May/June 2008
Thumbs-up, Thumbs-down Reviews for Reader’s Advisory
Lauri Vaughan reviews seven reader’s advisory tools. With a thumbs-up, thumbs-down approach, Vaughan offers a quickly accessible profile of guides for school librarians, especially those working with teen readers. Although published in 2006, all or just one of the titles rated thumbs-up would enhance the quality of the support work by school librarians. Watch for additional collections of Thumbs-up/ Thumbs-down reviews by Vaughan. Thumbs-up, Thumbs-down Reviews for Reader’s Advisory
Classic Teenplots: A Booktalk Guide to Use with Readers Ages 12-18 is the fifth revision of the 1967 classic Juniorplots by John T. Gillespie and Diana Spirt. With the first manual, Gillespie and Spirt helped the world recognize the then nascent genre of YA literature by supplying an essential tool for anyone providing reader advisory services to teens. The same can be said of this latest edition, which Gillespie authors with Corinne J. Naden. The volume provides entries for 100 teen novels divided among eight genre categories. Each entry includes publisher information, a brief introduction, a list of principal characters, a sizable plot summary, a brief explanation of major themes, a list of passages that could be used in a booktalk, a list of related titles, each with a brief annotation, and ends with an extensive collection of resources about the author and the book. Classic Teenplots also includes a brief guide to booktalking. Separate author, title and subject indices as well as an appendix of web sites on children’s literature enhance the value of this resource. The list of electronic sources is helpful, but not specifically geared to young adult readers. While the table of contents is a collection any YA librarian worth her salt should have under her belt and on her shelves, one wishes it could be more up-to-date. Gillespie cautions, however, that the volume is intended to be used as a companion with Teenplots – which he also authored with Naden in 2003 – and which includes several authors considerably newer to the YA scene. Taken together, the list of authors is excellent. Creating a list of books to which is added the descriptor “classic” is a task guaranteed to garner criticism if only on what is omitted. It’s an impossible task. In a teen world where the emphasis is always on fresh, the job is made even more difficult. Gillespie, Naden, and their publishers may have hit upon a reasonable formula by producing a classic list meant to have a longer professional shelf life complimented by a frequently updated list of excellent, but not necessarily classic titles. Let’s hope we see the next updated edition of Teenplots in the near future.
300 Junior Novel Anticipation Guides compiles twelve “value questions” on reproducible worksheets designed to inspire interest in titles for the youngest readers. The collection is geared for use with students in grades 4-8, and most specifically groups of students in a teaching environment. Nancy Polette suggests three ways to use the worksheets: As a handout to spur thinking before a book is started, as a discussion starter after the book is read, or as a tool for a student to skim through to choose a title. Surely the latter is the weakest use as the book includes no summaries of any of the 300 titles, and readers are likely to find any one of several other selection tools more helpful. While the book does have an index, it lacks cross-referencing with authors. Therefore, even though worksheets are included for four books in Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events, the titles are scattered throughout the book and the index, with no apparent relationship among them.The Harry Potter books that are included do show up in alphabetical order in the index, but only due to the accident that the titles all begin with the main character’s name. The questions Polette poses are statements with which readers choose to agree or disagree. It’s a nice format to require student involvement on a personal level even before discussion starts. The questions clearly aim for a much higher understanding of content than those prompted in various electronic reading programs that tend to skim the barest trivia. Even so, expecting tweeners who are preparing to read or have read Snicket’s The Miserable Mill to seriously agree or disagree with the statement “No one would have a huge library filled only with books about grammar” is a little like having a humorless discussion with the Monty Python crew about their favorite color.
Pulliam and Fonseca’s Read On…Horror Fiction is an excellent addition to any teen librarian’s collection of reader advisory tools. Indeed, it’s worthy enough to put directly in the hands of readers of horror fiction or readers thinking about dipping into this lesser read genre. The book includes thumbnail descriptions of hundreds of horror titles divided by appeal features: story, setting, character, language and mood. Pulliam and Fonseca’s use of appeal features as chapter division works well because it helps both the familiar and the unfamiliar make worthy selections. The chapters are further divided into convenient and attractive sections. For example, Chapter 3 – Setting includes the sections “Places, Everyone” and “Timing is Everything.” The pithy titles of subsections beg reading: “Is That Michael Myers at the Window? Halloween Horror,” “Hey, You Look Much Smaller on TV: Historical and Famous Characters,” and “With Humans Like These, Who Needs the Supernatural?: Maniacs and Sociopaths.” Title entries within subsections are ordered alphabetically by author, thereby keeping all titles by the same author together. While the book includes an index that will direct the reader to titles by an author mentioned in other sections, the titles are not included with the entry although they easily could have been. Entries do include icons indicating winners of the International Horror Guild, International Literary Guild, Bram Stoker, and Pulitzer Prize awards. And while the collection is not geared specifically for the young adult audience, the authors do provide a YA icon for titles they consider crossover books. The freshness factor – the authors consider only books published within the last ten years and a few classics – scores big with teen readers. With all the delectable choices offered, don’t expect teens to limit themselves, however. The final third of the book encompasses three appendices. Keenly noting that the evolution of the horror genre shares a stronger link to its cinematic adaptations than other genres, Pulliam and Fonseca’s first appendix is a lengthy list of films adapted from print. It divides movies into Classics, Modern Classics, Remakes, Slashers, Mainstream Horror, and Cult Classics. Entries include film title, director, production year, enticing description, and the film’s print origin. The second appendix lists the titles of any books mentioned in previous pages that are part of a series, with their siblings and in chronological order of publication. Even more useful for the uninitiated, Pulliam and Fonseca’s third appendix, Genreblends, presents a list of titles that qualify for, in their words, “Horror with a tinge of…” The list includes the subheadings Christian Fiction, Classics, Detective Fiction, Fantasy, Historical, Mainstream/Literary, Medical Thriller, Romance, Science Fiction, Splatterpunk, and Young Adult. Every section and subsection of this book starts with explanation in which the authors’ love of the genre is present and infectious. Perusers of this title who didn’t think they were fans of horror fiction when they picked it up will be reconsidering their status as such. Pulliam and Fonseca dedicate the appendix to “those of you who understand why it is important to see Samara crawl out of the well, out of the television, and slither across the floor toward us on the big screen.” Personally, I don’t know who Samara is, but after perusing this book, and in particular this appendix, I’m on a mission to go read and view her…him…it.
Specifically designed as a guide for mystery and crime book club facilitators, Niebhur’s Read ‘Em Their Writes may work even harder as a finding tool for fans of the genre. There is little here, however, for a non-fan and it holds even less appeal or usefulness to teens or teen librarians. The book’s introduction – after an author’s defense of the discussability of mystery and crime fiction – includes several pages on general book discussion procedures. Niebuhr provides entries for a hundred books which include a thumbnail description, author biography, plot summary, setting, subject headings, publisher information, and appeal points. Entries also include two boxes set off to the left of the summary material. The first box offers the address of any website associated with the author as well as any electronic source for a reader’s guide to the summarized title. The second box includes read-alikes, a list of two or three titles or an author that share similar style points with the described book. Books are divided among three categories: soft-boiled, traditional, and hard-boiled. Within these categories, titles are listed alphabetically by author. All entries include a list of discussion questions – as few as four, but usually more than six prompts for informal oral discussion. While compiling a wealth of information, Niebhur’s take on mystery and crime reading seems stale. The prolific and popular Miami author, Carl Hiassen, is included only for his 1986 title Tourist Season with no mention of his subsequent work. The quality of discussion questions seems uneven. Frequently the questions are brief one-liners few facilitators would want to rely on for lively oral engagement. Other times – the entry for Thomas H. Cook’s The Chatham School Affair, for example – the questions are numerous, multi-faceted and represent an excellent resource for the discussion facilitator. Every entry includes a website and reader’s guide box, even if only states “None” - which seems silly. Also silly and a little pedantic is the phrase, “See standard questions in the Introduction for more questions” following every list of discussion starters regardless of the length. Even Niebhur’s list of 50 additional titles, which are listed alphabetically by author, could have been organized more creatively – if only by the same categories he applies to the first 100 titles. A little organizational flare and fresher subject matter could have made this somewhat patchy facilitator’s tool into a much stronger resource for fans looking to explore mystery and crime fiction, and for the librarians that serve them.
When I first started my Library and Information Science degree, I was amazed at the number of class discussions that revolved around designing public relations campaigns for a library. Would I really have to evangelize about reading and reference services? Didn’t everyone already know what cool places libraries were? What fabulousness awaits them in books? A brief week into my internship in an elementary school library burst that bubble. (Isn’t it great to discover some vestige of naiveté when you’re 40?) Veteran children and teen librarian Kristine Mahood has no such bubbles floating in her world and she’s amassed an array of ideas on selling books and reading to teens in A Passion for Print: Promoting Reading and Books to Teens. Her first chapter, “Understanding Teen Assumptions About Reading, Books and Libraries,” reveals the author’s love not just for young adult titles, but also for the young adults who read them, as well as for the importance of seeing the book world from their place in it. Mahood reminds us, “that the experience of reading is not the same for teens as it is for adults. For teens, not every book is of their choosing, and generally, there’s going to be a test.” Young adult librarians, especially school librarians, would do well to remember that for even the most ambitious patron, sometimes we are just another adult putting a book in their hand. We need to show teens we are more than that. Mahood makes clear the best and most effective cornerstone of promoting YA lit is reading YA lit. Know your product; know your customer. Mahood relies heavily on the marketing techniques commercial outlets use to promote reading to teenagers. For example, she suggests making use of space where “consumers” are temporarily stationary for book displays. Hence the check-out desk and printer become the counterparts of the supermarket cashier station and coffee shop pick-up counter. Similarly, Mahood suggests placing books near the doorway much like featured sweater displays at your favorite clothing shop. It could be argued, however, that she carries this metaphor too far when she recommends visiting commercial bookshops for collection development ideas. While I don’t mind stealing a few good promotional strategies from the commercial big boys for the “how,” I like to think we have far better resources to use than the local chain bookstore for the “what.” At times, the pace of her work slows down and Mahood spends a little too much time discussing the obvious. In her chapter on collection development, the run-down of genres and their reading appeal with only one or two title examples is unnecessary. I’d much rather pick a veteran’s brain on how to choose and get some creative resources. Still Mahood is nothing if not comprehensive and ten chapters cover every topic from teen reading spaces to electronic promotion tools. Each chapter concludes with an extended list of print and electronic resources that seem quite fresh. The same can be said for the appendices – the first, a nice list of YA titles and series, none older than 2000 with the exception a very few classics and the second, a solid list of print resources for teen librarians of similar vintage.
Anyone in need of a fresh idea for a library program for teenagers will make great use of Valerie Ott’s Teen Programs with Punch: A Month-by-Month Guide. While school librarians might not need to be dreaming up as steady a stream of such programs as public YA librarians, Ott’s imagination will go a long way anywhere teens and books connect. Ott scores high points for depth of her subject matter, practical comprehensiveness, and pleasant writing style, but hits the grand slam in creativity and diversity. The table of contents presents 12 monthly chapters fully outlining three – with the exception of July and August which have two – teen library programs. Few of the programs need be kept with the month Ott assigns, however, and most could be used throughout the year. Each program outline includes a cost scale (Ott uses the familiar $, $$, $$$ and $$$$ for quick reference.) and a suggested age group. Subheadings include “How,” “Time, Cost, and Supplies,” “Promotion,” and “Collection Connection.” Chapters conclude with a list of references. Several of the programs require a printed handout, most of which are supplied in reproducible form in the book’s several appendices. All twelve chapters include a brief section entitled “When Time is Short and Money is Tight…” listing several more program ideas with thumbnail descriptions. In her introduction, Ott explains that particularly “surprising, progressive, and perhaps less conventional” programs are preceded by a small cannonball with a lit fuse. A sample of a program winning such designation is “Goth Gathering,” really an informal get together by someone who has done a little legwork into the Goth subculture. Ott does the legwork and provides an excellent list of fiction sources, including graphic and non-fiction titles. It is a simple, inexpensive program that has T…E…E…N written all over it. Ott also pulls together much more complicated programs like “The Experiment,” an idea inspired by the well-known experiment of teacher Jane Elliot, who divided her fourth graders into groups of blue eyes and brown eyes. The organization of creative materials Ott provides makes it an easy program to carry out, however, and soon teens in your library can be visiting “opportunity stations” such as the college admissions office, employment agency and real estate office to receive pre-determined responses based on randomly assigned characteristics such as disabled, gay, college-educated, and single. And, no surprise here: Ott provides a nice list of titles to have on hand for check-out once teens get done discussing the hazards of discrimination. Not enough? Here’s a quick sampling of other program titles: “Redo Your Room,” “Veg Out,” “Get Reel,” and “In Your Dreams.”
Reading Allison Follos’ Reviving Reading: School Library Programming, Author Visits and Books that Rock! I am reminded of my favorite teachers. Not my favorite teachers when I was a student – although they no doubt share similarities with those I’m remembering – but my favorite teachers when I first became a teacher. After huge classes and the inversely proportional funding of public high schools tempered my youthful energy and change-the-world enthusiasm, I was left with only my frustration. To overcome that and rescue some of my verve, I looked to the teachers who raged against all the obstacles, but who – regardless of whether they won or lost the battle of the week – went back to their classrooms and their students and performed nothing short of miracles. Follos exudes the same can-do attitude in her passion for promoting reading. In her introduction she tells us, “When I know that something is going to be good for the library, I want it.” By the end of the book, it’s pretty clear that Ms. Follos is probably going to get it. Make no mistake, however, clearly what Follos “wants” is every child in her school to reach their highest potential by making use of an underutilized strategy: reading. She is not naive about the amount to time, energy and expense she’ll have to expend to get it, but she is relentless. Her book is a strategy for any school librarian looking to get what they want too. Tactics are multifaceted, but she relies heavily on a few basics. First, throw as much information about the benefits of encouraging reading at everyone who will listen. Part I of her book, “Why Literature,”provides a wealth of resources for this important groundwork. And lest you think she is spinning her wheels preaching to the choir, think again. She provides a concise but fact-loaded argument for presentation to any willing ear. Secondly, (anti-Captain Underpants folks take note) she insists students be allowed to pick their pleasure. “Don’t cast personal aspersions on what children are reading if it doesn’t suit your standards. Let them read what they like and they’ll like to read.” Finally, work to make your library the center of a reading community. Get your teachers reading YA lit and ask administrators to let you teach a Readers’ Workshop class or have an otherwise “scheduled niche” in the school’s curricular week. Work on getting author visits at your school, squeeze reading in everywhere and get it as integrated into the curriculum as possible. Follos’ Title Trekking, sort of a Drop Everything and Read (DEAR) on steroids, is a worthy example. This program is a fleshed-out version of DEAR and easily scalable to the oldest students. Follos’ many concrete program ideas are littered with excellent title suggestions and my one regret is that these are not listed separately in an appendix for quicker retrieval. In her conclusion, “It Makes a Difference,” Follos reveals a dark personal background that explains her passion about reading. About her childhood, a therapist asks her “Was anyone paying attention to you?” When they weren’t looking – which apparently was often – Follos spent time reading. As a result, she wants, “children in a world fraught with crisis, disappointments, manipulative marketing, political brainwashing, and fraying family ties to have an option of hope, resolution, and choice. Reading is freedom.” I’m betting Ms. Follos is one of those excellent librarians the rest of her school has a very difficult time trying to ignore.
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