Fahrenheit 451
By Ray Bradbury
One of the most amazing books I have ever read in my entire life was the book Fahrenheit 451. This book was about a time where books were illegal and firemen burned any book that was uncovered. There were many parts of this book that stuck out to me. The books were burned because the books were to insulting to too many people. It was a safer world for everyone if there were no books to make anyone upset, but this also led to a disaster. No one was aware of the events that were going on around them. Guy Montag’s, the main character, wife couldn’t remember when she married Guy. I wonder, are we like that now? Do we not know what is going on around us? There was another example of this in the book. Guy, after falling in love with books, kills the Chief of the firemen, and absconds off to hide. He runs to Faber’s house, where he knows he will be safe for a short while. As he watches the T.V., he saw the police kill an innocent man. The government did not want the public to worry about the fugitive running around the city. In order to do so, they pretended to kill Guy by attacking the poor by-stander. I wonder if our government, and other governments around the world, do the same thing. How much do we not know? After reading this book, I am starting to wonder what is truth and what is not. I abhor the thought that we citizens are not being told everything that we should know. Even so, this book was amazing and I would love to read it again.
To Kill a Mockingbird
By Harbor Lee
To Kill a Mockingbird was a book about a young girl who remembers a summer when a black man was put on trial for raping a white woman. This book was an amazing story that truly impacted my life. It has really made me think about my neighbors, both friends and enemies. In the book, Scout, the nickname of the main character, had heard many stories about the people who live around her. One such person was Boo Radley, a mysterious man who lived locked up in his house. There were stories about how he cut his father with a pair of scissors or that his dead body was stuffed up in the chimney of his house. Yet over the course of the book, Scout learns that Boo was really a benevolent man, during such times when he gave her a blanket while she stood outside in the night, giving her little trinkets such as carved soap and a watch, and even saving both her and her brother’s life. People are not always what they appear to be. There are times I believe someone is a demonic character, but as I get to know them I come to realize that they are the considerate neighbor I could have. This book demonstrates this completely. After reading that book, every time I meet someone new, I try to get to know him or her first before deciding on what they are as a person. I try not to listen to the gossip at school or any other public area that spreads like a plague. Just like the book, those stories are usually very wrong.
After Dark
By Haruki Murakami
During the summer, I read the book After Dark. The plot is about a girl who is awake during one night, where she meets interesting people, learns new lessons, and come to realizations about her life. I noticed that throughout the book, everyone is running away from something, whether it was his or her own past, or strangers who are after them. Most characters hid themselves by running away from the problem, but the main character decided to stop running, and take action. I myself run away from many problems, whether it involves hard work or actions I do not want to remember. After reading this book, I questioned myself, “Why was I running?” I no longer want to run, either. After reading this book, I can see that standing up to the danger will not only make you a stronger person, but also make the problem go away. Running never solves anything; doing something about it will. I loved this book so much. There were so many lessons that this book teaches that everyone can benefit from. This book also speaks about mistakes. Everyone makes them. However, it is important to learn from these mistakes and move on. This goes back to running away. Do not run from mistakes. Take them head on, and fix them. This book has changed my perspective on life.
Across The Books 