Reading Response #2: My Life Next Door

                                                       My life next door

I just finished the book “My Life Next Door” by Huntley Fitzpatrick and I really enjoy
her as a writer so that’s why I originally picked this book but then quickly fell in love with it like
I did all the others she has written. She writes mostly teen books that our through a girls point of
view, the storylines and topics are never the same but always relatable I feel.
My life next door is about a girl named Samantha reed who lives a very structured life
with her single mom and older sister. Then there are the Garrett’s who live right next door and
are a chaotic messy family of 8 kids, 5 boys and 3 girls. Samantha’s mom has always been
annoyed with the Garretts and their lifestyle but Samantha is curious about their lifestyle.


 “One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts all the time.”


This quote is significant in the book because for the beginning of the book Samantha talks about how even when she was little she would sit on her roof facing the Garretts house and just watch them wishing she could meet them but of course her mom would never let that happen so it’s a secret she keeps from everyone. Then later on in the book her secret gets a little more risky because he actually makes contact with a Garrett. This book is a classic love story with a couple big twists so of course Samantha ends 
up falling in love with a Garrett boy and must keep it a secret from her mother. I wouldn’t 
recommend this book for most males just because it is kind of like a chick flick in book form but 
it is a very good story that I really enjoyed. 

Reading response #1: something like normal

                Something like normal by Trish Doller is a well written gate way. That is very relatable to anyone who is the armed forces or knows someone who is.  The book is about a young man named Travis who is on his first leave from the Marine Corps after his best friend Charlie died in combat.  The reader gets to go on a journey alongside him as he learns how to function in society, deal with his PTSD and cope with his best friend’s death that he feels like is his fault.

 

Doller does a fantastic job getting inside the head of the marine and making these situations raw real and shows how it actually affects the people and the people around them. Her writing is easy to read and relatable because it’s not formal and you as the reader actually feel like you are inside the head of the character. My favorite part about her writing style is that she talks about sticky subjects like death, the living conditions while at war and how it’s hard to live a normal life after seeing all that you have in war.  At the end of the book he writes a letter to Charlie to help himself cope and you can see just what he’s dealing with:

 

I’ve been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, but just talking to a therapist doesn’t make it all magically disappear. I mean, it’s good to unload some of the stuff I’ve been carrying around in my head, but I still have nightmares. I still wake up in the middle of the night, sweaty and scared, and have to remind myself it’s not real. The thing is, she tells me that the nightmares may never go away. That it could take years to stop reacting to loud noises or scanning the ground for IEDs. And even though I haven’t seen you in a while, I’ll probably never stop mistaking strangers in crowds for you. It sucks, but I’m learning to deal.

 

                This passage is one of the only times Travis talks about his problems and its significant because it shows character progression but also shows the writing style and how the reader really gets to get inside the head of a PTSD victim . I would love to read more books by this author because I like the fact that I can relate with the character and put myself in their shoes. It paints a vivid picture in my head of what’s happening.     

101 things about me
 

1) I listen to music almost 24/7

2) I have two dogs and am getting a new puppy by the end of the month

3) I have 4 siblings 3 sisters and 1 brother

4) I'm the middle child, only 3 of us still live at home

5) I attend church every Wednesday and twice on Sunday

6) At one point in time I had a black cat that was diabetic and diagnosed psychotic

7)  My step dad is a musician, artist and  pastor

8)  My favorite color is blue

9) I want to be a child psychologist

10) I plan to never have children

11) I read and write or make art in my free time

12) I've never been out of the united States

13) I have a sister in the U.S. Navy

14) two of my older sisters got engaged within the same week and will be married next year

15) my favorite number is 17

16) I want to live in Texas after college   

17) my parents got divorced when I was 3 years old

18) I've been to 3 different schools in  my life

19) math is my worst school subject

20) summer is my favorite season

21) v isiting the ocean is my favorite family vacation