The Drummer Boy of Shilo

Drummer Boy of Shiloh is a story following a young boy the night before the battle of Shiloh. The boy Joby is not only scared but is ashamed because he has little importance in his job. He thinks that he is just a blip in history and nothing he does has any effect on the war. But throughout the story he slowly realizes his importance in the war.

In the beginning of the story the drummer boy starts to think about the war. He believes that he will be the first to die and no one will ever care or even know. He thinks, “I got a drum two sticks to beat it and not shield”. Joby then starts to cry he feels alone and unimportant. He faces doubt in what he’s doing. Sometimes I can easily relate to him. I know I’m not going to go to war any time soon but I sometime feel like everything I do is unimportant. I think nothing I do will ever affect the world but I am wrong.

Towards the end of the story the general over hears his crying and talks to him.  At first the general comes out as a mean person but then he tells Joby that he is not the only one crying he tells him that all the other solders and even him feel the same way but Joby shouldn’t be because he is the heart of the army. The general didn’t mean that Joby was the most important solder but he meant that everything he does would affect something or someone. When I read this I thought of quote that said a flap of a butterfly’s wing may cause a hurricane in the other part of the world. It reminded me of the story because Joby is like a butterfly any thing he does might affect the outcome of the war.  Which goes back to my point that everyone has an importance in the world.

The Absulutly True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Over the summer I read the book "The Absululy True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" the book was one of my favorite books I've read for a while. I't had a strange mix of a sad story and a funny story but worked out perfectly.

In the book the main character junior a native from a reservation decides to go to school out of his reservation. throughout the book he faces problems like love poverty bad luck but mainly not being excepted but pushes through.

Junior was born with a stutter, lisp, big head and scrawny body. From the start of the story junior is challenged with finding friends at his home. His one friend is kind of a jerk. When he switches schools it makes it worse for him. He is pushed out of his tribe and thought of as a trader. Then his one friend leaves him too. Then everyone that believes in him falls away, his sister moves to las vegas, his dad becomes a drunk, his mom becomes depressed his dads friend dies and in the end his grandmother dies.

However when all this happens he still goes through school. He becomes the number one basket ball player at the school and makes them number 1 team. In his first game he plays against his home team and the natives are so furious the throw a penny into his head. when junior finds out he'll need 4 stitches he asks for them right away (with out pain meds) so he can play the game. when he goes back up he ends up getting elbowed in the face by his friend and sent to the hospital. his first respond to all the problems he faces is to just walk forward like he does here he moves on so easily always doing the right thing and every one else cant move past how he's at a different school. If i were him I'd probably leave the school right away. the amount of bravery he has is amazing and while he is always going on about how he's a failure but really he's a better person then anyone id ever met.