Have you ever felt left out or pushed away from others? In the novel, The Crossover, by Kwame Alexander. I chose to write about the main character Josh Bell. Josh Bell is a caring, immature and athletic teen who, through a series of trials comes of age. Josh Bell is caring because in the book it says, “ Tell him a joke. He doesn't even smile…Do his chores. He pays no attention…Say I’m sorry but he won't listen”(145), this quote shows he is very sorry that he hurt his brother and made him go to the hospital. In the book it also says, “ Well, I will talk to her about this job thing, since it means so much to you.”(167), this piece of evidence shows that Josh cares about his father and is even willing to talk to his mom to convince her to let him take the job. These two quotes show how Josh is a caring teenager. Josh Bell is also very immature because in the book it says, “ Today, I plan on passing the ball to JB, but when I hear him say “Filthy, give me the ball,” I dribble over to my brother and fire a pass so hard, it levels him”(134), this quote shows that he acted immaturely and without thinking or caring about what would happen to his brother. In the book it also says, “ Me and dad stare at each other for ten minutes without saying a word. I tell him, I have nothing to say.”(208), this evidence shows …show more content…
I know this because in the book it says, “ The only thing that really matters is that out here in the driveway shooting free throws I feel closer to dad.”(235), this quote shows that after his dad has passed he acts very maturely and accepts it. In the book it also says, “ I guess you da man now, Filthy, JB says. And for the first time in my life I don't want to be.”(225), this evidence from the book suggest that he would rather have his dad back in his life then be the man of the family. These two pieces of evidence show how very mature he transforms into being at the end of the
It’s interesting to see the ways different authors depict how a character matures. In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mocking Bird we can easily see how she chose to do it. The novel is set in Alabama in the 1930’s, while black vs. white racism was a big issue and problem for many. Atticus is the father of Scout and Jem, young children who witness the discrimination first hand when their father, a white man, defends a black man in court. Lee does a great job developing the characters; especially the narrator, Jean Louise Finch (Scout). Scout’s thoughts, conversations, and actions, illustrate that she’s emotionally maturing from the innocent child that she was.
In conclusion, Tj went through so much throughout his life and learned a lesson. Even though he was abused by his parent he has learned what not to do when he grow up. Tj also experienced how it felt to be loved in a foster home. I recommend everyone to read this book to learn the value of childhood and learning to appreciate what we have. Even 12 years from now you will be able to remember the lesson "unchained"
He is known right away to be an intimidating character when he spits on the ground and does not look at Larry’s mother when she speaks. Society would think that he is intimidating, large, unlikable, and never to be messed with. When Larry’s mother tells Joe to stop throwing sand at Larry, Joe’s father encourages Joe to continue. Joe’s father defines the themes on the roles of men and behaviors. Being completely different from Morton, Joe’s father can be presented as a stereotypical man. He obviously knows how to stand up for himself and earn the best for him and his son. He does not back down like Morton and immediately gains what he has fought for with his actions. Just by slowly looking over Morton “from head to foot” and the way he speaks to Morton, Joe’s father fits the stereotype of men perfectly. His behaviors, such as his body language, the way he speaks, and his reasoning indicate he is exactly what he looks
J.T. – is a male African – American sixteen-year-old who always gets in trouble. He is a good-looking guy and is great at playing basketball. J.T. tries his best to take care of his mother without causing more trouble for others. He has had a bad history; however, he seems to have learned from his mistakes and is now working for a better future. In the story, he felt very sad for having to fight Peaches and promises to repay her for her help with his mother.
People who enjoy realistic-fiction novels that include sibling rivalry, sports, making life changes, and the tension of a dysfunctional family environment will be interested in reading this journal writing from the first person perspective of Paul Fisher. This novel includes characteristics of middle school encounters ; therefor, ages 10 and up will appreciate this
The most important way he dealt with the downs in his life, was with his humor. Junior has always used humor in his life to deal with any problems. He tries to find the good in
The Crossover, a verse novel by Kwame Alexander, is the story of twelve-year old Josh Bell and his life’s occurrences, including learning of his brother, Jordan (JB’s), girlfriend, Alexis, throwing a basketball at JB’s nose so hard that it bled, and hearing of his father’s death that happened during the basketball tournament he won towards the end of the book. In this book, many important lessons are learned such as, the most noteworthy: strong family bonds bring happiness and benefit to the entire family, the importance of listening to people who matter to you, and how meaningful and necessary it is to understand the feelings and actions of others.
The difference between the child protagonists and adult antagonists throughout this novel is the generation gap and how adults are coping with danger and survival in the eerie, post-apocalyptic atmosphere differently to the teenagers. Ben is a very interesting character as he can telepathically talk to animals. Ben ensured himself that he will not use this special power after he ran away from Greg who forced him to so he could kill them for the food and skin. As a result, Ben is more vulnerable without this power as he has nothing to defend himself with. Molly, the gang leader is another character who has been detailed effectively. Kelleher describes her as demanding, daunting and powerful character as she forces Ben into doing things. Kelleher describes Greg as greedy as he only uses Ben for his special power so he can keep the dead animals skin for
In the novel Tyler says all the horrible things that have happened to him, “All the crap I had endured up until then - the face flushes in middle school, the wedgies, the names, being ignored, mocked, teased, spit on, even being hurt by Bethany…” (152 -153) This creates a sad mood that maybe some readers can relate to. Everyone has had tough times in school where we have been picked on by other kids, so this is a sad memory that others might have too. The mood of loss or fearing to losing someone is also shown in the story when Tyler’s father says, “‘I don’t want you to leave us.’ His throat tightened and he clenched his teeth.” (248) In this quote Tyler’s dad finally shows some emotions for Tyler which creates a mood of fearing to lose someone special to you. This moment might even tug at the reader's heart strings because this is the moment Tyler finally realised he was wrong about his father hating
"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view--until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." A quote by Atticus Finch a loving single father of two children in a novel by Harper Lee. The story takes place during the 1930s and the Great Depression, in a small (made-up) town called Maycomb Alabama. Scout now an adult is narrating what she experienced and felt in ages 6-9. She gives details of her family, school, and just everything she goes through. In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, she also talks about her brother Jem, who starts as a careless young boy that slowly starts getting more mature. Jem changing throughout the story helps show a little bit more of how the story develops and why character development is important in making a good novel.
Growing up as a young black male has many struggles. M.K. Asante’s Buck is an eye opener to the real world of life growing up as a young black male. Malo is the main character in this book. His older brother, Uzi, is in an out of trouble constantly, mother has mental issues and his dad isn’t really supportive of them.as in their family struggles. Malo feels that he is forced to be independent but his mother doesn’t fully agree with some of the decisions that he makes. With his family falling apart, Malo feels that he has to fight for himself to survive in this world.
Are his feelings for his father the same as they have been, or has their relationship changed? If so, what do you think has caused their relationship to
Nate Brodie, is in 8th grade and he is the quarterback for his school team. In this book,
Johnny's personality changed throughout the book. At the beginning of the book, Johnny was immature. He was too full of himself and did not think before he spoke. By the end of the book, he was more mature. He became more humble and less easily angered. In chapter one, Johnny was overly proud and arrogant. Then, in chapter two, his hand got burnt and he lost his pride.
Jackson is introduced to us in the beginning and is developed as a character throughout the story. Applegate mostly uses indirect characterization to show the growth and development of Jackson. In the beginning of the story we are able to learn a lot about him as a person through the things that he says and does. One thing that we learn about him early on is that he deals with and takes on a lot of responsibilities for a kid. His family is going through financial problems and on top of that he often ends up being responsible for helping take care of his younger sister, Robin. Jackson is forced to do things like play games with their food to distract themselves from the very limited amount of food that they have and read Robin stories in the middle of the night when she cannot sleep. These are things that most boys going into the 5th grade do not have to worry about. On top of this he is trying to deal with his own personal issues like the confusion and craziness of seeing his old imaginary friend everywhere. When his family is preparing to sell most of their belongings, Jackson and Robin go through their stuff to pick out items for their “keepsakes”, which is just a few items that they really treasure. Jackson’s