CCBC-Net Archives
[CCBC-Net] Hello and Books for Reluctant Readers
- Contemporary messages sorted: [ by date ] [ by subject ] [ by author ]
From: Steward, Celeste <csteward>
Date: Thu, 3 Aug 2006 09:11:28 -0700
Oh, great story, Shutta! And hooray for the junior high snoop--I was one myself. Glad to meet a kindred spirit.
So, your mom unwittingly tripped your reading switch with some darn good marketing--how enticing to find a stash of books that might possibly be forbidden, and even better to discover they are some of the best books ever written!
Celeste Steward
Collection Development Librarian, Children's Services Alameda County Library 2400 Stevenson Blvd. Fremont, CA 94538
-----Original Message----- From: ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.education.wisc.edu [mailto:ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.education.wisc.edu] On Behalf Of Shutta Crum Sent: Thursday, August 03, 2006 8:15 AM To: 'Gerry O'Brien'; ccbc-net at ccbc.ad.education.wisc.edu Subject: Re: [CCBC-Net] Hello and Books for Reluctant Readers
YAY, for Gerry O'Brien! Children (& adults) love to be read to! And I think good book-talkers can do this kind of thing, too. Leave the audience hungering to find out what happens next.
When I was in middle school I "discovered" --as in doing the usual snooping a middleschooler will do--a stash of paperbacks with the covers ripped off in my mother's bottom dresser drawer. Well . . . I thought maybe she didn't want us to know the titles. Maybe they were "naughty" books? So, of course, I had to sneak around and grab one whenever I could to read it. What I ended up reading was: GONE WITH THE WIND, THE LAST PICTURE SHOW, THE AFRICAN QUEEN to name but a couple I remember. I did not know at that time that they were considered well-written books. I only knew they really drew me in. . . and in the case of The Last Picture Show. . . were "adult" enough to keep me reading. (I later found out these must have been remaindered books my mother had picked up somewhere.)
Though I wasn't a reluctant reader, I've often thought this might be a good way to snag a reluctant reader in the home . . . a bit sneaky, but . . .
The other story I like to tell (because it's so opposite many public library stories of woe), comes from my work as a youth librarian. I actually had a somewhat abashed looking father come up to the reference desk one day and ask in a low voice, "Do you have any books with swearing in them?"
I must have look a bit puzzled, because he went on to say: "I have two boys, 15 and 17 and they don't like to read. I want something they can relate to."
"Oh . . ." I said, rising and slowly heading toward the young adult section. All the while, all kinds of dread fears raced through my head like: is this person on a mission and will I end up ensnarled in some book-banning controversy?
I selected E.R. Frank's AMERICA and opened it at random. The father was standing close, looking over my shoulder. We scanned the page and there was the "F" word. "Good!" He said, "I'll take it."
After that, I occ. saw the man in the library. Sometimes he was with--I assumed--one of his sons. A success story for two reluctant readers? I think so, though I'm not 100% sure. I do know that it made me think about the books they were being assigned to read in school--how relevant those might/might not be to their lives... how male-oriented at the upper end grades. And I am glad that not only did those boys have a father who was willing to go out on a limb, but also that our public library had the kinds of books they wanted.
Shutta Crum Spitting Image (Clarion, 2004) www.shutta.com? http://blog.shuttacrum.com
-----Original Message----- From: Gerry O'Brien Sent: Thursday, August 03, 2006 9:39 AM To: ccbc-net at ccbc.ad.education.wisc.edu Subject: [CCBC-Net] Hello and Books for Reluctant Readers
Hello. My name is Gerry O'Brien ... Over the years I read hundreds and hundreds of books to my students.
_______________________________________________ CCBC-Net mailing list CCBC-Net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu Visit this link to read archives or to unsubscribe... http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/mailman/listinfo/ccbc-net
Received on Thu 03 Aug 2006 11:11:28 AM CDT
Date: Thu, 3 Aug 2006 09:11:28 -0700
Oh, great story, Shutta! And hooray for the junior high snoop--I was one myself. Glad to meet a kindred spirit.
So, your mom unwittingly tripped your reading switch with some darn good marketing--how enticing to find a stash of books that might possibly be forbidden, and even better to discover they are some of the best books ever written!
Celeste Steward
Collection Development Librarian, Children's Services Alameda County Library 2400 Stevenson Blvd. Fremont, CA 94538
-----Original Message----- From: ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.education.wisc.edu [mailto:ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.education.wisc.edu] On Behalf Of Shutta Crum Sent: Thursday, August 03, 2006 8:15 AM To: 'Gerry O'Brien'; ccbc-net at ccbc.ad.education.wisc.edu Subject: Re: [CCBC-Net] Hello and Books for Reluctant Readers
YAY, for Gerry O'Brien! Children (& adults) love to be read to! And I think good book-talkers can do this kind of thing, too. Leave the audience hungering to find out what happens next.
When I was in middle school I "discovered" --as in doing the usual snooping a middleschooler will do--a stash of paperbacks with the covers ripped off in my mother's bottom dresser drawer. Well . . . I thought maybe she didn't want us to know the titles. Maybe they were "naughty" books? So, of course, I had to sneak around and grab one whenever I could to read it. What I ended up reading was: GONE WITH THE WIND, THE LAST PICTURE SHOW, THE AFRICAN QUEEN to name but a couple I remember. I did not know at that time that they were considered well-written books. I only knew they really drew me in. . . and in the case of The Last Picture Show. . . were "adult" enough to keep me reading. (I later found out these must have been remaindered books my mother had picked up somewhere.)
Though I wasn't a reluctant reader, I've often thought this might be a good way to snag a reluctant reader in the home . . . a bit sneaky, but . . .
The other story I like to tell (because it's so opposite many public library stories of woe), comes from my work as a youth librarian. I actually had a somewhat abashed looking father come up to the reference desk one day and ask in a low voice, "Do you have any books with swearing in them?"
I must have look a bit puzzled, because he went on to say: "I have two boys, 15 and 17 and they don't like to read. I want something they can relate to."
"Oh . . ." I said, rising and slowly heading toward the young adult section. All the while, all kinds of dread fears raced through my head like: is this person on a mission and will I end up ensnarled in some book-banning controversy?
I selected E.R. Frank's AMERICA and opened it at random. The father was standing close, looking over my shoulder. We scanned the page and there was the "F" word. "Good!" He said, "I'll take it."
After that, I occ. saw the man in the library. Sometimes he was with--I assumed--one of his sons. A success story for two reluctant readers? I think so, though I'm not 100% sure. I do know that it made me think about the books they were being assigned to read in school--how relevant those might/might not be to their lives... how male-oriented at the upper end grades. And I am glad that not only did those boys have a father who was willing to go out on a limb, but also that our public library had the kinds of books they wanted.
Shutta Crum Spitting Image (Clarion, 2004) www.shutta.com? http://blog.shuttacrum.com
-----Original Message----- From: Gerry O'Brien Sent: Thursday, August 03, 2006 9:39 AM To: ccbc-net at ccbc.ad.education.wisc.edu Subject: [CCBC-Net] Hello and Books for Reluctant Readers
Hello. My name is Gerry O'Brien ... Over the years I read hundreds and hundreds of books to my students.
_______________________________________________ CCBC-Net mailing list CCBC-Net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu Visit this link to read archives or to unsubscribe... http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/mailman/listinfo/ccbc-net
Received on Thu 03 Aug 2006 11:11:28 AM CDT
