Stella, 11 Zoom sagas Stella, 11 “I ain’t never used this alien program!” —Darlene I The only thing my sister could see of her second grade teacher for the whole first week of school was Mrs. Watson’s eyebrows. She couldn’t hear much either. Probably because Mrs. Watson had all twenty-nine kids’ microphones unmuted. So you could hear everything from Aliza’s dad talking about how everyone in the government was spies to Niklish’s mom cooking masala in the background. On the first day of my sister’s first week of second grade, Hana showed up in Mrs. Landis’s fourth grade classroom. Turns out, Mrs. Watson gave her the wrong Zoom link. By the second day, my sister was so bored that instead of listening to Mrs. Watson talk about subtraction, Hana had learned to take screenshots of her friend Lily’s face and edit them. II “Welcome to the Rancho Simi Park and Recreation District board meeting. . .” [ Black screen] “Frank! Frank! Frank, darling! Can they hear me? I can’t see myself! What in Lord’s name is going on! Frank!” “First, I would like to thank everyone for attending. . .” [Black screen] “Frank!” “But could everyone please. . .” “Hi, My name’s Darlene, and this is my first time using this Zoom thing. I’ve never used this futuristic alien program before! It feels like being in outer space!” “Mute their mics. . .” [ Black screen] shhhhhsjkdiskshktisksssssssk weneedskkkkkktosssssavekkkkkkktheshkshAsh treehkdiskhhhhin the park! [Screens freeze] III Mrs. Rozenberg was explaining decimals to the class. Just like she did yesterday. And the day before that. And the day before that. Because learning about how a decimal point represents a whole number and a fraction of the whole number needs to be taught everyday, for two and a half months straight. And about how a decimal point is a point that we use to separate the whole part of a number from the fraction part of the number. We’ve already heard that twelve times. No one can bear to look at the teacher anymore, and two of the students have taken to playing charades in the chat. Then, out of nowhere, Noah’s little brother wanders into the room in nothing but his brightly colored superman boxers. Clueless, unsure of what to do, he shrugs, waves hello, and scurries away from the utterly horrified thirty-eight pairs of eyes staring at him. IV “And to move the aperture. . .” [Freeze] “. . .you need to. . .” [Freeze] “. . .also make sure your elbows. . .” [Freeze] “. . .so your camera doesn’t. . .” [Freeze] “Everyone got that?” [Freeze] “Okay, moving on.” You have lost internet connection.
Stone Soup Magazine for young readers, writers, and artists
The Long Winter, Reviewed by Chloe, 9
I was in my room reading and re-reading some boring history books for like, the hundredth time, when my mom, holding a stack of classic books, came in and said, “You need to read some classic literature.” I groaned. I knew that classic literature in my mom’s eyes was her having me read to my brother (besides, usually classic books are really hard to understand.) She gave me half the books and she said, “Here, these are for you, and these are for your brother.” So I took off the first book I saw and it was the first book of the Little House series. Soon I was deeply absorbed in how life was like about 100 years ago. It was amazing. For the next few weeks I could be seen with the book anytime anywhere. Once I was done, I was like, I want some more of these books, so I reread them, then reread them again. My favorite one of the books is The Long Winter. Set about 100 years ago, The Long Winter is about Laura Ingalls and her family, as they survive a series of blizzards that last for several months. They are cold, hungry and tired, tired of brown bread, tired of grinding the wheat. When the town runs low on food and fuel, Almonzo Wilder understands what must be done, even his life is at a risk. So he and Cap Garland go after some wheat that was rumored to be grown southeast of the town of De Smet. The Ingalls family continues to have hope, hope that somehow, sometime the blizzards will end. Will Laura Ingalls and her family survive the long winter? Will Almonzo and Cap Garland somehow survive the long drive and beat a blizzard? Even through all the challenges, Laura has hope, hope that someday that the blizzard will end. And Almonzo has courage, and with that little bit of courage and a touch of bravery, he goes after that wheat, with his companion, Cap Garland. This book teaches us all a lesson important to life, it is to never give up, always have hope, because there always is hope. It also makes me think how lucky we are to live in such an era. I also feel lucky that we have air conditioning, snowplows, and refrigerators. In conclusion, I think that we should learn from this book to always have courage, and to always have hope. This is what makes The Long Winter unique, the feeling that you have to read on, because you want to know what happens next, and the feeling that says, Wow, that is true courage. The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Harper Collins, 2019. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process!
The Count of Monte Cristo, Reviewed by Grace, 13
Usually when I try to “get back” at someone for behaving rudely or badly toward me, my absolutely flimsy revenge plan falls to pieces, and my foe is left wondering why I look so embarrassed. Thus, The Count of Monte Cristo attracted me immensely because I was able to read about a fictional character’s revenge, and how it went. The whole book is packed from cover to cover with unexpected humor, perplexing plot twists, and dynamic dilemmas. The story opens with an innocent, capable, honest young sailor named Edmond Dantes who unexpectedly has happiness showered on him: his employer wants to make him the captain of the ship and his fiancée is to be married to him within the next week. However, his good fortune excites jealousy in the supercargo of the ship and another ardent lover of his fiancée, and through false accusation, they manage to have him arrested and out of their way. To make matters worse, once the deputy prosecutor investigates his case, he at first warms to Dantes and realizes that he has committed no crime, then changes his mind and, after speaking oily and soothing words to Dantes, he quickly destroys all evidence of Dantes’ being innocent and shuts him up in a dungeon. Forsaken and with no hope of justice, Dantes is filled with ennui and despair until he miraculously escapes many years later, acquires a vast fortune that he learned about while in jail, and takes on a new identity—namely, he calls himself the Count of Monte Cristo. Thus begins a wild, unpredictable, and complicated crossfire of Dantes’ revenge which not only affects the three people that he targets, but their relatives, friends, and even all of Paris. Throughout the whole story, the theme of revenge is always present. Not just Dantes, but also several minor characters are trying to work out their vengeance as well, and in every scene, hidden motives and mysterious figures are present. Even innocent actions such as refusing some delicious grapes have hidden meaning, and are part of someone’s revenge. However, it is almost heartbreaking for the readers to watch an innocent, unsuspecting, trustful young Dantes transform into a grim, hardened, but fantastically clever mastermind Count of Monte Cristo. As more and more people begin to suffer from his revenge campaign, sometimes the reader detests the Count’s scheme, and sometimes he feels glad that a certain person has fallen from his or her rank. Yet amidst all the chaos, there are also a few beautiful moments, such as when Dantes rewards his former employer, or when he watches over his former employer’s son with paternal affection. Additionally, all the suspense keeps the reader engaged. While the readers know that this “Count of Monte Cristo” is really Edmond Dantes, the three people that wronged him do not have this knowledge. Sometimes, the way that the Count’s hapless offenders condescend and scrape before him is almost comical—if they knew who he was, assuredly they would not behave so politely. Other times, such as when Dantes meets his former fiancée, Dumas masterfully keeps the exchange between them short and courteous in order not to reveal whether or not the fiancée suspects his identity. When will Dantes’ foes fall, and what in the world do his present actions have to do with his long-term goal? There is usually no rational explanation for some of the Count’s actions, but later in the story, everything makes sense, which is quite satisfying. The Count of Monte Cristo is a truly immersing and interesting book to read, and the widespread effects of Dantes’ vengeance are sometimes devastating and sometimes refreshing to read about. It highlights the effects of revenge, but oddly enough, themes of love, obedience, and repentance range throughout it. This book truly deserves to be read. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. Penguin Classics, 1844. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process!
