Midterm Response // It's All a Cycle

So far I have read The Catcher in the Rye and now I have begun To Kill a Mockingbird. Overall, reading The Catcher in the Rye was much more of learning experience and an eye opener than I had intended it to be. When I first began reading the novel, it was definitely a drag. I just couldn't get into it as I hoped I would have. I never got to the point where I couldn't put it down, but I did get to a point where things started to make sense and I realized what the author's message was.
Salinger's message was to adults, not just adolescents. An adult or a teenager could read it and take something from it. As a teenager I discovered that there is a lot of conformity in our world today. Too many people follow the path that has been traveled way too many times and either realize that it isn't for them or don't realize it and are stuck on this path of no originality, phoniness, and artificial life. This novel taught me to just keep being me. Not only to keep being myself, but help others who feel like they are being swallowed up by the shallow lives of others. It was also a wake up call to point out the things I myself do in life that are phony and bland. My favorite part of the novel was the brutally honest, Holden Caulfield. Salinger wasn't afraid to give it to you straight and that's what I enjoyed the most. I would encourage others to read The Catcher in the Rye, but I recommend that they find a clean version. (If possible) :)
Reading books of any sort in school seems to be ancient history anymore. So, I appreciate the fact that we have been given this privilege to read again. The reflection part that is involved with our reading is probably the most important part. By reflecting what we read to others through our blogs or other means of communication inspires others to read, do something for someone, reevaluate parts of their lives, etc. It's a trickle down effect. What inspires us may inspire someone else in a completely different way, but the main achievement in it all, is that it is inspiring someone.
Our quarter project for Novels is to do something awesome. We are supposed to take something we learned from our book and do something with it that is well, awesome. I have an idea, but I'm just not certain if it's the idea. I learned from my novel that the world needs less phony, more real. So I thought about speaking to the incoming freshman class of the next school year. I would talk to them about how important it is to be yourself in a world full of people who seem to be all the same. If money wasn't an issue I thought about creating bracelets that would remind someone each day to be yourself and live your life with conforming or being phony to others.
Reading can really change the way people think. It opens your eyes, mind, and heart to look at a situation completely different. It's other people's words, but sometimes it's your words too. An author may write about exactly how you feel or what you are thinking and it can make you feel less alone. I love how no matter what, some part of a book will always apply to my life.
As for the rest of the quarter (and semester), I hope to become a person who inspires others because I was inspired by someone else. It's all a cycle.