Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Booktalking 101- Make it Relevant!

Fresh off my booktalking week, I was exhausted by happy.  Most of the books I talked about are checked out and a waiting list is growing.  Always a good sign! 
One thing I usually do before each booktalk is get audience participation by asking about something relevant going on in news or culture that can connect teens to the books.  So here's a list of the books and the tie-in I found for each one.

172 Hours on The Moon by Johan Harstad:  Neil Armstrong death, Moon landing controversy, aliens
Leading question: If given the opportunity, would you want to travel to the moon and live on a space station for a month?

Article 5 by Kristen Simmons: Presidential election, due process of the law
Leading question: Name a society dictated by soldiers and a police state.  Would you want to live there?

Ashfall by Mike Mullin: name some world famous volcanic eruptions
Leading question: Did you feel the tremors caused by an earthquake two weeks ago in the DFW area?

Audition Stasia Kehoe: different types of dance from ballet to Gangnum style
Leading question:  What does it take to be a famous athlete or dancer?

Beneath a Meth Moon by Jacqueline Woodson: effects of meth on a person
Leading question:  What are some physical traits of a person on meth?

Blood Red Road by Moira Young: preciousness of water in Texas, the twin bond
Leading question: Have you ever been around twins that were super close? **trailer

Dead to You by Lisa McMann: Jaycee Dugard story
Leading question: How would your life change if you were abducted but brought back?

Dearly Departed by Lia Habel: Victorian England
Leading question:  Do opposites attract?  Why? **trailer

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green: cancer in a family
Leading question:  Name some of the saddest movies you've ever seen

Chopsticks by Jessica Anthony and Rodrigo Corral: Romeo and Juliet
Leading question: Have your parents ever made decisions for you that you didn't agree with?  How about who you date?

Dark Eden by Patrick Carman: human experimentation debate, deprivation chambers
Leading question: Think about one of the worst fears in your life.... ** trailer

Dark Inside by Jeyn Roberts: epidemics, West Nile virus in our area
Leading question: Movie Contagion, pandemic and pandemonium ** trailer

Trafficked by Kim Purcell:  story of domestic near Mexico found tied to a tree
Leading question:  Why people get trafficked into the land of the free, home of the brave

The Pledge by Kimberly Derting: the most common languages on Earth. story of the Tower of Babel
Leading Question: Which language would be most beneficial to use?  Why?

The List by Siobhan Vivian: school traditions, October national anti-bullying awareness
Leading question:  What makes a girl pretty or ugly?

I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga:  America has most serial killers than any other country
Leading question:  Can you name any famous serial killers in our country's history? ** trailer

In Too Deep by Amanda Grace: the facial signs a person may be lying
Leading question:  Have you ever lied?  Have you ever tried to cover it up but the hole kept getting deeper? ** trailer

Love and Leftovers by Sarah Tregay: stats of divorce in America; long distance relationships
Leading question:  How would you feel if you were forced to move across the country your junior year?  How would you keep in touch with your friends?

The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler: History of the Internet
Leading question:  If you could see yours and your friends' Facebook 15 years from now, would you want to know? (Non-fiction pair: Friend Me! 600 Yearsof Social Networking in America by Francesca David DiPiazza)

Quarantine by Lex Thomas:  ebola virus; biological weapons and the government
Leading question:  Have you ever read Lord of the Flies?  How would you feel locked in high school is no adults around? ** trailer

Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne: world disasters (tsunami, Japan nuclear meltdown)
Leading question:  If a major disaster happened and you had to stay somewhere for six months or more, where would you want to be?

No Safety in Numbers by Dayna Lorentz: Malls around the area, which ones are best
Leading question:  If, all of a sudden you were in lockdown at the mall and saw Hazmat suits come in, what would your reaction be?

Ripper by Stefan Petrucha: Most famous mystery in history.  What happened to him?
Leading question: Would you want your parents to be famous?  What happens if they were infamous? (Non-fiction pair:  Secret Subway by Martin Sandler) ** trailer



2 comments:

GinaB said...

Thank you for posting these. I've used your blurbs (and have written some of my own) to passively "book talk" in my library. I put the book talks in MS Word text bubbles with colored backgrounds. I fold the paper in half and put them on the tops of my shelves with the book holding down the paper. Books are absolutely FLYING off the shelves!

Naomi said...

That is an awesome idea! I love collaborating across the matrix :)