Looking for Alaska, Posted by Mrs. Schauer

LOOKING FOR ALASKA
by John Green
AR: Yes
Interest Level: Upper Grades

I bought this book two summers ago, but have only just gotten around to reading it...and I can't believe I waited so long to dig into it! Mrs. Camden and I started it at the same time, and I really want her to finish it before I REALLY blog it...I don't want to say too much about this one until she finishes it, because I don't want her to read my words and have it give away the story. ( I mainly just wanted to post something so she'd know I finished it!) LOL I will say this, though...I laughed, I got angry, I cried, I thought, I laughed some more, and thought some more....while reading this book. It is a bit dark, but very thought-provoking and it grabbed my attention from the get-go.

Burned, Posted by Mrs. Camden

Burned, by Ellen Hopkins,

AR: Yes

Interest Level: Upper Grades

When I checked this book out of the library, our school's (and no doubt Texas' --- quite possibly America's) librarian-of-the-year Teresa Schauer commented that it was easy reading due to its being written in prose. She was most certainly right about that! Quick and easy . . . but not painless. The content was disturbing to me. I mean, c'mon, I'm an adult . . . I know things are not perfect in the world outside the walls of my own home. Geez -- they're not even perfect within the walls of my own home! HAH! Yet this poor child's life was horrendous -- I felt so sorry for her, and I hated her father for his abusiveness and her mother for her absolute submissiveness.

I was so excited that Pattyn found "life" while staying with her aunt. I was definitely rooting for her . . . so I was shocked and saddened when the events after summer led to such a tragic ending.

All in all, I loved the book, though, and I would recommend it to our young male readers as readily as I would our female readers.

A Must Read for High School Teachers

TEACHER MAN
by Frank McCourt
AR Book Level: 5.9
Point Value: 14
Interest Level: Upper Grades
Audiobook Available in HS Library

On the recommendation of my principal, I listened to the audio version of this book, which I would also recommened because McCourt reads it himself, so each word, sentence and inflection sounds exactly as he heard it in his own head while writing it. Combine that with McCourt's beautiful Irish brogue, and you've got the makings of a fantastic listen!

TEACHER MAN, titled after the way he's referred to by his students, chronicles the experiences that McCourt had during his 30 year stint as an educator in the high schools of New York City. McCourt's teaching style was developed mainly as a defense mechanism--he learned to teach in a way that kept the natives from eating him alive! I'm not sure about how much he got across to his students as far as teaching English goes, but he definitley taught them (and learned from them) many valuable life lessons.

I laughed, got angry, and cried while reading this book. I highly recommend it to any high school educator. Even though it's set in NYC quite a few years ago, I think many teachers today will recognize some of McCourt's students as their own.

I just found out that this is actually the third book in a trilogy--and I have just placed orders for the first two books: ANGELA'S ASHES, and 'TIS.

Remembering J.D.

Today was probably one of the saddest days of my nineteen year teaching career. One of my favorite high school students collapsed in his shower this morning and died. When I heard, my whole being went numb for a bit. Then, my heart broke,more than a bit. J.D. was one of those kids you just liked, right away. He was intelligent and humorous. He was well-read, and liked to talk about what he was reading--well, to be fair, I'd have to say that he liked to talk...period. :-)

J.D. moved to the South Texas Children's Home at the start of this year, and on his first day in Pettus, he looked around the library and I could tell he didn't think too much of my tiny space or my collection. However, upon browsing the shelves more carefully, he deemed it "small and pathetic looking, but full of some great books." (Is it possible for a well-read student to give a librarian any higher compliment?) During his first week, he came in and asked me about a particular book, titled, "Midshipwizard Halcyon Blithe." I didn't have it in my library, but I could tell how much he wanted it, so I ordered it from Amazon. I will never forget the look on his face when I called him out of class to the library to give it to him. From that moment on, we were friends, and I enjoyed having him in my library. (OK, if I'm honest, at times he could be a tad arrogant and exasperating...but I immensely enjoyed our back and forth banter, which was almost constant.)

Last week he was bugging me about the seventh book in a series, titled "Snakehead." He wanted me to get it...immediately. I wanted to order it so it would be cheaper. Again, though, I could tell how much he wanted it...so last weekend while in Barnes and Noble, I picked it up for him. I couldn't wait to see the look on his face when I handed it to him on Monday morning. I called the office first thing, to see which class he was in, but he was out sick. Same thing on Tuesday...and Wednesday....and Thursday. Today I saw the book on the counter and realized he would never have the chance to read it. Then I thought of all the books I still wanted to recommend to him, but will never get the chance, and I felt the crack in my heart splinter into more fragments.

He was constantly changing the wallpaper on my circulation computer. His latest bit of handiwork is a picture of a penguin. I think it's from Batman, but I could be wrong. I kept jokingly telling him I was going to change it because it was silly, and not very in tune with my personality. Since the library should reflect the librarian, the circulation computer should at least represent at least a little of my personality. He shot back at me, "You better not change it, Mrs. Schauer--this picture rocks. Besides, your library should also reflect the interests of your students Not only that, if you change it, I will kick your arse." I know now that the penguin picture will remain on my circulation monitor forever, a constant memory of a wonderful soul.

My heart breaks for his parents, for his STCH family, and for the students of Pettus. I know there is a reason for everything, and I do trust that everything experienced on this Earth, be it good or bad, is a tiny snippet of a much greater, more significant master plan. Realizing that in my heart, though, doesn't make the loss any easier to reconcile in my mind. I also find myself in agreement with something Mr. Norvell said at the end of the day: "This is just one more question I can add to my list of things to ask my maker when I finally meet Him, face to face."

Physically, J.D. is gone, but I know, without a doubt, that his memory will live on in the hearts and minds of the students and staff of Pettus High School.

Thanks to Emily T. for the photos

Twisted, Posted by Mrs. Schauer

TWISTED, by Laurie Halse Anderson
AR: Yes
Interest Level: Upper Grades
Audiobook Available in HS Library

Senior year is just starting and Tyler Miller thinks that this year might just be different. He's always been a socially inept loser, but this year he's coming off of a summer spent working off his sentence for vandalizing the school with graffiti. He's got newly formed muscles, and a reputation that puts him on the "dangerous" side, rather than the invisible side he's always inhabited. The hottest girl in school (also the sister of the biggest bully and the daughter of his dad's boss) is after him and he's being invited to parties--things are going great until everything gets twisted. He is blamed for things he didn't do, there's pressure from home to do well in school--which is next to impossible because of his all-AP course load--his mom's an alcoholic, his dad's an overbearing jerk, and he's trying to do the right thing--but it's getting more and more difficult. As his personal life unravels, Tyler reaches the point where he thinks there's only one way out. I don't want to give away the ending, but I did love this book--which should come as no surprise when you consider the author.