Independant Reading; Along for the Ride; Theme & Summary III

Some of the real life issues that are reflected in the text of Along for the Ride  are topics such as judgments and divorce. In the book, Auden's parents are divorced and this causes most of the conflicts in the book because Auden currently lives with her mom who still hold a grudge on her former husband, Auden's dad. And he makes it even worse because he has a new wife that he is married to that Auden and Auden's mom doesn't like. . . at all. They think that Auden's dad's new wife is too annoying with her bubbly personality. The problem in the book is that Heidi, Auden's dad's new wife, wants Auden to visit them and their new baby and stay with them for a little while. While Auden wants to stay with them to get in touch with her dad, she wants to avoid Heidi to every extent. But when Auden finally starts staying with them, she realizes over time that Heidi was doing all the work around the house, and that her dad was doing nothing to help, which was exactly why Auden's mom got a divorce with them anyway. So now that Auden doesn't have any judgments or grudges, her mom still unfortunately does. When Auden's mom comes to visit, it was a rainy day and she doesn't know that Auden was working at Heidi's store, the most pink, girly store in the whole town. Before Auden left the house, she borrowed one of Heidi's, of course, pink rain jacket and she started to head down to the store. Little did she know that her mom was going to see her and be very disappointed. When Auden's mom walked into the store, Auden immediately recognized her mom's voice and ,"her displeasure more than evident. Auden said," When she finally got to me, she didn't look any happier." This connects the topic of divorce and conflict because it is like cause and effect; the cause is Auden's parent's getting the divorce, the effect is now Auden's mom judges every single decision that Auden's dad makes, like marrying Heidi. The theme continues from the beginning of the book; don't make judgments based on a decision made in the past in which perspectives differed.

 

Independant Reading; Along for the Ride; Characters Il

There are some very interesting characters with personalities that I can recognize from other books. But one character in particular I have been blogging about ever since I started this book, and that was Heidi. Heidi is the main character's stepmom. In the beginning of the book, the main character, Auden, and her mom were judging Heidi for her maybe too bubbly personality. And they made me think that Heidi was just an annoying woman from the start. Throughout the book, I have started to realize that is wasn't true, and Auden was starting to realize that too. But then her Auden's mom came into town, and she was still totally against Heidi's store, her clothes, and even her workers! Auden  took some personal offense to the things her mom had said about Heidi becuase she realized that her mom din't know anything about Heidi from the start,like how hard she worked to get where she is now, so why does she still judge Heidi? What I would be interested in doing would be to have a conversation with Heidi. The questions I would like to ask her would probably be asking her ,"Where were you born?", or ,"What kind of lifestyle did you live in?" becuase getting this information form Heidi might explain why her personality is this way becuase it may have been just the people she grew up around like her family or the town's personality that she lived in all together. Then if the reader had some more background on Heidi, we would feel more sympathetic towards Heidi and not towards Auden's mom. But then again, if the reader's knew the background of Auden's mom, then maybe that could explain to why she is so judgmental and she thinks she is right all the time and why won't she acknowledge others opinions.

Independant Reading; Along for the Ride; Analysis II

In the beginning of my book, Auden had a closer relationship with her mom then with her father. But Auden wanted a closer relationship with her father too, without having to get to know  his new wife, Heidi. Auden and her mom both despise her, but they haven't gotten a good reason why, besides her annoying peppy self. Throughout this whole book, there have been conflicts invloving Heidi where Auden seems to not want anything to do with her. But at other times Auden realizes how caring of a mother Heidi is, and how her father is the total opposite. He doesn't help with their new baby becuase he is always busy writing his next book. And Auden is secretly aggravated  knowing that her own father thinks his stupid book is more important that their new child. But then Auden's mom surprises her by coming into town, and of course, Auden is working at Heidi's little boutique all decorated in pink with Auden wearing Heidi's pink jacket too because of the rainy weather that day. The imagery in the color pink has a lot to do with the conflict that is about to arise between Auden and her mom.

"She replaced the botttle, then took a long look around the store, her displeasure more than evident. When she finally got to me, she didn't look any happier. 'Well. There you are.' 'Hi,' I said. She was studying me with such seriousness that I was instantly nervous, then even more so when I remebered the pink jacket I had on."

Obviously Auden is sort of ashamed that she was working in Heidi's store and wearing her pink jacket. She sees the disapproval on her mom's face. When Auden takes her mom out to lunch, things get ugly. Auden's mom starts throwing out all these insults that is deeply offending her daughter. The weird thing is Auden is loosing a close relationship she already had, and gaining one that she doesn't want with her stepmom, and never getting the relationship she wanted with her dad. Here are some insults from the book the Auden is receiving from her mom.

"I knew any business Heidi owned would probably not be to my sensibilities. But Booty Berry? And what about those Lolita-esque swimming bottoms? Are we packaging women to look like little girls now? Or little girls to look even more so, in order to exploit their innocence? How can she be a woman, not to mention a mother, and condone this sort of thing?"

"It's just so bothersome because it's the most shallow, base depiction of the female experience. Sugar and spice and everything nice, peddling packaging, not substance."

"I doubt your father picked Heidi for her fortitude. Quite the opposite in fact. I. Think all he really wanted was someone fluffy and insubstantial, so that he could be absolutely sure she'd always follow his lead."

"The sky was not streaked with pink. 'Well look at that,' my mother said, taking it in. 'Its your favorite color."

Now that we see all these insults to Heidi and Auden, will Auden choose not to move back with her mom and stay with Heidi?

Independent Reading; Along for the Ride; Reading Skills II

In this book, I'm wondering if Heidi and Auden's dad will work things out within their marriage. And I'm also wondering, will Auden develop a closer bond with Heidi, or will she still stick with her dad even though his choices aren't the best for his relationship with Heidi. Here is a passage from the book showing the conflict between Heidi and Auden's dad about their baby's name;

"Middle name,' he repeated. 'And only because her mother insisted. I wanted to name her Thisbee Andromeda.' Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Heidi wince. 'Really?' I said. 'Its powerful!' he replied, pounding his chest for emphasis. 'Memorable. And it can't be shortened or cutified, which is how a name should be. If you were an Ashley or a Lisa, and not an Auden, do you think you'd be so special?' I wasn't sure how I was supposed to answer to this. Did he actually expect me to agree that it was his choice of name, and not all my hard work, that had gotten me where I was? Luckily, it seemed to be a rhetorical question, as he was already en route to the fridge, where he pulled out a beer."

Now if I was Auden in this situation, I would feel totally surprised by her dad's actions because he doesn't even have the respect to stay in the conversation, but instead he just starts walking to the fridge signaling that he is right and his word is the final word. That is the problem in their relationship, and I don't know if they will figure it out. About 40-50%  of couples in the US get divorced. That's almost half! I don't have high hopes for them.

Marriage & divorce

Marriage and divorce are both common experiences. In Western cultures, more than 90 percent of people marry by age 50. Healthy marriages are good for couples’ mental and physical health. They are also good for children; growing up in a happy home protects children from mental, physical, educational and social problems. However, about 40 to 50 percent of married couples in the United States divorce. The divorce rate for subsequent marriages is even higher.

Adapted from the Encyclopedia of Psychology

http://apa.org/topics/divorce/

Independant Reading; Along for the Ride; Theme and Summary II

An update of what is happening in my independant reading book called Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen is Auden was walking in the kitchen to get her coffee for the morning when she hears Heidi keep saying the name "Caroline West". As Auden confronts her asking," I thought her name was Thisbee?", Heidi freaks out. Here is a passage of the conflict that will soon arise.

"I thought her name was Thisbee,' I said. Heidi jumped, startled, then looked up at me. 'Auden,' she stammered.' I. . . I didn't hear you come in.' I looked at her, then at the baby, then at her again.' I was actually just passing throough,' I told her, and turned to go. I thought I was afe, but then, just as i reached the stiars, she spoke. 'I dont like the name!' When I turned back, she looked up at the ceiling, her face flushed, like someone else had said this. Then she sighed, sitting back on her heels. 'I don't,' she said slowly, more quietly. 'I wanted to name her Isabel. It's the name of one of my best friends here in Colby, and I'd always loved it. . . . 'So,' I said to Heidi, walking back over to her, ' why didn't you?' She but her lip, smoothing her hand over the baby's back. 'You're father wanted  to have a literary name,' she said. 'He said Isabel was too pedestrian, common, that with it, she'd never have a chance at greatness.'

This passage from the book clearly shows that Heidi isn't really getting to have her opinion be heard by Auden's dad, and she has always been frustrated with that but she has always kept it in.  Now, she is finally realizing that her opinion should be heard, that she doesn't just have to go along with what Auden's father states. So she starts calling their baby 'Caroline West' instead of 'Thisbee'. I put in italics the important part that Heidi says that shows that only Auden's fathers opinion is heard. But Auden's father's point about having a literary name isn't really a good one in my opinion. You don't have to have a fancy name to "achieve greatness". You have to work for that.