Breathless
Lurlene McDaniel
ISBN 978-0-385-73459-2
165 pages
Delacorte Press, 2009
Genre: Issue Novel, Controversial
Reader's Annotation: Diagnosed with terminal bone cancer, high school student Travis asks his best friend, girlfriend, and sister to help him commit suicide.
Plot Summary: Travis--high school junior, diving champion, and self-proclaimed adrenaline junkie--breaks his leg jumping off a rock. While being treated, the doctors discover he has advanced bone cancer. They amputate his leg and start him on chemotherapy. Now unable to dive and also too sick to go to school, his best friend Cooper, his girlfriend Darla, and his sister Emily all form a circle of support for him and try to prevent him from getting too depressed.
When it becomes clear to Travis that he isn't going to beat the cancer, he decides he wants to die on his terms. When his parents deny his request to put a DNR on his chart, he turns to his best friend Cooper for help committing suicide. Cooper is torn by Travis' request, as are Darla and Emily when they learn of it. They struggle with the act's religious and ethical implications and their desire to honor their friend's wishes.
Critical Summary:
Lurlene McDaniel tells this story by alternating narrators: Emily, Travis, Cooper, and Darla alternate chapters, telling the story from their first person view. Though this should be a moving story, McDaniel seems too determined to rush the plot along in this extremely short novel. Indeed, in the span of a page, the story progresses a year and Travis moves from being fairly healthy to terminal. There's simply not enough time for her to develop the deep characterizations that would make the reader really empathize with Travis' wish not to suffer and the other teens' struggle with the decision's moral ambiguity.
However, despite the fact that there's not even enough space in this novel to explore its main topic, McDaniel chooses to have the mother of one character be an alcoholic prostitute and the father of one character be physically and mentally abusive, presenting the reader even more emotional territory that can only be very briefly addressed. Several of the characters have strong religious beliefs--the teens live in a very religious community--and yet the issue of how their beliefs might conflict with assisted suicide is only vaguely explored. Strange, too, is the manner in which Travis wants to die: drowning in the middle of a lake. It's a dramatic and complicated last act that would cause his loved ones severe emotional distress by having to watch him struggle and suffer. As a final insult, the answer of who eventually performs the act of euthanasia is never revealed. In a more masterful work, this open-ended finale might challenge the reader, but here it just seems frustrating and unresolved.
About the Author
Lurlene McDaniel is the queen of the "crying girl" novel. Her publisher describes her books as "inspirational novels about teenagers facing life-altering situations." Most of her books feature teens who have a terminal illness, though some do feature teens healthy teens dealing with their grief after a loved one dies. McDaniel has been quite prolific since the 1980s. Her previous release before Breathless did not involve death, but rather followed a teenage boy being seduced by a female teacher.
Curriculum Ties
Because it is so short, the novel could be used in a health class or similar to prompt discussion about the issue of assisted suicide. However, the resulting discussion would probably be much more nuanced than the book itself.
Booktalking Ideas
1. Tell the story from the point of view of Travis--why he wants to die on his terms.
2. Tell the story from the point of view of Cooper--if your best friend wanted you to help him kill himself, would you?
3. Tell the story from the point of view of Emily--should she respect the wishes of her parents or her brother?
Reading Interest/Level
Though the reading level is 7th or 8th grade, the novel's subject matter makes it more appropriate for high-schoolers.
Challenge Issues
Since assisted suicide is such a controversial topic, the book could attract challenges. The librarian might deal with the challenges by pointing out that McDaniel doesn't ever take a stand on the issue and that the arguments for both sides are presented. The reader is allowed to make up his or her own mind at the end as to whether or not the unnamed teen made the right choice.
If it were still challenged, the librarian should have a clear selection policy in place and be able to defend that selection policy to the challengee. The librarian could also point to the positive review the book received in SLJ.
Selection Criteria
I saw this book on the new release shelves of my library's YA section and thought it was an intriguing topic.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Lake of Secrets by Lael Littke
Lake of Secrets
Lael Littke
ISBN 0-8050-6730-2
202 pages
Henry Holt, 2002
Genre: Supernatural/Paranormal
Reader's Annotation
When Carlene and her mother return to the town where her brother went missing 18 years ago, she is haunted by memories related to the disappearance, even though she was not yet born when it happened.
Plot Summary
Fifteen-year-old Carlene's entire life has revolved around an event that happened three years before she was even born: the disappearance of her then-four-year-old brother Keith. Carlene's mother still maintains that he is alive somewhere, and frustrated with his wife's obsession, Carlene's father walked out on her and Carlene many years ago. When she hears a bit of news that might be related to Keith's disappearance, Carlene's mother and Carlene travel back to Lake Isadore, the place where he went missing. Though Carlene has never been there, she is soon haunted by memories of the place and events related to Keith's disappearance.
Through the help of some new friends she makes in the town, Carlene figures out that the soul of someone involved in Keith's disappearance was reincarnated into her body. She must use the memories to figure out the clues as to what really happened all those years ago.
Critical Evaluation
Lake of Secrets is a great premise for a book, and Littke is effective at creating a suitably spooky atmosphere. Carlene is understandably sympathetic to and completely frustrated by her mother's obsession with Keith. Carlene believes with merit that her mother has never really been able to focus on her daughter or see her as her own person -- even her 15th birthday present is a pair of binoculars to help Carlene search for clues about Keith. This frustration is mirrored in Carlene's realization that she inhabits someone else's soul. Is solving the mystery the sole reason for her existence? Does she even have her own identity?
While these psychological issues are intriguing, the mystery itself is not. A careful reader will figure out who is responsible for Keith's disappearance about halfway through the novel, though there are still some interesting details left to be discovered. The book is quick and breezy, with the first half dedicated to slowly building the atmosphere; the pace picks up more quickly in the second half. There's also a cast of charming, slightly eccentric small-town characters that add color.
About the Author
Lael Littke has written a number of horror and supernatural stories aimed at middle-readers and young adults. Many of her books touch on the same themes as Lake of Secrets. Haunted Sister involves a girl being haunted by her twin sister, who died 12 years earlier, while Searching for Selene also focuses on what happens many years after a young child is abducted.
Curriculum Ties
While the book could be used in a display of supernaturally-themed stories for teens, it is not particularly well-suited for any classroom use.
Boooktalking Ideas
1. Tie in Carlene's mixed feelings about being inhabited by someone else's soul with her own struggle for identity.
2. Focus on the spooky, supernatural elements of the story.
3. Talk about Carlene's friendships with love interest Luke and 7-year-old J.T.
Reading Interest/Level
Suitable for readers in junior high and above. Though a more sophisticated reader may be disappointed in how easily the mystery is solved, younger teen readers will enjoy the story.
Challenge Issues
Though the book does deal with supernatural elements, which some may find patently offensive, the book itself has no questionable content.
Selection Criteria
Lake of Secrets is included in Teen Genreflecting as a good choice for the supernatural genre.
Lael Littke
ISBN 0-8050-6730-2
202 pages
Henry Holt, 2002
Genre: Supernatural/Paranormal
Reader's Annotation
When Carlene and her mother return to the town where her brother went missing 18 years ago, she is haunted by memories related to the disappearance, even though she was not yet born when it happened.
Plot Summary
Fifteen-year-old Carlene's entire life has revolved around an event that happened three years before she was even born: the disappearance of her then-four-year-old brother Keith. Carlene's mother still maintains that he is alive somewhere, and frustrated with his wife's obsession, Carlene's father walked out on her and Carlene many years ago. When she hears a bit of news that might be related to Keith's disappearance, Carlene's mother and Carlene travel back to Lake Isadore, the place where he went missing. Though Carlene has never been there, she is soon haunted by memories of the place and events related to Keith's disappearance.
Through the help of some new friends she makes in the town, Carlene figures out that the soul of someone involved in Keith's disappearance was reincarnated into her body. She must use the memories to figure out the clues as to what really happened all those years ago.
Critical Evaluation
Lake of Secrets is a great premise for a book, and Littke is effective at creating a suitably spooky atmosphere. Carlene is understandably sympathetic to and completely frustrated by her mother's obsession with Keith. Carlene believes with merit that her mother has never really been able to focus on her daughter or see her as her own person -- even her 15th birthday present is a pair of binoculars to help Carlene search for clues about Keith. This frustration is mirrored in Carlene's realization that she inhabits someone else's soul. Is solving the mystery the sole reason for her existence? Does she even have her own identity?
While these psychological issues are intriguing, the mystery itself is not. A careful reader will figure out who is responsible for Keith's disappearance about halfway through the novel, though there are still some interesting details left to be discovered. The book is quick and breezy, with the first half dedicated to slowly building the atmosphere; the pace picks up more quickly in the second half. There's also a cast of charming, slightly eccentric small-town characters that add color.
About the Author
Lael Littke has written a number of horror and supernatural stories aimed at middle-readers and young adults. Many of her books touch on the same themes as Lake of Secrets. Haunted Sister involves a girl being haunted by her twin sister, who died 12 years earlier, while Searching for Selene also focuses on what happens many years after a young child is abducted.
Curriculum Ties
While the book could be used in a display of supernaturally-themed stories for teens, it is not particularly well-suited for any classroom use.
Boooktalking Ideas
1. Tie in Carlene's mixed feelings about being inhabited by someone else's soul with her own struggle for identity.
2. Focus on the spooky, supernatural elements of the story.
3. Talk about Carlene's friendships with love interest Luke and 7-year-old J.T.
Reading Interest/Level
Suitable for readers in junior high and above. Though a more sophisticated reader may be disappointed in how easily the mystery is solved, younger teen readers will enjoy the story.
Challenge Issues
Though the book does deal with supernatural elements, which some may find patently offensive, the book itself has no questionable content.
Selection Criteria
Lake of Secrets is included in Teen Genreflecting as a good choice for the supernatural genre.
When Lightning Strikes by Meg Cabot (as Jenny Carroll)
When Lightning Strikes
Meg Cabot (as Jenny Carroll)
ISBN 1-4169-0524-3
266 pages
Simon Pulse, 2001
Genre: Supernatural/Paranormal
Reader's Annotation
After she is struck by lightning, 16-year-old Jessica gains psychic powers that let her locate missing people.
Plot Summary
Jessica Mastriani, high school sophomore, is a regular in her guidance counselor's office and detention. Though she's got a great heart, her temper can sometimes get the best of her, especially when she sees someone being treated unfairly. One afternoon, she and her best friend Ruth are walking home from school when a huge thunderstorm strikes. The only place in the flat Indiana landscape to hide from the hail is under a set of metal bleachers, and Jessica is struck by lightning. At breakfast the next morning, she realizes she knows where the missing kids on the back of the milk carton are. She calls the tip line--1-800-Where-R-U--and tells them where they can find the kids.
After giving them several more anonymous tips--which all turn out to be right--the story attracts attention from both the national media and the FBI. Reporters camp out in Jess' front yard, and FBI agents want to take Jess to a secret facility to see if they can figure out what's caused her psychic powers. At first Jess resists, but after her schizophrenic brother freaks out from all the attention, she decides it would be best for her family to comply. While she's there, she learns that at least one of the kids she's found had very good reasons for wanting to stay missing, and she learns that the FBI really wants her help in finding some of America's most wanted. Can Jess' quick wits and pyschic powers help her set things right?
Critical Summary
When Lightning Strikes features Meg Cabot's signature smart, sarcastic, funny writing style. Jess is a flawed and lovable heroine. The book works as much as a standard teen drama/comedy as it does a supernatural genre piece: Jess is as concerned with gaining an attractive senior's attention and keeping her position at 4th chair flute in the school orchestra as she is with her newfound psychic powers.
Jess' family mostly seem like caricatures, and it's odd that Jess' mother, who is otherwise shown to be a caring and involved mother, becomes overly excited by the prospect of reward money. However, Jess' friend Ruth and her love interest Rob, are more carefully drawn characters, as is Mr. Goodhart, the kindly, beleaguered guidance counselor who's always called on to clean up Jess' messes.
While not a particularly affecting work, it's a short, entertaining read, sure to be popular with Cabot's many fans.
About the Author
Meg Cabot is primarily known for her chick-lit books, especially the Princess Diaries series. She wrote two supernaturally-themed series, The Mediator and 1-800-Where-R-U, under the pseudonym Jenny Carroll. Sales were disappointing, and both series were ended after four books. However, several years later, after Cabot had found great commercial success, her publisher decided to re-release the series under Cabot's real name. Sales were much better, and she published one final book in each series, wrapping up the loose ties.
Curriculum Ties
Though entertaining, this book is not weighty enough to be used as part of any curriculum.
Booktalking Ideas
1. Sell the book as a sort of supernatural Princess Diaries, stressing the book has Cabot's signature writing style.
2. Talk about Jess' everyday problems--her family, her permanent detention, her unrequited crush on Rob--and then add at the end, "And oh, yeah, she just found out that she's pyschic."
3. Talk about the ramifications of Jess' powers--just because she can find anyone, should she? And should she cooperate with the government to find wanted criminals? How does she know what their intentions are?
Reading Interest/Level
This book would be appropriate for readers junior high-aged and up.
Challenge Issues
While there's some discussion of typical teenage delinquency and references to sexuality, none of it is explicit and it is unlikely to be challenged.
Selection Criteria
While looking at lists teens had made on Amazon of their favorite supernatural books, I noticed that this one was mentioned over and over again.
Meg Cabot (as Jenny Carroll)
ISBN 1-4169-0524-3
266 pages
Simon Pulse, 2001
Genre: Supernatural/Paranormal
Reader's Annotation
After she is struck by lightning, 16-year-old Jessica gains psychic powers that let her locate missing people.
Plot Summary
Jessica Mastriani, high school sophomore, is a regular in her guidance counselor's office and detention. Though she's got a great heart, her temper can sometimes get the best of her, especially when she sees someone being treated unfairly. One afternoon, she and her best friend Ruth are walking home from school when a huge thunderstorm strikes. The only place in the flat Indiana landscape to hide from the hail is under a set of metal bleachers, and Jessica is struck by lightning. At breakfast the next morning, she realizes she knows where the missing kids on the back of the milk carton are. She calls the tip line--1-800-Where-R-U--and tells them where they can find the kids.
After giving them several more anonymous tips--which all turn out to be right--the story attracts attention from both the national media and the FBI. Reporters camp out in Jess' front yard, and FBI agents want to take Jess to a secret facility to see if they can figure out what's caused her psychic powers. At first Jess resists, but after her schizophrenic brother freaks out from all the attention, she decides it would be best for her family to comply. While she's there, she learns that at least one of the kids she's found had very good reasons for wanting to stay missing, and she learns that the FBI really wants her help in finding some of America's most wanted. Can Jess' quick wits and pyschic powers help her set things right?
Critical Summary
When Lightning Strikes features Meg Cabot's signature smart, sarcastic, funny writing style. Jess is a flawed and lovable heroine. The book works as much as a standard teen drama/comedy as it does a supernatural genre piece: Jess is as concerned with gaining an attractive senior's attention and keeping her position at 4th chair flute in the school orchestra as she is with her newfound psychic powers.
Jess' family mostly seem like caricatures, and it's odd that Jess' mother, who is otherwise shown to be a caring and involved mother, becomes overly excited by the prospect of reward money. However, Jess' friend Ruth and her love interest Rob, are more carefully drawn characters, as is Mr. Goodhart, the kindly, beleaguered guidance counselor who's always called on to clean up Jess' messes.
While not a particularly affecting work, it's a short, entertaining read, sure to be popular with Cabot's many fans.
About the Author
Meg Cabot is primarily known for her chick-lit books, especially the Princess Diaries series. She wrote two supernaturally-themed series, The Mediator and 1-800-Where-R-U, under the pseudonym Jenny Carroll. Sales were disappointing, and both series were ended after four books. However, several years later, after Cabot had found great commercial success, her publisher decided to re-release the series under Cabot's real name. Sales were much better, and she published one final book in each series, wrapping up the loose ties.
Curriculum Ties
Though entertaining, this book is not weighty enough to be used as part of any curriculum.
Booktalking Ideas
1. Sell the book as a sort of supernatural Princess Diaries, stressing the book has Cabot's signature writing style.
2. Talk about Jess' everyday problems--her family, her permanent detention, her unrequited crush on Rob--and then add at the end, "And oh, yeah, she just found out that she's pyschic."
3. Talk about the ramifications of Jess' powers--just because she can find anyone, should she? And should she cooperate with the government to find wanted criminals? How does she know what their intentions are?
Reading Interest/Level
This book would be appropriate for readers junior high-aged and up.
Challenge Issues
While there's some discussion of typical teenage delinquency and references to sexuality, none of it is explicit and it is unlikely to be challenged.
Selection Criteria
While looking at lists teens had made on Amazon of their favorite supernatural books, I noticed that this one was mentioned over and over again.
The Beatles: Rock Band (game) pub. Harmonix
The Beatles: Rock Band
Harmonix, 2009
XBox 360, Wii, Playstation 3
Genre: Music/Rhythm
Players' Annotation:
Pretend you're John, Paul, George or Ringo in the latest Rock Band installment that covers the music of the Beatles.
Game Summary:
The latest installment of Harmonix' popular Rock Band series lets players sit in with one of the most influential rock bands of all times. Like previous installments, the game allows one to four players to play along as a guitarist, bassist, drummer or singer. Players use controllers that resemble instruments and follow colored "notes" on the screen. The player must press the colored buttons (or hit the colored drum pad) that correspond to the notes in the correct rhythm and sequence, which gives the player the sense that s/he is really playing the song. The singer uses a microphone to sing along to the song; words and notes are provided, and the game determines how well the singer stays on pitch and beat. The game's difficulty ranges from easy to expert. Unlike previous installments, melody and harmony vocals are supported, allowing up to four vocalists to sing at one time.
The music from this installment is drawn entirely from the Beatles catalog and uses the original recordings. Instead of letting players create their own avatar, as was the case in previous installments, the animations use cartoon-like renderings of the Fab Four. Players can play in a story mode, which follows the band through their early days playing at the Cavern Club and on the Ed Sullivan show, all the way to their later years. Players can also use a "quick play" mode which allows them to play any song of their choosing. Group play is encouraged; players can form their own band locally or with people elsewhere over their platform's network.
Critical Evaluation
The Beatles: Rock Band is a beautiful and original game. Unlike previous installments for series like Rock Band or Guitar Hero, which have basically just included new songs, this game is a complete re-imagining of the series, with attractive and highly stylized graphics. The game includes a great representative sample of the band's oeuvre, ranging from early pop songs like "I Want to Hold Your Hand" to the more experimental sound of later works like "Helter Skelter." The settings for these songs change, too. For the songs that appeared earlier in their career, the Beatles are shown in important live venues such as the Cavern Club, the Ed Sullivan Show, or Shea Stadium. Later, after the band stopped touring, the band is shown playing in a studio setting, but to keep things interesting, the band is transported into "dreamscapes," inspired by the song lyrics and the visual styles of the time. "Octopus's Garden" and "Yellow Submarine" take place underwater; "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" is a psychedelic fantasy.
The game offers various levels of difficulty from easy to expert. Various challenges (such as playing a song perfectly) keep things interesting for hard-core gamers, while more casual gamers can just pick up and play (even taking advantage of a "no fail" option that prevents novice players from getting booed off the stage).
Because of its gorgeous graphics and great music, the game is almost as much fun to watch as it is to play. It takes the classic music/rhythm game and turns it into something new and original. There's strong teen appeal here--not only are these types of games incredibly popular with the age group, but also the Beatles remain interesting to young adults, especially those who are interested in rock music history. Since parents and grandparents may fondly remember the music, it may even get the whole family playing!
About the Company
Harmonix has been a groundbreaking figure in the world of music/rhythm games. In the early part of this decade, hits like Amplitude and FreQuency allowed gamers to play DJ, mixing in parts different parts of songs together. The company then developed the popular Karaoke Revolution that allowed players to sing along to popular hits and be scored on their pitch and rhythm. They started the instrument-as-controller craze with their hit Guitar Hero. Rock Band, which came out in 2007, put the singing and guitar elements together and then added in drums, allowing for four-person play.
Library Event Ties
This would be a great title for an in-library gaming event. Not only would it attract teens, but it also might attract curious adults and seniors who are fans of the Beatles. It would be easy and fun to put together a materials display in conjunction with the event--CDs by the band, biographies and books written about the band, movies of films done by the band themselves (A Hard Day's Night, Help!) as well as documentaries about the Beatles (Anthology, The Compleat Beatles).
Rating/Age Interest
and
Challenge Issues
This game is probably of most interest to teens and adults. Younger children who enjoy music/rhythm games may be interested, too. The game is rated T for Teen because of some mild language and tobacco references in the songs, but there is no other objectionable content. It seems very unlikely that the use of this game in a library setting would result in any sort of challenge, though perhaps the game's rating could be included in any posters/flyers advertising this event.
Selection Criteria
This game got a lot of coverage in mainstream media when it was released in September 2009, was reviewed very positively, and has sold very well.
Harmonix, 2009
XBox 360, Wii, Playstation 3
Genre: Music/Rhythm
Players' Annotation:
Pretend you're John, Paul, George or Ringo in the latest Rock Band installment that covers the music of the Beatles.
Game Summary:
The latest installment of Harmonix' popular Rock Band series lets players sit in with one of the most influential rock bands of all times. Like previous installments, the game allows one to four players to play along as a guitarist, bassist, drummer or singer. Players use controllers that resemble instruments and follow colored "notes" on the screen. The player must press the colored buttons (or hit the colored drum pad) that correspond to the notes in the correct rhythm and sequence, which gives the player the sense that s/he is really playing the song. The singer uses a microphone to sing along to the song; words and notes are provided, and the game determines how well the singer stays on pitch and beat. The game's difficulty ranges from easy to expert. Unlike previous installments, melody and harmony vocals are supported, allowing up to four vocalists to sing at one time.
The music from this installment is drawn entirely from the Beatles catalog and uses the original recordings. Instead of letting players create their own avatar, as was the case in previous installments, the animations use cartoon-like renderings of the Fab Four. Players can play in a story mode, which follows the band through their early days playing at the Cavern Club and on the Ed Sullivan show, all the way to their later years. Players can also use a "quick play" mode which allows them to play any song of their choosing. Group play is encouraged; players can form their own band locally or with people elsewhere over their platform's network.
Critical Evaluation
The Beatles: Rock Band is a beautiful and original game. Unlike previous installments for series like Rock Band or Guitar Hero, which have basically just included new songs, this game is a complete re-imagining of the series, with attractive and highly stylized graphics. The game includes a great representative sample of the band's oeuvre, ranging from early pop songs like "I Want to Hold Your Hand" to the more experimental sound of later works like "Helter Skelter." The settings for these songs change, too. For the songs that appeared earlier in their career, the Beatles are shown in important live venues such as the Cavern Club, the Ed Sullivan Show, or Shea Stadium. Later, after the band stopped touring, the band is shown playing in a studio setting, but to keep things interesting, the band is transported into "dreamscapes," inspired by the song lyrics and the visual styles of the time. "Octopus's Garden" and "Yellow Submarine" take place underwater; "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" is a psychedelic fantasy.
The game offers various levels of difficulty from easy to expert. Various challenges (such as playing a song perfectly) keep things interesting for hard-core gamers, while more casual gamers can just pick up and play (even taking advantage of a "no fail" option that prevents novice players from getting booed off the stage).
Because of its gorgeous graphics and great music, the game is almost as much fun to watch as it is to play. It takes the classic music/rhythm game and turns it into something new and original. There's strong teen appeal here--not only are these types of games incredibly popular with the age group, but also the Beatles remain interesting to young adults, especially those who are interested in rock music history. Since parents and grandparents may fondly remember the music, it may even get the whole family playing!
About the Company
Harmonix has been a groundbreaking figure in the world of music/rhythm games. In the early part of this decade, hits like Amplitude and FreQuency allowed gamers to play DJ, mixing in parts different parts of songs together. The company then developed the popular Karaoke Revolution that allowed players to sing along to popular hits and be scored on their pitch and rhythm. They started the instrument-as-controller craze with their hit Guitar Hero. Rock Band, which came out in 2007, put the singing and guitar elements together and then added in drums, allowing for four-person play.
Library Event Ties
This would be a great title for an in-library gaming event. Not only would it attract teens, but it also might attract curious adults and seniors who are fans of the Beatles. It would be easy and fun to put together a materials display in conjunction with the event--CDs by the band, biographies and books written about the band, movies of films done by the band themselves (A Hard Day's Night, Help!) as well as documentaries about the Beatles (Anthology, The Compleat Beatles).
Rating/Age Interest
and
Challenge Issues
This game is probably of most interest to teens and adults. Younger children who enjoy music/rhythm games may be interested, too. The game is rated T for Teen because of some mild language and tobacco references in the songs, but there is no other objectionable content. It seems very unlikely that the use of this game in a library setting would result in any sort of challenge, though perhaps the game's rating could be included in any posters/flyers advertising this event.
Selection Criteria
This game got a lot of coverage in mainstream media when it was released in September 2009, was reviewed very positively, and has sold very well.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
17 Again (film) dir. Burr Steers
17 Again
Directed by Burr Steers
ASIN B001OQCUYI
Running time: 102 minutes
New Line, 2009
Starring: Zac Efron, Matthew Perry, Leslie Mann
Genre: Comedy
Viewer's Annotation: Frustrated by his failures in life, thirtysomething Mike gets magically transformed back into his 17-year-old body to redo his senior year of high school and fix his mistakes.
Plot Summary: In high school, Mike had it all. He was a nice guy, star of the basketball team, and dated Scarlett, the prettiest girl in school. When he finds out she is pregnant, he walks away from a college basketball scholarship to marry her. Fast forward another 17 years, and Mike is miserable. He and Scarlett are getting divorced, he's completely disconnected from his two teenage kids, and he's stuck in a job that's going nowhere. Scarlett still has feelings for him, but says he's wasted the past 17 years complaining about how his life turned out and doesn't want to waste the rest of hers.
A magical school janitor magically changes Mike's body back to its 17-year-old state. (Mike stays in the present day and does not go back in time.) With the help of his best friend Ned, a nerd in high school who's now incredibly rich, Mike figures out that he is supposed to re-enroll in high school; here is his fresh chance to fix his mistakes! Pretending that he is Ned's long lost son, he befriends his wife and children and decides that his job is to fix their lives. As a peer, he sees his children much more clearly than he ever did as their father. His son is a favorite target of bullies and lacks the self-confidence to try out for the basketball team, even though he's quite talented. His daughter is dating a low-life and is ready to throw away her entire future on him. Mike also spends time with his wife (in the guise of helping her landscape her backyard) and realizes that he still loves her and has never fully appreciated her. Mike decides his mission is to change his family's life for the better.
Critical Evaluation
The adult-retransformed-into-teenage-self is a common trope of teen movies. 17 Again doesn't exactly break new artistic ground, but it handles the familiar material well. Matthew Perry has a bit of a thankless role, but is effective at making it clear that, though Mike has made many mistakes with his family along the way, he does deeply love and care about them. Zac Efron, of High School Musical fame, is charming and funny and does a good job carrying the movie. He has a gratuitous dance scene in the beginning of the film that is so much fun you can forgive the filmmakers for including it, and a scene where he humiliates the jock who is bullying his son and taking advantage of his daughter is also funny and satisfying.
The movie has some weird sexual undercurrents. The adult Scarlett is strangely attracted to the teenage Mike; she keeps on commenting on how he looks just like her husband did as a teenager. There are some moments of sexual tension between the two, which are broken with jokes about "cougars" and "MILFs." After he convinces his daughter to leave her loser boyfriend, she decides to turn her romantic affections on him. The movie treats all of these encounters with a light and comical tone, a la Back to the Future.
Still, despite these flaws, the movie generally plays well, A subplot involving Ned trying to win the affections of the school principal is a bit over the top, but it will surely appeal to teenage audiences.
About the Director
Burr Steers has appeared in bit parts in several movies, including Pulp Fiction. He has directed episodes for a number of cable dramas, including Big Love, Weeds, and The L Word, but 17 Again is his first feature film. He is working on another film starring Zac Efron, The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud, scheduled to be released in 2010.
Curriculum Ties
While frothy and fun, this film does not contain enough substance to be used in any school curriculum.
Viewing Interest/Level
The movie is rated PG-13. There's some mild language that would be inappropriate for younger viewers, but shouldn't cause any teens to bat an eye. There are references to sex--Scarlett gets pregnant in high school, condoms are passed out in a health class lecture--but the most explicit thing shown in the film is a kiss.
Challenge Issues
Since parents tend to understand the MPAA rating system for film, I do not think this would be likely to be challenged. Its PG-13 label is appropriate for its mild language and sexual references. Parents, too, might appreciate the scene where Mike urges his classmates to abstain from sex until they are truly in love, and even better, married.
Selection Criteria
Though I've certainly heard a lot about Zac Efron from the teenage girls in my life, I've never actually seen one of his films! I decided to rent this film to see what a popular teen film looks like these days.
Directed by Burr Steers
ASIN B001OQCUYI
Running time: 102 minutes
New Line, 2009
Starring: Zac Efron, Matthew Perry, Leslie Mann
Genre: Comedy
Viewer's Annotation: Frustrated by his failures in life, thirtysomething Mike gets magically transformed back into his 17-year-old body to redo his senior year of high school and fix his mistakes.
Plot Summary: In high school, Mike had it all. He was a nice guy, star of the basketball team, and dated Scarlett, the prettiest girl in school. When he finds out she is pregnant, he walks away from a college basketball scholarship to marry her. Fast forward another 17 years, and Mike is miserable. He and Scarlett are getting divorced, he's completely disconnected from his two teenage kids, and he's stuck in a job that's going nowhere. Scarlett still has feelings for him, but says he's wasted the past 17 years complaining about how his life turned out and doesn't want to waste the rest of hers.
A magical school janitor magically changes Mike's body back to its 17-year-old state. (Mike stays in the present day and does not go back in time.) With the help of his best friend Ned, a nerd in high school who's now incredibly rich, Mike figures out that he is supposed to re-enroll in high school; here is his fresh chance to fix his mistakes! Pretending that he is Ned's long lost son, he befriends his wife and children and decides that his job is to fix their lives. As a peer, he sees his children much more clearly than he ever did as their father. His son is a favorite target of bullies and lacks the self-confidence to try out for the basketball team, even though he's quite talented. His daughter is dating a low-life and is ready to throw away her entire future on him. Mike also spends time with his wife (in the guise of helping her landscape her backyard) and realizes that he still loves her and has never fully appreciated her. Mike decides his mission is to change his family's life for the better.
Critical Evaluation
The adult-retransformed-into-teenage-self is a common trope of teen movies. 17 Again doesn't exactly break new artistic ground, but it handles the familiar material well. Matthew Perry has a bit of a thankless role, but is effective at making it clear that, though Mike has made many mistakes with his family along the way, he does deeply love and care about them. Zac Efron, of High School Musical fame, is charming and funny and does a good job carrying the movie. He has a gratuitous dance scene in the beginning of the film that is so much fun you can forgive the filmmakers for including it, and a scene where he humiliates the jock who is bullying his son and taking advantage of his daughter is also funny and satisfying.
The movie has some weird sexual undercurrents. The adult Scarlett is strangely attracted to the teenage Mike; she keeps on commenting on how he looks just like her husband did as a teenager. There are some moments of sexual tension between the two, which are broken with jokes about "cougars" and "MILFs." After he convinces his daughter to leave her loser boyfriend, she decides to turn her romantic affections on him. The movie treats all of these encounters with a light and comical tone, a la Back to the Future.
Still, despite these flaws, the movie generally plays well, A subplot involving Ned trying to win the affections of the school principal is a bit over the top, but it will surely appeal to teenage audiences.
About the Director
Burr Steers has appeared in bit parts in several movies, including Pulp Fiction. He has directed episodes for a number of cable dramas, including Big Love, Weeds, and The L Word, but 17 Again is his first feature film. He is working on another film starring Zac Efron, The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud, scheduled to be released in 2010.
Curriculum Ties
While frothy and fun, this film does not contain enough substance to be used in any school curriculum.
Viewing Interest/Level
The movie is rated PG-13. There's some mild language that would be inappropriate for younger viewers, but shouldn't cause any teens to bat an eye. There are references to sex--Scarlett gets pregnant in high school, condoms are passed out in a health class lecture--but the most explicit thing shown in the film is a kiss.
Challenge Issues
Since parents tend to understand the MPAA rating system for film, I do not think this would be likely to be challenged. Its PG-13 label is appropriate for its mild language and sexual references. Parents, too, might appreciate the scene where Mike urges his classmates to abstain from sex until they are truly in love, and even better, married.
Selection Criteria
Though I've certainly heard a lot about Zac Efron from the teenage girls in my life, I've never actually seen one of his films! I decided to rent this film to see what a popular teen film looks like these days.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Stranger With My Face by Lois Duncan
Stranger With My Face
Lois Duncan
ISBN 0440983568
256 pages
Laurel Leaf, 1982
Genre: Supernatural/Paranormal
Readers Annotation:
With the help of an identical twin sister she never knew about, 17-year-old Laurie Stratton learns she has the power to travel outside of her body.
Plot Summary:
17-year-old Laurie Stratton has spent her entire life living in an isolated house on an isolated New England island with her parents and two younger siblings. Laurie's younger siblings look just like their parents and share their artistic talents--Laurie's parents are a writer and an artist--but Laurie shares none of the family traits.
Her friends and family start seeing Laurie all over the island, in places she knows she hasn't been. Laurie, too, senses the presence of someone else and starts seeing the reflection of a "mirror-girl" who looks just like her, but isn't. Eventually, the presence grows stronger, and the mirror-girl reveals herself to be Lia, Laurie's identical twin sister. Laurie didn't know she was adopted and confronts her parents; they admit that her mother was Navajo and they adopted her as a baby. They were given the chance to adopt her sister, too, but her mother felt inexplicably scared of and repelled by the infant.
With the help of her new friend Heather, whose parents, conveniently, used to teach on a Navajo reservation, Laurie learns that Lia is using astral projection, which allows her to sever her soul from her body and travel wherever she wants. Laurie is interested in seeing if she shares her sister's talents, but Heather warns her against trying it and also warns her that Lia has "evil eyes."
A mysterious accident soon befalls Heather; Jeff, a friend who shares Laurie's interest in astral projection, also disappears. Though she is warned to stop searching for answers and be content with her life on the island, Laurie is determined to figure out the truth about her sister, her heritage, and her possible power.
Critical Summary
Duncan is skilled at inserting supernatural elements into a typical realistic YA setting, so the reader readily accepts Laurie's transformation from typical teen into a supernaturally gifted superwoman. There's a lot of plot to cover in a mere 256 pages, so it surprised me that there was actually a fair amount of character development and atmosphere building. The beginning of the book lingers over Laurie's everyday experiences--forgetting her locker combination, not knowing who to sit with at the lunch table--but about three-quarters of the way through, it picks up a breakneck pace. The climax of the novel seems a bit rushed and unsatisfying.
Though the main and supporting characters were well drawn and interesting--Laurie's family is charmingly eccentric, Laurie's love interest has an interesting back story of his own--the character of Lia is strangely undeveloped. Duncan never quite explains her motivations. The ending of the book is genuinely spooky, with the last two pages providing a reader with a satisfying, lingering chill.
Though this book was published over 30 years ago, I was surprised at how relevant it seemed. Though there were no mentions of computers or cell phones, there also were no references that seemed incredibly dated.
About the Author
Lois Duncan has written many novels for children and young adults. She is especially known for her young adult suspense novels, which often feature supernatural, paranormal powers; her teen heroines often have psionic powers, such as psychic ability or clairvoyance. Many of her novels have been turned into made-for-TV movies, as has Stranger With My Face. The suspense novels, many of which were written in the '70s and '80s, remain extremely popular with contemporary readers.
Curriculum Ties
While this book will be an enjoyable read for young adults, it does not have any elements that would make it an appropriate choice in a school curriculum.
Booktalking Ideas
1. Talk in the character of Laurie, spookily explaining how friends and family have been seeing her around town in places she hasn't been and how she has been seeing the mysterious mirror-girl.
2. Talk about Laurie's sense of disconnection from her family and the other kids at school.
3. Explain the concept of astral projection and its connection to Navajo culture.
Reading Interest/Level:
This book, which is not a difficult read, would have appeal to both junior high and high school students.
Challenge Issues:
There is nothing particularly controversial about this book in terms of language or content, though it's possible that someone's religious beliefs might make them find the very idea of a book about the supernatural/paranormal to be objectionable.
Selection Criteria
I remembered Lois Duncan's books being popular when I was a young reader, and I was surprised to see them with different, updated covers in my library's young adult section. Stranger With My Face, along with several other Duncan novels, are also explored in critical essays by Lizzie Skurnick in her recent book Shelf Discovery.
Lois Duncan
ISBN 0440983568
256 pages
Laurel Leaf, 1982
Genre: Supernatural/Paranormal
Readers Annotation:
With the help of an identical twin sister she never knew about, 17-year-old Laurie Stratton learns she has the power to travel outside of her body.
Plot Summary:
17-year-old Laurie Stratton has spent her entire life living in an isolated house on an isolated New England island with her parents and two younger siblings. Laurie's younger siblings look just like their parents and share their artistic talents--Laurie's parents are a writer and an artist--but Laurie shares none of the family traits.
Her friends and family start seeing Laurie all over the island, in places she knows she hasn't been. Laurie, too, senses the presence of someone else and starts seeing the reflection of a "mirror-girl" who looks just like her, but isn't. Eventually, the presence grows stronger, and the mirror-girl reveals herself to be Lia, Laurie's identical twin sister. Laurie didn't know she was adopted and confronts her parents; they admit that her mother was Navajo and they adopted her as a baby. They were given the chance to adopt her sister, too, but her mother felt inexplicably scared of and repelled by the infant.
With the help of her new friend Heather, whose parents, conveniently, used to teach on a Navajo reservation, Laurie learns that Lia is using astral projection, which allows her to sever her soul from her body and travel wherever she wants. Laurie is interested in seeing if she shares her sister's talents, but Heather warns her against trying it and also warns her that Lia has "evil eyes."
A mysterious accident soon befalls Heather; Jeff, a friend who shares Laurie's interest in astral projection, also disappears. Though she is warned to stop searching for answers and be content with her life on the island, Laurie is determined to figure out the truth about her sister, her heritage, and her possible power.
Critical Summary
Duncan is skilled at inserting supernatural elements into a typical realistic YA setting, so the reader readily accepts Laurie's transformation from typical teen into a supernaturally gifted superwoman. There's a lot of plot to cover in a mere 256 pages, so it surprised me that there was actually a fair amount of character development and atmosphere building. The beginning of the book lingers over Laurie's everyday experiences--forgetting her locker combination, not knowing who to sit with at the lunch table--but about three-quarters of the way through, it picks up a breakneck pace. The climax of the novel seems a bit rushed and unsatisfying.
Though the main and supporting characters were well drawn and interesting--Laurie's family is charmingly eccentric, Laurie's love interest has an interesting back story of his own--the character of Lia is strangely undeveloped. Duncan never quite explains her motivations. The ending of the book is genuinely spooky, with the last two pages providing a reader with a satisfying, lingering chill.
Though this book was published over 30 years ago, I was surprised at how relevant it seemed. Though there were no mentions of computers or cell phones, there also were no references that seemed incredibly dated.
About the Author
Lois Duncan has written many novels for children and young adults. She is especially known for her young adult suspense novels, which often feature supernatural, paranormal powers; her teen heroines often have psionic powers, such as psychic ability or clairvoyance. Many of her novels have been turned into made-for-TV movies, as has Stranger With My Face. The suspense novels, many of which were written in the '70s and '80s, remain extremely popular with contemporary readers.
Curriculum Ties
While this book will be an enjoyable read for young adults, it does not have any elements that would make it an appropriate choice in a school curriculum.
Booktalking Ideas
1. Talk in the character of Laurie, spookily explaining how friends and family have been seeing her around town in places she hasn't been and how she has been seeing the mysterious mirror-girl.
2. Talk about Laurie's sense of disconnection from her family and the other kids at school.
3. Explain the concept of astral projection and its connection to Navajo culture.
Reading Interest/Level:
This book, which is not a difficult read, would have appeal to both junior high and high school students.
Challenge Issues:
There is nothing particularly controversial about this book in terms of language or content, though it's possible that someone's religious beliefs might make them find the very idea of a book about the supernatural/paranormal to be objectionable.
Selection Criteria
I remembered Lois Duncan's books being popular when I was a young reader, and I was surprised to see them with different, updated covers in my library's young adult section. Stranger With My Face, along with several other Duncan novels, are also explored in critical essays by Lizzie Skurnick in her recent book Shelf Discovery.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
The President's Daughter by Ellen Emerson White
The President's Daughter
Ellen Emerson White
ISBN 0312374887
304 pages
Feiwel & Friends, 2008
Genre: Contemporary Life
Reader's Annotation:
Sixteen-year-old Meghan Powers' relationship with her mother becomes even more complicated when she becomes the first female President of the United States.
Plot Summary:
Meghan Powers is a pretty typical teenager; smart and sarcastic, she lives for tennis, hangs out with her friends, and loves to tease her younger brother. Her family life drastically changes, however, when her mother, the senior senator from Massachusetts, decides to run in the Democratic primary. Her parents are usually off campaigning, and Meghan finds herself with unwanted attention both from people and teachers at her high school and from the media. Things get even stranger when her mother wins the primary. Megan goes from hanging out in Boston with her best friend Beth to staying at the Presidential Suite in the Waldorf-Astoria.
When her mother wins the election and is sworn in as president, Meghan and her family move into the White House, where life gets really weird. Not only is it kind of strange to be waited on by the Cast of Thousands (the nickname Meg and her brothers come up with for the large White House staff), but now every move the First Family makes is captured by the media. Meg's relationship with her mother, too, is complicated; Meg admires how beautiful, smart, and honest her mother is, but she also wishes that she weren't so ambitious and that she were around more. Meg wonders if she can ever carve out an identity for herself, or whether she'll always be the President's daughter.
Critical Evaluation:
White's novel is at once an interesting political piece and an intimate look inside a very smart, very funny teenage girl's head. The novel is well-researched, and the reader gets a very inside view at what life is like both inside a national political campaign and in the White House. The political aspect of the book is exciting and accessible, appealing to political junkies and those readers who may be new to politics.
Meg's family is both appealing and honestly drawn. Her parents and brothers are all complex, fleshed-out characters. Her father, like Meg, is both proud of his wife's talents and accomplishments, but also fiercely protective of his family; a life in the spotlight is not one he would have chosen for himself or his children. Her brothers lovingly tease Meg, as younger brothers do, but there is a real sense of love among the siblings. In the character of Meg's mother, Katharine Vaughn Powers, White creates a character equally driven by her love for her family and her personal ambition, not to mention her honest desire to serve her country and improve the lives of Americans.
The story is told in the third-person, but entirely from Meg's point of view. Meg's voice is unique; smart, cynical, at times slightly bratty and immature; at others wise beyond her years. She's a realistic and wonderful teenage girl.
Other Titles in the Series
White House Autumn (2008)
Long Live the Queen (2008)
Long May She Reign (2007)
Note: The President's Daughter, White House Autumn, and Long Live the Queen were originally published between 1984 and 1991. In 2007, White published a fourth in the series, Long May She Reign. The events in that novel take place immediately after the end of the third book, though White moved the setting from the '80s to the modern day. In 2008, her publisher released updated versions of the first three novels, also setting them in the modern day. They remain largely the same, though White took out some outdated things (old technologies or pop culture references) and added in some contemporary things, like cell phones and email.
About the Author
Ellen Emerson White wrote a number of young adult novels in the 1980s. She is largely known for her smart, strong, funny, and complicated female heroines. She's written under several pseudonyms; as Zack Emerson, she published a young adult series about the Vietnam War, and then under her own name, she wrote The Road Home, a standalone novel involving some of the same characters from the point of view of Rebecca, an army nurse. White has also written an adult mystery novel.
Curriculum Ties
American politics
Booktalking Ideas
1. Talk about the political aspect of the book, tying it into the 2008 election with the Democratic primary between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
2. Talk about Meg's relationship with her family, especially her mother.
3. Talk about how Meg's relationships with her friends and classmates change as her mother grows in prominence.
Reading Interest/Level
9th grade and up, though some junior high students may enjoy it.
Challenge Issues
None, though there is some mild language and a scene where Meg attends a party where underage people are drinking beer.
Selection Criteria
I read and enjoyed this novel as a teen myself and was excited to read the recent sequel and the updated version released last year. Shows you how a great book really does hold up!
Ellen Emerson White
ISBN 0312374887
304 pages
Feiwel & Friends, 2008
Genre: Contemporary Life
Reader's Annotation:
Sixteen-year-old Meghan Powers' relationship with her mother becomes even more complicated when she becomes the first female President of the United States.
Plot Summary:
Meghan Powers is a pretty typical teenager; smart and sarcastic, she lives for tennis, hangs out with her friends, and loves to tease her younger brother. Her family life drastically changes, however, when her mother, the senior senator from Massachusetts, decides to run in the Democratic primary. Her parents are usually off campaigning, and Meghan finds herself with unwanted attention both from people and teachers at her high school and from the media. Things get even stranger when her mother wins the primary. Megan goes from hanging out in Boston with her best friend Beth to staying at the Presidential Suite in the Waldorf-Astoria.
When her mother wins the election and is sworn in as president, Meghan and her family move into the White House, where life gets really weird. Not only is it kind of strange to be waited on by the Cast of Thousands (the nickname Meg and her brothers come up with for the large White House staff), but now every move the First Family makes is captured by the media. Meg's relationship with her mother, too, is complicated; Meg admires how beautiful, smart, and honest her mother is, but she also wishes that she weren't so ambitious and that she were around more. Meg wonders if she can ever carve out an identity for herself, or whether she'll always be the President's daughter.
Critical Evaluation:
White's novel is at once an interesting political piece and an intimate look inside a very smart, very funny teenage girl's head. The novel is well-researched, and the reader gets a very inside view at what life is like both inside a national political campaign and in the White House. The political aspect of the book is exciting and accessible, appealing to political junkies and those readers who may be new to politics.
Meg's family is both appealing and honestly drawn. Her parents and brothers are all complex, fleshed-out characters. Her father, like Meg, is both proud of his wife's talents and accomplishments, but also fiercely protective of his family; a life in the spotlight is not one he would have chosen for himself or his children. Her brothers lovingly tease Meg, as younger brothers do, but there is a real sense of love among the siblings. In the character of Meg's mother, Katharine Vaughn Powers, White creates a character equally driven by her love for her family and her personal ambition, not to mention her honest desire to serve her country and improve the lives of Americans.
The story is told in the third-person, but entirely from Meg's point of view. Meg's voice is unique; smart, cynical, at times slightly bratty and immature; at others wise beyond her years. She's a realistic and wonderful teenage girl.
Other Titles in the Series
White House Autumn (2008)
Long Live the Queen (2008)
Long May She Reign (2007)
Note: The President's Daughter, White House Autumn, and Long Live the Queen were originally published between 1984 and 1991. In 2007, White published a fourth in the series, Long May She Reign. The events in that novel take place immediately after the end of the third book, though White moved the setting from the '80s to the modern day. In 2008, her publisher released updated versions of the first three novels, also setting them in the modern day. They remain largely the same, though White took out some outdated things (old technologies or pop culture references) and added in some contemporary things, like cell phones and email.
About the Author
Ellen Emerson White wrote a number of young adult novels in the 1980s. She is largely known for her smart, strong, funny, and complicated female heroines. She's written under several pseudonyms; as Zack Emerson, she published a young adult series about the Vietnam War, and then under her own name, she wrote The Road Home, a standalone novel involving some of the same characters from the point of view of Rebecca, an army nurse. White has also written an adult mystery novel.
Curriculum Ties
American politics
Booktalking Ideas
1. Talk about the political aspect of the book, tying it into the 2008 election with the Democratic primary between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
2. Talk about Meg's relationship with her family, especially her mother.
3. Talk about how Meg's relationships with her friends and classmates change as her mother grows in prominence.
Reading Interest/Level
9th grade and up, though some junior high students may enjoy it.
Challenge Issues
None, though there is some mild language and a scene where Meg attends a party where underage people are drinking beer.
Selection Criteria
I read and enjoyed this novel as a teen myself and was excited to read the recent sequel and the updated version released last year. Shows you how a great book really does hold up!
A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libby Bray
A Great and Terrible Beauty
Libby Bray
ISBN 9780385732314
403 pages
Delacorte Press, 2003
Genre: Supernatural
Reader's Annotation:
Sent to live at a school for girls after her mother's mysterious death in 1895, Gemma becomes aware of her supernatural powers and uses them to bring her friends to a spirit realm.
Plot Summary:
It's 1895, and sixteen-year-old Gemma Doyle, who has spent most of her life in India, longs to return to England. After her mother dies in mysterious circumstances, Gemma's family sends her to Spence Academy, a finishing school for girls in London. Gemma finds the environment at Spence stifling; the teachers train the students to be nothing more than obedient wives and mothers, and she immediately makes enemies of powerful Felicity and beautiful Pippa, the two most popular girls at school. Since her mother's death, though, Gemma slowly becomes aware she has magical powers that allow her to glimpse the spirit world. She finds a diary written by two Spence students 20 years ago that details their experiences with similar magical powers.
Miss Moore, Spence's art teacher, urges her students to think for themselves and use their minds. In an art lesson, she teaches the girls about a mythical Order of women, who had the gift of prophecy and could visit the spirit world. Gemma, along with Felicity and Pippa (who have declared a truce), and Gemma's roommate Ann, an unhappy orphan who is at Spence on scholarship, decide to recreate the Order and use the diary to teach them how to do so. They are successful, and in visiting the spirit world, where they can make anything happen, they become unhappier with the restrictions placed on them in their real lives. They try to use the magical powers to change their own lives for the better. They realize, too late, that the diary had hidden secrets and that they may have set into motion actions beyond their control.
Critical Evaluation
Bray has created an interesting mix of genres in this book: while primarily a supernatural story, the historical story also has a strong feminist slant. The girls all struggle with their total lack of power and the limited options available to them. Beautiful Pippa knows she is little more than a marker for her father's gambling debts and will be married off to the first rich man who proposes. Charming Felicity has been all but abandoned by her parents; her father, a famous Admiral, spends all his time at sea, while her mother has run away to Paris and abandoned her family. Clever Ann, who is an outcast as school because of her plain face, dour personality, and scholarship status, knows she will spend her life as a governess for wealthy families, teaching children who will have opportunities in life she's never dared dream of. And Gemma, who has also been largely abandoned by her family, struggles to understand her new powers and is torn between the power and pleasure she gets from using them and the fear that she is playing at games she does not yet fully understand.
The teachers at Spence, too, show the limited options available for women of this era; Miss Moore has chosen not to marry and urges the girls to become vessels for their own opinions and dreams, rather than just reflecting those of their family. Their French teacher, Mlle Defarge, pines after a fiance who never calls, and Brigid, the housekeeper who has been at Spence for years and has observed everything, may hold the key to the truth behind the events in the diary.
The supernatural aspects of the novel underscore its feminist aspects; Miss Moore points out how women with powers have always been feared by the men in power, and a brotherhood of men tries to stop Gemma from further developing her powers. While they are in the spirit realm, the girls use their new powers to exert their influence on the world, creating a life that they themselves have defined, rather than blindly accepting society's narrow definition of what a proper young lady should be.
The friendships between the girls feel modern and fresh; readers will both relate to their struggles with parents and with school and be pleasantly spooked and thrilled by the supernatural elements of the Gothic novel.
Other Novels in the Series
Rebel Angels (2005)
The Sweet Far Thing (2007)
About the Author
In addition to the Gemma Doyle Trilogy, Libby Bray has written short stories in several young adult trilogies. Her newest novel, Going Bovine, was released September 2009 and is described as a comic fantasy novel in the vein of Douglas Adams. Bray, who is American, says she envisioned Gemma as a "heroine who kicks butt and takes names--all in a corset and crinoline."
Curriculum Ties
Women's role in historical society
Booktalking Ideas
1. Describe the social power dynamics at Spence and explain how Gemma and Felicity first are enemies, then become friends. But are they really friends, or just "frenemies"?
2. Describe the limits the four main girls feel have been placed on their lives, what they want to do versus what their families want for them.
3. Talk about Gemma's powers and the supernatural elements of the book.
Reading Interest/Level
9th grade and up
Challenge Issues
The girls sneak whiskey and get drunk. There is some sexual talk, though nothing more happens than a kiss. There is some violence, including the ritual sacrifice of both an animal and a child, as well as strong supernatural content. One character deals with her pain by cutting.
If the book were to be challenged, the librarian should be aware of the library's selection policy and be able to explain and defend it to the challenger. The librarian should ideally read the book and familiarize herself with the controversial content, or she is unable to do that, rely on sites like Common Sense Media (http://www.commonsensemedia.org/) that review media for parents and try to objectively detail the title's content.
The librarian could also point out to the book's positive reviews in professional journals, as well as its multiple awards, including being named a 2006 ALA Best Book for Young Adults.
Selection Criteria
Though you can't judge a book by its cover, I have to admit I was drawn in by the book's title and cover image. While reading the back, I realized that it was a supernatural book (my group presentation genre). When I realized that the book was the first in a popular and well-reviewed trilogy, I decided it was a must-read for this class.
Libby Bray
ISBN 9780385732314
403 pages
Delacorte Press, 2003
Genre: Supernatural
Reader's Annotation:
Sent to live at a school for girls after her mother's mysterious death in 1895, Gemma becomes aware of her supernatural powers and uses them to bring her friends to a spirit realm.
Plot Summary:
It's 1895, and sixteen-year-old Gemma Doyle, who has spent most of her life in India, longs to return to England. After her mother dies in mysterious circumstances, Gemma's family sends her to Spence Academy, a finishing school for girls in London. Gemma finds the environment at Spence stifling; the teachers train the students to be nothing more than obedient wives and mothers, and she immediately makes enemies of powerful Felicity and beautiful Pippa, the two most popular girls at school. Since her mother's death, though, Gemma slowly becomes aware she has magical powers that allow her to glimpse the spirit world. She finds a diary written by two Spence students 20 years ago that details their experiences with similar magical powers.
Miss Moore, Spence's art teacher, urges her students to think for themselves and use their minds. In an art lesson, she teaches the girls about a mythical Order of women, who had the gift of prophecy and could visit the spirit world. Gemma, along with Felicity and Pippa (who have declared a truce), and Gemma's roommate Ann, an unhappy orphan who is at Spence on scholarship, decide to recreate the Order and use the diary to teach them how to do so. They are successful, and in visiting the spirit world, where they can make anything happen, they become unhappier with the restrictions placed on them in their real lives. They try to use the magical powers to change their own lives for the better. They realize, too late, that the diary had hidden secrets and that they may have set into motion actions beyond their control.
Critical Evaluation
Bray has created an interesting mix of genres in this book: while primarily a supernatural story, the historical story also has a strong feminist slant. The girls all struggle with their total lack of power and the limited options available to them. Beautiful Pippa knows she is little more than a marker for her father's gambling debts and will be married off to the first rich man who proposes. Charming Felicity has been all but abandoned by her parents; her father, a famous Admiral, spends all his time at sea, while her mother has run away to Paris and abandoned her family. Clever Ann, who is an outcast as school because of her plain face, dour personality, and scholarship status, knows she will spend her life as a governess for wealthy families, teaching children who will have opportunities in life she's never dared dream of. And Gemma, who has also been largely abandoned by her family, struggles to understand her new powers and is torn between the power and pleasure she gets from using them and the fear that she is playing at games she does not yet fully understand.
The teachers at Spence, too, show the limited options available for women of this era; Miss Moore has chosen not to marry and urges the girls to become vessels for their own opinions and dreams, rather than just reflecting those of their family. Their French teacher, Mlle Defarge, pines after a fiance who never calls, and Brigid, the housekeeper who has been at Spence for years and has observed everything, may hold the key to the truth behind the events in the diary.
The supernatural aspects of the novel underscore its feminist aspects; Miss Moore points out how women with powers have always been feared by the men in power, and a brotherhood of men tries to stop Gemma from further developing her powers. While they are in the spirit realm, the girls use their new powers to exert their influence on the world, creating a life that they themselves have defined, rather than blindly accepting society's narrow definition of what a proper young lady should be.
The friendships between the girls feel modern and fresh; readers will both relate to their struggles with parents and with school and be pleasantly spooked and thrilled by the supernatural elements of the Gothic novel.
Other Novels in the Series
Rebel Angels (2005)
The Sweet Far Thing (2007)
About the Author
In addition to the Gemma Doyle Trilogy, Libby Bray has written short stories in several young adult trilogies. Her newest novel, Going Bovine, was released September 2009 and is described as a comic fantasy novel in the vein of Douglas Adams. Bray, who is American, says she envisioned Gemma as a "heroine who kicks butt and takes names--all in a corset and crinoline."
Curriculum Ties
Women's role in historical society
Booktalking Ideas
1. Describe the social power dynamics at Spence and explain how Gemma and Felicity first are enemies, then become friends. But are they really friends, or just "frenemies"?
2. Describe the limits the four main girls feel have been placed on their lives, what they want to do versus what their families want for them.
3. Talk about Gemma's powers and the supernatural elements of the book.
Reading Interest/Level
9th grade and up
Challenge Issues
The girls sneak whiskey and get drunk. There is some sexual talk, though nothing more happens than a kiss. There is some violence, including the ritual sacrifice of both an animal and a child, as well as strong supernatural content. One character deals with her pain by cutting.
If the book were to be challenged, the librarian should be aware of the library's selection policy and be able to explain and defend it to the challenger. The librarian should ideally read the book and familiarize herself with the controversial content, or she is unable to do that, rely on sites like Common Sense Media (http://www.commonsensemedia.org/) that review media for parents and try to objectively detail the title's content.
The librarian could also point out to the book's positive reviews in professional journals, as well as its multiple awards, including being named a 2006 ALA Best Book for Young Adults.
Selection Criteria
Though you can't judge a book by its cover, I have to admit I was drawn in by the book's title and cover image. While reading the back, I realized that it was a supernatural book (my group presentation genre). When I realized that the book was the first in a popular and well-reviewed trilogy, I decided it was a must-read for this class.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Speak (film), dir. by Jessica Sharzer
Speak
Directed by Jessica Sharzer
ASIN B000A7Q2I2
Running time: 93 minutes
Showtime Entertainment, 2004
Genre: Film; Drama
Viewer's Annotation:
After being raped the summer before her freshman year of high school, Melinda decides to stop speaking.
Plot Summary
Melinda (Kristen Stewart) enters her freshman year of high school as an outcast; her junior high friends have all joined other cliques, but she belongs nowhere. Her parents (Elizabeth Perkins, D.B. Sweeney) are preoccupied with their jobs, and for the most part her teachers seem at best uninspiring and at worst openly hostile. Miserable, Melinda decides no one would notice if she stopped speaking, so she spends the school year selectively mute, speaking as little as possible. In flashbacks, we find out that Melinda was raped shortly before school began and told no one. She called the police intending to report the rape, but incurred the wrath of her peers who assumed she was calling them to bust the underage party where it occurred.
As the school year progresses, Melinda sinks downwards and deeper into depression.The only two bright spots in her life are Mr. Freeman, the art teacher who encourages Melinda to express herself through art, and Dave Petrakis, her lab partner, who convinces her that the only way she can truly rebel is to speak up.
Critical Evaluation
Based on the Laurie Halse Anderson book of the same name (and also reviewed in this blog), the film stays largely true to the events of the book. (Certain small details are changed, such as the location of the rape, probably to make them slightly more cinematic.) Large portions of the dialogue are taken directly from the book. Anderson wrote the book in first person, and much of its text consisted of Bella's unspoken thoughts and observations on the high school world around her. The movie tries to recreate this, largely effectively, through voiceovers and point-of-view shots.
The movie is especially good at depicting the everyday miseries of high school life; like the book, Melinda's observations about the school, her teachers, and classmates are sardonic and spot-on. The movie, however, is not quite as good when it comes to depicting Melinda's family life. Her relationship with her parents is more satisfyingly explored in the book, and we understand more why she never told them about the rape. In the movie, however, we don't get a real sense of them as characters, and we don't understand why Melinda feels so fundmentally betrayed by them.
The character of Mr. Freeman, the art teacher, seems slightly less angry than his book equivalent, yet he is as equally nurturing. Some of the movie's best scenes show Melinda in his classroom, trying to express herself through art.
Because I had read the book just days before watching the movie, it's inevitable that most of my thoughts were about how the two directly compared. As with almost every book-to-film adaptation, the film suffers from not being able to include nearly as much detail about its characters interior lives. However, as it stands alone, the film is wonderful, moving, and funny, with great performances.
About the director:
Jessica Sharzer, the director, also co-wrote the screenplay. Speak has been the biggest release she's directed, though she is currently at work on a Dusty Springfield biopic starring Kristen Chenoweth.
Curriculum ties:
Rape, depression, social alienation, high school social dynamics, art
Viewing Interest/Level:
The film has been rated PG-13 for "mature thematic material involving a teen rape." It's not graphic, and I think it could be recommended for mature junior high students and up.
Challenge Issues
Though it stays very true to the book, I actually think it would be less likely to be challenged as a film than as a book, perhaps because parents tend to understand and appreciate the MPAA rating system. The PG-13 rating is appropriate; there are two scenes of violence, though neither is graphic.
Selection Criteria
I stumbled across this DVD in my library's OPAC, when I was looking for the book. Interesting note: there's recently been revived interest in this film, which was a small, independent release, because the actress who plays Melinda, Kristen Stewart, plays Bella in the films based on the Twilight saga.) There's currently a long wait for it at my local library, so I think it's been discovered both by teens who loved the book and who loved Twilight.
Directed by Jessica Sharzer
ASIN B000A7Q2I2
Running time: 93 minutes
Showtime Entertainment, 2004
Genre: Film; Drama
Viewer's Annotation:
After being raped the summer before her freshman year of high school, Melinda decides to stop speaking.
Plot Summary
Melinda (Kristen Stewart) enters her freshman year of high school as an outcast; her junior high friends have all joined other cliques, but she belongs nowhere. Her parents (Elizabeth Perkins, D.B. Sweeney) are preoccupied with their jobs, and for the most part her teachers seem at best uninspiring and at worst openly hostile. Miserable, Melinda decides no one would notice if she stopped speaking, so she spends the school year selectively mute, speaking as little as possible. In flashbacks, we find out that Melinda was raped shortly before school began and told no one. She called the police intending to report the rape, but incurred the wrath of her peers who assumed she was calling them to bust the underage party where it occurred.
As the school year progresses, Melinda sinks downwards and deeper into depression.The only two bright spots in her life are Mr. Freeman, the art teacher who encourages Melinda to express herself through art, and Dave Petrakis, her lab partner, who convinces her that the only way she can truly rebel is to speak up.
Critical Evaluation
Based on the Laurie Halse Anderson book of the same name (and also reviewed in this blog), the film stays largely true to the events of the book. (Certain small details are changed, such as the location of the rape, probably to make them slightly more cinematic.) Large portions of the dialogue are taken directly from the book. Anderson wrote the book in first person, and much of its text consisted of Bella's unspoken thoughts and observations on the high school world around her. The movie tries to recreate this, largely effectively, through voiceovers and point-of-view shots.
The movie is especially good at depicting the everyday miseries of high school life; like the book, Melinda's observations about the school, her teachers, and classmates are sardonic and spot-on. The movie, however, is not quite as good when it comes to depicting Melinda's family life. Her relationship with her parents is more satisfyingly explored in the book, and we understand more why she never told them about the rape. In the movie, however, we don't get a real sense of them as characters, and we don't understand why Melinda feels so fundmentally betrayed by them.
The character of Mr. Freeman, the art teacher, seems slightly less angry than his book equivalent, yet he is as equally nurturing. Some of the movie's best scenes show Melinda in his classroom, trying to express herself through art.
Because I had read the book just days before watching the movie, it's inevitable that most of my thoughts were about how the two directly compared. As with almost every book-to-film adaptation, the film suffers from not being able to include nearly as much detail about its characters interior lives. However, as it stands alone, the film is wonderful, moving, and funny, with great performances.
About the director:
Jessica Sharzer, the director, also co-wrote the screenplay. Speak has been the biggest release she's directed, though she is currently at work on a Dusty Springfield biopic starring Kristen Chenoweth.
Curriculum ties:
Rape, depression, social alienation, high school social dynamics, art
Viewing Interest/Level:
The film has been rated PG-13 for "mature thematic material involving a teen rape." It's not graphic, and I think it could be recommended for mature junior high students and up.
Challenge Issues
Though it stays very true to the book, I actually think it would be less likely to be challenged as a film than as a book, perhaps because parents tend to understand and appreciate the MPAA rating system. The PG-13 rating is appropriate; there are two scenes of violence, though neither is graphic.
Selection Criteria
I stumbled across this DVD in my library's OPAC, when I was looking for the book. Interesting note: there's recently been revived interest in this film, which was a small, independent release, because the actress who plays Melinda, Kristen Stewart, plays Bella in the films based on the Twilight saga.) There's currently a long wait for it at my local library, so I think it's been discovered both by teens who loved the book and who loved Twilight.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Impossible by Nancy Werlin
Impossible
Nancy Werlin
ISBN 9780803730021
376 pages
Genre: Faerie
Reader's Annotation
With the help of her boyfriend and foster parents, Lucy Scarborough must solve impossible riddles to reverse the curse an evil faerie has placed upon her mother and generations of Scarborough women.
Plot Summary
Lucy Scarborough is a typical junior; she's been raised her whole life by her loving and devoted foster parents, though her mother, who is insane, appears from time to time on the periphery of her life, always singing the old folk song "Are You Going to Scarbourough Fair?" At her junior prom, Lucy is visited and raped by an evil fairy, the Elfin Knight, who impregnates her and tells her of her fate: he has cursed countless women in her family. They all become teenage mothers and have all descended into madness. The only chance Lucy has of escaping her fate is by completing three impossible tasks detailed in the song "Scarborough Fair": make a magical shirt without seams or needlework; find an acre of land between the salt water and the sea strand; and to plow that land with a goat's horn and sow it all with one grain of corn.
Lucy, however, has one thing on her side that none of her ancestors did. Her foster parents believe her fantastical story and are determined to help her; so does the boy next door, Zach. Lucy has also found a diary left for her by her mother and written before she went crazy, that may contain clues that will help her solve the riddles.
Critical Evaluation
This was an incredibly clever conceit for a book. Werlin has crafted an intriguing structure for her story, and it's especially clever how she uses the already exisiting song of "Scarborough Fair" to draw in the reader. She seamlessly balances the fantastical elements of the story in with a very realistic and recognizable high school world. Werlin has made Lucy into a very pragmatic, skeptical character; by having Lucy directly address whether or not her story can possible be real, Werlin helps the reader suspend belief, too.
The puzzles are fun for the reader to work on, and the answers to them are satisfying. Though they are old fairy tale tasks, Lucy, Zach, and her parents use very modern resources and techniques to solve them. It's a largely wonderful book. However, Werlin spends a little too much time setting up her story; its progression and resolution seem slightly rushed.
About the author
Nancy Werlin, a National Book Award finalist for her previous book, The Rules of Survival, has written a number of popular and critically acclaimed young adult novels. Impossible is her first foray into the world of romance and fantasy; her previous books have been tightly crafted thrillers.
Curriculum Ties
None
Booktalking Ideas
1. Start out by playing or singing a bit of "Scarborough Fair," and then explain how Lucy must complete the three impossible tasks contained in the song.
2. In the booktalk, convey the dual nature of the book by equally focusing on Lucy's everyday teenage problems and the fantastical fairy tale element of this book.
3. Focus on the romance between Lucy and Zach.
Reading Interest/Level: 8th grade and up
Challenge Issues
Lucy is supernaturally raped. There is also a teenage wedding and the insinuation that Lucy will be turned into the Elfin Knight's sex slave for all eternity.
If this book is challenged, the librarian should read it if possible; if not, s/he should read as many professional reviews as possible of the book, as well as read about it on a site like Common Sense Media, that lists all of the details that might possible be controversial.
The librarian should be able to present and defend the library's collection policy to the challenger and explain how the book meets those criteria. S/he could point out Nancy Werlin's many previous awards, the many glowing reviews this book has received (starred reviews in both Kirkus and School Library Review), and its inclusion of several best of the year book lists already.
Selection Criteria
This book was singled out as "Outstanding" by four separate librarians in the Association for Children's Librarians of Northern California, which intrigued me. I also was very interested in the idea of a teen fantasy novel set in a very realistic setting.
Nancy Werlin
ISBN 9780803730021
376 pages
Genre: Faerie
Reader's Annotation
With the help of her boyfriend and foster parents, Lucy Scarborough must solve impossible riddles to reverse the curse an evil faerie has placed upon her mother and generations of Scarborough women.
Plot Summary
Lucy Scarborough is a typical junior; she's been raised her whole life by her loving and devoted foster parents, though her mother, who is insane, appears from time to time on the periphery of her life, always singing the old folk song "Are You Going to Scarbourough Fair?" At her junior prom, Lucy is visited and raped by an evil fairy, the Elfin Knight, who impregnates her and tells her of her fate: he has cursed countless women in her family. They all become teenage mothers and have all descended into madness. The only chance Lucy has of escaping her fate is by completing three impossible tasks detailed in the song "Scarborough Fair": make a magical shirt without seams or needlework; find an acre of land between the salt water and the sea strand; and to plow that land with a goat's horn and sow it all with one grain of corn.
Lucy, however, has one thing on her side that none of her ancestors did. Her foster parents believe her fantastical story and are determined to help her; so does the boy next door, Zach. Lucy has also found a diary left for her by her mother and written before she went crazy, that may contain clues that will help her solve the riddles.
Critical Evaluation
This was an incredibly clever conceit for a book. Werlin has crafted an intriguing structure for her story, and it's especially clever how she uses the already exisiting song of "Scarborough Fair" to draw in the reader. She seamlessly balances the fantastical elements of the story in with a very realistic and recognizable high school world. Werlin has made Lucy into a very pragmatic, skeptical character; by having Lucy directly address whether or not her story can possible be real, Werlin helps the reader suspend belief, too.
The puzzles are fun for the reader to work on, and the answers to them are satisfying. Though they are old fairy tale tasks, Lucy, Zach, and her parents use very modern resources and techniques to solve them. It's a largely wonderful book. However, Werlin spends a little too much time setting up her story; its progression and resolution seem slightly rushed.
About the author
Nancy Werlin, a National Book Award finalist for her previous book, The Rules of Survival, has written a number of popular and critically acclaimed young adult novels. Impossible is her first foray into the world of romance and fantasy; her previous books have been tightly crafted thrillers.
Curriculum Ties
None
Booktalking Ideas
1. Start out by playing or singing a bit of "Scarborough Fair," and then explain how Lucy must complete the three impossible tasks contained in the song.
2. In the booktalk, convey the dual nature of the book by equally focusing on Lucy's everyday teenage problems and the fantastical fairy tale element of this book.
3. Focus on the romance between Lucy and Zach.
Reading Interest/Level: 8th grade and up
Challenge Issues
Lucy is supernaturally raped. There is also a teenage wedding and the insinuation that Lucy will be turned into the Elfin Knight's sex slave for all eternity.
If this book is challenged, the librarian should read it if possible; if not, s/he should read as many professional reviews as possible of the book, as well as read about it on a site like Common Sense Media, that lists all of the details that might possible be controversial.
The librarian should be able to present and defend the library's collection policy to the challenger and explain how the book meets those criteria. S/he could point out Nancy Werlin's many previous awards, the many glowing reviews this book has received (starred reviews in both Kirkus and School Library Review), and its inclusion of several best of the year book lists already.
Selection Criteria
This book was singled out as "Outstanding" by four separate librarians in the Association for Children's Librarians of Northern California, which intrigued me. I also was very interested in the idea of a teen fantasy novel set in a very realistic setting.
Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
Speak
Laurie Halse Anderson
ISBN 0374371520
198 pages
Farrar Straus Giroux, 1999
Genre: Issue Novel
Reader's Annotation
After she is raped, 13-year-old Melinda retreats in silence, speaking as little as possible in school and at home.
Plot Summary
Melinda starts her freshman year at Merriweather High School as an outsider; she alienated most of the high school when she called the cops during a wild party over the summer. What Melinda never told anyone--not her best friend Rachel, not her parents--was that she was raped by a senior that night, but when it came time to tell the police, she clammed up and could not speak. In her pain, Melinda wonders if anyone would notice if she stopped speaking altogether. Her silence leads her to be an astute and often funny observer of human nature: her distracted, unhappy parents, the teachers who'd rather be elsewhere, the various social cliques.
Her art teacher seems to be the only one urging students to express their real emotions, and through art, Melinda finds a new way of self-expression. The book, which takes place over the course of a year, details both the depths of Melinda's pain and the promise of recovery.
Critical Summary
Speak is at once haunting and funny, painful and redemptive. In her masterful first-person narrative, Anderson is completely effective at evoking Melinda's head-space and getting the reader to understand how and why Melinda has gone silent.
She creates a deep cast of characters that all ring true, that people will recognize from their own high school: the spacey English teacher who tries anything to reach her students, the teacher who's more interested in promoting his own personal agenda, the principal who only cares about keeping the PTA parents happy. The students, too: the best friend from junior high who tries to reinvent herself as a freshman, the friend of convenience who only cares what she can get from you, the smart, principled boy you admire from afar, the jock girl you want to hate but can't because she's so genuinely friendly.
Anderson takes some risk with sentence structure and wordplay, which adds a bit of poetry to the prose. Her descriptions of Melinda's art is especially effective; we understand how, in learning how to express herself through an emotionally true piece of art, she takes baby steps towards expressing her truth verbally.
About the author
Anderson has written a number of books for children and young adults. Many of her young adult novels have been incredibly well-received critically. She's won numerous awards. She often deals with themes of depression and death in her novels, which are equally contemporary and historical. Speak was her first novel.
Curriculum ties
Rape, depression, alienation, art
Booktalking Ideas
1. If you are doing a booktalk with another person, have one person stand up there silent while the other person "voice overs" the booktalk from Melinda's point of view.
2. Talk about Melinda's first day of high school and her feelings of apprehension.
3. Talk about the role of art class in high school and in Melinda's recovery.
Reading Interest/Level
Because of the subject matter, I'd rate it at 9th grade or above.
Challenge Issues
The subject matter of rape could be challenged. There are some swears, some teenage drinking (Melinda is drunk when she is raped), and some violence (Melinda is attacked again at the end of the book). While trying to deal with her pain, Melinda spends her freshman year as a delinquent, cutting classes and failing most of her classes.
If the book were challenged, the librarian should read the book, if possible, and if not, familiarize herself with it through various professional reviews and through sites like Common Sense Media, which list many of the possibly controversial details of the work.
The librarian should also be familiar with the library's collection criteria and be able to explain to the challenger why the book fits the policy. She could show the challenger any of the many positive reviews Speak has earned and show its placement on a number of lists of best books for young adults. She could also point out that it was a Printz Honor Book.
Selection Criteria
I noticed this book has been mentioned in many of the readings we've had for the class as almost the paragon of the perfect modern young adult novel. After reading and loving Anderson's Wintergirls, I had to read her best-known work.
Laurie Halse Anderson
ISBN 0374371520
198 pages
Farrar Straus Giroux, 1999
Genre: Issue Novel
Reader's Annotation
After she is raped, 13-year-old Melinda retreats in silence, speaking as little as possible in school and at home.
Plot Summary
Melinda starts her freshman year at Merriweather High School as an outsider; she alienated most of the high school when she called the cops during a wild party over the summer. What Melinda never told anyone--not her best friend Rachel, not her parents--was that she was raped by a senior that night, but when it came time to tell the police, she clammed up and could not speak. In her pain, Melinda wonders if anyone would notice if she stopped speaking altogether. Her silence leads her to be an astute and often funny observer of human nature: her distracted, unhappy parents, the teachers who'd rather be elsewhere, the various social cliques.
Her art teacher seems to be the only one urging students to express their real emotions, and through art, Melinda finds a new way of self-expression. The book, which takes place over the course of a year, details both the depths of Melinda's pain and the promise of recovery.
Critical Summary
Speak is at once haunting and funny, painful and redemptive. In her masterful first-person narrative, Anderson is completely effective at evoking Melinda's head-space and getting the reader to understand how and why Melinda has gone silent.
She creates a deep cast of characters that all ring true, that people will recognize from their own high school: the spacey English teacher who tries anything to reach her students, the teacher who's more interested in promoting his own personal agenda, the principal who only cares about keeping the PTA parents happy. The students, too: the best friend from junior high who tries to reinvent herself as a freshman, the friend of convenience who only cares what she can get from you, the smart, principled boy you admire from afar, the jock girl you want to hate but can't because she's so genuinely friendly.
Anderson takes some risk with sentence structure and wordplay, which adds a bit of poetry to the prose. Her descriptions of Melinda's art is especially effective; we understand how, in learning how to express herself through an emotionally true piece of art, she takes baby steps towards expressing her truth verbally.
About the author
Anderson has written a number of books for children and young adults. Many of her young adult novels have been incredibly well-received critically. She's won numerous awards. She often deals with themes of depression and death in her novels, which are equally contemporary and historical. Speak was her first novel.
Curriculum ties
Booktalking Ideas
1. If you are doing a booktalk with another person, have one person stand up there silent while the other person "voice overs" the booktalk from Melinda's point of view.
2. Talk about Melinda's first day of high school and her feelings of apprehension.
3. Talk about the role of art class in high school and in Melinda's recovery.
Reading Interest/Level
Because of the subject matter, I'd rate it at 9th grade or above.
Challenge Issues
The subject matter of rape could be challenged. There are some swears, some teenage drinking (Melinda is drunk when she is raped), and some violence (Melinda is attacked again at the end of the book). While trying to deal with her pain, Melinda spends her freshman year as a delinquent, cutting classes and failing most of her classes.
If the book were challenged, the librarian should read the book, if possible, and if not, familiarize herself with it through various professional reviews and through sites like Common Sense Media, which list many of the possibly controversial details of the work.
The librarian should also be familiar with the library's collection criteria and be able to explain to the challenger why the book fits the policy. She could show the challenger any of the many positive reviews Speak has earned and show its placement on a number of lists of best books for young adults. She could also point out that it was a Printz Honor Book.
Selection Criteria
I noticed this book has been mentioned in many of the readings we've had for the class as almost the paragon of the perfect modern young adult novel. After reading and loving Anderson's Wintergirls, I had to read her best-known work.
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