Friday, January 12, 2007

- Story by Abigail Slack, Grade 6

 

House after house, building after building flew by and a soft drizzle lingered in the air. How could my parents do this to me, Jennifer Lantaly, the cheerleader, an A+ student? Make me move away from everything I loved, everything I had ever cared

about!

 

"All because of his stupid job," I huffed.

 

"Honey," Mom said, "this is it."

 

I glanced out the window and a beautiful redbrick house stared back at me. I had to admit it was spectacular. Every inch of the yard was green. Grass spread out all along the yard, the bushes were slightly overgrown, and the large pine trees were dense. There it was, my new home, right there, nestled in the trees, just sitting there, waiting to be opened.

 

Dad pulled into the driveway and the large, rumbling moving truck screeched to a stop on the street. I climbed out of my father's silver Volvo, slamming the door and making my parents jump. Even though I was disappointed because of the move, I was overwhelmed with curiosity. I had the strangest feeling that a secret was hidden somewhere in there, just waiting to be discovered. I hurried up the front steps and slowly, I turned the handle and the door creaked open.

 

I gasped. I had never seen anything so beautiful. An old brown staircase sneaked up a wall and the kitchen was bright with many windows. There were counters and old brown cupboards. I walked into the kitchen and reached out my hand and touched the glassy, brown counter. It felt cold, like the window of a car on a winter day. I took in

every detail. Inside a nook, surrounded by windows, I gathered, was the place to put a table. It was cute and homey. I advanced up the creaky stairs, running my hand along the smooth railing. I walked down the hallway and peered into a bedroom. I could tell that this was my room. No master bathroom or giant closet. There were just a few windows on a soft yellow wall.

 

"My bed will go perfect with these walls," I thought. Just then, I noticed something shimmering on the white carpet. I knelt down and saw a locket with a note. The sun danced upon the golden locket. I reached down and picked up the note. A strange riddle was written on it. It said, O lucky one who finds this locket, a place beyond your dreams awaits you, a magical world and just one simple word, wear the locket and simply say 'open', to discover the amazing world of Anazora.

 

"What is this?" I asked myself. Was this some sort of trick? Could I really wear this locket, say "open", and discover a new land?

     

Even though I should have told someone, I was dying with excitement. I slipped on the locket and fastened the clasp. Shivering with anticipation, I said in a loud, clear voice, "open." My brown golden locks swished behind me and the room around me became unclear. Just like that, the room disappeared and a burst of light surrounded me.


Click "read more" to, um, Read More!


# (6)#

StudentWriter    Posted by
StudentWriter
on 1/12/2007
2:23 PM
 Thursday, January 11, 2007

Why do you write? 

This is a question I always ask myself at the beginning of a new year -- and, each year, my answer is more or less the same: because I want to connect with people and make a difference in the world through my written words.

The world, however, is an awfully big place, and sometimes it can be daunting to think of your words out there, attempting to touch the people who read them. I'd like to share a story that always helps me find inspiration and motivation when I get overwhelmed:

A terrific storm pounded the coast all night long. The following day, a man walked alone along the beach that was covered with hundreds upon hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of starfish that had washed up on the sand by the high waves and were now stranded.

Far ahead of him on the beach, the man saw another beachcomber who was constantly bending down, straightening up, throwing something -- stones? -- into the ocean, and then bending down again.  As the first man walked closer, he saw that what the other man was throwing into the ocean was not rocks or sticks, but rather starfish, one by one by one.

"What in the world are you doing?" the first man asked when he reached the second man.

"I'm throwing these starfish back into the ocean because if they don't get back in the water soon they will die," he answered.

 "But there are hundreds -- thousands -- of starfish on this stretch of beach alone," the first man protested. "What possible difference can you make?"

"Well, to this starfish," the second man said, holding one of them in his hand as he prepared to toss it into the waves, "I can make a big difference."

With each word you write, you too can make a big difference.  Here's to a new year full of imagination and inspiration.


# (3)#
Dallas    Posted by
Dallas
on 1/11/2007
12:00 PM
 Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Hello Writers!

Just a quick note here to tell you about what's going on with our 3 major writing contests this year.

1) TAKE ME AWAY - The winners of the Take Me Away contest have been chosen and notified. Thank you all for participating. We had over 1,700 entries this year! Wow! The winning poems and stories will be published in the April/May issue of Writing magazine.

2) Student Writing Showcase - The deadline for ALL student writing showcase entries is tomorrow, Thursday, January 11, 2007. Make sure to get your entries in before midnight tomorrow night! There are no rules or restrictions in this contest. (How refreshing!) Simply email your poems/stories/essays to word@weeklyreader.com. Make sure to write "Student Writing Showcase" in the subject line. The winners will be published in a special bonus super duper wowee zowee electronic magazine on May 11, 2007. This contest is brought to you by the editors of READ and WRITING Magazines.

3) Ann Arlys Bowler Poetry Contest - The deadline for this contest is Wednesday, January 31. You still have a few weeks to compose a brilliant poem of lyrical bliss. Think beauty. Think art. Now stop thinking and write! Click here for more information and to print out the submission form.

That's all she wrote, my friends! Make sure to get in while the gettin's good! Can't wait to read your work!

Peace.


# #
Bryon    Posted by
Bryon
on 1/10/2007
8:55 AM
 Tuesday, January 09, 2007

It's a new year and it's time to read some new books. "But which books?" you may be asking. Fear not. The answer is here in this very blog entry! Here at Weekly Reader we have piles of interesting new books! While no single human being could be expected to read them all, I’ve made a spirited attempt over the last couple weeks. Here I present to you three books I recommend to fill your winter downtime.
First, there is a book about a misanthropic Australian high school student caught up in a deadly plot.
Second, preview a book about the dark ironies of a Boston slave living through the Revolutionary War.
Third, check out a book about mice saving the world from eternal darkness. This could shape out to be a very interesting year …


# #

Jeffrey    Posted by
Jeffrey
on 1/9/2007
9:39 AM


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