Literacy Matters - Vol 21 - Winter 2021

Book Title/ Publication Info

Author

Synopsis

Fire from the rock. (2008) New York: Penguin Group (USA).

Sharon Draper

“Sylvia is shocked and confused when she is asked to be one of the first black students to attend Central High School, which is scheduled to be integrated in the fall of 1957, whether people like it or not. Before Sylvia makes her final decision, smoldering racial tension in the town ignites into flame. When the smoke clears, she sees clearly that nothing is going to stop the change from coming. It is up to her generation to make it happen, in as many different ways as there are colors in the world.” https://www. penguinrandomhouse.com/books/296578/fire-from-the-rock-by-sharon-draper/ “Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed. Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr. But what Starr does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.” https://www.racialjusticebookshelf.com “In this New York Times bestselling novel, two teens—one black, one white—grapple with the repercussions of a single violent act that leaves their school, their community, and, ultimately, the country bitterly divided by racial tension.” https://www.racialjusticebookshelf.com

Literacy Matters Critical Literacy Matters The Hate U Give (2017) Harper Collins All American Boys (2017). Atheneum/ Caitlyn Dlouhy Books

Angie Thomas

Jason Reynolds & Brendan Kiely

Source: Synopsis taken from: https://www.racialjusticebookshelf.com and https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/296578/fire-from-the-rock-by-sharon-draper/

Table 1 Titles for Books to Conduct Literature Circles with Anti-racist Themes (High School)  Dr. Tiffany Hollis is currently an assistant professor at Coastal Carolina University in the Foundations, Curriculum, and Instruction Department. Her research interests focus on the areas of relationship-based and culturally responsive classroom management skills, trauma-informed education, critical literacy, and poetry. She is committed to diversity, equity, and social justice as evidenced by her ability to create equitable, accessible, and humanizing learning spaces and opportunities for historically marginalized students of color through poetry and literacy. Dr. Hollis also focuses on creating healing spaces in the classroom setting where conversations and dialogue around race, racism, social

Questions readers ask themselves and that they ask of the author, the text, and the world as they read, write, and learn: What did I learn about myself as a reader, writer, learner? What techniques did the author use to influence my thinking? What does this writing / text / dialogue mean to me? Is this text presenting a balanced view of the issue? Do I need to consult another source of information? Whose voice is represented here? Whose voice is missing? How would this be different if… What if … What is the author’s intent? What is the author really trying to say? Do I agree with this text? Does this information make sense to me? Does this information agree with what I already know? How is this text changing the way I think? What action do I need to take?

justice, power, and privilege can be engaged in. She currently focuses on developing critical, youth-centered pedagogy by building and supporting spaces for youth to experience the transformative power of their own voices in community with one another. Dr. Hollis may contacted at thollis@coastal.edu .

Figure 1 Critical Literacy Stems

| 28 | Literacy Matters | Volume 21 • Winter 2021

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