It's finally over

Over all this book now being, ended In the last few pages Jacob finally sells in a market he trades his school bag and clothing for five cones of tobacco. Which are then exchanged for five goats, that’s when Jacob finally sells in a market. Jacob loves his mama even though they may not be together he still wants to make her happy with any of his decisions. In order to make this happen he does a very special thing for her. When Jacob gets to Nairobi he meets a young boy, Jabari, who helps him find a school. Jacob being so excited gets so worried when the headmistress tells him he needs a parent to sign a note allowing him to join the school. This is where if you were him and didn't know what to expect you would panic, this was actually touching in a way for me made me think that even though it’s just school it would be very touching to his mother.  Eventually through the book just dragging o per usual you get to the end where Jacob is laying in his bed in his school dorm on the eve of his first day of school.  Again it kind of gets touching, because as he is laying in bed Jacob can see the stars over africa just like his mama promised him. I am very happy the book is over, because it just dragged on and on i think. I am also sad in a way, because it made you realize what it's like to not have a home. The book also made you see that not everything is as great as it is in canada.

The End is A New Beginning

The story of Jacob surviving the war Is over, he has survived and started school just like his mom wanted home to. Jacob has lived more than most people will ever in their lives. It’s very interesting to see jacob's attitude change from the beginning of the book to the end. In the beginning Jacob is determined to become a soldier and fight for sudan. After living away from home for seven year really change how he thinks about the war. Seeing Adam and Matthew's fight, helped him to see fighting wasn’t the answer. By the time he was in kakuma, Jacob was determined to go to school. Jacob visited the first boarding school but they turned him down because of religion. The second school required him to have a parent guardian. What Jacob did next really shocked me, he handed all but a few shillings to the head master. This shocked me because Jacob has only just met this headmaster and hardly knows him. It is surprising how different the culture is compared to Canada. Jacob would have experienced Canada for himself after coming here. Canada was a new beginning for him.

Ending Jacob's Journey

A Hare in the Elephant's Trunk

To start off Oscar is not dead, and while Willy and Jacob were walking to the Kakuma Refugee Camp Oscar gets a ride to the camp by a SPLA officer that feels bad that he is walking alone. The three unite again in the camp. The boys return to going to school. The receive notebooks and pencils from other places in the world so they are able to right on paper instead of in the dirt. The receive other items from other places in the world as well as clothing and other numerals supplies. Jacob is a very knowledgeable boy and picks up learning new English letters and words very quickly. Due to Jacobs ability to communicate in both English and Sudanese, he receives a job offer of becoming a translator, and he accepts. Jacob begins saving his money for schooling. Jacob soon leaves just like his nephew, in the night, leaving Oscar and Willy behind. We never do hear about them again. Jacob is off to "school". Jacob becomes the owner of goats, that he names after his family. My thoughts on Jacob naming the goats after his family is, to me, a tad strange. Jacob also "sells" tobacco. This section of the book flies by. We have several pages of walking at the beginning of the book that could have easily shortened to learn more about Jacob's life after Kakuma.

We are re-introduced to Uncle Daniel. The meeting really comes out of nowhere and we are not given tons of information about the encounter. Uncle Daniel is the only family member that comes back into Jacobs life, as far as I know. The whole point of Jacobs travels is to continue his schooling. The last page the book ends on is Jacob writing to his Mama. Pg.274 "Dear Mama: I hope you hear my words,wherever you are.Can you see me in school? I am wearing shoes, and i am writing this letter to you in English, in my new notebook. You are with me everyday, Mama. I hear your voice telling me, "Wadeng," and I see your face when i go to sleep every night. I hope you can still hear the stars singing over Southern Sudan..." and that has to be the most inclusive and disatisfying ending I have read. We know Jacob makes it to school, but that's that, nothing about after school. This happened so quickly. Maybe it was like this because it is trying to have us feel how the tie is passing how Jacob felt it. However a good writer can accomplish that without dragging less important sections on for what feels like forever.

All in all I am glad that  had the opportunity to read this book, and learn this story. I wish the book had more information on Jacobs life past where the book ends. There are interview questions in the back of the book and if you read those, you learn that Jacob made it to Canada, and a little more information that I feel could have been incorporated into the books "story".

Making his mother proud

So the book comes to the end but I disagree with the ending because i was expecting him to find his mother or at least a sister. Jacob walking for many months and the only thing that kept him awake was his thought of his own mother. (page 274-Jacob clomped his way into the classroom. He stood in the doorway,lifted his shoulders,and took a deep breath. So this is what school smells like...ahhh...like many storybooks. his fingers remembered mama’s stone and he smiled. He picked up the sharp pencil and wrote his name.) That is the last sentence about how jacobs traveled to laiser hill academy to fulfill his mother's dreams of him going to school.  

Finally some good luck.

Jacob had to decided he was to go to a boarding school after the school at Kakuma shut down from lack of teachers. So one morning Jacob was off to sell his belongings so he could get enough money to attend a boarding school. On this journey Jacob traded his clothing plus his knowledge for 5 cones of tobacco. He traded his 5 cones of tobacco and his knowledge for 5 fine goats. He lost one of his goats in a market but luckily his old friend from the SPLA found him and returned him. Jacob got a heck of a deal for his goats and then he was able to have enough shillings for boarding school. This reminded me of when we save money for things like vehicles what we do just to get enough money for the things you want in life. Jacob wanted to learn new things about the world and know about peace. When Jacob got back to Kakuma it seems like he came back at the perfect time as a relief truck was going to the city that night. Jacob got a free ride to the city and was then greeted by a poor boy that ended up helping him find his uncle after one of the boarding schools would give him entry if he had a family member's signature. Everyday people in schools related to this. If we want to go to extra curricular things or school trips you can't go unless you have parental permission. Jacob really had a lot of luck with his journey to school. I thought there would have been a bigger reaction when he saw his uncle Daniel, it didn't seem like he was all to excited to see Jacob. I mean they haven't seen each other in seven years and they don't really show that they've missed each other all that much, Jacob was gone the next day. Yah I get he was excited about boarding school but still, he had to leave Oscar and Willy. Is school worth leaving your family behind? I agree with what Jacob did. He went to school and the changed his life forever. Jacob is now a citizen in canada with a family. Do you think this opportunity would have presented itself to jacob if he didn't go to school? Maybe but there's a good chance it wouldn't have. Jacob ran into lots of luck in this last part of the book, and it worked in his favor. Sometimes we take school for granted and we don't realize that kids don't get the luxury of school and would give up anything even family to get that luxury.

A New Hope For Sudan

In “ A Hare In The Elephant’s Trunk” by Jan L. Coates , Jacob Deng is a very strong boy who has grown up thinking that he would rather be a soldier then go to school. Over Jacob's time walking to refugee camps Jacob has transferred his ideals and now likes learning and wants to go to school to help stop the war by not having conflict but solving by using words. What helped Jacob switch his idea of what he wants to do in his life is being able to go to school in Kenya. The school and his teacher in Kenya changed the way Jacob thought of the war. The school showed how much of the world involves books and words and how words can solve conflict instead of guns.  This quote on page 232 “I shall turn the land upside down,I shall change the land. I am a small boy but I am a man. I sit in the place where words flow…” shows that believes that he is the change and by going to school he will bring peace to Sudan. The school shuts down in Kenya and Jacob must find a way to go to another school somewhere and he is told there is a great school in Nairobi so Jacob has to use his knowledge to trade his supplies and give knowledge to kids to trade for tobacco and than use his knowledge and tobacco to trade for goats and then sells the goats for cash to then go to school. After Jacob gets his money he goes to one of the schools in Nairobi but they are too full and don't let Jacob go to school. Jacob then has to go to find another school he is allowed to join but he needs to have a guardian or family member to let him to school,and since Jacob doesn't have any family he must go find his family in order to go to school. Jacob does find his Uncle and gets a note signed and then gives it to the Headmaster so Jacob can go to school. Jacob then goes to school hoping now he can change the future for Sudan and make peace in the land.


HC

Jacob the ̶H̶a̶r̶e̶ Merchant

Jacob shows some of his bargaining skills and the knowledge he has in book 5, specifically page 231-255. He is able to take a few shirts he has and he finds a village and trades them for five cones of tobacco. He does not only use his shirts but he offers to teach the kids of the village 24 of the most important things by nightfall. He does this successfully and continues on his journey.  He meets up with a Turkana group where he was going to trade the five cones of tobacco for five goats. Once again he also promised to teach one kid one thousand and one of the most important things by the next morning.  As he said he did and he got 5 goats. Jacob then went to a town and sold his goats for 3700 shillings. I found it amazing how Jacob was able to accumulate over 4000 shillings in just a couple days. To put this into perspective for today’s day, he went a bought a meal for half a shilling. If you were to buy a meal in today day it would be like 10$. So based on that each shilling is worth 20$ and he would had over $80000 in Canadian dollars. I wish I was able to take 5 shirts and make $80000 dollars. I mean who wouldn’t want to be able to do that.

In my opinion Jacob made a bad decision on pages 259-263. Jacob had just met the Headmaster at Laiser Hill Academy. He knew barely anything about him and he was just told that he couldn’t come to school. Jacob didn’t know this was true, for all he knew he could of been lied to because the school is also full. The bad decision that Jacob made was giving the headmaster most of his chillings. Jacob barely knew the man. Would you have gave a man you just met all your money trusting that he wouldn’t spend any of it or give it away? I definitely would not of trusted a man I only knew for 10 minutes. I wouldn’t trust many people I know too give them all my money.

~BW

The Journey and its end

Jacob’s story ends with a hope for a better future, although it was long and boring at times it is a story worth telling. The story was full of bumps in the road, as well as good and bad times.  This entire book really shows what can happen when someone puts their mind to something, have a positive attitude and a little knowledge. The boys in the story pushed forward no matter what happen or what got in their way they made it to somewhere safe. They also learn many lessons one their way.  

First of all in the story we are brought back to the first few chapters with Jacob’s family as he thinks of them, this gives us a sense of how close he is to his family.  The first few chapters are very happy and up lifting but then we were thrown in to this dark, “load”, horrifying world with guns, tanks, and bombs. The boys are then facing the world and need to survive on their own bring their own talents to the group to push them forward. Right after Jacob lost all of his family, Jacob and Monyroor traveling together for a very long time. Eventually they find Oscar and Willy, along with the centipede of boys wondering the desert. They then starts to travel with them making our group of four that are the main charters in the book. Each of these boys plays a very important roll in all of their survival as the travel.  First of all is Monyroor, who is the leader of the group. He stays with the boys to leaded them and protected them like a King lion taking care of his pride.  As Willy said, “ You are the chief of our pride, Monyroor… You are the king lion, keeping us safe.” (Pg. 82-83).  Then there is Oscar who keeps everyone up lifted and distracted from all the bad in their lives, as he makes jokes and finds the positive side of the situation. Then Willy has very sharp eyes finding things for the boys like medicine and supplies. Like when Willy finds a special kind of flower that helps to heal sores (pg. 84).  Finally Jacob who is the kind boy with the “brains”, as he grows through the story he gets smarter and more responsible, helping the boys out and getting/making things that give the boys more of a chance at life.

Second of all there is much growth in the story, both in body and mind, expressly for Jacob.  I found through the book everyone was talking about war and going to become soldiers to fight for their country but around the end things chanced. Jacob realized that school was good and did make a big difference. If people understand things they can better understand each other, as well as work out their problems without war.  This is shown when Jacob and Majok start to become friends even though they hated each other before. Jacob then realizes school and educate can bring people together, “Maybe Majok is growing up, learning to live in cieng. That is the first time I can remember him being nice to me. Our fight seems a very long time ago- we are competitors in school now, but that is good competition. Maybe we are learning to respect each other…” (Pg. 222) Then later in the book it also is shown that war isn’t the way to go as Jacob meets Adam again and he is really different, respecting and thinking it is a good idea for him to go to school. (Pg. 247-250)  Then it is shown again when Jacob meets his Uncle Daniel and his uncle tell him, “I would do anything to help you go to school, Jacob. Young people like you are our only hope for the ending the war in Sudan…”  (pg. 270) So this shows us that an education can do much to help people whether it is to solve problems or find new ways of doing things.

Finally in my option this was a really goo book and it opens your eyes when it comes to third world countries and war.  There are many interesting parts but could be boring at times.  The boys were very persistent and happy. Another thing is the ending is really unsatisfying, as we know nothing about what happens to Oscar, Monyroor, and Willy, as well as really what happens to Jacob in the end. So all and all there it is a good book and I hope to learn more about the lost boys of Sudan.      

Jacobs adventure to school

When Jacobs school closes down, Majok told him that he is going to a private school in Nairobi. Jacob wants to go but it costs 3000 shilling to go. Jacob decides to leave his refugee camp and leave Oscar and Willy behind and go sell some of his belongings so he can afford school. Jacob trades some clothing for some tobacco. Jacob then comes across a village where he trades his tobacco, and teachings, for some goats. He then sells the goats and makes over 4000 shillings. Jacob heads off to school. He gets to Nairobi and the head person tells Jacob they are full. Jacob then goes to a different school but they say they do not take boys with no parents he need to get ahold of a relative. Lucky enough Jacob found his uncle Daniel  and got his signature. Jacob get into school and writes his moms a letter and then the book ends just like that.

Jacob's Lucky Day

            In the book “A Hare in The Elephant’s Trunk” we have read about Jacob’s amazing journey of survival, friends, family and knowledge. Jacob at this point now has enough money to go to school, but his only problem is he needs a living parent or guardian to sign for him so he can attend. While Jacob has been in Nairobi he has met a boy named Jabari that so far has acted as his guide through the city. On page 260-261 Jacob was told that he needs a parent, uncle, brother or some other family member to be able to attend school. Jacob’s response was “I will try”. I think at this point I wouldn’t have wanted to be the headmaster because to break news like that to someone who has gone through so much wouldn’t make yourself or anyone else feel too good. The headmaster then draws Jacob a map to a homeless shelter, then Jacob heads out to hopefully find some family. Upon leaving the school Jabari jumped up from where he was waiting. On page 263 Jacob says “I must find someone from my family, someone from Southern Sudan. A very tall Dinka person.” “Follow me,” Jabari said. Jabari then leads Jacob back into the city of Nairobi to where he lives, Mathare Valley. Jabari takes Jacob to the part populated with Dinka people. While searching for family, Jacob finds his Uncle Daniel, now that Jacob has found a family member he can now get a form signed by his Uncle to take to the headmaster. Jacob Deng is now finally able to attend school.

Reading the last part of the book I realize how lucky and fortunate Jacob is, he is able to find someone who is able to guide him around the city, he finds a school which has enough room for him and he finds his Uncle Daniel who can act as a guardian for him, thus allowing Jacob to attend school. Throughout the book you read about all the hard times he has had to go through and knowing it works out for him makes you feel better, you also realize how lucky he is for this to work out so good in the end. If I were in Jacob’s position I wouldn’t have had a clue of what to do from the start, but at the end of the day Jacob deserves all the luck he has received at the end of the book and throughout his entire story. It could have ended many times but Jacob and his friends always found a way to make it work not matter how tough it got.

The Ending

This book did not end how i expected it to, i was not satisfied with the ending at all. For one, throughout the whole book People left Jacob from death to just plain leaving. And then he leaves his last friends he had left Oscar and Willy, like you should know how it feels for people to leave you all your life so don't do it to others. For be to be satisfied with the ending of this book Oscar and Willy would have had to be with Jacob. And throughout the whole book he was looking for his family and in the end he finds his uncle Daniel. What about his Mom or Sissy! But then you got to remember this is not a fiction story, everything that happened in this book actually happened. #reallife Just imagine having to go through all the things Jacob had to, we have it easy compared to him. Really easy. I was impressed how he made enough money to go to school in such a poor country. All in all this was a decent book, wasn't the best but i ended up not hating it so thats a win. And he did end up going to school like his mom wanted, to bad she couldn't see him succeed.

At the Ending

The end of the book, I thought the ending was alright it left everyone hanging. It wasn't like most book but it wasn't at all that bad. When Jacob found his uncle that was probably the best part of the book since he was so determined to go to school, but couldn't without a guardian. Jacob I would think must of been so happy at this point because he found a family member and can now go to school like he wanted for a while. Still being in a city when you have never been in one before must be kind of a big deal. It'd be so different to be in a city from being in a desert all your life. I'm not a city type so for me i'd be just lost most likely. The book wasn't that bad as I thought it would be, actually tuned out not that bad. it had a good storyline to it but not enough action for me.

Opinion on the SPLA

In the beginning of the book the SPLA is brought up, I didn’t think at that time it would be such a big thing to actually care about and have an opinion about but it turns out it’s something you just can’t ignore. The SPLA stands for Sudan People's Liberation Army. After many days, the centipede arrives back in Willy’s village,  they have been walking in circles as there are no points of reference in the desert. Willy joins Jacob, Monyroor and Oscar and they walk for several more weeks. The Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) sometimes stops by, recruiting young soldiers, but the boys resist. The SPLA definitely doesn't help children be young and themselves, they pick young boys to make them into soldiers one day. Just think about that, being a 7 year old whose instincts should be to play not worry about life and have fun, but you’re forced to grow up and not be who you really want to be. I think that the SPLA is something you shouldn't side with or even give into, this army is not right for the world to have. In the beginning when Jacob said he doesn't want to go to school he just wants to be a soldier, i think that's not him even talking he truly doesn't know what he wants it is just the army getting to his head. When you’re 7 you may say what you want to do and be, but you most definitely do not know.

Man VS Self

In a Hare In The Elephant’s Trunk written by Jan L. Cotes. We have the main character Jacob who is seven and has to live with the way society wants him to. Some things you need to know before I talk about Jacob vs himself. When the story begins in 1987 he lives with his mother, grandmother and sisters and spends his time playing with his friend, Oscar. He helps his Uncle Daniel care for his cattle, looking after his family’s goats and crops, and engaging in storytelling. He wants to become a champion wrestler, like Uncle Daniel, and become a soldier. In the middle of the night soldiers come and invade Duk Padiet(his home), changing Jacob's life forever. He is a kid, but this just makes him change himself to be a grown up faster than your average everyday seven year old. Jacob faces many struggles trying to be what he wants, but for only being seven  he is really trying to be “the perfect boy”.  His mama tells him he has to go to school with Sissy, because she believes going to school will bring back peace (pg.45). He wants to follow the rules of mama but Jacob also want’s to be who he wants struggling to be himself. Jacob doesn’t really want to go to school to have peace he simply just wants to be a brave soldier and protect his home. When soldiers took over his home he left with Monyroor(older nephew), later they bump into an elder named Matthew and his daughter Louise. During this Jacob fights himself  to avoid not go back and protect his family and people and just keep walking to Ethiopia. When they get there he will see his mama. Jacob only has his blue mama stone, which his mama gave him and his memories. Being 7 is no longer an option for Jacob fighting his instincts to play, goof around and be a child he must act older to save his family, friends and himself.

the elephants poem #2

on page 168 it talks about a song about being as strong as an elephant. I thought that this was an interesting point because it gave them strength in their sorrows. The first line of the song says " a son of a man should not be left alone" this kind of related to elephants. The reason why it relates to elephants is because they always travel in groups, they don't tend to leave their "family" behind. "To struggle with people all alone" and "Like a black bull of the buffalo. these to lines to me show strength and weakness. In the first line I think that it is showing weakness. The reason why I think this is because for jacob, without his mother being with him it is really hard on him. He depended on his mother right from day 1. Since Jacob lost his mother its like a piece of him is gone. Even though Jacob is around a lot of people he still seems to be empty inside. The other line means strength in my opinion. The reason why I think that it means strength is because buffalo are really giant animals full of muscle and are a symbol of strength. This line in the song also relates to jacob in the story. The reason why it does is because so far in this story Jacob has been through alot, also has a couple of his really close friends. He's faced his fears and keeps his hopes up. He keeps telling himself that maybe the people that have left are waiting for them at their destination. The next line "If it is because my father is dead" I think that it relates to Jacob because the reason why the people keep dissapearing is because of the war. Jacob reallly wants to be a aprt of the war, so he can show people how strong he is. The fifth and sixth lines: "And I am blind to the fact" and "Then please let me know at once" these lines also rwlate to the story because when Jacob thinks he sees Oscor get pulled underwater by the crockodile he feels like it was his fault, That he coud have done better to try and save him.  The seventh line of the song; "Let me know the truth" this line of the song does not really relate to jacob because he doesnt want to face the fact that his mama might actually be dead. Jacob just wants to say that she is alive and she is waiting for them in Kenyna. He wants to say that Oscor is still alive too even though Jacob thought he saw him get taken by a crocodile. The eighth lines of the song :"So that I stand and face the elephant" To me, this shows bravery. The reason why this shows bravery is because elephants are very large animals and to be able to have the ability to stand up to them is very brave. This relates to Jacob because he is very braveand he tends to talk about elephants strength. The last line of the poem "To fight a lonley war with the elephant" I don't quite get the meaning of the passage but I kind of think that it is saying that elephants don't give up tey push until there is no one left and humans should do that to instead of giving up. If that's the message that it is trying to say then Jacob would fit in there because Jacob acts very mature and brave for his age. He has proven that he can get through anything with the help of others. This is very important because if Jacob didnt have the people he has right now, the bravery that he has right now, and even the strength that he has right now he would have been dead already in the book.

Jacob Trump

Jacob Deng is rich and knows how to use his wealth just like Donald Trump. Though to be fair he is still living in poverty, but for living in poverty he is as rich and well off as the billionaire and presidential hopeful Donald Trump. Jacob is rich because he has something that everyone in those desolate lands wants but do not have a mean of obtaining and thats knowledge. Jacob started out with a few pieces of clothing to trade and a head full of knowledge that he could teach to anyone for a price. It is because of this wealth of information that on page (236- 238) Jacob makes a deal in his favour for five cones of tobacco for the clothing and teaching five children the english alphabet.  It is than using this seemingly unlimited wealth of knowledge that on page (242-243)he trades these five cones of tobacco and teaching one child to count to one-thousand and one, for five goats. Jacob is than able to sell these goats at a market and almost become more wealthy than anyone around. Now Jacob differs from Donald Trump in his objectives of what to do with his wealth. Jacob uses his wealth for good as he uses it to go to school to further his wealth of knowledge. As Jacob reaches Nairobi, Kenya and begins his life in boarding school we know that Jacob is only going to get richer in knowledge as their is no greater wealth than knowledge. What Jacob does with this wealth he is gaining everyday is unknown to us at the end of the book but knowing who Jacob is he will use it for good unlike his other rich counterpart.

Just When you Think he's got it Figured

For me a significant point of interest was on page 252 when Jacob returned back to Kakuma with all of his shillings. He returned to thank his teacher and truly say farewell to his friends. At this point in the story I thought he had made it, it felt like he had made it, I was so sure all he had to do was get to Nairobi. Just when you think he's got it all figured out, life throws another curve ball; but that's the thing with life it does that. Life tends to throw us all a curve ball or two at unexpected times, some people are just better at getting back up than others. As we have seen throughout reading the book, Jacob is one of those people that can just get up and continue on. Jacob leaves Kakuma to journey to Nairobi with some UN truck drivers he's never met. When they get to the city they drop him off with basically no sense on where he should go. So now here's this boy, who's never been in a city before in his life, standing in the middle of Nairobi. How would you feel? I'm willing to bet you'd be pretty scared. Jacob befriends a little boy the same age as Willy who seems to know his way around, his name is Jabari. Jabari takes him to Nairobi Academy but the headmaster just looks at his cross around his neck, tells him the school is to expensive for him and to try someplace else. Jabari takes him to Laiser Hill Academy, the headmaster there speaks to Jacob. Everything is good until the headmaster informs him that he needs a family member to act as his guardian. He's done now, basically this whole book we read he has had no family with him besides Monyroor who is gone fighting in the war, there is no way he's going to find his family in Nairobi. Just when I thought he had things figured out again, he's thrown down; but Jacob is determined. Jabari takes him to a place where he lives it's the poor part of the city with starving people and lean to houses. They walk around until they hear dinka voices, they are all gathered around two dinka men wrestling. Jacob searches for a familiar face, until he hears someone yelling a familiar phrase “ don't let him see your eyes!” Low and behold it's his uncle Daniel, he found someone to sign his letter. Jacob and his uncle catch up since the last time they saw each other which was at cattle camp. Daniel signs his letter, he goes back to Academy and they let him. The outcome of this book was great, but I find myself looking back on it and thinking about the amount of things Jacob's been through just in the last 50 pages. In the last 50 pages he worked so hard to get to school. He traded his clothes for tobacco, his tobacco for goats and his goats for shillings to go to school. When he gets to Nairobi he is first turned down at one academy and then told he needs to somehow do the impossible task of finding a family member to act as his guardian; all to go to school. School? When you think about it school is something we pretty much take advantage of, we expect to go, it's just given to us, when really it's more of a privilege. Jacob had to work so hard to get there though. I guess if there's one things you should get out of this book is that you shouldn't take advantage of something so many kids around the world don't get to have.

Will There Ever be an End?

Our main characters have been bombed again and are walking for Kenya.  When the bomb hits all the boys run back towards Sudan and come upon the Gilo river. Jacob and Oscar make the tarantula but Oscars arm becomes an issue and this is where we lose Oscar. The boys get to the otherside and they start to walk. The walking behind again, I do hope that it isn't for so many pages as the first time.... They are bombed a second time while they are walking and Moonyroors life is also almost taken, however he comes too. This is where Jacob loses his Mama stone, worrying that his strength is now lost, he is forced to push on. The boys finally get a chance to "rest" again. This is when Adam comes again to recruit boys, he succeeds this time, and Jacob and Willy wake up to a note left from Jacob on pg 175 "Sudan Forever, Wadeng" circled by Monyroors lion tale. Many brothers, cousins and friends have also "disappeared". Will the boys find safety, I hope so, and as there journey embarks on anouther difficult time, I hope we come across Monyroor again. Find Mama and Jacobs sisters. Maybe an end to the war is coming. I can not wait to find out.

Gone for a walk again

Well the boys are back to walking. Ethiopia doesn't want the boys being refuges anymore and has chased them out of the country. They have to walk through Sudan to get to Kenya. I feel bad for these boys having to walk again because they are no longer welcome in a place they once thought was safe. These poor boys just can't catch a break. Their home country is being attacked and isn't safe but once again the are walking the plains hoping they can make it to Kenya without anymore loss. As they walk they are bombed and Jacob almost losses his nephew. He lost Oscar already to the rapid flow of the Gilo river and had the scare of losing Monyroor to the explosion of a bomb. Jacob is such a strong young boy and is being pushed to his limits. I was really glad that the boys finally found safety at Ethiopia and i hope that they will find the same in Kenya. These boys are very brave, strong, and in the darkest times still try to stay positive. I hope this walk is easier than the last and that they never give up hope.

Mojak. The Snake, The Cheeta, The Friend

Ever since the beginning of the book we have saw many faces in the book that we loved and hated. During the book we are introduced to the character Mojak and his development as he as one of the characters that we have had since the beginning of the book to almost the very end. During the story we have witnessed Mojak and all the stupid stuff he has done and yet still miraculously survive to eventually leave the camp to go to school. The character Mojak I believe made it his only reason for existing just that he could push every button of Jacob. At the beginning of the book we are introduced to Mojak as he is playing soccer with some other village boys. Even from the first time we met him we have witnessed his high superiority complex and everything that he brags about to try and make others feel bad. After the fight that Mojak has with Jacob on pages 156-158, we notice that Mojak has a huge character revelation and stops harassing Jacob as bad as he did before.
With Mojak at the end of the book though he has strayed away from the cruelness that made people shudder, we can still see the same sarcastic boy that we saw at the beginning of the book. It may sound funny to bring this up, but i believe that one of the reasons Mojak acts out towards Jacob is that he maybe jealous of Jacob and his life. Though it is true that Mojak and Jacob are in the same situation there are many factors that separate them both physically and mentally. In Jacob's life he has friends much like Mojak does, but the significance of the friendships are much different, with Jacob's friends they are much more than just people he hangs out with they are his family and with Mojak his friends are just with him for power reasons.
At the end of the book or the last pages with Mojak he seems to have developed a love/hate relationship with as proved when Mojak states to Jacob that he is leaving and that now Jacob must now find someone else to compete with at school. I believe without the character Mojak and his development there wouldn't have been that person we love to hate and that without Mojak some of the things Jacob has done may not have exactly turned out the way it did with Mojak in the story.

A Bond That Can Not Be Broken

    On are journey with Jacob Deng in “A Hare In The Elephant's Trunk” by Jan L. Coates, Jacob has been through alot on his journey. From being having a great life in the village then being ran out by the Ethiopian army and going to Ethiopia because they believe their is a feast their. Both Monyroor and Jacob met willy on their journey and meeting back up with Oscar. When Jacob and Oscar met back up There was a surprise to Jacob that oscar hurt his arm very bad.The boys were traveling with hundreds of boys making their ways to Nigeria. A very big obstacle the boys had to cross to get to Ethiopia was the River GILO. Some boys were eaten by crocodiles while some struggled to get across. Which reminded me of when I was younger and I could not really swim and I struggled to stay afloat and was nervous that some kinda animal was going to pull me under the water. But Jacob,Willy,Monyroor and Oscar made it across the river. When the boys got to Ethiopia the went to a Refugee camp there was no big feast which I thought would happen. Looking at Jacob I did not believe he could make it this far on their journey. I believe that Jacob's character growth has changed majorly,before he was scared of almost anything after they left the  village now looking know he believes that they are safe at the refugee camp and he has grown stronger mentality. Jacob has thought of what his mother and family taught him and used it to help his friends when they got hurt he is a very helping person ,and also very smart in his own way. After two years and still at the camp Jacob has learned how to plant things and goes to school. When I was Jacob’s ge I didn't really want to go to school I had way more fun things to do then learn. One night the boys got out of the refugee camp quickly because Moonyroor knew that they were going to be forced as all the boys are running from the camp they are being shot at by soldiers. On page 151 Jacob describes the situation the boys are running to cross River Gilo “Bullets continued to whine overhead as shouting,angry Ethiopian soldiers herded the boys toward the wild, rushing river”. I felt when I started reading from where I started I knew something bad was going to happen to Jacob after the boys were at the refugee camp. I feel like Jacob will not join the army to fight for Sudan, but he will become a intelligent man who will look for peace for Sudan and the people of Sudan. If you want to know if Jacob and the boys make it across the river and all survive you will have to read my next blog.

HC

Animals at war and the significances of the stories

In the book A Hare in the Elephant’s Trunk there are many references to animals and stories with lessons. These hold significance, visuals, lessons, a bit of foreshadowing or reality as the boys continue on their journey

Each of the references to animals have a big effect on the book as they give us a better sense of what is going on, as well as help us to better connect to the characters and better understand them.  The references are mainly toward people, how they look or acted and they can be also pointed toward events, sounds or groups of people, which gives us a visual idea. Our main character Jacob as stated before is called a hare for his long legs and feet, as well as long teeth in Majok’s opinion. Although Jacob is also compared to many other animals like a duck, turtle, cat and elephant as he grows and move forward in his journey. This gives me a visual of what he looks like and acts like, basically gave me an idea of whom he is. This can be said for many of the other people in the book as well.  Like Oscar, he is supposed to be a monkey as he is supposed to have big ears, although he is also compared to many other animals as well like a duck or a dying grasshopper. Then there is Will who is supposed to have the eyes of a Raven and Monyroor who is a lion because ha is brave. These are very few of the comparisons that are used but each have a visual, or significance. Few of the ones that I think have a big significance are some of the references to the Elephant and the hare. The one that I think has a biggest significance is when teacher Matthew is talking to the soldiers when he discovers that they were stealing from the boys. Teacher Matthew said “But, please understand; it is like elephants stealing food from baby hares.” (Pg. 136) This quote in particular gets us as well as Jacob wonders why would those who are supposed to be helping them steal from them, aren’t the soldiers supposed to be good. I think this helps Jacob get a realization later that it might not be go to fight and maybe words might be the answer.

Another thing that holds much significance is the stories (which all relate in one way or another) that are told during the boys’ journey. There are three stories that have lessons or significance whether to the title or to the people in the story. The first story we read about is one about the greediest man in all of Africa, named Col Muona (pg. 79). I think this story is a bit foreshadowing as throughout the story, Jacob meets people who are greedy, that steals or wouldn’t share with children and are also ignorant, as Jacob calls, the fighters, like Majok and Adam. The next story is the story about “The Elephant and the Hare” (pg. 126) this is a story that is reversed from what teacher Matthew said because of this it is also a bit foreshadowing but it is also significant. The hare in the story stole the elephant’s honey and replaced it with rocks; the elephant cuts off the hare’s tail before he leaves, by accident. When the elephant finds out that the hare stole his honey, he goes in search of the hare without a tail but finds that the hare convinced all the other hares to cut off their tails. I think this ties in to the last story about Col Muona, but also shows us that when a small person is smart and clever they can trick or out smart, a bigger, ignorant person who think they are the smartest (like Jacob and Majok). The final story is about how the warthog became ugly (pg. 217-218) this one ties in to the last two because the warthog is very ignorant and rude, just like Col Muona and the elephant a bit. This stories main point was that ignorance and rudeness gets you nowhere, as when no one really likes you they will not help you and only fight you. This really ties into the theme War vs. Peace as ignorance is war and kindness is peace. A good example of this is Majok and Jacob. In the story Majok is very mean and ignorant, as well as no one really likes him. While Jacob is nice and kind, he also helps people so people like him. So as you can see the stories have significance to the book as well, teaching lessons and showing that they can apply to real life. 

Just when you think everything is ok

At the Pinyudo Refugee Camp in Ethiopia is going very well. Jacob, Oscar,Willy and Monyoor have been living at the camp for 3 years. The boys have been receiving schooling at the camp from a man named Matthew, the boys do not like school and seem more interested in being a soldier. "All that work for nothing Monyoor said angrily. "Three years of our lives we put into that camp!"(Page 153) Just when life was getting better for the boys they were chased out of the camp by soldiers and they had to return to southern Sudan once again. When they get to the raging river that caused so many deaths the first time across they tried the same technique. But in efforts to get across Oscar was taken by the river. The importance of what happen'd in this part of this book is a huge eye opener for Jacob. Jacob doesn't have very many close family or friends in this huge group so when Oscar goes missing this really makes Jacob sad and mad. So when Majok tries to bully Jacob once again Jacob finally fights back and beats up Majok. This was also an eye opener for Jacob, he was sickened by the blood of Majok on his fists and he thought of what a horrible thing he just did. Jacob at that moment realizes that war is not the answer. Jacob forgets how much he wants to be a soldier and he know sees the importance of the schooling when he gets an opportunity, and also how frightening and scary conflict can be. He also sees how important it is to be strong for the people around you and how to stop when the point is made. Jacob could have killed Majok but he chose not to and to leave the impression he was no longer to be messed with. Jacobs ideals i think changed after the fight, he stopped focussing on how he could change his situation with violence and how he could change his situation with words.-SK  

War Happened! (Blog #1)

In the book "A Hare In The Elephants Trunk" we meet Jacob, Jacob is a young, caring boy living in the worn torn country Southern Sudan. In the start of the book we see Jacob living happily in his village with his mom and his sisters. Jacob's village was untouched by the war. Jacobs village was very reliable on the cattle farms around there village. My first reaction to this book was that it seemed weird that war was itching away at this country buy there this village was unharmed. One day the war came to Jacobs village and Jacob and his nephew Monyoor had to leave there family behind and run away to be safe. "But Mama, my sisters-what about them? Jacob Cried, digging in his heels. I cannot leave with ought them!"(page 37)This reminded me of places in third world countries, we hear about bad things going on in different countries and how we here about refugees needing places to stay and how they have to leave friends and sometimes family just to be safe, how people have to leave there whole life behind all because of war! I was reminded of this while reading because one day your life could be great and you could be surrounded by loving people with food and clean water and the next day it could all go to crap. When i was reading the details of what Jacob was feeling and seeing when the bombs dropped by his village i could imagine hundreds of people crying and running not knowing what to do. I think as this book goes on Jacob will learn the importance of sticking to HIS beliefs, helping others and reminding himself that everyday he is alive he should be grateful for. - SK

Oscars brutal death

I really liked the story Jacob had made up after his own adventures. On page 132 Jacob is traveling farther out to find things to add to the stew he was making when he came across a beehive. I actually thought him coming across the hive was really funny. Jacob is in a place which is almost a desert, very dry and not much plant life yet he finds a beehive. This made me really think of where and how far the bees would have to travel to get the pollen. The story Jacob makes on the next page is also intriguing, having a elephant as the main character. Jacob is most commonly referred to as a hare, but in his "ancient" story he portrays himself as an elephant. The way Jacob see him self is a lot different than the way others see him. People see Jacob as a young smaller boy, where Jacob may see himself as the big elephant. He may have just used an elephant because he has heard other stories of an elephant having honey. Jacob was told a story of an elephant being outsmarted by a hare. Jacob making a story about an elephant finding honey could tie in nicely with the other story. To bad Jacob said Abu left his village and neve ate honey again. These two pages were probably my favorite part of the book so far, they made me think about how tough everything is in that kind of country.

On page 152 Jacob lost his best friend Oscar in the strong currents of the Gilo. I would never had guess that Oscar would die this way, I thought he would have been taken by sickness or something to do with his arm. In Some ways it was his arm that killed him in the end, being able to use it may have helped him to hang onto Jacob better. I think that losing Oscar was a huge blow to Jacobs strength. He just lost his lifelong best friend who had been there to help Jacob through the toughest of times. I think Jacob finds guilty about Oscar's death because he was the one who had to hang onto him, but wasn't strong enough for his friend. Jacob will either become stronger from this or become weaker.

Knowledge is Power

(SPOILERS)
(Only if you haven't read past page 240)  

The book “ A Hare In The Elephant’s Trunk” is a great example of knowledge is power, we see this when Jacob is trying to make money for school by trading some of his items. On page 236 Jacob is trying to make a deal with a man named Joseph. Jacob is trying to trade some of the clothing he has got from the Kakuma Refugee Camp for cones of tobacco. Trying to get a better deal jacob says “If I tell you that I will teach each of your five children more than two dozen of the most important things in the world, all by sunrise tomorrow, will you agree to trade me five cones of your fine tobacco for the items in my bag?”. This is a great example that Jacob is using the information that he has learned in school to help trade for items that he will sell to help him be able to pay for boarding school. Not only is it allowing him to get a better deal, but he is passing down information to the children which not even their parents could teach. (Jacob taught the five kids the english alphabet)

I think that Jacob is using his knowledge as power. He is not only using his knowledge to trade for items, but is using it to help out teach kids information which they can apply onto their lives later on. There is a lot of violence that goes on through the entire book but when you get further in you can see how much knowledge helps the boys. Knowledge is valued by a lot of the people in Sudan and across Africa so being able to have some helps you get much further along.

I believe that jacob has made the right choice of choosing knowledge over violence and I am excited to see how much more it can help him.


MP

crocodiles kill people even little kids

I think that Jacob is turning out to be a leader and trying to help other people out beues when willy was missing his brother and his mother Jacob gave willie a stone that will remind willy of his mother. Jacob is helping to make everything better in the camp and is trying to get all the boys calmed down. Jacob is not a quieter he helped 2 boys across a river even tho there was crocodiles in the water. Jacob watched  boys his age he didn't even know get killed by crocodiles and dragged under.

((page 89) They watched in horror as the crocodile's powerful jaws opened wide, revealing its sharp teeth. Jacob's eyes closed as the jaw snapped shut> a boys was dragged under; red strings marked the spot where he had disappeared)

Nothing can stop jacob because on his mind he is going to find his mother

in ethiopia. Jakop and all his friends find themselves in a refugee camp and Jacob is doing what his mama wanted him to do and that is going to school. Jacob finds out that soldiers are stealing that boys food and are not being very kind to anyone their  

War Never Changes

In the book a Hare In The Elephants Trunk we get to look through the lens of Jacob Deng a boy growing up as a refugee. Jacob is fleeing the Sudanese civil war and what sounds like an attempted Genocide on his people. This Conflict is significant as it is the reason for the entire crisis and it sounds eerily similar to what is going on today in Iraq, Syria and the Kurdish lands in both Iraq and Turkey. Nothing has changed since Jacob was walking into Kenya in may 1992(p173) and around the world refugee crisis are still  major problem. Today children are still walking through perilous conditions in the Middle East and Africa just so they can get scraps to eat and get a little bit of security. Today just as 23 years earlier Militant groups such as ISIS wage  terrible campaigns to remove people from their homes and land and destroy those "Undesirable". The conflict and terrible brutality that Jacob and millions of other boys have faced are brutal and this conflict in history and the ones today prove theme that learning and education are the only way to peace. This proves that Matthew the teacher, Mathew the elder, Monyroor and Jacobs Mama are right and that learning and education is the only way to solve these problems. If everyone in Sudan went to school and had a good education they could take about and negotiate about their problems with words not guns. Jacob needs to listen to the guidance and become educated and help other boys get educated as time and history have proven that war does not solve problems it just creates more problems for the future.