Jodi’s Comments (group member since May 17, 2012)

Jodi’s comments from the UIU Library group.

I read it in high school & in college, and I've always considered it one of my favorite books. I haven't read it in many years so I am looking forward to going back and rereading it to see if I still love it as much as I did back then!

If you've already read the book, what are some of your general thoughts of it? If you haven't read it, is there a reason why?

We will be discussing this book on Dec. 10 on Fayette campus. However, please feel free to join this online discussion at anytime.

Yay Heather! :) I am one box short of a bingo!

How's everyone coming on Summer Bingo? I have 4 spots marked off....unfortunately they're all in different columns/rows! lol

Sounds interesting! I haven't heard of it before; will have to check it out!

From May 1 to September 1 the library is having a "Summer Reading Bingo" promotion. If you would like to participate or find out how it works, please email me at hilleshiemj@uiu.edu.

Has anyone finished The Bluest Eye or read it in the past? If so, what are your feelings? I know some people find it disturbing because of the sexual content and racial attitudes, but for me the writing style was what bothered me the most. I guess I just prefer straight story-telling and dialogue to the "flowy, poetic" style Morrison uses here.

What is your response to this quote on p. 409: "Part of it is the PTSD--Peter's response to chronic victimization. But a big part of it, too, is the society that created both Peter and those bullies. Peter's response is one enforced by the world he lives in. He sees violent video games selling off the shelves at stores; he listens to music that glorifies murder and rape. He watches his tormentors shove him, strike him, push him, demean him. He lives in a state, Mr. McAfee, whose license plate reads 'Live Free or Die'. King shook his head. All Peter did, one morning, was turn into the person he'd been expected to be all along."

Hi Natalie, I agree, her books are very thought-provoking! And definitely timely -- I found it very chilling in the interview with the author that while she was in Minneapolis writing this book, the news came on of a school shooting in Red Lake.

I'm not sure why, but this book didn't reel me in as much as I thought it would. I think possibly because I didn't especially care for any of the characters. Did anyone else experience this?

This month we will also be discussing "The Bluest Eye".

Despite her popularity, I think the only one I've read is My Sister's Keeper. And honestly I don't really remember what I thought of it -- just that I was shocked that the movie version totally changed the ending.

The library's April book club read is "Nineteen Minutes" by Jodi Picoult. Which of her books have you read?

Hi Tiffany,
Welcome and thanks for joining the discussion! As I mentioned above I definitely agree with you that "I was mildly surprised the book focused so heavily on the violent training aspect of prospective candidates and felt the ending seemed very rushed as a result". I don't have a problem with violence in books (if it's not gratuitous), I just felt in this case it was too much of a focus, at the expense of other parts of the story.

You also bring up a good point that this book is in fact geared towards teenagers. I love to read YA books and sometimes forget my age-group is not the "intended" audience. :) For those of you who know teens who have read the books, what were their opinions of it?

A couple more questions: In what ways could Tris be considered a hero? How is she similar and 'divergent' from the classic hero? While the story follow Tris, some might argue others would be the actual hero of the story. Which character or characters would you label heroes within the novel?

How does the idea of "faction before blood" come into play throughout the book? Do you think this idea has a place in today's society, or is it contrary to what most people believe? In our society, what ideas & beliefs are people loyal to in the way Tris's society is loyal to the concept of the factions?

One more thing; I was talking to someone at the library about the books and we both mentioned how unlike in the Hunger Games, we didn't really feel the same empathy for the main character. Also, although there was a lot of violence in the Hunger Games, it didn't bother me nearly as much as it did in Divergent. I think that might have been because in HG you kept seeing glimpses of people's humanity, where in Divergent most people seemed almost sub-human, betraying and hurting each other with no pity.

Dixie, thank you for all your insightful comments! I too hope that the next installment focuses more on character development/interactions rather than on violence. I have not yet gone back & re-read, but I think another thing that bothered me the first time around was how groups would follow orders without question, even if that meant killing another person. I am currently reading "Hitler Youth"; I've often wondered why so many Nazis went along with mass murder, but this book explains how they were trained to conform and to obey without question from a young age. In that book the author mentions how young people "graduated" by proving their fearlessness by jumping from 1 or 2 story buildings onto a canvas below. Hmmmm, sounds familiar!

Hello Dixie,
I'm glad someone finally agrees with me. lol.
Glad you decided to join the group!
Jodi

Take the quiz to see which faction you are: https://www.facebook.com/DivergentSer...

(I got Dauntless, the brave. Hmmmmmmmm)