808.899283 (Adolescent Literature) - Week Four

Slowly but surely catching up - maybe I'll be all caught up before the semester ends... maybe not. Here's hoping. In the mean time, I'm going to be employed this school year, so that's a plus. Also, I'm going to be a home owner in a little over a month. Also a plus. So much going for me right now, it feels pretty ridiculous!

Anywhoo, books and theme for week four of YA Literature, right? Theme this week was Friendships and the books were Benjamin Alire Saenz's Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe and Pinned by Sharon Flake. Links are to the Goodreads descriptions for the two books, as always.

3 Delights for Aristotle and Dante...

1. I love a good love story, especially one that seems so improbable (NOT impossible). I really can't help but cheer for both of the boys in this book. Yay, LOVE!
2. The writing is pretty solid! There's a great use of metaphor/simile and allusion(I mean, come on, the boys are named Aristotle and Dante, how could there NOT be?), and I can't help but smile at how the the author really makes the book a little "magical". No, reality isn't like this, but we wish it was.
3. The book deals with some pretty serious issues in really fantastic ways (including homosexuality, teenage relationships, hate crimes, and racial identity issues). And it's humorous and definitely doesn't take itself too seriously. I laughed with this book and held back tears with this book. It was fantastic.

3 Defects for Aristotle and Dante...

1. So maybe the way in which Aristotle figures out he's in love with Dante is a little "fake". It could really rip a person out of the story - it didn't bother me, though, but I could see how it might be a turn off for some readers. I just thought it was funny and as an adult who's seen kiddos in need of this guidance, I could relate with the parents.
2. No, real people don't talk to each other like that. Especially teenage boys, but we'll let it go because both boys are "readers" and "artists", right?
3. There are typos in this book, which KILL ME. Ugh. PROOFING needed to be better for this book, but I overlooked it because I was interested in the story more than I cared about typos.

3 Delights for Pinned

1. The book definitely has voice, I've got to give it that. Flake wrote a main character who definitely has spunk and an emotional background and her writing reflects the character's voice well.
2. A great high-low reader overall. Even though this wasn't the book for me, I could definitely see where the audience for this book is and who I could recommend this book to.
3. It's nice to see a female athlete in a male dominated sport portrayed in a novel for teens. This definitely isn't a subject that come up often in books with a romance story.

3 Defects for Pinned

1. Let me be honest. I didn't like this book much.I think the biggest issue I had with this book was the super aggressive way in which Autumn goes after Adonis. If the roles had been reversed and it had been boy chasing girl, I think quite a few people would say "woah, hold up. He's totally stalking her!" and they'd take issue. Some of my classmates tried to point out that the age of the characters is pretty young and so the relationship is going to be pretty immature, but I really hated it.
2. What was the point of some of the extra characters in this book? No, really. Why did we include some of the teachers or coaches or even parents in this book? They felt pretty one-dimensional and I didn't understand the point of some of them.
3. Maybe it's because I'm NOT the intended audience, but I definitely had a hard time connecting to the characters in this book. 

All said and done, that wraps up week four in YA Literature. More posts to come as time allows. 

808.899283 (Adolescent Literature) - Week Two

Yes, it's week eight of the semester. Yes, I'm JUST posting about week two. I'm unapologetic. Life is crazy, especially now that Oklahoma is officially opened at LaFollette High School.

Week Two's theme for YA Literature for week two was "Identity and Graphic Novels". For this week, we read two graphic novels: March: Book 1 by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell and Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol.

March: Book One is a non-fiction graphic novel about Congressman John Lewis' life being a young adult during the Civil Rights era and what it was like to be a part of lunch counter sit-ins and non-violent marches. The graphic novel pops back and forth between Congressman Lewis preparing for President Obama's inauguration and what he experienced as a member of the Civil Rights Movement.

3 Delights for March: Book One

1. The illustration in this book is powerful and done in completely black and white. It really tells the story in a unique way that makes the book more powerful than it might have been as a non-graphic novel.

2. The book does a great job showing all sides of the Civil Rights Movement - not just Martin Luther King, Jr., but also some of the other leaders, how students participating in marches and sit-ins practiced terrorizing one another to learn how to not react when white community members might do similar things, and how to protect themselves in the face of violence. It's also a great way to tie history to the present, as John Lewis is a real-live Congressman.

3. March is part of a series focused on the Civil Rights Movement. I'm excited to see the next few graphic novels when they are released.

3 Defects for March: Book One

1. It's a positive-negative, folks. The illustrations really ask readers to practice some higher visual literacy skills - there are some pages that follow typical panel format, but there are others that blow the typical panel format out of the water. This might be harder for first time graphic novel readers to understand and follow.

2. I wonder what color would have done to the illustrations - I think that the "shades of grey" produced by black and white illustration is great, but I think this could have been really powerful in color, too.

3. There are depictions of violence in this book! It's the Civil Rights Era, and there was violence against African-American citizens, so it's only right. I think it's done tastefully, but it is something to consider when recommending this book.

Anya's Ghost is a supernatural fiction graphic novel, focused around Anya, a young Russian emigre student who is having a hard time fitting in at school. When Anya falls down a deep hole, she finds herself faced with a haunted girl's skeleton. The ghost girl, Emily, trapped in the hole for 90 years since her death, makes friends with Anya and travels home with her when Anya is rescued. Emily the ghost intially starts off as a blessing in disguise - she helps Anya with homework, talks about her secret crush with her, and even helps her learn how to dress better and talk to others. But Emily isn't all sweetness, and Anya soon discovers that she's befriended a spirit more sinister than she thought.

3 Delights for Anya's Ghost

1. This graphic novel deals well with the themes of fitting in and discovering your true identity. It's great to see the immigrant experience dealt with in a YA graphic novel.

2. The illustrations are FANTASTIC - they're all done in a blue/violet tinted grayscale, which for the suspense/horror side of this graphic novel works particularly well. It's also interesting to watch the changes that happen to Emily's character throughout the novel. 

3. Easy to follow panels, this is a great "first-timers" graphic novel. It's very easy to follow the layout and the pictures clearly express what is happening in the story.

3 Defects for Anya's Ghost

1. It's PRETTY girly. You might be hard pressed to get a boy to read this graphic novel. I mean, even the black and white images have a purple tint. Male fans of Babymouse! might pick this up, though.

2. The very easy, basic panel structure might get boring for a more advanced graphic novel reader. They'll fly through this one quickly.

3. I don't know if I love how body image is dealt with in this book. It's find overall, but I wonder if it couldn't be better.

Fic Qui (Reviewing "Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock")

Hoo boy. How do you talk about "Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock" by Matthew Quick? The book is disturbing, to be sure, but it has a sense of humor, a deep self-depreciation, and a wonderful back and forth dialogue.

A quick summary for you: Leonard is a bit different. He loves Hamlet by Shakespeare and movies with Humphrey Bogart. He sometimes skips school to pretend to be an adult, dressing in his "funeral suit" to follow the most miserable adult on the bus wherever they're going. And on the day of his eighteenth birthday, he decides that he is going to take his grandfather's WWII war trophy, a P-38 Nazi handgun, and kill both his former best friend, Asher, and himself. But before he decides to "shuffle off this mortal coil", he wants to deliver gifts to those who have meant the most to him: his Bogie loving neighbor, Walt, a violin playing classmate from Iran named Baback, a home schooled student, Lauren, and his history of the holocaust teacher, Herr Silverman. As he delivers his last gifts, Leonard slowly reveals his secrets and what has led to his startling decision to commit murder-suicide.

Yes, this book is a little depressing. Yes, this book is a little disturbing. Yes, this book is DEFINITELY for a more adult reader. Between the subject matter, the language (the f-bomb is dropped numerous times), and the general mental stability of our main character, the book is great for a more advanced, more mature reader.

Five Defects

1. This book has sporadic footnotes. I don't mind reading a novel or info book with a plethora of foot notes (I mean, I'm a Mary Roach fan for goodness sakes), but the foot notes exist in the beginning of the book and suddenly no longer exist! Where did they go?
2. I disliked the portrayal of some teachers in the novel. Granted, I take it with a grain of salt - it's teachers from a student's perspective. But I distinctly dislike the portrayal of female educators in this book. It doesn't ruin it for me, though. That and the whole idea of "mandatory reporting" is NOT done in this book.
3. Ugh. Leonard's mother is SO messed up.
4. I understand the letters, I do. They almost made me feel that the book was going to go Sci-Fi on me instead of realistic fiction, though.
5. Why isn't there a firm ending? WHY? I want there to be something a little more firm, but I think the ending is beautiful in its own way.

Five Delights

1. Oh, the humor! It's what makes the serious, really dark subject matter of this book bearable. Without the laughs here and there, the book would be too depressing to read.
2. The book keeps you guessing and doesn't really let you know what's happening until the end. I love how it unfolds as the story progresses.
3. Oh, Herr Silverman. That is a teacher, folks. That is a teacher.
4. The book has a very authentic voice. Matthew Quick obviously understands trauma and mental illness very well. I appreciate a book dealing with some serious mental issues that doesn't handle it like a traditional "mental illness" book.
5. The book messed with my mind and I love a novel like that. As things unfold, I kept on being surprised, turned around, and off balance. I really enjoy that.