Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Blurb
A small village in northern Wisconsin is the backdrop for tragedy and heroism. The heroes in this book are a one eyed divorced butcher called the beagle and two brothers and a mother. In a village this small it is said to be a volunteer firefighter just a pulse is required. It balances tragedy with a sense of small town Midwestern humor. The tragedies in this book reacquaint the author with his childhood village. Through his experiences as a volunteer firefighter and EMT he ponders life and death. Esquire Magazine calls it “Quietly devastating … intimate and disarming and lovely”.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Ten sources with additional information
Berkes, Howard. "Volunteer Firefighter's Tale: 'Population 485'" National Puplic Radio. 3 Apr. 2004. Radio.
"Browse Inside: Population 485 by Michael Perry." HarperCollinsPublishers. HarperCollinsPublishers. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.
Kilter Edwards, Margie L. "We're Decent People: Constructing and Managing Family Identity in Rural Working-Class Communities." Journal of Marriage and Family 66.2 (2004): 515-29. JSTOR. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.
McEvoy, Mike. "When Is Dead Really Dead?" Fire Engineering 168.3 (2010): 28-36. EBSCO. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.
Moore, Carole. "Lights, Sirens, Action." Career World 33.5 (2005): 14-16. OmniFile. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.
Perry, Michael. "Micheal Perry- Author, Humorist, Singer/Songwriter: SneezingCow.com." SneezingCow.com. Michael Perry, 2010. Web. 08 Dec. 2010. <http://sneezingcow.com/>.
"Population 485." Reading Group Guide. Reading Group Guide. Web.
Tevis, Cheryl. "Who Will Rescue Rural America?" Successful Farming 108.10 (2010): 57-60. Wilson OmniFile Full Text Select Edition. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.
Thompson, Alexander M. "Work Without Wages: The Motivation for Volunteer Firefighters." The American Journal of Economics and Sociology 52.3 (1993): 323-43. JSTOR. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.
Village of New Auburn. Village of New Auburn, 2009. Web. 8 Dec. 2010. <http://www.newauburn-wi.com/>.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Brayden-Summarizer Ch. 12
In this chapter he talks about artifacts that have been dug up in New Auburn. It starts out with Jack Most's finding a rock with a paw print in it. Jack takes the rock to many experts and none of them agree on what it is. Then he turns to a story in his own backyard, one day he looks out his window and notices indentations in his backyard. The indentation make it look like something was buried there. He digs up these indentations and finds a lot of roots and other junk. Later he finds out that their use to be big sugar maples in his backyard years ago.
This chapter was written in a tone that made it sound like the last chapter. It seems like he is summing the whole story up at the end when he uses the artifacts dug up as a metaphor for finding home or contentment. To truly find home you have to abandon yourself to that place is what he is saying. It is the only chapter he ends pretty much telling what he wants you to take from what you just read. This also why it sounds like an ending because through the whole book he has talked about how he has given himself to the town by being a volunteer firefighter and now he has found home in New Auburn.
Brayden-Discussion Leader Ch.11
1) In chapter 11 he says he doesn't really like uniforms, but when going to out on a call he will usually throw an EMT shirt on or something explain his reasoning behind this?
This is because whenever someone see's a person in uniform they see them as heroic or without mistakes. When in reality they make just as many mistakes on their job as the rest of us. The reason he always tries to throw on part of his uniform before he goes out on a call is that he knows that his patient will be reassured by it and feel like he is even good hands even if the EMT isn't so sure about the patient's condition.
2) What are some of the reasons he put a chapter of mistakes he has made or he has seen some other EMT he works with make?
For one it is to show that even in their line of work mistakes are made and that they are only human. He does this to reinforce the point that EMT's are just like the rest of us. Another is to put a little bit of humor into a book that is mainly pretty serious and solemn. A perfect example of this is the story about the lady with Alzheimer's.
3) The story about the call to farm didn't really fit with the other stories in this chapter why did he put this story in this chapter?
With this chapter he is definitely trying to get the point across that they are everyday people that have lives outside of first responding. He talks about not wanting to go out on the call because he was going to go biking but no one else showed up. He ends the story with him fantasizing about telling the head EMT from Sandston off and refers to it as a "supreme heroic moment", just like everyday people dream of being heroic or telling a co-worker who is maybe a little bossy off.
4) What is the significance of the pig pen boy story?
The significance is that even those who many of use see as heroic don't see themselves in the same light. That when heroes look in the mirror an ordinary person who is just as embarrassing as the rest of us looks back at them. This is significant because if we looked at ourselves as heroes we wouldn't aspire to be anything or be motivated to be better.
This is because whenever someone see's a person in uniform they see them as heroic or without mistakes. When in reality they make just as many mistakes on their job as the rest of us. The reason he always tries to throw on part of his uniform before he goes out on a call is that he knows that his patient will be reassured by it and feel like he is even good hands even if the EMT isn't so sure about the patient's condition.
2) What are some of the reasons he put a chapter of mistakes he has made or he has seen some other EMT he works with make?
For one it is to show that even in their line of work mistakes are made and that they are only human. He does this to reinforce the point that EMT's are just like the rest of us. Another is to put a little bit of humor into a book that is mainly pretty serious and solemn. A perfect example of this is the story about the lady with Alzheimer's.
3) The story about the call to farm didn't really fit with the other stories in this chapter why did he put this story in this chapter?
With this chapter he is definitely trying to get the point across that they are everyday people that have lives outside of first responding. He talks about not wanting to go out on the call because he was going to go biking but no one else showed up. He ends the story with him fantasizing about telling the head EMT from Sandston off and refers to it as a "supreme heroic moment", just like everyday people dream of being heroic or telling a co-worker who is maybe a little bossy off.
4) What is the significance of the pig pen boy story?
The significance is that even those who many of use see as heroic don't see themselves in the same light. That when heroes look in the mirror an ordinary person who is just as embarrassing as the rest of us looks back at them. This is significant because if we looked at ourselves as heroes we wouldn't aspire to be anything or be motivated to be better.
Graphic Organizer Chapters 11-13- Stephanie LaPointe
The purpose of this illustration is to show the main points in chapters 11-13. Another purpose of this illustration was to show how Perry organized his chapters, and the significance of each of the chapters. In chapter 11, Perry dedicates most of the chapter towards listing mistakes that many of the firefighters have made, and how one should be understanding if a firefighter makes a mistake. In chapter 12 Perry bounces around with his stories, but he repeatedly continues to return to the subject of home. He talks about how he wants to find a spot where he is stable and how it takes time to fit into a town. Perry decided to end his book with the chapter titled Sarah. As mentioned above, Sarah died in a car accident. In this chapter, Perry shows us that firefighters are human and do show emotions.
Discussion Leader Chapters 11-13-Stephanie LaPointe
1. Q)Why does Perry tell the story about his mother when she helped deliver a baby?A) The reason Perry tells this story is because of his fear of having to deal with a situation similar to delivering a baby. Perry said that is one reason why he likes being a firefighter, most of the bad situations happen before they arrive on the scene. Perry also said that in a case like delivering a baby, you not only have to sustain life, but deliver it as well. This goes to show that there is more pressure, it is understandable why Perry would fear a situation like delivering a baby.
2. Q) What is the significance of the short stories Perry tells about firefighters making mistakes in chapter 11?
A) Perry is trying to show that everyone makes mistakes, even firefighters. People expect a lot from firefighters, which puts them under pressure. Perry tells these short stories about firefighters making mistakes to show that its ok to make mistakes, and laugh about them afterwards. People have to be understanding when firefighters try to help them, that since they are under pressure, they might slip up a little from time to time.
3. Q) In his book, Perry tends to skip around with his thoughts, what does Perry return to continuously in chapter 12?
A) Perry returns to the subject of home, and what it means to him. Perry first mentions by saying he is trying to look for a place he can stand without wobbling. He then says it takes time to settle into your home when you first move in. Perry says he is happy in his home, but he needs to balance being happy at home by being on the move from time to time. He then talks about how his grandpa got him started with liking to travel. Perry ends this chapter by giving a great quote that sums up this questions, "It is occuring to me that to truly live in a place, you must give your life to that place (pg 210)."
4. Q) Who is Sarah? What happened to her in chapter 12? Why does Perry dedicate his last chapter to her?
A) Sarah got married to Jed, Perry's brother. Sarah got killed in a car accident, seven weeks after she married Jed. The reason we believe Perry decided to end the book the way he did was because how much of an impact it had on the author. Perry talks about all the different people that have died that he has been involved with. Perry has had to deal with hundreds of depressing situations, and we believe that the one that hit the hardest was Sarah's death. Perry provides us with the image that he can handle his emotions in these situations, but he couldn't with Sarah's death. It showed us that Perry is human, and that there are tough times ahead for the people that loved Sarah, but in time, things will get better.
Population 485: December 7, 2010
One part of chapters 12 and 13 that was interesting to us was the part about Jack and his saber-toothed tiger rock. Jack found this rock while building a fieldstone fence for some lake ladies, which had what appeared to have a footprint shape on it. Jack has dedicated much of his spare time trying to figure out what is on the rock. This story was interesting to us because it was different than most of Perry's other stories. The story didn't really have a moral or meaning to it, it was more like entertainment for the reader. We also found it intriguing because the story wasn't one he was directly involved in. He knew about it and had seen it, but the story was based around Jack instead of on Perry. We also liked that it left us wondering if the rock actually had a saber-toothed tiger footprint on it. With most of his short stories, Perry explains the significance and the end result of them, but with this one, he leaves us wondering. Chapter 12 also was different from the rest because of its title "Penultimate". While discussing we realized that most of us had not known what it meant and had looked it up individually while reading the book. The title means "next to last". All of the other chapters are given titles to what they are about such as "Death", "Running the Loop", and "Beagle". If we could ask him a question this would definitly be on our list because we are interested to know why he gave this chapter such a literal name when the rest of the chapters are descriptive, inlcuding the last chapter entitle "Sarah". It just didn't seem to fit.
This last part of the book we spent the most time discussing and analyzing, particularly the last chapter entitled "Sarah". This chapter is very different from the rest of the book. Perry wrote it with different language, a softer feel to it instead of the usual sarcastic tones and quirky insights. The chapter is about his brother Jed's wife; how they come to be married and how Sarah's life comes to a short end not long after she and Jed are married. The way Perry wrote the ending a reader can tell that it is still a painful subject and he goes about describing it carefully. A quote caught out attention. "The tough times start the day the last casserole dish is returned" This quote made some of us stop reading and really think about it and we found this quote to be true. Right after someone dies, there are always people around but eventually they start coming by less and less and suddenly the person grieving is left on their own. This quote may not give much to the overall aura of the book, but we found this quote to be one that left us pondering.
We felt he could have ended the book differently. The entire last chapter is about Sarah up until the very last paragraph. He throws in that he has a girlfriend and then turns back to how he hopes Jed can overcome this tragedy. We felt it was a sudden ending and didn't wrap up or conclude the book at all. We had predicted in the first journal that he would end up with his old girlfriend he breifly mentioned. Is it the same girl? We also predicted that the book would start from where it began just as the chapters all had. This didn't happen either. Although our predictions never came true and the book could have ended differently for our liking, we still think it was a good ending. Obviously this was a hard time in his family and we can feel his emotion. He really connects with the reader in this final chapter and ends with well wishes to his brother.
Overall we all really enjoyed this book, though it was different from our origincal expetations and would recommend this book to anyone. Perry is a fantastic writer with an eye for small details that make the story realatable and personal.
Rob - Graphic Organizer chapters 11 &12
 |
This illustration highlights the key parts of chapters 11 and 12. Chapter 11 is cleverly titled Oops because that is what the stories in it are "Oops" moments. Everyone has had an oops moment in their life whether it was spilling a beverage on mom and dad's new carpet or breaking a window with a baseball. Chapter 11 illustrates some of Perry's favorite oops moments from his time in the field, and the gag gifts that accompany them at the end of the year banquet. Chapter 12, Penultimate, on the other hand is more focused on Perry. Although the chapter starts with one of the towns people, Jack Most, finding a prehistoric fossil; the chapter is about finding your center in life. The chapter switches to Perry when he describes that he is able to find his center or is at peace when he is on the road. Perry's desire to be free was instilled in him by his grandfather and that desire is still visible in his stories of travel. |
Rob - Vocabulary chapter 13
Anoxia (n) page 216 - A deficiency of oxygen to the body tissue of such severity as to result in permanent damage
Traverse (n) page 217 - something that crosses or lies across, obstacle, adversity
Nexus (n) page 217 - connection, link
Vituperation (n) page 218 - sustained and bitter railing and condemnation
Cuckold (n) page 220 - a man whose wife is unfaithful
Erudite (adj) page 220 - having or showing knowledge that is gained by studying
Exculpate (v) page 221 - to clear from alleged fault or guilt
Trepidation (n) page 221 - a nervous or fearful feeling of uncertain agitation
Abattoir (n) page 222 - slaughterhouse
Whorl (n) page 223 - something that whirls, coils, or spirals or whose form suggests such movement
Traverse (n) page 217 - something that crosses or lies across, obstacle, adversity
Nexus (n) page 217 - connection, link
Vituperation (n) page 218 - sustained and bitter railing and condemnation
Cuckold (n) page 220 - a man whose wife is unfaithful
Erudite (adj) page 220 - having or showing knowledge that is gained by studying
Exculpate (v) page 221 - to clear from alleged fault or guilt
Trepidation (n) page 221 - a nervous or fearful feeling of uncertain agitation
Abattoir (n) page 222 - slaughterhouse
Whorl (n) page 223 - something that whirls, coils, or spirals or whose form suggests such movement
Megan- Graphic Organizer Chapters 1-13
These key points are the journey throughout the story. Each one of these points is a name of a chapter within this book. All of these chapters or points are woven together to form Perry’s final thought of saying that this is where he belongs. These events play a significant role in his life in New Auburn, Wisconsin. This is his home and these are the people and events that make it.
Megan- Article Finder Chapters 11-13
To read more about the Pawling, click here.
Summarizer - Jenny Halopka Chapters 11-13
Chapter 11 is comprised of all the different things that the professionals that Perry works with, including himself, have messed up on. It shows that although they wear the uniform and are seen as people who never mess up, they are still people and do somtimes make mistakes that anyone could make. Chapter 12 is about digging for more. It comes up everywhere in this chapter. It starts with Jack Most's rock, then goes on about how Perry was digging in his backyard to see what he could find and even when the septic backed up. Perry had to dig to find the problem there to. Chapter 13 was entitled "Sarah" throughout the chapter Perry explained how Sarah came to be in their family and then the tragic ending of her life.Chapters 11 and 12 are writtin much the same as the rest of the book. They start at point, usually a story and have relateable topics inbetween and end with the story from the begining. The language used is still much more sopisticated than the backwoods hick he comes off to be and the tone is one of a humorous sarcasim. Chapter 13 is different from the rest of the book. He uses most of the same language, but there is no sarcasim. You can tell by the way he wrote it that it is still painful. One quote caught my attention. "The tough times start the day the last casserole dish is returned" This strikes me as notable because it made me stop and think. I 100% believe in this quote.
Article Finder - Jenny Halopka Chapters 11-13
http://www.firehouse.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53221
I choose an article about an EMT that found his son to be one of the victims of his emergency call. This has to be one of the biggest fears for a firefighter of EMT. In the last chapter of the book, Jed is one of the first people on the scene. He did what he could to save her but then what? No one else knew either so one of the other firefighters pulled him away and held him, but what would you do? It is one of those things that you would never wish upon someone else and yet firefighters and EMT's go to every call knowing that there is a chance that they will know the person.
I choose an article about an EMT that found his son to be one of the victims of his emergency call. This has to be one of the biggest fears for a firefighter of EMT. In the last chapter of the book, Jed is one of the first people on the scene. He did what he could to save her but then what? No one else knew either so one of the other firefighters pulled him away and held him, but what would you do? It is one of those things that you would never wish upon someone else and yet firefighters and EMT's go to every call knowing that there is a chance that they will know the person.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Vocab - Jenny Halopka Chapters 9-10
Somnolescence (pg 143) - sleepiness: a very sleepy state
Acquiescent (pg 148) - willing to carry out the orders or wishes of another without protest
Hypertrophies (pg 149) - abnormal enlargement of a body part or organ
Palpable (pg 1490 - capable of being perceived; especially capable of being handled or touched or felt
Omniscient (pg 150) - all-knowing: infinitely wise
Ineffable (pg 152) - Beyond expression in words; unspeakable; Forbidden to be uttered; taboo
Hemoglobin (pg 155) - gives red blood cells their characteristic color
Sclera (pg 156) - The white part of the eye
Louvered (pg 178) - Horizontal slots cut into the sides of diesel and electric locomotives and certain goods vans to give ventilation
Eradicated (pg 180) - eliminated, utterly destroyed
Discussion Leader - Jenny Halopka Chapters 9-10
1) Chapter 9 revolves around the idea of using a pager. Do you think a firefighter's life revolves around his pager? Does being constantly on call take away from other attributes of a persons life such as family and friends?
I think it takes a special person to be a firefighter or EMS. They have to be prepared for anything at any time of the day. Yes, I think their life does revolve around the pager but I also think that they like that part of their job. Maybe it's the unknowingness of what could happen in the next couple minutes or that they are responsible for other lifes, but I think they love what they do and thats why they do it. I also thing that it takes away from family time, but that their family membors look up to them for taking on such a great responsibilty. So, with all the negitive aspects, I think the positives still outweigh the bad in the mind of a firefighter or EMS.
2) With all the terminology firefighters have to use it can be easy to mess up as Perry showed. Do you think it was unprofessional of him to use the term "flat-linner" in front of a family member? Why or why not?'
Yes it was unprofessional but not to the point of being inconsiderate. With all the terms i'm sure it's easy to get mixed up and he still had to communicate to the ambulance what was going on. He could have used much worse terms but, I think, even under pressure he still found a suitable replacement word.
3) In this chapter, Perry takes a cat out to shoot it because it is very sick. Do you think this is ethical or should he have taken it to be ethanized? Why?
Personally, growing up on a farm I would side with how Perry handeled the situation. It isn't a pleasant thing to do, however it is better than letting the cat suffer. On a normal farm it wouldn't be possible to humanly euthanize every animal that was to sick to survive just for financial reasons. If the cat was killed with the best intentions in mind then I believe that anyway you do it, as long as it is done quickly, is ethical.
4) "Memory is a means of possession, but eventually, the greatest grace is found in letting go" Do you agree with this quote? Why or why not?
I do not completly agree with this quote. I think that letting painful memories go is part of a healing process, but I think we still need to keep good memories of people we have lost to keep them close in our hearts. I can relate to this because my mother died when I was young. My younger sister has come to me crying because she cannot remember certain details of our mother. I am thankful that I still have those memories to remember my mom and try to live up to who she would want me to be.
I think it takes a special person to be a firefighter or EMS. They have to be prepared for anything at any time of the day. Yes, I think their life does revolve around the pager but I also think that they like that part of their job. Maybe it's the unknowingness of what could happen in the next couple minutes or that they are responsible for other lifes, but I think they love what they do and thats why they do it. I also thing that it takes away from family time, but that their family membors look up to them for taking on such a great responsibilty. So, with all the negitive aspects, I think the positives still outweigh the bad in the mind of a firefighter or EMS.
2) With all the terminology firefighters have to use it can be easy to mess up as Perry showed. Do you think it was unprofessional of him to use the term "flat-linner" in front of a family member? Why or why not?'
Yes it was unprofessional but not to the point of being inconsiderate. With all the terms i'm sure it's easy to get mixed up and he still had to communicate to the ambulance what was going on. He could have used much worse terms but, I think, even under pressure he still found a suitable replacement word.
3) In this chapter, Perry takes a cat out to shoot it because it is very sick. Do you think this is ethical or should he have taken it to be ethanized? Why?
Personally, growing up on a farm I would side with how Perry handeled the situation. It isn't a pleasant thing to do, however it is better than letting the cat suffer. On a normal farm it wouldn't be possible to humanly euthanize every animal that was to sick to survive just for financial reasons. If the cat was killed with the best intentions in mind then I believe that anyway you do it, as long as it is done quickly, is ethical.
4) "Memory is a means of possession, but eventually, the greatest grace is found in letting go" Do you agree with this quote? Why or why not?
I do not completly agree with this quote. I think that letting painful memories go is part of a healing process, but I think we still need to keep good memories of people we have lost to keep them close in our hearts. I can relate to this because my mother died when I was young. My younger sister has come to me crying because she cannot remember certain details of our mother. I am thankful that I still have those memories to remember my mom and try to live up to who she would want me to be.
Article Finder-Stephanie LaPointe
Article Finder
Chapters 9 and 10
This article was chosen based on the fact that most of chapters nine and ten were dedicated towards one of the most important pieces of equipment a firefighter posses, a pager. Pagers are electronic devices that alert a firefighters about emergency calls. Pagers allow firefighters to go about their normal business on a day-to-day business, and alert them if they are needed. This article about pagers contained loads of information; everything from their own blog, to all different kinds of pagers to buy. One should pay attention to this article if they are reading Population: 485 because Perry mentions multiple times in many of the chapters about his pager. He talks about the significance, and how important it is to helping others. By gaining a better understand of the important parts to Perry's job will allow one to understand the book better.
Vocabulary Builder -Stephanie LaPointe
1. Scythe (pg 153)- An agricultural implement consisting of a long, curving blade fastened at an angle to a handle, for cutting grass, grain, etc., by hand. 2. Sclera (pg 156)- A dense, white, fibrous membrane that, with the cornea, forms the external covering of the eyeball.
3. Abattoir (pg 161)- A slaughterhouse.
4. Conflate (pg 162)- To fuse into one entity; merge.
5. Feral (pg 166)- Existing in a natural state, as animals or plants; not domesticated or cultivated; wild.
6. Litany (pg 174)- a ceremonial or liturgical form of prayer consisting of a series of invocations or supplications with responses that are the same for a number in succession.
7. Palimpsest (pg 175)- A parchment or the like from which writing has been partially or completely erased to make room for another text.
8. Primordial (pg 175)- Constituting a beginning; giving origin to something derived or developed; original.
9. Irrevocable (pg 175)- Not to be revoked or recalled; unable to be repealed or annulled; unalterable.
10. Spasmodic (pg 177)- Pertaining to or of the nature of a spasm; characterized by spasms.
Population 485: December 3, 2010
What our group found surprising about chapters nine through eleven was the chapter titled "Cat." This chapter started off with a story about the author having to kill a sickly cat. The reason this surprised us was the fact that Perry started with this story, and didn't follow up on it later in the chapter. In every other chapter so far he has started with a story and ended by coming full circle and talking about that story again. We believe this is because the chapter was focused on coming and going, and once something is gone, like the cat, it's gone. Some other parts of New Auburn that have come and gone in the past years, according to Perry are the brick factory, the old wooden schoolhouse, and the old three-corner gas station at the corner of Main and Old Highway 53, and the old Farmers Store to name a few. Like the cat story, once Perry was finished telling the story, he didn't talk about it again in the chapter. One of the old-timers once said to Perry, "Well, it served its purpose" (pg 170).
The assumptions the author had coming into the book were the reader was interested in learning more about small town life and firefighting or that the reader already knew about it. The author assumed that one would have a small knowledge about these aspects of his book. Perry did explain some details such as what certain farming equipment was or explain parts of firefighting just incase one didn't know everything about firefighting or small town life. The assumptions our group had at the beginning were that the book was going to be based off of a firefighter living in a small town, but it was much more than that. A large portion of the book was dedicated towards discussing the life of being a firefighter living in a small town, but it also explained the author's life lessons, the life of a close-knit community, and the hardships the author had to endure. We found that this is much more interesting than just soley the life of a firefighter. We can understand why he has the opinions he does and he is generally more personably.
The most interesting thing we learned occured in chapter 9 when he was talking about getting out of bed quickly for alarms. He said, "a firefighter's heart rate increases by over sixty-beats per minute in the first fifteen seconds after an alarm sounds" (pg 144). When Perry writes he generally uses his own ideas and how he perceives things, but we were happy he threw in this quote. We can see that he used outside sources so that it is not just his opinion, and also it is a staggering quote that makes you think about it more than just saying "and our heart rate speeds up". The was also interesting when you think about it what is actually happening. One minute a firefighter might just be sitting around, maybe reading a book or doing something on the computer. Then next thing they know an alarm has gone off and their heart rate has increased dramatically. In just fifteen seconds, a firefighters heart rate increases by sixty beats per minute, thats pretty interesting if you ask us. It would be interesting to see research conducted on this piece of data and how it might affect other people individually.
The ideal audience for this book is anyone who is interested in learning more about the small town life. Also, this book is great for anyone who is interested in firefighting, more specifically, in a small town setting. Anyone who has ever lived in a smaller town would be able to relate to this book and be able to connect to some of the points Perry makes. For example, anyone who has lived in small town knows that there are certain characters that everyone knows and will remember for some time after they pass away. This is just one of the many connections that a person could make with Perry's book. Ultimately, the ideal audience for the book Population: 485, is for people who have lived in a small town, or are curious about the interesting lifestyle.
A question that we would've like to have seen addressed by the author is what other people thought about his opinion on certain subjects. For example, what did other firefighters think about having to deliver a baby? Also, it would've been interesting to see what the people of New Auburn thought of thier fire department. A situation that wasn't in the book that we were curious about was what happens after the fire. The author briefly mentioned once about cleaning up, but how long does it take? Who is in charge of the clean up? Is the fire department even in charge of cleaning up after a fire or is that job delegated to a different task force or simply left to the owners of the property to decide what to do? Overall, the author did a great job covering all different sorts of situations and questions a reader might have.
Megan- Vocab Finder Chapter 10
1) Word: Commiserative
Page: 164
Definition: to feel or express sorrow or sympathy for; empathize with; pity
2) Word: Anthropomorphism
Page: 167
Definition: the attribution of human form or behavior to a deity, animal
3) Word: Preponderant
Page: 168
4) Word: Percolation
Page: 175
Definition: the slow movement of water through the pores in soil or permeable rock.
5) Word: Palimpsest
Page: 175
Definition: a parchment or the like from which writing has been partially or completely erased to make room for another text
6) Word: Primordial
Page: 175
Definition: pertaining to or existing at or from the very beginning
7) Word: Plangent
Page: 176
Definition: having a loud deep sound; resonant and mournful sound
8) Word: Louvered
Page: 178
Definition: a door, window, or the like, having adjustable louvers
9) Word: Palpate
Page: 179
Definition: to examine by touch, esp. for the purpose of diagnosing disease or illness.
10) Word: Eradicated
Page: 180
Definition: to remove or destroy utterly
All definitions found on Dictionary.com
All definitions found on Dictionary.com
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