Blog Reflection

1.     See Weblog Rubric

2.     For my book review blog I wrote eight posts. The books I wrote about were The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, The Pact by Jodi Picoult, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, My Sisters Keeper by Jodi Picoult, The Maze Runner by James Dashner, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K Rowling and Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard.

3.     I included a number of quotes for some books that were powerful to the true meaning of the book. For example I used the quote “I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly and then all at once” because it portrays how much the main characters loves each other and that there connection was much deeper than regular teenage relationships.

4.     I chose the gadget of showing recent comments because it is a nice reminder to me that other people are reading and appreciating my blog. Also for other readers it gives them insight into what other people’s opinion’s are on the books I’ve reviewed. I also chose the gadget on translator because some of my viewers are from different countries so I want them to be able to translate it into the language they speak.

5.     The template I chose for my blog works well with my theme of books because the colour brown is usally associated with books. Also the map in the background shows that the books are talk about are famous all over the world and the topics of the books are very worldy and talk about different cultures. 

6.     I included a picture of myself so that my followers would know there is a real person behind the writing.

7.      

8.     My followers are Brenda Chan, Matt M, Brodie J, Thomas P, Andy, Evan.

9.     I was able to check my comments and control what comments I want to be seen on my blog. For example if a comment was inappropriate then I can delete it. Also it was nice to have that control over blog.

10. I was very happy to see that other people has read over my blog and made comments. They all had nice things to say about my different post and hopefully they read some of the books I suggested.

11. I made sure when I was commenting on my followers blog to make the comments nice and appropriate. Each blog have very unique and different posts.

12. I used a number of pictures but made sure that the first picture for every blog is to be the book cover so the readers would know what the book looked like if they wanted to find it.

13. My one video post was a trailer for the third harry potter movie so readers could see how the movie is different from the book.

14. I checked through all the grammar to make sure it sounded proper.

15. Analytics were added to help monitor my weblog

Analytics Summary:

            I added the analytics so every time I open up my blog I can so I can see how many people have looked at my blog, where they live and who can published a comment on my blog. It is very easy to find because it pops up on the first page that you go to for your blog. Everyday that I work on my blog I see that I have six followers and nine posts. It helps me keep track of what I have written so far and how many page view’s I have gotten today.

Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard

This is another great book series centered around four
girls, Aria, Spencer, Emily, and Hanna. There troubles
begin when they are twelve years old and their best friend
Alison goes missing. After Alison's disappearance they
begin to lead separate lives.  Aria moved to Iceland with
family, Spencer moves on to become a straight A student
with no time for fun, Emily is a champion swimmer and
Hanna becomes the new it girl at Rosewood High. But
even though they lead new lives they can't run from their
pasts and someone by name of "A" wont let them. Their tormentor "A" knows all their dirty little secrets and wants to make sure they suffer for what they have done. All of them have one secret in common that will destroy their lives forever if it got out.

What got me addicted to this series is that ever book ends very dramatically always leaves you wanting more. If you read this book and want to read more the next book in the series is called Flawless.

So i would definitly give this book a rating of five stars our five stars. Even though it is an easy read you have ten other books to read after if you finish it really quickly.

As you may know they have made a television series of this series but i must inform you know like most televised books they are nothing alike. The only thing similar between them is that Alison died and that they have a stalker named "A". So i hope you check out the book and thanks for taking the time to check out my blog.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K Rowling

In the Harry Potter series there are seven books in total but i am going to talk about the third book of the series. I have read all books and this is my favourite out of them all. The reason i like "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" the most is because its the first book that begins to turn from a happy ending children's series to dark and mysterious teens series. In the third book Harry has already faced Lord Voldemort, the wizard who killed his parents and defeated his younger self trapped in a diary. Harry has faced many things from the past and in this book he will face the person supposedly responsible for the death of his parents. The night before he is meant to go to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry he uses magic on his aunt marge and is forced to leave his home earlier than expected. When he finally arrives at Hogwarts he finds out that Sirius Black, the man who betrayed his parents, is coming to kill Harry Potter so he can avenge the dark lord. It is again up to Harry to fins Sirius Black and find out what really happened the night of his parents death. Of course he has his best friends Ron and Hermione by his side to help him through this journey.

I would rate this book 28750249082390840928309 stars out of 5 stars. The Harry Potter series is the best book series i have ever read. It also doesn't hurt that they made movies out of all the books, that's an added bonus. I encourage you to read the books before you watch the movies because although the movies are very entertaining the books are much more in depth of detail.

The authour of the Harry Potter series is J.K Rowling.           
She was born in 1965 in England. She has a movie
about her life and how she came to create the Harry Potter
 series. She now lives with her husband and three children
in Edinburgh.

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

The Maze Runner is the first of this book in this gripping trilogy written by James Dashner. It starts
with a boy named Thomas who remembers nothing except for his first name. He wakes up in this strange place known as the glade. When he first arrives he starts to realize that everyone else in the Glade has no recollection of their past life either. All Thomas knows is that the only way to find his way home is by solving the maze. But along the way things begin to take a turn for the worst. The day after Thomas arrives the first ever girl glader is brought up through the box. Only she knows how the secrets that will help Thomas unlock the memories within his own mind.

This is the first book of James Dashner's that i have read but here is a list of some other series he has written:
1. The Infinity Ring Series
2. The 13th Reality Series
3. The Jimmy Fincher Series
He first began his career in accounting and finances but decided that writing novels was his true passion. He now lives in the Rocky Mountains with his wife and four kids.

I would rate this book four and a half stars out of five. The reason i give a half mark off was because i feel that there should have ended a bit better. I wont give too much away from the ending lets just say that then end is only the beginning.

                 If you really enjoy reading The Maze Runner then check out The Scorch Trials.

My Sisters Keeper by Jodi Picoult

                                                                                         

          Hopefully you have read some of the books I 

          have been suggesting because they are definitely 

          worth the time to read. Today the book I will be 

          talking about is "My Sister's Keeper" by Jodi 

          Picoult. This is the first Jodi Picoult book I ever 

          read and from then on she became one of my   

          favourite authours. This is also my favourite book of 

          hers because I felt I could connect emotionally with  

          the characters very well. Her books are very different

          from other authours because each chapter is in the 

          point of view of each main character. So you get to

          know what each character is thinking all throughout 

          the book.

          

                

My Sister's Keeper is the story of  Anna
Fitzgerald who was brought into the world so she could be a genetic match for her sister Kate who has leukemia. All her life she has been a donour for Kate helping her through her rough battle against cancer. So it is a shock to everyone in her family when she decides to get medically emancipated from her parents so she does not have to donate one of her kidneys. This story will force you to challenge your morals by choosing to save your sisters life or letting someone else poke and prod at you and make your life decisions for you.  As you read on you will see that Kate's disease is slowly tearing her family apart and it will take a law suit bring them back together.

          They have made a movie for "My Sister's Keeper" but to be honest I definitely recommend reading the book. SPOILER ALERT: The ending is different from the book and I dont feel it is as good of ending as the book's ending. When you read the book you get to know the mind set of each main character which is something you wouldn't get with the movie.

          I would rate this book 29475983427 stars out of 5 stars. So thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy the wonderful book that I have recommended to you.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a great summer book to read. Even though it is quite short it is full of very mature context. This is the story of an unusual boy named Charlie, who has always had a hard time fitting in. It is not like any other book because it is written in the series of letters to an anonymous person from Charlie. Charlie doesn't want the anonymous reader to figure out who he is. All he wants is for someone to here his story. When his older brother leaves for college he is left alone, forced to fend for himself in the cruel world of high school. In many ways you can connect with Charlie because he is an outsider all throughout his life until he meets Sam and Patrick. They are new kids in school and have instantly become friends with Charlie. In their own way they are unique and different. As you read on in the book there will be friendship, love and loss. But the ending is something you will have never fathomed.

As it turns out right after i finished reading the book i found out it was going to be made into a movie. With Logan Lerman as Charlie and Emma Watson as Sam. It is a very complex novel so i am hoping that they can truly encompass Charlies character and the whole story.

I would definitly rate this book a 4 1/2 stars out of 5. I would give it five stars but i like to read very long books and i felt it was a bit too short. I wanted to have more detail but that may just be me who felt that way. Anyways thanks for reading and i hope you check out "The Perks of Being a Wallflower". You will not regret it.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

You may have heard of the world famous movie "The Hunger Games" but what you readers might not know is that before The Hunger Games was a movie it was a book series. The plot of the first book is that the world is divided into twelve districts that have been corrupt by the Capitol. The Capitol controls all twelve districts and created the hunger games. Once a year two children , one boy and one girl, from each district are chosen to fight to the death on live television. They are chosen at random by draw. This year twelve year old Primrose Everdeen has been chosen to be this year's District twelve tribute. Katniss Everdeen, Prim's sister,  has volunteered to be the female tribute to save Prim from going in. As she embarks on the journey towards the hunger games the people of Panem begin to see her as the face of the rebellion. This book will take you into a future most people fear of. I encourage you read the whole series because once you start you wont be able to stop.

I rate this book five stars because it as an intriguing plot that always leaves you wanting more. WARNING! you might cry during the reading of this book. P.S Most of the books i'll be recommending will be tearjerkers.

If you are interested in going to see The Hunger Games in theatre's i highly recommend you read the book first because as much as i loved the movie i think the books are way better.

The Pact by Jodi Picoult

I want to recommend the book "The Pact" by Jodie Picoult. I first read this book while on a road trip up to my cabin at Eagan Lake. It was the perfect getaway book. I have read many of Jodie Picoult's books before so my expectations for this book was very high. Like most novels it focuses on love, heartache and sadness. This is the story of two troubled teens who make a suicide pact that will turn their lives upside down. Their families have been close all of Emily and Chris's lives so its no surprise that as they begin to grow up there relationship grows to be more than just a friendship. But when there parents get a phone call in the middle of the night because of a shooting that occurred, there friendship is put to the test. After that night there lives will be changed forever. One is child is dead and the other is accused of their murder. This book challenges your morals and if you think someone is allowed to decide who lives and who dies.

I rate this book five stars because of the emotional maturity. If you are into those happy romantic teen books with a happily ever after then this book is it not for you. WARNING! You will cry during the reading of this book so be prepared with a box of tissues.

Jodi Picoult is a brilliant writer. She is famous for her eighteen different novels and five of them making the Number One on the New York's Times bestseller list. She has a new novel coming out which she co-wrote with her daughter. It will be hitting bookstores June. 26th so watch out for it.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

A couple of weeks ago a friend suggested i read this book "The Fault in Our Stars". At first i thought it would be just another sappy teen romance book but as i began to read i began to realize how complex and morally challenging this book is. It's a book about two people who come together even in the most unfortunate circumstances. Hazel, a girl with stage 4 cancer has lost the will to live her life because of the struggles of her disability. Augustus, a boy who overcame osteosarcoma at a young age and is now in remission lives his life in fear of cancer finding his way back into his life. This book is full of so many surprises that bring laughter and tears. Once i started i couldn't stop reading. I was addicted after the first page. Just make that when you read this book you have a big box of tissues next to you, just in case.

 I would definitly rate this book five Harry Potter's out of five Ron Weasly's. Well that is my first post for this blog. Hope you take my advice and read "The Fault in Our Stars", you wont be dissapointed.

Creating blogs

http://sarah1033.blogspot.ca/

When creating this blog I found it quite easy and simple. The instructions were very direct and easy to follow so I had no difficulties. I felt creating the blog was very self-explanatory. You can control who sees your blog by going to privacy settings that’s where you can select if you want your blog to be public or private. You can control the comments on this site by choosing how many comments can be showed on the first page and who will see them and if they can comment. If there are any comments that you don’t like then you can delete them or choose what words are appropriate and such.

http://lifeisloud3.edublogs.org

            When creating an edublog I found it was easy but a bit difficult to design it because there’s so much crammed into one blog page. The instructions were quite simple though; I had no troubles building the blog. I feel the directions were needed for this particular site because it helps to guide so you make your perfect blog. If you go on to settings you can control your privacy by selecting who can see it and if you want only people with a password to see your blog. You don’t really have a lot of control over the comments that are made on your blog. You can delete them if you feel they are inappropriate.

http://lifeisloud3.wordpress.com/

When creating this blog on Word Press I found it was also very effortless. The instructions were very easy to comprehend and therefore very straightforward. This was a very self-explanatory blog to make. You have the option to make your blog private to only certain followers and can control if it shows up on a search engine. For the comments on your blog you have the option to delete or edit them if you are unsatisfied or upset with them.

If I were going to have students set up a blog at this point I would get them to choose blogger.com. I would choose that site over the other two because I like the design better and the layout is more organized. Also it is very straightforward and easy to follow instructions. If I had students set up a blog on Blogger.com I would inform them that it’s not very difficult to use and it will only take a matter of five minutes to set up. Overall I felt setting up a blog was very easy and was no hassle to make. I was never frustrated finding out the information I needed.