Post #7: The Book Thief Book Trailer

Post #6: Readicide

I do believe "Readicide" is a problem in our schools. Some students are born with a natural longing to read, while others are not. The students who don't have the desire to read on their own don't have many experiences with books until they are forced to read them for school. Often times, these books are analyzed for their literary structures, and they are not meant to be read simply for pleasure. Because some students' first experiences with books are not pleasurable, they automatically think that all books will be that way. This causes many kids to turn away from reading.

I believe schools should teach one genre fiction book for every classic book. I don't think classics should be totally eliminated- they're classics for a reason. They teach us important lessons and cause us to think on a deeper level. They also serve as a common link between people. If someone says, "That movie is like a modern version of Romeo and Juliet," everyone will automatically understand the correlation.

However, I think some books in the curriculum should be read for pleasure. Sometimes, when we overanalyze a book, we lose sight of what it's truly meant it to be- a pleasurable journey into another world. Getting lost in a book and relating to the characters is what ignites a passion for reading.

Some people look down on genre fiction books and think that they don't compare to certain literary works. While this can be true, just as classics are classics for a reason, genre fiction books are best sellers for a reason. Genre fiction books are enjoyable to the reader and well-loved. They too can create common links between people. If someone compared something to The Hunger Games or Twilight, immediately readers would identify with what they were talking about.

Genre fiction books can be just as valuable as literary works, and they may be the only way to wage war on this "Readicide".

Post #5: Adapting The Book Thief

Although there is a movie adaption already in theaters for The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, I have not yet seen it. So, I'm going to tell you how I would adapt the book into a movie.

One thing that would definitely need to be kept in the movie would be Liesel Meminger's journey to her new home and parents on Himmel Street. This is the main event that starts off the events in the book. Without Liesel’s arrival, none of the events in the book would've taken place.

Rudy, a boy Liesel meets on Himmel Street, would have to be a strong main character in the movie. He is often involved in Liesel’s mischievous adventures, and he grows to be a very good friend to Liesel. Without Rudy, Liesel would probably just sit inside her house all day feeling depressed that her mother left her. Rudy encourages her to come out and play with the kids on the street and is a big part of her life.

A third important piece that could not be left out of the movie is the arrival of the Jewish man, Max Vandenburg. Although I have not finished reading the book, I can tell this will be a very important event because the book is set in Nazi Germany, so inviting a Jew to live in your house is a very dangerous thing to do. I’m curious to see what is going to happen to Liesel and her parents because of this.

However, there are a few things mentioned in the book that would have to be cut out of the movie for time’s sake. In the beginning when Liesel is traveling to her new home, her brother dies. Although this is very hard for Liesel and causes her to be very depressed, it doesn’t seem to be a key event in the book so far because it hasn’t really triggered any of the events.

Finally, the part where Rudy talks about wanting to be Jesse Owens would have to be cut out. The author spends a fairly good amount of time discussing how much Rudy idolizes Jesse Owens, but once again, it doesn’t seem to trigger any important events. I don’t think the audience would have to know that about Rudy to understand the movie.