Slice #1 of 31 March Challenge

The River

The breeze gently brushes my cheek and ruffles my hair.  My toes are chilled to the bone from the cold water rushing over them.  The water distorts them and makes them look longer then they are and turns them a pale blue color.  There are only a few other people by the water and the sound of them is drowned out by the river.  I turned to the left and watch the water cascade over some rocks into a deeper part of the river that's surrounded by tree's and saw my cousins and sisters knee deep I ran down and splashed them.  By the time lunch was ready we were all soaking wet.

Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/98799884@N00/235458062">Stream</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(license)</a> 

Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor - Week #2

“Once upon a time,an angel and a devil pressed their hands to their hearts and started the apocalypse.” 

With their armies united all seems to be going as planned for Akiva and Karou.  But when they see thousands of warrior angels descend upon them they realize there is no hope of survival until Akiva's sister Liraz pushes them through a portal to the human world to make sure Jael comes back to their world- Eretz weaponless.  In the human world there is an ordinary scientist named Eliza, who has an extraordinary dream.  She dreams about the end of the world.  But it is not the end of her world.  Back in Eretz the Stellians believe that Akiva and Karou's war does not concern them until they realize that they are Jael's next target.  The Stelians must not be the victims of a war because if they are it would mean the end of the world just like in Eliza's dream.  

I enjoyed this book but it was a long read.  I did not get bored with the book but it definitely took me a while to finish.  It is kind of confusing because it is told from several different perspectives so you never quite know who's talking but I also kind of liked getting to hear the story from different points of view.  

Slice #6

The Wire

It was just a wire.  Just a wire keeping me from falling to the floor of the ravine.  A wire and cables and a harness.  I peered over the edge of the high platform at the tops of trees.  I took a deep breath and jumped.  The wire, the wire and cables and harness that held me above the ravine floor all became a blur.  All I could see were trees.  Trees and...

"Monkeys!!!" Maisie yells 

There are a lot of monkeys.  I count about ten crawling around in the trees.  As we fly by them they squeak.  When I look in front of me I realize that I've almost reach the end of the zipline.  I break fast.  The wire screeches and I come to a stop just in time.



Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/38966472@N00/3580408516">May 29th, 2009 354</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(license)</a>  

Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor

By way of deception Karou has taken control of the rebel army.  Now she can lead her people away from a bloody future of revenge... or so she thinks.  But when she finds out that Jael the leader of a bloodthirsty army of Seraphim has found a portal to the human world her plans must change.  Akiva is desperate to get revenge on Jael for killing his brother.  With a common goal he and Kaoru try to unite their once waring armies and create the dream of peaceful world they once imagined.
I enjoyed this book.  I think it is very interesting how she played on the idea of angels and devils as seraphim and chimera.  I also think it was a really good conclusion to the series.  I think the plot was fascinating and I really liked that it was set in another world as well as our own.  The characters were cool but hard to relate to because the story is not close to what our lives are like.  This book contains some adult topics and talks about resurrection, torture and other cruelties.  I would recommend this book to grades five and up.

Slice #5

The Caramel

I grab all of the ingredients.  I mix the cream, vanilla, butter and salt in a pot and start the heat.  I stir slowly and watch them bubble.  Then I have to make the syrup - the hardest part.  I mix corn syrup and sugar in a separate pot.  I make sure the candy thermometer is working.  I stir constantly so the syrup doesn't burn, but not too fast or it won't work.  I keep a watch on the thermometer.  It creeps to 150 degrees and then starts to climb faster - 200, 250 and finally 310.  I'm there.  I very quickly get it off the burner.  I add it to the cream and butter mixture, hoping I got the temperature right, because if not, it will just be slop.  It starts to thicken.  I breathe a sigh of relief.  I pour it into a pan and it sits overnight, as my whole family tries to sneak tastes.  Finally, it's done.  A little soft but tastes great.  Not perfect but good for a first try!

Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/72636606@N08/7678787478">Day 59</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/">(license)</a>

Dancing Home by Alma Flor Ada and Gabriel M. Zubizarreta

Margie is 100% American.  Mexico may be her parents home but it is definitely not Margie's.  When Margie's Mexican cousin Lupe comes from to live with her family Margie's whole world is turned upside down.  Lupe is placed in Margie's class even though she doesn't speak a word of English.  Margie is expected to translate for her but with Margie's limited spanish it makes it impossible.  She is also left out of all her parents conversations in Spanish with Lupe.  It doesn't help when people at school start teasing her and Lupe for being Mexican.  Things haven't been easy on Lupe either.  Lupe had to leave her family, friends, and school behind in Mexico.  She must learn a whole new language.  The only things that carry her through are the love and support of her new family, and the hope that she will see her father who left when she was young to search for work in America.  The girls must work together to learn to be proud of their heritage, and must lean on each other.
I really enjoyed Dancing Home.  While this is kind of a short book it definitely does not lack story.  I really liked the characters and thought they were easy to relate to.  Although there are some sad parts of the story I think that it is more of an uplifting story.  I really enjoyed the setting and the way the book makes you think about what it actually means to be American.  There is some Spanish in the book but it is explained in english so even if you don't speak Spanish you can still understand it.  I think it is kind of a story that younger kids could enjoy but I would recommend it as a quick read to grades five and up.