The Country of the Blind

Before reading

Title: The Country of the Blind and Other Stories

Author: H.G. Wells

Release date: 1911

Publisher: Thomas Nelson and sons

Plot summary

The book is about a lost civilization that was forgotten by the outside world. This civilization was affected by a disease that made people blind. After fifteen generations, they developed their own customs and culture. It just so happens that a young man inadvertedly enters the valley and encounters the blind civilization.

Opinion

The main theme of the book is a criticism of both human limitations and possibilities. The average citizen, to Wells, is a person dominated by the everyday routine of obtaining the physical necessities of life.

Juan M., 2nd Bac.

Holes

Before reading

Title: Holes

Author: Louis Sachar

Release date: 1998

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Plot summary

It all begins when, wrongly accused of stealing sneakers, Stanley Yelnats is sentenced to 18 months at Camp Green Lake Correctional Facility. The boys there dig holes daily in the hot sun, supposedly to “build character”, but Stanley soon discovers the warden is actually hunting for a treasure tied to Stanley´s ancestors. As he masters his digging skills he rescues a fellow inmate and Stanley´s self-confidence grows. For this reason, he finally discovers the treasure may be closer than anyone thinks.

Opinion

Notably, I recommend this entertaining novel to anyone who wants to have a good time, immersing themselves in the world of Stanley Yelnats and the mystery of the holes.

Ilán C., 2nd Bac.

Bill the Vampire

Before reading

Title: Bill the Vampire

Author: Rick Gualtieri

Collection: The Tome of Bill

Plot summary

The book talks about the adventures of Bill, an ironic, funny and socially awkward nerd that is bitten by a vampire hottie who he meets on his way back to his apartment from a comic-con. It turns out that girl was a member of a vampire cavern and he was her food! But somehow, Bill survives the blood-draining with enough time for his vampire transformation to kick-in, and he is a rare type of vampire. He is the legendary freewill, and is able to withstand the mental powers of older vampires; he can’t be compelled, but with great power comes great responsibility. He has to fulfil an ancient prophecy.

Opinion

The book’s most astounding element is that it uses a funny, ironic and original way of portraying the supernatural creatures that lurk in the night. I recommend this book to every reader who is tired of reading about teenage vampires with raging hormones and wants to see how a normal geek would use the vampire powers to save the world, get the chick, and kick some ass in the process.

Rafael C., 2nd Bac.

On the Road

On the Road book cover

The book we’ve read is “On the road” by Jack Kerouac. It was first published by Viking Press in 1957. Jack Kerouac (1922-1969) was an American novelist and poet considered a literary icon and a pioneer of the Beat Generation.

The book tells about the different road trips of two friends across the USA: Sal Paradise, the narrator, a writer who was depressed before meeting Dean Moriarty, an energetic and womanizing man with an incredible life. They go to New York, Chicago, San Francisco and many more cities, living life against a backfdrop of jazz, poetry, drugs and alcohol between the years 1947-1950.

The story is based on the trips that Jack Kerouac made with his friends, that’s why while you read it you feel a need for travelling and living new adventures. Therefore, we recommend this book to all the people that like real life adventures and a little bit of madness.

Mireia S. and Sofía R., 2nd Bac

Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre book cover

‘Jane Eyre’ is a novel written by Charlotte Brontë that was published in 1847. The last edition belongs to Heinemann publishers and has 38 chapters.

Charlotte Brontë was born in 1816 in Thornton, Yorkshire and she was the third daughter to a clergyman. She had a sister who was a writer as well, Emily Brontë (author of ‘Wuthering Heights’). She married Arthur Bell Nichols and died in March, 1855. Her most notable works are ‘Jane Eyre’ and ‘Villete’; both of them published under the pen-name of Currer Bell and enjoying immediate success.

From the very beginning of the story we can perceive Jane’s strong will and integrity, since it is the story of an orphan cultivated by a wealthy family which motivates much of the novel’s conflict, because Jane lives off the charity of others. As a consequence, Jane suffers mistreatment at the hands of John Reed and his wife. That way, Jane’s confinement to the red room represents her inferior position and the feeling of isolation with respect to her own society. Also, Jane’s early years at Lowood make her endure hard conditions as a student and despite her intelligence, talent and self-assurance she is only a burden for the society because she is poor.

After that she begins her career as a governess and travels to Thornfield. There she will experience some sort of new feelings towards Rochester, her servant. Because of that, she starts to think about social equality, freedom and personal growth, as she cannot believe that he could ever fall in love with her.

This novel is recognized as being one of the pioneer works of female literature in England, indeed, it has in some way a critical view through a formal complaint about how class and gender hierarchies contribute to send some people to ‘exile’. So, I really found valuable what Charlotte Brontë transmits against social injustice and preconceptions of 19th -century Victorian society, because she defends autonomy, education and freedom beyond appearances and social class.

María H., 2nd Baccalaureate

A Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carol book cover

‘A Christmas carol’ tells the story of Ebenezer Scrooge: an old, lonely, greedy, rude and cold-hearted man who hates Christmas.

One evening, after returning to his dark and cold home, he is visited by the ghost of his late partner Jacob Marley. Marley, as well as Ebenezer, had a miserable serving life; so, when he died, he was condemned to wander the Earth tied with heavy chains. To avoid a similar ending for his friend, Jacob informs Scrooge that 3 spirits will visit him during each of the next three nights.

That night, he meets the Ghost of Christmas Past, who shows him moments of his childhood and youth. Scrooge sees himself in school and, a little bit later, just marrying his love Belle. Twenty-four hours after that, he is visited by the Ghost of Christmas Present. He takes Scrooge through London, and he shows him the situation of a current family whose son is about to die. Finally, it’s the turn of the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, who shows the main character a sequence of mysterious scenes related with an unnamed man’s recent death. Ebenezer begs to know the name of that man, and, suddenly, he sees himself in a cemetery, almost inside a tomb. That moment he realizes that his attitude hasn’t been good, and he decides to make a change. This way, he desperately implores the spirit to delay his death, promising to be a better person for the rest of his life.

Personally, I think that the main character of this novel represents us in many ways. I mean: we have our point of view, which sometimes, though unnoticed, is harmful for us. But we still defend our beliefs until one person shows us the real meaning of life, and changes our way of seeing the world.

María G., 2nd Baccalaureate

THE PERIODIC TABLE

AUTHOR: Primo Levi
PUBLISHER AND YEAR: Penguin books, 1975

The periodic table is a novel that narrates the story of a man from his childhood, in a very intimate and personal way. This is due to the autobiographical character that the work acquires as a consequence of the linked concordance between the author’s and narrator’s identity.

Like this, Primo Levi tells us how he lived as a Jew during the Fascist regime and other transcendental experiences that had marked him.

Personally, I think what makes this novel unique is the nearness of the story to the reader’s reality together with the reference that is made to a well-known tragic and historical situation (the Holocaust). But maybe, although it could be difficult to understand the technical vocabulary about chemistry, it is also what gives more originality to the book, because through the elements in the periodic table the author transmits his life experiences.

María H., 1st Baccalaureate

EL PROCESO

Franz Kafka nació en el año 1883 en la ciudad checa de Bohemia. De origen judío, redactaba sus obras en alemán. Es el autor de obras que han sido consideradas algunas de las más influyentes de la literatura universal. Estas obras contienen una gran variedad de temas: la alineación, la brutalidad física y psicológica, el terror…

Uno de sus libros más destacados es “El Proceso”, novela inacabada por el autor, publicada un año después de su muerte, en 1925, por Max Brad que se basó en el manuscrito inconcluso que había dejado Kafka.

“El Proceso” relata la historia de Joseph K., un hombre que se encuentra al despertarse rodeado por dos agentes que lo arrestan debido a que se encuentra envuelto en un proceso judicial. Inicialmente, el personaje desconoce la causa de su situación lo que le lleva desesperadamente a intentar averiguarla. Sin embargo, durante el transcurso de la historia, a medida que crece su empeño en encontrar los motivos que le llevan ante la justicia, más alejado se siente de la verdad puesto que se encuentra con una gran cantidad de leyes incomprensibles y jerarquías infinitas que le obligan a ir de una persona a otra y que le impiden finalmente encontrar al juez a cargo de su caso.

A través de la novela el autor va reflejando los complejos, y muchas veces inexplicables, mecanismos de la ley y del Estado. Mediante el uso de un vocabulario denso y enredado el lector se va sumergiendo en la trama de la historia, empatizando cada vez más con la impotencia que siente Joseph K. al no encontrar los motivos por los que es condenado y termina llevándole a asumir su culpabilidad.

 Axel A.

1º bachillerato

CINCO SEMANAS EN GLOBO

El libro que voy a comentar a continuación recibe el nombre de «Cinco semanas en globo», y fue escrito por Julio Verne en el año 1863. Actualmente pertenece a la editorial ANAYA, gracias a la cual ha llegado hasta nuestros días.

Este reconocido autor francés nació en Nantes en 1828. Es considerado el fundador de la literatura moderna de ciencia ficción, pues, durante el desarrollo de sus relatos fantásticos, predijo la aparición de algunos de los productos generados por el avance tecnológico del siglo XX. A una edad temprana, ingresó en un seminario junto con su hermano. Más tarde estudió filosofía y retórica, asignaturas que le ayudaron a publicar una tesis doctoral de derecho. Comenzó escribiendo algunos sonetos y textos teatrales, que no tuvieron mucho éxito entre el publico. Sin embargo, el encuentro con un famoso editor le ayudó a continuar redactando obras de aventuras y fantasía; alcanzando de este modo un notable éxito como literato.

«Cinco semanas en globo» es uno de los «Viajes extraordinarios a los mundos conocidos y desconocidos», en los que Julio Verne pretende contar estructuradamente la historia del universo. Para ello toma como base los conocimientos geográficos, geológicos, físicos y astronómicos recopilados por la ciencia moderna; además de sus numerosas experiencias provenientes de las expediciones a lugares exóticos y lejanos.

Esta obra establece una síntesis entre realidad y ficción.  Cuenta la historia de un intrépido explorador inglés cuyo principal objetivo es cruzar África de este a oeste. Para ello busca la ayuda de dos acompañantes, los cuales le serán de gran ayuda a la hora de realizar este largo e improvisado viaje sirviéndose de un globo como principal medio de transporte.

En base a lo relatado, podríamos decir que el libro habla sobre el descubrimiento de lo desconocido y de los espacios inexplorados, donde la emoción reside en la sorpresa que nos invade junto con todas aquellas cosas que aún no conocemos. Por ello, la finalidad del autor es sacar a la luz aquellas partes del mundo, alejadas de la civilización moderna, que pueden llegar a deslumbrarnos con su pureza y su bella imagen.

Esta edición posee un prólogo que, a mi parecer, es absolutamente necesario para conocer la justificación que se encuentra detrás de esta obra. Además, también nos ayuda a conocer ciertos aspectos de la vida de Verne, así como su motivación en el campo de la literatura.

Como conclusión, opino que esta lectura me ha servido mucho a la hora de comprender que cada individuo es libre de viajar y conocer mundo; pues esta experiencia es vital para desarrollar nuevos y emocionantes aspectos en la vida de una persona. La recomiendo a personas que, como yo, ansían ver parajes alejados de su ciudad natal y vivir en ellos numerosas aventuras.

María G.

1º bachillerato

DÍA DEL LIBRO