Title: Bridge to Terabithia
Author: Katherine Paterson
ISBN: 0064401847
Plot Summary: Jesse Oliver Aarons, Jr. is the lone boy in a family of girls, growing up in a small, rural Virginia community where change happens more slowly than elsewhere. Into this drab and predictable world comes Leslie Burke, a girl who doesn't dress, eat, walk, talk, act, or think like any of the others Jess knows. Intrigued by Leslie's free-spirited and nonconformist attitude, the two quickly become friends, ignoring the teasing of Jess's sisters and peers as they retreat together into Terabithia, a magical world of their own creation. But when tragedy strikes, shattering the mythical land they have created together, Jess must draw on the strength that knowing Leslie has given him in order to carry on.
Showing posts with label character death. Show all posts
Showing posts with label character death. Show all posts
The Scarlet Letter
Title: The Scarlet Letter
Author: Nathaniel Hawthorne
ISBN: 1442140712
Plot Summary: The narrator of the story, living in what is then the present day in New England, comes across some old belongings of a woman who once lived in the community known as Hester Prynne. Hester, a married woman, had an affair with the Reverend Dimmesdale while her husband was away, and bore his illegitimate child. For this transgression, she was ostracized by the community and forced to wear a large scarlet "A" on her clothing at all times, to symbolize the sin of adultery. She attempts to regain the community's trust by leading a quiet and charitable life, but the reappearance of a mysterious stranger in town throws her world into turmoil. Although both she and her lover attempted to escape their current situation, they found that the ties of duty, obligation, and their mutual child are too great to let them go forever.
Author: Nathaniel Hawthorne
ISBN: 1442140712
Plot Summary: The narrator of the story, living in what is then the present day in New England, comes across some old belongings of a woman who once lived in the community known as Hester Prynne. Hester, a married woman, had an affair with the Reverend Dimmesdale while her husband was away, and bore his illegitimate child. For this transgression, she was ostracized by the community and forced to wear a large scarlet "A" on her clothing at all times, to symbolize the sin of adultery. She attempts to regain the community's trust by leading a quiet and charitable life, but the reappearance of a mysterious stranger in town throws her world into turmoil. Although both she and her lover attempted to escape their current situation, they found that the ties of duty, obligation, and their mutual child are too great to let them go forever.
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
Title: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
Author: John Boyne
ISBN: 97803857519637
Plot Summary: Bruno is a young German boy living in Berlin with his parents and older sister. When his father's job requires them to move to a remote village in Poland, Bruno bemoans the lack of other children to play with, general ugliness of his surroundings, and the loss of his old friends. However, when he starts to observe the goings-on behind the large fence visible from his bedroom, he makes the acquaintance of a boy his age who helps him realize that there is much more going on in his new home than he previously realized.
Author: John Boyne
ISBN: 97803857519637
Plot Summary: Bruno is a young German boy living in Berlin with his parents and older sister. When his father's job requires them to move to a remote village in Poland, Bruno bemoans the lack of other children to play with, general ugliness of his surroundings, and the loss of his old friends. However, when he starts to observe the goings-on behind the large fence visible from his bedroom, he makes the acquaintance of a boy his age who helps him realize that there is much more going on in his new home than he previously realized.
The Lovely Bones
Title: The Lovely Bones
Author: Alice Sebold
ISBN: 1600240682 (Audio Book)
Narrator: Alice Sebold
Plot Summary: Susie Salmon is a teenager living in a suburb of Philadelphia. When she is brutally raped and murdered by a neighbor, her family must cope with their grief, loss, and determination to find Susie's killer and bring him to justice. Susie is not her killer's first victim, but he has evaded capture for many years, and this time is no exception, although he is eventually met with a form of justice. While all this is taking place, Susie watches her family's goings-on from heaven, eventually witnessing their slow rebirth as a functional family unit, and the continuation of life in the form of her sister's child.
Author: Alice Sebold
ISBN: 1600240682 (Audio Book)
Narrator: Alice Sebold
Plot Summary: Susie Salmon is a teenager living in a suburb of Philadelphia. When she is brutally raped and murdered by a neighbor, her family must cope with their grief, loss, and determination to find Susie's killer and bring him to justice. Susie is not her killer's first victim, but he has evaded capture for many years, and this time is no exception, although he is eventually met with a form of justice. While all this is taking place, Susie watches her family's goings-on from heaven, eventually witnessing their slow rebirth as a functional family unit, and the continuation of life in the form of her sister's child.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Title: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Author: C.S. Lewis (original); Andrew Adamson, Ann Peacock, Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely (screenplay)
Director: Andrew Adamson
Cast: Georgie Henley (Lucy), Skandar Keynes (Edmund), William Moseley (Peter), Anna Popplewell (Susan), Tilda Swinton (The White Witch), James McEvoy (Mr. Tumnus), Jim Broadbent (Professor Kirke), Liam Neeson (Aslan).
ASIN: B000E8M0VA (DVD)
Other Movies in Series: Prince Caspian
Other Books in Series: Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Horse and His Boy, The Magician's Nephew, The Last Battle.
Plot Summary: Lucy, Edmund, Peter and Susan Pevensie are four siblings growing up in London during World War II. When the German bombings make conditions in the city too dangerous, they are relocated to a country manor inhabited by an eccentric professor and his rather dour maid. In exploring the vast house, the children stumble upon a wardrobe that is a portal to a magical world known as Narnia. However, all is not well in this land: the White Witch has all creatures and areas in the land under her control, and her magic makes it "always Winter and never Christmas" in Narnia. Three of the Pevensie siblings befriend sympathetic characters in Narnia, but Edmund is seduced into joining the White Witch's side with promises of wealth, power, and all the Turkish Delight he can eat. Unfortunately, the Witch's promises prove as artificial as her imposed winter, and he becomes her prisoner. The other three siblings set out to find him and defeat the Witch, encountering both dangers and encouraging signs of change along the way. Before they return to the "real" world, they will join forces with Aslan, a talking lion and the leader of the resistance against the Witch, for the future and soul of Narnia.
Author: C.S. Lewis (original); Andrew Adamson, Ann Peacock, Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely (screenplay)
Director: Andrew Adamson
Cast: Georgie Henley (Lucy), Skandar Keynes (Edmund), William Moseley (Peter), Anna Popplewell (Susan), Tilda Swinton (The White Witch), James McEvoy (Mr. Tumnus), Jim Broadbent (Professor Kirke), Liam Neeson (Aslan).
ASIN: B000E8M0VA (DVD)
Other Movies in Series: Prince Caspian
Other Books in Series: Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Horse and His Boy, The Magician's Nephew, The Last Battle.
Plot Summary: Lucy, Edmund, Peter and Susan Pevensie are four siblings growing up in London during World War II. When the German bombings make conditions in the city too dangerous, they are relocated to a country manor inhabited by an eccentric professor and his rather dour maid. In exploring the vast house, the children stumble upon a wardrobe that is a portal to a magical world known as Narnia. However, all is not well in this land: the White Witch has all creatures and areas in the land under her control, and her magic makes it "always Winter and never Christmas" in Narnia. Three of the Pevensie siblings befriend sympathetic characters in Narnia, but Edmund is seduced into joining the White Witch's side with promises of wealth, power, and all the Turkish Delight he can eat. Unfortunately, the Witch's promises prove as artificial as her imposed winter, and he becomes her prisoner. The other three siblings set out to find him and defeat the Witch, encountering both dangers and encouraging signs of change along the way. Before they return to the "real" world, they will join forces with Aslan, a talking lion and the leader of the resistance against the Witch, for the future and soul of Narnia.
Lord of the Flies
Title: Lord of the Flies
Author: William Golding
ISBN: 0399529209
Plot Summary: A group of British schoolboys are stranded on a desert island after their plane crashes, killing all the "grownups" on board. Determined to create some form of order to survive, the group of boys soon split off into two factions: the main group, led by the charismatic Ralph, who feels it is his duty to look after the younger boys, and the "hunters," led by the older and more practical Jack, who takes responsibility for finding food for the group. Both tribes eventually become more animalistic, with Jack keeping his group in line by encouraging their belief in a rumored "monster" on the island. These rumors lead to the boys mistaking the corpses of a pilot, a parachutist, and a wild pig for the imaginary creature. Tragedy strikes when one of the boys is mistaken for the monster and killed by the others; this also causes a shift in power, as many of Ralph's followers defect to Jack's side. When Ralph's now much smaller band decide to steal the glasses of an overweight, awkward boy known as Piggy, the ensuing struggle leads to Piggy's accidental death as well. It is not until the boys are ultimately rescued that they come to realize exactly how far they have fallen into the traps of anarchy and barbarism.
Author: William Golding
ISBN: 0399529209
Plot Summary: A group of British schoolboys are stranded on a desert island after their plane crashes, killing all the "grownups" on board. Determined to create some form of order to survive, the group of boys soon split off into two factions: the main group, led by the charismatic Ralph, who feels it is his duty to look after the younger boys, and the "hunters," led by the older and more practical Jack, who takes responsibility for finding food for the group. Both tribes eventually become more animalistic, with Jack keeping his group in line by encouraging their belief in a rumored "monster" on the island. These rumors lead to the boys mistaking the corpses of a pilot, a parachutist, and a wild pig for the imaginary creature. Tragedy strikes when one of the boys is mistaken for the monster and killed by the others; this also causes a shift in power, as many of Ralph's followers defect to Jack's side. When Ralph's now much smaller band decide to steal the glasses of an overweight, awkward boy known as Piggy, the ensuing struggle leads to Piggy's accidental death as well. It is not until the boys are ultimately rescued that they come to realize exactly how far they have fallen into the traps of anarchy and barbarism.
Puppet
Title: Puppet
Author: Eva Wiseman
ISBN: 0887768288
Plot Summary: Julie, a young girl growing up in Hungary at the end of the 19th century, deals with poverty, hunger, and domestic violence in her daily life. When her best friend is found dead, the villagers blame the local Jewish community. In the course of the murder trial, Morris Scharf, a young Jewish boy who is the son of the defendant, is coerced, tortured and bribed into giving testimony against his father. Although Julie understands the pressures with which Morris is faced, she decides she must overcome her father's wrath, the community's disapproval, and her own fear in order to tell the truth.
Author: Eva Wiseman
ISBN: 0887768288
Plot Summary: Julie, a young girl growing up in Hungary at the end of the 19th century, deals with poverty, hunger, and domestic violence in her daily life. When her best friend is found dead, the villagers blame the local Jewish community. In the course of the murder trial, Morris Scharf, a young Jewish boy who is the son of the defendant, is coerced, tortured and bribed into giving testimony against his father. Although Julie understands the pressures with which Morris is faced, she decides she must overcome her father's wrath, the community's disapproval, and her own fear in order to tell the truth.
The Kite Runner
Title: The Kite Runner
Author: Khaled Hosseini
ISBN: 1594480001
Plot Summary: Amir led a privileged life in Afghanistan prior to the Communist revolution: he and his father lived in a spacious villa with servants, and his father was a well-respected man in his community. Amir had an unequal yet genuine friendship with Hassan, the son of his father's servant. Yet when Hassan is brutally attacked by a group of boys, Amir stands by and does nothing, and later falsely accuses his friend of stealing, causing both him and his father to leave the estate, so that he will not have to feel guilty anymore. After the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Amir and his father have to leave the country, eventually moving to Fremont, California, where Amir meets and falls in love with a young woman from the local Afghan community. After his father's death, Amir gets a telephone call from an old family friend, asking him to come back to Afghanistan to rescue Hassan's son. In the process, Amir comes face to face with parts of his past that he would rather forget, and slowly tries to help his best friend's son begin the healing process.
Author: Khaled Hosseini
ISBN: 1594480001
Plot Summary: Amir led a privileged life in Afghanistan prior to the Communist revolution: he and his father lived in a spacious villa with servants, and his father was a well-respected man in his community. Amir had an unequal yet genuine friendship with Hassan, the son of his father's servant. Yet when Hassan is brutally attacked by a group of boys, Amir stands by and does nothing, and later falsely accuses his friend of stealing, causing both him and his father to leave the estate, so that he will not have to feel guilty anymore. After the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Amir and his father have to leave the country, eventually moving to Fremont, California, where Amir meets and falls in love with a young woman from the local Afghan community. After his father's death, Amir gets a telephone call from an old family friend, asking him to come back to Afghanistan to rescue Hassan's son. In the process, Amir comes face to face with parts of his past that he would rather forget, and slowly tries to help his best friend's son begin the healing process.
Holes
Title: Holes
Author: Louis Sachar
ISBN: 0439244196
Plot Summary: Stanley Yelnats, the son of a failed would-be inventor, comes from a long line of cursed individuals, all of whom bear the same name. The family curse dates back to an Eastern European ancestor who stole a pig from a a gypsy woman, Madame Zeroni. Stanley himself is wrongfully accused of stealing a valuable pair of sneakers, and is sentenced to a juvenile facility at which the Stanley and the other offenders have to dig holes all day, in search of a mysterious treasure sought by the woman who owns the land. In the process of meeting his fellow juvenile offenders, Stanley tries to figure out the mystery behind what it is they are searching for and the story behind it. In the process, the reader is shown flashbacks to the events leading up to the treasure's burial, and Stanley uncovers enough clues not only to change the situation at Camp Green Lake permanently, but possibly to lift his family curse once and for all.
Author: Louis Sachar
ISBN: 0439244196
Plot Summary: Stanley Yelnats, the son of a failed would-be inventor, comes from a long line of cursed individuals, all of whom bear the same name. The family curse dates back to an Eastern European ancestor who stole a pig from a a gypsy woman, Madame Zeroni. Stanley himself is wrongfully accused of stealing a valuable pair of sneakers, and is sentenced to a juvenile facility at which the Stanley and the other offenders have to dig holes all day, in search of a mysterious treasure sought by the woman who owns the land. In the process of meeting his fellow juvenile offenders, Stanley tries to figure out the mystery behind what it is they are searching for and the story behind it. In the process, the reader is shown flashbacks to the events leading up to the treasure's burial, and Stanley uncovers enough clues not only to change the situation at Camp Green Lake permanently, but possibly to lift his family curse once and for all.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Title: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Author: J.K. Rowling
ISBN: 043935806X
Other Books in Series: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
Plot Summary: When Harry Potter goes back for his fifth year at Hogwarts, he finds the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Dolores Umbridge, gradually taking over the school as per the instructions of her real employer, the Ministry of Magic. Meanwhile, his godfather, Sirius Black, introduces him to the Order of the Phoenix, a band of magical rebels dedicated to defeating Voldemort and his followers. In the same spirit, Harry forms Dumbledore's Army among like-minded peers at Hogwarts, banding together to drive out the tyrannical Umbridge after she takes over Dumbledore's position as Headmaster. Harry's involvement in both of these groups, combined with his other problems, push him almost to the breaking point, and although he makes it through his various ordeals, victory will not come without a strong measure of personal tragedy.
Author: J.K. Rowling
ISBN: 043935806X
Other Books in Series: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
Plot Summary: When Harry Potter goes back for his fifth year at Hogwarts, he finds the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Dolores Umbridge, gradually taking over the school as per the instructions of her real employer, the Ministry of Magic. Meanwhile, his godfather, Sirius Black, introduces him to the Order of the Phoenix, a band of magical rebels dedicated to defeating Voldemort and his followers. In the same spirit, Harry forms Dumbledore's Army among like-minded peers at Hogwarts, banding together to drive out the tyrannical Umbridge after she takes over Dumbledore's position as Headmaster. Harry's involvement in both of these groups, combined with his other problems, push him almost to the breaking point, and although he makes it through his various ordeals, victory will not come without a strong measure of personal tragedy.
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