Beauty's Readin Log

This blog is my summer reading journal for my pre-AP English class. They require a chapter by chapter journal. This year's book is Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. My teachers provided a list of reader response lead-ins that we must use to start the topic of that journal entry for that chapter. I hope that you enjoy my logs and maybe you will read Black Beauty too! Check out Hoppin Readin Review for other reviews

Sunday, October 01, 2006

whats up?

Sunday, August 14, 2005

My Last Home (Ch49 / Q18)

One thing I will never forget about this story is how both Joe Green and Beauty were so overjoyed when they finally found each other, because if Beauty hadn't come to that happy place, who knows were he might have ended up? So Beauty's story comes to an end. Mr. Thoroughgood and Willie decided to try their luck with Miss Blomefield. She was not a fashion lady so she took him even with his blemished knees. And who might his groom be, but Joe Green. When Joe tells Miss Blomefield, she is very glad as well and writes to Mrs. Gordon. They have promised to never sell him so his troubles are over and he can settle down in his last home. May he live happily ever after.

Farmer Thoroughgood (Ch48 / Q13)

If I could interview the author of Black Beauty, I would ask her the following questions:

1) Why did you get Beauty to go back to cab work?
2) Why did you make Ginger die?

In this chapter Beauty returns to a place that actually cares about him. At the horse fair Beauty is bought by a gentleman farmer named Mr Thoroughgood and his grandson Willie. Beauty is let out into a meadow and is taken care of very well. That next spring he was a fit as a fiddle and they decided it was time to find him a nice home.

Hard Times (Ch47 / Q31)

The line, "Oh! he can do it all right sir; send up the boxes, porter; he could take more than that; and he helped to haul up a box so heavy that I could feel the springs go down." in this chapter speaks to me personally because every once and a while my dad makes me do something that's slightly beyond my abilities. Now Beauty works for the same cab dealer as poor Seedy Sam, Nicholas Skinner. He has a harsh voice and a hard heart, ant the person that drives Beauty is more or less the same. He even makes Beauty work at his absolute limit and a little beyond. Beauty's driver once made him carry so many boxes of luggage that Beauty almost died. The was the end of his time there. Thank goodness!

Jakes and the Lady (Ch46 / Q30)

The character Jakes revealed something now about himself when he said, "Yes, Yes, too heavy, but that's not my fault. The foreman came just as we were starting, and would have three hundred-weight more put on to save time trouble, and I must get on with it as well as I can." He revealed that he is not a horrible guy and was only following orders. Beauty now works at a corn dealers and bakery. Jerry sold him there because he would have fair work and good food. If it were not for one foreman, it would probably be true. He almost always made them take on more even if they were full. He also had them use check reins as well. One day with a heavy load as usual, a lady came up and told Jakes why Beauty was having so much trouble. So Jakes from then on either let the check-rein out a few holes, or on hills, gave him his head altogether. Luckily for Beauty a younger horse can to do that job and Beauty was sold.

Jerry's New Year (Ch45 / Q4)

The setting is important in this chapter because it represents the terrible time cab drivers had during the winter. In this chapter Beauty's happy time with Jerry comes to an end. Christmas, a very jolly time with parties and presents, but not everyone is so jolly. For cab drivers and their horses it is anything but jolly. They have to wait out in the freezing rain, sleet, or snow. Two men had hired Jerry to wait for them at a party and Jerry got there exactly on time, but they had to wait for two and a half hours with Jerry cough getting worse and worse. When he finally got home he was very ill. Jerry got better, but he couldn't go back to cab work and the horses were sold. Poor Beauty and Hotspur.

Saturday, August 13, 2005

Old Captain and his Successor (Ch44 / Q6)

This chapter made me think about when my Great Grandma Nana died because Captain was like family and he died. In this chapter captain moves on to a better place. That place is heaven. Yes, Captain is severely wounded by a drunk and Jerry puts him out of his misery. Jerry then gets a new horse named Hotspur. Hotspur is a five year old and full of spirit. Jerry likes him a lot.

A Friend in Need (Ch43 / Q29)

A quote that contains a special image or figure of speech in this chapter is, "In as much as ye have done it to one of the least of these, " because it is taken out of the Bible and is a special way of saying when you do wrong to someone you do wrong to God. In this chapter the election is in full swing. Beauty says that he will never want to attend one again. Even on a seemingly jolly day to the half drunken voters can be h e l l to others. Mostly because that day Beauty saw two people ran over. Jerry and Beauty had had a lot of work that day. Butt Jerry still, even with all the fares out there, was able to help people in need. They were sitting at a cabstand when a lady with a child came and asked him where the hospital was. But Jerry, because she couldn't pay, took her at no charge.

The Election (Ch42 / Q17)

In this chapter I agree with the author's point that with voting you should always vote with what your conscious tells you because if your vote was always what everyone else voted it would give one of the candidates would have an unfair advantage. In this chapter it is election day and the sparks fly between different parties. Dolly gets picked on just because she is what's called a "blue black guard". But, Harry defends his sister and gives them a thrashing. But even though Jerry is glad that he defended his sister he did not want them getting involved in the quarrels between parties. Because some of them were not even voting for what they believed in because most people were voting for something they only half understood.

The Butcher (Ch41 / Q28)

This character is the character in the Red Fern because both "Prince Charlie" and the boy in the Reed Fern both love their animals dearly. "Prince Charlie" with his pony and the Red Fern with his dogs. In this chapter Beauty tells us about people and their horses. Some horses have bad masters but, like Beauty, some have very good masters, but still others don't even want to be bad to their horses. The Butcher's horse Beauty used to notice, always seemed to go unreasonable speeds. Beauty did not find out until one day they were sitting next to the butcher's shop when the butcher's cart came sprinting up and the boy jumped out to get the meat when the butcher came out and scolded him. Then the boy said that it wasn't his fault because the customers never had nay consideration. The Butcher definitely agreed.

Poor Ginger (Ch 40 / Q28 )

A quote that expresses the theme of how cruel some men are is "Oh! If men were more merciful they would shoot us before we came to such misery, "because some horses are worked and worked till they drop down at their work. In this chapter Beauty meets an old friend, Ginger. But she isn't the Ginger he once knew. Now she is weak, skinny, and has trouble breathing from bad treatment. She had a very sad story to tell. After Beauty had left the Lord W's home at Earlshall, Ginger was given 12 months to recuperate. Than she had been sold. She got on well at first but then the strain returned and she was sold again and eventually again and again. Finally she was sold to a man that rents out cabs. But when they found out her problem they said that she should just be used up. This left Beauty very sad. But not long after that he thought he saw Ginger dead on a cart. At least that put her out of her suffering. I hope Beauty never gets that way.

Friday, August 12, 2005

Seedy Sam (Ch39 / Q17)

In this chapter, I agree with the author's point that it is not fare for rented cab drivers have to pay so much to use a large cab owner's cabs while the fares are set so low because if you pay 18 shillings to rent a cab and two horses you would have to work 9 shillings out of both horses before you can touch any of it or provide for your family. In this chapter we meet Seedy Sam. Sam for a man named Skinner who owns a cab dealership. One day Sam came in with his horse looking tired and beaten up. The Governor started to tell him off. Then Sam starts telling them that the only reason that he does it is that Skinner charges 18 shillings for use of the cab and he has to pay that off before he can get any for himself. Worse is that he has 6 kids to fend for. After 4 months of this madness Sam finally broke under the strain and became ill and eventually died. I hope no one else meets his fate.

Dolly and a Real Gentleman (Ch38 / Q27)

An important quote from this chapter is, "There, Dolly, that's a gentleman; that's a real gentleman, Dolly; he has time and thought for the comfort of a poor cab man and a little girl", I think that it is saying that every one should be like the real gentleman. in this chapter Dolly meets a real gentleman. One day when Dolly had just brought Jerry his meal and was sitting down to eat when a man came up to hirer Jerry's cab. Jerry started to put down his bowl when the man said that even though he didn't have much spare time he would wait until he was finished. And that was how Dolly met a real gentleman.

Saturday, August 06, 2005

The Golden Rule (Ch37 / Q27)

An important quote from this chapter is: "but you know we should do to other people as we should like they should do to us; and I know very well what I should like if my mother was dying, and Jerry, dear, I am sure it won't break the Sabbath, for if pulling a poor beast or donkey out of a pit would not spoil it, I am quite sure taking poor Dinah would not do it". Because it means that you should always, Sabbath or no Sabbath, help people in need. In this chapter everything goes back to normal. Mrs. Barry has once again started calling on Jerry to take her places again, but never on Sunday. But once they did work on Sunday because a friend of Jerry's wife's mother was dieing and Jerry took her to be able to see her mother alive. Also when they got there, Beauty was able to run around and lie down when he hadn't been able to for a long time.

Wednesday, August 03, 2005

The Sunday Cab (Ch36 / Q22)

In this chapter the character Mr. Briggs reminds me of my little sister, Hannah, because they both try and try to get there way. In this chapter a very good customer, Mr. Briggs, comes to ask Jerry if he would take Mrs. Briggs to church on Sundays. Jerry of course refused because he only has a six day cab license and he doesn't want to loose his Sundays with his family. He told Mr. Briggs that he had once had a seven day license but the work was to hard for him and his horses. So Mr. Briggs tells Jerry that he will just find another cab driver. I still hope he never goes back to a seven day license.

Tuesday, July 26, 2005

Jerry Barker (Ch35 / Q10)

If I were Jerry at this point of the story I would continue to treat Beauty exactly as I was now. In this chapter learn more about Jerry. Beauty says that he never knew a better man. He also said that he was as kind and as good as John Manly. If Jerry wants Beauty to be happy he should just keep on treating him the same way. Jerry also never made the horses go faster for an extra fair but always went at fair even pace. But he was not against putting on steam if he only knew why. Beauty remembers that one day a young man carrying a heavy load slipped on an orange peel and he slipped. Jerry helped him into a nearby shop in tell he felt better. The man then asked Jerry to get him to a train on time. So Jerry put on the steam and got him there on time. He didn’t even take the extra money that was offered.

An Old War Horse (Ch34 / Q16)

Some words, images, phrases, images, or details that stuck to me in this chapter are, the whizzing of bullets, the cries of the wounded soldiers, and the many dead and dieing horses. In this chapter we learn about Jerry’s other horse’s past. His name was Captain and hade been first trained as a war-horse. He had many times had to charge right into the on coming bullets and had seen many young horses and soldiers killed or heavily wounded. Captain went through many masters with at least two different masters and had only been wounded, and then not badly, once. But now he is away from all the fighting and is living a quiet life as one of Jerry’s cab horses.

A London Cab Horse (Ch33 / Q14)

I predict that Beauty will live for a time in great happiness because Jerry seems like a guy who loves horses. In this chapter Beauty starts his new job as a London cab horse. For the first week cab work was very tiring for Beauty. But a kind word and fair treatment make all the difference. Beauty also meets Governor Grant. Grant had been on the cabby stand the longest time and most of the other cab drivers looked up to him.