Are you looking for something to read?
Pick one of these great books!
Are your students always looking for book recommendations?
Send them to browse through the picks for this or those from other years listed below.
Pick one of these great books!
Are your students always looking for book recommendations?
Send them to browse through the picks for this or those from other years listed below.
Weekend Picks for January 7, 2022
Have you made any New Year's resolutions? I don't make resolutions anymore, but I do keep a great habit of reading and learning from books. I also love sharing books with my students. This Weekend's Picks are suggested by two of my students, Sarah Spring and Lily Navarra. Both are pre-service teachers going into their second semester of residency in local public schools. They share two phenomenal texts that have already earned their rightful place among young adult novels.
 |  |
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang (2006)
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang is not only a coming of age story combining a unique and traditional approach to the hero’s quest for identity, an archetype stretching back thousands of years. Both Jin Wang, a contemporary teenager, and the Monkey King, representing generations of the past, undergo personal transformations, experience supernatural phenomenon, and undergo various other archetypal trials on the way toward their newfound identity. By positing the story in the modern world, Yang forges a new perspective on racism, heroism, stereotypes, and the dangers of pride and conformity. This is an engaging graphic novel that will keep you reading until you reach the final page.
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang is not only a coming of age story combining a unique and traditional approach to the hero’s quest for identity, an archetype stretching back thousands of years. Both Jin Wang, a contemporary teenager, and the Monkey King, representing generations of the past, undergo personal transformations, experience supernatural phenomenon, and undergo various other archetypal trials on the way toward their newfound identity. By positing the story in the modern world, Yang forges a new perspective on racism, heroism, stereotypes, and the dangers of pride and conformity. This is an engaging graphic novel that will keep you reading until you reach the final page.
The Crossover by Kwame Alexander (2014)
The Crossover is a first person verse novel that follows twelve-year-old Josh Bell as he must overcome confusing feelings of jealousy and abandonment and cope with his father’s terminal condition With each section in this novel, the poetry directly interacts with the reader. From the onomatopoeia, to the concrete poetry, to the various intentional poetic forms, Kwame Alexander crafts a novel like no other. Through the eyes of Josh “Filthy McNasty” Bell, the readers are introduced into the adolescent experience of a distinctive individual. In each of the poems, we learn that Josh values his family, looks up to his father, and lives for the game of basketball. Many of the poems serve as a play-by-play of Josh’s basketball games in first-person and real-time. These poems mirror the experience of watching an actual basketball game, having a quick rhythm, and exhilarating tone.
The Crossover is a first person verse novel that follows twelve-year-old Josh Bell as he must overcome confusing feelings of jealousy and abandonment and cope with his father’s terminal condition With each section in this novel, the poetry directly interacts with the reader. From the onomatopoeia, to the concrete poetry, to the various intentional poetic forms, Kwame Alexander crafts a novel like no other. Through the eyes of Josh “Filthy McNasty” Bell, the readers are introduced into the adolescent experience of a distinctive individual. In each of the poems, we learn that Josh values his family, looks up to his father, and lives for the game of basketball. Many of the poems serve as a play-by-play of Josh’s basketball games in first-person and real-time. These poems mirror the experience of watching an actual basketball game, having a quick rhythm, and exhilarating tone.
 |  |
Keep reading!
Until next weekend,
Leilya
Until next weekend,
Leilya
Start looking for information about the 2022 UNLV Summit on June 9, 10, 11 2022! You can interact with YA authors, scholars, teachers, and librarians! Our first author announcement is Varian Johnson!
RSS Feed