Module 10 – Bone
Summary
In this is first novel of the Bone’s series three cousins find themselves kicked out of Boneville. They quickly become separated and are able to reunite once again in a thick forested full of creatures and a pretty young girl named Thorn. No one has ever heard of the Boneville cousins or of their town. However, they are being sought after by an evil cat like creature.
My Impression
The black and white graphite drawings were nearly as telling as each short phrase with in them. This helped make the story interesting and easy to follow. The characters were funny and sweet looking and you couldn’t help but want them to make it back home safely.
Library Setting
This is would be fun to use when teaching students about comic drawings and graphite pencil drawings in art class. The teacher could pass around the book and other graphic novels like it for students to see different types. After discussing the design style, they could make a short story using their own box collection comics using graphite pencils.
Reviews
When greedy Phoney Bone is run out of town, his cousins, Fone and Smiley, join him. Fone makes friends with a country girl, her no-nonsense gran'ma, and a dragon; Phoney must contend with ferocious rat creatures who are led by a mysterious "hooded one" and who want Phoney's soul. This graphic novel (originally published in comic-book form) is slow paced but nevertheless imaginative.
(2005, Fall). Horn Book [Review of the book Bone 1]. Retrieved from http://www.titlewave.com/search?SID=5b28860e41ea06f43077b7a4522fabb7
The nine-volume Bone graphic novel series was the toast of the comics world when it was published by Smith's own Cartoon Books beginning in the early 1990s; in this first volume of Scholastic's new edition, the original b&w art has been beautifully converted into color. Smith's epic concerns three blobby creatures who have stumbled into a valley full of monsters, magic, farmers, an exiled princess and a huge, cynical dragon. The story is something like a Chuck Jones version of The Lord of the Rings: hilarious and action-packed, but rarely losing track of its darker subtext about power and evil. This volume is the most lighthearted of the bunch, though, featuring some of the wittiest writing of any children's literature in recent memory-a few of Smith's gags are so delicious that he repeated them for the rest of the series. It also introduces the Bone cast's unforgettable supporting characters: the leathery, tough-as-nails, racing-cow-breeding Gran'ma Ben; the carnivorous but quiche-loving "rat creatures"; a spunky trio of baby opossums; and Ted the Bug, whose minimalist appearance (a tiny semicircle) exemplifies Smith's gift for less-is-more cartooning. The way his clear-lined, exaggerated characters contrast with their subtle, detailed backgrounds is a product of his background in animation, and so is his mastery of camera angles and choreography. This is first-class kid lit: exciting, funny, scary and resonant enough that it will stick with readers for a long time. (Feb.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
(2005, February 7). Publishers Weekly [Review of the book Bone 1]. Retrieved from http://www.titlewave.com/search?SID=5b28860e41ea06f43077b7a4522fabb7
Module 10 – The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things
Summary
Virginia Shreves is fifteen and couldn’t feel more out of place within her family. She feels inferior next to their perfect figures and popularity. When her big brother, whom she has always idolized, is expelled from college, her world is nearly turned upside down. With her best friend living nearly 3000 miles away and her brother being accused of date rape she feels more disconnected than she ever did before. It is only then that she begins to find herself and start to truly love and value herself as the way she is and start to understand and accept her life and her family. She learns how to deal with her mother who wishes to see everything safe and happy, her father who sees beauty as something that is only skin deep, and her brother who is depressed and angry about what has happened to him. As she learns all of this, her family learns from her too. Over time their relationships strengthen and grow together.
My Impression
I enjoyed reading this story through Virginia’s eyes. The author makes the character into one that everyone can relate to in one way or another. I think this is a book that teenage girls are able to relate too. The content may have a stronger influence, but it’s realistic setting is one that most girls this age will be able to respect and relate to.
Library Setting
This could be used during a girl’s health lesson to talk about the main character’s feelings about her body image. With the main character in the story partaking in crash diets and another character in the story showing signs of bulimia, the counselor and or the health teacher could use those examples to hold a group discussion about having a healthy body image and about the effects of eating disorders.
Reviews
Gr. 7-10. Fifteen-year-old Viriginia Shreves is the blond, round, average daughter in a family of dark-haired, thin superstars. Her best friend has moved away, and she's on the fringes at her private Manhattan school. She wants a boyfriend, but she settles for Froggy Welsh, who comes over on Mondays to grope her. The story follows Virginia as she tries to lose weight, struggles with her "imperfections,"and deals with the knowledge that her idealized older brother has committed date rape. There's a lot going on here, and some important elements, such as Virginia's flirtation with self-mutilation, are passed over too quickly. But Mackler writes with such insight and humor (sometimes using strong language to make her point) that many readers will immediately identify with Virginia's longings as well as her fear and loathing. Her gradually evolving ability to stand up to her family is hard won and not always believable, but it provides a hopeful ending for those trying stand on their own two feet.
(2003, September 1). Booklist [Review of the book The Earth My Butt And Other Round Things]. Retrieved from http://www.titlewave.com/search?SID=5b28860e41ea06f43077b7a4522fabb7
"You can tell that Ani is angry, but at the same time she's also funny and strong and sassy." Though she's talking about punk folksinger Ani DiFranco, fifteen-year-old Virginia could easily be describing herself. Unfortunately, Virginia buries her anger (toward her picture-perfect but dysfunctional family) and is unable to see herself as anything but a fat girl who's kind of smart. When her brother Byron, whom she worships, is found guilty of date rape, Virginia finally begins to acknowledge what her older sister Anais has tried to tell her: that Byron and their parents are far from perfect. Virginia's transition from an insecure girl desperate for her family's approval to a confident young woman might be a little messagey, but it's believable, and she doesn't do it on her own. Support comes from her best friend, from a teacher with eating-disorder experience, from a doctor who stresses health not weight and recommends channeling anger through kick-boxing, and even from the college student her brother assaulted. Readers will cheer Virginia on when she tells her father not to comment on her weight loss ("my body [is] just not yours to discuss"); tells her brother he's "an asshole for date-raping someone"; ignores clothing advice from her appearance-obsessed mother (who recommends "strategic layers and camouflaging colors") and buys a sexy purple dress instead; and realizes that the guy she's been making out with behind closed doors actually wants to kiss her in public. Mackler does a fine job introducing girls to a very cool chick with a little meat on her bones.
(2003, Sept./Oct.). Horn Book [Review of the book The Earth My Butt And Other Round Things]. Retrieved from http://www.titlewave.com/search?SID=5b28860e41ea06f43077b7a4522fabb7
No comments:
Post a Comment