Brinsfield 1

Kaitlyn Brinsfield

Kimberly Johnson

SLM 504

25 July 2021

Assignment 3: Book Evaluations and Reading Promotion Plan

Book Evaluations

The tables on the following pages provide information and evaluations of books selected

from genres in young adult literature, including adventure, science fiction, fantasy, and historical

fiction. Each book was selected based on having at least 3 favorable reviews from trusted sources

such as Booklist, School Library Journal, Kirkus Reviews, or Horn Book listed in Follett

Titlewave.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
Collins, Suzanne. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Scholastic Press, 2020.
Selection source: Follett Titlewave
reviews, YASLA Teens Top 10 lists
Genre and Topics:
Dystopian (Young Adult Fiction),
Science Fiction (Young Adult
Fiction), Survival Stories (Young
Adult Fiction; Action & Adventure)
Recommended Grade Levels:
9-12
Reviews and Awards:
Booklist, 06/01/20; Bulletin of the
Center for Children's Books,
09/01/20; Horn Book Magazine,
09/01/20; Kirkus Reviews starred,
06/15/20; Publishers Weekly,
05/25/20; School Library Journal
Xpress, 05/22/20; Nominee for
YALSA’s Teen’s Top Ten 2021
Diverse Populations Areas:
Abuse
Poverty
Similar Titles:
Rise of the Red Hand by Olivia
Chadha
Chrysalis by Brendan Reichs
Brinsfield 2
Summary
Shortly after the Districts’ rebellion, the Capital emerged
victorious. However, the war left many prestigious families
struggling to survive, including 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow,
his Grandma’am, and his cousin, Tigris. Their only hope at
maintaining their status is for him to earn a prize that will
allow him to attend University by successfully mentoring a
contestant for the 10th Hunger Games, in a new program built
to gain popularity among the masses. Coriolanus is matched
with a fiery girl from District 12 named Lucy Gray Baird who,
after unique and game-changing events, managed to win the
10th Hunger Games. Unfortunately, because Coriolanus
cheated for her, he was sent to be a Peacekeeper instead of to
University. As a Peacekeeper in District 12, he is reunited
with Lucy, but faces constant conflict between the chaos of his
life with her and the stability of life in Capital. His choices
will be what ultimately determines the future of all of Pannam.
Reading Promotion
Compare and Contrast the character traits of 18-year-old
Coriolanus Snow to those of the Coriolanus Snow we
know from the original Hunger Games Trilogy.
AASL I.A.1
Recalling prior and background knowledge as context for
new meaning
Evaluation
Personal Reaction
An exciting prequel to the very popular Hunger Games
Trilogy. Although engaging, it does not quite stand up to the
glory of the original three books. Laced with similar themes of
political power and social hierarchies, this novel was an
interesting and thought-provoking science fiction work.
Memorable Literary Element
Setting: Collins seamlessly integrates the intricacies of a
dystopian world. She creates places and creatures that feel real
in a world of the future.
Appeal to Young Adults
Level 3: the well-built, unique world and engaging adventure
will transport readers to Pannam.
Level 5: young adults will be able to take a look at social
justice issues throughout this novel. Particularly pertaining to
government oppression.

Blood Water Paint
McCullough, Joy. Blood Water Paint. Dutton Books, 2018.
Selection source: Follett Titlewave
reviews
Genre and Topics:
Art (Young Adult Fiction), Europe
(Young Adult Fiction; Historical), Novels
In Verse (Young Adult Fiction) ,Sexual
Abuse (Young Adult Fiction; Social
Themes)
Recommended Grade Levels:
9-12 (YA, though reviews place this
anywhere from grade 8+ to only 10-12
grades)
Reviews and Awards:
Booklist starred, 10/15/17; Bulletin of the more influential work of literature. An extraordinarily
Center for Children's Books, 03/01/18;
Horn Book Guide, 11/01/18; Kirkus
Reviews, 01/15/18; Publishers Weekly
Annex starred, 04/16/18; School Library
Connection, 05/01/18; School Library
Journal starred, 01/01/18; Teacher
Librarian, 04/01/19; Voice of Youth
Advocates (VOYA) starred, 02/01/18;
William C. Morris YA Debut Nominees,
2019
Diverse Populations Areas:
Abuse, European Religions
Similar Titles:
If You Tell The Truth by Jasmin Kaur
Among the Fallen by Virginia Frances
Schwartz
Brinsfield 3
Summary
th
In 17 century Rome, Artemisia Gentileschi lives in a
time when men rule the world, and women are viewed, at
best, as property. After her mother died, Artemisia became
the woman of the house. She grinds pigments for her
father’s paint, and works on painting commissions that he
ultimately signs his name on even though her abilities far
surmount those of her father. As if this degradation isn’t
enough, when her art teacher rapes her, she has to decide
whether to stay silent or have the case tried on the basis of
her father’s “property” being damaged. Finding strength
in her mother’s stories of two fierce women in the bible,
Artemisia decides to tell the truth and face the
consequences.
Reading Promotion
Artemisia uses memories of her mother’s stories to paint
unique interpretations of Judith and Susanna from the
bible. Think of a story from your past that gives you hope,
strength, or joy. Create an artwork that portrays this story
and write a short description of the piece.
AASL I.B.3
Generating products that illustrate learning.
Evaluation
Personal Reaction
An enthralling and beautifully told story, based on true
historical events. This story was made even more
powerful through its use of transitions between the
mother’s bible stories and Artemisia’s internal conflicts
expressed in verse. McCullough refused to shy away from
the raw realism of her content, which made for an even
inspiring tale of feminine strength and social justice.
Memorable Literary Element
Conflict: The internal conflict that the character faces is
most engaging, and goes right alongside the conflicts that
Susanna and Judith face in their stories. The external
conflict is suspenseful and satisfying throughout the
novel.
Appeal to Young Adults
Level 3: With the historical context and strong sensory
details, this novel will have readers captured in 17th
century Rome, losing themselves in the stories.
Level 5: This novel demands the reader to look at it with
an eye for right and wrong. The reader works to identify
with social justice issues as the character faces the unfair
and cruel realities for women of the time. One may even
make connections to current feminist movements.

A Song Below Water
Morrow, Bethany C. A Song Below Water. Tom Doherty Associates, 2020.
Selection source: Follett Titlewave
reviews
Genre and Topics:
African American & Black (Young
Adult Fiction; People & Places;
United States), Contemporary (Young
Adult Fiction; Fantasy), Prejudice &
Racism (Young Adult Fiction; Social
Themes)
Recommended Grade Levels:
8-12
Reviews and Awards:
Booklist starred, 04/15/20; Bulletin of creatures simply thrown in. While the fantasy aspect of the
the Center for Children's Books
starred, 06/01/20; Kirkus Reviews,
04/01/20; Publishers Weekly Annex,
06/01/20; School Library Journal,
04/01/20
Diverse Populations Areas:
African American, Racial
Discrimination, Women’s Studies
Similar Titles:
A Chorus Rises by Bethany C.
Morrow
Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Level 3: some readers, particularly lovers of mythology, may
Tomi Adeyemi
Brinsfield 4
Summary
Effie survived a mysterious run-in with a Sprite as a child in
which four of her friends were turned to stone at a park while
playing Red Rover. After Effie's mother died a few years later,
she moved in with her "play-sister," Tavia's family. Tavia is a
siren in a society where she needs to hide her powers. Sirens
are one of the few magical humans that are shunned by society
because of their power to control others with their call. As
events in Tavia's life become more complicated, it becomes
more difficult for her to mask her powers. Meanwhile, Effie is
battling challenges of her own. The Renaissance Festival has
always been her safe place, where she is no longer Effie, but
Euphemia the Mermaid. It seems she may miss the Faire this
year as she tries to understand why she sees a water mirage,
has blackouts, and is in a constant battle with dry skin. As
events related to racial discrimination and feminist oppression
force them to embrace their magical identities, the girls make
incredible discoveries about their familial backgrounds.
Reading Promotion
Many mythological creatures are mentioned in this novel.
Choose one and research it. Write about where the myth
originates and the magical abilities the creature possesses.
AASL V.A.1
Reading widely and deeply in multiple formats and write and
create for a variety of purposes.
Evaluation
Personal Reaction
Without a well-developed fantasy world, this novel felt more
like a contemporary realistic fiction story with some mythical
novel was dull, the adventure, suspense, and conflict of the
story were what made this book bearable. The social justice
messages regarding racial and gender discrimination were
powerful, but felt very forced throughout this novel. Slow at
times, this is one that would be good for students who are very
interested in mythology and issues involving racism, but not
much else. To say the least, I was not a fan.
Memorable Literary Element
Theme: the most significant part of this novel was the social
justice themes. Though not gracefully done, the inclusion of
contemporary issues centered around racial and gender
discrimination are important, and may be of interest to teens.
Appeal to Young Adults
become enthralled in the story’s inclusion of mythical
creatures, along with the slight hint of mystery.
Level 5: young adult readers will find many thought
provoking social justice issues within the novel.

The Bridge Home
Venkatraman, Padma. The Bridge Home. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2019.
Selection source: Follett Titlewave
reviews
Genre and Topics:
Adventure, Asia (Juvenile Fiction;
People & Places), Runaways
(Juvenile Fiction; Social Themes),
Siblings (Juvenile Fiction; Family), characters were feeling, why they might have done something,
Homeless persons Fiction, India
Fiction
Recommended Grade Levels:
5-8
Reviews and Awards:
Booklist starred, 02/01/19; Bulletin of
the Center for; Children's Books,
01/01/19; Horn Book Magazine,
01/01/19; Kirkus Reviews starred,
12/15/18; New York Times,
05/05/19; Publishers Weekly Annex
starred, 12/17/18; School Library
Connection starred, 05/01/19; School
Library Journal starred, 02/01/19;
Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA),
12/01/18
Diverse Populations Areas:
Poverty
Asian Religions
Homelessness
Disabilities/Special Needs
Similar titles:
Beverly, Right Here by Kate
DiCamillo
Born Behind Bars by Padma
Venkatraman
Brinsfield 5
Summary
For as long as Viji can remember, her father has been an
unkind man. She is used to him hurting her mother, but when
he turned on her and her sister, Rukku, while her mother did
nothing to stop him, she knew it was time to leave. Viji took
Rukku and ran away to the city, where she hoped to make a
better life for the two of them. What she discovered was the
harsh reality of homelessness. Luckily, she found two
homeless boys who helped show her how to make a living.
Together, the four of them and their dog Kutti formed a
family, living on a deserted bridge above a silvery river.
Unfortunately, after an unkind boy in another gang gave away
their home’s location, they were forced to leave. What’s more,
the rainy season was coming. Now, the children must fight
even harder to survive the realities of living on the streets.
Reading Promotion
Sometimes, acting out scenes in stories can give us a better
understanding of the thoughts and emotions of the characters.
With a small group, select a scene from the book to act out.
Then, give a short analysis of the scene. Include how the
and/or how acting this out gave you a better understanding of
the story.
AASL II.A.2
Developing new understandings through engagement in a
learning group
Evaluation
Personal Reaction
Incredibly heartfelt tale, with sweeping highs and heart
wrenching lows. This novel takes a powerful look at
homelessness, poverty, survival, and love. An absolutely
gripping adventure that was beautiful to read. On an extremely
personal note, this one has been one of my favorite books of
the entire course so far.
Memorable Literary Element
Narrative Mode: Viji’s first person point of view is a
influential element in this story. It helps the reader live her
thoughts and feelings, which is what really makes this piece of
literature fantastic!
Appeal to Young Adults
Level 3: young readers will be swept away in the adventure of
this tale, easily getting lost in unconscious delight.
Level 4: some readers may be able to relate to various
struggles that the characters face within the story. They may
also identify with the strong themes of friendship and love.
Level 5: this novel also gives readers a chance to look deeply
at some of the unfairness of the world around them.
Particularly involving poverty and child labor.
 Brinsfield 6

Works Cited

Books

Collins, Suzanne. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Scholastic Press, 2020.

McCullough, Joy. Blood Water Paint. Dutton Books, 2018.

Morrow, Bethany C. A Song Below Water. Tom Doherty Associates, 2020.

Venkatraman, Padma. The Bridge Home. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2019.

Selection Source

“Follett Titlewave®.” Titlewave, Follett School Solutions, 2021, www.titlewave.com/#I1.

“YALSA's Teens' Top Ten.” Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), American
Library Association, 13 Apr. 2021, www.ala.org/yalsa/teenstopten.
Other Information (Levels in Appeal to Young Adults)
Shesman, Jennifer. Stages of Literary Appreciation. 2019.
Images

“Follett Titlewave®.” Titlewave, Follett School Solutions, 2021, www.titlewave.com/#I1.

 Brinsfield 7

Reading Promotion Plan

Rationale

Young adults are in a time of transition in which many of them are working to create or

find their identity, and are curious about where they fit into the world around them (Shesman 9).

Many teenage girls struggle with social and peer pressures during this already difficult time in

their lives. They desire to be unique, but also to fit in (Cart 2). These issues can make it incredibly

challenging for teen girls to find where they fit into society, especially one in which female roles

and expectations are constantly in a state of change. Feminist movements consume our news

stories, social media, and literature. In his white paper titled “The Value of Young Adult

Literature,” Michael Cart discusses the values of young adult literature, one of which being “…it

helps them to find role models, to make sense of the world they inhabit, to develop personal

philosophy of being, to determine what is right and, equally, what is wrong…” (3). Teen girls need

positive role models to help them through this difficult time in their lives, role models who can be

found in the pages of books.

With this in mind, my plan is to host a reading promotion event during women’s history

month (March 1-March 31), that will give teen girls a chance at “looking at society through

literature” (Shesman 9). When deciding on this event, I knew that I wanted to choose a topic that

was relevant to current issues in society that are of interest to teens. I also know that there has been

a large push in publishing for literature that portrays positive, strong female role models. In my

searches, I found the Amelia Bloomer Book List (linked here), an annual book list that compiles

an annotated bibliography “of well-written and well-illustrated books with significant feminist

content, intended for young readers” (American Library Association). During this event, I will

host a book club and podcast series that showcases 5 books, selected by the participants, from the

young adult fiction section of this list.

Audience and Objectives

 Brinsfield 8

The targeted audience of this reading promotion program will be high school girls in grades

9-12. Boys will not be discouraged from joining, but they may only continue to participate if they

are serious about reading and the reading content of the chosen books, as some of the literature on

the list includes very raw feminine realisms that some less mature teen boys may not take seriously.

I will not shy away from allowing my group to read the books that portray raw realism, however,

because as Mandy McGinnis discusses in her article, “It’s Not Nancy Drew Out There: Writing

Tough Topics For Teens” reading about such difficult topics may make people more comfortable

talking about them (2). As one of my goals is to encourage students to discuss and question society

and feminist movements, I want my students to become more comfortable talking about these

difficult topics.

The purpose of this program is the same as many reading promotion programs, to get my

students reading! I want to encourage my students to step out of their comfort zones, to discover

new genres of literature, to find themselves or others in the books, and to use what they read to

question and learn about the world around them.

The AASL Standards Framework for Learners cannot be forgotten in all of this, and should

be the backbone to every part of the library program, including reading promotion programs. The

AASL standards that this promotion will target are:

III.A.2: When students participate in the book club discussions, they encouraged to develop new

understandings of the literature through engagement in a learning group.

V.A.1: As students select and read the literature that they choose, they will be reading widely and

deeply in multiple formats. The will also be using this reading to create a podcast series.

I.B.3: In creating a podcast based on the books that they are reading, students will be generating

products that illustrate learning.

II.C.2: As students share their views about the books in the book club, they will be contributing to

discussions in which multiple viewpoints on a topic are expressed.

 Brinsfield 9

II.D.3: By reading and discussing novels that depict social issues students will be reflecting on

their own place within the global learning community.

III.D.1: As members of the book club, students will be expected to actively contribute to the

discussions.

As for how this reading program fits into school goals, I am not currently teaching in a

high school, but I know that schools want to get students reading and responding to literature. I

also hope that teachers can use this program as a way to incorporate specific learning connections,

such as discussion of female characters in ELA as well as issues regarding women’s rights in

history classes.

Plan Description

This reading promotion will take place during the entire month of March, as a Woman’s

History Month special library program. The following steps outline the plan and activities that will

take place as part of the program:

Step 1: I will collaborate with teachers to create a school-wide advertisement of the program. I

will ask teachers to select either their favorite strong female book character or woman of history,

dress like them, and give a short speech about them at the start of their classes. During the afternoon

announcements, I will announce the reason the teachers did this, and describe the program.

Step 2: I will create a display of Amelia Bloomer books in the library.

Step 3: I will hold a lunch-time book club during each lunch period, two days a week. Participants

will select, read, and discuss 5 books from the Amelia Bloomer Book List.

Step 4: I will hold an after-school reading hour where book club participants may read their book

selections quietly, by themselves, or with a friend. To secure interest in this activity, light

refreshments will be provided, and female leaders from the community will speak at the beginning

of each meeting, as outlined in the collaboration section.

 Brinsfield 10

Step 5: The members of the book clubs will be encouraged to participate in a special podcast series

that showcases the female characters of the books that they are reading, especially as they relate

to feminist movements. Those who participate will receive a $5 gift card to a local business, as

described in the collaboration section. Snippets of the podcast series will be played over the

announcements to gain interest and following, along with (hopefully) some more readers!

Step 6: At the culmination of the event, I will host a lunch-time pizza party instead of a normal

book club meeting. Students will be asked to fill out an evaluative Google Form at the start of the

party.

The largest predicted challenge, as teens are often unpredictable, will be procuring enough

copies of each book selected by the book club groups, especially since they will be selected very

shortly before we must begin reading them. In order to provide each student with the reading

materials they need, I will reach out to members of the community for assistance, which I will

describe further in the next section.

Collaboration

As essential school library stakeholders, I will need to bring both the members of the

community and school staff into my program in order to make it truly successful. The following

table shows the community members I hope to get involved in this reading promotion program:

Community/School Staff Member Role in Promotion Program

Support and promote the program through the

Administration
school announcements

Initial school-wide
Classroom Teachers advertisement/introduction; support with
classroom connections
 Brinsfield 11

Hold a fundraiser ahead of the event in order

Family Engagement Team/PTO to raise funds to purchase extra hard and
digital copies of the books selected

Local Female Community Leaders Speak about their trials and triumphs as a
(specifically those involved in STEM, recruited from
nearby businesses such as CSX and IBM)
woman in a male-dominated field

Speak about real issues regarding women’s

Local Female Community Activists
rights and share views of feminist movements

Local Retail Stores and Restaurants Donate gift cards to be given away as prizes,
(such as Ulta, Target, Barnes and Noble, Chick-fil-a,
Pizza Hut, etc.)
and/or funds to help buy books

Help students obtain copies of books they

Public Library
need if funds do not cover enough copies

Technology Use

An important activity within this promotion plan is the creation of a podcast series about

the female character in the books that students are reading. Students will use the School Library’s

AV Room to access audio recording materials such as microphones and sound systems, as well as

a designated recording space. They will also use computers to access a free recording tool such as

Anchor or Audacity to record and broadcast their podcast episodes.

Technology will also be incorporated in the advertisement of this program. A separate

programming page will be created and attached to the library’s website. A link to the Bloomer

book list will be provided there, as well as links to the podcast series episodes, and additional

information/resources on the book that were selected by the participants.

Another important technology tool that will be used is Google Forms, which will be used

to evaluate the success of the promotion program.

 Brinsfield 12

Evaluative Assessment

As an evaluation of the program’s success, students will be asked to fill out a brief Google

form that will be sent out shortly before the program’s final event. They will need to complete this

before they may participate in the pizza party. Students will be required to write about their favorite

book and tell why it was their favorite, describe book discussions that helped them widen their

views of feminist movements, and rate the activities from the program in order of most enjoyable

to least enjoyable.

I will also take notes during the book club discussions to evaluate the reading content and

programming’s effectiveness in meeting the AASL Standards and program objectives.

This data will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of this program, as well as to prepare

and plan for future reading promotion programs.

 Brinsfield 13

Works Cited
“AASL Standards Framework for Learners.” AASL, 2018. https://standards.aasl.org/wp-

content/uploads/2017/11/AASL-Standards-Framework-for-Learners-pamphlet.pdf

Cart, Michael. “The Value of Young Adult Literature.” YALSA, 15 May 2021.

http://ala.org/yalsa/guidelines/whitepapers/yalit.

McGinnis, Mindy. "Writing Tough Topics." School Library Journal, https://learn-us-east-1-prod-

fleet02-xythos.learn.cloudflare.blackboardcdn.com/5fc6ac6f78f96/3738558?X-

Blackboard-Expiration=1624978800000&X-Blackboard-

Signature=0ra8dxpuzViVLwamkZ2rObGxaJ3KHMaAYaIKosHaYEg%3D&X-

Blackboard-Client-Id=174618&response-cache-control=private%2C%20max-

age%3D21600&response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%2A%3DUTF-

8%27%27Writing%2520Tough%2520Topics%2520for%2520Teens.pdf&response-

content-type=application%2Fpdf&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-

Amz-Date=20210629T090000Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-

Expires=21600&X-Amz-

Credential=AKIAZH6WM4PL5SJBSTP6%2F20210629%2Fus-east-

1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-

Signature=cef7f8041bef5457adf2f29c6ce33d4d6bf560ea80d18289b00652113d92028d.

Accessed 20 Jul. 2021.

Shesman, Jennifer. Stages of Literary Appreciation. 2019.

“The Amelia Bloomer Book List.” The Amelia Bloomer Book List | Awards & Grants,

American Library Association, www.ala.org/awardsgrants/awards/34/apply.