Reading Rumpus

Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman - Book Review

There are so many things I want to discuss about Skeleton Creek, a unique concept book by Patrick Carman, that I don’t know where to begin. Do I discuss the possibilities for reluctant readers, the importance of 21st Century Literacies, the research buzz about male readers or do I just review the story itself?

Mr. Carman & Scholastic have done a great job promoting this tile, but I’ll start by giving you the premise: The town of Skeleton Creek is hiding a secret. Teenage writer Ryan lets us into his journal just as he’s released from a two-week stay in the hospital. Something sinister has happened to Ryan and his parents have decided the best way to keep him out of trouble is to keep him away from his best friend, Sarah, a film aficionado. But you know that’s not going to happen. They’re teens!

Sarah & Ryan communicate through email and a secret password-protected website. Every twenty-five pages or so, the reader heads off to the computer to access one of Sarah’s viral-style videos, building clues to solve the mystery of Skeleton Creek right along with Ryan and Sarah.

21st Century Literacies:
Some have called it interactive reading or cross-platform storytelling or split media, but really, the NCTE probably coined the best phrase: 21st Century Literacies. Educators, Librarians and Reading Specialists have been buzzing about 21st Century Literacies for quite some time. Finding best practices to utilize our new technologies and competing with the multimedia-driven society are nothing new. However, Skeleton Creek is a first. 39 Clues (another Scholastic title and also touched by author Carman’s hand) has a fantastic gamer-interactive slant to it, but I believe Skeleton Creek is the first to make use of the YouTube, viral, conspiracy, Easter egg hunting craze. For this alone, I am impressed.

Reluctant & Male Readers:
But impressing little old me isn’t important. I’m a strong reader, one of those sorts who LIVE inside a story; I wouldn’t have picked reading as a profession otherwise. I think stopping to go watch a video is a massive buzz kill, but I’m not the sort of person this story is aimed towards. The reluctant reader, the youth of daily YouTube perusals, the boys who never go near a book are going to be enthralled by this. That’s my educated opinion.

I saw a few reviews criticizing certain aspects of Skeleton Creek. Each time, I kept thinking, “But you’re a book reviewer! You love to read. You’re missing the potential” As a reading teacher who’s seen her share of struggling readers, I can really get behind this format. The short bursts of text; the climactic plot, and the multimedia format all add essential support for a struggling reader. Read a few pages, boom, you get to go watch a supporting video that not only further enhances the experience, but amplifies the plot.

Story & Videos:
The bottom line is that an entertainment experience is only as good as the story. I can dissect certain elements of being in real time with the journal writer, of telling a non-linear story to reluctant readers, but Skeleton Creek is one of those along-for-the-ride stories. And those are the ones that seduce a reader. You’re in on a secret, the foreshadowing hints abound, and the plot – not descriptive brilliance or character worship – drives the tale. And, I was scared. I read this at night and was afraid to leave my bedroom to get my laptop!

As for the videos, I could play Roger Ebert discussing acting plausibility and sound effect oddities, but the videos are meant to be viral. Think Blair Witch or Cloverfield without the nose hair shots or queasy camera shaking.

Conclusions:
My only real concern involves accessibility. I’m a Mac geek; I’m never unplugged (see that Twitter button over there →). But, I wonder if the story would wait until I could get to a computer, especially if I lacked Internet access excepting at school or a library. Yet, we wait months for Lost, filling our hunger with Internet theory sites until the plot continues. So, I’m hopeful Skeleton Creek could do the same (see crazy theory site below – Ha!).

Teachers would be well served to explore Skeleton Creek because this is going to start a trend. Mark my words (and just remember when we thought YouTube book trailers were the bomb).

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Genre: Mystery. Age: 9-12, but I also vote high school reluctant reader. Pages: 144.

Themes: Spooky, Cooperation, Determination

A Special Thank You to Mr. Carman for allowing an advanced peek. I'm a fan for life!
Publisher: Scholastic.
Date: February 2009.
ISBN-10: 0545075661 / ISBN-13: 978-0545075664

Buy Skeleton Creek Here

Great Patrick Carman Quote in Publisher's Weekly: “No sounds, no lights, no gaming strategy, no beat to dance to, no person on the other line to talk with. And yet all the studies show the same thing: reading is king when it comes to educating kids. It’s not about bridging the gap between technology and books—it’s about erasing it.”

Author Interview at Publishers Weekly

Scholastic Site

Media Kit

Info About Dredges

A Crazy Theory Site? or Something More Sinister?
HERE & HERE

Skeleton Creek is available February 10, 2009. The sequel, Ghost in the Machine, releases in September 2009. (What a cool name! Perhaps it hints at the theme?)

Additional book reviews can be found at Kristina’s Favorites, Maw Books, Abby the Librarian, Book-a-Rama, YA Fabulous, What Vanessa Reads, A Year of Reading, MariReads, YA Reads, Sharon Loves Book & Cats, Books and other thoughts, 100 Scope Notes, Just Blinded Book Reviews and Book Reviews & More.

Book Trailer:

Patrick Carmen became a writer after making up bedtime stories for his young daughters. That story eventually grew into the popular Land of Elyon series. In his spare time, Mr. Carmen counsels troubled youth and volunteers his time assisting impoverished countries. You can read more about him on his website.
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The Prince of Fenway Park by Julianna Baggot - Book Review

Ignoring my best reading advice, I didn't read the back cover before I began The Prince of Fenway Park. I noticed a small boy wearing a Red Sox jersey and the title having Fenway Park on the cover, so I figured it'd be a baseball novel about a boy. My knowledge of baseball is tiny, but I do know about baseball's most famous curse (how could any American not know about the curse of the Bambino?) and I was aware that a few years ago the Red Sox broke that curse. This was about the extent of my Red Sox knowledge.

The story begins with Oscar, a boy who feels cursed and abandoned. His adoptive parents have split and his mother needs to leave Oscar with his father while she pursues a relationship with the 'King of Condos,' promising Oscar that if all goes right he might just end up as the 'Prince of Condos.' The story was progressing nicely. I liked Oscar. He had a strong voice and a relatable situation. Then, BAM!

What I thought was a simple baseball story turned into a ........ FANTASY novel. It seems there are creatures living under Fenway Park. And they are cursed too. And they need Oscar's help because he might just be the one to lift the curse.

After I got past that suspension of disbelief bubble pop, I settled in to a good elementary-level novel geared toward engaging male readers. The characters were unique and delightful. Oscar's father took on a better persona, Oscar rose to the occasion and the fantasy characters were a humorous quirky lot. The inclusion of baseball trivia and, especially, the appearance of some of baseball's legends was fantastic. I did pause over the tidy ending, but concluded that there are enough realistic divorce stories for kids to read.

Advisory: It's important to note that The Prince of Fenway Park tackles racial prejudice head-on. The author provides an afterword explaining her handling of the subject, which I thought was a fantastic discussion topic, though possibly a sticky one for many educators.

Recommended for fantasy readers, sports themed story enthusiasts and elementary classrooms.

Read More Here »

Reading Aloud & The Decline in Fluency: Remedy ?

A discussion is brewing over the lack of parents reading aloud to their children. I happened upon the brouhaha at the wonderful blog of Jen Robinson (Kid Lit promoter extraordinaire!). It seems some fancy studies have been conducted to tell those of us in the education field something we already know: nobody is reading to the kids.

After a bit of searching, I found that Google has Timothy Rasinski's The Fluent Reader as part of their online free library. There's also alternatives to old fashioned round robin reading HERE. Why, my own soapbox rant on fluency and the use of recorded stories was the second link. Need more research? Here & Here. And though, RIF has a fantastic article telling parents why this effort is so important, it doesn't solve the dilemma: not enough parents are reading to their children.

I'll take it a step further and say, not only are they not reading enough to their children, they're also not discussing stories with them! I can tell you, as can most teachers, that fluency is a real problem right now. Students don't know what words, sentences, stories are supposed to sound like. We don't need a study to tell us what we can observe firsthand. And for the parent reading who wishes their child's teacher spent more time reading aloud, something I also wish, one has to understand the rush of curriculum into a small patch of day that prevents unrestrained love of story in a classroom setting.

But the real question is how do we promote a change?

It'd be easy to assign the blame to the lower socio-economic crowd and throw some government funds at promoting literacy in those neighborhoods, but the Lexus driving soccer Moms aren't reading to Johnny at night either. Believe me. I taught for years in a high socio-economic neighborhood. They all owned a Harry Potter book, but nary a one had read it with the kids.

How do we go about slowing people down enough to see the joys, benefits and immeasurable pleasure they'll get from cuddling with a book and their baby? Has society grown so selfish and so driven they're incapable of tasting the sweetness of small pleasures?

I feel like I'll be preaching to the choir with this post, but maybe we might come up with an idea...
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Newbery Winner Announced!

Can this be true ?????

(source = John Green's tweet)

OMG! (I'm channeling my total kid persona now!)

See what I had to say about The Graveyard Book: HERE

Savvy gets an honor!!!!

See what I had to say about Savvy: HERE
Life is great this morning!
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Soldier's Heart by Elizabeth D. Samet (Book Commentary)

I've included this review from my book commentary site here as I believe it has significance for reading / English educators:

I rarely want to read books about reading books. I’d rather be reading a book. And, as the wife of a retired military man, I shy away from books with a political slant toward the military. Yet something in Soldier's Heart: Reading Literature Through Peace and War at West Point made me decide to pick it up and once I observed the clear, yet poignant, writing style and respectful even-handed look at the soldiers themselves, I was hooked.

Any teacher hopes her students will walk away from literature with a greater vision of humanity, but a soldier will carry those lessons to a battlefield, to a foreign village, to a brother as he lay dying in their arms. It has always been one of my guiding educational principles that if a teacher loves her subject, she will impart that feeling to her students. And while they may never love her particular choices, they will certainly better understand the depth of feelings and will seek, for their better selves, subjects that empower and beautify their own lives. Elizabeth Samet LOVES literature. Read one chapter and you will know this. She would have been a fine Lit. teacher at any institution. But that she ended up at West Point is a wonderful thing for both her student soldiers and herself.

Samet inherits some standard liberal-leaning professor attitudes, but does a good job of balancing them with respect for the individual soldier. The prose wanders between mundane and profound in a manner only to lighten the subject. Her teaching choices represent wonderful examples of valor and sacrifice, something certain to be of importance in these student’s lives. And while this book adds credence to the importance and love of literature, it shines best when examined as a study of characters: men and women who make up an easily dismissed war machine, who are much, much more than the sum of its parts. In the end, I forgave Samet any political potshots because her respect for her students shined through her politics.

Read More Here »

I, Lorelei by Yeardley Smith - Book Review

Lorelei is going to be famous. She may be 11 years old, but she knows that she needs to record her life so that future biographers will have her own words. And since her English teacher tells her that it’s best to write for an audience, Lorelei chooses her recently deceased cat, Mud, to address.

Loreli may be destined for greatness, but her daily life mirrors that of most sixth graders. She’s a middle child, sandwiched between two brothers, and most of her thoughts revolve around friends and school. This would make for a cute telling as Lorelei’s voice is strong and believable, but no life is that simple and the author cautiously moves Lorelei to a realm of angst as her parents fighting turns to separation.

It is interesting to note that author Yeardley Smith is the voice of Lisa Simpson and as a follower of that television show; I saw snatches of Lisa in I, Lorelei. Lorelei’s smart and gifted. Deep thinking, yet still very much a kid. Perhaps the best part of I, Lorelei is that Smith never takes Lorelei too low. There’s always a glimmer of optimism, a hope that she’s going to be fine, even when she’s acting the brat over her swiftly changing world.

Though diary formats can sometimes be disengaging, Lorelei’s voice is so confident and honest, we not only easily engage in the story, we begin to love dead Mud too. Pretty good writing to get us to care about a dead character, though credit must be given to the adorable line drawings of Mud.

Recommended for independent readers 8-13, those interested in diary tales, stories of divorce and girls looking for smart & sassy role models. I expect there will be educational supplementals popping up soon for this one.

-------------------- Resources --------------------

Genre: Realistic Fiction. Age: 9-12. Pages: 352.

Themes:Friendship, Loss, Humor.

Awards: Thank You: Advisory:
Publisher: Harper Collins. Date: January 2009.
ISBN-10: 0061493449 / ISBN-13: 978-0061493447

Buy I, Lorelei Here

You can see an excerpt of the book on Harper Collins.

Places with Additional Thoughts:
Publishers Weekly, , The Bluestocking Society, late literacy, She Is Too Fond of Books, Reading With Monie, Rhapsody In Books, Melanie @ Love to Read, Scraptherapy, A Reader's Respite, Bermuda Onion

Author Interview:

Yeardley Smith is a jack of all trades appearing on Broadway, on television and in films. Children used to bully her about her voice, but she got the last laugh. She's won an Emmy for its use. She also likes to knit. You can see more about her work on IMDB or on her wiki entry.
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The Big Bell and the Little Bell by Martin Kalmanoff with illustrations by Alastair Graham - Book Review Mini

The Big Bell and the Little Bell recounts a 50's era song in text and pictures and includes a music CD for added enjoyment. And enjoyable it might be, with vivid illustrations and a positive message, were it not for the silly kitten family addition, pounding moralization and limit in scope.

There are certainly some uses for The Big Bell and the Little Bell, music teachers would be especially encouraged to have a look, I just wish there had been more meat between the pretty pages.

Genre: Picture Book. Age: 4-8. Pages: 32.
Publisher: Date: November 2008.
ISBN-10: 190625009X / ISBN-13: 978-1906250096

Buy The Big Bell and the Little Bell Here

Thanks to The Picnic Basket.
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The World That Loved Books by Stephen Parlato - Mini Book Review

Upon opening The World That Loved Books, one is struck by the vivid collages that spring forth from the page. Based upon the work of master artist Giuseppe Arcimboldo, author Stephen Parlato's artwork is not only stunning, it's unique. Most students will not have seen such intricate and well-balanced collage work. But the title hints at a deeper story...

The premise of The World That Loved Books is that there once was a land where everything a creature read, because all the creatures there read, became a part of their very being. A beautiful sentiment. But, it falls short on execution. It's not so much the economy of words, that's actually complimentary to the collages, it's the hodge-podge of focus. The text is sprinkled with puns, rhymes and just random thoughts which create a lack of cohesiveness. The ending, about paying a library fine, is lackluster for such a vibrant picture book.

(first picture by artist Giuseppe Arcimboldo, second picture from book by Stephen Parlato)

I believe there are some valuable lessons for art teachers and the obvious lesson on creating personal collages for books we've read, but the intricate illustrations would not lend themselves well to a story circle setting. This is a book better suited to one on one interaction.

Genre: Picture Book, Art. Age: 4-8. Pages: 32.
Thanks to The Picnic Basket.
Publisher: Simply Read. Date: November 2008.
ISBN-10: 1894965981 / ISBN-13: 978-1894965989

Buy The World That Loved Books Here

The author has a nice website (HERE) where he details his school visit agenda. This looks very worthwhile.
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Katie & Kimble: A Ghost Story by Linda Thieman - Mini Book Review

Katie & Kimble: A Ghost Story is an independent reader chapter book by a former English language arts teacher and the first in a series of books about a young girl, Katie, and her friend, Kimble, who just happens to be a ghost.

You can get all sorts of classroom materials on the book's website HERE

You can read Chapter 1 HERE, but you can also read the first six chapters from a pdf link (also on the book's website).

Visit A Blog of Books For You where the author discusses leveling children's books.

Visit Paperback Writer for a Q & A with the author.

Visit Books For Kids for a synopsis of the story.

Vist Posey Sessions where the author discusses character development.

Visit Laura Williams Musings for a brief review.

Here's the website for the book. It has reviews, activity pages for teachers/homeschoolers, coloring pages, e-cards AND you can read the first two chapters for free!

Here's the YouTube promo for the story:

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The Hunger Games & Jus Ad Bellum

Yesterday I caught a snippet of a discussion on NPR relating the jus in bello of the current Israeli campaign into Gaza, what the acceptable amount of civilian casualties are and how America uses its political might to control situations in the Middle East. Pretty serious stuff.

Read More Here »

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - Mini Book Review

In my typically late to the party fashion, I finally got around to reading The Hunger Games. All I can say is that right now author Suzanne Collins had better be holed up in her house writing frantically. Not since Pottermania have I so desperately hungered for a sequel. I was enthralled, totally possessed, by each passing page. What a way to begin my New Year in books!

I saw the stellar reviews across the book blogosphere and was excited when my copy arrived, but man, did it live up to the hype. Each new page held a teacher’s treasure trove of ideas. Themes, writing devices, elaborate plot structures, spot-on character investment... the list is innumerable. Science Fiction, Dystopia, Suspense, Reality TV & Romeo and Juliet all seem deficient when describing this action-packed novel.

Read More Here »