The Daily Dish
"The Summoning", Kelley Armstrong
This Chicken's Chock Full of Secrets
Many things unbelievable come to life and take place in “The Summoning”. The story takes place in the Lyle House, which is a home for “troubled teens”. The main characters Chloe, Rae and the foster duo, Derek and Simon, are teenagers with “disorders”. But their disorders are really just powers. Chloe is a necromancer, with the power to summon ghosts. Derek is a wolf, with the power to transform. Simon is a magician with the power of spell casting. Finally, Rae is a half demon, with the prominent power of fire. They are all stuck in the Lyle House with a medical diagnosis of a mental disorder. Once Chloe starts to uncover some strange facts about the house’s past, Chloe realizes the house isn’t what it seems. Subsequently, the teens figure out that they all have powers, not mental disorders. They soon come to the conclusion that they are all supernatural’s, and in the house for another reason. Derek and Simon decide that they need to find their dad, hopefully finding some answers about their powers. The book ends off with Derek, Simon, Rae and Chloe escaping the house to find Derek and Simon’s dad.
Tasty Designs
I chose the media elements for my page for a specific reason. The background is a photo of a house that is similar to what I envisioned the Lyle House looking like. I wanted to use that because the main setting for “The Summoning” is the Lyle House. I chose the colour blue as my font because it is a very calm and welcoming colour. I feel like there would be a lot of blue in the Lyle House, and the reasoning would be the same. But, blue can also be associated with confusion and fear. There definitely is a lot of that feeling in the book. I chose the font because it was a very prominent design. It stood out and didn’t seem dull to me. The font is large and blocky, making it easy to read and eye catching. Overall, everything I have chosen does indeed relate back to the book.
Derek Souza (Scott McCall - Teen Wolf, potrayed by Tyler Posey)
I chose the character of Scott to play Derek because he really stops at nothing to get what he wants or needs. I think he is a powerful character. Derek is the same way. He will do anything to protect Simon and to help out Chloe. But as they are both powerful characters, this coincides with the fact that they both have a large ego and neither of them is very good at excepting help. In the end of the book, Derek was transforming into a Werewolf (too soon), making him extremely sick and irritable, so Chloe tried to help him. Humiliated, Derek denied help. One time Scott was very ill, and his pack members (Scott is a werewolf as well) tried to help him, but he also denied help because of his ego.
Chloe Saunders (Aria Montgomery - Pretty Little Liars, potrayed by Lucy Hale)
Simon Bae (Harry Potter - Harry Potter Series, potrayed by Daniel Radcliffe)
Breaking the Wish Bone
The authors’ message in “The Summoning” is a very unique one. I think the message is to get out of situations that pressure you and to ‘breakaway’. The song fits very well to the book because it is about breaking away. In the book, Chloe is trying to first break away from the home and her disorder, but then she is trying to break away from the home and the people there who are pressuring her. Chloe tries to get away from Dr. Gill, Tori and everyone else who is there because Chloe knows she doesn’t belong there. At the end of the book, Chloe finally gets out of the home, and she makes her ‘breakaway’. Although with her friends and still with her powers, she has them under control and she is no longer pressured. Chloe really does feel as though she has made her ‘breakaway’.
I think the song talks about how life used to be normal, but then everything changed. This is like how Chloe had a fairly normal life but now she is stuck in the Lyle House, being told she is schizophrenic. The song also talks about how even though it has all changed, you can still breakaway. In the book, Chloe knows this, and throughout it all, she still fights for her ‘breakaway’. Chloe shows this by not taking the pills to help her “disorder” and she also investigates and researches the house and a way to get out. When Chloe discovers the houses past, she knows that she really does need to ‘breakaway’. So Chloe gathers what she needs, spreads her wings and breaks away from the pressuring, uncomfortable and unsafe Lyle House.
Breakaway - Kelly Clarkson
And when the rain would fall down
I'd just stare out my window
Dreaming of what could be
And if I'd end up happy
I would pray (I would pray)
Trying hard to reach out
But when I tried to speak out
Felt like no one could hear me
Wanted to belong here
But something felt so wrong here
So I prayed I could break away
[Chorus:]
I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly
I'll do what it takes til' I touch the sky
And I'll make a wish
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway
Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget all the ones that I love
I'll take a risk
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway
Wanna feel the warm breeze
Sleep under a palm tree
Feel the rush of the ocean
Get onboard a fast train
Travel on a jet plane, far away (I will)
And breakaway
[Chorus]
Buildings with a hundred floors
Swinging around revolving doors
Maybe I don't know where they'll take me but
Gotta keep moving on, moving on
Fly away, breakaway
I'll spread my wings
And I'll learn how to fly
Though it's not easy to tell you goodbye
I gotta take a risk
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway
Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget the place I come from
I gotta take a risk
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway, breakaway, breakaway