Thursday, July 17, 2008

~Bound~

-by Donna Jo Napoli

Bound was one of the two books that the school gave to us for the summer read. After I figured out the mystery of it, it was pretty conventional. Although I enjoyed it, it is easy to predict what would come next, because of the retelling of the loved fairytale

Xing Xing is a Chinese teen-aged girl that lost her father when she was young, and her mother younger still. She lives in a cave with her step-mother, and step-sister that has her feet bound. If a Chinese girl is born in the family, they are thought of as useless. Xing Xing's father thought otherwise. He taught her how to read, and write poems in beautiful calligraphy. Her father was a potter, so sometimes he asked her to write poems on his pottery.

When Xing Xing's mother dies, her deathbed wish was that Xing Xing would care for her father, just the way a wife would do, and for her to hear his last words. Of course, her father believed that they should make this wish come true, so it was Xing Xing that dressed, cleaned, and cooked for her father, not her step-mother. This made her step-mother angry, but she started to pay more attention to her own daughter, and her feet, rather than her husband. After her father dies, the step-mother gets her revenge by forcing her to work cleaning and cooking at the cave. But since her father died in an accident, she never got to hear his last words. Words that would lead to chance her life forever.

8 comments:

Maggie DeVries said...

Bound was a very delightful book. It took a while to get hooked onto, but once I got past the first couple chapters, it was hard to put down. The only thing that confused me was that Xing Xing's father had two wifes. Once I understood that, I understood the book a whole lot better.

Christy said...

Bound sounds like a really good book! I'll have to add that one to my list!

Maggie DeVries said...

It is. But I wouldn't recommend it to any younger siblings... : )

Noël De Vries said...

Here I am at a private blog! Is it kind of like a private party? Pretty cool.

How did you get the image behind your title header? Very nice.

Maggie DeVries said...

Christy made it for me. You go to "Customize" then click "Edit" on the header part. Then you upload the picture you want by typing in the address, or by browsing your files.

Actually, it is only going to be on private until I convince my dad. Marie has one, why would he not let ME have one?

Nicole said...

two wives at the same time? or one died, than he got married again?

It /is/ kinda like a private party... isn't it....

I think I know why I have an open blog ,and you have a private one, but if you really want to know, ask me.

I may have to take a blog break... Everyone is reading such good books that I keep adding them to my list, and my list gets longer until there are too many to read in a year! But, I couldn't stand not seeing all the books blogged about while I am gone, so I guess I wont go...

Maggie DeVries said...

No, I guess in China you can have two wives. It was a while back, though.

Nicole said...

ewww...


btw, what else are you reading?