Walls Book Review

Jeannette Walls lacks the ability to swim through the warm currents of water unlike her siblings, Lori and Brian. In order to teach Jeannette how to swim, Rex Walls decides the best method is to, sink or swim. Once they are standing in the sulfur spring water, Rex throws her in, catching her off-guard and allowing her to thrash restlessly in the water. Before she is able to completely sink, he grabs a strong hold of her, and drags her back only to throw her in once again. Through this method, she quickly learns how to swim away in order to escape the torture Rex is putting her in. I am able to visualize Jeannette panicking and swallowing some of the chlorine and panicking. Trying her best to reach to the surface, and being scared for her life and wondering, why would

“We are not what we've done. We are what we’ve overcome.” This set of wise words implies that our true identity is not defined by the achievements we have made, but rather by the obstacles that we manage to overcome and what we learn from them. Like most others, I faced some struggles growing up, and they have played a major role in who I am today. While, some of these struggles consisted of physical barriers in the way of my education, others were economic struggles, later serving as my motivational drive for doing well in school. Each of these has taught me valuable lessons and are the reasons why I am the person who I am today.

Commanded by Alan Warde, and the other council members of the village, the men of the Woodmyst are called into action armed with bows and swords.

Taking the time to read Lesson Learned: Loving Yourself as a Black Woman really shed light on a lot of things I’ve suppressed over the year because I’ve been too afraid to talk to anyone about. It helped me look at how much I try to put off and how I feel on the inside, but shows differently on the outside just so people won’t ask me what’s wrong or if I’m okay. Though there are many lessons throughout this book it was 3 that really opened on how I feel on a daily basis.

To live is Christ is the theme that runs through this book, like the intricate details of a big picture. Living for Christ is no easy task, it is for no mere man, but it is for the Christian. The Christian walk takes you through many different stages of maturity as you behold and delight in Christ's glory in Scripture. All along the journey of the Christian life -- through the darkest personal trials, and despite indwelling sin, and various character flaws -- Christ's glory is beheld and treasured, resulting in the taste of boundless joy, in growing security, and in continuous victory over oneself, the world, and the devil -- a triumph manifested in self-emptying and other-loving obedience, and ultimately in a life aimed to please God

In “Where there’s a Wall” poem by Joy Kogawa, the author addressed how a person can get through the wall and how a person behaves on the other side of the wall. Just like in real life, people have motivations as to why they act in a certain way. In the poem, the reasons that lead the character to walk away from the wall are the speaker’s fear and self-interest.

Transcending boundaries takes hard work, perseverance, and courage. In life, we face a plethora of problems on a daily basis. Most are insignificant but every person has come across a problem that has cause distress. I faced many boundaries throughout my life, but the boundaries that have affected my life the most are living in single parent home and facing my mother’s new ailment. These adversities shaped me into the person I am today. With my perspective on life, I believe that not only will I spread my positive influence on others at Wake Forest University, but throughout the whole world.

Achieving a strong sense of love and belonging through self acceptance, an idea reflected in Brené Brown’s TED Talk The Power of Vulnerability, mirrors the coming of age journeys of Scout, from Harper Lee’s novel To Kill A Mockingbird, and Gene, from John Knowles’s novel A Separate Peace.

While individuals often feel obligated to conform to the expectations of society, those that are confident can overcome these pressures, leading to the findings of one’s identity. Obtaining confidence is a process individuals undergo, once achieved an individual can decide to believe in themselves. The stories Initiation and Borders support the belief that self-confident individuals are independent, optimistic, accepting, and self-aware of their abilities.

This can be seen with the quote form Walls in the book, “True or not, I was convinced that if all these people found out about Mom and Dad and who I really was, it would be impossible for me to keep my job. So I avoided discussing my parents. When that was impossible, I lied,” (Walls 270). In this quote, the author appeared to feel shameful towards her past. She also seems to be ashamed of her parents, and even confessed to lying about them in order to appear to others that she was “normal” and not as poor as she was when younger. The author’s ideas on society and class has influenced my perspective on the issue by making me realize that one should never be ashamed or embarrassed by their past and what they have gone through. It also help me come to the conclusion that one’s individual worth is not dependent on how much money they make, how nice their house is, or how expensive their clothes are. Towards the end of the book, the authors became embarrassed about of these arbitrary things, even though she should have been proud because she wanted to get out of that environment, and did it so successfully. She should also be proud because it made her stronger as an individual because she had to overcome many hardships at a young age. This topic has made me criticize society and how

Losing weight can be extremely difficult but inspirational stories like this one from Chaunda Walls can inspire everyone to get healthy. Chaunda grew up active in several sports and participated in beauty pageants, but after getting married and having children, she began to slowly gain weight. Chaunda lives in the South, a region where foods like fried chicken, which comes in at 320 calories a serving, are regularly served. Before she realized it, she weighed over 230 pounds.

In the article After the Wall, explains how the fall of the Berlin Wall paved the way for the success of the European Union. The countries in the EU, came up with a law that let members establish a passport-free zone. This agreement is called The Schengen Agreement, which is considered the foundation of freedom in Europe, and received the Nobel Peace Prize for promoting peace. This union is in jeopardy according to French Prime Minister, Manuel Valls. He argues that not only is the Schengen agreement in jeopardy, but the very idea of Europe will be questioned. He believes this will happen if they don’t get control of their borders. He claims the borders need to be protected, and this claim is heightened by the recent attack in Paris. Others

Good morning everyone. My name is Marvelous Aluko. The quote I carefully chose to begin this book talk is “Everyone is obsessed with standing out, but just want a chance to fit in” – Elizabeth Geroge. I chose this quote because the main character in my book struggled with fitting in. The quote is also very relatable to today’s society. Everyone talks about being different while trying to fit into the crowd. Being different is all about doing things that push you far outside your comfort zone. This has a lot to do with the book I chose titled The Edge of Nowhere written by Elizabeth George.

There is a need today for believers who are willing to stand up and defend Christ without wavering. There are so many beliefs, religions, and worldviews contending for people’s allegiance. It takes knowing Christ, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and God’s word to defend the gospel. Christians must be ready to proclaim the message with persistency no matter if the times are favorable or unfavorable. Believers must ready to correct, rebuke, and encourage with great patience in teaching (2 Tim. 4:2). As Christians, you cannot look at others and their ulterior motives; you must be willing to share Christ according to his word.

Chapter One reminds us that the path to wholeness in Christ in a process that never ends. In today’s society, we have become accustom to seeing the results of our labor or investments quickly. During our journey to wholeness, we must remain persistent even if we cannot see the fruits of our labor. So often we put God on a time restraints. We expect to have our prayers answered when we believe they should be and become reluctant or loss faith when they don’t. We should remember that the journey to becoming Christ-like is an ongoing journey and remember to keep our eye on the prize which is being conformed into the perfect image of Christ for