Dont Criticize what you don't or can't understand, Folks!

Young adult fiction in all its complexities, from its beauty, and pain, to it’s themes, it’s villains, it’s hero’s and all the lessons hidden in their pages, there is always something new, either a new understanding, a new insight, or just simply enjoyment to be gained from reading them. None of this is shameful, none of this is “depraved” or “dirt.” We must keep an open mind to what can be gained from reading. YA books before we, in self-righteous indignation and selfish anger try to censure a literature of which many of us do not understand. There is plenty of truth to the old saying “Don’t criticize what you can’t or don’t understand.”

I think the article from the Wall Street Journal titled: “Darkness Too Visible” by Meghan Cox Gurdon is a massive exaggeration of what some consider the “moral depravity” and “dirtying” of the youth of the United States through literature. No one is, as Gurdon claims some publishers “try to bulldoze coarseness or misery into” the lives of children. In my experience, most children much less youth these days are quite well aware of the suffering and misery of others especially those around them before they get into new adulthood. Compassion and understanding of others life circumstances including all degrees of suffering and misery is actually a crucial aspect of many peoples definitions of maturity. This full and manifest maturity is, some argue, the goal of effectively making it through adolescence into young adulthood.  I don’t think it is the role of a parent or any other gatekeeper to inhibit the intellectual, personal, creative, or any other type of healthy and effective growth and development of any child or youth.

On top of this Gurdon chooses a few of the most troubling books in the YA literature genre, while ignoring many of the less extreme books not to mention avoiding the lessons that are to be learned from even the most “depraved” books. I hasten to admit that there might be something to be learned from the kids killing kids in the Hunger Games, I just haven’t figured it out even with my interactions with a number of Hunger Game fans.

I agree entirely with Laurie Halse Anderson in her blog post “Stuck between rage and compassion”, that young adult literature saves lives ever single day. I also agree when she writes that “Kids and teens need their parents to be brave and honest to prepare them for the real world.”  

There is a world of difference between exposure and advocating. Creating an understanding and promoting an illicit or sinister act are not at the same thing.

I am reminded of my own limitations, and narrow views about the Hunger Games especially when I read Linda Holmes’s blog entry “Seeing Teenagers AS we wish they were: The Debate over YA fiction “of the similarities between Hunger Games and Lord of the Flies. I appreciated Holmes’s statement about how Shakespeare himself was quite full of controversial and potentially “depraved” themes, characters and events. 

The comfort level of the parents in terms of the newly darker and grimmer fiction of this current generation is not always going to be the same level of the teenager in terms of accepting the diversity of life experiences. This discretion discrepancy is not a viable excuse for censorship, but is in fact an indicator  of not a warning sign for increase parental involvement and care, not parental  suppression.  I would bet a lot of books that these YA books of today save and improve more lives daily then they could ever “ruin”. In terms of younger people wanting to read material which is potentially unsuitable for them I would only give advice through discussing themes, characters, subject matter and plots in book talks as I would to any person in my library. 

To respond to challenges to the dark materials I would point to the first amendment, and to the intellectual and creative freedoms for which librarians stand for.

Sources:
Anderson, L. H. (June 5, 2011). Stuck between rage and compassion (WEB). Laurie Halse Anderson.
Retrieved January 19, 2012 from http://madwomanintheforest.com/stuck-between-rage-
and-compassion/.

Gurdon, M. C. (June 4, 2011). A darkness too visible (WEB). Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 16, 2012 from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303657404576357622592697038.html.

Holmes, L. (2011, June 6). Seeing teenagers as we wish they were:  The debate over YA fiction (WEB).   Money See, National Public Radio. Retrieved June 22, 2013 from             http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2011/06/06/137005354/seeing-teenagers-as-we-wish-they-were-the-debate-over-ya-fiction.

Nel, P. (June 5, 2011). Why Meghan can't read (WEB). Nine Kinds of Pie. Retrieved January 19, 2012 from
http://www.philnel.com/2011/06/05/cantread/.

Ivy: Homeless in San Francisco

The book I chose to talk about for Family Life Example post 1900 is:  Ivy: Homeless in San Francisco by Summer Brenner which is masterfully illustrated by Brian Bowes published in 2011 by PM Press and distributed by Reach and Teach. This book is a sometimes funny, often delightful, sometimes painful but most of the time it is a moving story with a crucial lesson about the energy, vitality, strength and pivotal role of family in the lives of young children. This children’s novel is about Ivy and her father Poppy. More importantly Summer Brenner’s marvelous work is a book is about an average eleven year old girl named Ivy who has some extraordinary experiences and adventures which include living in a loft, to being homeless in San Francisco (everything form living in a car, living in a park, to living in a shelter) to finding and in effect adopting dog before they are taken in by an elderly couple.  Ivy sometimes misses school for extended periods of time through out her experiences as homeless because she is so often on the move. Ivy slowly gets her new life together in more effective and heartfelt ways through her relationship to her dad and the humor, hope, resilience and love they share. She learns that life itself, and lessons from her dad, can have lessons that are more practical, impactful and lasting than any lessons from school.

Homelessness, particularly for youth, children and single parent families is steadily rising every year across the United States.  The publishers of the book are trying to do something about it through Project IVY.  

Reach and Teach has also successfully integrated the book with California state standards so it can be taught in schools around the bay area with this study guide.

To relate this to the assignment, Poppy and Ivy have a phenomenal father-daughter relationship that is carefully crafted through out the book. The missing mother is explained and Poppy’s relationship to his own dad (Ivy’s paternal grandpa) is explained in bits and pieces as well.  Ivy: Homeless in San Francisco examines the role of family in single parent (in Ivy’s case single father) homeless families, which is an overlooked but tragically growing population in the Bar Area and across the United States. I for one am incredibly impressed by the resilience, strength, integrity, humor, and love through out this book, especially the unique but somehow universal father daughter bond Poppy and Ivy share.

Freak the mighty, Max the Mighty and the power of friendships!

Picking just one gift, just one message for future generations, is quite a daunting task, so I just have to pick one gift based on what I currently want the next generation to focus on and that is improving self esteem, while growing in love and inner peace through cultivating happiness in lasting friendships.

My favorite fictional character in a children’s book right now, is Maxwell “Max” Kane from the “Freak the Mighty” series by Rodman Philbrick. In the first book in the series titled Freak the Mighty (1993) Max is a big kid, who has major struggles in school is really slow, and considers himself really dumb and has basically no self-esteem. Max also does not know his own strengths, power of will, and courage, potential, intellect, or depth of character until it is revealed in time though his actions and words and through his relationship with Kevin Avery who is nicknamed "Freak" because of his disability a disease called Morquio Syndrome that causes Kevin to walk with crutches and leg braces and eventually to die, but not before many adventures create a bond that changes Max forever. “Freak’s” friendship legacy lives on inside of Max. This is evident in the other book in the series Max the Mghty (1998) Max becomes a much better, more complete, and more loving person as a result of his relationship to Kevin and his blossoming confidence is evident in his adventures with Worm. Freak the Mighty became a movie titled “The Mighty” in 1998.

I would say that friendships are crucial not just for healthy social development but also for healthy personal wellbeing especially while growing up. Particularly these days as we live in such an individualistic society full of ways to isolate people with their online friends and technological, digital games and toys, (all the insulating gizmos and gadgets) I think loving friends are close to being the most priceless thing this life has to offer. So why not get the next generation in on enjoying two powerful and indelible books about the lasting impact of friendships!

The Storytelling Animal by Jonathan Gottschall review from the archives

from the archives: The Storytelling Animal by Jonathan Gottschall Review

This fascinating and exceptionally well written book discusses all aspects of storytelling in humans and its implications on both individual and societies.  According to From the role of story telling in hunter gather tribes like the !Kung people of Saharan Africa to the night stories that take over human minds during our nightly sleep cycles.

As Gottschall explains, Mirror neurons could play a part because often times it is difficult to not mirror back and feel the emotions of the main characters of a book, fiction or not, or any story.  Humans tend to reflect back what they observe, and with respect to stories, it is no different.

The reason for the evolutionary need for stories is complex and mysterious, but Gottshall muses that the combination of many reasons are evident in the constant use of and proliferation, and increasing in popularity of story telling despite the constant invention of new and ever more tempting distractions with all the new technology.

The book is charming and cleverly written and organized.  A must read for anyone excited about the future or the history of stories, as well as anyone perplexed by the need for or fascination with fiction in the real world, and those who are curious about why we observe, experience and express stories the way we humans do.  Gottschall states clearly and compellingly that fiction as well as our daily living realities are entwined into a fascinating vine with its own pattern, that reveals a hidden truth to all human life.  If only we would listen more carefully, observe more thoroughly and share more openly our stories could lead to peace, unity and strengthen our relationships. 

Young Adult Literature: indefinable, part of what i learned this term

Young adult literature is indefinable. This said there are current trends that help give parameters and categories inside young adult literature. Hunt in his 2007 article talks about the relatively new crossover novel phenomenon that is further blurring the lines between young adult and adult literature. Specifically now the length of the YA book is being extended and broadened to include longer and longer books in their awards to challenge the attention spans of today’s teens. I agree with some of my colleagues that perhaps the only requirement for being a young adult book is the quest for identity, a sense of self and individual agency, which may include a coming of age story, and/or one or more interwoven romances. 

This goes right along with Roger Suttons interview with Parry Campbell. Where Campbell explains that the YA book is focused on character or characters who are becoming adults and who are “finding the answer to the internal and eternal question “Who am I and what am I going to do about it?” (p. 110-111) Basically YA books are about forming and shaping adult identity or developing multiple adult identities.  Even this is ambiguous as many books of other types are about the growth and defining of identity or identities Wonder is an example as is the Freak the Mighty series, as is The evolution of Calpurnia Tate as is the a mango colored space just to name a few children’s books that fit this characteristic of YA literature.

The crossover phenomenon is doing even more to muddle things up. But if your like me you are encouraged by the quote on page 113 of the Sutton article. “Statistics from bookstores show that YA fiction is now outselling adult fiction by a large margin.” Cheers to the future of YA, teens and the future of reading!

a haiku and some recent posts in SLIS

dear readers

books open hearts wide, 
reading causes the readers
to birth brave new dreams

THe LINE BEtween adult and YA books is fiction 

Children of all ages are currently reading and may have always been reading and sometimes light-years beyond age/grade level. So distinctions seem to really do little more than make parents happy, give them some guidance on what is “age appropriate” or that fits the particular schools requirements for grade level material.  These blurry at best distinctions also provide basic scaffolding for a structure to bookstores and libraries. 

The idea of discovering and promoting crossover materials as a way to entice and tempt the more advanced or older young adult readers is a great idea. I need to start creating a list of crossover titles for my future librarians self and for my current job in a local independent bookstore.  The crossunder books are harder to define and find and I am more then a little confused about them. I find the term new adult a very accurate name for the cross over/ cross under subgenre. 

NO CENSORSHIP 

It is essential to my beliefs of what it means to be a public librarian is to be as liberal and progressive with liberty and freedom for all. This means casting the widest net as wide as we can given our limitations, in the books public libraries carry, trying to be as objective and open minded as possible.  

 I can understand why some people want to sensor certain books due to their defensive natures and their own types of sensitive discriminations. This said there is little to defend such insecure personal judgments. I think much arrogance is based on ignorance, so if people were exposed to more things the less arrogant and more open-minded people would be. Hence more exposure to greater diversity equals a better world.  

Now stepping back to the articles Campell has a compelling argument for more positive literature about Christianity and Judaism and spirituality and religion in general, to be balanced I would add that YA books about evolution and YA fiction about science in general is also underrepresented.  I agree with pretty much all of what Levithan wrote about in his activist article about the under representation of Gay (and LGBTQ) teen literature. I specifically like his point about library collections being representations, and that it is a librarian’s obligation to make this representation as welcoming and as accurate as possible. So true, I also agree with his point about identities of all kinds need to be defended and represented as fact.

As future librarians we must have the most diverse representation of literature possible. It is our duty to our country, to each other and to all humanity.

Relabel Non-fiction, get real

I feel that labeling our nonfiction as informative texts and our fiction as simple narrative would be a great disservice to discerning readers. Harris is wrong on a basic level. As fully literate human beings, we learn “information” from stories sometimes even more fully and carefully than we learn from “preachy” informative work.  The assertion that learning/teaching is the proper domain of “experts” and that all narrative “stories” must be entirely separate is, in my view, evolutionarily incorrect.  As I understand prehistory, we learned much of our information through stories--of events, of hunts, of heroic deeds -- not through anything close to scientific studies of these phenomena.   I feel that Harris is both historically inaccurate, and wrong today, for people of all ages continue to learn from stories.  Consider what happens at the dinner table, in bars, at the beauty salon, or on fishing trips.  Harris’s idea that young people would somehow benefit from inaccurately labeled sections is absurd.



21st century YA reference


I think that we, as librarians in information professionals, need to harness and empower our young adults technical savvy with information literacy through various methods. Whether it is online or digital reference services (like those we read about) and other resources or using e-readers for reference help or effective communication with librarians in the physical space of our libraries, our young people need to be well prepared for working with the resources and services that our 21^st century public libraries provide.   

To give better reference help for teens we need to pay special attention to the young adults we serve. As the Walter and Mediavilla article points out, if we want to be effective as librarians for young adults we will need to focus on helping teens achieve development outcomes associated with adolescence.  We must provide informational and reading resources and services that meet their individual objectives.  For their individualistic cultural world, the “average” will not do.  If we use more advanced inquiry-refining techniques and effective language, then the inquiry has better chances for success whether the reference question needs to be met in cyber space or in the physical space of the library itself.  

four Printz books reviewed by me (Drew Durham)

Book: 

Book 1: Where things come back John Corey Whaley (Atheneum Books for Young Readers July 24, 2012)

William C. Morris YA Debut Award (2012), Printz Award (2012)

Plot

Cullen Witter lives in Lily, Arkansas which becomes host to a woodpecker sighting, but is it a hoax?  A birdwatcher named John Barling believes he spots a species of woodpecker thought to be extinct since the 1940s near the town. During the subsequent bird induced chaos around town, Cullen’s fifteen year old younger brother Gabriel somehow mysteriously disappears. Thus Cullen must do what he can to keep himself, his family and his friendships together. While alternating chapters between third person narration between Cullen and a 18 year old missionary named Benton Sage. The story ends in an culminating and unexpectedly thrilling way. Whaley’s style of mixing humor with sadness and drama, a writing style which finds ways to discover beauty and hope in everyday situations makes this book into a wonderful novel filled with the juxtapositions and complexities of real life. Even if the situations are different then our realities, the descriptions, dialogue, and character development make everything seem very realistic.  This story would go well on display with other multi layered and sophisticated books which directly involve and create a dialogue around the theme of the meaning of life like Looking For Alaska and Sophie’s World of all which are surreal or realistic fiction.

Book 2: Chares and Emma: The Darwin’s leap of faith By Deborah Heiligman 2009 Square fish publishers (Printz honor 2010)

This Heiligman book almost won three awards, the National Book Award Finalist, Printz award Honor book and it won the Excellence in Young Adult Nonfiction Award. This book is thorough and beautifully written biographical expose about Charles and Emma Darwin focuses on their married life exploring everything about their marriage and life together. All aspect of their lives from the kids, to the big theological (Emma’s agnosticism) versus Charles’s scientific understandings is investigated. Emma’s and Charles love is displayed in all of its complexity and beauty. This tome is a great book that speaks so eloquently about one of the most important families in the history of science. The troubles and joys before their marriage are also carefully detailed, as is Charles Darwin’s troubled and demanding writing life. The death in their families including two of their children, and troubles with their health are well documented in this book. The dialogue, like all other details of the book, is period appropriate, and accurate and factually based. This book would go well alongside all Darwin related materials.

Book 3: Looking for Alaska: John Green

Miles Halter (a skinny 17 year old who is known for most of the book ironically as Pudge) is fascinated by all the famous last words he can possibly learn–and tired of his safe life at home and his comfortable High School in Florida. He escapes for boarding school in Alabama to seek what the poet Francois Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” The perhaps that awaits Miles at Culver Creek, includes drinking, smoking, pranks, tricks, religion class, and Alaska Young. Alaska is daring, hilarious, seriously troubled, and gorgeous. After a terrible tragedy Pudge blames himself for not preventing happens, Alaska’s presence never fully disappears from the book, and lessons abound in this Pritnz Award winner from 2006. The “great perhaps” the existential conundrum that this book focuses on, is a great philosophical idea repeated through out the book echoing a theme of existential angst that countless people must resolve for themselves. This book would do well alongside Where things come back and Sophies World due to its philosophical imperatives and lessons.  

 four Printz books reviewed by Drew Durham 

Book: 

Book 1: Where things come back John Corey Whaley (Atheneum Books for Young Readers July 24, 2012)

William C. Morris YA Debut Award (2012), Printz Award (2012)

Plot

Cullen Witter lives in Lily, Arkansas which becomes host to a woodpecker sighting, but is it a hoax?  A birdwatcher named John Barling believes he spots a species of woodpecker thought to be extinct since the 1940s near the town. During the subsequent bird induced chaos around town, Cullen’s fifteen year old younger brother Gabriel somehow mysteriously disappears. Thus Cullen must do what he can to keep himself, his family and his friendships together. While alternating chapters between third person narration between Cullen and a 18 year old missionary named Benton Sage. The story ends in an culminating and unexpectedly thrilling way. Whaley’s style of mixing humor with sadness and drama, a writing style which finds ways to discover beauty and hope in everyday situations makes this book into a wonderful novel filled with the juxtapositions and complexities of real life. Even if the situations are different then our realities, the descriptions, dialogue, and character development make everything seem very realistic.  This story would go well on display with other multi layered and sophisticated books which directly involve and create a dialogue around the theme of the meaning of life like Looking For Alaska and Sophie’s World of all which are surreal or realistic fiction.

Book 2: Chares and Emma: The Darwin’s leap of faith By Deborah Heiligman 2009 Square fish publishers (Printz honor 2010)

This Heiligman book almost won three awards, the National Book Award Finalist, Printz award Honor book and it won the Excellence in Young Adult Nonfiction Award. This book is thorough and beautifully written biographical expose about Charles and Emma Darwin focuses on their married life exploring everything about their marriage and life together. All aspect of their lives from the kids, to the big theological (Emma’s agnosticism) versus Charles’s scientific understandings is investigated. Emma’s and Charles love is displayed in all of its complexity and beauty. This tome is a great book that speaks so eloquently about one of the most important families in the history of science. The troubles and joys before their marriage are also carefully detailed, as is Charles Darwin’s troubled and demanding writing life. The death in their families including two of their children, and troubles with their health are well documented in this book. The dialogue, like all other details of the book, is period appropriate, and accurate and factually based. This book would go well alongside all Darwin related materials.

Book 3: Looking for Alaska: John Green

Miles Halter (a skinny 17 year old who is known for most of the book ironically as Pudge) is fascinated by all the famous last words he can possibly learn–and tired of his safe life at home and his comfortable High School in Florida. He escapes for boarding school in Alabama to seek what the poet Francois Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” The perhaps that awaits Miles at Culver Creek, includes drinking, smoking, pranks, tricks, religion class, and Alaska Young. Alaska is daring, hilarious, seriously troubled, and gorgeous. After a terrible tragedy Pudge blames himself for not preventing happens, Alaska’s presence never fully disappears from the book, and lessons abound in this Pritnz Award winner from 2006. The “great perhaps” the existential conundrum that this book focuses on, is a great philosophical idea repeated through out the book echoing a theme of existential angst that countless people must resolve for themselves. This book would do well alongside Where things come back and Sophies World due to its philosophical imperatives and lessons.  

  

Book 4:  Why we broke up by Daniel Handler

             Min Green is a bitter and hurt mismatched old movie obsessed ex girl friend of Varsity basketball team co-captain and total jock Ed Slaterton. Min (short for Minerva) is intent on showing her pain in her words and her symbolic sending of a box filled with many trinkets and curiosities of their wild high school love affair.  The fun Min and Ed have together as well as their intimate moments and their miss matched personalities and odd sense of humor are all flushed out in detail. Through explorations of their joys, their confusion, while readers join them in their high school love escapades, and half planned adventures. The raw betrayal Min endures because of Slaterton’s ruthless cheating.  The awkwardness of being intimate and steady with someone while having “friends” of the opposite gender, and still knowing your ex-lovers are both investigated in specific detail along with Min’s inner most feelings and pain. I think that this book would go well with other Young Adult break up books. 

The “Why we broke up project” is a follow up by the author Daniel Handler, and it is an impressive resource to share break up stores and a great idea to help people who have recently broken up or need closure and healing from a break up through sharing and reading breakup stories. The project is located at http://whywebrokeupproject.tumblr.com/