Lit Up: One Reporter. Three Schools. Twenty-four Books That Can Change Lives

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Synopsis
A bestselling author and distinguished critic goes back to high school to find out whether books can shape livesIt's no secret that millions of American teenagers, caught up in social media, television, movies, and games, don't read seriously-they associate sustained reading with duty or work, not with pleasure. This indifference has become a grievous loss to our standing as a great nation--and a personal loss, too, for millions of teenagers who may turn into adults with limited understanding of themselves and the world. Can teenagers be turned on to serious reading? What kind of teachers can do it, and what books? To find out, Denby sat in on a tenth-grade English class in a demanding New York public school for an entire academic year, and made frequent visits to a troubled inner-city public school in New Haven and to a respected public school in Westchester county. He read all the stories, poems, plays, and novels that the kids were reading, and creates an impassioned portrait of charismatic teachers at work, classroom dramas large and small, and fresh and inspiring encounters with the books themselves, including The Scarlet Letter, Brave New World, 1984, Slaughterhouse-Five, Notes From Underground, Long Way Gone and many more. Lit Up is a dramatic narrative that traces awkward and baffled beginnings but also exciting breakthroughs and the emergence of pleasure in reading. In a sea of bad news about education and the fate of the book, Denby reaffirms the power of great teachers and the importance and inspiration of great books.
Copyright:
2016

Book Details

Book Quality:
Publisher Quality
Book Size:
288 Pages
ISBN-13:
9780805095869
Related ISBNs:
9780805095852
Publisher:
Henry Holt and Co.
Date of Addition:
Copyrighted By:
David Denby.
Adult content:
No
Language:
English
Has Image Descriptions:
No
Categories:
Nonfiction, Literature and Fiction, Education, Language Arts, Philosophy, Sociology
Submitted By:
Bookshare Staff
Usage Restrictions:
This is a copyrighted book.

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