Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper

This one was a read aloud with one of my book buddies, which is why it was on my reading list for so long. I wasn't entirely sure we were going to get through it at the beginning.

Also, I recommended Out of My Mind to my mother this summer, who teaches special education. She got excited because she had a student who had cerebral palsy and felt like his world opened up when he got a computer he could use to vocalize what was in his head. Mom said he moved when he was still in elementary school, but came back and had lunch with my mother and the speech pathologist at her school years later. I think it's pretty awesome when a reader, even and older reader, can connect with the story, ideas, and themes in young adult literature.

Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Sharon Draper is one of the first authors I suggest when I have a reluctant reader. Most of my students have loved the Hazelwood High series, Romiette and Julio, and Battle of Jericho. While I liked Out of My Mind, I think it is a little slow to start, where readers will spend the first 50 pages or so thinking, "Okay, where is this going?"

The protagonist, Melody, is a fifth grader with cerebral palsy. Most of her life, she's had trouble communicating, controlling her limbs, and doing much for herself. All she wants is to be normal. So when she gets a computer called a Medi-Talker, that she can program to speak for her, Melody decides to show her smarts by joining her school's quiz team.

In Melody's quest to be as normal as she can be, she learns about the reality of being in a circle of "friends." Except that she never feels like she really fits in. When her team wins the local quiz competition and they go out to celebrate after, Melody is embarrassed because she has to be fed. While he teammates don't comment, the silence at the table speaks volumes about their opinions about Melody, despite her obvious talent and intelligence. I found myself getting angry at the way her classmates responded to her and talked about her, and felt like in the end, Melody got shafted. But that's the reality, isn't it? Unfortunate.

Out of My Mind is a story for anyone who feels like an outsider. It's a story that special education teachers can relate to (hi, mom). And it's a story that will give readers insight into what it could be like to not have a fully-functioning body, but still a fully-functioning mind.

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End of the Twilight

I am finally done with the Twilight Saga, having finished the fourth installment, Breaking Dawn, this morning. This one I received as a Christmas present from my mother, who made me wait the two days until Christmas (I was with her on the 23rd when she bought it) to read it.

After having talked to my students at the end of the semester about this novel (I had two reading it at the time), and the fact that my cousin, the original Book Buddy, told me how it ended, I thought I knew what to expect.

I was wrong.

Sure, Bella turns into a vampire. I think everyone saw that coming. But don't things like that usually wait until the end of novels? Point for you, Stephanie Meyer for not being quite that trite.

One of my criticisms of the novel at the beginning was that I felt like the mirroring of the stories with canonical literature was more overt than necessary. Take the Romeo & Juliet plotline from New Moon. Romeo is exiled from Verona = Edward goes into self-imposed exile in Italy. Romeo gets the message wrong and things Juliet is dead = Alice only se

es part of the story when Bella jumps off a cliff and Edward thinks Bella is dead.

I could go on.

But... and there must be a "but"... But from what I here, there are more teenagers (because the Twilight Saga isn't just for girls) reading the classical literature now, or at least enough that a re-release of many of the classics with more attractive covers (not the boring Signet Classics covers) was deemed necessary, as was the inclusion of these titles in the Young Adult section of the bookstore. Please note that I'm not complaining. This is merely an observation.

But back to Twilight. I'm going to admit that the catalyst for reading the novels was the trip to the movies with my boy-cousins, only one of whom--the aforementioned book buddy--is an avid reader. That particular book buddy was disappointed with the end of this series. Much like he was disappointed with the end of Harry Potter. I'm not sure any end of a series is ever particularly satisfactory. Not once you've been up close and personal with a character. I, however, was satisfied with the resolution and can now effectively put this series behind me.

I will admit that it has made me curious about vampire and werewolf lore, especially with the talk of the difference between Jacob's pack of shape-shifters and the Children of the Moon that scared Caius so much.

It really is unfortunate that many of my students are daunted by the size of a novel and are so easily bored if it isn't constant action. I think there are many who would enjoy and relate to the Twilight Saga. And yes, though I was opposed to it in the beginning, I did enjoy the story.

So there.

For J: On Feed and 1984

I enjoy the book conversations I have with people. These questions are for J, so he has a purpose for reading and some concrete things to think about as he goes. At some point, I'll record our discussion of these questions.

1. Consider the three party slogans from Orwell's 1984. Give your thoughts/reactions to each in the context of the novel and in the context of your own experience.
2. M.T. Anderson writes his novel to those who resist the feed. Who are those people? What do they look like in the context of today's society. What do they look like in the context of the novel? Are you one who resists the feed? Why or why not?
3. Explicate. Consider diction specifically. "You don't have the feed. You are the feed. You're feed. You're being eaten. You're raised for food" (202).
4. In what ways is the feed in Anderson's novel and Big Brother in Orwell's novel similar? Despite the obvious, how are they different? Given each context, which do you find more intrusive? Why?
5. Do you think we're moving toward a society resembling that of Feed or like that of 1984? Consider both the current consumer and political climates in your response.
6. In your mind, what does the idea of utopia look like? Think about the two novels you just read and the novels you read in AP last semester, like Huxley's Brave New World. Outline the virtues and flaws of each society. How do they measure up to your internalized concept of utopia?

First session of summer school is almost over, and I'd like to get some reading done over the July 4 holiday. I know it's a ways away, but I figure I'd go ahead and make a list of my current Must Reads.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
The Graveyard Book by Neal Gaiman (which I'm reading aloud with one of my book buddies)
Unwind by Neal Shusterman
The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak (which I've started already, just need to finish it)

Four books in three days. That's reasonable, right?

Full Tilt

The end of this novel was a long time coming. Due to school, work, etc. our read-aloud time was severely lacking. I read this novel because, when I was sitting next to Neal Shusterman at the New Mexico Library Association Conference in April, he told a story about a teacher who bet a student $5 that they would like this novel. If the student disliked the novel, then the teacher would cough up the dough. As it turned out, the student liked the novel and the teacher didn't lose any money. Of course, being the "extraordinary" reading teacher I am, I had to find out about this novel and see if I could entice my reluctant readers with the same bet. After finishing the novel, I'm fairly certain that many of my readers will enjoy it, if only for the intense ride the main character has to go on. They probably won't get the allusions to famous places around the world, or some of the novels the main character read (like Melville's Moby Dick), but even without that prior knowledge, students are in for an adventure.

Shusterman, N. (2004) Full Tilt. Simon Pulse.

Percy Jackson's Hero Journey Part II: Characteristics of the Hero

So before we can talk about Percy's journey, we also have to talk about what makes Percy the archetypal hero. Now, not all heroes have all the qualities, but many of the heroes have many of the qualities. I used Harry Potter to explain the journey, but I'll use Percy Jackson to explain the qualities of a hero.

And away we go.

1. The hero has mysterious origins.
1. In the case of heroes from Greek Mythology, more often than not, one parent is of divine origin. For Percy, his mom is a mortal and his father is Poseidon.
   
2. The hero is vulnerable. He can be killed, maimed, wounded, what have you. But he goes anyway.
1. The camp directors didn't want to give Percy the quest since they knew that he hadn't been trained properly. He also has every monster from Greek mythology coming after him. Oh, no. What if our hero gets killed!?
3. The path of the hero is dangerous and confusing.
1. And it doesn't help for Percy that someone stole Zeus's lightening bolt, blamed it on him, and Ares keeps getting in the way.
   
4. The hero is essentially solitary, his friends don't share his sense of purpose.
1. Percy is trying to clear his name. He's also one of the children that's not supposed to be, so his friends can't really identify with the fact that everyone wants to kill him.
5. Hero has a mentor/teacher/guide
1. Percy's guide/mentor/teacher is Chiron, the centaur. Unlike other centaurs, who are known for being wild, Chiron is civilized, and works with demigods at Camp Half-Blood.
6. Hero has a magical weapon that only he or she can use. It is given to the hero by the mentor.
1. Percy wields a sword given to him by Chiron. The first time Percy uses it, it's to kill his math teacher, one of the Furies. His sword is disguised as an ink pen and returns to his pocket whenever he loses it.
   
7. The hero has to go on a journey/quest to find something. He has to complete impossible tasks, battle monsters, etc. in order to either be a role model or save civilization as the people know it.
1. Percy has to save Camp Half-Blood from the friend that becomes an enemy. In the first book, The Lightning Thief, Percy has to find Zeus's lightning bolt to prove his innocence and to convince the Olympians not to kill him.
   

There are actually more elements to the hero journey. The most interesting graphic representation of the hero journey is found at the Monmouth Website, ORIAS, UC Berkley. The journey is set up counter clockwise, and if you hover over each element, it explains what each piece means to the hero's journey.

Percy Jackson's Hero Journey Part I: Characteristics of the Journey

The archetypal Hero Journey is one of the most commonly used formulas in both books and movies. After I describe the parts, go back and look at movies like Meet the Robinsons, Cars, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Akeelah and the Bee, Shrek (it's backwards) and many more and you'll see this formula applied to entertain us.

The hero journey is like a 12 step program. A circular 12 step program. I will use the ever familiar Harry Potter for brief examples before I delve into explaining the hero journey in terms of Percy Jackson and the Olympians. The 12 steps are as follows:

1. The hero's journey begins is the NATURAL WORLD. This could be where the hero comes from (e.g. Little Winging in Harry Potter).
2. The hero receives a CALL TO ADVENTURE (e.g. Harry's letter of acceptance to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry).
3. The hero doesn't want to answer the call (in the case of Harry Potter, he had no idea what the call meant).
4. The hero meets his MENTOR/TEACHER/GUIDE (we can argue for both Hagrid and Dumbledore in the role of Harry's teacher, but in the case of the journey, let's call this one Hagrid. Hagrid, we meet when Harry's still in the NATURAL WORLD; he knocks down the door of the boat/cabin).
5. The hero crosses the THRESHOLD into the SUPERNATURAL WORLD. Sometimes something will happen that will move the hero to accept the call. (The THRESHOLD in Harry Potter is the barrier at Platform 9 3/4, at this point, Harry moves from the NATURAL WORLD to the SUPERNATURAL WORLD).
6. The hero is TESTED. Here he meets both friends and enemies. (This spans a couple of scenes... First Harry meets Ron and Hermione, then Harry meets Draco and rebuffs him.)
7. The hero enters the INMOST CAVE, the source of the item he seeks. (Harry doesn't know it at the time, but he runs across the Mirror of Erised [interestingly, "desire" spelled backwards] long before he knows it will contain the Philosopher's Stone.)
8. The hero comes to the HEART OF DARKNESS (no, not the Conrad story). Here, he almost dies, and almost finds what he seeks.
   
9. The hero finds what he's looking for. (Harry finds the Philosopher's Stone in his pocket).
10. The hero embarks on the road back (or wakes up in the hospital wing).
11. The hero experiences RESURRECTION (this is extremely obvious in the 7th Harry Potter book more than the first).
12. He returns home, to the NATURAL WORLD with the knowledge that he's saved society.

One of the reasons Harry Potter works so well with the idea of a circular hero journey is because he embarks on this journey multiple times, moving from the NATURAL WORLD of Surrey to the SUPERNATURAL WORLD of Hogwarts. That, and he's continually fighting the bad guy.

The Juvenile's Introduction to Greek Mythology

So I could talk about literature with my book buddy, I read Rick Riordan's The Lightning Thief. In the phone message he left me, he suggested that I would really like the book, about a pre-teen who finds out he's a demigod, the son of Poseidon and a mortal woman. I have to agree with him; I did very much enjoy the novel. For juvenile readers, it serves as a good introduction to Greek mythology; many characters that appear also appear in the mythological stories we study in school, all with a modern take. The author has made it plausible for the reader to reasonably suspend disbelief saying that the gods move as Western Civilization moves, then offers evidence in the form of Greek gods moved from Greece to Rome, to Europe, and are now taking up residence in America: Olympus being at the top of the Empire State Building, and Hades being in Los Angeles. Interesting commentary on how the author (and possibly the residents of the nation) view the United States.

One of the interesting things that either Chiron or Grover explains to Percy (short for Perseus who was one of the many mortal sons of Zeus) that the Greeks influenced culture all around the world. I remember studying about Greek architecture in 7th grade, Mrs. Greer's class. Doric, Ionian and Corinthian columns, specifically. Look around, though. He's right. Greek influence is everywhere.

The purpose of this post is to outline the juvenile's introduction to Greek mythology as the title suggests, so I'm going to do just that.

• Demigod: half god, half mortal. The archetypal hero is a demigod. Hercules is the son of Zeus and a mortal woman. Our protagonist, Percy Jackson, is the son of Poseidon (god of the sea) and a mortal woman. One of our protagonist's friends, Annabeth is the daughter of Athena (goddess of wisdom) and a mortal man. These characters are not immortal, but posses powers that normal mortals do not.
• The Furies: They are the Roman incarnation of the Greek Erinyes. They are thought to dwell in Tartarus, where they torture the souls there when they're not making sure the order of things is just in the world. It is thought that the furies were sprang from the blood of Ouranos (the father of Kronos and the Titans).
  
• The three old women knitting socks = the Fates. The fates are three women who control the fate, if you will, of all beings. Gods included. The first sister, Clotho, spins the line. The second sister, Lachesis, measures the line with her rod, and the third sister, Atropos, cuts the line. It is the shearing of the line that causes death. Percy sees these women on the side of the road and witness the cutting of someone's line.
• Satyr: The satyr has had a few incarnations throughout mythology, but for the purposes of the novel, satyrs are half man, half goat. Traditionally they are followers of Pan (who can be as mischievous as Loki or Kokopelli) and Dionysus (who I've always known better as his Roman counterpart, Bacchus). They are lovers: of women, of boys, of music, of outdoors, and, being followers of Dionysus, wine. Percy's friend Grover is a reed pipe carrying satyr charged with protecting our protagonist from the "Kindly Ones." (a euphemism for the Furies)
• The Minotaur: part man, part bull, this mythological character dwelt in a labyrinth that belonged to King Minos (see the resemblance in nomenclature?). The maze was built by Daedalus and Icarus to hold the minotaur. In mythological stories, Theseus killed the minotaur. Interestingly, the Minotaur's father, the Cretan bull, appeared in one of the 12 labors of Heracles.
• Chiron: a centaur--half man, half horse. In the mythology, Chiron is the antithesis of a centaur being a "civilized" creature that didn't indulge in many of the same vices as the satyrs. In The Lightning Thief, Chiron plays his part as the archetypal mentor well. (I'll address archetype at a later date.)
• Charon, not to be confused with Chiron. Charon is the ferryman of the dead. When our heroes are in Los Angeles, at DOA (which if you didn't know is an acronym for Dead on Arrival, clever, no?) he is who they meet at the desk taking money to ferry people across the River Styx. If a soul came to the underworld without money for the ferry, he or she was left on the banks (or our modern waiting room) for 100 years before he or she could cross to the underworld.
  
• Chimera is another one of those mixed-breed animals. According to the Iliad, the Chimera had the head of a lion, the body of a goat and the hind end of a snake. In the incarnation in The Lightning Thief this animal can breathe fire, and has poison in its tail. In mythology it is the sibling of Cerberus, the three headed dog that guards the gates of the underworld, and the Lernaean Hydra (both of whom appear in Heracles's labors).
• The Underworld. Also known as Hades. It is split into a number of factions. In the novel, Hades says that he's had to expand because of the number of souls he'd been getting. Here is a rough map of the places in the Underworld.
  
• Medusa was one of the three Gorgons. They had snakes for hair and turned people to stone by looking at them. Medusa was the only one of the three sisters that was once beautiful. She was turned into the ugly Gorgon we know after she desecrated Athena's temple with Poseidon. In the stories, and in the 1981 movie Clash of the Titans, she was beheaded by Percy's namesake, Perseus.
  
• Lotus Casino = the island of the Lotus Eaters, and the casino is rightfully located in Las Vegas. People go and don't want to leave. Hello, Homer. In the novel, the kids go to the Lotus Casino, get LotusCash and play video games forever.
  

You will notice that I didn't discuss any of the gods here. This was done for a couple of reasons. The gods are easy to find information about. I wanted to discuss the modernization of the mythological elements.

Coming soon, analysis of the archetype of the hero journey in The Lightning Thief.

Everything Ember

I forgot this was in my header. I guess it's a good thing I look at my own page once in a while.

Since that header has changed, my book buddy and I have read the entire Ember series: City of Ember, People of Sparks and The Prophet of Yonwood. I have to tell you honestly, I loved the first book and the series, and the second all the way up to the end. I mean, hooray for Doon and recreating electricity, it was only a matter of time from the time he found that book on science experiments, but I wanted to know what happened next.

I understand, as a writer and a teacher of reading. The book ended with an air of hope. It made you want to go out and get the third one. Then it left you a little disappointed when you found out that the third was a prequel. Go, DuPrau, though for clearing up that notebook's red herring from the first book. I guess she had that all planned out from the start.

By the way, I forgot to mention that I have a book buddy. My book buddy is my 10 year old cousin. He and I read the same books and talk about them over the phone. It's pretty cool. I'm going to refer to him as The Man.