Week 9 Internet: Storybook Comments

Myth-Folklore - Indian Epics

The  Week 9 Internet assignment is available now, where you will be commenting on other people's Storybooks. This week, you will look at THREE FREE CHOICES in your class. Here is the key requirement: there must be two stories (or more) available at the Storybooks you choose. You might go back to a Storybook where you have read the first story already and read the first story OR you can choose a Storybook where you have not read any of the stories and read both the first and second stories together. (If you visit a new Storybook where you have not read the Introduction yet, make sure you read the Introduction before reading the two stories.)

Each comment needs to be 200 words minimum, providing detailed feedback about the second story (along with feedback about the first story and Introduction, too, if you have not commented about those previously).

Here are some tips for what to comment on if you are not sure what to say:

Story comments: Does the first sentence grab you? As you read the first few sentences of the story, does the setting start to come into focus? Are you introduced to the characters as needed so that each character stands out clearly and vividly? As the plot unfolds, do you have a sense of what the main tension is that drives the plot? Does the story have a sense of climax? Are the loose ends tied together? Does the tone and diction of the story fit the story's contents? Does the image on the page contribute to your experience of the story? Does the Author's Note give you a clear idea of what the original story was like, and how the author has changed the story in order to make it part of the Storybook? Do you have a good sense of how this particular story fits into the overall plan for the Storybook?

Plus, if you have not previously commented on the Introduction or Coverpage for this Storybook, here are some prompts for those:

Introduction Comments: Does the first sentence grab you? Does it seem like a good fit with what you expected from the coverpage? As you get to the end of the first paragraph are you clear about the topic and where the Introduction itself is going? Are you getting the information you need about unusual places or people or ideas? Are the transitions from paragraph to paragraph helping you to follow the author's thoughts? What kind of mood is the Introduction creating, and does the mood seem to fit the kinds of stories that the Storybook will offer? Is there a good sense of transition at the end of the Introduction into the world of the stories?

Coverpage Comments: Some things you might comment on include: the title (intriguing? exciting? what do you expect to find in this Storybook based on the title alone?), the image (what kind of mood does it set? what ideas do you get from the image alone?), page layout (how does it look in your browser?), fonts and colors (how do they look on your monitor?), image information (does the link to the image web source  work? is the information placed in an unobtrusive place on the page?)... and: is it easy to find the Introduction link?