After going through mudbound in record time and loving the book I had high expectations for Cold Mountain. These expectations where not met. It was difficult to focus on until about half way through. Before delving in to my complaints about this book one characteristic that I adore about books including this one is  the knowledge that is gained about the characters. Once finished the book it leaves me feeling i know their life stories, who they are, and what they stand for. Even when some of the characters seem due at first they have their own unique qualities that draw the reader close to them. This paints a beautiful picture for me of the uniqueness of people. Ada lacked in common scene and the knowledge for living despite her time spent on the land but could write beautifully along with being well learned in literature and the arts. Ruby comes across as savage in her ways but is a spit fire girl who had to fight to survive her whole life. Despite the hard cold demeanor Ruby holds she still has a caring heart as is show when she must nurse her father back to health. Even Inman who is pained as a coward for deserting the arm is show to be brave and caring. As he character progresses it becomes clear that Inman only hates who the war has turned him in to and doesn’t believe in what the south is fighting for. The character development is outstanding and although the book was not one that I loved reading I am now glad that I read Charles Frazier book. However in attempt to build up background information on both characters I, as the reader, was confused as Charles Frazier skipped back and forth between the people in the book. Along with adding to the chaos by adding in small side stories told from first person by side characters such as Adas neighbor and Rubies father. The book started out difficult to understand the set up due to the fact that Adas father is only mentioned once later in the book as her father and the reader is left to assume that Monroe is her father. Once the story gets going and all the characters are well identified it becomes easier to read however it seems to drag on as Inman takes part in his long journey back to Ada and cold mountain. This takes so long that it seems anticlimactic giving the book very little excitement. This could just be my spoiled mind being so use the action filled movies and shows of today’s times but I also believe myself to be an imaginative reader and able to enjoy most books.  The tail of Ada realizing how to live on her own with out relaying on her father and his workers is a slow but enjoyable read.  I personally find that part of the book more enjoyable and unique then that of the part filled with Inmans adventures. Adas tail is almost relatable to the one many of us are going to be facing when we graduate from our safe little high school bubble and move on in to the real world. Many have only seen and heard of the check books, responsibilities, and expenses that goes with the costs of living on our own. Ada goes through the same thing having only seen how the process of making a living and surviving on the rather secluded land but never having to do it herself. I believe the book has a good base plot line too it but simply wasn’t filled out in a way that I as the reader was execting. The same goes for what Charles Frazier was trying to represent with the crows. The crows stand for perseverance and survival which is defiantly something that Inman and Ruby both had to do but it told me long time to figure out that was the meaning behind the crows. But in perspective I am only a high school student with a limited knowledge of literary works. The author although may not be that some find enjoyable but is still one that needs respect for crafting a novel that the picky taste of high school students can yet appreciate. Like so many other things in life this book is what you make out of it. Cold Mountain may not be one of the best novels ever written but there is still much that can be learned from it.

The beautifully intertwined ideas that Mudbound covers was the first thing that made me love this book. It incorporates racial inequality, adultery, love, life after the war, and how life was for women of that time period. Second thing that made me love the book is how the characters came alive to me. When Ronsel was being punished for having a mixed son I felt filled with anxiety as if it truly happened. When Pappy died I was happy that no one else had to deal with his wrathful ways. I believe what all these huge ideas in the book have in common is that every character has his or her own secret about it. These secrets always end in hurting someone or in some cases only having the potential to greatly hurt someone. Even Laura’s mother had her own secret about her still born child which obviously still pained her all these years later. Laura herself starts with her secret of the unhappiness she feels from living on the farm. I love the unique view it gives on the life of a woman at that time. How she must always submit to her husband, never to say her desires if they are contradictory to his. This then grows in to lust for something new, which happens to be Jamie. Laura keeps her feelings secret and then after that she keeps the consequence of her sin secret, leading everyone to believe her son is Henry’s. In this case the secret Laura is keeping doesn’t hurt her but it has the potential to hurt her husband greatly. Secrets being made, kept and broken was all throughout the book but I didn’t realize that until I finished the dramatic fast pass novel. I relate to Laura as she slowly falls for Jamie. She is starved for attention and misses the feeling of being special in her relationship with Henry. I believe she never stopped loving her husband but simply wanted something to make her feel different. Laura’s love for Jamie reminded me of past crushes I’ve had; it is so easy to be caught up in them. However my crushes never reached the extent that hers did. Jamie was half drunk at all times and Laura was swept away by feelings she hadn’t felt in years. As I read on I saw the foreshadowing and was torn on what I wanted to happen next. I knew it was incredibly and almost unforgivably wrong but the way the author wrote Laura’s character I perfectly understood why she did what she did.  Her and Jamie are not the only ones who share the secret of what happened. Henry’s father also knows and it is Laura who first has the desire to kill the bitter man. Pappy also hides the secret of what he did that rainy night with all the other men but he is already dead before anyone besides Jamie and Ronsel’s mother has time to figure out it was him who started the whole thing.   I especially liked how Mudbound incorporates the after math of the war differently through Jamie and Ronsel. Through the eyes of Jamie we see the post traumatic stress disorder which leads to alcohol abuse and how these things hurt him as he keeps them a secret. Ronsel very quickly losses the secret of his son and is hurt in a very brutal way for it. Both men keep secret the things that they have seen and done over in the war. Jamie has the most secrets at the end of the book I believe, which is ironic because at the beginning he was describes as so light and care free. However at the end of the book he is an alcoholic suffering from post traumatic stress disorder, committed adultery with his brothers wife, decide Ronsel’s punishment, doesn’t turn in the members of the clan, and his biggest secret of all; killing his own father. All of these secrets drive him away from Laura and Henry. Every secret that was kept lead to how everything played out in the end of the story. If Laura wouldn’t have withheld how she was feeling to her husband she may never had developed feelings for Jamie. If Jamie never would have slept with Laura he wouldn’t have gotten so drunk the next day that he almost ran over Ronsel when he was driving back home. Then the letter would have never ended up in the hands of Henry’s father which lead to Ronsel losing his tongue and even more secrets being made. All of these secrets lead to what happens in the end. Mudbound not only is a great drama filled book while illustrating the problems back in that time it also is about the danger of secrets.

Hey everyone! My name is Alaina; which for a long time I didn’t like my name. Auto-correct always tries to change it, telling me that I spelled my own name incorrect but I’ve grow to liking its slight uniqueness. I was new to the public school system when I, with everyone else, stepped in Spring Mills for the first time. Before that I was home schooled. It was an experience that I will forever be grateful but even more grateful for the decision that I made to make a change. I have loved my high school experience. I’m incredible excited to start my senior year with the people that freshman year started out as strangers but are now dear friends who I share many memories with. The one thing that started off my freshman year well was running cross country. It got me involved with the school, friends that I still have moving in to senior, and running gave me a confidence that would serve me for life. A 5k, which is 3.1 miles, seems like nothing now but freshman year it could have been a marathon with how difficult it felt. Running made me feel alive in a way that I never felt before. Now keep in mind I’m no runner. I’m close to awful at it but its something that I love. Running is something that I do for my own enjoyment and fitness.  Swim was the next sport I tried and soon got to love. I would have never done swim on my own. At that point I could dog paddle with my head out like a turtle. It was Ki that got me to do swim. My life would be sadly different without Ki in it.  Swim gave me confidence about my body that I didn’t have before. I was still recovering from those awkward years of middle school; not feeling comfortable in my own body. Swim not only lead me to being happy with my body but also to the best summer job that I could have asked for. I lifeguard in the summers and have gained so many new memories from the entertaining job. Not only did Ki get me involved with swim but also she got me to go to church. My Faith is now the foundation to my life and makes me who I am. I hope to go on a mission trip to Camden New Jersey with my church this August. I would love to mission in Africa to the people there. Bio Psychology is what I want to do and I hope to be able to help those suffering from PTSD and physical brain traumas. my desire is to help people both physical and spirituality. For now these and many more are all in the distant future. I’m content in the present and am filled with excitement for my last year of high school. I look forward to getting to know any new faces in this class and having a great time with everyone.

Welcome to your brand new blog at Edublogs!

To get started, simply visit your blog’s dashboard, edit or delete this post and check out all the other options available to you.

Like more help?

We can walk you through step-by-step in our guide to getting started with your blog.

Happy blogging!