Colton Boorda

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Colton is Currently Reading

Colton Boorda is currently reading

The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness

by Simon Wiesenthal

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Colton Boorda said: " The Sunflower was an interesting book for me to read. It is told through a man who is a survivor of the Holocaust, many years ago, during World War 2. Simon Wiesenthal is the author of The Sunflower. He is a Holocaust survivor, as well as a Nazi hun The Sunflower was an interesting book for me to read. It is told through a man who is a survivor of the Holocaust, many years ago, during World War 2. Simon Wiesenthal is the author of The Sunflower. He is a Holocaust survivor, as well as a Nazi hunter, and then a writer to top it all off. The themes of this book are forgiveness, guilt, and remembrance. It is also told through Simon’s perspective when he was an inmate in the camps. Simon is introduced to a man named Karl, a dying SS soldier, on his deathbed. While he is on his deathbed, he starts to beg for Simon’s forgiveness for his war crimes, killing a great deal of Jews, leaving Simon speechless. This is the central idea for Weisenthal’s writing in this book. “You, who have just read this sad and tragic episode in my life, can mentally change places with me and ask yourself the crucial question: ‘What would I have done?”(Page 98). The chapters were full of many emotions and personal feelings that I never thought I would have while reading this book. It was very sad and a very traumatic experience for all the people affected. I believe that the book is named "The Sunflower” because Simon talks about how there are sunflowers laid on each dead German soldier’s grave. However, there is none on the Jewish “graves.” This explores the inhumanity and theme of remembrance of WW2 and the book.

Although this book was very sad and tragic, I enjoyed reading it a lot. I now have a better perspective of what happened in the concentration camps through someone who lived in them. Like I mentioned earlier, Simon’s main idea is to write about forgiveness regarding what happened in the Holocaust. Simon writes about his and reflects on his experiences in the camps with the Nazis. To this day, he is still trying to figure out whether or not he made the right choice by staying quiet when the soldier asked that question. He is also still trying to cope with all the people he had seen die and perish while in the camps. When Simon visited Karl’s mother after the war, he had not told her what her son had confessed to before he died. He wanted to keep the memories she had of him safe and not ruin how she viewed her beloved son. “I did not tell her the truth. I did not tell her what her son had done. I could not. I could not destroy her illusions.” (Page 97) This is just one example of Simon having to carry and endure burdens during and after the war. During Karl’s confession, he said one of the most gruesome and inhumane things I have ever read. He says, “We herded them into a house… a few minutes later we heard screams and saw flames. We had set the house on fire… the screaming became louder… and then we heard nothing more.” (Page 42) This made me very sad. I could not imagine this really happening to people. Simon did a great job creating visions for me to see in my head what was going on. I think he did this to show how none of this should have ever happened, nor should it happen again.

I would recommend this book to adults and higher. For kids and teenagers, it may be very disturbing for them to read. It explores death, gruesomeness, and inhumanity, which can ruin a young mind that is still growing and learning. I had a hard time reading this book, but I was very fascinated by it and would read it again. ...more "

progress:

(page 303 of 303)
"The essay by Anthony Doerr dives into the complexities of the "logistics" of Simon's situation. He explains how one's emotions, past and present, can all play a role in how one reacts to that situation. I think Doerr is trying to say what he thinks of the situation, not whether or not Simon made the right choice. He reacts to the emotions Simon felt throughout that whole situation, making it an interesting essay." — May 18, 2025 02:55PM

May 18, 2025 05:32PM · see review

Colton Boorda is currently reading

All the Light We Cannot See

by Anthony Doerr (Goodreads Author)

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Colton Boorda said: "

I decided to pick the book All the Light We Cannot See for my Spring reading challenge. I have always been interested in World War 2 and have always loved historical fiction. For me, my family has a lot of background in the military and government s

I decided to pick the book All the Light We Cannot See for my Spring reading challenge. I have always been interested in World War 2 and have always loved historical fiction. For me, my family has a lot of background in the military and government so when I read these types of novels, I am always fascinated with what they entail. Anthony Doerr, a Pulitzer Prize Winner, had me engaged the whole time. Doerr uses his words to write in such a poetic type of writing with much detail and description. I believe this is the reason I was engaged as I was. In All the Light We Cannot See, it is shown through two main characters who are living two completely different lives before, during, and after the time of World War 2. They eventually cross paths in a very unexpected manner. The two main characters are Marie-Laure, and Werner Pfennig. Marie-Laure is a blind French girl and Werner is a German soldier. The novel is written through their two very different perspectives which I think makes this book special.

Marie-Laure has not lived her whole life blind, which makes her perspective really stand out to me. When have you ever seen a blind girl living amidst times of struggle in other war novels? Marie-Laure lives her life in a completely different way making her realize and essentialize her other senses. It also sticks out to the readers in the way we see her learn, read, travel, and interact with people. Werner is no different(other than the fact he is not blind). He has his own struggles of learning to manage his love and skill for mechanics along with the uncertainty of the Nazi regime. Werner comes to find out the dangers that reside with his love for mechanics. The author says, "Then he rises from his cot and takes the little shortwave radio out of the first aid box--six years old and bristling with his modifications, replacement, a new solenoid, Jutta's notations orbiting the tuning coil-- and carries it into the ally behind the house and crushes it with a brick. "(page 86) This just shows how the regime of the Nazis, had people turn on and give up what they love most. This is a theme in the book. Everyone could be great before the war, but during and after, people have to do what they believe will keep them alive and successful.

This book was very long which was a challenge for me. I have never read a book as long as this one. But Doerr's writing never had me bored. Like I mentioned earlier, the descriptions and details of his writing make it easy to paint out the scene in your mind. This is what makes Doerr such a good writer. Doerr also skips around time a lot in this novel. He uses historical events to shape the future and future events to shape the past. This is why writing and having this book take place during the time of WW2 gives his readers a better understanding of a character's choices and experiences.

I would recommend this book to older high schoolers or young adults. It is a very slow but thoughtfully written book. It is a book about WW2 so there will be some gruesome topics in there but if you are a reader who can get through that, this is the book for you. All the Light We Cannot See was a great book and I would definitely read it again.

...more "

progress:

(page 544 of 531)
"While reading towards the end of the book I realized something very key. A lot of the characters are struck by the force of war causing them to lose their humanity. Even if they were a great person before, the war has changed them in a terrible way. We also learn that the past cannot be escaped, but the future can be embraced. I loved the ending to this book. Even though a few parts were sad, I still enjoyed it." — Apr 20, 2025 04:56PM

Apr 22, 2025 05:28PM · see review

Colton Boorda rated a book it was amazing

A Separate Peace

by John Knowles

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Colton Boorda said: " A Seperate Peace by John Knowles was a great read. I read this book during the Winter Trimester of my English class. It falls under the genre of realism. John Knowles has also written Peace Breaks Out, Indian Summer and The Paragon. John Knowles rec ...more "

progress:

(page 208 of 208)
"The end of the book had me a little bit sad. It reflects on Gene's actions and the consequences that came with them. As readers, we see how Gene looks at his youth experiences as a grown-up person. I think he still feels the guilt and trauma from Finny and his relationship even after many years. I also think Gene made peace with his past and he found closure. It took a while for him to do so, but eventually he did." — Mar 02, 2025 06:58PM

Mar 28, 2025 05:31PM · see review

Colton’s Quotes

“He wants to tell her what he has learned about the miracles of light, the way a day's light fluxes in tides: pale and gleaming at dawn, the glare of noon, the gold of evening, the promise of twilight -- every second of every day has its own magic. He wants to tell her that when things vanish they become something else, in death we rise again in the blades of grass, the splitting bodies of seeds.”
― Anthony Doerr, The Shell Collector

tags: beauty-in-nature, life-cycle, meaning

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