Tahir, S. (n.d.). An ember in the ashes: A novel.

pages 100 - End

List of named characters: 

• Laia
• Elias Veturius
• Helene Aquilla
• Kerin Verturia
• Commandant
• Falconius Barrius
• Marcus Farrar
• Cook
• Sana
• Farris Candelan
• Ennis Madelus
• Tristas Equitius
• Leander Vissan
• Demetrius Galarius
• Auger Cain
• Keenan
• Darin
• Spiro Tuluman
• Grandfather Quin Veturius
• Zak Farrar
• Izzi
• Mazen

 Tahir, S. (n.d.). An ember in the ashes: A novel.

pgs 1-60

Which character's storyline is the best? 

Argument:I will argue that of the two different story-lines, Elias' is more interesting and better told than Laia's (so far). 

Claim 1: Elias' timeline has better writing
Evidence: The scene where Elias (and reader) meet the leader of the Martials/Masks, the description of the courtyard and how "it was so quiet that you could hear a teardrop fall"
Warrant: Betting writing draws people in and more effectively illustrates the narrative

Claim 2: Elias has (thus far) been characterized better and more thoroughly than Laia. 
Evidence: Because the opening chapters for Elias has dealt mostly within his castle walls, and mundane duties, the reader has had more time inside of Elias' head because of her secure location and not needing to run and scramble around the city like Laia. 
Warrant: Better/More characterization give readers more insight into the characters views, world, and emotions, therefore creating a stronger attachment with the reader

Claim 3: While Laia has unanswered questions in her storyline, Elias' unanswered questions more obviously follow the traditional Hero's Journey--dealing with fate, and a promise of adventure. 
Evidence: Elias is high-born and already a part of a secretive and elite order, whereas Laia is still searching for the Resistance and has no evidence of how to join them or even what to do once she finds them. 
Evidence: Elias has his prophecy told by the Augers and they mention his epic journey that he is soon to venture forth on, as well as his famous destiny that he will soon fulfill. 
Warrant: Characters who are engaged in adventure connected to conventional fantasy tropes are more easily empathized with and give the reader greater interest in their future.

Counterclaim: You are just keen to Elias because of his gender and more easily relate to male characters.
Rebuttal: I actually read the text assuming that both Elias and Laia were female, already a fan of Elias despite realizing his gender at the undressing scene around pg. 40 or so.

Green, J. (n.d.). The Fault in our Stars.

If you were a teacher, would you want to share this work with your students?

                                          Why or why not?

     Absolutely! In fact, I've already convinced two of my intern-students to read it, and have been having a conversation with two other ones about John Greene's body of work (They have read Paper Towns, I haven't yet). I'm always worried that I get too excited about a certain book or author, then end up recommending it to the wrong person, or recommend it to a struggling reader--which in turn on bothers them and isolates them more from the reading world. This is yet another reason why it's so important to know your students. While I think that this is definitely a work to share with students--it's made for them--I would just make sure, perhaps with my teacher overriding powers (if a book pass didn't work) that they right students get the right text. And while I think that nearly every type of person can get something from, and learn to appreciate this book, with adolescents, it may not be the right book at the right time. With young readers and struggling readers, you only have so many shots in their (reading) zone of proximal development to nourish the seeds of reading.
     I would definitely not teach this text as a stand-alone text; it would serve most certainly as a companion-text. I'm teaching R&J later in Internship B, so hopefully I can get a Book club set up and throw this one in there for the smarties and book-worms.