Day 3 of Study Challenge

Add an extra half hour to your study time today

I reviewed a bit for my test on The Catcher in the Rye for english, and I feel a bit more confident for the test. I might write a review for the book later, but as of now I'll just say that I think that book is interesting.

Review: Caught in the Moment by Martin Dukes

Caught in a Moment is the story of Alex Trueman, a teenager who daydreams himself unwittingly into the strange world of Intersticia. This is a world outside of ordinary time, that exists in the slender intervals between instants. From Alex's point of view the world around him freezes into immobility. At first it seems the he alone is free to wander the hushed streets with their motionless cars and people. But he is not alone. Alex soon discovers that he shares the world with others. There are a few dozen fellow daydreamers who share his fate. There is plump, bespectacled Will, pretty brunette Kelly, and the rebellious outcast Paulo. Presiding over them all is the enigmatic Ganymede, and irascible vagrant who distributes food to his dependents and sets them perverse tasks to perform in return.

Alex soon finds that he has rare skills in Intersticia. Most uniquely he can affect the motionless world of 'Statica' around them. He can open doors, help himself to food, and move objects. But this forbidden activity soon sets him on a collision course with Ganymede in which the very existence of Intersticia is put at risk.


from goodreads

When I first read about this story, it was nothing like I had ever heard of. The story had a strange feel when I read it. It was like I as partly dreaming, and partly there. Whatever it was, I liked it. Some background info: this book is published in the UK and there is the occasional saying or word I was unsure of. That does not give away change or disrupt the story at all, and it's the quaint things that I like most about the story.

Martin Dukes is a wonderful writer, and I would think that he would be published by the big publishing houses here in the US. He writes in away that gives you enough information for now just to settle you, but not too much that all the secrets are given away at one time. I love the strong characters that he writes, and the in between worlds fascinate me.

Alex is such a peculiar teenage boy in my opinion. There's that off feeling I felt when the story started to unfold in the beginning. I guess, he never really is 'normal', even before he goes to 'Sticia. He is probably more intelligent than the teenage boys I know, but he has this sensitive spot that is quite prominent and something that I did not expect to show so early in the novel.

I felt like most, if not all, of the characters felt real and tangible. They were easy to grasp a hold of. I think Paulo was my favorite character out of all of them. There's the sense of you know who this character is before the main character has come into contact with, because everyone knows that person that curses like a sailor, and travels like one too.

My favorite part of the novel is that the moral really stands out. It's kind of like, be careful of what you wish for kind of thing. The whole don't take things for granted moral is popular amongst the popular morals, and I think Caught in the Moment is a great example of that. So, when my best friend asked me what I thought about Caught in the Moment, I gave her a head nods, thumbs up. (4 out of 5)

What Do You Want to be When You Grow Up?

There's something every adult, friend, acquaintance asks,"What do you want to be when you grow up?" A lot of them say afterwards that you can be anything you want, that you are young and can change your decision any time you want. Is that really true? because for me, a public school student, in the United States of America, I feel pressured to know what I want to be, now. I'm only thirteen, and I have to choose paths that I want to take for high school, and continue on to college/university.

I don't want to be one thing when I grow up. I'm well assured in myself that I can never stick to one thing. My hobbies and interest are too wide, for me to stick to one thing. As an example, one day I want to sing at Madison Square Garden, when I very well  know I'm neither a good singer, or musician. I am fond of music, and I sing my soul in every broken note, and off key word. Then there are some days when I want to be that writer in a coffee shop and wearing sweats all day. I want to be that lady that has works published, and her imaginary friends got her there. I also want to be a teacher that teaches English abroad one day, in France, or Spain, or in whatever country. Likewise, I want to own my own small business in town, and see the same people I see every weekend. I'd bake cakes, or sell books in my little nook and cranny. A lot of times, I want to be a computer engineer, or website designer. I want to make pictures, and things that will feel good to the human eye. Those are my most often wanted dreams that I want to become real. That's what I want to be when I grow up.

Then why can't I be those things? I'm stuck in this society that expects me to have the same job every weekday for who knows how long. I'm stuck in a society that makes me choose paths, and they still ask me questions like what I want to be when I grow up, when they very well know I can't be anything more than what I've chosen at this moment. I'm stuck in a place where I want to be successful, but I can't because I'd have to start from the beginning, from where people that wanted to be _______, since they were five. I'm stuck, and I'm only 13.

Since the invention of the internet, there's been a whole bunch of job creation on here. I see that the internet is going to become the future of jobs soon. I just hope that it will also allow me what society can't at this moment. I hope I'm aloud to turn on my computer one day and have my guitar or piano out and sing a concert to people live through the internet, and have them commenting back live. I hope that I can teach students through the internet, and grade papers, and help them become their fullest. I know I can write a novel and be published. I know that I can become a website designer. I know that I can be that seller only in my neighborhood, and its through the internet.

I know all the things I want to be. I just don't know how exactly I'll make all of those dreams be reality. If you're with me on this, please leave me a comment. I love receiving comments from you guys, and go ahead and have a battle in the comments below. I have to add this at the end, or else I'm afraid of being pounded with hate, and that's something I wish I didn't have to do, but everything I wrote are my thoughts, and opinions, my views, and mine. Thanks for reading, if you got this far.

Love and Hugs
Clara