KSSreads

Giller Prize 2009- announced tonight

Linden MacIntyre has won the Scotiabank Giller Prize for "The Bishop's Man."

The novel tells the story of a Roman Catholic priest who is tasked with keeping his colleagues in line and stamping out sex abuse scandals before they go public.

 MacIntyre, who is best known for his work with the CBC's "The Fifth Estate," beat out Kim Echlin, Annabel Lyon, Colin McAdam and Anne Michaels to take home the $50,000 prize.

Read more...http://scotiabankgillerprize.ca

Current Reader- October 9 Buna

  Our Current Reader is....

 

Mrs. Buna

Mrs. Buna is a Career Programs coordinator at KSS who loves books, basketball, and her 2 KSS alumni daughters.

Odd Girl Out by Rachel Simmons

Mr. Parker Just read...

Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds

Ms. Terhljan Just read...

Club Dumas by Arturo Perez-Reverte

Club Dumas, International Bestseller

Lucas Corso is a book detective, a mercenary hired to hunt down rare editions for wealthy and unscrupulous clients. When a well-known bibliophile is found hanged, leaving behind part of the original manuscript of Alexandre Dumas's The Three Musketeers, Corso is brought in to authenticate the fragment. He is soon drawn into a swirling plot involving devil worship, occult practices, and swashbuckling derring-do among a cast of characters bearing a suspicious resemblance to those of Dumas's masterpiece. Aided by a mysterious beauty named after a Conan Doyle heroine, Corso travels from Madrid to Toledo to Paris in pursuit of a sinister and seemingly omniscient killer.

Part mystery, part puzzle, part witty intertextual game, The Club Dumas is a wholly original intellectual thriller by the author of The Flanders Panel and The Seville Communion.

The Girl Of His Dreams, by Donna Leon

Leon's Commissario Guido Brunetti mysteries have won legions of fans for their evocative portraits of Venetian life. "The Girl of His Dreams" offers a spectacular, heart-wrenching addition to the series.

Mr. Melle Just read...

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls. is a memoir.

The Glass Castle is a remarkable memoir of resilience and redemption, and a revelatory look into a family at once deeply dysfunctional and uniquely vibrant. When sober, Jeannette's brilliant and charismatic father captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and how to embrace life fearlessly. But when he drank, he was dishonest and destructive. Her mother was a free spirit who abhorred the idea of domesticity and didn't want the responsibility of raising a family.The Walls children learned to take care of themselves. They fed, clothed, and protected one another, and eventually found their way to New York. Their parents followed them, choosing to be homeless even as their children prospered.The Glass Castle is truly astonishing -- a memoir permeated by the intense love of a peculiar, but loyal, family. Jeannette Walls has a story to tell, and tells it brilliantly, without an ounce of self-pity.

A Long Way Gone memoir of a boy soldier by Ismael Beah. 

It is estimated that in the more than fifty violent conflicts going on worldwide, there are some 300,000 child soldiers. Ishmael Beah used to be one of them.

In A Long Way Gone, Beah, now in his mid-twenties, tells how, at the age of twelve, he fled attacking rebels in his homeland of Sierra Leone and wandered a land rendered unrecognizable by violence. By thirteen, he’d been picked up by the government army, and Beah, at heart a gentle boy, found that he was capable of truly terrible acts. This is a rare and mesmerizing account, told with real literary force and heartbreaking honesty.

 

Mr. Smith Just read...

Merle's Door : by Ted Kerasote: is a wonderful read that is centered around the new relationship of a man and a stray dog who befriends him. The man's life is changed! Patrick Lawlor delivers an animated performance, both literally and figuratively. His portrayal of Merle's enthusiasm and loyalty is so endearing. The book has a genuine anthropomorphism while the author tries to illuminate Merle's expressions and behaviors a true dog lover cannot help but indentify. I have not been able to grant the freedom that Kerasote lent Merle, but nevertheless, he made me think hard about my love for the dog in my life- a pup chocolate lab.

Also read: The Philosopher's dog / Raimond Gaita and The Art Of Racing In The Rain by Garth Stein: Watch review...

 

Mrs. A. Holmwood is reading,

The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan.

A New York Times bestseller that has changed the way readers view the ecology of eating, this revolutionary book by award winner Michael Pollan asks the seemingly simple question: What should we have for dinner? Tracing from source to table each of the food chains that sustain us—whether industrial or organic, alternative or processed—he develops a portrait of the American way of eating. The result is a sweeping, surprising exploration of the hungers that have shaped our evolution, and of the profound implications our food choices have for the health of our species and the future of our planet.

"...What should we have for dinner?" asks Pollan in the opening of this unique history of four meals--from McDonald's fare to personally hunted wild pig. Award-winning narrator Scott Brick--truly one of the best in the business--takes the listener on a mesmerizing adventure to find some answers. The investigation could have bogged down in Pollan's exhaustive details, but Brick captures each experience with a tempo and emotional coloring all its own. From the comedy of gobbling Chicken McNuggets while speeding down a highway to the deliberately paced tension of stalking and killing a wild pig, Brick gives each story a distinctive voice--and taste."

Lance Armstrong's Autobiography

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbach

 

 

 

Giller 2009 Shortlist-power reads

Scotia Giller Prize 2009 continues the Canadian tradition of awarding prestige and exposure to some of our best writers and their literary achievements. Read any of the titles or authors work? Post your feedback below. 

The 2009 Scotiabank Giller Prize finalists are:
 

 
• Kim Echlin for her novel THE DISAPPEARED, published by Hamish Hamilton Canada
• Annabel Lyon for her novel THE GOLDEN MEAN, published by Random House Canada
• Linden MacIntyre for his novel THE BISHOP’S MAN, published by Random House Canada
• Colin McAdam for his novel FALL, published by Hamish Hamilton Canada
• Anne Michaels for her novel THE WINTER VAULT, published by McClelland & Stewart

http://www.scotiabankgillerprize.ca/

Like every year, the shortlist for the 2009 Scotiabank Giller Prize – unveiled in Toronto on Tuesday – contained a few surprises. Perhaps the biggest shock was the omission of Margaret Atwood’s widely praised The Year of the Flood, which seemed a likely contender for the $50,000 prize. With Atwood absent from the shortlist and Alice Munro having already removed herself from consideration, the field is now open to works by several writers in mid-career, including Colin McAdam’s Fall, Kim Echlin’s The Disappeared, and Annabel Lyon’s The Golden Mean (Random House Canada). Also nominated are Linden MacIntyre’s The Bishop’s Man (Random House) and The Winter VaultAnne Michaels’ long-awaited follow-up to Fugitive Pieces.( QuillQuire)

Other 2008 Titles

The Shack- W. Paul Young

How did a self-published book called 'The Shack' end up a NY Times bestseller, translated into 35 languages?  Quite a story before the story. 

Mackenzie Allen Phillips's youngest daughter, Missy, has been abducted during a family vacation, and evidence that she may have been brutally murdered is found in an abandoned shack deep in the Oregon wilderness. Four years later, in this midst of his great sadness, Mack receives a suspicious note, apparently from God, inviting him back to that shack for a weekend. Against his better judgment he arrives at the shack on wintry afternoon and walks back into his darkest nightmare. What he finds there will change his life forever.( Amazon)

"...I love this show and this interview is the reason why! George asking great investigative questions - in a completely open manner - as usual and great guests like Paul Young. It's great to see the Christian faith presented as it is meant to be a relationship - not a religion..."(CBC)

TheHour- video channel- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5e4b9zzqYN8
________________

Boys' lack of interest in reading

While doing research, on this nagging issue for many librarians, I found this old (2 years)article. For some time now, I have been disturbed by the drop of frequency and reading skills in boys. Achievement data bears out my worry.  We are gradually graduating fewer boys and rewarding fewer boys with scholarships.  Fewer males are graduating from college. Reading skills are the number 1 varibale for ex-cons chance to rehabilitate. This is serious. 35 years ago, when I graduated from high school, the cry was just the reverse.  Why are women not enrolling in college? Why are women second class citizens? Well, now it is reverse- can't we get it right. Make it equitable?

- Al Smith

This article is still well worth the read.  If you have insights or opinions about improving the reading practice of males, please post a comment or contact Mr. Smith at: literateowl@gmail.com

Boys' lack of interest in reading tackled by groups

Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Last updated 12:00 p.m. PT
By PAUL NYHAN 

Reading may be fundamental, but too many boys in middle school lack that critical educational building block.For the last decade, educators fretted over the academic gender gap -- girls outperforming boys on standardized tests -- yet the divide remains obvious in reading.

There is plenty of blame to go around -- disengaged parents, uninterested publishing houses, distracting video games and teaching styles -- but not as many clear answers.

"I would say there is a crisis," said Walter Dean Myers, a children's book author.

"Too many parents have walked away from this idea ... that education is a family concept, is a community concept, is not simply something that schools do."

There is also hope. Myers will speak Wednesday at the University of Washington's Information School on "Books & Boys -- Making It Work!"

The debate over whether boys are falling behind and in crisis has raged for years among academics, educators and writers. Reading remains one of their top concerns. In Seattle's public schools, sixth-grade boys trailed their female classmates by more than 10 percentage points in the standardized reading test in 2006. Reading often loses its hold on these children as they near and hit middle school, a time when reading and their social worlds become more complex.

"A lot of times, when boys get to middle school they are feeling sort of disenfranchised from the educational" experience, said Pamela LaBorde, children's librarian at the Seattle Public Library's Ballard branch.

The problem isn't necessarily that boys don't read, it's that they are often practical readers, LaBorde said, reading magazines and even manuals.

"I think we feel like boys just aren't good readers because they aren't curling up with 'Little Women,' " LaBorde added.

The reasons behind the reading gender gap are complex -- everything from cultural changes to behavioral differences -- but researchers know the brains of boys and girls develop at different rates.

Myers offered other reasons, such as boys being typically more comfortable telling teachers to buzz off. They also may feel ignored. That's because the publishing industry tends to focus on girls, Myers said.

"The publishing industry doesn't think there is a market, so they just don't market them," said Hayden Bass, teen services librarian at Seattle Public's Library's downtown branch.

To engage male readers, books need to tackle their issues: what it means to be a man, walk away from a fight, play sports and even go to war, Myers said.

"I've never had a male editor," the New Jersey-based author said. "When you see the books that win the awards, you see books that are much more suitable for girls."

When Myers wrote "Fallen Angels," a teen novel about Vietnam, it was a big hit with male readers.

"The basketball books I write make beaucoup bucks," added Myers, who has a new book on the Iraq war, "Sunrise over Fallujah," scheduled for release this summer.

Experts say there are titles for reluctant male readers -- "The Outsiders" comes to mind -- just not enough.

"The real requirement is that there is a male protagonist. Boys will not read books that have a girl protagonist," said John Martin, a Ballard novelist who writes for young adults, and started BoysRead.org this year to address the reading gap.  The problem is not lost on local educators. Seattle Public Schools spent nearly $3 million over the past three years to create 600-book libraries for classrooms and outreach, and plans to spend more.

In Seattle schools and elsewhere, a broader scope of reading materials is welcomed. Comic books are embraced, graphic novels are praised and audio books are seen as helpful.

But like many student challenges, the first steps begin at home.

"Getting kids reading ready by talking to them, by having conversations with these boys and telling these young readers that they have to join our society, we don't have to join theirs," Myers said. "You have to interact with your children."

RECOMMENDED BOOKS

Here are five books that Hayden Bass, teen services librarian at the Seattle Public Library's downtown branch, recently recommended for middle school boys who think they don't like to read.

·  "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian"; Sherman Alexie, illustrations by Ellen Forney. FICTION

Budding cartoonist Junior leaves his troubled school on the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white farm town school where the only other Indian is the school mascot.

·  "Grooves: A Kind of Mystery"; Kevin Brockmeier. FICTION

After seventh-grader Dwayne Ruggles discovers that the grooves in his blue jeans are encoded with a cry for help, he must find out who is sending the distress signal and why.

·  "Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life"; Wendy Mass. FICTION

What if you had the meaning of life inside a locked box, but you didn't have the key?

·  "Runaways, Volume 1: Pride and Joy"; Brian K. Vaughn. GRAPHIC NOVEL

What if you found out that your parents had superpowers ... but they weren't heroes? First in a series.

·  "The Action Hero's Handbook: How to Catch a Great White Shark, Perform the Vulcan Nerve Pinch, Track a Fugitive, and Dozens of Other TV and Movie Skills"; David Borgenicht and Joe Borgenicht. NON-FICTION

The next time a friend of yours is dangling from a cliff by his fingernails, he'll thank you for reading this book and knowing how to save him.

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Check out the Seattle P-I's parenting blog, Working Dad at blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/family. P-I reporter Paul Nyhan can be reached at 206-448-8145 or paulnyhan@seattlepi.com.

© 1998-2007 Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Author, Joseph Boyden-CBC theHour

If you read any of his books, we'd love to hear your views. Blog his writing...post a comment below

or send us a review

 Joseph Boyden is a one-time punk-rocker and street kid who grew up in suburban Toronto, but he also spent time on reserves in northern Ontario. Boyden is part Metis, with family in the Ojibwa tribe. His roots have had a huge impact on his work - especially his critically acclaimed novels: 'Three Day Road' and the Giller-winning 'Through Black Spruce.' Today, Boyden splits his time between Northern Ontario and the University of New Orleans, where he teaches writing. Up next from Boyden is a biography of Louis Riel and he continues the story from 'Three Day Road' and 'Through Black Spruce' in a third novel, due out in 2012.(CBC)

Growing up in Willowdale, Ontario, in the 1970s, Joseph Boyden was a typical little boy. He loved the outdoors, and along with his seven siblings would play war games and cowboys and Indians and roughhouse in the schoolyard next door. They would chase the goats that their father, an old-fashioned doctor, occasionally accepted as payment for his medical services. Joseph Boyden is 38 years old. He teaches Canadian literature and creative writing at the University of New Orleans and splits his time between Louisiana and Canada, which remains home to his mother and most of his siblings, as well as his 14-year-old son Jacob, who lives in Toronto with his mother. Boyden has been married for nine years to an American who’s also a writer; Amanda Boyden’s first novel, Pretty Little Dirty, will be released by Vintage U.S. next year.

PLAY VIDEO >

Boyden has published one previous book, the 2001 short-story collection Born with a Tooth. Most of the stories unfold on reserves and examine the joys and tribulations of native life. (Boyden’s ancestry is partly native.) The book was well received, but readers may not be prepared for the transformative, history-shaping power of Three-Day Road, which hits bookstores next month. The novel was inspired by the life of Ojibwa Francis Pegahmagabow, the legendary First World War sniper. It’s told partly from the perspective of Xavier Bird, a Cree soldier who returns to Northern Ontario after the war, wounded in body, crushed in spirit, and addicted to morphine. Xavier is met in Moose Factory, Ontario, by his aunt Niska, and as she paddles him back to her home in the bush, he recalls the bloody experiences of the war. Meanwhile Niska attempts to keep him alive by narrating her own life story. The novel encompasses a myriad of themes, the motif of death being foremost, and it parallels the brutal massacre known as the first modern war and the destruction of native culture with subtle poignancy.( Quill-Quire)

Note: Nest Book:  Biography of Louis Riel

author speaks to KSS teens

David Bouchard engages teens

Teacher-librarians concluded another Education Week Author Visit by hosting an appreciative and attentive group of  teens from Kelowna Secondary and Mount Boucherie Secondary by author/speaker David Bouchard, C.M.   You guys were great! Check out his book display in the Library, online Novelist collection or visit his web site. A cool highlight was Mr. Bouchard distributing his bookmarks to teens who answered questions from Stephanie Meyer's books and ancient mythologies.

The COTLA committee correspondence for the Bouchard  event started  March 3, 2008 but the basic plans go back for several years now.  Authors for COTLA's March Education Week initiative are chosen by a subcommittee of COTLA- including Al Smith, Sharon Bede, Sarah Parmar, Angie MacRitchie, Pat Kirkey and Jim Gillett.   Authors in this initiative are among Canada's best (Roch Carrier, Paul Yee, Karen Levine, David Bouchard, Kenneth Oppel, Deborah Ellis). 

 

David Bouchard is an engaging speaker with a passion for reading.   As a writer, educator and presenter, Mr. Bouchard has touched the lives of children, teens and adults but mostly he exemplifies the literacy and cultural richness of our country! He often starts sessions with an honour song dedicated to his aboriginal grandmother.   Mr. Bouchard, whose passions are children, reading, and writing, art and music and dance, aboriginal people and culture..., has published more than 35 titles...including: I am Raven, An Aboriginal Carol, If You Are Not From the Prairie, C’est du Hockey, Notes to My Daughter and The Gift of Reading. Mr. Bouchard has received the Governor General Literacy Award and recently been awarded the Order of Canada, C.M.

The entire committee thanks fellow teacher-librarians, sponsors and supporters but mostly send our appreciation to David Bouchard himself, for his participation, enthusiasm for reading and  all his wonderful books. To check out his upcoming projects visit: http://www.davidbouchard.com/releases2.html

David commented on not just the venues, but also the variety in the audience composition.  Not all authors could handle this, but David was certainly up for the challenge!

4010 people attended David's presentations

3,674 students 

31 schools (24 elementary, 4 middle and 3 secondary)

336+ adults including SD23 staff members, parents and members of the community

It is so cool that David could visit 500 kids at KSS in a gym and then visit 100 kids intimately in a a school library, all in one day!  These venue options are part of what makes this program so special.

Visit our photo gallery at Picasa

-  “We should all take note of David’s presentation- he held the attention of 400 teenagers for over an hour-something I’ve never seen before.” – Arnar Bernhardson,  Kelowna Secondary

- “ Bouchard was the best presenter my kids have ever met.  For the first time, they stayed behind in order to talk with David. ” – Richard Gauthier, Aboriginal Advocate, Kelowna Secondary

-  "Absolutely, totally 100%, fantastic presentation!" -- Jennifer Boal, Ellison Elementary School

-“

This will mean so much to David Bouchard and it touches my heart.  It almost sounds like this parent has had a life altering experience just by hearing about his message.  Unbelievable.  Richard Gauthier came up personally to thank our planning committee today..tears were in his eyes.  He too thought it was a moving experience, but he said something that confirmed what David said earlier on in the planning stages...he wanted to make sure that he was not just talking  to First Nations' children in a separate group , but he wanted them to feel the their pride in an audience of their non indigenous peers.  Richard remarked that his students (FN and Metis) were so proud after the event becuase it is being billed as the all time best speaker in the school (by students)  and that speaker was aboriginal!! His presentation has given our Aboriginal students a gift of being proud of their culture and boasting rights among the student population”.  –Sharon Bede, Kelowna Secondary

The COTLA Author Committee  would like to acknowledge our three main sponsors:  Capri Insurance, Harmony Honda, and CanWest Media’s Raise a Reader program which works in conjunction with the Kelowna Daily Courier and Project Literacy Kelowna. Thank you to our partners, School District #23 for their continued support of this annual Education Week event.

Also read summary at:
http://okanagan852a.blogspot.com/2009/03/author-visit-2009-david-bouchard.html

Graphic Classroom- comics and more

graphicclassroom.blogspot.com

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The Graphic Classroom is a resource for teachers and librarians to help them stock high quality, educational-worthy, graphic novels and comics in their classroom or school library. I read and review every graphic novel or comic on this blog and give it a rating as to appropriateness for the classroom.

The Best Comics for Your Classroom

CLICK HERE to see the best comics recommended for every grade. We have it categorized by recommendation and age level.

Keeping Comics Safe in the Classroom

CLICK HERE to read more about keeping your comics stored safely in your classroom. We make specific recommendations of products that we find work best.

____________________

By Nate Stearns
Staff Writer

....I teach, among other things, 10th grade English and part of our curriculum is a career unit – a 3-4 week exploration of the work world and the skills needed to be successful there. Practically, this means that students pretend to interview each other (Why should I hire you?), job shadow their moms at the Century 21 office, try to imagine what life would be like as an adult, and whether they should run screaming to the hills and live off moss and grubs in the Olympic National Forest.....

.....Daniel Pink’s THE ADVENTURES OF JOHNNY BUNKO is a radical and fascinating attempt at career advice. Eschewing WHO MOVED MY CHEESE pablum, Pink couches his guide in a manga comic book that tells the story of Johnny Bunko: a blander than bland salaryman stuck in a dead-end job at Boggs Corporation. Through a series of implausible (but very manga-rific) events, Bunko comes into possession of magic chopsticks that summon a magic sprite who leads him through the six most important career laws. These laws range from 1) There is no plan to 6) Leave an Imprint and Diana, the manga sprite, illustrates each one by whisking Bunko and his friends away to various places so he can experience her wisdom firsthand......

David Bouchard, author visits Kelowna, SD23

SD23 Education Week 2009- 
Central Okanagan Teacher librarians present-

David Bouchard

• Award winning author, and Order of Canada member is visiting Kelowna
  
• Bio: www.davidbouchard.com/
  

David Bouchard is an engaging speaker with a passion for reading.
As a writer, educator and presenter, Mr. Bouchard has touched the lives of children, teens and adults but mostly he exemplifies the literacy and cultural richness of our country! He often starts sessions with an honour song dedicated to his aboriginal grandmother. 

Mr. Bouchard, " whose passions are children, reading, and writing, art and music and dance, aboriginal people and culture...", has published more than 35 titles...including: I am Raven, An Aboriginal Carol, If You Are Not From the Prairie, C'est du Hockey, Notes to My Daughter and The Gift of Reading.

Mr. Bouchard has received the Governor General Literacy Award and recently been awarded the Order of Canada, C.M.

• SCHEDULE

Schools Partcipating and Presentation Times and Locations” 3000+ studetns and staff from 30 schools (24 elementary, 3 middle, 3 secondary) will be participating by attending a Bouchard presentation.

The Presentation: What to expect?”Mr. Bouchard is an engaging speaker with a passion for reading. His sessions often start with an honour song dedicated to his aboriginal grandmother. Presentations typically last an hour and are followed by a half hour of questions, answers and autographing of books.

Prepare your students to be engaged”.  In order for students to get the most our of Bouchard's presentation it is important that they know a little about the presenter, be familiar with 2-3 of this books, and perhaps have visited his informative website. The more students know about Bouchard, his books and his reading message, the greater his impact will be during the presentation.

Interview with David Bouchard in which he discusses his aboriginal background and the influence it has had on his life:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdPtMZbgEBY

 

Laughter the 2nd best medicine

 

CBC Ideas: with Paul Kennedy
Thursday, December 4

This is a lengthy but encouraging audio program concerning new thoughts in medicine. Laughter therapy among many other insights. This oncologist from Toronto is a prolific speaker and writer. He recently hosted a CBC theLens doc about 'humanism', "Good Without God". Share your thoughts and insights with me on this important topic...post a comment below>

LAUGHTER: THE SECOND BEST MEDICINE
Dr. Robert Buckman, author of Cancer is a Word, Not a Sentence , takes his science very seriously. But in an evening recorded at the CBC's Glenn Gould Studio in Toronto, he says that finding – and tickling – our funny bone is definitely good for our health.

About the Author: Robert Buckman, M.D., is a cancer specialist and a professor in the department of medicine at the University of Toronto, Ontario. He is also coauthor of Magic or Medicine? and What You Really Need to Know about Cancer. Also at QuillQuire-

Listen to this fascinating program from CBC Ideas:
http://podcast.cbc.ca/mp3/ideas_20081229_10167.mp3 mp3: runs 54:26

Subscribe to podcast: RSS iTunes


-Read more about Dr. Buckman's writing.

-Buy Local at Mosaicbooks.ca







-The Lavin Agency presents Dr. Robert Buckman, one of the funniest speakers in the world and expert on inter-personal communications. ( YouTube )

-CBC theLens: Good Without God. Source: http://www.cbc.ca/thelens/program_090107.html
(CBC)

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