MoCo Middle School assigned books are so depressing!

[Anonymous]

My daughter, age 14, is a reluctant reader, except for manga and some graphic novels. The books she has to read for English are so depressing! "Walk Two Moons" --a girl takes a long road trip with her grandparents during which she tells a story, and finally makes it to her destination, which is--spoiler alert!--the place where her mom died in a car crash!

Now she's reading John Steinbeck's "The Pearl." Poverty, violence, and death of a baby in the end.

All kids are different, and some kids might like reading about overcoming suffering and dealing with our worst fears, but is there a MoCo regulation against joy, humor, or just fun books that are on her age level, that she could use for a book report? Suggestions welcome.

[Anonymous]

The Pearl is a classic. It's sad you don't see that.

[Anonymous]

Most middle school and high school reading is depressing. They assume kids are reading genre fiction or other books on the side.

Talk to your local librarian, the kids librarian, or the librarian at the middle school for more fun recommendations.

[Anonymous]

It's not the school's fault that she is a reluctant reader.

Schools assign thought-provoking literature and classics. That is their job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My daughter, age 14, is a reluctant reader, except for manga and some graphic novels. The books she has to read for English are so depressing! "Walk Two Moons" --a girl takes a long road trip with her grandparents during which she tells a story, and finally makes it to her destination, which is--spoiler alert!--the place where her mom died in a car crash!

Now she's reading John Steinbeck's "The Pearl." Poverty, violence, and death of a baby in the end.

All kids are different, and some kids might like reading about overcoming suffering and dealing with our worst fears, but is there a MoCo regulation against joy, humor, or just fun books that are on her age level, that she could use for a book report? Suggestions welcome.

Is she complaining, or are you complaining?

See the last page, here: https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/uploadedFiles/curriculum/english/middle/grade8/English%208B%20Guide%20for%20Website.pdf

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Pearl is a classic. It's sad you don't see that.

It's a classic, but my DD was offended that she had to spend months reading and thinking about prostitution, with terribly moderated class discussion that, frankly, perpetuated stereotypes and misogyny.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Pearl is a classic. It's sad you don't see that.

Lots of books are classics, but that doesn't mean everyone has to read them, let alone like them.

I can't stand Steinbeck, myself. Not as a teenager, and not as an adult.

[Anonymous]

There are lots of great graphic novels out there. I think "fun" books are tough as kids get older because they really depend on one's personal taste AND because some of the more "fun" adult literature has more sex than MCPS is probably up for in a classroom context. Is your 14 year old in 8th or 9th grade? Does she get to choose her own reading for one or more assignments?

I just read Divergent, and really liked it, but it's not like it's light and fluffy. People love the Hunger Games but it's obviously also brutal in a lot of ways. I mean, what do you think of as fun to read?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Pearl is a classic. It's sad you don't see that.

Lots of books are classics, but that doesn't mean everyone has to read them, let alone like them.

I can't stand Steinbeck, myself. Not as a teenager, and not as an adult.

It does mean students should read those books because they influenced our country and our world. You don't have to like everything, but students should be required to read the books that shaped our country.

[Anonymous]

Oh my gosh, Walk Two Moons is one of my all time favorites. I remember reading it for the first time in 6th grade. I now teach middle school, and it's still on my shelf for kids to borrow for SSR. Such a great story.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Pearl is a classic. It's sad you don't see that.

It's a classic, but my DD was offended that she had to spend months reading and thinking about prostitution, with terribly moderated class discussion that, frankly, perpetuated stereotypes and misogyny.

“Offended??”

Time to raise a kid who is a little more resilient and who can read great literature without personalizing it. Lots of books are offensive. It doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be read.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Pearl is a classic. It's sad you don't see that.

It's a classic, but my DD was offended that she had to spend months reading and thinking about prostitution, with terribly moderated class discussion that, frankly, perpetuated stereotypes and misogyny.

“Offended??”

Time to raise a kid who is a little more resilient and who can read great literature without personalizing it. Lots of books are offensive. It doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be read.

Going through puberty is depressing enough. There are definitely classics that are less doom and gloom.

[Anonymous]

I think the idea that consuming sad media makes you sad, or scary media makes you scared, or happy media makes you happy is a flawed premise

[Anonymous]

OP here. Of course "The Pearl" is a classic. Charles Dickens' works and "Little Women" are classics, too, but they have romance and humor.
I'll see if we are allowed to read, " The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie. Summary: Sherman Alexie tells the story of Junior, a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Determined to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school on the rez to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot.

Heartbreaking, funny, and beautifully written, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which is based on the author's own experiences, coupled with poignant drawings by Ellen Forney that reflect the character's art, chronicles the contemporary adolescence of one Native American boy as he attempts to break away from the life he was destined to live.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the idea that consuming sad media makes you sad, or scary media makes you scared, or happy media makes you happy is a flawed premise

Actually, it's how it works for me.
AP English was super depressing because we only read depressing literature.

What about classics written by Jane Austen OP?

And I'm sure the librarian / media specialist could recommend some popular, more funny / uplifting books that might encourage more reading. If you have a reluctant reader, classics teaching universal truths might not be the best thing for them.