Monthly Archives: April 2011

Why Not All Kids Need to Read To Kill a Mockingbird

Last week I talked about the wonderful novel Last Night I Sang to the Monster by Benjamin Alire Saenz, but I cautioned that the book might not be appropriate for some teens. This is a point that I’ve made before in … Continue reading

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Maybe God Wrote “Change”: Review of Last Night I Sang to the Monster by Benjamin Alire Saenz

So I have another wonderful book to share with you all. I am probably the last one to read Last Night I Sang to the Monster by Benjamin Alire Saenz–another Cinco Puntos Press book–but it was one of the most powerful books … Continue reading

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Superheroes to the Rescue: Graphic Novels Can Bridge Literacy Gaps

Hey y’all, sorry for the week-long hiatus. Life, I’m telling ya! Anyway, I wanted to post about graphic novels (and not just because I’m a secret Captain Underpants fan.) When I was at Vermont College of Fine Arts, I wrote … Continue reading

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Picture Books with Unconventional Families

We generated this list on my grad school’s private forum, and I thought it might be interesting to you all. It’s picture books that don’t just have the mother-father-sibling-dog family relationships. The Family Book by Todd Parr Olivia by Ian … Continue reading

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Love and Security: A Lesson from Cats

I only started studying the affects of childhood abuse and neglect on psychology and development about a year ago. Since then, I’ve realized I can see the signs of abuse and neglect everywhere. It’s actually kind of unsettling. Sometimes people … Continue reading

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Growth through Strife: Review of This Thing Called the Future by J.L. Powers

The second of three books from Cinco Puntos Press that I want to feature,  This Thing Called the Future by J.L. Powers, due out next month, is a heartbreakingly honest and ultimately uplifting story of one girl coming into her own through the … Continue reading

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