BonusBlog! Children's Book - Warriors: The Sight

Is it ironic that perhaps the hardest book I read for Genius Hour is a children's book? After receiving suggestions from Brandon and Steven to attempt a children's book, I was reluctant at first, as I kind of established the precedent that I will be reading literary classics, or at least books that are part of the literary canon. Now, where does Warriors: Power of Three #1: The Sight, a fantasy children's' book made in 2007 about domesticated cats in the wild, fit into that equation? It doesn't, but it wouldn't be a true Genius Hour project if I didn't follow the goals I set originally. So let's begin with my bonus blog where I'll do whatever I want.

This was me reading this book, I think.  Are somewhat irrelevant photos a sight to behold or an eyesore? Comment down below.

As I mentioned before, the book was incredibly demanding of me. For a children's book, 360 pages is considerable compared to some of the more appealing series that are available like Magic Tree House or A to Z Mysteries. Nevertheless, during fourth grade, I begged my parents to get the Power of Three trilogy promising that I would read it cover to cover. My entreaties were answered, but I never honestly read this more-than-likely $30 collection. When cracking open this book for the first time since elementary, I still had my Garfield "Read with clean paws!" bookmark indicating my progress. I only made it a meager 25 pages.

Surely, I had read much longer books at the time. The year before I started my favorite series, Tunnels, with the first book being an impressive 450 pages. It didn't bother me much at the time though, as long as I was enjoying the book, I wanted to stay in the world created as long as possible. So, I guess what I'm trying to say here in here is that I didn't enjoy the world of Warriors. Matter of fact, I was bored to the point of disgust. Hence, my lack of initiative with this book. Surprisingly or not, reading about domestic cats in a clan eating, sleeping, and playing (all things regular cats do) is not that interesting.

Here's how the factions are organized. I was expecting the majority of conflict to come from the division of clans. Instead, all I found was an amusing catfight.

Usually, I would give an example here that credits the author in some way and to give him somewhat of a defense, but nothing stands out to me. The most I can say to the author is: "Well you did your one and only plot twist in the first 40 pages and you got me." Apparently, the kitten we were following was blind and I had actually no premonition that the kitten was. All I noticed is that the descriptive style of the author seemed to focus more on the sensual than the visual, but that's small potatoes.

As a result of the kitten's disability, he's not respected as well as his other clanmates, and they don't believe he can be a true warrior, and he tries to show those tabby warriors that he's just as good as all the rest of them, and he wants them to see that he doesn't need their help, and . . . . Oh sorry, dozed off like I did with the majority it with the book. Gosh, is it boring! Maybe it would be more interesting if I could relate, but even then the characters are simply monotonous. Jaypaw, the blind kitten, blatantly ignored the rules set for him like five times. It's annoying, and it isn't a likable sort of annoying, it's a frustrating type of annoying.

  19th-century drawing of a mean-looking tabby cat in a catloaf

Let's see what else I have in my notes for this book. (If you can't focus on a book about domestic cats fighting, by the way, that's my tip -- take notes.) Going into the book, I thought that cats were substituted into it just to gain appeal from both genders. If you remember back in the elementary days, books were not exactly sexist, but it was fairly obvious who they were trying to appeal to. Girls got all those horse novels which I couldn't understand the popularity of, and boys got sports novels, which I admittedly couldn't understand the popularity of either. Nevertheless, for the most part, that's how it was and still is with children's books.

I've actually read both of these while waiting for my mom to get done with shopping. Although they might appear like direct ripoffs of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, the difference for both of them is that they're actually not funny, more irritating than anything.

This cover is painful to look at.

I assume you'll get my point simple enough with the pictures and I don't really need to go into any more depth. Anyways, I thought the characters were cats simply because needed to gain some traction with girls in tandem with the boyish fantasy, so, cats. However, the author tries to do better than the bare minimum than just a 1 to 1 substitute. Instead of he said, it's now he meowed. Instead of congratulating each other, they rub muzzles. And, again, they spend most of their times doing cat things with each other.

One of the things that I never exactly understood while reading the book was sharing tongues with each other. At first, I thought it was just cat-kissing, but I realized they were cleaning each other. It may not be that interesting reading cats cleaning themselves, but, to be fair, it is what cats would do. Albeit, if I apply my Penultimate Lit Analysis goggles, the characters being cats doesn't add to anything. They're just domestic cats out in the wild, it's more of a medium for the themes than anything.

My domestic cat being precious under some bushes

The main meat of any novel is conflict and that is perhaps Warriors: The Sight's biggest shortcoming. Let me paws and reflect on what the dominant conflict was in the book. Well, there were some foxes on the clan's territory in the beginning. Jaypaw, the blind cat, tries hunting them down with his siblings. He then falls off a cliff or something. After that, he begins his training as a warrior. He's frustrated, getting a trainer who pities him. He realizes that he can see in people's dreams somehow (it's not really explained). He almost drowns the next day going for a walk. There's a clan fight. I was actually kind of excited for this, expecting the majority of the book to involve these type of conflicts. But then I realized this is a children's book, nothing's going to happen and these are domestic cats after all. Unfortunately, I was right, the furry warriors ended up with some scratches and I ended up with amusing visions of a blind cat swiping and yowling at other cats.

The tension between the clans is never exposed again, yet the book figures a way to continue for 125 pages.  The book continues with a pack of dogs and a spread of fever throughout the clans. The book ends with Jaypaw being called a hero. I could as much just lie for the ending with something less predictable and you would never be the wiser though. Why not? In actuality, it turned out Jaypaw was just in a coma and he was dreaming of what it would be like to be blind. That's better.

There's character development progressively throughout the novel, but it's far too shallow. Jaypaw believes he can serve his clan with the best, others make him question if he's able to, then, in the end, his original notions are reinforced, he realizes there are other ways to serve his clan than being a warrior.

Thermograph of various body parts of a cat. (Insert relation to blog here) Cats had a fever in the book. One almost died to the illness, but Jaypaw went into his dream and revived him somehow.

Personally, I disagree with Publisher's Weekly's review of Warriors: The Sight. Their review of the book supposedly represents much of the general consensus of the book, stating: "Action packed. Certain to please any young reader who has ever wondered what dreams of grandeur may haunt the family cat." For one, my cat doesn't dream about being in a clan fighting cats and struggling to find food. She dreams about being soft, of comfort, and how much she wants to go outside only so that she can want to go inside. Secondly, define action-packed, is it just that one fight that took place that makes it "action-packed." It's a terrible thing when I can compare a children's book having as much action as the novels I read. Lastly, I was a child when I tried to read this; I had a different, now-deceased cat at the time, but that didn't compel me, and it still doesn't with my new cat.

Perhaps the biggest issue with my lack of initiative didn't stem from the content of the book, it was the why to this book. With each book I begin, there's always that subconscious question of why I should read it. I don't have an answer for reading this book. Compared this to the hassle I've faced with much more challenging books I've completed for the blogs, such as Dracula or The Divine Comedy, their impact on literature and culture is undeniable. Here, with Warriors: The Sight the only reason as to why I kept on going with this book is because I told you guys all about my plans for my bonus blog, I couldn't just give up. So, I thank you all for the initiative and support you've provided.  I can't think of any big takeaway so as we've reached the tail's end of my blog, I'll just force a bunch of cat puns.

Warriors: The Sight wasn't a cat-astrophe, but it wasn't paws-itively purrfect either. I felt like I wasted meowrs reading this book, but it did provide inspurrtation for what might turn out to be litter-aly one of my best blogs. I mew what I was getting into originally, I just wished it did something to purrprise me.

According to Wikipedia, some cultures are superstitious about black cats, ascribing either good or bad luck to them.

MetaBlog™: I've also trademarked BonusBlog™. Two trademarks are an accomplishment. I'm not going to actually reflect on my blog, I feel like I summarized much of where I am to go from here with the last MetaBlog. I don't really see a necessity in it. This was fun as always. My goal for this blog is to get Two Views, so we'll see if I accomplished that or if I was just talking to myself with this blog.

Week 7 - In the Spirit of Genius Hour: A Mystery

Why, I remember the good old days, devouring all 26 A to Z Mysteries along with my typical assemblage of books. I remember my third-grade (Mrs. Roesler for any of you Highland Park veterans) teacher saying that there was no way I could read all the books I had claimed, primarily referencing me picking out one of the A to Z Mysteries from the library the same day I finished it. However, I did. Do I remember anything from the books? Nope, but who does at a young age with those type of books. All I remember now is from the x book in the series where a person fell off a carousel and broke his elbow.

Upon reflection, I couldn't say why I was so addicted to these books. I've never actually read a mystery since elementary, their appeal doesn't really fit my niche, so I usually pass them looking for something more ... rewarding. I've always had the notion that mysteries are fairly dry and unrewarding and it didn't help when I did attempt the genre again after a two-year hiatus with The Complete Sherlock Holmes. If you ever ask something that I don't have any interest in reading in the prospective future, there's your answer. But as my title says, this concluding blog raises a glass to Genius Hour. It toasts the opportunities provided and, as Genius Hour is about trying new things, here I am trying a genre that I haven't touched in eight years, the mystery. To represent the genre, the selection for this week is the most popular novel by the most popular mystery writer - And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie.

You know, fun fact Agatha Christie, as I saw smacked on my book, as you'll probably see on any book of hers, precedes only Shakespeare and the Bible, in books sold originating from one source. When I read that originally, I didn't know how to feel. Good for her I guess, you can tell how big an ego an author has by the size of their nameplate, and judging by the size of her's, it must take a lot to maintain.  Like you may have been able to infer, I don't know why mysteries are such a popular genre, but now that I've read And Then There Were None it has become apparent to me. Mysteries are gripping.

While I should've been working on vital scholarship essays, I was binging this book. I actually started and finished it on the same day, which is remarkable, because all the other books I've read would typically take a span of a week to complete. The plot of the book is simple enough, except for some of the words, I comprehended it just as easily as I would watch an episode of Scooby Doo in sixth grade. The novel begins with going in each of the character's perspectives, all with the same destination in mind to Soldier Island. Supposedly, they've been requested for a party with a friend who they haven't met in ages. The ten of them are a wild bunch of characters. One's a doctor, one's a zealous, religious old woman, one's a judge, one's a twenty-something who races cars through the streets of England, and so on and so forth. They arrive on the island feeling that something is off.  Their promised friends aren't there and they have yet to see their hosts. An excellent dinner calms their anxiety, that is until a phonograph reveals the true reason they are were all invited:

"You are charged with the following indictments: Edward George Armstrong, that you did upon the 14th day of March of 1925, cause the death of Louisa Mary Clees. Emily Caroline Brent, that upon the 5th of November, 1931, you were responsible for the death of Beatrice Taylor. Philip Lombard that upon a date in February 1932, you were guilty of the death of 21 men, members of an East African tribe . . ." All the charges are given out with most people charged with the murder of one or two deaths, but for brevity, I'll cut that out. The phonograph ends with: "Prisoners at the bar, have you anything to say in your defense?"

Engaging isn't it? At least I thought it was, at first, I was expecting the cliched dinner mystery where one of these colorful characters will be found dead once lightning strikes. Instead, what I got was a plot where they discover that there really is no one else on the island besides them, that means one of them organized this and plans to inflict the punishment from there on. It's clever in how it's done too, albeit a little bit forced at times.

It follows an old British nursery rhyme Ten Little Ni***rs, to make it more, um, politically correct it was then changed to Ten Little Indians in the American version, still racist nevertheless, it was finally changed to Ten Little Soldiers in most recent versions. Apparently, according to readers of Christie, casual racism is very common in her publications, in case you could tell from the past quote where 21 African deaths placed on the same level as one white person. It doesn't even serve a purpose as far as I can tell, it just seems out of nowhere (there is not any ethnicity besides the English in Then There Were None). I would consider the novel timeless, if there weren't actual discussions on why the crime of killing 21 Africans isn't that big of a deal between characters, I honestly kind of laughed in how spontaneous it appeared. Anyways, that was just something I wanted to get off my chest, back to the nursery rhyme.

Ten little soldier boys went out to dine;
One choked his little self and then there were Nine.
Nine little soldier boys sat up very late;
One overslept himself and then there were Eight.
Eight little soldier boys traveling in Devon;
One said he'd stay there and then there were Seven.
Seven little soldier boys chopping up sticks;
One chopped himself in halves and then there were Six.
Six little soldier boys playing with a hive;
A bumblebee stung one and then there were Five.
Five little soldier boys going in for law;
One got into Chancery and then there were Four.
Four little soldier boys going out to sea; A red herring swallowed one and then there were Three.
Three little soldier boys walking in the Zoo;
A big bear hugged one and then there were Two.
Two little soldier boys sitting in the sun;
One got frizzled up and then there was One.
One little soldier boy left all alone;
He went and hanged himself
And then there were None.

Final conflict at the end of the book

The novel creatively follows the rhyme with half the fun coming in the guessing of how the next death will follow this script. Like the third to last stanza being that a big bear hugged one for how his life was ended, well how does that correlate to a manor on a desolate island. In the end, you discover that a big bear-shaped clock clunked his skull after being pushed down from a two-story window. Yes, the landing may be improbable and silly at the same time. But really, I think that is what gripped me the most, I wanted to know what and who the next murder would be and, ultimately, who was committing the crime in the first place.

When I say unrewarding about the mystery genre, I am not implying that the ending are unsatisfactory, I mean that the subjects and themes touched upon are somewhat shallow with them probably not adding much to my literary experience. Which, although Agatha Christie surprised me with the themes and symbols present, they are still somewhat lackluster. Some are stronger than others, the novel took a unique examination on the administration of justice.

Paraphrasing what the character in the book saying why he did it all, "The law cannot reach these crimes the people commited. Thus, I must take matters into my own hands." Christie then raises the question who can really dictate punishments and whether or not they are worthy of them. What is justice after all, Christie proposes. It's an interesting theme, but at first glance, I didn't really catch on to the message, I was too busy trying to deduce who the killer was and seeing the residents slowly devolve into panic. But I see the broadspread appeal of mysteries both for people who are looking for a thrill in their books and for literary critics looking for something deeper beneath the surface. It's a good mesh that Christie does, to me, the way she composed it makes it so what I read is with a greater intention than it just being pulp.

And Then There Were None would take me on a spiraling ride that I would complete before I knew it. The book would end on a totally satisfying note answering any remaining questions that I may have which only adds to my experience of the blog. Contrary to my previous beliefs, it was a rewarding experience for me and probably my favorite book I have read during the entire blog. I completely why one would get so addicted to the genre now, I plan on reading more of this genre soon after I learn of some more remarkable mysteries. Which, I concede, is probably not the best as I was aiming to develop an enthusiasm for the more complex books I would read throughout.

It's nothing to sweat though, as here's the secret to reading all those complex, convoluted books you may hear so much about: don't. If you really want to get into reading and not take a couple months to read, say, The Divine Comedy, before that read what's on the more appealing side for you. That could be mysteries like And Then There Were None, sci-fi, or thrillers. At least, that's what I did to get myself back into reading late in the tenth grade. I loved Kurt Vonnegut's prose in his sci-fi writing, and I would read away no matter how unpopular or basic the book may have been because I loved his sardonic personality in his writing. Later on, when I read every book the library had to offer from him, I figured it was time to expand my horizons, and what better way to start it off by reading sci-fi classics, and I worked from there outwards. Maybe that's a preview of my Ted Talk in the works, I just thought it would complement what may be my last blog.



Juxtaposing my actual blog, a longer, more scrutinizing MetaBlog

Of course, following the penultimate, that was my last blog, it requires some falling action on my part and that was one of my intentions in style here. I didn't want to make it to grandiose, just keep it simple. I took inspiration from videos that I watch every December titled Disneycember with Doug Walker, they're short and satisfying reviews much like the mystery was for me, which is what I wanted to accomplish with this blog. I always ask did I accomplish what I set out to do with the blog this week. I always respond with a more or less noncommital sure, maybe I could've made some additions here and there, but I don't think I left much out in terms of content this week. So, in conclusion, I am satisfied with my blog and, really, my Genius Hour as a whole. Everything went smoothly. Procrastination wasn't much of an issue. Sure I may have finished blogs at midnight, but that was more or less poor planning on my part thinking that starting the write-up at 7:00 p.m. would be adequate time, typically my book I planned to read were finished a week before my blog. Nevertheless, I feel like I met my goals and read some interesting books along the way, so it has been a positive experience for me.