Teen Readers Celebrate Poetry, Reading, And Favorite Books

By Shannon Hicks

Reading is fundamental. The Southbury school system, which is what I went through as a child, subscribed to a number of Reading Is Fundamental, Inc sponsored activities and promotions. As a child I remember seeing RIF posters around my elementary school, but the importance of the nonprofit organization’s name was lost on me.

Today I understand those words, and I applaud the efforts of anyone who works with children to help them not only learn how to read but also those who continue to show readers of all ages how enjoyable reading can be. Programs at libraries, whether the libraries in towns and cities or the libraries within our schools, offer entertainment with the most subtle offerings of education mixed right in.

The Young Adult Department at C.H. Booth Library recently hosted a week of special activities aimed at raising the consciousness of teen readers. Teen Read Week 2003, sponsored nationally by American Library Association, officially ran October 19–25. Newtown’s library extended its observation of “Slammin’ at Your Library” –– the theme of this year’s Teen Read Week –– by running a two-part poetry workshop and then a public open mic event.

Nearly three dozen people showed up for a Friday night coffee house-style event, ready to enjoy original poetry by young readers and writers.

In preparing for the open mic, teens had previously attended two sessions of a poetry workshop led by Liz Arneth. The teens then worked with members of the library’s Young Adult Council in planning an open mic event based on a coffee house presentation. There were light refreshments and plenty of comfortable seating. Jazz music had been selected by Candyce Woods and her step-father Jim Roodhuyzen, which was played before, during, and after each reading.

“We had to set up extra chairs, which was wonderful,” Booth Library Young Adult Librarian Margaret Brown said this week. “The kids planned the entire thing, and it was a great success. They did a good job.”

Chelsea Fowler and Brandon Leon-Gambetta served as emcees for the evening. Chelsea was one of nine readers for the November 7 program. She read her original poem “Life.” Also participating were Elise Benedict, who also read a poem called “Life”; Margaret Cozens with “Blown Away”; Christine D’Alessandro with “Shoe in the Dreams”; Lauren Morrissey, “A Tour”; Zach Richter, “The Hypocritic House of Failure,” “The Flames,” and “Writer’s Block”; Sara Risko, “Always There”; and Sarah Ferris and Katie Volkers, who teamed up to read “Being Bored.” All of the works read by the teens were original.

Three adult readers also participated. Workshop leader Liz Arneth read poetry by Billy Collins, Margaret Brown read E.L. Thayer’s “Casey at The Bat,” and Booth Children’s Librarian Alana Meloni read “The Sound of Silence” by Simon & Garfunkel, “Pleasures of an Ordinary Life” by Judith Viorst, and Rudyard Kipling’s “If.”

The full presentation lasted just over an hour.

“I think [the younger readers] were somewhat nervous, but not terribly,” said Mrs Brown. “They did a good job.

“The length of the program was just right,” she continued. “It was not too long, and not too short.”

The librarian saw immediate reaction from those who coordinated the event, and has also received positive feedback from parents and library staff.

“The kids were very happy, you could see that right away,” said Mrs Brown.

Teens’ Top Ten Favorites

Newtown’s younger readers were also involved in a national survey during Teen Read Week. The first annual survey was the conclusion of a national project that created a Teens’ Top Ten list of favorite books from the past year.

Thirty-five books published between the second half of 2002 and October 2003 had been selected by teen reading groups (see details in the accompanying sidebar). Two top ten lists were announced this week, one voted on by the teens who compiled the original list of 35 books and the second representing the public vote by teens across the country. Margaret Brown made sure the nominated books were all available for Newtown’s teen readers.

A few books showed up on both the official YA Galley Groups list and the Teen Public list, which is not surprising considering the books were all being considered by those in the same age group.

Mrs Brown was not at all surprised to see that The Second Summer of The Sisterhood made both top ten lists. Ann Brashares’s sequel to The Sisterhood of The Traveling Pants takes four friends through a challenging summer, and it has been very popular at Booth Library.

“All three of the library’s copies are reserved so far in advance that I haven’t even had a chance to read that book yet,” Mrs Brown laughed.

What surprised Mrs Brown was one title that did not even make it to the nominations list.

“I really thought A Northern Light would have been in there,” she said. Jennifer Donnelly’s latest release, inspired by a famous 1906 murder in the Adirondacks, follows 16-year-old Mattie Gokey through life, illnesses, murder, poverty, joy, and inner growth. “The kids in Newtown have really enjoyed it,” said Mrs Brown.

That is one of the most fundamental things about reading; there are titles and subjects for everyone to enjoy.