Books by Lesesne, Reeves, and Marshall

by Sheila Cantlebary

Making the Match: The Right Book for the Right Reader at the Right Time, Grades 4―12, by Teri Lesesne (Stenhouse, Portland, ME, 2003)

Terri Lesesne maintains that even the most reluctant readers will come to embrace reading if they are repeatedly given the right books. Making the Match is organized around abundant tips for knowing the readers, knowing the books, and knowing the strategies for bringing the two together. Chapters are dedicated to such topics as young adult culture and successful book talking. Written in an entertaining style, the book offers suggestions for motivating students to read and respond to all kinds of texts, including nonfiction. Eighteen personal essays on the power of reading provide additional inspiration for educators and students. Contributors include popular young adult authors Sharon Creech, Chris Crutcher, Joan Lowery Nixon, and many more. Twenty-five appendices offer annotated book lists on a variety of topics and genre. These lists, among them "Tough Books for Tough Times" and "Read-Aloud Suggestions," are certain to be valuable references for any teacher or librarian who seeks to match books and readers.

Naked Reading: Uncovering What Tweens Need to Become Lifelong Readers, by Teri Lesesne (Stenhouse, Portland, ME, 2006)

Terri Lesesne's tween granddaughter not only reads in the bathroom; she extends the experience by continuing to read an additional thirty to sixty minutes while she air-dries after bathing. In Naked Reading, Lesesne shares a wealth of ideas for helping nine- to fourteen-year-olds become lifetime readers and learners. She first addresses ten commonly held myths about reading, such as "Readability is a good way to match books to kids." After considering the physical, mental, and emotional needs of tweens, Lesesne cites statistics that show that the majority of American adults do not regularly read for pleasure. She argues that tweens move through various developmental reading stages. They need opportunities to read for unconscious delight, to read autobiographically, and to read for vicarious experiences, philosophical speculation, and aesthetic experience.

Lesesne shares her research on prereading and post-reading activities that appeal to tweens and presents her creative ideas for "un-book reports." Using T-A-R-G-E-T as an acronym, she examines six characteristics recommended for programs seeking to invigorate readers: trust, access, response, guidance, enthusiasm, and tween-appeal. Reading lists sprinkled throughout the text include not only books on topics tweens prefer, but also subliterature such as comics, graphic novels, and magazines. The appendix features annotations for "More Than One Hundred Great Books for Tweens."

Adolescents Talk About Reading: Exploring Resistance to and Engagement with Text, by Anne R. Reeves (International Reading Association, Newark, DE, 2004)

Surprised by the degree and frequency of adolescents' reluctance to read, Anne Reeves devoted her doctoral research to exploring the reasons adolescents resist or are engaged with reading. The book offers in-depth case studies that reveal the compelling reading and writing stories of five high school students. We meet Sting, who says he "stopped bein' a good little boy"; Duke, who is striving to become a man; Rosa, who uses pulp fiction as therapy; Valisha, who can't find a reason to read; and Joel, who struggles to focus on textbooks. Three of the students had been avid readers in elementary school but lost the reading habit in middle school. All five describe how they use literacy to accomplish certain personal goals, and they also relate their frustrations with school reading and voice their concerns for the future. Reeves ends each case study by discussing what educators can learn from the student's pattern of resistance and engagement. She provides specific suggestions for maximizing engagement, helping students meet different kinds of reading demands, and keeping the reader within alive. She urges all teachers to develop an understanding of their own reading processes in order to make the invisible process of reading visible to students. Appendices include lists of the extensive interview questions Reeves used with students, parents, and teachers.

Are They Really Reading? Expanding SSR in the Middle Grades, by Jodi Crum Marshall (Stenhouse, Portland, ME, 2002)

When Jodi Crum Marshall suspected that not all of her middle schoolers were actually reading during sustained silent reading (SSR) time, she used classroom conversations to guide changes. What evolved was a new version of the self-selected reading time called SSL (supporting student literacy). Specific blocks of time each week were scheduled for sustained silent reading, sustained silent writing, and read-aloud. The program proved so successful in Crum's classes that it was eventually expanded to include the entire school. The book is chock full of suggestions for implementing an independent reading program. Crum's practical ideas for building a literate classroom environment even include a sample grant proposal to fund book purchases. There are also assessment ideas, suggestions for promoting conversations about books, and tips for enhancing schoolwide literacy beyond SSL. Appendices include surveys, tools for implementing SSL, titles for teens according to genre and topic, resources for teachers, and various forms for record keeping.

Sheila Cantlebary is a reading content specialist at the Ohio Resource Center. As a former teacher in Columbus Public Schools, she taught English, language arts, and reading (7-12), served as a K-12 English language arts coordinator, and was a teacher in the Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow program. Her teaching experience also includes facilitating State Institute for Reading Instruction and English Language Arts Academy sessions. She is currently co-facilitator of the High School Language Arts Network sponsored by the Central Ohio Regional School Improvement Team.

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