Blog Reflections

One of my best blog posts was the post on Sunday, October 6, 2013 when I was talking about what I had read so far. The blog post is called “So far”. In this blog post I am telling the readers where I am so far in the book. When I posted that I was at chapter 8. In the post I explained what happened in chapters 6 and 7. In this post I also tell what the characters are feeling. This post meets the standards of analysis according to the rubric because I used a specific example from the text. I said,” He saw Katie play with an imaginary ring on her finger and it reminded him of the women when he was at CID.” This shows that I used specific examples from the text. I also inferred in this blog post. I said,” After reading this chapter I infer that Katie will end up telling Alex more about her past.” This shows that I inferred in this blog post. This also shows that I met all the criteria for analysis.

http://saylorsreadingblog.blogspot.com/2013/10/so-far.html

Next trimester my goals for reading are to finish this book, because it is really long and I’m only half way into it. For writing my goals are to write more fluently and more descriptions.  Some areas of improvement I want to work towards next trimester are to become a more consistent reader so that I can become better at understanding texts, use better and more challenging vocabulary and to become better at writing based on the examples I read.

One thing I struggled with during this experience was making sure I read consistently so that I had things to blog about. It’s hard to find time to read because of homework and sports. I overcame this struggle by finding times during the week to read.  Another struggle I had was finding new ways to talk about my book in my bog. I overcame this by getting ideas off of other student’s blogs and referring back to the rubric. A strength I had with blogging was analyzing each chapter. It was really easy to summarize each paragraph. A good example of this is my post on Sunday, September 15, 2013 called “Safe Haven: Chapters 3 and 4”. In this post I did a good job of analyzing the text and I used descriptive details and used good connections.

http://saylorsreadingblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/safe-haven-chapters3-and-4.html

Reflections so far

I am really enjoying the book and believe anyone who likes romance and love stories would enjoy it too. It is very interesting and always makes you want to keep reading another chapter. I'm excited that Katie and Alex are finally falling in love and cant stop thinking about each other. I still feel like Katie is hiding somethings of her past and Alex does too. He wants to learn as mach as he can about her and that makes the reader want to too.

Chapters 14 and 15

In chapter 14 Alex and the kid decide to go to Ivan's for dinner. They see Katie there and she is very surprised and happy that they are there. Alex is also very excited that he gets to see and talk to her. Even though its not the most romantic or ideal place to see her, they still are just so happy to see each other. In chapter 15 Katie is working on decorating her house and getting new things to decorate it. When katie woke up on Saturday morning she walked out to the porch and saw Jo hammering away. When Jo asks Katie whats she is doing that night Katie says that she is having someone over for dinner. She gets ready the wole day waiting for Alex to arrive.

Chapter 13

This chapter is mainly about how Alex cant stop thinking about Katie. That week they were both working a lot and had no time to see each other. All he did was think about her which shows the love he has for her. This chapter is ver important because it shows everyones true feelings. So far both Alex and Katie really like each other more than friends and cant stop thinking about each other. This makes me want to keep reading because I want to see what will happen between these two.

Chapter 12

In chapter 12 Jo and Katie are talking about the beach trip with Alex and the kids. Its a very short chapter but in the short passage you learn how Katie really feels about Alex. It also shows how close Jo and Katie are getting and really showing how smart Jo is. Jo is good at manipulating Katie into telling her things and has a way of twisting Katie's words around so that she realizes things about herself. I'm really enjoying the book so far.

Questions/ Predictions

A question i have about the book is; What is going to happen between Katie and Alex? I predict that they will fall in love and get married. They seem to be falling in love now. I have also been wondering if Katie will open up to Alex about her past? I predict that she will eventually but she will really have to know him and trust Alex before she does.

Chapter 9 and 10

In chapter 9 Katie goes to the beach with Alex and his kids. On the beach Katie and Alex start to talk about Alex's wife when he stops and apologizes for bringing her up. Katie assures him that it is ok and that it's good to talk about her. She gets him to tell her how they met. So far the book is very interesting and i cant wait to keep reading!

Characters

There are only 5 main characters so far. There is Katie who is quiet, content, and cautious. She doesn't want to make any mistakes. So she always thinks before everything she does and doesn't talk to many people. There is Jo who is bold, caring, and very knowledgeable. She is one of Katie's only friends and knows the most about Katie. Alex is sweet, protective,and hard working. He runs the store, takes care of two kids and is a friend to everyone. Katie and him are starting to like each other and he really cares for her. Kristin and Josh are Alex's children. Kristin really likes Katie and is never slow to say what she feels. Josh is more quiet but likes Katie. The author does a great job at developing these characters and makes the book so easy to picture.

Chapter 8

At the end of chapter 7 Alex gives Katie a bike. When chapter 8 starts Katie comes to the store and tries to return the bike. She didn't want to owe anyone anything. Alex explained to her that the bike was his wife's that passed away and Katie gave in and took it. After that Kristin asked Katie to come to the beach with them. Totally out of character, Katie said yes.

So Far

Right I'm at chapter 8. In chapter 6 and 7 Alex is starting to realize that he likes Katie the only thing holding him back is the fact that he doesn't really know her. He saw Katie play with an imaginary ring on her finger and it reminded him of the women when he was at CID. It was a tic that women who have been beaten by their husbands. This means that Katie was beaten by her husband and that what made her come to Southport. Thats all you really know about her past so there is still a lot of details that I want to find out. After reading this chapter I inffer that Katie will end up telling Alex more about her past. In chapter 7 it tells me what her old house looked like. It seemed nice but uncomfortable. Also Jo came over to Katie's house and she told Jo the whole story of her and her husband. And didn't leave out any details. This is a great book, I'm really enjoying it!

Ouestions/ Predictions

The book is great but im still confused what happened in Katie’s past. Also i am wondering if Katie and Alex will ever start dating or even get married. It also feels like there is something missing in the story. I predict that Kristin will enjoy the company of Katie and will always want to be together. This will bring Katie and Alex together.

Recommendation of Safe Haven

I recommend this book to someone who enjoys a romance. Also someone who would enjoy this book  is someone who enjoys inferring in  the book and likes to think while you read. This book can get a little confusing and doesn't give you all the details. But if you enjoyed the book The Lucky One you would enjoy this book. It is very similar in characters and is remotely similar in the plot line. They are both romances and I recommend this book to someone with a softer side.

Characters

So far in my book Im at chapter 7. I am really enjoying! The author is very good at developing the characters and developing the plot line. Katie is nice, hard-working, but insecure. She always seems to be questioning what everyone else is doing and how they do it. But tou can tell that she is starting to become more and more comforable as she becomes better friends with Jo and Alex. Its so easy to picture the characters and the story. Im excited to keep reading and see what else will be revealed. I really am excited to figure out more about Katie's past.

Predictions, Questions and Connections

So far I’m on page 47. Based on the book so far I predict that Katie and Alex will become more than friends. I also think that Jo and Katie will become really close friends. I am wondering why Katie moved still. The book hasn’t said anything about it and it makes me want to keep reading. I predict that it will have something to do with a past relationship. The setting reminds me of my grandmas house, a small little town where everyone knows each other. The book still reminds me of “The Lucky One” because the characters are similar, its a love story and has a similar plot line. But its a good book and I really enjoy it.

So Far...

I am at chapter 6 in my book. So far i am really enjoying it. In chapter 5 Katie realizes that Jo is trying to bring Alex and her together. She is confused why but she is just happy that she has a friend. Also in this chapter Katie was determining what to tell Jo and what to keep to herself when Jo comes over. But I found out a lot about Katie’s childhood. Katie also went to the store and was talking to Alex. He brought up that he had a late wife but Katie didnt ask him about her like Jo said to. But so far I’m really enjoying the book!

Safe Haven Chapters:3 and 4

I am really enjoying my book Safe Haven. I read chapters 3 and 4. In chapter 3 Josh, Alex’s son fell off the dock while fishing. While Alex jumped in to save him, Katie was with Kristen. Kristen is Alex’s daughter. Alex was very greatful that Katie comforted Kristen and you can tell he is starting to fall for her. In chapter 4 Jo gets Katie to talk about her childhood and her “story” she finds out where she lived and just an outline of how Katie got to this town. They also talked about Alex and how he doesnt have a wife. I predict in the next chapter Kate will ask Alex about his wife and Katie will start to like Alex.

Safe Haven

I am reading Safe Haven by Nicolas Sparks. I am about 2 chapters into the book. It is about a woman named Katie to lives in a  small little town and she meets a store owner named Alex with two kids. Alex's little daughter is very fond of Katie and likes to draw pictures for her and talk to her. She meets a neighboor named Jo who is one of Katie's only friends. Katie works in a restaurant called Ivans. I predict that Alex and Katie will become very close and the kids will really like her and they will get married. I think that Jo will become a life long friend who will always be there for Katie. This book is kind of like the The Lucky One because they are both love stories and the characters seem similar to me. I am wondering why the book is called Safe Haven because right now it seems like just a regular book.