ALAN Online

Provided by Dr. Lori Atkins-Goodson

With every new young adult title, I find myself flashing through my class rosters—trying to connect each new book to a specific student.

For those of you in a classroom, you know it sounds easier than it is.  I’d love to hand each of my sophomores a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird (my favorite book ever), watch them smile and become totally engrossed in the novel—and know that the love of reading has been born.

But then I wake up and realize each student has his or her own unique likes and dislikes when it comes to reading, and Harper Lee isn’t going to offer that magical moment for all my other students like it did for me a few decades ago.So, sadly enough, I push my own interests aside to help them find something they’ll read—rather than just having them hold the book up and turn a page now and then when they think I’m watching.  (My daughter, who was 10 at the time, told me that’s the secret to making teachers think you’re reading.)

Lately, graphic novels have come to my rescue.  I wasn’t too excited about graphic novels myself, until my youngest daughter emerged as a reluctant reader.  In elementary school, she wasn’t really willing to try chapter books, but we found some humorous poetry books by Bruce Lansky (Kids Pick the Funniest Poems, etc.).  Those kept her interest, and we’d catch her reading the same poems over and over again—to herself, the cat, whoever would listen—to a point that her teacher told her not to bring the books to school anymore (another topic, for another column).

I then gave her a graphic novel or two, and now she devours them.  She stalks the school library shelves waiting for new books; she rummages through my stacks of books, pulling out any graphic novels.  Graphic novels have definitely made life at the Goodson house a little easier.

So, in my classroom, I’ve been dealing with Davie, a struggling reader and a classic “book holder.”  I tried books that were high-interest, low reading levels, which had worked with others, but Steve proved he wasn’t like the others.  He didn’t want anything to do with those books.  So, I picked up a graphic novel—The World of Quest, Vol. 1 by Jason Kruse—and handed it to him.  I wasn’t overly optimistic.

Imagine how surprised I was when I glanced over and saw him smiling as he turned the page.  Maybe it wasn’t the love of reading, but it wasn’t fake reading either, and that’s a start.

The next class, he returned to my room and asked if I had the second book in the series.  (Oops!  I didn’t even know it WAS a series.)  Turns out he’d done a little research on his own—that, in itself, is a good sign.  In a matter of seconds, I’d ordered the second book online.  He read it just as quickly.  Unfortunately, we’re still waiting for more books in that series to be published.  But I’ve since moved him on to other graphic novels (the Bone series by Jeff Smith) and he’s also reading a “regular” novel—something I haven’t seen him attempt before.  The graphic novels are giving him the confidence to try other books.

And, while he is branching out into other types of books, I refuse to say he’s outgrown graphic novels.  They’re lively, entertaining, and fast-paced.  Who wouldn’t want that as a reading option?  Part of the attraction has to be the colorful artwork that accompanies the writing.  (Remember that day when you realized the older you got, the fewer pictures you’d find in your books?  My daughter, moving on to more difficult books, heaved one onto the couch and refused to touch it.  “No pictures,” she said.  It was a sad day.)

Another plus may be that the students think they’re getting by with something—reading a graphic novel rather than one of those other “boring” books.But, in all honesty, we as language arts teachers often are literature snobs, and we’re often more than a little skeptical of books we don’t know and love.  I hadn’t read any graphic novels until I started finding them for my daughter.

Many teachers have wrinkled their noses at the possibility of using them in literature circles and as independent reading choices.  In doing so, we’re making our own teaching lives a little more difficult, and we’re not doing our students any favor by being the gatekeepers on quality literature.  By asserting our own tastes regarding literature, we’re not letting our students find their own favorites.

So, with much credit given to my daughter and Davie, here are some graphic novels that have proven especially popular with middle school through high school.  You might want to pick one up yourself and thumb through it.  Chances are you’ll keep reading.

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Bone series by Jeff Smith (Scholastic). This series of books continues to disappear from my classroom library.  I’ve bought the set several times, only to have them vanish from my shelves.  With reluctant readers, that’s a good sign.  These continue to be popular choices at the middle school and high school level.  My own reluctant reader was more than happy to lug around the 1,300-page collection, so that’s an endorsement worth noting, as well.

Coraline: The Graphic Novel by Neil Gaiman and P. Craig Russell (HarperCollins).  A paperback version was coming out in May of this year.

The World of Quest (Vol. 1 and 2) by Jason Kruse.

Graphic Classics.  Published by Eureka Productions, these feature some of the classic short stories told in graphic novel form.  Featured authors include Edgar Allan Poe, Bram Stoker, and Mark Twain, to name a few.

Manga Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet. Published by Abrams Books for Young Readers, this is an excellent way to get those reluctant readers who might balk at the thought of picking up the classic version to learn what the Bard is all about.

Sandman series by Neil Gaiman.

Japanese Manga such as:

Deathnote by Tsugumi Ohba

Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto

Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya

Bleach by Tite Kubo

Eyeshield 21 by Riichiro Inagaki

And, if you have others to add, let me know!  I’m always looking for more possibilities for my students!

(Thanks to Dr. Nancy McFarlin of Wamego High School for adding some popular titles to this list.)

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Lori Atkins Goodson has taught middle school language arts and high school English and newspaper in Wamego, Kan. An instructor at Kansas State University, Manhattan, she received National Board Certification and a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction. She has received numerous teaching awards, including NCTE’s 2007 Hoey Award, being a 2008 top 10 finalist for the NEA Excellence in Teaching Award, and the Kansas Master Teacher Award. She is the former chair of the NCTE middle level nominating committee and co-editor of The ALAN Review. She has had articles published in the Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, Voices from the Middle, and Kansas English, among others. Her Book Business blog can be accessed at bookbusiness.lorigoodson.com.