Max: Best Friend. Hero. Marine

Hey, everyone!

Sometime last year I started reading a book called Max: Best Friend. Hero. Marine. by Jennifer Li Shotz.

Summary of the book:

"The New York Times bestselling movie novelization—a powerful story about a special dog and what it means to be a hero that more and more readers have discovered.

When Justin's older brother, Kyle, is killed in Afghanistan, Justin can't believe that his brother is really gone. Except there's one thing that Kyle left behind….
Max is a highly trained military canine who has always protected his fellow soldiers. But when he loses his handler and best friend, Kyle, Max is traumatized and unable to remain in the service.

He is sent home to America, where the only human he connects with is Justin, and he is soon adopted by Kyle's family, essentially saving his life. At first, Justin has no interest in taking care of his late brother's troubled dog. However, the two learn to trust each other, which helps the four-legged veteran become his heroic self once more.

As the pair start to unravel the mystery of what really happened to Kyle, they find more excitement—and danger—than they bargained for. But they might also find an unlikely new best friend in each other."

I watched the movie and found the book at a garage sale and bought it. I started it in August but put it down for almost a year. I picked it up again and finished it one day.
The book and movie are very close but there are also some changes. There were all the same characters but there will some minor details.

I love so many things about this book. I love Max and Justin's relationship. I like how they have too got to know each other and create a relationship. My favorite part of this book was the scenes where Justin and Max would do regular human-dog activities. Justin would be riding his bike and Max would be right there with him. Someone is attacking Justin, I bet you, Max is right there protecting him.

Another thing I liked was the mystery that was going on. This book has some military background and I'm no expert about what goes on in the field but I could tell Shotz did her research. The book felt natural like it was something that could happen. Realism is key. There was a bit of a mystery going on with Tyler and I liked how into everything was given away with it.

One more thing I liked was how Shotz wrote Max having PTSD. Some authors can't write this in people and she did a great job writing it in a dog. The whole book was great in dealing with death. I have lost people very close to me, I can feel for the characters and it feels like something that could happen.

The realism of this book is amazing. I read mostly fantasy, so reading this realistic fiction book was amazing and felt great.

The relationships in the book were genuine. I liked the sparks of romance between Justin and Carmen. The friendship between Justin and Chuy was great. The tension between father and son was there. These are all things I felt before and they work for the story.
The writing is amazing, it's simple and clear. This book is middle school novel and it worked out well.

I recommend this book to any middle schooler who is looking for a quick, fun read. This book does have a movie, so once you finish the book you can watch the movie.

I hope you enjoy.

School vs Writing

Hello everyone.

I go to school full time, I'm in high school, but I also want to become a writer one day. Going to high school is like having a full time job, I have to dedicate time to school and I have activities outside of school, such as band. I was taking advanced classes All of these take time.

You know what else takes time? Writing. Writing takes up so much time.

So what do you do when you have school (or work) and want to write a novel? You make time.

I'm not sure what you wanted to hear. You have to make time to write. Have you ever took a look a look at your day and plan out what you have to do? You might realize that you have more time than you thought.

Do you ever just sit in bed and play on your phone for three hours a day? Maybe, you could be on your phone for two hours and write for an hour? It's your choice, but if you want to write a book, then you have to make time to write.

Trust me, this will give some realization about what you do with your day. You don't have to plan out ten hours to write but if you want, you could plan out an hour or two to write. You don't have to do this all at once, either. You could do some writing in the morning while you're on the bus or at lunch. You could do this during your breaks during the day. I like to have a timer for 25 minutes and write as much as I can. This lets me get my writing in and pushed me to write more than I would without the clock.

You don't have to take any of this advice. It is your choice. Right now, it's summer for me, so I have time to get myself into a pattern before school starts. You can plan out your day before school starts as well. Trust me, it's helpful to plan out your day. You feel like you have achieved more.

That's what I got. Take it or leave it. I wish you luck in life and you in writing your novel.

Wrap Up July Camp NaNoWriMo and Start of August

Hey everyone!

Yesterday was the last day of July and I completed NaNoWriMo. I have been a month.

On Instagram, I have been posting every day the number of words I wrote that day. I have kept me accountable. I was also doing two photo challenges. I posted a picture and answered the prompt of the day. This was one of my goals and I completed it.

You can find all that on my Instagram.

For Camp NaNo, I had two goals, to write 35,000 words and 50,000 words. I wanted to see if I could do it for November. It was the greatest surprise when I wrote over 50,000 words in 31 days. I believe my end number was about 51,000 words! That is the most I have ever written in one story.

My first novel wasn't even 50,000 words long and it took me a year and a half! This is crazy for me.

Now that Camp is over, I don't want to stop what I have been doing. My goal is to have my first draft finished by the end of this month. I'm hoping I can achieve this. Before this month started, I was writing another book but I'm keeping that book on pause to finish this book. I'm very happy with my progress so far.  I'm hoping to get at least 30,000 words written this month. I have more going on this month but I believe I can hit this.

Another thing I'm doing is three Instagram photo challenges. One is a writing related to one and the other two are book related. I'm to sure how that is going to go but I'll try. I'm going with writing but books can be a different thing altogether.

I'm going to include a life goal as well. I do not remember who started with, I believe it was @authircharityryan on Instagram. My life goal is to my very best at Band Camp that starts this following Monday and to work on my music along with writing. I need to find a balance before school starts up on the 28.

I'm hoping this month isn't too much and I don't run out of fuel. What are your plans and goals for the month?