The article discusses the image of the family and the family home in a series of novels for young people by the popular Polish writer Malgorzata Musierowicz in the context of literary conventions and stereotypes about the family in contemporary Polish society. The novels, which cover a period of over 40 years, generally fit contemporary Polish…

This paper presents original research which investigates university students' perceptions of identity, rights and duties in relation to four novels at a public-sector university in Sindh, Pakistan. Reader-response framework and model of citizenship are used as theoretical frameworks guiding this study. The findings are based on data supplied by 26…

This article presents the results from an international collaboration between undergraduate students in the United Kingdom and Norway. Using Literature Circles and "Google Documents" in groups, the students liaised digitally over three young adult novels that are prominent within the UK school curriculum. This study explored the ways in…

Purpose: This study aims to examine the responses and perceptions of Israeli Arab teachers toward multicultural and educational issues concerning Jewish-Arab relations. Design/methodology/approach: This study is a qualitative research. The study included 44 novice Arab teachers, who teach Hebrew in the Arab sector and are currently studying toward…

This paper details the visual responses created by a group of preservice teachers reading a series of contemporary graphic novels about adolescence. Visual response is here understood as an interpretive methodology of transmediation, informed by theorists of multimodal literacies as well as particular forms of psychoanalytic inquiry related to…

During two multifaceted, classroom-based research projects, Grade 7 students had opportunities to develop their understanding of metafictive devices and art and design elements by reading a selection of picturebooks and graphic novels. The students also had the opportunity to apply their knowledge and create their own multimodal print texts. This…

To help underscore the importance of giving the arts an integral place in the literacy continuum of secondary school language arts, I immersed myself in a careful reading of twenty teacher candidates' transactions in the art of body biography for novel study for intermediate students (grades 7-10). Coming together in groups of five, the teacher…

This article investigates mental representations of literary characters and their relations with other aspects of response to literature and age, gender, and expertise. A Saga chapter and the beginning of a contemporary novel were presented to 16 participants from each of three age groups (13 years, 17 years, adults) equally divided by gender and…

This essay explores a reading of "Robinson Crusoe" that suggests the novel has taken on new gravity after the first "preemptive" war in U.S. history, a war justified by the attempt to "spread freedom" to Iraq. It examines how Crusoe comes to understand the relationship between the state and the individual. Robinson…

Sonya Hartnett's "Thursday's Child" was published in Australia by Penguin Books in 2000. Editions are available in the UK (Walker Books, 2002), the USA (Candlewick, 2002), as well as in Canada, Germany, Italy, Norway, and Denmark. In 2002, the book was awarded the "Guardian's" Children's Fiction Prize in the UK. Like Harper,…

A study explored the developing literacy response of adolescents through writing by investigating three characteristics: patterns, individual variations, and the effects of genre on response. Subjects, 7 grade nine students from a small private secondary school on the west coast of Canada, were selected for their wide reading experiences. Subjects…

Argues that Christa Wolf's novel "Patterns of Childhood" provides opportunities for students to consider the adolescent dilemmas of the protagonist Nelly and to reflect on how they themselves are coming to terms with the world. Notes that the novel forces students to see Nazi Germany with new eyes. (RS)

Examines Gary Crew's novel written for a young adult audience, called "Strange Objects," a story containing verifiable historical fact interwoven with elements of fiction and the supernatural. Shows how the numerous genres and viewpoints in the book challenge and contradict one another, forcing young readers to perform resistant readings…

Intended for preadolescents, this novel can serve as an antidote to the well-documented sexism girls encounter as they struggle with questions of self-esteem. It tells the story of 11-year-old Lily, harassed by a boy at school, but with a distinct advantage in that her flute teacher is a time traveler. In the novel, Lily travels back 3,500 years…

"The Old Man and the Sea" remains one of Ernest Hemingway's most beloved works. This casebook helps readers interpret and appreciate the thematic concerns of the novel, as well as the contextual issues it explores. Topic chapters provide information on Cuba, including its natural geography, sociopolitical history, and the ethnic…