel. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to watching the movie again.

Naomi Belay - The Things They Carried

For my APUSH summer reading assignment, I chose to read The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien, it had been suggested to me by my older sister. The book takes place during the Vietnam War and tells a variety of short stories. Although I'm not all that interested in war stories, I thought it was an easy read and there were multiple times where I was too focused in the book to stop reading. I particularly enjoyed the stories  "The Man I Killed", "Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong" and "On the Rainy River". In "On the Rainy River" it shows the fear the author Tim O'Brien had felt prior to becoming a soldier in the Vietnam war, and how he almost went to Canada just to escape all the chaos. Usually soldiers or men drafted for the war are portrayed as brave and fearless, I admired how he admitted to being afraid. I liked how it wasn't just one long story and that there was a string of fascinating stories; and it wasn't just sad war stories, there were some funny ones too. It really helps you absorb what the Vietnam War was like, and it's nice how it's written by someone who had experienced the war firsthand.