Hulk Vs Wolverine by Damon Lindelof, art by Leinil Francis Yu & Dave McCaig

Two of Marvel’s biggest names come together to create a story fueled by love, betrayal and vengeance.  Told from the viewpoints of Bruce Banner, Betty Ross, Jennifer Walters and one relentless hunter, Wolverine, this story is full of twists, turns and surprises.  Bruce Banner, better known as the Incredible Hulk, has been sentenced to death but he (not surprisingly) survives the death sentence and goes into hiding.  In comes Wolverine who is ordered by Nick Fury to find and eliminate the Hulk.  The entire story plays out as a high octane action film with an underlying love story between Betty Ross and Bruce Banner.  Can Wolverine really bring an end to one of Marvel’s most powerful heroes?  And why would Nick Fury select Wolverine for this task out of all the other heroes?  Those aware of Jennifer’s true identity will be surprised at the turn of events.  This is a must read for any comic book fan. --Claudio Leon

Black Boy White School by Brian F. Walker

If who you are is a product of where you’re from, how do you stay true to yourself nearly a thousand miles from the only home you’ve ever known?  That’s exactly what Anthony “Ant” Jones tries to figure out when he’s sent to elite Belton Academy after witnessing a horrifying murder in his rough Cleveland neighborhood.  Over the course of the school year, Ant struggles to navigate the tricky private-school politics of race, class, and academic achievement as he works to find his place in the overwhelmingly white and wealthy crowd.  And yet, when he returns home for vacation, he finds himself a stranger on his own block. Can Ant succeed at Belton without losing his identity and alienating everyone who loves him?

Based on the author’s personal experience at prep school in Massachusetts, Black Boy White School is a thoughtful and engaging novel, full of believable characters and realistic situations.  The text is straightforward and well-suited to readers of popular teen fiction, such as the Drama High series, and the works of Allison Van Diepen.  Readers interested in race and politics will find a lot to think about in Brian F. Walker’s first book. --Regan Schwartz

Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

There is more than geography separating the south and north sides of the Chicago suburb of Fairfield, IL.  On the north side, the houses are immense, the clothing gorgeous, the GPAs impeccable, and the pressure nearly suffocating.  There is a whole different kind of pressure on the south side, where poverty and gang warfare end lives far too early and protecting your loved ones often means giving up your future.  These two sides come together and often clash at Fairfield High School, where a tough chemistry teacher has partnered popular cheerleader Brittany Ellis with dangerous gang member Alex Fuentes.  Amused by this situation, Alex happily takes a bet that he can lure Brittany into his bed before the semester ends.  But as they cautiously grow closer, they both realize that under the stereotypes and the facades, they have more in common than they ever thought possible.  Will it be enough to save them from the futures everyone else has mapped out for them?

Told in both main characters voices, this fast-paced novel, full of realistic relationships and dangerous situations is a hit.  This title will appeal to readers looking for teen romance and gritty “real life” novels.  Although the epilogue pushes the boundaries of believability, sometimes a bit of a fairytale ending is just what a reader needs. -- Regan Schwartz

Buddha by Osama Tezuka

This compelling manga series takes readers on a journey of enlightenment across 8 volumes.  It begins before Siddartha, the Buddha, is born.  Book one starts by explaining the different social castes in Kapilavastu, India.  Siddartha who is born a prince sacrifices his riches and family in order to search for the meaning of life.  This journey is what makes the series such an amazing read.  A Throughout the series we learn about a multitude of characters, that change their lives as they interact with Siddartha.  In turn they also force the future Buddha to rethink the purpose of his journey.  This manga series offers an accessible entry point to classic works on the buddha, such as Hermann Hesse’s Siddartha. The first volume in the series can be helpful to introduce students to the concepts of social classes and segregation and to world religions, perhaps in Global Studies.  Students looking for drama or that have read titles like The Alchemist would likely enjoy the series. -- Claudio Leon

Sports Illustrated Kids: In Your Face 3-D: the Best 3-D Book Ever! by David E. Klutho

This has been, by far, the most handled book in the Horizon library this summer. Perfect for reluctant readers, book lovers and everyone in between, each page in this book dares the reader to swipe a hand over the image to make sure there’s nothing actually floating above it. Using the 3-D glasses that come with the book (and I just discovered a phone number printed inside to receive FREE replacement glasses!), students have been eager to take turns flipping through and pointing out their favorite images to one another and staff. There is very little text throughout, mainly in captions and highlighted quotes, saving plenty of room for oversize pictures of sports action.

My favorite thing about In Your Face 3-D? Everyone forgets to maintain their cool while wearing the 3-D glasses. This book has the ability to bring out the fun-loving kid in even the most stoic teen.  --Anja Kennedy

Guest Post: American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

A 3-in-1 graphic novel, American Born Chinese intertwines three narratives that converge to reveal the author’s message of self-acceptance.

The first narrative revolves around Jin Wang, the only Chinese-American student in his high school.  He is bullied and lonely and in love with beautiful, blonde Amelia Harris.  All of a sudden, his life changes when a Chinese boy moves to town with his family.  Jin now has a friend, but accepts Wei-Chen’s friendship begrudgingly, since he would only cast greater light on Jin’s own other-ness.

The second narrative is based on a traditional Chinese fable: the story of the Monkey King.  Pompous and stubborn, the Monkey King wishes to raise from the status of king to that of a god.  He trains and becomes seemingly invincible.  Tze-Yo-Tzuh, the creator of all existence, takes umbrage at the Monkey Kings arrogance and traps him under an immense pile of boulders where he remains for a long time.

The final narrative is that of Danny, a popular, blond, all-American teenager.  The only atypical thing about Danny is his cousin, Chin-Kee, whose name is a play on a slur.  Chin-Kee is a cultural stereotype brought to life.  From the illustration which brings to mind propaganda posters of the ‘40s to the way he speaks in broken and accented English, Chin-Kee is the embodiment of all that embarrasses Danny and does so to such an extent that Danny is forced to transfer schools every year after Chin-Kee’s annual visit.

Each of the protagonists is struggling to discover how he can be accepted and content, while still being a part of his own culture.  At the end, the stories converge and each realizes that the key to happiness is in self-acceptance.  Each has his own role in life, and, by embracing that role, he will be satisfied.  Yang incorporates both visual and written humor, cultural traditions, and honest expression of emotion to fuse together this compelling and complex, yet very understandable, graphic novel.  --Julie Weber

Guest blogger Julie Weber currently teaches at Passages Academy.

A Girl Like Me by Ni-Ni Simone

Elite Parker is living a lie.  She works so hard to keep up the show - great clothes, attitude to spare, amazing voice, and hot boyfriend - but her home life is a dangerous mess.  Elite has been raising her four younger siblings for years, paying the bills and keeping everyone fed, healthy, clothed, and (most importantly) together.  Her mother is an addict with an addict boyfriend and their father was never in the picture.  Elite is struggling to hold down a job, keep up her grades, and keep her facade from crumbling.  When her vocal talent wins her tickets to the hottest concert of the year, Elite is swept up in a fairytale romance that threatens to ruin everything she has worked so hard for.

Written with plenty of humor and slang, A Girl Like Me is almost always a hit with readers looking for “real” books.  Ni-Ni Simone’s honest depiction of a family in crisis and the responsibilities shouldered all-too-often by older siblings is immediately relate-able, despite the over-the-top romantic fantasy.  This is a Cinderella story that emphasizes family, friendship, and honesty. --Regan Schwartz

Summer Update

We apologize for our blogging absence during the month of July!  The Passages Academy Libraries team has been very busy.  We are excited to be offering library services to our students in secure detention this summer.  This is the first year that students have been able to visit the school libraries over the summer break!  


As part of these new summer services, we’re running a Summer Reading incentive program, offering great rewards like scratch and sniff bookmarks and certificates of achievement to our voracious readers.  So far this summer, Ni-Ni Simone’s A Girl Like Me has been our most popular book (stay tuned for an upcoming review).  What’s been flying off your shelves this summer?


You can expect weekly posts for the remainder of August and the What’s Good bloggers to be back to frequent reviews and highlights when the new school year starts in September!

We're at ALA!

Three of us, Regan, Claudio and Anja, are at the American Library Association's Annual Conference this weekend. Regan and Claudio are presenting our iPad pilot on Sunday afternoon -- come find us and say hello!


Details here: Touching Literacy: iPads in the school library serving incarcerated and detained youth

Guest Post: Feed by MT Anderson

 

Imagine a world where you don't need a computer to get onto the Internet. You're always on, because it is wired directly into your brain; this is the world of Feed by MT Anderson. Feed is set in a not-too distant future where going to the Moon is as easy as going downtown and where almost everyone has the Feed installed into their brains at birth.

The Feed is like having Facebook and Google Instant Messenger just by thinking about it. Don’t know what to buy? The Feed will tell you. Don’t know what to wear? The Feed will tell you. Don’t know what to say? The Feed will tell you.

This makes school pretty much a joke. You can look up anything you don’t know on the feed, so you really don’t need to study.

This is the world where Titus lives. He’s a 15 year old, bored, and looking for fun. He and his friends take a trip to the Moon for the weekend, but the moon turns out to totally suck...until he meets Violet.

Violet isn’t like anyone he’s ever met before. She didn’t have the Feed installed until she was older, so she can think for herself. She doesn’t just buy what the feed tells her is cool or use the slang the Feed tells her everyone is using. She asks questions that the Feed doesn’t want her to ask. Like why is the rest of the world so angry at us? Why am I only a good person if I buy things? And what is causing these strange, bloody, oozing, pussy lesions that everyone is getting on their bodies?

As Titus talks to Violet at a club on the moon, a hacker breaks into the Feed and hijacks their minds. The police beat him down, call him a terrorist, but Titus can’t shake the feeling that something is wrong. It’s not just in his mind. Something has gone wrong with his Feed, and it looks like it might destroy him and Violet unless he can resist it.

But how do you fight your mind? How do you break out of the insanity that everyone around you thinks is normal? How do you save the girl you love from a world that wants to destroy her, and you, with it if you won’t obey.

Welcome to the Feed.

Fans of Scott Westerfeld's Uglies series and readers who have enjoyed The Maze Runner trilogy by James Dashner will find a lot to like in FEED. It's funny, exciting, and unforgettable. While the dystopian universe isn't nearly as violent as the world in Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games, it is in a way far scarier: it looks an awful lot like our own. I definitely recommend this book for anyone who's ever looked around and wondered if all our phones and gadgets are actually controlling us. --C. Alexander London

Guest blogger Mr. London is an acclaimed author of middle grade fiction and adult nonfiction.  Find out more at http://www.calexanderlondon.com/

Programming Spotlight: Arts & Dreams

I am bright so I shine like the sun

I feel good about myself

My life is a gift so I appreciate

I love and approve of myself through all the ups and downs of life

There's a whole world out there...

Earlier this week, students at Summit participated in two empowering art workshops, facilitated by Arts & Dreams. After learning about the meaning of positive affirmations, and the power they have to make desired changes in our lives, students used paint and colorful paper to create beautiful art. They wrote uplifting messages for themselves, and then some messages to inspire others. Thank you Laura, Patricia and Zyambo! --Anja Kennedy

Photo credits: Patricia Geremia and Laura Baran, Arts & Dreams

Four Eyes Volume 1: Forged in Flames by Joe Kelly

 

This gorgeous graphic novel is a scorched and smoking slice of revisionist history: the Great Depression with dragons.  It is 1934 and most of New York City is suffering the hunger, cold, and fear that comes with unemployment and a failing economy.  Underground dragon fighting has made a few men into emperors while the rest of the city starves.  Young Enrico Savarese becomes the man of the house after watching his father die at work - stealing a baby dragon.  Soon the dragon money runs out and Enrico must work to take care of his mama after he chases their boarder (and main source of income) out of the apartment at knife point.  Enrico seeks out Mr. Boccioni, his father’s old boss and declares himself ready to hunt dragons - after all, a dragon killed his father.  But the world is rarely as simple as it seems and lost inside the dragon’s cave - alone and scared - Enrico will discover who the real enemy is.

Exquisitely drawn and colored, Four Eyes expertly evokes the grit and grime of Depression-era New York.  Enrico’s quest for work, and his terrifying job at the DoReMe steel factory offer the reader a glimpse into the reality faced by many children in tough economic times.  The allure of dragon-fighting in this context, with its echoes of illegal dog fighting and gambling rings, is easily understood.  This is the first volume in the series, which includes issues 1-4 of the comic.  --Regan Schwartz

Programming Spotlight: Alex Simmons Visits Crossroads

On Tuesday, April 24th, author Alex Simmons visited Passages' middle school boys and girls at Crossroads, a secure facility in Brooklyn.  Mr. Simmons is a prolific professional writer who has authored many comic books (including many Archie and DC Comics titles and his own independent comic - Blackjack), as well as fiction and nonfiction books for youth, theater and radio plays, and even games!  He spoke about his life as a freelance writer, and about the many careers available in the comics industry.  All of the participants received copies of Obama and Palin in Riverdale, generously provided by LIT, which Mr. Simmons autographed.  Students also had a chance to practice creating their own comic character, and to autograph their work for Mr. Simmons who collected it to possibly include in his Kids' Art Gallery.

Mr. Simmons is also hard at work organizing this year's Kids Comic Con, on May 5th in the Bronx. --Regan Schwartz

Library Alchemy

William Bevill, librarian at Pima County Public Library's Juvenile Detention Center Branch has landed! He's in town to teach us unconference attendees how to perform a magic trick: turning hardcovers into softcovers for circulation. William kindly provided us with some photos of what we'll be able to do by Friday afternoon. For more information about our upcoming unconference, click here. --Jessica Fenster-Sparber

The UnConference is Coming! April 27, 2012

This Friday, April 27th, 2012, Passages Academy Libraries is hosting the first unconference on school libraries serving incarcerated and detained youth.  Learn more here.  Sign up here.

Spotlight Interview: Barbara Stripling

Barbara Stripling is running for ALA President! We've had the pleasure of working with her through her former role as Director of New York City's Office of School Library Services, where we've been awed by her dedication to supporting professionals, youth, families, and leaders, and her constant commitment to bringing special populations' needs to the table. We couldn't be more thrilled to see her lead ALA as President.

Barb graciously took time to answer a few questions for the What's Good? editors and we'll be sharing them all week. Stay tuned... and don't forget to vote!

WG:  What do you see as the most pressing reading needs for incarcerated and detained youth in 2012?  In the next five years?

Barb: I have thought a lot about this question.  I don’t presume to be an expert on the needs of incarcerated and detained youth, but I do have some ideas based on my conversations with Jessica Fenster-Sparber and other librarians in New York City who serve this population.  I think the greatest need may be for library access.  I suspect that many of our incarcerated and detained youth have no opportunity to use a library at all and, therefore, have very limited or no access to books that they want to read or to instruction in information skills.

The second greatest need is for the librarians who currently serve these young people to receive support through professional development and networking.  ASCLA has played an essential role in this by offering ongoing webinars, programming at conferences, policy and practice work in the division, and an interest group focused on the issues confronted by librarians serving incarcerated and detained youth. ALA needs to support ASCLA’s continuing efforts.

Another issue I have seen in providing library services to these young people is that, even if the facility actually has a library, there will most likely be very few good books in the library’s collection.    The funding for books is minimal at best; consequently, very few new books can be purchased.  In one facility I visited, the “library” was stocked with uncatalogued, donated books like The Tale of Two Cities.  When I think about the reading habits of incarcerated and detained youth, my sense is that these young people like to read about authentic characters in authentic situations.  I think they also enjoy many of the same genres that all young people enjoy – graphic novels, science fiction, fantasy. These youth should have access to the latest and most popular fiction books for teens.

I am sure that they also enjoy reading or perusing nonfiction, partly because they have limited access to the world that other teens enjoy as a normal part of their day – music, sports, computers, and gaming, for example.  Research tells us that teens (especially young men) enjoy having exportable knowledge – facts about various subjects that they can drop in to conversations as nuggets of expertise – so a robust nonfiction collection for detained youth would be especially important.

Because of the transitory nature of many of these students (perhaps they are in that facility only while they are awaiting trial), I think they would be well served by collections of short stories, easily accessible nonfiction, graphic novels, magazines, and other items that they can finish in the time they are there.  Many incarcerated youth are struggling readers, so age-appropriate, high-interest/low-vocabulary fiction books and heavily illustrated nonfiction books at a variety of reading levels would serve these young people well.

Spotlight Interview: Barbara Stripling

WG:  What’s your favorite thing to read and your favorite place to read?

Barb:  I read every day.  My favorite type of book to read depends a little on my circumstances at the time.  When I am stressed or too busy, I consume mysteries.  For me, they are the perfect escape literature and I read them very quickly.  I have a number of favorite authors and I read every one of their books when they come out.

I also love to read authors like Jodi Picoult, who writes fiction about important social issues.  I have to take a deep breath before I start one of her novels, because I know it is going to push me to think about hard issues, but once I start reading, I cannot stop.  She brings characters and real human dilemmas to life and I never want her books to end.

I also read nonfiction fairly regularly – biographies, accounts of historical times, even mountaineering.

My favorite place to read is outdoors, perhaps a reflection of my limited access to outdoor reading spaces when I lived in New York City.  I cannot think of a more perfect afternoon than sitting in the woods by a stream with a good book to read.  More realistically, my favorite places to read in New York City were the subway and in bed at night.  I loved my time on the subway every day – my commute to work and back was a treasured hour for reading.  I still read every night before I go to sleep (a dangerous proposition when I am in the middle of a really good mystery).

Spotlight Interview: Barbara Stripling

WG:  Can you tell What’s Good? readers a little bit about your experiences working with and supporting educators who work with struggling readers?

Barb:  I have been interested in supporting struggling readers since I was a high school English teacher and then a high school librarian.  I focused my efforts as a high school librarian in teaching students to think, to read with meaning, and to be independent readers and learners.  I am so thankful for all those years of direct contact with students, because those experiences frame all my decisions as an administrator and now a library educator.

When I was Director of School Library Services in New York City, I tried to support librarians working with struggling readers by addressing three main issues – access, interest, and skills.  Of course, the access issue is probably a major reason why students struggle.  If students have had no access to reading materials in the home, then they have not had the same exposure to reading and books as other students.  Libraries can fill that gap through robust collections and engaging library instructional programs.  We offered regular professional development sessions for our librarians to help them develop the types of collections and the instructional services that targeted the needs of their students.

We were fortunate in New York City that some foundations and businesses recognized our students’ need for greater access to good school libraries and great books.  The Heart of America Foundation worked with Capitol One and Target to fund a number of school library renovation grants.  These makeovers included books for the library collection and books for the students to take home for their personal libraries.  I will never forget one young elementary school girl who clutched her new books to her chest, looked me in the eye, and said, “For me?”

Interest is also critical for struggling readers.  We have tried several programs in NYC to help librarians motivate students to read.  For several years, our Office of Library Services has offered mini-grants to school libraries around reading.  The mini-grants have enabled librarians to build their collections around teen-to-tween issues, nonfiction, teen fiction, and curriculum project ideas.  Our Office developed a New Yorkers Read grant that focused on well-written nonfiction books and the formation of book clubs so that students could talk about the ideas in the books.  Through the mini-grants, we tried to help our libraries offer up-to-date books on topics that students loved to read about.  We wanted our students to be able to have choices about what they wanted to read.

Finally, we provided a lot of professional development and curriculum support for librarians to address the skill gaps of struggling readers.  Our Information Fluency Continuum was designed to lay out the literacy, critical thinking, technology, and information skills that students need to gather meaning from what they read.

Spotlight Interview: Barbara Stripling

WG:  If elected, how would you plan to support the provision of library services for incarcerated and detained youth?

Barbara Stripling: I have already been involved with supporting the provision of library services for incarcerated and detained youth by helping to develop the “Prisoners’ Right to Read: An Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights” as a member of ALA’s Intellectual Freedom Committee.  This interpretation was approved by ALA Council in 2010 and is now part of the Intellectual Freedom Manual.  I will continue to support any policy or intellectual freedom document that addresses the rights of these young people and provides ALA support for librarians serving these youth.

I will support the strengthening of the librarian community and addressing the issues of those who serve incarcerated youth by supporting the efforts of ASCLA and connecting its members with members in other divisions and ALA at large who are concerned with these issues.  In fact, I plan to focus, as ALA President, on making ALA more inclusive by opening the communication lines from members to ALA and from member to member (through a more collaborative structure for ALA Connect, for example).

Finally, I hope to foster more opportunities for members to contribute to the shared expertise of all members through the flexible formation of interest groups, the facilitation of conversations among all types of librarians (both virtual and face-to-face), and increased access to virtual professional development.

Henson Legacy Visits Crossroads

On Thursday March 29th, the fantastic world of Jim Henson and the Muppets came to Passages Academy’s library at Crossroads.  Ms. Bonnie Erickson, Executive Director of The Jim Henson Legacy, came to speak with the high school and middle school girls about her experiences in advertising and television.   In her conversation with the girls, she answered questions and spoke about how she came to work with Jim Henson on some of his early projects in the 1970’s. She shared about how important it is for an individual to follow her dreams and find something that she loves, and to stick with it.  


Prior to Ms. Erickson’s visit, the girls had the opportunity to create puppets of their own using an idea from the book 10 Minute Puppets by Noel MacNeal. During the visit the girls were invited to use their puppets and puppeteer along with a scene from “The Muppet Show”.  Ms. Erickson and The Jim Henson Legacy donated puppet kits that the girls will be able to use to build and write scripts for May’s upcoming visit from Leslie Carrara-Rudloph, the puppeteer of popular Sesame Street character Abby Cadabby.


Ms. Erickson was very excited and inspired by the dedicated staff of Crossroads, and the work that is done with the students.  She is looking forward to coming back to work with the students again. -- Mike Lopez


Guest blogger Mike Lopez currently teaches ELA at Passages Academy's Crossroads site and is busy organizing many future programs for our students.