To my four loyal readers, and those other two kids who wander past sometimes, I feel the need to warn you: I have been called upon to blog for class. This should not be onerous, as I don't see how I'm going to have time to read anything non-class-related for the next few weeks--not even most of the 11 non-class library books I have out now. But we're talking about three novels per week, and a girl's got to do what a girl's got to do.
Anyway, the reason I give you, my audience, this heads-up, is that I will be talking a lot about developmental assets, which are "positive experiences and personal qualities that young people need to grow up healthy, caring, and responsible," according to the Search Institute. They're like a blueprint to a well-adjusted teenager. I didn't want anyone to think that I'd joined some sort of cult when my blog suddenly got a lot more focused--just a YA lit class.
I should also warn you that I'll be reading a Jodi Picoult book next week; we all know where that's going to end up.
Before I start this seven week journey, though, I want to add my thoughts on Remember Me 2: The Return. UGH. Christopher Pike started out as a writer of good thrillers. He has since then discovered transcendental meditation. I liked Sati, though I found its spirituality too simplistic. But he's managed to dumb his philosophy down even from that, AND his dialog at the same time. It's mushy (Earth is just one part of our mystical journey, and we're all part of the great Oversoul that is God), and contradictory (you can advance through evil instead of good, but everything is good because it's all part of the Oversoul that is God), and just plain derivative (Nirvana is a big beautiful field). Also, you get to come back to Earth as a Wanderer, if you want, by taking over another person's life.
Oh, and one of his main characters is supposed to be this great writer, and she's kind of a lousy writer. It's like--OMIGOD--like Christopher Pike has been taken over by an anti-Wanderer, and lost his writing skills!
I'm a terrible, terrible person. But I really loved Remember Me. As far as I am concerned, it has no sequel.
3 comments:
Just for the record, I am a faithful reader of your blog which I found via altdotlife. I'm an avid reader in the Boston area and love your thoughts! :-)
Five faithful readers! Thank you for chiming in--I talk to myself enough in public that it's nice to know I'm not doing it on the Internet!
Library Hungry: I'm on staff at Search Institute and your blog site popped up on the Google Alert I have for "Search Institute." I want to thank you for promoting Developmental Assets in your blog. I also want to make you aware that members of YALSA also embrace the Developmental Assets. Following is a link to an article posted last Saturday on the official YALSA blog site. Thought I'd pass it along in case there is some symbiosis between your work and theirs. http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/06/14/making-friends-2/. All the best, Bill Kauffmann
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