Review Of Homer Hickam's October Sky

Homer Hickam was a teenage boy from a mining town in West Virginia called Coalwood. He inspired to build rockets when he seen the first artificial satellite, Sputnik, streak across the stars. With his friends and the local nerd, Homer sets out to do just that but with many errors and trials. Along with the town, Homer's father thought they were wasting their time with their rockets. He wanted Homer to be a coal miner just like everyone else but Homer knew he didn't belong there. As time went on, some people from town became interested in seeing the homemade missiles launch into the sky. The boys became popular and were known as the "Rocketboys" around town.

The 1920s were a time of social injustices, primarily revolving around racial discrimination. With the revival of the Ku Klux Klan only a few short years before, African Americans lived in fear of lynching and other forms of racism during this period. This form of social injustice was widespread and known by all in the United States, but there was another issue during this time that was not as well known. The West Virginia mine wars had begun in 1920 due to the injustices that the miners had faced for decades. Miniscule wages and dangerous work conditions were only a few of the hardships that the miners had to face. The author of the book Kettle Bottom, Diane Gilliam Fisher, was able to capture these hardships perfectly in her poetry to help shine light on the terrible treatment and the resulting consequences that the miners and their families received during this time. Many of her poems, such as, “Dear Diary,” “Pearlie Tells What Happened at School,” and “Walter and His Mama Talk about Angels,” show the negative impact that growing up during this period of violence and injustice had had on the miners’ children.

Exposition The characters are introduced by Hansberry. It is the 1950’s in a tiny apartment in Southside Chicago. The Younger family has just suffered the loss of Walter’s dad, with a $10,000 inheritance check supposedly to arrive in the near future. Upon hearing about the check, Walter, the protagonist, hopes to be able to take the money to invest in a liquor store. His sister, Beneatha hopes to be able to use it to attend medical school and Mama

Reaching for your dreams is like looking at the Sunday newspaper comics, if you look from a far, you see the big picture, but if you look close, all you see are a bunch of dots put together. October Sky is a film based on Homer Hickam’s determination to win a national science fair. He is constantly ostracized by his community and family and does not have much money to support him either. Homer clearly doesn’t have a good chance at even getting to the science fair, let alone winning it. Many obstacles are in his way and he can’t even see his goal with all of them in the way. Somehow, he perceivers and finds a way to reach his goal. His friends did not believe in him, but later started to really believe and they all

Denise Giardina, the author of, “Storming Heaven” does an exquisite job of using the point of view from four different narrators’ point of view to portray the story of the lives of the miners’. The use of the different point of views from Cincinnatus a socialist, Rondal a union organizer, Carrie a nurse, and Rosa an Italian immigrant is a brilliant idea to show the different impacts among several individuals and give different moods and views throughout the different narration. The story takes place in a mining community in a rural town in southwestern West Virginia. She uses the five senses to paint a picture and make it feel as if the readers are one of the many individuals within the story. Giardina does a superb job of using the abuses of the miners and stooges to show how his or her lives were and what caused the uprising in 1921. She uses the oppression of the workers’ to create a sympathetic mood amongst the readers. The way Denise Giardina portrays the atrocities that occur during the events within the story, shows how the coal companies treat the coal miners and how the companies don’t care about whether their workers or their children die.

Lewis Grassic Gibbons Sunset Song contains two characters, Chris and Ewan, whose relationship deteriorates throughout the novel. The writer shows this deterioration through the various techniques that he employs. Choose a novel in which the relationship between two characters deteriorates. Explain the reasons for this and while assessing the part each character plays in the deterioration. Make it clear where your sympathies lie.

1) I believe that there are many ways that the author has chosen to set-up a man and animal as competitors in the story “On The Roof Of The World” by Sir Charles G. D. Roberts.

The autobiographical and regional novel Sky of Stone by Homer “Sonny” Hickam Jr. is an astonishing journey through the life of Sonny, during his summer of 1961, after his first year of college at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute (VIT), and his time spent in Coalwood, West Virginia, where his father, who is also named Homer, is accused of negligence in the death of mine foreman Tuck Dillion (Hickam, Sky of Stone 2001). The author, Sonny Hickam, grew up in Coalwood, West Virginia, and his written many novels on his experiences growing up in Coalwood, including the critically acclaimed autobiographical novel Rocket Boys, which is celebrated as one of the best books of 1998 by the New York Times, and has even been turned into film (Hickam, About

Homer Hickam Jr, also known as Sonny, was a boy with a dream. Sonny had many supporters and fuelers for his success. Sonny Hickam had a very interesting relationship with his parents. He and his mom, Elsie Hickam, were very close and she was always encouraging him. However, Sonny’s father, Homer Hickam, was a bit less affectionate. Sonny was always seeking permission and acceptance from his father, but he only rarely received it. Sonny also had encouragement from Miss Riley, his teacher at Big Creek High School. Sonny’s idol and mentor was a German scientist named Wernher Von Braun. These relationships sparked and fueled his way into sweet success. Sonny and his Rocket Boys were unstoppable.

Every action we take impact the lives of others around us.” Rocket boys is a novel written by Homer H. Hickam Jr.. It is a story about his life going up in Coalwood. The novel takes us through his ups and downs while trying to do what he loves and be successful at it. Homer Hickam grew up to become a NASA engineer and made a major impact on the space exploration as it is today. In the novel Rocket Boys by Homer Hickam, his mother Elsie is delivered as a significant person in his life because she plays a pivotal role in his life and has never doubted his capabilities.

The Day the Cowboys Quit takes us back to a time of change in our country’s history, and gives us a more in depth perception on what the life of a cowboy was like back then, the changes that were taking place at the time thanks to the advancement of industrialization in our country, and the often abuse of power that characterized many of the big corporations of the 1880’s. The main settings for the story are the ranches in the Texas Panhandle during the 1880’s. The particular style of Elmer Kelton’s writing make this book fairly easy to read and understand; by using a simple way of writing, avoiding big words, and useless information that would otherwise distract or direct the reader away from the main idea of the story. This avid style of writing also makes the reader not only be able to read, but also feel the story; allows the reader to feel what Hitchcock and his friends were living like if the reader had being there.

Everyone is told at a very young age that they can be whatever they want to be. But is this really true? In our day and age, with technology advancing daily, many young people find that it isn’t as easy to follow one’s dreams as is portrayed in fairy tales. October Sky is like these books, as it shows boys following their dreams by creating homemade rockets. But what makes this seemingly unrealistic book stand out from the rest is its ability to inspire. This book intrigues the reader and draws them in as it shows the characters as they learn.

Setting: Post World War I era, 1919. In Howard’s (Kreb’s) quaint home town in Oklahoma. All who have returned from the harsh war are welcomed; their stories as well. All except for Krebs.

In this essay I will tell you about a teenager named Homer who lives in the coal mining town called Coalwood. This teen will overcome many obstacles including Homer’s dad wanting him to work in the coal mine,and he has to learn the mechanics of rocketry, and must overcome the obstacle of his youth. But in the end Homer’s hobby gets him into a good college and helps him become a rocket engineer just as he had dreamed he would be. This has lead me to conclude the theme of the movie is to never give up on your dreams, no matter what the cost. I think the theme of October sky is never give up because, when Homer's Dad, Jack gets hurt in the Mine, Homer goes to the mine and starts working there to support the family and not to get kicked out of Coal Wood because the family is not working.

"Talltail flung out a paw, reaching for the rogue's pelt. He felt fur brush his claw-tips as they curled around thin air. Then Sparow disipered" (Hunter 411). Tallpaw is a loyal apprentice of WindClan. But right before his training is complete, a tragic accident happens, leaving his heart ice-cold with the longing for revenge. Once he receives his warrior name, Talltail goes in search of a so-thought murderer. But the journey is dangerous, and he will be forced to decide if the long awaited journey is worth it. Bestselling author Erin Hunter takes off on yet another thrilling adventure, this time showing Talltails adventurous past. The Erins' have amazingly mixed difficult quests, tragedy, and lots of heartbreaking decisions. making into this past-telling novel.