Peak: Jail or Mt Everest

             I just started reading a book named Peak by Roland Smith.  The title or cover didn’t look very interesting to me but I was wrong.  Peak doesn’t start like a traditional book that goes in chronological order.  It starts with a hook; an exciting part that will catches people into the book, and then fills in the middle.  I started off with a 14 year old boy climbing up the outside of the Woolworth Building, like it was a mountain.  Seeing the skyscrapers of NYC every day I couldn’t imagine climbing up one.

            The main character’s name and the names his parents almost called him may give a clue to why he climbed the building.  His name is Peak but his parents also considered calling him, glacier, abyss or crampon.  His parents were both climbers and his dad is even a very famous climber.  This is one case where being famous could be good for you, his dad being so famous helped keep him out of jail.  Sometimes being famous is not good, Prince William of England would rather not be as famous as he is.

            Peak was arrested for climbing the Woolworth building while the mayor was in the building.  It was possible that Peak would spend time in jail after being arrested.  It was not only his father’s fame that saved him but also that the judge was a graduate of the school that Peak attended.  I realized how much his arrest affected the rest of the family, his mom and his twin sisters.  It also shows that the media can go too far by sensationalizing his story another young boy tried to copy him and ended up dying.

            Peak is given a great opportunity.  Instead of going to jail he is going to go live with his dad, who he hasn’t spoken to in seven years.  He gets to spend time with his dad and get to know him.  I can’t imagine not seeing or talking to my dad for seven years.  Another reason it is a great opportunity is because he is going to get to climb Mt Everest and be the youngest person to ever do it.  I am looking forward to finishing Peak and seeing how Peak’s homework assignment turns out, after all writing his adventure down is so he can get credit for his year of school.