5. Street Love

Myers, Walter Dean. Street Love. New York: Amistad and HarperTempest, 2006.

Annotation: Junice and Damian, put an urban twist on a classic star crossed love story that forces them both to evaluate their own lives before entangling themselves into passion.

Justification For Rejection: While "Street Love" does a phenomenal job with its language, poetry and flow the content didn't seem to stick. Instead of the traditional format for a novel Walter Dean Meyers headlines each section or chapter and sets up in verse/poetry format. It wasn't the style that didn't stick, but the quick and fluid story lines that never really panned out.

Each chapter focuses on a scene or character divulging the reader with various information and their inner thoughts. It was interesting to read this style and I was surprised to see how fast the reading became, but the conflict and exposition seemed to be left out. While we get little time to reflect on each characters woes and different backgrounds, it didn't seem to be enough. Maybe reading the book a second time would help, but each chapter started reading like a bunch of words. It was very poetic and again I applaud the style but it felt like a collection of spoken word poems.

I will admit the authenticity was believable, as it follows these characters throughout Harlem and "the street." My original plan for this weeks reading was the book "Monster" by Walter Dean Myers, after reading about it in one of the lectures but then changed my mind when I paged through some of his other selections. I didn't blindly pick "Street Love" because of the title but had randomly read some beautiful passages within it.

After reading the entire thing I will admit that Meyers has a knack for beautiful language and details even within the different format presented. A reason I didn't nominate this book was specifically because of the quote (in evaluating multi-cultural literature) "the best multicultural work creates rich characters with dimension, who, through expert crafting immerse the reader in their experience and tap into something deeply universal."

Meyers didn't leave time for us (the reader) to gain a personal connection with our main characters. Everything was too neatly presented as "these are the characters who are demeaning to women so they are bad," and "this is the passionate polite character who is nice so you should like him." It was almost too easy to pick and choose the protagonist and antagonist. I don't know if it was on purpose but I feel that YA readers would feel belittled even though it contains adult situations.

In the end, I feel my decision was the right one, even when I teetered back and forth. There are parts of the book I found beautiful and perfectly appropriate but the fast paced verse format pushed the story too fast. It left too many questions and little interest into these characters passion for one another. "Street Love" literally read like an outline where a boy and girl are introduced, fall in love, and run away together while dealing with their complicated friends and family, the end.

4. It's Complicated: The American Teenager

Bowman, Robin. It's Complicated: The American Teenager. New york: Umbrage Editions Book, 2007.

Annotation: The truth and voice of various teens all over America is captured within these brief interviews and raw photographs.

Justification for Nomination: While the book may seem like your average coffee table book filled with artistic black and white photos and brief answers to the authors questions, it acts as so much more. Photographer and interviewer Robin Bowman includes a two page "artist statement" explaining the depths in which this creative book took form. Driving across country, she approached various teens within their comfort zones and took on the task of asking a number of raw and honest questions involving drug abuse, sexuality, political views, dreams and so much more.

The real beauty of this book lies in the honest and sometimes hard to read answers. She covers every type of American teen, gender, orientation, race and disabled teen imaginable putting together a unique finished product . She also explains in her "statement" the artistic expression she wanted to express by capturing the modern teens voice. Bowman, had no agenda and didn't try pushing buttons. All proofs were finalized by the teens themselves and the quotes were taking directly from a recording she had with each teen revealing intimate details from each persons life.

My first reaction was that this was a photography book of unique teenagers and their wild stories, but as you read on you begin to feel sympathy and see these pictures as the human beings they are. Not only does this book have real personality that teens can identify with, but also shows the opinions of numerous peers. Again, it doesn't hold an agenda and the interviewees indistinctly react to touchy topics. A major theme I pulled from each entry is the age old topic of "don't judge a book by its cover." We see so many different faces and while some seem to play into particular stereotypes one may have, most of them might surprise you.

3. The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

Chbosky, Stephen. The Perks Of Being A Wallflower. New York: Pocket Books, 1999.

Annotation:

Charlie a passive high school student in the 90's, reveals intimate details and highlights of his life through personal letters written to an anonymous reader.

Justification For Rejection:

Written in a contemporary style, each page consisted of numerous entry dates and a letter format similar to a diary/journal or a "dear John" letter. I thought the different format would be interesting and would make the experience more intimate but unfortunately it came off as a lot of boring babel and pointless sensory details.

If I had to pick a positive thing from this book it would be the 90's atmosphere and all the sensory details. The author also did a good job of capturing the voice of a freshman in high school and the awkward experiences one has with love, sex, puberty and social anxieties. Unfortunately it was too jumbled and scattered within each page to make anything interesting. Each letter seemed like a mini-story that would reveal little or no information that pushed the story forward. It was literally like a journal recalling past events that didn't flow naturally or transition well. Story lines became untangled but it took too long for any sort of hook to present itself. The premise and set up/back story of each character was interesting but the jumping around found it hard to focus.

The author of this book graduated with a film degree and you can definitely tell that he had more experience with films because while the imagery was strong, the story was sort of a mess. This book was similar to reading a screenplay except if it were one it would have had too much voice over and dialogue. The particular letters that re-told actual dialogue or scenes from the protagonist Charlie's past felt particularly UN-natural and pulled you immediately in and out of this persons world like a rag doll.

For the most part, I had the best expectations and enthusiasm for this story and thought it brought up an interesting point of view (first) but the way it was presented and weaved in and out, made it lose it's relevance and interest.

2. The Watchmen

Moore, Alan and David Gibbons. The Watchmen. New York: DC Comics, 1986.

Annotation: The fate of the world rests in the hands of retired superheroes who have longed since hidden their identities due to a law outlawing vigilante superhero organizations.

Justification For Nomination: While your first instincts find these caped crusaders sort of boring, each issue is dedicated to revealing their humanity and troubled past. Some rise, while others fall to get where they are, but they all have one thing in common. They're ordinary superheroes who work with their intelligence or strength.

Unlike other stories like X-men or The Incredible Hulk, this collective group were either raised into a league or simply joined it. They all have their own identities, but the interesting fact is that there is only one character with abnormal abilities.

Living in a world where you just don't feel you fit in is an identifiable theme, but some of the content may be too graphic for young adults.

Sex, nudity and violence are contained in this story but play out like any R-rated or even PG-13 superhero film. I'd compare it to Frank Millers "Sin City" but this story doesn't revolve around an unusual futuristic world. The setting takes place in an ordinary world during the 80's and covers the contemporary figures and past events as it would if it were placed in 2009.

The artwork and colors are beautifully illustrated by Dave Gibbons/John Higgins and simulate real events like a storyboard or well crafted film. Even characters drawn into a scene that are fully designed in the background start to catch your eye and act as subtle hints that they will somehow play into the story later.

The dialogue is fairly simple to read and at times feels a little cluttered, but isn't anything too overwhelming. Your eyes naturally follow the blocking and speech bubbles and the flows of each characters story catches your attention.

My only critique for the series is that there is a sub-plot that cuts away from the main storyline. It acts as a mini-story that a character in the book is reading about and doesn't prove much interest or necessity to the overall theme or plot. It sort of unifies two characters but took me away from everything else and proved to be more of a nuisance than anything.

Overall, I enjoyed this piece and loved the realistic intermingling conflict of superhero deaths, hate, conspiracy, peace and love around the world. It leaves you wonder "What would the world be like without heroes in the world?"