A Game of Thrones - George R. R. Martin (YA)
This book is the first of the a series of high fantasy novels about the fight for power. Before the story begins, there was a blood thirsty king who ruled all the land. He was a lunatic, and many of the aristocratic houses rose up to kill him. They killed everyone in his family except for his children.
This first book revolves around the interaction between three different houses after his death. The families which have way too many characters to name are interlinked in many complicated ways. In this land, the summers last forever and so do the harsh winters. The main characters are rulers of different lands and on top of their family troubles, they have to care for the people on their land and defend their territory. They are all fighting for the main throne but mostly to keep their own throne safe. The relationship between characters are very diverse and so sum it up, there is a midget, an incestuous brother and sister, who have a lunatic son. A few cruel fathers, and a magical tribe, a large bunch of rude men, ice zombies who steal babies and a dragon princess who is physically abused by her brother and a bunch of five children who grew up with dangerous wolves. There are a few murders in between.
The story plot is interesting in the way it reveals a rather dark side of human nature, and strange, convoluted relationships on top of many plots, tragedies, betrayal and treacherous journeys. I would however refrain from using the book as a text because of its epic scale, the large number of characters and relationships. I would however use snippets from the book as prose selections because the plot is highly intriguing and I imagine the lower secondary students would really enjoy it. The stories are also narrated from different points of view --the characters in the story take turns to paint their own picture of what is happening in different chapters. The students can be given different chapters to analyse and this can be used to highlight prejudices and biases in the character's way of thinking.
Speak - Laurie Halse Anderson (MOE)
Speak is about a young lady, Melinda, who is beginning her freshman year in high school. She has a secret. Over the summer, she had gone to a party with some friends and she was the one who called the police, much to the annoyance to her other friends who now dislike her. She only has one friend in school, Heather, who is a transfer student.
Heather tries to gain popularity in school, while Melinda prefers to spend her time alone in an abandoned janitor's closet. She finds solace in art class where she thinks about interpreting a tree. In the hallways, she sees the object of her secret, "IT", who is Andy Evans. She takes a while to fully understand what has been done to her. Unfortunately, "IT", does not empathize with her, instead he makes fun of her and her experience. She slowly grows more distant from school and ends up going to the mall to skip school. Her parents and guidance counselor try to step in to help by she is adamant about not speaking. It is over many months of quiet pain and silence that she finally speaks up after gaining confidence from anonymous bathroom stall wall scrawls fro other girls who also despise Andy Evans. She finally admits to herself that she was raped. This helps her to recover slowly and she integrates better into school life.
Her former best-friend, Rachel is going out with Andy Evans, and she decides to warn her, despite having her truth doubted by Rachel. Melinda also stands up for herself and denies Heather's false friendship. As the year comes to an end, Melinda is stuck in a messy situation with Andy Evans again as he corners her in the janitor's closet. However, Melinda manages to defend herself even though she was hurt and she gains the respect of the girls in the school who has also suffered the attacks or rape of Andy silently. She ends the year more confident of herself and also manages to finish her art project.
I would include this as a lit text because it is highly accessible to lower secondary students who are just beginning to grapple with their own sexuality. It is actually a serious novel dealing with the issue of rape in a very palatable manner that is suitable for young teenagers. As such, it is very beneficial to discuss this issue in the classroom. Other than rape, there are also many lessons that can deal with issues of friendship, betrayal, ostracism, and gender/sexuality. The similar setting of the high school classroom will make these lessons more contextualized and engaging.
A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini (Would not typically read)
Mariam is the scorned illegitimate daughter of a wealthy businessman, forced at age fifteen into marrying Rasheed, who grows increasingly brutal when she fails to produce a child. Eighteen years later, Rasheed takes another wife, fourteen year-old Laila, a smart and spirited girl whose only other options, after her parents are killed by rocket fire, are prostitution or starvation. Mariam and Laila become allies in a battle with Rasheed, whose violent abuse is endorsed by custom and law.
The women are dependent on fathers, husbands and especially sons, the bearing of male children being their only path to an accepted social status. Each woman in the end is forced to accept a path that will never be completely happy for them: Mariam will have to sacrifice her life to save Laila after she murders their husband while Laila, even though marrying her childhood love, must find a way to keep the sacrifice Mariam has made from not becoming an act done in vain.
This book is the first of the a series of high fantasy novels about the fight for power. Before the story begins, there was a blood thirsty king who ruled all the land. He was a lunatic, and many of the aristocratic houses rose up to kill him. They killed everyone in his family except for his children.
This first book revolves around the interaction between three different houses after his death. The families which have way too many characters to name are interlinked in many complicated ways. In this land, the summers last forever and so do the harsh winters. The main characters are rulers of different lands and on top of their family troubles, they have to care for the people on their land and defend their territory. They are all fighting for the main throne but mostly to keep their own throne safe. The relationship between characters are very diverse and so sum it up, there is a midget, an incestuous brother and sister, who have a lunatic son. A few cruel fathers, and a magical tribe, a large bunch of rude men, ice zombies who steal babies and a dragon princess who is physically abused by her brother and a bunch of five children who grew up with dangerous wolves. There are a few murders in between.
The story plot is interesting in the way it reveals a rather dark side of human nature, and strange, convoluted relationships on top of many plots, tragedies, betrayal and treacherous journeys. I would however refrain from using the book as a text because of its epic scale, the large number of characters and relationships. I would however use snippets from the book as prose selections because the plot is highly intriguing and I imagine the lower secondary students would really enjoy it. The stories are also narrated from different points of view --the characters in the story take turns to paint their own picture of what is happening in different chapters. The students can be given different chapters to analyse and this can be used to highlight prejudices and biases in the character's way of thinking.
Speak - Laurie Halse Anderson (MOE)
Speak is about a young lady, Melinda, who is beginning her freshman year in high school. She has a secret. Over the summer, she had gone to a party with some friends and she was the one who called the police, much to the annoyance to her other friends who now dislike her. She only has one friend in school, Heather, who is a transfer student.
Heather tries to gain popularity in school, while Melinda prefers to spend her time alone in an abandoned janitor's closet. She finds solace in art class where she thinks about interpreting a tree. In the hallways, she sees the object of her secret, "IT", who is Andy Evans. She takes a while to fully understand what has been done to her. Unfortunately, "IT", does not empathize with her, instead he makes fun of her and her experience. She slowly grows more distant from school and ends up going to the mall to skip school. Her parents and guidance counselor try to step in to help by she is adamant about not speaking. It is over many months of quiet pain and silence that she finally speaks up after gaining confidence from anonymous bathroom stall wall scrawls fro other girls who also despise Andy Evans. She finally admits to herself that she was raped. This helps her to recover slowly and she integrates better into school life.
Her former best-friend, Rachel is going out with Andy Evans, and she decides to warn her, despite having her truth doubted by Rachel. Melinda also stands up for herself and denies Heather's false friendship. As the year comes to an end, Melinda is stuck in a messy situation with Andy Evans again as he corners her in the janitor's closet. However, Melinda manages to defend herself even though she was hurt and she gains the respect of the girls in the school who has also suffered the attacks or rape of Andy silently. She ends the year more confident of herself and also manages to finish her art project.
I would include this as a lit text because it is highly accessible to lower secondary students who are just beginning to grapple with their own sexuality. It is actually a serious novel dealing with the issue of rape in a very palatable manner that is suitable for young teenagers. As such, it is very beneficial to discuss this issue in the classroom. Other than rape, there are also many lessons that can deal with issues of friendship, betrayal, ostracism, and gender/sexuality. The similar setting of the high school classroom will make these lessons more contextualized and engaging.
A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini (Would not typically read)
Mariam is the scorned illegitimate daughter of a wealthy businessman, forced at age fifteen into marrying Rasheed, who grows increasingly brutal when she fails to produce a child. Eighteen years later, Rasheed takes another wife, fourteen year-old Laila, a smart and spirited girl whose only other options, after her parents are killed by rocket fire, are prostitution or starvation. Mariam and Laila become allies in a battle with Rasheed, whose violent abuse is endorsed by custom and law.
The women are dependent on fathers, husbands and especially sons, the bearing of male children being their only path to an accepted social status. Each woman in the end is forced to accept a path that will never be completely happy for them: Mariam will have to sacrifice her life to save Laila after she murders their husband while Laila, even though marrying her childhood love, must find a way to keep the sacrifice Mariam has made from not becoming an act done in vain.
Admittedly, this is a book that I would not usually pick up because I find it such stories of intense suffering and abuse hard to swallow. In general I would not pick up books like this; even when I flip through its pages, every page I land on is full of agony. I don't mind painful emotions and feelings but if it's on almost every other page of the book for so many pages, I don't think I would pick it up ever again.
However, I would definitely consider using snippets of this book in class because it is a very brutal and precise depiction of the pain and suffering of a woman who is living with physical abuse. What this does is to expose students to the rampant injustice that women in the developing world experience. Students can also think about gender stereotypes and polygamy.
Hi Debra, Game of Thrones is definitely interesting for its narrative style and you can talk about multiple points of view. It is also interesting for description of setting I think.
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