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Overall Premise
I Am Number Four, revolves around a teenager temporarily named John living in Paradise, Ohio. While being hunted by a species from another planet that wants to destroy all of Earth, John faces the struggles of attempting to remain hidden from the vicious creatures.Throughout the book John develops powers to use in battle against the creatures. Thankfully, he receives help from his all-knowing mentor, Henri. I wanted to read this book because I saw people reading it, and it looked intriguing. -
Event 1-- New School
Arriving in Ohio, John knew that he would have to start at a new school once again. On the first day of school John had excellent luck! His first power started to develop and it came with blinding light beams shooting out of his hands unexpectedly. With everyone staring in disbelief, John bolted out of the classroom. It wasn’t his ideal first day of school. Thinking: This event stood out to me because I had not expected an event so climactic to take place right away in the book. -
Event 2 -- New Friends
As John gets oriented with his new school, he makes two new friends. One of his friends, Sam, is is convinced that aliens are real and is constantly bullied by the jocks at school because of it. Additionally, John makes friends with a girl named Sarah who he secretly has a crush on. These three teens become very close-knit as the book progresses. Thinking: This event greatly influences the rest of the book because these three characters serve important roles in propelling the book forward. -
Event 3 -- The guardian
One night Henri and John hear suspicious scratching and growling noises at their front door. Worried that the Mogadorians, the species that is hunting John, have found them, Henri grabs a gun and quickly opens the door ready for the worst. However, to their surprise, a small beagle stands at the door without any sign of prior ownership. John and Henri adopt the dog, and it becomes a guardian for John. Thinking: This event reminds me of my dog, and how she is comforting and protecting to me. -
Event 4 -- Halloween
On John’s first Halloween in Ohio he decided to go to the town’s Halloween festival with Sam and Sarah. They went on the hayride through the woods that the jocks organized. The hayride didn’t end very well because the jocks ambushed John and Sam with flying punches and took Sarah. Fearful of what they might do to Sarah, John fights through the pain and darkness to find Sarah while using his powers. Thinking: This event gave me the impression that the jocks are cruel and don’t think about safety. -
Event 5 -- Training
In the winter months after John had developed some of his powers, telekinesis and fire resistance, Henri had started to train John. They worked on perfecting the use of his powers and how to control them. This turned out to be very difficult, and it had required a lot of practice. Thinking: This event stood out to me because I relate to John. I know that perfecting a certain skill can be complicated if it is new territory. Also, this prepares John for upcoming events and builds the action. -
Event 6 -- Burning House
One night John and his friends were invited to a party at a jock’s house. However, something terrible happened. As the night was wrapping up, a fire had started inside the house. Sarah was nowhere to be seen, so John went in to find her. Since he is fire resistant, he ran through the house unscathed until he found Sarah. Thinking: This event was important because it jeopardized John’s safety because people saw him fly out of the house with Sarah like superman which caused a lot of publicity. -
Event 7 -- Mogadorians
One day John had stayed after school with Sarah to finish up their work. All at once, the power went out, and there was nobody to be seen in the school. John heard suspicious noises coming from outside, and he knew what was happening. The Mogadorians had found him. Taking Sarah by the arm, he rushed into the nearest classroom to hide. Thinking: This event was very suspenseful for me because it was part of the climax of the story. Everything else in the book had led up to this moment. -
Event 8 -- Number Six
While John was hiding with Sarah in the classroom waiting for his chance to fight, a girl with long blond hair bursted through the door. She was number six of the nine Lorien teens. John was astonished that six had came to help them. Thankfully, she had brought Henri and Sam with her as backup to fight the Mogadorians. Thinking: This event has an important role in the upcoming books of the series because number six guides John through hardships to come because she is more experienced. -
Event 9 -- Fight Until Death
The battle with the Mogadorians began shortly after six and the others came to help. It was a grueling fight that lasted hours and brought upon many injuries and near death experiences. To their dismay, Henri was killed. He lunged to save John’s life from a Mogadorian behind him, and he was stabbed in the stomach. John was devastated, for there was nothing he could do besides finish the battle. Thinking: This event ended in sorrow, and it greatly contributed to the emotional factor of the book. -
Event 10 -- Saying Goodbye
After the battle with the Mogadorians had finished and the victory had set in, John had a difficult goodbye to make. Even though they had defeated some of the creatures, they weren’t extinct yet. As a result, John and six have to leave Ohio and find the others numbers so they can unite and defeat the Mogadorians. Therefore, John is forced to say goodbye to Sarah, whom he will immensely miss. Thinking: I related to this event because I said goodbye to my best friend when she moved to California. -
Reflection Explanation
Overall, I thought that I Am Number Four was a fantastic book! It gave me a great sense of suspense and emotion. I also felt like I was apart of the book or that the events were actually happening because it was very convincing and captivating. Additionally, the writing style of the author made the book seem very believable. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes action but also enjoys emotional books. Thankfully it is a series because I cannot wait to read the next book!
