Books #10-15

Alexie, S. (2007), The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. New York: Little Brown.

Arnold, also called Junior, lives on the Spokane reservation in Washington surrounded by poverty, alcoholism, and hopelessness. His only way out is to attend the public high school in the next time. But by leaving the reservation he is seen as a traitor to his people and to the people in the predominately white high school, he is an outsider. As he struggles to fit in at school, he slowly loses each person who supported him. First his best friend Rowdy, then his grandmother, his dad's best friend, and finally his sister. Junior, despite his loses, fights to be educated and be a member of his tribe.

This book had a huge impact on me. At first I thought it was going to be a high school version of Diary of Wimpy Kid because of Junior's cartoons, but it was so much more. The poverty and alcohol abuse is handled with humor, but also an honesty that draws you in. Junior is so torn between his two worlds. When he thinks his sister is free, only to have her die in an alcohol related accident, I was shocked. Every time Junior had a positive thing happen, a negative would knock him down. I think this spoke to me because my grandfather's last wife was a midwife with Indian Health Service. I spent time as a child on the Navajo reservation in Tuba City, Arizona. I played with kids like Junior, whose parents had nothing and were always drunk. I saw life on the reservation and I will never forget it. So as I read, I could see the houses with the broken windows, the yards littered with toys and empty bottles, and the little kids in dirty clothes playing outside.

I would teach this book in a heart beat to high school kids. The comments about sex might be a bit much for middle school kids. Mr. Alexie addresses serious contemporary issues with humor in such a way that students would enjoy this book very much. Junior's struggles with girls, his peers, his family, and the culture and expectations of his tribe are all things that teens could have empathy for.

Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=su_GVGWVHUs
Teacher Links -https://www.teachingbooks.net/tb.cgi?tid=10212&a=1


Anderson, L.H. (1999). Speak. New York: Penguin.

Melinda is the most hated girl in school. At a party over the summer, she called 911 and the police came and arrested several people. Now that high school has started, she is completely ostracized by her peers. But what they don't know is that she was raped at that party and to deal with seeing her assailant and school, she has stopped talking. Her outlet becomes her art class with Mr. Freeman. School becomes hell for Melinda. She tries a couple of times to reach out and become a part of a group and make friends, but the rumors and comments get in the way. When her former best friend starts dating Andy ( the rapist), Melinda decides to fight back. She tries to warn her but Rachel doesn't want to hear it. When Andy is inappropriate at prom, Rachel dumps him and Andy blames Melinda. He corners her in the closet where she hides during school and attempts to assault her again. But this time, her screams are heard by the lacrosse team and she is saved. With that, people learn the truth and Melinda finds her voice again.

This is a powerful piece of realistic fiction. Date rape is a subject that is not always covered in such a real and raw way. We have a culture that blames the victim rather than the perpetrator. We slut shame and bully, rather than offer the support that the victim needs. The honesty of Melinda's pain is something that all high school students, regardless of gender, should be aware of.

This book was summer reading for my daughter as she entered high school. I loaned her my copy and told her to talk to me when she was done. We had an amazing conversation about the book and its relevance. Then she started school...
Please if you teach this book don't do what my daughter's teacher did!!!! He picked it apart, asking them to talk about the motifs of lips, mirrors, and trees. He also referred to Melinda as whiny. This was the year that my reader stopped reading. He took a book she had loved and tore it to pieces in front of her eyes. If you are going to teach this, teach it for the empathy, for the social relevance, and for the girl in you class who has lost her voice!

Trailer - http://www.teachertube.com/video/speak-book-trailer-131463?utm_source=google&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=preroll&utm_term=search&utm_content=video-ads

Teacher Links_ https://www.teachingbooks.net/tb.cgi?tid=6343


Garden, N. (1982). Annie on my Mind, New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.

Liza and Annie meet at the museum and there is something about Annie that just draws Liza to her. What starts as a friendship evolves into a romantic relationship. The girls struggle to find time together and keep their relationship a secret. But when Liza is house sitting for a teacher and her partner, their secret is discovered along with the relationship between Ms. Stevenson and Ms. Widmer. The teachers lose their jobs as a result, and Liza faces a hearing at her school. Her entire relationship is exposed to all. The hearing is dismissed and Liza is allowed to graduate. Liza heads to MIT and Annie to UC Berkley. The book is told in flashback as Liza gets up the courage to contact Annie again.

I don't know how I didn't know about this book when it came out. I was in an all girls' boarding school with very progressive ideas and our fair share of lesbians. I know that the book was banned in several areas, but usually we were encouraged to read banned books. Some how I missed this one. It handles the confusion and budding romance in a sensitive way that is still relatable 35 years later, which is a hallmark of good YA. It's so hard to find a decent piece of writing that handles LGBTQ issues in a non stereotypical way. We need more books where students can see themselves in their the characters and story.

Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pxiMLpXyEs 

Teacher Links - https://www.teachingbooks.net/tb.cgi?a=1&tid=19932


Gephart, D. (2016). Lily and Dunkin. New York: Delacorte

Timothy may look like a boy, she knows that she is really a girl, a girl named Lily. With the start of 7th grade it seems the perfect time for Timothy to become Lily. But Lily's father disagrees with starting hormone blockers, with dresses, with make-up, with Timothy being Lily. Norbert just moved to Florida from New Jersey with his mother to live with his grandmother. Norbert, who goes by Dunkin, is bipolar and schizophrenic. In an attempt to fit in at school, he tries out for the basketball team. His height helps him make it, but he's not a strong player. To compensate, he stops taking his medicine and becomes manic. Both characters live parallel lives as Dunkin becomes friends with Lily's tormentors. But when Dunkin climbs a tree that Lily is trying to save, they both share their secrets. Dunkin's manic episode continues and he ends up hospitalized. Lily begins hormone blockers after her father learns the suicide rate for transgender youth. The two meet up again at the winter dance. No more secrets, Timothy is Lily and Dunkin is honest about his mental illness.

To cover the topics of mental illness and transgender youth in one book and to do it in such a respectful way is amazing. Both topics hold such a societal stigma that they have rarely been addressed in a YA book. We need characters like Lily and Dunkin for LGBTQ and mentally ill teens to relate to. Lily's relationship with her father is also important, as she struggles for him to accept her for who she is. Havighurst lists changing relationships with parents as one of his development steps.

Trailers- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBDtalThIRE 
Teacher Links- https://images.randomhouse.com/promo_image/9780553536744_2936.pdf 



Myers, W.D. (1999). Monster. New York: Harper

Steve is on trial for a crime he did not commit. He was truly in the wrong place at the wrong time and now faces 25 years to life, which at 16 is a death sentence. The story is told in two formats: a screenplay in the courtroom and a journal in the jail. The screenplay allow Steve to look at the trial in a controlled way. He is mainly an observer of witnesses during the trial, so he writes it that way. Once he is back in jail, he is alone. The journal shows the fear and worry he has as a 16 year old boy in an adult jail. Steve is found not guilty by the jury and released. But the experience in jail has changed him in ways neither he or his family expected.

Another amazing book! This glimpse into life in jail for a young black man was eye opening. Putting a 16 year old boy in with adult criminals is controversial, as is the role of a public defender. So many think that public defenders don't care and just do the minimum to keep their job. Steve's desperation to have positive human contact makes him such a powerful character. He wants to connect with his lawyer, and thinks he has, but in the end she just turns away and goes to the next case.

This is a very strong piece of realistic fiction. So much of this story is based on morals and moral development. As mentioned in the text, this is a key part of adolescent development. And while Steve has a sense of morals, he associated with some who did not. And that seems to be the crux of the story. When amoral people commit crimes and implicate the innocent, how does that affect the morals of the innocent?