Lowry, L. (1993). The giver. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 180 pp.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Science Fiction, John Newbery Award Winner
The Giver is a story about a young boy named Jonas who was a member of a very odd society. Jonas lived in what seemed to be a perfect world, where there was no violence or risks taken. As Jonas is getting ready to attend his ceremony of 12, he is nervous to find out what assignment he will be given. Everyone in the society was given an assignment at the ceremony of 12, so it was a big deal. At the ceremony he discovers that he is going to be the "receiver." The current Giver in the community was going to share all of his information with Jonas so that he could one day become the Giver. It is through the Giver that Jonas realizes that his society is not what he thought it was. They had no true emotions and were missing out on life in a big way. He begins to devise a plan with the Giver to try and bring his society back to normal.
Jonas is the main character in this book and the story focuses on his inability to "fit in" with the society. Even before Jonas is told he is to be the receiver and can never share what he learns with anyone, he was already somewhat of a misfit because he never really took to one specific assignment post so he did not know where he would be placed. The other characters in this novel are his family, who he later discovers are not the people he thought they were, and the Giver. Although the Giver was a part of the society and seemed somewhat grouchy and worn out all the time, he was still very genuine with and concerned for Jonas. The plot of this story follows Jonas's journey to becoming the Giver and his discovery of the truth behind the horrific acts that the people in his society, even in his family, perform. This novel particularly addresses the isolation of teens and their desire for individuality. Jonas, who already feels a sense of somewhat not belonging in the beginning, discovers that he has been given a greater purpose and realizes that he would rather try to make a difference even if his attempts failed, than to continue going along with his community. I guess one of the major ideas that I took with me after reading this was that if you never take any risks, then you are living somewhat of an isolated life. I don't know how much that point would really speak to teenagers, because they think they are invincible anyways, but it did register with me because I'm always to scared to take risks. This book also deals a great deal with lying and how Jonas reacts when he realizes that everyone in his society, even his own parents, are lying. Even though Jonas discovers that he to is allowed to lie because of his new work position, it is a concept that he really struggles with. I thought that was a great concept for teens to discover through this novel because many times they do not see the problem with lying and this sheds a different light on that topic.
This book could used for many things in the classroom. It could be great as an individual, small group, or whole class read. It could be a bridge to classics like 1984 by George Orwell or Brave New World. I personally would not recommend this as a read aloud because it might be a little hard for students to follow that way.
I think that the best age group for this novel would be 14 to 18. I know that a lot of students younger than that read this novel, but I think that some of the concepts may be hard to grasp at that age.
Because I am not a fan of science fiction, I sort of struggled with this book. It took me a while to catch on and really get into the novel. Honestly, I was pretty creeped out by this book. Their whole whacked society was a lot for me to take in and understand. By the end of it I was enjoying it more, but the ending still slightly aggravated me. This is definitely one of those books that would probably be best if read several times. I know that once I read the whole thing and realized what was going on, that I realized the entire book would be read differently the second time around and many more interesting aspects of it would stick out. This was not of my favorite books that I read, but if you like science fiction then you would probably really enjoy this.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Bud, Not Buddy, A Novel by Christopher Paul Curtis
Curtis, C. P. (1999). Bud, not buddy. New York: Scholastic, 245 pp.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Fiction, John Newbery Medal, Coretta Scott King Award Winner.
Bud, Not Buddy, is an enjoyable and emotional journey with a young boy named Bud Caldwell whose mother dies when he is very young. Because Bud does not know who his father is, he is placed in an orphanage and then put into different foster homes. At his final foster home, where he is treated so poorly that he winds up sleeping in the wasp infested garage, he runs away and plans to try and find his father. When his mother died all he had left was a ratty old suitcase that contained some rocks his mother had given him, a picture of her, and some flyers that said "Herman E. Calloway and the Dusky Devastators of the Depression!!!!" These flyers were of a band from Grand Rapids, Michigan, which was a very well known band and Bud just knew that Herman Calloway must have been his father or his mother would not have been so attached to those flyers. Throughout the story, Bud meets several nice people that help him towards his journey to Grand Rapids from Flint. After he finally arrives in Grand Rapids his life takes a major turn and turns out differently than he could have ever imagined. I won't tell you whether it turns out good or bad, because you should read it!
This story takes place during the Great Depression which is what makes Bud such a strong and driven young boy. He was not afraid to branch out on his own to find what he just knew was going to be his father, even if that meant being dirty and hungry for several days. He was willing to take any risks necessary, all by himself, to try and make a better life for himself. He really disliked the orphanage and would have rather been on the run forever than have to go back and be put in foster homes. The parts of the story that I found the most entertaining were, "Bud Caldwell's Rules and Things to Have a Funner Life and Make a Better Liar of Yourself." He refers to this list which he has created several times throughout the story, and usually uses them to translate what adults are saying into what they really mean and what his best response should be. They were all quite humorous. This book reminded me a great deal of Maniac Magee, which I also blogged about, in that both of the main characters were run aways looking for a family and a home. Their characters were very similar because they were both put in a very hostile environment yet still made a way for themselves. Very similar to Maniac Magee, I think that this book would be a great read for younger students that had a difficult home life or had experienced such a great loss so young. Both of these characters represent hope and the ability to succeed as a young child that was never expected to do so. A major difference in this book from that one is that it does not deal near as much with the issue of racial differences. Although there is some mention of the white people having more things and such, that was not the purpose of the book. I think that this story proves and sets a great example for students, that if they are determined and goal oriented then they too can achieve great success.
This book would be an excellent read aloud for a younger audience, especially if a teacher would be willing to really play (through voices) all of the roles. I would recommend this to any student who was interested in learning about how children deal with different issues or any student who really enjoys works that are similar to non-fiction, in that all the events could really have taken place and are historically accurate. If someone enjoyed this book, then they would also probably enjoy "The Watson's Go to Birmingham," which is also an award winning book by the same author.
The appropriate age range for this novel would be 11 to 14.
I loved this book and loved Bud's character. He was funny and vulnerable and just so sweet. He was the kind of kid that you meet and you just want to take them home with you. He was so well mannered, but he did not like the name Buddy and he did not want to be called that so he would let you know that he was "Bud-not-Buddy." This book made me laugh and cry and feel several different emotions which is what I think makes a great book. Also, because I really enjoy non-fiction and realistic books, I liked the realism of this book and the fact that it could have been a true story. The author actually does state in the back of the novel that some of the characters he created were actually based loosely on his own grandfathers and he included some pictures of them. I thought that was really neat!
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Fiction, John Newbery Medal, Coretta Scott King Award Winner.
Bud, Not Buddy, is an enjoyable and emotional journey with a young boy named Bud Caldwell whose mother dies when he is very young. Because Bud does not know who his father is, he is placed in an orphanage and then put into different foster homes. At his final foster home, where he is treated so poorly that he winds up sleeping in the wasp infested garage, he runs away and plans to try and find his father. When his mother died all he had left was a ratty old suitcase that contained some rocks his mother had given him, a picture of her, and some flyers that said "Herman E. Calloway and the Dusky Devastators of the Depression!!!!" These flyers were of a band from Grand Rapids, Michigan, which was a very well known band and Bud just knew that Herman Calloway must have been his father or his mother would not have been so attached to those flyers. Throughout the story, Bud meets several nice people that help him towards his journey to Grand Rapids from Flint. After he finally arrives in Grand Rapids his life takes a major turn and turns out differently than he could have ever imagined. I won't tell you whether it turns out good or bad, because you should read it!
This story takes place during the Great Depression which is what makes Bud such a strong and driven young boy. He was not afraid to branch out on his own to find what he just knew was going to be his father, even if that meant being dirty and hungry for several days. He was willing to take any risks necessary, all by himself, to try and make a better life for himself. He really disliked the orphanage and would have rather been on the run forever than have to go back and be put in foster homes. The parts of the story that I found the most entertaining were, "Bud Caldwell's Rules and Things to Have a Funner Life and Make a Better Liar of Yourself." He refers to this list which he has created several times throughout the story, and usually uses them to translate what adults are saying into what they really mean and what his best response should be. They were all quite humorous. This book reminded me a great deal of Maniac Magee, which I also blogged about, in that both of the main characters were run aways looking for a family and a home. Their characters were very similar because they were both put in a very hostile environment yet still made a way for themselves. Very similar to Maniac Magee, I think that this book would be a great read for younger students that had a difficult home life or had experienced such a great loss so young. Both of these characters represent hope and the ability to succeed as a young child that was never expected to do so. A major difference in this book from that one is that it does not deal near as much with the issue of racial differences. Although there is some mention of the white people having more things and such, that was not the purpose of the book. I think that this story proves and sets a great example for students, that if they are determined and goal oriented then they too can achieve great success.
This book would be an excellent read aloud for a younger audience, especially if a teacher would be willing to really play (through voices) all of the roles. I would recommend this to any student who was interested in learning about how children deal with different issues or any student who really enjoys works that are similar to non-fiction, in that all the events could really have taken place and are historically accurate. If someone enjoyed this book, then they would also probably enjoy "The Watson's Go to Birmingham," which is also an award winning book by the same author.
The appropriate age range for this novel would be 11 to 14.
I loved this book and loved Bud's character. He was funny and vulnerable and just so sweet. He was the kind of kid that you meet and you just want to take them home with you. He was so well mannered, but he did not like the name Buddy and he did not want to be called that so he would let you know that he was "Bud-not-Buddy." This book made me laugh and cry and feel several different emotions which is what I think makes a great book. Also, because I really enjoy non-fiction and realistic books, I liked the realism of this book and the fact that it could have been a true story. The author actually does state in the back of the novel that some of the characters he created were actually based loosely on his own grandfathers and he included some pictures of them. I thought that was really neat!
Friday, August 1, 2008
Maniac Magee, A Novel by Jerry Spinelli
Spinelli,J. (1990). Maniac magee. New York: Little Brown and Company, pp. 184.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Fiction, John Newbery Medal,.
Maniac Magee is about a young boy named Jeffrey Magee who lost his parents in a tragic accident (not giving anything away I promise, it's in the first few pages), and winds up on his own discovering his own way. After losing his parents he is placed at his aunt and uncles, who have a very dysfunctional relationship where they do not speak and are constantly putting Jeffrey in the middle. After trying to deal with them for eight years, he screams at them one night at a school concert saying, "talk to each other!" and then he runs away. As Jeffrey goes on to try and find a new home, at only 11-years-old, he finds himself living in a buffalo shelter at the local zoo in a town called Two Mills, which is over 200 miles away from his aunt and uncle. He discovers very soon that Two Mills is a town divided by race, known as East End and West End, and no one crosses into the other neighborhood without paying a price. This story follows Jeffrey's journey as he uses his athletic and knot untying skills to become known as "maniac," discovers the meaning of home and belonging, and helps to try and unify a town.
Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of this book is that it does not tell what time period it is set in. The way the book deals with the issue of racial barriers seemed to me to be set around the time that integration was just starting, but it could have fit any time period. It could represent today's times and the issues with we still deal with. This book could be really useful in the classroom because it does address that issue. Magee's character is very strong and he appears to be fearless. Because he has been on his own for a while, he doesn't realize the depth of the issue that Two Mills is experiencing. But even after he realizes how serious of an issue he is facing, after being welcomed into an African-American family home, he still faces the issue bravely and challenges others to accept each other. I admired his character and his determination to make a difference in people's lives, even though his own life was filled with adversity. The other characters in this novel help to build Magee's character and, through his journey to find a home, he is taught many valuable lessons. This book would be valuable to any adolescent who was in foster care, had lost a parent, or didn't ever really feel like they had a stable home. Magee helps to represent those students in a positive light and help them to see that they can still be successful people and powerful influences in the world.
This book would be great as a read aloud. It has many scenes that younger kids would probably find really funny if read aloud to them. It could also be used as a small group, or individual read.
The best age range for this novel would be around 11 to 14-years-old. The overriding themes and concepts are not that hard to discover so it would be good for that age group because the issues are presented in a way that is appropriate for them and easy for them to relate to.
At first I had a hard time getting into this novel. I tend to find it hard to follow something that is not concrete in nature of its setting. But after I became emotionally connected to Magee's character, I began to realize that I didn't need to know exactly when the story was taking place because the plot was written well enough for me to overcome that. I would recommend this book to younger students, especially boys. Girls would also enjoy this book, but it does have an overriding sports theme that accompanies it.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Fiction, John Newbery Medal,.
Maniac Magee is about a young boy named Jeffrey Magee who lost his parents in a tragic accident (not giving anything away I promise, it's in the first few pages), and winds up on his own discovering his own way. After losing his parents he is placed at his aunt and uncles, who have a very dysfunctional relationship where they do not speak and are constantly putting Jeffrey in the middle. After trying to deal with them for eight years, he screams at them one night at a school concert saying, "talk to each other!" and then he runs away. As Jeffrey goes on to try and find a new home, at only 11-years-old, he finds himself living in a buffalo shelter at the local zoo in a town called Two Mills, which is over 200 miles away from his aunt and uncle. He discovers very soon that Two Mills is a town divided by race, known as East End and West End, and no one crosses into the other neighborhood without paying a price. This story follows Jeffrey's journey as he uses his athletic and knot untying skills to become known as "maniac," discovers the meaning of home and belonging, and helps to try and unify a town.
Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of this book is that it does not tell what time period it is set in. The way the book deals with the issue of racial barriers seemed to me to be set around the time that integration was just starting, but it could have fit any time period. It could represent today's times and the issues with we still deal with. This book could be really useful in the classroom because it does address that issue. Magee's character is very strong and he appears to be fearless. Because he has been on his own for a while, he doesn't realize the depth of the issue that Two Mills is experiencing. But even after he realizes how serious of an issue he is facing, after being welcomed into an African-American family home, he still faces the issue bravely and challenges others to accept each other. I admired his character and his determination to make a difference in people's lives, even though his own life was filled with adversity. The other characters in this novel help to build Magee's character and, through his journey to find a home, he is taught many valuable lessons. This book would be valuable to any adolescent who was in foster care, had lost a parent, or didn't ever really feel like they had a stable home. Magee helps to represent those students in a positive light and help them to see that they can still be successful people and powerful influences in the world.
This book would be great as a read aloud. It has many scenes that younger kids would probably find really funny if read aloud to them. It could also be used as a small group, or individual read.
The best age range for this novel would be around 11 to 14-years-old. The overriding themes and concepts are not that hard to discover so it would be good for that age group because the issues are presented in a way that is appropriate for them and easy for them to relate to.
At first I had a hard time getting into this novel. I tend to find it hard to follow something that is not concrete in nature of its setting. But after I became emotionally connected to Magee's character, I began to realize that I didn't need to know exactly when the story was taking place because the plot was written well enough for me to overcome that. I would recommend this book to younger students, especially boys. Girls would also enjoy this book, but it does have an overriding sports theme that accompanies it.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Warriors Don't Cry, A True Story by Melba Pattillo Beals
Beals, M. (1994). Warriors don't cry. New York: Simon Pulse, 226pp.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Non-Fiction, Autobiography, Congressional Gold Medal Award Winner.
Warriors Don't Cry is an awesome story told by Melba Pattillo as a true account of her experience being a part of integrating Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. At only 16-years-old, Melba and eight other students fought day and night for their right to be considered equal citizens in an all white Little Rock high school. This novel follows Melba's journey through trials and tribulations she goes through as she experiences the most challenging year of her life. Melba, without parental permission, volunteered herself to attend Central and be a part of the integration. She said that she had always thought that God had saved her life as a child when she was very ill, because she was meant to do something great with her life. These nine students went through a living hell to try a take a stand for racial equality and at such a young age. They were extremely brave as they were called names and beat on everyday in school. Not a single day went by that they weren't purposefully tripped, spit on, called the "n" word, attacked, and utterly humiliated. Family support and counting on Jesus were the only things that got Melba through that awful time in her life. Although one of the nine did graduate the first year that they integrated, Melba and several others did not get to graduate from there because immediately following that school year Governor Faubus had all Little Rock high schools shut down to try and stop integration from happening. A few others of the Little Rock nine did wind up graduating from there after the high schools were later re-opened. All of the LR nine are still alive and well today and recently, in 2007, celebrated a 50 year anniversary remembering the year they spent in Central.
This book is an incredibly fascinating and humbling look at a very important historical event that changed the face of America. Although the story does not go into much detail about each of the nine students, because it is told as Melba saw and experienced it, it still gives enough detail to let us know that every single one of them was challenged every day to stay strong and fight for what they believed in. They all witnessed and were a part of being treated the worst way you could possibly treat a young child. With hardly anyone of their side, these students were responsible for keeping their heads held high even though they were not allowed to defend themselves, and voluntarily endured this torture for an entire year. This book is very historically accurate, while not necessarily bashing any one particular group to harshly, but more so just giving the facts. This book is also really neat because it has some pictures in the middle of it, showing Melba and her family, the LR nine, and pictures of the high school with all of the guards and angry mobs that were constantly surrounding the school. I really enjoyed seeing those because it helped me connect with the characters and also have a better understanding of their setting and just how harsh of a situation they were in. This book definitely appeals to the sense of emotion and I personally could not understand how it would be possible for someone to not have some type of emotional response; whether that be sadness, anger, etc. This book would be great for high school students to study, especially Arkansas high school students because it is a historical representation of something major that happened in our own state. I think that this book could possibly help bridge a gap of understanding for some on how and why African American people feel so strongly about being treated properly and equally, because it was not that long ago that this type of segregation was going on. I also think that it could give students a good insight into how it feels to be labeled and rejected and the suffering that those students go through. Obviously, this book is about racial equality and how at that time, the color of your skin meant the difference in how your entire life was meant to me lived. Students need to know and realize the magnitude of that situation and this book is a great way to show them that.
This book would be great as either an individual read, small group, or whole class read. I think that the whole class could benefit from learning about this, especially if it could somehow be being taught while the students were taking an Arkansas history course. Even if not in Arkansas though, this book would still be great. I wouldn't recommend it as a read aloud because it is too emotionally involving and I know that I personally wouldn't be able to read it aloud without crying.
This book would probably be best for students aging from 14 to 18.
I absolutely loved this book and really learned a lot about the Central integration that I did not know. Like, for one, these students were there voluntarily! I think that is what makes this story so unbelievably incredible. At any point they could have said, "I can't take it anymore," and walked away, but they didn't. Wow. I can't imagine having that kind of courage at 16 years old. I cannot even express how much admiration I have for those nine students and for the stand that they made. This book was so moving and still very educational. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning about the integration at Central High. The only reason I wouldn't recommend it to readers younger than 14 is because of the language, especially the "n" word, but if a reader that age was mature enough to realize that it was in there to be historically accurate then I would say it would be great for them to read as well. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am so glad that I read it!
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Non-Fiction, Autobiography, Congressional Gold Medal Award Winner.
Warriors Don't Cry is an awesome story told by Melba Pattillo as a true account of her experience being a part of integrating Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. At only 16-years-old, Melba and eight other students fought day and night for their right to be considered equal citizens in an all white Little Rock high school. This novel follows Melba's journey through trials and tribulations she goes through as she experiences the most challenging year of her life. Melba, without parental permission, volunteered herself to attend Central and be a part of the integration. She said that she had always thought that God had saved her life as a child when she was very ill, because she was meant to do something great with her life. These nine students went through a living hell to try a take a stand for racial equality and at such a young age. They were extremely brave as they were called names and beat on everyday in school. Not a single day went by that they weren't purposefully tripped, spit on, called the "n" word, attacked, and utterly humiliated. Family support and counting on Jesus were the only things that got Melba through that awful time in her life. Although one of the nine did graduate the first year that they integrated, Melba and several others did not get to graduate from there because immediately following that school year Governor Faubus had all Little Rock high schools shut down to try and stop integration from happening. A few others of the Little Rock nine did wind up graduating from there after the high schools were later re-opened. All of the LR nine are still alive and well today and recently, in 2007, celebrated a 50 year anniversary remembering the year they spent in Central.
This book is an incredibly fascinating and humbling look at a very important historical event that changed the face of America. Although the story does not go into much detail about each of the nine students, because it is told as Melba saw and experienced it, it still gives enough detail to let us know that every single one of them was challenged every day to stay strong and fight for what they believed in. They all witnessed and were a part of being treated the worst way you could possibly treat a young child. With hardly anyone of their side, these students were responsible for keeping their heads held high even though they were not allowed to defend themselves, and voluntarily endured this torture for an entire year. This book is very historically accurate, while not necessarily bashing any one particular group to harshly, but more so just giving the facts. This book is also really neat because it has some pictures in the middle of it, showing Melba and her family, the LR nine, and pictures of the high school with all of the guards and angry mobs that were constantly surrounding the school. I really enjoyed seeing those because it helped me connect with the characters and also have a better understanding of their setting and just how harsh of a situation they were in. This book definitely appeals to the sense of emotion and I personally could not understand how it would be possible for someone to not have some type of emotional response; whether that be sadness, anger, etc. This book would be great for high school students to study, especially Arkansas high school students because it is a historical representation of something major that happened in our own state. I think that this book could possibly help bridge a gap of understanding for some on how and why African American people feel so strongly about being treated properly and equally, because it was not that long ago that this type of segregation was going on. I also think that it could give students a good insight into how it feels to be labeled and rejected and the suffering that those students go through. Obviously, this book is about racial equality and how at that time, the color of your skin meant the difference in how your entire life was meant to me lived. Students need to know and realize the magnitude of that situation and this book is a great way to show them that.
This book would be great as either an individual read, small group, or whole class read. I think that the whole class could benefit from learning about this, especially if it could somehow be being taught while the students were taking an Arkansas history course. Even if not in Arkansas though, this book would still be great. I wouldn't recommend it as a read aloud because it is too emotionally involving and I know that I personally wouldn't be able to read it aloud without crying.
This book would probably be best for students aging from 14 to 18.
I absolutely loved this book and really learned a lot about the Central integration that I did not know. Like, for one, these students were there voluntarily! I think that is what makes this story so unbelievably incredible. At any point they could have said, "I can't take it anymore," and walked away, but they didn't. Wow. I can't imagine having that kind of courage at 16 years old. I cannot even express how much admiration I have for those nine students and for the stand that they made. This book was so moving and still very educational. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning about the integration at Central High. The only reason I wouldn't recommend it to readers younger than 14 is because of the language, especially the "n" word, but if a reader that age was mature enough to realize that it was in there to be historically accurate then I would say it would be great for them to read as well. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am so glad that I read it!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
The Avengers: The Replacements, A Graphic Novel by Jeff Parker
Parker, J. (2007). The avengers: The replacements. Edina: ABDO Publishing Group, 22 pp.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Graphic Novel, Fiction.
The Avengers is a fun and exciting graphic novel that follows the Marvel Comic characters through an action packed adventure where they are responsible for protecting the world. After they are told that they are being replaced by a group of robots that are more capable than they are of destroying danger without being injured, the avengers are asked to teach the new bots how to respond to danger. Unfortunately the military officials who programmed the robots made a major mistake and the robots begin to destroy everything and everyone. But of course, the avengers are waiting in the wings and are ready for battle against the ultron robots. After several battles and complications the avengers are victorious.
This book has great characterization, obviously, because it is about the Marvel Comic characters that have been a well known part of entertainment for a very long time. Even though the book was extremely predictable, because in all Marvel Comics the heroes are victorious, it still had an interesting story line and told a great tale. Each character was responsible for using their super power to save each other and defeat the robots. The setting and theme were very interesting because it took place in modern day and the whole point of the robots was that the U.S. Military was wanting to use technology to replace the old way of doing things. I thought this was an accurate portrayal of how our society functions today, in that we are always looking for a quick and easy fix and are always trying to develop quicker and easier ways to solve our problems. I think that this is a great book for younger adolescent children because it is fun, short, and entertaining yet it is still somewhat of a challenging read. I was very surprised at the level of vocabulary used throughout the story. It was much more complex than I had thought it would be. I can definitely understand how younger kids would be interested in this book and I think that these types of novels are a great way to get kids reading. Although this book does not address any kind of multicultural issue, it does have several different types of characters and all of them are different races and genders.
This book would be great to recommend to a student who struggles with long, difficult reads and has a short attention span. I also think this book would be a great way to give younger students who think that they do not like to read an opportunity to discover different types of books that they might find interesting. It would be best suited for an individual read around the ages of 11 to 14.
Even though this is not particularly the type of book that I enjoy reading, I did find it refreshing to read something that was totally different than what I am used to. I enjoyed the story line and was never bored. To say that I would read more graphic novels similar to this might be a stretch...but I definitely think that they are great for kids.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Graphic Novel, Fiction.
The Avengers is a fun and exciting graphic novel that follows the Marvel Comic characters through an action packed adventure where they are responsible for protecting the world. After they are told that they are being replaced by a group of robots that are more capable than they are of destroying danger without being injured, the avengers are asked to teach the new bots how to respond to danger. Unfortunately the military officials who programmed the robots made a major mistake and the robots begin to destroy everything and everyone. But of course, the avengers are waiting in the wings and are ready for battle against the ultron robots. After several battles and complications the avengers are victorious.
This book has great characterization, obviously, because it is about the Marvel Comic characters that have been a well known part of entertainment for a very long time. Even though the book was extremely predictable, because in all Marvel Comics the heroes are victorious, it still had an interesting story line and told a great tale. Each character was responsible for using their super power to save each other and defeat the robots. The setting and theme were very interesting because it took place in modern day and the whole point of the robots was that the U.S. Military was wanting to use technology to replace the old way of doing things. I thought this was an accurate portrayal of how our society functions today, in that we are always looking for a quick and easy fix and are always trying to develop quicker and easier ways to solve our problems. I think that this is a great book for younger adolescent children because it is fun, short, and entertaining yet it is still somewhat of a challenging read. I was very surprised at the level of vocabulary used throughout the story. It was much more complex than I had thought it would be. I can definitely understand how younger kids would be interested in this book and I think that these types of novels are a great way to get kids reading. Although this book does not address any kind of multicultural issue, it does have several different types of characters and all of them are different races and genders.
This book would be great to recommend to a student who struggles with long, difficult reads and has a short attention span. I also think this book would be a great way to give younger students who think that they do not like to read an opportunity to discover different types of books that they might find interesting. It would be best suited for an individual read around the ages of 11 to 14.
Even though this is not particularly the type of book that I enjoy reading, I did find it refreshing to read something that was totally different than what I am used to. I enjoyed the story line and was never bored. To say that I would read more graphic novels similar to this might be a stretch...but I definitely think that they are great for kids.
Hana's Suitcase, A Novel by Karen Levine
Levine, K. (2002). Hana's suitcase. New York: Scholastic, Inc, 111 pp.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Biography, Non-Fiction.
Hana's Suitcase is a very engaging story about a young family experiencing the holocaust through the eyes of a child. This story is told from the point of view of the children of the Brady family, George and Hana. Both of these children were separated from their parents at a very young age and were later forced to separate from each other. This story tells a very tragic and devastating story as they experienced it. Because China does not teach about the Holocaust in their school curriculum, there are many museums in China that are dedicated to teaching about the Holocaust. Fumiko Ishioka took a job in 1998 as coordinator of a small museum in Tokyo called the Tokyo Holocaust Center. It was there that she formed a small group called the "Small Wings" and all of the children in the group were dedicated to learning about the Holocaust. Fumiko decided that the best way that she could teach her students was through showing them actual physical objects from the Holocaust. After much determination, and several letters and phone calls later to multiple museums, Fumiko had finally been sent some items from the Holocaust museum in Auschwitz. The kids became very fascinated with the suitcase they received that had the name Hana Brady on it. They were all determined to find the story of Hana. Through years of research and many visits to different Holocaust museums, Fumiko finally finds links to Hana's story and is in absolute shock when she finds out that her brother is still alive. Through George Brady, the story of Hana's life is told and honored in this book.
This book is written in a past to present format. As I learned about Hana's story, I also learned about Fumiko, the museum in Tokyo, and how this story came about being able to be told. The setting takes place at many different locations. It starts off in Nove Mesto, Czechoslovakia, where the Brady family resides. It is then in a Czech town called Terezin, where Hana and Brady spent most of their childhood being guarded and watched by Nazi guards day and night. The final setting takes place in Auschwitz at the concentration camp where Hana Brady spent her final days. At first is was kind of hard to keep up with how everything in the story connected, but it did not take long for me to put the pieces together. By the end I was dying to know how Fumiko had discovered Hana's story. This story is very effective in getting across the horror that was the Holocaust and describing how horribly the Jews were treated during that time. It would be great for younger adolescent readers because it is emotionally grabbing without being too descriptive of the actual events in detail. It does mention gas chambers and have some mention of how many Jews were killed, but it does not go into any graphic detail that might be scarring or inappropriate for a young reader. I think that adolescents could really connect with Hana's story because most of them know how it feels to be mistreated by someone at some point, or might have experienced discrimination based on their race, religion, etc. This story also gives young readers a chance to understand how wrongfully mistreated the Jews were during that time, and hopefully might get them to reconsider how they discriminate against others.
This book would be best used as an individual choice, small group, or whole group reading. I think that it could definitely have its place in the classroom, especially if students were learning about the Holocaust in a history class or something like that. I think that the appropriate age range would be between 11 and 15.
I personally loved this book and felt honored to get to hear Hana Brady's life story. I thought that it was put together really nicely and was very appropriately written for young readers. This book is definitely an emotional read, and would be especially so if you had ever lost a parent or sibling during your lifetime. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in learning about how a child felt during the Holocaust and what that experience was like for them. I give it an A+.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Biography, Non-Fiction.
Hana's Suitcase is a very engaging story about a young family experiencing the holocaust through the eyes of a child. This story is told from the point of view of the children of the Brady family, George and Hana. Both of these children were separated from their parents at a very young age and were later forced to separate from each other. This story tells a very tragic and devastating story as they experienced it. Because China does not teach about the Holocaust in their school curriculum, there are many museums in China that are dedicated to teaching about the Holocaust. Fumiko Ishioka took a job in 1998 as coordinator of a small museum in Tokyo called the Tokyo Holocaust Center. It was there that she formed a small group called the "Small Wings" and all of the children in the group were dedicated to learning about the Holocaust. Fumiko decided that the best way that she could teach her students was through showing them actual physical objects from the Holocaust. After much determination, and several letters and phone calls later to multiple museums, Fumiko had finally been sent some items from the Holocaust museum in Auschwitz. The kids became very fascinated with the suitcase they received that had the name Hana Brady on it. They were all determined to find the story of Hana. Through years of research and many visits to different Holocaust museums, Fumiko finally finds links to Hana's story and is in absolute shock when she finds out that her brother is still alive. Through George Brady, the story of Hana's life is told and honored in this book.
This book is written in a past to present format. As I learned about Hana's story, I also learned about Fumiko, the museum in Tokyo, and how this story came about being able to be told. The setting takes place at many different locations. It starts off in Nove Mesto, Czechoslovakia, where the Brady family resides. It is then in a Czech town called Terezin, where Hana and Brady spent most of their childhood being guarded and watched by Nazi guards day and night. The final setting takes place in Auschwitz at the concentration camp where Hana Brady spent her final days. At first is was kind of hard to keep up with how everything in the story connected, but it did not take long for me to put the pieces together. By the end I was dying to know how Fumiko had discovered Hana's story. This story is very effective in getting across the horror that was the Holocaust and describing how horribly the Jews were treated during that time. It would be great for younger adolescent readers because it is emotionally grabbing without being too descriptive of the actual events in detail. It does mention gas chambers and have some mention of how many Jews were killed, but it does not go into any graphic detail that might be scarring or inappropriate for a young reader. I think that adolescents could really connect with Hana's story because most of them know how it feels to be mistreated by someone at some point, or might have experienced discrimination based on their race, religion, etc. This story also gives young readers a chance to understand how wrongfully mistreated the Jews were during that time, and hopefully might get them to reconsider how they discriminate against others.
This book would be best used as an individual choice, small group, or whole group reading. I think that it could definitely have its place in the classroom, especially if students were learning about the Holocaust in a history class or something like that. I think that the appropriate age range would be between 11 and 15.
I personally loved this book and felt honored to get to hear Hana Brady's life story. I thought that it was put together really nicely and was very appropriately written for young readers. This book is definitely an emotional read, and would be especially so if you had ever lost a parent or sibling during your lifetime. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in learning about how a child felt during the Holocaust and what that experience was like for them. I give it an A+.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Twilight, A Novel by Stephenie Meyer
Meyer, S. (2005). Twilight. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 498 pp.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Future Award Winner, New York Times Best Seller, Fiction.
Twilight is a modern day love story about a young girl named Bella Swan who finds herself in a new situation discovering new romances with one very suspicious male, Edward Cullen. After moving to the small town of Forks, Washington to live with her father, Bella begins school in a new place and tries her best to fit it. She makes several friends, but is particularly captivated by the mysterious and unbelievably gorgeous Edward Cullen. Bella suspects that something is not quite normal about him from the start because she witnesses his appearance go from cool, calm, and gorgeous, to angry, solemn, and black-eyed. As Bella lives her life day to day thinking of nothing but Edward and obsessing about his every move, she is dying to get to know him better and to discover what makes him different. She has no real proof that he is actually "special" until he performs an act of heroism and saves her from being crushed by a vehicle in their high school parking lot. After weeks of wondering and questioning, Bella and Edward have formed a very close bond and he feels comfortable telling her the truth. The truth is that he is a vampire, but not just your typical vampire. His people hunt animals instead of humans in order to maintain the most normal life possible; not to mention he hasn't aged a day since he was taken into the vampire world and was technically born in June of 1901. Although he knows it is not the brightest idea to be romantically involved with Bella because her smell is more tantalizing to him than any other humans smell, he cannot resist her. And although Bella should be scared to death to risk being in a relationship with a vampire, she too cannot draw herself away from her true love. The only way for Bella and Edward to be able to be together forever is for him to turn her into a vampire as well. Will she ever become a vampire?...that is still left to be determined.
Meyer does a great job at going into great detail with her characters. I felt as though through her descriptions I could accurately predict exactly the kind of people Edward and Bella were (which would be kind of hard not to know about Edward seeing as to how the majority of this book describes his gorgeousness and perfect everything every other page). The other characters in the book, such as Bella's father, Charlie Swan the Police Chief, were given just enough detail to add a more interesting story line to the novel, without taking attention away from Bella and Edward. It is very interesting that the plot of this novel is about a vampire love story, and these books have done so well. I think that this type of book is definitely not one that I would have thought I would have been interested in, but it was written so well that it keeps you on your toes throughout the entire read and you just have to know what happens next. What's really neat about this novel is that even though it is a fantasy, it is still somewhat set in a realistic situation and the characters are still easy to connect to. As far as adolescent development, this story contains a lot of social and emotional aspects that teens can relate to. Not only does Bella have to move to a new school and make new friends, but she also winds up falling for the one guy that no one seems to be okay with. I think that many kids could connect to the feeling of having to adjust to a new social setting and could relate to Bella in the awkwardness of that situation. The story is also emotional because it is about a forbidden love that is being fought for, and many teens can connect to that issue as well. This book addresses multicultural issues by having several different characters that are of different races and social classes. Edward is from a rich family ( his adopted vampire father is a doctor), and Bella is just a typical middle class daughter of a Police Chief, yet they still connect. There are also several different characters that are different races and one man is confined to a wheelchair, but none of them are discriminated against in any way in the text.
This book would be best suited for an individual choice read, because it would probably be pretty hard to incorporate into an actual classroom learning activity that is relevant. But, books like this one are definitely getting kids reading which is awesome so I would highly recommend it.
Although this book is considered adolescent lit, and should probably be said that it would fit best from ages 11 to 18, I'm going to say that it is also good for adults because I loved it!
I personally truly enjoyed this book and could not put it down. I don't know that I would recommend it to my male students, because it does have a lot of very girly " I love hot boys," moments in it. But I would for sure recommend it to any female student who was interested in a fun read, or male students if they wouldn't mind all the "mushy gushy" stuff. Although some might say that vampire love stories are somewhat of a "lost genre" I would say that Stephenie Meyer has definitely turned that trend around.
Genre: Adolescent Literature, Future Award Winner, New York Times Best Seller, Fiction.
Twilight is a modern day love story about a young girl named Bella Swan who finds herself in a new situation discovering new romances with one very suspicious male, Edward Cullen. After moving to the small town of Forks, Washington to live with her father, Bella begins school in a new place and tries her best to fit it. She makes several friends, but is particularly captivated by the mysterious and unbelievably gorgeous Edward Cullen. Bella suspects that something is not quite normal about him from the start because she witnesses his appearance go from cool, calm, and gorgeous, to angry, solemn, and black-eyed. As Bella lives her life day to day thinking of nothing but Edward and obsessing about his every move, she is dying to get to know him better and to discover what makes him different. She has no real proof that he is actually "special" until he performs an act of heroism and saves her from being crushed by a vehicle in their high school parking lot. After weeks of wondering and questioning, Bella and Edward have formed a very close bond and he feels comfortable telling her the truth. The truth is that he is a vampire, but not just your typical vampire. His people hunt animals instead of humans in order to maintain the most normal life possible; not to mention he hasn't aged a day since he was taken into the vampire world and was technically born in June of 1901. Although he knows it is not the brightest idea to be romantically involved with Bella because her smell is more tantalizing to him than any other humans smell, he cannot resist her. And although Bella should be scared to death to risk being in a relationship with a vampire, she too cannot draw herself away from her true love. The only way for Bella and Edward to be able to be together forever is for him to turn her into a vampire as well. Will she ever become a vampire?...that is still left to be determined.
Meyer does a great job at going into great detail with her characters. I felt as though through her descriptions I could accurately predict exactly the kind of people Edward and Bella were (which would be kind of hard not to know about Edward seeing as to how the majority of this book describes his gorgeousness and perfect everything every other page). The other characters in the book, such as Bella's father, Charlie Swan the Police Chief, were given just enough detail to add a more interesting story line to the novel, without taking attention away from Bella and Edward. It is very interesting that the plot of this novel is about a vampire love story, and these books have done so well. I think that this type of book is definitely not one that I would have thought I would have been interested in, but it was written so well that it keeps you on your toes throughout the entire read and you just have to know what happens next. What's really neat about this novel is that even though it is a fantasy, it is still somewhat set in a realistic situation and the characters are still easy to connect to. As far as adolescent development, this story contains a lot of social and emotional aspects that teens can relate to. Not only does Bella have to move to a new school and make new friends, but she also winds up falling for the one guy that no one seems to be okay with. I think that many kids could connect to the feeling of having to adjust to a new social setting and could relate to Bella in the awkwardness of that situation. The story is also emotional because it is about a forbidden love that is being fought for, and many teens can connect to that issue as well. This book addresses multicultural issues by having several different characters that are of different races and social classes. Edward is from a rich family ( his adopted vampire father is a doctor), and Bella is just a typical middle class daughter of a Police Chief, yet they still connect. There are also several different characters that are different races and one man is confined to a wheelchair, but none of them are discriminated against in any way in the text.
This book would be best suited for an individual choice read, because it would probably be pretty hard to incorporate into an actual classroom learning activity that is relevant. But, books like this one are definitely getting kids reading which is awesome so I would highly recommend it.
Although this book is considered adolescent lit, and should probably be said that it would fit best from ages 11 to 18, I'm going to say that it is also good for adults because I loved it!
I personally truly enjoyed this book and could not put it down. I don't know that I would recommend it to my male students, because it does have a lot of very girly " I love hot boys," moments in it. But I would for sure recommend it to any female student who was interested in a fun read, or male students if they wouldn't mind all the "mushy gushy" stuff. Although some might say that vampire love stories are somewhat of a "lost genre" I would say that Stephenie Meyer has definitely turned that trend around.
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