MoCo Middle School assigned books are so depressing!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My HS students complains they are all about race. She says she thinks it almost makes race a bigger issue than it would be otherwise.

Race actually is a big issue. And pretending it isn't, doesn't make it a smaller one, although a lot of people seem to wish that it did.

Exactly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My HS students complains they are all about race. She says she thinks it almost makes race a bigger issue than it would be otherwise.

Race actually is a big issue. And pretending it isn't, doesn't make it a smaller one, although a lot of people seem to wish that it did.

Of course it is a big issue but that does not mean that every single book for 4 years has to focus in it!

What are some titles of these books focusing on race?

Because I wonder if it's actually about race, or just about someone of a different race than you...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My HS students complains they are all about race. She says she thinks it almost makes race a bigger issue than it would be otherwise.

Race actually is a big issue. And pretending it isn't, doesn't make it a smaller one, although a lot of people seem to wish that it did.

Of course it is a big issue but that does not mean that every single book for 4 years has to focus in it!

What are some titles of these books focusing on race?

Because I wonder if it's actually about race, or just about someone of a different race than you...

Sorry can't list them. That is just my child's comment (repeated several times over the years). She is tired of reading books focused on race. She is a minority herself so I am guessing that is not it though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am personally VERY affected by depressing literature.
I think they pick these books in part because they think the teens will like them—especially all the apocolyptic stuff. But I do worry about how they affect kids who are already prone to depression. I have been trying to find less depressing stuff for my kid as a counter-balance. Suggestions are welcome! So far we have tried jane Austen, Shakespeare, and Agatha Christie.

Less depressing stuff, like King Lear?

I was thinking more Romeo and Juliet.

oh yes, two teens commit suicide. so cheery

I was that poster. For whatever reason, reading Shakespeare doesn't get me that upset. Maybe because Shakespeare doesn't really focus in on the emotional lives of the teenagers? It's more of an action story, really? Unlike something like Handmaid's Tale, that just wrecked me for months. Or Poisonwood Bible, that had me pretty crushed for a while. Or Kite Runner....anyway, I don't think that they assign any of those in MCPS MS, but they do seem to be reading a TON of post-apocolyptic stuff. And now with COVID, it's basically all my MS-er can think about.
Anyway, I'd love more suggestions for stuff that doesn't bring you down -- either for me or my teen.

Shakespeare wrote a lot about teenagers! I think Shakespeare might not make you upset because the language is archaic and that creates kind of a barrier to a visceral reaction. Also Shakespeare wrote a ton of comedies and love poems. And you may not have read Macbeth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My HS students complains they are all about race. She says she thinks it almost makes race a bigger issue than it would be otherwise.

Race actually is a big issue. And pretending it isn't, doesn't make it a smaller one, although a lot of people seem to wish that it did.

Of course it is a big issue but that does not mean that every single book for 4 years has to focus in it!

What are some titles of these books focusing on race?

Because I wonder if it's actually about race, or just about someone of a different race than you...

Sorry can't list them. That is just my child's comment (repeated several times over the years). She is tired of reading books focused on race. She is a minority herself so I am guessing that is not it though.

Same here, the summer reading lists are the same new author race genre as well. Sigh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Man I hope 80% or more of what they have to read and write about in English lit class is classics.
I thought all the woke schools read all those new victim books.

Wait until you see the new revisionist brainwashed k-8 social studies “curriculum.” Your kid won’t know anything about context or history, just that it’s evil.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My HS students complains they are all about race. She says she thinks it almost makes race a bigger issue than it would be otherwise.

Race actually is a big issue. And pretending it isn't, doesn't make it a smaller one, although a lot of people seem to wish that it did.

Of course it is a big issue but that does not mean that every single book for 4 years has to focus in it!

What are some titles of these books focusing on race?

Because I wonder if it's actually about race, or just about someone of a different race than you...

Sorry can't list them. That is just my child's comment (repeated several times over the years). She is tired of reading books focused on race. She is a minority herself so I am guessing that is not it though.

Same here, the summer reading lists are the same new author race genre as well. Sigh.

Are you the person who complained about the summer reading list at Whitman?

The one who seemed to think that "book by person who is not white" = "book about race"?

[Anonymous]

Nope.

[Anonymous]

I agree that MS books were incredibly depressing. For years, the running joke when DC was assigned a new book was "Who dies in this one?" In HS, there was an emphasis on books focusing on racism, but I think there was more variety.

While I agree that death and racism are important issues for literature to explore, literature is a lot broader than this. If Middle School teaches that "literature" is depressing, kids may not explore on their own and discover there's something for everyone.

When I was in MS and HS we had literature textbooks that presented a wide range of classic literature, which were supplemented by novels. We read stories addressing racism and we certainly read tragedies, but there was balance.

I absolutely agree that students should read the classics which have both influenced and reflected the development of civilization over the years. Not only do they provide context, but they give us common reference points. (That being said, I think a lot of our great classic literature was just the popfiction of the day that was popular enough to survive. I can easily see that in 500 years, Harry Potter may be presented as one of the great masterpieces of the 21st century.)

Here are some alternatives to consider:

Mark Twain
O Henry
Washington Irving
H. G. Wells
Jules Verne
Shakespeare (The Tempest, comedies, sonnets)
The Odessey - lots of death, but more in an action-movie sense than a gut-wrenching personally emotional type
Madeleine L'Engle
Louisa May Alcott - Little Women does have a significant death, but there's still a lot of joy in the book. I don't remember death in her other books.
Survival books like Call It Courage, Julie of the Wolves, Island of the Blue Dolphins, Robinson Crusoe, etc.
Isaac Asimov
Robert Heinlein (for MS I'd suggest his juveniles)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinlein_juveniles
The Westing Game
12 Angry Men
Gulliver's Travels (it's not just Lilliput)
Animal Farm
Robert Louis Stevenson
Alexandre Dumas

The Newberry award winners are generally great, although some may be depressing.

[Anonymous]

I think about the stories that have stayed with me since middle school, and they are stories like The Pearl. Most kids that age are ready for challenging material, and that includes emotionally challenging material. Reading fiction is an important way to develop empathy and understanding which is pretty important for middle schoolers. Overall I've been impressed with what my kids have been assigned to read.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I agree that MS books were incredibly depressing. For years, the running joke when DC was assigned a new book was "Who dies in this one?" In HS, there was an emphasis on books focusing on racism, but I think there was more variety.

While I agree that death and racism are important issues for literature to explore, literature is a lot broader than this. If Middle School teaches that "literature" is depressing, kids may not explore on their own and discover there's something for everyone.

When I was in MS and HS we had literature textbooks that presented a wide range of classic literature, which were supplemented by novels. We read stories addressing racism and we certainly read tragedies, but there was balance.

I absolutely agree that students should read the classics which have both influenced and reflected the development of civilization over the years. Not only do they provide context, but they give us common reference points. (That being said, I think a lot of our great classic literature was just the popfiction of the day that was popular enough to survive. I can easily see that in 500 years, Harry Potter may be presented as one of the great masterpieces of the 21st century.)

Here are some alternatives to consider:

Mark Twain
O Henry
Washington Irving
H. G. Wells
Jules Verne
Shakespeare (The Tempest, comedies, sonnets)
The Odessey - lots of death, but more in an action-movie sense than a gut-wrenching personally emotional type
Madeleine L'Engle
Louisa May Alcott - Little Women does have a significant death, but there's still a lot of joy in the book. I don't remember death in her other books.
Survival books like Call It Courage, Julie of the Wolves, Island of the Blue Dolphins, Robinson Crusoe, etc.
Isaac Asimov
Robert Heinlein (for MS I'd suggest his juveniles)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinlein_juveniles
The Westing Game
12 Angry Men
Gulliver's Travels (it's not just Lilliput)
Animal Farm
Robert Louis Stevenson
Alexandre Dumas

The Newberry award winners are generally great, although some may be depressing.

DP. Love this list, thank you.

[Anonymous]

Love the list above. Mark Twain and George Orwell in particular. Twain writes in such a slice of life way that takes you back to the time period and manages to fit in social commentary in a humorous way. Orwell has such interesting themes and allegories. They are heavy-hitting and thoughtful books without being depressing.

I hate to say it, but the most “happy” books are lightweight and not deserving of heavy analysis. I love, love, love Louisa May Alcott and Jane Austen and it’s fascinating to step into that time period but I can’t think of very many heavy-hitting themes in those books. They are enjoyable reads but not necessarily dissertation-worthy IMO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Love the list above. Mark Twain and George Orwell in particular. Twain writes in such a slice of life way that takes you back to the time period and manages to fit in social commentary in a humorous way. Orwell has such interesting themes and allegories. They are heavy-hitting and thoughtful books without being depressing.

I hate to say it, but the most “happy” books are lightweight and not deserving of heavy analysis. I love, love, love Louisa May Alcott and Jane Austen and it’s fascinating to step into that time period but I can’t think of very many heavy-hitting themes in those books. They are enjoyable reads but not necessarily dissertation-worthy IMO.

No heavy-hitting themes in Jane Austen? No heavy-hitting themes in Louisa May Alcott? But Mark Twain, he has heavy-hitting themes?

My recommendations:

1. Re-read Jane Austen, and this time pay attention.
2. Write a ten-page paper on author gender and the Western literary canon.