Trac Changes: On Coverflipping, Misogyny, and, Oh Yeah—How You and I Are Part of the Problem
A really good blog article about the coverflip challenge and exploring our own sexist preferences.
From Goodreads:
She’s been six different people in six different places: Madeline in Ohio, Isabelle in Missouri, Olivia in Kentucky … But now that she’s been transplanted to rural Louisiana, she has decided that this fake identity will be her last.
Witness Protection has taken nearly everything from her. But for now, they’ve given her a new name, Megan Rose Jones, and a horrible hair color. For the past eight months, Meg has begged her father to answer one question: What on earth did he do – or see – that landed them in this god-awful mess? Meg has just about had it with all the Suits’ rules — and her dad’s silence. If he won’t help, it’s time she got some answers for herself.
But Meg isn’t counting on Ethan Landry, an adorable Louisiana farm boy who’s too smart for his own good. He knows Meg is hiding something big. And it just might get both of them killed. As they embark on a perilous journey to free her family once and for all, Meg discovers that there’s only one rule that really matters — survival.
From Goodreads:
A nuanced novel in verse that explores identity in a multicultural world.
Emma Karas was raised in Japan; it’s the country she calls home. But when her mother is diagnosed with breast cancer, Emma’s family moves to a town outside Lowell, Massachusetts, to stay with Emma’s grandmother while her mom undergoes treatment.
Emma feels out of place in the United States.She begins to have migraines, and longs to be back in Japan. At her grandmother’s urging, she volunteers in a long-term care center to help Zena, a patient with locked-in syndrome, write down her poems. There, Emma meets Samnang, another volunteer, who assists elderly Cambodian refugees. Weekly visits to the care center, Zena’s poems, dance, and noodle soup bring Emma and Samnang closer, until Emma must make a painful choice: stay in Massachusetts, or return home early to Japan.
“This is too good to be YA!”
I think it says a lot about the perception of both YA and media aimed at young women that when people read a “good” YA novel, their reaction is to say that it’s not really YA and has clearly been miscategorized. I’ve seen this said frequently about books like Code Name Verity and The Fault in Our Stars.
Bordertown
“Bordertown” is comprised of a group of anthologies which were started in the 1980’s and continue to be published today. It began roughly around the same time as the rise of Urban Fantasy, containing authors who would go on to influence the Fantasy field, such as Terri Windling, Charles de Lint, Emma Bull, and others. The general setting for the anthologies is Bordertown, a place where magic and technology mix over, where humans and Faeries intermix, and where everything takes cues from punk rock and counter culture ideals. “Bordertown” is the sort of series that is written for teens, dealing as it does with searches for identity, meaning, values, and belonging. Often the characters face real world issues such as isolation, rejection by family and culture, depression, and loss. The author’s aren’t afraid to deal with tough subjects and trust the reader to engage in a conversation on the issues presented. Personally, “Bordertown” was my way of figuring out who I was at a time where it was hard to feel happy with my life. It showed me that the issues I faced weren’t mine alone to be faced in a vacuum, they were issues that were worth talking about and dealing with. for an imaginary place, “Bordertown” made quite a real impact on who I am and how I see the world.
Low on posts today
Here’s an idea: submit your favorite YA novel or series and a quick blurb about why it’s the best (for you)!
Where are all the black boys?
As an English Language Arts instructor in both middle and high schools for the past ten years, I can tell you how big a problem this is. When I was working in Brooklyn, my fellow teachers and I were always tearing our hair out trying to find engaging novels where our students would see themselves reflected in the protagonists. It was hard and it’s become even harder today.
TSQ: Transgender Studies Quarterly
TSQ is a new interdisciplinary academic journal that will change the way the world thinks about transgender issues.Okay Tumblr friends, this is important. A friend of mine is helping out with a Kickstarter campaign for an absolutely fabulous project that is all about creating one of the first (possibly THE first) academic journal on transgender studies. This is a big deal. Their first few planned issues are listed, and they’re exploring things like intersectionality, colonialism, trans* media, and more. Many of the staff on the project (including the founders) are trans* or genderqueer.
They’re trying to raise $20K, which is a totally doable Kickstarter goal. We have 30 days. Let’s help them make it happen. Go!
YOU GUYS THEY’RE REALLY CLOSE TO THEIR GOAL REBLOG LIKE THE WIND
You guys are the best.
I just had my first over-1000-notes original post ever and I love all of you so much.
It’s Not What You Think: Mexican Americans in YA | The Hub
“…I wanted to create a booklist that might help to address… misconceptions about Mexican Americans, as well as help you bulk up the diversity in your collection or personal reading. This list aims to highlight books that are not about the usual story — emigrating from one country to another, working as migrant laborers, or dealing with racism — and instead aims to show how Mexican American teens are, you know, teens. That’s not because those stories aren’t important — of course they are — but because when we talk about books about minorities， they tend to overshadow contemporary realistic fiction about the types of issues all teens face, like identity, cliques, and romance, and fantasy rooted in cultures other than western Europe.”
(Source: thehannahmachine)
