Monthly Archives: September 2006

Book groups, Children, Children's literature, Teaching

The verdict is in…

Yesterday was the first Bagels n’ Books book group.  A great, enthusiastic bunch of fourth and fifth graders, a dozen bagels that rapidly and magically disappeared into eight mouths, and a lot of talk about The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.  Guess what?  The kids didn’t like the book much.

These kids are well-versed in how to discuss literature, and though there were a few groans when I said it’s not enough to just say you don’t like a book, that you have to give specific reasons, they all provided clear and definitive reasons for why they didn’t like the book.  One girl said it was too easy and it didn’t take her very long to finish the book.  A boy chimed in that he read the book in, like, an hour.  Another girl said that there is no point to the book.  “Ah-ha!”  I thought to myself, “Maybe they haven’t delved deep enough into the book and that’s why they didn’t like it!”  But no, this girl went on to say, “I mean, I understand that it’s about Edward learning to love and getting back to Abilene, but what’s the point of that?”

A different boy, and the girl beside him, complained that the book didn’t have enough action.  They mentioned that Kate DiCamillo’s other books have action and excitement, and that The Tiger is Rising and The Tale of Despereaux are books that they enjoyed reading.  Other kids agreed vigorously to this comment.  One girl was brave and spoke up to say that she LOVES the book because of the language and style of DiCamillo’s writing; she also commented on the cyclical nature of the storyline and had as many bookmarks marking places in the text as I did.  Future English major, guaranteed.

I used Aidan Chamber’s technique of writing likes, dislikes, puzzles, and patterns on a big sheet of paper, trying to keep my mouth shut about my own opinions in order to let the kids fully express their thoughts.  Had we had more time together (our actual book discussion only lasted for a half hour), I could have gone on to guide the group to a deeper discussion of the book.  But I’m still not sure that I would have been able to change the minds of those kids who strongly dislike the book; and that was never my goal.

What fascinates me most is that a lot of the negative adult commentary I’ve read about the book has focused on it being too sad for children, too emotionally wrenching.  The kids yesterday really weren’t bothered by the sadness in the book, they were annoyed by the lack of action.  They had wanted a book that was going to take them on journey; I mentioned that well, Edward Tulane does go on a journey, and most of the kids just rolled their eyes at me.  “It’s not a REAL journey!”

Two things come to mind: this book is a very different type of fantasy than the fantasy that prevails in the publishing world today (I hesitate to say it: the Harry Potter type of fantasy).  Most of the kids in the book group yesterday are probably used to action-based fantasy with magic and heroes and sparks and blood.  Edward Tulane can’t speak or act, and thus passively endures all that happens to him, except for the growth within him of a heart and the ability to love.  His physical strength doesn’t change, and he doesn’t accomplish great physical feats in the process of learning to love; he simply learns to love.

The other thought that comes to mind is that any reader, young or old, has the ability to skip those parts of a text that he or she either isn’t ready for or just doesn’t want to deal with.  I do this all the time: when reading the sixth Harry Potter, I knew that someone was going to die, so I purposefully read the end first to find out who so that I wouldn’t be held captive by the suspense of the book.  Perhaps the kids in yesterday’s book group don’t want to read about loss and sadness, or perhaps they’re not ready for stories that deal with those issues in depth, and so the book seemed, to them, to be boring.  It didn’t address their concerns, and it didn’t appeal to them.

Notably, though, it was loved by one group member, the girl who was adept at locating subtleties in the text and who possessed the most sophisticated literary vocabulary.  I’ll go out on a limb here and say that she was ready for the text, and thus loved it.  Ready for the text, and also interested in what the text had to say.  “The right book for the right child at the right time.”  No one book can appeal to everyone.

At the end of the hour, I presented the book group members with seven books to choose from for our next meeting in October.  The choices were: The Tale of Despereaux, The Diamond in the Window, Love That Dog, Half Magic, Room One: A Mystery or Two, The Penderwicks, and The Search for Delicious.  The winner was:  Half Magic by Edward Eager, coming to the library on October 24th.

Library move

New library!

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I got a really great treat today – a tour of the new library building-in-progress.  Mary, the library’s director, and Roy, one of the library’s trustees, took Lisa and me on a complete, bottom to top tour of the new library.  Over the next two weeks, Mary will taking all of the staff members on tours so that we can all begin to visualize the fantastic place we’ll be working in very soon.

The new building is so absolutely fantastic that I know I can’t begin to describe it accurately – but I’ll try!  For those of you who don’t know Harvard, the high school used to be housed in what is called “Old Bromfield,” a gorgeous old brick building with a slate roof and a cupola with trademark dragons.  Old Bromfield has been replaced by the new Bromfield high school building, and the older building has been vacant for a while.  To make the new library, the architects designed renovations to the Old Bromfield building, and they also designed a complementary addition that retains the spirit, lines, and integrity of the older building.  After my tour today, I think that this new library building will be the most beautiful, classy, and welcoming library building that I have ever seen.

The interior walls are not yet finished, but enough finish work has been done that I could really see what the new location will be like.  Every detail has been thought through, and there are ample spots for quiet reading and appreciation of the incredible view of Bare Hill Pond through giant floor-to-ceiling windows.  The children’s room will have its own large storytime room, which can accomodate smaller programs and movie showings in addition to book groups and storytimes and board game club meetings.  There are also two garden level doors off of the children’s room so that parents can escort their children out for a breath of fresh air in between study sessions or book choosing sessions.  And the younger children will have their very own corner, with a window seat and play table and the picture book and board book collections.  What a change from what we currently have!

The rest of the library is similarly well-designed: the large program room upstairs has a fantastic cathedral ceiling that has to be seen to be fully appreciated; the adult reading room is beyond stunning; and the young adults will have their own space that will hold comfortable spots to read and appreciate the ever-expanding young adult collection.  The circulation desk is open and welcoming, and the behind-the-scenes staff areas are an oasis of calm blue walls.

I am so excited about our move to the new building, and I only have one regret: some small part of me wishes that I could be a regular library patron and curl up in one of those inviting corners in a cozy chair with a great book, enjoying the view and perhaps the warmth of the gas fireplace.  But I’m more than content with the terrific children’s room and my own (!) office with the pond view.  Wow.  Harvard residents, you’ll be blown away when the new building opens!!

Etc., Library move

Organization

The hectic pace of summer is over, we’re gearing up for the move to the new library, and I’ve gone into organization mode.

Some people tease me a lot about my organization and list-making, but I’d like to make it clear that I’m not obsessed, really, I’m just more efficient when I’m organized and have a good list in hand.  Everyone works differently, and the key is to find your own personal style.  Back in college, I learned that if I spent fifteen minutes each day making my bed and tidying my room, then I got much more studying done.  Maybe it’s because I’m not distracted by mundane things.

So this week at the library I cleaned out the desk in the children’s room.  Arts and crafts things got put in the arts and crafts closet downstairs, ancient summer reading prizes got put into the boxes in the attic, and a few things got thrown out (nothing of value, I promise you!).  Now the desk has some empty space in the second drawer, which is just one more step on the road to the new library.  Less to do when it comes time to pack up and move.
And then there’s the issue of my lists.  I read an article in this month’s Real Simple magazine which states the case for getting rid of lists and living your life.  But it must have written by someone with a different list-writing style than I have, since lists for me are an enabler to life.  Each day at work I look at my list, rewriting it if necessary, and it helps me to stay focused, prioritize, and to silence the part of my brain that keeps whispering “don’t forget to do x, y, and z!”  If I write x, y, and z down, then I can focus on what I’m doing at the moment and not worry about forgetting something important.  Lists help keep me from becoming scattered, especially in a job where there are frequent distractions.

Lists and organization aren’t for everyone, but that’s not what matters, is it?  What matters is that we each find the way we work best.  And I’m really happy with my newly cleaned desk.