Books that I knew were glorifying gang life and violence, espcially with kids I knew were mixed up with gangs, I would read, and talk with the student about what was and was not realistic and/or biased, and had some great talks with kids on some very tough subjects
Yes, this. We do this with music that we teach, a lot. I think some of our donors would be unhappy to know that we'll teach a student music with some of the lyrics we do. But I am much more willing to have a candid discussion with the student about what the song is saying, rather than have them walk away thinking, one more person who is against me.
Music and literature are great ways to open up doors with students.
Indeed, Liese. How are students going to learn to think critically about difficult subjects, if you don't talk about it with them?
I mean, I wouldn't sit down to talk to an 11 y.o. about "Hey, it's time to talk about S&M! You're 11!" BUT, if a youth is starting to evince an interest in, or be exposed to, an issue, then you can and should ask some questions: "This book/song talks about X? What do you think that is? Do you understand what the people in this book are doing? What do you think about this in the real world, with real people, as opposed to characters in a book or in a song?"
Oh, and also, Jilli, Meredith Ann Pierce! The Darkangel books -- vampires on the Moon. LOVED those books.
In case you're wondering,
"How bad can those Dune prequels really be?"
One man reads and reviews them for you.
I just happen to be listening to Dune on my commute these days. This further validates my decision that, although I like Dune, I can skip anything other than the original book.
I was in the local Barnes & Noble and saw "Standing Small" ... a history of Legos.
I was looking up Jane Aiken Hodge because I was trying to remember the title of one of her books, and I saw that she had died last year. Sad. And then I read the details.
After taking an overdose of pills the 91-year-old novelist lay in bed, alive but unconscious, for four days last month, watched by her daughters, before she finally died. Her daughter, Jessica Hodge, described yesterday the dilemma faced by the family and the “inhuman” legal position they have endured as they await a decision on whether anyone will be prosecuted.
She'd been planning it for years but hadn't mentioned it to anyone because she didn't want anyone in legal trouble.
Oh, that's just really sad.
I, for one, did not feel a need for
Little Women and Werewolves
[link] Considering Alcott's sensational Gothic stories, she'd be far more likely to write about vampires.
Just picked up Feed today, but DH picked it up first. So I think that means I have to read about werewolves instead of zombies ( i ahave sharp teeth in libaray book form )
