Character Attack

At work, everybody has one number for the copy machine with a limited number of copies. Someone--wonder who--repeatedly runs out of copies and hunts and pecks for another number. This leaves someone else with no copies. I have been a victim of this despicable practice, but never would I stoop so low as to steal another person's copies.

The other day, my principal accused me of doing this! I was highly offended and hurt that someone could even think me capable of doing something so dishonest. I may have faults but dishonesty is not one of them.

So I investigated to see why I was accused, and it turned out to be a misunderstanding. As a special education teacher, we have four special numbers that we use to copy IEPs for parents. When one runs out, we move to the next one. One day at the machine, I was trying to copy an IEP for a waiting parent. The first number was used up, so I moved to the next one and found the same problem. Apparently I said, "I've got to find a number with copies." The person behind me interpreted this as copy stealing and reported me to the boss.

Now, couldn't they have said something directly to me at the time? Sometimes the adult world is not that different than childhood.

The critics gave “The Lightening Thief” movie poor reviews, but I liked it. Sure, it wasn’t as good as the book, but what movie ever is? The purpose of going to the theater is entertainment. I enjoyed the special effects, watching the story unfold, and chemistry between the characters.

Although the movie was fun to watch, a lot was cut out from Rick Riordan’s book. For example, I never saw Percy interact with many of the kids from school or camp. This was a major part of the book that time didn’t allow. Also, a huge draw of the book was the unanswered questions. I spent a large part of my reading time wondering who Percy’s father was. Riordan dropped little clues that allowed me to piece together Poseidon. Did anyone head into the movie not knowing who Percy’s dad was on the front end? Furthermore, in the book, I wondered who stole the lightning bolt? The movie didn’t have that question looming over the audience. If anyone wondered anything, they were quickly told.

So why did I still like the movie? …fun Hollywood drama. If anyone asks my opinion, I would still say, “Read the book!”

Individual Characters

As a writer, I've always struggled with making my characters unique with their own dialects and mannerisms. Many kids books are successful at this difficult skill, such as Lynn Reid Banks', "Indian in The Cupboard," Ingrid Law's "Savvy," and the sixteen different characters from Paul Fleishman's "Bull Run." But the author who's done this most recently is Kathryn Stockett with her best selling novel, "The Help."

This story is told from three different view points. Although she only labels the first chapter of a few when she changes the point of view, it's easy to pick up the book and know whose head you're in because each character is so unique. Sometimes when authors make the best seller list, I question the writer's talents, but not with Stockett. Her prominent place on the book shelves is well deserved.