Our Bodies Spent Among the Dust and the Microfiche

I don't know if anyone else has heard of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, but I finally got around to listening to their debut album, only to discover they have a song called "Young Adult Friction," which is obviously quite awesome. Here's a Youtube video which is just the song over the album cover. You may also need the lyrics, unless your ears are really good at sifting through distortion.

[Insert Witty Title Here]

I am fairly certain that everyone has probably encountered NoveList in some form or another through their MLIS so far, but I thought an evaluation of the sites young adult content was still warranted. As a recap for those who might need it, NoveList is a readers advisory website that features many useful functions for librarians. I was fairly familiar with the options it had for adult readers, but was unsure how much content was YA specific.

I was initially disappointed that their didn't seem to be a "Author Read-alikes" section, as there is for adults. On further investigation, I found a "If You Like..." list in the "Recommend Reads" area, which give read-alikes for popular books. There are only 31 read-alike lists so far, though the list has only existed for slightly over one year, so that must be taken into consideration. And yes, there is a read-alike list for Twilight.

For those running book clubs, there are currently 220 book discussion guides for teens in NoveList, providing an expansive database for those looking for a little help generating their questions. I glanced through the guide for Whale Talk, having just discussed it on Tuesday, and it was fairly expansive, containing a plot summary, author biography, discussion questions and read-alikes. After looking at the NoveList entry for Whale Talk, I noticed a "Related Features" part of its entry that showed all related NoveList content dealing with the book. Learn from my mistake: when you know the title, look up the main entry instead of wasting your time searching through the lists.

For a fun activity, click on the "YA Fiction Checklist" tab on the right side of the homepage. On the next page, you can download a checklist of YA authors and titles, compiled by that Adult Reading Round Table, which will let you test your knowledge of authors in YA genres. The checklist allows you to find out if there are certain genres where you need to increase your knowledge (or you can simply use it as a cheat sheet if a patron comes up to you and asks for a sports novel). The list from 2002, so it's not the most current, but still features a number of well known authors and books.

They do have some articles, but they're really just glorified reading lists, nor are they frequently added to the site (only one article in each of 2007 and 2008). Other than this, I was impressed by the scope and quality of YA content on NoveList.

The ALAN Parsons Project

While not a library journal, the ALAN Review (only available online through UWO) is devoted entirely to young adult literature, albeit primarily meant for the teaching profession. ALAN, or the Assembly on Literature for Adolescents, is part of the National Council for Teachers of English (NCTE) in the United States. A lot of the content is relevant to our discussions on YA materials, so I thought it would be worthwhile to examine the journal a little further.

Looking through the two most recent issues, I was initially pleased by the number of articles aimed at pointing readers towards materials meant for marginalized teen groups. Out of two issues, three articles were about LGBT content and one was concerned with finding quality texts that dealt fairly and honestly with the issues faced by teen mothers. It should be the duty of professional journals to raise awareness of these issues and texts, which is exactly what the ALAN Review is doing. Even with some of the articles being slanted towards the use of these books in the classroom, there is still information that YA librarians can take away, even if it is just a list of titles that may appeal to a certain demographic.

The article "Creating a Space for YAL with LGBT Content in Our Personal Reading: Creating a Place for LGBT Students in Our Classrooms" (vol. 35, iss. 3) may not sound relevant, but it addresses many of the same questions that librarians have. How do we deal with parental pressure or other forces? What responsibilities do we have to various groups of people? By seeing how educators deal with some of the same problems that librarians do, perhaps their solutions will become ours as well.

Another article that stuck out to me was "Where the Girls Are" (vol. 35, iss. 3), a comment on the author Naomi Wolf's attack against the Gossip Girls and A-List series. My personal hatred of Gossip Girl aside (I hate it for no other fact than that they are rich and live in New York. I prefer the more romantic starving artist view of New York as seen in Flight of the Conchords. But I digress), I thought the article made a valid point that we should not automatically assume these books, which emphasize such nasty things as rampant consumerism and sexual voraciousness (or so I've heard), are forever warping the minds of young women. Assuming what a reader gets out of a book is a dangerous approach to dealing with materials. Instead of trying to sway readers away from those series, we must think about how society has manufactured the tastes of teenagers and make sure they have the resources to be able to make informed decisions.

One negative aspect to the ALAN review is that the book reviews are pretty much filler. They sometimes only contain plot synopsis, often make no comments as to whom the book would appeal to and end with the standard amount of glowing praise. A disappointing side to an otherwise wonderful journal.

Strange Fruit (Or, A Book Display For Whale Talk

Chris Crutcher's Whale Talk is a challenging book. As we debated between creating a display or writing a booktalk, part of our process was knowing what to talk about in a book that contained two plots that addressed very different issues. On one hand, the story was about T.J. Jones' quest to form a swim team to get athletic jackets for a bunch of his high school misfits. The other plot dealt with T.J.'s life as a person of mixed-race in a very white town with some very racist citizens.

Trying to deal with both plots in a booktalk would have been too confusing. We ultimately eliminated the booktalk route because we thought no one would want to read the book after being hearing what would no doubt be a thoroughly depressing booktalk (Whale Talk involves many instances of child abuse, the death of a young child and a brain damaged teenager who gets picked on by students and teachers. And that's just a taste.) We decided to do a display of other materials that deal with issues of race over the theme of outsiders because racially motivated storyline had a greater impact for all of us when we were reading the book.

Taking a cue from Hello, Groin, our display would consist of a human face divided to racial sections (do not ask how exactly this would be done, as we did not discuss the practicalities). Materials would then be displayed that dealt with issues of race and would point to the appropriate section of the face. These would not necessarily be items specifically for teens, partially because we couldn't brainstorm a lot of YA books that dealt with race. Some possible materials could be: American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, Beloved by Toni Morrison, The Hurricane directed by Norman Jewison, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie and Green Grass, Running Water by Thomas King. We also would want the display to have strong Canadian component that could either support or question the idea of Canada as a multicultural country.

There was also talk of pulling quotes from Whale Talk, with this one from the first page fitting in quite well: "The facts. I'm black. And Japanese. And white. Politically correct would be African-American, Japanese-American and what? Northern European-American?" This quote not only summarizes T.J.'s struggles of figuring out who he is, but also works with the visual design of our display.

-Kayleigh, Lauren, Meghan and Mike

Teen Graphic Novels

To go along with my presentation, here is an annotated list of recommend graphic novels for teens. The list has been split into two, the first half being graphic novels I think should be classified as teen materials, the second half consisting of adult graphic novels that might appeal to some teens.

This list is not meant to be comprehensive. It is reflective of my graphic novel reading habits, so I invite everyone to put their teen graphic novel picks in the comments.

* = available at the London Public Library

Teen Graphic Novels

*Abadzis, Nick - Laika

Abadzis tells the story of the first dog to go into space as part of the USSR's Sputnik program.

Abouet, Marguerite - Aya and Aya of Yop City

Both books look into the lives of Aya and her friends, Adjoua and Bintou, as they grow up in the Ivory Coast during the 1970s.

*Arnoldi, Katherine - The Amazing "True" Story of a Teenage Single Mom

Arnoldi recounts her personal struggles of being a teenage mother while not giving up on her dream of going to university.

*Brown, Chester - I Never Liked You

Originally published in 1994, I Never Liked You finds Brown looking back through his adolescence, telling of the girl he liked and the one who liked him.

*Clowes, Daniel - Ghost World

The odd friendship of Enid and Rebecca becomes fraught as they deal with the pressures of life after high school.

*Kim, Derek Kirk - Good as Lily

For her 18th birthday, Grace gets visited by her past and future selves as she struggles to grow up and find her place in life.

*Lat - Kampung Boy and Town Boy

Lat's wonderful tales of growing up and causing mischief in 1950s and 60s Malaysia manage to be both humourous and endearing. While the location is foreign, the stories have a universal quality, aided by Lat's wonderful artwork.

O'Malley, Bryan Lee - Scott Pilgrim (series)

Scott Pilgrim must defeat the seven evil ex-boyfriends of Ramona Flowers, while also playing bass in Sex Bob-omb. Soon to be a major motion picture starring Michael Cera.

O'Malley, Bryan Lee - Lost at Sea

Raleigh just left the love of her life in California and is travelling back home with three people from her high school that she barely knows. To make things worse, she thinks her soul is in a cat.

*Rabagliati, Michel - Paul Has a Summer Job

Fresh from quitting high school, Paul becomes a summer camp councillor, falls in love and learns important life lessons. Anything by Rabagliati deserves reading, but not all would appeal to teens.

*Smith, Jeff - Bone (series)

A comic classic, the Bone series tells of the travels of Fone Bone, Phoney Bone and Smiley Bone as they try to get back to Boneville. Can appeal to all ages, from children to adults.

*Tamaki, Mariko - Skim

Kimberly, aka "Skim," is an angsty teen who falls in love with her English teacher, Ms. Archer. Struggling to find her place in the world, she gets fascinated by everything Wicca, as well as Katie, who is also dealing with her own issues.

*Yang, Gene Luen - American Born Chinese

Winner of the 2007 Michael L. Printz award for excellence in young adult literature, American Born Chinese blends three seemingly disparate stories that deal with the themes of race and self-identification.

Adult Graphic Novels For Teens


*Bechdel, Alison - Fun Home

Fun Home weaves around the life of Bechdel as she deals with the death (or should I say suicide?) of her closeted father, at the same time that she is coming into terms with her own homosexuality. Seeking answers and closure, she evaluates her relationship with her father through this new framework.


*Burns, Charles - Black Hole

Told in stark black-and-white, Black Hole takes places in the 1970s and is about an STD that ravages a high school, mutating the bodies of those infected.

Delisle, Guy - Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea

A 2006 YALSA pick, this graphic novel is an account of Delisle's time in North Korea while overseeing a French animation project that has been outsourced. Caught off from the outside world, Delisle tries to understand the mind frame of his North Korean guides. His other works, Shenzhen: A Travelogue From China and The Burma Chronicles, are also excellent reads.

*Lemire, Jeff - Essex County, vol. 1: Tales From the Farm

10 year-old Lester is living with his uncle after the death of his mother. He escapes to a fantasy world with the help of an ex-hockey player who was never the same after one big hit.

*Miller, Frank - Batman: The Dark Knight Returns

Miller's Dark Knight reinvigorated the Batman franchise (and, arguably, comics themselves), creating a dark, menacing caped crusader.

*Moore, Alan - Watchmen

Who watches the Watchmen? When most superheroes have retired, who will save the world from nuclear war? Moore's tale of morality and justice still is revered as one of the greatest graphic novels ever and its political warnings still ring true.

*Spiegelman, Art - Maus (2 vol.)

Winner of the 1992 Pulitzer Prize, Maus is a stunning retelling of the Holocaust as experienced by Spiegelman's father, where the Jews are mice and the Germans are cats. As he writes Maus, Spiegelman includes his present-day relationship with his father, looking at how the time in concentration camps has affected his father and, in turn, their relationship.