The Rules of Survival

The Rules of Survival

The Rules of Survival is the story of Matt and his two sisters, Callie and Emmy, who are terrified of their mother. For as long as they can remember Nikki, their mother has scared them.

One night while their mother is gone Callie and Matt sneak out of their apartment to get some popsicles on a hot summer evening. While at the corner store a few blocks away they witness something and meet someone that starts to change their life forever and are introduced to the idea that they don't have to live their life afraid.

Matt has always taken care of and protected his sisters as best he could but once he realizes that having a crazy mother isn't normal and that people shouldn't have to live their lives afraid, Matt begins to cry out for help.

Over the course of the next couple years Matt with the help of his aunt, father (who is divorced from Nikki) and his mother's ex-boyfriend and the man they meet in the corner store, Matt is able to get his sisters away from their abusive mother and somewhere safe.

This book is really a sad book because it isn't hard to image that there are people who really go through these circumstances. Matt and his sister's situation really isn't as far fetched as some other books and it is interesting to see the thought process. Its hard to realize how serious situations are when you are so involved in them.

This book is a good read for all ages and I think it would be especially important for junior high and high schoolers to read with the purpose of exposing them to the realities of life, and in the process many who are living in these situations might somehow be saved. Since I plan on becoming a High School English teacher I would want my students to start keeping a journal at school where they could write anything they wanted to. I would keep the journals in a place where no one else could read them and talk to the kids about why it is important to let someone know if something is wrong.

I think this book is a cry for help. So often in this book Matt is pushed into places and situations that he never should have. Yes, his mother was abusive and crazy but why didn't anyone jump in sooner? Matt is writing a letter/book to Emmy and that is how we get the whole story. Multiple times he went to people and asked for help. People who knew what was going on and it took almost 3 years for it to finally happen. Why? This book is a cry for help, a plea that it not take 3 years for someone to step in. 3 years may be too late.

This book taught me a lot about what it might be like in Matt's shoes. No one should live in fear.

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Speak (March 13, 2008)

Dairy Queen

Dairy Queen

Dairy Queen a young adult book written by Catherine Gilbert Murdock. This is a story about a 15 year old girl,D.J., who as fate would have it is left to do all the farm work after her father is injured the previous year. Thus the nickname Dairy Queen.

D.J. has a few things that matter the most in her life, the farm, football, and her family. With these things taking up her time she is surprised one day when Brian, the quarterback of the rival football team shows up on on the farm and says that his coach, an old family friend, has said that he has to help out on the farm. D.J. is supposed to put him to work and train him up for the next football season.

D.J. has a sarcastic sense of humor and doesn't often say what she's thinking. Over the course of the summer Brian and D.J. become friends and something more than friendship seems to be growing between them. When D.J. tries out for her high school football team, Brian finds out and this causes problems for their friendship.

Something major that I picked up in this story is that communication is vital to a health relationship of any kind. It wasn't until the last couple of pages that I realized how much I'd learned about talking. D.J. learns in this story that problems and situations in our lives won't be resolved until we face what we are most afraid of, or most uncomfortable with.

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Paperback: 274 pages
• Publisher: Graphia; 288 edition (June 4, 2007)
• Idea for additional use: I think this is a good book that would be a good tool to use when dealing with students or people who struggle in identifying what some problems may be in their lives. Also, this book focuses a lot about communication and how important it is. I think that communication skills are critical for the happiness of a person.