During the last two weeks, I have experienced a tremendous internal “paradigm shift” when it comes to issues regarding racial diversity within my workspace (a k-12 school.) Still forming thoughts and wrangling with what I held true for a long time and what I am starting to realize as inaccurate “read” on some of these issues. Suffice it to say that I was myopic in my view. Isn’t it ironic how I, a Chinese woman who belongs to the LARGEST population in the world, have been thinking of myself as a “minority” race simply because I’ve lived in the U.S.A. for the past 20 years and have taken on, without questioning much, a predominately white perspective? I’ve only seen myself as belonging to the 5% of Asians in the U.S. and not as belonging to the 20% of World population for being Chinese, or to the 50% for being an Asian. (The population of “white” is reported at under 20% worldwide, lower than African/of African descent.) So, when we promote the notion of a Global Perspective to our students, we need to keep using different lenses when interpreting world events, history, cultures, power agents, conflicts, etc. And this HAS everything to do with literature we publish for our young!
2013 Newbery Read book 15 and book 16…
2013 Newbery Read, book 15 and book 16. I’m reading both at the same time — finding one much more compelling than the other. It has so much to do with the unique narrative voice of book 16.
Listening to Ready Player One by Ernest Cline…
Listening to Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. It’s incredibly fun!! But I really have to listen to it only when I can’t read…. back to reading book 15.
Finished 2013 Newbery Read book 14 Really enjoyed…
Finished 2013 Newbery Read, book 14.
Really enjoyed learning about the people, events, and historical significance of everything recorded and reported in a fairly lively manner in this book.
2013 Newbery Read book 14 A nonfiction Yay
2013 Newbery Read, book 14
A nonfiction! Yay.
2013 Newbery Read book 13 Finished it took…
2013 Newbery Read, book 13
Finished… it took me 4 days? Such a short and easy book… of course, there are other things in life that prevented me from reading it continuously… but that’s not it. It simply did not hold my interest. There is something about having way way way too many details of some very very mundane things that can really kill a book. Even if it does give a sense of reality and I do appreciate that aspect of it. The emotional journey of the kid narrator is extremely realistic — and that’s a plus as well. (The narrative voice DOES get more kid-like after the beginning chapters.) However, there are some potential areas that the author could have explored (such as the relationship between the main character and his once-best friend and this other character’s growth or pain) that didn’t get much weight — limited by the choice of seeing the matters through a young person’s eyes. Not that the book should be preaching about anything but it definitely missed the opportunity to be a bit wiser or deeper…
Hunger Games – the Movie
Hunger Games movie: seen. Liked it a lot. I was impressed by the book-to-screen adaptation. Very faithful (except that the deaths in the books have stronger impacts and gorier and the eyes of the mutant beasts were made to look like the dead Tributes, which was a shame) and to me, at least, there is an added bonus:
My gripe of the first book was always about how limited a view seeing through only Katniss’ eyes and I desperately wanted to see the audience reactions and the game-making. Seeing Rue’s father and District 11’s reaction on the big screen and all the high-tech wizardry in the control room of the Arena was really satisfying. (I would have liked a little more of the Capitol residents’ reaction when young people died in the Game.)
It’s also great that the soundtrack was used sparingly — so much of the movie was quiet with dialogue or without. Jennifer Lawrence shows the world of a young heroine’s nerves, toughness, and inner conflicts so well. And it’s great that she’s not your pretty-faced or stunningly beautiful traditional movie-star. She feels real and I can see how young girls/women all feel that they can step in Katniss’ shoes.
And of course, I really enjoyed being in a theater with 9 screens showing the same movie at once (from 12:01 to 12:09): the costumes and the excitement before AND after the movie added to the whole experience. Didn’t hurt to go with some teens who all wore the side braids and even came with home-made Mockingjay pins (well done!) and arrows tucked in their boots and waist bands.
Filed under Uncategorized
Over at School Library Journal’s Battle of the…
Over at School Library Journal’s Battle of the Kids’ Books – http://battleofthebooks.slj.com/ a heated debate has been going on all day over Wonderstruck and Okay for Now.
Hunger Games comes out in a bit over…
Hunger Games comes out in a bit over a day — and we are seeing the 12:04 a.m. showing at Loews/Lincoln Square. Should be fun.
2013 Newbery Read book 13 My narrator…
2013 Newbery Read, book 13
My “narrator voice consistency” antenna is in the upward, alert position — first person, present tense — so we can’t even pretend that this is someone looking back to a much younger self. This IS the inner voice of this young person…. word choices and sentence lengths and style of telling: all have to be so carefully done. (And I am not quite seeing the evidence that the author actually realized all the “responsibilities” that come with choosing this narrative voice — after 3 chapters. Don’t think I’ll be able to change my view on this one….)
2013 Newbery Read Book 12 It’s highly amusing…
2013 Newbery Read, Book 12
It’s highly amusing. The poems are quite fun and I’d say 70% of them are truly clever. It bothers me so much, though, that the artwork accompanying the poems is so sub-par. There is a clear “mimicking” (poorly) in layout, design, illustration style to a really famous and thoroughly recognizable illustrator’s work. I had to cover most of the drawings to enjoy the poems themselves. I’d rather leave it to my own imagination to “picture” the scenarios presented in the poetry which is NOT hard to do because the poet is actually quite deft in making the mental image very clear. (A few poems are clearly picture-dependent for illuminating a point hidden in the text, but they are rare and I wish they hadn’t been included.) So, the pictures, to me, totally detract from the work as a whole.
2013 Newbery Read Book 11 Done Short book…
2013 Newbery Read, Book 11
Done. Short book. Powerful. So honest, brutally honest. It does not feel like I just read a novel. It felt REAL. The emotional trajectory pulls the reader through and although there is not a lot of poetic or evocative language, there is a highly poetic rhythm in the prose: sentence after sentence, flowing like water: sometimes trickling like a small stream and other times roaring like a mighty river in a storm. I think this is one of my favorite titles by this author. And although judging from the design and the subject matter, one will quickly put it on the YA shelf, I can see broad appeal to Young YA (13/14) readers.
2013 Newbery Read Book 11 Just started it…
2013 Newbery Read, Book 11
Just started it. Intrigued.
2013 Newbery Read Book 10 Done Incredibly moving…
2013 Newbery Read, Book 10
Done. Incredibly moving. Probably because I have always admired this one main character from the series and to see the life’s story extended and told and with such a beautiful and hopeful ending at the end of the installment just fills my heart with so much tenderness. These book people are my companions in real life — I talk about them with other admirers of the books as if their lives count: and they DO because their philosophies and struggles and triumphs do give us practical information in our day to day life. I have to catch my breath after those final passages and now type these words through blurred vision: behind tears.
Considering Sequels for Newbery
One of the hardest thing for a Newbery committee member to consider is how to fairly and effectively evaluate a new book that belongs in a series. The traditional wisdom passed down unofficially from year to year is: whether the book can “stand on its own (merits).” Meaning: if a reader coming to this book without prior knowledge of the characters or plot development progression, will he or she be able to fully appreciate the book at hand. If the reader does not need the previous books to be fully immersed in the present title, then, it has a better chance to be considered seriously for the award. If, on the other hand, one feels somewhat lost or disconnected due to unfamiliarity with the whole series, the book’s chance for being a top contender is slim to none.
This leaves me wonder, though. In a way, isn’t the success of a sequel sometimes marked by being quite “dependent” on the previous volumes? The complexity of the characters and character relationships might make a new reader puzzled but it is exactly what an old acquaintance of the series looks for to deepen an already rich experience. Intense plot lines that were left unresolved at the end of the previous volume should not need a whole chapter of “recalls” to set up the scenes for this current volume. Such recalling passages, forced on the author who just wants to continue developing a complete story line, can be tedious and obstructs the flow of the tale. So, in a way, “not standing on its own” should be considered a merit to a book that is a sequel as part of a grand tale. I am reading a sequel to a story that has been told in previous four volumes. I find the book deeply satisfying — love to see old characters referenced, love to see new potential conflicts developing based on old relationships and events, love to see the storytelling tone that is unique to the series being picked up again and so consistent with the rest of the series. At the same time, I keep wondering: how would someone who’s never read a single volume of this series react to the information revealed on these pages? If I suggested this title, will it be a delight for most of the other 14 members or will it be an unwelcomed burden? And — do I care either way?
There are fifteen people on the Committee, with vastly different tastes (some love fantasy and sci-fi, others would not touch these without some seriously coercion,) and usually only a few would have read the previous titles of any series. How should we then proceed with a suggestion or even nomination of a book that is part of a series and unfamiliar to many? Should we all read and catch up with the previous books in the series so to judge whether this new volume fits beautifully with the whole picture? Should we insist on the book’s “making complete sense” to a brand new reader of the series? Do we trust the few committee members around the table to tell everyone how the book fit with the grand scheme of the series? Do we ignore them because they are already “biased” and probably are considering the whole series and not simply the book at hand (which is our charge)?
It has been a conundrum for ages and I imagine will be for eternity (in Newbery Land.) As for me? I’m going to finish this wonderful sequel that has kept me engrossed the moment I started reading the book and I won’t be able to tell the world whether I suggest it to my committee or not. Just you know that either way it is going to be a tough decision!
Filed under Book Notes
2013 Newbery Read Book 10 I have to…
2013 Newbery Read: Book 10
I have to read this one… even if it’s not published specifically for children. It feels indulgent: if the book is good and appropriate for young readers (13/14,) I will give it serious consideration.
2013 Newbery Read Book 9 Since this is…
2013 Newbery Read: Book 9
Since this is a picture book with very few words and so much of it was conveyed so successfully and humorously via the illustrations: I only put it as a “Newbery Read” because I love it so much :)
Done with 2013 Newbery Read Book 8 I…
Done with 2013 Newbery Read: Book 8
I couldn’t quite decide whether I absolutely adored the book or just really liked it. I couldn’t read it in one straight streak even though it’s a small book and should have been done 2 – 3 days earlier. That probably says something about my emotional attachment to the story: not strong enough. But do I enjoy the language and the rich landscape/setting? Yes, absolutely. And do I think the book begins and ends so beautifully and unusually and creatively? Yes. Was I moved by some of the turning points? Absolutely… was I moved to a point that I couldn’t contain myself and wanted to share my emotion as affected by some other books? Not really. There you have it.
Decided that I’ll try to listen to all…
Decided that I’ll try to listen to all 58 Sherlock Holmes short stories and then also all the novels. So far, I have marked six stories as “listened” – just created a google docs spread sheet to keep track. Plenty of fun awaits!
http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_20157156 — a Hunger Games recipe contest yielded the results.
