Non-Fiction Blogpost

Non-Fiction Text: On Staten Island, Relentless Bullying Is blamed for a Teenage Girl’s Suicide

By: Vivian Yee

The main idea of this article is to show how bullying has an impact on peoples life. When people tease one another they have to understand the harm that they are doing. Felicia was teased because she had piercings and lived in foster care. Many thought nothing would happen because she never expressed her emotion at all. Some details in the story were, “She looked happy. She was laughing. It didn't look like anything was upsetting her at all”. This show how she was a ‘closed person’ and never told people how she felt. Also in the article it states “if you tried to bully her, she’d laugh at you” this shows how she would hide her emotions and later on she would express them when no one was there to stop her. Lastly, in the article it says something like how “Somebody must’ve said something pretty bad about her for this to happen” this shows how she is a strong person so in order to break her, you have to say something that will actually hurt her in more than one way. This detail support to main idea because it shows how you shouldn't bully people because you never know what will happen.

Author wants us to feel sad and bad for this girl. No one wants to see a girl get bullied by other people. This is what makes us resistance the text a little, because you kind of don’t want to read it because it’s just depressing. “I can’t, I’m done, I give up.” This quote was from the article and it shows when I resistance the text because she gives up so it means this ‘bully’ done something really bad to make her almost want to die.

            I will take away that bullying is not a joke, it serious. You shouldn’t bully someone because you don’t know the harm that you are doing to that person. My thoughts have been shaped because I know this issue is bad, teenagers commit suicide, start cutting them and it’s not funny. This article shows that you can only take so much pain, till you just want to kill yourselves. I want to know, why do people do this to others? Do they take this as a jok

Social Action Question #4: When do you find yourself resisting the text? What does your resistance say about you or the text?

         The story I am reading is “a long way gone” by Ishmael beah. It’s about a 12 year old boy named Ishmael beah going into war. He is a child solider that is forced to fight with the rebels and wanders land rendered by violence.

            I found myself resisting this story way too many times, that I wanted to stop. I found myself resisting when he had to fight. He said it was like a bloodbath. When the rebels first came to attack his country, he saw a family in a van, died. The girls were shot in the head, and the parents were killed by a gun going through the windshield. This is just so intense, because this is when I started to shake, and made me think that he would die since the rebels seemed so close. Also, according to the story, he saw a guy walking that had been shot in the arm, throwing up blood, and looked like he had no hope left. This is when I really resisted because it made me gag and say to myself ‘oh my god’ this is so much! How can a 12 year old boy handle this danger and disturbing sight!

            The resistance says that I can’t handle the text. I think this goes out to everyone though, because I mean if you see people throwing up blood, or people getting shot in the head, and you know rebels are in your country, what are you to do? What can you do? This is an intense situation because it makes you nervous that you can be ‘next’. I should have expected some resistance, since I did research about child soldiers.

            This book is really good so far. I think the resistance shows how bad and brutal being a child solider was, and the bad memoires and images that they had to go through. I hope as I read along good things start to happen and maybe even a change. 

What is some difficult or complex thing happening in your book?

I am currently reading “a long way gone” by Ishmael beah. It’s depressing. Although I just started, I already know so much. It’s about 12 year old Ishmael beah going into war. He is a child solider that is forced to fight with the rebels and wanders land rendered by violence. There are so many difficult things happening in this story so far. He lives in Sierra Leone, which is where the war started. He is getting separated from his friends and family which is devastating, but even smaller then that is his parents are divorced.

This might not sound big, but it does have an impact on Ishmael which makes this a difficult situation. Since the divorce, he has had so many step moms  and he has liked none. He can’t show his feeling around them. According to the story, it says how one day he dad stood their smiling at him, until the step mom came out, and he looked away. I think it almost like the dad is afraid to show that he cares about his son. Why is he like this? I think he is like this because, maybe he has had a hard life with all the step moms and he can’t even shows his feelings anymore. They probably do not care really about how he feels or what he is doing. This has an impact on Ishmael because he wants to have his family back, but doesn't know how to start, but what makes this problem worse is his town is ruined.

Rebels have taken over. Another complex thing in the book is, rebels are over-powering his country. Their killing people, people are throwing up blood, bullets everywhere, it’s a messy bloodbath! This leaves Ishmael in a scare, because he know eventually he is going to separate from his parents and has to live on his own. This is a real-world issue. Example: what if you are in a grocery store and lose your parents you get sacred and worried. Well yeah, being separated from your parents in a war is even worst. This is not an easy obstacle to conquer; having to fight in a war at 12 years old is insane!

In conclusion, some difficult things in the book that I am reading are him going off to fight war without his parents and his parents being divorce. I hope as I get to the middle of the book, he gets over his fears or conquers his obstacles. 

It Happened to Nancy

              The book I am reading is “It happened to Nancy” Edited by Beatrice Sparks. This book is living  a bitter taste in my mouth.  Nancy is a fourteen year old girl who is dealing with a lot of scary events in her life. She was raped by her boyfriend Collin who was five years older than her. She later was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Nancy is a strong young woman. She kept this terrible news to herself for some time.   

Nancy has been going through a lot at her young age. Her mother is not a good support in her life. Her mom worked long hours, and always come home really late.  By reading this book, I learned not to trust anyone period. I also believe that young girls should not be dating older guys. I have no intentions of doing that, but it helps me to have that note in my head. I was curious to know why Nancy would even cross that line. But I do understand how she is feeling. She does not have the support of her parents. She doesn't mention her father at all. I think Nancy is looking for ‘love’ which she thought she found in Collin. Although she is going through a difficult time, I think she should be a leader and not a follower. Collin took advantage of her in a bad way.  This is a terrible thing for anyone to go through. It wasn't nice what Collin did to Nancy, but it happened, what can I say?

I am not sure but I think the editor named this book “It Happened to Nancy” because she wanted teenagers to know what can happen if they don’t listen. It seems that Ms. Sparks the editor also wanted young girls like Nancy to know about HIV/AIDS. She knows how teenagers think. They do not always like to listen like Nancy did. Here this young girl Nancy is sick at heart. She has gotten raped and unfortunately diagnosed with AIDS. I don’t think Nancy would ever be herself again or around other people especially guys. She would probably feel uncomfortable. Nancy has taught me to always speak your mind and never follow others. She followed Collin and look where that got her. Nancy always wrote in her diary about her deepest feelings and her deepest thoughts. She was very open in expressing her feelings in her diary.

It seems that Nancy got closer to her mom after the incident.  She started telling her mom every single thing that happened between her and Collin. She told her what he did to her, how he acted, to me I would have done that from the start. As a mom, I would be supportive but really mad at the same time. I would say to myself why my daughter is dating a college student. Maybe as a mom I might blame myself for not being at home often. Nancy now notices that she doesn’t have only her diary, but she also has a mom to talk to. I think she has to learn to ‘love’ herself.

Annie's Baby

The book I am currently reading is “Annie’s Baby” edited by Beatrice Sparks. It’s about a 14 year old girl, Annie, who was raped by her boyfriend and has to raise a baby by herself. She is confused and lost. She truly has no idea what she is doing meaning she doesn't even know how to ‘control’ a baby, which is making her nervous and making her have more anxiety. This book explains a teen issue of having to raise a baby by yourself and no one to talk to.

Annie is terrified of telling her mom that she is pregnant. But she hasn't come to realize that sooner or later, she is going to have to spill the whole situation. This relates to a teen issue because today so many teenagers are getting raped, and having babies that they can’t even take care of or afford. Annie thinks her mom will yell at her once she knows the problem and will not love her again, but that’s not true. Where I left off in the book is when, Annie was telling her mom about Daniel and what he has done to her and the outcome that she is left with. I couldn't even believe what the mom said. The mom was very supportive. She said things like “I’ll be here with you, every step of the way” and it was in just a motherly tone, which came off really well.

I think Annie has come to realize that although she has some obstacles she needs to conquer, she is not alone because she has her mom and friends by her side, boosting her when she is down. Annie speaking up to her mom about the problem, showed she needed help and she couldn't do this on her own.

Overall, I’m pretty much almost done with this book and I think it was amazing! It really showed me how you can’t trust anyone, no matter how many times you say ‘I Love You’ it truly means nothing. Also, this book has taught me that you can’t overcome obstacles without help from others, because you always need someone to boost your spirit once in a while!

Annie’s Baby edited by Beatrice Sparks

The book I was currently reading was “Deadly Little Secret” by Laurie Faria Stolarz. I didn't like it too much so I found a new book.

The book I am reading is “Annie’s Baby” edited by Beatrice Sparks. This is a very disappointing story. Annie is a fifteen year old teenager that has a responsibility no one her age should have to endure. She was raped by her boyfriend Daniel, and later found out she was two months pregnant. Annie is self-conscious about herself. She always thinks people are talking about her and she is constantly hiding herself from the world around her. She is not a social girl, and barely speaks to anyone. She does not like to express her feelings to anyone. Instead, she developed a relationship between herself and her diary.

By reading this book I learned not to trust anyone because words are cheap. You really should not believe what people say all the time. I said that because Annie truly believed that Daniel loved her. Annie met Daniel on the soccer field. They got together because they loved each other (well that’s what Annie thought). But you must learn not to let anyone take advantage of you. While they were going out they would call each other a lot. But what I’m not sure of is why they never hanged out as much in public. They usually just talk on the phone and never really hang out. I began questioning if Daniel really loved Annie because of the way he was treating her. I felt pain for Annie because of the way Daniel abandoned her. He would sometimes pass her and say nothing or just give her a quiet ‘hi’.

I’m not sure what Daniel wants from Annie exactly. I think Daniel is just using Annie for his own purposes. Many times at lunch, he would ignore Annie, and would always say to her “I’m hanging out with my friends; I’m hanging out with my friends”. He never has time for her at all. I think Daniel is a big ‘show-off’ always trying to prove something to his friends. He is always laughing and acting like… yeah I got a girlfriend, but he shows her no care or love at all. Annie needs to know how to speak up and just be a leader and not a follower. I say this because she is following Daniel and keep giving him chances, and the more she continues to do that the more he is going to hurt her. The bottom line is Daniel is using her. After Daniel and Annie went through some difficult moments in their relationship, they decided to go on a date. But here is the tricky part… he decided to go to ‘his house’. He was like “let’s go to my house and watch a movie or something”, so Annie was up to that and so they did. Everything was going good. Annie felt loved and wanted all over again. She was so much in love with Daniel that she did not realize any danger in what she was doing. But things turned around… in seconds.

The good moments did not last for long. It only took seconds or this is how it looked. Daniel showed his ‘true’ colors. He wanted to have sex with Annie. Of course she refused to do what he wanted and then he raped her. This is a painful and devastating situation for anyone. The sad thing is Daniel hurt Annie and she never spoke up. She did not tell her mom or any of her close friends what she experienced or went through. I felt that he used her like she was a dog or trash. I don’t understand why Daniel raped Annie. There were plenty girls at the school, so why did he treat her that way. I wonder if it is because she was not popular or she was quiet hmmm…. He knew that she loved him so he took advantage of her. I think Annie needs to know how to speak up and don’t let people walk over her like that again.

Annie needs to tell her mom, friends or the teachers at her school. She needs to let the pain out. I think by not telling anyone will make the situation worse, it can get her in a stage she doesn't want to be in. Sometimes you need to speak up and not hide your feelings. It does not make sense to pretend everything is ‘okay’ and you’re hurting inside. Annie is silent about her pain, but she has to ‘speak out’. Although I understand how Annie feels, I still strongly believe that she should not stay quiet about this matter. By speaking she can help other girls her age from guys like Daniel. I think Daniel should be reported for what he did to Annie.

I hope as I further read this book, Annie tells her mom what is going on in her life, because I know she cannot leave this in for much longer!

Deadly Little Secret by Laurie Faria Stolarz

The book I am currently reading is “Deadly Little Secret” by Laurie Faria Stolarz. This book is about a girl name Camelia who lives and changed and been very neutral. But now she going away from that, this boy Ben, starts junior year at her high school and everything changes.

So far in the book, I love the suspense; Camelia is getting these notes from a mysterious guy name Ben. This book is leaving me to predict what is going to happen next. Ben seems like a jerk, because he is acting like he is “full of himself” why? I think he knows that Camelia like him, after he saved her from the car accident, so he is playing ‘hard to get’ in a way. She then finds out information that she didn’t want to know. He is in her school, because he might have something to do with his ex-girlfriend’s death, which makes her want to know more. I think Ben should be honest with Camelia and tell the truth about what he did.

I think this book is a real-world issue because so far as I am reading, I am realizing that this always happens. You met a boy, that you like and they have deep-dark secrets that you don’t know about. Eventually by hints and details you gradually put clues together and solve the problem, and realize your ‘crush’ is not who you think they are.   I cannot put this book down! I am excited to get further into it, and really dig out all the information that Ben has to hide. 

November Blues by: Sharon Draper

The book I am currently reading is “November Blues by: Sharon Draper”. This book is about November Nelson losing her boyfriend Josh, and now she is pregnant with no father. But, along the way she has support from her friends Jericho, Dana, and Olivia. While reading this book, I realize you have to love someone to do stupid things. Now as she is pregnant I think "what is November going to do?" This book  about November Blues, takes you on the adventure of a pregnant girl and all her ups and downs and the joy of a baby.

On the cover of the book it states ‘one night can change a life forever’ I think Sharon Draper put this as a cover to show, how by doing one stupid mistake can change your future forever. November is pregnant now and is ‘lost’ she has no idea of what she is doing, and she doesn't even want to be a mom. The main purpose of writing this book is to show the real world issue of teen pregnancy. November got a scholarship to Cornell College, and I think Sharon wanted to show how when things go really well for you, your live can turn upside down and everything can go within a blink of an eye.  With the support of her friends, it helps her get her mind off of the fact that she is pregnant,

To me, this is a must read book Why? Because it shows how serious teen pregnancy can be and one mistake can change your life. I love this book so far, and I can’t wait until the ending. I know teens take this as a joke, but they should know the reality of having a baby and it is not all about the cuteness, they cost a lot of money!

“Am I Blue?” by Bruce Coville

In the story, “Am I Blue?” by Bruce Coville, The protagonist named Vincent is a young boy who is questioning his own sexuality. While in a process of not knowing if he is gay or not, he is a getting bullied by Butch Carrigan for being gay. Vincent then finds himself talking to Melvin, his fairy godfather. I think by bringing Melvin in the story, Bruce Coville uses supernatural forces from a fairy tale , to put across a real-life message of sexual abuse. As Melvin is his fairy godfather, he gives him three wishes, and his first one was changing his coffee into mocha. His second wish was everyone to have gaydar for 24 hours. What this gaydar did, was it showed whether a person was gay or not, and it should how many people were gay. Whoever, was gay was blue, and it depended. According to the story ‘The dark blues are pretty much excluding queer, while the lighter ones are less committed—or maybe like you, trying to make up their minds. I set it up so that you’ll see at least a hint of blue on anyone who has had a gay experience”.  Just showing whether people believed in being gay or not.

The relationship between Melvin and Vincent was strong. In the story it says “They’re always assuming someone is or isn’t for all the wrong reasons”. When I read this this is when it came to my attention “don’t judge a book by it’s cover” . I think many people are guilty, of calling someone “ugly, or stupid”, and they don’t even get to know the person for who they are. In the story, Vincent it getting builded by the way he walks, “do you have to walk so swishy?”. This is a phrase that Melvin asked Vincent to maybe get to the facts to see if he is actually gay. Also according to the short story it says “I’m really here to watch over you, advise you, guide you, till we get things on track.” this is what Melvin says to Vincent. This makes me think that Melvin is their to support him, till he knows that he is comfortable in his skins, and knows that he is good on his own. But, until then Melvin is not going anywhere. There relationship between them is father to son almost, because it’s like Melvin is always their for Vincent, and wouldn’t let go until he knows that he is ‘ok’.

This story was definitely an ‘eye-opener’ to gay bullying. Towards the end of the story, Vince’s bully is ‘blue as a summer sky’ , which makes Vince comfortable with himself, knowing he won’t be bullied again. But Vince is still not sure what his own sexuality is. I loved this story because it shows how a little support can go along way. It can motivate you to trust and believe in yourself.

The story the “Drummer Boy of Shiloh” by: Ray Bradbury really brought to my attention  the themes ‘strong but innocence’, and ‘motivation leads to bravery’.  The story is about a 14 year old boy named Joby, who ran away to war. I think this story shows strong because he is so young going to war, and he is clueless about what to do. Really what shows strength is all he has is drums. “Me thought the boy, I got only a drum, two sticks to beat it, and no shield”. I think Joby is lost because he has no protection. To me, I think the drums pacify Joby, really takes stress and things off his mind. It shows innocence because people tend to think, when you go to war you have to be big and bad, and tearless. But that’s wrong! Joby wanted to cry, he thought he was going to die, he was doubting himself. Crying to me shows innocence because it shows the soft side of you. Showing that you are not all tough, tell us that you still have a heart.

As I continued to read the story, I notice that the story contained ‘motivation’, which lead to ‘bravery’. Before the war started, the General spoke to Joby. The General was telling him how he can cry, and that’s ok, ‘I did last night’. This shows that although he is the General he shows his emotions, and he is not all as ‘hard as nails’. The general start talking with Joby ,trying to pacify him. He told Joby that he also cried last night,because he knew that the battle was hard to fight and also he knew that many soldiers would die,but he encourage Joby explaining to him how important was a drummer boy in a battle, what makes Joby strong to be with them.The General’s speech lead to motivation because in the story the General says “ you are the heart of the army”, this to me pushed Joby into the war even more because that quotes means you are what moves us, you are what keeps us alive. I think this puts Joby in a position to where he stays to himself, ‘ I have to do it, I can’t let all these guys down’ This motivates him because without him, there's no them.

The theme ‘motivation lead to bravery’ shows how a speech or phrase, can make someone so ambitious to do something. Also the theme ‘strong but innocence’ shows how you don’t have to be tough troops, you can have a fragile side and not afraid to show it. This short story really was a page-turner, because it made me think that obstacles may get in your way, but they can be conquered sometimes.

One of the books that I have read over the summer was Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick. This book had me in tears, this book tells you the theme of how 'everything happens for a reason'. It was a normal day for a thirteen-year old boy Steven Alper, untill a small accident happened in the kitchen, and Jefferey , Steven's little brother, was taken to the emergency room, and was diagnosed with leukemia. Everything changed from here. Just when things got worst, and he needs his parents most of all, his mom has to spend most of her days at the hospital taking care of his brother, and his dad is mostly keeping to himself, not talking to anyone, it was like Steven was not even there, he was also too worried about the bills to spend time with or even talk to his oldest son. The only way to pacify Steven is by playing his drums, letting anger, fear and anxiety out.

At the beginning this story had me thinking about the theme “everything happens for a reason”. Steven and Jefferey were just making some oatmeal for breakfast, untill suddenly Jeffery went on the stool and fell. He was rushed to the  emergency room and later diagnosed with leukemia. This really pushed me aside, and I really asked myself, ‘So if Jefferey didn’t fall off the stool, they would of never known he had leukemia’ , yes, it sounds bad because he has leukemia, but if you think about it closely then maybe it was a good thing they found out now then later.

Towards the ending Steven has  come to realize Jeffrey's illness. Really coming to recognize of how real it actually is example:  "Once I was forced to believe that Jeffrey really had cancer my mind played another big trick on me."What makes this book so come alive is how when Steven goes to school , students would say “how you doing Steven?” , “How Jeffrey?” or “trooper” usually said by his teachers.  It makes the book so real because it tell us readers that this is reality, then going through a situation like this, people care, and want to help.

This book really was a page-turner. Just everything page you read made it more suspense then the other, and it was like you had to finish the book! This book shows the reality of having a love one deal with cancer, and having to go through obstacles just like they are. I love this book because it shows how you may have obstacles in front of you, but you can always conquer them if you find yourself.