Interviewer: Hello Steven Herrick and welcome to 2ESL FM Radio station.Steven Herrick: Hello and thank you its great to be here.Interviewer: So were here to talk about your latest book the Simple Gift, now what exactly is the book about?Steven Herrick: Well the Simple Gift is about a boy called Billy and is trying to over come all the opsticals of life.Interviewer: So who would you say are the main charaters of the book?Steven Herrick: I would have to say Billy, Caitlin and old Bill, you know its based around them.Interviewer: Yeah I know what you mean and when do we first meet Caitlin in the book?Steven Herrick: Well Caitlin first comes into the book at the McDonalds scene were Billy is sealing scraps from abandoned tables and Caitlin is there mopping floors and she sees him but doesn’t tell the manager on him, she felt sorry for him.Interviewer: Yeah and what age groups do you think would best suit this book?Steven Herrick: I would say any were from 12 to late 40’s you know it’s a large age group.Interviewer: Yeah and when does old bill come into the book?Steven Herrick: Well you first meet old Bill in chapter 4 and billy finds him on the train track with a bottle and a pack of cigarettes.Interviewer What stage do you think caitlin and billy are at in there romantic relationship? By the end of the book?Steven Herrick: Well I think by the end of the book they are pretty close, you know because they have told each other how they feel and had a bit of a hug so yeah I would say there pretty close.Interviewer: Do you think Billy see’s Old Bill as a father figure?Steven Herrick: Yeah I would say when billy first meets old bill he does remind him abit of his father but after a while he lerans that old bill is in some ways very different to his father.Interviewer: Well that’s about all we have got time for thanks for coming Steven Herrick.Steven Herrick: It was my pleasure!

A lot of the book is about friend ship, kindness and random acts of generosity.I think Billy is a kind boy but has grown up in a bad family and he is trying to make a new and better life for himself.The simple gift shows you a different view of the world and shows you the world through a homless boy trying to make life better for himself, A grumpy homless old man missing his family and wishing the world would leave him alone and a rich girl just trying to be normal.Billy is afraid of turning out like his dad and he can imagine turning out likee that  and that’s when it hits, he needs to make a new life, a new start.

    No not really he is just a nice old train driver.    No not really because he is only in the start of the book not really the end.   No I don’t think he really does. Irene (librarian) Minor, She is only in some chapters thro out the book.     

     Not really, she is just a librarian   I think she really just stays the same through out the book.   No I don’t think she really does she reminds me a little bit of Caitlin the way they are both very kind. Caitlin Major, because she is one of the main characters and in some chapters it has like Caitlin written at the top of the page and its like what she is thinking and doing. 

       Yes sort of in a way, she is stereotyped as a rich girl but nice at the same time and some times wishes that she wasn’t so rich.   I think Caitlin towards the middle of the book she goes behind her parents back a lot more like dating Billy and not telling her parents.  No I don’t think she really does she reminds me a little bit of Irene the way they are both very kind. Caitlin’s parents Minor, Because they are only in the book in a couple of chapters.     

    Yes, They are just rich snobs.   Nope I think they are the same through out the book.   No I they don’t really compare to any one else in the book. Old Bill’s family Minor, we never meet them because they died and we only hear about them.    

    No not really, but you don’t hear really that much about them.   Well you never actually meet them you only hear about them.  No I they don’t really compare to any one else in the book. Brent Matthews (welfare officer)  Minor, Because he is only in a couple of chapters. 

      Not really he is just a welfare officer.   No not really.  No I they don’t really compare to any one else in the book.
]]> http://catsrock.wordpress.com/2007/03/28/deconstructing-the-text/feed/ 0 catsrock http://catsrock.wordpress.com/2007/03/22/plot-summary-cloze/ http://catsrock.wordpress.com/2007/03/22/plot-summary-cloze/#comments Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:43:33 +0000 catsrock http://catsrock.wordpress.com/2007/03/22/plot-summary-cloze/ ]]> The Simple Gift is a free verse novel told from the perspectives of  three
main characters Billy, Caitlin and Old Bill.

Using first person narrative creates a sense of realism enabling the responder
to get to know the characters and to be able to identify with them.
The use of colloquial language also engages the devastated audience.The concept of a ‘simple gift’ is depicted in the themes of friendship ,random acts of kindness,
and young adult. These themes represent what is valued by the main characters and
what is practiced by the minor characters Irene and Ernie .Billy escapes from his abusive father and his depressed neighbourhood, Nowheresville.
He meets train driver, Ernie as he travels by train to Bendarat .
Ernie is kind and generous and offers Billy a warm guard’s cabin, food and a hot drink.
Billy notices the differences between men like Ernie and men like his father .Billy spends his first days in Bendarat at the local library where he meets Irene the Librarian.
She is warm and friendly towards Billy. He finds somewhere to live, a disused open generosity.As Billy has limited money to obtain food, he goes to McDonald’s and eats other people’s leftovers.
It is here that he meets Caitlin. She witnesses Billy’s scavenging but decides not to report him to the manager.
Gradually Billy and Caitlin become friends .
Billy notices that she has clean hair and appears to be rich as she wears a gold watch. He delays making a Judgement about her because of her friendliness.Billy discovers he has a neighbour at the train yard. It is an old drunk called Old Bill.
Throughout the story it is discovered that Old Bill is escaping from reality by
drinking alcohol so that he won’t remember his wife and daughter who have passed away.Old Bill and Billy become good friends. Billy realises that Old Bill needs his help
He brings him a bowl of Weet-bix every morning and encourages him to stop drinking.
They share a common bond; they are both homeless and have escaped from something they would rather forget.
They work together at the Golden Crest Cannery and as their friendship develops
Old Bill reduces his smoking and drinking .Old Bill shares his sorrowful story of how his wife and daughter died and Billy calls him ‘the saddest man in the world’.Old Bill witnesses the relationship between Billy and Caitlin grow.
They all share a meal at Caitlin’s parents’ home and Old Bill is truly grateful .Caitlin also wishes to escape from her wealthy lifestyle.
She mops floors at Mc Donald’s to earn enough money to move out of home.
Her parents are unaware that she is seeing Billy.Billy is stopped in the street by two policemen who organise an appointment
with the welfare officer, Brent Stevens . Billy is drinking .
He considers running away from Bendarat but doesn’t want to leave Caitlin and Old Bill.

On hearing of Billy’s problem Old Bill thinks of a plan to help Billy.
He decides to fix up his train carriage, and allow Billy and Caitlin to live there.
Old Bill was a lawyer before the death of this wife and daughter.
He uses this knowledge to argue Billy’s case to the Welfare Officer.Billy and Caitlin move into Old Bill’s house and Caitlin decides to tell her parents about Billy.
Old Bill travels to the Great Barrier Reef  to live his daughter’s dream.

Beside each of the statements below write ‘T’ if the statement is true or ‘F’ is the statement is false.(F) Billy helps Old Bill because he reminds him of his father. (T) Caitlin had different values and beliefs to her parents. (F) Old Bill has been an alcoholic all his life. (T) Billy thinks Irene is a like the Librarians he has met before. (T) Ernie owns the speedboat. (F) Billy’s father is kind hearted. (F) Bendarat is a wealthy country town. (T) Caitlin hates mopping floors at McDonald’s. (F) Caitlin’s father forces her to work at McDonald’s. (F) Billy takes Bunkbrain with him to keep warm at night. (T) Billy lives in carriage 1864. (T) Caitlin is ashamed of herself after she sees Billy with Old Bill. (T) Billy’s father physically abused Billy. (T) Billy believes there is ‘honour in poverty’. (F) Old Bill’s family live in another town. (T) Old Bill goes to the Great Barrier Reef . (F) Caitlin tells her parents about her relationship with Billy. (F) Billy bought Caitlin an emerald ring. (T) Billy did not give the ring to Caitlin. (T) Caitlin is wealthy. (F) Brent Stevens, the Welfare Officer meets with Billy and Caitlin. (T) Billy helps Old Bill because he needs it. (F) Caitlin does not like Billy’s ‘home’. (F) Caitlin is proud to come from a wealthy family. (T) Billy believes that friendship is more important than money. (F) Irene suggests Billy go to TAFE.

 I would like to achieve better grades this year because through out last year i did very poorly and i new i was doing badly through out the year but i didnt do any thing about it i could have but i didnt infact i thought who cares it i do badly its just greades? i’ll get over it, i’ll pass, but then when i got my report and looked through it i realised that i did care i was just influenced by the people around me and that i really do wanna do better so i’ll get i better job than working in safe ways all my life and have a happy healthy life, So this year i made it my goal to get better greades and pass year nine proudly in stead of scraping through like i did in year eight and i did nothing that i could be proud of in year eight this year i wanna do alot things that i could be proud of.