With a Little Help From Our Pens

Several students who took my GLBTQ YA Lit class this summer created a blog called "With a Little Help From Our Pens" in order to create a space where people can submit their stories, poems, etc. about GLBTQ issues.


http://withalittlehelpfromourpens.tumblr.com/

Collaborate – from the original Latin collaborare (col “together;” and laborare “to work, labor”): To work in conjunction with another or others, to co-operate; esp. in a literary or artistic production, or the like.

The verb “to collaborate” was our initial purpose. The four of us—all from different backgrounds and possessing different skill sets—found ourselves in a class together, studying GLBTQ young-adult fiction. From the critical perspective, the overriding focus on this genre seems to be that of examining and cataloging representation. Are the novels, stories, and narratives fair? Accurate? True? The consensus finds that GLBTQ fiction is moving in the “right” direction, but that representation, historically, has had many faults.

We thought: “We could write. We know what’s missing; what’s cliché; and what the previous authors have gotten wrong.” And so, our mission was to put together a collaborative anthology: fiction, non-fiction, criticism, and poetry. How are the roots of our assurance, however, any stronger than the authors who have gone before? Millions of people have the same thought about any given situation everyday: “I could do that.”

And we don’t want to focus on being the “same.” If we’re going to speak about difference, we must understand the meaning of difference. We realize that our stories are exactly that: ours. We could never write your story, even though that’s what we wanted; so, we invite you to write it yourself.

This space is the final product. We will christen it, so to speak, with the material that we prepared for the inceptive idea; but after that, it’s yours. We want your words, in whatever form is best for you. And we want your raw emotion, from one side of the spectrum to the other, for collaboration will not otherwise bring about fruition. While the process is “to work,” which can be joyful; it is also “to labor,” which involves struggle. There are so many different ways that you can collaborate with us. Of course, we look forward to your creative submissions, but we hope for much more. Make recommendations for the users of this community: show us websites with important information; tell us about books that moved you or spoke to you; share videos of your favorite author explaining his or her work. Give feedback to your peers; a key component of collaboration is support. Begin discussion forums so that authors know how they can better speak for and about GLBTQ young-adults.

We will update the forum every weekend, and we ask only that you whole-heartedly seek the understanding that we realized: there is no “right;” there is no “same;” difference is beautiful. Until we can teach this to the world, we’ll get by with a little help from our pens.

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LGBTQ Lit and YA Lit

It's been a long time since I posted--several months in fact! I am just coming off of back to back YA literature classes: LGBTQ in May and regular YA lit in June (I am still teaching the graduate level YA lit class now, just online).

I hope in the next week or so to post about the many great titles we read over the courses. I want to start with with two of the first titles we read in May:




Spring Fire was written by Vin Packer (really the famous YA author ME Kerr) and published in 1952. It is thought to be the first lesbian pulp (fiction) novel; however, it is so much more! It addresses alcohol abuse, date rape, and the pressure to conform to society's standards. The novel is about Susan (Mitch) Mitchell, a very awkward and somewhat lonely freshman at a college (somewhere in the midwest) who falls in love with Leda, a sorority sister who has, shall we say, "some issues."

We read the 2004 re-released version (Cleis Press) and according to that edition's introduction it was only republished after negotiations with the author. Packer/Meaker who had always been troubled about the books' ending: after their relationship is exposed, Leda is committed to a mental institution. Then, Mitch realizes she never really did love Leda. As with other YA literature from that time period, such sins as homosexuality (and premarital sex, and drinking, and so on) could only end badly for those involved. The book could not have a "happy ending" for the two young women.

In the 2004 edition's foreword Packer wrote that her first editor told her that because the book would be sent through the mail, there could not be any references that portrayed homosexuality attractive or the postal inspectors would return it to the publisher. One character must acknowledge that she is not a lesbian, and the other she's involved with "must be sick or crazy".


Odd Girl Out was published in 1957 by Ann Bannon (a pseudonym) and tells the story of a shy freshman, Laura, who becomes bewitched by the beautiful Beth who convinces her to join her sorority. Laura does and they become roommates . . . and then more. Like Spring Fire, there could be no happy ending for Laura or Beth. And, again, non-comformity to the social mores could only have negative repurcussions. Likewise, this book also has many of the same themes: homosexuality is bad, premarital sex is bad, drinking is bad, image is everything, etc.

I won't give away the ending . . . there is no mental hospital, but there aren't bunnies and rainbows either.

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Our class had great discussions regarding these two novels. Many of the female students are/were in sororities and we all talked about how BAD the fraternity boys were in the books. This was 60 years ago . . . if they were like that then, what does that say for today? I think these books would be WONDERFUL to use in the high school classroom--maybe not as whole class reads, but definitely in literature circles. There are many comparisons/contrast that students could make regarding the views and actions of the characters to what happens today.

We Could be Brothers

I received a copy of We Could be Brothers (Derrick Barnes) while at the ALAN workshop last November. I came home, filed it with the other 100 I need to read and it sat. Until this week. I really needed to read a "middle school" book because that is my weak area. (I never taught middle school and to be honest, that age kind of freaks me out).

I really liked this book! Of the realistic "middle school" books I have read over the years this one read most true to me. I thought Brooks did a good job of balancing, juxtaposing, and exposing the mutliple stereotypes often thrown around about urban kids and schools.

The book was endorsed by Coe Booth and Alfred Tatum--not too shabby.

There is also a book trailer on the author's website.

A Book to Hook Male Readers

Even the dead tell stories.

This is the first line in Marcus Sedgwick's Printz honor book Revolver. I was anxious to read this after reading the summary, and it didn't disappoint (I think I read it in less than two hours). Part history, part adventure, part mystery, the tale alternate between action in 1899, 1900, and 1910, and ultimately ends with a "closing" in 1967. Set in the Artic wilderness the novel tells the story of Sig and his family who, led by his father, settle in the cold north in search of gold. When the novel opens, Sig's father has just died having fallen through the ice on his way home.

Yet, how could the father, who knows the rules of traveling across the frozen lake make such a stupid mistake?

The reason for his blunder becomes evident less than a day after the father dies when a scary, mysterious stranger arrives calling for what he is owed by the father. And, he refuses to leave unless he gets what he wants. But, what is it?

The "it" is the purpose of the flashbacks to 1899-1900. The reader begins to trace the father and family's past and travels. Yet, Sedgwick is careful not to show his hand too much. We slowly begin to realize that Sig's father must have cheated his bosses during his job as an assay clerk (one who tests and measures the gold the prospectors find). But how? And how did Sig's father "cheat" the mystery man?

The answers to those questions are saved for the end of the book--and ending that boys will surely get to in order to find out!

Don't Ignore Vera Dietz!!

OMG is all I can say about A. S. King's Printz Honor book Please Ignore Vera Dietz. I bought it to read on a trip to Madison, WI, and had finished it by the time the plane landed. I could not put this book down!!!

The story--told from different perspectives, including a pagoda (yes, a pagoda)--is mainly about the complex relationship between teenagers Vera and Charlie who have been friends since childhood. It is one of those relationships where if everything was right, they would admit they loved each other, date, and then get married and be happy. But as we know in life, and YA fiction, things aren't so simple.

First, Vera's mom left when she was 12, running off with her podiatrist (and before all that she was a stripper). Vera's dad is trying, but he can't let go.

Charlie lives next door and the physical and emotional abuse his father dishes out to his mother can be heard by Vera and her father (and others) but no one does anything to intervene. Then, there's the creepy thing with Charlie's underwear (I am not going to spoil the book and tell all!).

Fast forward: Charlie finds a new crowd, turns against Vera, and dies under some "questionable" circumstances. Vera begins to see and hear thousands of Charlies at odd times.

There is, of course, much more!

I loved the change in perspectives and the wonderful balance of humor, playfulness, sadness, and seriousness. And, the flow charts provide a very interesting dicussion and instructional tool for teachers :)

My First Book Trailer!!!

Well, I finally did it!

After a year of sharing awesome book trailers with my students and telling them how great a trailer can be to promote a book, I finally made my own.  It took me just over two hours using Windows Movie Maker, but I surmise that this is mostly because I have OCD, and it had to perfect.  I am still not absolutely 100% thrilled with it, but I think it is awesome nonetheless.

I chose to do a book trailer for Laurie Halse Anderson's Wintergirls.  This book has meant a lot to me in the past year.  First, in the past, I have struggled with anorexia and bulimia in the quest to be perfect.  This book reminded me just how crazy I was during that time period.  Second, this was the book that began my YAL obsession.  I was a Harry Potter fan and a Twilight fan, but I had never really branched out from there.  Laurie Halse Anderson opened my eyes to a world of literature that I never knew existed.  Finally, every student who has ever borrowed this book from my library has said that it made an impact on them in very different ways.  It helped some to open up about an eating disorder and other "imperfections", others to overcome their own eating disorders, and still others to understand what their friends are going through.  I hope one day to meet Laurie Halse Anderson and tell her all of this.

Without further adieu, I present to you my book trailer:

NOTA BENE:  I chose a hardcore song for this, so if you are in an office or school right now, you might want to adjust your volume.

Black History

Well, it's been W-A-Y too long since I posted something here, but as you may know, my father had some heart trouble a couple of months ago and that rocked my world a little bit. For about a month (or two or three) afterwards I couldn't bring myself to read any of my YA books. And you know I love to read YA books. I don't know if it was because I was too emotionally drained and/or exhausted or what, but I just couldn't do it. Not a great way to go into the spring semester and my YAL course. I ended up teaching some of the "classic" YA novels at the beginning of the semester--books I've read so many times I can talk about them in my sleep (The Chocolate War, The Outsiders, Forever). So that bought me some time. And now I'm BAAAA---AAAAACCCCKKKK and making up for lost time.

I was recently invited to join the book committee for the Children's Defense Fund Freedom Schools program. If you haven't heard about the Freedom Schools program, check it out here. I feel so honored to be a part of a great group of women who decide which books the Freedom Schools scholars will read each summer. The committee meets at the beautiful Alex Haley Farm in Clinton, TN, for a weekend in the fall and spring and we read, and read, and read, and talk about what we're reading, and write lesson plans for what we're reading. It's good stuff.

One of the books I've gotten a chance to read through this work is Kekla Magoon's The Rock and the River. I had tried to read this book last year and had a hard time getting into it--just couldn't find my rhythm, or couldn't engage with Sam, the 13 year-old main character, or something. But I gave it another try and boy, am I glad I did.

Sam is stuck between childhood and adulthood, between his father--a friend (fictional) of Dr. MLK's, and a leading voice for non-violent protest during the latter years of the Civil Rights Movement--and his older brother, who has just joined the more militant Black Panther party. Sam finds the Black Panthers seductive--their slick black jackets and berets, and their violent actions that bring about quicker changes than pacifism seems to. Ultimately, Sam is frustrated by his father's patient hope, and must decide if he will be "the rock," and stand in place, or "the river," a force for change. Lots of important history to be learned here!


Another great YA historical fiction novel that I love, love, love is Rita Williams-Garcia's One Crazy Summer. I love it as much for the historical snapshot it provides, as I do for its portrayal of a complex mother-daughter relationship.

Here's a good review about the book from a great blog you should get to know, The Classroom Bookshelf: (it has lots of good ideas for teaching this work, and lots of links to useful historical websites)

In 1968, the nation was in tumult; Martin Luther King was shot in April, Bobby Kennedy in early June. Right in the middle of this year of change, Delphine and her sisters arrive in Oakland, California to spend “one crazy summer” with the mother who left them years before. Cecile is not interested in being a mother, not interested in doing “what mothers do.”Delphine observes: “In the animal kingdom, the mother bird brings back all she’s gathered for the day and drops it into the open mouths of each squawking bird to be fed. Cecile looked at us as if it didn’t occur to her that we would be hungry and she’d have to do what mothers do: feed their young.” As the summer progresses, Delphine and her sisters, attending a summer camp run by Black Panthers, are introduced to new ways of thinking about race and identity, responsibility and community. Delphine’s worldview shifts as she compares and contrasts the beliefs of her Southern grandmother, who is the primary caregiver to the girls alongside their father in Brooklyn, to those of her mother in California, beliefs introduced more through her mother’s words than through her actions. With honesty and humor, Williams-Garcia has crafted a variety of strong and passionate girls and women. The growing pains Delphine and her sisters experience mirror the larger pains of a nation acclimating to the changes brought forth by the civil rights movement, the cultural revolution, and anti-war efforts, and foreshadow the shifting family dynamics ushered in by the women’s movement of the 1970s.

If non-fiction's more your thing, or you're looking for some good YA non-fiction for your classroom, check out Susan Bartoletti's They Called Themselves the KKK: The Birth of an American Terrorist Group. This book is terrifying. Just look at that cover. It should invoke all kinds of fear and terror in you, and it does. You'll learn all kinds of stuff you may or may not want to know about the KKK's origins and gross misdeeds. I didn't know the KKK was formed in Tennessee, in Pulaski, TN, to be exact. (How nice that I live in the state that can claim that one). I didn't know the KKK had its hand in the murder of Emmitt Till, the murder of numerous Freedom Riders, the 1963 Birmingham church bombing--and that's just the ones the media bothered to show up at. That doesn't count the hundreds of thousands of innocent men and women terrorized, murdered, raped, lynched, that we don't know about, and that the nation's (white) leaders knowingly turned its eyes away from. This is another one of those books that makes you not like white people so much. This book will make you angry. Maybe that's what it's supposed to do.

Almost Perfect

Wow--that's all I can say at this point about Brian Katcher's YA novel Almost Perfect. I was anxious to read it since it received the 2011 Stonewall Award given annually to "children's and young adult books of exceptional merit relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered experience" (ALA).

It tells the story of Logan, an 18-year-old high school senior in rural Missouri. Fresh off a break up with his girlfriend of three years (Brenda), after she cheated on him (even though they had never had sex). Logan can't think of anyone else. He still waits for Brenda's bus to arrive, just hoping to catch sight of her. His friends think he needs to get over it--especially since he is heading off to college in the fall, and there will be tons of girls there.

Then, a tall, stunning stranger, Sage, arrives in hhis science class. She doesn't dress or act like anyone he knows. Soon, he finds himself attracted to her. He thinks she likes him too, but she is distant. Slowly, he learns some things about her: she was homeschooled for the past few years; she is not allowed to go out at all; she can't date.

Sage sneaks out to go to a movie with Logan and his friends and they hold hands. Later, after more time together they kiss. Then, Sage tells Logan the secret she's been hiding: she's really a boy.

Logan is furious and calls Sage names. They part, now avoiding each other. Yet, Logan can't get Sage out of his mind. And, Sage needs a friend--a friend to support her. So, they become friends.

Yet . . . the attraction between them does not disappear and after a weekend away together things will never be the same.

I won't give away the ending, but suffice it to say, this book will take you on an emotional roller coaster along with Logan and Sage. There is no happy ever after to contradict the plot line. And that's what is powerful.

We know from the news that for this country's GLBTQ teens, life is rough. Yet, there can be understanding. With understanding, things can change for the better.

**If you haven't read Luna by Julie Ann Peters, it also has a male character that wants to transition to a female.

The Stonewall honor books were: will grayson, will grayson (John Green and David Levithan), Love Drugged (James Klise), Freaks and Revelations (Davida Willis Hurwin) and The Boy in the Dress (David Williams), illustrated by Quentin Blake.

Bridge to a Classic

I was in the bookstore last month (why, oh why do I go in there) to see the newest YA books and I came across Jane by April Lindner.



The novel is a modern retelling of Jane Eyre. This time our female protagonist is Jane Moore, who becomes a nanny when she has to drop out of college due to finances (her parents die in a car crash; her brother and sister take what they can get and leave their younger sister hanging). Shy, plain (per her description) and naive, Jane gets the job most prized: the nanny for famous rock start Nico Rathburn.

She moves to his estate and, well, the rest is pretty much history (if you know Jane Eyre, then you know what I mean).

While I could not put this book down, I won't say it is one of my top realistic fiction novels. However, I am not sure if part of that is my age or not. [I am quite cynical by nature, so a young and naive girl marrying one of the world's most famous rock stars doesn't register with me] I think if I had read this book as a 15-year-old, I would have loved it.

I do think it is a perfect bridge to the classic novel and that is the wonderful quality of YA literature like this. The themes, the plot, the characters, and even the setting--though they are all 21st century--will provide the connections that some of our students will need in order to read the Bronte novel. While I would not teach it as a whole class novel, I would most definitely have it in my classroom library.

Revolution

I loved Jennifer Donnelly's A Northern Light when I first read it, and it is still one of my favorite YA historical fiction novels. So, I was eagerly awaiting her newest book--Revolution. Rather than write my own summary (I hate writing summaries!), below is taken from Donnelly's website (I think she writes it better anyway):

As you might expect from the title, the book is about a revolution. On one level, it’s about the French Revolution and one of its smallest victims. On another level, it’s about the revolution inside, about the changes we as human beings go through as we struggle to make sense of our world and its tragedies.

Without giving too much away, the story centers on two girls – one who lives in present day Brooklyn and has suffered the loss of her younger brother. And one who lived in 18th Century Paris and witnessed one of the worst crimes of the French Revolution. Their stories converge when Andi, the Brooklyn girl, travels to Paris and finds a diary hidden inside an old guitar case that belonged to Alex – the French girl.

Here's how we described the story on the book jacket:

BROOKLYN: Andi Alpers is on the edge. She’s angry at her father for leaving, angry at her mother for not being able to cope, and heartbroken by the loss of her younger brother, Truman. Rage and grief are destroying her. And she’s about to be expelled from Brooklyn Heights’ most prestigious private school when her father intervenes. Now Andi must accompany him to Paris for winter break.

PARIS: Alexandrine Paradis lived over two centuries ago. She dreamed of making her mark on the Paris stage, but a fateful encounter with a doomed prince of France cast her in a tragic role she didn’t want—and couldn’t escape.

Two girls, two centuries apart. One never knowing the other. But when Andi finds Alexandrine’s diary, she recognizes something in her words and is moved to the point of obsession. There’s comfort and distraction for Andi in the journal’s antique pages—until, on a midnight journey through the catacombs of Paris, Alexandrine’s words transcend paper and time, and the past becomes suddenly, terrifyingly present.

************

There is so much to say about this novel that, frankly, I don't know where to start. In order for me to say as much as I want, I will refer to an old stand-by, Carol Jago's Criteria for choosing whole-class novels.

# 1: Written in language perfectly suited to the author’s purpose
Like Donnelly's other novels, that language is lush, beautiful, haunting, and intoxicating. The "diary" entries pull you in making you a part of 18th century Paris. Then, there's the modern language (inner speech too) of Andi. We feel her pain, although we don't know until close to the end of the book, what "really" happened to send spiraling down.

# Exposes readers to complex human dilemmas
Definitely! Not only do we learn extensively (and I mean extensively--Donnelly did her homework and even provides a comprehensive list of sources) about the Revolution, but Donnelly seamlessly parallels the revolution of two hundred years ago to aspects of Andi's life (hint: once you learn the whole story of Truman's death, you'll get it).
Power, class, (in)justice, and on and on.

# Includes compelling, disconcerting characters
Most definitely. Andi is a puzzle that the reader wants to solve. Yet, she's relatable. Anyone who has gone through a tough trauma or loss will understand what she is going through. Then, there's her father and mother--neither of whom is being the parent he/she could be--yet, we can understand why. We take them with their flaws.
And, then, there's the characters from two hundred years ago (I won't spoil!)

# 4Explores universal themes that combine different periods and cultures
Please! I really can't give away what I want to, but trust me! This criterion fits this book perfectly.

#5: Challenges readers to reexamine their beliefs
I think this criterion is inevitable. As Andi realizes several times in the book--as much as she was taught and thought she knew about the French Revolution, she didn't know the whole story. I think teen readers will learn a tremendous amout from this novel. Here, in Alabama, 9th graders study world history and have world literature--this book would be perfect to add to the curriculum.

#6: Tells a good story with places for laughing and crying
While I didn't cry, I know there would be many who could and would (I am not a cryer). I think teens who are going through tough times like Andi is, and there are more and more that are, will be more affected. While there are not laugh out loud places, Donnelly adeptly balances sorrow and joy.

I loved this book! I stayed up late reading it and put it down only because I had to get some sleep.

There are some other great areas for study in this book besides the obvious. For example, music plays a HUGE role for Andi. Donnelly has provided a playlist. You can also learn about what inspired her to write the novel.