.It's the new year already?.

 I can't quite believe how long it's been since I've written on here.  The last post tells me it was mid-September, reminding me just how fast the last few months have gone.  And I have a feeling the next few will be zipping by just as fast.

If I was on a semester schedule at school I could say this is my last semester, but since we're on quarters I'll still have one more to go after the one at present - which I'll be going in to week 3 of 10 this week (see, flying by already).  I'll be graduating in June with an M.A. in English Literature and a Certificate in Women's Studies, searching for an adjunct teaching position at a community college close by - I hope! I've decided I'm just going to take my time in finding a job instead of scrambling around panicking.  I've got a growing number of guitar lessons to see me through the summer if need be anyway.  And Scott, too, is coming up on a new and exciting stage in his Ph.D program.  He's finished with coursework and will begin studying and taking Comps this semester, on top of teaching two general option religion courses.  He'll then begin working on his dissertation with two years paid to complete it.

On January 2nd we celebrated not only two years of wonderful marriage, but two years of successful studies in programs we're both blessed to be a part of.  Graduating this June will be bittersweet for me because I'm both ready to leave and sad to be finished (although my proposal for my independent paper is due next week so about mid-March I might really be ready to get out of all this mess).  But my real reason for being sad is the people - the TAs and professors who have been supportive and helpful every step of the way.  I've met some great people through my program and I'll be sad not to be able to share all the joys and frustrations of being a grad student teaching freshman composition.  I hope and pray I'll end up in a supportive and encouraging environment as a new teacher next year, whether at a private high school or community college.

All that said, this last semester (er...next to last quarter) has started exceedingly well (much better than the growing pains I experienced last quarter).  My class of freshmen are engaged and quite talkative actually, in a good way! And the courses I'm taking, while I felt a bit out of my comfort zone at first, are going really well - "Feminist Theory: Writing the Body" and my first Comp/Rhet class "Teaching Argument: ENG 102."  I'm very excited to be creating another themed class as part of the Teaching 102 course, this time working a theme into the argumentation freshman comp class.  I've decided on Place & Heritage, specifically focusing on the Appalachian culture.  My students will explore the issues, stereotypes, and heritage connected to the place of Appalachia, reflecting on their own cultures and heritage through interviews and readings.  I'm excited to be working on this project, though it seems a bit overwhelming right now, because I have such a connection to Appalachia and I think it'll be great to explore it in the classroom.  My independent paper topic also deals with Appalachia: the cinematic narrative creating a national identity in Muriel Rukeyser's The Book of the Dead, an epic poem depicting the Gauley Bridge Mining Tragedy in West Virginia.

Well I can't end a post without reading suggestions so here's what's been on my bedside table lately (thanks mostly to my husband for giving them to me as Christmas presents):

Mudhouse Sabbath: An Invitation to Life of Spiritual Discipline by Lauren Winner - As a convert from Judaism to Christianity, Winner finds small ways we, as Christians, can connect to our Jewish heritage.

Orange is the New Black: My Year in Women's Prison by Piper Kerman - I'm not sure why but I'm always fascinated by narratives about life in prison, whether it be on TV or in books.  Kerman attended a women's college, came from a good background, but did time for helping transport drugs.

Take This Bread by Sara Miles - Miles grew up in an atheist household, despite her grandparents' involvement in mission work and social activism in the name of God.  Her memoir tells of her conversion to Christianity after a serendipitous communion experience.  Read an excerpt here.

I also just finished the first book of The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins and I can't wait to watch the movie coming out in March!  Until next time...

.bestsellers...new and old.

This past week I've been able to sit inside reading all day without feeling guilty because of the stifling heat and I've been lucky to find a few captivating books to keep my attention.

I borrowed Emma Donoghue's Room from the library and quite literally couldn't put it down.  I devoured it in two afternoons and decided to take it straight back to the library just so someone else could have the pleasure of reading it (I usually take my time to return books which is not a good habit, I know).  I checked it out because I pretty much just wanted to see what all the hype was about and it's definitely one of those books that deserves the attention it's getting, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was turned into a movie very soon!  For some readers it might be a bit morbid but I'm always up for a little challenge.  I highly recommend to anyone looking for one of those books you just can't put down and trust me, it won't take much out of your life to read but it'll stay with you for a while.

I've currently picked up Markus Zusak's The Book Thief which is an old YA Lit bestseller and was suggested to me quite a while ago.  I'm so glad I finally got around to picking it back off the shelf because it too is an interestingly original work, weaving poetry and prose in a truly accessible way for young readers, but touching on some difficult subjects and cultural commentary.  When the narrator is Death, what else would you expect, right?  I could see this being taught in a thoughtful high school classroom.

Some other titles I'm interested in checking out soon:

[I saw this one today while browsing the tables at the bookstore and thought it would probably be interesting.  I'm becoming more interested in creative nonfiction lately, especially after taking Feminist Memoir last quarter]

[The school where I teach will be using Dave Eggers' new book as its common text this year so I'll definitely be checking this out soon!]

As always, happy reading!  What have you been reading lately?

.children's books that never "grow old."

While Scott and I were browsing our local Half Price Books last night, I wandered into the Young Adult section, as I often do in bookstores, to relive old memories of reading as a young girl.  To quote my favorite movie, "You've Got Mail" (which means I'm actually quoting Nora Ephron), "When you read a book as a child, it becomes a part of your identity in a way that no other reading in your life ever does."  I really believe this quote because the stories I read as a child define who I am today, even in small ways.  I still think back with fondness on coming across "Holes" in the library, long before it was made into a movie or chosen for book awards, deciding on my own that it was a fabulous story with a wonderful message for someone like me (someone a little different).  


Since I want to be an English teacher, I want to have a small library (in more literal terms, a bookcase) filled with great reads that my students can borrow anytime they want.  A lot of times, and I remember this happening to me very often, young people get discouraged when they randomly choose a book from the library, and well, it stinks.  They might try again, and they might not.  When I was in third grade, our teacher had this same kind of small library system where we could sign out books and bring them back in for new ones.  It made us feel a little more grown-up knowing that our teacher trusted us to check them out and bring them back on our own.  It was in that class that  I discovered many beloved books like:

The Cricket in Time Square by George Seldon

Beverly Cleary's Romana and Ralph books (we even had a little mouse in the classroom named "Ralph") made recently more popular with the new movie

Roald Dahl's James in the Giant Peach, Matilda, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Twits, and George's Marvelous Medicine (my mom later introduced me to Boy, his autobiographical book of childhood, which {FUN FACT!} - is the book that Meg Ryan is reading during storytime in "You've Got Mail")

Donald Sobol's Encyclopedia Brown series

I'm smiling as I type these titles and see the familiar book covers again.  Nora Ephron is definitely correct in saying that reading as a child defines us in no other way, and it stays with us forever! Just seeing the spine of one of these familiar books takes me back into the world within.

Later, in middle school, I would discover books on my own in the library and read the suggestions for "Battle of the Books."  Although I wouldn't always participate in the "battles," I would love reading the books on the lists. Some of my favorite reads during my middle school years were:

Walk Two Moons by Mary Lou Finney

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

A View from Saturday by E.L. Kognisburg

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Kognisburg

Superfudge by Judy Bloom

Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little by E.B. White

Shiloh by Phyllis Naylor

The Best School Year Ever by Robinson

Holes by Louis Sacher

Even later, as I was getting a bit too "old" for YA books (which, what does that really mean??), I took a YA Lit class in college and discovered even more!

The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
Maximum Ride series by James Paterson

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Sarah Dessen's books

The Series of Unfortunate Events series by Daniel Handler

Spiderwick series by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black 

My love for YA Lit will never grow old even when I do.  These books are classics for readers of any age and they have the ability and mission to teach so many great life lessons!


*What are some of your favorite Young Adult books?!