You should read "The Australia Connection"

..........because you can learn a lot of Australia. Also it's very interesting except that some parts are a bit unrealistic and to long (for example the drive to Sydney).
It's a good thing that at the end of the book is a short vocabulary, so that the book was very easy to read that's why I like to read the book even more.
The whole story is realistic and varied. It's about love, music and family problems and so a really good mixture.

My impression about the book

In my opinion it was a wunderful book. You learned a lot of Australia. I really could imagine how it looks there, when I read for example the chapter about the rain forest.
Also I think it was really a fantastic happy end - Alex and Dani become a couple and live together in England, where they have a successful band " The Dolphines" - I think it's a kitschy band name - but for them the name have a meaning.
Also it's a little bit pity, that in the end nothing had been told about the relation between Alex and his father, or at least something about their parting when Alex flys back to England.

*******************************************************

The End

A mini saga for chapter 9 and 10

The Beat Crew brakes up, because Pete and Joe get drunk in every free moment, so Dani and Alex don't want anything to do with them, also their new song "Huging Me" isn't successful.
That´s why Dani move with Alex to England , where they become a new band "The Dolphines".


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

--------- The song - "Hugging Me" ----------

Hugging me,

let me never alone,

I will stay forever with you together

I can't live without you !

"Up to the top..." - Chapter Eight

In my opinion the situation,
where Dani and Alex were
standing on the lighthouse
and looking at the sea, was
the best part, because I
imagine this situation very
romantic. Also I fancy that
the sight at the dolphins
was looking very beautiful.
I have never seen dolphines
in the nature in their own living space and so I think it would
be a lovly sight.

How did you feel if you read this part of the 8th chapter ?

Do you agree with my comment ?

"Father and son " - 7th chapter

After reading chapter 7.

Comment on the following quote: "And, of course, Alex understood only too well." (p.43, l.33)2. Write a different ending of the chapter: "That night, when Alex had gone to sleep, TOM picked up his diary and began writing." (compare p.43, l.34f)

The way I see it, the author will tell us that Alex understand now why did his father leave the family. Tom had explained him very emotional that he wasn´t ready to become an adult, he didnt´t want to grow up so quickly, so that Alex really comprehended the reason for leaving the family.

Dear diary,

I am with my son Alex for four days on a desert island. All day

long we talked about the past and slowly we get to know each

other better.I really like him, I think he is very clever like his

mum. This evening he asked me that question which I feared all

the time, why did I leave the family. I explained him my motives

in a very detail way. He listened to me carfully and I think he

understood me. Hopefully he can forgive me some time!

I know it was a big mistake to leave him. But now I will try my

best to be a good father for him and I will help Alex whenever he

has a problem. But I think I never can be the real father for him,

he always will see a friend in me !!!

After I read 6th chapter

I was very shocked when I read that Tom apologize to Alex for didn´t contact him for 16 years. I had never expected this, I think it´s unnecessary, you can´t change the past. (what was happened is happend. "was geschehen ist, ist geschehen"- can anybody help me by this sentence? Please write a comment! - Thank you Mrs. Karstädt)

I was right when I wrote that Alex and Tom will have a small argument, but only Alex was angry and reproche his father. (P.31/23-27) Tom setteled his son and apoglize to Alex. "All I can say is, I´m sorry." (P.32/9)

Mainly they taked at their first meet why Tom never contact Alex, but Tom didn´t tell Alex in a detail way why he left the family.

At the end of the chapter Alex likes his father, because the text says:" he had lost a father but found a friend."

Before I read chapter 6th

I think Alex will be very shy at first, because he hadn´t seen his father for many years !
But maybe then Alex will take his father to task because he never tried to see or contact him and it could be a little argument.
After that they could ask each other, what did they do in the past and what hobbies do they have. Maybe T0m wanted to know if Alex have a plan what he want to study or do in the future.

________Questions ???__________

My questions to chapter 5 :
1. Why was the journey back to Sydney a nightmare ?
2.How do you find the song text of Dani´s band ?
3. Why Alex played a wrong note at the live-act ?
4.Do you like this chapter ?

Disagreement between Alex and Dani

The fourth chapter

Alex decided to go with Dani´s band on tour, where he is the bass guitarist. In their freetime Alex became closer to Dani and they even kissed. Will they get a couple ?

After that Dani showed Alex the little blue penguines which were floodlighted. Many people were standing on a wodden platform and looked at the penguines and their babies. Dani asked Alex if they were sweet. But he didn´t think like Dani and he said to her if the penguines enjoy it to be in the spotlight, upon which she hurt Alex feelings. That was their first disagreement !

But on the way back to the hotel they were now reconciled and they kissed a second time!

I think this disagreement was very unnecessary, because the topic was irrelevant. But it was fine that they got on well with each other.

third chapter "the island and the mountain"

Discribe what happens on top of St. Mary´s Peck ?
Why does Alex think "Let him see how he likes it" ?
Who is he ? What will he likes or not ?

This chapter is about Alex week in Adelaid by the family Williams. Alex makes with the son Kevin of the William family a trip to the St. Mary´s Peck, the highest mountain in Australia. They sleep in a tent and climb on the top of the mountain. On the top Alex learns something more about his father Tom. Kevin suggests too that Alex father had pretended that he did not exist.
I can imagine how cross and disapointed Alex is. I think everybody would be angry about this, or ?
In the night Alex thinks "Let him see how he likes it", because he is angry that his father disowns his son. So Alex will see how his father Tom will react when Alex isn`t there if he returns home from England. Alex want that his father feels the disappointment which Alex felt when he arrived at Sydney airport and his father wasn´t there.

The second chapter "Hello Australia"

My opinion of Alex first 66 hours in OZ:

I was shocked when I read that Alex father didn´t welcome him on the airport. Alex was very
disappointed, I can understand him!
Tom could have visited his son in Britain when he flew to London. That´s very strange.
But the rest of his first 66 hours in OZ was fantastic for Alex. Above all that he got to know some youths in his age - and then there is Dani, a pretty girl. Alex likes her at once.

Will Alex fall in love with her?
What do you think?

Australian Connection - " The trip of a lifetime "

My first impression :
I think the first chapter is a good introduction, because you get an impression about the central person Alex and his familie. Also you get informations about the main story and the progress, so I am very curious how the realationship with Alex father and him will be develop.
The first chapter was easy to read and there weren´t many words that I didn`t know,so it was fun to read this chapter.