Prep for Peril and Promise of YA Literature- bookhenge

         YA literature continues to remain a mystery to me. Aronson, in section 4 of Beyond the Pale, suggests that any book can be YA literature. His final quote in the chapter reads, "To return to the publishing dilemma, a YA book is one that offers art and ideas in a fashion that communicates especially well to teenagers. A book a teenager should read, is any book". We have to keep in mind that this is from the standpoint of a publisher. I look at the book that I'm working on and assume that it isn't meant directly for teenagers. Could teenagers read it? Certainly. In the same way that a teenager might pick up a book like Tolkien's and really dive into it. However, YA authors will clearly be gearing their content and work towards a YA crowd and must offer as he says "art and ideas" in a way that "communicates especially well to teenagers".
        However, in his other article, Aronson seems to struggle with what it is that really communicates and connects well with teenagers. His article addresses the disconnect we find between knowing that YA literature is popular and what it is that kids get out of these books. Aronson says, "We know that young people respond to books. And we know that authors, parents, and teachers all try hard to mold that responsiveness through the art and text in books". So there is response and there is a host of different people trying to make literature that brings out a good quality in that response. But Aronson asserts that everything else involved in the process of YA literature is somewhat of a mystery.
         I still belive that there is something in each person, some unique perspective, that is unpredictable. Based on the myriad of experiences, dreams, hopes, and passions that each person experiences, it is hard to know what they will highlight in any given work. What they find beautiful about a certain novel or piece of art is going to be different than what any of us might see. That is why we must work on what we do control as teachers and writers. One, we can help to encourage reading and writing in every high schooler/middle schooler we meet. Two, we can continually address the content of the books we write and suggest to make sure they are positively reinforcing.
        I would clearly be a little more on the literary side of the continuum. I do have a sense of morals and I know there are certain books that contain some information that is simply not appropriate for certain high school ages and certain middle school ages to read. How would I operate then? I'd give students as many opportunities to read as possible. I'd find ways to enliven texts that really do find themselves in the canon and I would also do my best to find out what students are looking for. I might not have a book like Nothing or Will Grayson, Will Grayson involved in my classroom. However, if I know it is the type of book that would relate very clearly to one of my students that is struggling to get into the text that we're currently studying, I'd suggest it just for the sake of keeping them on their literary toes.
       I also think that Aronson makes a good point about the disconnect between YA literature creation and target audiences. He seems to suggest that by the time most writers have the writing ability necessary to go back and write about their experiences, they have lost touch with what it was like to be that age. Thus, the target audience is much harder to connect with. I had the pleasure of meeting with a young writers club at Carrboro High School the other afternoon and I encouraged them to journal, journal, and then journal some more. I showed them the quotes by Aronson about how these writers struggle to really connect to young teens. I then suggested that the more they journal, the more they write down feelings, struggles, hopes, and dreams; the easier it will be for them to look back at this time and capture it with the ever-increasing writing skill they experience as they grow as writers. They seemed extremely excited about this fact.
        It is our responsibility to encourage students towards writing and reading as often as we possiblly can. I think a lot of YA literature needs to be incorporated. Certainly, some of the classics should never go untaught, but why not use literature that has managed to connect with a rising, transforming generation.
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Back to Class, bookhenge

The title of this blog is a reference to the fact that I had to go BACK to visit our class and experienced it via the transcript and going through the archives. I wasn't there for the live session, the interaction, and I missed out on that to be sure. I love being able to react live, but it was still a wonder that our class can be made so available. I did feel like I missed the portion of live interaction, but enjoyed the fact that I didn't "miss" the content and the conversation of my classmates.
         Now, to the actual class. I thought any conversation on literary quality and the value of books for our lives, and the lives of teenagers, is a worthy one. I really enjoyed the thoughts of my classmates and how well they argued for certain books, characters, and writing to be considered. I continue to see that different people just have different perspectives. That is why we read and write. Because the things we notice and see and experience will be different than anyone else. I might have felt one thing while reading Will Grayson, Will Grayson, but I'm assured that my classmates noticed something else and I can only learn about that through sharing and conversation. I made such an effort to talk about the Cardturner because I had a perspective that I thought was worth sharing. I'm glad my classmates felt the same about the various books and points they made about them. Great class leading up to the awards.
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Thoughts on the Cardturner ( bookhenge )

 

The Cardturner by Louis Sachar. When I reflected on the number of "literary quality" ramifications that I personally set for books in my blog, this seemed to be the standout choice. I mentioned that I liked a book that eludes standards cleverly and works both with and against the general framework of most novels. The cardturner was mostly linear, but it dropped back into certain memories and kept certain knowledge hidden from us throughout the book. It was a wonderful display of understanding what to tell the reader and when to tell them. I also mentioned liking an "unlikely" plot that is made interesting through creativity, style, and character. What a fine example of that process. Sachar has taken bridge, a notoriously boring card game that upon picking up the book few people of my generation would have found interesting or worthy of our time and he has made it both. The subject is bridge... BRIDGE. And yet Sachar gives us just enough information about the game and strings it out so that we stay interested. We eventually WANT to know the next card played and wish we were there, guessing Trapp's next move. I went on to mention that literary quality involved a clear voice. I think Sachar sticks very well to our image of who Alton Richards really is. The information that is given to us only further emphasizes the fact that we are hearing from our narrator. It reminded me, quite honestly, of The Great Gatsby. A narrator that seems to be surrounded by something mighty and is trying to figure out his own way in the midst of those who have already tread loftier paths than himself. I also identified the unreliability of Alton, we have a biased view of this story and we are very specifically seeing one angle and one perspective. Sachar does well to stick to this perspective. The setting acts exactly as it is supposed to; as a backdrop. I cannot remember much detail about the various house, roads, or towns. I do have an image of the bridge tournaments, of the people, etc. This is what he wanted for his setting. The real world that sticks with us is that of bridge. The last thing I'd say is that most good stories are character driven. The plot should fall into place and everything should make sense, but the characters should be the nucleus. I think that happens in this story. Sachar quickly fleshes out characters for us to love, dislike, and be unsure of. The only criticism being that some of his characters seem too set in their despicable nature. His parents, for instance, seem overly unlikeable at points. No one can be like that all the time can they? I would have liked to see at least one or two redeeming qualities (same thing with cliff)

 

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Literature as a Performing Art- bookhenge

I have to admit that I had my doubts about this feature of the class. I saw bookcasts as a way to double check that we were expanding our knowledge of and experience with YA literature. Unfortunately, the idea of making these seemed phony to me. To report a "stirring" up inside of me and to link it to past events or present thoughts just seemed phony to me. Certainly, certain books I have read make that happen and link me back to the past in a way that I couldn't experience elsewhere. However, the thought of reading these books and just forcing a response seemed like something I could not do.

However, I broke through on my second book cast and really enjoyed creating my own story from the story that we read. It just was an interesting way to have kids thinking about something other than a summary. They have to connect the characters feelings and story to their own. It was an empowering release for me, but it also presents 2 problems in my opinion.

1) Students being afraid. They haven't experienced as much as a lot of us have (though I'm aware that some might have experienced more). A lot of kids won't know what to bookcast, they won't have an experience that the literature draws them towards. What do we do about those disconnects?

2) Why I think the disconnect is an issue is because I think it leads to a false front. High school students don't want to dig deep emotionally most of the time. I'd say that most of them might take an assignment like this and completely make some experience up that sounds like it works. We have no way of checking if the experience is authentic and moving; or just another way for that student to bs their way for a good grade. I don't see how we can check those things.

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Literary Quality

This is an interesting term to attempt to define and seems, at best, flexible. I mean sometimes the books that we expect to hold to certain standards surprise us in the way that they avoid and elude those standards. I love books that think outside of the box in terms of story and style; they take a plot that seems unlikely but entertains us through creativity. Much like my point about good fantasy being the proper escape from reality; sometimes good literature can be the proper escape from standard formats. I do think though, that a piece of literary quality has a compelling story that is told in a clear voice (another way is to have multiple voices that are so distinctintly interesting that just one clear voice would seem silly). There must be a setting that we can see, or feel, or want to see and feel. I also think that the literary quality often revolves around a character-driven story. Certainly, a lot of books get by on a clever or creative plot; but we resonate with the character and their experiences more than we do with a plot. Thus, I think a good book contains some of these things and always, always, always... a quality piece of literature transports me. To its time and place; or its line of thinking; or any number of other possibilities. If I am completely the same after reading it; why should I have read it at all?

Three is Me, Im three-- Bookhenge entry

I have to admit that my professional self has very limited experience. I am certainly engaging in many of the topics that are listed above here; curriculum, social justice, critical literacy, and creativity… However, I have no classroom and am only taking part in the theory side of this process up to date. The closest example of me as an actual “teacher” is the bible study I have led at Riverside High School for the last two years. I found this to be a useful example in my other graduate school classes when we talked about certain reading techniques that teachers employ; as I used many of them for teaching the bible to high school students. My goal is to continually prepare my “professional” self by every means available to me. I don’t just want to hit the classrooms as an enthusiastic teacher that has his positive attitude bubble burst because he wasn’t prepared for the many challenges that face teachers every day. I want to use these classes and all the technology and information outside of these classes to equip myself for the task that is ahead.

I know that the literate self requires one to responsibly immerse in literature, both that we like and that young adults of our age like. I feel like I have done just that with regularity in the past years. People talk about how graduate school can be stressful, and you’re working harder, but I feel as if I’ve never read more in my life. At every chance, I have been diving into novels. Most recently, I read the entire Chronicles of Narnia series, and before that I re-read several Harry Potter books. Believe it or not, I even read the entire Twilight series. The lore behind it is strikingly rich in how it strays from typical vampire lore, and yet that isn’t exactly why most “young adults” are enjoying the series. My literate self is constantly trying to find new and intriguing reads (whether this is based off my own interests, the suggestions of friends, or the suggestions of the general public). In spite of these efforts, my literate self is also consistently surprised by what is out there and by how little I have actually been able to read! My goal in this class is to continue adapting my style to teaching the literature that I love. It is a simple task for me to read and soak in a great novel, but how do I share it with others? I certainly have friends that ask me about books and will bring out my opinions, and those are enriching experiences. However, it is my goal in this classroom to meet others who want the same kind of feedback and are willing to constantly challenge my literate self to not rest in stagnancy.

The virtual self is particularly interesting to me. While I feel particularly available in the virtual world, it became quite clear that I’m unfamiliar with a lot of the technology that teachers out there seem to be using! I use facebook for a number of things, have played MMORPG’s like World of Warcraft, and even enjoy tweeting. This is also a field that has been particularly aided by my love for video games growing up. My brothers and I were hooked on an MMORPG called Asheron’s Call when we were in middle school. We also ran a guild together in the much more modern World of Warcraft. These games teach a number of modern skills and require a large amount of preparation and organization when you reach end-game content. The result was that I learned valuable skills while simultaneously growing to love fantasy even more. Every dungeon has a new story behind it. However, I have done very little research or implementation with these worlds and education. I see them as avenues to network and enjoy myself, but it makes perfect sense that these convenient technologies could enhance the learning experience. I can’t wait to find out more about this.

Upon reflecting over what I’ve written, I noticed that it feels as if my life has been a long preparation for teaching English. I love to read and I love to write and a long time ago I did that without the knowledge that one day I would be teaching it to others. I think I want to continually have that initial sense of wonder, where I read and write for myself and as a means of enjoyment. But I also realize now how I have to mingle that initial approach with one that hones my ability to pass this sense of wonder to others. I have to find ways to share this and to inspire young adults to find the things that are worth seeing in what I already love. Sounds fun.

Alterations

Language_Today Language Today

by Writing_Today

A new edition of Huck Finn substitutes "slave" for the n-word -- NYTimes Room for Debaters are mostly appalled: http://nyti.ms/ekBe0L

 

This is the tweet, and coinciding article, that I chose to do a journal entry on. My first thought was this: What if I wrote a book? I wrote it meticulously, I combed through every sentence, I chose every word. Some of my best writing involves such a process. I get to a point where I have read and reread certain sentences so often that I have certain paragraphs committed to memory. If I am taking that time to pick out my words, how would I react if someone went in and change 219 of them. I think Twain, who knew a thing or two about society and about the craft of writing, chose the words he used with care. And he knew the art of getting a rise out of people through his writing. I can understand hopefully altering an old text so that people who might not have gotten anything out of it just might. People who might have been offended, will look at the text with new eyes and learn the lessons Twain intended them to learn. However, from a writer's standpoint I cannot help but feel undermined. I would hate to see my work changed in this way, but would Twain have hated it? I am not sure. I bet his tweet or blog entry would be far more capable of addressing this issue. For now, I'll leave the actual conclusion up in the air.