Reading Response #2: Girls Don't Fly

The story line has been pretty slow-going in the past few chapters. Not much has changed. Myra walked out of her job at the Ice Cream Parlor after getting into a minor dispute with Erik. Her sister moving in has become another stress because they are polar opposites. Much like how my sister and I are; yet another relation to the book. She's still dead set on saving the money to go on this trip to the Galapagos Islands.

One of the things I've grown to enjoy about this book is how the author starts each chapter. At first I was unsure of it, but the further I get into the book the more intrigued I'm becoming. Each chapter starts with a definition. They always pertain to birds, and in some way the events in the chapter also. For example, tenth chapter begins with "homing: when a bird comes home after getting lost." The chapter is about Myra's older sister, Melyssa, coming home. Her and her boyfriend had a fight and he left. Between the stress of the break up and the baby she decides to take some time off school and come home. Another one I enjoyed was the word "irruption: when a bird shows up where it doesn't normally go." I honestly didn't even notice the relation of these words to the chapters until a few days ago but now that I have, the book has become even more interesting.



Sea Gull "Everyone thinks of them as trash birds, but not every bird would pick a field clean of crickets for starving pioneers." -Myra page 2

What I haven't been able to figure out yet is the significance of the birds. Nothing has indicated that bird are a big part of the story besides Myra shooing her bother's away from a seagull that they were trying to throw rocks at. I'm curious to see if the Galapagos Islands is where the bird significance will come from.

That's all for now, hopefully next time there will be more interesting things to share!

Reading Response #1: Girl's Don't Fly

I've barely gotten into Kirsten Chandler's Girl's Don't Fly and it already has me emotionally intrigued. In the very first paragraph of the first chapter the main character, Myra, describes to the reader her idea of the "perfect moment." The day dream is quickly interrupted by her little brothers. It leaves you wondering more about her and what she wants from life verses what she's getting. It's not long after that we are introduced to Myra's older sister and her boyfriend who are in town because they recently found out that they're having a baby. Myra's parent's are already on edge and therefore have pushed the responsibility of the younger boys onto Myra.




Her life is already a mess and the one thing she's looking forward to is her date with her boyfriend that's commonly referred to as "Prince Charming" by Myra's parents and sister. That night "Prince Charming," Erik, brought Myra flowers and then broke up with her. The author make's it very apparent as to how the break up affected Myra. She uses character responses to create an image for what Erik and Myra's relationship was like despite that they only interact as a couple once in the reading and it's simply to break up. When finding out about the break up the response from one of Myra's coworker's was "but you're the Dream Team. You're sweet and poor and he's hot and rich" (pg20). That's the general response when other character's heard about the break-up.




The Galapagos Islands

Erik and Myra being two of the most academically gifted and driven in the school make the upcoming competition for a trip for two to get to go do a research project on the Galapagos Islands for 8 weeks. This opportunity raises curiosity of what will become of Erik and Myra. Myra seems very intrigued by  the presentation and very driven to earn the opportunity.

It makes the book some what relatable because I think that at some point everyone wishes for that picturesque relationship. But the idea of losing it puts a new spin on your typical suspenseful love story. I'm eager to read more into how Myra handles the bumps in her road.

Almost 101 Things About Me

* I’ve loved animals ever since I was a kid and I have a particular interest in reptiles. I have more pets than is reasonable.

* Bugs freak me out, anything with more than 4 legs is not cute.

* My dog, Gracie, weighs more than I do.

* I got engaged to Kenneth Brown in preschool.

* As boring as it sounds, my favorite food is cheese pizza.

* I love everything about being outside.

* I love Disney movies more than it’s socially acceptable for any 17 year old to admit.

 * I’m a “test tube baby” meaning that I was conceived via donor insemination.

* Everyone in my family, except my mom, and even some of my friends call me Anna Banana.

* I’ve always been really shy, as a kid I spent my days with my grandparents and my older cousin, Levi, because I hated preschool.

* I have a large family and we’re all fairly close. Family means a lot to me. 

* Thanks to the Sesame Street character, Zoe, my favorite color has always been orange and I even went through a phase as a toddler where I only wanted to eat orange things.

* I currently have two jobs. One is at a family owned Mexican Restaurant known as Prima’s and the other is at a locally owned pet store called Pets Way (formally known as Pet Warehouse).

* My birthday is on Valentines Day. It’s a blessing and a curse because its a “fun fact” and people usually remember but it’s also on a holiday and often when I try to see a movie on my birthday, it’s sold out