Surprise! Surprise! Why I chose the book

Yet again, I'm starting a new book. I've been really disappointed about my last book and how I quit, so this time, I tried to really put some thought into what to read. I thought carefully about all the candidates, and read the first few pages of each book. Hopefully, this new book that I've chosen will live up to my expectations. The book I chose, is "Never Give Up", by Patricia Mccormick.

As always, the reason why I first pulled the book off of the shelf was because of the name. When I initially saw the title, I didn't think that I would read the book, as it seemed like it was just another generic cheesy story of someone who keeps going after facing setbacks and achieves their goals. I couldn't have been further from the truth. This book is based off of the true story of Arn ChornPond, who is a Cambodian minor who finds himself in a work camp during the revolution. The story takes place during the Cambodian Revolution, and shows in the eyes of a child, the horrors that took place. For once, I paid no attention at all to the cover picture. I went straight to the back, and immersed myself into the story of young Arn.

I thought that I had found a wonderful book for me to read, but as I always do, I looked up the author before I started reading the book. Turns out that Mccormick is an award winning author, with numerous other works.

I read the first few pages, and I'm firmly convinced that I won't be quitting this book anytime soon. The story is written in short, broken english, and you can actually hear the voice of Arn. Let me show you an example. "No warning, the soldier, he hit the kid in the head with rifle. And the kid, he sag to the ground, like his leg go dead, and then fall in curb. I run away very scared, very fast". You can't get more realistic than that.

All in all, I think that I found a good book. It's realistic, emotional, and nerve wracking. I'll be sure to keep you guys posted as I read on.