The documentary novel Countdown by Deborah Wiles is an interesting and riveting tale of a girl who goes by the name of Franny Champman. Franny is a young girl in the fifth grade living during the time of the Cuban Missle Crisis, in 1962. Along with the worries of being bombed, Franny has to face several complications along the way, such as the problem of her crazed Uncle Otts, her troubles with her ex-bestfriend, Margie, or her sister Jo Ellen being away from home from long periods of time, away at college. As things grow worse and worse for Franny, she begins to feel more and more invisible. As time progresses, Franny feels left in the dust and abandoned by her family, who suddenly becomes occupied with greater problems.
Towards the end of the novel, Franny uncovers that people do truly care about her. Her family grows more and more supportive towards her and she sees that she truly does matter to people. Her friendship with Margie is restored and she makes several new friends along the way. A romantic intrest sparks up between Franny and the boy next door, Chris. Jo Ellen returns home and Franny and Jo Ellen restore the sisterly bond that was lost long ago, and Uncle Otts is finally at peace with the family.
Throughout the novel, one thing that was taken into consideration, was the character development. Deborah Wiles had excellent character development, especially with the main character, Franny Chapman. Franny wasn't portrayed the way a typical eleven year old girl is show more usually portrayed. Yes, she wore headbangs to school daily and dressed in dresses and cute things like that, but underneath all of that, the author shows us a little girl who is absolutely terrified. She has no idea whether or not she is going to wake up and live through the next day, because, in reality, Franny and the rest of America could have been bombed at any second. Franny is terrified, she is stressed, and is frantic. Deborah Wiles does an excellent job of portraying these emotions, without directly stating it.
Although the character development was fantastic, the novel was too much of an easy read. The novel easily could have taken me less than a week to finish, and the same goes to others that have read it. Half of the book was just images, thus why the novel was categorized as a documentary novel, but the images took up a lot of where Deborah Wiles could have put in more detail. Her transitioning from sequence to sequence was also rather quick and lacked detail, making the story confusing at points. If Deborah Wiles had added detail, instead of rushing through the novel, the novel would have been more enjoyable to readers such as myself.
The character development was spot-on, however, the lack of detail really killed the novel for me. I really wasn't impressed by the novel, due to it's simplicity. If the author had taken more time and put more detail into it, the novel would have been much more enjoyable. The only major problem with the novel was the lack of detail, which ruined the novel for me. show less
Towards the end of the novel, Franny uncovers that people do truly care about her. Her family grows more and more supportive towards her and she sees that she truly does matter to people. Her friendship with Margie is restored and she makes several new friends along the way. A romantic intrest sparks up between Franny and the boy next door, Chris. Jo Ellen returns home and Franny and Jo Ellen restore the sisterly bond that was lost long ago, and Uncle Otts is finally at peace with the family.
Throughout the novel, one thing that was taken into consideration, was the character development. Deborah Wiles had excellent character development, especially with the main character, Franny Chapman. Franny wasn't portrayed the way a typical eleven year old girl is show more usually portrayed. Yes, she wore headbangs to school daily and dressed in dresses and cute things like that, but underneath all of that, the author shows us a little girl who is absolutely terrified. She has no idea whether or not she is going to wake up and live through the next day, because, in reality, Franny and the rest of America could have been bombed at any second. Franny is terrified, she is stressed, and is frantic. Deborah Wiles does an excellent job of portraying these emotions, without directly stating it.
Although the character development was fantastic, the novel was too much of an easy read. The novel easily could have taken me less than a week to finish, and the same goes to others that have read it. Half of the book was just images, thus why the novel was categorized as a documentary novel, but the images took up a lot of where Deborah Wiles could have put in more detail. Her transitioning from sequence to sequence was also rather quick and lacked detail, making the story confusing at points. If Deborah Wiles had added detail, instead of rushing through the novel, the novel would have been more enjoyable to readers such as myself.
The character development was spot-on, however, the lack of detail really killed the novel for me. I really wasn't impressed by the novel, due to it's simplicity. If the author had taken more time and put more detail into it, the novel would have been much more enjoyable. The only major problem with the novel was the lack of detail, which ruined the novel for me. show less
Dan Brown has written another wonderful novel by the title of The Lost Symbol. Dan Brown embarks us on yet another Robert Langdon adventure. In this adventure, Robert takes a trip back to his homeland, the wonderful and glorious USA. However, in this novel, we learn that the home of the free and the home of the brave isn't what we think it is.
Dan Brown shows us secrets hidden by the U.S. in The Lost Symbol, while still having a firm grasp on the narration portion of his story. Robert Langdon is sent on a journey to the big and beautiful Washington D.C. to decipher an ancient masonic pyramid for a strange man who demands strange things. Normally, Robert Langdon would never let the pyramid fall into the hands of evil, but quite frankly, Robert has no choice. Robert's friend, Peter Solomon, who is a mason of the thirty-ninth degree, is being held hostage by this horrific man. Every minute that Robert Langdon is not making progress in deciphering the pyramid, another horrific thing happens to Peter Solomon, such as his hands being cut off.
While deciphering the pyramid, Robert meets yet another romantic love interest, Katherine Solomon, the sister of Peter. This was an issue that really drew my attention: Robert has three different love interests throughout the series. This didn't make much sense to me, and I would have preferred that Robert had stayed true to his original first love. At the very least, it would have been nice if Dan Brown had given any explanation for the show more sudden disappearances of Robert's two previous love interests.
Another issue that concerned me while reading, was the last few pages of the novel. In Dan Brown's novels that include Robert Langdon, the endings have always tended to lose me. I think what Dan Brown's problem might be, is the fact that he tries to cram a ton of information into a few pages. He seemed to rush the ending entirely, which ruined the novel a bit for me. This novel would have been better if Dan Brown had taken the extra few chapters to elaborate his ending, instead of leaving me dazed.
However, Dan Brown has also rated an excellent novel, as all great novels have their flaws. Dan Brown has successfully created the perfect blend between the narrative portion of his story and the historical portion of his novel. Together, they blend to create an incredibly amazing novel, that will keep you clinging to the edge of your seat until the very end.
Dan Brown has also managed to create incredibly rich and wonderful characters. His character development was by-far the best character development that I have ever seen. I felt as if Robert, Peter, and Katherine were somehow incorporated into my average, everyday life. It seemed as if everywhere I turned, every word I heard, and every thought that raced through my head was somehow connected back to the characters in The Lost Symbol. I commend Dan Brown on his excellent character development skills, which will forever leave an impact on my readings and writing.
Although I am left wonder what had ever happened to all of Robert's previous love interests and the ending of The Lost Symbol was a bit rushed, Dan Brown's novel was still absolutely stunning. His character development was rich, juicy, and simply flawless. The blend of history and narration had me on the edge of my seat, begging for more with every page that I turned to. Dan Brown has done it again, and this novel is an incredible read for all. show less
Dan Brown shows us secrets hidden by the U.S. in The Lost Symbol, while still having a firm grasp on the narration portion of his story. Robert Langdon is sent on a journey to the big and beautiful Washington D.C. to decipher an ancient masonic pyramid for a strange man who demands strange things. Normally, Robert Langdon would never let the pyramid fall into the hands of evil, but quite frankly, Robert has no choice. Robert's friend, Peter Solomon, who is a mason of the thirty-ninth degree, is being held hostage by this horrific man. Every minute that Robert Langdon is not making progress in deciphering the pyramid, another horrific thing happens to Peter Solomon, such as his hands being cut off.
While deciphering the pyramid, Robert meets yet another romantic love interest, Katherine Solomon, the sister of Peter. This was an issue that really drew my attention: Robert has three different love interests throughout the series. This didn't make much sense to me, and I would have preferred that Robert had stayed true to his original first love. At the very least, it would have been nice if Dan Brown had given any explanation for the show more sudden disappearances of Robert's two previous love interests.
Another issue that concerned me while reading, was the last few pages of the novel. In Dan Brown's novels that include Robert Langdon, the endings have always tended to lose me. I think what Dan Brown's problem might be, is the fact that he tries to cram a ton of information into a few pages. He seemed to rush the ending entirely, which ruined the novel a bit for me. This novel would have been better if Dan Brown had taken the extra few chapters to elaborate his ending, instead of leaving me dazed.
However, Dan Brown has also rated an excellent novel, as all great novels have their flaws. Dan Brown has successfully created the perfect blend between the narrative portion of his story and the historical portion of his novel. Together, they blend to create an incredibly amazing novel, that will keep you clinging to the edge of your seat until the very end.
Dan Brown has also managed to create incredibly rich and wonderful characters. His character development was by-far the best character development that I have ever seen. I felt as if Robert, Peter, and Katherine were somehow incorporated into my average, everyday life. It seemed as if everywhere I turned, every word I heard, and every thought that raced through my head was somehow connected back to the characters in The Lost Symbol. I commend Dan Brown on his excellent character development skills, which will forever leave an impact on my readings and writing.
Although I am left wonder what had ever happened to all of Robert's previous love interests and the ending of The Lost Symbol was a bit rushed, Dan Brown's novel was still absolutely stunning. His character development was rich, juicy, and simply flawless. The blend of history and narration had me on the edge of my seat, begging for more with every page that I turned to. Dan Brown has done it again, and this novel is an incredible read for all. show less
Dan Brown has embarked us on another journey through a day in the life of Robert Langdon, and he has yet to disappoint us. In this #1 Worldwide Best Seller, The Da Vinci Code takes us on a journey through perhaps two of the most marvelous cities of today: Paris and London. This novel is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat and it is no-doubt a pleasure to read.
In The Da Vinci Code, Robert Langdon has flown to France to visit arguably one of the greatest curators of all time, Jacques Sauniere. Much to Robert's surprise, he has come to find Jacques Sauniere murdered in a corridor of the Louve, the grandest museum in France. (Jacques Sauniere curates here.) Robert Langdon is being framed for the death of Jacques Sauniere by the Judicial Police, due to a message written in ultraviolet ink that Jacques Sauniere had written himself, next to his lifeless body. Jacques Sauniere's last words went as followed: P.S. Find Robert Langdon. Little do the Judicial Police know, that "P.S." stands for Princess Sophie, meaning Sophie Neveu, Jacques Sauniere's granddaughter who had lost touch over the years.
Sophie Neveu knows Robert is innocent. While trying to prove Robert's innocence, she discovers a set of clues that have them traveling from France all the way to London. Clue after clue, Sophie and Robert uncover the map to one of man's greatest mysteries of all time: the Holy Grail. Sophie and Robert embark on a journey for the long lost Grail. While on the journey they learn that show more Jacques Sauniere was the grandmaster of a secret society, known as the Priory of Sion. Robert and Sophie journey through Paris and London, meeting old friends, being betrayed, and being wanted fugitives along the way.
Dan Brown has never failed me with any of his novels that I have stumbled across. Once again, Dan Brown has met my standards, leaving me content with yet another one of his fabulous novels. With every page I turned, I found myself becoming more and more hooked into this wonderful adventure novel.
I give praise to Dan Brown for successfully throwing history into a novel, without tearing all life out of me. The bits of history thrown into this novel only had me begging to read more. Once again, this novel had made me spend my free time researching the historical events and facts that were mentioned in this novel. I found myself learning more and more with every page I had turned to. I give my utmost respect to Dan Brown for keeping me hooked while expanding my knowledge. Few novels that I have read have done this successfully.
I am aware that most people in our modern-day society do not wish to sit through a boring history lesson, but this book is quite the contrary. The combination of action scenes and history bits had kept me on the edge of my seat. I was even thrown off a couple of times with the twists and turns that Dan Brown had added! This novel is the perfect combination of action and history. Dan Brown has once again successfully brought two worlds together in one novel.
While reading this novel, there was simply nothing I would have done differently. The action sequences and the transitioning that had came to follow had moved along at exactly the right speeds. The novel was not rushed, nor was it too slow to a point where I had just wanted to drop it completely. This novel was possibly one of the best novels that I have read in my entire life. I give praise and my greatest respects to Dan Brown for writing such an amazing novel. show less
In The Da Vinci Code, Robert Langdon has flown to France to visit arguably one of the greatest curators of all time, Jacques Sauniere. Much to Robert's surprise, he has come to find Jacques Sauniere murdered in a corridor of the Louve, the grandest museum in France. (Jacques Sauniere curates here.) Robert Langdon is being framed for the death of Jacques Sauniere by the Judicial Police, due to a message written in ultraviolet ink that Jacques Sauniere had written himself, next to his lifeless body. Jacques Sauniere's last words went as followed: P.S. Find Robert Langdon. Little do the Judicial Police know, that "P.S." stands for Princess Sophie, meaning Sophie Neveu, Jacques Sauniere's granddaughter who had lost touch over the years.
Sophie Neveu knows Robert is innocent. While trying to prove Robert's innocence, she discovers a set of clues that have them traveling from France all the way to London. Clue after clue, Sophie and Robert uncover the map to one of man's greatest mysteries of all time: the Holy Grail. Sophie and Robert embark on a journey for the long lost Grail. While on the journey they learn that show more Jacques Sauniere was the grandmaster of a secret society, known as the Priory of Sion. Robert and Sophie journey through Paris and London, meeting old friends, being betrayed, and being wanted fugitives along the way.
Dan Brown has never failed me with any of his novels that I have stumbled across. Once again, Dan Brown has met my standards, leaving me content with yet another one of his fabulous novels. With every page I turned, I found myself becoming more and more hooked into this wonderful adventure novel.
I give praise to Dan Brown for successfully throwing history into a novel, without tearing all life out of me. The bits of history thrown into this novel only had me begging to read more. Once again, this novel had made me spend my free time researching the historical events and facts that were mentioned in this novel. I found myself learning more and more with every page I had turned to. I give my utmost respect to Dan Brown for keeping me hooked while expanding my knowledge. Few novels that I have read have done this successfully.
I am aware that most people in our modern-day society do not wish to sit through a boring history lesson, but this book is quite the contrary. The combination of action scenes and history bits had kept me on the edge of my seat. I was even thrown off a couple of times with the twists and turns that Dan Brown had added! This novel is the perfect combination of action and history. Dan Brown has once again successfully brought two worlds together in one novel.
While reading this novel, there was simply nothing I would have done differently. The action sequences and the transitioning that had came to follow had moved along at exactly the right speeds. The novel was not rushed, nor was it too slow to a point where I had just wanted to drop it completely. This novel was possibly one of the best novels that I have read in my entire life. I give praise and my greatest respects to Dan Brown for writing such an amazing novel. show less
Angels and Demons is not your classic adventure novel. This novel isn’t a tale of Superman, Batman, or even Wonder Women. Robert Langdon is not your everyday hero. He is in fact a hero, but he bends the definition of a hero. Robert Langdon is the type of man who uses his wits and knowledge of symbology to save the biggest religion in history: the Catholic Church. No, Mr. Langdon cannot fly, nor does he have the power of great strength, but he is a hero of no other, who attempts to do the impossible.
Robert Langdon is a professor of symbology at Harvard University. During the oddest hour of the night, Robert receives a call from a man known as Max Kholer, the director of CERN, an enormous scientific company, who have done the impossible by creating antimatter. This antimatter has been stolen from CERN and has been in hidden in Vatican City. The antimatter only has until midnight, when it shall explode and destroy all of Vatican City, and much of Rome. Robert Langdon has been contacted, due to the homicide of Leonardo Vetra, the creator of the antimatter. Normally, the police and investigators would be contacted, but something extremely unusual had happened to Leonardo Vetra’s body. Leonardo Vetra’s shirt was found unbuttoned, revealing the word Illuminati being branded into his chest. The Illuminati were an ancient brotherhood which had gone incognito over four hundred years ago. This is where Robert Langdon comes into play. Robert Langdon knows absolutely show more everything about the Illuminati. So, he is called to embark on a mission through Vatican City, alongside of Vittoria Vetra, the daughter of Leonardo Vetra and the co creator of the antimatter, in search of the killer and the stolen antimatter, before they are too late.
This adventure novel had me on the edge of my seat throughout the entire novel. Every sentence that Dan Brown had written had seemed to drag me in deeper into the book. It had sucked me in like a black hole, which I couldn’t escape from. This novel had easily been the best novel I had ever read.
Even though Angels and Demons had some incredibly great assets, there were also some minor flaws. For example, the action sequences were extremely slow, to a point where I was about to skip over five pages to get to the climax of the sequence. Dan Brown took too long to get to the climax of the sequence, leaving the introduction to the sequence incredibly dry, boring, and long. I was a little disappointed by the drag in these action sequences, leaving my reader experience at a lower level than it had previously been at.
Minus the slow action sequences and the minor flaws, Angels and Demons is an incredible novel. It is not an easy read, but it is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat, begging for more after every sentence. Dan Brown had done a phenomenal job in creating this book, bringing much joy to all of his readers. show less
Robert Langdon is a professor of symbology at Harvard University. During the oddest hour of the night, Robert receives a call from a man known as Max Kholer, the director of CERN, an enormous scientific company, who have done the impossible by creating antimatter. This antimatter has been stolen from CERN and has been in hidden in Vatican City. The antimatter only has until midnight, when it shall explode and destroy all of Vatican City, and much of Rome. Robert Langdon has been contacted, due to the homicide of Leonardo Vetra, the creator of the antimatter. Normally, the police and investigators would be contacted, but something extremely unusual had happened to Leonardo Vetra’s body. Leonardo Vetra’s shirt was found unbuttoned, revealing the word Illuminati being branded into his chest. The Illuminati were an ancient brotherhood which had gone incognito over four hundred years ago. This is where Robert Langdon comes into play. Robert Langdon knows absolutely show more everything about the Illuminati. So, he is called to embark on a mission through Vatican City, alongside of Vittoria Vetra, the daughter of Leonardo Vetra and the co creator of the antimatter, in search of the killer and the stolen antimatter, before they are too late.
This adventure novel had me on the edge of my seat throughout the entire novel. Every sentence that Dan Brown had written had seemed to drag me in deeper into the book. It had sucked me in like a black hole, which I couldn’t escape from. This novel had easily been the best novel I had ever read.
Even though Angels and Demons had some incredibly great assets, there were also some minor flaws. For example, the action sequences were extremely slow, to a point where I was about to skip over five pages to get to the climax of the sequence. Dan Brown took too long to get to the climax of the sequence, leaving the introduction to the sequence incredibly dry, boring, and long. I was a little disappointed by the drag in these action sequences, leaving my reader experience at a lower level than it had previously been at.
Minus the slow action sequences and the minor flaws, Angels and Demons is an incredible novel. It is not an easy read, but it is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat, begging for more after every sentence. Dan Brown had done a phenomenal job in creating this book, bringing much joy to all of his readers. show less