...I am excited for your posts to start appearing as you work your way
through the Reading List during IM 625 this semester. Remember, you are
reflecting briefly on the "choice" reading that you have done in the
categories. The specific titles listed under each category will be
discussed in class, so no need to reflect about those in this space.
When you are ready to reflect and share, please choose the appropriate page from the list at the right and go to that page to post. By using the individual pages, I am trying to impose some semblance of order on the posts rather than having 20 people posting in one BIG blog about all types of books and resources.
Happy reading, listening, viewing and reflecting!
When you are ready to reflect and share, please choose the appropriate page from the list at the right and go to that page to post. By using the individual pages, I am trying to impose some semblance of order on the posts rather than having 20 people posting in one BIG blog about all types of books and resources.
Happy reading, listening, viewing and reflecting!
Seventeenth Summer by Maureen Daly
ReplyDeleteGrades 6 and up--
I had hoped that Seventeenth Summer would be like a dusty treasure found in an attic that contains lost wisdom of the ages.
Let's just say my hopes were left unmet. As a lover of literature, I hate to say it, but getting through this book was a struggle! I know that this novel was well received when it was released and I am absolutely in awe of a 17-year-old who can write and publish a novel, but I couldn't stand it! When I began reading, I knew there was bound to be more than a bit of teen angst and overly pliable female characters, so I wasn't surprised to read lines like "Friday and Saturday limped on" and "The next day meant nothing, because I didn’t see Jack at all," but I was nonetheless disappointed in the character's lack of agency in the novel. I can't help but to wonder how my perspective would shift if I had read it at the time of publication. Would I be in awe of how openly she spoke of her affection? Would she be more brazen than other girls her age? I can't imagine it, which is a shame. VERDICT: A single edition of this book in a media center or library would do. It would provide a resource of "back in the day" YA literature and be a fascinating historical text for reference in a social studies classroom. For pleasure reading, not so much.
Title: Seventeenth Summer
ReplyDeleteBy: Maureen Daly
After we read this for class, I felt it would be a good choice for my media center (middle school grades 5-8). I felt that the innocence of the main character would speak to a rural community. Since we added the book to the collection the beginning of March, the book has been checked out and on hold. It has not stayed on the shelf.