STACKED

books

What to Buy Your Boy

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So now that you know why boys don’t read (and how they do), here’s a quick list of some titles that would be knockout choices for holiday gifts for boys in middle through high school:

Alive in the Killing Fields: Surviving the Khmer Rouge Genocide is a work of non-fiction by Nawuth Keat about his time as a child in war-town Cambodia. It sounds reminiscent of A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, which is another work of non-fiction about growing up in war torn Sierra Leone. What’s appealing about these titles? In both cases, the main character — a real person — sees a problem and acts upon it (or is acted upon, as the case may be). There’s war, there’s action, and there’s a gripping story.


Guardian Of The Spirit (Moribito)by Nahoko Uehashi is a graphic novel but is part of a series that’s laden with mythology and thus more similar to manga. There’s swords, action, and great graphics that’ll keep boys plowing through. And hey, when they finish this one, there are more in the series.

I’ll admit this is a riskier choice, simply because it’s not your standard Gordon Korman book. But either way, it was one of my favorite reads lately. Pop is a story about Marcus, a football player who’s just transferred schools and is having a hard time having the new team give him respect. He decides to take up practicing at the local park, where he meets an old man who is quite a prankster. Turns out that guy is the father of Troy Popovich, football team quarterback and he has a major mental health issue — so Marcus takes it upon himself to connect Charlie with his past and his present. This book has sports and has a character who sees a problem and tackles it full on. Oh, and it’s funny!


Eon: Dragoneye Reborn by Alison Goodman is all fantasy. In this story, 12-year-old boys have the opportunity to become an apprentice of the Dragoneyes — men who harness the power of the 12 energy dragons. But there’s a twist this time, with a girl perhaps being chosen instead of a boy. This one’s got a lot of myth and action and a proposed sequel in the works.

I’ve mentioned both of these series before, but it’s not going to hurt to repeat them. Darren Shan is a wildly popular horror writer for both the middle and high school grade boys.

Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare will appeal to the younger set. This book series was just made into a film, too, which will come out after the holidays. But you know, there is also Cirque Du Freak: The Manga . So if they read the books, maybe the manga will appeal to them, too.

Of if they’ve finished that series or are more in the high school set, you should give them The Demonata #1: Lord Loss: Book 1 in the Demonata series. The ninth book in this series just came out, so there is plenty of reading here.

And lastly, here’s something you probably won’t see from me again simply because I am a Very Biased Person and as a librarian, I am willing to admit it. But here it is. I’m going to recommend James Patterson’s Maximum Ride Series. This is a book with adventure and science fiction, both of which have mega boy appeal. But here’s my other reason for recommending Patterson’s teen series — it’s a gateway. Maximum Ride also is a graphic novel series. Two ways to read it.

Oh did I say he was a gateway? Well, he is. He also has another popular teen series called Daniel X. Finished that one already? Well, there’s a new series coming out sure to appeal to boys, too, as well as those who are obsessed with the paranormal: Witch & Wizard. The first book came out this last Tuesday. When those books are finished, Patterson’s got an entire world of adult fiction that more sophisticated readers can dive into (some are a little more risque than others, and some are perfectly suitable). Know why else Patterson’s a gateway? He’ll get kids interested in reading books like Patterson’s, which will open up their worlds to new authors and adventures. As much as he annoys me as a librarian (he’s a shelf hog), he does something for readers and for reading.

There you have it — a short list of books sure to please the boys you are still looking to buy for. Remember to check out Michael Sullivan’s website, too, for more recommendations.

And as promised, here’s a quick bibliography of the research for this series of posts based on Sullivan’s program:

Guys Read – still!

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[This is a continuation of my guys read series courtesy of a fantastic workshop by Michael Sullivan.]
As we know, boys and men are reading something, even if they claim they aren’t. But what and where they are reading is something that we need to not only take a look at but we need to work with.

Where do the men in your life read?

The answer is probably “the bathroom.” Another popular answer is probably “in bed at night.” More broadly, the answer is men read in isolation – they do it when no one else can see them. If they are reading outside the bathroom or the bedroom, they’re probably doing so covertly, too. Michael Sullivan joked, with all seriousness, that the paperback book is a male’s best friend because it can fit in his back right-hand pocket just like his wallet.

Do you see the challenge?

By not seeing men reading because they read in isolation, boys don’t develop reading role models. They model this behavior, then, and read covertly, if they’re reading at all. Remember back a couple weeks ago about the fact boys think with “rules and tools.” If there’s not a road map there to guide them (i.e., a male reading role model), then it will be difficult for boys to see reading as something they should do.

That means finding male role models who are reading or getting those men in your life who do read to do so in sight of younger males. Boys want role models, and if they see it, they want to do it, too.

As you’ve gleaned from here and from the last two posts, the problem is that we’ve made reading work for boys. There are barriers all around them, even if we don’t necessarily see them. Remember that the “rules and tools” mentality combined with the lack of reading role models, as well as the belief we share about books being what it means to read is telling boys that they aren’t really reading. They believe they’re weak because they don’t do it as well as Susie or Sally and they believe they don’t read because the newspaper, magazines, or the internet isn’t really reading.

So rather than admit they can’t read, they practice the mentality of they don’t read. As humans, it’s easier for us to admit to not doing something versus being unable to do something….even if it’s the case they CAN and ARE doing it.

Never fear, though, as we can solve this problem, and the solutions are much simpler than we can imagine, given the cards stacked against boys from the start.

First – never stop reading to boys! Boys love listening to stories, and often it is this very act of reading aloud that helps them strengthen their reading skills. Find a male to read aloud to them, too. This is a bonding activity and a force of modeling the behavior.

If you don’t have time to read aloud, introduce boys to audiobooks. This increases their literacy just like the printed word does, and it also allows them to do other things while they’re reading (remember that boys prefer being active since that’s how they learn best – can you get better than an audiobook to give them that freedom?). Here’s the plug for my post on audio literacy, too, if you haven’t come to see just how valuable that learning is.

Stuck on WHAT to have to a boy to read? Welcome to Boys Lit! Remember the discussion about how boys like rules and tools? Well, their brand of books is fast paced, action-filled, and features characters who see something then act on it. These books don’t develop character who have complex relationships with one another or communicate; these are books of things happening, with a character using rules and tools to move forward. These characters are mad because the map showed a road and darn it, there will be a road (they don’t need to ask for directions!).

Boys love:

* Non-fiction (sports, action, adventure, gross, quick factual books — the sorts of things they don’t get to read in school);
* Fantasy (the hero’s journey speaks to the male “rules and tools” mindset). Sullivan believes it’s never too young to give a boy Tolkien;
* Sports (it is identifiably male – Mike Lupica has done a lot for this area, and Gym Candy was one of the best books in last 5 years for boys lit, according to Sullivan)

See a pattern here yet? These are the things they aren’t getting to read in school. Add to that non-fiction magazines, newspapers, and internet materials (of any variety, truthful or not).

But let’s not get too excited here. One of the things we’re failing to do is understand that our ideas of a good book from a female perspective is different than those of a male’s. We’re getting something different out of these books than boys are, and when we turn to recommend a title to them we’re sure they’d like — the safe choices — we’re giving them books that are for girls (aka, not “boy” writing). As much as librarians like Chris Crutcher and Gary Paulsen, those aren’t boys lit writers. Sullivan called them “girl” writers, despite their intent. As females, we cannot get into the male mind, and as such, we often overlook what’s going to really speak to them. So, we’re trying, but we’re only giving them the half way answer.

Need help now?

Rather than Paulsen, choose Ben Mikaelson (Touching Spirit Bear and others). He is a much, much better adventure writer with real boy appeal. Paulsen focuses too much on emotion and connections. Mikaelson is action and adventure.

Graphic novels – they’re the half-way answer. We need to be giving boys manga. Manga’s often based on mythology (and thus the hero’s journey) and it often spans many volumes. Once they get hooked, they will read as many in a series they can get their hands on, and isn’t that the goal?

Gothic horror – boys want to explore violence because it is SO unnatural and doesn’t make sense in their world (rules and tools). Let them read it. Boys want to start on Stephen King young. There’s a better choice in Darren Shan. The “Cirque du Freak” series is great for 4-6th graders and the “Demonata” series is great for 6-8th grade. 8th grade or older? Give them Stephen King if they ask, and Dark Half is where to begin.

Now that you’ve got an idea of what you should be doing (i.e., reading the books boys love, taking that knowledge, and considering what you recommend), you need to talk to boys about these books. Never fear. It’s not that tough! First off, general book talking rules:

1. Never talk a book you haven’t read;
2. Always talk to the back of the class because the kids at the front are already readers. Sell READING itself more than the book;
3. Book talking is not a review. Sell the book instead of reviewing it.

Now, remember that the boys are in the back and need to be sold on reading. Talk to them:

1. Keep it short (remember they think reading is solitary, feminized, and sedentary and by being lengthy, well, it is);
2. Get the boys involved (read in concert and make it a social activity);
3. Highlight what boys like (in Maniac Magee there is one scene with sports. The book is not about sports but by highlighting that, the book sells itself. Selling it as a book about race relationships goes back to #1);
4. It is EASY to book talk non-fiction. Idea: pick a book of gross facts and ask the audience to pick a number; open to that page and read.

This is so easy, but because we think like females (well, those of us who are female do), we can’t think about these things. But here it is. The secret to helping boys develop an interest in reading.

And remember back to my last post in this series asking about “the” book? For most males, “the” book that turns them on to reading is indeed a fantasy title. For the males I surveyed, often it was Tolkein or something in the Star Wars series. It’s your turn to ask what got them into reading and it’s our responsibility to do that reading, too. We need to be advocates for boys reading, and the only way to do it is to know what they are reading, encourage their reading, and insist that they ARE reading (even if it’s the newspaper). The more we do that, the more they see themselves as reader, and the more likely they will be banging down your door for the 10th installment of Shan’s “Demonata” series.

Although I’ve finished the content of this series, I will bring you one more post in the next week or two with some of the titles Sullivan highlighted — just in time for holiday shopping! I’ll include a bibliography, too, for those of you interested in learning more and reading the research behind this.

What are your thoughts? Do you have any “go to” boy titles? Do these things surprise you at all? Do you disagree at all? Lay it out there!

Guys read

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This is the second post in a series to be shared over the next couple of weeks. Today’s topic: why boys don’t read. Before I give the background, make sure you read the first post, and then keep in mind that these comments are about the average boy (not the exceptions you know) and they ARE backed by research. I will post a bibliography in a concluding post.

So, why don’t boys read like we wish they would?

Simple: they’re wired differently.

Boys’ brains work differently than girls because they are hardwired differently. They react differently to stimuli than girls (think of this simple example: a desk chair is in a classroom. Who is making it come off the floor?). And maybe most importantly, boys are taught very different lessons about reading than girls are. When they’re young, reading is fun. They get story time, which allows them to be active and stimulated. The other time they’re read to they’re getting ready for bed. Reading is an activity that energizes and relaxes boys.

But when they get into school, reading is work. You can’t get up and dance and you can’t fall asleep. The way the boy brain works just doesn’t “get” this like a girl brain. So now reading is a chore – but it’s moreso when the boy is nestled between two girls in a classroom, both of the girls reading well and beyond. The boy? He’s struggling because reading is not fun now and he’s struggling because he thinks he’s dumb since Suzy and Sally are reading just fine.

Boys think in a manner we can call “rules and tools” — they want something to do and they want a way to do it (or a way to figure out how to do it). Women think in a manner that seeks information to communicate and connect. Sullivan gave the great example of a man and a woman driving and getting lost. The woman suggests asking for directions while the man pulls out the map and insists the road was supposed to be there. He doesn’t want to ask because he should be able to figure out the solution.

So when the boy sees that Suzy and Sally are reading well and he is not, he’s discouraged. He has no rules nor tools to do it here. And since the majority of teachers are female, particularly in those developmentally important years for reading, boys are taught to read in the same way girls are, but since they don’t learn that way, well, they’re stuck. Boys are trying to read for information, but they’re being taught how to read for communication.

This does not make on type of thinking better than another. It means they are different. This is what we are missing with boys and reading. We are teaching them the way we’ve learned as women — people who have always been catered to in learning reading — and we’re missing that boys learn it in just a different way.

Just to note: a girl’s brain is fully developed at 11 1/2. Boys? 14 1/2. There’s even further disadvantage for them because they’re already starting out behind, but because they aren’t being taught in a manner most advantageous to them, they’re further and further behind.

Now to complicate this information a bit more, here are some scary statistics:

  • Over the last 30 years of standardized testing, girls always outscore boys on reading
  • Boys get 1.5 years behind in reading ability and level (makes sense when you know about their brain development, right?)
  • By 11th grade, the average boy is 3 years behind in reading
  • The Sophomore Study in the U.S. found that boys read 10% less than girls…being 2.3 hours a week on average (that also doesn’t say much for girls).
  • Boys can drag girls down
  • A Kaiser Family study found that boys spend 6.5 hours in front of electronic screen … per day.
  • 35% of the entering males in the freshman class at UCLA said they don’t read
  • 23% of females in that study said they don’t read

Scary stuff, right. Well, it gets scarier:

  • 70% of the Ds and Fs earned in school are from boys
  • 80% of high school dropouts are boys
  • 80% of convicted felons are high school drop outs
  • 85% of special education students are male
  • 85-90% of those diagnosed as ADHD are male
  • 14% of all boys are coded as ADHD
  • 1 out of every 3 boys is in remedial reading by 3rd grade (recall the statistic about boys being 1.5 years behind in reading than girls)

Besides being scary, what do these things all mean?

Being a boy is a disability.

Did you see that part about 35% of UCLA freshman males say they don’t read? This is something important — remember the structured thinking aspect of boy’s brains? Well, for them, admitting failure isn’t okay. Rather, admitting they don’t do something fits with their rules and tools mindset. It’s easier for boys to say they DON’T do something vs. they CAN’T do something. Boys do read. We just need to reach out to them to get them understand they they can.

Thoughts? Comments? Share them. I promise this is my only scary post on this topic. Next installment I will discuss about where and what boys are reading, and then in a final post, I’ll give some of the links to resources from Sullivan’s fantastic program.

Kid-Friendly Graphic Novels & Knights of the Lunch Table by Frank Cammuso

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Every two months, all of the children’s librarians from my entire system (73 libraries!) gather downtown for an information order meeting. One of the presentations at a recent session? You guessed it – graphic novels for kids. Our fearless leaders in Children’s Services have been trying to broaden the world of graphic novels in the Los Angeles Public Library. The battlecry? No longer will the Young Adult area hold a monopoly over the graphic novels! Publishers, children’s librarians, and patrons are demanding more content for younger kids.

I managed to coerse the graphic novel committee into letting me post their great powerpoint overview of the graphic novel genre and how Los Angeles Public Library is incorporating these books into the children’s collections… and programming around it! As a verified non-expert in this genre, I appreciated the synthesis of a huge amount of information into a simplified format. I only wish I could’ve grabbed some snapshots of the cute insanely cute crafts that were demonstrated. I hope you enjoy the efforts of Marc Horton, Eva Mitnick, Carey Vance, Joanna Fabicon, and Maddy Kerr – I know I did.

The September issue of School Library Journal reflects this trend. Peter Gutiérrez wrote an article entitled “Good & Plenty: It used to be hard to find good graphic novels for the K–4 crowd. My, how times have changed.” Okay, the title is a bit of a clunker, but the article itself offers a great primer to some of the awesome material for children. And I decided to challenge myself to read a few of the novels mentioned.

My favorite of the bunch? Frank Cammuso’s Knight’s of the Lunch Table series, without a doubt.

I accidentally ordered the second volume of the series, the Dragon Players, instead of the first volume, the Dodgeball Chronicles. No matter – the story was easily picked up without needing an introduction.

King Arthur and the Round Table seemlessly fits into this modern day story about middle school. Artie attends Camelot Middle School with his evil sister Morgan. Of course, there’s a Mr. Merlyn, a science wiz with a mysterious raven as a classroom pet. And Percy and Guen show up as Artie’s best friend and love interest respectively. That’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to references to the Camelot legend. At times, I really want to go back and grab my copy of the Once and Future King, just to catch more obscure allusions in the text.

In the Dragon Players, Artie finds himself in a competition of dueling dragons – robot dragons, that is. The bullies of the school, appropriately named “The Horde,” have forced Percy to build them a fearsome dragon competitor. Cammuso weaves the theme of duality from the beginning of the story to the narrative climax. I particularly loved the scene where “the ladies of the lunch” dispense a warning.

Arthur, King of Middle School,
Within thy heart, two dragons duel.
One is warm and one is cook,
In thy life just one shall rule.

All pretty standard stuff, right? Of course the mystic lunch ladies would speak in cryptic gibberish. But Cammuso continues the exchange… with an appropriate food-related sense of humor. This, of course, totally confuses Artie.

French fries… or veggie sticks?
Who knows which dragon you shall pick?
Chef salad… or pizza cheesy?
One is right and one is easy.

I couldn’t stop laughing, and then I forced several co-workers to listen to the dialogue.

A shadowy figure in the guise of a dorky kid named Evo shows up with an easy answer to Artie’s dueling robots dilemma. And of course, Artie and his friends have to go through harrowing hijinx before they must make a decision. Kids will definitely identify with Artie; he’s savvy, street-wise, but a little uncertain at the same time. Like most kids, he looks to his friends and his mentors for advice… but Artie can also look to his magic locker (a middle school version of Excalibur) for a more unique form of guidance.

The art is fantastic – the characters are drawn with deft, broad strokes. The coloring is vibrant, appealing to both younger kids and their parents. I’m not extremely visually oriented; I read text too fast. But I found myself going back through the pages a second (and even a third) time to absorb all of the small details in the background of the panels. The stories pertain to middle schoolers, but younger elementary school readers will eat up this series.

Guy reading

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This is just to whet your appetite for a longer, fuller discussion of male reading habits. This past week, I had the chance to listen to Michael Sullivan give a talk about getting boys reading. If you get the chance, please see him, listen to him, and most importantly, TALK ABOUT HIM with the boys in your life.

One of his key points that I want to quickly mention is that all males who become readers can name that book that turned them into readers. It’s one book that made reading something to them in ways no education or program had. This weekend, while among a number of my close male friends, I asked them to name that book. And they all could and they all did.

Sullivan has a belief for many boys, it’s a fantasy book. More on why in a future post. But for now, tell me one of two things:

1. What was the book that turned a male in your life on to reading (or if you’re one of the rare males reading this blog — statistically speaking — what was it for you)?

2. If you are a female, can you name the book that turned you on to reading? One title that made you a reader? Or have you always been a reader?

Over the next few weeks, I’m going to talk a bit about guy reading habits and books they dig. It’s an important and underdiscussed topic. Feel free — i.e., PLEASE — chime in. I am eager to hear your thoughts.