On Enemy Soil by Jim Murphy

On Enemy Soil by Jim Murphy
  1. Bibliography
Murphy, Jim. On Enemy Soil: the Journal of James Edmond Pease: a Civil War Union
Soldier. Scholastic, 2012. ISBN 0545398878.
  1. Plot Summary
This is the personal journal belonging to sixteen year old James Edmond Pease. Pease is a
soldier fighting on the northern side of the American Civil War. With hard work and
determination, and a bit of good luck, Pease works his way up in the ranks in his company.
This story follows Pease’ journey through a bloody war fought on farms and in family’s
backyards. Although James Pease is a fictional character, his experiences are based off
of those that many soldiers faced during this bloody time in history. 
  1. Critical Analysis
As the story begins, the reader can derive from the lack of proper grammar that
Pease is not a very learned man. However with Pease writing the was he talks, the
style adds voice to the story. For example, when Pease is discussing the opposing
side he states, “They was the enemy…” (Pg. 12). Another example can be seen on
page 83, …”men was not so lucky when their wagon overturned.” 
The reader can see Pease grow up through the experiences he faces. Although he
is still quite young, in fact he is technically not old enough to be apart of the army,
Pease is forced to experience tremendous anguish through death and survival. 
This story reads almost like a fictional piece due to the dialogue and interesting
characters thrown throughout the story. My favorite character in this story was
that of Sally, an older slave woman who risks everything to help James hide from
the confederate soldiers. She is nurturing and provides for James, as a mother-like
figure; something James knows nothing about, as his own mother passed away when
he was very young. 
I enjoy reading stories such as these. I enjoy being able to grow close with the
character and experience what the character is experiencing. Feel as the character
feels. It provides for an intimate look into the character’s world.
  1. Review Excerpts
  • “In a journal that evolves in detail and eloquence as Peace matures,
Pease’s unassuming personality keeps him a vivid, accessible narrator throughout.”
—Booklist
  • “James’ account captures the tedium and drudgery of day-to-day life in the
infantry, the confusion and terror of battle. Murphy bases this [fictional] journal
on real diaries of actual Civil War soldiers. A solid addition to a popular series.”
—School Library Journal
  1. Connections
  • Pair this story with a lesson of the Civil War.
  • Because this story is geared more towards boys, try letting the girls in class read When Will This Cruel War Be Over?: The Civil War Diary of Emma Simpson, Gordonsville, Virginia, 1864 By: Barry Denenberg. This story is still a journal written during the Civil War, however this story is in the perspective of a girl, which the girls in the class might be able to relate to more.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

If I Ever Get Out Of Here by Eric Gainsworth

Image
If I Ever Get Out of Here by Eric Gansworth   A.            Bibliography Gansworth, Eric. 2005. New York, NY; Scholastic. ISBN 0545417317   Plot Summary Taking place in the 1970s, this story uses the songs of The Beatles to portray the story of Lewis, an American Indian teenager that is growing up in a time (and place) where his Native American heritage is underappreciated and sets him apart. This coming of age story uses themes of young love, friendship, family, and bullying to tell the story of how despite all the odds, Lewis is able to find some semblance of normalcy and happiness.   Critical Analysis (Including Cultural Markers)             The cultural markers of this story come in the reactions of others to Lewis and his lifestyle. The mistreatment of Lewis can be seen time and time again, all because he is of a different cult...
Read more

Infographics: Information in Picture Form

Image
   Just as the title suggests, infographics are simply images with statics and numbers thrown in. It is generally something that someone can read by just glancing at. Infographics are a good way of informing the public or getting your point across about a certain topic. When creating your own infographic , there are many programs available online to help. For the purpose of this post, I will be comparing three different websites; Easelly , Piktochart , and Infogram , to see which (in my opinion) is easiest and most user friendly with creating an infographic .    All three programs that I played around with to create an inforgraphic required me to create an account. As such, I don't anticipate much Spam mail coming from these sites, however that is a subject for another day. Let's see how each one of these programs stacked up. Easelly ( http://www.easel.ly/ ) This site is terrific because it already has created infographics where one can go in and change the...
Read more

Gingersnap by Patricia Reilly Giff

Image
Gingersnap by Patricia Reilly Giff Bibliography Giff, Patricia Reilly. Gingersnap . Wendy Lamb Book s, 2013. ISBN 0375838910. Plot Summary Jayna is an orphan and has only her older brother Rob to rely on. Rob has been called to the war in the Pacific, and Jayna is left with only her landlady, Celine. Jayna decides to go to New York and try to find any possible family. After finding a French cookbook with a photograph of a bakery among Rob’s things, Jayna goes in search of the Gingersnap bakery. Once there, she finds much more than she could have imagined. Jayna finds answers to her questions, acceptance, and most importantly, family.  Critical Analysis The different recipes scattered throughout the story that related to particular moments in the story add to a unique spin on the story. For example, on page 122, there was a recipe titled “Waiting Soup” that appeared just as Elise mentions that Jayna can stay with her until Rob comes home from th...
Read more