Perfect Chemistry (pp. 1-119)

Do you share any of the feelings of the characters in this work?  Explain.

 Perfect Chemistry is one of the hottest new YA novels, especially with girls, and I can see why.  While the content is not for younger audiences, older teenagers will really be able to relate to the characters.  It has the stereotypical blonde, rich, pretty cheerleader who's dating a varsity football player and the other guy from the wrong side of the tracks who happens to be in a gang.  While this sounds old and outdone on the surface, the more you get into this book the more you realize how rich the characters really are on the inside and you start to wonder about the people you went to high school with who seemed to have it all.

Brittany is the character that I can really empathize with, despite the fact that I do not have a sibling with a major disability.  However, because of this, she is constantly at odds with her parents over her older sister, especially when they talk about sending her to a facility after numerous failings by various caretakers.  Brittany's college decision even revolves around her sister as she feels it is her responsibility to take care of her because of a special connection that they share and because of her patience.  My grandfather was recently put into a nursing home permanently and while I know this is the best place for him to because of his growing dementia and other unrelated health problems, it kills me that he has to be there.  Every time we visit him I want so badly to take him home and be able to live there full time to take care of him.  However, he lives in Greenville and this option is simply not viable for me or any of our other family members.  He needs care 24/7 which includes getting to the restroom along with the fact that he is prone to falling.  I know that he understands and would never ask any of us to give up our routines to live with him full time, I still feel guilty that I cannot.

Brave New World, con't.

First reactions:

Whoa.  I knew this book was controversial but now I see why!  It would be difficult teaching this to high school students but I think it is something they need to read, especially now with all of the advancements in medical technology.  Huxley's science fiction world is slowly but surely coming to fruition and it is works such as these that students need to be exposed to more than ever.  I was excited to read a book that is commonly on the banned books list but honestly, I don't see why it is.  Sure there are some controversial issues, but they aren't any worse than what Toni Morrison includes in some of her novels which are commonly taught in high schools today.  Of course, I'm not knocking Morrison, I just wanted to use her as a comparison.  I'm really excited to finish this book as it is hard to put down and I can only imagine how exciting the ending is going to be!

Brave New World-Aldous Huxley

Do you like this piece of work?  Why or why not?

Oh, man.  Brave New World is definitely one of the more heavier books I've read but lucky for me, I am really into dystopian fiction.  After reading chapter 3, I couldn't help but keep reading into chapter 4.  It's hard to put this book down but I find myself almost needing to because it's such a downer!  It's almost as if it wasn't written in 1938 because it seems so current, which is the scary thing.  Overall, though, I am really enjoying Brave New World despite the disturbing events and subject matter involved.  The way that the children are conditioned based on their social class is just mind boggling and when the Director is talking to the students about the game they are playing and how he doesn't understand "fun".  What really blew my mind, though, was when one of the head honchos showed up unexpectedly and he was thinking to himself about the rumors swirling around that he hides away ancient books and Bibles.  I can't imagine a society where Bibles are considered ancient and authors like Shakespeare aren't revered!  So far, though, I don't really understand why this book shows up on banned book lists.  I was expecting a really graphic description of the children and their sexual encounters but its vagueness is what surprises me the most about why it's banned.  The way Huxley has his characters discuss this isn't perverted in any way; in fact, it's more that they look down on such primal urges and that people actually used to copulate to produce children.  The students are so embarrassed at their ancestors that it seems they don't even like to think about such an atrocity.  I'm really looking forward to delving deeper into this utopian/dystopian society that Huxley created and he does a great job of revealing just enough at a time that keeps the reader wanting to read more in order to find out the secrets behind this society.