Dr. Bickmore's YA Wednesday Weekend Picks
Are you looking for something to read? Pick one of these great books!
*The large images are linked to a book review.
Weekend Picks for 2019
Once again, selecting the Weekend Picks will be a shared adventure. This provides more perspectives and reading experiences than I can provide alone. Sarah Donovan will be selecting for January and she will be including her students. So Far, I know that Gretchen Rumohr-Voskuil will be taking over March again and Stephanie Toliver will be the guest host for the month of April. This is all good news for the Clark County School District and all of the Las Vegas area. All three of these scholars will be presenters at a small two day professional development program focused on teaching Young Adult Literature. Their picks and their collected commentary will be a great introduction to the advice they have to offer. We are off to a tremendous start for 2019.
Steve's Weekend Picks for May 2019
Weekend Pick for May 17, 2019
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It is no secret that I am one of Padma Venkatraman's biggest fan's. I have been reading and thinking about her work for over a decade. With this pick, I think every one of her books has been a weekend pick. Scroll down and find the most recent one about The Bridge Home. Climbing the Stairs and A Time to Dance shared the same week--I couldn't wait. Padma and I keep running into other at NCTE. We are no longer just an Academic and an Author, but friends.
This week it is time to pick Island's Dream. It is one of her novels that is woefully underappreciated. Padma gives us a glimpse of a way of life that is unknown and in danger of disappearing. Padma draws on her visits to the Andaman Islands. It is wonderfully crafted. She also focuses on a powerful young girl, Uido, who grows and comes into her own as a tribal leader. Big bonus for me and everyone else attending the 2019 Summit at UNLV, Padma is coming! |
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Weekend Pick for May 10, 2019
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I met Phil Bildner at a Kidlit Conference in Hershey, Penn. It was an excellent conference. One of the key features, was the small, intimate nature of the gathering. I met some new friends and continue to explore a host of books and others from that event.
Phil and I began a friendship. He fun, quick witted, and I can't wait to see what he is going to come up next. He is the founder of The Authors Village, where he helps arrange school visits and speaking engagements for a host of authors. He writes for children and adolescent. Phil joins us at the 2019 Summit. I am looking forward to his visit. I am picking the thoroughly enjoyable A Whole New Ballgame, the first in his Rip an Red collection. |
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Weekend Pick for May 3, 2019
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I have been following Meg Medina's work for quite awhile. If you scroll all the way down you will find that Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass was one of my early Weekend Picks.
This week I pick Meri Suarez Changes Gears. I have been holding on to this one. I wanted to do it this month in anticipation of hearing Meg speak and participate at the 2019 Summit on Pedagogy YA Literature at UNLV. The Kirkus review highlights that "Medina writes about the joys of multigenerational home life." I agree that the relationship between Merci and the rest of her family is a driving force in the book. Don't limit your expectations to only that feature. "No offense"... but if you haven't read this book you need to get with it. |
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Stephanie's Picks for April 2019
Stephanie Toliver is a graduate student in literacy at the University of Georgia at Athens, my alma mater as well. Congratulations are also in order--she just passed her comprehensive exams. I was fortunate to see her at a conference, run across her blog, and other social media contributions about diverse characters in literature. She also presented last June at the 2018 Summit on the Research and Teaching of Young Adult Literature. She was amazing! As we planned, the people at Clark County School District wanted me to invite back for the 2019 Summit on Teaching YA Literature. We are glad she can attend. Having her participate this month in selecting the Weekend Picks has two goals. First, did I mention, she is amazing? Well, she is and her perspective on diversity in YA fiction should be shared with everyone. Second, this is a great way to get more people in Las Vegas familiar with one of our six featured presenters.
Weekend Pick for April 26, 2019
Stephanie Toliver
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You're broken down and tired
Of living life on a merry go round And you can't find the fighter But I see it in you so we gonna walk it out And move mountains We gonna walk it out And move mountains
I spoke of Okwu and how my otjize had really been what saved me. I spoke of the Meduse’s cold exactness, focus, violence, sense of honor, and willingness to listen. I said things that I didn’t know I’d thought about or comprehended. I found words I didn’t even know I knew. And eventually, I told them how they could satisfy the Meduse and prevent a bloodbath in which everyone would lose.
“But we have been doing that. Some of us, at least. Folks on slave ships jumped overboard, runaways followed the North Star to freedom. And look at Marcus Garvey—he knew we didn’t truly belong here. Paul Robeson went to Russia. Marshall told me James Baldwin lived in France for a while...“My point is, Black people have been getting beat down for hundreds of years—slavery, segregation, and now we got these trigger-happy cops out here. You really think all of us should just stick around and take it?”
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Because this is the last weekend for my April guest post, I wanted to highlight two books that have been centered in the book club I’m currently running, which is funded by the American Library Association’s Diversity Research Grant. The book club is called the Sci-Fi/Fantasy Sista Circle, and it was created as a space for Black girls to come together and read speculative fiction. I chose two books to begin the club, anticipating that the girls would read the books on their own, and then we would come together and discuss their thoughts about the book. However, I was incorrect in my initial assumption because the girls wanted to read the books aloud together each week. So, instead of beginning the book club with these two books, these books have been centered throughout the months we’ve been reading together.
The first book is Nnedi Okorafor’s, Binti, that stars a 15-year old mathematical genius named Binti who is from an African Himba tribe who is granted the opportunity to attend an interplanetary university. The first in her tribe to leave the village, Binti is nervous about how she will be received by the outside world, especially since her people face discrimination by other groups. When she boards the ship to head to Oomza University, she makes friends and finds community within the spaceship; however, her happiness is quickly demolished, as a group of aliens, called Meduse, take over and dispatch of every human aboard the ship. Saved by an ancient relic that she does not understand, Binti must use her wit, ancestral knowledge, and bravado to not only save herself, but the rest of the unsuspecting students and faculty who are the future targets of the Meduse’s justified anger. But, how do you save others and rise up against an imminent threat when you are an army of one?
The first book is Nnedi Okorafor’s, Binti, that stars a 15-year old mathematical genius named Binti who is from an African Himba tribe who is granted the opportunity to attend an interplanetary university. The first in her tribe to leave the village, Binti is nervous about how she will be received by the outside world, especially since her people face discrimination by other groups. When she boards the ship to head to Oomza University, she makes friends and finds community within the spaceship; however, her happiness is quickly demolished, as a group of aliens, called Meduse, take over and dispatch of every human aboard the ship. Saved by an ancient relic that she does not understand, Binti must use her wit, ancestral knowledge, and bravado to not only save herself, but the rest of the unsuspecting students and faculty who are the future targets of the Meduse’s justified anger. But, how do you save others and rise up against an imminent threat when you are an army of one?
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The protagonist of Cin’s Mark is Taj, a young boy who wants a way out of a world filled with oppression, sadness, and death. His uncle was wrongfully convicted, and his mother, unable to cope with the grief, hardly leaves her bed. This leaves Taj to care not only for himself, but for his mother as well. He works, cooks, and goes to school. He makes sure to hide any semblance of neglect from case workers who want to remove him from his mother’s household. He is a child who has taken on adult responsibilities in order to make sure that he doesn’t lose the only family he has left. However, as he is walking a dog in the cemetery, as he often does, he sees ghosts - a young boy named Drew and an older woman named Cin. Seeing Taj’s unhappiness, Cin presents him with a deal: if he can find and return something that was taken from her long ago, she will help him to find freedom. But, what will this freedom cost?
I paired these stories together for two reasons. The first is that both stories center young people who leave or want to leave their homes for various reasons. For Binti, leaving will allow her to get the education she desires. She will be able to study with some of the most intelligent beings, human and non-human, and engage in a form of learning that could surpass anything she would have learned had she remained on Earth. For Taj, leaving is a chance to start anew. He is broken down and tired of the violence enacted against Black people, and he wants to find a better life for his mother and himself. The second reason is that both stories center youth who, at one point, lose their fighting spirits, but eventually they choose to take a stand by walking up to those in power and using their voices or by walking out of mentally and emotionally draining situations altogether. |
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The girls in the book club have shown me another reason why these stories are important, something I hope has been present throughout my posts this month. Both of these stories have been used as starting points for real-life social justice conversations as well as just real-life connections to the worlds of Black girls. Even though Binti takes place on a spaceship sometime in the future, the girls have connected with Binti’s family-centered thinking, her intricate hair routine, her need for community and friendship, and her desire to help others. In Cin’s Mark, they connect with Taj’s fear of the unknown, his relationships with his friends, his desire to help his mother, and his willingness to hustle and even make a pact with a ghost in order to ensure that he and his mother remain together.
Additionally, in both stories we have talked about museums and the ways in which Black bodies and body parts have been placed on display throughout history. They connected this discussion to Black Panther and the scene in which Killmonger tells the museum curator that the displays are stolen property. We have also talked about violence specifically against Black girls. For example, when Binti is harassed by a group of women who touch her hair, the girls recalled their own stories of people randomly touching their hair. Also, when Taj and his friends speak about the ways in which Black women are often put against each other in the fight for respectability, the girls discussed why they were also so quick to regulate Black women and girlhood.
Essentially, even though these stories and the stories that I’ve highlighted in the previous picks are all situated within speculative fiction, there are elements within the texts that are relatable to readers. Additionally, even though these texts may be centered in fantastic and/or futuristic worlds, there are often social justice conversations embedded within them. Realistic conversations can happen in speculative works. Sometimes, when you’re broken and tired of living life on a merry go round and you can't find the fighter, speculative fiction can help you to imagine and dream into existence the changes you wish to see.
Additionally, in both stories we have talked about museums and the ways in which Black bodies and body parts have been placed on display throughout history. They connected this discussion to Black Panther and the scene in which Killmonger tells the museum curator that the displays are stolen property. We have also talked about violence specifically against Black girls. For example, when Binti is harassed by a group of women who touch her hair, the girls recalled their own stories of people randomly touching their hair. Also, when Taj and his friends speak about the ways in which Black women are often put against each other in the fight for respectability, the girls discussed why they were also so quick to regulate Black women and girlhood.
Essentially, even though these stories and the stories that I’ve highlighted in the previous picks are all situated within speculative fiction, there are elements within the texts that are relatable to readers. Additionally, even though these texts may be centered in fantastic and/or futuristic worlds, there are often social justice conversations embedded within them. Realistic conversations can happen in speculative works. Sometimes, when you’re broken and tired of living life on a merry go round and you can't find the fighter, speculative fiction can help you to imagine and dream into existence the changes you wish to see.
Weekend Pick for April 19, 2019
Stephanie Toliver
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There have been times that I thought I couldn't last for long
But now I think I'm able to carry on It's been a long, a long time coming But I know a change is gonna come, oh yes it will Change for the better and not for the worse Let's stand together and break our curses We look off in the distance chasing dreams But the things that I see with my eye's obscene All that you touch, you Change. All that you Change, Changes you. The only lasting truth is Change. God is Change. |
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In Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler, we meet Lauren Oya Olamina, who lives in a world ravaged by environmental change, capitalism, racial and ethnic tension, rampant drug use, and other societal ills. Living with her family in a walled community in the ravaged state of California that shields her from the worst of society’s downtrodden, she begins to see that her community has ignored aspects of the current society, falsely believing that they will be safe and protected from the outside if they stick together. At the beginning of the novel, Lauren lives with her father, stepmother, and two brothers. The rest of the community is made up of a patchwork of individuals that cross racial, gendered, and religious lines, but they work together to ensure the survival of their community, especially in an area where arson, robbery, and murder were rampant. When a group of arsonists destroy the community, however, Lauren must learn to live outside of the sheltered home she’s always known and put her knowledge to the test.
Lauren is extremely smart, but she knows that survival cannot happen alone. She knows that she will need to build new communal bonds to survive. Her dedication to community is shown throughout the book, but there are a few moments when her need of community is highlighted. In a short talk, Lauren reminds her group members of this need by saying, “We're a pack, the three of us, and all those other people aren't in it. If we're a good pack, and we work together, we have a chance” (p. 182). Later, when the group grows, she states, “The world is full of crazy, dangerous people. We see signs of that every day. If we don’t watch out for ourselves, they will rob us, kills us, and maybe eat us. It’s a world gone to hell, Jill, and we’ve only got each other to keep it off us” (p. 286). Finally, when the group finds a temporary place of solace, she says, “If we work together, we can defend ourselves, and we can protect the kids. The community's first responsibility is to protect its children - the ones we have now and the ones we will have” (321). In these statements, Lauren shows her dedication to the community, a belief that the collective will persevere over the individual, and a need for the group to remain connected to ensure survival.
What is most poignant, though, is her ability to promote an idealistic dream for the future of the communal group. Her former community did not last long, ending abruptly based on the whims of evil men. Still, even though it takes a long time, she knows that change will come and that she and her group will find some semblance of peace. Additionally, even though she has seen some terrible things, as referenced in the quote about robbing, killing, and eating, she believes that there can be positive change as long as the group stands together during this tough time. This is shown in the way she dreams of a future community in the midst of hardship. Of course, she knows that change is the only constant and that her community may not last and her dreams may not come to fruition; still, she is determined to change others and be changed by others in an effort to promote a better world for future generations.
Although Parable of the Sower is considered an adult novel, I know there are least some teachers and writers who agree that it would be a wonderful addition to high school reading lists, especially because there are so many events that happen in the text that mirror what is happening in the current society. There are even characters in positions of power who are closely aligned with people who are in positions of power in 2019. In my opinion, this book would have won an ALA Alex Award had the award been established when the book was published in the early 1990s. This would be a great discussion starter in high school classrooms, as it depicts conversations surrounding climate change, corporation-government partnerships, indentured servitude, religion, disability, racism, sexism, and empathy. Moreover, because it is set in the early 2020s, it could promote a great discussion about the similarities and differences between Butler’s imagined world and our real one. The best thing about this book, though, is that it has a sequel, Parable of Talents, that is even more prescient than the first!
Lauren is extremely smart, but she knows that survival cannot happen alone. She knows that she will need to build new communal bonds to survive. Her dedication to community is shown throughout the book, but there are a few moments when her need of community is highlighted. In a short talk, Lauren reminds her group members of this need by saying, “We're a pack, the three of us, and all those other people aren't in it. If we're a good pack, and we work together, we have a chance” (p. 182). Later, when the group grows, she states, “The world is full of crazy, dangerous people. We see signs of that every day. If we don’t watch out for ourselves, they will rob us, kills us, and maybe eat us. It’s a world gone to hell, Jill, and we’ve only got each other to keep it off us” (p. 286). Finally, when the group finds a temporary place of solace, she says, “If we work together, we can defend ourselves, and we can protect the kids. The community's first responsibility is to protect its children - the ones we have now and the ones we will have” (321). In these statements, Lauren shows her dedication to the community, a belief that the collective will persevere over the individual, and a need for the group to remain connected to ensure survival.
What is most poignant, though, is her ability to promote an idealistic dream for the future of the communal group. Her former community did not last long, ending abruptly based on the whims of evil men. Still, even though it takes a long time, she knows that change will come and that she and her group will find some semblance of peace. Additionally, even though she has seen some terrible things, as referenced in the quote about robbing, killing, and eating, she believes that there can be positive change as long as the group stands together during this tough time. This is shown in the way she dreams of a future community in the midst of hardship. Of course, she knows that change is the only constant and that her community may not last and her dreams may not come to fruition; still, she is determined to change others and be changed by others in an effort to promote a better world for future generations.
Although Parable of the Sower is considered an adult novel, I know there are least some teachers and writers who agree that it would be a wonderful addition to high school reading lists, especially because there are so many events that happen in the text that mirror what is happening in the current society. There are even characters in positions of power who are closely aligned with people who are in positions of power in 2019. In my opinion, this book would have won an ALA Alex Award had the award been established when the book was published in the early 1990s. This would be a great discussion starter in high school classrooms, as it depicts conversations surrounding climate change, corporation-government partnerships, indentured servitude, religion, disability, racism, sexism, and empathy. Moreover, because it is set in the early 2020s, it could promote a great discussion about the similarities and differences between Butler’s imagined world and our real one. The best thing about this book, though, is that it has a sequel, Parable of Talents, that is even more prescient than the first!
Weekend Pick for April 12, 2019
Stephanie Toliver
Freedom! Freedom! I can't move
Freedom, cut me loose!
Freedom! Freedom! Where are you?
Cause I need freedom too!
I break chains all by myself
Won't let my freedom rot in hell
Hey! I'ma keep on running
Cause a winner don't quit on themselves
Normally, Dreamwalkers were immune to the influences of Nightmares, but if it was a fear close to your heart, it could get to you anyway. A week before the fight, police shot a black girl, seventeen, same age as Alice. Her name was Brionne Mathews. It happened in the parking lot after a football game at a school across town. Nothing the news said made sense, something about a fight between gangs and some people had guns. The girl had on one gang’s colors, but so did a lot of people. They were the same colors as one of the teams playing that night. Over the next few days, things were kinda chaotic. Protests and arrests. Course some mofos came in trying to start trouble. So many people were hurt, angry, and so afraid. It was enough to create two Nightmares. Alice had felt that fear, a physical thing that ate away at her from the inside. It left her hollow, shaking, and useless.
A Blade So Black features a teenage, cosplaying, Black girl named Alice Kingston. When her father dies, Alice is attacked by a Nightmare, an otherworldly monster that is the physical manifestation of humanity’s fears. She is saved by Addison Hatta, the guardian of the gateway between the modern world and Wonderland. When he finds out that she can see the Nightmares, he recruits her to fight alongside him as a Dreamwalker, one who travels to Wonderland in an attempt to defeat the Nightmares before they reach the real world.
In the excerpt, it shows that Alice was supposed to be immune to the influences of Nightmares; however, if a fear hit close to home, then the Nightmare could affect her. The next few lines are important. What is causing fear in her community is the death of a Black girl at the hands of a police officer. A girl, the same age as Alice, is now dead because she wore her school’s colors. From this event, a new, deep sense of fear arose, causing families to place stricter curfews on their children, causing parents to worry every time their children leave the house, causing a deep-rooted fear that re-engaged the historical traumas that have historically plagued Black communities in the United States. Because of her connection to this distressing situation, Alice is greatly affected. She discusses the hurt, anger, confusion, and fear that happens in the community and within herself. Having special powers is great, but “But was she faster than a bullet? Was she strong enough to survive one?”
L.L. McKinney uses her speculative fiction novel to build a story that tethers the fantastic world to our real one, hearkening to real-world, painful events that have happened in the United States. For example, Darnisha Harris was 17-years-old when a Beaux Bridge police officer killed her by firing two shots into the car she was driving. 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley Jones was at home asleep on her couch when an officer fired a gun in the home during a “no-knock” raid. These instances are in addition to the number of young Black women who have been killed by police before they reached the age of 30 – Rekia Boyd, Mya Hall, Shelly Frey, Shantel Davis, Shereese Francis, Korryn Gaines, Sandra Bland. McKinney shows that these instances don’t just affect the individual families. They affect communities near and far.
With the difficult Nightmares popping up more frequently, Alice thought about quitting. She feels like she can’t defeat them, like she can’t move. However, even though she is angry and scared, Alice decides to keep fighting. She refuses to quit on herself, on her role as the chosen one, or on her community. Just like Beyoncé suggests in her song, Alice chooses not to let her freedom rot in the hellacious, fear-inducing darkness in which the Nightmares form. She keeps on running, searching for a way to break free from the real and otherworldly nightmares that try to take away her and her community’s freedoms.
What I like most about this book is that Alice reminded me of myself. The fear she has, the job she’s chosen to do, and the way she cares for her family and friends really resonated with me. Also, Alice’s mom reminded me of my mother, a woman who loves me unconditionally, but also can annoy me with her worrying. However, I understand the fears of both of these characters. If the Nightmares Alice faced were real, I can only imagine the dastardly creatures that would manifest in my hometown. Because of the various ways that McKinney connects fiction story to modern life, this book is a great way to approach tough social justice issues. Additionally, with its diverse cast of characters, focus on family, and connection to a childhood classic, I’m sure there is something for all students within the pages of McKinney’s book. Plus, since the sequel, A Dream So Dark, comes out September, you’ll have a new recommendation just in time for next school year!
Freedom, cut me loose!
Freedom! Freedom! Where are you?
Cause I need freedom too!
I break chains all by myself
Won't let my freedom rot in hell
Hey! I'ma keep on running
Cause a winner don't quit on themselves
- Beyoncé
Normally, Dreamwalkers were immune to the influences of Nightmares, but if it was a fear close to your heart, it could get to you anyway. A week before the fight, police shot a black girl, seventeen, same age as Alice. Her name was Brionne Mathews. It happened in the parking lot after a football game at a school across town. Nothing the news said made sense, something about a fight between gangs and some people had guns. The girl had on one gang’s colors, but so did a lot of people. They were the same colors as one of the teams playing that night. Over the next few days, things were kinda chaotic. Protests and arrests. Course some mofos came in trying to start trouble. So many people were hurt, angry, and so afraid. It was enough to create two Nightmares. Alice had felt that fear, a physical thing that ate away at her from the inside. It left her hollow, shaking, and useless.
- L.L. McKinney, A Blade So Black, loc. 539
A Blade So Black features a teenage, cosplaying, Black girl named Alice Kingston. When her father dies, Alice is attacked by a Nightmare, an otherworldly monster that is the physical manifestation of humanity’s fears. She is saved by Addison Hatta, the guardian of the gateway between the modern world and Wonderland. When he finds out that she can see the Nightmares, he recruits her to fight alongside him as a Dreamwalker, one who travels to Wonderland in an attempt to defeat the Nightmares before they reach the real world.
In the excerpt, it shows that Alice was supposed to be immune to the influences of Nightmares; however, if a fear hit close to home, then the Nightmare could affect her. The next few lines are important. What is causing fear in her community is the death of a Black girl at the hands of a police officer. A girl, the same age as Alice, is now dead because she wore her school’s colors. From this event, a new, deep sense of fear arose, causing families to place stricter curfews on their children, causing parents to worry every time their children leave the house, causing a deep-rooted fear that re-engaged the historical traumas that have historically plagued Black communities in the United States. Because of her connection to this distressing situation, Alice is greatly affected. She discusses the hurt, anger, confusion, and fear that happens in the community and within herself. Having special powers is great, but “But was she faster than a bullet? Was she strong enough to survive one?”
L.L. McKinney uses her speculative fiction novel to build a story that tethers the fantastic world to our real one, hearkening to real-world, painful events that have happened in the United States. For example, Darnisha Harris was 17-years-old when a Beaux Bridge police officer killed her by firing two shots into the car she was driving. 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley Jones was at home asleep on her couch when an officer fired a gun in the home during a “no-knock” raid. These instances are in addition to the number of young Black women who have been killed by police before they reached the age of 30 – Rekia Boyd, Mya Hall, Shelly Frey, Shantel Davis, Shereese Francis, Korryn Gaines, Sandra Bland. McKinney shows that these instances don’t just affect the individual families. They affect communities near and far.
With the difficult Nightmares popping up more frequently, Alice thought about quitting. She feels like she can’t defeat them, like she can’t move. However, even though she is angry and scared, Alice decides to keep fighting. She refuses to quit on herself, on her role as the chosen one, or on her community. Just like Beyoncé suggests in her song, Alice chooses not to let her freedom rot in the hellacious, fear-inducing darkness in which the Nightmares form. She keeps on running, searching for a way to break free from the real and otherworldly nightmares that try to take away her and her community’s freedoms.
What I like most about this book is that Alice reminded me of myself. The fear she has, the job she’s chosen to do, and the way she cares for her family and friends really resonated with me. Also, Alice’s mom reminded me of my mother, a woman who loves me unconditionally, but also can annoy me with her worrying. However, I understand the fears of both of these characters. If the Nightmares Alice faced were real, I can only imagine the dastardly creatures that would manifest in my hometown. Because of the various ways that McKinney connects fiction story to modern life, this book is a great way to approach tough social justice issues. Additionally, with its diverse cast of characters, focus on family, and connection to a childhood classic, I’m sure there is something for all students within the pages of McKinney’s book. Plus, since the sequel, A Dream So Dark, comes out September, you’ll have a new recommendation just in time for next school year!
Weekend Pick for April 5, 2019
Stephanie Toliver
You can buy your hair if it won't grow
You can fix your nose if he says so
You can buy all the makeup that M.A.C. can make
But if you can't look inside you
Find out who am I too
Be in the position to make me feel so
Damn unpretty
“Your nose shape fits well with your face. The heart shape – ”
“Your so kind.” She pats my hand and gulps down the rest of her tea. “Do they train you all to lie so well?... I’d like an eye color close to yours. I know it’s impossible to have your amber-colored eyes, but let’s try, shall we? And let’s start my blond transformation. Dark blon, then I’ll go gradually lighter to white as the snow comes – yes, yes – that’s what I’ll do… I’ll get more press. …Also, if we have time, could you fix my lips? They’re looking very fishlike today.”
“Are you sure you want all of these things done at once? What about the pain?
“Of course.” She scoffs, then eyes me. “If I could have you rebuild me from the bones out, I’d do that as well. I can tolerate it. I’m strong… I’d do anything to be beautiful.”
The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton is a novel set in the kingdom of Orléans, where people are born red-eyed and grey-skinned. In other words, most people within the kingdom are born “unpretty.” However, Belles are people who can change the appearance of citizens and make them “beautiful” as long as they pay a fee. As shown in the excerpt above, Belles can alter a person’s hair and eye color, and they can even change the shape and size of someone’s body. Moreover, they are able to change a person’s personality, eliminating unwanted traits and adding more desirable ones.
The main character in The Belles is Camellia Beauregard, and she is one of these Belles, known for her unmatched ability to make people beautiful. Camellia has been bred for beauty work, trained since she was a young girl. Although she is talented, though, she does not just want to be a Belle. She wants to be the favorite, the Belle who is chosen by the queen of Orléans to live and work in the royal palace. However, once she is granted access to the castle, she learns that being a Belle may not be as glamorous as she believed. There is darkness behind the light of the castle, and there are enemies lurking around many corners. In fact, there is an underbelly of beautification that she has yet to understand at the beginning of the book, but she learns more and more as time passes.
For example, the passage I chose to share was a conversation between Camellia and Sabine, a royal family member. Sabine is already aesthetically pleasing according to Camellia, but Sabine does not believe it. She wants to alter her eye color, hair color, and lip shape. She even mentions that she would alter her entire bone structure if she could. To be beautiful is to endure a high level of pain, which is why the Belles provide a special numbing tea. The more alternations necessary, however, the less the tea will work. Still, Sabine is dedicated to being more beautiful. She is willing to undergo any amount of pain to reach the aesthetic that would allow her to be pretty. However, she seems to be using outward beautification to compensate for negative inner feelings about herself.
This commentary by Clayton expounds on the idea of beauty in our world, hearkening to the inane beauty standards placed upon society, especially upon the women in world. Through the story of Camellia, Clayton shows that our obsession with beauty can have dire and violent consequences. However, the author also acknowledges that although many of the women in the story can afford to be beautiful – they can buy the hair, buy the makeup, and fix their noses – many are ugly on the inside, and no amount of outside work can fix the ugliness that lives within them. However, even though Camellia was once jaded, she begins to look inside herself, find out who she is and who she wants to be. In the end, she realizes that there’s more to the work than being a favorite and being beautiful.
This is a great story to bring into secondary classrooms because there are so many of our young people who are dealing with the constant bombardment of beauty standards that tell them every day that they are not enough. They are inundated with visuals and discussions about who is and who is not beautiful, who is and who is not camera ready, who is and who cannot be loved because they do not meet specific standards of beauty. Clayton, however, questions that, not only in the pages of the story, but also in her author’s note. She pushes us, as readers and critical thinkers, to talk about “the commodification of women’s body parts and the media messages we send young people about the value of their exterior selves, what is considered beautiful, and the forces causing those things to shift into disgusting shapes” (author’s note).
As a discussion starter, critical commentary, and all-around good read, I must recommend this book. It’s such a good story, but there are critical discussions infused within the plot and characters. Sadly, this book ends on a cliff hanger, but the good thing is that once you finish reading, you can get book 2! It came out March, 5, 2019, and it is just as wonderful.
You can fix your nose if he says so
You can buy all the makeup that M.A.C. can make
But if you can't look inside you
Find out who am I too
Be in the position to make me feel so
Damn unpretty
- TLC, Unpretty, 1999
“Your nose shape fits well with your face. The heart shape – ”
“Your so kind.” She pats my hand and gulps down the rest of her tea. “Do they train you all to lie so well?... I’d like an eye color close to yours. I know it’s impossible to have your amber-colored eyes, but let’s try, shall we? And let’s start my blond transformation. Dark blon, then I’ll go gradually lighter to white as the snow comes – yes, yes – that’s what I’ll do… I’ll get more press. …Also, if we have time, could you fix my lips? They’re looking very fishlike today.”
“Are you sure you want all of these things done at once? What about the pain?
“Of course.” She scoffs, then eyes me. “If I could have you rebuild me from the bones out, I’d do that as well. I can tolerate it. I’m strong… I’d do anything to be beautiful.”
- Dhonielle Clayton, The Belles, 2018, p. 198
The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton is a novel set in the kingdom of Orléans, where people are born red-eyed and grey-skinned. In other words, most people within the kingdom are born “unpretty.” However, Belles are people who can change the appearance of citizens and make them “beautiful” as long as they pay a fee. As shown in the excerpt above, Belles can alter a person’s hair and eye color, and they can even change the shape and size of someone’s body. Moreover, they are able to change a person’s personality, eliminating unwanted traits and adding more desirable ones.
The main character in The Belles is Camellia Beauregard, and she is one of these Belles, known for her unmatched ability to make people beautiful. Camellia has been bred for beauty work, trained since she was a young girl. Although she is talented, though, she does not just want to be a Belle. She wants to be the favorite, the Belle who is chosen by the queen of Orléans to live and work in the royal palace. However, once she is granted access to the castle, she learns that being a Belle may not be as glamorous as she believed. There is darkness behind the light of the castle, and there are enemies lurking around many corners. In fact, there is an underbelly of beautification that she has yet to understand at the beginning of the book, but she learns more and more as time passes.
For example, the passage I chose to share was a conversation between Camellia and Sabine, a royal family member. Sabine is already aesthetically pleasing according to Camellia, but Sabine does not believe it. She wants to alter her eye color, hair color, and lip shape. She even mentions that she would alter her entire bone structure if she could. To be beautiful is to endure a high level of pain, which is why the Belles provide a special numbing tea. The more alternations necessary, however, the less the tea will work. Still, Sabine is dedicated to being more beautiful. She is willing to undergo any amount of pain to reach the aesthetic that would allow her to be pretty. However, she seems to be using outward beautification to compensate for negative inner feelings about herself.
This commentary by Clayton expounds on the idea of beauty in our world, hearkening to the inane beauty standards placed upon society, especially upon the women in world. Through the story of Camellia, Clayton shows that our obsession with beauty can have dire and violent consequences. However, the author also acknowledges that although many of the women in the story can afford to be beautiful – they can buy the hair, buy the makeup, and fix their noses – many are ugly on the inside, and no amount of outside work can fix the ugliness that lives within them. However, even though Camellia was once jaded, she begins to look inside herself, find out who she is and who she wants to be. In the end, she realizes that there’s more to the work than being a favorite and being beautiful.
This is a great story to bring into secondary classrooms because there are so many of our young people who are dealing with the constant bombardment of beauty standards that tell them every day that they are not enough. They are inundated with visuals and discussions about who is and who is not beautiful, who is and who is not camera ready, who is and who cannot be loved because they do not meet specific standards of beauty. Clayton, however, questions that, not only in the pages of the story, but also in her author’s note. She pushes us, as readers and critical thinkers, to talk about “the commodification of women’s body parts and the media messages we send young people about the value of their exterior selves, what is considered beautiful, and the forces causing those things to shift into disgusting shapes” (author’s note).
As a discussion starter, critical commentary, and all-around good read, I must recommend this book. It’s such a good story, but there are critical discussions infused within the plot and characters. Sadly, this book ends on a cliff hanger, but the good thing is that once you finish reading, you can get book 2! It came out March, 5, 2019, and it is just as wonderful.
Gretchen's Picks for March 2019
Gretchen Rumohr-Voskuil is an Associate Professor of English and serves as director of the Inquiry and Expression program. She earned her B.A. from Hope College, her M.Ed. from Aquinas College, and Ph.D. from Western Michigan University. Dr. R-V teaches composition, literature, literature methods, and writing methods at Aquinas. He research involves the history, rhetorical force, and application of the term "best practice;" rhetorics of motherhood; the relationship between state-mandated standards (CCSS) and first year composition; writing center pedagogies; and creating safe learning spaces for trauma survivors. Dr. R-V's scholarly work has appeared in Language Arts Journal of Michigan, Teaching Literature in Virtual Worlds: Immersive Learning in English Studies (Routledge 2011), and The Doctoral Degree in English Education (Kennesaw 2009), but she is most proud of her four young daughters.
Weekend Pick for March 29, 2019
Hannah Hazelbach
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Hannah Hazelbach is an English and history teaching candidate at Aquinas College.
It is Patina’s turn to take her place besides her friends Ghost, Lou, and Sunny at the starting line in the second book in the Track series by New York Times Bestselling author Jason Reynold’s. Patina “Patty” stands on the line with a new set of challenges. Fiercely independent, Patty has embraced the role of a mother to her younger sister when her mom is diagnosed with a disease that has restricted her ability to use her legs. Trying to survive feeling like an outsider in a new school, Patty channels her strength by using running as an escape from the stress and anxieties in her life. In a time where we all want to “escape” our own fears and challenges, Patina’s resiliency when faced with many demanding realities that young adults experience is an inspiration to readers of all ages. I found myself reading for several pages without pausing to take a breath. Reading this book will transport readers to a time in their life when they suddenly found themselves courageously stepping up to the line of life, providing them with the strength to triumphantly overcome any hardships they experience. |
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Weekend Pick for March 22, 2019
Sydney Theis
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Since I (Gretchen) shared alone last week, I’m yielding the floor this week! Aquinas College student extraordinaire Sydney Theis shares her pick for the coming weekend. Sydney has been a student in my methods courses and also works as an Aquinas College Writing Center consultant. Thank you, Sydney!
Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson While this book is by no means new, and although I read it for the first time months ago, Lori Halse Anderson’s Wintergirls is constantly on my mind. Following the interiority of eighteen-year-old Lia, who is stricken with anorexia, which intensifies after the death of her friend with the same illness, Anderson crafts a narrative focused on mental illness. She includes its direct effect on individuals, as well as all members involved. Not eating blinds Lia from the reality of her own state of being as she carries a haunting voice in her head. In detailing the battle within her main character’s interior, Anderson conveys the power and loss of what goes unspoken. Both poignant and hopeful, Wintergirls grapples with the idea of letting one’s thoughts devour and determine ourselves. |
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Weekend Pick for March 15, 2019
Gretchen
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While I often share weekend picks alongside a student, I’m lonely this week--it’s Aquinas’ spring break! My pick this weekend is Benjamin Alire Saenz’s The Inexplicable Logic of my Life, which I’m currently reading via Audible. There are so many reasons for me to love this book so far, but the characterization shines through Sal, who as a senior in high school is grappling with questions about his biological father; Samantha, Sal’s best friend, who is as smart as she is strong; and Sal’s gay adoptive father, who is gentle, wise, and unfailing in love for his son. I haven’t gotten to the end yet, yet hope to cross the finish line while enjoying a latte on Saturday afternoon. For those of you who haven’t yet read Saenz’s work, especially Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, you need to--now. Saenz is not only an acclaimed YA author, but an award-winning contemporary author as well. I am proud to say that Saenz will be visiting Aquinas College for its Fall 2019 Contemporary Writers Series on Thursday, September 26 (free and open to the public)--where we will revel in his expert storytelling.
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Weekend Pick for March 8, 2019
Gretchen with Raymond Antel
Raymond Antel is an avid reader and a M.Ed student at Aquinas College. As you can tell, he is an enthusiastic ambassador of books who will make an excellent secondary ELA teacher!
From Raymond: Written by the revolutionary “Rebel Paleontologist”, Robert T. Bakker, Raptor Red transports readers directly into the cunning mind of a female Utahraptor, 120 million years ago. You’ll tear through the pages while Raptor Red stalks her way across Mesozoic North America on a thrilling Dino-odyssey. Warning: these are not your granny’s dinosaurs! Bakker spins his fearsome tale with a diverse cast of realistic and dangerous animals, fighting for their very survival in a strange new world. Become the dinosaur you were always meant to be! Read Raptor Red! |
From Gretchen Rumohr-Voskuil, associate professor at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan:
While we’re on the topic of “fearsome tale[s] with a diverse cast of realistic and dangerous animals,” I’ll share that my pick is Unpresidented: A Biography of Donald Trump. As far as I can tell, this is the only nonfiction YA book that examines Donald Trump. Given that young adults will remember the 2016 election as they prepare to vote in the future elections, I appreciate that Brockenbrough engages this issue with integrity, meticulously researching and reporting on Trump’s upbringing, rise to fame, and journey to the White House. And considering that the audiobook is 8 hours, this could be a “clean out the garage and do some laundry” audiobook that pairs well with a few weekend runs or drives. |
Weekend Pick for March 1, 2019
This weekend’s picks brought to you by the Rumohr siblings:
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From Luke Rumohr, Eighth grade history teacher in Cadillac, Michigan:
Nat Turner was recommended by a fellow history teacher I follow on Twitter @HistoryComics. In the same way that the Laurie Halse Anderson’s Seeds of America trilogy brings to life the Revolutionary War, I found myself glued to the Confessions of Nat Turner brought to life by graphic novelist Kyle Baker, quickly realizing that this is change: creating documentation of a man that textbooks don’t like to discuss. I regret that I did not discover this book earlier in my teaching career and confess I began scheming immediately of a way to gain a classroom set for my students. As an 8th grade US History teacher, I am always looking for ways to bring to life our nation’s history in a way that can relate to students and spark engagement in and out of the classroom. In this, Baker’s Nat Turner is a masterpiece. I am not sure I have ever read a more engrossing preface that kept my head nodding in agreement, while creating anticipation of the true story to be told. Graphically raw and primary source rich, the topic of slavery in my rural northern Michigan junior high school has an additional channel for discussion and enrichment. |
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From Gretchen Rumohr-Voskuil, associate professor at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan:
There are so many reasons why Jacqueline Woodson’s National Book Award finalist, Another Brooklyn, would be a great weekend read. First of all, it’s Jacqueline Woodson, for pete’s sake. You can be assured that her prose will inspire you, evoke memories, connect you to the stories she so compellingly tells. It also focuses on themes we can all relate to: young friendship that endures and young friendship that fails; innocence that is lost; rites of passage that we all experience. Finally, the book is relatively short--175 pages--which means you could start it Friday night after supper, pick it up for an hour or so after your Saturday morning workout, and then finish it in the quiet of your Sunday afternoon. At under three hours, the audiobook to Another Brooklyn could keep you company while you finish those weekend projects. Can you all tell I’m thinking about how to bribe myself to finish those weekend projects myself? |
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Steve Bickmore and Friends Pick for February 2019
Black History Month
Weekend Pick for Feb. 22, 2019
with Georgia McBride
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Georgia McBride and I have been friends for several years now and we have never meet in person. She is the owner of Georgia McBride Media Group. She has been a friend of the blog and suggest authors from time to time and even supported two authors who attended the summit at UNLV last summer. She sponsored Justin Joschko, who also wrote for the blog and Jo Schaffer who also wrote a piece as well. When I asked Georgia to help me with a weekend pick for Black History Month, she reminded me that Chris Ledbetter had written for the blog a while ago and he would be her pick. I thought--What a great choice. Georgia McBride writes: “Chris Ledbetter’s Greek Mythology retellings serve as super cool origin stories for well-know Greek gods and goddesses that today’s readers can easily relate to. Very imaginative and loads of fun. I think she exactly right. We hope you check out The Sky Throne.
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Chris (on the right) with a fan.
Credit: Brian Wohl.
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Weekend Pick for Feb. 15, 2019
with Stephanie Toliver
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I, Stephanie, believe that any book recommendation should start with a favorite quote and then enter into a discussion about why that quote resonates with the reader. This, to me, builds more of a connection to possible future readers than a simple summary of the plot. So, here is my favorite quote from Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi.
“Help!” I scream out loud, drawing on their strength. “Please! Lend me your hand!” Like an erupting volcano, the power of my ancestors flows through me, maji and kosidan alike. Each grips onto our connection, onto the very heart of our blood. Their spirits twirl with mine, with Mama’s, with Baba’s. We pour ourselves forward, our souls fighting into the stone. “More!” I scream to them, calling on all spirits linked by our blood. I dig through our lineage, clawing all the way back to those who first received Sky Mother’s gifts. As each new ancestor surges forward, my body screams. My skin tears like it’s being pulled apart. But I need it. I need them. In this scene, Zelie, the main character of the story, is fighting to save magic. In many aspects, it would seem that she is alone, as she is the only physical being present who is capable of bringing magic back to the land of Orisha. However, when she needs them most, she calls upon her ancestors, forging an intergenerational bond linked through blood, heart, and spirit. Their souls fight as one to ensure a future for their people. Even though it’s hard (Zelie’s body screams and her skin tears), she knows that she will get through this dark time and bring light back into the world. She knows this because she knows that the spirit of her ancestors runs through her body. It is the lifeline that she needs to defeat all obstacles. I love this quote because it is a clear example of how Black people rely on their ancestors, their community, and their family to get through situations that could never be conquered alone. Even when we feel like we are by ourselves, our ancestors – those who paved the way for us – are always there, telling us to push through even when times are difficult. They remind us that they are always there, walking beside us, ready to refill our magic when we’re running low. This book is a beautiful reminder of that bond, and I cannot wait to see what Adeyemi has in store for us with her upcoming sequel, Children of Virtue and Vengeance. My turn. I, Steve, loved reading this book. I had it on hold at the public library for weeks. it was extremely popular and then I scored a copy at the ALAN Workshop. I loved listening to Tomi and quickly read my copy. It is hard to add any thing to Stephanie's comments. So, read this book.
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Weekend Pick for Feb. 8, 2019
with Tiye Cort
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This isn't a YA novel, but it is a great anthology of short essays from different industry professionals and contemporary literary greats. I loved reading this collection because it made me remember the first time I read about characters who looked like me and had similar experiences as Black girls and women. I would definitely recommend this reading for anyone who want to read real stories from authors that they admire (Jacqueline Woodson, Renee Watson) and there are also awesome book recommendations for further reading!
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Weekend Pick for Feb. 1, 2019
with Shanetia Clark
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This week I get to talk a bit about one of my favorite YA books of all times. The Watsons go to Birmiingham--1963 is one of those books that just stays with you. There is laughter and tears and I think you would have to be quite hardened to avoid either one. This is a novel that can be taught in a English class to talk about plot, major and minor characters, setting, tone, and almost any aspect of literature. It you were brave enough to really have a conversation with one of colleagues in Social Studies, this book provides boundless opportunities for cross curricular connections. If you don' know this book, please put it on you 'to be read" list. There is value in revisiting some of the books that have a little bit of age on them. More good news. This is in't is only book so you have a lot to look forward to down the road. If you don't believe me, listen to what my friend and colleague, Shanetia Clark, has to say.
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I, Shanetia, was asked to write a short piece about why I like Christopher Paul Curtis’ The Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963. To prepare, I reread the book “through my ears” by listening to the audiobook which was narrated by the iconic Levar Burton. I laughed. I cried and grieved. I reflected during quiet moments during the day. Curtis’s characters provide a lens of monumental movements and moments in US history that the young (and the young at heart) can relate. I considered writing about how in The Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963, Christopher Paul Curtis’s narrative brought readers—myself included—to fits of laughter about the sibling teasing. I thought about writing about the tears that raced down my face after bombing at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. I felt anger, sadness, and grief about the manifestation of the racial tensions and violence in the South in the 1960s. I could have shared how Curtis weaves in his story, the love and humor of the Watson family and the Watson children’s subsequent lost innocence about the world. I thought about the bonds of the African-American family.
Despite all of these avenues I could have followed, I have decided to share how Christopher Paul Curtis’s novel brought my colleagues, who are elementary teacher education professors, and I together in a new way. While I was thinking about this short blurb, I yelled in my department’s office suite, “Who has read The Watson Go to Birmingham?” Faculty members who were busy working called out in response:
Me! I love that book!” shouted the science education professor.
“I’ve read it! It’s so good,” yelled a literacy professor.
“ Oh my! Me! What a great book! Do you need a copy?” responded a children’s literature professor as she scanned to her bookshelf.
“I’ve read it! It’s my daughter’s favorite book,” said the arts professor.
“Let’s take a picture with us holding the books, and I will show the audiobook,” I replied in return.
Despite all of these avenues I could have followed, I have decided to share how Christopher Paul Curtis’s novel brought my colleagues, who are elementary teacher education professors, and I together in a new way. While I was thinking about this short blurb, I yelled in my department’s office suite, “Who has read The Watson Go to Birmingham?” Faculty members who were busy working called out in response:
Me! I love that book!” shouted the science education professor.
“I’ve read it! It’s so good,” yelled a literacy professor.
“ Oh my! Me! What a great book! Do you need a copy?” responded a children’s literature professor as she scanned to her bookshelf.
“I’ve read it! It’s my daughter’s favorite book,” said the arts professor.
“Let’s take a picture with us holding the books, and I will show the audiobook,” I replied in return.
Agreeing to take a picture, my colleagues rushed out of their offices, holding their own copies of the book. With smiling faces and enthusiastic recollections of reading with and teaching this book to elementary and middle school students, to undergraduate elementary teacher candidates, and to the young people in their families, my colleagues started to recall humorous, devastating, and hopeful moments of this Newbery Honor winning book. I thank Christopher Paul Curtis and his book The Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963 opening the space for important conversations about history and literature.
People from left to right: Amber Meyer, Shanetia Clark, Patty Dean, Jeni Davis, and Brandy Terrill.
People from left to right: Amber Meyer, Shanetia Clark, Patty Dean, Jeni Davis, and Brandy Terrill.
Sarah J. Donovan Picks for January 2019
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Sarah J. Donovan is a junior high ELA teacher and adjunct professor in teacher education at DePaul University. She is the author of Genocide Literature in Middle and Secondary Classrooms and a forthcoming young adult novel, Alone Together. She writes a weekly blog, Ethical ELA.com, where she writes about the ethics of teaching English and her #bookaday journey. Follow her @MrsSJDonovan.
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Weekend Pick for Jan 25, 2019
#4 Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi
I received an ARC of Chokshi’s book and was thrilled to see she was writing a series for Rick Riordan. (My students have always loved Riordan’s take on mythology.) Aru is the first in a four-book series, a line of global mythology-inspired books. In this, readers experience Indian mythology from a #ownvoices author who grew up in the Atlanta area and connects to her Indian heritage through fairy tales and mythology books. Aru, our protagonist, frees an ancient demon causing her peers and mother to be frozen in time, and Aru must save them by finding the reincarnations of the Pandava brothers (from the Hindu poem Mahabharata). When my seventh grade student, Abhi, heard a classmate talking about the Hindu mythology in this book, his ears turned up. Abhi reads a wide variety of literature, currently War and Peace, but he felt a special connection to this book for Aru’s culture and problem solving. In fact, after reading this book, he read Mahabharata. Here is Abhi’s response to Ari Shah and the End of Time:
Aru and Mini are attempting to secure the last key to the gates of death, so that they can collect the celestial weapons before “The Sleeper,” a demon, attempts to steal the weapons himself. While thinking about what to do, Mini explains to Aru that in this stage, they will have to take the key without using magical items. This poses the challenge of figuring out how to empty a magical pot of poison: “I didn’t say that. I just said that we can’t approach it with anyone who’s had any experience with magic’...’If you heat liquid, it can turn into a gas. Some of the poisonous liquid has become the poisonous vapors that are holding the liquid’” (171). This is a mirror for trying anything new, that even if you are used to any specific form of problem-solving, a new perspective may be required, while thinking, while experimenting, and even while writing. Aru helps readers see that perspective is important when dealing with problems--mental, emotional, or physical--and that a little ingenuity can go a long way. Roshani Chokshi is a brilliant author who can connect to teens while teaching readers about Hindu mythology.
I received an ARC of Chokshi’s book and was thrilled to see she was writing a series for Rick Riordan. (My students have always loved Riordan’s take on mythology.) Aru is the first in a four-book series, a line of global mythology-inspired books. In this, readers experience Indian mythology from a #ownvoices author who grew up in the Atlanta area and connects to her Indian heritage through fairy tales and mythology books. Aru, our protagonist, frees an ancient demon causing her peers and mother to be frozen in time, and Aru must save them by finding the reincarnations of the Pandava brothers (from the Hindu poem Mahabharata). When my seventh grade student, Abhi, heard a classmate talking about the Hindu mythology in this book, his ears turned up. Abhi reads a wide variety of literature, currently War and Peace, but he felt a special connection to this book for Aru’s culture and problem solving. In fact, after reading this book, he read Mahabharata. Here is Abhi’s response to Ari Shah and the End of Time:
Aru and Mini are attempting to secure the last key to the gates of death, so that they can collect the celestial weapons before “The Sleeper,” a demon, attempts to steal the weapons himself. While thinking about what to do, Mini explains to Aru that in this stage, they will have to take the key without using magical items. This poses the challenge of figuring out how to empty a magical pot of poison: “I didn’t say that. I just said that we can’t approach it with anyone who’s had any experience with magic’...’If you heat liquid, it can turn into a gas. Some of the poisonous liquid has become the poisonous vapors that are holding the liquid’” (171). This is a mirror for trying anything new, that even if you are used to any specific form of problem-solving, a new perspective may be required, while thinking, while experimenting, and even while writing. Aru helps readers see that perspective is important when dealing with problems--mental, emotional, or physical--and that a little ingenuity can go a long way. Roshani Chokshi is a brilliant author who can connect to teens while teaching readers about Hindu mythology.
Weekend Pick for Jan 18, 2019
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The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
I first read A Monster Calls (2011) by Patrick Ness in 2015 because a fellow seventh grade teacher recommended it. My father had just died the year before, and I was still grieving. The low-fantasy genre illuminated for me the “monster” grieving within me, allowing me to be angry with Conor. I have shared it with many students since. This book, The Knife of Never Letting Go, came to my attention the same way as the others featured in January’s Weekend Picks: by way of student recommendation. Grace is a voracious seventh grade reader. In her recent vlog, she brought me back to Patrick Ness with her discussion of The Knife of Never Letting Go (2008), a YA science fiction novel that follows Todd Hewitt, a 12-year-old boy who runs away from Prentisstown, a town where everyone can hear everyone else's thoughts, after learning of a secret about its past. Hear why Grace recommends it in her vlog below. Alongside her Ness recommendation, Grace asked me to share a second science fiction book recommendation. Here is her endorsement of Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury: The beauty of being a tween is that you're too old for short chapter books but hesitant to leave the comfort of safe topics. For starters, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is an amazing classic to begin with. A book that is not too complex to perceive, and it's a great taste before reading future teen books. With no outrageous language, it is the conflict between Guy Montag and himself. A young girl named Clarisse triggers him to expand the small room of thoughts becoming a fireman had planted in him. He doubts what he thinks is right, and so he narrowly runs away while getting submerged into another adventure. Just like what Clarisse says with Guy Montag, "I sometimes think drivers don't know what grass is, or flowers, because they never see them slowly,' she said. 'If you showed a driver a green blur, Oh yes! he'd say, that's grass"(Bradbury 6). As you can see, reading this science fiction ‘classic” will reveal a renewed aspect of living and the power of words to do so. See Grace’s Video below the images: |
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Weekend Pick for Jan 11, 2019
The Leaving by Tara Altebrando
I try to read a book a day. It is sort of an obsession of mine--to be familiar with so many books that I can recommend the right book at the right time for the right student. I add to my to-read list weekly with friends’ social media recommendations and, of course, Dr. Bickmore’s YA Wednesday picks.
In 2018, I read almost 200 books, but with our daily choice reading, my students read that in a month, so more and more of my reading life is influenced by students’ recommendations. In late December, while I was watching my students’ reading vlogs, I came across a book that I just had to read: The Leaving. Seventh grader, Nina, began the vlog with a brief summary about how six kids went missing when they were in kindergarten, and all but one returned a decade later with no memory of where they were or the lives they lived. Nina discussed the range of emotions the characters felt as they tried to “put the puzzle pieces together.” I asked Nina to lend me the book, and it was the first book I read over winter break. I couldn’t put it down. After break, I met up with Nina to talk about the book (especially the ending), and she told me she went on Amazon to write a review and noticed some people were critical of the ending. We agreed we liked the ending; the premise of the book is fascinating enough that I think it will satisfy most mystery lovers.
Check out the video for Nina’s full response, and enjoy listening to her read and discuss a few passages. (This video is shared with Nina and her parents' permission.)
You can meet Nina through her video. It can be found just below the image.
I try to read a book a day. It is sort of an obsession of mine--to be familiar with so many books that I can recommend the right book at the right time for the right student. I add to my to-read list weekly with friends’ social media recommendations and, of course, Dr. Bickmore’s YA Wednesday picks.
In 2018, I read almost 200 books, but with our daily choice reading, my students read that in a month, so more and more of my reading life is influenced by students’ recommendations. In late December, while I was watching my students’ reading vlogs, I came across a book that I just had to read: The Leaving. Seventh grader, Nina, began the vlog with a brief summary about how six kids went missing when they were in kindergarten, and all but one returned a decade later with no memory of where they were or the lives they lived. Nina discussed the range of emotions the characters felt as they tried to “put the puzzle pieces together.” I asked Nina to lend me the book, and it was the first book I read over winter break. I couldn’t put it down. After break, I met up with Nina to talk about the book (especially the ending), and she told me she went on Amazon to write a review and noticed some people were critical of the ending. We agreed we liked the ending; the premise of the book is fascinating enough that I think it will satisfy most mystery lovers.
Check out the video for Nina’s full response, and enjoy listening to her read and discuss a few passages. (This video is shared with Nina and her parents' permission.)
You can meet Nina through her video. It can be found just below the image.
Weekend Pick for Jan 4, 2019
The Inexplicable Logic of My Life by Benjamin Alire Saenz
Published in March 2017, I first read this book in July 2017. I had read and listened to Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe and fell in love with how the author uses poetic prose to bring people together. This book, The Inexplicable Logic of My Life, is also about relationships. Sal and Sammy are friends, but unlike most YA novels, their relationships stays platonic as they support one another through change and grief. And this is a story about parent-child relationships. Sam and her mom, Sylvia, are at odds. Sal is making sense of what it means to be white while identifying more with the culture of his adopted Mexican family and friends. Sal’s father is gentle and good, and it was just comforting to read a YA novel with a positive father figure. I loved being part of Sal’s family as I listened to the audio version.
This book came back to my heart and mind anew this December when one of my students checked it out from her local library and chose it to review for our weekly vlog assignment. (Students read every day in class anything they wish, and a few times a quarter, they create a vlog review of a book to share on our class blog as an opportunity to talk about books at length, to develop a rich resource for discovering new titles, and for me to respond and support their reading lives as a co-reader and teacher.) When I saw Llyanna holding up this book, I felt such gratitude to Benjamin Alire Saenz for bringing Llyanna such a “beautiful” reading experience (her word). So I share Llyanna’s vlog with you (with her and her mother’s permission) for this first weekend pick of January.
You can meet Llyanna through her video. It can be found just below the images.
Published in March 2017, I first read this book in July 2017. I had read and listened to Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe and fell in love with how the author uses poetic prose to bring people together. This book, The Inexplicable Logic of My Life, is also about relationships. Sal and Sammy are friends, but unlike most YA novels, their relationships stays platonic as they support one another through change and grief. And this is a story about parent-child relationships. Sam and her mom, Sylvia, are at odds. Sal is making sense of what it means to be white while identifying more with the culture of his adopted Mexican family and friends. Sal’s father is gentle and good, and it was just comforting to read a YA novel with a positive father figure. I loved being part of Sal’s family as I listened to the audio version.
This book came back to my heart and mind anew this December when one of my students checked it out from her local library and chose it to review for our weekly vlog assignment. (Students read every day in class anything they wish, and a few times a quarter, they create a vlog review of a book to share on our class blog as an opportunity to talk about books at length, to develop a rich resource for discovering new titles, and for me to respond and support their reading lives as a co-reader and teacher.) When I saw Llyanna holding up this book, I felt such gratitude to Benjamin Alire Saenz for bringing Llyanna such a “beautiful” reading experience (her word). So I share Llyanna’s vlog with you (with her and her mother’s permission) for this first weekend pick of January.
You can meet Llyanna through her video. It can be found just below the images.
Weekend Picks for 2018
Check out the slide show of Weekend Picks for 2018!
Is there something you missed? Is there a book you should share with someone?
Steve's Picks for December 2018
Weekend Pick for Dec. 28, 2018
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This last pick for the year is a flashback. Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes is a masterpiece that celebrates, student creativity, teacher engagement in the classroom, poetry, and community. I frequently point to this book of an example of how teachers can change the pedagogy and student engagement in their classroom. Arts and student participation in the arts is often something that many teachers shy away from. Maybe because they are hesitant to do this type of work themselves (I know that was always part of my hesitation) or they just didn't think students would do it. If you do know this wonderful book or you haven't revisited it since it won the Coretta Scott King Award in 2002, it is time to check it out.
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Weekend Pick for Dec. 21, 2018
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This week my pick is The Bridge Home by Padma Venkatraman. I read this wonderful book back in September when I got an early copy. Thanks Padma, I know that you made that happen. I think Padma is a wonderful writer. If you follow my blog, you know that I have been a long and enthusiastic supporter of her work. One of my early publications was a chapter on Climbing the Stairs and I was thrilled with her verse novel, A Time to Dance. (I had A Time to Dance as a weekend pick in April of 2017, before we did annotations.) If you don't know either of these earlier books you should add them to to read list as soon as possible. Once again, she has proven her talent as an author with her first middle grades book.
I would have picked it earlier, but I passed duties to Jon during November and during October, I was catching up on nominees for the National Book Award. I loved the book and it reminded me of my privileged and my obligation to do more good in the world. This is a great book for a book group and an excellent choice for a book to read with your own children. On Dec. 14, 2018 Lesley Roessing beat me to the punch and wrote this wonderful review on her Facebook Page. I agree with everything she says, thanks Lesley. Before I can write this review, I have to mop up the puddle that right now is me. Not sure I have cried as much in a while as reading Padma Venkatraman’s new novel today. Yes, today, one day. Could. Not. Put down. The novel is written as a letter by Viji to her younger sister. Viji and Rukku, who has a mental disability, run away from their physically abusive father when their mother forgives him time after time. Viji says, “Our togetherness was one of the few things I had faith in.” (2) Homeless, they join two boys, Muthu and Arul who live on a bridge, and the four of them become a family. They live day-to-day, picking through trash to sell recyclable materials, refusing to become beggars. Arul notices that Rukku can do more than Viji thinks and gives her small responsibilities, letting her feel valued. “…he’d seen something in you that I hadn’t bothered to notice.” (64) In fact, Rukku sells the bead necklaces she has been making for more money than they have had so far. After they lose their “home,” they move to a graveyard infested with mosquitoes and Rukku and Muthu become ill. Viji decides to trust and seek help from Celina Aunty, a woman who runs a home for working children, but Rukku dies, and Viji blames herself. It takes time, but Celina Aunty convinces her that even if she has no faith in religion, she should learn to “have faith in the goodness within yourself.” (161) When Arul admonishes her, “Start giving thanks for what you do have.… You’re here in this home with a chance to do something more with your life. You have Celina Aunty. You have me. You have Muthu. Most of all, you have yourself.” (164) Writing to her sister, Viji travels back, but she also can now move forward, imaging herself as the teacher she always wanted to be—with a chance to work with children like Rukku, with new friends, and with her family, Arul and Muthu. Padma Venkatraman does it again--creates girls who find their strength. #booksthatgenerateimportantconversations #ARC #homelessness#neurodiversity #family #poverty #stronggirls #India Penguin ClassroomPenguin Random House |
Weekend Pick for Dec. 14, 2018
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I decided to look back a bit in my history of being immersed in YA and pick a book that is a bit older that deserves to be revisited. One of the themes I like to read about in YA literature are books that have music as a central theme. I was running my eyes over the titles and Jordan Sonnenblick’s Drums, Girls, & Dangerous Pie jumped right out. I read this book the first time at least over ten years ago. I read it again when I was reading titles that used music as a component. More importantly, Sonnenblick mangages the impossible. He make a book that is clearly in the sick-lit category funny. It is heartwarming and a joy to read. As I scanned through it again, I was also reminded it was his first book. By my count he now has eleven book to his credit. If you don’t know any of this books, start with this one. Then just keep reading.
Browsing through this book reminds me why I looked forward to meeting Jordan when I had dinner with him at NCTE a couple of years ago. At the time, we talked about having a larger conversation about YA, literature, and teaching English in general. It is time to pursue that connection again. |
Weekend Pick for Dec. 7, 2018
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Some books take you by surprise. I had heard some buzz about Adib Khorram's Darius the Great is not Okay and moved it up in my to read list. All of the buzz is correct. It was well worth the read. Kirkus provides a starred review and I agree. Khorram creates a character study that captures a young man who is struggling with depression. I found Darius a character that I wanted to get to know. His conflict with bullies, his father, and his own desire to feel both better and stronger is remarkably drawn. He often finds it difficult to get through a day in his Portland, Oregon high school. As the family decides to visit Iran to visits his dying grandfather, Darius finds an opportunity to rethink family and life.
He navigates a new land and closer family engagements and along the way he discovers friendship. I found myself routing for and emphasizing with Darius. I found this book to be subtle and stronger with a staying power that I hope more readers find. I hope more teachers look to add this book to their classroom shelves. |
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Jon's Picks for November 2018
Weekend Pick for Nov. 30, 2018
My final pick for November is a more recent book, one by a British author who may not be familiar to American readers. William Sutcliffe’s book We See Everything is a novel set in the near-future in a small swatch of London that’s been walled-off for reasons that are never clear to the reader. We come to learn about The Strip (the name of the segregated section of London) through two characters who alternately narrate the novel: Lex, a young man living in The Strip who, like everyone else in the area, lives in ever-present fear of the military drones that hover far above and rain down missiles of death on the already devastated area; and Alan, a talented video gamer whose skill gets him recruited by the military to fly those same drones.
My obvious sympathies were with Lex, whose struggle to merely pick a few ripe berries on the Berlin-wall-like border between The Strip and the rest of London provides a heart-pounding opening to the book. The tension rises as Lex is drawn into the underground resistance, serving as courier for his father, who is a significant target for the military and its drones. The introduction of a romantic interest in Lex’s life sheds more light on the impoverished and oppressive conditions in The Strip.
But as the book goes on, it’s hard not to feel some sympathy for Alan, too, in spite of the fact that he’s training to pilot killer drones. He has a frustrating relationship with his mother, and he wants desperately to be on his own and independent–and this position as a drone pilot can provide that for him. He’s not entirely likeable, but as the book progresses his understanding of the nature of the conflict he’s a part of invites us to see him more positively. His growing uncertainty only increases the intensity as the action heads towards a climax that is heart-breaking and thoroughly moving.
Any reader of this book who follows world events will see hints of the real-world Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the events and conditions Sutcliffe explores. (In fact, Sutcliffe’s previous novel for young adults, The Wall, is a work of realistic fiction set in the West Bank.) Reading about Lex’s life and those of his neighbors can provide insights into the conditions of anyone who lives under threat of an occupational force. I could see this book, which should be compelling for reluctant readers, paired in classrooms with non-fiction and fiction about the Israeli occupation and the experiences of people on both sides of the conflict. It’s a great book in its own right, but is more than just an action-packed thriller and could open windows for young readers about situations in the world today.
My obvious sympathies were with Lex, whose struggle to merely pick a few ripe berries on the Berlin-wall-like border between The Strip and the rest of London provides a heart-pounding opening to the book. The tension rises as Lex is drawn into the underground resistance, serving as courier for his father, who is a significant target for the military and its drones. The introduction of a romantic interest in Lex’s life sheds more light on the impoverished and oppressive conditions in The Strip.
But as the book goes on, it’s hard not to feel some sympathy for Alan, too, in spite of the fact that he’s training to pilot killer drones. He has a frustrating relationship with his mother, and he wants desperately to be on his own and independent–and this position as a drone pilot can provide that for him. He’s not entirely likeable, but as the book progresses his understanding of the nature of the conflict he’s a part of invites us to see him more positively. His growing uncertainty only increases the intensity as the action heads towards a climax that is heart-breaking and thoroughly moving.
Any reader of this book who follows world events will see hints of the real-world Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the events and conditions Sutcliffe explores. (In fact, Sutcliffe’s previous novel for young adults, The Wall, is a work of realistic fiction set in the West Bank.) Reading about Lex’s life and those of his neighbors can provide insights into the conditions of anyone who lives under threat of an occupational force. I could see this book, which should be compelling for reluctant readers, paired in classrooms with non-fiction and fiction about the Israeli occupation and the experiences of people on both sides of the conflict. It’s a great book in its own right, but is more than just an action-packed thriller and could open windows for young readers about situations in the world today.
Weekend Pick for Nov. 16, 2018
My second “throw-back” pick is John Bellairs’ book The Revenge of the Wizard’s Ghost, although several of Bellairs’ books would make the list of the few YA titles that I recall reading as a young man. I credit reading Bellairs with instilling a life-long admiration for Edward Gorey’s illustrations (Gorey illustrated many of the book covers and frontispieces of the Bellairs books that I checked out of our local library) as well as a long interest in gothic storytelling.
This book takes place in the 1950s and centers on Johnny Dixon, a thirteen-year-old timid boy whose mother has died of cancer and whose father is a fighter pilot stationed in Korea. He’s living with his grandparents right across the street from one of his best friends, Professor Chidermass. Wizard’s Ghost tells a fairly stock tale of gothic horror: Johnny is haunted by strange dreams of an ornate little chapel and when he starts acting uncharacteristically angry and rude to those around him, we discover that he’s been possessed by the ghost of the evil wizard Warren Windrow. To save Johnny, the professor and Johnny’s other best friend (a young man named Fergie) must travel to the Windrow estate and find a magical talisman that will expel the evil ghost from Johnny’s body.
In some ways, this book shows the way writing for teen readers has evolved in the 40+ years since Bellairs first started writing. There isn’t a lot of deep character development in these books and they’re told in the third person, so we likewise miss out on an introspective, reflective narrator and his observations of people and events. We can predict a happy ending, with evil (outlined in stark, simple relief against the good of Johnny’s friends and family) being soundly trounced. But it’s a fun little adventure story that moves quickly and engages readers in its riddles and mysteries–even though many of these seem simplistic to an adult reader.
You won’t find much more complexity in the other books Bellairs wrote about Johnny Dixon or about Lewis Barnavelt, the young man who serves as protagonist for another series Bellairs wrote. (You may recognize the title of the first Barnavelt novel, The House with A Clock in its Walls, which was recently adapted into a film.) But these books served as my introductions to gothic horror and mystery stories. Although Bellair’s gothic elements are relatively tame, they prepared me for further reading in Stephen King and even classics like Frankenstein. Reading the Barnavelt books taught me a lot about Catholicism and ancient history while introducing me to the conventions of the mystery/thriller genres that I still enjoy today. And having a series to read was important to the younger me: I loved reading but worried about taking a chance on an unknown book when I could only check out a handful of titles at once from the library.
As a young reader, I saw a lot of myself in Johnny Dixon and Lewis Barnavelt; I was kind of nerdy and timid and less interested in sports than I was in reading and computers. Although the stories are simple, they brought me into fascinating worlds of ghosts and ancient curses and brave boys (and their adult friends) who faced down evil. And while I appreciate the ways that recent writing for teens has evolved to display more complicated characters and settings, I hope we’ll keep a place for simpler storytelling in the reading lives of the young people we work with and recommend books to.
This book takes place in the 1950s and centers on Johnny Dixon, a thirteen-year-old timid boy whose mother has died of cancer and whose father is a fighter pilot stationed in Korea. He’s living with his grandparents right across the street from one of his best friends, Professor Chidermass. Wizard’s Ghost tells a fairly stock tale of gothic horror: Johnny is haunted by strange dreams of an ornate little chapel and when he starts acting uncharacteristically angry and rude to those around him, we discover that he’s been possessed by the ghost of the evil wizard Warren Windrow. To save Johnny, the professor and Johnny’s other best friend (a young man named Fergie) must travel to the Windrow estate and find a magical talisman that will expel the evil ghost from Johnny’s body.
In some ways, this book shows the way writing for teen readers has evolved in the 40+ years since Bellairs first started writing. There isn’t a lot of deep character development in these books and they’re told in the third person, so we likewise miss out on an introspective, reflective narrator and his observations of people and events. We can predict a happy ending, with evil (outlined in stark, simple relief against the good of Johnny’s friends and family) being soundly trounced. But it’s a fun little adventure story that moves quickly and engages readers in its riddles and mysteries–even though many of these seem simplistic to an adult reader.
You won’t find much more complexity in the other books Bellairs wrote about Johnny Dixon or about Lewis Barnavelt, the young man who serves as protagonist for another series Bellairs wrote. (You may recognize the title of the first Barnavelt novel, The House with A Clock in its Walls, which was recently adapted into a film.) But these books served as my introductions to gothic horror and mystery stories. Although Bellair’s gothic elements are relatively tame, they prepared me for further reading in Stephen King and even classics like Frankenstein. Reading the Barnavelt books taught me a lot about Catholicism and ancient history while introducing me to the conventions of the mystery/thriller genres that I still enjoy today. And having a series to read was important to the younger me: I loved reading but worried about taking a chance on an unknown book when I could only check out a handful of titles at once from the library.
As a young reader, I saw a lot of myself in Johnny Dixon and Lewis Barnavelt; I was kind of nerdy and timid and less interested in sports than I was in reading and computers. Although the stories are simple, they brought me into fascinating worlds of ghosts and ancient curses and brave boys (and their adult friends) who faced down evil. And while I appreciate the ways that recent writing for teens has evolved to display more complicated characters and settings, I hope we’ll keep a place for simpler storytelling in the reading lives of the young people we work with and recommend books to.
Weekend Pick for Nov. 9, 2018
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I thought for this pick and the next that I’d travel back in time and revisit some of the (very few) titles that I remember actually reading myself as a young adult. I came of age in the 80s, when some of the greatest YA authors were writing but, for whatever reason, never encountered those writers until my undergraduate training to become an English teacher in the 90s. Instead, I remember reading a very slim selection of books written specifically for me, but I remember them well (a testament to the power of young adult literature).
The book I’ve picked this week is John Christopher’s book The White Mountains. This book introduces us to a future world where Earth has been invaded and conquered by aliens in the form of tripods, spindly three-legged metal machines that always reminded me of The War of the Worlds aliens. The story focuses on Will, a young man who is about to turn 14 and is anticipating, like all other boys and girls who reach that age, being taken by the tripods to be “capped” or implanted with a metal mesh on his scalp that allows the aliens to control his thoughts. Influenced by a chance encounter with a man who causes him to question the alien’s power, Will runs away from home in search of a rumored city where men and women live free of the control of the aliens (the eponymous White Mountains). The book is a tightly woven narrative that moves quickly and keeps readers on edge throughout. Christopher’s world is an interesting and unique blend of sci-fi elements, with the aliens and their mind control, and a medieval world, thanks to the conquest of humans that’s thrown them back to the pre-industrial world. His story explores issues of agency and free will that are so important to teenagers as Will awakens to the real consequences of the loss of freedom so uncritically accepted by the society around him. I remember as a teen reader being caught up in Will’s world and engrossed in his adventurous journey to the White Mountains. After re-reading the book recently, I think it still holds up relatively well, especially the story. I also learned the Christopher followed up the original book with three more, two sequels and one prequel that describes the alien invasion and conquest (accomplished with the help of a hypnotic TV show). So there’s even more of the world of the tripods to enjoy if you find, like me, Will’s first adventure to be worth the read. |
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Weekend Pick for Nov. 2, 2018
I don’t know how well Geraldine McCaughrean is known on this side of the ocean, but I’ve been a fan ever since I read her book The White Darkness. On a trip to the UK this summer, I saw her newest book Where the World Ends on shelves there (doesn’t everyone browse the YA bookstore shelves when they’re abroad?), and I couldn’t wait to read it.
Where the World Ends takes us back to the 18th century and St. Kilda, a small archipelago off the coast of Scotland. We follow a dozen men and boys from the small island of Hirta who are dropped off on a nearby stac (a column of rock formed by wave erosion) to hunt seabirds who nest there. When the boat to pick them up fails to show up on time, the group is initially worried but not too anxious: the abundance of seabirds and the shelter of a large cave in the stac means they’re okay for a while. But as days and weeks go by without rescue, they begin to assume that the world has ended and that God and His angels have forgotten to sweep them up in the Rapture.
The ensuing breakdown of order and comity evokes William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, although McCaughrean’s book isn’t as vividly dark as his. I found myself immediately immersed in the setting, and detailing the harsh environment of the stac is where McCaughrean’s writing really shines (as it did in her vivid descriptions of Antarctica in The White Darkness). She draws compelling characters too, and even though the book is written in third person, she manages to provide disturbing insights into the dual nature of the stranded men and boys. The story works marvelously as an allegory for the loss we all experience when we first confront the complex truths about humanity when those whom we’ve previously trusted reveal a darker side in a moment of desperation or selfishness. (And it’s based on a true incident, which sent me to the Internet and a delightful rabbit hole of Google searches.)
If you haven’t heard of Geraldine McCaughrean, Where the World Ends is a great place to start becoming familiar with her work–you won’t be disappointed.
Where the World Ends takes us back to the 18th century and St. Kilda, a small archipelago off the coast of Scotland. We follow a dozen men and boys from the small island of Hirta who are dropped off on a nearby stac (a column of rock formed by wave erosion) to hunt seabirds who nest there. When the boat to pick them up fails to show up on time, the group is initially worried but not too anxious: the abundance of seabirds and the shelter of a large cave in the stac means they’re okay for a while. But as days and weeks go by without rescue, they begin to assume that the world has ended and that God and His angels have forgotten to sweep them up in the Rapture.
The ensuing breakdown of order and comity evokes William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, although McCaughrean’s book isn’t as vividly dark as his. I found myself immediately immersed in the setting, and detailing the harsh environment of the stac is where McCaughrean’s writing really shines (as it did in her vivid descriptions of Antarctica in The White Darkness). She draws compelling characters too, and even though the book is written in third person, she manages to provide disturbing insights into the dual nature of the stranded men and boys. The story works marvelously as an allegory for the loss we all experience when we first confront the complex truths about humanity when those whom we’ve previously trusted reveal a darker side in a moment of desperation or selfishness. (And it’s based on a true incident, which sent me to the Internet and a delightful rabbit hole of Google searches.)
If you haven’t heard of Geraldine McCaughrean, Where the World Ends is a great place to start becoming familiar with her work–you won’t be disappointed.
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Steve's Picks for October 2018
Weekend Pick for October 26, 2018
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I have been holding on Harbor Me for a while. I have been reading through the long and short list of the National Book Award. I have a couple more to go, but this is my last week before I pass the torch for another month. The book is too good to let sit.
I liked how Woodson framed the setting as a place for students to dialogue, to learn to trust and to share. Their life experiences are different. How they frame family is different. How they fit within school as a group of "others" is also very interesting. They have all be marginalized in some way. When a teacher creates a weekly space for them to chat they build community. Some readers may quibble that the space the teacher creates is unrealistic. Indeed, it might be. I, however, have decided to see it as a metaphor, as the ability a teacher has to create safe and meaningful places for community. Students can often do it on their own, but maybe the adults should learn to help a bit more |
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Weekend Pick for October 19, 2018
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Christopher Paul Curtis is a boss! I love his books. Most of them make me laugh out loud and then cry. I found his newest book, The Journey of Little Charlie to be engaging and a perfect fit with the rest of his books. I loved the opportunity to revisit Buxton, Canada. This wonderful bit of historical fiction is a great reminder that we can all chose to be advocates for the oppressed.
If you are new to historical fiction, this is a good place to start. If you are a fan of historical fiction set around slavery and the civil war, this need to be on your to read list. In addition, it is nice to remember that this book is still in the running for this year's National Book Award. |
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Weekend Pick for October 12, 2018
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I have been reading books from the Longlist of the National Book Award. I have enjoyed them all so far and I have a couple more to go. Relax, I realize I am behind and the short list came our of Wednesday. I will catch up. We all have different tastes and some books hit us at just the right time. My pick for this week was Blood Water, Paint by Joy McCullough. As I read this book I was stunned by how beautiful it was and how timely it felt. It would be a shame to enthusiastically promote the book and not mention that McCullough's inspiration for the book is the true story of Artemisia Gentileschi. She was an Italian painter in the 1600 who was raped by a painter and won her case in court. I did not know the story. I am glad that I know it now.
Artemisia's art is beautiful and should be remembered. At the same time her willingness to make a public stand against her attacker is amazing. As people read this book in the future they will wonder and perhaps assume that it followed the Kavanaugh hearings and the allegations by Dr. Christine Blasey Ford (#sayhername, #Ibelieveher). Well, obviously it was published before and selected for the longlist before hearings began. Again, this is a beautiful historical verse novel. The pages ran before my eyes as I was swept away be the narrative. McCulloug does a wonderful job of creating a strong character who draws her inspiration from two biblical characters, who have both been the subjects of Renaissance paintings, Judith and Susanna. You can find the paints of this remarkable painter by following this link. Unfortunately, I was not surprised that we still have a hard time believing women. We know with surety why so many stay silent. |
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Weekend pick for October 5, 2018
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It is the season of the National Book Award. I am reading through the longlist in an attempt to catch up. I grabbed The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo. Oh! By the way, she will be speaking at NCTE. Have you registered?
I love the poetry of this book. I was captured by how powerfully the author captured the tensions between a mother and daughter who love each other but fail to communicate at the deepest level. The tension is heightened by the role of religion, friendship, sibling connections. Both the obvious and secret poets in your classroom with love this book! |
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Jenny's Picks for September 2018
Jenny Cameron Paulsen, a twenty-five year teaching veteran, educates middle schoolers in American History and World Studies in Cedar Falls, Iowa. She has served as the conference chair and president of the Iowa Council of Teachers of English. Currently, She is an ALAN state representative and member of the Amelia Walden Award committee.
Weekend Pick for Sept. 28, 2018
The Future and the Past Blow Your Present Mind
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Title: Dread Nation
Author: Justina Ireland
Review Link Kirkus Common Sense Media
Author’s Website
Annotation: First of all, enjoy the majesty of this cover. If strong is the new pretty, this young lady is straight fire! A fierce black woman in period clothing holding a vicious, bloody farm implement while standing in front of Old Glory: Jane McKeen disturbs the universe before the first page, and that’s what I like best about her. Two days after her scandalous birth to a rich, white mother in Kentucky, the dead rise on the battlefield at Gettysburg, and it’s zombie apocalypse 1863. All black and Native American children are forced to attend combat schools starting at age twelve to learn to fight the “shamblers” and act as protective Attendants to white ladies. Darkly comic and seriously action-packed, I LOVED Jane, so sassy and smart, and her bold frenemy Katherine. Beneath the surface of the novel boils a cauldron of raw visions of race and power dynamics in this country, past and present. Justina Ireland is Stirring. The. Pot. With six starred reviews, this book is guaranteed to start a conversation, or stop it, depending on the company you keep! One caveat: I am hoping to see a stronger Native American presence in the next novel now that the ladies have ended up in the Handmaid’s Tale-style “utopia” of the American West. You can read Debbie Reese’s thoughts on Native American portrayal in the novel here. Thanks to Laurie Halse Anderson for the link on her Goodreads review. I somehow missed this while living in my little bubble, and it gave me some good thinking on perspective-taking.
Title: The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice & Virtue
Author: Mackenzi Lee
Review Links: Kirkus. Goodreads
Author’s Website: http://www.mackenzilee.com
Annotation: Also a gorgeous cover! I tried to channel Monty’s sexy pout, but I will spare you that photo session. This Stonewall Honor Book and Kirkus Prize Nominee from 2017 is a thoroughly delightful and humorous adventure that bloody wrecked my heart. I fell HARD for Monty, Felicity, and Percy. The narration and description are exquisite. This coming-of-age, historical mystery, laced corset-tight with romantic tension, features fully-fleshed characters struggling to escape the confines of societal expectations for gender, race, sexuality, and social status. It's an exhilarating journey through 18th century Europe complete with accidental piracy, nefarious alchemy, highway robbery, & drunken debauchery (well only for Monty). The quest to love yourself as you are has never been sweeter or tougher. Young adult literature of the finest caliber. You will be satisfied and also thirsty for more. As Teen Vogue, one of my fave magazines, put it: “The queer teen historical you didn’t know was missing from your life.” Good news! The sequel, A Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, drops October 2!
Title: Rabbit & Robot
Author: Andrew Smith
Review Link: Publisher’s Weekly (Starred Review) Goodreads
Author’s Website: https//:www.ghostmedicine.com
Annotation: Third awesome cover! And my hair magically grew between reviews! As I read Andrew Smith’s latest novel Rabbit and Robot, a phrase from Edgar Allan Poe came to mind, “I became insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity.” Cager Messer, a rich kid addicted to the drug Woz (which is mass produced for school children to be easily managed and indoctrinated) wakes up from detoxing on the spaceship Tennessee to discover the “horrible sanity” that he and his friend Billy and his caretaker Rowan may be the only survivors of the human race, as Earth is engulfed in total war. A fascinating exploration of technology and humanity, this novel is hilarious as well as heart-breaking. Who does not appreciate an electronic tiger who quotes existential philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre while he is savagely eaten by a hungry, but otherwise friendly mechanical giraffe named Maurice, who speaks French? The whimsical, inventive insanity is the very heart of the novel’s appeal. (I may never recover from the blue gasket people.) The absurd behavior of the cogs, or robots, on board the ship, who are coded to the extremes of human emotion without the baggage of self-awareness (much like toddlers, no?), paired with the awful reality of Cager and Billy’s situation, facing oblivion in orbit, give this the flavor of a Vonnegut novel in all its horror and humor and occasional homage. But what if they aren’t the only humans on board? Or the only beings? What does it even mean “to be”? This is a stellar coming-of-age novel that portrays the complexity and ambiguity of learning to be who you are, no matter who you love and how, in all its magnificent anguish. Sartre would be pleased. A cosmic treat! Lucky you, it went on sale Wednesday! (Bias Alert: Drew is my friend. He gave me an ARC. Because he’s a generous guy. The End.)
Happy reading
Author: Justina Ireland
Review Link Kirkus Common Sense Media
Author’s Website
Annotation: First of all, enjoy the majesty of this cover. If strong is the new pretty, this young lady is straight fire! A fierce black woman in period clothing holding a vicious, bloody farm implement while standing in front of Old Glory: Jane McKeen disturbs the universe before the first page, and that’s what I like best about her. Two days after her scandalous birth to a rich, white mother in Kentucky, the dead rise on the battlefield at Gettysburg, and it’s zombie apocalypse 1863. All black and Native American children are forced to attend combat schools starting at age twelve to learn to fight the “shamblers” and act as protective Attendants to white ladies. Darkly comic and seriously action-packed, I LOVED Jane, so sassy and smart, and her bold frenemy Katherine. Beneath the surface of the novel boils a cauldron of raw visions of race and power dynamics in this country, past and present. Justina Ireland is Stirring. The. Pot. With six starred reviews, this book is guaranteed to start a conversation, or stop it, depending on the company you keep! One caveat: I am hoping to see a stronger Native American presence in the next novel now that the ladies have ended up in the Handmaid’s Tale-style “utopia” of the American West. You can read Debbie Reese’s thoughts on Native American portrayal in the novel here. Thanks to Laurie Halse Anderson for the link on her Goodreads review. I somehow missed this while living in my little bubble, and it gave me some good thinking on perspective-taking.
Title: The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice & Virtue
Author: Mackenzi Lee
Review Links: Kirkus. Goodreads
Author’s Website: http://www.mackenzilee.com
Annotation: Also a gorgeous cover! I tried to channel Monty’s sexy pout, but I will spare you that photo session. This Stonewall Honor Book and Kirkus Prize Nominee from 2017 is a thoroughly delightful and humorous adventure that bloody wrecked my heart. I fell HARD for Monty, Felicity, and Percy. The narration and description are exquisite. This coming-of-age, historical mystery, laced corset-tight with romantic tension, features fully-fleshed characters struggling to escape the confines of societal expectations for gender, race, sexuality, and social status. It's an exhilarating journey through 18th century Europe complete with accidental piracy, nefarious alchemy, highway robbery, & drunken debauchery (well only for Monty). The quest to love yourself as you are has never been sweeter or tougher. Young adult literature of the finest caliber. You will be satisfied and also thirsty for more. As Teen Vogue, one of my fave magazines, put it: “The queer teen historical you didn’t know was missing from your life.” Good news! The sequel, A Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, drops October 2!
Title: Rabbit & Robot
Author: Andrew Smith
Review Link: Publisher’s Weekly (Starred Review) Goodreads
Author’s Website: https//:www.ghostmedicine.com
Annotation: Third awesome cover! And my hair magically grew between reviews! As I read Andrew Smith’s latest novel Rabbit and Robot, a phrase from Edgar Allan Poe came to mind, “I became insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity.” Cager Messer, a rich kid addicted to the drug Woz (which is mass produced for school children to be easily managed and indoctrinated) wakes up from detoxing on the spaceship Tennessee to discover the “horrible sanity” that he and his friend Billy and his caretaker Rowan may be the only survivors of the human race, as Earth is engulfed in total war. A fascinating exploration of technology and humanity, this novel is hilarious as well as heart-breaking. Who does not appreciate an electronic tiger who quotes existential philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre while he is savagely eaten by a hungry, but otherwise friendly mechanical giraffe named Maurice, who speaks French? The whimsical, inventive insanity is the very heart of the novel’s appeal. (I may never recover from the blue gasket people.) The absurd behavior of the cogs, or robots, on board the ship, who are coded to the extremes of human emotion without the baggage of self-awareness (much like toddlers, no?), paired with the awful reality of Cager and Billy’s situation, facing oblivion in orbit, give this the flavor of a Vonnegut novel in all its horror and humor and occasional homage. But what if they aren’t the only humans on board? Or the only beings? What does it even mean “to be”? This is a stellar coming-of-age novel that portrays the complexity and ambiguity of learning to be who you are, no matter who you love and how, in all its magnificent anguish. Sartre would be pleased. A cosmic treat! Lucky you, it went on sale Wednesday! (Bias Alert: Drew is my friend. He gave me an ARC. Because he’s a generous guy. The End.)
Happy reading
Weekend Pick for Sept. 21, 2018
From Revolution to Revelation: The Constitution Week Edition
Happy Constitution Week! This week I have three picks: biographies of amazing folks dedicated to the idea of America, her governance, and freedom fighters for all her inhabitants. Three lives spanning three centuries equal one great weekend of reading!
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Title: Alexander Hamilton, Revolutionary
Author: Martha Brockenbrough
Review Links: Common Sense Media Kirkus
Author’s Website
The most robust defender of the Constitution: we begin with A. Ham. This is a delightful, challenging and informational read on the fascinating $10 founding father, an immigrant who rose out of poverty through the fire of his tremendous intellect and talents to personify the very idea and ideals of a new America: an idea that remains a shining beacon of hope not yet fully realized. I especially enjoyed the plethora of historical art and artifacts included to assist envisioning the past. Brockenbrough presents his flaws and achievements with exceptional readability. Friends, enemies, weaknesses, and strengths—all get their just due in the complexity of historical context. Add it to your shelf, my friends.
Author: Martha Brockenbrough
Review Links: Common Sense Media Kirkus
Author’s Website
The most robust defender of the Constitution: we begin with A. Ham. This is a delightful, challenging and informational read on the fascinating $10 founding father, an immigrant who rose out of poverty through the fire of his tremendous intellect and talents to personify the very idea and ideals of a new America: an idea that remains a shining beacon of hope not yet fully realized. I especially enjoyed the plethora of historical art and artifacts included to assist envisioning the past. Brockenbrough presents his flaws and achievements with exceptional readability. Friends, enemies, weaknesses, and strengths—all get their just due in the complexity of historical context. Add it to your shelf, my friends.
Title: Facing Frederick: The Life of Frederick Douglass, a Monumental American Man
Author: Tonya Bolden
Review Link: SLJ :(Starred Review) Common Sense Media
Author’s Website
My colleague Phil calls Douglass my “historical boyfriend” because I am such a huge fan. Here is a picture of me trying to take a selfie with his imposing statue at the New York Historical Society this summer. I have T-Rex arms, so it was challenging. Needless to say, when I saw this book, I pounced on it. The joys begin immediately with the gorgeous, meticulously researched photos and daguerreotypes. His love of the very new art and science of photography made him the most photographed person of the 19th century: and he’s looking at you. Yes, YOU. Mix that tremendous stare with his rhetorical fire and genius, and you are in for a real treat of an educational read. I got chills when he addresses the Republican National Convention 100 years after the Declaration of Independence and challenges, “Do you mean to make good to us the promises of your Constitution?” Nearly 150 years after his speech, he glares out from the pages of this beautifully made book, still daring this nation live up to the lofty vision America set out to be: liberty and justice for ALL. Facing Frederick captures with exquisite detail the “Self-Made Man,” who freed himself from enslavement and rose to the heights of history through self-empowerment. His life and words are as timely and timeless now as they ever have been. Share this one with everyone you know. I’m reading aloud to my 4th period right now. Historical biography at its best, I can’t wait for the next book from Ms. Bolden.
Author: Tonya Bolden
Review Link: SLJ :(Starred Review) Common Sense Media
Author’s Website
My colleague Phil calls Douglass my “historical boyfriend” because I am such a huge fan. Here is a picture of me trying to take a selfie with his imposing statue at the New York Historical Society this summer. I have T-Rex arms, so it was challenging. Needless to say, when I saw this book, I pounced on it. The joys begin immediately with the gorgeous, meticulously researched photos and daguerreotypes. His love of the very new art and science of photography made him the most photographed person of the 19th century: and he’s looking at you. Yes, YOU. Mix that tremendous stare with his rhetorical fire and genius, and you are in for a real treat of an educational read. I got chills when he addresses the Republican National Convention 100 years after the Declaration of Independence and challenges, “Do you mean to make good to us the promises of your Constitution?” Nearly 150 years after his speech, he glares out from the pages of this beautifully made book, still daring this nation live up to the lofty vision America set out to be: liberty and justice for ALL. Facing Frederick captures with exquisite detail the “Self-Made Man,” who freed himself from enslavement and rose to the heights of history through self-empowerment. His life and words are as timely and timeless now as they ever have been. Share this one with everyone you know. I’m reading aloud to my 4th period right now. Historical biography at its best, I can’t wait for the next book from Ms. Bolden.
Title: Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Author: Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik
Review Links: NYT Book Review. Goodreads
Author’s Website
The Tumblr That Started It All
When I grow up, I wanna be RBG! There’s no doubt this tiny justice is a powerhouse of intellect and moxie—a heroine for ALL of America. The book is a fun, multi-genre format that pleases the eye, yet scholarly in substance. Full of photos and memorabilia, adults and kids alike are sure to be sucked into her powerful story. I was impressed with her strong friendships with Justices Scalia and O’Connor, managing to find common ground with colleagues of widely divergent views. Her childhood, her “dissent” collars, her workout, the career obstacles she faced as a Jewish woman: it’s all here. Yet what remains in my heart is the strength of her remarkable marriage with Marty. I love everything about this book! Whenever I get discouraged about our world today, I remember Ruth’s words: “We’re still striving for that more perfect union. And one of the perfections is for the ‘we the people’ to include an ever enlarged group.” (Wild applause breaks out inside my head.) Also available in a young people’s edition, for the younger social justice warriors in your life, spend the weekend with a wonderful woman
Author: Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik
Review Links: NYT Book Review. Goodreads
Author’s Website
The Tumblr That Started It All
When I grow up, I wanna be RBG! There’s no doubt this tiny justice is a powerhouse of intellect and moxie—a heroine for ALL of America. The book is a fun, multi-genre format that pleases the eye, yet scholarly in substance. Full of photos and memorabilia, adults and kids alike are sure to be sucked into her powerful story. I was impressed with her strong friendships with Justices Scalia and O’Connor, managing to find common ground with colleagues of widely divergent views. Her childhood, her “dissent” collars, her workout, the career obstacles she faced as a Jewish woman: it’s all here. Yet what remains in my heart is the strength of her remarkable marriage with Marty. I love everything about this book! Whenever I get discouraged about our world today, I remember Ruth’s words: “We’re still striving for that more perfect union. And one of the perfections is for the ‘we the people’ to include an ever enlarged group.” (Wild applause breaks out inside my head.) Also available in a young people’s edition, for the younger social justice warriors in your life, spend the weekend with a wonderful woman
Weekend Pick for Sept. 14, 2018
The Historical Epidemic that Created a Constitutional Crisis
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Fever 1793
Author: Laurie Halse Anderson Release Date: 2000 I’ve been a fan of Ms. Anderson since the first publication of Speak, and I’ve read and re-read her realistic fiction novels many times. Only recently though, with my reassignment from teaching English to social studies, did I discover the joys of spending hours within the world of her historical fiction. Her keen eye makes visible the African-American contributions to our history, so essential to our understanding of the past as well as the present, but so often not given proper notice. The message of interdependence, of so many cultures needing to work together in forming this country shines brightly here as she portrays the pivotal work of the Philadelphia Free African Society and the French doctors at Bush Hill in caring for and saving thousands suffering in the yellow fever epidemic. It is so difficult to imagine how limited medical knowledge was then! Wandering abandoned Philadelphia with the spirited fourteen-year-old narrator Mattie and the older character Eliza, the talented free black woman who cooks for Mattie’s family and business, was both an adventure and a terror. They both face the fear and ensuing anarchy with tremendous courage and grace, looking after one another the best they can. All the characters here are rendered with loving compassion and beautiful realism. I love how each chapter begins with an authentic voice of a participant, which gives this book even more historical credence. I would enthusiastically recommend it for enjoyment as well as classroom use. Huzzah! Review Links: New York Times Book Review Goodreads Author’s Website: http://madwomanintheforest.com/ |
An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793
Author: Jim Murphy Released: 2003 Imagine my delight when, after just enjoying the fictional version, I stumbled upon a used copy of a non-fiction version as well! If you enjoyed Robin Cook medical mysteries in your teens (my son just discovered him!) or Michael Crichton’s medical thrillers, this book will be a little slice of heaven for you. I was not surprised to corroborate that Ms. Anderson’s fiction was impeccably researched. I WAS surprised to find that this non-fiction title read with all the tension and suspense of a great mystery, even though I already knew how it ended! This book is full of facts, charts, first hand accounts and primary documents masterfully woven together with Murphy’s first-rate writer’s craft. The courageous city leaders, the doctors with opposing theories of treatment, the unwarranted backlash against the Free African Society, and the Founders who fled the nation’s capital during the very first session of Congress: This is a compelling story, masterfully told with the highest of stakes: Our nation was nearly lost before it began as the capital city population was decimated. It also contains a first-rate annotated bibliography for further research, if like me, you are captured by this epic event.. Review Link: Kirkus Goodreads Author’s Website: http://jimmurphybooks.com/ *Both of these books might be considered “middle grade” but I found them rather intriguing as an adult and wouldn’t hesitate to use them with 6th-12th grade readers. |
Weekend Pick for Sept 7, 2018
September 11th: Memorializing the Known and Not
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Title: Love is the Higher Law
Author: David Levithan Genre: Realistic Fiction Release Date: 2009 In the years since September 11th of 2001, no one has captured my sense of reality warped and spooled into the repeating images of the collapsing Twin Towers as David Levithan did in Love is the Higher Law. The character Peter, walking through Washington Square Park on his way to school, says, I keep going back to that first moment--seeing the black hole in the tower, seeing the site of the crash. That image, that one image, is what I am picturing right now. That tower is our history, our lives, all the minutiae and security and hope. And that black hole is what I’m feeling...This day is a dark crater. There is no room for songs. The songs are wrong. Every song is wrong. And I don't know what to do without music (39). If you, like me, rely on music to help shape and decode your reality, if the lyrics of U2 and their contemporaries of 2001 carry special meaning for you, then this book, in particular, and Mr. Levithan’s books in general, are perfect for you. The musical allusions provide a an entry point for teens who were born afterward or are too young to remember, and the stark beauty of the prose will keep them hooked. My own copy is full of sticky notes marking mentor sentences, quotes that resonate, and images that stick hard in my memory. The novel takes place on that unforgettable day and immediately after as the three young adult narrators in New York City--Peter, Jaspar, and Claire--navigate and attempt to make sense of a new landscape, both figurative and literal: We are not as safe as we thought on our own soil. The “dark crater” of that day, the “dark crater” at Ground Zero, still haunt our nation. We stare at the now empty skyline like the character Claire meditating on the nature of grief itself: “This is what a memorial is: Standing still, staring at something that isn't there” (163). But there is hope in this beautifully crafted and lyrical novel as the narrators, all New Yorkers, and all of America find unity and comfort in acts of public service and memorial concerts. The music reminds the characters to “Walk On” in the face of tragedy, to embrace each “Beautiful Day” as it comes, and to remember. Together. Review Links: Common Sense Media Goodreads Author’s Website: http://www.davidlevithan.com/ |
Title: Truthers
Author: Geoffrey Girard Genre: Mystery & Suspense Released: 2017 For those who don’t remember, there is an excellent novel released last year in which the main character is also too young to remember. I was drawn in by Katie, the strong and resourceful teen protagonist in this compelling novel that interrogates the realities surrounding the 9/11 tragedy. When her father disappears inside himself in the government’s “protective” custody after a violent incident at work, she struggles to navigate school and foster care alone while trying to figure out the truth about what happened on September 11th when she was just a year old, maybe two. Was there really a conspiracy and cover-up by the government? What happened to her mother? Was her father somehow involved? Is he even her real father? Is he telling the truth or has post-traumatic stress disorder ravaged his mind? The relentless tension propels the reader forward as Katie, tenacious and observant, uses every intellectual and legal power at her disposal to discover the truth and fight for her father’s release. I’m a mystery junkie, and this novel exceeded all my expectations for quality suspense. Prepare for a long night of racing to the finish if you start this one! Review Links: Kirkus Goodreads Author’s Website: http://www.GeoffreyGirard.com     |
Steve's Picks for August 2018
(with some help)
Weekend Pick for August 31, 2018
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I bought this copy of Chris Crowe's Mississippi Trial, 1955 sixteen years ago this coming October. Why do I remember this event? I was with my daughter, Abbey, on a father daughter trip to New York City. I was in my first year of graduate work at the University of Georgia. It was 2002 and the scars of 9/11 where still fresh. I have been thinking about this trip a lot. Abbey and I wondered around taking in the sites: Time Square, Broadway, the Apollo Theater, the hole that replace the World Trade Center, and Radio City Music Hall. Two shows were on the docket, but as we passed Radio City Music Hall we noticed that Aretha Franklin was playing there that night. Abbey looked at me (Thank goodness I had played enough soul music that she knew she was.) and asked it we good see this instead of one of the other shows. We investigated, bought tickets, and we saw a remarkable concert. What does this have to do with Crowe's book? Well, as we browsed through the stacks Abbey saw this book and wanted to buy it. I was surprised, I knew Chris Crowe just slightly at the time and I was surprised that she knew him at all. I began to hear all about how the year before he had visited her school and talked about Emmet Till and this book. To hear her tell it, Crowe was the best thing since the invention of sliced bread.
This book is great. I know a ton of teachers who have done wonderful things with it in their classes. As I ponder the passing of Aretha Franklin, I have be rereading Ta-hehisi Coates' Between the World and Me, revisiting Nathan McCall's Make Me Wanna Holler, and wondering if I have anything to say in a PhD about the implications of literacy in society and politics. The official NFL season starts soon and I wonder if people with "read" any more clearly the taking of knee in a world of uncensored tweeting. Crowe's book is an interesting take on the history of Emmett Till and will pairs well with his nonfiction account of the event, Getting Away with Murder: The True Story of the Emmett Till Case in its new edition with much on the newly revealed evidence about the case. Thanks Chris, Keep writing. |
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Weekend Pick for August 24, 2018
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I will talk about books with anyone. Perhaps the person I most enjoy talk to about what I have been reading is my Mom. Mom just turned 86. She is still reading. She might be the only person alive that has read all of my academic work. (She even reads the edited books!) When I read Amal Unbound, by Aisha Saeed, I knew my mom would love it. I took it up the road a couple of hours and now, six weeks later I don't have it back. She read it and loved it as well. She has informed me that it is traveling. She has a friend who did Humanitarian work in Pakistan a couple of decades ago and she is reading it now. Who knows how long it will be passed along. I hope it keeps going around and around. This remarkable book looks at humanity. It discusses friendship and hope. Like all quality literature it is not bound by its classification. Sure it YA. Sure it is easy to read, but you will love it.
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Weekend Pick for August 17, 2018
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I wonder. How much it would cost to put a book about veterans in the hands of every junior studying American literature or history? Cheaper than a parade? Elizabeth Partridge has added another fantastic piece of non fiction to the world of YA literature. I woke up this morning to the a discussion of the cost of a military parade in the US capital. I get the need for the occasional pomp and circumstance about important issues. I do think, however, that many communities continue celebrate the 4th of July, Veteran's Day, and variety of other events that praise the work and sacrifice of the men and women who serve. I had my thanks again. As the numbers were bounced around. I couldn't help but think about schools without libraries or classrooms without enough books. Even 10 million dollars would add a lot of books about veterans--fiction and non fiction--to classrooms.
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Weekend Pick for August 10, 2018
courtesy of Sharon Kane
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Mary Harrell and I have been meeting monthly in a writing group with six other women for almost two decades, so we have mentored and encouraged each other through many drafts of many texts. I am thrilled to introduce her and tell you about her debut YA novel, The Mythmaker (2018, Chiron Publications).
Katie begins her narration on the day of her mother’s funeral. Some words are for us; some are directed at her mother. Some stories tell of events before her mother’s death, while others occur during the several years following the “unacceptable loss.” Some conclude with a lesson learned. All of the vignettes cohere. (That’s a word Katie loves.) To learn more about Mary and The Mythmaker, you can visit these sites: themythmaker.com www.facebook.com/maryharrellauthor chironpublications.com Enjoy. |
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Trista's Picks for July
Weekend Pick for July 27, 2018
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After spending a lot of my spare time reading heavy young adult novels lately, I needed to find something a bit more uplifting and light. Cue Maurene Goo’s I Believe in a Thing Called Love! This novel has been on my reading list and classroom bookshelf for awhile, and I am so glad I finally took some time to read it. I found myself laughing along with the main character, Desi, as she navigates her final year of high school and failed attempts at flirting - her failures. When she finds herself interested in the Korean dramas her dad has been obsessed with for years, she decides to study them to figure out the steps to falling in love. As varsity soccer star and student body president, Desi figures she can make a plan for just about anything - including love. Hilarity and real-life drama ensue as she follows “K Drama Steps to True Love” in an attempt to snag her latest crush, mysterious artist Luca Drakos. This novel was a quick and truly enjoyable read that had me feeling the butterflies and roller coaster emotions that Desi felt throughout the story. This will be a top recommendation for students in the future and keep its place as an option in the multicultural unit I teach!
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Weekend Pick for July 20, 2018
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Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick spent some time on my bookshelf at school and was first chosen and read by a student of mine during a multicultural unit. He so highly recommended not only that I read it, but that every single young person takes the time to read this novel. Of course, I knew right then that I needed to make it a priority to read this novel myself. Our narrator, a young boy named Arn, is torn from his family in his home town in Cambodia and finds himself in a labor camp. He is forced to navigate the control of the Khmer Rouge and find a way to survive when killing and death surround him. He sees things that most of us cannot even imagine and does whatever necessary to survive starvation, harsh manual labor, malnourishment, and the Killing Fields. McCormick keeps Arn’s voice authentic and the story is chilling, heartbreaking, and eye-opening. As an educator, my mind is already spinning with ways to further incorporate this novel into my classroom. This is a story worth sharing and discussing; it is one of those novels that is sure to stick with me forever.
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Laura's Picks for July
Weekend Pick for July 13, 2018
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Two sisters, a scoundrel, and a legendary game of hide-and-seek: Welcome to Caraval.
Scarlett and Donatella – Tella – grew up listening to stories about the fantastical world of Caraval, each wishing for nothing more than to experience its grandeur. When Scarlett’s requests for the opportunity to experience the legendary Caraval mysteriously comes true, Scarlet and Tella finally have the chance to escape their abusive and authoritarian father. After receiving tickets for the show and refusing to go to keep Tella safe from her father’s hands, Scarlett wakes up on a ship with Julian, a scoundrel piratesque character, who has taken her against her will. What she doesn’t know is Tella planned the whole kidnapping to help Scarlett escape her father and the arranged marriage he has planned for her. When she and Julian arrive at Caraval, despite the warning that “what happens beyond [the gates of Caraval] may frighten or excite you, but don’t let and of it trick you” for Caraval is “a world built on make-believe,” the two embark on a search for Tella, who has been missing since arriving on the isle, Scarlett and Julian in the cutthroat, topsy-turvy world created by the man, the myth, the Legend, Master of Caraval himself. As someone who does not really like mystery, I was hesitant to read Caraval, but as I progressed through the text, I found myself yearning to find Tella just as Scarlett was. Stephanie Garber creates a world reminiscent of the Hunger Games meets Pirates of the Caribbean developing characters who are fantastical yet realistic. She embodies who readers experience in real life: conniving, selfish people disguised as beneficial and selfless, each moment of assistance laced with ulterior motive. However, the sibling relationship ultimately fuels the text as Scarlett consistently proves the love she has for her sister is all she needs to win the game and save her sister. Though there is a splash of romance, the story truly revolves around finding out who she really is, what she desires most, and how these two things create her very unique identity. I look forward to seeing how Garber extends her world in Legendary, the second in the Caraval series. |
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Weekend Pick for July 6, 2018
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Jessie couldn’t have anticipated how Wood Valley High School - a high stakes prep school in LA - would change her life. 733 days after losing her mom to cancer, Jessie and her dad move from Chicago to LA to live with her new step family. On her first day at WVHS, Jessie receives an anonymous email from Somebody/Nobody, SN, revealing the secrets to surviving the halls of Wood Valley. Along the same vein as Simon and the Homo Sapiens Agenda, Jessie’s IM correspondence with SN opens the door to love, loss, and life experience. I love how Buxbaum captures Jessie’s anxieties as she explores her new life. She is so forthcoming with the emotional rawness associated with the loss of a parent, mixing families, and new experiences that Jessie becomes a friend you cheer on as she lets her wall down. As Buxbaum’s debut YA novel, she successfully captures what young adult readers need: an honest portrayal of life after loss.
Tell Me Three Things - Julie Buxbaum |
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Steve's Picks for June
Weekend Pick for June 29, 2018
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When a books blurb references that it is like Sarah Dressen, I have to admit that I am reading a bit out of my normal stack of books. Not that I don't think Sarah is great, I do. I think she has been one of the great contributors to YA literature. I just tend to read a different sort of book. Kristen Chandler's the Thief of Happy Endings, just grabbed me. The cover art is tremendous the colors, the font, and the boy on the cover certainly wasn't the scrawny kid I was when I worked on the Idaho farm back in the day. I was drawn to it, loved it, and I am looking forward to catch up with Kristen' earlier works and you should too. Best of all, I passed it on to my mother who is recovering from her own tragic fall--but not from a horse, thank goodness, and she keeps telling everyone who is helping her how great it is. Sage advice from my mother.
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Weekend Pick for June 22, 2018
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This is a fantastic book. A book that deals with a child confronting grief. As my siblings and I are confronting with the impending passing of our own parents, I am realizing--again--that the child in us is often not to far under the surface. I don't want to loose my parents, but I don't want them to suffer either. We will move forward. Patrick Ness nails it with this one. There is also a movie. I am not sure I am ready for that yet. I will wait awhile. Once again, I find that fiction can help me manage life.
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Weekend Pick for June 15, 2018
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This weeks YA Wednesday Weekend pick is during the 2018 Summit on the Research and Teaching of Young Adult Literature. The pick as to be a book by a participating author. Jo Schaffer's Stanley and Hazel offers some great examples of research. If your students love the move Newsies, there is a good chance they will devour this book. If they love intrigue, make sure they grab it. History and YA is a perfect match.
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Weekend Pick for June 8, 2018
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Bill is a fabulous writer and a great guy. These two books are open and honest in the best of ways. I can't think of two books that go together as well as these. Sometimes, with sequel, a writer looses the tone or the style. This is not the case here. I picked two books this week, because if you read the first, you will want to read the second as soon as you get a hold of it.
If you don't know Bill's work it is way past time to change that condition. |
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Weekend Pick for June 1, 2018
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The NPR interview caught my attention. You can find it here. Mary H. K. Choi's novel is engaging from the get go and it doesn't let up. I need books like this to remind me that we all experience life in different ways and from different perspectives. Race in America is complex. I am an old white guy and rather than try to explain the issue, I am trying to listen. I found myself listening carefully to Penny. I listened to her issues with her mother, her roommate, her left behind boy friend, and her relationship with her "emergency contact." The book is getting some buzz, but maybe not enough. I found another interview in The Lily. You can find it here.
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Lesley's Picks for May
Weekend Pick for May 25, 2018
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One of my favorite novels is Forget Me Not for both the storyline and the format. In response to a compromising photo of her that is texted and causes all her schoolmates to shame her, Ally commits suicide —or so she thinks—as her only way out. A friend tries to save her by showing her that her life has value and that she can make the decision to live. Shaming is defined as the act of publicly criticizing and drawing attention to someone and, therefore, is a form of bullying.
This novel is important not only for the storyline, which will generate important conversations among teens about cyberbullying, shaming, and suicide, but for the writing. Carolee Dean creatively employs a variety of poetic forms—villanelle, pantoum, cinquain, tanka, shape poems—and meter, as well as script writing to identify the characters and alter the mood of the plot so subtly and artistically as to not disrupt the reading and the reader. |
Author: Carolee Dean
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Weekend Pick for May 18, 2018
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One of my, Lesley's, favorite novels is Kekla’s Magoon’s How It All Went Down, but, no surprise, that intriguing novel has already been a Weekend Pick. Luckily, I have another Magoon recommendation--Camo Girl, written for readers in Grades 5 and up.
Over seventy percent of young people say they have encountered bullying in their schools—as victim, offender or bystander. Bullying is especially a problem in middle school. According to the National Center for Education Statistics and Bureau of Justice Statistics, 28% of U.S. students in grades 6–12 experienced bullying. In surveys, 30% of young people admit to bullying others. Ella and Z are sixth-grade outcasts, and they are best friends. But they are not best friends because they are outcasts; they are there to support each other—no questions asked. Ella suspects Z and his mother live in Walmart, but that aside and no matter how weirdly Z acts and how Ella looks, they are friends for life. Then Bailey, a new student, arrives on the scene, and Ella is no longer the only black (actually biracial) student. Popular in a way Ella wants to be, he befriends Ella, and she thinks she may have to choose between popularity and Z. But just maybe Bailey, who has his own view of reality, can help both of them. As a reader who requires a provocative story, well-developed diverse characters, and good writing, I was thrilled to find a book that I read straight through and that would be a good choice for young adolescents, both boys and girls, who just want to be accepted and a book that would generate important conversations about bullying and friendship. Added note: Kekla will be one of the keynote speakers at the summit there is time to register. |
Weekend Pick for May 11, 2018
Author Jennifer Richard Jacobson and her newest novel The Dollar Kids
I cried because there were sad events and frustrating events, and I cried because there were happy and poignant occasions. But I also cried because the book came to an end, and, even though author Jennifer Richard Jacobson gave us a hint into the future, I didn’t want to leave Millville and its inhabitants, both old and new, especially the Dollar Kids.
I don’t know if today’s children of all ages face more challenges than those who came before them or whether, through reading, my eyes have been open to challenges that children face and have always faced. As Jacobson opened our eyes to the plight of homeless children through her memorable character ¬¬¬¬¬Ari in Paper Things, in her new novel Dollar Kids she shows readers the effect of loss and guilt on a young adolescent.
Eleven-year-old Lowen is one of the Dollar Kids whose families move to Millville to take advantage of the dollar houses offered to deserving applicants to restore. Lowen’s family is looking for a new beginning away from the city where his young friend was a victim of a fatal shooting in a grocery store. Lowen feels loss, but he also feels guilt because didn’t he send Abe to the store to get rid of his constant questions and suggestions? This is his secret, and when Lowen, his older brother Clem, his sister Anneth, and his British mum move (father to follow) into the Albatross, their dilapidated dollar house, he struggles with this snake inside him as he also contends with making friends, competing in sports, resuming his drawing, and helping his mother make a success of her new business. As he connects with the Millville inhabitants and reconnects with his family, he learns to find peace in the unseen force.
What I appreciated is the diversity of characters, especially in age. Many authors offer us books that have characters of a particular age, and it has been said that most readers like to read about characters who are at least their age or older. While the main character Lowen is eleven, there are plenty of characters who are younger and older, and an array of both male and female characters. Even the adult characters are diverse and interesting. There are also sports, art, and music, as these characters have an array of talents as well as a range of family situations. But what they all have in common is the hope that Millville will survive, and they find it “takes a village,” working together to make that happen.
Lowen is a cartoonist who finds a place in the town as a caricaturist, and an engaging and effective feature of the novel is the graphics by Ryan Andrews. Lowen uses these comics to manage, and explore, his grief and guilt.
Being from a small town, I can appreciate the Millvillians who know everything about everyone—or so they think, bicker and compete, but can be counted on in a crisis.
I don’t know if today’s children of all ages face more challenges than those who came before them or whether, through reading, my eyes have been open to challenges that children face and have always faced. As Jacobson opened our eyes to the plight of homeless children through her memorable character ¬¬¬¬¬Ari in Paper Things, in her new novel Dollar Kids she shows readers the effect of loss and guilt on a young adolescent.
Eleven-year-old Lowen is one of the Dollar Kids whose families move to Millville to take advantage of the dollar houses offered to deserving applicants to restore. Lowen’s family is looking for a new beginning away from the city where his young friend was a victim of a fatal shooting in a grocery store. Lowen feels loss, but he also feels guilt because didn’t he send Abe to the store to get rid of his constant questions and suggestions? This is his secret, and when Lowen, his older brother Clem, his sister Anneth, and his British mum move (father to follow) into the Albatross, their dilapidated dollar house, he struggles with this snake inside him as he also contends with making friends, competing in sports, resuming his drawing, and helping his mother make a success of her new business. As he connects with the Millville inhabitants and reconnects with his family, he learns to find peace in the unseen force.
What I appreciated is the diversity of characters, especially in age. Many authors offer us books that have characters of a particular age, and it has been said that most readers like to read about characters who are at least their age or older. While the main character Lowen is eleven, there are plenty of characters who are younger and older, and an array of both male and female characters. Even the adult characters are diverse and interesting. There are also sports, art, and music, as these characters have an array of talents as well as a range of family situations. But what they all have in common is the hope that Millville will survive, and they find it “takes a village,” working together to make that happen.
Lowen is a cartoonist who finds a place in the town as a caricaturist, and an engaging and effective feature of the novel is the graphics by Ryan Andrews. Lowen uses these comics to manage, and explore, his grief and guilt.
Being from a small town, I can appreciate the Millvillians who know everything about everyone—or so they think, bicker and compete, but can be counted on in a crisis.
Weekend Pick for May 4, 2018
Gae Polisner
Researchers at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center found that “children who lost a parent due to suicide when they were teenagers or young adults had the highest chance of being hospitalized for a suicide attempt in the first 2 years after the parental suicide.” This finding highlights the vital importance of providing support to children who are grieving.
Klee’s father committed suicide, and Klee was the one who found him. If that weren’t bad enough, his mother moves Klee away from his friends and Manhattan for a senior year in a new high school in the suburbs, away from the museums, art, and parks he loves—the museums, art, and parks where he spent time listening to his father’s stories about Van Gogh and life—and from his friends.
Klee looks for support in Sarah, his one new friend, but he may be demanding more than she can give. When she disappoints him, he cuts himself with a knife and ends up in a psychiatric hospital.
The reader lives through Klee’s hospitalization with him; as does he, we wonder what is real, what is imagined. Who can he trust? He already found that he cannot trust his perfect mother, or can he? Who is real, and whom does he fabricate. How much like his favorite artist, Van Gogh, is he?
Klee’s father committed suicide, and Klee was the one who found him. If that weren’t bad enough, his mother moves Klee away from his friends and Manhattan for a senior year in a new high school in the suburbs, away from the museums, art, and parks he loves—the museums, art, and parks where he spent time listening to his father’s stories about Van Gogh and life—and from his friends.
Klee looks for support in Sarah, his one new friend, but he may be demanding more than she can give. When she disappoints him, he cuts himself with a knife and ends up in a psychiatric hospital.
The reader lives through Klee’s hospitalization with him; as does he, we wonder what is real, what is imagined. Who can he trust? He already found that he cannot trust his perfect mother, or can he? Who is real, and whom does he fabricate. How much like his favorite artist, Van Gogh, is he?
Gae Polisner creates a perfect puzzle with In Sight of Stars. I was reminded of the sliding puzzles I played with in childhood. But in sliding puzzles, there always is a piece missing. And Klee finds he does have a piece of the puzzle that is missing and when he finds it, he may be able to build the picture and trust again.
Once started, I literally could not put this novel down. (Picture me frowning at the doctor for taking me on time for my appointment.) The story is skillfully crafted, as each piece slides into the opening left by the movement of another piece. The characters—Klee, Dr. Alvarez, Sister Agnes Teresa, Martin, Sarah, and even Klee’s mother—are well-developed and are integral parts of the puzzle. There is a transcendental or ethereal quality that reminds me of Amy Sarig King’s Still Life with Tornado. There are so many pathways and levels offered by this novel that I know I will read it many more times.
The novel offers hope for those who are surviving trauma and loss: “…the sight of stars is always right there. Right in your line of vision. Even on the cloudiest day.”
Once started, I literally could not put this novel down. (Picture me frowning at the doctor for taking me on time for my appointment.) The story is skillfully crafted, as each piece slides into the opening left by the movement of another piece. The characters—Klee, Dr. Alvarez, Sister Agnes Teresa, Martin, Sarah, and even Klee’s mother—are well-developed and are integral parts of the puzzle. There is a transcendental or ethereal quality that reminds me of Amy Sarig King’s Still Life with Tornado. There are so many pathways and levels offered by this novel that I know I will read it many more times.
The novel offers hope for those who are surviving trauma and loss: “…the sight of stars is always right there. Right in your line of vision. Even on the cloudiest day.”
Steve's Picks for April
Weekend Pick for April 27, 2018
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I love YA books that use music as a setting, a theme, or to amplify characters. Non Pratt's lovely book, Remix, has been on my to read list for too long. I am glad I read it and you should too. It is a powerful book about friendship, set against the background of weekend music festival. Adolescent struggle to figure out who to trust, family, friends, lovers, and potential lovers. Remix captures this struggle.
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Weekend Pick for April 20, 2018
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I love the books of A. S. King. Her works are brilliant. Granted, I have to think. I have to let my mind expand. I let my imagination run. In the weekend pick post thanked her for writing not just great YA literature, but great literature. I believe this is true. When those of us who point to the quality of YA, we must include A. S. King. Her work is original and inspiring. I love I Crawl Through It, but start anywhere.
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Weekend Pick for April 13, 2018
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This is a late Weekend Pick. I have been running all over New York City for the AERA conference and in the midst of it all relaxing. My wife is an academic as well and we are taking some time to see the city and to enjoy some place. This week's pick is one of those remarkable book that stays with me. I am so glad that Tanuja Desai Hidier wrote this book. This is the fifteen anniverary and if you don't know it, buy it! the April 18, blog post with celebrate this book and the author as well.
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Weekend Pick for April 6, 2018
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Even with all of its pain, I loved this book. Watch out Chris Crutcher (But. he knows this, he provided a blurb for the book along with Kathleen Glasgow and Jeff Zentner.) there is a new gun in town. Peter Brown Hoffmeister captures the pain of loneliness and loss as well as anything I have read in quite a while. "Little" McCardell is a character to be relished, revered, and remembered. Read and share this book. Send it to every award committee.
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Gretchen's Picks for March
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Gretchen Rumohr-Voskuil is an Associate Professor of English and serves as director of the Inquiry and Expression program. She earned her B.A. from Hope College, her M.Ed. from Aquinas College, and Ph.D. from Western Michigan University. Dr. R-V teaches composition, literature, literature methods, and writing methods at Aquinas. He research involves the history, rhetorical force, and application of the term "best practice;" rhetorics of motherhood; the relationship between state-mandated standards (CCSS) and first year composition; writing center pedagogies; and creating safe learning spaces for trauma survivors. Dr. R-V's scholarly work has appeared in Language Arts Journal of Michigan, Teaching Literature in Virtual Worlds: Immersive Learning in English Studies (Routledge 2011), and The Doctoral Degree in English Education (Kennesaw 2009), but she is most proud of her four young daughters.
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For the month of March, I’ll be suggesting some weekend reads. And, because my students at Aquinas College are superstars, I will be pairing each of my recommendations with one of theirs. Many of the books my students will share have resulted from a book workshop that I’ve described before on this blog.
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Weekend Pick March 30, 2018
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Here is Katie Sluiter"s pick, Flush.
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Here is Gretchen Rumohr-Voskuil’s pick, Orbiting Jupiter,
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I chose my sister-friend, Katie Sluiter, to be my Weekend Picks partner this week. Katie teaches English at Wyoming Junior High in Wyoming, Michigan, and we’ve worked on several projects together. We also had the (unfortunate) experience of running out of gas on our way to the St. Louis NCTE and ALAN conference because we were (fortunately) listening to Jason Reynolds’ Long Way Down. It’s funny--and amazing--how the love of books, kids, and teaching (see also: ice cream) can unite us. Anyways, here is Katie’s pick, Flush.
Flush by Carl Hiaasen is a fun middle grade novel that brings awareness to environmental issues. The novel starts out on Father’s Day when 13-year-old Noah Underwood finds out that his dad has been thrown into jail for sinking the Coral Queen, a casino boat. The story takes place in the author’s home state, specifically the Florida Keys. Noah’s dad, Paine Underwood, is not just a lifelong denizen of the Keys, but he is a fisherman and avid environmentalist. He sunk the town’s richest man’s business because he was sure they were dumping raw sewage into the ocean, polluting the beaches and killing the wildlife. Now everyone thinks he’s just a delusional nut job. Noah and his little sister, Abby set out to prove their dad is not crazy. Flush is a great weekend read for middle schoolers and adults because it’s quick enough to read in just one or two sittings. It’s totally quick-paced and spunky just like the rest of Hiaasen’s writing. |
This week, Katie has shared reasons why Flush is an ideal book for middle schoolers. Orbiting Jupiter celebrates nature through its gorgeous prose; I sighed with contentment when reading Schmidt’s description of the night and the cold and the stars, which were “thick as cream.” Through the beauty of his diction as well as his story, Schmidt raises awareness of our country’s failing juvenile detention system. Schmidt profiles Joseph, a thirteen-year-old father who is desperate to see his daughter, Jupiter. Joseph is placed with a rural foster family, and foster brother, Jack, narrates a riveting story about family, sacrifice, loyalty, and redemption. I actually read this book in its superb audio format--something to keep in mind when working with students who may be looking for good audiobooks.
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Weekend Pick March 23, 2018
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Here is Jayna Zimmerman’s pick, The Watch that Ends the Night.
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And here is Gretchen Rumohr-Voskuil’s pick, Ghost, by Jason Reynolds.
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The Watch that Ends the Night by Allan Wolf is an oldie but goodie that crosses the genre of realistic historical fiction and poetry. Wolf’s gripping collection retells the sinking of the RMS Titanic through the voices of 25 different characters. Through the alternation of different narratives, Wolf personifies the rats that scuttle the ship to the Iceberg that sinks it. Meticulous research also completes the narrations of characters like Thomas Andrews the ship-builder and Margaret “Molly” Brown a new money passenger. Even though readers may know how the story ends, the haunting and unique free verse humanizes the fallen.
I enjoyed this text as it blends two genres often left separate. Many non-fiction books and even paranormal historical fiction books (Fateful by Claudia Gray) seek to capture the horror of the North Atlantic tragedy. However, Wolf seeks to reach the humanity of the individuals who survive and who were left at sea. Through the many voices, the reader is invited to see the humanity of those on the Titanic. For young adults, I see this text as an opportunity to bridge into history. Often we share events with students and other readers through the lens of a textbook or primary document. The Watch that Ends the Night is an opportunity to capture the reader who may not be interested in the rigid structure most non-fiction texts provide. The language of the text invites readers of varying ability to view history through the eyes of a witness. If Enchanted Air by Margarita Engle reached an adolescent close to you, this book might be the next step. |
There are so many reasons that Ghost should be on your weekend reading list: it was nominated for the National Book Award; it is a complex story that will be appreciated by young people and grown adults; it can be read in just an hour or two; it explores the ramifications of gun and domestic violence; it is written in Jason Reynolds’ smart, tight prose; it’s a book that will appeal to both male and female readers; it is part of a series, allowing young readers to invest more fully in building a story world. But overall, beyond its NBA nominations, I didn’t know any of those reasons when I picked up the book a few months ago. I liked the cover, and I knew I liked Jason Reynolds. From the first paragraph on, I ignored everything else in favor of learning more about Ghost, a kid who runs from his problems until he meets Coach, who recognizes Ghost’s raw athletic talent. Throughout this story, you will learn from, empathize with, and cheer for Ghost as he learns the true meaning of mentorship, teamwork, honesty, family, and bravery. On second thought, you may wish to pick up Patina and Sunny while you’re at it--after all, you’ll desire to meet everyone on the track team after meeting Ghost. |
Weekend Pick March 16, 2018
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Here is Jonathan DenHouter’s pick, Scar Island
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And here is Gretchen Rumohr-Voskuil’s pick, The Nowhere Girls, by Amy Reed.
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Scar Island by Dan Gemeinhart is a story about a good-hearted juvenile delinquent named Jonathan Grisby.After committing a mysterious offense, Jonathan is sent to the Slabhenge Reformatory School for Troubled Boys, an Alcatraz-like prison island where he is to be "rehabilitated." In truth, the adults on Slabhenge treat Jonathan and the rest of the imprisoned boys as slaves. After a freak mishap, the boys take their opportunity to take control of the prison island, which leads to a situation akin to Lord of the Flies. When a 100-year storm breaks out on the island, Jonathan needs to come to peace with his past in order to lead the boys on the island to safety.
I chose this book after Dr. RV recommended it to me. The premise sounded interesting and, I admit, it had an attractive cover. But beyond that, Scar Island is a captivating adventure story that would appeal to young adult readers who don't like to read. Although Gemeinhart's writing can be a little slow--filled with descriptions of what the characters are doing that distract from the dialogue--the story is compelling and surprising. Jonathan is a likable protagonist, and his transformation over the course of the adventure rings true. Even the story's antagonist, Sebastian, who appoints himself king of the island after the takeover, becomes a sympathetic character in Gemeinhart's hands. YA readers and adults alike will enjoy the adventure of Scar Island. |
I had the pleasure of meeting Amy Reed at the ALAN workshop in November 2017, and we discussed the plot The Nowhere Girls, in which the unlikely friendship of three misfits--a queer, punk Latina; a chubby pastor’s kid; and a gorgeous science geek with Aspberger’s--turns into activism as they seek justice for a rape victim and protest the misogynist culture at their high school.
While I’ve mentioned related books, I think that The Nowhere Girls ventures into unique territory, unapologetically wedding conversations about teenage sex and consent with the ways that morality, authority, and religion dictate norms. In addition, the book brings about crucial conversations about sex as pleasure, adult expectations, female empowerment, slut-shaming, empathy, and truth. Reed is utterly believable in her storytelling, and I was intrigued and encouraged at the multiple ways nearly every female character learned to believe, and support, one another. This book also considers the power of grassroots movements and nonviolent resistance and could be a companion text to excerpts of the classic Greek drama Lysistrata. You’ll want to start this book TODAY--prepare to read all night long--but also prepare a revered spot for it in your classroom library. |
Weekend Pick March 9, 2018
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Here is Jayna Zimmerman’s pick, In the Shadow of Blackbirds, by Cat Winters.
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In the Shadow of Blackbirds is not a new title out on the market but remains a gem that blends historical fiction with the paranormal. Set in 1918 in San Diego, Winters invites us to enter the world of 16-year-old Mary Shelly Black. Mary has been sent to San Diego to live with her aunt while her father languishes in prison as an assumed traitor to the Allied cause. With World War I well underway claiming lives on the battlefield, the Spanish Influenza claims thousands of lives on the home front. Mary is thrust into the world of spiritualism and séances as the grieving seek to speak with their beloved deceased. Mary does not believe in séances and spirits until the ghost of her first love lost in battle returns with a final haunting mystery.
I found In the Shadows of Blackbirds to be an excellent twist on historical fiction and fantasy. I have yet to find many texts that cover the Spanish Influenza and Winters embeds fact within her narrative seamlessly. The entire book is peppered with historical images from Uncle Sam and the war effort to “ghosts” in photographs. Her rich language makes the reader feel as if they have stepped into the contagion with Mary and walk beside her. For young adults, I see this text as a bridge between history and fantasy. It takes the ever-popular theme of the paranormal and turns it into a higher art form beyond the lovesick. Students will have the opportunity to grapple with a time in our nation’s history that is often left out of the textbooks. If the young adult in your life appreciated multimedia texts like Daniel Handler’s Why We Broke Up and Asylum by Madeline Roux they will find a similar comfort in the blending of styles by Winters. Overall this is a delightful read that left me with chills. |
I tend to gravitate toward realistic YA fiction, but I was riveted by McCormick’s Never Fall Down, which tells the story of the Cambodian genocide. As a writer, McCormick has the ability to draw our attention to pivotal human rights events through her nonfiction prose. Thus, McCormick’s recent The Plot to Kill Hitler, which details the life and impact of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, caught me at the first chapter. Though I am familiar with Bonhoeffer’s impact, I hadn’t had a chance to learn more fully about his early life, theological training, peace activism, and ultimate ability to stand as a key figure in the resistance, communicating to Allies that Jews were being killed in concentration camps.
The text’s use of sidebars and images adds to its meaning, enhancing the reader’s understanding of what led to, and sustained, World War II and the rise of Hitler. Beyond such understanding, the book has made me consider what it means to stand for truth and justice, even when it seems like no one shares these values. The Plot to Kill Hitler can be used in excerpts as a way to explain elements of World War II. However, with its rich descriptions, fast-paced storytelling, and short length--192 pages, many of them images--the most reluctant of readers will be under McCormick’s spell for the entirety of the book. |
Weekend Pick March 2, 2018
Here is Sarah Stayman’s pick, Turtles All the Way Down, by John Green.
Aza is a sixteen-year-old high school student who is battling personal wars inside her head. She wants to be a good friend, daughter, and student, but all of that proves to be harder than it might first appear. What she calls her “spiraling thoughts” are doing everything that they can to bring her down. On top of all that, Aza suddenly finds herself playing the part of a detective at the request of her enthusiastic best friend, Daisy, when a local billionaire goes missing. The reward for the fugitive is $100,000, and Daisy believes that she and Aza are the girls for the job.
This book gave me a glimpse into what mental illness can be like for an individual, and how their fears and thoughts can be all-encompassing. It was a realistic novel in the sense that there wasn’t a perfect ending where every string was tied into a neat bow. This novel delivers the message that sometimes in life everything can’t be “fixed” with the magical wave of a wand, but nonetheless it will be okay. In fact, Aza is not the perfect character and that is why she is so relatable and important. Finally, there was the thrill of trying to find Russell Pickett, because who doesn’t love a good mystery? This novel is ideal for young readers because the main character is so realistic with her life and struggles. Aza battles with mental illness and readers can either relate to this on a personal level or learn from it and gain a new perspective. Turtles All The Way Down is brutally honest about the way that life can be in all of its pain and glory. |
And here is Gretchen Rumohr-Voskuil’s pick, Exit, Pursued by a Bear by E. K. Johnston.
Of all the books I’ve read recently, Exit, Pursued by a Bear is in the top ten. The plot focuses on Hermione Winters, captain of the school cheerleading team, who is sexually assaulted after someone drugs her during a training camp. In the weeks following, Hermione must grapple with the aftermath of trauma, learning who will stand by her and who will walk away.
I love the book because it challenges so many preconceived notions. There is the notion of cheerleading as a “light sport,” which Johnston destroys with her descriptions of the sport’s rigorous day camps, practices and competitions. There is the notion of females as weak, which Johnston confronts with her characterization of Polly, the tough-as-nails, make-no-excuses friend that never leaves Hermione’s side. And finally, there is the notion that it’s impossible to support sexual assault survivors. Exit adds to the growing list of books that address sexual assault, but what’s notable is that Johnston has written one of very few books in which the survivor is supported and empowered, in specific and tangible ways, each step of her recovery: from waking up in a strange hospital bed, to talking to detectives, to facing teammates, to medical interventions, to parental relationships, to school reputations, to the implications of future romantic relationships. This book is important because the plot, characterization, and dialogue can give hope to survivors; it can also help us visualize how we can, in turn, support them. As a survivor of sexual assault and as a professor in whom many survivors have confided, I found myself nodding throughout the book as Johnston gave voice to my own--and others’--feelings and experiences. Please consider adding this exemplary book to your weekend reading list and to your classroom library. |
Steve's Picks for February
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Sarah Donovan Picks for January!
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Sarah J. Donovan is a junior high ELA teacher and adjunct professor in teacher education at DePaul University. She is the author of Genocide Literature in Middle and Secondary Classrooms and a forthcoming young adult novel, Alone Together. She writes a weekly blog, Ethical ELA.com, where she writes about the ethics of teaching English and her #bookaday journey. Follow her @MrsSJDonovan.
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Sarah's Picks for January 2018
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YA Weekend Pick 1/19/2018
YA Weekend Pick 1/12/2018
YA Weekend Pick for 1/5/2018
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Below are the links to Dr. Bickmore's YA Wednesday Weekend Picks for 2017
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YA Wednesday Pick 12/29/2017
YA Weekend Pick 12/22/2017
YA Wednesday Pick 12/15/2017
Refugee by Alan Gratz 12.8.2017
The Duke of Bannerman Prep by Katie A Nelson 12.1.17
One Hundred Spaghetti Strings by Jen Nails 11.17.2017
Weekend Pick 10.27.17
Dr. Bickmore's Weekend Pick for October 6, 2017. It is a brand new book. It's birthday is Oct. 10, 2017. Preorder now. It joins the ranks of Erskine's other fine works like Mockingbird, Seeing Red, and The Absolute Value of Mike
Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye is a great choice for a weekend pick during banned book week. I see this book as one of the founding books of Young Adult literature. It is an amazing look at coming of age and the difficulty of adolescent.
Weekend Pick 9/15/2017
Every time I think about this book I am so glad that my former LSU colleague, Jackie Bach, kept asking me if I had read it yet. I finally did and it is one of those books that stays in my head.
I found the third novel, I am the Cheese by Robert Cormier as a young English major. I know at the time many readers were all abuzz about The Chocolate War, but something about the mystery, complicated narrative, and the inclusive ending resonated then and continues to do so today.
The post title is: http://www.yawednesday.com/blog/10-young-adult-novels-that-have-stayed-with-you
YA Wednesday Pick 9/1/2017
I decided if you pick Paulsen's Hatchet for the weekend book, you better wear your Happy Camper T-Shirt.
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http://amzn.to/2vqcyHN
YA Wednesday Pick 8.11.2017 Fabulous book by great guy.
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YA Wednesday Pick 8.4.2017. I can't believe I haven't picked this before. King Dork is great. It is time to laugh out loud.
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YA Wednesday Pick 7.28.2017
This is one of the best books I have ever read. I love talking about this book. So, if any one is interested, let me know.
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YA Wednesday Weekend Pick 7.21.2017
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Weekend pick 7/14/2017.
The cover is linked to an early blog post that references this great book.
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Weekend Pick 7.7.2017. This week's YA Wednesday post kept me thinking about Nancy Drew and how she has been represented. The cover on the far left is the one I read. The cover on the far right is from the 1930. Talk about staying power.
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Weekend Pick 6.23.2017
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Weekend Pick 6.16.2017 Click on the image for a book review.
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Weekend Pick 6.9.2017
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Weekend Pick 6.2.2017 Click the image for a book review.
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Weekend Pick 5.26.2017
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Weekend Pick 5.19.2017
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Weekend Pick 5.12.2017
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Weekend Pick 5.5.20
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Weekend Pick 4.28.2017
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Weekend pick 4.21.2017. Margarita is now the Young Poet Laureate. Here is the story: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/foundation/press/detail/2017/142016. Here is her web page.
http://www.margaritaengle.com/
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Weekend Pick 4.14.2017
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Weekend Pick 4.7.2017
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Weekend Pick 3.31.2017
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Weekend Pick 3.24.2017
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Weekend Pick 3.17.2017
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Weekend Pick 3.10.2017
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Weekend Pick 3.3.2017
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Weekend Pick 2.24.2017
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Walter Dean Myers's Fallen Angels is a book that offers and unrelenting view of what we ask of young Americans. More importantly, if we look at this moment in history what we asked of young black men in disproportionate numbers. The honest of this book moves me every time.
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Weekend Pick 2.17.2017
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Weekend Pick 2.10.2017
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Weekend Pick 2.3.2017
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Weekend Pick 1.27.2017
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Weekend Pick 1.20.2017
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Weekend Pick 1.13.2017
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Weekend Pick 1.6.2017
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Weekend Pick 12.30.2016
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Dr. Bickmore's First YA Wednesday Weekend Pick 12.23.2016
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