YAAS: LGBTQ+ Pride Month

If you want to learn about the original conception and mission of this program, read my What is YAAS? post. TL;DR: It's a weekly group for youth age 14+ where we do community service work, library programs, host guest presenters, and make connections with peers in a safe and welcoming environment.

Tonight's guest presenter was my dear friend Bobby, a program facilitator at One N Ten. I met him when I started volunteering at One N Ten's Mesa satellite group, and I'm so glad I did because he's one of the sweetest, most genuine, and most down-to-earth people I know. He graciously agreed to be our guest for LGBTQ+ Pride Month. 

One N Ten Mesa staff/volunteers at Camp OUTdoors 2018!

I gave him free reign to choose the subject he presented on, and he chose the history of the pride flag and the pride movement. He showed the following very cool and informative videos, and showed a PowerPoint with photos of the people who started the movement in the 1960's such as Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera. 

left to right: Rivera and Johnson mid-protest

Bobby also talked about the Stonewall riots and listed some more modern LGBTQ+ rights bills that have been passed in recent years, like the Stonewall Hotel in New York being declared a national monument by President Obama in 2016. 

Normally, after I posted these videos I would show pictures of proud library teens holding up their art from the hands-on portion of the night, but I didn't take any. BUT there was a hands-on project that everyone worked on after Bobby's presentation, and it was great. Everyone made their own personal pride flag based on things they're proud of themselves for. I loved this spin on the pride flag, becuse even if some of the youth don't identify as LGBTQ+, they all have things to be proud of about themselves!

Here are the videos Bobby showed during his presentation, followed by the few pictures I was able to take tonight.

Video: Origins of the Pride Flag on CNN

Teaching

Listening

Asking questions

Group picture!

Also, my favorite picture book on the history of the pride flag is Pride: The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag by Rob Sanders. Please enjoy this video of someone reading it aloud and showing all the gorgeous illustrations.

Display: LGBTQ+ Pride Month 2019

Time for my annual Pride display! Pride Month is like Christmas for me. I joke that it's the only month of the year I get to be gay at work. It's not, my workplace is super inclusive and accepting, but it IS the time of year that I get to hang rainbows everywhere with relative impunity! This year, I focused on YA fiction and nonfiction books, but invited the whole staff to add books as they found them.

Throughout the month, a lot of books made their way through the display. You can also check out 2017's display list for more titles. Here are the ones you can see in the photo:

• Traffic by Ellen Hopkins (YA fiction)
• Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (YA fiction)
• Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan (YA fiction)
• Queer America by Vicki Lynn Eaklor (YA fiction)
• Stonewall by Ann Bausum (YA/adult nonfiction)
• And She Was by Jessica Verdi (YA fiction)
• The Apocalypse of Elena Mendoza by Shaun David Hutchinson (YA fiction)
• Being Transgender: What You Should Know by Thomas E. Bevin (YA/adult nonfiction)
• At the Edge of the Universe by Shaun David Hutchinson (YA fiction)
• Ship It by Britta Lundon (YA fiction)
• FML by Shaun David Hutchinson (YA fiction)
• The First Man-Made Man by Pagan Kennedy (Memoir)
• Hold Me Close by David Levithan (YA fiction)
• Here We Are Now by Jasmin Warga (YA fiction)
• Alice and Frida Forever: A Murder in Memphis by Alexis Coe (YA/adult nonfiction)
• Journey to Same-Sex Parenting by Eric Rosswood (YA/adult nonfiction)
• Becoming an Ally to the Gender-Expansive Child by Anna Bianchi (YA/adult nonfiction)

To draw even more eyes to the display at the front of the library, one of my volunteers made this bulletin board strategically placed in the teen area. The writing on the shooting star reads, "Check out the PRIDE display in the front lobby!"

HAPPY PRIDE MONTH!!!!!!!!!!!

Mad Science: The Science of Sound

Today in Mad Science, we learned all about what makes sound happen. I remembered vaguely that there was a Magic School Bus episode about sound, so I took to the trusty Internet to locate it and show a clip that would explain vibration and sound waves better than I am able to. At the beginning of the program, I showed two videos.

The first video was the Magic School Bus clip I was thinking of. It does a great job explaining how vibration makes sound, and the basics of sound waves. The second video is from The Dr. Binocs Show, one I was not previously familiar with. I like this one because it also goes over vibration and sound waves, but then furthers the discussion by talking about matter and the absence of sound in the vacuum of space.

For our experiment today, we did a mini DIY musical instruments lab. First we made a harmonica out of tongue depressors and rubber bands. I did this as a step-by-step workshop, not telling the next step until everyone had completed the current one. This way, no one got to the end and started playing their harmonica too early.

While it was difficult to teach while the kids were excited about making noise, I opened up a discussion about the construction of our harmonicas. What did the kids think could be done differently to produce a louder sound? A different pitch? What would happen if we removed the paper from inside?

They decided that the paper creates space between the sticks, which is necessary to create a vibration on the rubber band. According to the videos we watched, vibration is required for sound to happen. A couple of them constructed a second harmonica with no paper, and their hypothesis was proved correct!

Our second experiment was a buzzing noise maker made with index cards, string, pencil-top erasers, and rubber bands. There is a great entry with a video on What We Do All Day that explains exactly how to make it. I did this project step-by-step as well, and didn't tell the kids that the aim was to spin it and make it buzz until everyone's was complete.

Like we did with the harmonica, I took a few minutes to talk about why the construction of this instrument works the way it does. We quickly identified the source of vibration, and also like the harmonica, realized that removing the index card stops the vibration, and therefore, the sound.

At the end of the program, we watched the two videos again for the handful of late-comers who missed them at the beginning. The kiddos were delighted to bring their buzzy new toys home, and I officially feel like a science teacher.

Book Review: You Don't Know Me But I Know You

Before I start this review, I'd like to announce that I set my Goodreads goal to 50 in 2018. Since I hit 58 in 2017 I considered making it higher, but I also want to push myself to read more adult fiction and nonfiction this year, which take longer to read. Then again, I will be running two youth book clubs this year, which is 24 middle grade and YA novels right there. So. I will probably read 60-70 children's and YA titles this year. Que sera, sera.

WARNING: SPOILERS ARE COMING. If you haven't read the book, you will learn things you shouldn't until the end of the book. Just trust me, this book is amazing; read it, then come back and read this entry. Recommend it to every teen in your library while you're at it. Yeah, it's that good.

Moving on...

Book info: 
Title: You Don't Know Me But I Know You
Author: Rebecca Barrow
Year Published: 2017
ISBN: 9780062494191
Interest Level: Grades 9-12

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Rebecca Barrow’s bright, honest debut novel about chance, choice, and unconditional love is a heartfelt testament to creating the future you truly want, one puzzle piece at a time.

There’s a box in the back of Audrey’s closet that she rarely thinks about.

Inside is a letter, seventeen years old, from a mother she’s never met, handed to her by the woman she’s called Mom her whole life. Being adopted, though, is just one piece in the puzzle of Audrey’s life—the picture painstakingly put together by Audrey herself, full of all the people and pursuits that make her who she is.

But when Audrey realizes that she’s pregnant, she feels something—a tightly sealed box in the closet corners of her heart—crack open, spilling her dormant fears and unanswered questions all over the life she loves.

Almost two decades ago, a girl in Audrey’s situation made a choice, one that started Audrey’s entire story. Now Audrey is paralyzed by her own what-ifs and terrified by the distance she feels growing between her and her best friend Rose. Down every possible path is a different unfamiliar version of her life, and as she weighs the options in her mind, she starts to wonder—what does it even mean to be Audrey Spencer?

You Don't Know Me But I Know You is without a doubt the most diverse YA novel I have ever come across. I added the disclaimer about spoilers because I can't even list all the ways it shows diversity in modern teens without giving away a major plot point.

The main character, Audrey, is a mixed race teenager who lived with her single, white mom. Her mom, an ex-movie star, adopted Audrey by herself when she was single. So already we have a mixed race family, single parent family, and adoption.

There is also very realistic bisexual representation in the form of Audrey's best friend, Rose. Rose has dated guys and girls, and during the course of the book gets over her ex-girlfriend, sleeps with a guy friend at a party, and then overcomes her relationship fears and enters into a healthy and loving relationship with the new girl in school. This character is some of the best LGBTQ+ representation I've seen in recent YA literature, because this facet of her being is accepted by her friends, and mentioned without it constantly (and unrealistically) monopolizing every conversation. Rose has other things going on in her life, like her absentee parents; like in real life, her queerness does not define everything about her existence.

Sex is presented in a very positive way in this book as well. It is understood that teens have sex, birth control should be made available, and if an accidental pregnancy happens, it's something to deal with and not the end of the world. The adults in the book are very understanding when Audrey and her boyfriend slip up and get pregnant, even though they were using birth control. Once again, the fact that they are having sex does not define them.

HERE IS WHERE THE SPOILERS KICK IN so if you're still reading and haven't read the book yet, bookmark the page and go read the book first.

It is also really realistic how Audrey finally comes to the decision to end her pregnancy. She has a lot of open communication with her boyfriend (something else that doesn't usually happen in books in favor of dramatically fighting couples), and they consider all options. What it would be like to be parents, how it would feel to carry the baby to term and then give it up for adoption, and whether the best choice is abortion. Audrey's own status as an adoptee comes into play in the form of a letter from her birth mother. What ultimately convinces her that abortion is the right choice is, in fact, the letter where her birth mother tells her about her life 17 years after giving Audrey up for adoption. I love, love, love this twist. Audrey reads the letter and realizes that, like her birth mother choosing adoption because it was the best choice for her at the time, she needs to choose abortion so she can go on without disrupting all the important plans she has for her life. She takes a long time to land on abortion after a lot of careful consideration.

The abortion scene itself is very well done. The doctor and nurse are nonjudgmental, the procedure is presented as clinical and not scary, and her mental state during and afterward are curious but calm. It makes me so happy that YA literature has come far enough in its evolution that an abortion scene can be presented scientifically and without any sort of preaching. The genre has come a long way from killing off LGBTQ+ characters as a form of karms after they made out with someone of the same sex. More info about that weird recurring phenomenon in They Have Faces Too: LGBTQ Literature, Then and Now, an article I read this week by Michael Cart on the Booklist website.

I feel like this book would be an amazing pick for my Young Adult Diversity Book Club. Why is it diverse? Let me count the ways...

• Mixed race main character
• Single parent family
• Mixed race family
• Adoption
• Teen pregnancy
• Bisexual representation
• Sex positivity
• Abortion

Most books include one, maybe two subjects that make them diverse. This one has EIGHT! That's unheard of, and amazing. Did you read the book and spot more diversity that I missed? Leave me a comment!

In conclusion, I am completely in love with this book. This is Rebecca Barrow's debut novel, and I cannot wait to see what she comes out with in the next couple of years! She is definitely an author to watch, because great things will continue to come from her. Unrelated, I want to be her best friend. She just looks like she'd be a really cool buddy to eat Chinese food and watch Netflix with, doesn't she?

Author Rebecca Barrow

YA Diversity Book Club 2017

My vision for this book club is to provide a space for all teens who enjoy reading and talking about what they've read. I put the word "diversity" in the title because we focus on books in which the characters belong to marginalized communities: racial, ethnic, disabled, LGBTQ+, homeless, mental illness, abuse, etc. I have found that reading books that explore marginalization is a great way to open up the conversation in a non-threatening way. After reading these books, kids will open up about similar experiences they have been through or witnessed their friends going through. It's part book club, part safe space, and part social; I want my teens to leave this club knowing that I am here for them, as are their new friends, if they are having a hard time for any reason.

Since I have not been keeping up with entries about my teen book club since I started it in the summer, I figured I would do a 2017 wrap up and then start monthly entries about it in 2018 as meetings happen.

Reception about this program has been varied, because the type of highly-motivated teens that a book club tends to attract are also super busy with other extracurricular activities. During the summer, a lot of our teen volunteers were very involved, but that dropped off in September when everyone went back to school. I still have exactly one very involved member, who has been doing their best to talk it up at school and their other activities. For the moment, however, I am just working on getting the word out and recruiting more teen readers.

January will be a planning meeting where I'm asking the kids what they would like to read. I am trying to lure them with pizza, so we'll see if I get any new members.......

In the meantime, here are the books we read in 2017 along with Goodreads links, why they fall into the category of diverse books, and a short review.

September: If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan

I fell in complete love with this book. Farizan does an amazing job of explaining the difference between being gay and being trans to readers that might not understand it, without breaking out of the character's voice. The ending was heartbreaking, but also exactly what I hoped would happen.

It's diverse because: Iranian culture, LGBTQ+ themes (lesbian and trans)

October: All-American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brandon Kiely

I actually originally read this book for a class in grad school about YA literature. It's very timely because it talks a lot about a Black Lives Matter-esque movement without actually using the name of the real-life movement. Alternating between the POVs of two teen boys, one white and one black, we get to see all sides of a story dealing with police brutality.

It's diverse because: Racial issues and teaching tolerance

November: Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

I have to say, I am not usually a fan of fantasy, but I loved this book! It's like the Harry Potter universe, except the kids sometimes drink, curse, and have sex. The spells are also much more modern, and it explores the idea of magic being a concrete substance that you can own, spend, and run out of. Also, Rowell does an amazing job of writing in British voices across all six or seven narrators, even though she herself is American. Halfway through reading I found out that it is actually the book from Rowell's other novel, Fangirl, and was written after Fangirl was published and popular. Now I have to read that one as well!

It's diverse because: British culture, LGBTQ+ themes (gay)

December: None of the Above by I. W. Gregorio

I read this book last year and did not have a chance to re-read it before our December meeting, but I still remembered it well enough to have a conversation about it with the one member who showed up. I like it because it is written by a doctor who specializes in Intersex patients, so all the medical facts are correct. Gregorio also does a great job of capturing all the characters' emotions, especially the main character's. What I dislike about this book is the utter cliche that is Kristin's high school life. She's a pretty, popular athlete who desperately wants to win Homecoming Queen and have sex with her boyfriend, and then it all comes crashing down when she finds out that what has been masquerading inside her as ovaries are actually testicles. The only downside to the diagnosis as far as I can tell is not being able to have biological children, if you wanted them. Otherwise, the devastation Kristin experiences and the merciless bullying her schoolmates subject her to when they find out seems incredibly dramatic and over the top. The best character is the mentor she finds through an Intersex support group, a self-assured lesbian who helps her understand her condition and develop a new outlook on life. But, it's a worthwhile read and a great example for teens of how to accept yourself no matter what curve balls life throws at you.

It's diverse because: LGBTQ+ themes (intersex)

"I Am Jazz" Public Reading

I planned a last minute program this week, after finding out about the nationwide public readings of I Am Jazz by Jazz Jennings and Jessica Herthel.

I found out about the event from Facebook, and went to this website for more info. Apparently it's a yearly thing. If I'd had more time to plan I would have advertised it more, but I think my event went pretty well.

 When people first entered the room, I had a copy of the book displayed along with a handout about gender identity appropriate for all ages, our December newsletter, flyers for my Young Adult Diversity Book Club, and library surveys so we could find out what people thought of a potentially controversial event.

It was an event for all ages, and since it is a picture book there were mostly kids there with their parents. So as an introduction to trans issues, I showed this catchy video:

After the video, I asked our small crowd what they liked or noticed about the video. One little girl's favorite part was the penguin with a magic wand, because she was like everyone's fairy god mother. Another child said she liked that all the birds in the video get to dress the way they want, and no one can tell them how to dress except themselves. I told her that was exactly the point of the video, and exactly what we would be talking about tonight; dressing and living as your true self, however you feel most comfortable.

Our second video was the one I originally saw on Facebook that clued me in to the whole movement.

And finally, I passed around the one library copy of I Am Jazz that I was able to get my hands on while we watched this video, of Jazz herself reading the book:

After the videos, I encouraged the participants to stick around while I cleaned up the room. I had a craft table set out where they could color, cut out, and mount a paper doll chain on a piece of construction paper.

I also had two tables of books displayed, all in the theme of diversity, gender identity, and LGBTQ+ issues for children and teens.

We had 17 participants total, which is not bad at all for an event completely conceived and advertised two days beforehand. The people who came seemed to have a good time, enjoy the videos, and even took a few books to check out! I'm really satisfied that I was able to share this important event with our patrons.

Here is a list of the books I displayed:

Children's Picture Books

• Introducing Teddy by Jessica Walton
• 10,000 Dresses by Marcus Ewert
• Red: A Crayon's Story by Michael Hall
• And Tango Makes Three by Richardson & Parnell
• Sparkle Boy by Leslea Newman
• Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress by Christine Baldacchino
• Worm Loves Worm by JJ Austrian
• It's Okay to Be Different by Todd Parr
• The Okay Book by Todd Parr
• The Family Book by Todd Parr

Children's Chapter Books

• Better Nate than Ever by Tim Federle
• Five, Six, Seven, Nate by Tim Federle

Teen Nonfiction

• Queer: The Ultimate LGBT Guide for Teens by Belge & Bieschke
• The ABC's of LGBT by Ashley Mardell
• "You Can Tell Just By Looking" and 20 Other Myths About LGBT Life and People by Bronski, Pellegrini, & Amico
• The Full Spectrum: A New Generation of Writing About Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, and Other Identities
• This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson
• Queer There and Everywhere: 23 People Who Changed the World by Sarah Prager
• Queer America: A GLBT History fo the 20th Century by Vicki L. Eaklor
• Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out by Susan Kuklin

Adult Nonfiction

• Coming Around: Parenting Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Kids by Anne Dohrenwend

        

I could gush forever about all these books, but it's probably better if you discover them on your own.

June 2017 Display: Pride Month

Because June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month, I decided to make a display celebrating pride in the Young Adult section of our library. Here are some pictures I took of the display right after I finished it. (Sorry about the weird warping on a couple of them... I attempted to do panoramic view pictures)

Below is the list of books I displayed. For the record, I have not read too many of the books on this list yet. My favorite genre to read is YA fiction, so this list could easily double as my to-do list for the next couple years. Feel free to use as a jumping off point for introducing more LGBTQ+ positive lit in your classroom or library!

• YA Fiction
• Meg & Linus by Hanna Nowinski
• Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley
• Our Own Private Universe by Robin Talley
• Pretend You Love Me by Julie Anne Peters
• How Beautiful the Ordinary: Twelve Stories of Identity
• Beautiful Music for Ugly Children by Kirstin Cronn-Mills
• Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan
• Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel by Sara Farizan
• Annie On My Mind by Nancy Garden
• Freakboy by Kristin Elizabeth Clark
• None of the Above by I. W. Gregorio
• Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan
• One Man Guy by Michael Barakiva
• Hero by Perry Moore
• I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
• Ash by Malinda Lo
• Lies my Girlfriend Told Me by Julie Anne Peters
• Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List by Rachel Cohn
• How I Paid for College: A Novel if Sex, Theft, Friendship, and Musical Theater by Marc Acito
• True Letters for a Fictional Life by Kenneth Logan
• If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan
• Thinking Straight by Robin Reardon
• Promposal by Rhonda Helms
• The You I've Never Known by Ellen Hopkins
• Drag Teen: A Tale of Angst and Wigs by Jeffrey Self
• Seven Ways We Lie by Riley Redgate
• You and Me and Him by Kris Dinnison

• YA Nonfiction
• The ABC's of LGBT+ by Ashley Mardell
• Queer: The Ultimate LGBT Guide for Teens by Kathy Belge
• "You Can Tell Just by Looking" and 20 Other Myths About LGBT Life and People by Michael Bronski
• It Gets Better: Coming Out, Overcoming Bullying, and Creating a Life Worth Living 
• This Book is Gay by James Dawson
• Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out edited by Susan Kuklin
• The Full Spectrum: A New Generation of Writing About Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, and Other Identities