Week 2- Some Assembly Required

So this week the theme is characterization, and I want to talk some about that, but it might not be all I talk about, so just be aware.

First off, there's something I forgot to mention last week, which is that every few chapters there is a chapter or two told not from the point of view of Colleen, but of Ann Putman, a girl living in the 1800s in Salem. Ann tells the story of how she and her friends sort-of-kinda-accidentally made everyone in their town think they were basically possessed. They peed on rye last I saw them. So that was awkward.

Let's start with that characterization now. As long as we're talking about Ann, I'll mention some of her characteristics. Ann is a weird character. And I'm not just saying that because she said she'd willingly fall asleep in a room where there are multiple wasps' nests.

Ann is kind of a pushover, and she'll basically do anything to get attention. Like when one of her friends bit her and instead of telling the doctors examining her that it was a bite from a crazy human girl, she stayed silent and let him assume that a demon was attacking her. Because that's a logical conclusion.

Then we're back to Colleen. She actually reminds me a lot of me in a weird way. She cares a lot about her grades, but gives herself enough time to spend with the few close friends she has instead of having a large group of less close friends. She's very conscious of how other people view her, and is genuinely humble when it comes to her achievements. She really makes me think of me in the way she handles certain situations.

I also wanted to mention some little predictions and stuff. So, a lot of girls at Colleen's school are getting this "mystery illness", and one of the characters mentioned that his girlfriend, one of the girls there, wasn't returning his texts, and I immediately thought to myself, "Yeah, she's sick" and a few chapters later there was a 'dramatic reveal' that the character got the mystery illness. Called it. I'm usually able to predict little things like that in movies and books.

A prediction for later in the book? Colleen's little sister. Her name is Louise, but Colleen's family calls her Wheeze. She's very young, and no one pays attention to her. They just kind of ignore her, and she'll disappear for long periods of time before briefly reentering as comic relief. My prediction is that Wheeze will somehow be crucial to climax of the story. The author wouldn't include a character so close to the main character for no reason, so she's gotta have some kind of ulterior motive that we don't see yet. If I'm gonna be more specific, she could even be the mystery texter who's been sending Colleen hints on what's going on, although that doesn't seem likely considering her age. But she'll definitely be crucial later.

I guess that's all for now. Later!

Week 1- It's Razzle Dazzle Time!

Hi! The first book I chose to read this year was Conversion by Katherine Howe. According to the blurb, this book is a sort of fantasy/supernatural story related to the Salem Witch Trials, but set in modern times. I had a list of books I was considering to grab from the library, and this book was not on it. But when I saw it, the cover caught my eye, because it has a sort of creepy quality without you being able to tell exactly why it looks creepy. It's got a sort of yellow canary-esque bird with its beak open like it's calling or singing, and it's perching on what looks like a branch at first but is actually more like a stem, and has thorns on it. It really made me stop and stare, especially with the font used for the title and author. I almost walked by it because I'd already chosen other books, but I just had to stop and read the inside jacket cover. Once I did, I almost squealed. I love reading about the Salem Witch trials and things related to them. It's just a really interesting topic! Supernatural and fanasy appeal to me in general, but I'm not really sure why. I just like stories that change the world we live in.
Anyways, I've only read a few chapters, but so far I like the style of writing. The story is told from the point of view of Colleen, a girl at a private school, where girls start having seizures and experiencing other strange symptoms. Colleen is very down-to-earth and realistic for her age. She takes the time to describe her relationships with other people as they are introduced, which can get a little tedious at the beginning when all the characters are being introduced, but it really does give her more depth that matters a lot. Colleen is dedicated to her schoolwork, but isn't a geek and has actual friends who care about her. She's smart, but she's not a stereotype, and so far she's pretty relatable. I'm not sure exactly how this book will end, but I have a feeling it could go one of a few ways: Colleen becomes a hero and everyone is saved from the "illness" described in the blurb, Colleen is an actual person and not a "chosen one" and can't save them (a new set of Witch trials), and the extreme of that second one, where the world possibly falls into some kind of dystopia or at least the illness continues to spread and there is a new set of Witch Trials, but worldwide.
I know this is super long, especially for a first post about a book I'm not very far into, but I just wanted to explain my thoughts and feelings so far. Thanks for reading!