And the Mountains Echoed

 Dear Bookworms, 

Click on the image below and download a worksheet with some discussion questions that may enlighten your reading of The Mountains Echoed.

Happy holidays and hope to see you on January 14th!

6th Mini Saga Contest

 Can you imagine a story in exactly 50 words?

Participate in the 6th edition of the Mini Saga Contest of the EOI de Santiago de Compostela!

Participation terms:

• To enter, you must be a B2.2. or a C-level student enrolled in the EOI of Santiago de Compostela (Vite) or its satellite schools.
• Write your mini saga in exactly 50 words (plus a title up to 15 words).
• Send your text to biblioteca.sar@eoisantiago.org no later than January 14th, 2022. Make sure you include your full name and the name of your group.
• A maximum of 15 stories will be shorlisted and published here so that anyone can vote on their favourite mini saga. Public voting will be enabled until February 4th.
• The 7 stories that receive the highest number of votes will be considered by a jury of teachers from the English department, who will choose the 3 winners based on the originality and artistic quality of the stories.
• Winners will be announced on February 11th, 2022.
• EOI SANTIAGO retains the rights to publish your text online or in a printed compilation.

 Participation in this contest necessarily requires the unconditional acceptance of its terms.

Book club 2nd meeting

 Our second meeting will discuss Khaled Hosseini's third book, And The Mountains Echoed, an unforgettable novel about finding a lost piece of yourself in someone else. 

Participation is limited to the first 18 students who sign up here. 

Hope to see you on January 14th at 6:30pm. Happy reading!

Book club informative meeting

Our first meeting this academic year (2021-22) will be held at the library of the IES de Sar on Friday, November 26.

We won't have a specific book to discuss. Instead, we will talk about our expectations for the club, exhange book recommendations and get informed about the dates and times of this academic year's book club meetings.

Participation is limited to the first 18 students who sign up. If you want to join the meeting, sign up here.

Hope to see you on November 26. Save the date!

Library Day

Libraries are so much more than places to find books; they are a vital resource in our communities. In honor of Library Day (October 24), we've designed and used this worksheet to help students be aware of the many roles that libraries still play in society.  

Click on the image below and find out why libraries matter.

Happy Library Day!

COVID-19 Rules 2021-22

 If you've read the previous post, you will know that our library reopens on October 18. 

Please, follow these guidelines for a safe return. Thank you in advance!

Opening times

 Good news!

Our library opens on October 18!

Before you come, please check the COVID-19 rules for a safe return. Thanks in advance and hope to see you there!

Thank you!

 June is here and that means the end of classes. Thank you to the students and teachers who have followed this blog and have participated in the library events organised this year. A big thanks to all the students who have taken part in our book club sessions, your contributions have been invaluable!

Best of luck in the final exams and we wish you a safe and happy summer break!

Candela's review of The Catcher in the Rye

Candela Vidal, one of our dear bookclubbers, has written an excellent review of the last book we discussed: The Catcher in the Rye.

Thank you so much, Candela, for such a delightful text; it really helps us appreciate the greatness of Salinger’s novel!

The Catcher in the Rye Book Club worksheet

 Dear Bookworms, 

Click on the image below and download a worksheet with some discussion questions that may enrich your reading of The Catcher in the Rye.

You can have the worksheet with you in case we run out of ideas but, in view of our previous meetings, I'm sure this won't be the case.

Hope you see you this Friday at 7pm!

The Catcher in the Rye

 They say that a book shared is a pleasure doubled. I would say that pleasure was tripled when we discussed Never Let Me Go last Friday. Once again, thanks for your great contributions!

Our next book also has a teenager as its narrator and main character. J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye is one of the most widely read and beloved of all contemporary American novels, credited  with instilling in many of us a lifelong love of reading.

Remember that if you want to come to our next virtual meeting, you need to sign up here. Participation is limited to the first 15 students who sign up. Go to https://eduxunta.webex.com/meet/alosada and you will have access to our meeting room.

Friday, April 30, at 7pm

Hope to see you then!

Never Let Me Go Book club activity

 Dear Bookworms,

Hope you are enjoying Never Let Me Go. Here's a worksheet with quotes and some discussion questions that might enlighten your reading. Click on the image below to download it.

We can have the worksheet at hand in case our meeting does not run smoothly but, given how eagerly you intervened in previous discussions, I'm sure that won't be the case.

Hope to see you in my Webex room next Friday at 7pm!

5th Mini Saga Contest Results

Now that the voting poll is closed, here are the winners of the 5th Mini Saga Contest!

"An Unexpected Request" by Laura Lima

"The Story of My Beagle" by Alejandra Franjo

"Leaving Paradise" by Elvira Rodríguez 

Special thanks to the other finalists for their great stories and thanks as well to all you who have voted for your favourite mini saga, thus helping us to choose the winners.

 

Never Let Me Go

Dear Bookworms,

I wanted to thank you for your participation in our book club meeting this evening. I found your thoughts and impressions about The Kite Runner so interesting and eye-opening! It was a real pleasure to discuss the book with you all.

The next book we’ll be reading is Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go, a dystopian novel, at once amazingly tender and morally corageous, about what it means to be human.

Remember that if you want to attend our next meeting, you need to sign up here. Participation is limited to the first 15 students who sign up.

Once you’ve signed up, go to https://eduxunta.webex.com/meet/alosada and you will have access to our meeting room.

Friday, March 5, at 7:00pm

Save the date!

The Kite Runner book club activity

 Hi bookworms!

As promised, here you have a worksheet with excerpts from the Kite Runner and some discussion questions that will help us make the most of our book club meeting next Friday. Click on the image below to download the document.

Looking forward to seeing you!

5th Mini Saga Contest: Voting now open

The finalists of the 5th Mini Saga Contest have already been chosen. Thanks to all the participants for their great stories!

Please, read the mini sagas below and vote for your favourite story here. There will be three prizes and winners will be announced on February, 5.

 A Blind Date

She fell for that man on Tinder. They both used secret usernames and he seemed so enigmatic, mysterious, exciting, adventurous… everything she lacked in her life. They would meet in Cafe Iacobus that Saturday night, he would take a red rose. She wanted to die when she saw her husband.

 An Unexpected Request

The little girl hadn´t hardly slept. Suddenly, she jumped out of bed and ran downstairs quickly. When she reached the Christmas tree in the hall, there he was, delivering packets. Santa smiled and said: Precious, what do you want for Christmas? She stared at him seriously and answered: “Equal pay”.

It’s Happening!

I open my eyes. The sun’s shining. “Thank you for the sun”, I think. I go outside. “Thank you for the fresh air”, I mutter. I see your face. “Thank you for your smile”, I mumble. Today is the very first day without a face mask. The pandemic is over.

Leaving Paradise

Floating in warm water. No light, faint sounds. A distant echo of your voice. Eyes wide shut, feeling cosy. Suddenly, a bump! A tsunami pushes me upside down. Not feeling good. Your screams freak me out. A light at the end. Please keep me inside. Not ready for my birth!

 Making Up Her mind

She was meant to change her life drastically and enjoy the time she had left. That morning she quitted her wretched job. Then, she spent most of her savings booking that amazing trip. The next morning, she received a call. A terrible mistake had happened. Her biopsy results were ok.

 Nature’s Rebellion

Fruit no longer tasted the same. A slightly earthy metallic flavour gave way to a worse phenomenon: tiny red drops appeared on their surface; the bleeding was unstoppable once you bit them. Nobody dared to do it after the first attempt. Nature had decided not to feed humans any more.

Oddly enough, you popped by and I only had eyes for you

Aware that it might get out of hand, not only my shrewdness but also my shamefully admitted loneliness drove me on. “This candle will resuscitate your dead wife tonight”, said the scrawny and unkempt wizard. I am afraid I have always been single but who wouldn’t crave a blind date?

Planned Obsolescence

Just a few hours before he had been the center of attention. Cheerful children flitting around; adults capturing the moment with their smartphones. A pleasant smell was coming from the kitchen and everybody but him ran inside. The taste of a rotten carrot in his mouth. The sun on top.

So insane

They keep telling me that this relationship is unhealthy, that you are hurting me. This is insane. They urge me to leave you. But I am willing to pay the price in exchange for such great company, and above all, for the support you give me.

-"Here! Your tobacco"

-"Thanks!"

Stella Maris (IMO 7253021)

Since they got married, she had always packed his suitcase when he left for his job as a ship captain. Now, he was retired and very ill. “Please, pack my luggage. Tomorrow, I must go away” he said. She sat by him on the bed, held his hand and waited.

The Ballad of a Love-Hate Relationship

My smartphone is buzzing, there must be something going on. Is that my wife? Is that my boss? Is that my mother using hers wrong? I’ve got my degree and also my master and I’ve always paid my taxes. Why on earth is my life controlled by such small devices?

 The C2 exam

It´s gonna be alright. It´s gonna be OK. We are well trained, team. One course working hard on this. One year waiting for this moment. Now it’s the time to demonstrate your skills. Take a breath, relax, and go for it! Reading, writing, listening, speaking! Oh, and a mediation task!

The King of the Underworld

Hades could see the whole of the underworld. Faithful Cerberus by his side. He looked pensive, his eyes tinged with sadness. He always felt like that at this time of the day. He looked down and thought to himself: WI really wish they put more cheese in my cheese sandwich.

 The Story of My Beagle.

Born in a cage, I was predestined to hunt as my siblings. We are freed to train for that in a freezing winter. I am lost. Terrified. I hopelessly run. Noise, almost darkness. Iam hurt, bleeding. I see lights. A voice calls me. I stop; she hugs me. Thanks.

You Are My Sunshine

Winter, same old, same old. I wake up hoping to see you at the crack of dawn. I walk over the sea staring at the horizon, thinking of those warm drawn-out summery days with you. Emerged as if from a dream, you show up bashfully. Hiya! Here comes the sun!