Connecting Boys with Books What Libraries Can Do Michael Sullivan Connecting Boys with Books What Libraries Can Do Michael Sullivan American Library Association Chicago 2003 While extensive effort has gone into ensuring the reliability of information appearing in this book, the publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, on the accuracy or relia- bility of the information, and does not assume and hereby disclaims any liability to any person for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions in this publication. Composition and design by ALA Editions in Aperto and Berkeley using QuarkXPress 5.0 for the PC Printed on 50-pound white offset, a pH-neutral stock, and bound in 10-point coated cover stock by Victor Graphics The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1992. ϱ Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Sullivan, Michael, 1967 Aug. 30- Connecting boys with books : what libraries can do / by Michael Sullivan. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8389-0849-7 (alk. paper) 1. Children’s libraries––Activity programs. 2. Young adults’ libraries––Activity programs. 3. Boys––Books and reading. 4. Reading promotion. 5. Reading––Sex differences. I. Title. Z718.1.S85 2003 028.5Ј5––dc21 2003006962 Copyright © 2003 by the American Library Association. All rights reserved except those which may be granted by Sections 107 and 108 of the Copyright Revision Act of 1976. Printed in the United States of America 0706050403 54321 To Helen Marie Sullivan, who always wanted me to be a reader and a writer CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS vii FOREWORD ix INTRODUCTION xi Chapter 1 Lost Boys 1 Chapter 2 Reaching Out to Boys and Men 8 Chapter 3 It’s Still about Books 22 Chapter 4 From Story Hour to Independent Reading 44 Chapter 5 Chess, Games, and Challenges 57 Chapter 6 The Power of Stories 73 Chapter 7 Reading, Talking, and Promoting Books 95 CONCLUSION 109 BIBLIOGRAPHY 113 INDEX 117 v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS itations never seem to tell the story of where a book comes from, and in Cthe making of this book there are many people who have had their part. First I want to thank the dedicated librarians with whom I have had the priv- ilege of working, who have shared their ideas, their interests, and their enthusiasm with me, and many of whom freely gave their input on this book itself. Foremost among them are Phyllis Danko, Mindy Hawkins, Lesley Gaudreau, Susan MacDonald, Ellen Tirone, and Stacy Debole. Other librarians have shared their programming ideas and experience when I truly needed personal insights. Prominent among these is Donna Beales. Professor Margaret Bush has had an enormous impact on this work, and on me, as she has had on so many of the children’s specialists in the field today. Renée Vaillancourt McGrath at ALA Editions has been a constant encour- agement in my writing, and it is thanks to her that the opportunity to write this book arose. And finally, of course, are the fine young men for whom so many of these programs were offered: Derek, Zack, Carmine, Joey, Steven, Alex, Chris, Ben, A. J., Matthew, Sky, Peter, Kris, David, and all the rest. You carry a heavy bur- den, to prove that the men of the coming age can be decent, smart, and just one step better than the generation, my generation, that has come before. I have enjoyed every minute working with you, teaching you, reading to you, playing against you in chess, and watching you grow up. I hope to see you pave the way for a generation yet to come. vii FOREWORD by Jon Scieszka ou probably don’t need Michael Sullivan to tell you that many of our boys Yare having trouble with reading. The U.S. Department of Education sta- tistics show boys an average of one and a half grades behind girls in reading. Seventy percent of kids in remedial classes are boys. Boys are not the major- ity showing up for library programs. Boys are the majority saying they spend no time reading for pleasure. But we do need Michael Sullivan to challenge us to change these statis- tics, and tell us in practical and concrete terms what libraries can do to con- nect boys with books. Thank goodness he has. If you care at all about kids and reading—read this book. If you don’t care about kids and reading—read this book. In fact, you probably shouldn’t even bother to read the rest of the foreword. Just go ahead and read this book. If you are still here, I guess I can explain that Sullivan does a marvelous job of illuminating some of the factors that affect boys and reading. He describes the differences in boys’ and girls’ learning styles. He examines the lack of male reading role models. He offers a slew of ideas for effective pro- gramming for boys, a cornucopia of book lists for boys. He takes a clear-eyed look at the profession of being a librarian and invokes the ethical imperative of the ALA Bill of Rights to provide “equal service to all.” I can’t believe you are still out here in the front of the book reading this. Librarians have a unique opportunity to connect boys with books in a way that inspires them. Libraries can offer boys the choice and immediate Jon Scieszka is the author of The Stinky Cheese Man, the Time Warp Trio series, and plenty of other books he has tried to connect with kids. He is also the founder of a literacy pro- gram for boys called “Guys Read” at www.guysread.com. ix x Foreword engagement that they prefer in reading. Libraries can be a safe and nurturing place in those dangerous hours when most kids get in trouble after school. Librarians can be the ones to change the problem we know many of our boys are having with reading. Now turn the page, and let’s start changing the world. INTRODUCTION I remember, I remember, The fir trees dark and high; I used to think their slender tops Were close against the sky: It was a childish ignorance, But now ’tis little joy To know I’m farther off from heav’n Than when I was a boy. —Thomas Hood, “I Remember” 1 his is a book for all those who sincerely believe that library services and Treading are too good to be missed. It is for people who believe, as I do, that good reading habits are essential to getting the most out of life, and that those habits are difficult or impossible to acquire if they are not learned early. It focuses specifically on boys in that period when they are no longer children but not yet teenagers, from eight to twelve years old, what we know as the “tween” years. This book is both a warning and a celebration of the things that make boys different from girls and the things that make this age so dif- ferent from others. I have come to believe that both the concern and the exal- tation are necessary if we are to open up to boys the great expanse of possi- bilities that a healthy reading life can provide. In developing a book about library services for boys, I wanted to avoid any hint of misogyny. It is difficult for men to talk about gender and not sound discriminatory, especially when the topic is the special needs of boys. That may be why so little has been made of this issue in public debate. There are plenty of children’s librarians and elementary educators who are con- xi xii Introduction cerned about choosing books for boys; designing services for boys is a more delicate matter. But the issues here have nothing to do with disparaging the needs of girls or the ability of women to serve boys. It is not a matter of sep- arating the sexes, and I will not be talking about men and boys painting themselves in war colors and pounding on drums in the woods. I will be look- ing at ways to make the things we do for everybody more welcoming for boys. Indeed, gender separation could have a negative effect on the develop- ment of boys. One of our goals when working with boys should be to counter the flat, stereotypical view of masculinity that prevails in today’s media, and mixed-gender groupings in early adolescence can help. As Angela Phillips points out in The Trouble with Boys, “Where adolescents socialize in mixed groups there will be far less pressure on boys to conform to male behavioral norms. If girls are part of a boy’s peer group he is far less likely to treat them as objects to be leered at, or sneered at, and he will almost certainly find that these friendships open up the closed doors of the place in which he stowed his feelings.”2 I would add a contextual note. Boys and girls mixing together in a sup- portive, positive, and productive environment is more likely to mute behav- ioral norms. Today, we see mixed-gender groupings in “hangout” situations, and we know that peer pressure is affecting younger and younger kids. It is clear that eleven- and twelve-year-olds may be acting out the same power relationship scenarios that fourteen- and fifteen-year-olds were exhibiting in a previous generation: flirt and impress, intimidate and dominate. This is where the library comes into the picture.