The Kite Runner

So far, the film is sooo good! The bond at the beginning of the movie makes everyone wish they could have a best friend with the relationship that Amir and Hassan had. I'm pretty sure everyone wants a friend who would do anything and everything for them. They seemed so close that it surprised me when the bully was telling Hassan that Amir only hangs out with him because he's bored, and never when any friends are around. Of course, being a bully he would make someone feel like crap, but...

I can't believe that Amir didn't help Hassan, his best friend who would do anything for him, literally anything, and Amir just stood and turned his back when Hassan needed him the most (even though Hassan didn't know Amir was there). It infuriates me that Hassan went through getting raped by those older dudes, and Amir treats him like crap. He just throws tomatoes or whatever those fruit things were at him, and even goes through the trouble of trying to get his family fired. Amir even calls Hassan a coward, he calls him a coward even though Hassan is the one who always stood up for him when they were confronted by the bullies!

I think though, that Amir was so ashamed of himself for the fact that he couldn't stand up for his best friend. Or maybe, because he overheard the bully saying that he only hangs out with Hassan when no one else is around, he was ashamed of himself for that, because it was partly true?

It sucks though, like eight or ten years pass and it seems as though Amir still doesn't want to hear from Hassan. Did anyone notice that when he was typing and right before his dad came in, you could hear like kids or something as if he was having a flashback? Anyways, I wonder how it will end. My guess: Amir will adopt Hassan's kid and raise him as his own. And finally tell someone about what happened to Amir. Maybe even run into the bully while he's there at Pakistan and give him a good beating or something. haha

I have the names right, right? I didn't confuse the kids names? If I did, please tell me!?!?!?!

The best Best American Short Stories

Toga Party was definitely the most entertaining story. Who would imagine old people in real life dressing for a Toga party? Let alone even going to a toga part--or any party for that matter. I mean, the ending pretty much sucked, but what kept me reading was to find out what the ending was.

It was also pretty funny that the old people at the party were acting like teenagers! Getting their moves on by fishing for grapes with their mouths, and that "ring" toss game. Haha. But I definitely wasn't expecting the actual ending that the story ended with. I was totally expecting Richard to finally accept death and not fear how he would kick the bucket plus not worry about his will anymore...but I guess in the end, the garage light timed out and he finally had no need to worry.

I totally agree with Nicole though, it would suck if it was our parents who did that to themselves- killing themselves and leaving us kids to deal with the bodies! But, I guess in reality they would have died sooner or later, and would have interrupted their children's work and family life anyway...

The "Best" American Short Stories 2007

Balto, Toga party, Dimension, and Horsemen were all pretty depressing. But besides the depression, something they all had in common was the fact that you were always on the main character's side. Maybe this has to do with the fact that you pretty much only know that character's thoughts (i.e. in the Uglies trilogy by Scott Westerfeld, when Tally, the main character is a good person, a bubble head, and even evil, your always on her side). Another thing they had in common was the fact that they all started in medias res, or in the middle. You figure out each characters past througout the story, but you don't start off knowing it.
I think that Stephen King, being the editor of these stories, did this on purpose. He is an author who loves to leave you hanging (especially in the novel "Cell," what the heck happen's to the main dude's son?!?!?!?!?). So King probably gave us these depressing, in medias res, leave you hanging at the end, sort of stories because they are the next best things to horror.

Everything is Illuminated...part 1

I think that Jonathon's obsession with collecting momentos related to events and people has to do with him wanting to remember those special people and events...or in other words he doesn't want to forget anything in his life, or his family's life, and he wants something (everything) to remember them by.

The Alternate Ending to Edwin's life

Edwin de Valu walked to work that morning, as he does every morning, just thinking to himself like every other day-"I love this fuckin' city." He walked into his new office, possibly the smallest in the building, but it's better to say "I work in an office" than in it to say in a cubicle. He continued working on the slush-pile manuscripts (which was an extremely high pile seeing as Panderic Inc. was still low on staff) and was halfway through the rejection letter, when the door swung sloooowwly open..."You still owe me for my tie!" It was Nigel. "I though you quit? What the hell are you doing here?" "Oh, don't worry, I'm outta here as soon as I get my money." "Wait, so as soon as I pay you, you'll get the hell out and never come back?" Edwin took his wallet out and happily turned over the money. This day just can't get any better, he thought. But, just as Nigel walked out, Edwin noticed someone standing by the door.
"May! What are you doing here? I thought you worked at Key West Books now?" "I quit my job. I couldn't go on one more day without you. And i wouldn't have been able to live with myself without knowing how you felt too." He just stared at her dumbfoundedly. "I knew it, I shouldn't have come." She turned around and started to leave. "WAIT!" He turned her around and kissed those red crayola lips of hers for what didn't feel long enough but probably lasted an eternity. "May, I thought I lost you!" He (amazingly for a wimpy guy) carried her out of Panderic Inc., never looked back, and together they moved to Japan to start fresh.

Self-help books

Although I've never read a self-help book, I know that people read them to better themselves. but what do I think of them? They could be cheesy traps for people who need help in that area to get sucked into without really getting help. Or, they may actually help people change and stay the way they want to be. In my opinion, they can be both.
I once listened to a radio show where some important person (important because he wrote the book) wrote a book on "How to Change your Kids in 5 Days." No, not like their personalities, but their bad bratty attitudes and their spoiled ways, and certain ways parents should act to prevent that. It seemed like it actually works. So I imagine other books must help and work as well. However, there most likely are books out there that tell you that you should change, but they don't say how. i.e.-weight loss books, they probably make you feel self-conscious and tell you to excercise and eat right, but they don't tell you the steps you should take to proceed.
So, to sum it up, I think that Self-help books can go either way. Half the books out there are possibly like that change your kid book and definitely help you out, but the other half are completely pointless and just make you feel inferior.