It’s Perfectly
Normal by Robbie H. Harris and Illustrated by Michael Emberley
Harris,
R. H., & Emberley, M. (2014). Its perfectly normal: Changing
bodies, growing up, sex, and sexual health. Somerville, MA: Candlewick
Press. The bird and the bee are in the
library. Bird wants bee to take a look
at the book she is reading. Bird
reluctantly agrees to read the book. The
book is about everything there is to know about the human body. The book contains information of how a person
comes into the world. It discusses the
organs in humans and the organs that are the same or different dependent on
one’s gender. It discusses growing and
changing bodies as people go through puberty. It discusses the sex organs in
detail and labels the parts of the body.
The book includes information on the attraction of one person to
another. It explains how a person can
make another person feel sexy and describes the act of having sex. The book details the ways in which one can
become pregnant. It addresses
misconceptions and gives details on how one can become pregnant even if they do
not have vaginal intercourse. It also
provides information on different contraceptive methods to avoid becoming
pregnant. In addition, it discusses methods in which couples that cannot become
pregnant naturally can become pregnant or find a way to have a baby with their
DNA. The book details the different stages of pregnancy and illustrates the
different stages of the baby in the womb.
It also provides information on the birth of a baby and the way the body
functions as it gives birth. It
discusses the two methods in which birth is given, which is natural and
cesarean. It then goes on to discuss
what happens to the newborn baby as it arrives on earth. It discusses circumcision and premature
babies. The book provides information
and tips on how to stay healthy. It
provides information on sexually transmitted diseases (STD) including Hepatitis
B. It details the different STDs and
encourages the reader to get regular checkups and ways to avoid the
diseases. It goes on to state that HIV
is the most dangerous of all of the STDs.
It explains the virus and the implications of contracting the
virus. In addition, it provides
information and clarifies misconceptions on how one contracts the virus. It also encourages readers that have been
abused to come forward. This book is a
type of book that one reads for philosophical speculation. This book will answer the big questions one
has about themselves and others. This book
will address the way the body reacts given different developmental stages in
their lives or given a circumstance. It
provides illustrations with labels on the different body parts and explains the
function of said parts. In addition, it
describes different points of view and feelings and explains that different
points of views and feeling differently than others is perfectly normal. The strength of this book is that it allows
readers to understand the changes that occur within the body. It also provides reader encouragement to seek
help from parents or a trusted family member.
Who has what?: All about girls
bodies and boys bodies is a great for readers a little young to understand this
book. Harris, R. H., & Westcott, N.
B. (2011). Who has what?: All about girls bodies and boys bodies.
Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press. ISBN: 9780763629311
Monster by Walter
Dean Myers
Myers,
W. D. (1999). Monster. HarperTeen.
The name of the book is Monster by Walter Dean Myers. The book is written in movie format in that
the story begins in prison and then has flash backs prior to the act that led
to prison. The story is about
sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon. Steve is
an African American from Harlem who is in prison awaiting trial for felony
murder as an adult. It all begins when
Steve and his neighborhood friends gathered to talk about and play
basketball. They would hang out in front
of the stoop just talking. It is then
when James King, the older neighborhood friend starts to discuss the need for
money. This results in a plan to get a
crew together to steal. They decide to
steal from a store. At the store the
owner pulls out a gun and finds himself in an altercation with the
perpetrators. During the altercation the
perpetrators take the gun and point it to the owner, which resulted in a
discharge into the store owner’s body.
One of the perpetrators had a friend in jail and decides to visit his
friend. During the visit the perpetrator
sells the prisoner a carton of cigarettes and proceeds to disclose where he
obtained the cigarettes. The prisoner
then takes the information to the District Attorney to make a deal. As a result, four men where taken into
custody. Steve was arrested and later
arraigned as he was one of the men implicated in the crime. In prison Steve has a lot of time to reflect
on his surroundings. He observes that in
prison no one is safe from injury or crimes.
He explains that he has to be careful about his behavior in every way, because
a mere wrong look at another prisoner can result in an assault. Steve is afraid of prison and he faces a
possible sentence of 25 years to life.
He is frightened that given the culture of prison, he might not survive
should he get convicted. Steve’s account
of prison is graphic. He details the
fights among the different gangs. He
also describes the ways in which prisoners rape others. These acts occur regularly and
frequently. He states that it is not
good to cry as that is reason for others to assault you. Steve also attends court hearings. The court hearings are held in downtown New
York. Steve has his personal attorney as
do the other three men. The prosecutor
is using witnesses that are prisoners who are trying to cut their time. However, the attorney dos a poor job of
presenting his case as Steve’s attorney was able to convince the jury that
Steve was nowhere near the vicinity of where the crime occurred. She convinced the jury that Steve may have
partook in the initial conversation of the plan to commit a robbery, but that
he did not take part in the act. As a result,
Steve was acquitted on all charges.
However, the incident forever tarnished the name of Steve Harmon. I felt that the book did an excellent job of
keeping the reader in suspense.
Throughout the book, Steve never admitted to taking part in the crime
nor did he ever give details of the occurrence.
As a result, the reader was uncertain of Steve’s part in the crime. This book is an example of books that
develops empathy towards the character.
The character lost his life so young and in many respects. The parents had high expectations for Steve,
which he will be unable to fulfill given the irreparable damage to his
character as a lingering question of his participation in the crime still
exists. This book is also an example of
reading for vicarious experience. In
this book a reader can experience consequences through Steve’s act of
participating in the conversation that led to the crime. It is a great way to deter readers from
partaking in activities or conversations that can lead to a crime. Nowadays we read of many youngsters posting
acts on social media, where the result is a criminal act. I believe that this book would have readers
think before acting. A reader can enjoy
other books such as, Myers, W. D. (2016). Fallen angels. NYC: Zola
Books. ISBN: 9781939126122 or Myers, W. D. (2008). Slam! New York:
Scholastic. ISBN: 9780545055741
Lucky Broken Girl
by Ruth Behar
Behar,
R. (2018). Lucky broken girl. New York, NY: Puffin Books. Ruthie is a young girl that lives in New York
and comes from Cuba. Ruthie is not
fluent in English and is placed with the “dumb class”. Ruthie works hard to learn English and to
prove that she is not dumb. Ruthie does
well in school and is then placed in a class with kids her age. Things are going well for Ruthie in school
and with friends in the neighborhood.
Ruthie’s parents however are poor and can not afford many things. Ruthie wants a pair of go-go boots and she is
always asking her parents for a pair.
Ruthie finally gets a pair of go-go boots and she is very excited. However, this puts a financial strain on her
parents as her father is the only one in the family working. Her father is short-tempered and is easily
angered. The day Ruthie got her go-go
boots, Ruthie’s mom questions her husband about the purchase, to which he
responds angrily, that he works hard for his money. The day after, Ruthie’s father takes the
purchases a little far as he purchases a blue Oldsmobile. That Sunday, the family takes a drive to
visit friends in Staten Island. On the
way back, the family is in a horrible accident that leaves Ruthie bed written
for about a year. During this time, Ruthie
is home schooled. She also loses her
best friend, Ramu as he returns to his home in India. She also makes new friends and learns to type
and paint. Ruthie in the meanwhile has
inner conflict as she hates the driver responsible for the accident. Ruthie knows that the driver of the accident
is dead and does not want to feel resentment toward the young man and works
hard and eventually forgives him. Ruthie
eventually recovers as she now longer is a in a full body cast and learns to
walk. She develops a great friendship
with Danielle and becomes appreciative of her mother and Chicho and all who
endured the journey with her. This book
brings awareness of how humans interact given different situations. It develops a sense of caring for those in
need. In this situation, as we look at
Ruthie’s situation, we can feel her frustration of being in bed and being
unable to move or take care of her personal needs. The sense of having to rely on others and
then having people turn away because they are afraid of what they see. We can see the pain and the “prison” that
Ruthie’s mother has to endure as a result of Ruthie’s broken leg. We also see how others respond positively as
they help Ruthie emotionally and spiritually.
The following video is a short account of Ruth Behar’s life. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etCLlFl1jnw
Annie on My Mind
by Nancy Garden
Garden,
N. (2013). Annie on my mind. New York: Farrar, Straus, Giroux. Liza meets Annie while she is on her way to
visit the Temple of Dendur for her senior project. When Liza meets Annie, she feels a way she has
never felt before. They get along well
and they exchange numbers as they go their separate ways. Liza goes to Foster Academy, a private school
that is experiencing financial problem.
At Foster Academy Liza is the student body council president. Liza begins to have problems at school
shortly after she meets Liza. Her Peer
Sally has decided to pierce ears at school.
Liza finds out about what Sally is doing, and as student body council
president she is required by school code to ask Sally to turn herself in to the
principal. Liza does not ask Sally to
turn herself in, as a result both Liza and Sally get suspended for three days
headed into the Thanksgiving break. In
addition to the suspension, the principal informs her that there will be an
election to vote for confidence in Liza.
What this means is that Liza could potentially lose her elected position
in the student body counsel. Liza is
worried as the suspension could have a negative impact on Liza’s future as Liza
has applied for admission to M.I.T. The
election will take place after the Thanksgiving break. During the break Liza and Annie meet, spend
time together and become friends.
However, Liza’s feelings are not that of a friend, which is confusing to
her. Liza returns to work and the
students elect to keep Liza as their student body council president. Sally is remorseful and becomes part of the
fundraising committee and Liza agrees to help.
The committee meets to determine ways in which they can raise enough
money to keep Foster Academy from closing.
During this time Liza has been hanging out with Annie. On one of those outings they end up at Coney
Island. This is where Liza and Annie
share their first kiss. This also where
all confusion hits Liza as she is unaware of how to proceed. Liza decides to continue the relationship
with Annie. However, they are frustrated
as they are unable to share their feelings in public. One day the fundraising committee meets at Ms.
Stevenson’s and Ms. Widmer’s home, Liza’s teachers. It is there that she finds that her teachers
will be away on vacation during spring break.
Liza agrees to feed her teachers’ cat while they are away. Liza and Annie become intimate in Liza’s teachers’
home. One day when Liza forgets to
attend a meeting and Sally goes to look for Liza at her house. They inform Sally where Liza is and when enlisting
the help of Ms. Baxter and Sally find that Liza has been having relations with
Sallie. She gets suspended one more time
as a result, this time the board would have a meeting to determine if Liza
would get expelled. Liza is not expelled
and is able to return to school. Liza
and Annie go about their business and rarely see each other. Each of the girls go away to college. While at college they decide to continue
their relationship. Some students will
be able to associate with Liza and Annie.
This is a great example of reading autobiographically. It has inner conflict as the girls are unable
to resolve how to address their love for each other. When they finally come out, they encounter
bullying as many do not understand their relationship. They have to endure separation
for the sake of not hurting the people they love. It is only when they are away at college that
they decide to continue with the relationship.
The following video is a trailer of the book. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppRtHPFXzzk
Gabi a Girl in
Pieces
Quintero,
I. (2014). Gabi, a girl in pieces. El Paso, Tejas: Cinco Puntos
Press. The book is written in diary
form. It is about a girl named Gabi
heading into her senior year. Gabi lives
with her mom and her brother Beto. Gabi
has a father who is addicted to meth and is out of the house for long periods
of time. In school Gabi struggles with
math, but excels at the other subjects. She
has two best friends, Sebastian and Cindy.
During the summer Sebastian tells the girls that he is gay. Cindy tells Gabi and Sebastian that she is
pregnant. Cindy tells the pair that the
father is German, the hottest guy in school.
Gabi is upset that Cindy hadn’t shared the details with her as they were
supposed to be best friends. As the
school year began, Gabi had not been kissed nor had she ever been in a
relationship. This last year of high
school Gabi had two relationships. One
with Eric who she wasn’t sure about and ended up cheating on her and the other
is Martin, who she though she liked while she was with Eric. Shen Gabi dumped Eric she started hanging out
with Martin. Martin and Gabi had many
common interests, one of which was writing and poetry. During the year Gabi’s father comes back into
the picture claiming that he was ready to turn his life around, for the third
time. During this time her mother becomes
pregnant. The bliss does not last long
as her father returned to using meth.
Gabi has been writing letters in her diary all this time and she always
writs letters to her dad. She tells her
dad that she loves him, but that he has been hurtful to her and the
family. She writs that they worry and
that she is afraid that one day he may not come home. In February Gabi finds her dad by the edge of
their garage, where he is dead. Gabi falls
into a depression. When Gabi returns to
school the students ask her questions about finding her father dead. Sebastian and Cindy protect and shield Gabi
from the others. Beto is also taking the
death of his father really hard. One
night he comes home drunk and sends his mother into labor a month early. The baby is born prematurely, but is
anticipated to do well. Cindy goes into
labor fourteen days later. Later, Cindy
tells Sebastian and Gabi that she had been raped by German, this angers Cindy’s
friends. Time goes by and prom is
quickly approaching. Gabi goes to prom
with her boyfriend Martin. That night,
Gabi loses her virginity. Later, when
Gabi runs into German, she gets angered and confronts German about the rape, to
which he replied that it never happened.
He approaches Gabi awe fully close and Gabi knees him in the crotch. Gabi gets suspended, but the suspension is
revoked after further investigation, however, she is unable to attend
graduation. Graduation night, after
graduation, Gabi gets to celebrate with her family and her friends at a restaurant. This is a great book is for aesthetic
reading. It helps understand culture and
it allows young Hispanic girls to read and make associations with today’s youthful
culture. This book is not about a
beautiful average girl, instead it is about a “fat” girl that is not so
fat. As one reads through the book, they
can begin to question choices of the protagonist as well as her friends. The following site is for the trailer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBshMlkLwqM
The Absolutely True
Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Alexie,
S., & Forney, E. (2009). The absolutely true diary of a part-time
Indian. New York: Little, Brown and Co.
It is the story of Arnold Spirt Jr., and American Spokane Indian living
on a reservation in the state of Washington.
Arnold was born with water in his brain and he would get two seizures a
day. He was very nerdy and he was
bullied in school and in town. As a result,
Arnold would stay at home reading books or drawing cartoons. Arnold attended school in the reservation. When he was in 8th grade he was
continuously ridiculed. When Arnold
started High School, he got in trouble the very first day for throwing a book a
teacher and was suspended as a result.
The same teacher later visited Arnold at home. He explained to Arnold that he felt that he
was responsible for breaking their spirit.
He then convinced Arnold to leave the reservation so that he would not
end up like the rest of the Indians in the reservation, broken and drunk. Arnold decides to go to a white school off
the reservation leaving behind his best friend Randy. Randy became resentful for leaving. At the beginning they made fun of Arnold and
didn’t make friends right away. He ended
up befriending the prettiest girl in school, and eventually became her
boyfriend. Her name was Penelope. Penelope’s dad was not fond of the
relationship as he thought that she was using Arnold to get to him, as he
disliked Indians. Arnold gained
popularity because of Penelope and even stood up to the school bully and
bloodied his nose. They later became
friends. Arnold even tried out for the
school’s basketball team and made the varsity team as a freshman. The first game of the season they traveled to
reservation to play in Arnold’s home town.
When the team showed up, the home fans turned their backs on
Arnold. That night Arnold played against
his best friend Randy, who ended up giving Arnold a concussion sending him to
the hospital. Arnold’s team would end up
loosing the game. The team improved
after that loss and did not loose any other games. Arnold’s hometown remained undefeated until
they traveled to Arnold’s school where they would lose their first game by
about forty points. Arnold later looses
his grandmother, his dad’s best friend Eugene got shot in the face. Arnold’s sister who also moved out of town to
get married died with her husband in their house fire. These events affected Arnold, but it also
proved that Arnold had made many friends that encouraged him. This book exposes the reader to the Spokane
Indian culture. The families are very
close to another. The writer makes you
believe that the reservations are more like death camps. That the government has failed them. It is sad to think that most Indians resort
to Alcohol and don’t live a very good life.
The book states that people believe that Indians are well off due to the
many Indian Casinos, but the truth is that the Indians do not benefit from the
Casinos. The following is a great book with
similar interests. Alexie, S.
(2014). Reservation blues. New York, NY: Grove Press. ISBN: 9780802141903
Anderson,
L. H. (2019). Speak. New York: Square Fish/Farrar Straus Giroux.
The book starts with Melinda Sorino entering high school. In school she sees her ex-friends. Her ex-friends are mean to her as they treat
her like and outcast. Sometimes they
bump into her and have even ripped the books from her arms. They treat her this way because they believe
that Melinda called the cops on a party.
As a result, some people were arrested and some lost their jobs. Heather from Ohio is new in school and
befriends Melinda. In school Melinda tries to get by without being noticed. She is not fond of any of her classes except
Art. She even has come up with nicknames
for her teachers. In school she skips and
the teachers have noticed. They call a
meeting with her parents to discuss Melinda.
They tell the parents that Melinda’s grades have declined when compared
to the previous year. The discuss
Melinda being a mute. They understand
that something has happened to Melinda, but Melinda does not want to
share. During winter break Melinda’s
parents buy Melinda drawing pencils, which tells Melinda that they have been
noticing that she likes art. She tries
to find the courage to tell her parents all about the August evening when she
was raped, but she holds back. At school
Heather finds a way to involve Melinda with a group named the Marthas. She helps with the teachers’ lounge and with
the can food drive among other things. She
finally finds the courage to say no to Heather when she asks to help decorate
for prom. All seniors are headed to the
prom and so is her ex-best friend Rachel.
Rachel has been invited to the prom by senior Andy Evans. Andy, the beast, as Melinda calls him, was
the boy who raped Melinda. She tries to
warn Rachel about Andy and decides to approach her in the library. As they began to speak the librarian warns
them to refrain from talking. Melinda
writes Rachel a note explaining that she never meant to call the cops to the
party. That she had called the cops
because she had been raped. Initially
Rachel is sympathetic, but as soon as Melinda reveals that the rapist was Andy,
Rachel storms out of the library. Rachel
proceeds to go the Prom with Andy, but during a slow dance he begins to grope
her and Rachel pulls away leaving Andy along on the dance floor. When they
return to school Andy confronts Melinda telling her that he is aware that he
told Rachel that he raped her. He tells
Melinda that she wanted to have sex and then he tries to assault her again. The lacrosse team hears Melinda’s scream and
come to rescue. The entire school heard
about the incident. This allows Melinda
to begin the healing process. The book can
take the form of a couple approaches. It
can be read autobiographically by someone who has experienced being raped or it
can be reading for vicarious experiences.
If one is reading this book for autobiographical reasons that it provides
the reader with choices that another victim has made. In this case, Melinda was not the only girl
who had been a victim of Andy. In the
restroom, Melinda had written that Andy was a boy to stay away from. Other girls responded by writing surnames to
what Melinda had written. This will help
the reader know that rapist sometimes have multiple victims. The following is a link for the trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fv3FelRmk3Y.
Lily and Dukin by
Donna Gephart
Gephart,
D. (2018). Lily and Dunkin. New York: A Yearing Book. Tim wants to be called Lily. Lily is at home practicing wearing his mother’s
clothes. While she is trying on her
mother’s clothes, her dad arrives with groceries. At that time, she decides to go help her
father with the groceries. When her dad
sees his son with a dress on, he becomes startled. At that moment a boy walks by with a Dunkin Donuts
bag. The father tries to rush Tim in so
that no one sees Tim in a dress, but it’s a little late as Lily decides to wave
at the boy as her father escorts her into the house. Lily “Tim” decides to tell her father that he
needs hormonal blockers as soon as possible.
The father does not want to hear about it and wants nature to take its
course. Norbert is new to the neighborhood
as he has recently moved to Florida from New Jersey. Norbert and his mother came to Florida
because Norbert’s father spent all their savings in a business deal that didn’t
go as planned. Norbert is on his way to
Dunkin Donuts to get a coffee and he passes by a big tree where someone on top
of a tree calls his attention. That someone is Tim. Norbert doesn’t know Tim, but the blue eyes
look familiar. They are the eyes he had
seen earlier in Lily. Norbert gets the
courage to ask if Tim was wearing the red dress in the morning. Instead of admitting to what Lily really is
Tim decides to say that his sister dared him to wear the dress. At that time, Norbert introduces himself as
Dunkin, because he does not like his name.
Tim’s father eventually agrees to let him take hormone blockers. Tim and Dunkin become friends. In school Dunkin wants to be part of the basketball
team. He is excited because he is part
of the team. However, Dunkin’s teammates
expect Dunkin to choose the team over Tim, because Tim acts like a girl. Initially Dunkin wants to be accepted by the
team and ignores Tim in the hallways. After
a while however, Dunkin decides that his friendship with Lily is more important
than the team. This book opens your eyes
about issues that students face. This
book is written like a teenage novel, where every little occurrence affects
them emotionally. The book provides
insight to the different cultures where one can read vicariously or it can also
be read autobiographically. The
following is a link for the trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBDtalThIRE.
