Book
Notes # 17
Garden, N. (1982). Annie
on my mind. New York, NY: Farrar Straus Giroux
Summary: Eliza “Liza” Winthrop is a senior and student council
president at Foster Academy. Liza meets
an intriguing new friend, Annie Kenyon, and their relationship quickly develops
into love. Liza gets the opportunity to pet sit for her teachers, Ms. Stevenson
and Ms. Widmer, while they are on vacation.
With the house all to themselves Liza and Annie are spending lots of
alone time together. Sally, a fellow
student, starts to worry about Liza when she misses an important meeting. Sally alerts Ms. Baxter, the school secretary
and nosy neighbor, who forces her way into the house and finds Liza and Annie in
a compromising position. Ms. Baxter snoops
around the house and confirms her suspicions that Ms. Stevenson and Ms. Widmer
are lesbians. As a result, Ms. Stevenson
and Ms. Widmer are fired and Liza is publicly outed for her affair with Annie. Liza fears rejection from others for loving
Annie. Ultimately, she decides losing
Annie is too great a price to pay.
Response: Annie on My
Mind is a realistic fiction novel ideal for readers 9th grade
and up. Gardner did an excellent job of
telling a sincere love story. I truly feel
for Liza and Annie and found myself rooting for them. Liza and Annie both struggle with honesty. Annie knew she was gay and could admit it to
herself, just not to others. Liza could
not admit the truth to herself much less other people. Liza was meandering down a path of self-discovery.
This book is not going to be a mirror for all as it relates to homosexuality,
but I think everyone can relate to experiencing a source of shame or
embarrassment in their lives. In this
way the book is relatable to all. This
book provides an example of Liza being courageous in sharing her true self with
others. Albeit she was forced, but
sometimes that’s what it takes. People
are very reluctant to be reveal a personal source of shame. The truth will set you free, even if it’s difficult
to reveal. It is a lot like ripping off
a Band-aid. The thought of doing it is much
worse than the reality and what a relief it is when it’s over. Follow the link for a book trailer for Annie on My Mind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppRtHPFXzzk&t=29s.
Type of text: Required
Book
Notes # 18
Kidd, C. (2013). Go: A
Kidd’s guide to graphic design. New York, NY: Workman Publishing
Summary: Go: A Kidd’s
Guide to Graphic Design is ideal for middle grades and up. Go
is a nonfiction book about graphic design.
This introduction to graphic design gives the history of graphic design,
explains the basic components, and its functions. Graphic design serves to solve a problem
through visual communication of information, which includes a combination of
color, form, text, image, and content. Kidd explains how various forms and typography
affect the message that a graphic design communicates. This book also contains ten simple introductory
design projects to get you started as a designer.
Response: I found the history of graphic design
fascinating. Kidd’s graphic design
timeline dates to 15,000-10,000 B.C. with primitive cave paintings found in
France. Graphic design is wonderful
because it allows people to leave a legacy long after they are gone. In the past six centuries we’ve seen rapid
advancement in graphic design due to technology. It started
was the printing press in the 1500s, then photographs in the 1800s, computer
and software in the 1900s, and now web based graphic design applications. This book was published in 2013. In the world
of books that is considered recent, but not as it relates to rapidly evolving technology.
These days technology seems to develop
overnight. Now anyone can feel like a skilled
graphic designer with web-based applications like Canva, Picktochart, BeFunky, Vectr,
etc. Just conduct an internet search for
free graphic design and you will retrieve more options than you expect. This
book taught me many things I didn’t know about graphic design and has inspired
me develop a logo for myself (Design Project #7).
Type of text: Required
Book
Notes # 19
Myers, W.D. (1999). Monster.
New York, NY: Harper Tempest
Summary: Sixteen year-old Steve Harmon is on trial for felony
murder. Steve tells of his experience of
being on trial as a film written and directed by himself. The prosecutor accuses Steve and James King
of being monsters and accomplices to a robbery which ended in the murder of a
Harlem drugstore owner, Mr. Nesbitt. Richard
“Bobo” Evans, the admitted killer, is serving jail time for other crimes and is
naming Steve and James as accomplices to get a reduced sentence. Being in jail and on trail is taking its toll
on Steve. He is starting to wonder if he is the monster he
is accused of being. The jury finds
Steve innocent. Why does Steve’s lawyer deny
him a celebratory hug after the verdict was read? Why did his father move away and
become so distant? He has been proven
innocent in a court of law, but the damage to his reputation has been done. Steve is labeled a monster.
Response: Monster
is a realistic fiction novel ideal for middle grade readers. Throughout the book Steve frequently mentions
wanting to be tough like the other boys in his neighborhood. He looked up to them and wanted to be like
them. Steve’s experience in jail makes
him realize he does not want to be tough at the expense of his freedom. The
film is a metaphor for Steve’s life. He
may be the actor and director of the film, but in the end the viewer makes the
final judgement. Steve’s fate is beyond
his control and left in the hands of the lawyers, judge, and jury. Steve is powerless to determine his own outcome. After the trial Steve tries to rediscover himself
through his films. Steve films himself
from different angles, using different voices, wearing different clothes, and telling
the camera who he is and what he is about.
Steve desperately wants people to see the good in him. Does Steve really know who he is? Is Steve starting to believe he is a
monster? How can he change what people
think of him? Being on trial for murder
has permanently changed Steve’s image and he hopes to use his films to make people
think differently of him. Follow the link for a book trailer, video with Dean
Myers, and teaching materials for Monster
https://www.tes.com/lessons/nv2Ln3aEtLlRxQ/beyond-the-book-monster-by-walter-dean-myers.
Type of text: Required
Book
Notes # 20
Crutcher, C. (2009). Angry
Management. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books
Summary: Angry Magagement
contains three novellas with various characters from Crutcher’s pervious
novels. Mr. Nakatani has been hired by
Global Community Health as a guidance counselor for a group of at risk high school
students. The students in Mr. Nak’s
Angry Mangement group are asked to do one thing, tell their story. Sarah Byrnes and Angus Bethune tell their
story of falling in love inspite of their physical characteristics that make
them feel unlovable. Montana West and
Trey Chase tell their story of uniting to challenge the school board after
several stories Montana wrote for the school paper are scensored. Marcus James, a homosexual black male, and
Matt Miller are unexpected friends. Matt
comes to Marcus’s aide after a mysterious pink noose is hung on Marcus’s locker. The admistration wants to sweep the situation
under the rug, but Matt Miller speaks up knowing it is the right thing to do.
Response: Angry
Management is a realistic fiction novel ideal for readers 9th
grade and up. Crutcher fuses multiples
characters from previous novels into three short stories with different
characters and plots. Yet all three
stories are brought together because the characters are a part of Mr. Nak’s
Angry Management group. This is an
unconventional idea for a novel. I have
not read any of Crutcher’s books before reading this one. In this case, the forward in Angry Management was essential to my
understanding of the book and characters.
For each of the novellas Crutcher, by way of Mr. Nak, gave specific
information on each character. This
synopsis along with sufficient back story in each of the novellas allowed me to
follow along with each story without being confused. Fusing three stories together allowed
Crutcher to address multiple social issues in one novel; like racism, homosexuality,
sex, adoption, physical insecurities, etc.
View a trailer for the book here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnwQhl81CuQ. For a reading group discussion guide follow
the link http://www.chriscrutcher.com/uploads/1/0/9/8/1098293/angry_management_rgg.pdf.
Type of text: Author Chris Crutcher
Book
Notes # 21
Block, F.L. (1989). Weetzie
Bat. New York, NY: HarperCollins
Summary: Weetzie Bat
and her best friend Dirk are looking for love.
That changes when Dirk’s grandmother, Fifi, gives Weetzie a golden container
with a wish granting genie. Weetzie
wishes for a Duck for Dirk, My Secret Agent Lover Man for herself, and a beautiful
house for them to live happily ever after.
All wishes come true, but do they live happily ever after? After My
Secret Agent Lover Man refuses to have a child with Weetzie, she decides to conceive
a child with Dirk and Duck. This upsets My
Secret Agent Lover Man and he has an affair and conceives a child with a witch. Weetzie, My Secret Agent Lover Man, Dirk, and
Duck decide to raise both children as their own. Duck leaves fearing his love will cause Dirk
to become sick and die. Dirk tracks him
down, they reunite, and he rejoins the family.
Response: Weetzie Bat
is a fictional book. It contains a few
unrealistic elements, such as a wish grating genie and witches. With a few unrealistic elements mixed in with
an otherwise realistic story, this book would be considered magical realism. It is challenging trying to identify the ideal
age reader for this book. The book is
written in a style that would be most appealing to a middle grader, but the
content of the book is beyond their maturity. An older reader is equipped to handle the content
but might not enjoy the juvenile writing style.
The content and the writing style of this book are disconnected. Concerns arise like pregnancy, adultery, abortion,
suicide, AIDS but they are not addressed in any substantial way. Weetzie seems fine with just about everything,
Dirk breaking up with her because he’s gay (early in the book), her secret three
some with Dirk and Duck to conceive a child, and My Secret Agent Lover Man affair
with a witch. Anyone of those events
would be devastating. Not Weetzie, she
is totally fine with it all. The one
exception in this book is when Weetzie’s father dies. Block describes Weetzie’s sadness, “grief is
different. Weetzie’s heart cringed in her like a dying animal. It was as if someone had stuck a needle full
of poison into her heart. She moved like
a sleepwalker. She was the girl in the fairy
tale sleeping in a prison of thorns and roses.”
This is a tragic situation that
the author addressed well. Block is the
master of similes and included many throughout the book. One of my favorites was when she described My
Secret Agent Lover Man’s arms, “The veins pulsed with blue peace like rivers
that lead to a mountain lake.” Block
uses descriptive similes in a very poetic way.
This must be why readers fall in love with Weetzie Bat. Read on to find
out more in the Dangerous Angels: Weetzie Bat book series.
Type of text: Author Francesca Lia Block
Book
Notes # 22
Westerfeld, S. (2017). Spill
Zone. New York, NY: First Second
Summary: The Po’Town Spill is a mysterious event that left
Po’Town a complete paranormal waste land.
The event turned all the inhabitants, except for the lucky few, into partially
alive mostly dead meat puppets. Now no
one enters or leaves Po’Town, except for Addison. Addison sneaks in at night to take photographs
of the paranormal activities of the Spill Zone to support her and her sister,
Lexa. Tan’ea Vandersloot, a collector of
Addison’s art, offers Addison $1,000,000 to retrieve a small slightly
radioactive box from the hospital. This
simple task requires Addison to break all the rules she follows to keep herself
safe in the Spill Zone. She worries she
might see her parents’ meat puppet bodies or get attacked by a crazy mutated
animal creature. After retrieving the
box and bringing it home Addison realizes the box has special powers. Addison may have unleashed the Spill Zone
beyond Po’Town. To be continued.
Response: Spill Zone
is graphic novel ideal for grades 9 and up.
The dark and bizarre story line engaged me from start to finish. The book starts with Addison preparing for a
trip into the Spill Zone taking Vespertine, Lexa’s creepy doll, with her. Vespertine gets recharged during the trips to the
Spill Zone and this enables her to telepathically communicate with Lexa. I noticed the author indicated their telepathic
conversation using special dialogue boxes.
Vespertine speech was in a gagged black dialogue box, while Lexa’s were
yellow. All other spoken dialogue was in
white dialogue boxes. I suspect the
author used Vespertine’s dialogue box to elude to her more sinister nature. I think she will be an antagonist in the
sequel. The clear antagonist in this book
is the Spill Zone. Addison needs the
Spill Zone to survive, but the Spill Zone fights her every step of the
way. The author peaked my interest from
the very beginning of the story by giving no definitive explanation as to what
caused the Spill. It could have been a nanotech accident, alien visitation, or
a portal spilling from another world. So,
I jumped in wanting to learn more about what is happening in the Spill Zone. This engaging and beyond strange work of
fiction left me with many unanswered questions.
The final line of the book, “more to come” indicates that Spill Zone has a sequel. To learn about the day of the Spill read the
prequel Spill Night (Spill Zone 0.5). You will have to wait until July 2018 for the
sequel The Broken Vow (Spill Zone #2). I’m eager to read them all.
Type of text: Great Graphic Novels for Teens Top Ten 2018
Book
Notes # 23
Smith, A. (2013). Winger.
New York, NY: Simon & Schuster
Summary: Ryan Dean “Winger” West is a smart scrawny fourteen-year
old junior at Pine Mountain Boarding School. He gets in trouble and is sent to live in Opportunity
Hall dormitory. His new roommate is Chas
Becker, the campus trouble maker. Winger’s
plan is to stay out of trouble, get out of O-Hall, and win the affection of his
best friend, Annie Altman. The late-night
antics of O-Hall threaten to derail Winger’s plans. Winger’s openly gay best
friend Joey Cosentino is secretly being perused by Casey Palmer. Joey rejects Casey’s advances. Then Casey becomes jealous of Winger and
Joey’s friendship. After Joey goes
missing, the police find his body beaten and dead. The police question Casey and his roommate Nick
about the murder and they confess. It
takes Winger months before he can talk about losing Joey. After O-Hall is closed, Winger spends the remainder
of the year in the boys dormitory rooming with his unlikely friends, Chas and
Kevin.
Response: Winger
is a realistic fiction novel ideal for grade 9 and up. When I saw the cover of this book, I knew Winger was the Andrew Smith novel I
wanted to read. I had to know more about
the bloody nosed, black eyed, stiched face kid.
Winger did not disappoint. I
enjoyed the hilarious cartoons, his conversations with himself, and the funny
descriptive comparisons throughout the book.
Ryan Dean is a bit vulgar. He
repeated several times that he did not curse.
He usually said that right before he cursed. I found that amusing, but very true to humanity. People, myself included, are in denial about
their own short comings. I like Ryan
Dean’s authenticity. I feel he is a good
example of the normal boy, maybe he is wittier than most. As a mom of three boys, the oldest of which
is approaching the teenage years, I found this book inciteful. I need to know what boys think and how they
approach life. Reading this book may
help me to be more understanding my boys when they are teenagers. This book made me laugh out loud many
times. The humorous tone of the book
stopped in Part 4. In this part of the
book Ryan Dean learns of Joey’s murder. I
was floored by Joey’s death. I saw the
author building to something more serious, but I did not see a murder
coming. Ryan Dean really took hard when
he lost Joey. I wish the book didn’t end
this way. Learn about Ryan Dean’s senior
year in the sequel Stand Off. Watch the book trailer here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ux35quSH4lk.
Type of text: Author Andrew Smith
Book
Notes # 24
Green, J. ( 2005). Looking
for Alaska. New York, NY: Penguin Group
Summary: Miles is a connoisseur of famous last words. He tells his parents that he wants to go to
Culver Creek Preparatory School using the famous last words of Francois
Rabelais, “I go to seek a Great Perhaps.” At Culver Creek Miles quickly finds a tribe of
friends to guide him; Chip “Colonel Martin, Alaska Young, and Takumi. Their friendship grows quickly, and Miles develops
a crush on Alaska. After a night of
drinking in the dorm Miles finally gets his chance to kiss Alaska. Joy turns to heartache when Alaska abruptly
leaves after a phone call from her college boyfriend, Jake. The next morning, at a school wide assembly, they
learn that Alaska died in a car accident. Miles and the Colonel are distraught and
determined to find out more about Alaska’s accident. Was is suicide? After their investigation turns up no
additional answers they decide to remember Alaska by pulling off the ultimate
school prank.
Response: Looking for
Alaska is a realistic fiction book ideal for 10th grade and
up. This book is told by counting 136 before
to 136 days after Alaska’s death. I
thought this was an affective layout for the book. Often in our lives we have an experience that
changes our life forever. This
experience can be so significant that it is almost as if time has stopped. We can divide our life into what happened
before and what happened after the event.
Green was able to lead the reader to the emotional significance of
Alaska’s death in Miles’s life, by using the books layout. This is the second John Green book I’ve
read. I’ve also read Turtles all the Way Down. I noticed both books had a strong, witty,
independent, “does not care what others think” female character. Alaska and Daisy had similar character traits. This has me wondering… Do all his books have
a character like this? If so, are they
always female? Is this John Green’s real-life
persona depicted in his books? I’m determined
to read all of John Green’s books to find out.
Follow the link to watch the book trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-9K64RuCVU.
For An Educator’s Guide to the Works of
John Green click the following link http://www.penguin.com/static/images/yr/pdf/JohnGreen_Guide_june_2014.pdf.
Type of text: Author John Green
Book
Notes # 25
Ness, P. (2008). The
knife of never letting go. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press
Summary: Todd lives with his foster parents, Ben and
Cillian, in Prentisstown. This all male
town run by Mayor Prentiss is plagued with Noise, no one’s thoughts are private. After Todd discovers a whole in the noise, a
girl named Viola, his foster parents tell Todd to leave. Todd and Viola are on the run and being
chased by Aaron and the Prentisstown army.
Along the way Todd meets people that reveal the secrets of Prentisstown. The truth is Prentisstown never fought in a
war against the alien Spackle and the women of the town were murdered not
killed by the Noise. There only hope is to get to Haven where they
will be safe, but a run in with Aaron leads Viola to take charge, stab, and
kill him. On the final stretch of the
journey to Haven Viola gets shot by Davy Prentiss, Mayor Prentiss’s son. When Todd and Viola finally arrive in Haven its
deserted except for Mayor Prentiss, who declares himself President Prentiss.
Response: The Knife of
Never Letting Go is the first book in the Chaos Walking series. This is a fictional dystopian thriller ideal
for readers 9th grade and up.
I liked this book so much that I read the trilogy, although it’s been a
while since I’ve read the books. Patrick
Ness is the king of the cliff hanger ending, whether it be chapter ending or
book ending. He has mastered the art of leaving
the reader wanting more. While reading
this series, each of the book brought out intense emotion like fear and anxiety
for Todd and Viola. This is common in
thriller novels. The dystopian setting
aloud the author to craft any even more intense story that yields stronger
emotions from the reader. Those who
enjoyed this book should read #2 The Ask
and the Answer and #3 Monster of Men.
Follow the link to view a trailer of The Knife of Never Letting Go https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tj4fowWo7xM.
Follow the link for a teacher’s guide https://jwpblog.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/a-reading-guide-to-the-knife-of-never-letting-go.pdf.
Type of text: Required
