Oh, I get it. You just don't like who did the rescuing, that's all. Wishin' I was your boyfriend what's-his-height. Oh wait, he's run off.

Spike ,'Potential'


Literary Buffistas 3: Don't Parse the Blurb, Dear.

There's more to life than watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer! No. Really, there is! Honestly! Here's a place for Buffistas to come and discuss what it is they're reading, their favorite authors and poets. "Geez. Crack a book sometime."


hippocampus - Jan 12, 2014 5:07:47 pm PST #21868 of 28463
not your mom's socks.

Interesting, Sox. What made you choose it?

A friend's recommendation. And I really liked Shiver.


Amy - Jan 12, 2014 5:21:40 pm PST #21869 of 28463
Because books.

I have Shiver but I haven't read it. I haven't been in the mood for werewolves!


Consuela - Jan 12, 2014 5:55:06 pm PST #21870 of 28463
We are Buffistas. This isn't our first apocalypse. -- Pix

A friend's recommendation.

I really liked Raven Boys. It feels like Stiefvater truly knows what she's doing: she's got total command of the narrative and the characters. And while it's a YA supernatural story, it seems not to involve either werewolves or vampires. Or demon-hunters of any kind.

I'm looking forward to reading the second in the series, although I'm waiting for the ebook to show up at the library...


Amy - Jan 12, 2014 5:57:59 pm PST #21871 of 28463
Because books.

I'm really liking The Scorpio Races so far. She's such a confident writer -- like you said, total command of the narrative and the characters' voices. I also love this myth -- I never imagined horses could be so terrifying.


Tom Scola - Jan 14, 2014 3:59:02 am PST #21872 of 28463
hwæt

Why We Should Stop Teaching Novels to High School Students.


Jessica - Jan 14, 2014 4:02:47 am PST #21873 of 28463
And then Ortus came and said "It's Ortin' time" and they all Orted off into the sunset

Wow, it's like a love letter to the Common Core.


Kate P. - Jan 14, 2014 5:04:15 am PST #21874 of 28463
That's the pain / That cuts a straight line down through the heart / We call it love

I mean, I can see what she's getting at, but I don't think it's a terribly compelling argument. For one thing, there does in fact exist a genre of novels that are exactly about all the hopes, fears, feelings, and experiences of teenagers, so it's odd to me that she doesn't even mention YA books once. I do think teaching good nonfiction should be a part of most high school English classes, but there are kids who would get bored with a steady diet of Capote and Didion, too. Instead of abandoning novels for nonfiction entirely, I'd argue for including different kinds of writing on high school reading lists: classic literature, contemporary literature, YA novels, and nonfiction too.


DavidS - Jan 14, 2014 5:09:59 am PST #21875 of 28463
"Look, son, if it's good enough for Shirley Bassey, it's good enough for you."

That's just weak songwriting. You wrote a bad song, Petey!

Emmett and I quote this all the time. Frequently while pointing an accusing finger at the radio.


Sophia Brooks - Jan 14, 2014 5:11:53 am PST #21876 of 28463
Cats to become a rabbit should gather immediately now here

I think I hate that argument, because I was a Lit major. In fact, I wanted historical fiction to be taught in Social Studies so it was more interest. However, I didn't get that Jake was impotent the first time I read The Sun Also Rises either. And I didn't get that Buck was a dog in The Call of The Wild. And I didn't get that the woman in The Awakening killed herself. Oddly, I still enjoyed the books!


Jessica - Jan 14, 2014 5:37:10 am PST #21877 of 28463
And then Ortus came and said "It's Ortin' time" and they all Orted off into the sunset

I have memories of a chalkboard stick figure with a "no" symbol over the private parts before we started reading Sun Also Rises, so there was no chance of misinterpretation.