Sara’s Letter-Essay #9: “The Raft”

I have recently finished reading The Raft written by S.A. Bodeen. It is a 231 page realistic fiction book. I chose to read this because I have read it before and it was a very entertaining and interesting read. The great amount of suspense kept me flipping the pages and it was difficult to put down. I also chose this book because I love to read suspenseful books. Additionally, the author incorporated a lot of detail and description so I can picture exactly what is going on. It was very enjoyable to discover the outcome of the story.

A 16 year old girl, Robie is visiting her aunt in Hawaii. She soon has to get to her home on Midway island in a hurry, so she gets on the next flight alone, at the last minute.  Everything is going well until one engine breaks down and the new co-pilot Max, is yelling at Robie to put on a life jacket and jump out the window of the plane as it plunges into the vast body of water. Max and Robie are the only survivors of the crash. They are in the middle of the ocean with no water, all they have is a raft, and a bag of skittles. No one even knows they are out there. Robie is fighting for her life out there and there is nobody coming to help anytime soon.

I liked the way the author included many descriptive passages. Also, I loved how the book consisted of a lot of suspense. It was hard to stop reading. The authors provided many examples of author’s craft and signposts. The structure of this book was very organized and I enjoyed all of the events that occurred

This passage takes place when the Plane is starting to crash and fall down into the ocean. S.A. Bodeen wrote:

 

“Everything was fuzzy. Dull.

None of it could possible be real. The G-1 bounced all over, and then we went into a dive, so steep by belle straightened against the seat belt, and then I couldn’t do anything but hold my hands over my face and scream into them. I didn’t see Max coming until he was right there. With one hand, he held onto the seat across the aisle. With the other, he grabbed my shoulder and shook, hard, until i stopped screaming. His face was inches from mine and his eyes narrowed. “Listen to me! If you want to get out of here, you have to listen!” I couldn’t move. I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t do anything but listen.

His breath smelled of coffee as he continued to yell at me, face-to-face. “The G-one should stay on the surface for about five minutes. If we stand any chance at all, we’ve got to get the raft out the window exit, then inflate it.”” (page, 31)

I quoted this passage because it demonstrates description, detail, and a lot of suspense. I would rate this book a nine out of ten.

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3 thoughts on “Sara’s Letter-Essay #9: “The Raft”

  1. I read this book too and I thought that it was very good as well, I also would rate it a 9/10 and that it was too, very suspenseful.

    1. I read this book in 6th grade, I really liked it. I would rate it a 9 out of 10 as well. I really liked the passage you chose. It really does show all the suspense there is in the book.

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