In light of the schools discussion going on in Natter, I thought this article was really interesting and would love to hear what our Buffista teachers and librarians think.

Jessica, I read that article yesterday. I was intrigued because when I taught middle school that IS how I taught. More important to love to read than to read what I am teaching. I taught very similarly down to the idea that you can teach most literary stuff through poetry. I also had a really lovely relationship with my school librarian who helped me sell kids on specific books.

I think it's important to have a balance now that I teach AP. With AP, there are different requirements -- they need to have a number of canon level books under their belt for the open ended questions. I teach 8 novels or plays and then they have limited choice around other novels or plays that deal with similar themes -- 3 or 4 choices per text I teach.

For me, I hated AP in high school, though I excelled, because I hated the shit that we had to read. I'm sure that is true of my students too. But culturally, it's important to know the story of Lear or of Dorian Gray or Handmaid's Tale.

I'm coordinating a LibraryThing Flash Mob (for the 4-5000 volume collection the classics department has at my work). I'm scared; hold me.

From Publisher's Marketplace:

Fiction: Sci-Fi/Fantasy DANCING WITH WEREWOLVES author Carole Nelson Douglas's VAMPIRE SUNRISE, in which a Las Vegas paranormal investigator battles a Frankenstein monster for the werewolf mob while rescuing her dead-dowsing partner-lover from a hidden empire of ancient Egyptian vampires, again to Paula Guran at Juno, for publication in November 2009

::waits for Jilli's head to 'splode::

I don't why, but reading that makes me think I have absolutely no chance of getting published. At least I'll have accomplished writing a book.

Pfft.

I'm tired of vampires and zombies.

I think it's time for a revival of arch super criminals like Fantomas or Dr. Mabuse or Diabolik.

Oh! That reminds me that the killer unicorn book finally came out last week. I can't believe I forgot about that. I need to start putting these important events on my calendar.

Barb, that description reads like someone took a handful of words that describe the trends/content of paranormal fiction and just threw them at a computer to see which ones would stick. Not just battling a Frankenstein monster, but battling a Frankenstein monster for the werewolf mob! Not just battling a Frankenstein monster for the werewolf mob, but battling a Frankenstein monster for the werewolf mob while rescuing her lover from vampires! And the lover, incidentally, apparently dowses for the dead? Or IS dead and dowses (while dead)?

Paranormal word salad.

That reminds me that the killer unicorn book finally came out last week.

Ooh, speaking of killer unicorns I was watching The Abominable Dr. Phibes yesterday (and if you haven't seen it, you all should as it's super stylish art deco gothic mayhem and archly funny) and the Death By Unicorn scene was flippin' hilarious.

What's making me crazy is the relentless mashing together of all the different monsters-- it's like vampires alone are no longer good enough. There has to be vampires + werewolves + Frankenstein monster + wereslugs + the mob + slayers + investigative agencies + Mary Kay ladies, et al.

I like your idea, Hec.

ETA: Clearly, Teppy and I share a brain.