Tejas Kumar 6/22/10 Language Arts Mr.

Yamamoto

The Red Pyramid By: Rick Riordan

Pyramids, Obelisks, Sarcophagi, Gods, and Magic, all are words that come to mind when one thinks about the wonders of Egypt. Egypt is home to the House of Life, formerly known as Per Ankh, consisting of magicians, which has secretly been in existence since the Fall of Egypt to Rome. In this book, Sadie, 12, and her brother Carter, 14, find out that they have descended from a long line of Pharaohs and are the most powerful children to be born in a long time. To their shock, they find out they are hosting the Gods, Isis and Horus, and now they must save their father from the evil god Set ... by magic, literally. The lesson of this book is that no matter what, things will change sooner or later. Also, trust is essential to success, without trusting youll spend your whole life in doubt. Overall, this book was intriguing and captivating because of the main characters, the despair they faced, and the action involved. The main characters made the book funny and comical because both brother and sister have opposite personalities and never actually thought of each other as family. This is good because books with a sad theme like this need some humor, and sibling rivalry is a feature that can create humor throughout the book making it a pleasant experience. An example of sibling rivalries creating comedy is on page 59 NO ITALICS NEEDED I had my own kitchenette, fully stocked with my favorite snacks: ginger ale[No, Sadie. Its not an old persons soda! Be quiet!]Twix and Skittles. This example shows the book was funny because this inter-commentary runs throughout the book, interjecting the speaker with funny comments. Furthermore, Sadie has a narcissistic attitude so she makes fun of Carter very often,

Tejas Kumar 6/22/10 Language Arts Mr. Yamamoto and since the book is a written version of a recording, the interjections come in both sad and happy places. Another example of a comical interjection is on page 62, I had a new shimmering golden form with wings instead of arms. I was some kind of bird. [No, Sadie, not a chicken. Will you let me tell the story, please?] This is a good example of a comical interjection because Carter was interrupted during a serious moment at the time, which then became a funny moment in the retelling. Also, if you look at the difference in the page numbers between the quotes, you will find there is only a difference of three pages. This proves my earlier statement that the inter-commentary runs throughout the book at short intervals. The characters not only made the book humorous, but they also made some very personal moments. The despair the characters faced gave the book a sense of depth emotionally because it allowed for a deeper connection to the characters thoughts, words, and deeds. This was good because you cant take a book seriously if its all fun and games. There has to be some kind way to connect to a book to make the reader somehow feel attached to it. An example of an emotional passage is on page 395, What havent I sacrificed already? I wanted to scream. What have I got left? This shows a sense of depth to the story because when youre reading about these two siblings and all theyve sacrificed, your heart and soul just pours out to them. Furthermore, it shows that however cocky Sadie might seem, she cant handle everything happening so fast. Another example of an emotional moment was on page 364, Horrible guilt came crashing down on me. What kind of a daughter was I? I clutched the tyet amulet on my necklacemy one remembrance of Dad. I know most of you will be thinking: You hardly ever saw your Dad. You barely knew him. Why would you care so much? This example shows an emotional time because

Tejas Kumar 6/22/10 Language Arts Mr. Yamamoto Sadie is torn that to save the world she will have to sacrifice her Dad. Moreover, you start to feel that the humor the characters exchange is a way for them get their feelings out and not have pent up emotion ready to explode. Though these emotional parts gave you a dock to connect to, the action was the most fun to read. The action made the book addictive and enjoyable because the sequence in which it is written wants to make you read the next part. This helps the story because it attracts the reader and creates good publicity for the book because the readers will be sure to tell their friends. An example where action makes the book addictive is on page 196, The lion turned and charged at Carter, as if she knew I was supposed to be dueling him. This shows the book is addictive because now the lion is charging at Carter and you want to know how he defeats or if he even defeats it at all. Furthermore, you want to learn more about the magic behind the creation of the lion, like how it knew Sadie was dueling Carter. Another example of when the action made the book enjoyable was on page 484, Ill agree to release youif you swear to behave, to return to the Duat, and not cause trouble until we call you. And then you will make trouble only for us, fighting against Apophis. This example shows action making the book enjoyable because Sadie strikes a deal with the very God who they set out to destroy. Moreover, it shows even Gods can be given a taste of their own medicine, which probably will make them abide the rules. The action really is very captivating and makes the book one of the best Ive read. Overall, this book was amazing. Action, despair and personalities all made this book a personal favorite. My favorite part is at the end when they let go of the gods they are hosting, and by the look on the Chief Lectors face, it was probably never done before. I didnt not like any part of this book, so basically I liked every

Tejas Kumar 6/22/10 Language Arts Mr. Yamamoto part of the book, if that makes sense. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes adventure and mythology. It is a must-have for any Egypt fanatic. I am the type of person that feels you should get something out of doing something; same goes for reading this book. It is an enjoyable tale for just about any tween reader. In conclusion, The Red Pyramid was an amazing book. Well done. Interesting TS, good supportive quotes, and analytical CM. 100/100