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librarybonanza
Age: Preschool
Horace and Hattie find a squeaky friend to play hide-and-go seek amidst fall fauna and objects. Not the most graceful writing but it fits nicely in the fall niche.
Horace and Hattie find a squeaky friend to play hide-and-go seek amidst fall fauna and objects. Not the most graceful writing but it fits nicely in the fall niche.
Age: Middle School-High School
Not quite the ripping page turner of other magic-based books, The Raven Boys unravels the magical energy surrounding the little town of Henrietta. Raised in a house of psychics, Blue tends to amplify their abilities with no special ability of her own. When she joins a rag-tag group of boys on their quest for a Welsh king led by the charming Gansey, Blue finally feels like she belongs as part of a unit. But Blue has a dark secret: A daunting prophecy has revealed that the first boy she kisses will die. Although she has seen Gansey's spirit wandering the graveyard of the soon-to-be dead, she is falling for another boy, Adam, desperately trying to avoid a kiss that could seal his death.
I liked the more gritty presentation of magic through paranormal happenings that exist in our world such as psychic readings and energy surges. The various abilities of Blue's family was also fun to watch in play and I'm intrigued to see more of them throughout the series.
Although young love is blooming in Blue's life, the ties of friendship between the boys and Blue is much more interesting to me. Through their friendship and shared "screen time" (if you will) I am delighted to move onto the next book to continue their story.
Not quite the ripping page turner of other magic-based books, The Raven Boys unravels the magical energy surrounding the little town of Henrietta. Raised in a house of psychics, Blue tends to amplify their abilities with no special ability of her own. When she joins a rag-tag group of boys on their quest for a Welsh king led by the charming Gansey, Blue finally feels like she belongs as part of a unit. But Blue has a dark secret: A daunting prophecy has revealed that the first boy she kisses will die. Although she has seen Gansey's spirit wandering the graveyard of the soon-to-be dead, she is falling for another boy, Adam, desperately trying to avoid a kiss that could seal his death.
I liked the more gritty presentation of magic through paranormal happenings that exist in our world such as psychic readings and energy surges. The various abilities of Blue's family was also fun to watch in play and I'm intrigued to see more of them throughout the series.
Although young love is blooming in Blue's life, the ties of friendship between the boys and Blue is much more interesting to me. Through their friendship and shared "screen time" (if you will) I am delighted to move onto the next book to continue their story.
Age: Toddler-Kindergarten
Sweet and simple celebration of black girls hair. There is an entire page dedicated to frohawks. 'Nuff said.
Sweet and simple celebration of black girls hair. There is an entire page dedicated to frohawks. 'Nuff said.
Age: High School
Tough Issue/Trigger warning: Murder of a friend, police brutality
First line: "I shouldn't have come to this party."
This book is a remarkable, compelling, fantastically written contribution to the Young Adult genre and I will recommend this to everyone that is within my line of sight, for infinity.
Thomas expertly balances the main plot point--Kahlil's murder at the hands of a police officer--with the main character's various identities colliding or newly emerging. Starr lives in a poor black neighborhood but attends a suburban prep school with a predominantly white, privileged population. Starr has grown up with a proud and firm belief in her black identity. Her father, a small business owner, has made Starr and her siblings memorize the 10 point program of the Black Panther party and quotes by Malcom X. But at her predominantly white school, Starr must constantly keep her black identity in check, not wanting to come off as too ghetto, changing her voice and mannerisms. She has never invited her friends or boyfriend over to her house.
When her childhood friend, Kahlil, is shot and killed by a police officer right in front of her eyes, Starr's identities start overlapping while also introducing a new identity: advocate against police brutality.
There are some very complex relationships that Starr must handle. These include: a self-centered white friend that brushes off a racist comment and other underlying privileged behavior; her very close relationship with her uncle who is also a police officer; and her rich white boyfriend that truly cares about Starr but has not been let in to her black identity.
Now to the pivotal importance of this book: the overwhelming subjection of black people to police brutality and murders by police. Not only is there a raw depiction of unprovoked murder but the aftermath of the murder is the most important part of this book, occupying a clear majority of the text. Kahlil's memory soon becomes trashed by everyone in power and by those that blindly support law enforcement, no matter their crime. An incredibly poignant scene is when Starr goes in to the police station to testify. The investigators guide Starr's testimony in order for her to discredit and incriminate Kahlil, causing Starr to state that "he didn't pull the trigger on himself" (103). Soon after, the cop's father attempts to humanize the cop on media outlets, while Kahlil is labeled as a drug dealer. Starr gets her chance to tell her story on a popular television show (but I could never see that happening in real life). Thomas even presents the exploitation of protest when several kids at Starr's prep school use a protest as a means to skip class.
While this is only one--and a fictional--perspective on police brutality and the tragedy of murder, it hits a lot of serious undertones of race and the blind glorification of the police. As someone that has seen the direct result of police brutality and the demonization of the victim, this was a hard read but an essential contribution to literature. Printz 2018, baby.
Book club questions:
1. The Hate U Give Little Infants F*cks Everybody--Why did Thomas choose this Tupac song as the title of her book?
2. Discuss the interrogation scene.
3a. Why is Starr conflicted about her identity?
3b. Upon pitching her idea for a Black Lives Matter YA book, Thomas said, "I knew there were calls for diversity in children’s lit, but you always wonder as a person of color, how diverse is too diverse?" How does this question mirror Starr's conflict about being a person of color in a white world? How does this represent our "color blind" culture where white people embrace diversity insofar as it doesn't 'disturb' them?
More to come...
Every teenager struggles with misperceptions of themselves and may stay engaged with this book because of their empathy with Starr.
Tough Issue/Trigger warning: Murder of a friend, police brutality
First line: "I shouldn't have come to this party."
This book is a remarkable, compelling, fantastically written contribution to the Young Adult genre and I will recommend this to everyone that is within my line of sight, for infinity.
Thomas expertly balances the main plot point--Kahlil's murder at the hands of a police officer--with the main character's various identities colliding or newly emerging. Starr lives in a poor black neighborhood but attends a suburban prep school with a predominantly white, privileged population. Starr has grown up with a proud and firm belief in her black identity. Her father, a small business owner, has made Starr and her siblings memorize the 10 point program of the Black Panther party and quotes by Malcom X. But at her predominantly white school, Starr must constantly keep her black identity in check, not wanting to come off as too ghetto, changing her voice and mannerisms. She has never invited her friends or boyfriend over to her house.
When her childhood friend, Kahlil, is shot and killed by a police officer right in front of her eyes, Starr's identities start overlapping while also introducing a new identity: advocate against police brutality.
There are some very complex relationships that Starr must handle. These include: a self-centered white friend that brushes off a racist comment and other underlying privileged behavior; her very close relationship with her uncle who is also a police officer; and her rich white boyfriend that truly cares about Starr but has not been let in to her black identity.
Now to the pivotal importance of this book: the overwhelming subjection of black people to police brutality and murders by police. Not only is there a raw depiction of unprovoked murder but the aftermath of the murder is the most important part of this book, occupying a clear majority of the text. Kahlil's memory soon becomes trashed by everyone in power and by those that blindly support law enforcement, no matter their crime. An incredibly poignant scene is when Starr goes in to the police station to testify. The investigators guide Starr's testimony in order for her to discredit and incriminate Kahlil, causing Starr to state that "he didn't pull the trigger on himself" (103). Soon after, the cop's father attempts to humanize the cop on media outlets, while Kahlil is labeled as a drug dealer. Starr gets her chance to tell her story on a popular television show (but I could never see that happening in real life). Thomas even presents the exploitation of protest when several kids at Starr's prep school use a protest as a means to skip class.
While this is only one--and a fictional--perspective on police brutality and the tragedy of murder, it hits a lot of serious undertones of race and the blind glorification of the police. As someone that has seen the direct result of police brutality and the demonization of the victim, this was a hard read but an essential contribution to literature. Printz 2018, baby.
Book club questions:
1. The Hate U Give Little Infants F*cks Everybody--Why did Thomas choose this Tupac song as the title of her book?
2. Discuss the interrogation scene.
3a. Why is Starr conflicted about her identity?
3b. Upon pitching her idea for a Black Lives Matter YA book, Thomas said, "I knew there were calls for diversity in children’s lit, but you always wonder as a person of color, how diverse is too diverse?" How does this question mirror Starr's conflict about being a person of color in a white world? How does this represent our "color blind" culture where white people embrace diversity insofar as it doesn't 'disturb' them?
More to come...
Every teenager struggles with misperceptions of themselves and may stay engaged with this book because of their empathy with Starr.
Age: Middle School-High School
Along the lines of the first Hunger Games for its focus on wilderness survival and murderous teens.
Along the lines of the first Hunger Games for its focus on wilderness survival and murderous teens.
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I enjoy. I continue series.
This quote about sums up Steifvater for me. She catches me unawares with these beautiful sections of descriptive landscapes and people and relationships while maintaining the forward momentum of her plot. Just little pockets of beauty that you could easily overlook--much like what she describes.
"Though hundreds of stars were already visible, the sky was still a deep blue, a whimsical touch from an idealistic painter. The mountains on the other side of the valley, however, were night black, everything the sky was not. Dark and cool and silent. And Between them at the mountains' feet, was Henrietta itself, studded with yellow and white lights" (364).
This quote about sums up Steifvater for me. She catches me unawares with these beautiful sections of descriptive landscapes and people and relationships while maintaining the forward momentum of her plot. Just little pockets of beauty that you could easily overlook--much like what she describes.
"Though hundreds of stars were already visible, the sky was still a deep blue, a whimsical touch from an idealistic painter. The mountains on the other side of the valley, however, were night black, everything the sky was not. Dark and cool and silent. And Between them at the mountains' feet, was Henrietta itself, studded with yellow and white lights" (364).
This truly is an excellent documentation of a social movement with all its successes, downfalls, and the ugly past we have struggled to shake from us even to this day.
Age: Preschool-1st grade
Religion: One God
Heavy-handed religion guides this poem to uplift and inspire young black men.
Religion: One God
Heavy-handed religion guides this poem to uplift and inspire young black men.
Age: Toddler-Kindergarten
Science: Astronomy
"Night after night, the moon comes out to play..." Courgeon relates the phases of the moon with certain objects in our world, comparing the waxing crescent to a monkey's banana, for example. Stark yellow and black illustrations make this perfect to be read aloud. The specific vocabulary for the moon's cycles is not used within the story but discussed in the end papers.
Science: Astronomy
"Night after night, the moon comes out to play..." Courgeon relates the phases of the moon with certain objects in our world, comparing the waxing crescent to a monkey's banana, for example. Stark yellow and black illustrations make this perfect to be read aloud. The specific vocabulary for the moon's cycles is not used within the story but discussed in the end papers.