Where to start with this one? This is going to be more of a
stream of consciousness post than my previous posts, simply because I have so
much going on in my head and no real way of organizing it. I apologize in
advance.
Now perhaps it is because I knew I was going to teach this
book, but I really enjoyed this novel. “Enjoyed” isn’t the right word, “enjoyed”
implies that I found pleasure in it for pleasure’s sake. Don’t get me wrong, I
did find myself smiling from time to time when reading, but the real joy I
obtained from this novel was looking at it from the lens of how I would teach
it. I really wish I could teach this work, chapter by chapter rather than
simply pushing it into one lesson. There is so much I want to talk about, so
many lines to dissect and reassemble, so many themes to dive into, so many analogies
to interpret! I want to rip this book apart, chapter by chapter, line by line,
word by word, and reconstruct it. There is so much here that I’m just overwhelmed.
I need more time with this one, I need to read it again, and then again. I need
to write notes in the margins, I need to spend an hour or so thinking about
what “We are not the same,” or “leave it at the door” could mean and what
ramifications those ideologies could have. This work just feels like its
dripping with meaning, and I’ve only been able to squeeze it once.
The characters are great. Not only do I feel like both of
the many characters are real teenagers, with their language, their topics for discussion,
and their lives, but the way in which they deal with the tough issues of the
work seem very authentic as well. Additionally, I think all the characters
represent certain types of people in the real world. Whether it’s the political
activist, the silent bystander, the protective parent, or a collection of other
personality types, I feel as if this work reflects back on us in the real world
very well.
Now the work touches on a lot of big issues: police
brutality, race, bystander mentality, religion, the uncertainty of the future, doing
what is right vs. easy, etc. I think these are all very important issues that
teens can not only relate to, but should also become very aware of. This isn’t
an easy book to read, and it shouldn’t be. It makes you feel uncomfortable. It
makes you think and rethink your position on issues that are not always easy to
talk about. This is a hard book, but a necessary one. It is relevant to teenager’s
lives in the most difficult way. Welcome to the real world kiddos.
So yeah, I really liked this novel, but I liked it because I
want to teach it. I want to pick it apart, and come to understand it better,
but I also want the challenge of making students confront this work. It is not
an easy book to teach, in many ways it is a minefield of sensitivity and deeply
held convictions. This work is dangerous, and it is I for that very reason that
I love it so much. I want to push the envelope, I want to skate the line.
I’m now going to go on a lengthy and likely unnecessary rant.
I’m kind of a space nerd. Now I say this because there is this movie, based on
true event, that I really love, called The
Right Stuff, and it’s about the Mercury astronauts. Long story short, all
these astronauts were test pilots, insanely talented (and perhaps stupid) adrenaline
junkies that pushed the limits of what their aircraft and their own bodies
could handle. They had a knack for this stuff, a talent that other people didn’t
possess, a skill that allowed them to push the boundaries a little further than
anyone else: they had the right stuff.
That’s what I want to do, not with planes or rockets, but with my teaching. I
want to see if I can push those boundaries: see if I have the right stuff. This
book allows me to do that.
Anyway, I apologize for my ranting, time to wrap this up. I
have only one complaint with the novel: it’s a little obvious sometimes. There
were a couple of moments where I went, “No don’t explain how it’s like racism,
we already understand!” You can leave some things unsaid. It’s like how
explaining a joke will never make it funnier. This is my only complaint and the
only reason I am giving the work a flat A instead of an A+.
This was a good one. This one’s going to stick.
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