By T. Gail Pritchard, Ph.D., University of Arizona College of Medicine
In this last blog for the month, I want to share some books that deal with other kinds of epidemics, notably: bullying, obesity, substance abuse and suicide. These books are not pretty in nature, they do not necessarily have “happy” endings, and they are often connected to each other. They offer a glimpse into contemporary behaviors occurring in epidemic proportions among our youth. Continue reading
by T. Gail Pritchard, PhD, College of Medicine, University of Arizona
This week, the books presented cover the “what if?” scenario: What if a naturally occurring virus swept through the world killing most of its inhabitants? What if scientists engineered a virus and it got out of control? What if a virus killed all the adults? What if one country unleashed a deadly virus on another? What if an alien virus appeared? All of these scenarios have been the subject of young adult novels. Here are a few to add to your reading list: Continue reading
by T. Gail Pritchard, PhD, College of Medicine, University of Arizona
This week, the focus will be on specific pandemic, epidemic, and outbreak historical events captured in picture books and chapter books. Frischknect, Lepper, and Cyrklaff (2008) note, “infectious diseases have played a substantial part in shaping the history of humanity” (p. 995) and “it is often an issue of wrong information” (p. 996). Further, they state, “The dramatic effects of lacking information can be seen in many historical contexts, e.g. the spread of the Plague in medieval Europe, the accidental import of smallpox and measles into the Americas, the deliberate release of infectious agents, or the recent spread of HIV in much of Africa” (Frischknecht, p. 997). Continue reading
by T. Gail Pritchard, PhD, College of Medicine, University of Arizona
http://columnfivemedia.com/work-items/good-infographic-outbreak-%E2%80%94-deadliest-pandemics-in-history/
This past summer, I took a course in global health. Not surprisingly, a great deal of the course focused in infectious diseases in developing nations. As part of our readings, lectures, and discussions, the origins of many of these diseases, the pathways to treatment and/or cure, and the impact on world history was featured. Of course as we covered various infectious diseases from cholera to HIV/AIDS, from malaria to polio, and from small pox to yellow fever, I made connections with children’s and young adult books I have read, Continue reading
by Seemi Aziz, Tucson, Arizona
Looking at the picturebooks left in this text set I came to realize that they have some strong stereotypes about Muslims that add as well as take away from the stories as representatives of the myriad of Muslim cultures.
In Jeanette Winter’s Nasreen’s Secret School & The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq the main premise is of representing strong female Muslim characters. To this end the stories are appropriate and successful. While they shows the protagonist as strong, the peripheral characters are shown as oppressed or oppressive. Further the enemy or the occupiers are not named or differentiated. Continue reading
by Seemi Aziz, Tucson, Arizona
After looking at the 11 picturebooks in this collection I came away with the realization that these books merely covered a few regions that Muslims occupy as well as a handful of situations. These limited portrayals provide only a window of restricted representations. For instance, the necessary voices of children living in the Western countries are represented in books that come across as didactic and may turn off the audience in western countries even if the content is culturally relevant. Amira’s Totally Chocolate World and Mobin-Uddin’s My Name is Bilal are two such examples. Continue reading
By Seemi Aziz, Tucson, Arizona
As I work on a project evaluating the authenticity of Muslim Voices in text I have been surprised by the number of books out there that are both of quality and taste. As an educator scholar of the Muslim Voices Project, being conducted under the auspices of the Humanities Council New York, I helped suggest and select the following list – still in need of some abridgement. As I read and evaluate the list I will share my thoughts about some of them in this forum. The list along with a short descriptor is as follows: Continue reading
by Carmen M. Martínez-Roldán, Columbia University
This week we continue with the focus on the use of international children’s and adolescent literature in classrooms. Today I share an interview with Prof. Deanna Day from Washington State University at Vancouver, who shares how she incorporates international literature in her reading class. In her responses, she focuses on books on immigration.
by Carmen Martínez-Roldán, Columbia University
I’m Dr. Martínez-Roldán, Associate Professor at Teachers College, Columbia University. During March I will be inviting educators, teachers, and librarians to share their experiences using international children’s and adolescent literature in their teaching. Each week I will feature the experience of an educator and hope that the reader will feel inspired to share her/his own experiences as a reader of the featured books. In this first blog, Dr. Jo-Beth Allen from the University of Georgia tells us how she uses literature in her university writing courses. Continue reading
By Andrea García, Hofstra University
During the weekend of March 8 and 9, 2013, Tucson will host one of the biggest gatherings of children’s authors and illustrators during the Tucson Festival of Books. In thinking about writing the last blog entry for the month of February, and in keeping with the idea of cultivating relationships with readers and books, we cannot forget the importance of meeting authors and illustrators as part of our lives as readers. Continue reading