Book+Annotations

__ All Annotations Fall 2008.doc __
 * [[image:http://images.barnesandnoble.com/images/13740000/13744793.JPG width="177" height="280" caption="Princess Academy by Shannon Hale: Book Cover" link="http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9781582349930"]] ||
 * Princess Academy by Shannon Hale: Book Cover ||

[|Princess Academy Annotation.doc]


 * [[image:http://images.barnesandnoble.com/images/24990000/24991107.JPG width="185" height="272" caption="Crispin by Avi: Book Cover" link="http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9780613749657"]] ||
 * Crispin by Avi: Book Cover ||

[|Crispin Annotation.doc]


 * [[image:http://images.barnesandnoble.com/images/16050000/16052195.JPG width="127" height="193" caption="Cover Image" link="http://search.barnesandnoble.com/How-I-Live-Now/Meg-Rosoff/e/9780641960147/?itm=2"]] ||
 * Cover Image ||

[|how i live now Annotation.doc]


 * [[image:http://images.barnesandnoble.com/images/33330000/33332173.JPG width="128" height="193" caption="Cover Image" link="http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Absolutely-True-Diary-of-a-Part-Time-Indian/Sherman-Alexie/e/9780316013680/?itm=1"]] ||
 * Cover Image ||

[|Absolutely True Diary Annotation.doc]


 * [[image:http://images.barnesandnoble.com/images/13720000/13722754.JPG width="184" height="280" caption="Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen: Book Cover" link="http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9781565125605"]] ||
 * Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen: Book Cover ||

[|Water for Elephants Annotation.doc]


 * [[image:http://images.barnesandnoble.com/images/14590000/14593749.JPG width="182" height="280" caption="Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta: Book Cover" link="http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9780375829833"]] ||
 * Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta: Book Cover ||

[|Saving Francesca Annotation.doc]


 * [[image:http://images.barnesandnoble.com/images/14620000/14624049.JPG width="185" height="218" caption="The Book Thief by Markus Zusak: CD Audiobook Cover" link="http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9780739337271"]] ||
 * The Book Thief by Markus Zusak: CD Audiobook Cover ||

[|The Book Thief Annotation.doc]

Article # 1 - Radley, Gail. (1999). //Coping with Death in Young Adult Literature//. The ALAN Review, Volume 27, Number 1, pp. 14-16. Radley explores how three novels, Angela Johnson's __Toning the Sweep__, Paula Fox's __The Eagle Kite__ and Cynthia Rylant's __Missing May__ give readers a helpful model for coping with death. These books treat death as a natural part of life. The authors explore how young adults deal with death and through many stages come to terms with it. I found Liesel's story to be like the characters in these books. The death in __The Book Thief__ is not used for dramatic effect, but is just a sad part of Liesel's life. She must also deal with the aftermath and come to acceptance. [|Coping with Death in Young Adult Literature.docx]

Article # 2 - Hauschildt, Patricia M. (2006). //Worlds of Terrorism: Learning through Young Adult Literature//. The ALAN Review. Summer 2006 Hauschildt explores how silence and a sense of returning to "normalcy" developed in schools after the 9/11 attacks. She writes about how young adult novels can help students relate to terrorism even though it seems as though it is a distant occurance. She concludes that by allowing students to explore terrorism as a topic, they might be able to replace their fear with knowledge and move forward with more understanding. Although __The Book Thief__ is set during World War II, a more "traditional war" without terrorism, I think that Liesel experiences a form of terrorism when her mother disappears. The Nazi Party took many people from their homes before and during the war and the German people were very fearful of being kidnapped at any time. The fear of being "taken" is something that Liesel must learn to live with as she grows up. [|Worlds of Terrorism.docx]

**//The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian//** by Sherman Alexie

**//American Born Chinese//** by Gene Luan Yang

**//Gossamer//** by Lois Lowry

**//The Invention of Hugo Cabret//** by Brian Selznick

**//Rules//** by Cynthia Lord

**//The Book Thief//** by Markus Zusak

**//The Wednesday Wars//** by Gary D. Schmidt


 * Book Annotations by Beth Lander

__Down a Dark Hall__ by Lois Duncan **

Published by : Laurel-Leaf/Random House Children's Books, 1974.

**Length**: 181 p.

**Interest level**: 6 - 8 grades

**Awards**: None

**Book Selection Requirement**: This book was chosen to meet requirement #1 (books by specific authors.)

**Genre**: Mystery and suspense.

**Themes**: Relationships and family, school life, friendships, popular culture, the paranormal.

**Censorship issues**: Some parents may object to the paranormal aspects of this story.

**Setting**: The Blackwood School for Girls in Blackwood Village, New York.

**Main characters**: Kit Gordy Mr. and Mrs. Dan Rheardon, Kit's parents Madame Duret, headmistress of the Blackwood School Jules Duret Professor Farley Natalie Culler Sandra Mason Lynda Hanna Ruth Stark

**Brief summary**: Kit Gordy is deposited at an exclusive girl's school by her mother and stepfather as they leave on their honeymoon. Kit's initial fears of the Blackwood School prove fateful, as she and three other students of the school are subjected to rather unusual experiments.

**Classroom uses**: __Down a Dark Hall__ can be used to illustrate many basic elements of reading comprehension. The plot is simple enough for use in the analysis of plot development. Also, there are many instances where characters anticipate events or actions, which would allow for teacher/student dialog about conclusions, and whether or not certain conclusions can be drawn based on the characters anticipations. This book would also make an excellent rainy day read-aloud.

**Personal reflections**: I found this book to be a very easy read, with some exciting mystery and action. I can't see the book being used in a classroom setting beyond being either a read-aloud, or something to use as a basic reading comprehension text. This is the first book by Lois Duncan I have read, and, after reading a number of reviews, I have learned that it may not be representative of her best work.

**Reviewed by:** Beth Lander

**__Crispin__** **by Avi**

**Published by** Hyperion Books for Children, New York, NY, 2002.

**Length**: 262 p.

**Interest level**: 6 - 8 grades

**Awards**: ALA Notable Children's Book Award, Newberry Award

**Book Selection Requirement**: This book was chosen to meet requirement #1 (books by specific authors).

**Genre**: Action/Adventure, Historical Fiction

**Themes**: Social Studies, family relationships, friendship, history, character development, virtues of courage, self-esteem and respect.

**Censorship issues:** None

**Setting:** 14th century England, small villages, and a small medieval city.

**Main characters:** Crispin Asta, Crispin's mother Lord Furnival Lady Furnival Bear Father Quinel

**Brief summary**: A 13 year old boy, who begins to discover his sense of self as he discovers that he is more than "Asta's Son," is falsely accused of theft, and is forced to leave his home in order to save himself. In securing his personal safety, he discovers his true identity, which begins with his true name: Crispin. Crispin's journey towards freedom is aided by an odd juggler named "Bear," who introduces Crispin to the world at large as well as the world hidden within him.

**Classroom uses**: Social Studies: __Crispin...__ can be used to illustrate many aspects of medieval life. Crispin's village is an excellent example of most small villages that people lived in at the time. The feudal social and economic systems can be examined by looking at the relationship Asta and Crispin had within the two spheres that dominated their lives: their village, and the nobility structure that provided stability, if not wealth, to small villages. A lesson comparing modern economic systems to that which governed Crispin’s life could be derived from this examination. Why couldn't Crispin's mother live in a better house? What would Crispin's future have been like had he not been accused of a crime and forced to run away? What kind of work would he have done? Why was there no school for children in his village? What opportunities exist for children today that weren't available to Crispin, and why? Why was Crispin's flight from the village so terrifying to him? Are there any journey's that would make a modern student fearful? Crispin's being branded a "wolf's head" provides an opportunity to compare and contrast medieval and modern criminal justice systems. How could a child be so rashly accused of murder? What rights did Lord Furnival's steward have in his Lord's absence? Why were there no trials by jury? Why was no evidence collected or presented? What punishment awaited Crispin if he was caught?

**Personal reflections**: My emphasis as an undergraduate was in the history of the renaissance/reformation, but the understanding of both required a firm grounding in medieval European history. I love reading historical fiction, and have been disappointed by many books set in the medieval period, mostly because they didn't have good history behind them, and I'm a stickler for good history. **__ Crispin __** was a delight because Avi's use of historical setting, his accurate portrayal of the feudal system, his description of the roles of women and children were all spot on. That accuracy provides a subtle sense of menace throughout the entire book, a sense that correctly depicts a period of time in which life was fragile, and not highly valued. Books that bring periods of history to life in a way that is approachable by children can illuminate what many students find to be a dusty, fact ridden, oft dreaded class: social studies. Avi blows the dust off!

**Reviewed by**: Beth Lander


 * __House of the Scorpion__ by Nancy Farmer **

Published by Simon Pulse, New York, NY, 2002.

**Length**: 380 p.

**Interest level**: 6 - 8 grades

**Awards**: ALA Notable Children's Book Award, Newberry Award

**Book Selection Requirement**: This book was chosen to meet requirement #2 (award winning books).

**Genre:** Science Fiction

**Themes**: Civil and human rights, social and economic conditions, family relationships, friendship, equity, justice, self-esteem, respect.

**Censorship issues:** There may be some objections to the role of drug trafficking in this book, as well as to the discussions of the value of human life.

**Setting:** A post-modern land called Opium, locked between Mexico and the United States.

**Main characters**: Matt Alacran Celia El Patron Maria Tam Lin

**Brief summary**: The first years of Matt's life are spent in the security of a little cottage in the midst of poppy fields, loved and cared for by a woman named Celia. When he breaks Celia's rules, and makes contact with three children who approach his cottage, he is thrust into a life dominated by a secretive old man named El Patron. Matt's discovery of who El Patron is, and how Matt is related to him, forces Matt into a strange world in which he must fight for his survival and ultimately his redemption.

**Classroom uses**: 1) Science/Biology: __House of the Scorpion__ will provide science and biology students with a harsh look at a current point of controversy: stem cell research and the potential of cloning. Ethical issues revolving around the creation of clones for tissue substitution can add meaningful conversation to the classroom. Do any students have grandparents with heart conditions similar to the one suffered by El Patron? To what lengths would those students or their parents go to prolong their loved-one's life? At what point does humanity define death? At what point should the progress of science trump the needs of society? 2) Ethics/Political Science: The ethical issues raised in Farmer's book would also provide the basis for meaningful classroom debate. Does consciousness define life? Does Matt's status as a conscious clone as opposed to the majority of others who are raised like livestock offer him an advantage, or a disadvantage? At what point does humanity define life and death? Should government have a role in the regulation of scientific advances that could potential harm the structure of society? What role does economics and wealth play in the valuation of a person's life?

**Personal reflections**: While I enjoyed the book, I found it to be a bit of a slog to get through (a thought that provoked much controversy with my 15 year old, who ate this book up when she was 12). Farmer's somewhat stilted use of language, which I believe was done intentionally to frame Matt's dis-ease with his world, may be difficult for some readers. I also thought that Matt's stay in Mexico, his time at the factory and his subsequent journey to Maria's mother were a necessary transition (the hero's epic journey that provides self-awareness), but one whose length may prevent any but the most dedicated (or adventurous) teacher from using this book as a curriculum supplement. I also think that the subtle but pervasive presence of what we hold as illegal drugs may frighten off teachers who would not want to use a book that could result in hard-to-control conversations in the classroom.

**Reviewed by**: Beth Lander


 * __Twisted__ by Laurie Halse Anderson **

**Published by** Speak (Penguin imprint), New York, NY, 2007.

**Length**: 250 p.

**Interest level**: 10 - 12 grades (Mature readers)

**Awards:** None Yet!

**Book Selection** **Requirement:** This book was chosen to meet requirement #2, sort of. The author is an award winner.

**Genre**: Realistic fiction

**Themes:** Family relationships, individualization, self-esteem, sexual relationships, bullying, suicide

**Censorship issues**: Frank discussions of sexuality, rough language, family dysfunctions, suicide.

**Setting**: A contemporary, un-named town in which Tyler's life is dominated by George Washington High School, where he attends, and the Millbury Brothers Trust, where Tyler's father works, and which is owned by the father of Bethany Millbury, Tyler's sort-of girlfriend.

**Main characters**: Tyler Miller Bill and Linda Miller Hannah Miller Calvin Hodges (Yoda) Bethany Millbury Chip Millbury

**Brief summary**: After receiving a summer of community service for defacing school property with spray-painted graffiti, 17-year-old Tyler Miller returns to high school. Only it's not the same Tyler who left at the end of junior year. Tyler left his junior year a nobody: an average student with average looks. When his senior year begins, Tyler is tall, buff and muscular, the result of a surge in hormones and lots of hard physical work. Tyler's new physique attracts the attention of the most popular girl in school, who is also the daughter of his father's boss, and Tyler's worst enemy. This attraction leads Tyler down a path of personal challenge and discovery as he learns that all transitions, physical as well as personal, come with a price. In __Twisted__, Anderson shines a glaring light on a touchy subject: what it means to be a man in today's society.

**Classroom uses**: So many novels for young adults deal with a young girl's maturation, and the issues girls face with their developing sexuality and their role as women in society. __Twisted__ provides a healthy look at the same issues boys face in today's world, and the often difficult choices they must make after having been reared in a society that markets sexuality like candy, demands aggression in the workplace, and yet yearns for sensitivity from men. __Twisted__ would make a highly approachable text for use in a human sexuality or family dynamics class. The novel could provide the basis for frank discussions about male sexual development; the role visual stimulation plays in male sexuality and what teenage girls should be aware of; the dangers of digital technologies; parent/child interactions; feelings of loss and discontinuity; and individualization, and the price that often accompanies it.

**Personal reflections**: I believe __Twisted__ should be required reading for every 14 year old girl as she enters high school. While we see stereotypes of teenage boys depicted in movies and on television (most of which tend towards hyperbole), Anderson provides a heart wrenching perspective through Tyler Miller. Girls often see parodies of teenage boys, and therefore don't have the opportunity to develop empathy for the changes that boys undergo in adolescence. I had great sympathy for Tyler, and rooted him on at the end of the book for standing up and being a "man," which, in his case, meant standing up for his true self. I have far more understanding of the trials and tribulations of female adolescence, and have tended to hold the trials and tribulations of boys (and men) at a distance, a kind of "us vs. them" mentality. Books like __Twisted__ would allow all readers, young men and young women, a chance to break through that mentality, and perhaps work towards greater respect for each gender, and most importantly, for ourselves as sexual beings.

**Reviewed by**: Beth Lander

** __Peeps__ by Scott Westerfeld **

**Published by** the Penguin Group, 2005.

**Length**: 312 p.

**Interest level**: 10 – 12

**Awards**: A top ten book for 2005, ALA Best Books for Young Adults; A top 40 children's book selection for 2005, "Kirkus Reviews"; a best books of the year selection for 2005, "School Library Journal"; 2005 blue ribbon, Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books; New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age, 2005

**Book Selection Requirement**: This book was chosen to meet requirement # 2.

**Genre:** Science fiction

**Themes**: Romantic relationships, family relationships, body and health, courage and survival, self-control, popular culture.

**Censorship issues**: Some violence. Sexual themes.

**Setting**: Contemporary New York City, above and below ground.

**Main characters**: Cal Thompson Dr. Prolix Dr. Rat Morgan Ryder, the vampire who infected Cal Lace, Cal's possible girlfriend Cats, rats and really nasty worms

**Brief summary**: Nineteen-year-old Cal is a "peep," better known as a vampire. Infected with a parasite ("Peep" being an acronym for "parasite-positive"), he is only a carrier, and suffers none of the horrible effects of his disease. Cal's disease, however, should not be spread, and instead of enjoying the normal life of a young man in New York City, Cal works in solitude hunting down other "peeps." His work becomes complicated by the presence of a young woman named Lace, and the discovery that something lurks beneath the surface of the city that may be worse than your average, everyday vampire.

**Classroom uses**: In __Peeps,__ Scott Westerfeld makes great use of the "parasite-positive" disease of vampirism as a metaphor for the multitude of diseases that affect a person's ability to have a "normal" life. Westerfeld notes on his website that "Some days you wake up, and you just have to write a vampire novel." But rather than write what we've come to think as the stereotypical vampire novel, Westerfeld wrote a vampire novel with a solid basis in science. In his words, he wanted a vampire novel to include "natural selection, sexual attraction (and) parasitic infection..." __Peeps__ is immersed in the science of disease transmission. Each chapter is entitled with either the name of a parasite, a means of transmission, or other element of virology/bacteriology or disease pathology. The novel could be used to supplement a high school biology class as a "fun" means of discussing disease, illness, transmission, the importance of cleanliness, and sexual transmission of diseases. The novel could also be used in a human sexuality class to discuss the impact that diseases like AIDS (the parallels between "parasite-positive" and HIV/AIDS are very noticeable) have on one's life, ability to have healthy sexual relationships, the impact the disease would have on others, the stigma of disease, etc.

**Personal reflections**: Cal Thompson is an engaging hero stuck in a crappy place: trapped nearly forever in the body of a 19 year old, with all of the desires of a typical 19 year old, with no outlet for them whatsoever. And yet he makes (sour) lemonade out of the life he has after being infected. Cal presents a pretty positive example for young men in that he recognizes the tragedy of his personal situation, yet doesn't surrender to it. Cal could easily succumb to his sexual desires and spread his disease, but instead chooses to be a "gentleman." He holds a steady, if icky, job which he does to the best of his ability. He is not self-serving, but outwardly focused. And he views his life with that most wonderful of aphrodisiacs: a sense of humor. My only complaint with the novel was that I found the ending to be a bit trite, a set up for a sequel to come. Other than that, this was a truly enjoyable book, and a good diversion away from the goth/emo vampire genre.

**Reviewed by**: Beth Lander


 * __I am the Messenger__ by Markus Zusak**

Published by Alfred A. Knopf, 2006 (paperback, U.S.)

**Length**: 357 p.

**Interest level**: 9 – 12

**Awards**: 2003 Children's Book Council of Australia book of the Year Award, 2005 Publishers Weekly Best Books of the Year, 2006 Michael L. Prinz Honor

**Book Selection Requirement**: This book was chosen to meet requirement #2.

**Genre**: Realistic fiction/suspense

**Themes**: Relationships and families (romance, friends), honesty and compassion, self-esteem and respect

**Censorship issues**: None.

**Setting**: A contemporary city in Australia.

**Main characters**: Ed Kennedy The Doorman, Ed's dog Audrey, Ritchie, and Marvin, Ed's best friends Bev Kennedy, Ed's mother Daryl and Keith, hitmen

**Brief summary**: Ed feels that he has achieved nothing in his nineteen years of life, but that changes when he begins receiving mysterious messages written on playing cards. His assignments from a secret source cause him to bring positive changes to several peoples' lives. While Ed doesn't always appreciate his forced presence in other people's lives, he begins to appreciate what his life means to others, and consequently, what it means to himself.

**Classroom uses**: 1) I would use Zusak's text in an English class that is studying Shakespeare to lighten things up a bit. Messengers are used consistently throughout Shakespeare’s texts (__King Lear__, __Richard II__, __Macbeth__, among others) and while not critical characters in themselves, Shakespeare’s messengers often prove to be the pivot in characters' actions and reactions. __I am the Messenger__ would provide the basis for a discussion regarding the roles of messengers, whether they are passive or active, whether the adage of "not killing the messenger" always proves true in their bearing bad news, and whether Ed Kennedy meets the criteria of being a true messenger. Zusak's book can also be used as a general study of plot construction, story movement, anticipation, character development and other elements critical in learning to read and interpret books. 2) Zusak's book would also be an excellent source in religion or ethics classes. Messengers often have their basis in religion, sent by one deity or another to create turmoil, cause specific actions or simply bring messages. Does Ed meet such a definition of a religiously based messenger? Does Ed's final act of awareness move him beyond a traditional, religious notion of a messenger? How does Ed's quest match up against other classic quests in literature and religion? Is Ed a hero? Will he continue on the path his quest has started for him? Why elements in Ed's life needed to be challenged in order for him to pursue his quest? What in Ed's life prevented him from recognizing his shortcomings?

**Personal reflections**: __I am the Messenger__ is a moving book, especially when one considers that Ed's life prior to his quest is not so very different from the lives of countless other young people around the world who lack structure and support. Ed (prior) represents wasted potential; Ed (post quest) represents hope. What I enjoyed most about the ending was that it wasn't pat - the reader wasn't given a perfected Ed. The reader is given the possible Ed, and in his possibilities lays such lovely hope. I would highly recommend this book to any teenager (or adult) who was having a "fractured gestalt" kind of moment in life, someone who's sense of wholeness was endangered, or someone who was having difficulty seeing the forest for the trees. I would recommend the book because it doesn't preach, and it doesn't talk down to the reader, and it doesn't offer a set circumstance of behavior for Ed post quest. It, instead, offers renewal and hope. And it's a lovely book for it.

**Reviewed by**: Beth Lander


 * __Twilight__ by Stephanie Meyer **

Published by : Little Brown and Company, 2006 (paperback)

**Length**: 498 p.

**Awards**: New York Times Editor's Choice, Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year, ALA "Top Ten Books for Young Adults"

**Book selection requirement**: This book was selected to meet requirement #3, "Read a contemporary YA novel with a female as a main character..."

**Genre**: Horror, mystery and suspense, romance

**Themes**: Family dynamics, friendships, school life, romantic relationships, courage and survival, self-esteem, popular culture

**Censorship issues**: Objection to vampirism and the occult, violence, suicide

**Setting**: The small town of Forks, Washington.

**Main characters**: Isabella Swan Charlie Swan Edward Cullen Carlisle and Esme Cullen Emmett Cullen Alice Cullen Jasper and Rosalie Hale

**Brief summary**: Bella Swan leaves the warmth and monotony of her mother's home in Phoenix for the dampness and what she believes will be the monotony of life at her father's home in the Olympia Peninsula of Washington state. Fearing that she'll never fit in her new home and new school, Bella meets someone who fits in even less than she does: the handsome and mysterious Edward Cullen. Edward and his "family" have successfully hidden from the world the fact that they are vampires, at least until Edward meets Bella. Their meeting plunges both into a thrilling but dangerous relationship that threatens not only them, but their loved ones as well.

**Classroom uses**: __Twilight__ would best be used in an English class as a modern juxtaposition against stories of star-crossed lovers, such as __Romeo and Juliet__. __Twilight__ would provide the ability to contrast and compare the heroes and heroines of both stories: how do their respective family relationships govern their own relationship? What outside forces are in play in each relationship? What sacrifices is each couple willing to make for the sake of their relationship? The novel can also provide the basis for a discussion about the elements needed to define a text as "literature" vs. "popular culture," allowing for a look at Shakespeare’s plays in their contemporary context as food for the masses.

**Personal reflections**: I first read __Twilight__ a year ago when I was stuck at home for a week with bacterial laryngitis and bronchitis. it was the perfect bit of fluff to fill lots of empty, silent hours. The romantic aspect of the novel was reminiscent of the Harlequin "bodice rippers" my grandmother used to read back in the 1970's: misunderstood heroine is thrust into an unpleasant situation, and is rescued by manly hero who saves her from herself. The only thing Bella lacks is heaving bosoms.

I have issues with the development of Bella as a character. I never saw Bella developed as an individual, as "herself." Instead, Meyer develops Bella as she is seen by other characters, so the reader only sees a reflection of Bella, and not Bella as an independent young woman. I also have strong feelings against Bella's choice to rid herself of her humanity in order to be with Edward (to disclaim, I have read the entire series, and I do know how it ends). Edward briefly resists Bella's desire to be with him forever, but then succumbs, and puts himself into the role of father-lover-protector. Bella's personality and individuality are completely subsumed in her relationship with Edward, whose main functions seem to be saving Bella from danger, and taunting Bella's burgeoning sexuality.

My choice of articles to support this book selection investigates the topic of female adolescent self-esteem and it's exploration in literature. It seems that no matter what educators, parents and others do to try to break girls from presenting themselves to society first as sexual objects and secondly as anything else, society in the form of popular culture continues to insist that girls define themselves primarily through their sexual identity. Here are three articles that explore adolescent development and gender identification:

Cline, Kathy. "Bonding in the Broken Place." __The Alan Review__ Vol. 28, No. 2 (Winter 2001) 9 November 2008 http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/v28n2/cline.html

Cline discusses how literature "...allows young adults the catharsis for healing, rebuilding, and changing" through observing how characters in novels work through problems and conflicts. (Cline, p. 1) Through the analysis of many young adult novels, Cline pinpoints five characteristics of resiliency that define how the characters in young adult novels move through problems to catharsis and healing. These characteristics are:

1) Support from a parent of from a significant other. 2) Problem solving skills, or the ability to perceive their experiences constructively. 3) Autonomy, or the ability to act independently and exert control over one's environment. 4) Tenacity, or the ability to develop resources to be able to rebound from harm. 5) Sense of belonging, or the ability to find value in oneself through contributions to a greater whole.

Cline then analyzes three young adult novels for each of these characteristics.

It would be an interesting exercise to view __Twilight__ through the lens of these five characteristics. Would Bella, under such scrutiny, be seen as a model of resiliency?

Irwin-DeVitis, Linda and Beth Benjamin. "Can Anne Be Like Margot and Still be Anne?" __The Alan__ __Review__ Vol. 23, No. 1 (Fall 1995). 9 November 2008 ht [|tp://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/fall95/Irwin-DeVitis.html]

The authors discuss a use of __The Diary of Anne Frank__ that deviates from its typical use as an historical primary source to illustrate racism and prejudice during World War II. Instead, they look at Frank's diary as an example of the conflict in adolescent psychosocial development. Anne's older sister, Margot, represents the model teenage girl: compliant, passive and sweet. Anne voices another option, one of independence and self-reliance, a loud voice that is initially silenced by her family and her culture's demands, and then one that is ultimately silenced by the Holocaust.

Using Carol Gilligan's work at the Harvard Project on Women's Psychology and Girl's Development as a base, Irwin-DeVitis and Benjamin gathered a voluntary summer reading group of 11 - 13 year old girls who read The Diary of Anne Frank as a prompt to "...know whether young adolescent girls are able to identify, relate to, and speak out about issues of voice when they encounter literature portraying early adolescent females struggling to balance voice and relationship." (Irwin-DeVitis, p. 4)

The authors questioned their volunteer group about the diary on three levels: the first dealt with the readers' personal connections to the book and their first impressions of the book; secondly, the readers' were asked a series of questions on issue of adolescent development as they related to the book; lastly, the readers' were asked to choose and interpret quotes from the book that allowed the readers to explore issue of interest to them.

The framework noted above could provide the basis for an additional classroom use of __Twilight__ as a study of gender/social identity in a high school sociology or feminist study class. Such an exploration would be an exciting study, particularly since so few novels studied in middle or high school classes focus on female protagonists. Styslinger, Mary. "All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Go: Implications of Feminine and Sexual Identity for English Curriculum and Teaching." __WILLA__, Volume 11, p. 33 - 36. 9 November 2008 http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/WILLA/fall02/styslinger.html

The author used a focus group of 8 young women between the ages of 18 and 21 to examine their perceptions of femininity and sexual identity, during which they identified the reaction of males as central to the construction of their identity. Styslinger then uses "post-structural" feminist interpretation (defined by the author as an interpretation that "...recognizes gender as shaped by social relations. As gender relations vary both within and over time, gender is defined in terms of roles being played in society." (Styslinger, web p. 5) to view the realities of the group and to suggest changes in the English curriculum that could facilitate the study of gender and self in the classroom.

Styslinger's three suggestions for change include the expansion of texts used in classrooms to include stories and characters that portray differing realities; assign projects and open discussions that help student experience multiple perspectives in gender constructions; and create assignments that support access to different ways of being, ways that may not conform to societal demands.

Styslinger's framework would allow for a more open discussion of the roles played by the characters in __Twilight.__ An initial discussion of gender roles, societal expectations and how boys and girls feel they need to act in different settings (boys' roles in society are determined just as strongly as that of girls) would provide the basis for looking at contemporary novels and how the novels help to reinforce an adolescent's ideas of how they should function in the world. Do girls believe that they need to be as passive as Bella in order to bag their "dream boy?" Do boys believe that they always have to be the protector, the bulwark in a relationship in order to feel more of a man?  Title: //The Face on the Milk Carton// (first book in the Janie series)

Author: Caroline B. Cooney

Publisher: Laurel-Leaf

Length: 184 pages

Interest Level: Grades 7 to 10

Awards: American Library Association Recommended Books for the Reluctant Young Adult Reader International Reading Association Children's Choices Pacific Northwest Young Reader’s Choice Award

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Themes: Parent/Child Relationship; Kidnapping; Boy-Girl Relationships; Missing Children

Censorship Issues: None

Book Selection Requirement: Requirement 1

Setting: Small Connecticut town

Main Characters: Janie Johnson Frank Johnson (Janie’s dad) Miranda Johnson (Janie’s mom) Reeve (Janie’s neighbor and boyfriend)

Brief Summary: Janie is a teenage girl who sees the face of a child on a milk carton and believes that she is that child. This event triggers many questions for Janie and she begins to look into her childhood.

Classroom Uses and Comments:    ·  Janie’s parents are very protective of her. Discuss how students’ parents treat them like young children.  ·  Janie looks up information in the New York Times index. Teach the students how to use the New York Times index. Ask them to find out one major news item from the day they were born.  ·  Pose the following question “Pictures of kidnapped children can be found in many places (i.e. milk cartons, Walmart, the news). If you recognized a kidnapped child what would you do?”  My Reflections: This book reminded me of a Lifetime movie. Then a friend told me it was turned into a Lifetime movie. The suspense had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I was eager to find out who was on the milk carton.

 Other Books by Caroline B. Cooney: //Whatever Happened to Janie? // (second book in the Janie series) //The Voice on the Radio // (third book in the Janie series) //What Janie Found // (final book in the Janie series) //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Code Orange // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Driver’s Ed // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Burning Up: A Novel // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> The Terrorist // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Wanted // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Goddess of Yesterday // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> What Child is this? A Christmas Story // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Diamonds in the Shadow //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">

Annotation by: Carey Stolber  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">

Title: //Surviving the Applewhites//

Author: Stephanie S. Tolan

Publisher: HarperTrophy

Length: 216 pages

Interest Level: Grades 5 to 8

Awards: ALA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults Book Links Lasting Connection Mark Twain Award nominee (Missouri) Kentucky Bluegrass Award Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award (Vermont) ALA Booklist Editors’ Choice

Genre: Realist Fiction

Themes: Eccentrics and Eccentricities; Home Schooling; Theater; Country Life; North Carolina

Censorship Issues: Drugs, Prison, Profanity

Book Selection Requirement: Requirement 2

Setting: Rural North Carolina

Main Characters: Jake Semple E.D. Applewhite Lucille Applewhite Randolph Applewhite Cordelia Applewhite Destiny Applewhite Sybil Jameson Archie Applewhite Jedediah Applewhite Hal Applewhite Jeremy Bernstein

Brief Summary: A young boy whose parents are in prison and who has been expelled from the local school goes to live with and be home schooled by an eccentric family on their farm. While living with the Applewhites Jake learns what it is like to be accepted as a contributing member of a family.

Classroom Uses and Comments: <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Have each student describe a project he or she would do if he or she was homeschooled. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Have students describe how he or she would fit in at Wit’s End. What role would each play (i.e. cook, teacher, etc.). <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Talk about other books with juvenile delinquents and what happened to the characters in the other books. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Watch the Sound of Music and compare the original version to the Applewhite version. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Compare the Applewhite’s school to your school. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> My Reflections: This was a fun book. I laughed several times. I thought all of the characters were interesting and well defined and I actually liked them. I liked that the ending was hopeful

<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-style: italic"> Other Books by Stephanie S. Tolan: // Listen! // // Ordinary Miracles // // Welcome to the Ark // // Plague Year // // Who’s There? //

Reviewed by: Carey Stolber

<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Title: //Hoot//

Author: Carl Hiaasen

Publisher: Yearling

Length: 292 pages

Interest Level: Grade 5 and up

Awards: Newbery Medal Winner ALA Notable Children's Book Texas Lone Star Reading List Illinois Rebecca Caudill Young Readers Award Kentucky Bluegrass Master List Maine Student Book Master List Minnesota Maud Heart Lovelace Award Pennsylvania Keystone State Reading Association Book Award Connecticut Nutmeg Children's Book Award ALA Best Books for Young Adults Maine Student Book Master List

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Themes: Environmentalism; Bullying; Cooperation; Florida; Friendship

Censorship Issues: None

Book Selection Requirement: Requirement 2

Setting: Small town in Florida

Main Characters: Roy Eberhardt Dana Matherson Officer David Delinko Curly Mr. and Mrs. Eberhardt Mullet Fingers Beatrice Leep

Brief Summary: Roy Eberhardt has recently moved to Florida. He is being bullied by Dana Matherson and is trying to fit in. He sees a shoeless boy running one day and decides to follow the boy. At the same time the site of a soon-to-be built pancake house is being vandalized. Are the running boy and the vandalism connected?

Classroom Uses and Comments:  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'MS Gothic'"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Review internet search skills and have the students research one of the animals mentioned in the museum. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Have students write a persuasive letter explaining why the pancake house should or should not be built. Or have each student select a topic and write a persuasive letter on that topic. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Discuss following rules versus doing the right thing. My Reflections: I really enjoyed this book. The main characters, Roy in particular, were very realistic and his bullying experience was described realistically. I thought the environmental aspect made the book more meaningful.

Other Books by Carl Hiaasen: //Flush Scat// (publication date: January 2009)

Annotated by: Carey Stolber <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Title: //The Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob Green//

Author: Joshua Braff

Publisher: Plume

Length: 259 pages

Interest Level:

Awards: None

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Themes: Adolescence; Family; Judaism; Parental Divorce

Censorship Issues: Drugs, Alcohol, Sex

Book Selection Requirement: Requirement 3

Setting: Piedmont, NJ

Main Characters: Jacob Green Abram Green (Jacob’s father) Clair Green (Jacob’s mother) Asher Green (Jacob’s older brother) Dara Green (Jacob’s sister) Gabriel Green (Jacob’s younger brother) Jon (Jacob’s friend) Megan Brief Summary: As the story begins Jacob Green is a 10-year-old Jewish boy living in northern New Jersey. His family has recently moved and he and his brother are starting at public school. Previously, the boys attended a Jewish (yeshiva) school. The story chronicles his life from age 10 to age 15. During that time period he adjusts to a new school, makes new friends, has his bar mitzvah, and learns about girls. All of these events are set within his family. His father is extremely demanding of his children and wife and has very little tolerance for errors. Each member of the family handles the pressures of being part of the family differently. Throughout the book the reader is privy to Jacob’s thoughts as he progresses through adolescence.

Classroom Uses and Comments:  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Discussion of the vocabulary in the book, including narcissist, flippant, etc. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Compare the actual events to those in Jacob’s head. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Discussion of coming-of-age rituals beginning with Jacob’s bar mitzvah. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Discussion of drugs, alcohol, and sex. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Is Abram abusive? Is he a bully? My Reflections: I liked this book from the first page. I could relate to the situation of an interfaith family and a father with high standards. Jacob’s thoughts on what was happening in his family were realistic and funny. The family members’ responses to Abram’s bullying is also realistic and heart-wrenching. I was shocked that the mother was so willing to leave her three youngest children with Abram. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Two articles: <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> 1.   <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Cole Pam B. “For Boys Only: Young Adult Literature about Girls and Dating.” //The ALAN Review// 31.3 (2004) : 5 Nov 2008 http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/v31n3/cole.html. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Cole states that there are several books about dating written for girls, but few written for boys about dating. Boys prefer books that include adventure and reality, not romance and fantasy. She describes several books that address dating that would appeal to boys. //The Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob Green// includes discussion of girls and dating, but definitely appeals to boys. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> 2.   <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Shaw, Dara Gay. “The Treatment of Religion and the Independent Investigation of Spiritual Truth in Fiction for Adolescents.” //The ALAN Review// 22.2 (1995) : 5 Nov 2008 http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/winter95/Shaw.html. Shaw states that adolescence is a time of questioning one’s place in the world and investigating spiritualism and religion. Many books give students the opportunity to explore these issues. The //Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob Green// focuses on Jacob’s exploration of faith during his adolescence. Read a contemporary novel that would appeal to the modern male teen. Discuss whether or not you agree with this statement from Robert Lipsyte: “I think boys don’t read as much as we’d like them to because (1) current books tend not to deal with the real problems and fears of boys, and (2) there is a tendency to treat boys as a group. . . which is where males are at their absolute worst. . . instead of as individuals who have to be led into reading secretly and one at a time.” <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> I do not agree with Robert Lipsyte. There is a wide variety of books that are written for and about boys. I think the problem is that we as teachers and librarians tend to recommend books that we like and that we relate to. Since the overwhelming majority of us are women we are drawn to books that appeal more to girls. We need to approach book selection from the point of view of our consumers and remember what types of books tend to like. At the same time we need to make sure we don’t fall into the trap of treating boys as a group. That is the greater danger. We must remember to recommend books based on the person not the group that they are a member of. The Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob Green is definitely a book geared for white boys – specifically white Jewish boys, but that does not mean that all white boys will like it or that there isn’t an Asian girl who might get something out of the story. The book has the universal plot of religious exploration and religious extremism. We need to look at each book for its potential to reach a single reader. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Other Books by Joshua Braff: None

Annotation by: Carey Stolber **<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">

Title: //Catalyst// **

**<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Author: Laurie Halse Anderson **

**<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Publisher: Penguin Group **

**<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Length: 231 pages **

**<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Interest Level: Grade 8 and up **

**<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Awards: ** **<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Genre: Realistic Fiction **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">ALA Best Book for Young Adults **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">YALSA Odyssey Audiobook Award **

**<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Themes: High school; Death; Incest ** <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Censorship Issues: Incest; Sex **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Book Selection Requirement: Requirement 2 **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Setting: Syracuse, NY **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Main Characters: **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Kate Malone **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Toby Malone (Kate’s brother) **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Rev. Jack Malone (Kate’s father) **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Mitch Pangborn (Kate’s boyfriend) **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Sara **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Travis **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Teri Litch **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Mikey Litch **

**<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Brief Summary: Kate Malone is an A student, cross-country star, and minister’s daughter. She has applied to MIT and is waiting to find out if she gets in. Her next door neighbor and nemesis, Teri Litch, moves in with her brother after their house catches fire. //Catalyst// tells her story as she experiences some very difficult situations her senior year. **

**<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Classroom Uses and Comments: **<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">
 * **<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Discuss choosing a practical career versus a career you love. **<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">
 * **<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Discuss the chapter titles (all chemistry vocabulary) and their significance to the story. **
 * **<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Discuss the significance of sight to the story. **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">My Reflections: In some ways I am the ideal audience for this book. My father is a minister and the relationship between Kate and her father, particularly the fact that he is always available to others, but not always available to his own family. I thought Kate was a very realistic portrayal of a top student who has planned her life from age 10. **
 * <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Other Books by Laurie Halse Anderson: **
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Chains //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Twisted //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Prom //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Masks //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Thank You, Sarah: The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Time to Fly //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Fear of Falling //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Say Good-Bye //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Storm Rescue //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Fever, 1793 //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Fight for Life //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">No Time for Mother’s Day //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Homeless //**
 * //<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Turkey Pox //**

**<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Annotated by: Carey Stolber **<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">

Title: //The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian//

Author: Sherman Alexie

Publisher: Little, Brown, & Co.

Length: 230 pages

Interest Level: Grade 7 and up

Awards: National Book Award for Young People’s Literature Boston Globe-Horn Book Award

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Themes: Native American Boys; Spokane Indians; Friendship; Race

Censorship Issues: Smoking; Alcohol

Book Selection Requirement: Requirement 1

Setting: Spokane Indian Reservation

Main Characters: Junior Rowdy Junior’s Mom Junior’s Dad

Brief Summary: Junior is a 14-year-old Indian living on the Spokane reservation. He has some health problems and is very small, but smart. He decides to attend the all-white school in a nearby farm town. People on the reservation believe that he has turned his back on them by attending the all-white school and people at his new school are hesitant to befriend him because he is an Indian. The story chronicles his attempts to navigate life in two separate and very different worlds.

Classroom Uses and Comments:  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Discuss how expectations affect achievement. Use the following quote from page 180. “I suppose it had something to do with confidence. I mean, I’d always been the lowest Indian on the reservation totem pole – I wasn’t expected to be good so I wasn’t. But in Reardan, my coach and the other players wanted me to be good. They needed me to be good. They expected me to be good. And so I became good.” <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">How do the drawings affect the story? Do they enhance the story or are they a distraction? <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">How are Junior’s relationships with adults different from your relationships with adults? <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Discuss why Junior calls himself as a “part-time Indian.” <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> My Reflections: I enjoyed this book. It was great to see a story about an Indian that was realistic, but also hopeful. The portrayal of life on the reservation was realistic, but Junior didn’t view his life at awful. He knew he didn’t have much and that his Dad was an alcoholic, but he could see the positive aspects of his life. Also, his life in Reardan showed that there are other options for those who live on reservations. I only wish that a few of the students in Reardan had been more fully developed.

Other Books by Sherman Alexie: // Reservation Blues // Annotated by: Carey Stolber

Title: //An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793// Author: Jim Murphy

Publisher: Clarion Books

Length: 165 pages

Interest Level: Grade 7 and up

Awards: <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">2004 Newbery Honor Book <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> 2004 Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Boston Globe-Horn Book Award <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> ALA Notable Children’s Books <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">

<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Genre: Nonfiction <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">

<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Themes: Yellow Fever; Epidemic; Philadelphia <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Censorship Issues: None <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Book Selection Requirement: Requirement 2 <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Setting: Philadelphia, PA <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Main Characters: <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Benjamin Rush <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Matthew Carey <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Matthew Clarkson <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">

<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Brief Summary: //An American Plague// describes the yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia in 1793. Many of the wealthy citizens fled the city leaving the poor behind. A few politicians and doctors stayed behind to run the city and nurse the sick. Jim Murphy looks at all aspects of the epidemic, including how it affected the sick, the doctors, the lawmakers, and the blacks. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">

<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">Classroom Uses and Comments: <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'MS Gothic'"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'MS Gothic'">Pair //An American Plague// with //Fever 1793// by Laurie Halse Anderson <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'MS Gothic'">Compare the yellow fever epidemic with a modern epidemic, specifically the response of the healthy people <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'MS Gothic'">Use //An American Plague// to introduce a research unit on the time period. After reading the book students can select a topic (i.e., religion, politics, science, etc.) or a person (i.e., Benjamin Rush, Matthew Clarkson, George Washington, etc.). <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol"> ·  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Gothic'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'MS Gothic'">Discussion of helping others versus protecting your family. Would you have left the city to protect your family or stayed to help the sick? <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> My Reflections: This book was fascinating. Murphy did a great job of weaving stories of the specific people who were present during the plague with facts about how the plague affected Philadelphia society. The most startling part of the entire book was the discussion of the potential for another yellow fever epidemic. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Other Books by Jim Murphy: //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> The Real Benedict Arnold // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Inside the Alamo // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Blizzard: The Storm that Changed America // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Gone A-Whaling: The Lure of the Sea and the Hunt for the Great Whale // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> The Journal of James Edmond Pease: A Civil War Union Soldier // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> The Great Fire // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> A Young Patriot: The American Revolution as Experienced by One Boy // //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Across America on an Emigrant Train //<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #666666; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Annotated by: Carey Stolber

Ventresca annotaions

Lisa Fair Swaney- annotations

Criteria for Evaluating Young Adult Literature http://www.evalutech.sreb.org/criteria/fiction.asp

Criteria for Evaluating Nonfiction http://www.evalutech.sreb.org/criteria/nonfiction.asp

YASLA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers: Selection Criteria http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/quickpicks/quickpicksreluctantyoung.cfm


 * Sample Annotation**


 * Format for Book Annotations**


 * Title:**


 * Author:**


 * Publisher:**


 * Length:**


 * Interest Level:**


 * Awards:**


 * Book Selection Requirement:**


 * Censorship Issues:**


 * Main Characters:**


 * Genre:**


 * Themes:**


 * Brief Summary:**


 * Classroom Uses and Comments:**


 * Personal Reflections:**

Reviewed by: