|
|
|
|
Guys Read, Too!
By Brett Walther
Saturday August 31, 2002
With the wrapping-up of Oxford County Library Summer Reading Program activities, I thought back on the summer myself and was shocked at how little I'd read.
Although I'm by no means a speed-reader, I usually make it through a couple of books over the course of a summer. I don't know if it was because the relentlessly hot and dry conditions of June and July made the beach particularly alluring, but for the first time in my life, I realize I've read more in the past winter than I did all summer.
In order to rectify my recent reading dry spell, I decided to check out the "Books and Reading" links that the Oxford County Library lists on its web site at www.ocl.net/bookinfo/reading.shtml. These links are a great resource if you are looking for lists of recommended reads.
As is often the case, while looking for one thing, I discovered something else entirely.
Click on the "Guys Read" link under the "Book Information" subheading at the above URL, and you'll see what I'm talking about.
Guys Read at www.guysread.com is a literacy initiative developed by author and elementary school teacher Jon Scieszka. In the "Why" link on the main page, Scieszka explains that the site was designed to address the fact that there are few supports for boys' literacy in society. Although all children can benefit from literacy initiatives, Scieszka is on the mark when he notes that there is a serious lack of male role models for literacy, and that many books boys are asked to read in the school system simply don't appeal to them.
In response to this, Guys Read reaches boys directly with reading selections recommended by other guys. There's no cheesy titles or monstrous tomes here, and the selections are for the most part arranged in terms of reading level.
I was happy to note that I had actually read several of the books that made the list of recommended reads, including Roald Dahl's The BFG and Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game. It is no surprise that Matt Groening's The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to our Favourite Family is on the list as well, and naturally, given my somewhat unhealthy fixation with the show, I've read that one too.
You can send in your own suggestions by clicking on the link at the top of the Top Ten Recommended Reads list. The interactive nature of Guys Read continues in the link to the Guys Read discussion board hosted by Readerville.com. There are some decent discussions that go on here, and it's worth taking a few seconds to register with a login and password in order to participate yourself.
Even though the summer may be drawing to a close, I think I'll be making up for lost time this fall by checking out the recommended titles I might have missed while growing up.
Brett Walther is with the Oxford County Library Rural Resources Partnership. He specializes in providing Internet-based job searching assistance in the branches of Oxford County Library and can be reached at 519-423-1928, extension 204.
|
|
