Assignment #2: After reading this book review, what do you think your experience reading this book is going to be like? Do you tend to look at book reviews before you purchase a book? Do you use book reviews to influence your book purchases? Are you more apt to listen to a friend who recommends a book to you? Your response should be at least 250 words.
Reading Mark Welch’s overall review of And Still We Rise has only assured what I’ve thought of the book from reading the first sixty-one pages: I will absolutely love this book. Books such as these, ones that tell the true stories of people who have faced such unbelievable hardships and circumstances but do not ever lose hope, are my favorites. I like inspirational stories, ones that tell you the story of a person, from the past or present, and the problems they’ve faced, the odds they’ve overcome, and (hopefully if it ends happily) the success they find at the end of their journey. The reason why I feel I’m so attracted to books like these is because reading them makes me feel better about my own life. It makes me appreciate what I have by realizing that there are plenty of other people out there who have it much worse. It also shows me that though I have problems of my own, issues I feel are impossible for me to overcome, I can succeed because others in the world have overcome things far more challenging than what’s on my plate. But most of all, the one thing I appreciate sincerely from books like And Still We Rise is that you can be assured that you are not alone in this world. Pain and suffering is universal, and whenever I feel absolutely terrible, when I just want to pull my hair out or break down and cry, when I feel that no one understands what I’m going through, books like these show me that I’m not alone.
In the past few days during which I read the first sixty-one pages of the book, I’ve found myself going on an emotional roller coaster ride. There were times I felt shocked, times I felt like tearing up, and times I felt frustrated or angry at what was happening to the characters or the wrong decisions they were making. All this aggravation and I’ve only read about three of the twelve students whose stories fill the pages. (Sigh). I know that there’s probably a lot more in store for me as I continue on with the book, but in all honesty, I’m excited. I want to find out what happens next to these students, who, though I know I probably will never meet, I have much respect and support for. When an author can make you care and take such interest in the characters of their book, fictional or not, that is how you know that they can write.
When it comes to considering what book to buy and read at my local bookstore, I rarely read book reviews before I make my purchase, especially those people post online. I respect entirely that other people have their own opinions, thoughts, and feelings about books, movies, music, etc. But I never need to read reviews to know what I like and what I want. Furthermore, I don’t like reviews so much because I don’t like to be influenced at all one way or another before I start something, especially when it comes to a book. There are always people who like it and people who don’t, and I don’t like to be influenced at all, even in the slightest way, before I start reading a book. I like going into things with an open, empty mind and creating my own opinion of something before I hear or read the opinions of others.
But there are times when I stand in the aisles at Borders or gaze up and down the shelves at the public library and have absolutely no idea what to read. In those circumstances, the only people I would trust to ask for their opinions and suggestions are family and friends. If I had a review of a book in the newspaper versus the words of my close friend, I would listen to my friend. I know for a fact that I can trust in their recommendations for me because unlike reviewers in the newspaper or on Amazon.com, my friends and family actually know me. They know what I like and what I don’t like, and so I can put my full confidence in them, trusting that they will suggest something that I will truly like or dissuade me from reading something I really won’t like.
Reading Mark Welch’s overall review of And Still We Rise has only assured what I’ve thought of the book from reading the first sixty-one pages: I will absolutely love this book. Books such as these, ones that tell the true stories of people who have faced such unbelievable hardships and circumstances but do not ever lose hope, are my favorites. I like inspirational stories, ones that tell you the story of a person, from the past or present, and the problems they’ve faced, the odds they’ve overcome, and (hopefully if it ends happily) the success they find at the end of their journey. The reason why I feel I’m so attracted to books like these is because reading them makes me feel better about my own life. It makes me appreciate what I have by realizing that there are plenty of other people out there who have it much worse. It also shows me that though I have problems of my own, issues I feel are impossible for me to overcome, I can succeed because others in the world have overcome things far more challenging than what’s on my plate. But most of all, the one thing I appreciate sincerely from books like And Still We Rise is that you can be assured that you are not alone in this world. Pain and suffering is universal, and whenever I feel absolutely terrible, when I just want to pull my hair out or break down and cry, when I feel that no one understands what I’m going through, books like these show me that I’m not alone.
In the past few days during which I read the first sixty-one pages of the book, I’ve found myself going on an emotional roller coaster ride. There were times I felt shocked, times I felt like tearing up, and times I felt frustrated or angry at what was happening to the characters or the wrong decisions they were making. All this aggravation and I’ve only read about three of the twelve students whose stories fill the pages. (Sigh). I know that there’s probably a lot more in store for me as I continue on with the book, but in all honesty, I’m excited. I want to find out what happens next to these students, who, though I know I probably will never meet, I have much respect and support for. When an author can make you care and take such interest in the characters of their book, fictional or not, that is how you know that they can write.
When it comes to considering what book to buy and read at my local bookstore, I rarely read book reviews before I make my purchase, especially those people post online. I respect entirely that other people have their own opinions, thoughts, and feelings about books, movies, music, etc. But I never need to read reviews to know what I like and what I want. Furthermore, I don’t like reviews so much because I don’t like to be influenced at all one way or another before I start something, especially when it comes to a book. There are always people who like it and people who don’t, and I don’t like to be influenced at all, even in the slightest way, before I start reading a book. I like going into things with an open, empty mind and creating my own opinion of something before I hear or read the opinions of others.
But there are times when I stand in the aisles at Borders or gaze up and down the shelves at the public library and have absolutely no idea what to read. In those circumstances, the only people I would trust to ask for their opinions and suggestions are family and friends. If I had a review of a book in the newspaper versus the words of my close friend, I would listen to my friend. I know for a fact that I can trust in their recommendations for me because unlike reviewers in the newspaper or on Amazon.com, my friends and family actually know me. They know what I like and what I don’t like, and so I can put my full confidence in them, trusting that they will suggest something that I will truly like or dissuade me from reading something I really won’t like.
Damnn, this is a good reaction to the review. It's not just detailed, but you support your views and state your own personal opinion about not wanting to read reviews, which I completely agree. I think that your writing really reflects you, and you can hear your voice very well in this prompt. So good job Sam. :]
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