O'Rourke Library Update
One Read 2015-16 School Year
A cross cultural experience!
" I will Always Write Back: how one letter changed two lives " is a positive and uplifting book written in the clear style of a journalist, Liz Welch, and through the eyes of two young authors who eagerly share their experience of being international pen pals. eBook ISBN 978-0-316-24134-2 or Hardcover ISBN 978-0-316-24131-1
Let's look inside
The reader hears from Caitlin Alifeirenkia and Martin Ganda in alternating chapters. Each presents a thoughtful account of the experience of teenagers forming a long distance relationship across the span of six years.
In 1997 the engaging and innocent exchange between a young girl in an upper middle class American suburb and a 14 year old boy in Zimbabwe begins. The characters get to know each other through their letters as they move from high school to college.
Readers get to know the teens and themselves as they contemplate the story's themes and ideas. This book stimulates curiosity about the continent of Africa while contemplating ideas as expansive as poverty and affluence, as practical as education and family and as simple as identifying necessities and setting priorities.
Context is everything. The library will be conducting its usual Special Projects related to the One Read book this year but the more the merrier. Consider designing a graded in-class assignment that links " I Will Always Write Back " to the curriculum.
The selection
The One Read selection for the 2015-16 year was recommended by an experienced member of our education community, recognized by the Library Director as an appropriate title and appreciated by a small group of educators and administrators as the ideal choice. Spoiler Alerts? " I Will Always Write Back " was discussed with students in general ways to get feedback on the selection but not so as to ruin the summer reading experience for them.
Reading is both a personal and social activity here at Bishop Fenwick High School. As life habits form, we learn to give the act of reading a prominent place among life's demands and priorities. One Book Reads offer a unique opportunity to introduce a book that's interesting and fun while recognizing that ours is a culture of learning and there's always more to know and understand.
The activity of using the written word to establish and build relationships is obvious. Equally appropriate for course related projects are assignments related to economic, political and social issues in Zimbabwe and by extension the continent of Africa as well as creative approaches to broad topics like poverty, education and race.
Take it to the water cooler
" I will Always Write Back: how one letter changed two lives " offers an opportunity for a shared experience among students, parents, faculty and the administration. The common experience of the One Read provides us with a tool to better connect and build relationship across our community as we move into the 2015-16 academic year.
Opportunities to connect this book with class content across the curriculum are many so please share your ideas as a way of stimulating conversation and activity around the One Read.
This title was selected for both its entertainment value and the avenues it presents for learning and understanding. Through the library program, students will have the opportunity to express their thoughts and generate new ideas through projects that involve music, art, writing and experiential opportunities. The rest is up to you!
Considering Points of View
Avoiding pitfalls
Some readers may be tempted to judge the novel too early. Don't be fooled. What may seem a little sentimental or cliché in the beginning opens to reveal a true story of people we can and want to relate to as the experience of the two teens evolves. The novel avoids numbing stereotypes and generalities about an American coming to the rescue and guides readers to realize that real people and real relationships are much more complicated and much more interesting.
O'Rourke Library
Email: dms@fenwick.org
Website: https://www.fenwick.org/podium/default.aspx?t=143365
Location: 99 Margin Street, Peabody, MA 01960
Phone: 978-587-8350