Follow us:
DR. BICKMORE'S YA WEDNESDAY
  • Blog
  • Contributors
  • Weekend Picks 2021
  • Weekend Picks 2020
  • UNLV online Summit 2020
  • YA Course Fall 2019
  • Bickmore's Posts
  • Weekend Picks 2019
  • Weekend Picks old
  • English Education, CIL 642 Resources
  • Contact
  • Music and YA
  • Zeiter LDC
  • YA Research
  • About
  • National Book Award for Young People's Literature
  • Books I Just Happen to Like
  • Writers as a Positive Influence
  • 2018 Summit
    • 2019 Summit on Teaching YA
    • YA Course Fall 17
  • Untitled

Bick's Picks for 2018

12/12/2018

1 Comment

 
I love this time of year and all of the holiday fun. Okay, I still have to grade a bunch of student work; I have all of those "end of the semester" meetings; I am consulting with graduate students: I need to plan syllabi for the next semester; NCTE proposals are due soon; ALAN proposals are due soon; and I am planning for next year’s ALAN workshop.

While I still have a lot to do, I love considering all of the books I have read this year. I made my end of year picks a tiny bit early. I was lucky enough to give a couple of presentations last Saturday at a Clark County School District event for middle and secondary literacy educators. The day's keynote speaker was Ernest Morrell. He was fabulous and I always learn something that helps me when I listen to his scholarship.

When I started making picks in 2016 I thought I would pick 5. Well, I couldn't do it. Instead, I focus on the books that I can’t stop thinking about or talking about during the course of the year. It always seems to be more that 5. I admit I am a bit narrow in my focus. I tend to read realistic fiction with a focus on race class and gender, that are written for older adolescents. I also find myself reading more and more nonfiction. 

I readily admit that excellent books are abundant in middle grades, science fiction, in fantasy and other genres. It is hard to read everything. I rely on others to guide me. It is worth reviewing the weekend picks that others have selected during 2018. Another place to look is at the recommendations suggested by others through other blogs. I recently had my attention drawn to Dr. Michael Macaluso’s blog post. He points to his top 10 resources for finding multicultural books. His suggestions provide excellent advice.
​
As you prepare for the holidays and look for gifts I hope you consider some of the books listed below. Without a doubt these are powerful texts. If you only read these 7 books in the course of a year, you would have plenty to think about. I love that The Poet X won the National Book Award, but I am a little bit proud of myself that it was on my list of my best books before the award. Many of these books  received high praise during the year, and they deserve it. The one book that is under represented on this list is Too Shattered for Mending. It is Peter Brown Hoffmeister’s second YA novel and it is fantastic. It might be the one I would select above all of the others if I was forced to do so. I don’t have to so it will have to remain a tie among them all. I just think that not enough people have been exposed to this book yet. Maybe this post will help remedy this situation. Please read it. Read everything on the list, you won’t regret it. In fact, I think that after reading you will be looking to share these titles with others.
Pick #1 Jeff Zentner The Kirkus Review Goodbye Days
Picture
Pick #2 Elizabeth Acevedo The Kirkus Review The Poet X
Picture
Pick #3 Elizabeth Partridge The Kirkus Review Boots on the Ground
Picture
Pick #4 Aisha Saeed The Kirkus Review Amal Unbound
Picture
Pick #5 Nic Stone The Kirkus Review Dear Martin
Picture
Pick #6 Peter Brown Hoffmeister The Kirkus Review Too Shattered for Mending
Picture
Pick #7 Joy McCullough The Kirkus Review Blood Water Paint
Picture
1 Comment
Anne Shealy
12/12/2018 09:47:50 am

Thank you so very much! I'm talking up many of these titles with the middle level ELA teachers I work with in SC.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Dr. Bickmore is an associate professor of English Education at UNLV. He is a scholar of Young Adult Literature and past editor of The ALAN Review and the current president elect of ALAN. He is a available for speaking engagements at schools, conferences, book festivals, and parent organizations. More information can be found on the Contact page and the About page.

    Co-Edited Books

    Archives

    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    June 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014

    Categories

    All
    Chris-lynch

    Blogs to Follow

    nerdybookclub
    http://blogs.ncte.org/  
    yalsa.ala.org/blog/

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly