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Re: novels in verse
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From: maggie_bo_at_comcast.net
Date: Mon, 09 Apr 2012 18:15:47 +0000 (UTC)
Maeve writes:
"it interests me that my own 13-year-old has an aversion to novels in verse . In fact each time that I talk her into reading one, she likes the individ ual title, but is not willing to be open-minded about the next offering. Sh e liked "Inside Out and Back Again" very much but says "kids only read book s like this when their teachers make them!" Somehow her dislike of analyzin g poetry rubs off to these novels."
Yes--I do think kids have preconceived notions about whether they will like or dislike a novel in verse before they even open one. What's interesting to me is that, while many kids AND adults assume that novels in verse are s omehow "highbrow," or at least difficult reads, the opposite is often true. The novels in verse for children and young adults that I have read do not require or even stand up to the deep analysis of a complex poem (at least n ot from beginning to end, and this is not to say that one could not be writ ten that does; but I haven't read one yet, and I think such a book would ha ve a very limited--if appreciative--audience). In fact , many novels in ver se can be wonderfully appealing to students who are labeled reluctant reade rs, or who like to read but don't seem to enjoy the same books that most ot her kids enjoy. Many of these students claim to despise description, but I am not sure that this is exactly what they mean. I think what they often me an is that they despise transitions, tan gents, connectors, and anything tha t is not absolutely essential. The poetic form allows the author of a novel in verse to do away with traditional exposition and even words a "regular" novelist cannot avoid: everything from dialogue tags to various forms of t he verb "to be." In the best of circumstances, the result is a short, tight , clean, and highly evocative story that provides a lot of space for the re ader's imagination to fill in the details. As more and more of these books are being published each year, I'm betting that the aversion to and misunde rstanding of the form will wear off as the years pass. Already, there are s tudents beginning to seek them out.
Maggie Bokelman Eagle View Middle School Librarian Mechanicsburg, PA
Received on Mon 09 Apr 2012 06:15:47 PM CDT
Date: Mon, 09 Apr 2012 18:15:47 +0000 (UTC)
Maeve writes:
"it interests me that my own 13-year-old has an aversion to novels in verse . In fact each time that I talk her into reading one, she likes the individ ual title, but is not willing to be open-minded about the next offering. Sh e liked "Inside Out and Back Again" very much but says "kids only read book s like this when their teachers make them!" Somehow her dislike of analyzin g poetry rubs off to these novels."
Yes--I do think kids have preconceived notions about whether they will like or dislike a novel in verse before they even open one. What's interesting to me is that, while many kids AND adults assume that novels in verse are s omehow "highbrow," or at least difficult reads, the opposite is often true. The novels in verse for children and young adults that I have read do not require or even stand up to the deep analysis of a complex poem (at least n ot from beginning to end, and this is not to say that one could not be writ ten that does; but I haven't read one yet, and I think such a book would ha ve a very limited--if appreciative--audience). In fact , many novels in ver se can be wonderfully appealing to students who are labeled reluctant reade rs, or who like to read but don't seem to enjoy the same books that most ot her kids enjoy. Many of these students claim to despise description, but I am not sure that this is exactly what they mean. I think what they often me an is that they despise transitions, tan gents, connectors, and anything tha t is not absolutely essential. The poetic form allows the author of a novel in verse to do away with traditional exposition and even words a "regular" novelist cannot avoid: everything from dialogue tags to various forms of t he verb "to be." In the best of circumstances, the result is a short, tight , clean, and highly evocative story that provides a lot of space for the re ader's imagination to fill in the details. As more and more of these books are being published each year, I'm betting that the aversion to and misunde rstanding of the form will wear off as the years pass. Already, there are s tudents beginning to seek them out.
Maggie Bokelman Eagle View Middle School Librarian Mechanicsburg, PA
Received on Mon 09 Apr 2012 06:15:47 PM CDT
