"The Magician's Nephew"- Reading Response

In the first book of the classic Chronicles of Narnia, "The Magician's Nephew" by C.S. Lewis, the main characters Polly and Digory meet an evil and pretentious queen named Jadis. While reading the book, I found myself resisting this character so much that I nearly stopped reading. I think this was because even though she was cruel and full of herself and broke the law, nobody in the story tried to put her in jail or make a real effort to stop her because she was a beautiful woman.

I found myself resisting Queen Jadis because she was cruel, often for no reason. For example, she destroyed her own world and claimed it didn't matter because her people's only purpose was to serve her. Then, when Digory and Polly took her to Earth and then Narnia, she tried to take over both worlds. Jadis also uses violent tactics to get people to listen to her. When she met Digory's stubborn Aunt Letty, she tried to blast her when she was told not to use strong language in the house. When Jadis discovered that her blasting powers didn't work on earth, she threw Aunt Letty against the wall without hesitation.

I also resisted Jadis because she was pretentious and full of herself. For instance, when she went to earth she expected everyone to listen to her and bow down to her, and she called everyone "slave" or "dog" or "minion". She also only talked to or listened to people who could be useful to her. She refused to even look at Polly because she didn't know that she had access to magic as well as Digory. Jadis also did stupid things to try and "assert her dominance" like standing on top of cabs and telling people she was the queen of the world.

Despite everything else Jadis did, the thing that annoyed me most about her was that nobody (on Earth especially) made a huge effort to stop her. This was because she was, to use the words of Uncle Andrew, a "dem fine woman". What everyone on earth did mostly was just make fun of her and ogle at her, not acknowledge or try to prevent her vicious ways.

"Should IKWCBS be Banned?"- Publish

Everywhere in the United States parents and teachers are attempting to ban certain books from middle schools that are thought to have objectionable content. Many of these have taught children important lessons over the years. These challenged books include the tragic classic I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou. It's the  touching, nonfiction autobiography of a girl who was raped as a young child and is forced to deal with that and racism throughout her life. Because of these mature themes, many people think that this book should be banned from middle school libraries. I disagree. I think that it is important IKWCBS book stays on the shelves in middle schools. It is important for kids at that age to learn about real-life issues such as those presented in the book. Besides that, many children are already exposed to these issues and banning books has proved to be ineffective in many situations.

IKWCBS should not be banned from middle school libraries because children in middle school need to learn about real life issues like those in the book. For example, in the book, the main character Maya deals with a lot of racism aimed towards her and her family, since they are black and living in the era of the Great Depression. These are unavoidable subjects in life even today, and the best way for a child to learn about these issues is through reading about it. And either way, it's not as if children haven't already been exposed to racism. Some experience it firsthand, while others learn about slavery in school in as early as 2nd grade. In the book, Maya's grandmother takes her to be treated by a white dentist, but the dentist says "I'd rather stick my hand down a dog's mouth than a n*gger's". This may seem extreme to some parents and teachers, but this book is an autobiography, and it gives kids a real look into history and what life was like for black people at that time. It could also help kids who are experiencing racism towards them by giving them something to relate to. It could help them feel like they are not alone, and maybe give them a boost in confidence.

This book also shouldn't be banned because book banning in general is ineffective. According to the article “The Banned Books We Have Loved”, "banning doesn't... hurt the [banned books] much at all. If anything, it may even inspire more interest....and sales, too." Banning certain books just makes books more intriguing and kids more interested. For instance, the New York Times best seller “The Hunger Games” was one of the most frequently challenged books of 2011, according to the American Library Association. Yet the book and the series has only become increasingly popular, and the first and second in the trilogy have already been made into movies.

Some people want to ban IKWCBS because it has sex and rape scenes in it. But this is not a good reason to ban the book because most middle school kids have already been exposed to this through books, movies and media. Sex Ed or Health is also taught in many schools, so it is not an unfamiliar topic with middle school kids. Also, if rape scenes make the child reading the book uncomfortable, they should know when to put it down. it should be an expectation for kids of that age to know what they can handle in a book. If a child reads the blurb/content of a book such as this one and is uncomfortable with it, he/she should be mature enough at an age of 11 and up to stop reading it.

Limiting kids from reading certain books such as I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is wrong. This book specifically has important themes and real issues that kids should learn about or already have learned about, like racism, rape, and sex.

"The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making"- Reading Response

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynnne Valente is a creative fantasy about a young girl named September who is whisked off to a world of witches, Wyveraries, and magic. At first, this world seems to be any bored little girl's dream, but she soon realizes how dangerous it is. The dreadful queen of  Fairyland, the Marquess, has attempted to make Fairlyland more safe than ever before, but by this she has made it even more dangerous. The Marquess has almost complete power over her kingdom, and establishes it by essentially making all the creatures of Fairyland work for her; and when they disobey, punishing them harshly.

One way the Marquess shows her power is by making certain creatures work for her. For example, when September had disobeyed her orders, she commanded the Tsukumogami (alive household objects over 100 years old) to kill September. The Marquess also gained control over the kindness of the creatures of Fairyland. When the her people weren't kind to the little girls and boys that came to Fairyland, she greenlisted them. She greenlisted them for other reasons, too. September and her friends, Ell and Saturday, met a woman named Calpurnia Farthing while bicycle riding. Calpurnia had taken a changeling (a child who has been taken from earth to come to Fairyland and replaced with a goblin) from an orchestra where the changeling had been very unhappy. Even though it was in the best interest of the child, and she didn't have anyone to look after her anyway, Calpurnia was still punished for messing up the Marquess's system.

Another way the Marquess established her power was by making Fairyland "safer" and more suitable for the young humans who came there. One way she did this was by chaining all of the flying creatures of Fairylands' wings. One of these creatures was A-through-L, or Ell, one of September's friends. Later in the book the Marquess claims it was "unfair" to everyone else when certain creatures could fly. But if it wasn't enough that their wings were chained, they were also chained with iron, a metal that every native of Fairyland was allergic to.

The Marquess was a cruel queen of Fairyland. She showed her power through force and brutality, and Fairyland was better off the way it was before she took over.