tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post6202938029390483013..comments2023-08-07T03:46:24.163-04:00Comments on Confessions of A Hermit Crab: Misplaced?Jessica Brilliant Keenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05292649334006427891noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-12439403431790889692009-08-04T12:21:52.610-04:002009-08-04T12:21:52.610-04:00Hi, Krebiz.
Glad to meet you. It's never too l...Hi, Krebiz.<br />Glad to meet you. It's never too late to comment here.<br /><br />Thinking about this classics in high school issue, I do think exposure is important. We all know the power of a good teacher, and it works the other way. A terrible teacher's impact stays with us a long time, too.<br /><br />Hope you like Willa C when you get to it.Jessica Keenerhttp://confessionsofahermitcrab.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-34048056417440561292009-08-04T11:51:30.700-04:002009-08-04T11:51:30.700-04:00I'm a bit late to the party, so to speak, with...I'm a bit late to the party, so to speak, with this comment. I just came over from Donigan Merritt's blog.<br /><br />I wholeheartedly agree with you about school pushing the classics. Sometimes though, I do wonder if they're more or less giving us an adult reading list to which we can return. I found that Moby Dick is a weird, wholly wonderful book. I went back to John Donne, and jennahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05390768198484010363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-89670685941608966222009-08-02T22:03:51.952-04:002009-08-02T22:03:51.952-04:00Welcome, Brad. Thanks for joining. I don't kno...Welcome, Brad. Thanks for joining. I don't know Donigan Merritt's work. Thanks for the suggestion and for stopping by!<br /><br />JessicaJessica Keenerhttp://confessionsofahermitcrab.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-18807744928784641262009-08-02T21:58:13.808-04:002009-08-02T21:58:13.808-04:00If you're interested in place in fiction, you ...If you're interested in place in fiction, you should check out the novels of <a href="http://http://doniganmerritt.typepad.com/donigan_merritt" rel="nofollow">Donigan Merritt</a>. Place is a primary influence on his fiction. <br /><br />Hello as well. I just subscribed to your blog, having seen the link on Facebook. I look forward to reading.Brad Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14303095673203409777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-16214695365162095152009-08-02T06:54:19.428-04:002009-08-02T06:54:19.428-04:00True, Kristina. It is a fine line!
JessicaTrue, Kristina. It is a fine line!<br /><br />JessicaJessica Keenerhttp://confessionsofahermitcrab.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-2074953958218631872009-08-02T00:00:12.017-04:002009-08-02T00:00:12.017-04:00"I think grammar schools often over-push the ..."I think grammar schools often over-push the classics before kids are emotionally ready to appreciate what they're reading."<br /><br />Absolutely true. Yet, there should be SOME pushing or some kids might never discover them. I might have been the only kid in ninth grade who loved A TALE OF TWO CITIES, which was assigned reading. It's a fine line.<br /><br />Haven't read MYKristinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03005060328496062807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-71128550312653773532009-07-31T17:24:45.623-04:002009-07-31T17:24:45.623-04:00Hi, Ellen.
You make a good point. The exposure is ...Hi, Ellen.<br />You make a good point. The exposure is necessary. They should be introduced, but how these classics are taught needs some rethinking. Of course, a great teacher makes all the difference. I think the same thing happens in early history classes. At least it did for me. So dry. Too much emphasis on dates, etc.<br />Thanks for stopping by!<br /><br />JessicaJessica Keenerhttp://confessionsofahermitcrab.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-26994724903609528372009-07-31T17:02:24.590-04:002009-07-31T17:02:24.590-04:00I totally agree that grammar schools--and I would ...I totally agree that grammar schools--and I would also add middle schools and sometimes high schools--push the "classics" on kids ... and it backfires. For instance, I cringe when I hear adults say that they "hate" Shakespeare because they were forced to read it when they were younger. But what should be done about this? Should kids not be introduced to the classics in a Ellen Parkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03161364250893303683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-21158138767756173072009-07-31T11:01:06.753-04:002009-07-31T11:01:06.753-04:00Hi, Dylan.
Wow. What an image. A red thread--so ti...Hi, Dylan.<br />Wow. What an image. A red thread--so tiny and yet so significant, and the thread of the story that trails it. Magnificent. I hate to admit it, but I have not yet read Cormac McCarthy. And I need to read Stones for Ibarra.<br /><br />Thanks for stopping by!<br /><br />JessicaJessica Keenerhttp://confessionsofahermitcrab.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-68875663660469130302009-07-31T10:46:57.647-04:002009-07-31T10:46:57.647-04:00Thank you for the Willa Cather reminder--it's ...Thank you for the Willa Cather reminder--it's been years. I'm just insane about "Stones for Ibarra"--the way Harriet Doerr shows you a room (or a landscape) by having people move through it, handle things. A woman climbs a ladder to clean her chandelier, and finds a red thread that's been placed there as a charm by her housekeeper--to keep the woman from discovering a crack dylanhttp://dylanlandis.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-16355823345577520142009-07-31T10:20:04.788-04:002009-07-31T10:20:04.788-04:00Billie,
We homeschooled our son for awhile. Homes...Billie,<br />We homeschooled our son for awhile. Homeschooling is a fantastic option for the right kids and family and not what many people imagine. It's typically not about being at home, but out in the world, which offers endless learning possibilities. It also requires mammoth devotion and time from one or both parents, and trust.Jessica Keenerhttp://confessionsofahermitcrab.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-13087145148769881332009-07-31T10:14:21.068-04:002009-07-31T10:14:21.068-04:00Jessica, I think you're right - so many of the...Jessica, I think you're right - so many of the classics that get assigned in those earlier years (I guess b/c the audience is captive and won't remain that way for too long!) are really such potent material for that age group.<br /><br />We homeschool, and I have so many of the classic books here, from my own childhood and from being an English major undergrad. It's been interesting billiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18187141867284800597noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-46012008784559873802009-07-31T09:52:12.919-04:002009-07-31T09:52:12.919-04:00Hi, Billie.
Thanks for your suggestions.
You know,...Hi, Billie.<br />Thanks for your suggestions.<br />You know, I think reading My Antonia in high school is probably a terrible time to read it. I think it calls for an older audience. I'm sure it was assigned to you as part of your curriculum. In my town, they assigned My Antonia in 8th grade. I didn't read it then but I remember thinking the title sounded stuffy and boring.<br /><br />Jessica Keenerhttp://confessionsofahermitcrab.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-26956498964633288082009-07-31T09:28:05.662-04:002009-07-31T09:28:05.662-04:00Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian and his Borde...Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian and his Border Trilogy are extremely rooted in place, to the point that I feel like I've been in that country, in that era, on horseback, after reading them.<br /><br />I'm also remembering Dot Jackson's Refuge as being a novel that put me right where it was and kept me there. I still have a sense of the place, and I've only read the book once,billiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18187141867284800597noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-72509165523185732632009-07-31T08:34:24.944-04:002009-07-31T08:34:24.944-04:00Sue--Great reading suggestions. I haven't rea...Sue--Great reading suggestions. I haven't read most of them. Have read Carson McCullers and loved her. Read her during my "Southern" reading phase. If you like stark, then My Antonia should appeal to you, too. It's big sky country. Dry, expansive. <br /><br />Thanks for stopping by.<br /><br />JessicaJessica Keenerhttp://confessionsofahermitcrab.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719141244732470210.post-81569025653138482072009-07-31T08:25:31.881-04:002009-07-31T08:25:31.881-04:00When it comes to being moved by the setting, I def...When it comes to being moved by the setting, I definitely go for places that are stark, like Andrew Wyeth paintings. Something really hits me emotionally about them.<br /><br />These ones are amazing for setting: Carson McCullers, Member of the Wedding; all of Annie Proulx; GG Marquez, Leaf Storm; Anne Moody, Coming of Age in Mississippi. And The Little House books.LitParkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17522150687696351583noreply@blogger.com