A Captive Audience - Bringing Books to Teens in Detention

Dodie Ownes -- School Library Journal, 9/3/2008

Since early 2007, Kay Skipper, media-center specialist at Bailey Middle School, has spent nearly every Wednesday evening in detention. Not at her school though – she goes to the Mecklenburg County Gatling Detention Center in Huntersville, North Carolina. There she meets with other volunteers to conduct the “Guys Read Book Club.”

Originally spearheaded by Elaine Self from the Council for Children’s Rights after her agency’s attorneys returned from a conference with the idea, the get-together is used as an incentive to keep the boys, aged 8-16, on track. On any given evening, anywhere between eight and 20 boys may attend. “Since there is no way for us to know how many or who will be there each Wednesday evening, we take a set of 20 books in hopes that the boys will be permitted to attend,“ says Skipper. “Each week we ask the boys for input as to what they want to read. The North Mecklenburg Woman’s Club provides the money for us to purchase paperbacks for the boys to keep. For some it is the first book they have ever owned. Some of them now have quite a personal library!”

Because of her work as a middle school media specialist, Skipper has read most of the books, many which feature a male protagonist.  Once a book is selected, book club members take turns reading aloud during the one hour meeting. “We often only get through two or three chapters because we stop and talk about the characters and try to challenge the boys with questions about their own opinions or how they can relate to the situation,” reports Skipper. “The discussions we have about the books are what make the club successful to me.”

According to Skipper, titles from the Bluford  series (available from Scholastic and Townsend Press) are among the most popular. “The boys love this series because it is written in their vernacular and the plot centers around problems most all of them have encountered. A re-occurring issue is a father returning to the family after deserting them.  “Emotions were very intense during these discussions” Skipper continues. “It is an excellent opportunity for them to discuss issues in their life in the third person.” The book club is sponsored through the Council for Children's Rights, based in Charlotte, North Carolina. After an article about the “Guys Read Book Club” appeared in the local newspaper in July 2008, Skipper and Self had more than 30 inquiries about volunteering time or donating books. In fact, Skipper reports that there is more interest than the detention center can put to use so a program is being created to start book clubs in group homes.