You Remind Me of You

I am a big fan of "issue" books, but Eireann Corrigan actually lived this life, so it hit home harder. I feel like most middle and high school students would not be ready to read something as real and raw as this poetry memoir of her battle with anorexia. For three years, she was in and out of treatment centers and by the time she graduated, her doctors were convinced that she was going to die.

This "issue" book doesn't only touch upon eating disorders, but coming of age, loss, love and attempted suicide. All of Corrigan's poems revolve around herself not being able to reach defection. Who is perfect? Even though I won't encourage my students to read this, Corrigan has a way of keeping her audience engaged and humor through the hurt. She accounts her struggle with anorexia and her boyfriend Daniel's struggle with attempted suicide. Within minutes, she's lost the man who spoon-fed her to another hospital down the road. Over their years of recovery they went from hospital to hospital trying to bring about this sense of life and being. Daniel couldn't bear the hurt Eireann was facing, so he relied on weed to carry him on. "Your problems don't only hurt you!" When things got so bad, he tried to end his life in his basement while his sister was upstairs talking to their mother on the phone.

This is the story of love, harm and recovery. The poems begin happy and fade to depressing and visa verse. They keep you hooked and at times make you cry and actually feel for her. This is not what I considered an "issue" book is some body's lifestyle and feel it was Corrigan's form of therapy.

In a classroom, I might read a poem or two and have a discussion, but I would not force my students to read this. Although, I think they should be introduced because these topics are so real and happen to many teens daily.

Christina Aguilera's song, "Beautiful" reminds me of the face that people don't see in the mirror when they have eating disorders. They don't realize that they are beautiful. They don't realize that they are fine and do not need to lose weight. Anorexia is a hard disorder in which many teens face and have nobody who will listen.
This book is a great reminder that you are beautiful and have a purpose.

The Lovely Bones

Alice Sebold novel was a #1 national bestseller in 2002 and was recently turned into a movie. It is a first person narrative about Susie Salmon who was raped and murdered on December 6Th, 1973. Susie is the person telling us the story about her neighbor murdering her and her family's healing process and search to find the killing. Her sister and father take big risks to assure that nothing like this will happen again in the neighborhood.

It scares me to think that most rapes and murders occur by people that the child knows and happens close to home. I definitely won't teach this to middle school students or Freshman. It has too many raw details and made me emotional and kept asking "why" so I think it would depress my students.

For my teaching around a text project, I'm thinking about using this novel to teach foreshadowing, flashbacks and voice. Sebold does an excellent job taking us from "heaven" with Susie back to the exact moment of the rape. She also does an outstanding job of adding humor en though it is a very depressing novel.

Rape is something a lot of people do not want to discuss and Sebold establishes that if you give it time you can always find answers even if they are right in front of your eyes the whole time. It is a novel of courage, hope, forgiveness and love. Susie was truly loved.

Inside the snow globe on my father's desk,
there was a penguin wearing a red-and-white
striped scarf. When I was little my father
would pull me into his lap and reach for the
snow globe. He would turn it over,letting all
the snow collect on the top, then quickly
invert it. The two of us watched the snow fall
gently around the penguin. The penguin was alone
in there, I thought, and I was worried for him.
When I told my father this, he said, "Don't worry,
Susie; he has a nice life. He's trapped in a
perfect world." -The Lovely Bones

No matter how many times I read this I feel like I could help Susie if I were there. I feel she was too naive to say no and run. I feel helpless. This novel will bring up a ton of discussion, what could we do? How do you feel?

Summer's End

Audrey Couloumbis writes this historical fiction novel about the Vietnam War, draft cards, coming of age and running from troubles. This novel is set in the time of the Vietnam War and right before Grace's planned 13Th birthday party. This is the year she invited all her classmates. This was the birthday Grace was waiting for her whole life until her world was turned into turmoil because of her idiotic older brother.

Grace and Collin never really got along. He was the hippie of the family and attended sit-ins and had a dog and a long-time girlfriend. He was 18 and just got his draft card. This card meant that he WOULD be drafted. Before he even made it home for dinner, he did the unthinkable. He burnt the draft card. This mistake tore the family apart and caused Grace to have to cancel her party. Collin only did it as taking a stance in freedom, but it led o a long journey to Canada with Caboose, his dog.

Almost a full year later, Grace finds the present Collin got her for her 13Th birthday. She than discovers he really loved her and he is forever closer in her heart.

This book may be intriguing for everyone, because it has war parts and love parts and also touches on freedom and finding yourself. Grace is able to find that she i loved and a birthday party is just a birthday party. It becomes no big deal that her special day was ruined because of her brother's stupidity.

Maybe burning the draft card was the best thing Collin could do for his family, just maybe...

Speak

Unlike "Inexcusable", Laurie Halse Anderson takes "Speak" in a different light and analyzes the victims pint of view. Why can't see talk about it? Why is she now an outcast at school? Why won't anybody listen? "Speak" was named a 2000 Printz prize honor book and was transformed into a film in 2004.

The main character, Melinda, has become an outcast because she called the cops at a party. The party got busted and everyone was in trouble for being underage. What nobod knows is that she called because she was being sexually abused by the novels antagonist, a hot, soon-to-be senior, Andy Evans. Heather, the new kid, becomes her only best friend and art is her escape. Melinda is a very depressed student because she wants to talk, utnobody will listen. When she finally speaks,will it be too late? Heather dithes her for her old best friend who starts having a crush on Andy. Melinda tries to warn her, ut she is not believed. All she has to do is speak. Will it be too late when she finally finds the words?

Read the book to discover if Melinda takes a stand.

Anderson does a great job to illiterate the feelings and mood that sink deep inside Melinda. Melinda never wanted to loose her friends, but they would refuse to trust her. After all, she ruined their summer party. How would you feel if you couldn't escape 'it'? How would you feel if 'it' stared you in the eye everyday and you couldn't say one word?

She can't stay silent forever, can she?

Inexcusable

In this book by Chris Lynch about failure, rape and becoming an outcast Keir Sarafian realizes the importance of a simple two lettr word. Lynch's book became a finalist by winning the National Book Award in 2005.

"I am a good guy. Good guys don't do bad things. Good guysunderstand no means no, and so I could have done this because I understand."

This novel hits the hard topic of rape in the guy's point of view. We see his denial. He couldn't have done anything wrong bcause he loved Gigi. This football player and loyal friend has an inside struggle with himself because (1) he hurt a player from another team at the beginning of the season and paralized him and (2) he "raped" Gigi,one of his best friends. Keir doesn't understand what he did and now he doesn't have anyone to turn to, his sisters won't listen and his father is more like just a partner in the game of "Risk," they share beers and conversation, but that's it. Keir then recounts all the events that led up to the incident. He believes this is all one big mistake, but something very unexcusable.

I believe that children under the age of hig school level should not be exposed to Lynch's words since some is worrisome and may make one emotional. But, students have to realize that this is real. I find it admirable that Lynch wrote in the male point of view because so much of these rape stories are written in the victims mindframe.

Charlie St. Cloud

I picked up this book by Ben Sherwood, mainly because Zac Efron stars in the film and was on the front cover of the book. I never watch movies without first reading the books, because the book gives us time to make our own visualizations. This book shows how some deal with death.

Charlie and his brother Sam took a rode trip that ended in tragedy. Charlie drove to Fenway being only 14 and "killed" his brother. His life changed greatly.Charlie was brought back to life in the ambulance and was given a power to see and talk to the dead. After graduation, he moved into a little cabin in the graveyard and became the grounds keeper whiel his mother moved as far away from the place of the incident as she could and simply moved on with her life, gaining a new family and new kids. Charlie had always had a hard time keeping a girlfriend and friends because he had to be in the field by sundown to play catch with his dead brother. Meanwhile, he runs into Tess, a popular girl from town who sails for a living. She is gorgeous and he needs to make a choice, Tess or Sam? Should he hold on to Sam forever or let go? Throughot the novel, we see a big twist in plot.

I suggest everyone read it. This is not a book for just teens, but adults and teens alike. It helps us come up with reasons why we should move on. It is not good to forget, but how long is too long to hold on to someone who we know is not coming back?

Introduction

Dear Readers,
Over the next 18 weeks,I'm going to read YA (young adult) literature to familiarize myself with this genre and gain the ability to teach my students what they enjoy. Through these independent books, I will put myself out there to the struggles in the real world. I enjoy books on issues because it ensures me that nobody is perfect, but I also want to read books that are challenging to me. Those that are challenging to me may be those that my students love. Through this project, I will blog a book review that states my likes and dislikes along with how and why we could teach a book like this. Stay tune, Alicia :)