For the past one hundred years, the American public has been entertained by the daily and the Sunday newspaper comic strips. The comics are now recognized as a legitimate and unique pop art form that chronicles the American culture. Research concerning reading interests and preferences provide evidence that the comics have a particular attraction…

Describes approximately 60 fiction and about 10 non-fiction young adult literature books and other print media about sports. Notes the importance of sports in American society. (SG)

A "Read-iculous Read-a-thon" at an elementary school highly motivated first and second-graders to increase their reading time and interests through such activities as pep rallies, a reader's day, character act-outs, and other activities. (CB)

Presents results of survey conducted to discover the reading habits and preferences of secondary school students in Greece. Results show a high percentage read a newspaper often and the number of books read per month is high. (BK)

Discusses how students benefit from a book fair. (DD)

The ways in which Teri Lesesne, an author, selects the best book from the hundreds of books published each year are discussed. The importance of understanding the needs of the readers and the curriculum is explained.

Adding graphic novels to a school's library collection is an effective way to foster students' love reading. Graphic novels can also help improve language and literacy development, including second language learners, the illustrations provide valuable contextual clues to the meaning of the written narrative.

A One Book program called "Building a Community of Readers" encourages reading and discussion of a book in a casual setting and not as an assignment to earn a grade. Some suggestions are provided that would help in establishing such a program and encourage a community-wide participation that includes choosing the book, choosing the committee,…

Describes a reader interest feedback system in which the editor of a campus newspaper interviewed different types of readers about their reading interests and asked them to comment on experimental newspapers. Points to advantages of such a system. (GT)

Focuses on a women's reading group that was organized for the purpose of discussing popular books from the Nancy Drew collection. Notes that when the participants were collaborative rather than hierarchical in their discussion stances, they constructed unexpected knowledge and expressed divergent views. Explores the implications of findings for…

This article describes, "Getting Acquainted with Young Adult Literature," a book club geared specifically toward teachers, launched by Angela Boccuzzi-Reichert. Angela is a media specialist at Merton Williams Middle School. The club is the perfect way to familiarize teachers with contemporary young adult literature--and ultimately expose hundreds…

When Oprah Winfrey began her successful book club in 1996, she continued a tradition that public libraries have provided for decades. Oprah placed a spotlight on reading that encouraged many women who had never read a book "to read." Book clubs sprang up in neighborhoods, bookstores, and on Web sites. Library media centers began offering book…

Library media specialist should be prepared to select books appropriate for each student's needs. In this article, the author suggests that when making selections for Spanish-Speaking ESL students, look for the following characteristics: (1) Choose books with simple, limited text and pictures on each page, (2) Select bilingual books with text in…

The article describes an elementary school's "celebrity reader" program, where students invite representatives of various professions to visit their class and read one of their favorite stories. Suggestions are presented for identifying and inviting guest readers and follow-up activities. (CB)

Recent developments in literacy teaching have tended to target the needs of primary, rather than high school pupils and focus on technical, rather than affective aspects of reading. This paper describes a questionnaire-based study undertaken to identify perceptions and views held by Key Stage 3 readers of different ages, genders and abilities.…