The Scarlet Letter (Liesl) Beginning to read it

As I'm beginning to read The Scarlet Letter, I realize this may be sort of hard to read because of all the words that I don't know. In the first two chapters, Hawthorne (the author/narrator) talks about the prison door. Thats all he talks about in the first chapter. But in the second chapter Hester Prynne(the main character) comes out from the door and is holding a baby. She is wearing an very detailed A on the right side of her chest.

End of Pigman (Liesl)

Lorraine and John were escorted home by a cop. When the cop told Lorraine's mom, she was very mad. When the cop left, her mom started crying and stopped after Lorraine explained what happened (but of course leaving out parts she wasn't going to want to hear). John and Lorraine didn't visit the Pigman for a while after that, but they wanted to make things better. They went to his house and apologized, and asked him if he wanted to go to the zoo. He agreed but ended up coming late, even though he was always on time. They bought him some peanuts and it was a long train ride to the monkey house because there were so little words said. In my personal opinion, the tone on the book now is a lot sadder, and you can tell the Pigman was hurt.

When they arrived at the monkey house, all of the monkeys were inside because of how cold it was. They went inside and looked for Bobo, but they couldn't find him. They asked the worker and he said that Bobo was dead. Right there and then, Mr. Pignati dropped dead. He was so shocked and upset that he fell dead.

The Pigman pages 110-149 (end)

This part of the book starts out as John and Lorraine hanging out at The Pigmans house, like they usually do. Other that The Pigman still being at the hospital things are different. Ever since John and Lorraine kissed, she has noticed things have been a little awkward. John is being slightly more sassy to Lorraine than he usually would and Lorraine's being the same way back. To break the tension between them, John suggests they through a party with a "few" friends. That night over 40 people, plus a band arrived at The Pigman's house. The party was booming until Norton arrived, and all he was looking for was trouble. He wasn't originally invited but they let him in anyway. John kept his eye on Norton most of the time but the moment he looked away Norton was gone. John went looking for him and discovered Norton was just trying to steal things from The Pigman. John and him got into a fist fight upstairs until Norton got away and ran downstairs. John couldn't find him at first but was horiffied to find him in the pig room. Norton was smashing The Pigman's prized possesions. John then started the fight up again but this time brought it to the door. When they got there the music stopped, and the people were silent. The Pigman was home, not smiling or looking happy in anyway. John, seeing The Pigman like this passed out, leaving the trouble to Lorraine. She and John were taken home by the police and they were in a heap of trouble. The next couple days they went to school as they usually should. They couldn't stop thinking about The Pigman so they called him up and arranged a trip to the zoo to visit Bobo. The next day they met The Pigman and made their way to the primate house. When they got there The Pigman seemed a little happier. When they arrived at Bobo's usual cage, he was not there. They asked a worker about it and he said Bobo had died. The Pigman then broke down crying. Suddenly he collapsed on the floor, dead. After calling the ambulance and everything was taken care of, John realized that we are like baboons, running around only caring about the stupid things that don't really matter. He also learned to appriciate life and do all you can, to live.

All together I really enjoyed thiss book. I feel like I really got to know the characters and I loved seeing them grow closer together as friends, and kind of like a family. I think this book is a good example of how in life you really do rely on other people to live. Once they're gone a part of you has also disappeared. I liked this book and would recommend it.

The Pigman pages 68-110 (Jessica)

After finding the funeral bill John and Lorraine keep The Pigman's secret to themselves and even hiding it from The Pigman himself. After that The Pigman meets them at the ferryhouse, and takes them two the zoo to visit Bobo. When Bobo doesn't accept the food The Pigman tries to give him he becomes very upset and admits Bobo getting old. Next The Pigman takes the two to a department store to buy some special foods that he and his wife used to love to prepare with each other. He let the kids pick out anything they like, they had picked many fine delicacies, like chocolate ants and frog legs when they stumble upon rollerskates, they each picked out a pair and then were on their way to the pet section of the store. When The Pigman saw the monkeys he was sad becasue they reminded him of Bobo. To cheer him up they all put their rollerskates on and skated all around the store.

The next day Norton (mentioned in previous post) invited John to have a beer in the cemetery. John knew that all Norton was something other than just John's company. Norton began to ask about The Pigman, his house and things he could steal from him. John knew this would turn into trouble so he lied and said that there was really nothing worth stealing in The Pigman's house. That's when Norton threatened to "pay a visit" to The Pigman's and John threatened Norton in various ways.

After that John and Lorraine started visiting The Pigman daily. One day while at his house he becomes very upset, once again, because he believes Bobo's getting very old. Although they realize this makes him very upset they think it is the right time to admit that they are not only sales people but actually highschool sophmores. The Pigman, then probably feeling like he should return the favor of telling the truth, admits that his wife is dead and is not just visiting California. As The Pigman is crying John goes to the closet and digs out the rollerskates The Pigman had bought for them. Seeing this The Pigman cheers up and joins John, as well as Lorraine. They are all having a wonderful time until something horrible happens, John is running up the stairs and The Pigman is following close behind. This is too much for The Pigman and he has a heart attack. John calls 911 and The Pigman is taken to the hospital.

The next day Lorraine and John visit The Pigman and find that he is alright. The Pigman gives them the key to his house so they can "watch t.v. or, have some more chocolate ants." They go back to his house and prepare dinner for themselves. While Lorraine is cooking John runs up to The Pigman's room and dresses in a suit, slicks his hair back and draws on a mustache. When he shows Lorraine she runs upstairs and dresses up too. She finds a dress, put her hair up all fancy, and put on makeup. When she comes down John is in awe with her appearance. He acts as if he is a famous actor and she is in love with him. He tells her he needs just on kiss (acting) and catches her as they were running around before. They kiss for the first time. They then awkwardly return downstairs and eat in silence.

Jessica

The pigman: pages 68-128 Liesl

John and Lorraine found a funeral bill for Conchetta and they realize she's dead.  The, Mr. Pignati got really upset because Bobo, his beloved Chimpanzee, wouldn't eat what he fed him. Mr. Pignanti also realized that Bobo was getting old, and that he might die soon. The subject of Bobo made Mr. Pignati start talking about his wife, and the great food they used to have. When Mr. Pignati found his charge card (the card he uses so he doesn't have to pay up front for what he buys), he decided to take Lorraine and John to a department store. Mr. Pignati was being very generous and told John and Lorraine to buy what ever they wanted. Lorraine felt kind of bad, but John was taking whatever he wanted. Then the stumbled upon some rollerskateds, and Mr. Pignati really wanted to buy them. Lorraine was telling him not to waste his money, but then John told her that he was just charging it. They all bought the rollerskates, and wore them out of the store. When they arrived back at Mr. Pignati's house, they started to talk about Conchetta and Mr. Pignati began to cry. They comforted him by eating the chocolate ants they had bought(charged) at the department store. Then, they all started laughing and it became a big game. They were all chasing each other, and then they got the stored rollerskates out of the closet and began running around with those on. Then John ran up the stairs yelling to Mr. Pignati, "Bet you can't get me". Halfway up the stairs, Mr. Pignati collapsed and had a heart attack. He was taken to the hospital and John and Lorraine visited him, saying they were his children. This enlighted Mr. Pignati because he felt like he wasn't as alone. The doctors told Lorraine and John that Mr. Pignati would proabably be coming home saturday, and then Mr. Pignati told Lorraine and John that they could have the house to themselves. After being reassured that Mr. Pignati was okay, and was going to live, John and Lorraine left.

When they got back to the house, Lorraine decided to make spaghetti, which John hates. As she was making it, John dressed up as an actor by putting on a suit, slicking his hair back, and drawing on a mustache. When Lorraine saw that, she told John to cook the spaghetti sauce instead of her, and then she went upstairs. She came down looking like a "movie star" with a dress on, and a feather in her hair. John followed her and was pretending they were deeply in love, and then he leaned in and kissed her. This was the first time they had ever kissed.

Ever since the kiss, John started acting weird around Lorriane. Lorraine thought it was all because of the kiss, and that he just started thinking about their relationship.

John decided that he wanted to have a "small get together" and Mr. Pignati's house. He invited some people, but most of those people ended up inviting more people, so it wasn't really small anymore. John made sure there was beer and wine for every one. He mostly invited his close friends, but not Norton, after the incident at the cemetery. At the cemetary, Norton had asked John if there was anything good to steal at Mr. Pignati's house. This really aggravated John, since Mr. Pignati's such a nice man.

But Norton showed up anyway. He was mad at John, for not inviting him, and John thought he was going to be destructive, but he was just standing there. After Norton said something that had set John off, they started fighting. But then John fell and walked away. The Norton did too. About 10 minutes later, John was wondering where he had gone, and he was trying to find him. When he did, he say that Norton had destroyed some of Mr. Pignati's pigs, and is continuing to destroy them. Then John gets very mad. He starts yelling and punching Norton, and then they notice a taxi outside. Lorraine an dJohn's first thought was that it was Mr. Pignati, but this was on Friday, and they thought he was coming home Staurday. But, sure enough it was, and he walked in, without a smile.

The Pigman; pages 1-68 (Jessica)

First off, I am enjoying this book more than expected. The book begins with John writing the first chapter, Lorraine the second and it goes back and forth. I thought this was kind of odd and it did not make me want to read the book when I first started. This book seems to be a lot about character development in the beginning. Lorraine seems like the smart girl, that is not trusted or respected by her mother. John, however seems like the bad boy who doesnt care about rules and doesn't mind disrespecting his parents (especially his father) ever once in a while. Later in the story, when Lorraine describes when she and John met he seems a lot more than a badboy. The book continues with John, Lorraine and two of their friends; Dennis and Norton having a prank call marathon. When it's Lorraine's turn she happens to dial a man named Angelo Piginati. She pretends like she's a charity and gets him to donate ten dollars. To do this she has to talk to him for a very long time. He seems very lonely the way he talks about his wife who is away in california. Even though she feels bad, she and John go to his house to pick up the check anyway. When they get there they notice how messy the house seems, even from the outside. When they get inside they see that its mainly full of old junk that no one really needs. They stay with the talkitive Mr. Piginati longer than expected. He welcomes them to look around and make themselves at home. While they are exploring they find Mr. Piginati's collection of pigs. They range from marble to glass, big to small, and fat to thin. He explains that he started giving his wife these pigs so she could be reminded of him. The reason the book is called The Pigman is because of these very pigs. When they are about to leave he asks them to go to the zoo sometime but they refuse. That night as Lorraine is hassled by her mother once again so she decides she wants to lose some stress and skip school. She tells John and they arrange a trip to the zoo with the Pigman. That morning they met him at the zoo at ten o'clock. She realizes she doesn't really want to be there and she believes she is experiencing somethings that prove it, or signs. At the zoo they meet The Pigman's bestfriend, Bobo, the monkey. This is when they realize how lonely he really is. After the zoo they begin to visit The Pigman more often. One day when they were exploring his house even further John discovers a funeral bill with The Pigman's wife's name written on it. That's when they realize his wife is not visiting California but is really dead.
-Jessica

Pages 30-68 Liesl

During these pages of the book I learned more about Mr Pignati, who Lorraine and John call the Pigman. The call him these because he has a room full of fake pigs, glass, clay, and marble. The pigman seems very caring and nice, but he talks about his wife a lot, and how she's been in California for a little over a month. Lorraine and John both think that she left her, and I do too. Since Lorraine and John think this, it makes them feel bad for The Pigman, especially Lorraine. She didn't want to take the 10 dollars from him that came from a prank call from Lorraine saying she was part of the J and L fund, and they were collecting donations. When they went to collect the money, The Pigman talked about how he loves the zoo and he walks there every day. Lorraine and John decide to go to the zoo with him, and while they're there, the find out how lonely The Pigman really is. Mr. Pignati spent most of his time throwing peanuts at a baboon he named BoBo. Also while they were there, Lorraine wanted to leave the whole time, and she used omens to back her up. The first one was when she told the peanut lady that she wanted four bags of peanuts, and then the lady asked her how many bags she wanted. Lorraine knew that she hated kids from this, and it made her feel uncomfortable. Then she was corned by a peacock and then she was stared down by a kid looking through glass, and this made her very uncomfortable. It made her feel like she was being watched, just like the animals.

The Pigman pages 1-30 (Liesl)

I think that John and Lorraine are two completely different people, but somehow they're best friends. John is a trouble maker and aspires to be an actor, but Lorraine is more quiet and keeps to her self, and she aspires to be a fiction writer. But I feel like they both balance each other out. Lorraine helps John quit his bad habits (or at least try's to) and John helps Lorraine break out of her shell. I feel like the book focuses a lot on eyes to portray personalities. Lorraine and John are writing about their situations with the Pigman, and it's in their point of view. The Pigman is dead, and they are describing him and how they ended up knowing him. Every chapter they switch off who is narrating.