Concerning TeenBookWorms

In my promotion, I mentioned that we would be doing Shrinky Dinks the last Monday in May. But, it turns out that we were very closed as it was Memorial Day. So, we ended programs that one week early, and my programs don't start until June 18th. So today, I'm going to tell you a little bit about our TeenBookWorms group.

Basically, this is a group for high school students who love to read. We choose one book a month, read it, and then I come up with some discussion questions (or borrow them from another reading club) and we chat about it. Some of the time, we might get a little side tracked with upcoming movies (especially with The Hunger Games and The Avengers), or crazy Youtube videos. But, we always have a great time, and we always chat about literary stuff.

Another cool part about the group is that you as the teens pick the book. We pick our titles a few months out so we aren't surprised, and I might have some suggestions if you get stuck. But ultimately, you get to decide what you would like to read.

So far we've read: The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt, Divergent by Veronica Roth, Germ by Robert Liparulo, and Stravaganza: City of Masks by Mary Hoffman.

At our last meeting, we lined up the books we're going to be reading through the summer as well.
June 26, 4-5pm Wonderstuck by Brian Selznick
July 24, 4-5pm The Maze Runner by James Dashner
August 28, 4-5pm Illusion by Frank Peretti

If any of our upcoming books sound awesome to you, read it, and come chat with us :) If they don't sound interesting at all, then pop by anyways and tell us what we should read next hehe.

Read Shakespeare? On Purpose?

The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt

Why did I read it?

Take a wild guess? My children's literature Master's class? You're good!

What happened?

Holling Hoodhood (yep that is the name of the character) is in the seventh grade, and is convinced his teacher, Mrs. Baker, has it out for him. On Wednesday afternoons, half of his class goes to Hebrew School, and the other half go to Catholic Catechism. Holling is the only kid in the class who attends a Presbyterian church, and so he has nowhere to go on Wednesdays. So, he gets to hang out with Mrs. Baker for the entire afternoon!

If she isn't having him bang the dust off of erasers or feed her oversized rats (that even she is afraid to get near), she has him read Shakespeare. As things move along, Holling realizes that Shakespeare might not be that bad (the curses he gives his characters are particularly juicy), and Mrs. Baker might not hate him as much as he thinks.

What did I like or not like about it?

Set in 1967, the Vietnam War comes up as a background theme throughout the novel. The two sides to that war are contrasted nicely by Holling's sister and his father. In addition to the historical perspective, Holling's perspective on things are often hilarious and very insightful. Ultimately, Holling starting to make choices about what and who he will be when he grows up is a fantastic story.