11/10/12
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
1-35

1) The book begins with the main character Thomas, at least that's what he can remember, in a pitch black elevator going upwards until it stops at a strange place. Thomas crawls out of the elevator and is greeted by around 50 to 60 other boys, some older than him, some younger. Thomas is tremendously confused for his first day, but from what he's been told, he is now in the Glade, a large courtyard surrounded by mile high walls with door in them just as high. He remembers nothing of his life before the elevator ride and the Glade. A younger boy named Chuck befriends Thomas, and Thomas appreciates it, for in a place so strange he feels good to have someone. Thomas also make enemies with one of the older kids in the Glade, Gally, after he stood up for himself when Gally was harassing him. Just as night fell, Thomas saw 4 boys run in from the 4 doors of the courtyard, one from each wall. He asked Chuck who they were, and he said they were the Runners. It was one of the only questions of Thomas's anyone could answer. For some strange reason Thomas felt as though he was meant to be a Runner, although he had no idea what it was.

2) "Suddenly, the Glade, the walls, the Maze-it all seemed . . . familiar. Comfortable. A warmth or calmness spread through his chest, and for the first time since he'd found himself there, he didn't feel like the Glade was the worst place in the universe. He stilled, felt his eyes widen, his breathing stop for a long moment. What just happened? he thought. What changed? Ironically, the feeling that things would be okay made him slightly uneasy.
            Not quite understanding how, he knew what he needed to do. He didn't get it. The feeling-the  epiphany-was a strange one, foreign and familiar at the same time. But it felt . . . right" (Dashner, 34). I picked this quot for several reasons. The first one being that it is ironic. Throughout the whole first part of the book, Thomas is incredibly confused with his new life. He keeps asking everybody questions that remain unanswered, because for some reason, everybody is afraid to to answer them. Then, suddenly when he goes to sleep for the time, a feeling of peace and calmness washes over him. Maybe because he's accepted his fate and has a goal for himself, to become a Runner. Another reason that I chose this quote was it leads up to a few pages later in the book, when another feeling comes to Thomas. He feels as though he has been there before. The Glade feels familiar. If he hadn't had the feeling in the quote and got the initial overall confusion, he may not have realized that he had been before.

3) Connections to the text for me are sparse, but I could make a couple distant connections. One of these would be that the main character in the story is transported to a completely new place that he's never seen or been to before. Similarly, I've been transported to an entirely new place. I've moved from my home town of Washington Island. I've come to a completely new school and am now living in a new house that I've never seen before. My final connection to the text includes that of Thomas's friend Chuck. In such a strange and foreign place, Thomas is still able to find friends. Similar to this, I've found friends at Gibraltar, even though I'm new. From this, one can draw that if you try, friendships can be made no matter what scenario or situation.