KHSSummerReading

I had read this book (along with Fast Food Nation) when it was first decided to add it to the reading list. I think of the book often when I am driving around town. If I pass someone walking with a couple of bags of groceries making the trek from Hannaford or Shaws back into North Conway I wonder if they are struggling with making ends meet in this town where there are a lot of service jobs (retail outlets, restaurants, hotel housekeeping, etc.).

I think about the treatment the author and the others she worked with in the restaurant in Florida received. It just seemed like there was little respect for the workers as people. I was always taught that every person deserves a basic respect. Some will earn more respect from you but anyone deserves to be treated with kindness and respect. I remember in college I was working the night shift as a police dispatcher/operator for the university. The night custodial/maintenance crew buzzed the office to be let into the building. I opened the door and just naturally said “Good evening gentlemen”. One of the men stopped and looked at me saying “Thank you – no one has ever called me a gentleman before”. That one event has stuck with me and reminded me that I need to always be respectful.

Where are you in the book and what are your initial thoughts?

Ms. Hill

The first part of this book (like many others) introduces the characters in the story.  It doesn’t seem accurate to describe them as characters since they were real people.   I found it challenging to keep track of everyone who was introduced and where they lived.  The maps in the beginning were interesting but not as helpful without getting more into the reading.

I found the diagram showing the path of the storm helpful but I have always been fascinated with storm tracks especially since the internet has made it much easier to follow storms.  It is probably good to be reading this during hurricane season.  There are currently three active named storms – two in the Atlantic and one in the Pacific.  One of the Atlantic storms, Dolly, is traveling over the Yucatan Peninsula and is moving on to make a second landfall on the Mexico-Texas border.  Galveston is due to get some heavy rain but isn’t due for a direct hit.

It was amazing to me that Mr. Cline saw the signs of a large storm and passed that information on to his superiors but then discounted the evidence he had.  It helped to remind me that we need to really reach beyond our perspectives to be open to other perceptions and information.  I continue to be astounded at the loss of life – over eight thousand people.  That is about equivalent to the year round population of the valley here.  Then to consider that 30+ times that number were lost in the December 2006 tsunami in South East Asia is astounding.

Every region has experienced its share of battles with Mother Nature and Galveston was no exception prior to this storm.  It helped to have some history of other storms in the region and the U. S. to provide some prospective.  A few years ago my brother was working in New Orleans on a ship building project.  He was evacuated out to Dallas for Katrina and then evacuated back out of Dallas for another storm that season (I think it was Rita).  To top it off he was sent to Spain to help finish the ship and then Spain was hit with a hurricane remnant that was still a tropical storm.  Europe rarely sees a hurricane or tropical storm survive the trans-Atlantic journey.

Where are you in the book and what are your initial thoughts?

Ms. Hill

Well, I finished my first book of the summer – Curse of the Narrows.  As I move onto Chariots for Apollo, it is a similar type of read but very different feel.  I have been interested in the space program for a long time so I have read some books on it – Lost Moon (renamed Apollo 13), a book by Andrew Chaikin (sp?) that inspired the HBO series ‘From the Earth to the Moon’.  I also have books written by prominent men from the various programs – ‘Deke’ about Deke Slayton and another from Chris Kraft – but I haven’t read them yet.

I finished the section (in CfA) that described the establishment of the Grumman White Sands facility for testing.  The information on hypergolics and rocket fuel in general was fascinating.  I find myself more interested in the chemistry aspect.  It probably ties in with the ‘Curse of the Narrows’ which about the 1917 pyric acid explosion in Halifax Nova Scotia.  The pressure in the rocket fuel tanks is astounding.

I also found the vision of Werner Von Braun and his group amazing.  They were true visionaries.  They imagined going to places that were beyond the comprehension of many people.  Their time table certainly wasn’t met but the critics had a point in thinking about the money spent to get to the moon and beyond when there were so many social issues that needed to be addressed.

Where are you in the read and what are your thoughts so far?

Ms Hill

Welcome KHS students of all grades to the summer reading blog for three books!!!!! The book you signed up to read is either Isaac’s Storm, Chariots for Apollo or Nickel and Dimed. There is quite the variation between the three books.

Isaac’s Storm is about the worst natural disaster in the history of the US – a hurricane that hit the Galveston Texas in 1900. More than 6000 people were killed. This small compared to the high 5 and 6 digit death tolls for the earthquake in China or the tsunami of 2006 but is still the worst in US history. It is told through the perspective of the lead weather observer for Galveston, Isaac Cline. It was considered by some as a turning point for the Weather Bureau which became the National Weather Service.

Chariots for Apollo trace the history of the Apollo program. It is one of many books written on the subject. The public interest in the Apollo program was reignited by the book Lost Moon written by James Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger. There have been a host of other books that followed. One of these was written by Deke Slayton, a main figure in the program because he was meant to be an astronaut but was grounded because of heart problem. He continued to work with the program. But that is another book. I haven’t read this one yet so I will be working through it for the first time also. I have had it for years but never got around to reading it. I figured this new summer reading approach was a good push for me to pick up a book I have had around for awhile but hadn’t read yet.

Nickel and Dimed is about trying to live in this country on a minimum wage salary. I found it to be, at times, a heart-wrenching story about survival and the human spirit. The author lived in different parts of the country trying different jobs with very specific rules. These rules were to help her understand the way of life for many Americans struggling to make financial ends meet in this country. The author could have easily done research in valley for the book (she did do work in the Portland Maine area for the book).

You may be here for one book but maybe you will check out the discussion on the others and get interested in reading them. Or you may be here to just get the reading assignment done and not have to do the writing in school in the fall. Either way – thanks for joining us and again – Welcome!!!!