Marie-Laure and Werner, how has your opinion of Marie-Laure and Werner changed and why?

Marie-Laure: My opinion of Marie hasn't changed that much throughout the book. I think she is very smart, amazing, and I love how much she loves her family. I think its so impressive how she can solves the puzzles her father makes her and navigate her way around the neighbor based off counting and memorization. I think she is a very caring person. Always thinking of her father and helping her uncle in anyway she can.

Werner: My opinion of Werner has changed. At first I thought her was an extremely smart boy who was a great big brother. But, as time throughout the book as passed Werner has made decision that I do not agree with. For example how he never helped his friend by standing up for him, or when he threw the water on the man, and how he never writes to his sister. I understand that its not a black and white situation and that he is only a kid going through war. That never stopped his friend Frederick. I still like Werner though. I think he is very smart and talented.

"Just roll with it" Oral History

A granddaughter interviews her grandfather in a parking lot in her 1994 Buick. Why the parking lot? Her grandfather lives in a senior living home and didn't want to share his life with others. She begins the interview with questions about his life and her grandmother. Her grandmother passed away in 2012 and he loved his wife very much. Her grandfather has had lots of hard moments in his life. He lost his eldest son of Lou Gehrig’s disease. He now is dealing with Alzheimer disease. His family was poor growing up. He shares a story that one time he knew there would be no hot water at home so he broke into his school to take a warm shower. Throughout his interview though he has wonderful attitude, many laughs are shared. When his granddaughter asks if he has any advice for them as they get older? He responds with "Don’t fight it. Just roll with. I mean real life. Live it. It’s wonderful." I think that is a beautiful message and great advise. https://storycorps.org/listen/james-kennicott-and-kara-masteller-112015/#

My thoughts on Persepolis

I really enjoyed reading Persepolis. The story was capturing and beautiful. I strongly recommend the graphic novel. It was one of my favorite books we read for ELA. Marjane faced so much in her life and reading her life story as a graphic novel was amazing. The story also taught me a lot about the Islamic Revolution. One of my favorite parts about Persepolis was learning about how the revolution affected her and how she handled it. For example when she started to have to wear the veil and she first did it because she was told she would be killed, raped, murdered if not. When she had to leave her family because of the war you see her face many struggles from not having her family. She becomes depressed, sells and does drugs, goes through many changes in personality. A lot of the things she faced were experiences teenagers face like the changes in personality. I think that because she didn't have her family around she would be things she was disappointed in. Multiple times in the book she says that at those moments in her life she isn't the person her family would be proud of.

Character Sketch

I am doing my character sketch on Marie-Laure LeBlanc. Marie-Laure is a French sixteen year old girl. She is tall and has freckles. She is blind, but was not born blind. She has a very close relationship with her father. Her mother passed away so it is just her and her father. She loves to read and solve puzzles with her fingers. Every year on her birthday her father has a new one for her. She is able to solve them in less than 10 minutes. Her father is a locksmith and he works at a museum. She often spends time at the museum. Her father has built a small replica of her town, she mesmerizes the town by running her fingers along the model. She loves to drink coffee with lots of sugar in it. Marie-Laure and her father are running from the Nazi soldiers, it is not clear whether that is because she is a person with a disability or because she is Jewish. I look forward to finding out more about her.

Oral History Interview

This past week my group and I interviewed Dawn Callaway and her husband/business partner. Dawn , her husband Scott, and their two other business partners run 4 businesses together. We interviewed Dawn and Scott mostly about Black Hole and Poison Girl. Black Hole is a coffee shop and Poison girl is a bar. It was an amazing expierence. Dawn and Scott are very kind and had many great stories. I think the interview went very well. My team and I learned a lot of information, not only about their businesses but also about them. In the future I would request to have the interview in a more private setting. We had our interview outside of Black Hole. There was a lot of background noise, for example people starting a and stopping their cars. The most interesting parts of the interviews were their stories about how they feel apart of the community and stories about the buisneses themselves. My favorite story was the one about the giant Kool-Aid man in the back of Poison Girl.

Persepolis Character Sketch

I am doing a character sketch on the grandmother in Persepolis. Marjane's grandmother is the mother of her mom. She has a very strong voice and is my favorite character. Her sass and just rational thinking along with her being a total badass makes her my favorite character in this book. Marjane and her grandmother are very close. She loves the scent of lavender and sticks her breast in ice water for ten minutes every morning and night to keep them perky! She is a very influential character in this book. She gives Marjane some very important advise which is  "always keep your dignity and be true to yourself." She keeps Marjane on a good path and is very loving. Her badass side is like lying to guards and making up a whole story of how she is diabetic so they can get ride of all the alcohol. Reading her parts were some of my favorite parts.

Marjane's Personality

1. Explain the differences between Marjane's personality before she left Iran and when she returned after being in Austria. Why do you think she changed so much? Use specific examples from the book to support your claims.

Marjane's personality when she left for Austria and when she came back were very different. Before she left for Austria she was a typical 14 year old rebellious girl. She listened and followed her parents rules and she respected them. She was well behaved except for the small acts of rebellious nature. She was also very close with her with her family. When she returned from Austria her personality was very different. She went through so much in Austria. She had to grow up on her own, had sex, smoked, developed bad habits and got into the wrong crowds. All these things influenced her and when she finally returned home after hitting what I would say is rock bottom she has grown up and matured. She still has a passion for politics and fighting for what she believes in but she is a matured adult.