Category Archives: books

Book Review: On Writing

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I’ve been through my fair share of Stephen King in my lifetime, and I have mostly enjoyed his stories. There are plenty of critics who take pot shots at him from a variety of angles, but I have found that if I go into his novels with the mindset of “story” and maybe “scary story,” then I am fine. He hits all the right notes when he is on his game. When King’s On Writing came out, I bookmarked it but then never got around to picking it up until now.

It’s an intriguing look inside the mind of a popular writer, and there’s plenty of voice that comes through here, too, including his own pot shots right back at his critics. King has a lot to say about writing, but what I found the most interesting, to be honest, is the earlier sections where he talks about how broke into the world of writing. Mostly, it was through the support of his wife, Tabitha King (a writer in her own right), and On Writing does come across as sort of love letter to her. Never underestimate the support and ear of your spouse. There are also many threads of the horrific accident that happened to King one day, as he was walking down a rural road and was struck by a truck. Talk about mortality check.

The middle sections of On Writing go deeper into the art of writing, as King sees it, and those sections work fine, but the best piece of advice is this: read. A lot. Read a lot of books, and pay attention to style, development of ideas, character voice. If you want to be a writer, you need to notice the craft of writing, and you do that by reading.

Oh, yeah, and avoid using too many adverbs. King doesn’t like that — he thinks it is a writer, cheating. I’m sort of with him on that idea of avoiding too many flourishes and instead, stick to the story.

If you have any aspirations to be a writer, or if you are fan of King, or heck, even if you want a good read, On Writing is worth your time. (Check out some excerpts if you are interested.)

Peace (in writing),
Kevin

 

Book Review: Forge

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I realized after I bought Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson that it was a sequel of sorts to the book Chains (which I have not yet read but now think I need to go backwards.) Both books (Chains was a National Book Award finalist) tell the stories of slaves during the American Revolution, at a time when our country’s fathers were fighting for their own freedom even as they owned their own slaves, too. This terrible irony is made all to clear when the main character of Forge, Curzon, enlists in the fight against the British only to be brought back into slavery by his old master.

And none of the commanding officers intervene, or find it odd. Only Curzon’s fellow soldiers, off in the background of the story, formulate a plan to help their fellow soldier out and find ways to show solidarity with the situation, even though they are mostly powerless to do anything about it as enlisted soldiers.

But the fire of freedom burns bright in Curzon, particularly when he once again meets Isabel, one of the main characters from Chains (I believe) and someone he has dreamed about for much of the book for the way they parted, and he is determined to not only survive, but to help both of them break free and find a better life together. Anderson brings us right inside the head of Curzon, and so we see not only the bravery of friendship in difficult times, but also the fierce independent streak in the former slaves as they fight for their country and themselves. Forge is a reference to the historical Valley Forge, where much of the story takes place as General Washington prepares his soldiers for the oncoming battle against British forces and the dreadful winter that challenges every soldier with survival. And racism works in partnership with winter to create a very harsh climate indeed.

Forge is a powerful book, and a great example of historical fiction that is told with truth about the bonds of slavery and the will to live, and how strong the heart can be in the most difficult of situations.

Peace (in the narrative),
Kevin

 

Video Reflection: Revisiting “Teaching the New Writing”

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As one of the editors and writers in Teaching the New Writing, I thought it might be time to step back and reflect a bit on how the book is holding up against time. In other words, do the chapters by classroom teachers writing about how technology may or may not be changing their teaching of writing (in a culture of standardized testing and assessment) still hold relevance for teachers?

I know such reflection is a bit self-serving, given my role as an editor and writer, but I genuinely wondered about it. So I perused the book once more and decided to just start talking as a video reflection.

In the end, I conclude that there are some chapters that still can be very important to teachers considering or using technology. A few pieces don’t quite stand the test of time. And I think the question of what does writing look like in a digital age is still up for grabs. Is technology changing the way we write, and therefore, the way we teach writing?

I invite you to come participate in a discussion of my reflections. Using a new site that I found (Thanks to my friend, Terry) called Vialogues, you can participate in chats about videos, and more. It’s interesting and worth a visit. Give the site a try by adding your ideas about Teaching the New Writing or about writing in general.

Peace (in the reflective practice),
Kevin

 

Book Review: Pathways to the Common Core

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I imagine that there is going to be a flood of books from publishers trying to get an angle into understanding and implementing the Common Core curriculum. My state is right in the mix of the Common Cores — shifts should already be happening — and our Western Massachusetts Writing Project is already seen as having expertise in the ELA components. So, I cast a critical eye on books that center on the Common Core, but I am also very interested in what other people have to say.

Pathways to the Common Core: Accelerating Achievement by Lucy Calkins, Mary Ehrenworth and Christopher Lehman is a shining example of how three smart educators come to the Common Core with a critical lens, shift through the expectations of students and teachers, and come out the other side with a fair, logical and open look at how to meet the objectives while still maintaining a professional voice as a teacher in the classroom. They don’t skirt the challenges, particularly around the balances needed in reading a large amount of non-fictional text next to narrative text, and the requirement for a comprehensive review of how argument and opinion is taught across the grades, and how content areas teachers must be ready and prepared to teach reading and writing, too. The authors also highlight the many concerns and fears that teachers may have about the Common Core, acknowledging the tension that “national standards” bring the table (even if the Common Core is not officially being called national standards).

What I liked is how Calkins, Ehrenworth and Lehman follow progressions of learning vertically as well as horizontally, and offer positive advice on how to meet the challenges. They have clearly done their homework here, and they highlight best practices across the board in meaningful ways. The last few chapters, which may be more for administrators than teachers, gives a blueprint on how to get conversations in school buildings and districts started, and how to support change by first building on strengths already in play and the moving outward from there.

My main criticism — and this is my own lens speaking here — is that the book barely mentions the roles that media and technology can play in the Common Core. Except for a section around Speaking and Listening, Pathways doesn’t really acknowledge the world of literacy that kids are living in, and how the standards actually open doors for collaborative writing, use of technology for publishing, and more. I know, however, that that is not the focus of this book. It was just something I noticed.

Overall, Pathways to the Common Core does what it sets out to do: explain how the Common Core can unfold, highlight the challenges that will face most teachers, and provide a potential path for bringing the standards into curriculum design.

Peace (in the reading),
Kevin

 

Book Review: The Mongoliad (book one)

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I have to admit: I wasn’t sure if seven writers writing one adventure novel would hold together strong enough to keep me interesting. But The Mongoliad, which was apparently originally conceived as a collaborative serial novel for e-readers and such, clearly came under the eye of an editor of some merit. The book mostly stands up to the talents of the seven writers (including one of my favorites, Neal Stephenson, which shows you the power of a name —  I would have probably just passed this one by without Stephenson’s involvement).

I have the paper-bound version of the book (which is the first in a series) because I was completely unaware of the online/app development of the story itself as an experiment with writing novel. After I was done reading the book, I was touring through the website home of the novel, and I came to realize just how vast the media elements were for the story as it unfolded — with videos, and maps, and chapters, and more. (Of course, you need to pay for premium service to gain access to all of the good stuff. And it costs a pretty penny.)

The story itself is about the reign of the Mongols over parts of Europe following the death of Ghengis Khan in the 1200s, and how various orders of the Christian brotherhoods came together to defend Christianity from the invasion. These brotherhoods were small groups of knights, and a plot is hatched to cut the head off the snake, so to speak. There are a few story lines underway in this first book, but I thought the character development was pretty well done. There’s more to the knights than just fighting (although these guys clearly love the intricacies of the fighting sequences), and some of the major characters are just outside the periphery of action, so we get a bird’s eye view of the story, too.

I’ll be keeping an eye out for the second installment of the book. Maybe I should do that online, though, and experience the book as an app.

Peace (in the book),
Kevin

 

 

 

Book Review: The One and Only Ivan

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I’ve learned something important over the past few months: always trust my friends with The Nerdy Book Club. I read so many tweets about The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate that I finally decided, I gotta get that book. And I did. And it is wonderful. Told in the voice of Ivan, a silverback gorilla who lives in an animal exhibit in a strip mall, the novel deftly brings us into the mind of an intelligent creature seeking do the right thing for a young elephant, Ruby, who arrives in captivity, too. Ivan has made a promise, and he intends to keep it. I won’t give the story away, except to say that the writing here will touch your spirit and the story will remind you of the importance of family, in whatever shape it comes.

The afterward is also interesting, as Applegate notes that her book was inspired by a true story of a captive gorilla in a mall “zoo” operation, but as she wrote, the story became something more. The One and Only Ivan is a keeper, and Ivan’s voice will linger with you for days, as it has done with me.

Peace (out of captivity),
Kevin

 

When Sports Stars Show the Way (by Reading)

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I know there is always a dispute in the athletic world about whether or not sports stars are role models for kids. They are. Those stars may not like it but in this culture of youtube-d power plays, ESPN highlight reels, and documentaries of the lives of popular culture figures, athletes are still looked to by kids for the ways to act, to play, to live. So, I was happy to see a piece in The Answer Sheet at the Washington Post about the ways that LeBron James uses his downtime to read books.

Check out this short television piece about James’ interest in reading. (His team, the Miami Heat, just won the NBA championship last night).

Peace (in the book),
Kevin

Book Review and Visual Poem: Einstein’s Dreams

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I don’t know about you, but I have some favorite books that I return to from time to time, reconnecting with the experience of that first read. Einstein’s Dreams by Alan Lightman is one of those books. This small collection of creative vignettes that explores the concepts of time, as envisioned through the mind of Albert Einstein, is just a pitch-perfect example of how narrative and science can come together in an entertaining and educational way. Each chapter unfolds along one of the lines of Einstein’s thinking about time, and then Lightman creates a vision of what the world would look like.

And so, in one world, time runs backwards. In another, time runs concurrently with other time. In another, time is local, so that one minute in one city might be ten years in a neighboring town. In another, time is finite and always a ticking clock about to expire. In another, time is a memory, and then it is not. It’s hard to explain how Lightman accomplishes what he does here, but I always find my head racing around the concepts of time when I pick this one up to read (again).

The other day, I noticed that a friend — Steve Moore — had posted three digital responses to a book he was reading, showing how different apps from his cell phone could be used to approach a single topic from different angles. I was intrigued by that idea, so I decided to create a visual poem inspired by Einstein’s Dreams, as a sort of reader response to the book and also an extension of inspiration.

See what you think:

 

Peace (in time),
Kevin

 

Book Review: The Key to Aligning Your K-5 Class with Common Core Standards

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Actually, it was the subtitle of this book that caught my attention: 30 Projects That Integrate Technology into Core Lesson Plans (although both the title and the subtitle are mouthful, almost as if Fiona Apple were in charge). That said, this handy resource book covers a lot of ground around ways that technology and media tools like Google Earth, Storybird, blogging and wikis and more can be used by teachers to engage students around the Common Core learning standards. Each section is set out with a very basic format, and the writing — while not that exciting — is straight to the point, which is what you want in a resource guide.

Some of the lessons that popped out at me as being particularly interesting:

  • Creating student/peer book review with QR Codes that can be put on stickers, and placed in classroom books;
  • Studying the craft of writing by using webcomics for understanding main ideas of narrative structure;
  • Using mindmapping software for collaboration with other students around informational topics;
  • Tapping into timeline software for sequencing of ideas over a period of time;
  • Touring the world of setting of books with Google Lit Trips, and creating your own;
  • And more.

The book is put out by the Ask a Tech Teacher website, and the introduction reminds teachers that technology should no longer be a separate activity; Instead, as reflected in the Common Core and many state standards, technology and media production are part of the whole literacy package that students SHOULD be using for reading and writing, and listening and speaking. The 30 lessons in this book provide a helpful framework for teachers who are wondering where to even start, and the writers provide links to paid software and web resources, but also alternative free possibilities, too. I appreciated that.

Peace (in the sharing),
Kevin

 

Book Review: The Girl Who Was On Fire

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I’ve written my fair share lately about Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games trilogy but I guess I am not done yet. As part of one of our Scholastic Book orders, I saw this collection of “completely unauthorized” essays about The Hunger Games called The Girl Who Was On Fire (edited by Leah Wilson). I know this is just a book marketing gimmick to sell more books, but I have been very curious about all the ancillary books that my students are reading about the book and the movie.

The first few essays didn’t interest me much, as they covered the love triangle (Katniss, Peeta, Gale) and how love becomes an enduring theme in the series. I love love, but I wasn’t all that interested in the analysis of it in the book. (Is that a guy reaction? Maybe. Most of the writers here are female, by the way. And my most avid readers of the series are girls. Why is that?)

But the next few sections centered on the parallels to modern reality television and the games (as well as connections to classic literature that Collins references in the books), and the use of rhetoric and “smoke and mirrors” in the politics of Panem, and how Katniss navigates those ideas to her own advantage. There’s also an intriguing essay about the science of The Hunger Games, and how maybe some of the strange things in the books (such as the genetic mutant Mutts) are not that far-fetched after all, if you consider the scope of modern science. There’s even a piece about the impact of Post-Traumatic Stress on the characters (particularly Peeta) and how those events shape a life.

Overall, it was interesting to read The Girl Who Was On Fire collection after just finishing the series, even if the book is part of a marketing campaign by Scholastic. Now, where is that copy of the parody of the books called The Hunger Pains (by National Lampoon, of all things)? That’s what I need now to lighten up the mood a bit.

Peace (in the book),
Kevin