Phoebe Willett

Phoebe Willett

The 21 Balloons

William Pene du Bois

Realistic Fiction

Holiday

Page. 90

1. Right now in my book, Professor William Waterman Sherman has landed on the island of Krakatoa. Mr. F is showing him around. They first went to the diamond mines where Professor Sherman saw the amazing abundance of diamonds on the island. Professor Sherman is getting used to the earthquakes on the island because of the volcano. He stayed at Mr. F's house for the last night and is now at breakfast with everyone from the island. Mr. F is informing the professor about everything that happens on the island of Krakatoa since Professor Sherman will never be able to leave now that he is there. No one ever leaves because they can't without everyone helping on the boat and because they would tell the world about the diamonds on Krakatoa, ruining the value of them.

2. I love this book! I love the concept of this book; that there could be an island out there that is so amazing. I also like hearing about all of the things they do with the diamonds and how they live their everyday lives. Also, the inventions that they have on the island are so creative and unimaginable. I love reading it because it makes me want to jump right into the book and live in paradise with them.

3. A theme that I've noticed in this book so far is equality. The members of Krakatoa have created a system in which everyone does an equal amount of work. Each family is named after a letter of the alphabet and cooks one day every 20 days on a cycle. They cook meals for that day according to the nationality that the family represents. This system shares the work load so that everyone is equal. Everyone also owns an equal amount of shares in the diamond mines so that no one is richer than anyone else. Everyone works the same amount of time and everyone has the same amount of money. This creates an environment where everyone respects each other because there is no need for resentment or jealousy.

4. My favorite character so far is Mr. F. He has been very kind to Professor Sherman and has hosted him in his house and has given him clothes. He has shown the professor around the island and helped him get acquainted with the islanders and the island itself. He could have just killed Professor Sherman when he saw him first so that they didn't have to worry about Krakatoa being found out or someone else getting a share of the diamonds but he didn't.

5. My least favorite character right now is Captain Simon. When Professor Sherman was found stranded in the ocean, all Captain Simon could focus on was getting the story out of the professor even though he said that he wanted to share his great adventure with his explorer club first. Captain Simon was not respecting Professor Sherman's request and even talked to a reporter about Sherman, causing the country to explode with excitement about what the amazing story could be.

6. I predict that Professor Sherman will be welcomed warmly by all of the islanders and fit in well. He has always dreamed about being by himself up in the air, and this island is as far away from normal society as you can be and still be around people. I think that they will build him a house and he will make plenty of friends. Then, Professor Sherman will stay there for a few months and then want to leave.