Anderson,+Alex

Entry one: i am going to read is //The Legend of Sleepy Hollow// by Washington Irving. The reason i chose this book was that i have heard the title many times but never actually seen or picked up the book before. I would like to know what it's about and who knows, maybe i'll even like it.

Blog 2: Hello fellow book readers and bloggers alike. Just a refresher I am currently reading the short story, //The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.// I don't the actual book so I can't tell you what page I'm on. Sorry. However I can tell you what I've read so far. The book takes place in a town located near a valley in new york. This is your average small town. The special thing about this town though, has nothing really to do with the town. In the near by valley, there's a certain part of the hollow that gives the inhabitants and even visitors weird sensations. Those that enter the hollow experience the feeling of being very very tired. There is also said to be a ghost that haunts this particular part of the forest and also the city. This ghost is said to be a Hessian soldier that was killed in the Revolutionary War. It is said that in battle, a cannon ball hit the man in the face and killed him. So naturally, the man doesn't have a head any more, and neither does his ghost. So the locals have given the spirit the rather appropriate and clever name, "the headless horseman". That's genius right? I'm quite interested to see where the story goes from there. I've heard the headless horseman kills people, which honestly, I'm quite excited about. So I'm gonna keep reading and hopefully get some carnage. Mwhahahahaha. Until next time........... Don't lose your head in anticipation.

Blog 3: 9/9/11

This week I actually got my book! Yay me! But anyway, I read from page 14 to 29. I've realized that I bought the edition of the book that has like 13 short stories in it that Washington Irving has written. So //The Legend of Sleepy Hollow// is going on pause for a little while till I get to it. The first short story I read was called //Voyage.// This story is about the authors voyage across the Atlantic to England. He describes what sailing does to the mind and how European culture is so much different. My favorite quote actually comes from this story. "To one given to daydreaming and fond of losing himself in reveries, a sea voyage is full of subjects for meditation; but then they are the wonders of the deep and of the air, and rather tend to abstract the mind from worldly themes." I really like this quote cause like the author, vast open spaces of beauty, such as the ocean, tend to make me daydream. These views are so calming and peaceful, and the author feels the same way. The other story I was able to read was //Roscoe//. This is a story about a famous author he met while in Europe. This author lived a very hard life and many people were sad about his fall from grace.

Blog 4: 9/17/11

I only read about 2 pages since last blog so not a whole lot to report. :P Buuuuuuut, so far I really like this book. It's really descriptive and makes it very easy to read. I agree with a lot of the views and points this author has made about life and how we live it. I can't really tell if my predictions are correct yet because I havn't gotten to that story yet. With time, with time.

9/28/11

Rip Van Winkle: He is the main character in the short story, //Rip Van Winkle//. Crazy right? But any way, Rip is a farmer in a small Dutch town. He is very well known and liked by everybody in the town. Everybody but his wife that is. The reason that she doesn't like him is because Rip is so passionate about helping other people, that he does absolutely no work at all for himself or his family. His wife, Dame, often yells at him and kicks him out of the house. Rip is extremely calm and nothing really bothers him, not even his wife's constant nagging.

Dame Van Winkle: She is Rip's wife. She's a nagger. If you are a guy you probably understand that term. Although I will admit she has good reason, she is always nagging at Rip to do something and often gets mad at him. When she is mad she kicks him out the house. This happens on an almost daily basis. She is really the only reason that the Van Winkle house is still standing since Rip doesn't take care of it.

Ichabod Crane: Main character, Legend of Sleepy Hollow. He is a school teacher. He is really tall and skinny. Ichabod is very smart and is a very gifted story teller. I also find him as sort of a......... man whore, for lack of better words. Ichabod is very poor and has almost no belongings. He stays with different students family's each week. He is in love with a Ms. Katrina. BIG NOTE, like me, he is petrified of ghosts.

Brom (Abraham) Van Brunt- Brom Bones as he's referred to, is idolized in the town as a hero. He is very strong and handsome and is an excellent horseman. This guy is a straight up stud and he knows it. I feel it gives him the feel of a jerk. He rides around with his little posse and basks in the glory of people praising him. Not to mention he can't get over himself. He loves telling stories about all the deadly stuff he's done and survived. Note not all these stories are true which just makes him an even bigger idiot in my eyes.

Summary: The plot of Rip Van Winkle is that Rip lives a life of service for others and his wife hates it. One day his wife kicks him out again and he decides to walk in the forest. Well he meets a mysterious individual there. He helps this man carry a massive keg to some random open area in the forest. Rip drinks from the keg and wakes up back on the hill where he found the person and his dog and gun are both gone. He goes into town and things have changed...... What happened to good old Rip? Sleepy Hollow takes place in Greensburgh, New York. Young Mr. Crane is teaching and living in the sleepy town haunted by the Headless Horseman. For most of the story it talks of his amazing talents as a singer, dancer, teacher, and story teller. One night he is with his love, Katrina, at a party at her mansion. She starts flirting with the town "stud/meat head". He gets upset and leaves. All of a sudden he realizes he's in a dangerous place to be at night, and who else decides to show up but the Headless Horseman. Thus begins the epic final chase.

Rating: 3 These stories weren't bad, but they aren't really my style preference of literature. The ending of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow actually had me reading incredibly fast because I was so anxious to find out what happened. It definitely had my heart going there. So I did enjoy part of the story which prompted my 3 rating. I do wish there more of the story that was like the final couple pages of TLOSH.

Wiki Reflections: I do find wiki as a somewhat helpful tool. That way you can look and see what other people are reading and get their opinions on it. Or if you don't understand part of your own book, or wish to discuss part of your book, you can find other people reading it and maybe get a different viewpoint to help shed some light on the situ. It is also interesting to compare your ideas of lit with other classmates to see how your different opinions stack up.