Outstanding Books for the College Bound

Kleon, A. (2012). Steal like an artist: 10 things nobody told you about being creative. New York, NY: Workman Publishing Group.

Newspaper blackout poet Austin Kleon shares some tips about maximizing creativity that he has learned over the years.  In his book, he offers and explains ten tips that can help anyone be more creative.  The book itself has a graphic quality that includes quotes from well-known artists and inspiring illustrations and photographs.

Middle and high school fine arts teachers and English teachers would be wise to model and share some of Kleon's advice to students.  When it comes time to apply for college and seek out jobs, the students who have learned to reach their full creative potential will shine.  In his introduction, Kleon posits that all advice is autobiographical.  He is a writer and artist, so readers can rest assured they are receiving sound advice about the creative process.  A bibliography of suggested and further reading is included in the book.  The voice in which he presents his ideas is very conversational and inspiring.  His information is current and he avoid stereotyping artists, in fact, he makes the statement that "the romantic image of the creative genius doing drugs and running around and sleeping with everyone is played out", admitting that he works a job with standard hours, has a wife and dog, all while living in a quiet neighborhood.  Something I enjoyed most about this book is that Kleon addressed both the free-spirited nature of the creative process, but how to tame it with structure, routine, and organization.

Great Graphic Novels for Teens

Novgorodoff, D. (2014). The undertaking of Lily Chen. New York, NY: First Second.

When his older brother, Wei, dies, second son Deshi is sent out by his parents to find a corpse bride so that a ghost wedding may be performed and Wei can avoid loneliness in the afterlife.  Deshi hires Mr. Song to help him find a body.  On their quest, Deshi meets Lily who is running away from her parents.  Lily ends up helping Deshi give his brother a proper ghost wedding in an unexpected way.

Because of some language and sexual situations, I'd recommend this book for grades 8 and up.  Chinese folklore and ghost stories are very unique and this book offers a glimpse that might pique students' curiosity for what I feel is an under-appreciated Chinese cultural gem.  Teenagers will like the fact that the main characters rebel against their parents' wishes.  This element of the plot addresses Havighurst's developmental task because Deshi and Lily end up undergoing a major change in the relationship with their parents when they decide to abandon their families altogether in the end.   The popularity of zombies and ghosts may also make this book appealing.  Older readers may also enjoy Lisa See's Peony in Love which takes the idea of a ghost wedding and builds an intricate and captivating story around it.  Having prior experience with the concept of a ghost wedding, it was refreshing to see it placed in a modern context in The Undertaking of Lily Chen.

Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults

Stone, T. L. (2013). Courage has no color: The true story of the Triple Nickles. New York, NY: Scholastic.

This book chronicles the creation, training, and legacy of the Triple Nickles, a group of black paratroopers from World War II.  Stone discusses the treatment of blacks (and other people of color) in the military and how over a relatively short period of time these men and their commanding officers were able to start to change the U.S. military's rules about blacks in the military.  The photos, captions, and special spreads about the war are top notch and completely support the ideas stated in the text itself.

Courage Has No Colori is an excellent specimen of nonfiction for grades 5 to 8.  It provides an uncommon perspective on the racial prejudice that blacks face.  Most students are only familiar with the Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks and Jim Crow laws aspect of the civil rights issue.  Sharing a book like this with students and something like We Are the Ship by Kadir Nelson, would be a great way to expose them to racism outside their current schema.  A book like this is very important to share with students in the wake of the racial tensions in current events as kind of a "Is history repeating itself?" moment.  Tanya Lee Stone's desire in writing this book was to take what little was known to the public about the Triple Nickles, collect the scraps of stories and get the story out to the masses.  She extensively researched the topic to the point that she had too much information to include in this one book.  In her closing chapter of the book, she expresses the gratitude she has for our nation and these soldiers who did so much but go so little recognition.

Printz and Printz Honor

Tamaki, J. (2014). This one summer. New York, NY:  First Second.

While on vacation at her parent's getaway cottage, Rose and her friend Windy overhear conversations about sex and sex-related issues between the corner store's teenaged boy employee and his friends and girlfriends.  Between swimming and watching horror movies, the girls spend the next few weeks trying to get the low-down on what's going on between the employee and his girlfriend.  Meanwhile, Rose's parents are fighting and a miscarriage from the previous summer is the source of tension between her parents.  Near the end of the story, Rose's mom ends up saving the newly pregnant and emotionally distressed girlfriend of the corner store employee, when she is spotted floating in the water of the beach.

Middle school girls in particular will enjoy this book because the characters are on the cusp of venturing into adolescence.  Readers will find familiarity with the discussion of boobs, Rose's inexplicable interest in the corner store employee, sudden infatuation with horror movies, and difficulty dealing with her parents' issues which really have nothing to do with her.  I think it's very refreshing that the story is set in summer, so many realistic fiction books involve the drama of the school year; it's nice to know that summers aren't perfect either.  Havighurst's tasks of adapting to their physical bodies comes into play in this book because the girls compare and question the development of their bodies.  Rose and Windy also learn about appropriate sex roles as they see the drama unfold between the employee and his girlfriend.

Quick Picks

Doctorow, C. (2014). In real life. New York, NY: First Second.

Anda is recruited to take part in an online gaming experience exclusively for girl gamers.  Along the way she discovers that some of the features of the game are maintained by people in other countries working under unfair conditions.  She resolves to do what she can to bring light to this situation and help these workers.  Her actions as she tries to accomplish this goal get her into trouble in a few different ways.  When the truth comes out about what she was actually doing, she is lauded for her efforts and given full membership of the game.

The introduction of this book makes some very powerful and thought-provoking statements about worldwide economics and the issues of unfair working conditions throughout the world.  This book would be great for teachers to use to initiate or stimulate a conversation about this topic.  It would also pair very well with other texts about child labor throughout time and around the world.  A few minor cuss words used sparingly throughout the book might put a few teachers on edge, but they are used accurately within the gaming environment and mimic what real teens/gamers would say to each other.  Boys, who are more likely to be gamers could be interested in this book, but I think that the target audience is girl gamers.  Doctorow and illustrator Jen Wang do a great job of representing girl gamers realistically.  The girls depicted in this books are normal-looking, normal-sized.  They embrace their inner nerd.  Likewise, Anda's family is normal, portly mom and dad with genuine mom and dad concerns about their teen daughter playing online.  Girl readers will certainly relate to Anda and her fight to do what's right will inspire them to take a look at this issue.

Best Fiction for Young Adults

Pratt, N. (2014). Trouble. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster BFYR.

Hannah is a fifteen year old girl who finds herself pregnant after multiple sexual encounters within a short time frame.  Aaron is the new kid in school dealing with the grief of a traumatic event.  The two develop a symbiotic relationship to deal with their problems: Hannah gets a "fake father" for her baby and Aaron gets to "save" someone.  Their plan falls apart towards the end as the truth comes out, but their dedication to their friendship perseveres.

The novel is told from two perspectives, Hannah's and Aaron's, and is set up like a diary with dates and times, alternating in no consistent pattern between Hannah and Aaron.  Teenage girls in high school will certainly enjoy this book because the majority of the plot centers around pregnant Hannah and the drama that goes into getting pregnant, being pregnant, her fall from social grace, and dealing with friends and family.  Males who choose to read the book will enjoy reading about Aaron's issues.   The circumstances regarding Hannah's pregnancy cause her struggles with societal rules and doing what she knows is right demonstrates Kohlberg's postconventional level of moral development.  When she bravely ignores these rules to do what's right, she executes Havighurst's developmental task of changing her relationship with her parents.  Aaron meanwhile has been struggling with a changing relationship with his parents for the entire book.

Top YA Authors: Rebecca Stead

Stead, R. (2015). Goodbye, stranger. New York, NY:  Wendy Lamb Books.

In New York City, four seventh graders wrestle with adolescent drama.  Bridge is determined to keep her circle of friends together and strives to understand how she feels about Sherm,who dealing with the divorce of his grandparents and departure of his grandfather, while also trying to combat the jerks in his school who are tormenting one of Bridge's friends, Emily.  Emily getss caught up in a sexting scandal that stresses out their other friend, Tab, who just wants to be real and fair and fight for what's right.  Tab's sister Celeste is struggling with own friendships.  The storylines converge at the end and everything appears to turn out fine for all the characters.

I think this book would be exceptionally important for middle schoolers to read.  The issues that the characters in this book face are particularly relatable to this student population.  Stead's use of multiple characters allowed for her to cover a multitude of issues facing young adolescents.  The issues these characters face also address a few of Havighurst's developmental tasks.  Each character experiences some changes with their relationships with their parents, Emily in particular finds out that reaching out to her mom to deal with the sexting scandal was particularly helpful.  Tab is the poster child for developing morals and values. Through her teacher, Tab develops a genuine concern for human rights.  Bridge and Sherm's relationship is a great example of an easy relationship between opposite sexes but by the book's end they are advancing more than just friends status.