Critically evaluating the work of others.

REVIEW OF:


War of Kingdoms by Julie Wang

I really enjoyed the opening of the novel because of its beautiful imagery. It really painted a pretty picture. After the beautiful setting was established it made the story seem more realistic. I was able to get involved with the story because the intro really helped bring me into the fictional word. I really liked the following the most, "A pleasant breeze skimmed across the blue waves that gently lapped against the docks and beaches that stretched along the side of the port town, carrying with it a symphony of bird sound."

The author uses vivid phrases to let traders see what is happening. She seems to do this a lot with characters. She tells you what they look like and lets you guess their purpose. Here are three examples of the author showing us who the character is.
1: "sheaf of papers neatly stacked and held close to him and silver-rimmed glasses perched on his nose sighed"
2: "Restraining another sigh and running his free hand rather roughly through pale blonde hair"
3: "a rather bored looking white-haired youth that sat among some of the cargo crates that sat on along one of the docks, waiting"
The character that I find most interesting is the old man. The old man is interesting to me because he is always described sighing.I want to know why this is. What makes him so tired, what makes him so exhausted? The way the author vaguely describes the character makes the old man more interesting and makes me more curious. 
The narrative has a "top" story and a "bottom story." What I have read so far is that there is a boy, who is waiting at the dock. This could be symbolic of him waiting for his manhood. The boy is described as looking "bored" and this resembles how most boys act before they mature. Teens get bored of being immature, so they mature. I feel that the bottom story might be his journey into maturation.
I don't think the setup can really be improved that much. I really enjoyed the way the story bounces around from world to world. It adds excitement to the story since there are so many cliffhangers. It reminds me of War and Peace, one book telling the stories of many.


REFLECTION:


In this piece I found myself reviewing the work of another peer. I was supposed to read her work and then comment on it. My comments had to consist of helpful and friendly feedback.


This showcases my ability to read the work of others critically. I can evaluate the content, writing style and tone of someone's work, which helps me personally. Since I have gotten the opportunity to find flaws in the works of others and help them improve those flaws, I can now channel my experience into my writing. I can now avoid making mistakes, and I can now fix the mistakes I make.


Under this body of writing is a link. This is the link to the original work I reviewed in this critical peer review.


HERE IS THE LINK:    

                                   https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VxmOiTsOEpX419p2BGPLQiBlktVuDBKKeRvjikpxdhs/edit?pli=1

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