My Blog Post Has Transformed into a Listicle

    Sophie’s World, by Jostein Gaarder, is definitely a gear-turner. Set in a Norwegian village, a 14-year old girl named Sophie receives a letter from a philosophy teacher telling her that she has been enrolled in his philosophy class. From then on, she continues to receive letters from the mysterious teacher named Alberto Knox, who teaches her about the history of philosophy. Sophie also gets a letter that is addressed to a girl named Hilde, and she later discovers that the reason she is being taught philosophy may be connected to Hilde. Quite a game changer. 

What Sophie’s World Can Do for You: 2 Reasons Why You Should Read Sophie’s World, or Why You Should Continue If You’ve Started It but Stopped

1. To Learn about Philosophy

Given the summary, the more obvious reason you should read Sophie’s World is to learn about philosophy. When Alberto Knox first introduces philosophy to Sophie, he says that “the only thing we require to be good philosophers is the faculty of wonder” (Gaarder 17). He compares babies to having this same sense of wonder. He says that babies are still learning about the world, so if they were to see someone flying, they would react with awe, but they might not be alarmed since they don’t know that people can’t fly (usually). I like this example because it shows that philosophy is essentially observing one’s surroundings with an open mind and questioning those observations. The rest of his letters introduce Sophie to the history of philosophy, showing her how different philosophers--ranging from Socrates to Plato to Aristotle to David Hume to Immanuel Kant and others--used this sense of wonder to build theories and seek answers to questions they had. These philosophers were also influenced by each other’s theories when constructing their own even if that meant challenging them. Aristotle, for example, was a student of Plato, but he developed his own philosophy that refuted his teacher’s. There are also details that I found funny although I’m not sure if that was the author’s intention, but it made philosophy even more interesting. When Alberto Knox writes about Socrates and Plato, a student of Socrates, he describes Socrates as “potbellied, and had bulging eyes and a snub nose,” (65) and then Plato is described as “a handsome young man” (77). Despite Socrates’s appearance, he was said to be “perfectly delightful” inside (65). Then there was Diogenes, a Cynic philosopher who “reputedly lived in a barrel and owned nothing but a cloak, a stick, and a bread bag” (129). These descriptions go against a stereotypical perception of philosophers looking dignified and leading distinguished lives. I found these smaller details entertaining, and I’m glad that the author writes about philosophy in an engaging way.

2. Spontaneous Gasps

If you enjoy a good gasp every now and then, you should definitely read this book. In the beginning, along with the letter from Alberto Knox, Sophie receives a letter that is addressed to a girl named Hilde from Hilde’s dad. Sophie doesn’t know why she has been sent this letter, but she learns that she is somehow connected to Hilde. However, after this exciting development on page 10, the first third of the book is mostly about Sophie’s philosophy classes except for brief mentions of Hilde. Besides learning about philosophy, my incentive to keep reading was to find out more about the mystery of who Hilde is and how she is connected to Sophie and Alberto Knox. Since the first part of the book mostly focuses on the history of philosophy, any mention of the Hilde situation is especially exciting and may even cause one to gasp, like I did.  For example, when Sophie finds an object related to Hilde, she says, “Hilde! But who was Hilde? How could their paths keep crossing like this?” (57)  I too wonder that, Sophie. And whoever reading this blog post-listicle should read the book to find out. 

Possible Side Effects of Reading Sophie’s World: 

1. Frustration--That You Are Willing to Accept, Mostly

I had assumed that a healthy portion of Hilde’s story would be intertwined throughout the novel, but alas, I was wrong. While this slow start to the mystery was frustrating at first, I think the author’s point was that it is important to have a good foundation and understanding of the history of philosophy before being able to apply it to the mystery. Perhaps exposing the readers to different ways of thinking will help them comprehend the story along the way. Learning more about philosophy also influences Sophie’s thinking throughout the story, and she learns how to piece together the mystery on her own. Once you accept the fact that you will have to wait 160 pages to get to Hilde’s story, the philosophy lessons are quite interesting to read. 

2. Slight Discomfort: Borderline Stranger Danger

While Sophie wonders about who Alberto Knox is, she does not seem as worried about why a grown man she does not know is contacting her. This may cause one to question: Why is Sophie so accepting of a middle-aged man writing her letters? Why does she encourage this relationship and write back to him? Why does she agree to meet him alone? Yet, one must set aside those troubling worries and enjoy the book. 

Du bør lese denne boka! (This means “You should read this book” in Norwegian according to Google Translate).

--Grace

Diogenes (Cynic philosopher) in his barrel.

The Wandering Earth (and other stories): How many worlds can you think of?

 

  This blog post will be about a book that is quite different from the others which I have read and praised in this past year. Instead of being one large well-connected story around a central theme, The Wandering Earth is merely a collection of short stories each around 50 pages or so long. The stories aren't that detailed, but I nevertheless found the book's worldbuilding and ideas intriguing and enjoyable to read about. 

    Several stories within this volume depict human encounters with civilizations completely foreign to our own civilization. For example, in one of the stories, humanity encounters a highly advanced species which seeded life on Earth and helped humanity grow into a strong civilization,  and the story is based on that civilization trying to integrate with Earth due to the breakdown of their technology. In another one, two civilizations are present, with one aggressive civilization set to enslave other species and methodically extract their resources, and with another civilization falling victim to that force, using its last moments to warn humanity of their imminent war. Yet another story introduces us to a civilization a few inches across, made up of jolly humans shrunk to microscopic sizes. 

    I also loved how many of the stories came with an inspiring theme, or presented an interesting idea to think about. The topics covered are diverse, but the most recurring themes are related to human nature and the future of humanity. For instance, two back-to-back stories feature an individual striving to accomplish something in their lives, to improve their lives, or simply to tackle a challenge for the sake of it. In Mountain, a mountain climber, when faced with an alien mothership raising the sea to the upper atmosphere, chooses to defy all logic and swim towards the mothership. There, he learns of that alien civilization's struggle to learn about the universe around it and explore beyond the bounds of the civilization's cradle, in a story within a story. The story then goes on to compare these challenges, saying that they are all like the mountains the main character climbs, and states that if there is a challenge, there will always be someone to face it. The next story, Sun of China chronicles the adventure of a poor peasant, advancing through society to become a famous astronaut working on an orbital megaproject. Both stories, at its core, are about showing off the ambition of humanity through the lens of individuals, and I find both to be wonderful examples of writing which you can read quickly and in one sitting. 

    The Wandering Earth has ten stories in total, each presenting intriguing and thoughtful ideas like the ones I mentioned. Although I probably won't be able to cover the themes of all the stories (and I'd also rather not spoil too many stories), I recommend that you check this book out, and immerse yourself and the numerous universes that The Wandering Earth opens up for you. 

by Maxwell He

Noreen- A Murder Story from a Different Perspective: The Lovely Bones

 

            For my last blog post, I read a drama novel called The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold and designed my own book cover for it. The story is of a teenage girl, Susie, who was murdered by her neighbor, Mr. Harvey. Readers follow Susie as she watches her family and friends come to terms with her death. I appreciate that the entire plot is not only based on the mystery of who murders her. Us readers know right from the first chapter that Mr. Harvey is guilty. This allows us to gain a clearer perspective of Susie’s thought process and feel connected to her.

            At first I was not sure how to organize my original cover, but then I thought of the two main settings Susie spends time in, heaven and her suburban neighborhood. The bottom half of the cover illustrates themes of her neighborhood. You might notice the drawing to the left, representing Susie’s traumatic event and the atrocity of what Mr. Harvey did to her. What is also painful about Susie’s experiences is that Harvey kills her and gets away with it consistently. Susie says, “He wore his innocence like a comfortable coat” (Sebold 26). Susie realizes that even he believes his innocence. Amidst the darkness of her hometown is her family grieving her death. On the right of the bottom half, I drew her two siblings and parents. “Nothing is ever certain” is what her family tells each other hoping that Susie is found (Sebold 21).

            While the lower portion of the cover is full of sadness and has a dark theme, I tried to illustrate Susie’s personal heaven in a bright way on the top. Her heaven is unique and true to her personality. It is filled with non-traditional things like big butterflies and roller coasters. It reflects her own imagination and dreams. In order to get to her personal heaven, Susie has to accept her death and allow her family to move on. She has to trust that they sense her watching over them, as she says, “Had my brother really seen me somehow, or was he merely a little boy telling beautiful lies?” (Sebold 95).

            Lastly, I hope that my cover all together illustrates the dynamic of the two settings Susie experiences. While she still looks over her family, she moves on and no longer feels the need to get revenge on Harvey, leaving the darkness of her past. What I find so unique about this story is that while most books are in the perspective of the family losing a loved one, we get the perspective of the victim and watch her react to her family’s grieving process. I recommend The Lovely Bones to anyone seeking a dramatic but heartwarming story. 

The Adventure of a Lifetime in a Fantastical World - The Mark of the Dragonfly by Jaleigh Johnson

     

    Many stories tell of a strange earth-like steampunk world but none are as unique as The Mark of The Dragonfly. In the beginning of the book, the reader is greeted with a map of an unusual and unfamiliar continent called Solace, but as the reader goes on, the world of Solace is built with it, and the different areas on the map are explained. The world is made up of two rival kingdoms, the Merrow Kingdom and the Dragonfly Territories, but in the north of the continent lies a great field where meteor showers bring strange artifacts from other worlds with them. This strange occurrence has dictated the lives of many people, including the main character Piper, who works as a mechanic for artifacts found in the meteor field. Piper's life alone, after losing her father, was bland and uneventful until the biggest meteor shower in years brings something that will change her life forever and allow her to leave the miserable scrap towns. All in all, the location-based narrative structure immerses the reader in the fantastical world the characters travel through on their journey to escape.

    One of the most interesting characters of the story is the character Anna. Although Anna becomes a more established character as time goes on, her origins are mysterious. When Piper finds Anna in the wreck of a caravan destroyed by the meteor showers she brings her back to her house to recover. There she finds Anna is a member of the royalty in the Dragonfly Territories, bearing the Dragonfly tattoo, but has lost her memory in the accident. Anna's mysterious past, including the mystery behind why a member of royalty was in the middle of a meteor storm in the first place, causes problems along their journey. This mysterious element in the story makes the reader want to keep reading to investigate and uncover the truth behind Anna.

    Although Piper's journey to return Anna to the Dragonfly Territories comes with reward and later proves to be necessary to protect Anna, it does not come without conflict. One problem Piper has with her journey is that since Piper chose to break the law by leaving the shelter to save her friend Micah, Piper is wanted by the authorities. This forces Piper to act discretely in her journey and make the decision to leave her home town to protect herself and safely return Anna. Piper's fugitive status makes returning Anna to the distant Dragonfly Territories even more difficult and outlandish, yet interesting to follow. In addition to this problem, Piper has an internal conflict with the fact that her father died while working in a factory belonging to the Dragonfly king, and blames it on him. Piper's line "King Aron had built the factory in Noveen, the monster that had swallowed Piper's father up and made him breathe poisonous smoke" (Johnson 47), shows that she is resentful and seeks revenge for her father. Therefore, she is not inclined to help the king by returning a member of his royalty. These conflicts and her desire for revenge make Piper a complex and interesting character to follow.

    Only thirteen years old, Piper is on her own without any immediate family and works as a scavenger and repairer. For Piper, her only remaining family are Micah, Jory, and their parents who have always helped and been kind to her. When Micah, Piper's best friend, is injured during the meteor storm and slips into a coma, Piper is worried she will lose a part of the only family she has left. The adventure ahead of her not only helps her fulfill her dream of exploring the world, but helps her to make new friends and find new family. Overall, this is a very well written novel and the first of a series that explores the mystical world of Solace, following Piper and her friends on a journey to uncover mysteries and find a better life.

Kelby