Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
Told in free verse, mostly, this is an autobiographical tale of a young black girl from birth to approximately age ten. The reader learns a bit about the protesters who would sit at the food counters that they weren't welcomed at, but mostly learns about a little girl who grew up in these turbulent times. We read of how her mother and father split when the author is small, how she and her siblings go to live in South Carolina with her grandparents for a time. We learn of their move to Brooklyn, and the birth of their half brother who gets sick from eating paint chips.
This was a sweet story, which is not what I expected, given the time it was written about. I expected to read a lot of racist comments, but I was wrong.
It's funny to think that the author is only thirteen years older than I am, but it seems like so much more than that. Weird.
Monday, August 31, 2015
Sunday, August 30, 2015
Fall Required Reading #19
Gabi, A Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero
Gabi is a Mexican American girl living in California. Her mom puts a lot on Gabi being a good girl, and wanting her to lose weight. Her dad is a drug addict, and, although he's basically a lose, Gabi loves him to pieces. She has a younger brother named Beto who everyone thinks hung the moon simply because he is a boy.
This book is Gabi's journal of her senior year. Through her entries, we see how she feels about her best friend, Cindy, who is pregnant, and her other best friend, Sebastian, who is gay. We see her fall in lust with Eric, then in love with Martin. Pretty much, we see the typical life of an overweight high school girl who is just trying to live her life. I have to say, I loved this book.
There are a couple of things I didn't love about this book. First of all, I had to make a book cover so I could read this in my classroom because there is a vagina on the cover. No one wants to have to explain that to freshmen. The other thing that bothered me is that not all of the Spanish phrases were explained. Most were, and I could get the gist because the author would restate the phrase either before or after in English. Not all were that way, and I would have benefited from a glossary. In the grand scheme of things though, neither one took away from my enjoyment of the book.
Gabi is a Mexican American girl living in California. Her mom puts a lot on Gabi being a good girl, and wanting her to lose weight. Her dad is a drug addict, and, although he's basically a lose, Gabi loves him to pieces. She has a younger brother named Beto who everyone thinks hung the moon simply because he is a boy.
This book is Gabi's journal of her senior year. Through her entries, we see how she feels about her best friend, Cindy, who is pregnant, and her other best friend, Sebastian, who is gay. We see her fall in lust with Eric, then in love with Martin. Pretty much, we see the typical life of an overweight high school girl who is just trying to live her life. I have to say, I loved this book.
There are a couple of things I didn't love about this book. First of all, I had to make a book cover so I could read this in my classroom because there is a vagina on the cover. No one wants to have to explain that to freshmen. The other thing that bothered me is that not all of the Spanish phrases were explained. Most were, and I could get the gist because the author would restate the phrase either before or after in English. Not all were that way, and I would have benefited from a glossary. In the grand scheme of things though, neither one took away from my enjoyment of the book.
Thursday, August 27, 2015
Fall Required Reading #18, I think
Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
Published in 1982, this book is considered groundbreaking. Why? Because it is about two teenaged girls who realize that they're gay. In those days, people weren't as open about homosexuality as they are now, and people certainly weren't as accepting of homosexual people. I didn't have to read this to know it to be true; though I may not have realized it at the time, I witnessed it. I'm not going to go into too much on a personal side, but there are people close to me, whom I love dearly, who are homosexual. As far as I am concerned, it's a natural part of who they are, just as eye or hair color. Because I was exposed to homosexuality at a young age, I do not get all bent out of shape about it like many people in our society. I say this because I can see narrow minded people not wanting to read this, much less put it in their school library.
In many ways, this is a typical high school love story. Really, the only difference is that the people in love are the same sex. Not a big deal. It was really very sweet to read.
The narrator is Liza, a freshman at MIT. She's thinking about Annie, the girl she met a little over a year before when she was at the Met in New York City. Liza and Annie became fast friends, and Liza felt an undeniable attraction-not necessarily sexual-to Annie. It doesn't take long for the girls to discover they have feelings for one another, feelings that go beyond the boundaries of friendship. They kiss, they hold hands, they exchange rings for Christmas. Eventually, they want to explore their relationship further, and when an opportunity presents itself, they pounce on it.
Over spring break, Liza has volunteered to cat sit for two of her teachers. They happen to be women. If you read between the lines, you know before it ever gets to this point of the book that they are lesbians too. Long story short, Liza and Annie are caught by those who don't understand, and the repercussions of their actions cause not only trouble for Liza's teachers, but cause a rift between Annie and Liza. The book is recounting what led to this silence between Annie and Liza.
I loved this book. It was more than a fictional story about two girls who fall in love for me. For me, I felt that I gained some insight to what my loved one may have experienced at the same time, and that is valuable in my world.
Published in 1982, this book is considered groundbreaking. Why? Because it is about two teenaged girls who realize that they're gay. In those days, people weren't as open about homosexuality as they are now, and people certainly weren't as accepting of homosexual people. I didn't have to read this to know it to be true; though I may not have realized it at the time, I witnessed it. I'm not going to go into too much on a personal side, but there are people close to me, whom I love dearly, who are homosexual. As far as I am concerned, it's a natural part of who they are, just as eye or hair color. Because I was exposed to homosexuality at a young age, I do not get all bent out of shape about it like many people in our society. I say this because I can see narrow minded people not wanting to read this, much less put it in their school library.
In many ways, this is a typical high school love story. Really, the only difference is that the people in love are the same sex. Not a big deal. It was really very sweet to read.
The narrator is Liza, a freshman at MIT. She's thinking about Annie, the girl she met a little over a year before when she was at the Met in New York City. Liza and Annie became fast friends, and Liza felt an undeniable attraction-not necessarily sexual-to Annie. It doesn't take long for the girls to discover they have feelings for one another, feelings that go beyond the boundaries of friendship. They kiss, they hold hands, they exchange rings for Christmas. Eventually, they want to explore their relationship further, and when an opportunity presents itself, they pounce on it.
Over spring break, Liza has volunteered to cat sit for two of her teachers. They happen to be women. If you read between the lines, you know before it ever gets to this point of the book that they are lesbians too. Long story short, Liza and Annie are caught by those who don't understand, and the repercussions of their actions cause not only trouble for Liza's teachers, but cause a rift between Annie and Liza. The book is recounting what led to this silence between Annie and Liza.
I loved this book. It was more than a fictional story about two girls who fall in love for me. For me, I felt that I gained some insight to what my loved one may have experienced at the same time, and that is valuable in my world.
Monday, August 17, 2015
Summer Book #30
Calling Maggie May by Anonymous
This is another of the books I bought that was written in the tradition of Go Ask Alice. I liked this one much better than Lucy in the Sky. I think it was because this one wasn't about the dangers of drugs, which was refreshing. This one was about a girl who finds herself in the world of prostitution.
"Maggie" is 16, and has a tiger mom. You know what I am talking about: the Asian mother who makes her kids play piano and violin, and expects only A's. Maggie has an older brother who is perfect. He does everything that their parents expect. Maggie can't measure up, even if she wanted to. One day, she befriends Ada, and everything changes. Ada is a call girl. Prostitute. Hooker. Escort. Take your pick on the title. She has sex for money. In an effort to reinvent herself, and do things her own way, Maggie becomes a call girl herself.
She skips school to meet her "dates," and ultimately runs away from home. She goes from a "safe" escort service to hooking on the streets. It was definitely an interesting read.
This is another of the books I bought that was written in the tradition of Go Ask Alice. I liked this one much better than Lucy in the Sky. I think it was because this one wasn't about the dangers of drugs, which was refreshing. This one was about a girl who finds herself in the world of prostitution.
"Maggie" is 16, and has a tiger mom. You know what I am talking about: the Asian mother who makes her kids play piano and violin, and expects only A's. Maggie has an older brother who is perfect. He does everything that their parents expect. Maggie can't measure up, even if she wanted to. One day, she befriends Ada, and everything changes. Ada is a call girl. Prostitute. Hooker. Escort. Take your pick on the title. She has sex for money. In an effort to reinvent herself, and do things her own way, Maggie becomes a call girl herself.
She skips school to meet her "dates," and ultimately runs away from home. She goes from a "safe" escort service to hooking on the streets. It was definitely an interesting read.
Saturday, August 15, 2015
Summer Reading #29
Lucy in the Sky by Anonymous
The appeal of this book, as well as the other two I bought during the same bookstore trip, is that it was written in the tradition of Go Ask Alice, which I read sometime in the past five years. It's written as a journal that is left behind by someone who met an unsavory end, in this case, a drug overdose. The problem I had with this one was that it was predictable, as if the author was trying too hard to emulate the predecessor. A teenager reading this may not be as discerning as I am, though, and if it keeps even one kid from doing drugs, then the reading will be a success.
The girl in this book, whose name you really don't know (it isn't necessarily Lucy), just turned 16. She lives on the beach in California, has an older brother, and not a lot of friends. In going to yoga with her brother, she meets a boy, Ross, who ultimately introduces the narrator to pot. In going to a party with her brother, she meets Lauren, who introduces her to cosmos.
The narrator spirals out of control: pot, cosmos, LSD, cocaine, Xanax, meth, heroine. She ends up in rehab, but unfortunately, nothing stops her destructive behavior in the end.
The appeal of this book, as well as the other two I bought during the same bookstore trip, is that it was written in the tradition of Go Ask Alice, which I read sometime in the past five years. It's written as a journal that is left behind by someone who met an unsavory end, in this case, a drug overdose. The problem I had with this one was that it was predictable, as if the author was trying too hard to emulate the predecessor. A teenager reading this may not be as discerning as I am, though, and if it keeps even one kid from doing drugs, then the reading will be a success.
The girl in this book, whose name you really don't know (it isn't necessarily Lucy), just turned 16. She lives on the beach in California, has an older brother, and not a lot of friends. In going to yoga with her brother, she meets a boy, Ross, who ultimately introduces the narrator to pot. In going to a party with her brother, she meets Lauren, who introduces her to cosmos.
The narrator spirals out of control: pot, cosmos, LSD, cocaine, Xanax, meth, heroine. She ends up in rehab, but unfortunately, nothing stops her destructive behavior in the end.
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
Summer Reading #28/Fall Required Reading
Deadline by Chris Crutcher
I hadn't planned to read my required Crutcher book until after school had started, but this showed up on one of my kindle emails. Definitely a good call to get this one, as it really touched me.
Ben is getting his physical to run cross country during the summer before his senior year, but finds out that he has a terminal illness and only has about a year to live. He opts out of treatment, and because he is over eighteen the doctor can't tell his parents. Ben wants to have his time on Earth be as normal as possible. He plays football with his younger brother. He dates the girl of his dreams. He questions the education he is receiving in his civics class. He tries to help the town drunk. He tries to get a street in town named after Malcolm X. He doesn't tell anyone about his illness.
When reading this, you see that, despite his illness, there are people with worse problems than Ben's. I think that's what makes this story more real than most. And although you know what will ultimately happen, you still want to read. So many emotions reading this, but I feel like a better person for it.
I hadn't planned to read my required Crutcher book until after school had started, but this showed up on one of my kindle emails. Definitely a good call to get this one, as it really touched me.
Ben is getting his physical to run cross country during the summer before his senior year, but finds out that he has a terminal illness and only has about a year to live. He opts out of treatment, and because he is over eighteen the doctor can't tell his parents. Ben wants to have his time on Earth be as normal as possible. He plays football with his younger brother. He dates the girl of his dreams. He questions the education he is receiving in his civics class. He tries to help the town drunk. He tries to get a street in town named after Malcolm X. He doesn't tell anyone about his illness.
When reading this, you see that, despite his illness, there are people with worse problems than Ben's. I think that's what makes this story more real than most. And although you know what will ultimately happen, you still want to read. So many emotions reading this, but I feel like a better person for it.
Monday, August 10, 2015
Summer Reading 27
Fierce Presents: Kisses and Curses by various authors
Not sure why I bought this, as I am not the biggest fan of short story compilations. I guess the fact that there are three authors out of the fifteen in this book that I have read before. Reading their short stories was relevant to me as they were related to the books I had read by those authors. The other twelve though, I had a hard time with because they were companion pieces to books I haven't read. I felt that it was necessary to have read the source material for the short stories to make sense to me. Perhaps if the stories were stand alones, I would have liked the book better.
Not sure why I bought this, as I am not the biggest fan of short story compilations. I guess the fact that there are three authors out of the fifteen in this book that I have read before. Reading their short stories was relevant to me as they were related to the books I had read by those authors. The other twelve though, I had a hard time with because they were companion pieces to books I haven't read. I felt that it was necessary to have read the source material for the short stories to make sense to me. Perhaps if the stories were stand alones, I would have liked the book better.
Tuesday, August 4, 2015
Summer Reading #26
The Forgotten Girl by David Bell
After having read another book by this author a couple of weeks ago, I thought I'd check out some of his other stuff. That was a good call. Very suspenseful.
Jason and his wife, Nora, live in the town he grew up in. They have no children of their own. One night, Jason's wild child sister, Hayden, shows up on their doorstep, asking if they can watch her seventeen year old daughter for a couple of days. Hayden needs to make amends as part of her twelve step program, but no one suspected that it may have some dire consequences.
After the timeframe Hayden gave to pick up her daughter, Jason and his family start to worry. Hayden had been spotted with the town criminal, and then her car is found abandoned with drops of blood in it. While the police are searching for Hayden, they come across the remains of Jason's former best friend, who was killed twenty-seven years ago, on the night of their high school graduation. Everyone had assumed that the friend had just taken off; no one thought he had been killed. Jason puts two and two together, and realizes his sister's sudden reappearance has to do with the death of his friend.
Jason gets to the bottom of everything, and it is a wild ride. This one kept me on the edge of my seat, and I will be reading more by this author.
After having read another book by this author a couple of weeks ago, I thought I'd check out some of his other stuff. That was a good call. Very suspenseful.
Jason and his wife, Nora, live in the town he grew up in. They have no children of their own. One night, Jason's wild child sister, Hayden, shows up on their doorstep, asking if they can watch her seventeen year old daughter for a couple of days. Hayden needs to make amends as part of her twelve step program, but no one suspected that it may have some dire consequences.
After the timeframe Hayden gave to pick up her daughter, Jason and his family start to worry. Hayden had been spotted with the town criminal, and then her car is found abandoned with drops of blood in it. While the police are searching for Hayden, they come across the remains of Jason's former best friend, who was killed twenty-seven years ago, on the night of their high school graduation. Everyone had assumed that the friend had just taken off; no one thought he had been killed. Jason puts two and two together, and realizes his sister's sudden reappearance has to do with the death of his friend.
Jason gets to the bottom of everything, and it is a wild ride. This one kept me on the edge of my seat, and I will be reading more by this author.
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