Steph's comments
(member since Jul 08, 2008)
Steph's comments from the YA Book Club group.
(showing 1-20 of 25)
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Foer--what a book! It's on my best-ever list. Love that book.
Me too. A true winner.
Teacher here as well. I was thinking the same thing as far as cross-curricular. Even with the sex scenes, I don't think I'd use it for older than ninth grade. Maybe 10?
I read Twilight, skipped New Moon, and skimmed New Moon. I was worn out by then. Too much. Over-the-top, repetitive writing style. I think once I go through the process of meeting and discovering a character, I'm done. I'm the same way with lots of TV series: I'm enraptured by the first season and then totally bored. I also started her "adult" title, THE HOST and was also sorely disappointed. It read like her teen titles; I didn't see much difference. Just a sci-fi romance for gushing girls.
I read Zusak's I AM THE MESSENGER and was turned off enough to bypass THE BOOK THIEF.
Yes, there are several differences. (See my post above). Scenes left out, characters realized in different ways, characters left out. . . I thought the book was much better.
I'm on board. I read it a while back and didn't particularly enjoy it. It may not be a fair comparison, but I like the sparse writing style of Gaiman's graphic novels, and STARDUST is full of extraneous details. Plus, I don't dig the self-congratulatory humor of the book. Too showy. Wink, wink.But I will say it was better than the recent film version that went way over the top with special effects, and way under with character development.
I would classify STARDUST as fairy tale before anything else. I have found it shelved in the adult Sci-Fi/Fantasy sections.
Lisa,I would love for us to read Sharon Draper's COPPER SUN.
Chevy,Sorry, I have to give a thumbs down for Paolini. I read THE ELDEST because one of my students asked me to. I thought the writing was horrible: flowery just to show he could. Long-winded too.
Nikki,
I second that recommendation for October: Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause
I finished CITY OF BONES last night. I know I didn't start with the best attitude, but I pretty much continued in that same vein. Boring. Repetitive relationship issues between Clary and Jace that drag the book on endlessly. Too much informational dialogue. Predictable plot line: action, relationship development, action, relationship development. Classes of underworlds and the Clave were created for convenience sake as the need arose. The Star Wars family relation ending was cheap. It also finishes with a complete set up for the next book: no dice on the mortal cup.
I'm just through the first chapter. I know it's too soon to say a single word, but I'm not too excited about the book yet.
Angie and Elizabeth, Love the graphic novel suggestions! Especially getting some specific Batman titles. Where I'm still new to the series, it's a little overwhelming when I see them listed all together on line.
And now I'm jealous that I didn't get to read the GN version of Caroline--I didn't know there was one.
For something completely different, try Blankets. I have a review of it on my goodreads page.
Ashley,I'd be using WHEN I WAS A SOLDIER for a tenth or twelfth grade unit. In tenth, I do a unit on war and in 12th, one on societal violence.
I've got the book in my Amazon cart. Just need the moolah to get it and others.
Angie, I have several series and collected titles that I'm interested in: The Watchmen, The Dark Knight (Batman), Blankets, Love and Rockets,
The Black Hole and Sandman to name a few. Try the Watchmen!
Ashley,This looks like a great memoir. A good part of my student population is Jewish and this would be a great addition to my curriculum. I'll have to give it a look. Add it to the list. Sigh.
These are great suggestions; I been introduced to several authors/titles I wasn't aware of. Thanks everyone.
Danielle and J-Lynn,I have been persuaded: I'm not going to skip City of Bones. I'll get it ordered today. Thanks for the advice.
Lisa,I'll be trying Coraline out on my 5 year old niece later this month. We'll see. I could be way off.
I remember being read James and the Giant Peach and Alice in Wonderland around age 4 or 5 and thinking them very scary. I felt tense and worried as I listened, but also very engaged and eager for more. Beyond that, I can't think of any frightening stories from my childhood. When my mom read me to me, it was mostly poetry or the Little House on the Prairie series. When I starting reading on my own, my first "scary" titles were Nancy Drew, the Wizard of Oz and Narnia series.
I let you know my niece's verdict. Her little brother, age 4 may end up listening in as well.
I enjoyed the article as well. If I were to add anything to it I'd say, there's good Y.A. and trashy Y.A. lit, just like with adult reads.
