Imagination, Journeys, and real-life experiences - Summer 2013

According to the calendar, summer, officially, is not until June 21.
With warmer weather, summer break from school, and vacations planned, the season starts in May and early June for most people.

I hope you have some good titles on your list, and would be happy to know what you intend to read, too!

My list of titles to read this summer is long, as usual. A few titles include:

Clean: Overcoming Addiction and Ending America’s Greatest Tragedy by David Sheff
--author of Beautiful Boy about his son Nick Sheff, who struggled with an addiction to meth

This book looks at legalization of marijuana and the purpose and services of rehab centers

Dear Marcus: A Letter to the Man Who Shot Me by Jerry McGill
I am judging this book by it's cover, and it looks compelling and makes me want to open to the first page. 

 
Somebody, Please Tell Me Who I Am by Harry Mazer and Peter Lerangis
--When Ben suffers a traumatic brain injury during a military attack, he loses his ability to walk, talk, or remember anything about himself. The road to recovery will not be easy.

Complications: A Surgeon’s Notes on an Imperfect Science by Atul Gawande
finalist for national book award
--the reality of medicine – a science that is not able to perform miracles or make promises, with a risk always present, yet an art to this science and in service to others.

A Land More Kind Than Home by Wiley Cash
--Jess is a curious young boy, and has to grow-up faster and earlier than his age would determine. He must gather the will and courage to do what is right and overcome adversity.

The Beautiful Struggle by Ta-Nehisi Coates

--“In this poetic and powerful memoir, we meet Paul Coates: a Vietnam vet and a Black Panther, an old-school disciplinarian and Aquarian believer in free love…enigmatic god to his seven children, with a mission to carry them across the shoals of inner-city adolescence..”

Calling Me Home by Juile Kibler
Isabelle McAllister and Dorrie Curtis are on a spontaneous road-trip from Texas to Cincinnati, and on this journey Dorrie learns of the elderly Isabelle’s secret past – a past that haunts Isabelle and may provide some answers for Dorrie

Brian Castner takes a Long Walk to Iraq, around the U.S., and to Iraq again

 The Long Walk: A Story of War and the Life that Follows, is now in paperback.
  For more information on Brian Caster, his book, and his work, see his blog: Fever Blog

     Castner and his story have received so many positive reviews and from so many well-regarded sources.  This book could be added to numerous reading lists, including summer reading or class curriculum.  This book could fit into various English classes, including literature and film/psychology,  a course on war literature, outside/independent reading, as well as courses in psychology or sociology, U.S. History, or political science. 
     This non-fiction work is not just the experience of war, it is the experience of "modern" warfare, realities of military leadership, and life after war - a part of a soldier's life that could be more difficult to endure physically, emotionally, and psychologically than events during combat.

      Castner had many long walks in Iraq and the U.S.  In Iraq, he was a leader of a team with the responsibility to disable bombs, along with  many other responsibilities that come with leadership positions; he loved what he was required to do.  He had many long walks back to the U.S. for a new segment of training or an end of tour.  His longest walk, though, was upon his return home after his last deployment.  His honesty and reflections are raw emotion.  His willingness to be that vulnerable certainly is more than a form of therapy for himself; it's a sense of reality and human emotion that shares insight into the psyche of the contemporary soldier.  

     I have more bookmarks in this book than most books I read.  I think I could write a paper on it! As more soldiers and veterans return from the Middle East and elsewhere, hopefully their "long walk" in war and returning home can be a little easier by reading this book, and others of us can try to understand them a little better, too.

  

Beneath a Meth Moon ~ Jacqueline Woodson

        Jacqueline Woodson mixes two realities in Beneath A Meth Moon (2012): Hurricane Katrina and drug abuse and addiction.   

            Laurel loses her mother and grandmother in Hurricane Katrina.  She has her father and younger brother, but they don’t they make her feel better or happy the way the moon does.  From the moment she tried meth, she was hooked; it placed a blanket over her losses and worries, and just makes life good.  The only way she can make this feeling last is to be on her own – and with the moon. Homeless and soon helpless, Laurel walks several journeys until she bottoms out, but not without someone to be there save her life.

            While this book has some strong reviews, I thought it was a bit disjointed. The story moves forward and backwards in time, but the distinctions are not always clear, and I had a hard time determining where Laurel was in time and space and her emotions.

            The impact of drug addiction is clear; however, I thought a lot of details were missing that could have added substance and depth to the story and characters.  I was hoping for something riveting that could serve as an engaging fiction story representing real and intense social issues.
            Not only are these types of stories needed, Woodson does exactly this kind of work in If You Come Softly.

Book trailers for 2014 Illinois Teen Choice Award

From Monica Tolva's YouTube Channel:

The Children and the Woves by Adam rapp - whew!

     The Children of the Wolves by Adam Rapp was a multi-faceted reading experience. I was surprised, disturbed, sympathized, and perplexed.  I have to say, based on those descriptors, Rapp has succeeded.  Though I don’t know his goals or purpose in writing this story, it creates a reality quite different from mine.  Unfortunately, characters like or elements of Bounce, Orange, and Wiggins probably do exist.  I’m reminded that a village is needed to raise a child, and positive role models and supportive adults are needed in the lives of children. 

   
     Not to judge a book by its cover is quite true with this slim, small book. It may seem “easy” and “nice” on the outside, but the inside is combustible (and the yellow, red, and orange of the book jacket certainly lends to the connotation of fire).

    
     I suggested my student volunteer to read it, which she did within 48 hours. I enjoyed our discussion about the story and characters – strong sense of voice, identity, conscience, and actions; it certainly is thought-provoking and could ignite a lively book discussion.  I do, though, recommend this book for mature high school students and adults. 

Good sounds in Beautiful Music for Ugly Children - Kirstin Cronn-Mills

             Cronn-Mills brings humor, sympathy, and awareness to a sensitive, yet important topic. 

             

              Meet Liz. Meet Gabe. Liz is becoming Gabe.  Emotionally and intellectually, Liz is Gabe. She has been making the transition for some time, and she is finally able to share her true self to her family and a couple of close friends. However, just as Liz is having a hard time, her family needs time to digest and reconcile with their own feelings and sudden change in their realities. 

           
            Gabe is a senior in high school, and graduation is approaching.  Soon, Gabe will have the freedom to be Gabe full-time.  In the meantime, Gabe has been given an opportunity to share his passion for music – to be a DJ on the local, community radio station where he hosts his late night show “Beautiful Music for Ugly Children.”  Quickly he garners a strong fan base of hundreds on the Facebook page.    Here, Gabe really can be himself - listeners get to know him– and he can spin some good music. Through the airwaves, there are no judgments, no assumptions, no negativity.

            When Gabe is finally willing to take a chance – to push his comfort zone and put Gabe in public – he gets burned, and burned bad.  Word gets out on the Facebook page and while the number of fans drops immediately, a couple of fans just can’t handle the reality of the situation, and want to hurt him physically. 

            The theme of Elvis Presley is found in the creative titles of each short chapter, and is one of the threads that binds Liz and Gabe to John, the neighbor, mentor, and friend of Gabe. 

            Liz is not gay. She is transgender, and the feelings and reactions portrayed seem to be realistic – there are those who can’t handle such a circumstance, others have enough life experience to accept and support Gabe, and others encounter the roller-coaster of emotions and concerns, and who just need time. 

            While I haven’t read all the LGBTQ fiction available, from what I have read, Beautiful Music for Ugly Children is a needed addition to the collection, for we all have B sides to our A sides.