Blog #5

I have mixed feelings about "Caramelo". Honestly, I was really enjoying it when I started reading, but then my interest dwindled after we started reading "In the Time of Butterflies" in class, which I enjoyed much more. One thing I did really like was the short chapters since I personally just dislike long chapters, and short chapters make me feel like I've accomplished something. On the other hand, I agree that this book was disjointed. I feel like the three parts didn't go together very well, which was a major issue for me. The first part flowed into the second pretty well since both were romantic stories and this also flowed into the third part pretty well. After the third part switched to Lala's story it seemed to be set in a different world. I understand that it may have been the author's intention to show the different generations, but there didn't seem to be a strong enough link in theme to connect the different parts. Also, I very much disliked how Lala found out her grandmother's story from a hallucination of the grandmother's ghost. The whole story was very realistic from marital to money problems, and then a ghost pops up. Overall, the ending left me dissatisfied. I might recommend this book to someone taking Spanish, since I liked recognizing different Spanish words, but otherwise I wouldn't recommend it. Also, I wouldn't recommend "Caramelo" to a boy. Although some boys may enjoy it, "Caramelo" is the coming of age story of a girl, which would be hard to relate to for a boy.

Post 5: Overall reaction

Caramelo was an enjoyable book to read. It was difficult to get into at first, having to adjust to the writing style and getting over the “choppiness” as Karen mentioned. But after getting further into the book, I became more interested in its plot. I decided that I liked having most of the book written from Lala’s point of view. It allowed the reader to have a new outlook on situations and to experience some interesting “scene setting”. I loved going through the occasional in-depth description of setting – even though these could be pages long, I actually liked them. They made the book and the world inside of it so much more alive. The writing style and point of view were probably the most unique parts of the book, second, of course, to the Spanish culture it was infused with. It’s not the greatest book that I have ever read, but it was a good one. Lighter reading, but still intriguing… I would definitely recommend Caramelo!

Overall Reaction Blog 5

Overall, I enjoyed Caramelo. I liked having the perspectives of both Lala and her grandma. It helped to develop the characters and explain why they didn't get along so well. I also liked how descriptive the book was and how original the descriptions were. However, I didn't really like how the beginning of the book was so choppy. It was so many short stories combined, and sometimes the little stories seemed to have no point. And sometimes it was hard to understand exactly what was going on, because the book was throught the viewpoint of a child, and a child doesn't always understand. So that sometimes made it frusterating. But all in all, I enjoyed the book, and I would recommend it.

Week Five

Welcome to Week Five, and our last week week of blogging. This week's post should be on your overall thoughts about the book. It must be a ten sentence reflection. You do not need to comment on anyone else's blog, but your post should be up here by Sunday, March 29 You should have made up any missing work by then as well.

Question Blog 4

My question regards Father and the Awful Grandmother. Why does the Awful Grandmother call Father mijo, and not her other sons? Also, why does Father do everything the Awful Grandmother tells him to do?

Blog #4

My question concerns all parts of the book. It deals with the great grandmother and grandfather, the mother and father, and the children. How are the different generations of Reyeses similar or different(in their romantic relationships, attitudes, etc.)?

Week Four

Welcome to Week Four!

For this week's blog you will post a thought-provoking question that does not have only one answer. Remember that you must make 10 comments this week, not 5. Please do not leave this until the last minute, you have the whole week to get it done.

Post 3: Literary Elements

Literary elements seem to be the basis of this book as it is completely made up of random anecdotes from Lala’s childhood. There is an immense amount of imagery and many descriptions of the settings and characters. This makes the book seem more real, more complete. There are also some traces of symbolism, as Karen pointed out, with the cars that are red, white, and green – the colors of the Mexican flag. In places like these, as well as other anecdotes, you can sort of see where the author took her creative license to enhance the book. In the very beginning of the book, there is a disclaimer that many parts of the story are often exaggerated, that it is just bits and pieces sewn together. I think this confession of Lala’s allows the author to write more freely and play more with the literary elements that she includes in the novel. It doesn’t have to sound entirely realistic, and the author has more freedom in leading Lala around through the novel. However, I still think that the representations of culture and family are still authentic. Literary elements like imagery, epithets, and other creative touches (like the scattered Spanish) add to the story overall.

Literary Elements Blog 3

There are a lot of literary elements in this book. Lala doesn't use the actual name of the characters, but a nick-name that usually describes them. There's the Awful Grandmother who Lala doesn't like, Aunty Light-Skin who has light skin, Uncle Fat-Face, and Uncle Baby. There is also a lot of similes and metaphors. These definitely help the descriptions, and make it seem like you're right there with Lala every step of the way. Through the use of similes and metaphors, the characters are all well developed, considering that there are so many of them. All of these help the reader understand that the story is being told by a little child. There's also the allusion to the Mexican flag that Sidney pointed out to me when we first started reading the book. The cars that Father, Uncle Fat-Face, and Uncle Baby drive have the colors red, white, and green; the same as the Mexican flag. This adds to the pride they have in their Mexican heritage.

Blog #3

Even though this example is near the beginning of the book, it is the passage that stands out to me the most so far in the book. The example I thought of was from chapter 4 when the Reyes family, in Lala's part of the book, are crossing the border from the United States to Mexico. Lala is describing the car trip and her memories of Mexico using lots of her senses. I suppose you could call the literary device imagery. What I think is so unique about the imagery the author uses is that it includes sound, smell, sight, touch,and taste, which lots of authors don't do. It reminds me of the descriptions in "All the Prettty Horses" since those descriptions were also very detailed. Also, the passage compares items in the United States to the equivalent items in Mexico, like how a spoon is a different weight. I think this expresses how Lala thinks like a child. She is curious and very observant of her surroundings. It also affects Lala when she goes into new places, like her grandmother's house, or when her mom takes her out to lunch. Lala wants to absorb everything new around her.

Week Three

Welcome to Week Three of the Discussion! This weeks discussion will run from Monday, March 9 to Sunday, March 15.

This week's discussion will be on figurative language and literary elements in your book. Please find an example of these in your book and POST a 10-sentence comment on it. Don't forget to comment on 5 other posts on this blog. You have all week to complete this assignment, please don't wait until the last minute.

Post 2: Setting

The setting in this book isn’t described nearly as well as the characters, so it can be hard to picture or understand. So far, the novel takes place in Chicago and Mexico, two places that are very different from each other. But since theses places have such varying cultures, you would think there would be more descriptive passages about them, especially noting that Lala is observant of almost everything around her. There were a few passages, though that went into great detail about one particular place. One passage was when Lala and the family go to her Aunty Ninfa’s house. She uses up three pages of the book just to talk about her aunt’s house and all of the furniture and knick-knacks in it. She also says that her Aunty Ninfa is from Italy, so maybe she spends time describing her house to sort of describe that culture. After all, most of her family is Mexican, so maybe she doesn’t feel the need to describe things that are familiar to her – they just don’t stand out as much. Lala also becomes descriptive when they cross the border into Mexico. She illustrates the landscape and the people and even the sounds. So there are certain parts of the book that are explained, perhaps the more significant settings. And then there are others that aren’t.

Setting Blog 2

The book mostly takes place in Mexico, but it also has some parts in Chicago. This helps the reader understand that Lala is American, but has Mexican roots. The time period is, well there aren't exact dates, but it is while Lala was a child. There is also the time period while the Awful Grandmother is telling Lala the story. The setting impacts Lala because it makes her accept her family more. The setting is pretty hard to imagine. It's not as well described as the characters are. However, like Linnea said, the setting can be understood, mostly through what the characters do. Or if a character has a certain personality, the setting around them tends to match it. The book really couldn't have a different setting, and be the same story. If the book had a different setting, there would have to be a different heritage described. And if that were the case, different cultural aspects of the story would have to change. And culture seems to be a big part of this book.

Blog #2

The setting in Caramelo seems variable. Firstly, Lala travels from the United States to Mexico. Secondly, the book changes time periods from part 1 to part 2. I'm not quite sure what the time period is, but I think it is fairly current since Lala talks about her grandmother being young around the time of the Mexican Revolution. Since the time period switches, I think the thing the reader needs to understand about the time period is which one it is: old or current. The setting impacts Lala greatly. She talks about the change of setting (from the United States to Mexico) as a family tradition. Also, she encompasses the change of setting, being both American and Mexican. I can understand the setting. I think the author's description of characters is more precise than the setting, but the description of characters helps the reader visualize the things going on. For example, when Soledad goes to Aunt Fina's house, the description seems focused of Fina's disorganized and distressed character, but through this I am able to understand the setting. This book would not make sense at all in a different setting! I feel like the main focus of the book is Lala tracing her heritage through her grandmother and connecting to her Mexican roots. Therefore, it wouldn't make sense if she weren't in Mexico.

Week Two

Welcome to Week Two of our discussion. This discussion will last from Monday, March 2nd to Sunday, March 9th.

This week's discussion is on Setting. Please POST a 10-sentence comment on setting. Don't forget to comment on 5 other posts on this blog. You have all week to complete this assignment, but waiting is not recommended!

Post 1: Character

I like the way that the main character, Lala, thinks. She is very descriptive and provides unusual anecdotes during the story. It’s interesting to have her narrate the novel because you get to see her opinion of each character. The reader can discover what she thinks of all her cousins and how much she despises the Awful Grandmother. (Interjection: I also find it interesting that she uses epithets for a lot of the characters and that she places “the” in front of their nicknames. Just a side note.) Her thought process is fascinating to follow. She has the attention span and enthusiasm of a child, which she is at this point in the book. She is very observant of everything that is going on around her. And despite being the baby of the Reyes family, she has some very mature thoughts. I like that the book is set up this way, so that the reader starts at the beginning of Lala’s journey and (hopefully) gets to see her progress and mature throughout the book.

Character Blog 1

The main character in Caramelo is Lala Reyes. She is Mexican and lives in Chicago. Every summer, her family travels to Mexico. She loves both Mexico and Chicago. She has a very large family (6 siblings and 6 cousins). Lala is able to describe everything she sees very well. It makes it a lot easier to imagine what is going on. Lala also has a very good memory. It is so good that she can even remember events that happened before she was born! Well, really she just remembers the stories, but someone always has to correct her to make sure she mentions that she wasn't alive yet. Or that she was too little to remember what happened. She is influenced by Awful Grandmother, both directly and indirectly. Father always does exactly what Awful Grandmother tells him to do, and sometimes Awful Grandmother bosses Lala around, as well. Because of this she spent one whole year without her brother, Rafa, because he stayed in Mexico to learn more Spanish. Lala also had to get all of her hair chopped off at Awful Grandmother's orders.

Blog #1

I think the main character, Lala, is a very curious girl in everything she does. She seems to take note of absolutely everything that's happening around her. When Lala talks about crossing the border from the U.S. to Mexico she observes things with all five senses. In this, she's also very curious. However, I think she's also very innocent and at some times clueless, which is expected since she is a young girl. This is sometimes frustrating as a reader because I can't fully understand a situation from her description, like when her parents are fighting. I relate to her because I think I'm pretty observant of people around me. Also, she's the youngest in her family and has brothers. I too am the youngest and have an older brother. I think the things that Lala needs to learn to fix her mistakes are normal things that will come with age like learning appropriate behavior in different situations like when she refuses to eat her grandmother's mole. Lala is influenced by her family because those are basically the only people she's spending time with in the book. Also, I think her family entertains her since she's always talking about different details of her family's life. For example, she's intrigued by what her grandmother does doing her alone time.

Week One!

Welcome to Week 1 of our Discussion. This discussion will last from Monday, February 23rd to Sunday, March 1.

This week's discussion is on Character. Please POST a 10 sentence comment on character. Don't forget to comment on 5 other posts on this blog. You have all week to complete this assignment, but don't wait until the last minute!!!

ARE YOU GOING TO READ THIS BOOK?

ARE YOU GOING TO READ THIS BOOK?

If so, please comment on this post with your name and hr and answer the following 2 questions by Monday, February 2nd.

1. Why do you want to read this?
2. How are you going to acquire the book?

Welcome!

Welcome to 3rd quarter OR. Here we will be discussing the book Caramelo by Sandra Cisneros. Following this is a short summary of the book.

"With the ability to make listeners laugh out loud with her humor, get lumps in their throats with her poignancy and leave them thinking about her characters long after they've hit the stop button, Cisneros is a master storyteller and performer. Her sweeping tale of the Reyes family, with the charmingly innocent Lala Reyes at its center, moves from 1920s Mexico City and Acapulco to 1950s Chicago, all the while grounding the family's whimsical events with "notes" to help readers understand the greater significance of, say, a nightclub singer who snagged Lala's grandfather's heart or the Mexican government's initiative to build a network of highways throughout the country. Cisneros (The House on Mango Street) reads her flowing text in an often ebullient voice, recounting the sights and sounds of Mexico City's boisterous streets or performing one of the many grand-scale arguments Lala's parents have. Her voices are marvelous. She perfectly portrays the Awful Grandmother's bitterness (the old lady loved to remind her son, "Wives come and go, but mothers, you have only one!") and sweetly croons the birthday songs Lala and her brothers sing to their father. This is a treat of an audio, combining a fantastic narrative with an equally excellent reading."

Courtesy of:
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Caramelo/Sandra-Cisneros/e/9780679742586/?itm=1