Micro-blogging...my first attempt. Being Mortal by Atul Gawande

It's time to make the move back to blogging.  That said, four months after adding a third child to the family probably  isn't the best time to make any new moves, but it's MICRO-blogging (or should I say, micro-blogging) so I think it should all work out.

So here's my objective: keep reading and keep blogging and connect both my reading and my blogging to my larger purpose of taking good care of people.  We'll see how it goes.  Here's my first shot at it:

Read this essential book recently.  Being Mortal by Atul Gawande  It's essential because it's about us and the scariest things we all face: aging, watching our loved ones age, dying, and watching our loved ones die.  It's sobering, it's upsetting, and it's real.  Dr. Gawande, a surgeon, is trust-worthy and credible.  He shares the science of medicine as clearly as he describes art of taking care of one another.  He shows us the research behind how knowing what you are afraid of and what you value can add happier, healthier days, weeks, months and years to your life.  

It seems to me we must spend more time reflecting on what are we really afraid of and what are we really moved by much earlier than when we are faced with our mortality.  If reflecting on these questions and answers can give us healthier, happier days at the end of our lives, aren't they more likely to give us more healthier, happier lives as we move along through our years?

So, if questions like "What is your understanding of the situation and its potential outcomes?" and "What are your fears and what are your hopes?" are good ones when faced with serious sickness or injury, I'd suggest they are as important day-to-day.  Let us ask ourselves and those near to us these questions often enough so that we get in touch with our answers and the vulnerability it takes to answer them honestly.  That's my wish for this first micro-blog about what I've been reading and how it connects to my larger work in this moment.

I really can't say enough about this book.  I wish it was essential reading for all.  Keep reading, all. 

-absk

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Look, I know it's going to take you a bit to get into this book, but the pay-off is worth it.  This story of the friendship of Queenie and Maddie have in the midst of the terrible tragedies of World War II is a mighty one.  Please know that once you get to the second half of the book, the part told by Maddie, you will be reading intensely trying to figure out what is going to happen.  The story of these best friends, pilot and this spy, working undauntedly on behalf of the French Resistance is terrifying, beautiful, and stunning.  You won't believe your eyes as you read.

The episodes of war are both frightening (like when the German Luftwaffe is hovering above the girls as they try to escape the shooting or the accounts of Nazi torture) and intriguing (like all the plotting, planning, and promising the Resistance efforts require).  And the narratives are written like a puzzle.  You are certain you can trust the narrators, but you realize you aren't the only audience reading the pages.  But, BUT!, the very best part of this novel is the friendship the girls share.  It crosses class divisions and personal inclinations; it is as strong as any family tie.  They offer each other places to escape and chances to show great strength.  The share fears (literally, they each list 10) and moments of true joy (bike rides and plane rides).  Their friendship is uncommon.

As I try to describe this book that I just completed, I can't believe I'm really trying to describe it.  It's indescribable.  It's a puzzle and a simple story of friendship.  It is a slog and twisty suspenseful roller-coaster.  The narrators are trust-worthy and complete liars.  The girls are a spy and a pilot, a female spy and a female pilot, no less. The book and it's contradictions punched me in the gut- in a way only the best, best, best stories can.  I cannot stop thinking about the experience I had reading this book.  Book love, people.  Book love.  Get your hands on this challenge book when you can.  Stick with it's outcome, and enjoy.

Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith

Kids will love the humor in this book.  Some will love the man-eating grasshoppers and the grasshopper-violence.  Others will love the complicated friendships and relationships.  This book seems like one of the bravest books I've read in a while. The end of the world is coming because of man-eating grasshoppers and the protagonist, Austin, and his best friend, Robbie, are responsible. Austin is as confused about what he is feeling in his heart as he is certain about it. The small-town setting is familiar even to those of us who have never lived in a small town. It's a coming-of-age tale complete with an army of grasshoppers meaner than the bullies, all sorts of sexual urges,  true friendship, and a search for what really matters in life.

Here's what the NY Times said about it...
Here's what The Onion's A.V. Club thought about it...
Here's what Common Sense media said about it...

It's definitely a book for Gr 8 or high school (lots of f-bombs and erections), and it is a book that stands up to classic YA literature: Catcher in the Rye and Slaughterhouse 5, for example.  I'm so thankful there are books like Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smtih in this world.  My boys, my students, all teenagers need books this funny, complicated, and honest.

Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick

I don't know if I can talk about this book yet.  It knocked the breath right out of me, and fear, sadness, and pain filled me up.  But this book is about so much more than sadness.  This book represents resilience and the power of the human experience, connection, and survivial.

The book is about a Cambodian boy, Arn Chorn-Pond, who lives through the Khmer Rouge revolt.  He really did...the author's story is a retelling of his life. It's like the movie "Killing Fields" but in YA literature.  I don't want to say much more about it because I'll never do it justice or the experience of reading it justice. 

I just know teenagers, by their nature, are drawn to stories of justice, survival, and resilience.  As I read this book, I couldn't stop thinking about my boys and my students and how much I yearn to protect them from this kind of injustice, violence, and hatred.  The truth is, I can't.  This violent hateful story represents how this world works too often, and if we don't share these experience in safe, artistic, and genuine ways, we risk being too far removed from them.  We need to live them...especially those of us who are safe, insulated, and privileged.  So, yes, I recommend this book to my 8th graders (and to both of my boys once it's timely), and I celebrate Arn's story.  I celebrate, with Arn, the power of tears, the power of music, and the power of embracing the past in order to live, alive and awake and aware, in the present.

Here is some of the buzz around this book:

Reading Rants (my most trusted book blog)
LA Times
NY Times
NPR
YouTube

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

In all my reading life, I have never cried so hard over a book.  I cried because it's a book about war.  I cried because I'm so sad my time with the characters came to a close.  I cried because everything beautiful about this book is ultimately everything human.

Now I realize what I've said so far isn't going to inspire kids to read this book (especially boys) but oh, how I want EVERY kid to pick up this book.  Because there's something in this book for everyone...

• War
• Bullies
• Soccer
• Nazi Germany
• Stealing
• Foster care
• Friendship
• Death (after all, Death is the narrator)
• Creativity

Pick up this book today.  Take your time reading it's pages.  This book will stay with you.  It will haunt you and change you.  Pick it up and tell me what you think.

Ghostopolis by Ned TenNapel

This graphic novel amazed me.  It's full of various surprises, scary creatures, historical figures, and real life tragedy.  Some parts frightened me, some parts humored me, but all of it enthralled me.

The story seems simple...a young boy is mistakenly sent to the underworld- Ghostopolis.  Once there, Garth finds only a handful of characters willing to help him get back to the real world, and he stumbles across others who don't want him to make it home.  Eventually, he finds himself in an epic battle with the King of Ghostopolis.  To find our if he beats the king and makes it back home, you'll have to pick up the book.  Believe me, it's a treat.  Read it now! (before the movie comes out...)

Keep reading, everyone!
-stenson

Harry Potter Books 1-3: Winter Break 2010

Harry Potter and friends have been keeping me company this winter break.  The series has swept me up, and all I can hope for is for 2011 to be filled with as much fun, adventure, and wisdom as these books.  I would love to have some students join me on this ride.  The magic, the wizards, the legends will captivate you!

While I had hoped to read the first five books over break, I got sidetracked by some other grown-up books.  Moonlight Mile by one of my favorite authors Dennis Lehane and National Book Award Winner Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann.  But like I said, I don't think middle-schoolers will like these but I do recommend these to my grown-up reading friends.

Keep reading, everyone!
-stenson

*Photo found on wizardingworldpark.com

Claudette Colvin & Friends

Some of my favorite books have nominated by or have received this award. It's an award that is given not just to books that are widely popular and well received, but to books that represent excellence in young adult literature. Here are some of my favorite National Book Award nominees and winners:

• What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell,
• American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang,
• Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin,
• Inexcusable by Chris Lynch,

and I could on and on and on but I won't. I'll just trust that you look at the links and pick a few to add to your future book lists. Go ahead; you are about to be wowed!

Congrats to this year's nominess and winner:

Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice by Phillip Hoose
Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman
Stitches by David Small
Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor
Jumped Rita Williams-Garcia

This years nominess and winner are officially on my book list. As I read them, I'll certainly post about what I've experienced. Add them to your lists too! Go ahead; you are about to be wowed by the talent listed here. Keep reading everyone!

-stenson

*image taken from The National Book Foundation and http://us.macmillan.com/claudettecolvin

The 1st 5 Books of Stenson's Summer

Super exciting stuff...

1. I'm 5 for 5 with books this summer. I've been on a roll. Some of them are really just for grown-ups, but the two I'd recommend for kids are The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han (though I don't need to talk it up that much...it's a huge hit that I'm just getting to) and The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley (a book written for all ages, brilliant writing, a fun and feisty protagonist, and an amusing caper).

2. Have you heard of Animoto? Love this free site where you simply upload picutres, pick the music, add some text and submit it all. A funky, original video appears after a few moments. I can't wait to use this in Room 103 with 7th grade readers. Here's a peek at what it can do. *It was my first attempt, so please just humor me. You can watch by clicking on the image above....

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

Flavia, the protagonist from the mystery The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, made me laugh, made me want to study Chemistry, and made me keep reading until the caper was solved. I really fell in love with little Flavia. Feisty, smart, fun- this little girl has two sisters she's constantly trying to poke, pinch, and prod and a father she is constantly trying to delight and charm. The family lives in her deceased mother's family's estate in 1940's Britain.

Day by day, Flavia is entertained mostly by the chemistry lab in the family mansion, but all of that changes one day when she stumbles upon a dead man in the garden of the estate.

Flavia is part Scout, part Sherlock Holmes, and part Marie Lavoisier (don't worry, I didn't know who that was until I read this book either), and she pulls you right into her mind, her home, and her life- a land where emotions though rare sneak out, observations are detailed, complete, and funny, and the story, like the mystery at the center of it, only gets better and better.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie is definitely a challenge book (those of you who have had me as a teacher will know what I mean) because I think it's intended audience is grown-ups. However, this delightful tale will be enjoyed by all ages, and the writing is simply too brilliant and too fun to not be shared by everyone of all ages.

Enjoy! The book is a part of a series so get excited for all sorts of amusement.

Please visit the sit for more information about this charming, fun series. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley. The picture above was taken from the site linked to the left: www.flaviadeluce.com.

Keep reading!

-stenson

Whodunnit?

My days of winter break fill up with hours and hours of reading. It is glorious. It's even more glorious when the winter weather gets fierce, and everybody is forced to stay put and stay inside. Ah, what a splendid week!

The Likeness by Tana French was a book Santa stuck in my stocking. It is a sequel of sorts to a book I read last year, so it was intriguing to see what the characters had been up to since I last "saw" them. While it's not a book most kids would enjoy, I really do recommend it (and it's predecessor In the Woods) to grown-ups who enjoy good mysteries.

Knowing how much a good mystery can grab readers and engage them for a wild and thrilling ride, I decided to collect a list of books for teens who like mysteries. It's not exclusive, so let me know if you have others to add.

Here are a few that I found...hope you enjoy! Keep reading, everyone!

First, my favorite new mystery for young adults

Blundell, Judy. What I Saw and How I Lied. 2009.

In 1947, with her jovial stepfather Joe back from the war and family life returning to normal, teenage Evie, smitten by the handsome young ex-GI who seems to have a secret hold on Joe, finds herself caught in a complicated web of lies whose devastating outcome change her life and that of her family forever.

Hiaasen, Carl. Scat. 2009.

Nick and his friend Marta decide to investigate when a mysterious fire starts near a Florida wildlife preserve and an unpopular teacher goes missing.

Grisham, John. The Client. 1993.

Eleven-year-old Mark Sway accidentally witnesses a murder and becomes the target of relentless prosecutors and the mob, and the only person who can save him is Reggie Love, an attorney barely out of law school.

Duncan, Lois. I Know What You Did Last Summer. 1973.

Four teenagers, trying to conceal their responsibility for a hit-and-run accident, are pursued by a mystery figure seeking revenge.

Plum-Ucci, Carol. The Body of Christopher Creed. 2000.

Did he run, was he kidnapped, or was he murdered?

Myers, Walter Dean. Monster. 1999.

Sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon is on trial for murder. As the circumstances unfold, readers get a chance to think carefully about the crime and decide his innocence or guilt.

Konigsburg, E.L. Silent to the Bone. 2000.

Is the British nanny lying when she accuses 13-year-old Bramwell of injuring his baby step-sister? His best friend thinks so, but Bramwell isn't talking. He's gone mute.

Sleepers.

These books are ones you might have missed. Luckily, we've got America's librarian, Nancy Pearl to point them out. Each of these titles are on my FBL ("Future Book List" for anyone not in my 7th grader Reading class).

Can't wait to peek inside each of these books. Here's the NPR article that gives a little sneak peek into each title. Thanks to NPR for the photos.

When Nancy Pearl says, "read this book", I run to the library to check it out. Hope you do too. And when you do, tell me about it.

Enjoy!
Keep reading-
stenson

Skeleton Key, The Graveyard Book, and Other Super but Scary Stories

Disclaimer: Your teacher HATES being scared. I don't like horror movies. I don't like ghost stories. For the most part I hate everything spooky, scary, and terrorizing.

HOWEVER, there are a few scary stories I've read because they were just too good to put down.

Here's a vlog highlighting my two very favorites.



But there are a few honorable mention books too:

The Body of Christopher Creed by Carol Plum-Ucci
Full Tilt by Neil Schusterman
The Cirque du Freak series by Darren Shan
Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer

Happy Halloween, everyone. Happy Reading too.
-stenson

Mr. Walter Dean Myers

If there was a king of Young Adult Literature, Mr. Walter Dean Myers might be it.

He writes authentically and powerfully about the lives of teenagers. His characters struggle with real-life problems, they make honest mistakes and make bad choices, but ultimately, they all fight for hope and justice.

The list of books he has written is lo-oo-oo-oong. Here are just a few of my favorites. And, of course, there is a vlog about a few must-reads he has written. Check the class iPods for that.

Bad Boy: A Memoir
Fallen Angels
Hoops
Monster
Scorpions
Shooter
Sunrise over Fallujah



For more information, visit his website.

or check out this interview with the author, Walter Dean Myers.

Life As We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer

Miranda is excited at first because everyone is buzzing about the asteroid. What will happen? Will it look like fireworks? The whole neighborhood is out on the streets waiting for the asteroid to hit the moon. And when it does, look out. It's not a terrible sight, but it's clear right away that it's not a good thing either.

So begins the story of a normal 16 year old girl slow journey into an apocalyptic world. The coasts are flooded with tsunamis, volcanoes around the world start erupting, and the climate begins to change for the worse. Schools start to close, gas is rationed, and food is being stockpiled. While they don't have guarantees they are going to make it, Miranda and her family fight to survive. Readers have to keep reading to find out if this family is going to make it.
picture from amazon.com

What I like most about the book is Miranda. Even though her circumstances get worse and worse and worse, she handles them like a champ. Taking each day as it comes, dealing with the challenges presented, and still living a life like every other teenager. Will she get to keep skating? Will she ever go to the prom? Why did her dad chose his new wife over their family? Will her mom always be annoying, nosy, and bossy?

This is my second time reading this book. I knew the book was essentially about hope, but I couldn't remember exactly how it ended. It didn't disappoint the second time. I loved it. Hope you do too!

By the way, I have this book on the iPods if anyone is interested.

Keep reading, everyone.
-stenson

Oops, I did it again.

The response was mixed, but most everyone tuned in to the first vlog. While many rolled their eyes or turned me off, others sauntered to the bookshelves to find one of the three books. It got me thinking...this could be a weekly thing.

The second vlog introduces readers to:

-The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian by Sherman Alexie
-Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
-Life As We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer

If you can take it, try Vlog 2.


Keep Reading!
-stenson

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Want action and suspense? Check.
Want gore and guts? Check.
Want likeable characters? Check.
Want a few who make you laugh? Check.
A few to fall in love? Maybe.

With elements of science-fiction and reality television, with futuristic and realistic elements , Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games grabs the readers from the first page and grips them with such suspense few are likely to successfully put it down until the end.

The book beings on the day of the Reaping, where each District of the post-apocalyptic North American country of Panem must send two youth to the 74th Annual Hunger Games. The government exerts total control over its people, and the Games are just one of its cruel ploys to remind the people their lives are only as good or as bad as the government decides they will be.

The book is a lot like The Lottery (a classic short story by Shirley Jackson) meets Survivor (the popular reality-television series) meets Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare tragedy about two star-crossed lovers). The main characters--Katniss and Peeta--are chosen from a lottery, forced to leave their families, and go to the Capitol where they will be contestants in a grisly Gladiator game.

It must be said that Katniss, who is the Girl on Fire, is a terrific heroine. Two thumbs up for a girl with the wits, strength, and kindness to be a true competitor, a protective big sister, an effective hunter, the pride of her District, and the love-interest of at least a couple of boys. She is a girl who could teach us all many lessons. Speaking of lessons, the book has several to tell....about violence in our culture, about the increasingly desensitizing nature of reality television, about the harm of a government not of the people, and about empathy.

It took me a long to pick up the book but minutes to fall in love with it. I urge all ages to read this book. Knowing two more in the series follow, I predict, as did awesome author John Green) the trilogy will be received with Twilight-esque mania. Join in on the fun. Get your hands on a copy today!

For more information like videos, message boards, and online games, check out this site.

Keep reading!
-stenson

Farewell, Teacher Man.

-photo from trashotron.com

I would have loved to have a teacher like Frank McCourt. I had good teachers, but this guy told a story like Picasso painted. He was one of the best. Plus, I fondly remember lying next to the proud-to-be Tall Guy while he giggled as he read the last of the three auto-biographies Teacher Man. I hope we left this world smiling; Mr. McCourt died on Sunday, July 20 at the young age of 78. He will be missed.

Read on.
-Stenson

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks. By e. lokhart

Frankie Landeau-Banks, narrator and hero of the award-winning “The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks” by E. Lockhart, is the literary friend for whom my middle school girls have been looking.

Our heroine pointedly asks the handsome, popular, rich guy: “Why is it psychotic if I did it, and brilliant if Alpha did it?” Calling to task the double-standard girls and women face frequently, widely, all too often. That's not the only aspect of gender stereotypes and roles Frankie calls into question. You've got to read this book to find out more.

She is equal parts insecurity and confidence, creativity and conformity. That's why she is great...because she's a lot like many of the young girls I teach, a complicated mess of strengths and weaknesses. Her sophomore year is an unforgettable one. She wins the heart of the most popular senior boy on campus, she fights hard successfully to become more than just the "bunny-rabbit" nickname her family has given her, and she makes a mark at her prestigious prep school by taking on a long-standing, all-male, secret society, and she does so with with flair and imagination.

The book is entertaining, witty, clever, and smart. It's a fun read, and a satisfying one. The lessons of the book are tough to articulate, but even me--a happily married, pretty boring and ordinary 34 year old woman--learned about the tricky relationship between men and women.

Secretly (or not so secretly now), I also loved the peek into the rich, boarding school life of Frankie and her classmates. Good grab a copy and read it.

BUT! I also recommend the audio version. Ms. Sirois (the narrator), Ms. Lockhart, and Ms. Landeau-Banks create a captivating, memorable story. Read it this summer. If you can't trust me, trust the NY Times.

Keep reading-
Stenson (a.k.a. abs kujawski)

Wintergirls

For every young woman out there who has battled with body-image or weight issues-
For every adult and child who has loved someone who has had these battles-

there's little I can say to show you I understand or know what it's like, but there is a book you all must read. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson. As one reviewer wrote, it's hard to read, but harder to put down. You've got to give Lia (and all the young girls like her) the gift of reading her story and sharing it with others.

For a list of reviews or other information about the book or the author, go to www.writerlady.com.

You. Must. Read. Wintergirls.
-abs(tenson) kujawski