The Mirror of Fire and Dreaming (honors book report)

Divakaruni, Chitra Banerjee. The Mirror of Fire and Dreaming. Roaring Brookes Press. New Milford, Connecticut: 2005.

I found The Mirror of Fire and Dreaming on my book shelf and realized that I hadn't read it yet, even though it was a 16th birthday present. It is a fantasy story set in modern day India, though most of the events take place in magical settings that most people cannot enter.

Firstly, this is a sequel to The Conch Bearer, which I have not read. However, the important events that occurred in that book are explained in the sequel. That in mind, the book starts with the boy Anand, the main character, starting his training and classes at the Silver Valley, the magical place in India where children with magical talents are taught by Masters and Healer. Anand found out in the previous book that he was the conch bearer, a very special job, for the conch is a very powerful magical object.

As Anand begins his classes, he finds that he is unable to do the tasks given to the students. On a couple of occasions, however, he sees and hears things way beyond his level and he ends up bringing to the attention of the Masters the plea for help from a village healer miles away. Anand's friend from The Conch Bearer, Master Abhaydatta is sent to help the village, but Anand is not allowed to go. When Anand sees a vision of Abhaydatta in danger, he does not bother with telling the Masters, but goes straight to his young friend Nisha, a girl who joined his adventures in the previous book. He persuades her to go with him and together they steal the conch away from its guarded stand. The conch attempts to transport them to the village, but Anand lets go of Nisha and the conch in the process. When he lands, Anand is alone.

In the village, Anand finds out that a stranger, Kasim, has come to the village and is enlisting the help of the village men to find an elusive treasure in the forest. Although the men do get paid, they all come back insane. Each time Kasim returns with the latest workers, he chooses a new group, and Anand manages to slip in. He discovers that underneath the ruined palace that is the digging site, Kasim has been feeding the souls of the men to a jinn, an extremely powerful and evil spirit. Anand also finds the object that Kasim was looking for, a mirror into the past, hundreds of years into the past, when the palace was still in use. When Anand steps through the mirror, he discovers that Abhaydatta, Nisha and the conch are there as well, though Nisha has taken on the persona of the niece of the Nazib's advisor. (The Nazib is essentially a king.) The problem is that the jinn, with Kasim's help, is attempting to enter that world too and take over the land, and on top of that, all of their powers, including the conch's, are much less effective than in their own world.

With an exciting search for the conch, which is hidden, and making a new friend, Anand with Abhaydatta's and Nisha's help finds himself the only one who can defy the jinn, with the conch in his hand, of course. They all survive in the end, and Anand, Abhaydatta, Nisha and the conch all return to modern day India. There, Anand is highly honored for his courage, and he finally is able to continue his lessons.

The conch is an interesting character in the story. It is a shell, of course, but it possesses many powers. For one thing, it is an object of power, and therefore it tends to attract people to it. Anand, as its bearer, is particularly tied to it. Also because he is its bearer, the conch speaks to Anand in his mind. It is vertually all knowing, though it doesn't regard any knowledge unless it is relevent at the moment. It also cannot give humans the answers because they have to have a chance to grow. It may only help if there is no other way. Although the conch is not present for most of Anand's adventures in The Mirror of Fire and Dreaming, it plays a very important roll in the climax by disolving the jinn into oblivion.

I really enjoyed this book. It was the first book I've read in a while that I wanted to be reading in class and everywhere that I got a chance. Again, I wish I had read The Conch Bearer first, but maybe I'll read it in the future. I would recommend that people read the first book first, but this one was very good! It is essentially a fantasy book about helping others with the gifts that you are given.

I think it would be extremely exciting to travel back in time hundreds of years to a kingdom in India! I would probably be mostly like Nisha, who is straight forward, clear and sometimes demanding. I actually think the book ends well, and leaves room for a third book.

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is an award-winning, Indian-American author and poet who has written a wide selection of books, most of them either fiction or poetry. She has been published in over 50 magazines, and her writing has been included in over 50 anthologies. Her books have been translated into 16 languages, including Dutch, Hebrew, Russian and Japanese, and two of them have been made into movies. I am very glad I read The Mirror of Fire and Dreaming because it sparked my interest in fantasy again!

Delta, Northwest Agree to Merger

Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines last night announced a proposed merger that would create the world's largest carrier and possibly spur an industry-wide round of restructuring that could vastly change air travel for millions of Americans.
The proposal, which was months in the making, would create a global airline with seven domestic hubs and international destinations stretching from Asia to South America to Europe. It comes as new international agreements have reduced barriers to competition, fuel prices have skyrocketed and the economy has weakened. In the past month, four discount airlines have sought bankruptcy protection.
The merger of the two carriers is far from a certainty, however. It would need to pass regulatory muster, and Northwest has yet to reach an agreement with its pilots, an employee group that could complicate integrating the airlines. Concerns about industry consolidation have been raised on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers have expressed extreme frustration in recent weeks at declining airline customer service, increasing flight delays and questions over the industry's maintenance practices.
Many analysts said the deal could spark a round of mergers between other U.S. carriers so they could more effectively compete with the combined Delta-Northwest, which would keep Delta's name and its Atlanta headquarters. The next possible combination, according to many inside the industry and those who observe it closely: United and Continental airlines, which would then leapfrog the new Delta as the world's largest carrier. The two airlines have talked about merging in the past.
The proposed Delta-Northwest merger would not affect the carriers' frequent fliers, who are already members of the same international Sky Team alliance. It does not appear that Washington area travelers would notice much of a change, either. The combined airline and its regional carriers would handle about 13 percent of departures from the region's three major airports, according to an analysis of flight schedules conducted for The Washington Post by OAGback Analytical Solutions.
Delta's top executive, Richard Anderson, who would retain his post in the new airline, said in a statement released last night that the deal was a good one because it would lead to an "airline that is financially secure, able to invest in our employees and our customers and built to thrive in an increasingly competitive marketplace." Northwest's chief executive, Doug Steenland, would step aside but would gain a seat on the new carrier's board.
In the proposed carrier's first news release, executives pledged to retain all of their hubs and not reduce jobs through layoffs -- a tough promise to keep in today's environment and one that comes just a few weeks after Delta announced that it was seeking to reduce about 2,000 jobs from its 50,000-person workforce.
The deal is an all-stock transaction in which Northwest shareholders would receive 1.25 Delta shares for each Northwest share. The statement said the transactions give Northwest shareholders a 16.8 percent premium, based on yesterday's closing stock prices. Delta shares closed yesterday at $10.48 and Northwest at $11.22.
Delta, the nation's third-largest carrier by traffic, and Northwest, the fifth-largest, could potentially carry more than 175 million passengers a year, according to federal data. Executives said they expect a combined company to generate more than $35 billion in annual revenue. They also said they expect the merger to cut some costs.
Despite their enthusiasm, executives face hurdles before they can finalize any deal.
Although President Bush's top transportation official has said she supports airline consolidation, the Justice Department is expected to take a critical look at the deal for potential antitrust problems. Top Democrats have promised hearings on what mergers would mean to communities and passengers.
The airline will also have to dance delicately around labor issues.
Delta took a major step in reducing that friction last night by reaching an agreement with the union leaders of its 6,000 pilots, an action expected to ease transition issues. Northwest has not reached such a deal with its 4,500 pilots. Two months ago, executives from both carriers worked hard to win over their pilots to ease transition and reduce the chances for labor rifts -- problems that have complicated similar deals. However, after Delta and Northwest pilots could not reach a consensus on seniority lists and other matters, the merger plan dissolved.
Analysts say the economic environment for airlines has deteriorated since then, so much so that the carriers are willing to go ahead without the Northwest pilots on board. They said in the news statement that they would attempt to deal with integration issues in coming months.
It is not known how a completed merger and other proposed transactions would affect customers. Analysts generally agree that fares would increase, especially in markets not served by low-cost carriers. However, with the U.S. airline industry in such rough shape, passengers might be better off if carriers consolidate into three or four larger and stronger entities, the analysts said.
"The industry could quickly go from six major network carriers to as few as three," said Robert Mann, an airline analyst in New York. "We have an industry that is slowly but surely going out of business. That is an unfortunate fact. We need an industry that functions and actually makes money and can reinvest in more efficient fleets."
But others said industry-wide consolidation is not a foregone conclusion. Northwest and Delta are already part of the same international alliance and are essentially marketing partners already. After studying the deal, other carriers might realize that the combined carrier is not so different from the two airlines' current operations, the analysts said.
"This won't be some juggernaut," said Mike Boyd, an aviation analyst and consultant. "They are essentially together already. . . . It is a merger that is not going to be some sort steamroller over the rest of the industry."

URL: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/14/AR2008041402596.html?wpisrc=newsletter

Vocabulary Week 13

Just looking at this picture gives me a sensation of vertigo!
James felt a dizzying sensation of vertigo as he rose to his feet and he closed his eyes.

The supreme court is probably the most punitive group in the US.

"She must be the most punitive teach ever! I've never had a detention before!"

I love how the two men in the cartoon look like crooks! It reminds me other the way that lots of people are constantly trying to get money, as opposed to squandering it.

There should have been a large sign saying "Squander." The room was full of luxurious furniture, paintings in golden frames and plates of food on every surface.

Poor old man! He looks so forlorn and depressed.

Nora looked forlorn after she read the note. "We're never going to make it in time!"

The news reporter is attempting to avoid libelling, so as not to make anyone upset. It is funny, because that is unrealistic.

Both candidates managed to libel the groups of concern, who proceded to be outraged.

revere-v.-- to regard with respect tinged with awe.
vertigo-n.-- a dizzying sensation of tilting within stable surroundings or of being in tilting or spinning surroundings.
punitive-adj.-- serving for, concerned with, or inflicting punishment.
slander-n.-- words falsely spoken that damage the name of another.
squander-v.-- to spend or use (money, time, etc.) extravagantly or wastefully.
panache-n.-- a grand or flamboyant manner.
forlorn-adj.-- desolate or dreary; unhappy or miserable as in feeling, condition or appearance.
quell-v.-- to supress, put an end to, extinguish.
concision-n.-- concise quality; brevity; terseness.
libel-v.-- to misrepresent damagingly.
defamation-n.-- false or unjustified injury of the good reputation of another; a false accusation of an offense or a malicious misrepresentation of someone's words or actions.
misdirection-n.-- a wrong or incorrect direction, guidance, or instruction; (Law) an error made by a juge in charging the jury.

Current Event 8

Whistle-Blowers: Ties Between FAA, Southwest Too Close

Federal aviation safety inspectors testified before Congress today that lax oversight by their bosses and other regulators allowed Southwest Airlines last year to fly thousands of passengers on potentially unsafe jets in need of key safety checks.
The inspectors, who sought protection as whistle-blowers from Congress and federal investigators, said managers did little to correct problems with how Southwest and their own colleagues were handling the carrier's safety lapses.
"I am here today because I am concerned for the safety of the flying public," said Charalambe Boutris, an inspector who is credited with exposing the problems.
Boutris and the other inspectors testified before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which has been investigating Southwest's maintenance practices and allegations of weak FAA oversight of the carrier and potentially others. Since the investigation became public last month, four major airlines have been forced to ground hundreds of planes to conduct needed safety checks or make repairs to comply with safety directives.
Rep. James L. Oberstar (D-Minn.), chairman of the committee, said the issues raised by the inspectors represented the "most egregious lapse of safety I have seen in the last 23 years."
"The FAA would have us believe that what took place was an isolated incident," he said. "But the testimony we have heard substantiates that this is not an isolated aberration attributable to a rogue individual. But rather, this was a systematic breakdown of the safety oversight role of the FAA."
Federal Aviation Administration officials have said the Southwest problems were isolated. They have said a recent audit revealed that airlines were complying with 99 percent of safety directions. Four carriers are under investigation for not complying with directives, the FAA has said.
Southwest officials have apologized for any potential safety lapses, but said that even though the airline was late in making inspections of planes, the public was never endangered.
The safety lapses are coming to light during the safest stretch in U.S. commercial aviation history. And even the sharpest critics of the FAA's oversight, including Oberstar, have said that air travelers should not be afraid to get on passenger planes.
During today's hearing, the inspectors said many of the problems stemmed from a close relationship that had developed between a supervisor in their Dallas office, Douglas Gawadzinski, and a former FAA employee who had taken a job at Southwest. They believed that Gawadzinski was too lenient on the carrier because of that relationship.
The inspectors said Gawadzinski allowed Southwest to continue flying planes in March 2007 even after inspectors and airline personnel discovered that jets were well-beyond deadlines to complete checks for cracks in their skins.
Such checks were enacted after a large chunk of fuselage ripped away from a Boeing 737 in 1988. Undiscovered cracks on the Southwest planes "could have resulted in a sudden fracture . . . which would have had a catastrophic impact during flight," Boutris said.
The next month, the airline kept flying planes in need of critical rudder inspections even after it alerted the FAA to lapsed checks.
When the inspectors approached supervisors about the problems, they said they encountered roadblocks. Gawadzinski underplayed the potential safety dangers, and they received no help from high-ranking officials despite repeated attempts to air their concerns. Three were removed, at least temporarily, from their posts, and Boutris received a death threat that congressional staffers said was being investigated by the FBI. "No supervisor can do what my supervisor was doing without the support from fellow inspectors . . . and I believe with the support of people in Washington," Boutris testified.
Inspector Douglas E. Peters said his experiences proved that there "was evidence that FAA management personnel with the responsibility and the authority to take appropriate action proved themselves unworthy of being custodians of the public trust."
"The proof was provided by their blatant disregard and failure to respond to significant safety events that were constantly reported, Peters testified.
They also raised concerns about the broader issue of the FAA's partnership with carriers and its reliance on them to disclose safety problems. Such disclosures often do not result in punishment if the airlines are upfront about the issues.
The programs generally have been credited with encouraging carriers, pilots, maintenance crews and others to report mistakes and quickly correct them. However, many outside safety experts, members of Congress and federal investigators believe the FAA should tougher on the carriers.
In prepared testimony, the Department of Transportation's Inspector General Calvin L. Scovel III said the FAA developed "an overly collaborative relationship with" Southwest, which helped lead to last year's lapses.
Scovel added that he believes the FAA "relies too heavily on self-disclosures and promotes a pattern of excessive leniency at the expense of effective oversight and appropriate enforcement."
Last month -- a year after the original problems at Southwest -- the FAA fined the carrier $10.2 million for the missed safety checks and for continuing to fly the planes even after the airline learned that it had missed the inspections.