Origin is the story of a genetically perfect immortal 17 year old girl who has lived all her life in a lab facility and has been "protected" from the outside. She soon learns that what she really needs protection from comes from inside the lab....and the people she calls family.
I recently had the opportunity to meet local author Jessica Khoury. Jessica is a native of Toccoa, GA, and is 22 years old. She was home-schooled, played soccer (and now coaches), and earned her Bachelor's degree from Toccoa Falls College. Origin is her first novel.
Origin is the story of a genetically perfect immortal 17 year old girl who has lived all her life in a lab facility and has been "protected" from the outside. She soon learns that what she really needs protection from comes from inside the lab....and the people she calls family.
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I was so fortunate recently to meet Ally Condie, author of Matched and Crossed! She was the guest speaker at Brenau College and spoke to the student body and the public. Mrs. Condie talked about how she started writing and where she gets her inspirations. She explained that her favorite authors play an important role in her writing style. Some of her favorite authors include Ray Bradbury, Agatha Christie, and Laura Ingles Wilder. Mrs. Condie gave the audience three helpful hints when writing: 1) write a little every day; 2) give yourself a break; and 3) exercise! Sometimes you just have to work up a sweat! Mrs. Condie was very humble; she is more surprised than anyone about her recent successes! She graciously autographed her books for me and one book to be given away to a lucky student during Teen Read Week. This school year has been busy, busy, busy! It all began over the summer when we moved into the new school. Through many, many days of hard work (unpacking HUNDREDS of boxes! I could not have done it without great volunteers!), the media center was ready for the first day of school!
Since then, we have tweaked things here and there - reorganized a couple section, purchased lamps and displayed student art, and helped students (and teachers!) become accustomed to the new procedures. All in all, I am very pleased with the way the media center looks. It is bright and inviting.....and students enjoy being here! What more could I want?!? This week, the HCHS Media Center hosted its first ever book fair! Students and teachers alike enjoyed browsing the shelves and selecting summer reading material. The most popular title was Beastly, which also has a movie based on the book playing in theaters now. The most popular trinket item was the drumstick pencils. I am sure teachers are LOVING all the drumming in class!
The book fair raised over $500 to be used for future book purchases! The book fair will definitely be a new tradition at HCHS! I have discovered that I enjoy books that imagine what our futures may hold. For example, in the novel Feed by M.T. Anderson, people are implanted with devices that allow for information to be instantly and constantly downloaded directly into their brains. Students no longer have to go onto the internet for information or, heaven forbid, actually look in an encyclopedia! Instead, students simply have to think about a topic and all the information about that topic is instantly downloaded into their brains. In the novel, people become so tuned in to their downloads that they can barely function without them. If you teach in a high school, that doesn't seem too farfetched!
In the novel Matched by Ally Condie, society has reinvented itself after it was determined that there was TOO MUCH information cluttering minds. Now, instead of instant information about any topic, government officials have destroyed all information except what has been determined to be the very best: 100 best songs, 100 best poems, 100 best paintings, etc. Anything that did not make it into the top 100 was destroyed. The Officials have also eliminated choice so as to make life simplier. Marriages are arranged, careers are assigned, meals are pre-determined with portion control, exercise and leisure activities are scheduled, even the age in which people die is controlled (80th birthday). But what happens when someone decides to make his/her own choices? Cassia and Ky are detemined to live their lives the way they want to, even if it means losing everything. Two different novels, two different takes on the future. Both interesting reads because I can easily imagine them happening in our future! |
AuthorWelcome to my media blog! I am a media specialist and I LOVE my job! I get to help students utilize new technologies and discover a love of reading. I nurture my own love of reading by reading what my students are enjoying; they have very eclectic tastes and introduce me to things I might not read on my own. The best book I read recently was The Book Thief. CategoriesArchives
January 2013
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