Graphic Novel(2): Will & Whit

Gulledge, L. (2013). Will & Whit. New York, NY: Amulet Books. Wilhelmina (Will) Huxstep is a seventeen year old girl that is coping with the death of her parents, as she lives with her aunt Elsie (Ella) and assists her in her antique shop. Will also copes with her dark past by ironically creating lamps (her light) from old items that she finds. She is as creative as she is terribly afraid of the dark. When Hurricane Whitney blows through their town, it leaves them without electricity. Will is devastated because with no electricity, her lamps are useless and she must now face her fears. She does so with the help of her friends, Ella and the new project of planning an art carnival. This beautifully illustrated graphic novels is intended for students in the 7^th grade and up. Will is a normal girl who has gone through a tragedy, some students may be able to relate to her experience or can rather relate to Will simply because she is a teenager with a struggle. I would suggest Page by Paige also by Laura Gulledge for further reading. I can appreciate the fact that she writes about normal, everyday teenagers and brings them to life with their own unique story. Will and Whit meets the criteria of emotional development as outlined in the text because it deals with death and how this teenager handled death initially, her coping mechanisms and how she ultimately faced her fears and was able to love.

Graphic Novel (1): Smile

Telgemeier, R. (2010). Smile. New York, NY: Scholastic. Raina is a 6^th grade girl who initially needs braces to correct an overbite. But unfortunately, before she gets them, she has a bad fall that leaves her missing her front two teeth. As she goes through ups and downs with getting them repaired and then corrected, her peers have many questions and opinions about Raina which made her very self-conscious. This in turn results in her sometimes making bad decisions and falling victim to the bad decisions of her peers. But once the braces come off when she is high school, Raina seems to have a delayed positive reaction to her “new” teeth. It is not until her friends assure her that she is “cute” with her new that her self-confidence surfaces. This is a cute tale of the misfortune this little pre-teen is having. My heart goes out to her throughout the story because I realize life can sometimes give you lemons. Students ages 8 to 12 years old may be encouraged by reading her story and relating their own experiences to Raina’s. Raina’s story does end positively which could give children hope that “this too shall pass”. Health teachers could probably use this book to begin a lesson on why it is important to take care of your teeth. The book meets the criteria for social development, as Raina struggles with a physical set back, it is affecting her socially as well. Self-awareness plays a big role in self-esteem.

The Old Dead Nuisance

Anderson, M. (2011). The Old Dead Nuisance. In Guys read thriller (Vol. 2). New York: Walden Pond Press. Paul accompanied his dad while filming a television show called “True Spook”. As they walk through the old house along with a few psychics that were assisting to “hear” from the alleged ghosts, Paul discovers that he is not moved by the assumption that there are ghost in the house, but rather he is more interested in the fortune Josiah Smitch had left behind for his sons. While left alone in a room, Paul decides to search for the fortune himself. While doing so, he encounters the ghost, Josiah who is apparently heartbroken over the way his sons had treated him before his death and he vowed never to tell anyone where he hid his fortune, including the sons. But when Paul inquires, Josiah only tells him that it’s right in front of him. Paul soon figures out where the fortune is hidden but also discovers that because of his encounter with Josiah, he too must be psychic. This story is intended for students ages 8 – 12, although I enjoyed this short story thoroughly. To me, this was a page turner as I anticipated what would happen next. English teachers can use this story as a good example of how a short story is written. The book meets the criteria of mental development being that Paul had to comprehend what was happening to him, then decide on how he would handle it.

 

The Chicken Doesn't Skate

Korman, G. (1996). The Chicken Doesn’t Skate. New York, NY: Scholastic Press.
Milo Neal is the son of a famous scientist from St. Martin, Minnesota. Milo and his mother recently move back to St. Martin following his parent’s divorce. He now attends South Middle School where the students are preparing for a science fair. Milo comes up with an exciting idea for his project: The Complete Life Cycle of a Link in the Food Chain – the chicken would be the subject. When Milo brings a baby chick to school, the children fall in love with it and name it Henrietta, against Milo’s wishes. The school’s hockey team even feels that the chicken is a good luck charm. But when they all find out that Milo plans to kill their new pet, to cook and serve it to the science fair judges, the classmates kidnap the chicken and hide her. In the end, with the help of his dad, Milo realizes that he doesn’t need to kill the chicken in order to prove his point. When Henrietta returns to him, she lays an egg, thus proving his theory of the life cycle. This story was intended for students in grades 3^rd  – 7^th. It is very humorous and children will love it. They would also probably love This Can’t Be Happening in McDonald Hall! By G. Korman. The book meets the criteria of social development as the characters experience real situations and have reactions that children can relate to throughout the story.

 

Fake Mustache

Angleberger, T. (2012). Fake Mustache. New York, NY: Abrams Books. Lenny Flem, Jr. is a regular 7^th grader, living a normal life with his parents who really enjoy watching a certain television program. Lenny’s best friend Casper is intent on disguising himself. He buys a suit and an expensive fake mustache that aids him in pulling off a series of robberies and other crimes. Casper’s ultimate plan is to take over the world by stealing the presidential election. Lenny is the only person who knows of Casper’s evil plans and is determined to stop Casper with the help of Jodie O’Rodeo, a teen idol that stars on her own television show. I really enjoyed this story. It is humorous and silly. I believe it is most appropriate however for students in the 3^rd to 7^th grades. Students will enjoy laughing at the antics and experiences of Lenny and Casper. Other, similar readings that I would suggest are Adventures of Beanboy by Lisa Harkrader and Stonewall Hinkleman and the Battle of Bull Run by Tom Angleberger. Both of these books have comical themes with adolescent boys as main characters, who must somehow make a great “save”. The book meets the criteria of physical development. In the story, Lenny’s friend Casper wants look older – so much so that he spends $400 that was given to him as a gift on a “manly” looking suit and a fake mustache to look the part of an older gentlemen, as most adolescent boys long for.

 

Period 8

Crutcher, C. (2013). Period 8. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books. Paul (Paulie) Baum confesses to his girlfriend Hannah that he has cheated on her. They, along with other friends including Mary (Virgin Mary) Wells, Arney Stacks and Kylie all take Period 8 together. This class is a sort of relaxed, advisory period where students talk about things that concern them. Although the break up between Paulie and Hannah had been the topic of conversation in Period 8, reasons for disappearance of Mary became a hotter topic and also the random outbursts and unusual behavior of Kylie were discussed as well. Through a series of horrific events, it was discovered that the student body president, Arney had been making deals with prominent men in the community. He would influence his young, unsuspecting female classmates to have sex with the men. Arney had even put Mary up to seducing Paulie which led to the breakup of Paulie and Hannah. Period 8 is a great book for students in grades 7 and up. I believe this book exudes the type of drama that would intrigue this age group. It’s packed with suspense and is a definite page turner. For further reading I would suggest Second Impact by David Klass. Period 8 definitely meets criteria for Kohlberg’s moral development. The initial conflict with Paulie and his girlfriend proves this when he confesses to her. And then we find out about Arney’s secrets. These experiences could help drive home the point of moral conflicts.