tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30493572860556958042024-03-12T21:01:12.300-07:00Not Just for Independent Reading AnymoreA sophisticated genre, young adult literature shouldn't be limited to independent reading in the English classroom. In this blog, we'll tell you about the genre that teens are reading (and teachers should be teaching).Susanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11555703158153387447noreply@blogger.comBlogger73125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-49443348465707244582012-01-20T05:59:00.000-08:002012-01-20T06:16:32.993-08:00MIAThe reason that we've both been MIA for half a year is because we have been reading tons and tons of excellent YA novels!<br /><br />Okay, so that's a lie!<br /><br />We have been reading tons of YA novels, but we have also been really, really busy. I moved back to Florida and took a job at my alma mater and the fall was conference season. We presented at NMSA, NCTE, ALAN, and LRA!<br /><br />But, we're back and will be writing about some of the great books we've been reading.<br /><br />**********************************************<br />I actually want to revisit a book that has become a national obsession: <span style="font-style:italic;">The Hunger Games</span>! <br /><br />I used the whole series last summer in my YA Lit class and the students created body biographies (one example is below) for Peeta and/or Katniss. If you haven't tried body biographies, they are a great mechanism for students to show their knowledge and interpretation of a character and a work.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigkTK8ak1z1OwMtJEneIsqmfmKbWzd-Y0XXgtCistx3D7auzXLoVfnuGtRajDHWgi6jnsq-MMrsGrwRDtBR2Of-wwJFWLY9b-gD60Ig4YH03uLDBPLWj1zLw5yFpXMQ9lBqKEahYwD0EI/s1600/Katniss+and+Peta+2.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 152px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigkTK8ak1z1OwMtJEneIsqmfmKbWzd-Y0XXgtCistx3D7auzXLoVfnuGtRajDHWgi6jnsq-MMrsGrwRDtBR2Of-wwJFWLY9b-gD60Ig4YH03uLDBPLWj1zLw5yFpXMQ9lBqKEahYwD0EI/s320/Katniss+and+Peta+2.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5699716302084282754" /></a><br /><br />In my new role here in FL, we include YA literature in our content area literacy courses. The other sections are using <span style="font-style:italic;">The Giver</span>, but I chose <span style="font-style:italic;">The Hunger Game</span>s. As we read, we talk about the cross-curricular and interdisciplinary connections that can be made with this book. We brainstorm every couple of class sessions based on how far we are in the book. Last fall the students came up with interesting and creative ways to use the novel in all of the content areas, including art. I can't wait to see what they come up with this semester. For this reason alone, it should be used for whole class (or whole school) reading.<br /><br />I am also using the novel with 6th and 7th graders as part of my ALAN research grant. We'll hold our discussion next Monday. I am curious to hear what the students think about the book.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-49041639752512153052011-08-11T04:28:00.000-07:002011-08-11T04:32:03.008-07:00With a Little Help From Our PensSeveral 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.
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<br />http://withalittlehelpfromourpens.tumblr.com/
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<br />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.
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<br />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.
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<br />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.”
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<br />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.
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<br />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.
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<br />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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<br />Guidelines & Regulations
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<br />This site is a safe space that is being monitored and moderated by the administrators and you are welcome to join us! Please take note of the following guidelines and regulations for a safe and productive experience at With a Little Help from Our Pens:
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<br />POST SAFELY:
<br />--Never post or share your personal information online (this includes your full name, address, telephone number, email address, phone number, school name, parents’ names, credit card number, and/or social security number, etc.) or your friends’ personal information.
<br />--Never share your Internet passwords with anyone, except your parents.
<br />--Do not post photos of others without their permission.
<br />--Never meet anyone face-to-face whom you only know online.
<br />--Try to have an open communication with your parents about what you do online.
<br />--Try not to write too specifically about yourself. For example, you could write “I’m in my local marching band” rather than “I’m in the Lincoln High Marching Band.”
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<br />POST RESPECTFULLY:
<br />--Remember: We all have different experiences, perspectives, and identities that should be mutually considered when posting and respected as you use this site.
<br />--Listen and think before you post.
<br />--Don’t say anything that might be offensive to someone else.
<br />--Be considerate and courteous of others and their perspectives.
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<br />POST SMARTLY
<br />--Be mindful of grammar, spelling and punctuation.
<br />--Be sure you clarify any abbreviations you might use.
<br />--Be conscious and considerate not to post any spam, any inappropriate material or content, and any copyrighted material without a source.
<br />--Unruly or unnecessary profanity will not be tolerated.
<br />You will be removed from this site if any posted material contains any slurs, derogatory comments, or any inappropriate content.
<br />--Remember: You are broadcasting yourself to the world—present yourself in the best possible light.
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<br />***The blog will be screened to remove disrespectful language and/or content. We reserve the right to delete any comments for any reason at our discretion and we reserve the right to warn, suspend, and/or remove individuals or groups that do not follow the above guidelines and regulations.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-14361893034495647712011-06-25T10:42:00.001-07:002011-06-25T11:09:38.535-07:00LGBTQ Lit and YA LitIt'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).<br /><br />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: <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV0lSfaqnptR6IVrGSsnf0lzK1BCAenIrce4n9kHm_efh7jijGpTPvSdedcR7qQXS41fgXtd9CfBa-qIl89waYPoXK9pOzcFuno-O1mSoadvaeetO8-BwWu4JONhGSrVo57R3u-rbxok8/s1600/spring+fire.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV0lSfaqnptR6IVrGSsnf0lzK1BCAenIrce4n9kHm_efh7jijGpTPvSdedcR7qQXS41fgXtd9CfBa-qIl89waYPoXK9pOzcFuno-O1mSoadvaeetO8-BwWu4JONhGSrVo57R3u-rbxok8/s320/spring+fire.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5622214841049713922" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgISBVNAUTE4W-H0UaM1pva8ZsUIRQPKVY-9MsK1Z4Dv8T6t-3VU1v4_buFNu5vA6XbnkpgKvjWGdc5ku3pgiUhtIlJpP1QQZ6ZuhtiBjNcRdNODuO9UjksjNjZGMPUR0ba4Sm8BZCrVXE/s1600/odd+girl+out.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgISBVNAUTE4W-H0UaM1pva8ZsUIRQPKVY-9MsK1Z4Dv8T6t-3VU1v4_buFNu5vA6XbnkpgKvjWGdc5ku3pgiUhtIlJpP1QQZ6ZuhtiBjNcRdNODuO9UjksjNjZGMPUR0ba4Sm8BZCrVXE/s320/odd+girl+out.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5622214718781521442" /></a><br /><br /><br /><em>Spring Fire </em>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." <br /><br />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.<br /><br />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".<br /><br /><br /><em>Odd Girl Out</em> 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.<br /><br />I won't give away the ending . . . there is no mental hospital, but there aren't bunnies and rainbows either.<br /><br />**********************<br /><br />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.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-15443823832288037072011-03-10T08:51:00.001-08:002011-03-10T08:57:13.543-08:00We Could be Brothers<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOxX4C2_5FvtDvY8-eFsk5kqcIX04yr_6bDCmZvff23rQ_SZY7mnNU4FZFIBfF3of-T1H4jXjqVIeOFggnaj8oxo4K49P3C0A1MLjxrt8VjIGbx5Akq3445qprmEfApsUQwZjjoC5Sruc/s1600/we_could_be_bros.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 246px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOxX4C2_5FvtDvY8-eFsk5kqcIX04yr_6bDCmZvff23rQ_SZY7mnNU4FZFIBfF3of-T1H4jXjqVIeOFggnaj8oxo4K49P3C0A1MLjxrt8VjIGbx5Akq3445qprmEfApsUQwZjjoC5Sruc/s320/we_could_be_bros.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5582495804741141522" /></a><br /><br />I received a copy of <em>We Could be Brothers</em> (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). <br /><br />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. <br /><br />The book was endorsed by Coe Booth and Alfred Tatum--not too shabby. <br /><br />There is also a book trailer on the author's <a href="http://www.derrickbarnes.com/derrick_barnes.html">website.</a>Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-48965067764849494882011-03-06T07:42:00.000-08:002011-03-06T07:55:16.790-08:00A Book to Hook Male Readers<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCsHcvC1ltn_i_Ads5eCK6CtS6J9Q8q5sxXp_j9_QOHgBdAPoaGpTYS5vcJzWP5gyfBOGzgKdYzzFOWP2ZNb-dWOE1kuDFvOtnhOdFp9CynF62LRaLhfCbZOB2At8klTVkKF-IanYuTak/s1600/revolver.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 181px; height: 279px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCsHcvC1ltn_i_Ads5eCK6CtS6J9Q8q5sxXp_j9_QOHgBdAPoaGpTYS5vcJzWP5gyfBOGzgKdYzzFOWP2ZNb-dWOE1kuDFvOtnhOdFp9CynF62LRaLhfCbZOB2At8klTVkKF-IanYuTak/s320/revolver.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580993109856639474" /></a><br />Even the dead tell stories.<br /><br />This is the first line in Marcus Sedgwick's Printz honor book <em>Revolver</em>. 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.<br /><br />Yet, how could the father, who knows the rules of traveling across the frozen lake make such a stupid mistake?<br /><br />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 <em>it</em>?<br /><br />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?<br /><br />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!Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-18987812061102343922011-03-04T05:46:00.000-08:002011-03-04T05:56:44.952-08:00Don't Ignore Vera Dietz!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibCReiNZGgdIWbjhYodZyw0oHQLGqg-Kq9PxH44Ik_kYyK9oCEHk9LMmyagvEIS8tWDCrHRvbh1qT5WD8-bCsp-9yNEEMeYjZL79hVbDXb57xii-K1tkN-vdCmKjNTUJrWYYwQZxYskkA/s1600/vera.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 183px; height: 276px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibCReiNZGgdIWbjhYodZyw0oHQLGqg-Kq9PxH44Ik_kYyK9oCEHk9LMmyagvEIS8tWDCrHRvbh1qT5WD8-bCsp-9yNEEMeYjZL79hVbDXb57xii-K1tkN-vdCmKjNTUJrWYYwQZxYskkA/s320/vera.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580221276616797810" /></a><br />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!!!<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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!).<br /><br />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.<br /><br />There is, of course, much more!<br /><br />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 :)Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-69062182215249873342011-02-22T21:33:00.000-08:002011-02-22T21:33:18.061-08:00My First Book Trailer!!!Well, I finally did it! <br />
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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.<br />
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I chose to do a book trailer for Laurie Halse Anderson's <i>Wintergirls</i>. 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.<br />
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Without further adieu, I present to you my book trailer:<br />
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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.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dweouUKJM2g9so1BPhkgtHs9mh7WXZaKnpVuxMWBxRaMdkUJgag6r_d4kMgL_-q1RRD8l2dgc1_9Oj7r9aHMg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-64482354139144488412011-02-18T19:45:00.000-08:002011-02-18T20:53:04.448-08:00Black HistoryWell, 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 (<em>The Chocolate War, The Outsiders, Forever</em>). So that bought me some time. And now I'm BAAAA---AAAAACCCCKKKK and making up for lost time.<br /><br />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 <a href="http://www.childrensdefense.org/programs-campaigns/freedom-schools/">here</a>. 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.<br /><br /><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 223px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5575246356198169090" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP-eG71WrJWiyAyzGyXeZgQ-KykVWxPDupRITJlO4KJIOnmtMvNvwiQm363hdhRef8F6ypGRhUjSoEaLU9Z2bPOMikHwr7VdoBbBzruYD74jN4nUJRD4Tb80vX7gFvjN1n4VvgntQeGQIq/s320/the-rock-and-the-river.jpg" />One of the books I've gotten a chance to read through this work is Kekla Magoon's <em>The Rock and the River</em>. <em></em>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.<br /><br />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!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihyzicUem_PoB-mAuefqfjmcn08xw5LHNNM0sdQPO9E2tvBhf-ju8Wok1I5G4_vNLYSjoGRSr6xXLY6susjnQUcPzGZly2N75cUANu2EY66QU1qycUGi_Ti6Nkm3kUsfMgXIQCTbi7D8vh/s1600/one+crazy.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 211px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5575248567876376066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihyzicUem_PoB-mAuefqfjmcn08xw5LHNNM0sdQPO9E2tvBhf-ju8Wok1I5G4_vNLYSjoGRSr6xXLY6susjnQUcPzGZly2N75cUANu2EY66QU1qycUGi_Ti6Nkm3kUsfMgXIQCTbi7D8vh/s320/one+crazy.jpg" /></a><br />Another great YA historical fiction novel that I love, love, love is Rita Williams-Garcia's <em>One Crazy Summer.</em> I love it as much for the historical snapshot it provides, as I do for its portrayal of a complex mother-daughter relationship.<br /><br />Here's a good review about the book from a great blog you should get to know, <a href="http://classroombookshelf.blogspot.com/">The Classroom Bookshelf: </a>(it has lots of good ideas for teaching this work, and lots of links to useful historical websites)<br /><br /><em>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. </em><br /><em></em><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqMCtYyOSCG7w3LeBH7ebp0QdIPoQlw9iILTRoqXtbLJ_fen8Pj5S9cygxwZJTNbkOWe1Kn5CVctrf6prLrybLE2xagog2V8aV1mMV96dL64uxUNE5Xy_gKQvN-5OjjStneO_ylD3FEOr0/s1600/bartoletti-kkk.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 271px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5575254167888955106" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqMCtYyOSCG7w3LeBH7ebp0QdIPoQlw9iILTRoqXtbLJ_fen8Pj5S9cygxwZJTNbkOWe1Kn5CVctrf6prLrybLE2xagog2V8aV1mMV96dL64uxUNE5Xy_gKQvN-5OjjStneO_ylD3FEOr0/s320/bartoletti-kkk.jpg" /></a>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 <em>They Called Themselves the KKK: The Birth of an American Terrorist Group.</em> 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 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulaski,_Tennessee">Pulaski, TN</a>, 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.Susanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11555703158153387447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-56215062933837732932011-02-10T05:41:00.000-08:002011-02-10T05:56:15.885-08:00Almost Perfect<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicQOZAuwXrnH9-MQuUi_k3uIRbJNjM5Z-AZBR394fr4usuRd5_VoWNl3AzxWGWsVheOOVAm3zT1ksIsesIRR-Ho08mPgEBAFhyphenhyphenUuS43JvAF9rMVpt3VEUyP4BYSSfsyjEJPTcwJLKcyTo/s1600/almost+perfect.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 85px; height: 129px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicQOZAuwXrnH9-MQuUi_k3uIRbJNjM5Z-AZBR394fr4usuRd5_VoWNl3AzxWGWsVheOOVAm3zT1ksIsesIRR-Ho08mPgEBAFhyphenhyphenUuS43JvAF9rMVpt3VEUyP4BYSSfsyjEJPTcwJLKcyTo/s320/almost+perfect.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5572055820153183362" /></a><br /><br />Wow--that's all I can say at this point about Brian Katcher's YA novel <em>Almost Perfect.</em> 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). <br /><br />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.<br /><br />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. <br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />Yet . . . the attraction between them does not disappear and after a weekend away together things will never be the same.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />**If you haven't read <em>Luna</em> by Julie Ann Peters, it also has a male character that wants to transition to a female. <br /><br />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.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-78883099307622675642011-01-17T13:11:00.001-08:002011-01-17T13:22:14.004-08:00Bridge to a ClassicI was in the bookstore last month (why, oh why do I go in there) to see the newest YA books and I came across <em>Jane</em> by April Lindner. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrcLyNf2s4WGztDRYtjj9iked-R7eVJzXeO1f6iojmIDv10oDkLiWENjqiaTr8sExpMsbKl5w9KCL2Y5mJbHDD9UK8w9d7FPOYH4RiPk3skw4fvGgPFowNJfSS2JnNWGQjmO3EU9eyS30/s1600/jane.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 212px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrcLyNf2s4WGztDRYtjj9iked-R7eVJzXeO1f6iojmIDv10oDkLiWENjqiaTr8sExpMsbKl5w9KCL2Y5mJbHDD9UK8w9d7FPOYH4RiPk3skw4fvGgPFowNJfSS2JnNWGQjmO3EU9eyS30/s320/jane.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5563267071340957538" /></a><br /><br />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.<br /><br />She moves to his estate and, well, the rest is pretty much history (if you know <em>Jane</em> <em>Eyre</em>, then you know what I mean).<br /><br />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. <br /><br />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.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-50016729973532990362011-01-04T11:20:00.001-08:002011-01-04T11:41:40.990-08:00Revolution<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZq1gL0Qv31OY7Z911BTuzww6SVAz-LstXSoGZ24E2wB9E1_PYLN-GAmV0Jc4tE3M56coqVh2OEhWWMiv8dXEdz0R31xp1u1MYwOBIC4dsvNtqQs5NvHtprt0V6KJcMCdDahArZXgOnqk/s1600/rev_cover.gif"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 170px; height: 251px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZq1gL0Qv31OY7Z911BTuzww6SVAz-LstXSoGZ24E2wB9E1_PYLN-GAmV0Jc4tE3M56coqVh2OEhWWMiv8dXEdz0R31xp1u1MYwOBIC4dsvNtqQs5NvHtprt0V6KJcMCdDahArZXgOnqk/s320/rev_cover.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558412897458344258" /></a><br /><br />I loved Jennifer Donnelly's <em>A Northern Light</em> 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--<em>Revolution</em>. Rather than write my own summary (I hate writing summaries!), below is taken from Donnelly's website (I think she writes it better anyway):<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />Here's how we described the story on the book jacket:<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br />************<br /><br />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.<br /><br /># 1: Written in language perfectly suited to the author’s purpose<br />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.<br /><br /># Exposes readers to complex human dilemmas<br />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).<br />Power, class, (in)justice, and on and on.<br /><br /># Includes compelling, disconcerting characters<br />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.<br />And, then, there's the characters from two hundred years ago (I won't spoil!)<br /><br /># 4Explores universal themes that combine different periods and cultures<br />Please! I really can't give away what I want to, but trust me! This criterion fits this book perfectly.<br /><br />#5: Challenges readers to reexamine their beliefs<br />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.<br /><br />#6: Tells a good story with places for laughing and crying<br />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.<br /><br />I loved this book! I stayed up late reading it and put it down only because I had to get some sleep. <br /><br />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 <a href="http://www.jenniferdonnelly.com/rev_songs.html">playlist</a>. You can also learn about what <a href="http://www.jenniferdonnelly.com/rev_inspiration.html">inspired</a> her to write the novel.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-78375501269722268352010-12-23T09:05:00.000-08:002010-12-23T09:18:30.222-08:00When a Good Girl Does a Bad Thing<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAj2PdXHQKOutBciypuGrv6jLVD3A1IR5gB9QO7OOdIoXHjRGXxEv02JmNx0HkCx4pT__3-ptKmoGbTXy34DgII-96DjZ0Xtg3SSDBEB0v66RgRmVFybOKev3oBO04K0ZTnGiZyzy3Wfk/s1600/black+tuesday.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 180px; height: 280px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAj2PdXHQKOutBciypuGrv6jLVD3A1IR5gB9QO7OOdIoXHjRGXxEv02JmNx0HkCx4pT__3-ptKmoGbTXy34DgII-96DjZ0Xtg3SSDBEB0v66RgRmVFybOKev3oBO04K0ZTnGiZyzy3Wfk/s320/black+tuesday.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553925494098020850" /></a><br /><br />Jayne Thompson, the protagonist of Susan Colebank's first YA novel, is on top of things: she's valedictorian of her junior class and she's a star on her tennis team. But on top of things isn't always that great. Her mom, a local TV reporter, is more concerned with appearances than reality; her younger sister, a diabetic, is completely irresponsible (and Jayne is pressured and counted upon to cover for her, make up for her, do things for her); her dad, while nice, seems out of touch.<br /><br />And Jayne never complains out loud. But what she does do, as a knee-jerk reaction, is run a red light. <br /><br />That one instance results in the death of a young girl, the sister of a "mean girl" at Jayne's school. Jayne suffers terribly for her actions--her grades drop, she isolates herself, she shuts down.<br /><br />Things change when she is sentenced to a year of community service at Outreach Arizona. Jayne initially seems to be headed down a dangerous path: drinking, a tattoo, a piercing, but all of that is part of Jayne finally finding herself, rather than who others want her to be.<br /><br />I liked this novel and think that teen girls would relate to it, especially those like Jayne (I was kind of like her) who are under tremendous pressure from a parent to be what the parent wants. <br /><br />The book would work well in a unit on chances/second chances. Students could also read <em>Looking for JJ</em> and <em>We Were Here</em>, for example, and talk about the juvenile justice system and what seems to be fair/unfair punishments.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-87058966141844860792010-12-20T13:54:00.000-08:002010-12-20T14:12:06.054-08:00Could You Survive?How could/would you handle:<br /><br />not having <br />a) your mp3 player or ipod?<br />b) your ipad?<br />c) your cell phone?<br />d) your computer?<br />e) internet access?<br />f) TV and radio?<br /><br />It would probably tough for most of us (including me) to think about losing 1-2 of these, but what about all of them?<br /><br />You could do it?<br /><br />What if you lost:<br /><br />g) running water?<br />h) electricity?<br />i) natural gas?<br />j) coal?<br />k) sunlight?<br />l) gasoline?<br />m) food?<br /><br />It's hard to imagine.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4NP74TwxuBtJ6jy8syctFLgsu-mxxYP2JnXGaS-z-ARF6mPBhwK3YN0Y8e9cIiWynYwX30xErV93oAm-Mbu_WJHAe5iSf3yx4YUm1V5ZYL-yv99_KvkxCs2RmPdbo_VMQQ81GO6BHlJ0/s1600/lifeasweknewit.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 286px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4NP74TwxuBtJ6jy8syctFLgsu-mxxYP2JnXGaS-z-ARF6mPBhwK3YN0Y8e9cIiWynYwX30xErV93oAm-Mbu_WJHAe5iSf3yx4YUm1V5ZYL-yv99_KvkxCs2RmPdbo_VMQQ81GO6BHlJ0/s400/lifeasweknewit.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5552889758958546418" /></a><br />Losing all of this is what Susan Beth Pfeffer explores in her 2006 book <em>Life As We Knew It</em>, the first in a trilogy. Told in diary format by Miranda, an average teenager living in Pennsylvania, from May 7 until March 20, the story takes place sometime during GW Bush's presidency [Pfeffer lets us know her political views through characters' negative comments about Fox News and the former president (evil jerk)].<br /><br />At the beginning, everyone is excited: a meteor is set to crash into the moon. It's a festive time, with everyone outside waiting to see the big event. Then, something went wrong. The astronomers were not accurate about the angle of impact. Suddenly, the crash bulleted the moon closer to the earth. Almost immediately, the world felt the impact: tsunamis that wiped out the coastline and cities of every continent; then earthquakes; storms; volcanic eruptions.<br /><br />Everything was chaos. And then it got worse. The ash blocked out the sun. Crops died. The weather changed. People were starving, including Miranda's family. This goes on for months and months. <br /><br />I loved this book and can't wait to read the next two. I think that while girls would like the book more than boys, there certainly is enough in here to interest everyone (Miranda has two brothers, one older and one younger). While there is nothing "evil" like in <em>Lord of the Flies </em>or the <em>Gone</em> series, this book is a nice connection. <br /><br />This book would also work in a cross-disciplinary unit with both science and social studies.<br /><br />I loved this novel and can't wait to see what its sequels are like.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-91273741676956644452010-11-30T10:20:00.000-08:002010-11-30T10:23:45.756-08:00And the winner is . . .<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijld_aY3IvYGojaaEiY3SucEqoYYiiDAgZW5f6_huHk0-K1V7EsqUq7tkS0yHKXTY4wTR0jrbcGZy68UnFDjQjeuI7IIrpzkAcJXq04D8C_MYWP385uBRfuD7AduUZV7dgjcvZMpOKRR4/s1600/ypl_erskine_mockingbird_win.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 188px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijld_aY3IvYGojaaEiY3SucEqoYYiiDAgZW5f6_huHk0-K1V7EsqUq7tkS0yHKXTY4wTR0jrbcGZy68UnFDjQjeuI7IIrpzkAcJXq04D8C_MYWP385uBRfuD7AduUZV7dgjcvZMpOKRR4/s400/ypl_erskine_mockingbird_win.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545409666962695650" /></a><br /><br />From the National Book Awards website:<br /><br />ABOUT THE BOOK <br /><br />In Caitlin’s world, everything is black or white. Things are good or bad. Anything in between is confusing. That’s the stuff Caitlin’s older brother, Devon, has always explained. But now Devon’s dead and Dad is no help at all. Caitlin wants to get over it, but as an eleven-year-old girl with Asperger’s, she doesn’t know how. When she reads the definition of closure, she realizes that is what she needs. In her search for it, Caitlin discovers that not everything is black and white—the world is full of colors—messy and beautiful. <br /><br />ABOUT THE AUTHOR <br /><br />Kathryn Erskine was a lawyer for fifteen years before turning to her first love: writing. Her debut novel, Quaking, was one of YALSA’s Top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. She lives in Virginia with her husband, two children, and dog, Maxine.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-43484277143290187212010-11-28T07:42:00.000-08:002010-11-28T07:44:57.421-08:00The Curse of the Wendigo"Lush prose, devilish characterizations, and more honest emotion than any book involving copious de-facings (yes, you read that right) ought to have...Yancey has written both books in the Monstrumologist series as if they were the last, going for broke and playing for keeps, no matter who or what ends up on the chopping block. This is Warthrop's The Hound of the Baskervilles; if we hold our breath, maybe part 3 will come faster."<br />-- Booklist, starred review<br /><br />"A page-turner of an historical horror that will simultaneously thrill readers and make them sick to their stomachs."<br />-- Kirkus Reviews<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqu4jex0ojsCPzRL2mEP8qgqZ-q35ZqjS5G-5BVcQDtUe08RpB_WOQrHCJMvDUR6yYrVv8cpqA6pxkodANGqBVVgE_SAONmgApw4SeS_5qpas_zUTP-59CjiAjsOM1Iw9TZSfN7jOg82U/s1600/wendigo.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 164px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqu4jex0ojsCPzRL2mEP8qgqZ-q35ZqjS5G-5BVcQDtUe08RpB_WOQrHCJMvDUR6yYrVv8cpqA6pxkodANGqBVVgE_SAONmgApw4SeS_5qpas_zUTP-59CjiAjsOM1Iw9TZSfN7jOg82U/s400/wendigo.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544626562644113330" /></a><br /><br /><br />I didn’t think that Yancey could top <em>The Monstrumologist</em>. As we all know, sequels—in both print and film-- often bomb (the follow-up to <em>Grease</em> is the one that does it for me). However, as the reviews above suggest, <em>The Curse of the Wendigo</em> is just as good—I would argue it is better than—Yancey’s first book in the series. <br /><br /><em>Wendigo </em>opens, like its predecessor, in the twenty-first century, with its “author” trying to figure out the mysterious William James Henry. How old was he? Could he really have been born in 1876? <br /><br />The story begins in 1888, and to open this saga is a mysterious visitor—a woman (Muriel Chanler)! And it becomes quite clear that she and Dr. Warthrop have a past. This, to me, is one of the smartest details to add complication to the book. We gain an understanding about why the doctor is like he is. He loved and lost. His wall is deliberate. This backstory is integral to the action. <br /><br />Muriel’s husband, one of the doctor’s oldest friends and colleagues, has gone missing in the Canadian woods and is feared dead. What seems to have gotten him is the Wendigo (also called Mossmouth, ‘high wind,’ and Lepto lurconis). Although he initially laughs it off, Warthrop and Will Henry travel to Canada and trek into the woods to find John Chanler. <br /><br />They find “him,” but what they find is not what went into the woods . . . I won’t spoil the book for you, but I will say, run out and get it now!<br /><br />The writing is fantastic. The pace and storyline in this book expand on the prior tale picking up speed and action. I also think this book has more personality. I found myself laughing more than gagging (like I did with the first book). [describing a man impaled by a tree: “We can’t leave him stuck here like a pig on a stick,’ Warthrop replied. “Snap to, Will Henry.”]<br /><br />Yancey gives Warthrop more wit and sarcasm—which fits considering we learn more about his “person” in this volume. Yancey also introduces women—strong women—into this story, both in Muriel and in a young girl, Lilly Bates, who by all accounts has the resolve, wit, countenance, and strength of stomach to be the first female monstrumologist (I would add she is sneaky and evil, too, but you’ll have to judge for yourself).<br /><br />Read a sample chapter <a href="http://books.simonandschuster.com/Curse-of-the-Wendigo/Rick-Yancey/Monstrumologist-The/9781416984504/excerpt">here</a>Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-75073345430083865172010-11-21T18:30:00.000-08:002010-11-21T18:31:37.198-08:00Annie on My Mind<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Y3bSRqF6RV4/TOnPIbhm7AI/AAAAAAAAABs/pPdDqkp_ZAY/s1600/annie-on-my-mind.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" ox="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Y3bSRqF6RV4/TOnPIbhm7AI/AAAAAAAAABs/pPdDqkp_ZAY/s320/annie-on-my-mind.jpg" width="211" /></a></div><br />
I recently had the pleasure of reading an incredible love story, but it was not your typical love story. <em>Annie on My Mind</em> is the story of a chance meeting between two young girls, Liza and Annie, at a museum. Liza knows that there is something different about Annie, something that she cannot put into words. However, the reader knows exactly what is happening. Liza has a crush on Annie.<br />
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Everyone around them believes that Liza and Annie are developing a powerful friendship, which they are, but a friendship that is so much more. They spend all of their time together, and, eventually, Liza reveals to Annie that she loves her. Liza and Annie explore what this love means both emotionally and physically. They are both scared and confused, but they are also hopeful. They envision spending the rest of their lives together and growing into old ladies with one another.<br />
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The two girls are discovered in quite a compromising situation, and they are outed before they have had the chance to truly accept who they are. What surprises Liza is the support she receives from her family and other adults when she is faced with one of the most difficult trials of her young life.<br />
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<em>Annie on My Mind </em>is the most powerful young adult LGBTQ fiction that I have ever read. Although it was originally published in 1982, its two courageous female protagonists show that love knows no bounds, including sexuality. The author, Nancy Garden, creates a dichotomous reaction to the girls with adults taking both sides on the issue. <br />
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Additionally, Garden fires back at the Bible verses often used to vilify homosexuality with a story from Greek mythology that is older than the Bible. Liza reflects on a Greek legend she heard in school. It was the speech given by Aristophanes in Plato's <em>Symposium.</em> This story states that, in the beginning, every person had four arms and legs and two heads. We were essentially two human beings in one. We were constructed as forms of man/man, woman/woman, and man/woman. These original humans angered Zeus, but, instead of destroying them, he became greedy and realized that if he cut them in half, he would have double the sacrifices. Thus, everyone was cut in half and spent the rest of their life looking for their other half. To me, this is a powerful statement of reassurance to anyone who may be curious about their sexuality. Moreover, it is a powerful statement about love and the concept of "soul mates", in general.<br />
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What Garden has done is not only written a young adult LGBTQ novel, but a powerful love story that all can enjoy. This book should be in every classroom library.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-70687549369684907202010-11-08T12:52:00.000-08:002010-11-08T12:57:20.246-08:00National Book Award Finalists!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXnFqyjfrnsufBlNrtcbkRWzngG3gqqqy6nLzLrkqzl4DNZHEutItD-nfV4rwFYaveoTgnfUub9sUzmJGhpvcRwMeAKkp05iXuZW-84b0qiZPLOksAjsGtSWfLuAzV2YK6BIaAjpbiRZ4/s1600/ypl_5.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 94px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXnFqyjfrnsufBlNrtcbkRWzngG3gqqqy6nLzLrkqzl4DNZHEutItD-nfV4rwFYaveoTgnfUub9sUzmJGhpvcRwMeAKkp05iXuZW-84b0qiZPLOksAjsGtSWfLuAzV2YK6BIaAjpbiRZ4/s320/ypl_5.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537285061785406754" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.nationalbook.org/nba2010.html">YOUNG PEOPLE'S LITERATURE</a><br /><br />Paolo Bacigalupi, Ship Breaker (Little, Brown & Co.)<br /><br />Kathryn Erskine, Mockingbird <br />(Philomel Books, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group)<br /><br />Laura McNeal, Dark Water (Alfred A. Knopf)<br /><br />Walter Dean Myers, Lockdown <br />(Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers)<br /><br />Rita Williams-Garcia, One Crazy Summer <br />(Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers)<br /><br />I feel ahead of the curve this year! Not only have I read <em>Ship Breaker</em> and <em>Lockdown</em>, but we (a local teacher and I) are teaching <em>Lockdown</em> to a class of ninth grade students!!<br /><br />Now, I just need to read the other three titles!Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-32940228891605641242010-11-07T09:11:00.000-08:002010-11-08T12:59:11.517-08:00Kick Ass Females, Past and Future: Katniss and GemmaI haven’t posted in a while, partly due to my insane teaching schedule and partly because I have been READING! My post today is—literally and figuratively—on the past and the future.<br /><br />I read <em>The Hunger Games</em> trilogy as the books were published, sadly finishing the series with Mockingjay in August. (As with the two books before it, I finished the book in one day.) Katniss, the female hero in this dystopian future, kicked ass and won me over from the start. In the past two days, I finished up the last two books (yes, all 1400 pages of them!) in the Gemma Doyle trilogy. Gemma is equally heroic, just kicking ass in the past.<br /><br />As I was reading Libba Bray’s final two books—I can’t believe it took me this long to buy and read them!—I couldn’t help but think of Katniss Everdeen, Collins’s heroine of the future. What I like about them is that while they are great, they are also flawed. While they are likable, they are also contemptible at times. In short: they are real and they are us.<br /><br />Beyond the two characters as areas of study, both sets of novels provide a range of perspectives for students to analyze, discuss, argue about, and critique—from violence, to societal ideals, to the roles of women, to man’s inhumanity towards the planet and each other. I would love to see both series being taught in school.<br /> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS7fQvlnkoCTYy8ui9WCjZpim6dyjhxmAna_rr3rIfS1kraIy_-MLfDb2eJ_dTlXQTK2cGuslEuWqsSvLyG5YSA1R72fO8qj00AIeXLFLKfSUV7DZaio707v8CptQTj7IUmbzldf6nx_E/s1600/Hg--jacket-210.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 132px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS7fQvlnkoCTYy8ui9WCjZpim6dyjhxmAna_rr3rIfS1kraIy_-MLfDb2eJ_dTlXQTK2cGuslEuWqsSvLyG5YSA1R72fO8qj00AIeXLFLKfSUV7DZaio707v8CptQTj7IUmbzldf6nx_E/s200/Hg--jacket-210.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536857427145568834" /></a><br />Let’s start with <em>The Hunger Games</em>. In the future, in what was once America as we know it, the country is a place of vast extremes. In The Capitol, excess rules and it takes more and more stimulation (food, clothes, color) for the citizens to exist. The ultimate stimulus is the annual “hunger games,” where two people are chosen (if you can call it that) from each of the twelve other districts to fight to the death—the entire gruesome spectacle is televised for “enjoyment.” Katniss, our heroine, steps in for her younger sister and through smarts, skill, luck, and strength manages to outwit the President: she and her fellow district choice, Peeta, win. And, that is just the first book in the trilogy. For those that haven’t read the series, I won’t spoil it. <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnKXZ20jasSEk9sv2YAX5bwXtnEcwuVHv4YxQYZn_gaqfgZclXXn3NCLDOi18qmrwoX1ZY7NW7k2ee-8N9bacvfcZ89etwk0cuI6lxjnmD9bDjPWYtLNDWsS_ZKPjSLUxK5ekEBURixdE/s1600/Catching_fire_c-210.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 132px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnKXZ20jasSEk9sv2YAX5bwXtnEcwuVHv4YxQYZn_gaqfgZclXXn3NCLDOi18qmrwoX1ZY7NW7k2ee-8N9bacvfcZ89etwk0cuI6lxjnmD9bDjPWYtLNDWsS_ZKPjSLUxK5ekEBURixdE/s200/Catching_fire_c-210.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536857662146098626" /></a><br />However, what I want to stress is that even though I cheered for Katniss, she is not the infallible heroine; some may call her a tragic hero, but I am not sure about that. Perhaps she is simply a “real” hero. She is a reluctant hero. She hates the limelight. She doesn’t like the attention. She goads people. She can be fickle. Again, in short: she is each of us.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTT_QpKpk2Om0ymyT6sY4kJP7dfA9Pob6wHny3zp8iNu1uywQlLIw028MAi0JirUT5_8_qlHpGsSfQnO1aOqbsFp_Yzc6jyJwpRtHTxLa850QeJY8R1Oc-1fHYOo8EA-1xteUtUfDrfKA/s1600/Mockingjaycover-210.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 133px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTT_QpKpk2Om0ymyT6sY4kJP7dfA9Pob6wHny3zp8iNu1uywQlLIw028MAi0JirUT5_8_qlHpGsSfQnO1aOqbsFp_Yzc6jyJwpRtHTxLa850QeJY8R1Oc-1fHYOo8EA-1xteUtUfDrfKA/s200/Mockingjaycover-210.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537286243985646050" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDfXB-sc7ngcdujyjnTaJo70wION1M_eDj0_CailmVcTCIyzFT7YdHYQiSSfZwScqeQBBhsQMRPh3qeVL2nScZ-Fd3CRGXJ_qaeCgDFpIruy1R-9rlvRPcAq0qihfbXaOyyq_gZu0TE0c/s1600/gemma1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 138px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDfXB-sc7ngcdujyjnTaJo70wION1M_eDj0_CailmVcTCIyzFT7YdHYQiSSfZwScqeQBBhsQMRPh3qeVL2nScZ-Fd3CRGXJ_qaeCgDFpIruy1R-9rlvRPcAq0qihfbXaOyyq_gZu0TE0c/s200/gemma1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536857902402053682" /></a><br />Then, there’s Gemma Doyle in Libba Bray’s historical/fantasy trilogy (<em>A Great and Terrible Beauty</em>, <em>Rebel Angels</em>, and <em>The Sweet Far Thing</em>). When the series opens Gemma is a typical teenager: pouty, selfish, and immature. These (self-recognized) traits are brought to the forefront when within the first 50 pages, her mother is murdered and Gemma is forced to think about her last words and actions toward her mother—and the strange vision she had where she saw her mother murdered. Shortly thereafter, Gemma is shipped off to England and The Spence School—where she is to be made a “proper” young lady. The remainder of book one and throughout books two and three, the reader is taken on Gemma’s fantastical journey to figure out not only who her mother was, but who she is—and what her role is in The Order, a group of priestesses who have ruled a mystical and powerful world called “the realms.”<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwVFQ90uOnITPV0HyDg8dt7dBZkFjIFhFGCPgvEhUp-mdk-WI7LyP7ogKRZu5slprOuvSi-rEDDxvsakVrFQ7so2g7UqLCfYCwNJyGpX9R-lsDm91QojTErFUCXSB4YqwFKViBlWgnGA0/s1600/gemma2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 108px; height: 162px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwVFQ90uOnITPV0HyDg8dt7dBZkFjIFhFGCPgvEhUp-mdk-WI7LyP7ogKRZu5slprOuvSi-rEDDxvsakVrFQ7so2g7UqLCfYCwNJyGpX9R-lsDm91QojTErFUCXSB4YqwFKViBlWgnGA0/s200/gemma2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536858138506367394" /></a><br />Like Katniss, I cheered for Gemma. She is a reluctant hero. She goads people. She can be immature. At times I wanted to take her by the shoulders and shake her. Yet, she does good and makes positive changes. She is, again, like us.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpIr28B633X9He92uSdYuHHF1AvoyXjLDsIhUYPzs5AusXgW3orDR6jfovOeqq9wY2gU9VxRCa3CYM8EbNkzduziPW4azDj-WsOjplwzM0psz7C00PViUt5sEXmlLfmZW0EnInKsTP5FU/s1600/gemma3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 132px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpIr28B633X9He92uSdYuHHF1AvoyXjLDsIhUYPzs5AusXgW3orDR6jfovOeqq9wY2gU9VxRCa3CYM8EbNkzduziPW4azDj-WsOjplwzM0psz7C00PViUt5sEXmlLfmZW0EnInKsTP5FU/s200/gemma3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536858299107941762" /></a><br /><br />Both series put social issues in the forefront: expectations for women and “proper” women’s roles; capitalism and greed; poverty; prejudice and racism; substance abuse (Bray even tackles lesbianism). All six books could easily be taught in conjunction with often used canonical works or on their own. For example, <em>The Hunger Games</em> trilogy could be taught with <em>1984 </em>and/or <em>A Brave New World</em>. Bray’s three novels could be used with a number of Austen’s works (although I think <em>Pride and Prejudice</em> is best suited) or alongside Kate Chopin or Edith Wharton (or Emily Bronte).<br /><br />Both series have enough allusions and cultural references for students to conduct any number of research projects. For example, after reading the Collins series students could investigate organ and limb transplants or stem cell research. With Bray’s novels students could research the prejudice against gypsies or the suffrage movement. <br /><br />I could go on and on . . . and, literally, I wish I could read on and on.<br /><br />I guess I will have to wait for the next kick-ass female series.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-84713854722534075712010-11-06T16:17:00.000-07:002010-11-06T16:32:36.612-07:00Birthday PoemOn November 1, I (Susan) turned 40. I don't feel any different, maybe just a little bittersweet about saying goodbye to my 30s, which were some awesome years. Got married when I was 31, got my PhD at 33, bought my first home at 34, got tenure (and ran a half marathon) at 39. I kinda feel like I should spend my 40s celebrating. :) Anywhoo. Here's a poem I love to read every year on my birthday:<br /><br />For the Anniversary of My Death by W. S. Merwin<br /><br />Every year without knowing it I have passed the day<br />When the last fires will wave to me<br />And the silence will set out<br />Tireless traveler<br />Like the beam of a lightless star<br /><br />Then I will no longer<br />Find myself in life as in a strange garment<br />Surprised at the earth<br />And the love of one woman<br />And the shamelessness of men<br />As today writing after three days of rain<br />Hearing the wren sing and the falling cease<br />And bowing not knowing to what<br /><br />W. S. Merwin, “For the Anniversary of My Death” from The Second Four Books of Poems (Port Townsend, Washington: Copper Canyon Press, 1993). Copyright © 1993 by W. S. Merwin. Reprinted with the permission of The Wylie Agency, Inc.<br /><br />Ooh. Ouch. Might seem a little morbid to some, but I think considering one's death is all about affirming one's life. And, to make the YA tie here, has anyone noticed lately a lot of great YAL books being published about death and dying? or the consideration of death? This poem would make a good intertextual fit with Chris Crutcher's <em>Deadline</em>, <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBZJCyrkd4hctK84Rtok40HE89xVar85wyKpjMTDATRT56-dNV6jQbBAXljswCrCIwrOBMdUmiJ5wd_0eNL75e8q1Nj5DH8uXRgfxMj6BzpAGbUVYeCFGoElFFyLK1utO2SQ1_yAMjiDAy/s1600/deadline.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 226px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBZJCyrkd4hctK84Rtok40HE89xVar85wyKpjMTDATRT56-dNV6jQbBAXljswCrCIwrOBMdUmiJ5wd_0eNL75e8q1Nj5DH8uXRgfxMj6BzpAGbUVYeCFGoElFFyLK1utO2SQ1_yAMjiDAy/s320/deadline.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536582862402223874" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsWil59TPM2SYcx421C7q3Y9LJ02oKIhOKNaOzedlWb2yXBxqW5NWLJX8qpN3vjtFN3usepwRAxV-s_Qh5cEI_kiVUUz9fxjN0MTbStxbJE-RszCAvW63HCPmhKsvtYksxFBFp4frd83Jl/s1600/before_l_die.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsWil59TPM2SYcx421C7q3Y9LJ02oKIhOKNaOzedlWb2yXBxqW5NWLJX8qpN3vjtFN3usepwRAxV-s_Qh5cEI_kiVUUz9fxjN0MTbStxbJE-RszCAvW63HCPmhKsvtYksxFBFp4frd83Jl/s320/before_l_die.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536583071426890242" /></a><br />Jenny Dowhnham's <em>Before I Die</em>, Lauren Oliver's <em>Before I Fall</em>, and <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY4Bbbfdb0pB8CelHBwgoE6EQbZflrEY0li9P7Ma_Pmp-bEpJ8rpvlJgTnL2_-0PHyFyGwFIlmtK23nEKXrHO0h7CXPdpm8QUU9iq4_z66Hs3o6nxPXjwbJS0U4fIo7rFXxbGCkXm5zLrH/s1600/before+i+fall.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 212px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY4Bbbfdb0pB8CelHBwgoE6EQbZflrEY0li9P7Ma_Pmp-bEpJ8rpvlJgTnL2_-0PHyFyGwFIlmtK23nEKXrHO0h7CXPdpm8QUU9iq4_z66Hs3o6nxPXjwbJS0U4fIo7rFXxbGCkXm5zLrH/s320/before+i+fall.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536583246500437346" /></a><br />Gayle Forman's <em>If I Stay</em> (which I've posted about it <a href="http://yalitfan.blogspot.com/2010/08/life-or-death.html">here</a>), all of which encourage teen readers to consider and affirm the life they're living.Susanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11555703158153387447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-66785582501371459202010-10-25T22:18:00.000-07:002010-10-25T19:17:24.479-07:00Reading YA Lit at Freedom SchoolIn case you haven't heard about the Children's Defense Fund, or the Freedom School initiative, check out their <a href="http://www.childrensdefense.org/programs-campaigns/freedom-schools/">website</a> and get educated. Freedom Schools is a wonderful summer/after-school program that has one main goal: "to help readers and nonreaders fall in love with books: the stories, the characters, the pictures, the ideas, and the values—and to give nonreaders an overwhelming desire to read, which is a basic step toward reading." The program also aims to provide safe spaces where youth can go after school and during the summer to celebrate literacy and citizenship. Personally, I think the program serves as a very necessary counterstory to the popular discourse surrounding minority youth as readers--"Black kids don't read," "Black kids are lazy," "Black kids don't have books at home, or role-models who read." Blah, blah, blah. These are dangerous lies, and the Freedom Schools serves to poke some crater-sized holes in these lies, showing that Black kids are indeed engaged, skilled readers who are passionate about books!<br /><br />I had the incredible honor of being a part of the Knoxville Freedom School this summer. I met some incredible youth, some incredible adults, and read some incredible young adult literature. Every year, a committee of bad-asses meets at the <a href="http://www.childrensdefense.org/about-us/haley-farm/">Haley Farm</a> in Clinton, TN, to read and read and read and read and select books for Freedom School (sounds like my kind of retreat). The committee wants Freedom School participants to read whole novels (not excerpted texts), and they want Freedom School kids to read literature that affirms the non-White identities and cultures of Freedom School participants--predominantly Black youth.<br /><br />The Freedom School kids in grades 6-8 (called Level III scholars) read six young adult novels during the six-week program.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjySLKxZqLdOn86N_X0HarEQrO7cwb7NyZ8pbEKGRpRdeIpo_-EZxAnChdRFLIsVgckh62Fwdo4mJgG9ERjA-7AOR9a27mYDm8LZDKhUHc5EvsghxkHCaeOTutDE6SQfPceNOvBejr4iYk3/s1600/begging.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 212px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532168787165561858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjySLKxZqLdOn86N_X0HarEQrO7cwb7NyZ8pbEKGRpRdeIpo_-EZxAnChdRFLIsVgckh62Fwdo4mJgG9ERjA-7AOR9a27mYDm8LZDKhUHc5EvsghxkHCaeOTutDE6SQfPceNOvBejr4iYk3/s320/begging.jpg" /></a>The first novel the Level III scholars read was Sharon G. Flake’s (2007) <em>Begging for Change</em>. In this book, due to a turf war, 13-year-old Raspberry Hill’s mother has been beaten with a metal pipe, and lies in a hospital. Raspberry’s father is an alcoholic and a drug addict. No wonder Raspberry decides to steal money from her well-off friend, Zora, even if it is Zora and her father, Dr. Mitchell, who treat Raspberry and her mother like family. But Raspberry’s stealing doesn’t stop there, and soon she’s lost the trust of people she cares about most. When her own father steals from her, Raspberry begins to wonder if she’s any different from him. As Raspberry mother tells her and other thugs on the street, “To be better, you gotta want better.” Ultimately, Raspberry must do some hard soul-searching to decide who she’s going to be and what “better” looks like for her.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZx3WKY3gCaf9IOceHIrE72N4FjhEmbNLVLaf0dNOTeMyYiny8kQywqTgzw50XuBqFjQwxqyNxd6I4wyrRXsgg9YmFFQs_toyR-WV9-WMPaNIr11-DZ9DwFpMVcGJ_aKyd3Gkk-_kObiDn/s1600/joseph.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 300px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532169631658356962" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZx3WKY3gCaf9IOceHIrE72N4FjhEmbNLVLaf0dNOTeMyYiny8kQywqTgzw50XuBqFjQwxqyNxd6I4wyrRXsgg9YmFFQs_toyR-WV9-WMPaNIr11-DZ9DwFpMVcGJ_aKyd3Gkk-_kObiDn/s320/joseph.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />Next, the scholars read <em>Joseph</em> by Shelia P. Moses (2008). This young adult novel tells the story of fourteen-year-old Joseph Flood, who is a victim of his mother’s chronic drug abuse. Spending all of the child support money sent by Joseph’s dad, who is away fighting in Iraq, Joseph’s mother lands the two in a homeless shelter. Joseph has the opportunity to go live with his mother’s sister in the suburbs, where he can attend a good school and join the tennis team. But Joseph doesn’t want to leave his mother—who will look out for her? Who will take care of her? Joseph must navigate the slippery slope between loyalty to family and self as he scrapes out a stable future for himself.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtEbGKQlEGjtGo8KtB4BBXQcIs7m-m7tg4OWV02Tu4L3eWNLmdpXdDkvJ_4mdOqQxnX72AowiOuTSrDWB8XhBf04wxBVgH7eXDr_caLz2wbStxDsA0HNIoKQwsNS0CEPxVDSfzEaQsndQs/s1600/bang.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 214px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532169917099419458" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtEbGKQlEGjtGo8KtB4BBXQcIs7m-m7tg4OWV02Tu4L3eWNLmdpXdDkvJ_4mdOqQxnX72AowiOuTSrDWB8XhBf04wxBVgH7eXDr_caLz2wbStxDsA0HNIoKQwsNS0CEPxVDSfzEaQsndQs/s320/bang.jpg" /></a>For week three, the scholars read another Sharon G. Flake (2005) novel, <em>Bang!</em> This young adult novel depicts the violence that mars some impoverished urban neighborhoods, and the constant state of terror its residents live in as a result. Mann, the main character, has just seen his little brother, Joseph, shot to death on the front porch of their house—an innocent victim, in the wrong place at the wrong time. Mann’s mother and father are grieving in their own ways, none of which are helpful to Mann, who has started smoking weed with his best friend, Kee-Lee, and skipping school. When Mann’s father decides Joseph got shot because he was “too soft,” he abandons Mann and Kee-Lee miles from town and tells them to find their own way back home. Mann’s journey back to self-hood is fraught with violence, disappointment, mistakes, and regrets, but Mann ultimately decides what kind of man he is going to be, and what it might take for Black men to stop killing one another.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhEV-Mg5smaB0Tt0bTYELMKQpsa2uTZB-PGm2E6iL_AoNfJyM8870sy5gV-vtSY_GUdeu9AMBjzSfIeJQzrlNunYNOSulwI1j9fb32bDbRhJ2vOpPW6QiLSazwnRIh4ls9dcWhaln-4M63/s1600/claudette.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 230px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 252px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532170128234999794" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhEV-Mg5smaB0Tt0bTYELMKQpsa2uTZB-PGm2E6iL_AoNfJyM8870sy5gV-vtSY_GUdeu9AMBjzSfIeJQzrlNunYNOSulwI1j9fb32bDbRhJ2vOpPW6QiLSazwnRIh4ls9dcWhaln-4M63/s320/claudette.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Week four, Level III scholars read Phillip Hoose’s (2009) National Book Award-winning <em>Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice</em>. This nonfictional work gives voice to the fifteen-year-old girl who refused to give up her seat to a White woman on a segregated bus nine months before Rosa Parks did. But instead of being celebrated, like Rosa Parks was, Claudette found herself shunned by her classmates and ignored by the black leaders of Montgomery, Alabama. Why was Claudette shunned and ignored? Why didn’t she get the credit for jumpstarting the Civil Rights Movement? What did Rosa Parks have that Claudette didn’t? This book answers these questions and elucidates a little-known piece of American history.<br /><br />For week five, scholars read Sharon Draper’s Coretta Scott King Book Award-winning young adult novel, <em>Copper Sun</em>, which I've written about <a href="http://yalitfan.blogspot.com/2010/07/copper-sun.html">here</a>.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVOL4JU68h4Z4x2aliJkkErHGeU49_AZzy_YURTaEAYJnMWM0lLT42xX6ZJ3A4OID7g24O4QsHqavK1LlhfrUNPC3eFZn2z-wl2BQYt-ozBwCJeP2NNF1-YGNohhZVLxqXHvpdj_nb3Waz/s1600/michelle+obama.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 300px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532171021643333602" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVOL4JU68h4Z4x2aliJkkErHGeU49_AZzy_YURTaEAYJnMWM0lLT42xX6ZJ3A4OID7g24O4QsHqavK1LlhfrUNPC3eFZn2z-wl2BQYt-ozBwCJeP2NNF1-YGNohhZVLxqXHvpdj_nb3Waz/s320/michelle+obama.jpg" /></a><br />Finally, for the last week of Freedom School, the Level III scholars read David Colbert’s (2009) young adult biography, <em>Michelle Obama: An American Story</em>. This rich biographical portrait traces Michelle Obama’s life from her ancestors who were slaves on a rice plantation in South Carolina, to her working-class, Southside Chicago childhood, to her rise as one of the most influential women living today. Unique to this biographical telling, Colbert contextualizes Michelle Obama's life story within larger movements in African American history: slavery, freedom, the Reconstruction era, the Civil Rights movement, and finally, her own era.<br /><br />These are all good reads, and if you're looking to add some African-American YA lit to your classroom library or curriculum, I highly suggest all these titles. Sharon Flake, especially, proved popular with the Freedom School kids--her writing is gritty and real, and doesn't back down from honestly portraying the violence and terror and chaos that defines the lives of too many urban youth.Susanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11555703158153387447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-60602350101126112532010-10-23T13:50:00.000-07:002010-10-23T13:57:27.033-07:00For the Love of Animals<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLGoPYzvZEtNYlFY6R7D5lnM8v2Y8YZftiOcDRhLJo0wxOM7RtzCQ1RO-sDe-fqTdeuwOLIsDVK7w79zRFco21ENuxd0P-Qf844vheqzN2ZAdA1FM27CraZiufDzflr0Pa89aW_WtlWZA/s1600/oppel.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLGoPYzvZEtNYlFY6R7D5lnM8v2Y8YZftiOcDRhLJo0wxOM7RtzCQ1RO-sDe-fqTdeuwOLIsDVK7w79zRFco21ENuxd0P-Qf844vheqzN2ZAdA1FM27CraZiufDzflr0Pa89aW_WtlWZA/s320/oppel.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531347001547838610" /></a><br /><br />Despite a shelf filled with close to 100 YA novels I have yet to read, in one of my recent trips to the bookstore I picked up <a href="http://www.kennethoppel.com/">Kenneth Oppel’s</a> <em>Half Brother </em>(Harper Collins). Set in Canada in the 1970s, the story revolves around a thirteen-year-old named Ben who becomes the big brother to a chimp named Zan. Ben’s father is a famous behavioral scientist and wants to see if a chimp can learn human language. So, Ben’s mother takes baby Zan from his mother (this is heart-wrenching) and brings him home to begin their research. When the funding for Project Zan is pulled, Ben’s father sells Zan to a university in the Southwest United States to prevent the chimp from winding up being used in medical testing. However, this new arrangement quickly seems not as promised: the director uses chains and leashes to move the chimps; a cattle prod scares the chimps into submission; and Zan winds up with a missing tooth.<br /><br />On a trip to visit, Ben and his mother find out that Zan is being sold (along with several other chimps) to a medical testing facility—one with a horrible reputation. Rather than let this happen, they steal Zan and take him back to Canada. Yet, realistically, what can they do with a growing chimp who was raised to think he was part human? This is the question that they ultimately must answer. It is also the question at the heart of the novel. Even if their research wasn’t “harmful” and was only meant to help us communicate with chimps, harm was inevitable. [As an educational researcher, this question of harm is something I must always consider.]<br /><br />I really liked the novel. While at times I felt the voice, dialogue, and thoughts did not match a thirteen-year-old male, I would need to get feedback from a male teenage reader to ultimately decide. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaNqimTwTOjbXE1TS5gSmCkuZ0X3mvJy-2wCSbmeWHi0uWtfBquQN0DLRtargvh62kInUo3TdO2eKYmCnYwL0klPMzPCRAGldfZYlcyZsOI4QAdNK6mNGSx7qKIwOkoiERj3HIvw0CSDc/s1600/Hurt.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaNqimTwTOjbXE1TS5gSmCkuZ0X3mvJy-2wCSbmeWHi0uWtfBquQN0DLRtargvh62kInUo3TdO2eKYmCnYwL0klPMzPCRAGldfZYlcyZsOI4QAdNK6mNGSx7qKIwOkoiERj3HIvw0CSDc/s320/Hurt.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531347511472331394" /></a><br /><br />Like <a href="http://www.ginnyrorby.com/Ginny_Rorby/Hurt_Go_Happy.html">Ginny Rorby’s</a> Hurt Go Happy, this novel asks readers to think about why and how we use animals for testing—whether that testing is to create shampoo or cure cancer. After reading either or both of these novels, teachers could have students complete research projects that center on issues of animal rights.Students could learn about how to be a <a href="http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/cosmetic_testing/compassionate_consumer/overview.html">compassionate consumer</a> and how animals are used in <a href="http://www.humanesociety.org/about/departments/animals_research.html">labs</a> and for <a href="http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-experimentation/default.aspx">experimentation</a> (warning: some videos are disturbing).<br /><br />The Humane Society of the US has a wealth of <a href="http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/chimpanzee_research/ ">information</a> on chimpanzees and other animals used in research.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-47008340080475166342010-10-18T09:02:00.000-07:002010-10-18T10:01:04.806-07:00Bones Tell Stories<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcCMlrc2dKNhodVDxd0x2b0zNVcPQPaOOxJ3plgJgxXRmYyF6v9t4JhX380zhOfpSQ6OH6ur20evWxXXDsFhF0U_RsPWK169cpu8PfC_PFEV-mqswCQ9bythsJ5uUtl2cCTwQPNq04gfMY/s1600/christopher+killer.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 230px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529419542265920418" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcCMlrc2dKNhodVDxd0x2b0zNVcPQPaOOxJ3plgJgxXRmYyF6v9t4JhX380zhOfpSQ6OH6ur20evWxXXDsFhF0U_RsPWK169cpu8PfC_PFEV-mqswCQ9bythsJ5uUtl2cCTwQPNq04gfMY/s320/christopher+killer.jpg" /></a> I may have missed my calling in life because if I had it to do all over again, I might have tried to be a forensic anthropologist. "<em>Suuuurrrreeee, Susan</em>," you're probably saying. "<em>Riiiiigggghhhht</em>." That would mean I would actually have to stomach the sight of blood or worse, decomposing flesh. And I might actually have to touch a dead body. Ok, you're right. That wouldn't be for me. I have a hard time cleaning up cat vomit.<br /><br />So I guess I'll just have to stick with reading books about forensic anthropologists. See, maybe this is all about that adolescent who is still stuck inside me, because teens LOVE murder mysteries! And forensic anthropology is all about solving some murder mysteries. It's about storytelling, too--about listening to the stories bones tell and being the voice for voiceless victims.<br /><br />If you're looking for some good young adult novels (or books teens will pick up and consider reading) about forensic anthropology, consider Alane Ferguson's forensic mystery series that begins with <em>The Christopher Killer</em>. The series follows teen-aged Cammie Mahoney as she assists her coroner-father in solving murders in their Colorado town. Cammie, who wants to be a forensic scientist when she grows up, is attracted by the science of forensics, and she--and readers--will learn a lot about the field as they read. Check out Alane Ferguson's interactive website here: <a href="http://www.alaneferguson.com/">http://www.alaneferguson.com/</a><br /><br />You might also want to check out Jefferson Bass's novel, <em>Carved in Bone, </em>or <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Carved+in+Bone">other books</a> based on the work of famous UT forensic anthropologist David Bass and the <a href="http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1623538,00.html">Body Farm</a>, located on the UT campus.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2y0-AqvEAm3MPwfnIv1NUlaetu8CMJ7unpb_fol3ZCpgKZ9O1XhJr4ig_IRSKVW7TStgtjiSHzRFGXRuaIZf1tIasFhVp9n2gC9p-un6qU7SvUKC5ZjkV4CiG9Px43PJdYP23S5kuoRZh/s1600/carved.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 214px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529424956943809538" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2y0-AqvEAm3MPwfnIv1NUlaetu8CMJ7unpb_fol3ZCpgKZ9O1XhJr4ig_IRSKVW7TStgtjiSHzRFGXRuaIZf1tIasFhVp9n2gC9p-un6qU7SvUKC5ZjkV4CiG9Px43PJdYP23S5kuoRZh/s320/carved.jpg" /></a><em>Carved in Bone</em> is a fun story, especially if you live in or near Knoxville or the Great Smokies. Dr. Brockton (we can assume is Dr. Bass) is called in by the Cooke County sheriff's office to help solve the case of Leena Bonds, a woman discovered preserved in Russell's Cave. Her murder involves lots of colorful locals, though, who would prefer the truth about her death not get out. Lots of local flavor and history here (maybe a little too stereotypical for my tastes), and a good mystery story to boot. Readers will learn more about how forensic anthropology is done. Perfectly fine for the upper middle school and high school classroom.<br /><br />A more sombre read is Clea Koff's nonfiction account of her UN-sponsored missions to Rwanda, Bosnia, Croatia, and Kosovo to unearth physical evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Here's the editorial review from <em>Booklist:</em><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRTxrSep9loHketW_qo0g4x6vJYi9w8GMYmhaZcUu57oJqXLt7YYUauRkyYILLl6jQ5P75NwJYzNI5qet2aKyjPkZtGDKBgQ0bl_XnOBfSKrz3jpWNInqFUSDoM1H0JjPZcND9uYfVbI5i/s1600/bone+woman.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 300px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529426973925209314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRTxrSep9loHketW_qo0g4x6vJYi9w8GMYmhaZcUu57oJqXLt7YYUauRkyYILLl6jQ5P75NwJYzNI5qet2aKyjPkZtGDKBgQ0bl_XnOBfSKrz3jpWNInqFUSDoM1H0JjPZcND9uYfVbI5i/s320/bone+woman.jpg" /></a><br /><em>"Any title containing the words mass graves portends some tough reading, and Koff's unblinking, direct memoir is not lacking in ghastliness. One of her aims, however, is to contrast her interior reactions to her work of exhuming and examining the victims of the Balkan and Rwandan massacres of the early 1990s with the meticulous professionalism needed to conduct it. Koff's observation that "when I analyze human remains I am interested, not repulsed" is shown in her objective descriptive writing about particular victims' physical characteristics and traumas. Away from the grave or autopsy table, however, Koff allows glimpses of the mental effort her professionalism requires by relating her numerous nightmares and manifestations of stress. She accepts this burden out of a deeply idealistic motivation--her hope that her career in forensic anthropology will reduce human rights violations in the world. Koff also writes about incidents of her field experiences such as privations, the dangers of gunfire and mines, and the interpersonal relations with her colleagues and UN guards."</em><br /><br />This is a much grimmer, darker read without all the fictional cushions. Still suitable for older, mature adolescent readers, especially those adolescents who--like Koff--want to make a difference in the world.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGpl6uZXwACBMvS8XwSPdxygJNSgs5W60TuNNGb7-5oFUc-4Fn9PIO5riXNw2cPD8pVveYpAiOXQejjZyR7baTakykqjSPwKJWS3VmuIplesiYFhUIJoJdw0-sTJdzJcba9RxuLSUMGup9/s1600/bones.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 136px; height: 136px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGpl6uZXwACBMvS8XwSPdxygJNSgs5W60TuNNGb7-5oFUc-4Fn9PIO5riXNw2cPD8pVveYpAiOXQejjZyR7baTakykqjSPwKJWS3VmuIplesiYFhUIJoJdw0-sTJdzJcba9RxuLSUMGup9/s320/bones.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529430146579109938" /></a>Also, consider this fun book series for the classroom: the <em>Bones </em>books, based on the Fox TV show by the same name. The investigative crime show drama is inspired by real-life forensic anthropologist and best-selling novelist <a href="http://www.kathyreichs.com/">Kathy Reichs</a> (the Temperance Brennan novels).<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGRsuxDS1FEcCN-dgXqAEzNDctjtc7MSdbFQkae2fZSbzVqYFwFHVbfERr2CyfQJQSQ81L2f__BFmRsbc4bOVSZhql50sX70ScE6bNcAMARHiA1Cwpjh-dzBD_lhTb9LUW2P_eQ7TilhP9/s1600/csi_book.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 233px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGRsuxDS1FEcCN-dgXqAEzNDctjtc7MSdbFQkae2fZSbzVqYFwFHVbfERr2CyfQJQSQ81L2f__BFmRsbc4bOVSZhql50sX70ScE6bNcAMARHiA1Cwpjh-dzBD_lhTb9LUW2P_eQ7TilhP9/s320/csi_book.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529430526841881474" /></a>Last but not least, these CSI books were hugely popular when I taught middle school. Might make a good addition to your classroom library shelves if you're trying to motivate reluctant readers. <br /><br /></div>Susanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11555703158153387447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-52093374289688424652010-10-08T17:36:00.000-07:002010-10-08T18:14:24.189-07:00Monsters for Halloween<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnnl_ospCaB1p6ULcW7weomE_PybqTKaricfEbRklRC_lxd__LKqygQ30g6boTUiv8wxup6NGztYALHGLJ1LZAdG168xx1QV3xdYHpDC4D5i2G5mX67ZQTeX9Ojfp8EItTGdS3O70k3nMG/s1600/monster.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 213px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5525839600301190738" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnnl_ospCaB1p6ULcW7weomE_PybqTKaricfEbRklRC_lxd__LKqygQ30g6boTUiv8wxup6NGztYALHGLJ1LZAdG168xx1QV3xdYHpDC4D5i2G5mX67ZQTeX9Ojfp8EItTGdS3O70k3nMG/s320/monster.jpg" /></a>Lisa talked a bit about this book in an earlier <a href="http://yalitfan.blogspot.com/2010/06/printz-award-winner-and-honor-books.html">post</a>, explaining that it scared the bejezus out of her when she read it. I second that emotion. I'm the type who has to leave the room when commercials about scary movies come on TV. And recently, there's lots of scary movie commercials on TV. There's that weird "Case 39" movie with Renee Z., and Wes Craven's got a new one out, "My Soul to Take." Don't ask me what any of these are about--like I said, I leave the room when the commercials come on. All I have to hear is the creepy music, or see claws, or heads spinning, or children saying things like, "I see dead people," and I'm outta there.<br /><br />So WHY? Why would I subject myself to <em>Monstrumologist, </em>a bona-fide horror YA story if ever I've read one? I guess because the cover's so cool. I mean, just look at it. And the title's cool. I mean, do "monstrumologists" even exist? Is that a real word? And then Rick Yancey is coming to Knoxville in March, to a middle school where I'm doing some research with some bad-ass teachers who use YAL every day to motivate the life-long love of reading in the adolescents they teach. So I figure I better be familiar with his oeuvre (although I've yet to read his Alfred Kropp series, or his books for adults. But I will, before March. I promise).<br /><br />There are certainly monsters in this one--monsters so scary you hope to GODDESS they are just fiction. But what's scary about this one, too, is the humans--humans who are so ambitious and driven by their hunger for knowledge (and bloodlust) they will do anything to satisfy that hunger. The lines between right and wrong blur here--or, at least, they do when the scientist and the serial killer start trying to rationalize their madness.<br /><br />But there's also the stuff of great YA fiction here: Will Henry, the orphan-monster-apprentice, who longs for his dead parents, for connection, to anyone--even if it's a mad scientist who must bear the weight of his own emotionally absent father's misdeeds--is the clear(er) conscience, the lone light in the underground tunnels of human darkness. He comes off clean and true, and you'll find yourself rooting for him and hoping he's got your back when the anthro-popo show up.<br /><br />I think sophisticated readers will appreciate all the allusions in this one--this book is a literary scavenger hunt in its own right. I could also see teachers pairing this with <em>Frankenstein</em> and/or using the book in a small-group literature circles activity (perhaps with Nancy Farmer's <em>House of the Scorpion </em>and Pearson's <em>Adoration of Jenna </em>Fox, or even some of Darwin's works) and focusing on the theme of "humans playing God." <br /><br />Get it, and read it, but don't put this in the "by the bed" stack. You'll want to read this one in broad daylight, with all the lights on.Susanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11555703158153387447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-88346045357662653382010-10-05T10:00:00.001-07:002010-10-05T10:04:34.943-07:00Stolen<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-OW3aByThaHLMZJ7j2Y-5q1W_CNZsTp8XlQj_-OWeHczDg5KeGd2kklOlXzZCo2qKac3HolJsE3JNMFQbKz5-eqqdupFw5YUrF0fCFTzdSdueNBHU6TBUqf_d79Y7exWtKl9sIjDz3zI/s1600/stolen.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 206px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-OW3aByThaHLMZJ7j2Y-5q1W_CNZsTp8XlQj_-OWeHczDg5KeGd2kklOlXzZCo2qKac3HolJsE3JNMFQbKz5-eqqdupFw5YUrF0fCFTzdSdueNBHU6TBUqf_d79Y7exWtKl9sIjDz3zI/s320/stolen.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524608151802421218" /></a><br /><br />Patty Hearst.<br />Elizabeth Smart.<br />Natalie Holloway.<br /><br />Their names conjure up images of young females kidnapped and not always returned. Lucy Christopher’s <em>Stolen</em> (2009, Chicken House Publishing) brought these stories to mind from the moment I started reading. <br /><br />It has been a while since I have sat down and read a book in one day—not even a whole day at that (and that book was <em>Catching Fire</em>). From the first line, I was sucked in reading with sweaty palms and heart palpitations. I COULD NOT PUT THIS BOOK DOWN.<br /><br />Here’s part of the first two pages:<br />You saw me before I saw you. I’m sure of it. In the airport, that day in August, you had that look in your eye, as though you wanted something from me, as though you’d wanted it for a long time. No one had ever looked at me like that before, with that kind of intensity. It unsettled me, surprised me I guess. Those blue, blue eyes, icy blue, looking back at me like I could warm them up. They’re pretty powerful, you know, those eyes, pretty beautiful too. Surely I’m not the first girl to be frozen up by them.<br />You blinked quickly when I looked at you, and turned away, as if you were nervous…as if you felt guilty that you’d just been checking out some random girl in an airport. But I wasn’t random, was I? And it was a good act. I fell for it. It’s funny, but I always thought I could trust blue eyes. I thought they were safe somehow. All the good guys have baby blues. The dark eyes are for the villains…the Grim Reaper, the Joker, werewolves. All dark. <br />I’d been arguing with my parents. Mum hadn’t been happy about the dirty jeans I’d chosen for the flight, and Dad was just grumpy from lack of sleep. So, seeing you … I guess it was a welcome diversion from that. Is that how you’d planned it; wait until my parents had a go at me before you approached? I knew, even then, that you’d been watching me for a long time. There was a strange sort of familiarity about you. I’d seen you before … somewhere … but who were you? My eyes kept flitting back to your face. <br />You’d been with me since London. I’d seen you in the check-in line with your small carry-on bag of clothing. I’d seen you on the plane. And now, here you were, in Bangkok airport, sitting in the coffee shop where I was about to order coffee.<br />I ordered the coffee. I waited for it to be made. I fumbled with my money. I didn’t look back, but I knew you were still watching. It probably sounds weird, but I could just feel it. The tiny hairs on my neck bristled every time you blinked. <br />The cashier held onto the coffee cup until I had my money ready. Stan, his name badge said; strange I can remember that.<br />“We don’t take British coins,” Stan said, after he’d watched me count them out. “Don’t you have a note?”<br />“I used it in London.”<br />Stan shook his head and pulled the coffee back towards him. “There’s a cash machine next to duty free.”<br />I felt someone move up behind me. I turned.<br /><br />**********************<br />What happens after this? Even if you didn’t know the premise of the book, by this point as female, you know deep down. The narrator, Gemma, gets “taken” by a man she meets in the coffee shop in the Bangkok airport.<br /><br />Christopher wrote this debut novel as part of her doctoral program in the UK; I am impressed with it both in terms of content, writing, and genre. It was the winner of the 2010 Branford Boase Award and was short-listed for the CBCA Award.<br /><br />The novel is, in essence, a letter to Gemma’s captor, a man named Ty who has been watching (stalking?) her since she was ten.<br /><br />I think all young females should read this book to see just how easily it can happen (I am a grown adult and it scared the shit out of me!). We learn how he was able to get her out of a crowded airport in one country and to another. We see how the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome">Stockholm Syndrome</a> happens. We can also see how a “bad” person can have good qualities [earlier this year I wrote about Elizabeth Scott’s <em>Living Dead Girl</em>; the kidnapper in that novel, Ray, has no redeeming qualities]. <br /><br />To watch an <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IX1VjLL0itc ">interview</a>Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3049357286055695804.post-84224973824001997362010-10-01T10:25:00.000-07:002010-10-01T10:33:11.526-07:00Pitch Black<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0_z4Wl5_aZnSWz9UqdD5CD-X0hwNSKvmVruyNsCz8Tat8YuKzWCSTohwVi8_ehXOqAAXUO_TJPfdLtzA8rm9HwM3ySc1xnimRm6lbu1wzKuNOvkirTIb-nIRKAxVirxXAPGQEMr2vm4w/s1600/PitchBlack-cover_72dpi.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 174px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0_z4Wl5_aZnSWz9UqdD5CD-X0hwNSKvmVruyNsCz8Tat8YuKzWCSTohwVi8_ehXOqAAXUO_TJPfdLtzA8rm9HwM3ySc1xnimRm6lbu1wzKuNOvkirTIb-nIRKAxVirxXAPGQEMr2vm4w/s320/PitchBlack-cover_72dpi.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523131149681437602" /></a><br /><br />PITCH BLACK: DON”T BE SKERD by Youme Landowne and Anthony Horton is one of the most powerful graphic novels I have come across of late. Not only could it be used as a stand-alone text in secondary classrooms, but it is a natural for a supplemental text in a range of units. The novel tells the story of how Youme and Anthony met and provides a brief, but powerful and shocking glimpse into the world of the homeless (and the homeless that live under New York City’s subways. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEJN7g5pDpZoBf-UczvTA60fbiYUf5mgqd_GU1eJtynocrZu8x942qT7K2rcLSHVeoVbDfKlAQmQ8Oq414_sdgw5AtXSZxOjlIjirAqkeu5535mdq8grIGfR4aq6PS4XnMbkCtwlGaT5s/s1600/pitch+black+1.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 227px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEJN7g5pDpZoBf-UczvTA60fbiYUf5mgqd_GU1eJtynocrZu8x942qT7K2rcLSHVeoVbDfKlAQmQ8Oq414_sdgw5AtXSZxOjlIjirAqkeu5535mdq8grIGfR4aq6PS4XnMbkCtwlGaT5s/s320/pitch+black+1.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523130726672519378" /></a><br /><br />The drawings--all in black and white with some comic-book style--are beautiful yet sad and will haunt you. Youme and Anthony seemed to capture the breadth and depth of life for our country's forgotten citizens. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmGs-Y9fBzd2aAUO4aJKJs3FM87LNvWhd4UyWuC_Hj1KeSBskll7eV36xijJvf-lHBjv_I-0Ssb_TifnWA6j5d1_x-TQSvCmYOFlBpql9h_oCMeVEO5w1cwsDOI9-8TeuA1wK77rfKFk/s1600/pitch+black+3.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 138px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmGs-Y9fBzd2aAUO4aJKJs3FM87LNvWhd4UyWuC_Hj1KeSBskll7eV36xijJvf-lHBjv_I-0Ssb_TifnWA6j5d1_x-TQSvCmYOFlBpql9h_oCMeVEO5w1cwsDOI9-8TeuA1wK77rfKFk/s320/pitch+black+3.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523131247296642674" /></a><br /><br />I don’t want to give too much of the plot away, but if you want to know more, you can see an<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYJYSShDzGk"> interview </a>with Youme and read a New York Times <a href="http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/07/rules-for-living-in-subway-tunnels/ ">Story</a>. The graphic novel was selected as one of YALSA’s Top Ten Best Graphic Novels for Teens in 2008.<br /><br />What I love about this graphic novel is the range of teaching possibilities, from the “traditional” (i.e., New Critical analysis), to new literacies, to critical literacy, to visual literacy, and on and on. <br /><br />This past summer, in my advanced YA literature course, I used Latrobe and Drury’s Critical Approaches to Young Adult Literature (2009, Neal-Schuman) which provides a range of approaches teachers can take when studying YA literature. When thinking about Pitch Black, some clear directions emerge. For example, teachers could start with reader response techniques and then move to a close reading of the text (I particularly think that studying the role of conflict, setting, tone, and theme apply here).<br /><br />Likewise, teachers could study the novel in terms of the moral development of those that impacted Anthony. Using Gilligan’s “Caring and Connectedness Perspective” teachers could ask students about the extent to which others (and Anthony) recognized the interdependence of humankind, condemned exploitation and violence while making decisions (p. 35). Teachers could also try the sociological lens and look at social content, the reader, the author, and the text (p. 156).<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYPwT5fXvSOR4pPqF0xQWU9HZo0jxLoKBjURmDrsxojUdZ2-rk56_QWUd1lqDVWc6HEFVZ_hpzJbF6SAKyp6KQP6syHdXJFEyeaPytD0vU5Bb2EKfOfIFl-3CNxJzRsbegAotgw4Zi4ZU/s1600/pitch+black+back.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYPwT5fXvSOR4pPqF0xQWU9HZo0jxLoKBjURmDrsxojUdZ2-rk56_QWUd1lqDVWc6HEFVZ_hpzJbF6SAKyp6KQP6syHdXJFEyeaPytD0vU5Bb2EKfOfIFl-3CNxJzRsbegAotgw4Zi4ZU/s320/pitch+black+back.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523131617902834274" /></a><br />I would also suggest using Root’s (1996) notion “border crossings” with it . . . and, of course, Marxist, race, and critical race theories apply as well.Lisahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05330711752873654328noreply@blogger.com1