Journals (Nottingham Trent University)
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Book Review: We The Animals by Justin Torres
No full text.Jonathan Coe’s The Rotters’ Club primarily focuses on the lives of three young schoolboys growing up in 1970s Birmingham during emerging youth culture and civil unrest. Utilising the contextual factors of the backdrop, Coe presents the subtle implications this conflict has in the development of the main characters in the narrative as the characters move toward adolescence. The consequences of political unrest and extremist ideology emerging in Britain play a clear role in the irreversible shaping of each character’s disposition and social status within society, as their community echoes the conflict in the greater macrocosm of culture across the country. The aim of this article is to present Coe’s use of contextual factors to portray the impact of both explicit conflict and underlying issues in the maturation of characters in the novel. To this end, issues centred on racism, xenophobia and social progressivism are to be discussed and analysed throughout the argument to determine the true extent of how conflict shapes the lives of the youth as they come of age
Book Review: The Poet X
No full text\u27The Poet X\u27 is about strong identities, trying to find yourself and start your own life when the world is against you, growing up in a culture where you are expected to live up to family beliefs. 
Student guide to the Gym- Expectation VS Reality
Get PDFThe second article- short 250 words.
Aimed more at students
Sweet Sorrow: How David Nicholls presents growth in relation to coming of age.
Get PDFThis article explores how David Nicholls presents the growth in relation to coming of age in Sweet Sorrow. I explore themes such as the opposite sex, sex, drugs and family tribulations; which lead the protagonist Charlie to ‘Come of Age’. Furthermore, discussed throughout the article is the breakdown of Charlie’s home life, which is a key factor in why he has no aspirations for himself. The article also explores how by joining ‘The Company’ the reader sees the growth of Charlie as a person through meeting and falling in love with Fran and by also realizing there are things he would like to do with his future, something which he had no desire of doing at the beginning of the novel. Another topic discussion in the article, examines why Nicholls’ writing becomes relatable for the reader which in turn makes it easier to see growth through coming of age within Charlie. 
Social class and environment in the moral development of children in The Kite Runner
Get PDF This article focuses on the issues of social class in relation to the two protagonists\u27 growth into adolescence. Set in Afghanistan The Kite Runner touches on the turmoil the country faces and shows the troubling effect it has on two children, which the essay will particularly focus on. It will specifically determine whether social class and religion have a direct influence on their moral development. With both children from differing religions and social classes, their attitudes to life also differ. Comparisons are to be made over the children\u27s reaction to specific events in the novel to examine whether this has aided or hindered their moral growth. It will directly focus on the children\u27s attitudes and beliefs reflected towards each other to finally determine who has better moral development, the child from the superior religion and affluent background; or the child from the inferior religion with a much poorer background. This decision will be made through careful analysis of the text and secondary criticisms
Foods from novels that we wish were real (and what we turn to instead)
Get PDFFoods from novels that we wish were real (chocolate frogs, toffee trees, etc.) and the real world alternatives we settle for instead
Coming of Age: Lasting Influences
No full textAs children grow their personalities and values are very heavily influenced by what surrounds them. Their life at home and the people they are surrounded with can have a significant impact on who they are and who they become. The focus of this text will be some of the socioeconomic factors that have influence on one’s education, academic success and mental health while growing up. The factors I will be looking at are the parents’ level of education, income and assets, health and home atmosphere and neighbourhood they are situated in. As a reference I will be using and comparing Children, Youth, Families and Socioeconomic Status[1], an article posted by the American psychology association and The Private Joys of Nnenna Maloney, a novel written by Okechukwu Nzelu.
The article states that children coming from poor backgrounds are usually situated in impoverished neighbourhoods which has direct influence on their behavioural development. Those children are more likely to be faced with adversity than their peers which can later on influence their academic success. They are more likely to start kindergarten with underdeveloped linguistic skills, leading to falling behind their peers coming from wealthier families. On the other hand, The Private Joys of Nnenna Maloney shows us that it does not and it is not always like that, as long as there is enough motivation breaking out of ‘’social norms’’ is possible.
Furthermore, in the article I will be reflecting on the different ways both texts approach the factors previously mentioned, the way they oppose each other or relate to each other.
[1] American Psychology Association, ‘Children, Youth, Families and Socioeconomic Status’,
< https://www.apa.org/pi/ses/resources/publications/children-families> [ accessed 28 November 2019].
 
Book Review: Hybridity of Identity: The Culture Clash of Fundamentalism and Modernism In Hanif Kureishi’s The Black Album
Get PDFThis review, looking closely at the opposing ideals of fundamentalism and modernism highlighted in Hanif Kureishi’s The Black Album, analyses a Bildungsroman based on an overlap of cultural binary opposites which engages in a central debate of the hybridity of identity