This is my favorite part of the main bulletin board. |
George and Abraham certainly were not fashionistas. But I've done what I can.
Don't ask me why David Sedaris is thrown in with the rest of these things. I think one of our Library assistants suggested it, using the logic that Sedaris has that new book about squirrels and chipmunks, and Squirrel Day was on January 21st. But then I just left him up there and stuck him with the bunnies for Year of the Rabbit. I don't think he'd mind.
The main bulletin board in all its February hideousness. |
Having had a very recent conversation with a student about gay issues, in particular how tough dating/romance can be for gay teens, I thought it would be nice to make sure the Library was INCLUSIVE in its representation of Valentine's Day. I spotlighted 2 books from our collection for each orientation:
The God Box by Alex Sanchez
Icarus In Flight by Hayden Thorne
GIRL + BOY:
I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder
Forever by Judy Blume
GIRL + GIRL:
Annie On My Mind by Nancy Garden
Keeping You a Secret by Julie Anne Peters
Many of the kids have definitely noticed the display, especially the "Boy + boy" part. Most reactions have been very positive, but the first day I put the display up one of the boys made a point to recoil and act freaked out, saying, "Boy plus boy? Girl plus girl? Wow, that's WEIRD..."
I said, "What's 'weird' about it?" and looked him right in the eye, waiting to see what he'd say. Another student standing nearby piped up, "Yeah, what's WEIRD about it?" which I thought was cool. The boy stammered, "Nothing! Nothing's weird about it. Nevermind..."
I thought to myself, That's right, bitch.
(Please ignore the unsightly stack of papers to be recycled at the bottom right) |
I don't think I could make it through a 10-book series now. I've read some fantasy/sci-fi series as an adult that stretched to 5 books, and that seems like an accomplishment. But these are smaller, teen-level books, so I guess it's different. When I was still in elementary school I'd read all the Narnia books, all the Prydain Chronicles, and all 14 original Oz books by L. Frank Baum.
So anyway, there's February. The end.