1.
Read an autobiography or biography of at least 100 pages at or above your reading level.
2.
Give the following information:
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Book Title:
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Author:
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Biography / Autobiography of:
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Publisher:
3.
Write one paragraph each (three total) answering the following questions:
- Early Years and Accomplishments: Write what you have learned about the person’s
early years. How did these childhood experiences influence the person’s
achievements as an adult? What were this person’s main accomplishments?
- Goals, Success, and Influence : Describe the goals of this person. Do you
think this person was successful? Why or why not? What factors influenced
this person’s achievements? What influence did this person have on the
community, the country, or the world?
- Your Opinions: What is your opinion of this person’s life and accomplishments? Would you recommend this biography or autobiography to others? Why or why not?
4.
Finally, write a two to three sentence response to another person’s book report comment.
Book Title: When I was Puerto Rican
ReplyDeleteAuthor: Esmeralda Santiago
Autobiography of: Esmeralda Santiago.
Publisher:
Esmeralda had a total of 11 brothers and sisters. Her mom and dad would constantly fight which was the reason why Esmeralda moved so much with her siblings and mom. The biggest move Esmeralda had ever made was moving to New York City from Puerto Rico. They were two very different places. In New York Esmeralda had to take care of her siblings while her mom went to work. Esmeralda practically raised her siblings. As a child Esmeralda was bullied in school for not knowing any English. Not only was she bullied for not knowing any English but also because she was very different from the rest of the kids. Esmeralda had to take care of herself, siblings and her education. I think the kids in the school influenced Esmeralda a lot because they were the main focus in why she wanted to learn how to read, write and speak English really bad. She wanted to show them that she can become something. Esmeralda's main accomplishments were to learn how to read, write and speak English.
As I said in the previous paragraph her main goal was to learn how to read, write and speak English. I believe that Esmeralda was a very successful person. She raised her family and finished school with out standing grades. I think the main factor that influenced Esmeralda was probably her family. She was the first person to go to college or even finish high school in her family. That was a huge goal she had. Not only did she finish high school but she also went to a great college, Harvard University. She influenced the Hispanic culture a lot. She made Latinos realize that they do have a chance they just have to go out there and work for it. She is a great motivator. She explained that even though you have a family and a job, education is the number one thing any person needs.
If I can explain Esmeralda in one word it would be hardworking. She was a hard worker since she was a kid. Rasing 11 kids, herself and focusing on school all at the same time is a very hard thing to do. She was focused and she accomplished her dream. I would recommend this autobiography to Latinos out there who didn't finish high school. This book is honestly a huge motivator. "If I can do it then you can do it too" - Esmeralda Santiago.
Not everyone has the courage and tolerance to go step by step to make themselves worth something and be acknowledged. Her goal may not be big and important to many people out there, however, to her, it is everything she wishes for and will do whatever it takes to make it happen. In my opinion, those who start from nothing and build their future bit by bit until they success are the people I find very admirable.
DeleteThis seems like a really good book. I couldn't see my self going through the things she had to go through. Yeah I watch my brother but my mom was always there when ever he got to the point where I couldn't handle him anymore. She seems like a very strong girl
DeleteThat must have been really hard for her. I think it is hard just to learn Spanish. She is learning English and watching her siblings. I know I would never be able to accomplish such things.
DeleteI really want to read this book it sound very interesting. their are allot of people who go through this every day but dont have the courage tpo stand up for themselves
DeleteGrowing up if he had that many siblings how did she become famous? I know a couple of families that have a lot of kids in their family and its hard for them to do a lot. They constantly have to watch their siblings and help clean.
DeleteBook Title: Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery
ReplyDeleteAuthor: Russell Freedman
Biography / Autobiography of: Eleanor Roosevelt
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Eleanor's mother died when she was ten years old, and her adored but alcoholic father died two years after. She was raised by a strict grandmother, Mary Hall. Eleanor Roosevelt felt an urge to become a social worker so she worked with the underprivileged in the East Side slums of New York City. Her choices were effected from the childhood because if she did not live that bad experience she would not be able to choose the best choices. She felt so alone, however she needed to learn on how to work hard when she had no one to depend on. She did grew up very quickly when she lost her parents. She overcame the hardships in her personal path and dedicated her life to helping others. Her main accomplishment was to expend women's rights and help Red Cross.
Her whole life was dedicated to help people, to end war and expand women's right as I said earlier. She helped during World War I by knitting for the soldiers. She was an amazing red cross volunteer, and fed soldiers passing through the nation's capital. Eleanor fought for woman's rights and like to work with politics, she used her husband's-Theodore Roosevelt-power as president, created organizations, worked with United Nations and used newspaper column- "my day". Eleanor was a woman whose humanitarian impulses came from within her. Her heart was moved when she saw, heard and read about the suffering of people who did not deserve the pain –especially the needless suffering. Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady of the United States. She was a co-founder of Freedom House and she also supported the formation of the United Nations. In 1943, she founded the UN Association of the US and was delegated to the UN General Assembly from 1945 through 1952. She was referred to by Harry S. Truman as "First Lady of the World" in regards to her human rights achievements.
I am not going to lie, she is an inspiring woman. After going through all the hardships in her childhood life, I believe she is a very strong willed woman who will not stand down until she has accomplished her lifetime goals. Yes, for those who are interested in someone inspiriting, I would definitely recommend Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery because in her lifetime, woman have little to no rights, she rose up to defend women's right that was too weak to defend itself.
Helping people out is very kind now a days because everyone could use a hand once in a while. Most people that have a bibliography, there is always a part in there where the person is helping others. Eleanor is truly a great woman because she has gone through the thick and thin. I will definitely have to read this book someday.
DeleteI also think Eleanor sounds like a inspiring women. Helping people out is a big thing to do. A lot of people now in days see people who need help and don't do anything about it. So what she did was great. She stood up for what she believed in and it sounds like she didn't give up.
Delete• Book Title: The greatest Muhammad Ali
ReplyDelete• Author: Walter Dean Myers
• Biography / Autobiography of: Muhammad Ali
• Publisher: Walter Dean Myers
One thing I learned about Muhammad Ali is that he was one of the first people to be a World Heavy Weight Champion. Muhammad joined the Nation of Islam in 1964. When he did this is gave up his career after he won the heavyweight championship. However Muhammad was then later charged of evasion which also ended his career. Ali was one of the best boxers there could ever bee, he would train day in and day out. Ali was known for his unorthodox fighting skills and he came up with some catch phrases, “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee”.
Muhammad Ali is an overall great guy but when it come to the real life he doesn’t do so well. Ali got caught up with evasion charges and he was later then found guilty. I believe that Ali was an amazing boxer but what he did to end his career was just unnecessary. Doing bad things to end something that you love to do is just the wrong choice. Muhammad loved fighting in the ring so much he came up with catch phrases to scare his opponents. Ali gave me a big influence by never giving up at what you want to do in life no matter what. When Muhammad got his bicycle stolen he told the police officer that he wanted to beat the thief up. Later on the police officer was a trainer for boxing so Muhammad then worked with him to achieve his goals.
Muhammad was a great guy he never gave up which is how I am today. No matter what happens there’s always a solution to fix things or for improvement. Ali went from rock bottom to a 3 time heavyweight champion with a matter of training himself. When his bicycle got stolen he was so mad he wanted to go and fight the guy himself who stole it. Ali has a lot of guts and I would definitely recommend this book to others because they should read how he started from the bottom now he is huge today. Muhammad is known to be the best boxer so far, as he says “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee”.
Why did Ali convert to the religion of Islam? How did he become a professional boxer? I have heard that phrase before, and now it is good to know where that phrase originated from.
DeleteHe had to be really brave to convert his relligion. I wouldnt have even thought about that. Mr. ali is a common name throught out my house hold i hear him allot but i never knew like the full story.
DeleteI've always wanted to learn a lot about Ali. I have always been told how good he was but have never seen a video about him. How many years did he fight for?
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteA Stolen Life
ReplyDeleteJaycee Dugard
Jaycee Dugard
Luna Lee, inc.
Jaycee didn't really have the best life when she was younger. Her mom married another man which wasn't her dad. Her step dad would get mad at her for every little things she does wrong. I think he was jealous of the fact that his wife having someone else to love instead of him. Her step dad would make her do things just because he was to lazy to do it or he just wanted her to get mad. Jaycee didn't really have a lot of friends because he and her mom moved a lot and she kind of got tired of making new friends. Every thing Jaycee been through showed her that there's a lot more things in life then bad. I would say Jaycee accomlishments were never giving up on life and satying strong and never giving up. Woring through life even though things were going bad.
Jaycee wanted to leave Phillip and get out of the place she's supposed to call home. I don't think she was successgul because she was kidnapped at the age of 12. She really couldn't do anything about it becuase she didn't have a phone and Phillip didn't let her go outside. A lot of thing incluenced Jaycee achievements was knowning that she had her two kid to worry about and hoping that she would see the people she loves again.
Jaycee is a very strong person. I can't imagine seeing myself go through the things she had to go through. Having to go through being raped and kidnapped is something someone won't be able to get over. Jaycee didn't get over the fact that all those things happened to her but she knows that she has other things in life then to worry about the past when she has her kids life to think about and her future to think about too. This is a very good book. One of the best books I ever read. This shows that people have it too good. I wouldn't want anyone to go through the things Jaycee had to go through.
I believe that Jaycee was successful because she was able to find her way out of there. It takes a very strong person to go through life living that way. She survived something that usually people do not survive. That is very successful.
DeleteTitle: The Story of my Life
ReplyDeleteAuthor: Helen Keller
Autobiography of Helen Keller
Publisher: Doubleday, Page & Co.
Helen Keller was born on June 27, 1880. Helen was not born blind and deaf; when she was nineteen months old she got sick. Helen’s childhood friend was Martha Washington, who she could somewhat communicate with. At the age of six, her dad found a doctor who could probably help her. So they drove out to Baltimore to see Dr. Chisholm. Dr. Chisholm could not do anything to help Helen. The most important day in her life was when Anne Mansfield Sullivan became her teacher. Helen was almost seven when Ms. Sullivan came into her life. Helen first started to communicate by just spelling words on people’s hands. Helen Keller ended up becoming a famous speaker and author. Without her childhood teacher she would not be able to do what she does. One of Helen Keller’s main accomplishments is the fact that she overcame her disabilities and learned how to live life with it.
Helen Keller’s goal in life would have to be helping people. When she was older she would help in a lot of foundations. Also she devoted her later life to raising money for the American Foundation for the Blind. I do think Helen was successful because she wrote for books. Also she was awarded with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Helen was also elected for National Women’s Hall of Fame. Helen’s teacher Anne Sullivan influenced her accomplishments because she was the one who taught her everything. Helen was an influence to the community because she was involved with a lot of politics.
I think Helen Keller was a brave and strong woman. She accomplished I believe is one of the hardest things. Going through life not being able to hear or see anything. That has to be hard on a person. You would have to be strong in order to accomplish such a goal. I do recommend this autobiography to people because it tells you about life in a different perspective than what you know. It makes you look at your life differently.
It is quite interesting on how helpful Helen Keller was to the blind community. I did not know that she was not born with this condition, it was only a illness. What I would like to know is what was the cause of the illness that made her blind?
DeleteTitle: Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story
ReplyDeleteAuthor: Ben Carson M.D.
Biography/Autobiography Of: Dr. Ben Carson
Publisher: Zondervan
Born in Detroit in 1951, Ben Carson and his older brother, Curtis, lived in poverty. Their mom had been a 13 year old bride. She and their dad split and divorced when Ben was 8 years old. The boys and their mom lived briefly in Boston, and then came back to Detroit.
Ben Carson earned poor grades in elementary school. His mother stepped in and did some tough love, like limiting watching TV, and making him read a lot. Her high expectations started paying off by junior high school, where he exceeded academically. As a teen, he had a majorly bad temper. He came close to killing a friend of his, which drove him to believe a lot more in his religion and God .He got himself together, and worked hard in high school, which earned this brilliant student a scholarship to Yale.
At Yale, he did quite well, and earned a bachelors degree in 1973. Then he went to medical school at the University of Michigan, and graduated as a doctor in 1977. He completed his residency a few years later at Johns Hopkins.He was the youngest doctor ever to head the Johns Hopkins pediatric Neurosurgery department. With his highly skillful hands, he successfully preformed the hemispherectomy operation, which helps a child by removing half of the brain to stop seizures. He also did a famous operation to separate baby Siamese twins in 1987. Ben Carson has been awarded tons of honors, including many honorary degrees, and many in recognition of service to others for his extraordinary work.
Ben Carson has changed the world. Without his perseverance and extensive research on finding a way of helping the siamese twins, there would not be an answer to solve this medical dilemma. This has encouraged various medical professionals to go above and beyond. It has not only made me more fascinated by his work, but many future physicians as well.
I would recommend this book to others. This book has a lesson: Even though your life is not the greatest, there is always a light at the end of that tunnel. Reach for your goals, and in the end, you could achieve something very successful, just like Dr.Ben Carson.
Title: The lost boy
ReplyDeleteAuthor; Dave Pelzer
Autobiography/biography: autobiography
Publisher:
He shows you can accomplish things with a rough past. In the book “The lost boy” he shows how he moved on from his past just like in part one he was abused by his mother and his dad left after not being able to end it. So in the lost boy he finally told the consolers what occurred at home and he was then moved to a foster home and switched from place to place.
As he grew older he still longed for his mother to change and for his father to come and release him from the foster homes. He realized that she wasn’t going to change. One of his goals was to release his past and to find himself. I don’t know if he accomplished his goal because I just started reading the next book. But I think he will be able to accomplish his goals because he was able to write theses wonderful books and grow up to be a nice person
I really love Dave books. He makes you realize that life is more important and you should really be happy with what you have because some people don’t have the things that you have and the loving parents that some people are blessed with. I Really think his story is something he learned from and something to learn from because I did. He accomplished his goal with a harsh past and is still alive and living healthy with no regrets. I do recommend this book because it was well written and after you read the first one you will want to read the next one and the next one.
its outstanding the fact how such young people can always keep their head held high and just accomplish their major dreams. as like in my story even the toughest situations you can always see the sunlight.
DeleteTitle : I know why the Caged Bird Sings.
ReplyDeleteAuthor : Maya Angelou
Biography / autobiography : autobiography by Maya Angelou
Publisher : Ballantine books
Maya Angelou was born on April 4th of 1928 in St, Louis, Missouri. She was raised in St. Louis and Stamps, Arkansas. In Stamps Angelou experiences the rough brutality of racial-discrimination, but she also gained the faith and values of a traditional African-American family, community, and culture. At the age of 14, she dropped out of school to become the first African-American female cable car conductor. Later she finished school and gave birth to her son, Guy, this all happened a few weeks after her graduation. In order to be a great mother and successfully give her child the life she needs, she started to work as a waitress and cook; however the passion that she had for music, dance, performance, and poetry soon became highly important in her life.
Maya Angelou is one of the most known and influential person of our time. Being remembered as a global renaissance woman she is an amazing poet, memoirist, novelist, educator, dramatist, producer, actress, historian, filmmaker, and civil rights activist. In 1954 and 1955, she toured Europe with the producers of the opera Porgy and Bess. She also began her study in modern dance. By 1957, Angelou recorded her first album Calypso Lady. Then in 1958 she moved to New York and she joined the Harlem Writers Guild. Maya Angelou always lived a life with great economical struggles and a lot of discrimination for the fact of her being from black race. In her book called “I know why the Caged Bird Sings” she says, “It was awful to be a Negro and have no control over my life”
My opinions over Maya Angelous’ life is that she is very inspiring because she had her life filled with discrimination and racism, but she still managed to overcome the obstacles put into her life. Having her accomplish everything she did is outstanding. Honestly, in my opinion, Maya is a very strong female.
Shaquille O’Neal
ReplyDeleteMurry R. Nelson
Shaquille O’Neal
Greenwood Biographies
Shaq was born on March 6, 1972, in Newark, New Jersey. He went to high school at Cole High School in San Antonio, Texas. The thing that really made him as good as he is was the boys and girls club. He said that it kept him out of trouble. They let him practice as much as he wanted to. They also helped him with his grades. He spent all of his time there.
Shaq started getting noticed when he went to college at Louisiana State University. He was a star. Shaq was drafted in the 1992 NBA draft. He was picked first overall by the Orlando Magic. That year he won the Rookie of the year award. In 1996 Shaq got traded to the Los Angeles Lakers. With the Lakers he won three championships in a row with Kobe. He was dominating. In 2004 he got traded to the Heat. Then in 2006 Shaq and Wade won a championship against Dallas. He was very successful and was one of the greatest centers in basketball. Shaq was noticed by the whole world and was looked at as an idol to the youth.
My opinion on how good Shaq was and all the championships is just wow. I look at him as being the best center in basketball that I have ever seen play. He was the best when he played and took over games. It amazes me on what he as all done. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys sports. To read about a man who has accomplished so much is fun to read about. I just knew him as a player before this but now that I’ve read this I learned how much he did before that and how much he went through. I liked this book a lot.
Title: Immaculee Ilibagiza with Steve Erwin
ReplyDeleteAuthor: Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
Biography of: Immaculee Ilibagiza
Publisher: Hay House
Early years and accomplishments: Immaculee Ilibagiza is a woman who survived a devastating holocaust in Rwanda, Africa 1994. As a young child she grew up in the village of Rwandan with her family in what was a considerably wealthy home in her village. Her parents believed all their children would get far in life as long as they had education, schooling, which was very expensive and hard to get into because of an ‘ethnic balance’ the government was forcing on the country. Not to mention women were especially looked down upon for being educated. Although Immaculee excelled, finishing the 8th grade at 15 years old, top of her class. Next to come for her was high school, which cost thousands of dollars, once again because of the ethnic balance. The ethnic balance was divided into 3 classes. Hutu, the highest or best class, Tutsi, the middle (also most discriminated) and Twa, which barely existed anymore. Immaculee and her family were Tutsi, which ended up controlling her fate and her whole countries. Anyway, her parents sold two cows to pay for Immaculees schooling, cows being very valued in their country. After arriving at the school, Lycee de Notre Dame d’Afrique, she stayed in a small dorm, with ten other girls, walking two miles for water every day. After high school Immaculee proceeded to a national university in Butare, Africa, passing a test and discrimination of her government to get there successfully.
Goals, success, influences: Immaculees big goals in life were to become very educated, leave her village and have a steady, well paying job. She felt she had a lot to prove to her brothers, and all men around her that women were equal and were just as smart. Of course before all that, she would have to overcome the goal of beating the genocide apocalypse that unfolded around her. This included her house, village, neighbors, and friends being burned and mutilated all around her, also being separated from her family at every turn ruled by the Interahamwe meaning “those who attack together”. The Interahamwe were a militia built, trained, an armed by the government to kill all Tutsi. Immaculee even hid for a month and a half from these devils in a close pastor’s bathroom, 4 feet by 3 feet with five other women. She survived a series of raids and would pray intently to god for more than 12 of the 24 hour days she spent in that bathroom. God led her through the holocaust and Immaculee believes it is the reason she is alive and well today.
Opinion: My opinion of Immaculees life is that I’m astounded a person could go through so much still coming out with such a good heart and room for love in it. She knows the true meaning of life and deserves to live in peace for the remainder of it. I would recommend this book to others. It’s gripping, compelling, passionate, and really makes you think about all you have and what we take for granted every day.
All reports above have been graded. No new comments (reports) or responses may be added for credit. To turn-in a late assignment, see Mr. Dawursk.
ReplyDelete