11/15/2010 Read 339/439 Quick Picks Discusssion

[Pam Goble]

PART 3 - PARTICIPATION CRITERIA FOR THE NING.

1. Since all of you are reading different books, the idea is to share the many reads students can experience from reading YA literature. For each list you, will get
reviews on approximately 20 or more books.

2. What must be included in your posts are:

            a. A short summary

            b. A connection to YA Lit criteria

            c. A link to a resource for further information about the book/novel( these may include author information, reviews, insight or information
about issues the text references.

            d. Your opinion/recommendations of the book/novel relating back to criteria. A key
question to consider is whether the book is
classroom appropriate, and, if so, what reading
level/grade/studentswouldbenefit from reading the text. If it is not
suited for the classroom, if students are reading the book, what is the
appeal?           

3. Lastly, you must respond to at least 2 other posts in detail.

Again have fun...after the class is done you can still keep those reviews coming on the NING and talk to each other about what your are reading for the year!

 Pam

Pam

[Christina Abruzzini]

Heather,
You bring up a great point about how this is told from "the other woman's" point of view. Like I had said in my review, I actually wanted to root for Sarah, the narrator, as she seemed so likable. I think what also made it easier to like her was the fact that her best friend was unlikable and at times put down Sarah. While in certain situations, "the other woman" is shown in a very negative light, (I still say Angelina took Brad from Jennifer), in this book Sarah is shown as a sweet, innocent girl that truly cares for her best friend. She is the opposite of selfish and when reading it, you feel so bad for Sarah. She cannot help the way she feels and knowing that she did have the best intentions makes her that much more of a winner in my eyes. She continually noted in the book that the last thing she wanted to do was end her friendship. However, as many of us probably know, you cannot hide/prevent feelings; it is just not humanly possible. We shouldn't have to either for that matter. Sarah was the underdog throughout the novel and came out on top at the end.

[Pam Goble]

Drama is synonymous with middle/high schools kids.

[Rebeka Mirza]

Christina,

This sounds like a really good book! I would have loved to read it in high school. I thikn this is something that many teenagers can relate to. And I agree that many girls would enjoy reading this book. Girls are always having different problems with boys, such as this one in the story. It's such a difficult situation for Sarah. She likes a boy who is with her best friend! A situation such as this, she has to choose between the two. I think that this is a problem that may arise in many high school students' lives. Sometimes they do have to choose between a boy or a best friend since they might be spending too much time with one. But in this case, it was Sarah who had to do the choosing. I really think she made the right choice. From the way you described Brianna, she did seem arrogant, and she probably knew that Sarah had feelings for Ryan! It also seemed like she didn't really like him. I think everything happened for the better.

Just by your review, I was waiting to see what happens at the end. I think it's important for authors such as this to leave a cliffhanger at the end of each chapter. That helps readers stay hooked on the story! I'm glad that Ryan and Sarah ended up together, even if it meant that she had to lose her best friend.

[Christina Abruzzini]

Amber,
Your book seems similar to mine in regards to the romance aspect. You seemed to be intrigued by Lucius and Aurora's budding romance just as I was with my book! I definitely feel that this book seems to be a great read for middle school to high school aged children as you said. The various social aspects that you discussed would be crucial for this age group to read about as it would be easily relatable for them. I think that the fact Lucius has a physical deformity also makes for an excellent read for younger people. It seems that especially nowadays, physical features are so critically looked at. When looking at the "Hollywood scene," many children find themselves wanting to look like certain celebrities whether it be in regards to hair/makeup/clothing style/etc. I'm sure even some males feel they need to have abs of steel like some male celebrities. This can be OK as long as we are not focusing too much on how a person LOOKS. We all have insecurities and I know especially with young women, we all have something physical we would like to change. (I know I do!) But whatever happened to "it's what's on the inside that counts." I feel like in our society today, there is too much hype on how we are physically supposed to look. It is definitely valuable for students to read this type of book that can show younger people to look past a person's physical image, as you had said Amber. You mentioned that discussing the themes would be valuable in a classroom lesson. Would you suggest any other concepts about the book like comparing it to modern day celebrities (to relate to some students) or something of another nature? I'm just curious on what else you might be able to incorporate with this novel! Sounds like a great read :)

[Nicole Priester]

I really like that fact that you mentioned how valuable this book is to teach kids to look past a persons apperance. However, Teens are probably some of the most judgemental people in society. It is all about fitting in and being part of the norm for most. I think it is great that you would take on such a task and applaud you. How would you go about doing this though? I mean like Christina said, you could use celebraties. The first person I think of is Christopher Reeves. He was a "stud" and then all of a sudden he was paralysed.

[Meg Seth]

This sounds like a really interesting read. Like my selection, yours seems to focus on the concrete realities of high school life, and it sounds like this seems to be a theme in the "quick pick" award nominees. I wonder if less enthusiastic readers are more likely to read books that deal with friendship, romance, and drama in a realistic way. After all, modern culture is dominated by reality TV, and perhaps this type of book has the same appeal. What are your thoughts? Do you think that realism and reality TV have similar appeals to reluctant readers, or is something else at play here?

[Alexander Wm. Evers]

I believe the contrary; unfortunately. I believe that a YA perceives the distinction between Reality TV and reality-based novels as being as fundamental and profound as the difference between visual images (i.e. pictures that comprise Reality Tv) and printed text. Regardless of how "real" the reality-based text is, it is still being literally and figuratively bound by the material book, and thus artificial in the mind's eye of an adolescent; meanwhile, adolescents see visual images as "alive" and, in the case of reality television, the content existing concretely within their "here and now".
This is not always true however, and in many cases, you can directly employ texts that refute this disposition. YA students often respond well to newspapers, online articles, etc. because, I think, that they view these as existing, like reality TV, in the "here and now"; e.g. newspaper print daily articles addressing things in students immediate environments, online articles exist within the internet which is, debatably, defined by its ability to remain current and relevant. Using texts that are essentially and intrinsically rooted in the "now" is an excellent technique; and, maybe potential antidote.
Furthermore, I think that the importance and preeminence of visual images, to adolescents, is an implicit part of this stage in their development. They are obsessed with how they "look" to others, moreover, they are constantly judging, watching, and trying to interpret the behavior and appearance (i.e. "look") of others. Consequently, reality television gratifies the adolescent desire to watch, judge, and (often, unfortunately) mimic the behavior of individuals whose presence on television makes them seem important, fashionable, etc. This can be a very bad thing- just imagine, God Forbid, a female student body who have been persuaded (or "brainwashed" as my Mom puts it), by the incessant visual reinforcement of Reality TV broadcasting, to start mimicking the behaviors and attitude of veritable Homeric monstrosity known as the "Snookie".

[Pam Goble]

I would agree that books have more "value" development than TV shows; they have more time to do. so.

[Adriana]

I like how your book seems to be so suspenseful as well as the fact that it deals with a student getting teased for being different. These kinds of books especially interest me because things like bullying bother me a great deal and I'm always looking for different perspectives on it and ways that I could possibly help deter it. Does this books have a good resolution when it comes to this issue?

[Pam Goble]

Different does make for bullying and teasing, etc. Research on remedies is all over the place. It would be nice to have a specific resolution.

[Heather Olson]

Amber, I am really interested in reading this book now. I think it could be very important for YAs to read it in school to deepen awareness about social issues, such as physical handicaps/deformities. I know someone who was born with a physical abnormality and their sister and mother have it, as well. They and their sister were teased mercilessly as children over this abnormality and still suffer from the negative effects of that today (they are in their late 20s/early 30s now). It's so terrible and I would love to have a book like this either on my classroom shelves or even included in my curriculum if possible - at least in an after-school book club, perhaps. Thank you for sharing. I'm adding it to my to-read list (which is growing larger and larger with this class' postings)!

[Rebeka Mirza]

Amber,

I think this book would work really well in the classroom! I think this book definitely needs to be read by high school students. They are very judgmental during these years, so this would help them gain a different insight. I really want to read this book. I think it's important for people not to judge others by their outside appearance. It's what's on the inside that counts. I think they would realize how important this is. This would be great to read for the whole grade level. If all English teachers taught this in the 9th grade, all the students would be talking about it. I'm not saying that all of them would necessarily change for the better. But, this would invoke discussion and sympathy towards others. They might be less likely to be so harsh with others.