Professional Reading

In this update to Radical Reads (Scarecrow, 2002), Bodart gives an in-depth look at the latest controversial literature for teens. More than 100 new titles are profiled, offering detailed information, including sections on risks and strengths, major themes and ideas, brief character descriptions, booktalks and book-report ideas, reviews, awards, and more. The index consists of a comprehensive list of titles, broken down by reading/interest levels, genre, subject, and curriculum areas. Along with an updated bibliography, Bodart's original appendixes on censorship issues, including Web sites and other sources for resisting censorship, and the importance of writing defense rationales are also included. The clear and concise format makes it easy to navigate quickly to the information or title needed. The most valuable section in this update, however, is the new introduction that explains the importance of controversial YA literature to teens and why they must have access to it. This is a must-read for anyone serving teens, including teachers.—Kelley Siegrist, Farmington Community Library, MI

This highly informative volume brings in experts in various subfields to discuss topics such as superheroes; manga and anime; girls and comics; American and international comics; public, school, and academic libraries; and censorship. The chapters are self-contained, and many of them have extensive references. Despite these assets, the volume is not without flaws. To begin with, because different writers worked on different chapters, certain elements are discussed over and over again, making a straight-through reading highly repetitive, e.g., the term "manga" is defined several times throughout, authors are introduced repeatedly, etc. The first chapter makes several statements with which comic-book fans might take issue. To name just a few: Namor is listed as a magic/myth character because he hails from Atlantis but he is also a mutant, Spider-Man's black-and-white costume is said to have "white webbing" when it is actually black with a white spider motif, and the Mutant Massacre story line did not take place in 1996. There are also some broader comments of a dubious nature, such as the statement that Louis Riel is "Canada's founding father." The index is inconsistent. At times, the book lacks organization, e.g., there are two sections labeled Appendix A. While there is much to enjoy and inform in this volume, it is unfortunately hindered by correctable errors.—Douglas P. Davey, Halton Hills Public Library, Ontario, Canada

Diamant-Cohen has developed this manual to encourage librarians to present Spanish-language MGOL programs. Taking into consideration the enormous need to provide these programs to young English learners whose parents speak Spanish at home, and the shortage of bilingual children's librarians working in facilities that serve Latino communities, the author proposes recruiting community partners fluent in Spanish who will be trained by the children's librarian and will copresent the sessions. Five parts cover the basics on how to run the program successfully. The manual is complemented with illustrations that can be replicated and used as flannel-board figures; bibliographies, worksheets, and a CD with instructions; nursery rhymes in English and Spanish; and graphics and templates of documents. This volume is infused with enthusiasm to serve the children of Spanish-speakers. It will not only help English-speaking librarians, but also the bilingual ones to present and enjoy MGOL.—Freda Mosquera, Broward County Library, Fort Lauderdale, FL

Horning's 13-year-old publication has become a standard in the field of reviewing, evaluating, and selecting children's literature. This revised edition has the same broad categories as in the earlier edition but offers separate chapters on children's book publishing and the fundamentals of review writing. It includes a section on illustrated novels such as Brian Selznick's The Invention of Hugo Cabret (Scholastic, 2007) and the expansion of the graphic novel for elementary-aged readers such as Jennifer L. Holm & Matthew Holm's "Babymouse" books (Random). In "Traditional Literature," a section on fractured fairy tales has been added while the chapter on poetry now includes explanations of sound, imagery, ideas, and the growth of the verse novel. Numerous examples of quoted passages from literature across the spectrum round out Horning's very complete resource that will continue to be the venerable reference tool and required reading for education and library-science students, youth librarians, teachers, and anyone else interested in kids, reading, and children's literature.—Rita Soltan, Youth Services Consultant, West Bloomfield, MI

Responding to the growth of all forms of graphic novels and nonfiction, Monnin advocates using the material that students willingly read to improve literacy, not just in reading classrooms but also as part of the English/Language Arts curriculum. Although there is nothing groundbreaking in her thesis, she is a cheerleader for using standard techniques, such as story maps, in a new and more graphic manner. The examples and book titles will be a help to teachers unfamiliar with graphic novels and suggestions for comparison units using a graphic novel with a traditional novel will support those more at ease with conventional selections. The appendixes alone are worth the cost of the book. This should be in the professional collections of all secondary school libraries.—Suanne Roush, Osceola High School, Seminole, FL