A Literary Analysis

Another Literary Analysis by Maya

Citation: Dixon, Dougal. The Big Book of Dinosaurs. London: Bison Books, 1989.

Reliability: I could tell this nonfiction book on dinosaurs by Dougal Dixon was reliable because the author has written about 25 books on fossils, geology, and dinosaurs, as well as some articles in encyclopedias . He got his education from the University of St. Andrews. He has been nominated for Hugo Award for Best Related Work and Locus Award for Best Non-Fiction.

Category: The Big Book of Dinosaurs follows an informational pattern. This nonfiction book tells all about dinosaurs and what species they evolved into. It explains the different species of dinosaurs and what life was like for them for the 170 million years they were on earth. The book is full of interesting facts about these reptiles along with over 160 photographs to go with them, which is why The Big Book of Dinosaurs is a great book to look in if you are a visual learner.

Short Annotation: Different species of dinosaurs are vividly explained in this book recommended for readers 7 and up.

Point of View: Third Person:

  • “During the 150 million years or so that they existed, the dinosaurs evolved and changed.” (12)
  • “The archosaurs into four main groups.” (23)
  • “They faded away in the early part of the Jurassic period and their places were taken by the sauropods.” (30)

Tense: Past:

  • Camarasaurus was probably the most common of the late Jurassic tree eaters.” (33)
  • “The largest was Triceratops, 30 feet (9 meters) long and weighing 6 tons.” (56)
  • Gallimimus was very similar to the other ostrich mimic dinosaurs, but was somewhat larger.” (74)

Literary Excellence:

  • Appositives: “Take a look at the tropical rain forests, such as those of the Amazon basin, central Africa or the islands of the Far East.” (6)
  • Alliteration: “…the almost continuous canopy of branches and leaves…” (6)
  • “…or else decay into the soil of the forest floor where their substances are taken up and used by the trees once more.” (6)
  • Prosauropods probably lived mainly on all fours and only reached upwards while feeding, supported on sturdy hind legs and tail. (26)
  • “The tail club consisted of a double knob…” (50)
  • “…jutting forward and a smaller spike jutting back.” (51)
  • “…different dinosaur groups actually lived un water.” (89)
  • “…duckbilled dinosaur…” (73).
  • “…where a broken bone had become” (78).
  • “…wallowing about in warm shallow water, diving for waterweed…” (89).
  • “…once thought that these animlas…” (90).
  • “…modern monitor…” (100).
  • Repetition:
  • “But each time and in each area, each animal existed as part of an overall pattern.” (12).
  • “…jutting forward and a smaller spike jutting” (51).
  • “…enormous tyrannosaurid (85).
  • Short Sentences: “It was a lizard eater” (64).
  • “Certainly it was one of the last” (85).
  • “The dinosaur world is full of puzzles like that” (88).
  • “That is as good a theory as any” (94).
  • “Who killed them?” (95).

Connection:

My connection to The Big Book of Dinosaurs is text to self because it reminds me of when my family and I took a road trip to Drumheller, Alberta, which is also known as the dinosaur capital of the world. My brothers, dad, and I got to visit places like the Royal Tyrell Museum of Palaeontology and see the World’s Largest Dinosaur.  While in the museum, I remember seeing many fossils from different dinosaurs and other reptiles. On the way to our destination, we stopped in Revelstoke, Edmonton, Sprucegrove, Calgary, and Kamloops. On the way to Drumheller, we passed the Badlands and Hoo-doos in Alberta, which has soil from 70 million years ago. Some other tourist attractions we got to see were West Edmonton Mall, The Enchanted Forest, Radium Hotsprings, and Banff. I would’ve been 9 or 10 while on that trip but I still remember learning about these “terrible lizards” and what life would’ve been like then. It is fascinating that they were able to live on this planet for so long. The Big Book of Dinosaurs is a great place to look for information on these terrifying, but somehow beautiful, creatures which once roamed our planet.

A Literary Analysis

Gregor Mendel

A Literary Analysis by Tristan

A. Citation/Bibiliographic Entry

Bardoe, Cheryl. Gregor Mendel: The Friar Who Grew Peas. New York: Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2006.

 

B. Reliability

I believe that this book to be reliable.   I researched the author, and though she’s only written the one book for young adults, she is a writer in her professional life.  She has written articles, press kits, and texts for museum exhibitions. The publishing company, Abrams Books for Young Readers, has been in business for over sixty years and is well known for exceptional books, being the first company to be established for illustrated books.

C. Category

_X___ Chronological Pattern  _X_ Main Character

·     This book, a non-fiction picture book, is written in a chronological pattern.  It teaches us about the important milestones in the life of Gregor, and presents them in a chronological order.  It also focuses on one main character, that of Gregor.   We learn about major events throughout his life and how his choices affected other people.

D.  Short Annotation

I actually quite enjoyed this book, not for the writing but more for the diagrams. The book seemed to make more sense than a video that I watched. I believe the goal of the book is to give glory to the man who discovered genetics.

 

E.  Point of View


This book is written from the 3rd person point of view.  Rather than saying he, or I, the author refers to the main character by name.

  •  “Surrounded by great thinkers, Gregor plunged into further studies.  He became ‘addicted to nature,’ he later wrote.”
  • Gregor learned how to test such laws with carefully planned experiments.”
  • “Gregor had something else in mind.”

 

F. Tense

This book was written in the past tense.

  • “Gregor knew that he must choose the plants for his experiment carefully.”
  • “After two years of preparation, Gregor was eager to start breeding his plants to make hybrids.”
  • “Gregor pondered these questions throughout the snowy winter.”

 

F. Literary Excellence

·     Sounds of Words 

  • 1.  alliteration – repeating the beginning consonant sounds in words
  • ·     “It was time to tell the world.”
  • ·     “His father was a hardworking farmer who hoped his only son would follow in his footsteps.”
    2. assonance – repeating similar sounds, especially vowel sounds
  • ·     “When Gregor retured to the abbey, the abbot asked him to teach science at a nearby school.”
  • ·     “To attend, he would have to eat and sleep there.”
  •  3. consonance – repeating similar consonant sounds, especially at the ends of words, as in lost and past or confess and dismiss.
  • ·     “Students liked Gregor’s clear expectations and lively sense of humor.”
  • ·     “Before beginning the tests,…”
  • ·     “Even when he was sick, Gregor never fell behind in his lessons.”

Choice of Words  

  • 1. litotes – understating for effect; e.g. no small victory; not a bad idea
  • ·     “He chose to feed his mind and go without food to fill his grumbling belly.”
  • ·     “At school, he feasted on his lessons.”
    2.  vocabulary – using precise nouns and verbs to describe scenes/emotions
  • ·     “’…strenuous…’”
  • ·     “’…exertions,’”

·     
Arrangement of Words 

  • 1.  length of sentences – differing lengths to create a mood
  • ·     “Then Gregor waited. He would not remove the sacks until the flowers had been replaced by pea pods filled with seeds.”
    2.  repetition – repeating sounds, words or phrases for effect
  • ·     “…-smooth peas and wrinkled peas, yellow pea pods and green pea pods, smooth pea pods and bumpy pea pods, and so on.”
  • ·     “The yellow pea plants bred with green pea plants had yielded all yellow peas.”
  • ·     “In 1900, three different scientists, in three different countries, stumbed upon the paper that Gregor had published in 1865.”
  • 3.  appositives – inserting a phrase between a set of commas or dashes
  • ·     “Suddenly Gregor was seeing heredity—how parents pass traits down to their children—in an entirely new way.”
  • ·     “In 1900, three different scientists, in three different countries, stumbed upon the paper that Gregor had published in 1865.”

G. Connection
__X__ text to self   ___X__ text to world

My first connection is a text to world connection. This book reminded me of a video that I watched about genetics. In this video the speaker was saying how everybody thought that Aristotle was right about how traits mix; however, when Gregor studied the peas he discovered that the genes didn’t mix but rather one is dominant and one is recessive. Therefore a yellow pea with only yellow genes does not create a green pea. A yellow pea could have a gene to create a possible green pea from previous generations.

My second connection is a text to self connection. This also makes sense to me, none of my dad’s brothers are tall, however his dad is, and already I’m a good three inches taller than my dad. My mom isn’t tall either, so it’s not directly from her that I’m taller than them.

A Literary Analysis

Rules of Survival

Another Literary Analysis by Maya

 Citation:

  • Werlin, Nancy. Rules of Survival. London: Penguin Books Ltd., 2006.

Reliability:

  • I could rely on this book for examples of literary excellence before I read it because Ms. Rosen said the author, Nancy Werlin, is known for using proper writing. She is also a New York Times bestselling author. Rules of Survival was a National Book Award Finalist and an LA Times Book Prize Finalist.

Category:

  • Rules of Survival follows a problem-solving pattern: person versus person. Matt and his sisters, Emmy and Callie, struggle to live with their mentally ill mother, Nikki. Matt, who is the oldest, comes across a large man named Murdoch who was protecting a little boy from his abusive father when Matt saw him. Matt soon becomes obsessed with this man and after he eventually finds him, Nikki starts to date him. After they break up, Nikki does everything she can to try and hurt him.

Short Annotation:

  • Matt, Emmy, and Callie must find away to cope with living with their mentally ill, and sometimes violent, mother. This 259 page-novel vividly shows the struggles some children face with their parents and is recommended for readers 12-17 years old.

Point of View: First Person:

  • “I could telephone Murdoch, too, I thought”(15).
  • “I had expected him to do something” (127).                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

Tense: Past:

  • “I knew my face was still perfectly bland” (27).
  • “He was enraged” (41).
  • “We were better off just sticking it out with Nikki” (82).

 Literary Excellence:

  • Alliteration: “…almost always…” (37); “…watched the white-capped waves…” (37); “You pumped your feet furiously, fiercely” (143).
  • Short Sentences: “I chose.” (28); “Rage? Lust? Restlessness?” (47); “Tilt-A-Whirl. Bumper cars. Three separate roller coasters. Octopus. The Giant Drop.” (56);   “I inhaled.” (214); “You just never knew.” (83); “Winter came.” (144); “That’s Aunt Bobbie. A mystery.” (104); “I didn’t know. I didn’t care.” (59); “Fun was always Nikki’s word. Nikki’s goal” (156).
  • Metaphor: “…fought her demons…” (90); “Huge doubt filled me, though” (198).
  • Appositives: “Of course, at the time, I didn’t know what she was doing, exactly.” (11); “After that, I stayed angry at Ben, but the feeling of desperation…” (71).
  • Simile: “It was like a bomb thrown into the room” (109).
  • Repetition: “Normal, normal, normal. Normal for us.” (108); “’Mom? Please. Please stop fighting’” (151).
  • Synecdoche: “We can keep an eye on each other” (199).

 

Connection: text to world: 

  • My connection to Rules of Survival is text to world. I see stories about these kids who have grown up with parents who couldn’t take care of themselves enough to properly care for their kids. I tend to come across a lot that has to do with mental health and how it can affect not only the person with the illness, but everyone around them as well. In this novel, the author never states what Nikki, their mother, has but her mood ranges from being extremely caring to her children to being extremely violent. She likes to have fun, and play “games”. People in real life with these issues often can have their children taken away from them in order to keep everyone safe. People still don’t truly understand how much today’s society is impacted by mental health and Rules of Survival perfectly tells a story about it with our making fun of it.

A Literary Analysis

The Listeners

Another Literary Analysis by Maya

Citation: Whelan, Gloria. The Listeners. Chelsea, MI: Sleeping Bear Press, 2009.

Reliability: I could tell that this picture book would be reliable because it is part of a series: Tales of Young Americans Series. The author is an award-winning poet who has also written many other children’s books. She has won awards like the National Book Award. The illustrator has had his work featured in Time, GQ, The New Yorker, and Sports Illustrated.

Category: I think The Listeners follows a repetitive pattern because every night, Ella May and her friends go back to the Master and Mistress’s house to listen to what they talk about. When they have heard what they need to, the children go back to their parents and report what they heard. The reason the parents don’t sneak out and listen to the Master and Mistress’s conversation is because –even though the author doesn’t say it in the story- the children are much smaller and harder to catch. This basically repeats throughout the whole book without following a boring storyline. The Listeners is an exceptional book with a story on a serious topic.

 

Short Annotation: Ella May, a small girl who is an African-American slave along with her family and friends, listens in with her friends every night to what her Master and Mistress are talking about and reports it to their parents. This extraordinary picture book is recommended for readers of all age.

 

Point of View: 1st Person:

“My friends, Bobby and Sue, are too little to pick cotton like I do”  (4).

“We come home tired” (7).

“I pick with Mammy and Daddy” (16).

 

Tense: Present:

“It’s still dark in the morning when the boss blows on the bugle” (4).

“It’s noon and time to eat” (17).

“We sit in the gallery” (20).

 

Literary Excellence:

Length of Sentence:

“We come home tired” (7 ).

“We got to listen” (7).

“We’re out of bed fast” (4).

“It’s Saturday night” (20).

“My toes won’t like that” (31).

Simile: 

“…fast as foxes…” (11).

“We eat and eat until our bellies are fat as possums” (17).

“I got a smile as big as an alligator’s on my face” (9).

“His words come out as mean as rattlesnakes” (35).

“we make ourselves as small as cotton seeds and as quiet as shadows” (9).

Metaphor:

“The sun and me start our work at the same time” (13).

“In the afternoon the sun melts me so I can hardly pick” (17).

“Fiddles throw music out the windows” (25).

Alliteration: 

“Nobody picks faster than my daddy does” (15).

“We dance and dance until our feet are damp with dew…” (26).

“…the boss blows on the bugle” (4).

“When I go to sleep I pretend my scratchy straw mattress is a bed of roses” (30).

Repetition:

“We dance and dance…”(26).

“We jump and jump on the cotton.” (28).

“We eat and eat…” (17).

Personification: 

”The music talks and talks to us…” ( 9).

 

Connection: text to world: My connection to The Listeners was text to world. During early American history, African-Americans were never equal with “white folks”, being slaves who were bought and sold and forced to work without pay. It was such a sad time in our history, a time when people were valued as things and not beings, seen as less than, simply because of the colour of their skin. In 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed a presidential proclamation freeing millions of slaves in the Southern States. I would like to say that we have come a long way, and I believe we have this part of our world, but unfortunately there are some parts of the world where this still exists. Even though his was a picture book it gave some insight into how families coped in those times of hardship. That even though this didn’t happen during my lifetime, that it’s important to take a look back to study this history to understand how we got to where we are today.

 

A Literary Analysis

Deadpool

A Literary Analysis by Keenan

A. Citation/Bibliographic Entry

  • Way, Daniel. Deadpool: Evil Deadpool. New York: Marvel Characters Inc., 2011.

B. Reliability

  • I know this author to be reliable because he received the Xeric Foundations Grant in 2000 for his first publication, Violent Lifestyle #1.  Through this book, he was introduced to Marvel Comics editor Axel Alonso who hired him for his next mini-series. I also know he is reliable because he went on to write more than 17 comics for Marvel before writing this book, and he continues to write for Marvel today.

C. Category

  • The category of this story is Interlocking Episodes because this book has multiple stories about different things. These stories are all about Deadpool and fighting crime.  Some graphic comics about Deadpool have a lot of gore but some only have a little bit of gore. The books with a lot of gore are the books that are longer but the ones with alot of gore are shorter than the ones with less gore. The word gore means bloody and violent. These books are not all bloody and violent; they are also funny.  The are funny because Deadpool makes so many jokes.  One of the jokes he made is “ I got the guns” referring to his muscles.  In conclusion, this book’s category is Interlocking Episodes because this book has multiple stories within the same book.

 

D. Short Annotation

  • Deadpool is a middle-aged Superhero from New York who has to convince the NYPD and Captain America that there is a clone of himself causing mischief.  This 123-page graphic novel, written from the 1st person point of view, shows the struggle to convince someone that something is true when there is little proof.  Recommended for readers 12 – 15 years old.

 

E. Point of View: 1st person point of view

  • …I just escaped from a mental institution  an’ all…” (3).
  • Yep! ’cause I’m a baller like that” (20).
  • I wasn’t lost” (54).

F. Tense: Present

  • Today, I want something on my desk this afternoon” (59).
  • …he recently escaped from a British Maximum Security Prison” (69).
  • …we’ve been monitoring Deadpool’s movements via satellite for the past seventy-two hours” (72).

 G. Literary Excellence       

  • Repetition:
  • “Ting, Ting” (114).
  • “Brakka, Brakka” (103).
  • “Bip – Bip – Bip – Bip – Bip – Bip” (98).
  • “Klik – Klik, Klik” (30).
  • “Blam, Blam, Blam, Blam, Blam, Blam, Blam, Blam” (29).
  • Alliteration:
  • “…busting binge begin” (19).
  • “…time trying…” (26).
  • “…try to…” (33).
  • “…won’t, just wanna…” (54).
  • Hyperbole:
  • “We once got lost on an escalator” (54).
  • Onomatopoeia:
  • “BRRANNNNGGGG” (39).
  • “PSST – -!” (89).
  • “KRAKK” (93).
  • “SSSSSHHNGG” (94).
  • “BRAKKA, CHAKKA, CRAKKA” (103).
  •  “FFWWWOOOOOOMMM” (35).
  • “KKRRROOOOOOOOOMMMMMM” (80).
  • “OOK! EEK-EEK!” (117).

H. Connection

My connection to Deadpool: Evil Deadpool by Daniel Way is text to text and text to world.

This book reminds me of other Marvel books I have read in the past. This Marvel book talks about Deadpool and how he convinces the NYPD and Captain America that there is a clone of himself. I have read multiple books about Captain American and other Marvel characters.  Another Marvel book is Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe.  These two books both have humour but they also have alot of violence and blood.  In this book there are alot of guns and bombs used.  Deadpool threatens that he was going to blow himself up with a child in the car to get Evil Deadpool’s attention. These two Deadpool books remind me of the other Deadpool books.

Evil Deadpool also reminds of the recent killings in France. The reason why this book reminds me of this situation is because there were some deaths in the book as well as in France.  The difference between the book and the France killings is that there were only a couple deaths in the book, whereas in France there were hundreds killed.  In the book, Deadpool is looked at like a terrorist and Captain American said “you are lying and a terrorist” (47). The killings in France were caused by terrorists. In the book, Evil Deadpool acts like a terrorist and tries to kill people, just like in France.  The military and police force are like Superheros, just like Captain America and Deadpool. The military and police are acting like them because they are searching for the terrorists in France so that it doesn’t happen again and no one else gets hurt or killed.  Deadpool and Captain America are trying to stop Evil Deadpool from harming people, too. The recent killings in France remind me of this book and how the military and police are acting like Deadpool and Captain America. 

A Literary Analysis

     Migrant

A Literary Analysis by Maya in grade eight

Citation: Trottier, Maxine. Migrant. Toronto: Groundwood Books, 2011.

Reliability:

I could count on this picture book to be entertaining because I have heard of Groundwood Books, the publisher, before and it has a good reputation. The book has also won the Best Illustrated Children’s Book Award by the New York Times and was a Governor General’s Literary Award (Illustration) Finalist.

 Category:

Migrant shows a main character pattern. It focuses on the story of a young girl, Anna, whose family is always moving between Mexico and Northern Canada. She wonders what it would be like to stay in one place instead of travelling every season. The story tells what this German-speaking child sees and feels about this foreign country. Using a ton of metaphors and similes, the author, Maxine Trottier, compares Anna’s life to different animals and what their lives are like. Anna has trouble staying busy while her family works because she is too young to do anything.

 Annotation:

Anna, a little girl whose family travels from Mexico to Canada, feels like a bird who is constantly flying back and forth,  north to south, when the seasons change, She wonders what it world be like to stay in one place. This imaginative picture book, beautifully illustrated, is recommended for readers 4 to 14-years-old.

 Point of View: 1st Person

  • There are times when Anna feels like a bird.” pg.4
  • “There are moments when she feels like a rabbit.” pg. 8
  • “Anna is too young to work.” pg. 14

 Tense: Present

  • “That is what she is during the day.” pg. 11
  • “Anna is too young to work.” pg. 14
  •  “But fall is here, and the geese are flying away.” pg. 36 

 Literary Excellence:

  • Metaphor:
  • “Her family is a flock of geese beating its way there and back again.” pg. 4
  •  “A bee. That’s what she is during the day.” pg. 11
  •  “At night Anna is a kitten sharing a bed with her sisters…” pg. 15

 

  • Simile: 
  • “In the other room her brothers are like puppies…” pg. 18
  • “To Anna’s ears it is as though a thousand crickets are all singing a different song.” pg. 26
  • “…their words as spicy as the hottest chilis…” pg. 22
  • “… or as slow and rich as dark molasses.” pg. 22
  •  “…Anna feels like a bird.” pg. 4

 

  • Length of sentence:
  •  “Dollars. Peas. Meatballs.” pg. 22
  •  “But when no one is watching, she picks a tomato now and again. Just the small ones.” pg. 14
  •  “A bee.” pg. 9

 

  • Alliteration: 
  • “…blanket that barely covers…” pg. 16
  •  “…sisters by your side…” pg. 15

 

  • Consonance:
  •  “…growling and nipping…” pg. 16
  • “What would it be like to be a tree…” pg. 28
  •  “…brothers and sisters…” pg. 10

 

  • Appositive:
  •  “A kitten is a good thing to be, a safe thing, curled there…” pg. 15
  •  “…puppies, growling and nipping in their sleep, fighting over…” pg. 18

 

  • Repetition:
  • “…dip and rise, dip and rise…” pg. 15

 

  • Hyperbole: 
  • “To Anna’s ears, it is as though a thousand crickets are all singing a different song.” pg. 25

 

Connection:

My connection to Migrant by Maxine Trottier is text to world.  Previously in our Social Studies class, we learned about early human migration. Approximately two million years ago, people started migrating from Africa into Asia and then eventually to the tip of North America and the rest of the world. The main character, Anna, is a young girl who comes from a family of migrant workers from Mexico. According to Trottier, “Low German-speaking Mennonites from Mexico are a unique group of migrants who moved from Canada to Mexico in the 1920s and became an important part of the farming community there.

What is interesting is that I have learned that in our town there are still some local companies that will hire migrant workers for each season. For example, an aerospace facility and some farms have hired seasonal workers to increase their labour force. Unlike Anna, many migrant workers in today’s world are able to apply for permanent residency and create a new life in our country.

In the case of Anna’s family, they travel back and forth from Mexico to Canada, and do not have the living and working conditions usually reserved for residents. This constant lack of stability for Anna has therefore created a lack of a proper childhood — at least one that looks like the one I had — and this book both beautifully illustrates and communicates the hardships of a child of a migrant worker in so few words. 

A Planning Sheet to help you write your own Literary Analysis 

 

A Literary Analysis

Colours of British Columbia

A Literary Analysis by Megan in grade eight

Citation:

Bouchard, David. The Colours of British Columbia. Vancouver: Raincoast Books, 1994.

 

Reliability:

I know this author is reliable because he has written five other books including the best selling If You’re Not from the Prairie… and the award-winning The Elders are Watching. I also know he is a reliable because he is now a school principal in West Vancouver and a popular storytelling performer in schools throughout Canada.

 

Category:

The category of this perfect picture book is repetitive pattern, informational pattern and rhythm-rhyme pattern. It is a repetitive pattern because the author uses “I remember” more than once at the beginning of sentences. It is also an information pattern because it tells readers about beautiful British Columbia and the wonderful colours in the towns in which we live. This amazing illustrated picture also contains a rhythm-rhyme pattern because the author uses “een” words in the same sentences. The author also uses “ame” sounds and “o” sounds.

 

Short Annotation:

This wonderful picture book describes, in words and pictures, famous sites in beautiful British Columbia. This book has amazing paintings which I am sure readers would love. It  is recommended for readers of all ages.

 

Point of View:

This picture book is in the 2nd person point of view. Here are some examples:

  • pg.12 “You’ll probably remember clowns at the circus or toys that were lost as you’ve grown”
  • pg. 22 “To learn of our brown, you will have to go into the heart of our wonderful land.”
  • pg. 24 “To seek out our purple you’ll have to go down to the beach anytime of the year.”

 

Tense:

The tense of this picture book is present tense. Here are some examples:

  • pg.12 “It’s always the colour we see in the evening, a sunset so often aflame.”
  • pg.8 “Let me now tell you, while fresh in my memory, i found my first colour in trees.”
  • pg.18 “Of the moaning and calling of distant fog horns, like a crying with no one around.”

 

Literary Excellence:

Alliteration:

  • pg.18 “…it’s a spirit that speaks…”
  • pg.12 “It’s like a picture, painted on velvet…”
  • pg. 12 “… a sunset so often aflame.”
  • pg.10 “… tall trees…”
  • pg.14 “… this truly…”

Consonance:

  • pg.8 “more and mere”
  • pg.14 “ were and here”
  • pg.14 “ earth and birth”
  • pg.29 “wondrous and gardens
  • pg. 28 “ winter and summer”

Simile:

  • pg.12 “It’s just like a picture, painted velvet…”
  • pg.12 “Well it doesn’t look like velvet, it does looks like dreams…”
  • pg. 18 “Somewhat like blue but softer and wet…”
  • pg.18 “That feels much like rain, hung low in a cloud with tones of soft gentle clay”
  • pg.18 “…like a crying with no one around.”

Repetition:

  • pg.10 “ I remember…” “I remember…” “I remember…”
  • pg. 29 “ It’s not just our wondrous gardens” “It’s not just our mountain trails.”
  • pg. 29 “ It’s more than our B.C. fruit.” “It’s more than our salmon or whales.”
  • pg. 10 “…unless you have stood deep in the rain.” “Stood deep in our forest…”
  • pg. 16 “…blueblue…”

 

Connection:

I can connect to this picture book because when I was little I traveled around B.C with my family. I hardly remembered what anything looked like, but reading this book reminded me of all the beautiful sights I saw so long ago. Reading this picture book also reminded me of all the colour we have here in B.C. I guess I still travel B.C, just not as much. But I still go in summertime, for a couple of weeks, to Kelowna and places like Peachland, West Bank, and Summerland. (One summer I even went to Rattlesnake Island, in the middle of Okanagan Lake, to a place where customers can park their boats right in front of a restaurant!) Every summer, I also go up to 100 Mile House and stay with my grandfather for a couple of weeks. We travel up to Williams Lake and Prince George and go fishing, quading and horseback riding. I love travelling to far-away places. I like seeing the beauties of nature and visiting all the little towns. This picture book by Bouchard brought back all those wonderful memories.

A Planning Sheet to help you write your own Literary Analysis