Adolescent Literature - Reviews from Teachers

* Kid Approved Books *

2007-12-29T14:34:00.000-08:00

Fall 2007

My students and I just spent the whole semester reading and talking about adolescent literature. Although we drew on the voices of real adolescent readers, the discussion was definitely conducted from an adult perspective. To get the views of adolescent readers, I asked my student to generate a list of “kid approved” books. The books come recommended by students, family members, friends and others who are adolescents determined by age (leaving out those of us who might be adolescent by mind-set). Many of these books are here because (to quote various kids) they are "awesome, not boring, realistic, emotional, hopeful, funny, cultural, sickening (but ok), contain great heroes, good plots, and are encouraging."

Individual Books

Al Capone Does My Shirts (Gennifer Choldenko)
Among the Hidden (Margaret Haddix)
Because of Winn-Dixie (Kate DiCamillo)
Bone by Bone by Bone (Tony Johnston)
Charlotte's Web (E.B. White)
Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Jeff Kinney)
Diary of Anne Frank
Hatchet (Gary Paulson)
Holes (Louis Sachar)
Hoops (Walter Dean Myers)
How it Happened in Peach Hill (Marthe Jocelyn)
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson (Bette Bao Lord and Marc Simont)
Lightning Thief (Rick Riordan)
The Misfits (James Howe)
My Brother Sam Is Dead
Number the Stars (Lois Lowry)
The Outsiders (SE Hinton)
The River (Gary Paulson)
Shiloh (Phyllis Reynolds Naylor)
The Skin I'm In (Sharon Flake)
Slam! (Walter Dean Myers)
Summerland (Michael Chabon)
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing (Judy Blume)
Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood (Ibtisam Barakat)
TTYL (Lauren Myracle)
Tuck Everlasting (Natalie Babbitt)
The Watsons Go To Birmingham, 1963 (Christopher Paul Curtis)

Series

American Girls
Artemis Fowl (by Eoin Colfe)
The Chronicles of Narnia (by CS Lewis)
The Clique Series (Lisi Harrison)
Goosebumps (by R.L. Stine)
Gossip Girls (Cecily von Ziegesar)
The Hardy Boys
Harry Potter (by J.K. Rowling)
Lord of the Rings (by JRR Tolkien)
Nancy Drew
A Series of Unfortunate Events (by Daniel Handler)
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (by Ann Brashares)
Star Wars
The Twilight Saga (Stephenie Meyers)
Uglies (by Scott Westerfield)

Authors

Avi
Judy Blume
Meg Cabot
Matt Christopher (esp. books about sports)
Beverly Cleary (Ramona books for the girls, The Mouse and the Motorcycle for boys)
Andrew Clements
Caroline B. Cooney
Katie DiCamillo
Dan Gutman
O. Henry (esp. "A Retrieved Reformation" & "After 20 Years")
Stephen King
Lois Lowry
Lurlene McDaniel
Gary Paulsen
Christopher Pike
Phillip Pulman
Cynthia Rylant
Gary Soto
Jerry Spinelli

Avril Lavigne’s Make 5 Wishes Volume 1

2007-12-29T14:32:00.001-08:00

Starring Avril Lavigne and Created by Camilla d’Errico and Joshua Dysart

Reviewed by Tania Padron

This short graphic novel was an easy and pleasurable read. The main character Hanna, is a lonely, quit girl who longs for something exciting to happen to her. Hanna’s character is very relatable. Her parents are having marital problems and her quiet personality does not allow her to express her feeling with her parents or make friends that she can talk to. The book is geared towards kids ages 13 and up but I think even younger kids would really enjoy this graphic novel. The drawings suck you into Hanna’s life. They are colorful, imaginative and full of life.

Hanna has no friends except for her imaginary best friend Avril Lavigne. Avril’s role in the story is a sort of conscious for Hanna who is becoming desperate by her depressing home life and social situation. Hanna feels trapped in her life and longs to find some life altering solution. She takes on pretend personas to communicate to people online. She knows them but they have no idea who she really is. One day while she is online she comes across a website offering a box and five wishes. She feels a strange draw to the box and feels compelled to purchase it. The little demon inside the wish box proves to be life changing but not necessarily the solution Hanna expected.

This volume really left me wondering what would happen to Hanna at school after she had made her 4 wishes and what she would do with her last wish. Would her life change for the best or would Hanna find out that she was the only one who could change her life for the better. Would she stop hiding behind her fears and imaginary personas? Would her wishes make her life worse than it was before? Volume 1 left me hanging. Saying to myself, that’s it! I want to know what happens next.

A Child Called "It"

2007-12-29T14:30:00.000-08:00

by Dave Pelzer

Reviewed by Tania Padron

A Child Called “It” is a dramatic and almost unbelievable autobiographical story of Dave Pelzer’s struggle as a child in an abusive home. Dave Pelzer’s story is one of California’s most severe cases of child abuse. The book is part of a trilogy. It details Dave’s life from ages 4 to 12. The author, Dave, tells us about the horrible cruelty he endured as a child by his alcoholic mother and a father who let the abuse continue with full knowledge of it. Dave’s family loved him as a baby, toddler and small child. The turning point was never very clear but alcohol played a major role in Dave’ s mother’s dramatic character change. She turned from loving warm attentive mother to a sadistic evil woman who Dave began to refer to only as The Bitch by the end of the novel.

Dave’s mother singled him out because according to her he was a “bad boy”. She used him as a scapegoat for all of her frustrations and her alcohol triggered rages. Her hatred for him was so vile that she began to refer to him as “It.” Dave was completely excluded from his family unit. He never ate with his family as they all dinner together and was not allowed to play with his brothers. Instead he did all the household chores while his brother played. He was seen as the family’s slave and that is how he began to se himself. So far detached had his mother made him from herself and from his family that he no longer saw them as his family.

This book is filled with vivid imagery and details of Dave’s physical, mental and emotional abuse. It was very difficult for me to read his account of what happened to him. I literally had to skim some parts because of the gritty descriptions. My heart was tired from reading about such horror that was inflicted upon Dave. I could feel his emotional pain as he described his feelings of despair and his battle for survival. I felt I was living it with him and my heart reached out to him.

The fact that Dave’s mother and family early on in Dave’s childhood had loved each other was I believe the key to Dave’s ability to survive. He knew there was good in the world. He did not understand why it had been taken from him or if he would ever have love in his life once again but his hope and inner strength kept him alive for a long time.

The graphic nature of Dave’s abuse is probably why this book is controversial and not recommended for young adults. This book is more appropriate for high school and not at all for middle school students. At times it was difficult for me to read parts of the book and I imagine it could be deemed traumatic for a young adult. However, bringing light onto child abuse in such an honest way as this book does is important for our society and for students who may be dealing with abuse themselves. I would recommend if this book where to be read by high school students that a length in depth discussion follow on what students should do to reach out for help and different resources a child has to help themselves or a friend.

The Breadwinner

2007-12-29T14:28:00.000-08:00

by Deborah Ellis

Reviewed by Tania Padron

This book is an exciting and sorrowful tale of an educated Afghan family confined to live under the strict Taliban regime in their war torn country of Afghanistan where people live with despair, fear and death all around them. Afghanistan has been at war since 1978. First the Soviets tried to take over the country and were pushed out by the Afghani troops, since then the Afghani people have been living in and dying because of a civil war that continues to this day.

The stories main character, Parvana, a young girl of approximately 10 years old has the heavy burden of working to feed her family of 4, two sister, one 17 and the other younger just a child, a baby brother and her mother, after her father is taken to prison for no apparent reason. The terror ensued by the Taliban and their strict restrictions on women are portrayed in this story through the struggles Parvana and her family endure as well as the people Parvana befriends. Her family is confined to their small one room apartment for most of the time because the Taliban forbids women to be seen outside without a male escort and even then they must be completed covered from head to toe. Parvana is able to escape the restrictions on women because she is so young. After her father is taken off to prison her mother and her once physical education teacher, Mrs. Weera who comes to live with Parvana’s family, come up with the incredible idea that will allow the family to survive.

Parvana’s father was once a university professor and her mother a writer before the Taliban took their jobs away from them. Parvana could no longer go to school as she once did but, she knew how to read and write and often yearned for the days when she was just a simple child going to school and playing with friends. Now she had to be an adult. Her older brother had been killed by a land mine and she was her family’s only hope. Through her struggle to make more money to support her family Parvana is faced with some ethically and personally difficult choices. Parvana’s adventures with her once school friend bring life to her and to the story.

I would recommend this book to anyone you cares about what is going on in Afghanistan, to its people and especially to the people who think this will never affect them or anyone they know. Now more than ever this story will touch and resonate with Americans who might have thought that they and their families would never understand what it means to live the nightmare that is war.

Forever

2007-12-29T14:27:00.000-08:00

by Judy Blume

Reviewed by Tania Padron

The main characters of this book, Katherine and Michael, are both high school seniors. They meet on New Years Eve at a mutual friends house and begin a flirtatious relationship, which eventually leads to a committed, honest and loving relationship. Katherine and Michael promise to love each other forever but the life ahead of them may have different plans for them. As high school seniors they will soon be going to different colleges and will be apart for long periods of time. They cherish the time that they have together before they go of to college.

As their relationship develops they explore the sexual part of their relationship. The couple talks openly about their sexual experience or lack of, they share their fears and their hopes. The characters speak graphically of their sexual encounters. They take on a responsible attitude toward their relationship and Katherine especially is proactive about her sexual education. At one point she goes to Planned Parenthood to learn about birth control and get checked out. The author portrays their sexual relationship from an idealist’s perspective. Katherine and Michael’s relationship is probably not the average teenage boyfriend/girlfriend relationship. From an adults perspective Katherine and Michael are naive. They believe they will be together forever. They are committed to each other and are very much in love until they are confronted with the strain of being apart for the summer.

The role Katherine’s parents and grandmother plays in the story is that of educators and protectors. The father seems especially overprotective when he demands that Katherine will spend the summer at sleep away camp instead of being with Michael. Katherine’s parents were not against her relationship with Michael but they did not want her reject opportunities because of her desire to be close to him. Time apart for any couple can be difficult. The time they spend apart is a test of their devotion to each other.

At camp Katherine meets a boy who tests her love for Michael. There is an attraction between them that scares and confuses her. His name is Theo. He is a senior in college and her tennis partner. When she gets news that her grandfather passed away she becomes so desperate with sadness that she acts on her desire for Theo. She kisses him. Her awakening feelings for Theo are the end for her relationship with Michael. Katherine realizes that the promise that she and Michael made to love each other forever was too much for her to handle. She is too young to commit herself to one person when she has feelings for someone else.

On the cover of the book the author poses the question, “Is there a difference between first love and true love?” The fate of Katherine and Michael’s relationship seems to answer that question for the readers. Teenage girls would absolutely relate to this love story and could live vicariously through Katherine’s experiences. I would not use this book in the classroom but I do think the story portrays a model relationship between a teenage couple that is important for young readers to be exposed to. The actions for both Katherine and Michael are responsible and heartfelt.

A Rose by Any Other Name

2007-12-29T14:25:00.001-08:00

by Madonna

Review By: Melissa Paparozzi

The popular genre book I read was called A Rose by Any Other Name, and it is one out of four books in the English Roses series by Madonna. One of my sixth grade students recommended this book to me, and I though it would be appropriate because she told me that she had read the entire series, and several of her friends and classmates had read the series as well. I thought it was really interesting that this series was written by the pop singer and actress, Madonna. When I brought this up to the girl who let me borrow the book, she did not seem to know exactly who Madonna was. She likes the series for its girly slang and “cool” pictures. However, if this book came out when I was in sixth grade, I bet it would be popular regardless of how good it was because Madonna wrote it!

The novel is about a group of five sixth grade girls who are all best friends. They do everything together from walking to school to after school sleepovers and study dates. Each girl has their own unique traits about them. When it comes time for the sixth grade school play, all the girls want to be involved. The only girl who does not want to join in the school play is Grace, the athlete of the group. Grace would rather be outside playing sports than inside doing theatre-related activities. The other girls give Grace a hard time about not trying out for the play, and when it is time for tryouts Grace decided to get up and audition. When she got on stage she blew away the audience and landed herself the lead role in the play. The only problem was that one of her best friends, Charlotte, had her heart set on the lead role. Charlotte gets jealous at first, but eventually decided that friendship should come first, and she agrees to prep Grace for her role. On the opening night of the play, Grace fakes an injury so that her best friend and understudy, Charlotte, can play the lead role. Charlotte gets to shine as Juliet in the school play, and the girls’ friendship remains strong as ever.

This book is not exactly an instructor’s dream teaching novel, but I don’t think it was meant to be. I would not put this book in my curriculum or even in my classroom library, but I would recommend it word-of-mouth to any of my female students looking for a quick and fun read. I can appreciate this book for its leisure value, and I think it is okay to read things “just for fun.” Also, the theme of friendship that resonates throughout the entire novel is something that many adolescent girls could learn from. Adolescence is a time in life when kids start having major conflicts with their friends. Hence, I think that any late elementary or early middle school student could learn a lot about friendship and have some fun while reading this book.

Maus: A Survivor’s Tale

2007-12-29T14:22:00.000-08:00

by Art Spiegleman

Reviewed by Melissa Paparozzi

Maus: A Survivor’s Tale by Art Spiegleman, is a compelling graphic novel about the family of a Holocaust survivor. Maus is a memoir, and it switches back and forth between the past and the present. When the reader is taken into the past, we learn about the struggles of Art Spiegleman’s father, Vladek, who lived in Poland before and during the Holocaust. Vladek eventually wound up as a prisoner at Auschwitz. When the story is in the present, we learn about some of the effects the Holocaust had on the Spiegleman family that have lasted for decades. For example, Art finds it hard to have a relationship with his stubborn and, ironically, racially prejudiced father. Also, Art’s father had a difficult relationship with his wife, Anja, who ended up killing herself.

The most interesting part of this novel is that it is graphic and the characters are animals. Not only is this a great effect to look at, but the characters have symbolic value as well. The Germans are portrayed as cats, the Jews are portrayed as Mice, the Americans are portrayed as dogs, the Polish people are portrayed as pigs, and the British are portrayed as fish. All of these animals correlate with character traits that the author is trying to convey. He uses the obvious cat and mouse characterization to convey the relationship that the Germans had as predators to the Jews. The author used dogs to characterize the Americans in a positive light, as dogs can represent friendliness and loyalty. The Polish people portrayed as pigs probably has a negative connotation, as pigs are usually thought of as dirty and brutal. Portraying the British as fish could represent the fact the England is an island. All of this personification and symbolism make for an extremely interesting read.

Furthermore, this graphic novel would be great for using in an eighth grade classroom. Students at this age are old enough to deal with the difficult subject matter, and they could learn a lot from all of the different literary devices. Teachers could use this novel in correlation with lessons on symbolism, personification, flashback, narrators, and connections to the history classroom. I think it would be best to teach this book as a read aloud or readers’ theatre because if it is read in class the teacher can really point out the graphics that symbolize different things. Also, students might get excited about doing a reader’s theatre because they can act like animals and people at the same time. This would be both fun and challenging for them. Overall, Maus is an excellent novel for teaching literacy concepts and history as well.

Lily’s Crossing

2007-12-29T14:21:00.000-08:00

by Patricia Reilly Giff

Reviewed by Melissa Paparozzi

Lily’s Crossing, by Patricia Reilly Giff, is an adolescent novel that deals with some very difficult history. The main character, Lily, is a young girl growing up in America during World War II, and she has to face many challenges due to the war. Lily lives in New York state, but her family moves to a beach town every summer to vacation. Now that the war is on, Lily’s father will have to go to Europe to work in a factory where he is needed. This leaves Lily living at the beach alone with her grandmother. Lily’s mother is deceased, and she cannot seem to accept the fact that she will have to live without her father this summer. Lily’s only friend at the beach also has to relocate during the summer to follow her father’s job. Lily is confused, angry, and lonely during this time of war.

Lily’s stress only becomes worse when she meets a young boy who is visiting her neighbors at the shore. His name is Albert, and he is staying with a family near Lily because he is Jewish and has to avoid the Nazi’s in Europe. Lily learns about Albert’s plight, but she does not know how to react to his situation. He is scared for his family just as Lily is scared for her father. Lily is young, immature, and extremely prone to lying. As a result, she ends up hurting Albert and herself before she is able to help him.

I think that this novel would be perfect to teach to sixth or seventh grade students. It is a great novel to use for teaching across the curriculum and incorporating social studies into a literature lesson. There are several activities that students could engage in to bridge the two subjects. Students could work in lit groups to research assigned topics pertaining to World War II. The teacher could assign different topics to each group and then groups could share their research with the rest of the class. Some topics groups could research are the Nazis, Hitler, women’s roles in the war, the home front, rationing, and many more. Another good activity for teaching across the curriculum would be to do some map work. Students could locate where Lily is from and where she goes to the beach on a United States map. Also, students could locate where Albert is from and where the war is on a European map. This activity would help put the novel in context for the students. Furthermore, many vocabulary words from the novel are related to the World War II era. If teachers include these words in the vocabulary lists for this book, students will get a history lesson while doing their vocab
Hence, Lily’s Crossing is a wonderful novel for teaching adolescents to deal with “difficult history.” Students get to see an average girl face challenges that are beyond her control. Her everyday life spins out of control when the United States enters into World War II. Many adolescents are familiar with World War II, and this novel will show them how someone their age dealt with it. Also, this is a great learning novel for students who may not be familiar with World War II. In addition, students can use this novel to relate to their own personal connections to war. For example, students may have had family members who were victims of the Holocaust, or students might currently have friends or relatives fighting in Iraq.

Al Capone Does My Shirts

2007-12-29T14:19:00.000-08:00

by Gennifer Choldenko

Reviewed by Melissa Paparozzi

Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko is young adult novel about family, growing up, and difficult relationships. The main character is a “big-for-his-age” twelve-year-old boy named Moose, who recently moved to Alcatraz Island with his family. Moose’s family uproots their life in Santa Monica so that Moose’s dad can take a prison guard position at Alcatraz and the family can earn enough money to send Moose’s sister to a very expensive private school. Moose’s sister, Natalie, is being sent to a private school because she is severely mentally handicapped. Due to the fact that the novel is set in the 1930’s, Moose’s sister’s condition is never named, and Moose’s family does not seem to understand her condition at all. Today, Natalie would be probably be diagnosed as having some form of autism.

In the novel, Moose has to deal with moving to a strange place where he knows no one, and dealing with his handicapped sister at the same time. His parents (especially his mother) put all their energy into “curing” Natalie of her condition, and they expect Moose to be equally as concerned and dedicated to this cause. As a result, Moose loses out on the experience of being a kid. He doesn’t get to play baseball after school because he has to baby-sit his sister. He doesn’t get to hang out with other kids his age without his sister coming along, and doesn’t get to spend time with his parents because they are always at work or focused on Natalie. Moose’s mother would rather devote her time and attention to voodoo dolls or magic pills that could cure Natalie rather than spend time with Moose. She feels that Moose is lucky and blessed to be normal and healthy, whereas Natalie has nothing and needs all the help she can get just to survive in the world.

This novel would be great to work with in a fifth, sixth, or possibly even seventh grade classroom. The struggles that Moose endures are great ways to strike up conversations and written pieces about strained family relationships, being the new kid on the block, and dealing with mental disabilities. I would probably assign this novel as something the entire class would read, and due to the fact that it is somewhat long (213 pages) I would have students do some reading in class as well as take some reading home. Some activities I would engage in with my class during this novel would be circle discussions, journal writing, essay writing, and group work. In circle discussion, students could voice their opinions and concerns about what Moose has to go through. In journal and essay writing, I would ask students to relate Moose’s childhood to their own, and I would ask them if they think Moose’s life is normal. Finally, in lit groups, students could work together and compare responses to the text. I might even ask each lit group to present certain responses to the class.

Behind Enemy Lines

2007-12-29T14:17:00.000-08:00

by Howard R. DeMaille

Reviewed by Melissa Ann Hunton

Overview:

The book I chose for the theme of “Difficult History” was Behind Enemy Lines by Howard R. DeMaille. The reason I chose this book was simple. I wanted to find a book about a person struggling during war time, and I wanted to stay away from using The Diary of Anne Frank as most teachers rely on for this theme.

This book begins in a small town in Michigan. A young man is attending college when the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor. Howard decides it is time to enlist, not only for his country, but more importantly for some adventure in his life. Since he has always loved plans, he decided to enlist in the Air Force. Before leaving, he throws a party with other boys enlisted, and they plan a party for their return: how naïve they were. Three days later, he was stationed in England and on his first mission. He was the pilot of a B-17G with a crew of about six men. During an air raid, his plane was shot down. The crew had to abandon the ship by parachuting out.

Howard landed in a Holland field, and was rescued by a group of boys who brought him clothes to look like a civilian. A woman named Mimi and a man names Peter brought him to their home, where he was fed, clothed, and hidden from German-occupied Holland. Peter was a member of the Dutch Resistance and was there to help any Allied forces. Howard then found out that his 19-year-old crewmember’s parachute failed to open, and he was found dead on the ground. Good news was he was reunited with a crewmember, and together they were taken to a “safe” house. They were safe for 12 days, and given fake Hollander passports and identities. They studied the Dutch language to fit in better.

At about 10 pm one night, the German soldiers began pounding on their doors. They tried to hide but they were seen and captured. Peter and Mimi were beaten a woman was shot and killed, and Howard was taken to an empty warehouse with other captured Allies. They were fed moldy bread and were surrounded by rats. Howard was interrogated-since he only knew his name and rank, they knew he wasn’t a spy. After two weeks, he was taken to Stalog Luft I, in Germany, one of the infamous Prisoner of War camps for Allied Air Force officers. They were given a ID #, a blanket, cup, spoon, and occasionally soap. There he was reconnected with some of his men.

Finally, after the Russians had made it to the camp, the Germans fled, and the men were finally flown home at the end of the war. He though he would never be free again.
“I’ve lost interest in my ‘adventure’ project.
It just seems to go on, and on, and on.
There is hope in sight, but it’s tough to keep from being depressed.
I can only pray that someday I will be free and home again.”(p. 165)

Why I Chose This Book:

The reason why Howard DeMaille chose to write and share his story is to show the heroism of all the Dutch people who tried to help him along the way. They sacrificed their lives, homes, and safety for the life of an American pilot. Howard is still amazed that he got out of there alive, because every day was another struggle and everyday could have been his last. This book tells of the horrific treatment of Allied forces by the German solders. So many were killed and were not as lucky as Howard.

This was the first time I read a story from an American’s point of view on WWII. I think the story speaks for itself- how war is never easy, and how people suffer and die while fighting for their countries. Not just the armed forces but civilians who live in towns occupied by these forces that take over their government.

Uses in Classroom:

I would absolutely use this as an in-class read. I think grades 6 and 7 are most appropriate. I think a history of WWII should be given beforehand, if just a quick summary. The book should be read and discussed as a class. Next you can have students either role play the characters or make an alternate ending (if Howard did not survive). Students can work collaboratively to come up with thoughts on how they would feel if they were in the war and this happened to them. Would they give up hope? Would they try to escape, even if they would be killed if caught? Students can then write a brief paper and present it to the class. This collaborative work will help with brainstorming and student confidence in their work.

The teacher can also have students research the POW camps and together as a class discuss the conditions lived in, the brutality, and how many died or were freed. Another idea would be to compare the book to Anne Frank’s diary- how are they similar and how are they different? Make a list comparing and contrasting both experiences.

This book was moving because it is based on a true story. I actually got chills during some parts of the book. I believe students will come out of this having a better understanding of what actually happened and what they textbooks tell them.

If A Tree Falls At Lunch Period

2007-12-29T14:15:00.000-08:00

by Gennifer Choldenko

Reviewed by Melissa Ann Hunton

Why I chose the book…

The book I read and reviewed for the popular book choice was If A Tree Falls At Lunch Period by Gennifer Choldenko. While searching through the teen section in the book store, the illustration on the cover of this book immediately caught my eye. A simple tree is drawn falling from the sky, and I imagined the underlying meaning of the story representing something profound and moving. The author is a Newberry Award winner also, and since I had read some of her other work, I thought this might be a great choice to explore.

Book Overview…

I have so much to say about this story because it truly captured the images of seventh graders attending middle school. The book deals with issues of race, wealth, identity, and relationships. As compared with other books I have read for this class, I did not finish reading the book left with an aftertaste of disgust and anger for the way the author portrayed characters and the issues at hand. What I did gain was the honesty the author was trying to convey and the awareness she wanted readers to take from the book.

The main characters of the book are Kirsten and Walt. Kirsten is a Caucasian twelve year old who lives in an all white neighborhood and attends the top-private school called Mountain Middle School. She lives in a large house with her parents who have been constantly fighting with one another and may be getting divorced. She has also recently been struggling with her weight, which her mom thinks is because of the situation at home. Walt, on the other hand, attended City, a school in an urban neighborhood next to Mountain. He is a brilliant student and applies to Mountain for a scholarship, which he receives. Walt’s cousin also receives a small scholarship, but can’t attend because he doesn’t have the money to cover the remainder tuition. Walt is one of the only black students, even though the slogan of the middle school is “One World: Cultural Diversity at Mountain”. Walt immediately realizes that he is an outsider in this school. He quickly befriends a Hispanic boy named Matteo, someone who resembles a friend of his at City.

Meanwhile, Kirsten is having trouble fitting in to the world of materialistic girls. Even her best friend Rory has abandoned her to hang out with the popular girls. Kirsten’s mom tries to help her fit in by talking to the other moms and buying her daughter new clothes and shoes. What her mom doesn’t understand is that Kirsten has no interest in being friends with them, because she’s not that kind of girl. She starts to make friends with Walt and is immediately targeted as weird for eating lunch with the “poor kids”. Even though Walt is admired by all of his classmates, he can’t catch a break when it comes to his race and wealth, or lack there of.
Toward the end of the story, while Kirsten is sneaking junk food from the stash in her kitchen, her parents come in arguing about her father’s secret love child. This is the first Kirsten has heard of this. Then they mention that Walt is her half-brother, and that her dad had fathered a boy with a lady named Sylvia (Walt’s mother) just two months before Kirsten was born. Kirsten tells Walt, who has been told a lie that his real father died in the Air Force. Walt and Kirsten are both utterly confused and Walt has to accept the fact that his dad is white and has been paying for his education at Mountain. At the end, they continue to explore their friendship and start to understand that they aren’t as different as they thought.

Classroom Use…

I loved this book to the point where I would use it as much as I can in the classroom. Even though at the end everything seemed to come together as a fairy tale, I understand the important issues the author was trying to convey in this text. I would definitely use this book in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade. A chapter by chapter in-class read would be my first option. I would then expand student’s thinking by asking them real life questions, for example: How would you feel attending a school where you are the minority? Or what are the advantages a wealthy student has, and what are the disadvantages of a poor student? I think student’s can write journal entries and free writing assignments relating the text to their lives or to write a story of their own addressing these issues. I would definitely keep this book in my classroom and recommend it to any of my students. There is absolutely no profanity, referrals to sex or drugs, and any other topic that would cause it to be challenged by parents or readers. It was a relief to read a book where I didn’t see unnecessary words or references used.

Hikaru No Go

2007-12-29T14:13:00.000-08:00

Author: Yumi Hotta
Illustrator: Takeshi Obata

Reviewed by Melissa Ann Hunton

Book Overview:

Fujiwara-no-Sai was an instructor of the Emperor a thousand years ago until a rival Go teacher cheats and drives him to suicide. Sai’s yearnings to continue playing the game were so strong that his spirit became trapped in the Go board, bound to remain there until the “Divine Move” is played. While searching through his grandfather’s storage room, Hikaru finds this game board, which leads to him to be possessed by Sai’s ghost.

Sai hopes that this connection with Hikaru will provide a way for him to once again play the game he loves, but Hikaru doesn’t care about a game he thinks is for old people. Unfortunately, Hikaru also feels Sai’s emotions, and Sai’s intense sadness at the idea of never playing again makes Hikaru so sick that he gives in. So the stage is set for a creative generational conflict. Hikaru feels forced into learning something he has no interest in, although the discipline will do him good. He’s forming a connection to a tradition much larger than he is, the way American boys feel part of a bigger sportsmanship of football or baseball.

Sai not only upholds the rules of the game but also defends the way the game should be played, using skill to teach a rude or overbearing player a lesson. Conveniently, Hikaru has also been having school trouble in social studies and history, areas Sai can help with from personal experience. The age of the ghost points out an interesting cultural difference. If this story were set in the US (with the sixth-grader learning to play poker), then the ghost would be at most half Sai’s age. Japan, however, is much more ancient, with a longer lineage of tradition.
Sai has a feminine look, accentuated by the little hearts that appear whenever he gets to play Go. Hikaru’s body language is perfectly suited to a teen with attitude, staring into space or twiddling his pencil instead of paying attention. He’s a cute kid whose wide eyes emphasize how much he has to learn, and his two-tone hair accentuates his desire to rebel. Even when his self-centered thoughtlessness is annoying, the reader knows he doesn’t mean to hurt others.
In later chapters, Hikaru meets Akira, an expert Go player his own age, and tries to compete in a tournament. The stories capture the excitement of competition. There are enough Go rules and strategy to build the reader’s knowledge but not so much that the story loses track of the drama. The emphasis is on Hikaru’s growth process. The way others react to his skill shows that knowledge doesn’t get you very far if you’ve annoyed everyone else so much that they won’t play with you.

Akira is the son of a Go champion, and he’s been raised to carry on the tradition. His encounter with Hikaru shakes his confidence, calling into question everything he’s known about his life so far. Hikaru has to balance the desire for independence with wishing to belong. The community of Go players becomes more attracted to him as he begins to understand why they are so dedicated to a simple, classic game.

How I Would Use The Book:

I think that this book would be a great book to have on the shelf on your classroom library. For me, because the book seems to be more of a comic book than anything else, I would not be able to use it in a traditional sense. However, if any student in my class wanted to do a creative book report or any other creative project with this book, I would definitely allow them too.

Although this book seemed a little crazy at first, I was able to find the central themes in the book. One is the spirit of competition, which most kids can relate to. Another is the idea of respect and tradition in the Japanese culture. Even in comic books, the author still was able to tie in the theme. For me, I understand that Manga is more of a new, developing literacy. It will take people, especially adults and teachers, a while to understand why students are so attracted to these texts. It is not the traditional way of reading but I think that if our students are reading something, then that’s okay and we should still encourage all forms of reading.

Gossip Girl

2007-12-29T14:11:00.000-08:00

by Cecily von Ziegesar

Reviewed by Melissa Ann Hunton

Why I chose the book…

The “dangerous” text I chose to review is Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar. I actually read this book during the summer of my senior year of high school. I didn’t fall in love with the book because there were many parts that seemed a bit too scandalous. Since I was living the life of an average teenager, I had no idea that girls my age could live these extraordinary lives. The girls were spoiled with the latest designer clothes, top schooling, and being able to travel all over the world. However, even though they had all this money and attended the best private schools in the city, they seemed to have more problems than happiness.
Some readers might consider this book trashy and have no educational use at all. I tend to agree with those critics because the book brings up so many of these issues, such as drugs and sex. I feel girls in their teenage and young adult years should be exposed to these issues, but in a way that is much more subtle and not so scandalous and “out there”. One aspect of the book I really enjoyed was that it made me question which kind of life is the best to experience. A rich girl’s life consists of a top education, popularity, and the best clothes; however, she also has the overbearing pressure to stay popular, to deal with jealousy and betrayal, and live in a world of family, sex, and drug problems. The life of an average girl doesn’t have many of the materialistic pleasures in life but also doesn’t have the money-related problems that the rich girl does.

Overview of the book…

The story is told from the viewpoint of a rich, popular girl. She writes about her life by blogging on a website every week, and signs her name as “Gossip Girl”, hence the title of the book. She writes about the “drama” that happens each week in the world of the rich girls. She states early on, “Our apartments are all within walking distance of the Metropolitan Museum of Art of Fifth Avenue, and we attend the single-sex private school Constance Billard, and even with a hangover, Fifth Avenue looks beautiful in the morning…but something is rotten on museum mile…” In this one quote, she sums up what the whole book will be about: how cruel people can be to each other, the pressures of living such a glamorous life, and what really is happening to these girls in their own lives, with their family, and with their boyfriends.

The story explains the social ladder in high school. The girls are under many types of pressure: the pressure to be thin, to be pretty, and to be the most popular. Blair Waldorf, one of the most popular girls in school, is struggling with bulimia and forcing herself to vomit in the bathroom after every meal. Another character, Jenny, is trying to become popular, but because she is only a sophomore, she is disappointed over and over again. Yet another character, Serena Van Der Woodsen, has just been thrown out of boarding school and is now back at Constance Billard. A boy Daniel secretly loves Serena, but she doesn’t give him the time of day. At the same time, Vanessa, an unpopular and artistic girl, has a crush on Daniel. However, he is too wrapped up in Serena that he doesn’t even notice her.

As the story continues, “Gossip Girl” writes obnoxious rumors about Serena explaining why she was kicked out of boarding school. A few of them are that she had a baby, that she was dealing drugs, or that she joined a cult. These rumors eventually lead to Serena being disliked by her classmates, even her best friend Blair. The outrageous rumors continue to hurt the girls and their friendships, showing that living in this world of hate and jealously doesn’t have all the perks one may think.

How I Would Use the Book…

Unfortunately, I don’t see how I can use this book in the classroom. It talks too much about sex, drugs, and other issues that lead to the labeling of this book as “dangerous”. I can see why critics have challenged not only this particular book but also the whole Gossip Girl series. I understand how this book is extremely popular among teenage girls; it discusses all the issues that they may be experiencing, or they see through the media (magazines, books, TV shows, and news reports). It is important to stress these issues, but not in the way this book represents them. For these girls, it is an everyday occurrence that someone has sex, does drugs, or struggles with eating disorders. As a teacher, I would not want to portray these issues as being almost normal. I understand why critics are fearful of this book entering classrooms and even into the hands of teenage girls.

If I did attempt to use the book, I think maybe the students could choose a book that they feel has significant issues teenagers deal with and experience. They could write a book report about it or even a journal entry. This is a book primarily written for teenage girls, so I could not use it as a whole class read because the boys would be uninterested and might be too immature to handle it. I think that a mature girl could handle a writing assignment or a book report about such serious topics, and then she can formulate an opinion about the book.

A book that is this contemporary is dangerous to a traditional classroom, and to a school district that rules out books like these. However, books like The Giver are always on reading lists because the author was one of the first to write about important, underlying issues in society. Unfortunately, since there are many more books like Gossip Girl in print, they are thrown into the category of “dangerous”, trashy, and non-educational.

The Book Thief

2007-12-29T14:08:00.000-08:00

by Marcus Zusak

Reviewed by Lorin Rose-Nowak

Overview: Death, as the narrator of this tremendous story by Marcus Zusak, is a kind, albeit realistic storyteller who feels sorry for what he has to do in his line of work. "To me, war is like the new boss who expects the impossible," he declares, as he tells the story of WWII Germany and the Holocaust through the experiences of Liesel Meminger, a young German girl. At the outset of the story, Leisel (the book thief) lost her brother to the paternal Death and her frail mother to sadness and desperation, and was sent to live with a foster family in the town of Molching. Molching is in between Munich and the concentration camp, Dachau, and is part of the route the Nazi’s use to march the Jews to “concentrate,” according to Leisel.
Gruff Rosa and kind Hans Hubermann, Leisel’s foster parents, come to love her as a daughter, and she loves them. Their little town has all of the requisite characters and places that would make up a little German town on the edge of war in the1940’s: Leisel’s best friend, the sweet but conniving boy next door, Rudy; a school teacher who doesn’t understand Leisel; a gang of tough kids who steal food and anything they can get their hands on; unsympathetic Hitler Youth Leaders, the Fuher, Jews marching through on their way to a death camp, and devastating air raids. The Hubermann’s even have something extra: Max, the son of one of Hans’ Jewish friends from long ago hiding in their basement.

The Book Thief got her start the day her brother died, when a book fell out of a grave digger’s pocket at the cemetery, and instead of returning it, Leisel took it with her to her new foster home. "The Grave Digger's Handbook: A Twelve-Step Guide to Grave-Digging Success" becomes her link to the past, and her future. Hans Hubermann, Leisel’s new accordion playing papa, taught her how to read using the book, and reading became the thing that kept her going throughout the story. Stealing books became a lifeline for Leisel, and one by one, even snatching one from the raging fire of a Nazi book burning, Leisel builds a collection of words.

Even though this is wartime, things are going pretty well in the little town of Molching, until Max Vandenberg shows up. Max, the son of a long ago friend of Hans, is Jewish and desperately needs a place to hide from the Nazis. The Hubermanns took him in without a question, fed him, and cared for him. Leisel was immediately mesmerized by the young man, who whited out the pages of Hitler’s book, Mein Kampf, so he could use the fresh pages to write a story for her. Leisel learned about life and the world from Max and their relationship was very special. After months of safety, the Nazi presence in town intensified, and Max had to leave so the Hubermanns could remain safe. The next time Leisel saw Max, he was marching through the town on the way to Dachau, having been captured by the Nazis. They openly recognized each other and the guards saw. Everyone saw. “For me, the sky was the color of Jews,” Death said as he recounted the treachery at Dachau. Would Max survive?

In the end, Molching is demolished in an air raid and no one survives in the neighborhood but Leisel. There was no warning siren. Leisel was in the basement writing the story of her life for Max when the bombs hit, and when they pulled her out of the rubble the next morning, her street was all in broken bits. So was her family. Leisel went to live with the mayor and his wife (who she also stole from) and the books she loved, eventually moving back to her neighborhood to work in a tailor shop. One day, a man came to look for her.
It was Max.

Comments: I wasn’t sure how a fictionalized account of the Holocaust as seen through the eyes of a young German girl would make me feel, but all I could do as I got further and further into the book was shake my head in agreement and with new understanding. I am Jewish, and married into a family whose parents, aunts, uncles, and extended family are survivors of the German concentration camps. From the safety of my home in New Jersey and for many years, I heard first person accounts of the horrors of the war. All there was to read were books like The Diary of Anne Frank and many other stories told from the Jewish point of view. Then I let Leisel and her family in and thought about their points of view. Although a fictional account, I cannot help but think events like these must have occurred. I felt Leisel’s love and compassion for Max. Although this story is listed as YA fiction, this is NOT just a young adult story. Everyone should read this book- young adult and old adult alike.

The Book Thief is rich with opportunities for use in the classroom. Although quite long (550 pages), students can become immersed in a part of history as seen from differing viewpoints. Great discussions could be had about tolerance and what makes people act the way they do in times of tremendous stress. Markus Zusak writes in such a lush and poetic style, that an English Lit. class could read and analyze excerpts, perform Reader’s Theater, or rewrite the ending. All in all, however anyone decides to use this book, the experience will be well worth it for the students.

The Higher Power Of Lucky

2007-12-29T14:04:00.000-08:00

by Susan Patron

Reviewed by Lorin Rose- Nowak

Overview: The heroine of this gem of story, ten-year-old Lucky Trimble, lives in a trailer in the California desert community of Hard Pan (pop. 43). Lucky's mother was electrocuted in a thunderstorm two years earlier, Lucky became a ward of the state, and her father's first wife, Brigitte, stepped in to act as guardian. Lucky’s father abandoned her and got Brigitte to become her guardian through a ruse. Lucky loves Brigitte, but fears that she is tired of being her guardian and worries that Brigitte is about to move back to France and leave her alone.

Lucky’s job is cleaning up outside the Found Object Wind Chime Museum and Visitor Center, and even though it doesn’t pay much, it’s one of the only paying jobs in Hard Pan. Lucky is a curious girl, and she loves to eavesdrop on the many “twelve-step” groups that meet in the museum. Listening to the tales of alcoholics, gamblers, smokers and overeaters who have hit rock bottom, Lucky begins to search for her own Higher Power. While her best friend ties intricate knots with rope, Lucky tries to get some control over her own life by searching for answers. She thinks wards must always stay alert and be prepared with a survival kit backpack just in case the unexpected or something strange and terrible happens again.

Fascinated by science, nature, and Charles Darwin, Lucky observes her world carefully but sometimes misreads what is going on. And when her misguided observational skills tell her that Brigitte is about to leave, Lucky decides to run away. To find her higher power and take control of her life, Lucky runs away in a dust storm, hoping to cause worry, sadness and a change of Brigitte's heart. Potential disaster leads to Lucky's discovery that Brigitte loves her, which helps her come to terms with her mother's death.

The Higher Power of Lucky is a tale of family love, community support and the power of friendship. Lucky searches for the truth of her own life—just like the rest of us. It is for this reason that she is such a wonderful and very real heroine.

Comments: The Newbery award winning book this year — The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron, contains the word scrotum, not once, but a few times. Apparently this is a huge problem for some librarians and parents who have been challenging and/or removing the book from school library shelves according to some short discussion on LM NET, the library media listserv I belong to.

The inclusion of the word has literally shocked people, who have pledged to ban the book from elementary schools, and reopened the debate over what constitutes acceptable content in children’s books. Librarians from all over the country, question the role of the librarian when selecting, or censoring (some argued) literature for children. The book has already been banned from school libraries in a handful of states in the South, the West and the Northeast, and librarians in other schools have indicated in an online debate that they may well follow suit. The topic has dominated the discussion among librarians since the book was shipped to schools.

I have read and reread the first chapter of The Higher Power of Lucky and I just don’t see the problem with it! It is my feeling that the people who are reacting to that word are not reading the book as a whole. Actually, that’s what censors do — they pick out words and don’t look at the book as a whole. This is hardly shocking language when many 3-year-olds know “anatomically correct” words for body parts and psychologists routinely urge parents to introduce the correct terms as soon as their children can understand them. You would think that librarians would be excited at the arrival of a book that supports this view instead of glossing over words you are more likely to hear from children, such as “butt-head” and, of course, “poopy-head.”

When reached at her home in Los Angeles, Susan Patron said she was stunned by the objections. The story of the rattlesnake bite, she said, was based on a true incident involving a friend’s dog. Ms. Patron also mentioned that one of the themes of the book is that Lucky is preparing herself to be a grown-up. Learning about language and body parts, then, is very important to her. Ms. Patron, a public librarian, also wrote the book for children nine to twelve years old. Librarians who are against the book felt that Ms. Parton didn’t really keep her audience in mind, as Lucky is ten years old.

I remember back to the time when some school officials tried to ban Harry Potter books from schools, saying that they endorsed witchcraft and Satanism. In a world that sends people to war over human rights and oppression, it is my strong belief that the people who consider The Higher Power of Lucky as a dangerous text should get a life and focus on how to keep kids reading, rather than wasting everyone’s valuable time with this ridiculous stuff.
Use in the classroom: I could use this book in my upper middle school classroom to analyze the themes of growing up, coping, abandonment, runaways, and loss. For younger readers (5th and 6th grade) the theme of blended non- traditional families can be compared to the student’s own family. Resilience as a personal quality in a young girl is a very powerful message, humor in the face of adversity, and life in “small-town” California could be compared to life in the student’s town/community as well.

After the Dancing Days

2007-12-29T14:03:00.000-08:00

By Margaret I. Rostkowski

Reviewed by Lorin Rose- Nowak

Overview: The year is 1918. At this time in the Midwest, ladies wore big skirts and wide brimmed hats, people drove new Model T cars, a telegram could only mean that someone was dead, and Annie waited for her father and uncle to come home from WW I. Her father made it, but her uncle died in France. For Annie and her family, World War I is now over, but for the wounded men Annie sees being carried from the same train her father walked off of, a new kind of war is just beginning. The war of discrimination and trying to fit back into the lives they had before the war.

There was no room in most of the lives of the people from Kansas City for the most recent veterans of WWI, the soldiers burned from the deadly disfiguring mustard gas. Looking at the burned faces and bodies where legs and arms used to be makes everyone uncomfortable. Fourteen year old Annie is beginning to grow up and questions everything. This is a time when women are just beginning to lobby for voting privileges, and everyone is very proper in beliefs and deed. So when Annie’s father, a doctor, begins to work at the local veteran’s hospital, she seizes the opportunity to visit and make friends with the recovering soldiers, most particularly a twenty-two year old veteran, Andrew. As Annie helps Andrew slowly adjust to his wounds, she also faces devastating truths about war and the complex world of adulthood. Annie’s growth and questioning escalates, and despite her mother’s opposition to her hospital visits, Annie maintains her friendship with the severely burned and disfigured Andrew. Through their friendship, Annie discovers the real circumstances of her beloved Uncle Paul’s death and begins to confront and understand her mother’s anger at life. “Isn’t war a thing to be forgotten?” That's what Annie's mother would like to do. She wants to forget the pain and heartache--and to keep it away from Annie, too. But Annie cannot forget the events that touched her family. Instead of running away from the information, she seeks it out with great courage, and in turn helps her mother come to grips with her own insecurities. It is with this same courage Annie helps Andrew begin to accept himself again, and tame the war raging inside.

Comments: This is a story of growing up and the many ways of healing. Although it was written out of a deep feeling for the time of WWI and its problems, the social and family issues are a current theme. I could use the book in my classroom to compare the strong and differing views of mothers and daughters on an important issue. Certainly, the theme of differences in people and the many ways of acceptance could be studied. Other themes that could be studied are forbidden friendships, how people deal with disfigurement, burn victims, heroes and heroines found in unlikely places, and patriotism. A comparison could also be made between the returning soldiers of WWI and soldiers returning from Iraq. Unfortunately, this is a current and relevant theme.

Among the Hidden

2007-12-29T13:59:00.001-08:00

by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Reviewed by Lorin Rose-Nowak

Overview: It is sometime in the future 20th Century. Luke is an illegal third “shadow” child in this futuristic society, where families are limited to having two children. His life is quiet and increasingly lonely as he ages because Luke’s parents must hide him in the house so the Population Police won’t find him. He wishes he could play outside again the way he used to when he was little before the Government cut down the woods behind their farm house in order to build mansions for the elite of society, the Barons. Throughout this science fiction thriller, Luke’s world continues to shrink until he is finally secluded in the attic at all times.

After his family leaves for work and school each day, Luke cannot help but sneak peaks of the outside world through the attic window. This is when he notices movement in the house next to his. It is owned by a Baron family. After studying his new neighbor's house for a while he discovers that there is a third girl child living there, too. He eventually gets the courage to sneak over and meet her.

Luke and Jen soon become very close friends, and she informs him that they are not the only two shadow children - there are many more across the United States who have to hide from the Population Police. Jen introduces Luke to the Internet and to a chat room where she communicates with the other third children. Jen also tells Luke about a big rally in Washington D.C. that she's organizing to support the hidden children. Jen is fearless, a quality Luke does not possess, so Luke decides not to join the rally. When Jen sneaks to his house to say goodbye to him, that’s the last time they see each other. Luke is worried because he doesn’t hear from Jen for days, and sneaks into her home to find her. He is caught and confronted by Jen’s father, a member of the Population Police, who doesn’t know Luke exists. Jen’s father informs a sad and terrified Luke that Jen was shot and killed at the rally. At this turning point, Jen’s father decides to help Luke escape and get new identity. The book ends, leaving the reader waiting for the next book in the trilogy, in order to learn what happens to Luke in his new life.

Comments: As I rapidly turned the final page of Among the Hidden, wondering what was going to happen to Luke and if he would ever find his way free of being an "illegal" child, I thought back on what I had just read. I hadn't hoped for much in the beginning because the story starts out a bit slow moving, however, once Luke, the illegal third son who must hide to avoid being caught by the Population Police, discovers a counterpart named Jen who lives in a neighboring house, the story picks up quickly. I didn’t want to put the book down until I finished it, and it was an easy read.

Although considered young adult literature, this is the kind of book a teacher could read aloud to a class, irrespective of their age. I believe it is appropriate for students beginning in Fourth Grade and beyond. Haddix creates incredible excitement, tension, and sorrow, and she does so in a way that adults, young adults, and children can enjoy.

It is definitely not a struggle to consider how Among the Hidden can be used in my classroom. Luke is an easy character to connect to and a student could track his growth throughout the story- a study in character development. Jen was a courageous girl. This is a powerful theme that girls can connect to and write about. What if Jen had lived and the rally worked? Or, did she die for nothing? What if the theme of population control really existed here in the United States as it does in other countries? In a Social Studies class, students could research about population control and write an opinion paper, pro or con. Students could predict what happens to Luke and write the first chapter of the next book. Haddix writes with such figurative language-students could be assigned a passage to rewrite using different figurative language. The final theme that could be studied by older students in high school is Totalitarianism. A totalitarian country could be researched then compared to the strong themes in the book.

American Born Chinese

2007-11-19T16:47:00.001-08:00

By Gene Luen Yang

This is an award-winning graphic novel that tells three parallel stories. One is about the Monkey King of Chinese Legend, one is about Jin Wang (a young Chinese American boy trying to fit in at a new school) and the last is about Danny and his cousin, Chin-Kee (a living, breathing Chinese stereotype who comes to visit). To say more about it might be to give too much away. However, in each storyline the characters struggle with questions of identity, the nature of culture and desire to belong to something.

I think the artwork is tremendous, and it communicates some things that might only come across visually. Parts are laugh-out loud funny, parts make you cringe, and some scenes are devastatingly sad. If you have not read comic books or graphic novels before this might be a good introduction to the genre. It deals with weighty topics in an accessible way.

Students in my class liked it. Many enjoyed the format and the storylines. There was a general sense that this could be used in the classroom, with some caveats. The racism that is parodied might be read without the satirical edge and could be taken at face value. Young students might not get, right away or without support, that Chin-Kee represents a history of racism towards Chinese Americans, rather than an object that they should laugh at.

Fruits Basket #1

2007-11-19T16:30:00.000-08:00

Natsuki Takaya

This is the first volume of a very popular shojo (girls) manga. It centers around the experiences of Tohru Honda, who moves in with the mysterious Sohma family. She has recently lost her mother and was living in a tent on the Sohma family property. Since she is still going to school this creates some complications in her life. The Sohma are young men, all of whom have a strange power. They turn into the various animals of the Chinese zodiac (the dog, the rat) and one that is not allowed to join (the cat). They invite Tohru to live with them and take care of the place while she figures out what to do next. She develops a crush on one of them and there is definitely romance in the air. There is also great tension among the Sohma, which often results in violent confrontations. If that sounds straight forward it doesn't capture the full chaos of this manga.

Just like comic books in the US, not every manga is alike. There are other manga that are more sci-fi or fantasy, and some with different amounts of violence. This is just one place to dip into the manga pool. People new to the format (text and visuals arranged in Japanese order, from right to left and top to down) might struggle with the organzation. They might also struggle because the story is told in anything but a linear fashion. The print is small, and some key cultural points are not explained. It is not for everybody. But is is for the ever growing community of manga readers in the United States.

Most students in the class did not even finish this book. However, they recognized that their local bookstores are often filled with kids sitting on the floor with their noses stuck in manga of every stripe. Depending on the manga, they can be jumping off points for discussions of the genre and possible differences in visual culture in the US and Japan.

Monster

2007-10-02T16:03:00.000-07:00

by Walter Dean Myers

Monster is the story of a young man, Steve Harmon, put on trial for being involved in a hold-up that results in the murder of a shop keeper. The book consists of Steve's journal entries and a script for a movie that he is writing about the trial and his experiences. It is a gripping drama - the reader can feel for Steve even while pondering his guilt. The book moves along at a brisk pace, alternating between flashbacks and reflection with what is happening in the trial. Fans of courtroom dramas will enjoy the plotline and dialogue. The journal and the script provide different perspectives, and at times, different versions of the same events. This leads the reader to ask questions about Steve's account and his character.

Students were generally positive. A few talked about how they had to prevent themselves from looking ahead so that they didn't reveal the ending to themselves too soon. Suggestions for use of the text included having students rewrite the ending or write journal entries from another character's perspective. Since much of the book is in script form, students could also do reader's theater or similar interactive projects.

ttfn

2007-10-02T15:52:00.000-07:00

By Lauren Myracle

ttfn is the sequel to ttyl. It finds the same friends, Angela, Maddie and Zoe dealing with their sophomore year in high school. The text is the same as ttyl, that is, in a form of IM. The book is thus structured as a series of messages between the three girls. Each character gets a distinctive font and color to help tell them apart (in addition to having their names on each message).

The three personalities are pretty clear. Maddie is the reckless one, Zoe is the straight-arrow, and Angela is the emotional one. The plotlines center around boys, experimenting with drugs, thinking about sex, and the fact that Angela has to move from Atlanta to El Cerrito (in the Bay Area of California).

I don't personally find the books compelling as stories, but they are doing quite well and kids are responding to them. What I do find compelling is the fact the author is at the forefront of trying to integrate IM and other digital technologies into the structure of adolescent literature.
I think books like ttfn represent baby steps towards a more expansive sense of text structure, and regardless of their limitations, the books are breaking some ground.

Some students in the class liked it, if in a disposable sort of way. Others did not care for it. Many thought the drug use and sexuality made the text off-limits for use in class, unless only certain sections were used (which all agreed would send kids to find the taboo missing sections). Students not used to texting and IM found the language to be hard to follow at times. Those who are veteran texters thought is was fairly realistic, though each message might be a bit long.

things you either hate or love

2007-09-22T13:41:00.001-07:00

By Brigid Lowry

A novel told from the perspective of Georgia, a teen living in Australia. The novel covers a period of her life in which she is trying to figure out a bit more about herself. It doesn't have a plotline that pulls it together, but rather it details episodes that Georgia and her circles of friends (and not-s0-friends) go through. Georgia is fond of making lists, and the novel includes a number of them (e.g., the list that gives the novel its title, ways in which I am DIFFERENT from my mother, things that go up and down, etc.). One thing that moves the novel along is the fact that Georgia is a fan of the (fictional) band Natural Affinity, and is trying to earn enough money to travel and see them in concert. She doesn't have a boyfriend (although she has a crush or two) but she does have some good friends. The kids hang out and do the things kids do - argue, flirt, party, and complain about their families. They also make lists.

Some teen readers who like the book describe it as a quick and easy read. That it is. However, it does touch on some complex issues (like body image, the nature of friendship, etc.). I thought the author, Brigid Lowry, captured Georgia's voice in a really compelling way. Response in my classroom was mixed - some thought it was on target, others felt like the voice came across as too self-aware at times.

Diary of Wimpy Kid

2007-09-22T13:29:00.000-07:00

by Jeff Kinney

This book is a combination of text and cartoons, but it is not a graphic novel. It is structured as the journal (non-diary) of Greg Heffley, and so the drawings act as Greg's own illustrations and embellishments of what is written down in his journal. Greg is in middle-school, doesn't have a ton of friends, and is lacking social capital. He gets by through hanging out with his friend Rowley and by coming up with schemes to improve his lot in life. He is not particularly likable, heroic or even honest. But the book is. Many times I laughed out loud at both the situations and his descriptions of them. A quick and very enjoyable read. It began its life on the internet, and you can still find it there in a daily page format. Beware the Cheese Touch!

Farewell to Manzanar

2007-05-26T19:18:00.001-07:00

by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston

This is an account of a young Japanese-American girl's experience in the Manzanar Interment Camp. It is a biographical account, written by the author as an adult. It provides a description of Japanese-American life in LA before the war and the interment and an insiders account of what life was like inside the camp. Particularly affecting is the impact that the interment has on her father and how changes in his personality have ramifications for everybody else.

First Year: For many of the students, this was the first time they read about the Japanese American interment camps. Some were quite moved by it. Some seemed to expected a different type of account and didn't seem to be as affected. One student said "I kept waiting for something traumatic to happen." Yikes. There was some debate about the quality of the writing, but most agreed that it could be used in a classroom, especially as part of a larger history or social studies unit.

Second Year: Again, this was the first experience reading about this topic for most students. However, unlike last year, the class as a whole seemed to feel like the experience was pretty horrorific. There was less criticism of the writing and more of a focus on the story and themes.

Shabanu

2007-05-26T19:17:00.002-07:00

by Suzanne Fisher Staples

This is a novel about a young nomadic girl living with her family in the Cholistan desert of Pakistan. She is somewhat of a tomboy and quite attached to her favorite camel. The novel follows the rythms of the family's life - the role of the weather and seasons, raising and selling camels, the rituals releated to marriage. The plot is really set in motion around the notion of an arranged marriage, which Shabanu is not inclined to particpate in. It becomes an adventure novel and moves at a brisk pace. When I read it I have a hard time putting it down.

In addition to the compelling writing and story, I chose this book because I think it provides an opportunity for readers to think about cultural differences in a way beyond holidays and food. Shabanu's community has a different set of expectations than most readers and so readers have to wrestle with ideas of universal human rights and local customs. If you reject Shabanu's community's mores, how do you argue for your own? What does it mean to belong to a community or a culture?

Other questions include: What does it mean for somebody who is not a member of the community or culture to write about it? What does it mean to try and capture a voice that from another community/culture? How do you as a reader make judgements about the worth or impact of such a text?

First Year: Students in the class liked it and gave positive reviews. They thought it could read as a whole class and that it is a good novel for working together across subject areas (e.g., with social studies).

Second Year: Positive response as well, except one student didn't like it because it made her so angry and upset about the situation of women in the community. Students noted that they didn't realize there was so much to know about camels.

There is a sequel titled Haveli, but I have not read it yet.

so hard to say

2007-05-26T19:17:00.001-07:00

by Alex Sanchez

A novel about a complicated friendship. The structure is simple, with alternating chapters written from the perspective of two young teenagers (a Mexican-American girl and a boy who begins to question his sexual preference). To a large extent it is a story about feeling comfortable with who you are.

I didn't think it was the greatest book ever written, but I liked the fact that the boy was so young. It seems most fiction about young adults examining their own sexuality deals with older kids, and this one involved junior high school aged kids. This is a reality for some of these students, and I think it is a good to have a novel out there for them.

First Year Response: Students thought it was OK. Some were worried that the topic was too sensitive for younger readers while others thought it could be good for students. Most agreed that they would not assign it to the whole class, but might make it available for individual students.

Second Year Response: Some students picked up on the many stereotypes and thought it might be problematic. There was a general sense that some school districts might not support the use of this book, but that it (or another one like it) would be helpful to both gay teens, those dealing with sexual identity issues, or non-gay teens who need to think through homophobia.

The Broken Bridge

2007-05-26T19:16:00.006-07:00

by Philip Pullman

This novel deals with a Ginny, a young girl growing up in Wales. She lives with her father after her Haitian mother passed away. Her mother was a famous artist, and this has always been important to Ginny, who is an artist herself. The plot gets moving when a heretofore unknown half-brother shows up and family secrets start to become revealed. Ginny's search for the answers to questions she didn't even know she had to ask lead her to start rethinking who she is.

I like this book a lot, but it is not everybody's cup of tea.

First Year Response: Students found the writing to be compelling. They didn't see it as a book to read with the whole class, but could have it in their classroom libraries for individual students to read.

Second Year Response: Many students did not like it, and it reminded them of the kinds of book they (and their students) have to read and dissect in school. It was seen as pretty old-fashioned. Some just thought it was boring and couldn't get into it. On the other hand, students recognized the writing as complex and rich, so perhaps it is not going to rejected outright.

Club Meds

2007-05-26T19:16:00.005-07:00

by Katherine Hall Page

This short novel is told from the perspective of a young boy with ADHD. He has friends that are also on medication (hence, Club Meds). Most of the plot revolves around dealing with a bully who has decided to do a shake down for the main character's ritalin. The Club Meds group comes together to try and figure out a way to deal with the situation.

The resolution to the story is not the greatest piece of writing, but I think the rest of the book holds up well. It has a realistic tone, but it doesn't feel like it is too doom and gloom. Students in class generally thought that this would be good for independent reading, rather than as a whole class assignment. I think it could be very helpful for students who are dealing with the stressors of being medicated.

ttyl

2007-05-26T19:16:00.003-07:00

By Lauren Myracle

A novel written in the form of text messages between three girls who are close friends. I am not sure the conceit is realistic, as some of the text didn't seem to really be the short kinds of texts that are associated with im language. It is a noteworthy attempt, however, and a part of a series of books that are consistently good sellers. Many kids really have responded positively to this series (see also ttfn), so I think it is important that teachers take a look at it (and other popular series that might not be thought of as great literature).

There are some serious issues that come up (bodily functions, sexuality, etc.) that made some of the students in class uncomfortable. Perhaps it would an addition to a classroom library, rather than a book for a whole class assignment.

Cut

2007-05-26T19:16:00.001-07:00

By Patricia McCormick

A short novel about Callie, a girl that engages in self-injurious behavior - specifically, she cuts herself. The book starts with her in a treatment facility, and over the course of the book we learn about her story. We also meet many other young girls who are in the same facility, but for different reasons. The book deals with the therapy they are receiving, and addresses just how hard it is for these young women to overcome their issues and become healthy.

I found it to be a moving book, one that doesn't exploit the issue. The characters are sympathetic without being romanticized. The descriptions are straight forward but don't cross the line into gruesome.

I like the book a lot. Some students felt it might be too sensitive a topic, but others thought that it would be good for students to read to start a conversation about this kind of behavior.

The Giver

2007-05-26T19:15:00.004-07:00

By Lois Lowry

This is one of the most commonly banned book in the country, which is why I include it in the course.

The story follows Jonas, a young boy in a future society in which people don't have memories of anything outside their very ordered existence. This includes feelings and other uncontrollable things that make us human. Only one person in the community has the responsibility for being the repository of feelings and memories. The plot gets moving when Jonas is chosen to become the next person to take on this responsiblity.

The book has a light sci-fi feeling to it, and while parts of it seem heavy handed, I think the ending is quite moving and very disturbing. The ending leads to some very passionate conversations.

First Year: Most of the students in class liked the book, and some loved it. Most thought that it can be used as the basis of a whole class lesson by picking up on themes of identity and conformity. The class seemed to be about split about whether to read the ending as upbeat or as downbeat.

Second Year: Students like the book a lot, mostly for the same reasons. One read from an inteview with the author which is included in newer versions of the book. In that she suggests an upbeat reading of the ending. That was interesting because I had just read an older interview with her in which she declined requests to write a sequel, saying that a sequel would ruin the amibigous nature of the ending. She seems to have gone away from that stance, which I think is too bad.

Hoot

2007-05-26T19:15:00.003-07:00

By Carl Hiaasen

This book follows the adventures of Roy Eberhardt, who has just moved to Florida from Montana. He is the new kid in town, and is struggling to adjust. One day from his seat on the schoolbus he sees a barefooted boy take off into the underbrush, and when he follows him he becomes involved in a situation that will take many strange twists and turns. Roy runs into seedy local characters, learns about the politics of development, and becomes invested in emotional environmental issues. All this is told with humor and lots of action.

The book has been a great success and it has been turned into a movie. Some students in the class had already read the book with their students and others thought it could be used with a whole class. It is fun, but not earthshattering.

The Music of Dolphins

2007-05-26T19:15:00.001-07:00

By Karen Hesse

This is an experimental story of Mila, a girl who was raised by dolphins. She is taken from the sea and brought to clinic where she gets medical attention. More importantly, she is cared for by researchers want to study her language and development. The narrative is told in the first person, and for much of the story Mila's human language (English) is still developing. She misses her dolphin family and struggles to survive on land.

I think the book is phenomenal, rich with potential.

First Year: Some of my students found it a bit weird. The consensus seemed to be that you would need the right class to work the text. I think any class could benefit, just in different ways.

Second Year: Similar response. Some people liked it, some others couldn't get into it. Great class discussion about another amibiguous ending. Many thought it would be challenging for some readers.

P.S. Longer Letter Later

2007-05-26T19:14:00.002-07:00

By Paula Danziger and Ann M. Martin

This is the story of two friends, Elizabeth and Tara*Star, who keep in touch via letters. The epistolary structure makes it seem mid-20th century, and the sequel moves the characters into the electronic age.

The tension is the novel comes from the fact that Tara*Star has moved, so the friends are now apart as they begin a new school year. Both girls struggle with their own parents, but for completely different reasons. In addition, individual changes to their personalities make it harder for them to relate as they did when they were in the same town. Things happen, lessons are learned, and life moves on.

I did not assign this book again this year because I felt like the letter format was too odd nowadays. Students in the class thought it was OK, but nobody was really sold on it.

Bud, Not Buddy

2007-05-26T19:14:00.001-07:00

By Christopher Paul Curtis

This novel is set in 1936, and is set in a depressed Flint, Michigan. It concerns Bud (not Buddy, as he likes to point out) - a ten year old orphan trying to survive. His mother passed away a few years before the story starts, and he has never met his father. Bud has lived in terrible foster homes and orphanages. He goes off on his own to find his father and the novel becomes a road novel filled with tramp villages, jazzmen, and grown-ups of a variety of stripes.

The novel is told from Bud's perspective, and he has a tendency to let the reader in on his lists and rules. I think the voice the author creates for Bud is effective and it really draws you in. Most students in the class liked it and several have already used it with their students. They felt like it could be used for whole class work and not just individual reading time.

Love that Dog

2007-05-26T19:13:00.001-07:00

By Sharon Creech

A book written in the form of a series of poems. The book is structured as the writing assignment of a young boy who begins by making it clear that he does not like poetry. Over the course of the (short) book he starts to change his mind about poetry and to reveal things to the reader that are quite moving.

First Year: Most of the students in class thought this would be good to use in class, and could be used for whole class instruction (especially in a unit about poetry).

Second Year: With one or two exceptions people loved this book. I have the class take turns reading the poems and people are free to comment whenever they feel like it. I think this creates a time and space to take the poem on in a more contemplative way. People can hear new things and have their response be augmented by hearing what other people have to say. You have to experience the language of poetry using your senses.

* Links to Other Sites *

2007-04-05T20:58:00.000-07:00

Here are links to other sites.

Cooperative Children’s Book Center

Home page, listserv and archives
http://www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/ccbcnet/default.asp

Bibliography of Books for Middle and High-School Age Students
http://www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/books/detailLists.asp?idBookListCat=4

Cynthia Leitich Smith's Children's & Young Adult Literature Resources

http://www.cynthialeitichsmith.com/lit_resources/cyalr_index.html

Frank Roger’s General Children’s Literature Resource

Home Page
http://frankrogers.home.mindspring.com/general.html

Multicultural Children’s Literature
http://frankrogers.home.mindspring.com/multi.html

Vandergrift’s Young Adult Literature Page

http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/~kvander/YoungAdult/index.html

Young Adult Library Services Association

http://www.ala.org/ala/yalsa/yalsa.htm

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

2007-04-05T20:54:00.000-07:00

Student Review

Overview: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon is a story about a 15-year-old boy named Christopher with autism. The book is written as if Christopher is writing his own book about a mystery he is trying to solve. This allows the reader to step into the shoes of an adolescent with autism and see life through his unique perspective.

Christopher knows every prime number up to 7,057, as well as every country and its capital city. He doesn’t like anything that is yellow or brown and he hates to have furniture moved out of its place. Christopher lives with his father because his mother died two years earlier of a heart attack. He does not like to be touched or hugged so his father holds up his hand and spreads his fingers out like a fan. When his father does this, Christopher holds up his hand and they let their fingers touch to show they love each other.

The book begins with Christopher discovering that Wellington, a dog who belongs to their neighbor Mrs. Shears, has been murdered. Against his father’s wishes, he decides to investigate the murder of Wellington. While talking to a neighbor named Mrs. Alexander, he discovers some unexpected information about his mother and Mr. Shears. Christopher then finds hidden letters written to him from his mother and this discovery convinces him that his father can no longer be trusted because his father has lied. Christopher leaves home with his pet rat Toby on a scary adventure into an unfamiliar world filled with unfriendly people.

Comments: This book raised controversy in January of this year in Galveston, Texas. All citizens, teens to seniors were originally encouraged to read it for the “Galveston County Reads Day,” but the mayor later retracted it, saying that he didn’t recommend it for the younger readers. A member of the City Council took it a step further, saying that the ‘F’ word appeared on page 4 and that “later in the book, the [lead character] says there is no God and there is no life after death. Clearly these are not ideas we should promote to kids.” The City Council member also said, “We should give [children] wings, but they should be smaller when they are young. This is too much, too soon.”

Last year, I worked as a shadow aide for a boy diagnosed with PDD,NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Not Otherwise Specified – an autistic-like diagnosis) and the teacher of his class recommended that I read this book. I couldn’t believe how much it helped me in my work with this young boy and I would strongly recommend it to all teachers. When I read it again for this class, I thought it would also be a great read for adolescents, 12-years-old and older.

This book gave me an incredible perspective of how children with autism think, and why they act the way they do. It was fascinating to get to know Christopher and try to understand the way in which his brain worked and operated on a daily basis.

As teachers and future teachers, we will all be in the situation to teach a child with special needs at some point during our careers. Our typical students may have an even harder time understanding some of the behavior of a child with autism and may benefit even more from reading this book. I think it would be a good book to read within a class to create awareness of some of the pervasive developmental disorders that are becoming more common. After reading this book, I realized how often most people use common expressions, or figures of speech that are very confusing to people like Christopher. When someone says, “it’s raining cats and dogs,” a child with autism can only interpret this in a literal way. Christopher interpreted these kinds of expressions or metaphors as lies because it was difficult for him to say anything that wasn’t the truth.

Number the Stars

2007-04-05T20:52:00.000-07:00

Student Review

Overview: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry is a book about what the people of Copenhagen Denmark endured when German soldiers occupied their country in 1943. The story itself is fiction, but at the end of the book, the author reveals that the characters are based on real people and their experiences that occurred in Denmark during that time. According to the author, nearly 7,000 Jewish Danes were smuggled across the sea to safety in Sweden, all by the help of the Danish Resistance.

The main character is a 10 year old girl named Annemarie Johansen, whose best friend is Ellen Rosen. Ellen and her family are Jewish and they live in constant fear of being “relocated” by the Nazis. While at synagogue, celebrating the Jewish New Year, the Rosens are informed that a raid is going to take place that night and all Jews will be forced to leave their homes and go with the German officers. The Johansen family takes in Ellen while Ellen’s parents flee from their home. Mrs. Johansen takes her two daughters and Ellen to her brother Henrik’s house in Gilleleje, which is right on the water that separates Denmark from Sweden.

While at Henrik’s, Ellen is reunited with her parents when a member of the Danish Resistance brings the Rosens and some other Jewish Danes to Henrik’s house. They pretend they are having a funeral so they have an excuse when the suspicious German soldiers come knocking on their door to inquire about the group of people they have noticed assembling. In the middle of the night, Annemarie’s mother Mrs. Johansen takes the group of Jews to Henrik’s fishing boat in the harbor to hide in it until morning. A few of their plans go wrong, but brave, young Annemarie saves the day and helps her Jewish friends escape safely to Sweden.

Comments: Number the Stars is an excellent book that deals with the tragic way in which Jews were treated by the Nazis during the war. I would recommend this book for any classroom or any young student because it is well-written and easy to read. The story is narrated, but it is told on Annemarie’s level (a 10-year old), only revealing information as she learns of it. It handles a difficult historical subject without ever mentioning the horrible things that took place. It is an inspirational story that teaches friendship, sacrifice and freedom; the Johansens sacrifice their own personal freedom to help their friends, the Rosens, escape to Sweden where they will be safe from the German soldiers.

This book was interesting and thought-provoking and would probably be enjoyed by most young readers (ages 10 – 14). It also had some suspenseful moments where it was difficult to put down. It may encourage readers to evaluate their own lives and ask themselves if they would be brave enough to risk their lives and freedoms for their friends. Readers who are unfamiliar with this time in history may wonder what would have happened if the Rosens had been captured by the German soldiers. In a classroom setting, a teacher could introduce students to the subject of the Holocaust by reading this inspirational story of courage first, and then teach what happened to those Jews who weren’t as lucky as the Rosens.

Fix

2007-04-05T20:49:00.000-07:00

Student Review

Overview: Fix by Leslie Margolis is a story about two sisters, Cameron and Allie Beekman who live among the rich and beautiful people of Bel Air, California. Their beautiful mother, Julie Davenport was a famous actress before she got married and had children. Although Cameron and Allie inherited some of her beauty, they also got stuck with their father’s large nose. After years of ridicule and teasing, Cameron’s parents sent her to the reputable Dr. Glass to have rhinoplasty.

The story begins three years later as Cameron is graduating from Bel Air Prep as a confident, self-assured, popular and beautiful 18-year old young woman. She has grown to love the attention and power that her new found beauty and confidence has brought her. Although she is happy about her transformation, she’s still disappointed with her overall appearance and feels like her body is not proportionate. After a great deal of research, she informs her parents that she has decided to have breast augmentation surgery.

In between each chapter about Cameron is a chapter about her 15-year-old sister Allie. Unlike Cameron, Allie plays sports and spends little time on her appearance. Allie’s life is devoted to playing soccer, where her teammates call her ‘The Beak.” Assuming that this is an insensitive attack on her large nose (and not just a derivative of her last name, Beekman), her parents schedule an appointment for rhinoplasty over her summer break. Allie is very confused about why she needs a new nose and she doesn’t understand why people care so much about appearances. Allie’s appointment falls too close to her 3-week summer soccer camp, which is her opportunity to prove to her coach that she’s the best JV player to take the one open spot on the varsity team. Allie weighs her options and tries to understand the perspective of her sister Cameron and their parents. If Allie is happy now, why have a surgical procedure to change her face?

Comments: Fix is an excellent book that deals with some of the challenges that all women face. Leslie Margolis does a very good job of being a voice for the teenage girl. The book is well-written and takes two different perspectives, alternating between Cameron’s and Allie’s experiences.

When I decided to read this book, I was curious to find out if it would make an argument either way (for or against cosmetic surgery). I felt that the author did a great job making both arguments by telling the stories about the very different sisters. Cameron felt like her nose job had changed her life for the better and had given her the boost of confidence she needed at such a vulnerable time in her life. While all of her friends and family members criticized her decision for a breast augmentation, she was completely at peace with her decision and she stood her ground because it was what she truly wanted. Margolis forces you, the reader, to question Cameron’s motives: should you be worried about what may turn into an addition for Cameron (the “one more surgery and then I’ll be perfect” syndrome), or should you be proud of Cameron for standing her ground and going after what she wants, regardless of the criticism?

Allie could not understand why everyone around her was obsessed with beauty and she wrestled with the decision of whether or not to go through with her rhinoplasty. Allie struggled with the position she was in. If she expressed her true feelings about cosmetic surgery, she felt she would hurt her sister’s and mother’s feelings. But in the end, she realized she needed to be true to herself, which is where she found true happiness.

I would recommend this book to any young reader over the age of 12. Although the story started with underage drinking, (18-year-olds drinking alcohol in Mexico on their graduation trip), the language was very appropriate and clean, with no sexual content. It is informative about some cosmetic surgery procedures, their risks, as well as their painful recoveries, and it could be helpful to adolescents who are contemplating surgery. It was a quick read that would probably appeal to most teenage girls who have ever felt insecure about their appearance.

King Dork

2007-04-04T14:28:00.000-07:00

By Frank Portman

I really liked this book, even if the students in class were not thrilled about it. It is the story of a teenage who is obsessed with music (rock and roll), figuring out the mysterious death of his father and the secret to dealing with the oppposite sex. It is a novel about navigating the strange waters of high school, particularly the groups and sub-groups that make up the student body.

What I think is really interesting is that the main character is fighting against the cult of "Catcher in the Rye." Almost every adult in the story raves about it, especially the teachers, and he doesn't think it is so great. He also directly addresses the kind of things kids have to read in school (e.g., A Separate Peace, Lord of the Flies, etc.) and brings to life the reading habits of high school kids. I never like Catcher, so perhaps it hit home.

There is some drug use, some explicit (but not graphic) sexuality, and some language that is salty (but realistic). Students in my class thought they might not want it in their classrooms, but others thought some students could read it during independent reading time.

The First Posting

2007-04-03T14:11:00.000-07:00

Hi. This blog will cover reviews of adolescent literature as written up by teachers.