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[CCBC-Net] Breaking the Silence
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From: Ginny Moore Kruse <gmkruse>
Date: Fri, 21 Mar 2008 16:00:36 -0500
I'm chilled by Aline's account of the girl who had systematically bullied her for years and then stopped doing this as a "Christmas gift." Issues of power and lack of power are everywhere in this series of exchanges.
It has occurred to me that some of us once might have been the bullies, the meanies. (I don't expect anyone to speak up.) And there are no shirts for former bullies to parallel the horrifying tees Mary Ann described.
Today I'm remembering an extraordinary book with eloquent language and extraordinary visual dimensions. Something quite unlike what anyone had seen before, or perhaps since it was published by Scholastic Press in 2000. Here's what was written in "CCBC Choices 2001" about the book
"Wings" by created by Christopher Myers - Quote: Everyone stares at the new boy who has just moved onto the block. Ikarus Jackson seems plenty different, that's for certain. He flies above the rooftops,
"swooping and diving, looping past people's windows." At school, everyone notices him, too. They joke about his "long, strong, proud wings," his unusual hair, and his shoes. One classmate seems to understand him. Cruel kids have whispered about her, too, making her feel lonely, even strange. Watching what is happening to Ikarus, she summons the courage to break her own silence. The spare, poetic words of this observant, sympathetic narrator build suspense. Myers's exciting cut-paper collage art brings wonder to his fully original, dynamic, beautifully designed story, which is loosely based on the Greek myth about Icarus. "Wings" was primarily inspired by the youthful experiences of the writer/artist, who says he was tall for his age. He stood out among his peers for that reason, and also because he preferred to draw rather than do what tall boys are supposed to enjoy. His captivating picture book set in today's urban landscape is peopled with kids whose responses to Ikarus may raise the question of how anyone handles meeting a person who seems different. Unquote.
And how do we adults, who care about the children and teenagers for whom we have professional or personal responsibility, summon the courage to make break the silence keeping someone from being safe? from being affirmed rather than rejected? Which books? which readers? the tall boy who doesn't want to play basketball? the girl who knows she's a boy? the child who can't arrive at school all cleaned up because s/he spent the night at a shelter for homeless families? the girl who doesn't own matching doll clothes and other paraphernalia? Tessa invited us to think deeply about the questions she's raised. It isn't easy, but it's more than worth the time and energy.
With appreciation for all the messages, Ginny
Ginny Moore Kruse gmkruse at wisc.edu
/Honor Book, 2001 Charlotte Zolotow Award/
Received on Fri 21 Mar 2008 04:00:36 PM CDT
Date: Fri, 21 Mar 2008 16:00:36 -0500
I'm chilled by Aline's account of the girl who had systematically bullied her for years and then stopped doing this as a "Christmas gift." Issues of power and lack of power are everywhere in this series of exchanges.
It has occurred to me that some of us once might have been the bullies, the meanies. (I don't expect anyone to speak up.) And there are no shirts for former bullies to parallel the horrifying tees Mary Ann described.
Today I'm remembering an extraordinary book with eloquent language and extraordinary visual dimensions. Something quite unlike what anyone had seen before, or perhaps since it was published by Scholastic Press in 2000. Here's what was written in "CCBC Choices 2001" about the book
"Wings" by created by Christopher Myers - Quote: Everyone stares at the new boy who has just moved onto the block. Ikarus Jackson seems plenty different, that's for certain. He flies above the rooftops,
"swooping and diving, looping past people's windows." At school, everyone notices him, too. They joke about his "long, strong, proud wings," his unusual hair, and his shoes. One classmate seems to understand him. Cruel kids have whispered about her, too, making her feel lonely, even strange. Watching what is happening to Ikarus, she summons the courage to break her own silence. The spare, poetic words of this observant, sympathetic narrator build suspense. Myers's exciting cut-paper collage art brings wonder to his fully original, dynamic, beautifully designed story, which is loosely based on the Greek myth about Icarus. "Wings" was primarily inspired by the youthful experiences of the writer/artist, who says he was tall for his age. He stood out among his peers for that reason, and also because he preferred to draw rather than do what tall boys are supposed to enjoy. His captivating picture book set in today's urban landscape is peopled with kids whose responses to Ikarus may raise the question of how anyone handles meeting a person who seems different. Unquote.
And how do we adults, who care about the children and teenagers for whom we have professional or personal responsibility, summon the courage to make break the silence keeping someone from being safe? from being affirmed rather than rejected? Which books? which readers? the tall boy who doesn't want to play basketball? the girl who knows she's a boy? the child who can't arrive at school all cleaned up because s/he spent the night at a shelter for homeless families? the girl who doesn't own matching doll clothes and other paraphernalia? Tessa invited us to think deeply about the questions she's raised. It isn't easy, but it's more than worth the time and energy.
With appreciation for all the messages, Ginny
Ginny Moore Kruse gmkruse at wisc.edu
/Honor Book, 2001 Charlotte Zolotow Award/
Received on Fri 21 Mar 2008 04:00:36 PM CDT
