A Paragraph Response to I KNOW WHY THE GAGED BIRD 
SINGS By Maya Angelou (Chapters 10-15)


  From chapter 10 to chapter 15, Maya Angelou talked about her experiences in Saint Louis. She and Bailey lived with their grandparents for half an year, and then they moved to their mother's place. Their mother was living with his boyfriend named Mr. Freeman. Eight-year-old Maya was raped by Mr. Freeman. He was found guilty but escaped jail time. He was murdered later, presumably by Maya's uncles. After the one-year experience in Saint Louis, Maya and Bailey got sent back to Stamps.

  These five chapters fit with the rising action in the plot. Maya's experiences in Saint Louis was definitely the most miserable ones in her childhood, because she got raped by her mother's boyfriend. After the rape, she was well treated in the hospital, and her mother and the family tried to make her happy by giving her toys and flowers. Also, her uncles probably killed Mr. Freeman----the man who raped Maya. However, all these "cares" were material. No one ever asked her how she feels. The toys given by her mother, or Mr. Freeman's death caused by her uncles, were more like their compensations to Maya. They knew they were responsible, and they felt guilty of themselves, so they gave Maya these material compensations to make themselves feel better.

  The overtone or mood of these five chapters serious. They are successful, because Maya was talking about her miserable experiences. It is inappropriate to make this part funny. However, it is still good to read.

A Paragraph Response to I KNOW WHY THE GAGED BIRD SINGS By Maya Angelou (Chapters 1-9)

  In Maya Angelou's I Know Why The Gaged Bird Sings, she talked about her childhood experiences. When she was three and her brother Bailey Johnson was four, they got sent to their grandmother----Mrs. Annie Henderson's home in Stamps, Arkansas by her father. Her father's name was also Bailey, who had already made a consensus with his wife----Maya and Bailey's mother, to end their marriage. Maya and Bailey lived in Stamps with their grandmother and Uncle Willie----who had been crippled as a child. Their life was simple: They went to school, went to church, and helped their grandmother to do some chores. When she was seven, their father came to the town and brought them to Saint Louis to see their mother.

  The first nine chapters I have read fit with activating circumstance and rising action in the plot. Because Maya and her family were Black Americans, she talked a lot about racial discrimination in this novel. In her description, back in time during the 1930s, black Americans were treated very unfairly. They lived in a special area in the town, which was the area for black people. They even got mock from white kids. White people did not think they deserved to be called Ms or Mr. Certainly, Maya felt unfair and sad, and she was hoping for a change. I was very surprised when I was reading the part that the grandmother was mocked by the white kids, because I did not realize before that the racial discrimination was so grave and vile. 

  The overall tone and mood of this book is pretty serious, but not dry. I think they are very successful, because racial discrimination is a serious topic, but the stories and the realistic emotions make it fun to read. It has the power to make readers keep reading and reading. You can feel the characters' emotions and feelings when you are reading, and you laugh when the characters laugh, you cry when the characters cry. The word "momma" stuck out to me. "Momma" is how Maya and her brother call their grandmother. Their grandma played the role of mother, and by using this word, I can feel how sad Maya felt when they left Stamps to Saint Louis to see their real mother.  

A journal response to Harper Lee's To Kill a Mocking Bird told from Jem's perspective


Dear Journal:

Time goes so fast and it's almost time for school to start again. The summer vocation has been great. It was so fun to had Dill to hang out, and he was a really cool friend. He made the summer much more fun than before in this old boring town. Both me and Scout appreciated for that. We did a lot of things together this summer. We built the tree house and told each other stories in there. The most exciting thing was we actually got into the Radley Place. I touched the house and ran away as soon as possible, left Dill and Scout behind me.  I was so scared at that time, and I tried not to show that in front of Dill and Scout, but I think they knew it. It was a great adventure even though we were scared. It was so miserable when Dill left us to return to Meridian a few days ago.

Scout is going to have her first day of school tomorrow. I know she is not going to like it. I already told her to keep distance from me and hang out with the first grades. I really do not want her to bother me at school, because it is going to be embarrassing in front of my friends. I am going to take her to school tomorrow, because Atticus does not have time for that. It is a good thing, because I get paid by doing that for him.

Maple Trees near the Old Barn

TO MISS HANCOCK

  (a poetic response to"The Metaphor" by Budge Wilson)

In my life

I have never thought 

to travel back in time

because 

I always believe 

tomorrow will be better

However

now

 the first time of my life

I am not sure

I am not sure if tomorrow will be better

I am not sure if I will meet a teacher 

as great as you

Ms. Hancock

I wish

I was always there for you

but I was not

I wish

I could go back to grade 7

the happiest year of my life

but I could not

I wish

you did not slip under the school bus

but you did

I wish...

I miss you

Miss. Hancock

I am really really 

sorry

To My Friend Bill

( a poetic response to "Sound of Hollyhocks" by Hugh Garner )

I wake up in the morning 
see the sunshine coming through the curtain
the color of the sky is just like the day I first met you
I know that when I turn my head I will see you lying on your bed
and you will say "Good morning!" to me just as usual
but when I turn my head I can only see the white wall 
where did you go?

 I walk on the streets 
see the rain washing the ground
the color of the sky is just like the day you left
I know that I will see you in the next corner
and you will say "Hello!" to me just as usual
but when I get there I can only see the hollyhocks
where did you go?

Dear friend
you went to such a far place 
that I have to use the rest of my life to get there
but I'm not afraid 
because you are there waiting for me