The Ending of Dear John

Referring to my last post about this book, I was pleasantly surprised to see that this book was no the way I imagined it to be. In my last post, I mentioned that the book had a typical love story and that it had a plot that was predictable. As I was reading the book, I thought that after John came back from the way, Savannah would still be waiting for him no matter how long he was away for. In comparison to the beginning of the book, I felt that they would be inseparable and would end up together no matter what. To my surprise, it was the opposite. They did not end up together though there were undeniably feelings still there when they met each other again. To my dismay, my expectations of this book having a fairytale ending was crushed when I found out Savannah was married to another man. John obviously still had feelings for her throughout the book and there was still an attraction between the two. I should have expected a sad ending though due to Nicholas Sparks' other book which also have a sad ending. Overall, I liked this book because of the surprises throughout.

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

In the book "Dear John" by Nicholas Sparks, the main character, John is in the army and he quickly falls in love with a girl named Savannah. He then becomes friends with her friend named Tim, in which they all spend time with each other. After reading about the events that take place between John and Savannah and how he must leave her to go serve in the army, I feel that I can predict the plot of the story. Also, I feel that the story of love in this book is very unrealistic. The relationship between Savannah and John seem to be perfect and that nothing can tear them apart. The only con of their relationship is that he must leave her and be deployed to a place due to his participation in the army. It is sad to see John and Savannah part and it is interesting to see the relationship between John and his father. Also, how Savannah is involved and greatly affects John's relationship with his father.

The Ending of "She's Come Undone"

Getting toward the end of the book, I thought it was the best part of the book due to the many different things going on in Dolores' life. The book takes the reader through the childhood of Dolores to her adulthood. It is an interesting transformation that she makes and it is interesting to see the many difficult situations she is put in. The events that takes place in Dolores' life and the ways she is treated is not typical for a woman. From being raped, her mother dying at such a young age, being unappreciated and ignored, being well over two hundred pounds in her teen years are few of many factors that affected her greatly as she was growing up. The most notable difference I noticed in Dolores from when she was a child to when she is an adult, is the amount of control she uses. As a child she would let others take control of her and never stand up for herself. She would always be passive in the way she would react toward people trying to offend and target her. As she grew older, more in to a woman, Dolores learned how to control her life in a healthier way and show people that is a strong individual. She did not let her former husband, Dante, use her and decided to divorce him for her own benefit. If it were the old Dolores, she would have probably let him walk all over her, but it was apparent that she has changed and has a new optimistic view on life.

More About "She's Come Undone"

As I get farther into the book, "She's Come Undone", I feel sympathy toward Dolores. She must deal with many incidents that a typical thirteen year old would not have to deal with. The fact that no one gives her a break after what had happened to Dolores causes her so much stress, yet no one pays attention to her. I think it is upsetting to see such a young girl suffer so much after the traumatizing incident and dealing with it without help from anyone. She is constantly being told to do things and has trouble sleeping, but her mother and grandmother do not do anything about it. Her mother is also tired of Dolores' behavior but she cannot help that she feels the way she does after what had happened. Now, Dolores must deal and cope with the death of her mother which came from nowhere. I feel sorry for her because she already has trouble understanding what had happened and how to deal with it, but now she must cope with her mother's death and stay strong. Dolores' story is unique and original since no young teen usually goes through this much.

The Connection Between "She's Come Undone" and "Speak"

After reading some of "She's Come Undone" I made a connection concerning the main character of the book, Dolores, to the main character Melinda in the book "Speak". Both Melinda and Dolores are harassed and in a way both lose their sense of self. Dolores is harassed by her mother's boyfriend. She does not really know what is happening until he makes his move. She did not know what to do or think about it. I thought that this connected to Melinda because when she too was harassed by a boy who goes to her school, she was unable to make any type of communication and stayed cooped up in her own bubble. She lost her friends and did not know who she was anymore. They both have trouble understanding what they go through and do not realize to what extent it was wrong. In Melinda's case, she is scarred and does not want anyone to know about what has happened. Both characters endure the same kind of harassment and the incidents both have a strong impact on them.

Thoughts About The Quiet Room

The last chapters in The Quiet Room is Lori's mother, her doctor, and of course, Lori speaking of her experiences in the hospitals and the voices that Lori hears in her head. Lori goes through the detail of what the voices say to her, how they make her feel, and how she deals with them. The fact that her parents were willing to take the risk of the medication killing their daughter, they still decided to give it to Lori. It shows that her parents who loves her so dearly desperately wants Lori to get better. I think that it is remarkable that she was able to overcome her schizophrenia disorder and has a positive outlook on life. Compared to the Lori in the beginning through middle of the book, every time she was put into a situation, her mind would always get filled with negative thoughts and suicide. She always had the desire to kill herself so that she did not have to deal with the voices in her head. By the end of the book she would always say that she wanted to live and spend her life with her family who cares for her. Lori says that she is no longer the type of person who runs away from her problems but as a goal, wants to face her problems and wants to find a way to deal with them. I think The Quiet Room is a powerful book that shows the growth and transformation of a vulnerable schizophrenic woman to a courageous, will-powered, and matured woman.

More into The Quiet Room

After getting farther into the book, I found it to be much more interesting because in the beginning it was explaining Lori's background and family instead of the real deal. Now that I got more into the book the chapters started to alternate between family members in Lori's family and they explain how they are affected by Lori's behavior/her schizophrenia. One chapter is narrated by Lori's father, Marvin who partly blames himself for the disorder and wonders where his sweet and caring daughter has gone. I feel pity toward Lori's father because he too is suffering from Lori's psychological disorder and does not know what to do in order to help Lori. Another chapter is narrated by Lori's younger brother, Steven who blames his parents for Lori's disorder. He always looked up to Lori but now that she is in the hospital he feels that his parents are just trying to avoid the problem by sending her away in isolation. Lori's mother, Nancy also narrates another chapter in the book. She lies to her children instead of telling them she was actually visiting Lori at the hospital. She does not know how to communicate with Lori because she refuses to listen and to accept the help everyone around her is offering. Lori's problem is tearing her family apart and I find it disappointing that all this is the cause of a drug and a boy. It is sad to see a family get broken apart because of this situation where just a few months ago they were one close-knit family who always spent time together.

Thoughts on "The Quiet Room" by Lori Schiller

The books starts off about summer camp and the boy she is involved with. All of a sudden he breaks things off with her and she starts to lose her composure which leads to her taking drugs. This is when all things just start to go down hill. I think that it is interesting that she would let a boy ruin her life and drive her in a negative direction, especially since she has many other things going for her, such as her good grades, her family, her friends, and being accepted and/or wait-listed at prestigious colleges. After coming home from summer camp, she avoids spending time with her family and hides things from her best friend. All of which she never used to do. Lori does not have the guts to tell them about what really happened during summer. I think that it is disappointing to see such a well-rounded girl succumbing to taking drugs because of a boy. Also, that she would let her relationship with her family and best friend be affected due to her terrible decision. It only ruins her most important relationships, her ability to obtain an education, and her everyday basic activities.

A Million Little Pieces

Over the summer, I read A Million Little Pieces by James Frey. It is a book that is debated to be non-fiction and fiction. The events in the book are true, but he admits that he projects a character that was stronger than he truly was at the time. As I was reading the book and got closer to the end of the book, I noticed a transformation occurring within the main character, James. In the beginning of the book, he arrived at the Rehabilitation Center as a closed-minded man whom did not accept the help of others. James also could not control his cravings for drugs and the feelings he felt toward people, like his family. James did not accept the steps the people at the Rehab Center felt would help him in becoming sober. He refused to listen to anyone because he did not want to feel authority coming from others and only listened to how he felt. James also felt alone and did not have the desire to make friends, but by the end of the book James felt loved, had friends, and even a girlfriend. James started to develop into a character that became willing to become sober and started to try different things in order to reach sobriety. He also started to make friends in Rehab and started to deal with his cravings for drugs in a healthier way. Due to the Family Program in the Rehab Center, James and his family had a much better connection toward each other now that the truth was out in the open. His girlfriend, Lily also motivated him to stay sober so that he would be able to help her get sober as well. Overall, James was a stubborn and grumpy man who transformed into a mature man who instead of caving into his desires for drugs, he was willing to be sober.