What would you do if the last hope of the human race depended on the ones who were destroying life as we know it? The scenario stated above exactly depicts what happens throughout this exciting book. Kira, a sixteen year old nurse in training, is placed on the front lines of a battle. Human hybrid soldiers named Partials have released a devastating virus named RM that prevent newborns from surviving. With the human race slowly diminishing, Kira becomes the last hope for humanity as she races to find a cure for the virus RM. Dan Well's Partials thrilled me with suspense and kept me turning pages.
Dan Wells defies the stereo-type of having a male character as the hero of the story. By making Kira the teenage girl that becomes determined to find a cure, he puts on twist on typical gender roles. Early on readers can tell that Kira thinks different from the rest of her society and decides she will be a part of finding a cure. On page 90 Kira states, "One day we will have a survivor... It's inevitable. A child will live." Kira, depicted as a very strong character, does not become ignorant like others around her do. She knows a baby will never be born with immunity and determines at this point that a cure is needed and that she will do whatever it takes to find a cure.
Also, this book has a chilling setting. Human technology (Partials) becomes intelligent enough to turn against us. This theme comes up in many books we see published today. The Partials have a high-tech communication system called the "Link" which connects every Partial soldier's emotions and feelings to one another. When one Partial becomes endangered others nearby can sense what he feels. The "Link" makes it very hard to fight against or ambush Partial soldiers. Human technology designed to protect humanity, becomes the most dangerous force humanity has ever seen throughout this book, and depicts a very horrific scenario.
Although I admired Kira as a character from the beggining of the book, the medical experimenting Kira does throughout the book, tends to become a little unrealistic. Kira, being a sixteen year old " Medic-In-Training", more than likely would not have the medical background to find a cure to a disease like unto cancer; the RM virus has a "99.9% fatality rate." However, this book was in fact written as fiction so readers might need to use their imagination some throughout, especially when it comes to the medical perspective of the book.
Overall, I highly recommend this book to any reader who enjoys intense action and science fiction. The plot builds on itself continuously and leaves the reader hungry for more. Although this book was written more for a teenage audience, I believe many adults would enjoy this book as well. Partials is definitely worth 5 stars.
Friday, February 7, 2014
Monday, January 27, 2014
Current Connection 3.2
Throughout the the culinary industry, we see much attention and credibility given to male chefs as opposed to female chefs. In an article entitled, "Men or women: Who makes for a better chef?" readers learn more about the opinions people carry about gender roles in the kitchen.
There are many people who strongly believe men are more capable of being a successful chef. V. Ramdas states in this article "Men make better chefs..Most top chefs are men." Many people like Ramdas believe men are just much more physically capable of handling the endurance that comes along with being a chef. Being a chef includes many long hours of working, standing up, with limited breaks. This reason , to some restaurant owners, eliminates women from even being an option of hire for a restaurant chef.
On the other hand, there are also many people who think that women make better chefs. Athulya George shares with readers her belief that women have more enthusiasm for cooking, therefore they are better cooks overall. Women have always been the ones to cook meal for there families and have enjoyed cooking. Women are just as capable of preparing good high class cuisine.
We can conclude that men and women both make equally good cooks for various reasons. Men may be able to withstand harder shifts at work, but women have equal skill levels for cooking in restaurants. No one gender is better than the other whn it comes to the culinary industry.
There are many people who strongly believe men are more capable of being a successful chef. V. Ramdas states in this article "Men make better chefs..Most top chefs are men." Many people like Ramdas believe men are just much more physically capable of handling the endurance that comes along with being a chef. Being a chef includes many long hours of working, standing up, with limited breaks. This reason , to some restaurant owners, eliminates women from even being an option of hire for a restaurant chef.
On the other hand, there are also many people who think that women make better chefs. Athulya George shares with readers her belief that women have more enthusiasm for cooking, therefore they are better cooks overall. Women have always been the ones to cook meal for there families and have enjoyed cooking. Women are just as capable of preparing good high class cuisine.
We can conclude that men and women both make equally good cooks for various reasons. Men may be able to withstand harder shifts at work, but women have equal skill levels for cooking in restaurants. No one gender is better than the other whn it comes to the culinary industry.
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Current Connection 3.1
In a recent webpage article entitled "Women Chefs Take Control" readers learn through personal interviews of female chefs of the recent rise in success of female chefs and female restaurant owners. In the past female chefs did not have as much credibility as male chefs and male restaurant owners, but as time has passed more and more women are becoming famous and highly respected in the culinary industry.
In past times women were not taken as serious as male chefs. Although now we see many respected woman chefs, running successful high class restaurants, this was not always so easy for women becoming culinary chefs. Nora Pouillon, a women interviewed for this article, states to readers "In the late '70s it was really difficult for a women to be a chef- we were not taken very seriously." She goes on to explain that it was near impossible for a woman to get a job as "the top executive in any of DC's premier kitchens." Sure women may have been able to get jobs in small diners or fast food joints, but as far as becoming the head chef of a high class, expensive restaurant, women were not considered a successful option for businesses.
Not only was the task difficult for women to obtain a job as a professional culinary chef, many restaurant owners would not even consider hiring a women. Ann Cashion may be used as a prime example of how difficult becoming a respected professional chef was for women even in the 80s. She states to readers in her interview for this article that when she attempted to acquire a job assessment for a Washington restaurant, the immediate response she received from the head chef was "Forget about it. They don't hire women." Many restaurants did not even consider a women as an option for hiring. Women are just as well capable as men to be chefs, but through the 70s to the 90s, male restaurant owners just did not want to accept that.
As the times have changed more and more women are taking on the culinary industry and proving their success as chefs. Rachel Harriman has a positive outlook on this situation stating "Forget about gender roles and stereotypes and just be the best you can be." Rachel, a prime example of how hard work and dedication pays off, also leaves readers with this statement "The one great thing about DC is that whether you're male or female, today there definitely is a great chef network here." Furthermore as the times have changed, the culinary industry to has changed, allowing more and more women to prove their skills and dedication to the culinary industry.
Nowadays we see everywhere the success of female culinary chefs. Whether we see them having a successful television show on the Food Network channel or we see them working in a top notch restaurant; the success of female chefs can be seen all around us as proof that dedication and hard work pays off even to the toughest of critics.
Finally, we see how women are having a positive effect on the culinary industry. We have seen examples above of how women have worked hard to make a name in the culinary industry and how their work has paid off. Being a chef, a job that loved by men and women alike, now allows every person equal opportunities for jobs as chefs. Employers no longer look at gender first, they assess an employee based solely on their performance.
In past times women were not taken as serious as male chefs. Although now we see many respected woman chefs, running successful high class restaurants, this was not always so easy for women becoming culinary chefs. Nora Pouillon, a women interviewed for this article, states to readers "In the late '70s it was really difficult for a women to be a chef- we were not taken very seriously." She goes on to explain that it was near impossible for a woman to get a job as "the top executive in any of DC's premier kitchens." Sure women may have been able to get jobs in small diners or fast food joints, but as far as becoming the head chef of a high class, expensive restaurant, women were not considered a successful option for businesses.
Not only was the task difficult for women to obtain a job as a professional culinary chef, many restaurant owners would not even consider hiring a women. Ann Cashion may be used as a prime example of how difficult becoming a respected professional chef was for women even in the 80s. She states to readers in her interview for this article that when she attempted to acquire a job assessment for a Washington restaurant, the immediate response she received from the head chef was "Forget about it. They don't hire women." Many restaurants did not even consider a women as an option for hiring. Women are just as well capable as men to be chefs, but through the 70s to the 90s, male restaurant owners just did not want to accept that.
As the times have changed more and more women are taking on the culinary industry and proving their success as chefs. Rachel Harriman has a positive outlook on this situation stating "Forget about gender roles and stereotypes and just be the best you can be." Rachel, a prime example of how hard work and dedication pays off, also leaves readers with this statement "The one great thing about DC is that whether you're male or female, today there definitely is a great chef network here." Furthermore as the times have changed, the culinary industry to has changed, allowing more and more women to prove their skills and dedication to the culinary industry.
Nowadays we see everywhere the success of female culinary chefs. Whether we see them having a successful television show on the Food Network channel or we see them working in a top notch restaurant; the success of female chefs can be seen all around us as proof that dedication and hard work pays off even to the toughest of critics.
Finally, we see how women are having a positive effect on the culinary industry. We have seen examples above of how women have worked hard to make a name in the culinary industry and how their work has paid off. Being a chef, a job that loved by men and women alike, now allows every person equal opportunities for jobs as chefs. Employers no longer look at gender first, they assess an employee based solely on their performance.
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