Have you ever felt so depressed and
lonely that you wish you could just disappear? I know I have, but there is one
thing that always makes me feel better. My friends. This connects to “An
Abundance of Katherines,” by John Green, a story about a seventeen-year old
named Colin and his best friend, Hassan. The main character Colin has a long
history of dating girls named Katherine, but when all is well with Katherine #
19, she breaks up with him. Hassan decides to take Colin on a road trip to get
over his loneliness, but little do they know this trip might just change their
lives! I think the main theme of the book is that having friends, even if its
just one or two, can help you get through hard times and find who you really
are.
In the beginning of the book, Colin is
still grieving when Hassan suggests the road trip. He tells Colin and his
parents that they’ll be gone, “Just until he gets better.” Obviously Hassan cares a lot about Colin and how much he wants him to get
better. This really gives the reader an idea of what type of friend Hassan
really is. At the beginning of their trip, Hassan tells Colin, “We’re on a road
trip. It’s about adventure!” I think the author adds this in to reflect on how
during the road trip, they may encounter places or people they never though
they would meet.
And they do. They meet Lindsey Lee Wells, a girl
living in Gutshot, a small remote town that the two boys somehow find
themselves in. Lindsey quickly becomes Colin’s “second real friend.” Although
Colin still thinks about Katherine 19 a lot, Lindsey does a pretty good job of
distracting him. As the story unfolds, Colin realizes that he’s in love with
Lindsey. He eventually tells her, “I like you, and I never really like anyone.” This is significant because it shows that his
thoughts and feelings are changing because of her. She is the one who finally
broke the Katherine chain and stole Colin’s heart. I think that meeting Lindsey
is significant to the theme of the story because Lindsey helped Colin get over
Katherine 19 and showed him that it doesn’t matter what a girl's name is, it only matters if he really loves her.
Overall, the main theme of this book is that
having friends who are there for you, can really help you get through hardships
in life. In the story, Colin’s friends Lindsey and Hassan change him and show
him that change isn’t always a bad thing. They help him to be truly confident.
This connects to my own life because my friends are always there to make me
laugh and feel better when I’m down, and they constantly demonstrate to me the
good that comes out of change and doing something different! All in all, this book
shows that true friends are always there to help and guide you when you need
them.
Pictures of Hollis Woods, by Patricia Reilly Giff, is a story about a girl named Hollis Woods and her experiences of finding out where she belongs. The story starts off with her in the car driving to her new family after running away from the last family who adopted her because felt like she was ruining their family and she didn't think she deserved a family. She moves in with an old lady named Josie and Hollis loves her right away. Because Josie is forgetful, the adoption center tries to take Hollis away from Josie. Hollis decides to run away again, but this time she takes Josie with her.
Throughout the whole story, Hollis wants a real family. At the beginning of the book, when she is an orphan, Hollis is asked to bring in a picture with a W-word in it for school. Instead of bringing in a picture of wood, or Snow White like all of the other kids, Hollis brings in a picture of a family. Her teacher tries to explain to her that family starts with F, Father starts with F, mother starts with M, and brother starts with S so there is no W but Hollis see's it as "W for wish, or W for want, or W for 'Wouldn't it be loverly'".This shows that all she wants is a family. At one point in the story, Hollis says "But I'm not..." and Josie says to her, "Not anxious to be loved? You know thats not so." Obviously Hollis is having internal struggles. But by the end of the book she realizes that she is really anxious to be loved.
All in all, at the end of the book Hollis learns that a family is not just a mom, a dad, and a son, it's having people who love you, no matter how many.
