Independent Reeding

This morning I began reading The Green Mile by Stephen King. I read Carrie a few years ago, and I really enjoyed it, so I figured that I would try another Stephen King novel. The Green Mile tells the story of Paul Edgecomb, a death row supervisor at a Louisiana prison in 1932. While Paul includes experiences from many different inmates that are on death row, of the sixty pages that I have read so far, the book is primarily about an inmate named John Coffey. Coffey, a six-foot, eight-inch, two hundred fifty pound man raped and murdered two young girls. There are many components of the story that are creepy, such as very detailed descriptions of the young girls' bleeding corpses. One of the things that I found even creepier, however, is how blasé Paul is to the events happening around him. While Paul is discussing the events of the crime, he begins to comment on families from the same town.  He mentions that he "knew their families; most of them had sent Sparky a meal fro...

The Alchemist  by Paulo Coelho is the story of a young Spanish shepherd named Santiago who goes on a prolonged journey to fulfill his Personal Legend, one's spiritual destiny or purpose. During his journey, Santiago learns numerous life lessons. While Santiago learned many of the lessons from the words of others, he learned most of them through his experiences and by observing nature and human behavior. Below is the Ten Commandments of the Personal Legend, a compilation of the top ten most important life lessons that resonated with me.  The Ten Commandments of the Personal Legend I - Trust the Impossible "They (children) are not afraid to dream, and to yearn for everything they would like to see happen to them in their lives. But as time passes, a mysterious force begins to convince them that it will be impossible for them to realize their Personal Legend" (Coelho 24). If someone has the confidence to believe in the impossible, the impossible will become thei...

I just finished reading The Alchemist  and all I can say is "Wow!" Prior to reading the book, I thought it was going to be good, but I did not expect it to be nearly as good as it was. I can say, without a doubt, The Alchemist  is one of the best books I have ever read. So before I talk about the book, I think it is only fair that I give Paulo Coelho a quick shutout... he deserves it.  Throughout this book, Coelho manages to teach numerous life lessons and present many interesting perspectives all the while maintaining an intriguing plot. One of the most interesting aspects of the story were the different cultures that were introduced. The main character, Santiago, is from Spain. Therefore, the beginning of the book included a lot of Spanish and Iberian culture. Santiago then spent a good portion of the book working with a crystal merchant in Tangier, Morocco. During his time in Tangier, there were a lot of African and Islamic cultures that were discussed. Then, ...

Below are a few of Santiago's journal entries. This is what Santiago would be writing about during 4 significant events from the first half of the book: His appointment with the gypsy, his interaction with Melchizedek, after getting tricked in Tangier, and while working with the crystal merchant. Please note: The Alchemist's exact date is not specified but it can be assumed that it occurs sometime between the 1500s and 1800s. This can be determined because it is too early for there to be planes and other, modern technology, but Southern Spain is free from Muslim rule and there are Englishmen in Africa for work. Entry 1: Once again, I had that dream. Yes, that  dream. Again, I found myself in the field with my sheep and, again, that strange child approached the sheep and began playing with them. Like before, this irritated me because I don't like when strangers play with my sheep; they are afraid of strangers. But, just like last time, the sheep peacefully played ...

For my next book, I am going to be reading The Alchemist  by Paulo Coelho. Unlike when I read Into the Wild , I knew virtually nothing about The Alchemist when I began reading it. All I knew about it was that it was about a Shepard named Santiago, it was originally written in Portuguese, and it supposedly contains a lot of life lessons. After knowing those three things, who wouldn't want to read the book? A book about a Sheppard? I love Sheep! A book that was translated from Portuguese? I'm learning Spanish in school which is similar to Portuguese! A book that contains life lessons? I'm a teenager who is qualified for nothing; I desperately need suggestions and guidance! So basically, this book sounds perfect.  So far, the book has been really interesting and I'm excited to continue reading! Paulo Coelho The Original Cover Side Note: The copy that I got from my local library has little drawings in it every few pages, so that's epic! ...

From the numerous movies, documentaries, articles, etc. about McCandless, so many people know about his various adventures, most notably his final. Those, however, do not give the whole story of who Christopher McCandless truly was. Almost all of the things that he is known for can be drawn back to specific events from his upbringing, so a crucial part of understanding Chris is understanding his backstory. Although it has been nearly twenty-eight years since McCandless' passing, considering how many people were impacted by his story, I feel that it is only fitting to write a eulogy for Chris, documenting his life, his journey, but most importantly, his character.  Christopher J. McCandless Alexander Supertramp (2/12/1968 - 8/18/1992) Chris was born in El Segundo, California but was primarily raised in Annandale, Virginia after his father, Walt McCandless, accepted a position as a NASA rocket scientist. Chris had a troubled childhood, experiencing physical and menta...