Short Story Birthday Box By Jane Yolen

Kate suffers from a form of nervous depression. Her husband, who is also her doctor, believes her illness is the cause of her feelings toward the house. John belittles the illness and most of his wife’s thoughts and concerns. Her prescribed treatment is to basically do nothing. She is not even allowed to work or write. She believes that activity and freedom would could treat her.

Katharine Brush’s short story “Birthday party” depicts a man treating his wife rudely after his wife surprised him for his birthday. Brush tries to show the readers that people shouldn’t be rude or ungrateful when a loved one tries to impress them. Brush used imagery and assonance to achieve her purpose.

Firstly, Kate is noticeably affected almost immediately after the death of her mother and father. We see this by her descriptive quotes about how she was feeling and the observations she made about others in her life. Some instances include “I remember being rigid with fear, not daring to look at him” (19), “it was like being at the bottom of the sea” (53), and “...there was a whirlwind howling through me” (54). These quotes represent how Kate felt overwhelmed by unmanageable emotions; she felt almost numb and empty. She even ends up cutting her finger just to feel something and it hardly hurt at all. This is a confused, traumatized little girl. Next, Kate is affected by the basic principles her parents taught. The simple memory of her parents provoked thought of the Presbyterian Commandments they would follow. These principles shape who she is and represent a background where people do not talk about problems or share emotions. “No, you swallow your feelings, force them down inside yourself, where they feed and grow and swell and expand until you explode, unforgivably, to the utter bewilderment of whomever it was who upset you” (36). Lastly, the trauma she has endured has made her scared. Scared of sharing feelings, scared of commitment, scared of loving someone. Daniel, Kate’s boyfriend, feels he is in the dark when it comes to Kate’s past and her emotions. This is because Kate is simply scared to love him. She proves this and it’s connection to her past by saying, “people I love and need have a habit of disappearing from my life” (89). The death of her parents has definitely shaped who she is but some may say, it helped her show resilience and strength to embrace her past and move

On these pages, Katie can be seen to be suffering from anxiety. An example of this would be when she states “When were they saying? Had I done something wrong in class? My stomach contracted with dread…” (Page 128). This struggle of hers originates to the death of her parents. As a result of them dying, she has developed an anxiety problem and a constant fear of being a disappointed for people, and especially

First, Katie is good at staying positive. Throughout the story, Katie encounters many difficult and harmful situations. Her past is full of sadness and horrible memories. When she was only nineteen, she lost both of her parents to a horrific car accident. After that happened, Katie found a husband, Kevin, who loved her for about the first year of their marriage, but as time

She couldn’t talk to anyone because she didn’t trust anyone and couldn’t tell anyone the truth. Katie had to start a new life, find somewhere else to live, and find a new job. A long term effect for her would be that no matter where she goes she has to make sure that she is watching out to see if he is following her. She will never feel safe around anyone especially around cops because he was a cop and he could have them looking out for her anywhere that she could possibly go. Katie could have stayed for so long in that relationship for many of reasons that were not told in the story but we could introduce some of the reasons why they do stay in the

I’m writing a essay about a book called Kira-Kira written by Cynthia Kadohata. Katie and her sister Lynn are best friends, but after a while she became sick. After a while they found out why she was sick, she had a disease called Lymphoma which means cancer in the blood. When the family knew about it they tried to do anything they can to make Lynn happy before something terrible happens.

Through Anna’s character and viewpoint, the author allows the reader to see through this brave, gently, and strong girl all the other characters portray Anna to be. Anna constantly finds herself asking if she would even be alive if Kate hadn’t been diagnosed, she’s constantly batting between weather her parents wanted her verses just needed her to keep the daughter they wanted alive. Anna loves her sister and she’s happy to help her sister out, everyone sees that, but because the author lets her narrate a great portion of the book the reader can see she secretly wants a life of her own. The reader hears Anna say, “I’m not sick but I might as well be” also this one, “lately, I’ve been having nightmares where I’m cut into so many pieces that there isn’t enough of me to be put back together.” (Picoult xx)

Earlier pages of the book demonstrates Katie’s dislike. Page 18 illustrates her father convincing her to eat her toast. On the fourth panel her father says “There are children starving in Africa” then Katie replies with, “Send it to them, then.” (Green 18:2:2) This foreshadows the events that will take place later in the comic. There are different instances where the dark cloud gives Katie a negative perception that feels real but does not exist. Because of this, Katie gets held back from feeling like a normal

Katie is a 17 year old adolescence diagnosed with cancer since she was 3 years old. The doctor told her parents, back then, that only if they had a new born child, it would be able to donate its sister so that she could survive in future times.

There did seem to me, to be an air of giving up, as far as the family was concerned. Perhaps years of Katie’s antics, or shame from years of not acting themselves, have hardened most of the family towards this situation. It was bizarre to watch, often seeming to me as the rhetoric and feelings

“Molly, we have something to tell you,” my parents said, walking into the living room with saddened looks on their faces. I paused the movie and awaited their news. “Your grandma has been diagnosed with cancer.” I definitely was not expecting that to be the news, so it hit me like a brick wall; I was troubled and overwhelmed by the news to such an extent that I was speechless. She has been an important figure in my life for as long as I can remember and has always been there to listen and give me advice whenever I need it. Her insight into the important things in life has helped me and will continue to as I pursue my dreams for years to come.

When she turned on the tv in the living room the News was on. The News reporters were at the scene of the car accident and he said, “There are two kids missing one by the name of Katie Williams and the other by the name of Jeremy Williams with their pictures next to their names. Also, they have been missing for twenty four hours after their parents have been found dead in a car accident. If you have seen them call the number on the bottom of the screen.” Katie turned it off to cartoons right when Jeremy walked in because she didn’t want him to be worried and cry even more than he already

One thing that is special to Katie are the old essays that her dad wrote in high school. They are special to her because when her dad died she found them and it was another way of getting close to him. “ I remember reading some of his old essays and just crying. I couldn't throw thoughts out,” says katie on page 46. Another thing that Katie thinks is special to her is and old baby animal

From the beginning of the book, Kate is seen as sort of a victimized character. A person you only see through the scope of others, and you can simply judge as the “tough as nails/keeps on smiling/fun, caring sister” leukemia patient. Though, just when the reader is thinking the twists in the novel couldn’t get any more trite or predictable (another arguable point(I swear this is the last one)), cancer-stricken Kate throws said reader a curveball. Towards the end of the story, Anna reveals to the reader, that in a conversation she and Kate had, Kate admitted that she had no desire to live and had attempted suicide. This revelation, of course, changes the way the reader sees Kate, and realizes with more sympathy, the reasons for Anna’s seemingly selfish decision.