Books That Creeped Me Out When I Was Young

I was a weird child (which you probably already know if you've read this post or this post), and today we're going to look at yet another weird part of my childhood behaviour...

So I've been working in a library recently and reorganizing the picture book shelves made me think of the books I read as a kid, in particular the books and fictional things that kind of creeped me out. If you didn't need yet another reason to think I'm weird, then just look at some of the things I was creeped out by:

 

1. The 19th story of Wayside school,  the one that doesn't exist

2. Heffalumps

 

3. Nova's Ark by David Kirk - For some reason, I thought the pictures in this book were fascinating but also kind of scary.

 

4. Time Flies by Eric Rohmann - In my opinion, that cover is still scary.

5. The wicked thought in The Red Racer by Audrey Wood - that big green monster struck fear in my young heart, I tell you.

 

 

I know these things aren't really that scary, but they genuinely did scare me when I was younger.  These fictional things and books actually made my insides twist and my heart speed up. (This is also why I don't read horrors or thrillers or anything, haha). Now, I kind of think it's cool how much of an emotional response these books got out of me, but it also brings up another point: every reader has different levels of what they can handle.

A lot of really intense books that you probably think are fluff would have terrified me if I would've read them even in middle school. I wasn't ready to read those kinds of books until now or a few years ago. But that's OK, because everyone is different and everyone reads differently and takes things in differently. Evidently I get taken in very easily by books and their fictional worlds, so they have, and have had throughout the years, a much stronger effect on me than other people.

Not every 13-year-old (or any age) is going to be able to handle all the same books that every other 13-year-old can handle. That's kind of why I think rating books is a weird idea. People need to "rate" books according to their own personal needs, and not make a general statement that everyone should follow.

What do you think? What books creeped you out when you were young?

Cliff-hanger Endings: Are They Really That Bad?

Hey guys! In order to make up for my silence over the last while, I thought I'd just give you a short update on what's going on, and then I'll start my post. So, I'm actually in the midst of exams right now so I am taking lots of time studying and writing those (normally my exams would be in June, but because of the kind of courses I'm taking, they're in May). I'm also getting ready for wrapping up school completely and graduating high school in only twoish months! Eek. :D Let's see... I'm also trying to prepare a short story to enter in a local writing contest. I hope to start some fun new blog stuff after I'm done more of my exams, so you have that to look forward to. I have a few ideas up my sleeve. ;)

Anyway, I wanted to talk about endings. The two books that my English class most recently read were A Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence and A Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. Neither of them had very satisfying endings. A Stone Angel ends with the two words "And then..." and that's where the novel ends. The story ending of A Handmaid's Tale ends with the main character being taken away, and whether to safety or to her death the reader doesn't know. Then the last line of the epilogue-like ending is a university professor asking his students "Are there are any questions?" which is funny because, um, YES.

A lot of the students in my class complained loudly about how these endings were horrible, you don't get to find out anything, it wasn't wrapped up nicely at all, etc, etc. Then they write the entire book off as awful because you don't get to find out anything - and what's the point of reading a book that doesn't answer any questions it raises?

Well, that's a discussion for another day. But are these somewhat cliff-hanger endings really that bad? I feel like they are very effective, and they make you think. That is what I like about these endings - they force you to think. If there is anything that makes me love a book, it is that it makes me think. That's part of the reason why I loved Jellicoe Road so much. The intertwined and complicated plots required a whole lot of thinking to figure them out.

I think this is also why those "20 years later" epilogues sometimes really bug me, such as the one in Harry Potter or Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles. I feel like they shut down any opportunity for the reader's mind to wander and wonder further about the characters and story. Basically, it shut downs any opportunity for the reader to think about the book.

Yes, endings need to wrap up loose ends and whatnot. But I think they also need to be left at least somewhat open-ended to allow the reader to think and wonder.

So, I want to know what you think about all this... Do you like books that make you think? Do you like endings that wrap up completely, or that are left open? What books have made you think the most?

Banned Books Week: Spot The Pattern

It's banned book week this week, and here at I Am Writer Hear Me Roar, we are going to play a game called "spot the pattern". I'm sure you have played a version of this in your grade school math classes. You know, you're given the numbers 2 4 6 8 and you have to figure out the pattern (it goes up by multiples of [so a friend pointed this out to me: the numbers actually don't go up by mutliples of two... I just said the wrong word, but you probably got what I meant... and believe me, I actually can do math! I got like, a 90 in math last year!] two! What!?).

Except instead of numbers, we'll use books (because numbers scare us writerly people, right?)

Book #1: To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Source

Harper Lee grew up in a society where black men were thought of as predators; where the only men in the jury were white men so black men had no chance of being acquitted; where things happened like nine teenage boys being accused of rape.

To Kill A Mockingbird is about a mishievous tomboy Scout and her adventures until her and her friends watch a black men getting tried in a court case after being accused, wrongly, of raping a white woman.

To Kill A Mockingbird brings to light the very large issue of racism against black people that was present in the 1930s (both the time Harper Lee grew up in and the time the book is set in) and the 1960s (the time when the book was published).

To Kill A Mockingbird has been banned or challenged at various schools for using swear words, racial slurs, and for general racism. (Just an interesting sidenote, though: it's been said that To Kill A Mockingbird is the one book other than the Bible that has changed people the most... hm....)

Book #2: Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

Source

Huck Finn was first published in England in 1884, then in the U.S. in 1885. The book itself takes place sometime between 1835 and 1845. The book follows Huck as he goes on a journey with a black slave Jim, and realizes that Jim is a genuinely nice guy and not like society makes out black people to be.

Twain uses this book to criticize and challenge the racist American society of the time and the perception of black people, specifically the view that black people weren't human and didn't have feelings.

Source

Huck Finn has also been challenged and banned, for word choice (swears and racial slurs) and the line "he not only itched but scratched." It is

one of the most challenged/banned books of all time.

Book #3: The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

S.E. Hinton wrote The Outsiders when she was 16, inspired and irked by the gang rivalry at her own school. The book itself follows two groups who are separated by their social status in high school. It was published in 1967.

The Outsiders has been banned/challenged for gang violence, drug and alcohol abuse, slang language, and family dysfunction.

Book #4: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Source

Our society today is obsessed with entertainment and reality TV. There are also wars, all over the world, all the time. The Hunger Games is about a dystopian society where a reality show-like event is held each year, where children enter an arena and kill each other while the rest of the world watches on live TV for their own entertainment.

When talking about where the idea came from for The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins says "one night, I was lying in bed, and I was channel surfing between reality TV programs and actual war coverage. On one channel, there's a group of young people competing for I don't even know; and on the next, there's a group of young people fighting in an actual war. I was really tired, and the lines between these stories started to blur in a very unsettling way."

The Hunger Games has been challenged/banned, mostly for violence.

Do you see the pattern?

I hope you do. If you don't, I want you to take a second look at all those books - all those books that deal with and bring to light issues of their day, critiquing everything that is wrong with that -our- society. I do not understand why people are banning these books when they have such, such important things to say.

I understand that some books aren't for everyone, I really do. But the thing that bugs me is that these people who are challenging these books, they are challenging them for little things. They are not looking at the big picture, of what the message of these books is, of what they are supposed to mean! These book-challengers are missing the big picture, are missing the fact that these books take all that crazy stuff from reality.

So. What do you think? Should books be banned? Do you agree with me - are these book-banners missing the big picture? Can you think of any other banned books that might deal with society's issues? (Oh, I already thought of another one... The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian by Sherman Alexie...) What are your thoughts on banned books?

SOURCES (brace yourself):

(all other sources are linked to in the text/caption)

To Kill A Mockingbird:

ttp://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=bbwlinks&Template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=136590

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/To_kill_a_mockingbird

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harper_Lee

Huck Finn:

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huckleberry_Finn

http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1842832_1842838_1844945,00.html  (ok so this article says that there's a movie version of Huck Finn where the black slave is played by an actor who is not black to avoid controversy...!?!?!?)

The Outsiders:

http://world.edu/worldedu_posts/banned-books-awareness-outsiders/

www.sehinton.com

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S.E._Hinton

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Outsiders_(novel)

The Hunger Games:

http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6590063.html (where I got the quote from)

http://swardkehoe.blogspot.com/2011/09/banned-books-week-has-begun.html (what an intelligent reader has to say about The Hunger Games)

http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/bannedbooksweek/ideasandresources/free_downloads/2011banned.pdf

Teen Writers Summer Blogfest: Stuff to Know About Your Teen Readers

Hey everyone! I'm still in the beautiful not-too-hot city of Calgary (Alberta, Canada). We walked around the zoo today for four hours, and then we went to the opening ceremony for my brother's soccer tournament (which is the reason we're in Calgary). There is lots of cowboy hats everywhere, because of the stampede. Anyway, apparently in my last post I worded a sentence oddly and accidentally called everyone in my family junk food.

----

So today is the last day of the awesometastic Teen Writers blogfest hosted by Brittany who had the awesome idea in the first place. It's been super cool, and I've uh... met (?? well, I haven't met them but I've found lots of new blogs) lots of cool new bloggers. I also have quite a few more followers, so hi, followers! Say hi! I love comments and e-mails from people, so feel free to do that.

WELL. Today's day is Ask-the-Teens day, where YA writers, authors and bloggers ask us teens things about what we really think about reading. And I have to say, the questions the question-askers came up with are, well, really REALLY good questions. I can tell because as I was reading them the first time, I was already thinking up long, in-depth lengthy answers. :) Oh, and I've also tried to get some answers out of my brother for some of the questions, to get another teen's opinion.

From Jess:

1. Middle grade novels are defined as books for the 8-12 age range. Do teens still read middle grade fiction as they get older (for example, Harry Potter is an example of middle grade that's read by teens and adults) or are they naturally attracted to books with older themes and characters? Is it uncool to still read middle grade as you enter your teens?


I love YA, but I absolutely adore middle grade. For me, there is just something refreshing and fun about middle-grade. I also find the characters more interesting sometimes, more fun or quirky. And a quote from my brother: "Uh, I don't really pay attention to age." The thing is, every teen is different. There may be some teens out there that only read YA, but for me, I love reading a variety of different books about characters of a variety of different ages.
2. This is arguable, but it's been said that the teen years see a decrease in boy readership. Can you mention some books that you know male teenagers seem to be attracted to? Obviously, this depends on the reader, but are there books/themes that male teens connect to more than others?

I am a girl, so I personally can't answer this question but I can tell you some things about my brother (15 years old) and I also asked some of my guy friends on Facebook about their reading habits. ;) So, the summary:

My brother doesn't read often, but that is only because he doesn't pick out books for himself. When he gets a book handed to him, he will be enraptured with it until he finishes it. I think he would read more if he learned to pick out books on his own. (You can read more about my brother's reading habits here.) Anyway, my brother loves the Artemis Fowl series by Eoin Colfer (actually, so do I) and he also quite enjoyed the popular Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins.

My brother's best friend (also 15), says he doesn't read that often but he enjoys the Alex Rider series (I have never read these, but I've heard they're good!!) and The Hunger Games.

Another friend of mine says he is currently reading quite a bit (mostly to reread Harry Potter before it comes out), but he does try to read a book a week in the summer (especially if the book is part of a series). His favourite series: the Inheritance Cycle, Pendragon Adventures, The Nine Princes in Amber, Terra Incognita series and the Keys to the Kingdom series (I have never read any of these except for the Inheritance books).

So... apparently series are popular with guys?? Haha, because that's accurate with a three-guy survey.

Sometimes when I read books that are written for guys, I find that they are way more interesting than (certain) books written for girls.

3. So many books and book series are being turned into films for the teen audience. Are you satisfied with the movie versions that you've seen recently? Can you comment on a few, both good and bad?

The most recent films I've seen based on books are the Harry Potter movies. I have to say that they were very well done, and gave a reader of the books exactly what they might be looking for. Well, except for the sixth one. But especially with the seventh one (part one). That's kind of a boring answer though, because everyone's seen and read HP... I think some movie versions of books are done excellently, and some are done really poorly. The dilemma is being able to transfer a book onto screen while keeping the main ideas, and giving the readers what they want to see live. It's very hard, I think, to satisfy the readers. One of my cousins refuses to see any movies based on books (although I'm not sure whether that's all movies based on books, or just movies based on books she's read.) I'm not quite that extreme.

From Elizabeth:

I would like to know how you go about choosing a book to read. Is it the cover? The title? Word of mouth?

There are a lot of different ways I choose a book to read. One is blogs, o' course, if I read a review and it sounds interesting. I usually don't hear about books through word of mouth, because usually I'm the one recommending books. Though sometimes I do hear about books over and over and over (so obviously these are popular books), and then I figure I should check the book out. :)

But if I'm not going by book reviews, or recommendations...

When I'm walking through a library, I look for interesting titles first (because that's what you see when books are shelved). If the title is interesting, then I don't really take the cover into account (unless I saw the cover before the title). Then I read the blurb. If the blurb is interesting, or it has something that I can connect to (because my sister has Down Syndrome I am into books about characters with disabilities), then I'll put it in my book bag. But whether I actually read the book depends on the writing itself. I also tend to go back to books by authors I like. And I won't go back to authors I don't like. (So make your first book really good!! :D)

Sorry this post was so long, but I will blame the good questions!! :D

Three Types of Night Readers

If you read before you go to sleep, then you *might* find yourself in one of these categories:

*ahem* We interrupt our regular programming to bring you two unexpected things that just happened.

One: my dad just asked "Is that where you live if you're a hermit, a hermitage?" Ahem. I do not think he is correct, but you may back him up with websites or encyclopedias if you'd like (or prove him wrong).

Two: I just found a text document on my desktop that seemed to be an e-mail about the federal government of Nigeria... but actually now that I look at again I think it's one of those spam things that tries to get you to give money (although why it is copied into a text document on my desktop I have no idea).

*ahem* We now return to our regular programming.

THREE TYPES OF NIGHT READERS (aka people who read before they go to sleep)

1. The Practical One

This would be me, most of the time. I take a book into bed after a long day, stretch out, relax, and get into the story. After my eyelids begin to droop, I glance at the page number, chuck the book I'm reading on the floor and proceed to ponder over the events of the book for another half hour before I go to sleep. (Well, I ponder while my brain takes off on rabbit trails.) Or maybe if it's really good, I'll go to the end of the chapter or more likely, go until I stop at a page where there are no cliff-hangers.

2. The All-Night Reader

This is when the release date comes of a book you have been waiting for FOREVER, and you go out the day of the release and buy the book and you just want to DEVOUR that book. You start reading as you walk away from the cash register at the book store, and don't even stop when you get home. You don't even realize you get into bed because the story is so good and then you're just reading, reading the night away and the book is over. And when you've finished the book, you heave a big sigh as if you've just run a marathon, and you look up. The sun is just coming up, and you suddenly realize you are dead tired. But you've hit The End in the book, so it's okay now if you sleep.

3. The Face Planter



Wow, looking at all these pictures of people sleeping
made me tired... (and this isn't my cat)

You read, and you're really into it and your eyes are drooping but you just can't put the book down, not yet not when all this interesting stuff is happening. Well, apparently all that stuff wasn't so interesting after all, because the next thing you know you're lifting your head off some pages and you've got a book ink tattoo all over your face. Yup, you fell asleep while reading. When you finally lose the world to dreamland, you do a faceplant right into your book. Every night.

So which one are you? Practical? All-nighter? Faceplanter?

(NOTE!!! Hey! Don't forget about the Teen Writers Summer Blogfest that I'm partcipating in with a bunch of other teens, starting THIS FRIDAY which is also Canada Day, just to let you know. So yeah, click the link and go check out all the other teens' blogs!!)

OH and I STILL CAN'T SEE MY FOLLOWERS!! So if you are new here, check out the new here page and comment/e-mail me so I can check out your blog/become friends/whatever!

Books and Their People

So I've already read a couple of posts about this article, which basically says that YA is too dark or as the subtitle to the article says: "Contemporary fiction for teens is rife with explicit abuse, violence and depravity. Why is this considered a good idea?" And then it goes on to say all that is wrong with the YA of today, giving examples of all the terrible dark books there are. (I don't understand where the author did their research... it is really easy to find book review websites and get some really good books about hope and other NOT dark stuff).

I'm not going to comment on the article itself, but it reminded me of an earlier issue that has been brought up time and time again that I've been wanting to touch on. People read books, or YA, and they judge them and go "this isn't suitable for children" or "there's death in this" or something, anything, condemning books and saying that they're WRONG. That people should not be writing like this, that books should not be like that.

Um, since when can books be right or wrong? Books are not math questions. They're a reflection of life that's maybe a little distorted, but since when is the answer to life definable?

Although in another sense, I think that books can either work for someone or not work for someone. This is why I don't understand a lot of reviews, because the reviewer is commenting on things in the book that maybe they like but that someone else probably won't.

People are different from each other. Since people are different, they have their own unique taste in books and need different kinds of books to read than other people. (So you can't really say if you like a book or not until you've read it.)

For example, I find Sarah Dessen books extremely "fluffy" and I've tried and failed more than once to slog through the obviousness of what's going to happen. Yet there are hundreds of people out there who love Sarah Dessen books, probably partly because of the fluff and predictability of them.

Some people think books are good. Some people think the same books are horrible. This isn't because the words magically change as each person reads it, but because the actual person reading the book changes.
Each person has unique qualities and past experiences that they bring to their reading experiences, shaping what they like and don't like.

And sometimes one person's needs differ from time to time. I'll read four sort-of romance books and then get so sick of them and then read some science-fiction thing because I need something different. Or I feel like reading something easy and not-so-real, or I'll feel like reading something really hardcore and deep. It just depends on the kind book I need at that moment.

So (back to the article), some people need those dark kinds of books, and other people need happy books. People have reading needs, and you CANNOT throw out some general statement about reading needs that aren't your own. Because they're not yours.

And, on another note, you can find happy books! Even in the most dreadful books I've read, there are little bits of hope somewhere. It's awful to stereotype anything, people, books or otherwise like that.

So I really hope I made some sense...

Anyway to check out some other thoughts on the article (although mine wasn't really thoughts on the article... the article was just a way to tangent onto another thought), visit Veronica Roth and Taryn Albright, and read the awesome thought shared over at Paper Hangover.

What do  you think?