It's all about Hunger Games people!

Seriously, as you may have gathered, this books has everything. A fight to the death! The need and will to do anything to survive! Action! Romance! Love triangle! Family love and family feud! Most importantly you will literally not be able to put it down until you finish it. In a review Stephanie Meyer mentioned something about taking it out to dinner with her, which I initially just wrote off as another one of her great literary achievements, but she was right. Once you start, block out your life. This is all you will be able to do. Read it! Then give it to someone else who will love it as much as you. Speaking of which, if anyone already has read it and wants the sequel, I got it. Just let me know!

"What is the point of the (dead) pigeon book?"

That's what a friend of mine asked me when I told him about my book talk. It felt good to tell him this: Well, first of all, it's great for reluctant readers. You know, it's a book, but it doesn't have too many words on each page. And it's funny! And sinister! Also, it's an art book. Each gruesome page is designed by a different artist making it an awesome supplement to a modern American art class, or just a varied and interesting way to spend a rainy afternoon. Lastly (and my favorite thing) is that it shows how far one stupid idea can take you! A la Skulls, Canceled Flight is a perfect example how a silly, though creative idea, can turn into a book! Amazing!

Where are all the lesbians at?

This question has come up several times in class and I believe there are a few explanations. 1. Being a gay man has historically been more taboo than being a gay woman and perhaps there is more of an urge to debunk those notions by writing books like Freak Show and The Vast Fields of Ordinary. 2. On the other hand, gay men are now FABULOUS and that might make the market for gay boy books more feasible. 3. (My "real" theory, or thoughts at least...) The books that we've read so far with male characters, gay or straight, have focused a lot on teenage sexuality. Think about all the boners and boobs in Little Brother and the wet dreams and straight up fucking in Boy Toy. Girls portrayed in YA lit. are much more prone to crushes and (gasp!) even falling in love with little to no mention of having a wet vagina or hard nipples. (Both indications of arousal, FYI). Looking at these aspects makes it seem reasonable that there are no books focusing on lesbian love, let alone lesbian sex. I mean, even Body Drama, the book for girls and their bodies, mentions NOTHING about being turned on, masturbating or anything that's great about being in a healthy sexual relationhip!

Disappointment in community resources

I have to say that working on our community profiles was not only frustrating, but made me actually feel sad! Perhaps it was an issue of search terms but the easiest information to find on teens in Brooklyn neighborhoods was crimes they have committed. Machetes in Williamsburg, vandalism in Brooklyn Heights. It seems like such an obvious juxtaposition. There was so little information on what they can do in their out-of-school time that it doesn't come as much surprise that they turn to crime.

On a similar note, I watched Crips and Bloods: Made in America last night. It is a very interesting documentary on gang life/violence in LA. It is chock-full of history and information, but the real take-away message is that if these teenagers had more options and more support, they wouldn't be getting involved in this lifestyle. These opinions come from current gang members, reformed gang members, professors, etc.

Waging a war of annoyance on American websites

Has everyone read Little Brother? Did anyone catch this story this morning? The similarities nearly took my breath away.

The fade out

Several books we've read so far for Young Adult Lit and Literacy (including If I Stay, Living Dead Girl, and The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks) have ended with a fade out. That is, the endings are vague, much like a song that fades out rather than concludes. (It drives me crazy in music... fade out? More like cop out!) But somehow it works in books, especially for teens. The endings are, rather than inconclusive, open-ended. They are great for discussion. Did she live? Did she win? Is she really free? Why, why and why?

First blog post EVER

I've been considering starting a blog for awhile. I like to talk about anecdotes from my day, and soon I will be working in a new library and I thought it would be fun to write about books and other literacy-related events and activities. However, when starting a blog was assigned to my class, I froze. This first post reminds me of starting a journal. It feels like I should have something profound to say. I want to be sharing my vast knowledge and clever opinions with everyone who graces this blog with their presence. But the more I thought about it, the less I could think of. So this is my ice-breaker. Consider the ice broken.