Exerpts from Summer Reading Reports

So the girls at Alison’s school are required to read 3 books per summer, and give short (500 words or so) reports with enough specifics so the teacher knows they actually read the damn things.

Naturally, given that she had 3 months to do this, she was finishing her reports this morning, 15 minutes before the first bell of the first day of school. Silly girl left them up on my screen, and I just had to be nosy:

I also baby-sit as my source of income as well as one of my hobbies. I enjoyed and related to many of the humorous remarks throughout The Nanny Diaries and “Nanny Facts.” For example, “Nanny Fact: in every one of my interviews, references are never checked. I am white. I speak French. My parents are college educated. I have no visible piercings and have been to the Lincoln Center in the last two months. I’m hired. (4)” Of course there are differences between the qualities that Nan and myself think that will get you hired. I agree that references are never checked and if you appear normal, attend school, have future goals, and speak properly you will get hired.

I suppose I can’t really argue; this is a kid who saved $5,000 from babysitting and tutoring last year. And yet…it’s just so Alison, somehow.

Hmmm. I’ve now moved on to her report on a book called “Fiend.” Suddenly I much prefer pretentious nannies & wannabe pretentious teens (though I do love the last line- hell, it sounds like Thanksgiving dinner with my family):

The author first introduces the reader to Jesse Harding Pomeroy when he is not yet a serial killer but is “a budding sexual psychopath with the sadistic drives…of a classic lust-murderer”(28). Back in this time period research was limited and there was not as much knowledge about psychopaths. In many ways he was like your typical teenager except that he was super intelligent and organized but complete lacking “his human qualities-empathy, conscience, a capacity for remorse…”(56). He first started his attacks at the age of twelve and he only tortured his victims to the point of pure trauma.

Having gone that far, had to read the last one, on “A Million little peices.” Well, you can’t say she doesn’t have a flair for the dramatic… but lets hope many of these temptations are still hypothetical.

Today’s world is full of temptation. The temptation to rob someone when your bills are due, the temptation to quit your job, the temptation to do drugs, the temptation to drink, and so many more. No one knows more about giving into the worst temptations than James Frey.

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