My heart goes out to so many who've lost jobs during this pandemic, and to the over worked and under protected health care workers putting themselves at risk for the sake of others. I worry that restaurants and other small businesses may not survive these months of shut downs. I know I'm extremely fortunate to be safe and comfortable at home, living without fear of a personal financial hardship. Nevertheless, there are challenges that go with the stay at home directive, and with the resulting social isolation. One of the challenges may be getting into my regular clothes after months in sweat pants, snacking at will. For now. though, I miss the personal contact with friends and family that I've long taken for granted. I'm ordering groceries on line these days and I miss being able to pop into the grocery store, or any other store, at will. I miss my monthly poker games! That said, I'm also experiencing unforetold benefits with this process of sheltering at home. I'll save that information for the next blog. In the meantime, I hope you are all staying healthy, nurturing your soul with good books, and managing the challenges this strange time brings to you.
 Mr. Huyhn's classes at San Gabriel High School (CA) have read three books from the Hamilton High Series:Telling, Detour for Emmy, and Too Soon for Jeff. It was fun to visit with such enthusiastic readers at San Gabriel High School., and to engage with them in a lively Q/A session (2/12/20). This past weekend was the annual California School Library Association conference. It was a delight to be there among so many librarians who are crucial to the education of our youth. Reading for pleasure, finding reliable sources of information, developing critical thinking skills, all enabled in school libraries by teacher/librarians. Included below is a reading list developed in our "Healing Power of YA Books" workshop, according to subjects that teens may find to be helpful as they work their way through personal issues:
CSLA 2020 Book List/Healing Power of YA Fiction Abuse A Child Called It, also A Man Named Dave, Dave Pelzer Baby Help, Marilyn Reynolds Bullying Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass, Meg Medina. Piddy Sanchez becomes the focus of bullying because she isn’t Latina enough to suit Yaqui Delgado. Cultural/Racial Diversity Does My Head Look Big in This?, Rand Abdel-Fatah. When sixteen-year-old Amal decides to wear the hijab full-time, her entire world changes. A Very Large Expanse of Sea. Tahereh Mafi. Cultural, “own voice text” of Muslim experience I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter. Erika Sanchez Stargazing, Jen Wang. Asian American friends. Graphic novel Gun Violence/Gangs Long Way Down, Jason Reynolds. Fifteen-year-old Will, gun in his waistband, rides the elevator down to street level, determined to get revenge for his brother’s murder. At each stop he’s confronted by the ghost of someone from his past, dead from gunfire. Dear Martin. Nic Stone. MLK, gun violence La Vida Loca, Luis Rodriguez. Published over 20 years ago, it’s still highly relevant to those in gangs, or affected by gang life. The Hate You Give, Angie Thomas. As she straddles two worlds, her poor neighborhood and an upper/middle class prep school, Starr Carter witnesses the unwarranted killing of her longtime good friend, Khalil, a killing that results in violent demonstrations and puts her life in danger. Health/Physical Challenges The Fault in Our Stars, John Green. A love story with cancer in the foreground. Wonder, RJ Palacio. Facially disfigured since birth, August Pullman struggles to find friendship and a place for himself at school among “normal” kids. Realistic and also positive. Positive: A Memoir, Paige Rawl with Ali Benjamin. A midwestern American girl who was born HIV-positive. When her HIV status is revealed in middle school, she becomes the focus of intense bullying. Eddie’s Choice, Marilyn Reynolds. Born with a deformed hand, Eddie long ago learned to cope with humor and self-acceptance. Immigration The Secret Side of Empty. Maria E Andreu. Immigrant experiences, DREAM Act I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter. Erika Sanchez. Immigrant experiences; grief, loss. The Border, Steve Schafer. Americanized, undocumented teen works frantically to get a green card while struggling with the usual emotionally fraught issues of teen life. LGBTQ What If It’s Us. Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera. LGBT--male Carry On. Rainbow Rowell. LGBT romance, male, also with magic Boy Meets Boy. David Levithan. Gay romance--male Two Boys Kissing. David Levithan. Based on true story, AIDS, gay romance--male Love Rules, Marilyn Reynolds. High school senior comes out as lesbian. No More Sad Goodbyes, Marilyn Reynolds. Autumn is rescued from foster care by lesbian teachers, who also help her place her baby in an open adoption. Aristotle & Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, Benjamin Alire Saenz. LGBT romance--male October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard, Lesléa Newman. A tribute in 68 poems. Although Matthew was beaten to death 20 years ago for being perceived as gay, the issues are, unfortunately, still current. Love Rules, Marilyn Reynolds. The story of a high school senior who reveals that she’s lesbian, as told from her straight best friend’s point of view. Mental Illness Small Spaces, Katherine Arden Turtles All The Way Down, John Green. A main character dealing with OCD and a love interest, wrapped up in a mystery. All The Bright Places, Jennifer Niven. Two teens save each other from jumping off the edge. Eddie’s Choice, Marilyn Reynolds. Pressures of school have Eddie’s girlfriend, Rosie, experiencing extreme anxiety. Guts. Raina Telegemeier. Graphic novel, anxiety Outsider Born a Crime. Trevor Noah. Memoir Hey, Kiddo, Jarrett J. Krosoczka. Addict mom, unknown dad, Jarrett tries to fit in, finds ways to express himself through art. Personal memoir, graphic novel Mexican White Boy. Matt de la Peña Overcoming Adversity It Calls You Back: An Odyssey through Love, Addiction, Revolutions, and Healing, Luis J. Rodriguez If You Loved Me, Marilyn Reynolds. High school senior struggles to manage anger resulting from incidents of early childhood neglect--incidents of which she has no conscious memory. Also struggling with her decision to remain a virgin until marriage. PTSD The Impossible Knife of Memory, Laurie Halse Anderson. Hayley must deal with her father’s PTSD as she navigates the challenges of a new school, a love interest, and her desire to escape it all through suicide. How Dare the Sun Rise: Memoirs of a War Child, Sandra Uwiringiyimana with Abigail Pesta. A girl from the Democratic Republic of the Congo tells the tale of how she survived a massacre, immigrated to America, and overcame her trauma through art and activism. Shut Up, Marilyn Reynolds. Mother returns, wounded, from Irag, with horrifying memories and nightmares. Son is suffering from PTSD due to sexual molestation. Purpose The Great Work of Your Life, Steven Cope. Finding your life purpose. Be Here Now, Ram Dass. Following a spiritual path Racism I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee Dear Martin, Nic Stone. The social injustice of racial stereotypes. Eddie’s Choice, Marilyn Reynolds. Mexican-American Eddie Barajas paints over racist graffiti and is targeted by white supremacists. The Hate You Give, Angie Thomas. As she straddles two worlds, her poor neighborhood and an upper/middle class prep school, Starr Carter witnesses the unwarranted killing of her longtime good friend, Khalil, a killing that results in violent demonstrations and puts her life in danger. On the Come Up, Angie Thomas. A budding rapper is caught in a controversy that labels her a menace. Also caught between upholding her own values or doing what she can to help her mother pay the rent. Rape/Molestation Speak, Laurie Halse Anderson Boy Toy. Barry Lyga Shut Up, Marilyn Reynolds. Sexual molestation of nine-year-old boy and his brother’s determination to save him. Telling, Marilyn Reynolds. Sexual molestation of twelve-year-old girl by the father of children for whom she babysits. But What About Me, Marilyn Reynolds. Erica, a high school senior, struggles to get her life back on track after a brutal rape. Everything I Knew to be True, Rayna York Suicide/Related Issues The Memory of Light, Francisco Stork. Vicky Cruz wakes up in a mental hospital after a failed suicide attempt. Although fiction, the story is based on Stork’s own battle with depression. Teen Pregnancy/Parenting This is All: The Pillow Book of Cordelia Kenn. Aidan Chambers. No More Saturday Nights, Norma Klein Baby Help, Marilyn Reynolds Detour for Emmy, Marilyn Reynolds Too Soon for Jeff. Marilyn Reynolds. Teen pregnancy from a boy’s perspective No More Sad Goodbyes, Marilyn Reynolds; Autumn is rescued from foster care by lesbian teachers, who also help her place her baby in an open adoption. Resources: Dear Author: Letters of Hope. Joan Kaywell, editor. Top young adult authors respond to kids’ toughest issues. Joan F. Kaywell Books Save Lives Award, University of South Florida, given annually to the book that best represents an adolescent overcoming a situation in such a way as to provide significant insight and hope to a reader. https://lib.usf.edu/special-collections/childrens-young-adult-literature/hipple/kaywell- award/ www.TeachingBooks.net 5 I’m often asked if any of my books have been translated into Spanish and am always sad to say that they’re not. But now, through the generosity of a native Spanish speaking friend, “What If” from Beyond Dreams has been translated, is now being transcribed, and within the next few months will be available to e-book readers. This is something of an experiment, to see what response a Spanish translation receives, and to consider whether or not there’s a significant market for other Spanish translations in the Hamilton High Series. Stay tuned! Now that Eddie’s Choice is launched, I’m playing around with ideas for the next book. I know it won’t be another Hamilton High story, not that there aren’t plenty of teen issues to explore in fiction: a homeless teen struggling to stay in school, maybe a transgender person who’s been kicked out of their house? But no, I’ll leave that to someone younger and better versed in the ways of social media than I am. I’ll jump ahead and write about life in the 80s. Not the 1980s. Life in the 80s age group. Should it be a sequel to collection of personal essays titled Over 70 and I Don’t Mean MPH? Or should it be a novel featuring a woman in her late eighties. If it’s Over 80 and I Don’t Mean MPH, I’ll have to stick to the truth—close to the truth, anyway. If it’s fiction I can give the old lady adventures and trials beyond anything I care to personally experience. As my born-in-the-late-1890s, quilt making Arkansas aunt would say when faced with a challenging decision, “I’m piecin’ on it."
With the publication of Eddie's Choice, the 11th book in my "True-to-Life Series from Hamilton High, it seems time I should stop neglecting my website and get current. So, for starters, November 3, 2019, was Book Launch day, and I'm thrilled to finally have Eddie's story available for readers. Some of you will remember Eddie Barajas from my previous book, Shut Up. Told from his older brother Mario's point of view, it is the story of the love of two brothers, and of the older brother's struggle to rescue nine-year-old Eddie from the clutches of a sexual predator.
The reason several characters from early books show up again when they're older is that I sometimes wonder how they're getting along after having been through hard times. And for the past several years I found myself sometimes wondering about Eddie. How did his earlier molestation affect his later years? Had he managed to get past the severe anxiety that so often goes with such trauma? I also found myself wondering how the increased hatred and animosity exhibited in our present political climate might be affecting teens. The only way to discover how growing hatred and division affects young people, or to learn how Eddie's doing as an older teen, is to write the story. So I did. More about that soon. |
RSS Feed