David Metzenthen’s Boys of Blood and Bone is a truly ambitious novel. He received his inspiration to write the novel as a tribute to his grandfather, to show his respect to those who went to war and to connect young Australians to past history. His novel links the stories of Henry Lyon, in the summer before he starts his first year at University and Andy Lansell, an Australia digger killed in World War 1. The book contains several messages which should be of value to everyone. These include mateship, relationships, committing to personal responsibilities or duties in society and to value the little things in life. However, the idea that people haven’t changed while Australia and the world has and his feelings towards the lasting effects of war are two strong underlying beliefs of Metzenthen’s which he has incorporated into his novel. This novel provides a real eye opener for all young adults and makes them more appreciate life in all aspects. These are all demonstrated through the narrative point of view.…
Confucius once said “Study the past if you would define the future”. In this quote he implies that in order to understand what the future possibly holds, one has to study the past. This also holds true when examining the present as well. If one does not fully understand the significance of certain past events, it can be difficult to understand what is going on now in the present. The Faming of the Bones is a book by Edwidge Danticat based on the real life Parsley Massacre that occurred in the Dominican Republic in 1937. Danticat tells the story of a young Haitian domestic worker named Amabelle who works in the Dominican Republic during dictator Rafael Trujillo’s presidency. The book tells of Amabelle’s hardships and struggle to survive during…
linking the stories of Henry Lyon, in the summer before he starts his first year of Law at university, and Andy Lansell, Australian digger killed in the Somme in 1918. Andy and Henry's stories meet when Henry's car breaks down in the small country town of Strattford on his way to a sailboarding weekend with his mates and his stuck up girlfriend Marcelle. While stuck in Strattford, Henry gets to know Trot and his girlfriend Janine and strattfords very own walking history book Cecelia Hainsworth, never-married fiancee of the long-dead Andy. Henry is given Andy's diary to read, and finds himself fascinated by the story of this young man of his own age from another time, another world.…
David Metzenthen's Boys of Blood and Bone is an ambitious novel linking the stories of Henry Lyon, in the summer before he starts his first year of Law at university, and Andy Lansell, Australian digger killed in the Somme in 1918. Andy and Henry's stories meet when Henry's car breaks down in the small country town of Strattford on his way to a sailboarding weekend with his mates — and his disgruntled girlfriend Marcelle. While stuck in Strattford, Andy gets to know Trot and his girlfriend Janine and centenarian Cecelia Hainsworth, never-married fiancee of the long-dead Andy. Henry is given Andy's diary to read, and finds himself fascinated bythe tragic story of this young man of his own age from another time, another world.…
There are various conflicts in the story, "The Glass Roses", though the main and most significant one being of an internal conflict within the protagonist, Stephen, a "willowy fifteen-year-old" working in the pulp woods. The internal conflict occurs between his desires to fulfill his childhood dreams and those to become a "man". Stephen is heavily influenced by his father, and longs to be like the other workers with their "ox-like shoulders", but also does not want to leave his "childish" dreams and ideals behind. However, Leka, the Polack, shows Stephen how that being different and having your own ideals and ideas can be beautiful, like his mother's glass roses though "There is not much room in the world for glass roses". The conflict is solved however, when Stephen decides to become like his father and fit the stereotype of a man, perhaps because he does not want to disappoint his father, raising an important issue, "To what extent should a child conform to his parents' expectations of him?" I think that it is through these conflicts that the author effectively demonstrates how heavily a person can be influenced by others, such as their parents.…
The reality of war is brutal and unjust. Through the experiences of prisoners of war, Bridie and Sheila, the audience is presented with a grim picture of the nature of war. In Act One, Scene Five, a photograph of skin-and-bone children who are dressed in rags is projected. The graphic image shocks the audience as it shows the harsh conditions that these children were put in. This creates a sense of empathy for the children. The mistreatment id then emphasised through Sheila presenting a chop bone. The chop bone represents the harsh and desperate times of war; where even the simplest of things are considered a treasure. The fact that Bridie and Sheila 'shared a bone' enforces the lack of human respect and powerlessness that they had. Later in the scene, Sheila makes an understatement “we were all a bit gloomy. It became quite a problem.” The use of second person makes the situation even more real and highlights how they were brutally treated. Through this, a greater sense of sympathy is created and the mass effect that war has on its prisoners is made more profound. These images provide evidence as to what happened during that time. Not only does it effectively assist the audience to visualise such events, but to also view the solidity of the atrocities of war.…
Upon meeting someone whose life reflects our own we are given the chance to step back from reality and take a look at their life and ours. We capture the ability to see a clearer idea of where our life may lead us and what it has already become. Russell Banks uses this vehicle of parallelism in Rule of the Bone between Froggy and Chappie. Banks shows readers the similarities of their lives through their history of sexual abuse, the captivity they are held under and the releasing of their souls by I-Man in order to show what may have been in Bone's life if he had not learnt to live' it.…
“Leigh Bardugo is the New York Times bestselling author….She was born is Jerusalem,grew up in Los Angeles, and graduated from Yale University….These days she lives in Hollywood and can occasionally be heard singing with her band”(leighbardugo.com). Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo is about the Sun Summoner, who gets lost in in a magical void and falls in love with an evil king who controls this void. The King uses her power to try and takeover east Ravka. WHen the void becomes too powerful she must destroy him. People should read this book not only because of its connection to Immigrants, and its message that people should work hard to overcome future obstacles.…
In Doll Bones, there are three 12 year old friends named Zach, Poppy, and Alice. The day they became friends they’ve been playing a continuous ever-changing game -a game that takes place in a world populated with pirates and thieves, mermaids, and warriors. Ruling over them all is the Great Queen, a bone – china doll imprisoned in a cabinet, cursing those who displease her. But then one day Zach’s father threw away his action figures. Zach quits the game and lies about the reason. Their friendship might be over, until Poppy announces she’s been having dreams about the Queen – and of the ghost of the girl who won’t rest until her doll is buried in her empty grave. So they go on an adventure to find the ghost girl grave, but Alice has to be…
Famous writer, Virginia Woolf, once said, “The beauty of the world has two edges, one of laughter, one of anguish, cutting through the heart asunder.” The Lovely Bones is a book about a fourteen year old girl named Susie Salmon. Shortly after the book begins, an abrupt turn takes place; the reader learns that young Susie Salmon was murdered and raped by a man. The rest of the book focuses on the family of Susie Salmon and how the death of their daughter drives them to the brink of insanity. While Alice Sebold explains what’s going on in reality, she also has another part of the story that takes place in Heaven with Susie. Why would one want to read a book that focuses on grief and depression in the present and after life? The overall story…
The Bonesetter’s Daughter is laid out into three different parts: Part One begins with a narration through Ruth’s eyes, Part Two is narrated by LuLing, and Part Three is finished once again by Ruth. Throughout part one, Ruth talks about how unhappy LuLing is, for example on page sixteen Tan writes, “Her mother was permanently unhappy with everything and everybody.” In the novel, LuLing’s life is portrayed as a one of dyer struggle and surmised of many misfortunes. Yet, it seems that the main cause of this unhappiness stems from Precious Auntie’s ghost that LuLing claims to be haunted by throughout the novel. The pain (i.e. the ghost) that Luling must deal with is representative of the suppression of her secrets, feelings, and grief that she holds within herself. LuLing has many secrets that she keeps to herself, and refrains from telling anyone (even her own daughter-Ruth). At first glance, a reader might question, “Why does LuLing withhold so many secrets? Why doesn’t LuLing tell Ruth what has happened in her life? What is the point of withholding these secrets that seem to be leading LuLing to an unhappy life?” In order to answer these questions there is a need for outside sources to bring in, in…
What is it that makes a novel based upon a mystery so intriguing? Is it the commonly found dark and gloomy aspect that is carried along with the plot, or is it the murderer always lurking in the shadows? G. K. Chesterton, author of Favorite Father Brown Stories, and Ellis Peters, author of A Morbid Taste for Bones, were masters of writing mysteries. Favorite Father Brown Stories was written in the early twentieth century, and it is a composition of short stories. These stories revolve around Father Brown, and they all have some sort of mystery in them, ranging from murders to tracking the most stealthy criminal in Europe. The next book, A Morbid Taste for Bones, takes place in twelfth century wales. It focuses on a group of Brothers from Shrewsbury Abbey, who come to Wales to retrieve the remains of Saint Winifred when a tragic turn of events…
One night a group of 4 teenage girls had a sleepover and did something unforgettable, they did the normal stuff of what every group of friends do: they had a bonfire, ate some s'mores, and told scary stories. But they later got bored and decided to check out something completely random; they surfed the internet for dark magic and urban legends and came across “The Witches’ Baby”. The girls were interested and clicked on the link that brought them to a website that was dark and had skulls all over it. One of the girls was a little freaked out and told the other girls that we should get off, it doesn’t feel right. The other girls laughed and picked on her calling her a wimp and a scaredy cat, they clicked on a tap that said black…
One night at a club, 15-year-old Clarissa "Clary" Fray witnesses an apparent murder by a strange teenager whom no one else can see, Jace Wayland. He tells her the victim was actually a disguised demon. The next day, after Clary sees Jace again, she returns home to find her mother Jocelyn Fray, missing and her apartment trashed and occupied by a monstrous creature. Clary defeats it but is injured.…
Winter’s Bone her character has to follow her father’s trail into a world of meth, violence, and people that are bound by codes of loyalty and secrecy. As Ree Dolly is searching for her father she never passes moral judgment on the other characters. She always stayed true to herself and was determined to find her father no matter what the cost was.…