"Going Bovine" by Libba Bray

Bray, Libba. Going Bovine. New York: Ember, 2009. Print. ISBN 10: 0385733984.

Summary:

16 year-old Cameron Smith is trying his best to skate through high school unnoticed. In fact, Cameron seems to have made an art form out of staying invisible – he works hard to fade into the background in the classrooms and halls of his high school, so much so that he doesn’t have any real friends, just a few students he sometimes meets up with in the men’s restroom to smoke a joint or occasionally occupy the same table in the cafeteria. Going unnoticed is made extremely difficult by two things: 1) His twin sister, Jenna, runs with the pack of popular kids at his school; and 2) He starts hallucinating images so terrifying that he physically reacts to them in public.

Cameron is not on good terms with his parents. His teenaged slacker routine has been so successful that his parents assume his hallucinations are the result of heavy drug use. As Cameron points out in the book, he has never taken hallucinogens because he is afraid of the kinds of things he might see (Bray, 10). However, his parents remain convinced that his hallucinations are the result of heavy drug use or an attempt to draw attention to himself.

It is only after Cameron is diagnosed with the human strain of “Mad Cow” disease (hence the title) that he and his parents realize why he is having hallucinations – and just how serious this is. Basically, there is no cure. His diagnosis is tantamount to a death sentence.

Hope arrives in the form of Dulcie. She’s an angel – but definitely not the kind of angel found in most literature and lore. Dulcie has a bad sugar habit, a penchant for decorating her wings with graffiti, and an affinity for punk-rock attire. Dulcie reveals that Cameron must find a lost scientist known only as “Dr. X” if he wants to be cured. As traveling companions, Cameron takes along Gonzo, a hypochondriac dwarf from his school, and Balder, a Viking god in disguise as a yard gnome. But it isn’t just Cameron’s life on the line – the future of the whole world is at stake!

Review:

I noticed this was not the typical teen novel almost right away because it is a lot more intelligent than much of the fluff published in the YA category. One element that makes it much smarter is the science. Ten pages in, the stoners are huddled in a circle smoking pot while discussing Schrödinger’s Cat – a quantum physics thought experiment. Some of the reviews I read scoffed at “slackers” such as these discussing quantum mechanics while doing drugs. However, I feel their scorn is unwarranted. The particulars of the experiment are grisly enough to fascinate any teen mind, especially those who habitually slaughter and maim on their video game consoles for hours on end. This is not the only case of advanced science creeping into the discourse. From beginning to end, the premise of the book relies heavily on the scientific theory behind parallel universes, time travel, and the endless possibilities posited by the Schrödinger’s Cat experiment.

Secondly, the novel closely parallels the classic novel “Don Quixote.” Cameron and his English class are reading the novel as part of their course work. At several points, Cameron wonders to himself if he is “tilting at windmills” a la Cervantes’ title character. Then there are the elements of the story itself – his fantastic quest across the country side, battling giants, seeing the fantastic instead of the mundane most mortals see. Even the fact that the girl/angel he falls for is named “Dulcie” – which could be short for Dulcinea, Don Quixote’s love interest. Cameron originally goes on his quest not only to seek a cure for himself, but also because he is interested in Dulcie. Over the course of his journey, he falls in love with her.

Lastly, the book incorporates elements of Norse mythology and Latin to go along with the problems and complexities that make up most teens’ maturation process. The big ideas of the novel are nestled comfortably alongside Cameron’s struggle between what his conscience tells him to do and what self-preservation states would be best for him personally. Furthermore, the novel is laugh-out-loud funny in parts, yet moves one to tears in others. This is a complexly layered novel that one does not just read; one mentally has to chew it in some parts. However, the digestion of the more intelligent aspects is just as enjoyable as the coming-of-age story.

I only see a few weaknesses in this novel. This novel is so intelligent, some teens will not be able to see it through to the end – or if they do, they will not have understood the entire scope of the novel. Furthermore, some of the reviews I read stated they felt the language and content was too mature for teens under the age of 16, while the science discussed would be lost on most students under the age of 18. Finally, because of the language, most teachers and librarians would not be able to create a lesson plan around this book. However, if one had an advanced student and knew the parents of that student were lenient in their book restrictions, this book could be recommended to the student for pleasure reading.

Awards:

Booklist Editors’ Choice: Books for Youth - 2009

Children’s Book Sense Pick – 2009

Publisher’s Weekly Best Children’s Book of the Year – 2009

Booklist Books for Youth Editor’s Choice – 2009

Printz Award Winner - 2010

Nominee: Locus Award for Best Young Adult Book - 2010

Best Books for Young Adults - 2010

Teaching Extensions:

Because of its content, this book will need to be carefully incorporated into the curriculum as one of many options or as part of an archetype study – and only with a signed parental permission slip for the student to read it. According to Nilsen and Donalson, this book would fall under the “Innocent Embarking on a Journey” archetype (325). While Cameron is not innocent in the traditional sense – he does have a naïveté about how the world works and one’s responsibilities in it. “Going Bovine” could be presented as one of many options for students to read after the entire class has read “Don Quixote.” Students would then do an interactive book report on iPad or computer (whichever is more readily available at the school) comparing elements of the two novels.

In high school science classes, this book could be read (again, with signed permission slips!) after students have had a lesson in the Schrödinger’s Cat experiment. Students would then discuss in class how the novel accurately interprets the theory into a literary scenario. This activity is recommended for Junior- and Senior-level classes, or Pre-Advanced Placement/Advanced Placement classes for younger levels. However, if used in Pre-AP/AP classes at younger levels, there are some elements that may not be suitable for less mature readers.

An option for this book in a school or public library is creating an interactive Web 2.0 display that links readers back to “Don Quixote” and books explaining in teen-speak the scientific theories involved with the book, as well as listing books students might like to read along a similar vein (Douglas Adams’ “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy,” for instance).

References:

Nilsen, Alleen P, and Kenneth L. Donelson. Literature for Today's Young Adults. Boston: Pearson, 2009. Print.

Rouse, Margaret. "Schrodinger's Cat Definition." What Is? TechTarget.com, Dec. 2011. Web. 24 June 2012. <http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/Schrodingers-cat>.

"Schrodinger's Cat." YouTube. Minute Physics, 26 Sept. 2011. Web. 24 June 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOYyCHGWJq4>.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie with illustrations by Ellen Forney

Alexie, Sherman, and Ellen Forney. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian. New York: Little, Brown, 2012. Kindle Edition. ISBN: 0316013684. (Originally published in print in 2007.)

Summary:

14 year-old Arnold “Junior” Spirit feels he is going nowhere fast on his reservation in the state of Washington. It all began the day in his math class when he was given his “new” textbook for the year – and it had his mother’s maiden name written in it. His “new” textbook was more than 30 years old! Junior throws his book in disgust, setting off a chain of events that would lead him to stop attending school on the “Rez” and seek his educational opportunities at the all-white high school 22 miles away. Soon, Junior finds himself a stranger in a strange land – not accepted in his new environment, yet vilified as a “traitor” by the only people he has known his whole life. Will Junior be able to navigate his new world while still staying true to the culture and only life he has ever known on the Rez? Will his family and friends ever forgive him if he does make it in the “white” world?

Review:

This novel is full of the despair and delight that one can only experience in true life. The story’s hero, Junior, is heartbreaking and hilarious all at once. During the reading of this novel, I often found myself laughing out loud while the tears were still pouring down my face from ex especially depressing paragraph. Born with several physical impairments as well as severe speech impediments, Junior is the object of bullying and taunting his whole life. he notes that he wants to grow up to be an artist “because words are too unpredictable…too limited” to get his full meaning across (Sherman, Kindle location 88). But, Junior states, the worst thing about his life on the rez is not the bullying. The worst thing is that the people growing up there have been poor for so long, they have come to feel they deserve their poverty. Despite this, Alexie is able to find with Junior the dark humor present in so many of life’s most depressing situations.

Alexie includes content and situations that would put this book at the top of many “challenged books” lists – masturbation, violent death, views on homosexuality, bullying – a veritable cornucopia of taboo subjects. But Alexie approaches these subjects in a very natural, conversational tone, completely from the point of view of a 14 year-old boy. I imagine that if I listened in on any teenaged boy and his friends during their most secret conversations, I might hear some of the same topics being discussed. It is because Alexie speaks of these topics in such a “normal” tone that this book should be celebrated rather than attacked. It is important for adolescents to form their own opinions from a variety of sources, then be able to discuss these “hot button” topics at home in an informed manner. Conversational introductions such as the ones presented in this book are an excellent way for teens to begin to form their own opinions. Reading this book and then discussing it together provides a natural means for parents and educators to act as the “frontal lobe” for the developing brain of teenagers (Gorman, 34). As Gorman stated in her article, teens’ brains are still developing, so their own sense of judgment can sometimes be questionable (34). This does not mean, however, that we should step in and prevent them from reading material we feel is risqué. Instead, we should embrace the opportunity to help teens develop their own decision making processes and problem solving skills by discussing topics that we as adults know are being discussed by students, but may normally feel uncomfortable discussing. Just because one is uncomfortable discussing a topic does not mean that topic does not exist in the real world. Students need the input and guidance (without being overbearing) of adults during a time in their lives when their rational decision making faculties are still developing.

Part of the reason why this book works so well is that Alexie states that a great many of the things that happened in this book are based on his own life as a teenager. Alexie is successfully able to put himself back in his teenaged mind-set to offer an authentic and realistic representation of what this particular teenage boy is experiencing and how he reacts to those experiences.

Overall, this novel is very powerful. However, there is one weakness – the final showdown between Junior and his former best friend Rowdy. In the book, Junior is suddenly able to jump higher, out-dribble and generally beat the socks off his former team. I find this a little hard to believe, however, considering the health problems Alexie made it a point to list at the beginning of the book. Yes, having a son with asthma and other health problems, I know it is possible to still play sports with these conditions. I also know that adrenaline is a powerful thing that can make the impossible seem possible. However, I also know that if a student had seizures, brain damage and a host of other physical problems, many schools would not let that student play sports due to liability reasons. That being said, this was the only weakness I perceived in the whole novel.

Awards:

National Book Award – 2007

Boston-Globe Horn Book Award – 2008

International Book on Books for Young People Sweden - Peter Pan Prize – 2009

California Young Reader Medal – 2010

Finalist,  Los Angeles Times Book Prize – 2007

Teaching Extensions:

Have students write a diary-type entry regarding a time in their lives when they felt they had to change something – location, image, hair, etc. – in order to make their lives better. Did it help? Did anything change?

Have students reflect on the scene where the brother are bullying Junior at the powwow. Have them write an entry from the brothers’ point of view explaining why they picked on him. Use examples of rationalizations from the book. Then discuss why these rationalizations are not an excuse to bully others.

Reference:

Gormon, M. (2006). The terrible teens. School Library Journal, 52(6), 34. http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6338706.html

"Hatchet" by Gary Paulsen

Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

Paulsen, Gary. Hatchet. Aladdin Paperbacks ed. New York: Aladdin Paperbacks, 2007. Print. 186 pp. ISBN-13: 978-1416948346. (Originally published by Bradbury Books in 1987.)

Summary:

Thirteen year-old Brian Robeson's mom and dad just went through a divorce, and now - instead of spending time with his whole family and his friends during the summer - Brian has to fly to Canada to visit his father. Brian is angry - angry at his parents, angry at the lawyers, angry at the judge and most of all, angry at his mother for The Secret that had torn his whole family apart. The Secret was the reason why his father was living and working so far away in the Canadian oil fields and Brian and his mother lived together in their old house.

In the course of his flight to visit his father, Brian's ripped from his own musings when the pilot - the only other person on the single-engine plane - has a heart attack and dies. Brian survives the initial plane crash but is only able to escape with a ripped up windbreaker and the small hatchet his mother gave him just before he got on the flight. Brian must use his wits and every ounce of strength he has (both mental and physical) in order to survive alone in the Canadian wilderness. Will he be rescued before winter comes? Will he, a soft city kid, be able to survive on his own?

Review:

This book was riveting from start to finish. Paulsen's work contains many of the qualities of good Young Adult literature discussed in Chapter 1 (Nilsen and Donelson, 17-37). The book involves switches back and forth through time as seen through Brian's memories of the events leading up to his parents' divorce and his trip to visit his father. While the book is not written in first person, it is written in an omniscient third person that allows the reader to see the world as Brian sees it and experience his thoughts and emotions fully. The action in the book centers around Brian's survival, which is accomplished purely through his own actions - thereby giving him the credit for his own accomplishments. The action is also fast paced, with edge-of-the-seat suspense both in pivotal scenes and a continuing tension throughout the novel centering around Brian's continued survival and his possibility of rescue. Despite all of the tension and despite a few (natural) outbursts by the main character, the book also retains a sense of optimism that Brian will be rescued, even if that means Brian must work harder on his own to make sure he is found. Just when it seems he is about to give up, something happens to give Brian the courage to keep surviving and keep working to help his would-be rescuers find him. Last but not least, there is additional tension in the book as readers try to discern just what the Secret is and why Brian is so angry about it. Through this work, readers are authentically able to relate with Brian's feelings about divorce, his mother's actions, and the legal system that so blithely split his family into pieces. One weakness about the story, in my opinion, is the scene where an animal attacks Brian for no apparent reason. The way it was written seemed to me as almost a random occurrence. There is no explanation for it. The scene would have been more believable if Paulsen had explained that the animal was protecting its baby nearby. But the way it occurs feels almost like Paulsen needed something bad to happen to Brian, so he pulled a scenario out of a hat. But that is the only weakness I perceived in the novel.

Awards:

"Hatchet" has won numerous awards, including its selection as a Newbery Honor Book, an ALA Best Book for Young Adults, an ALA Notable Children's Book, a Booklist Editor's Choice book, a Notable Children's Book in the Field of Social Studies, and multiple awards on the state level.

Teaching Extensions:

As a middle school English/Reading teacher, I could build an entire unit around this book. The Reader's Guide at the end of the edition I purchaced suggests that teachers ask students to create a list of 10 things they would NEED in order to survive. Once students had all created their lists, the teacher should ask the students to keep their lists in their binders to be used in a later exercise. Once the book had been read all the way through, engage the students in a discussion comparing their lists to the tools Brian had in "Hatchet."

While the students are reading the book, when they reach key passages, engage them in discussion regarding how they feel they would act and behave in similar situations. Most of my students have never lived outside of a city. With what survival skills, if any, would they be equipped to survive in the wilderness for 54 days? Discuss what keeps Brian optimistic about his rescue, and in what situations does that optimism slip?

When the book is finished, have the students write a different ending for the book in which Brian is NOT rescued before winter comes. What do they envision happens to Brian? When they have completed their versions, have the class read "Brian's Winter," Paulsen's vision of what would have happened to Brian if he had had to survive longer in the wild. Have the students write a comparison and contrast essay between their ending and Paulsen's revised one.

Assign the students to rewrite the story creating a version in which Brian must crash land the plane in an urban environment. What elements of the story would be different? Would it be harder to crash land a plane in the wilderness or in the city/suburbs?

As a tie-in with science and social studies, have students study about the area of Canada in which the story is set. Are Paulsen's descriptions of the landscape, geography and animal life correct? Do the animals actually behave in the ways Paulsen described? Are there really tornadoes in Canada? Can you eat raw turtle eggs and "gut cherries" without poisoning yourself?

Reference:

Nilsen, Alleen P, and Kenneth L. Donelson. Literature for Today's Young Adults. Boston: Pearson, 2009. Print.