Jamie+L

3/27/12

=**Research Papers: Strengths and Improvement Possibilities.**= Though this was my first major research paper, I think it went pretty well. I feel like I did a good quality job on this paper and put a lot of effort into it. Some areas I exceeded in were: heading and title, expressing my content, showing evidence of research methods and use of citations. Some areas I can improve on include: content of the body, organization of the body and working on my works cited page.

2/15/12 =Narrowly Escaping Death= __**Characters**__
 * Milkman:** Milkman started out in this book as a young kid. The book follows Milkman throughout the book to show how he grew up and what it was like. He went through many hard times in his life, including the times when Guitar and Hagar tried to kill him. On the last attempt, Guitar tries to shoot Milkman, which would be really scary.


 * Macon Dead:** Macon Dead is Milkman's father. He plays a role in this book that, without him, would ruin the book. He both helps and slows Milkman's role in finding his family roots. During the book, you figure out that Macon and his wife do not get along that well because he believes she was having an affair with him with her father. At one point, Macon puches her in the face and Milkman lunges and pushes Macon up against a heater, so Macon and Milkman have a love-hate relationship as you find out in the book.


 * Guitar:** Guitar is a little bit older than Milkman and becomes friends with him during school. He is called Guitar because he has always wanted to play one. You find out in the book that he is not a very good kid because he drinks, smokes and belongs to an illegal gang. During the book, Guitar tries to kill Milkman a few times because he feels like Milkman has kept him out of some gold he should have.

2/7/12 =Long Lost Family= Lately in this book, Milkman, Macon Dead's son, meets his Aunt, which Macon Dead does not want to happen. He doesn't want his son to know his Aunt because she sells wine and is poor, while he is a landlord. Milkman goes to her house with his friend, Guitar, and talk to her and meet her family. Milkman really like his Aunt even though his father doesn't want him to associate himself with her. After that, Milkman's life just goes downhill, because Guitar is a bad kid and drinks beer and smokes and they are about 10 years old. I think this books has a strong sense of what it was like to be african american in the past. That's all the farther I got but I will keep you posted!

1/27/12 =Why You Shouldn't Drink and Shoot= During the passage I read this week, Macon Dead is trying to collect his rent and money from people and gives Mrs. Bains one more week to pay her rent, which is already two months overdue. He then goes to get a man named Porter's money. Porter is up in a building window, drunk and armed with a shotgun. He shouts all kinds of demands and pees out the window on the people looking up and trying to help him. He also says someone needs to die before morning; nobody special, just anyone. When Macon Dead shows up, he points the gun at him and says that Macon //needs// killed. Macon responds with: "If you pull that trigger you better not miss. If you take a shot you better make sure I'm dead, cause if you don't I'm gunna shoot your balls up in your throat!" I like this quote because he is drunk and speaking irrationally to someone who just wants him to pay his dues.

1/20/12

It's a bird! It's a plane! Oh wait....

Robert Smith is only a character for a short time in this book, but makes a big impact on the story. He decides one day that he will try to fly, so he gets on top of the Mercy Hospital, which the blacks called the "No Mercy Hospital" because they couldn't deliver their children inside because they were racist. On top of the Hospital, he puts on handmade wings and tries to fly and commits suicide by jumping. Because of this, blacks were now able to give birth inside of the hospital which really changed their lives.

Photo curtousy of planetbrowny.com

1/13/12

=The book that really sings to you.=

I chose Song of Solomon, a novel by Toni Morrison, published by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. I think this book will be interesting because it is about musioc and I have never read a book that is mainly based on music. To find out more about this book, check out this website.