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Oprah’s Angel Network has local alternative students cracking the spines of discussion-provoking books at the North Branch of Summit County Library in Silverthorne.
The program provides three books — each focusing on a character struggling with a “serious challenge” — for teens to read and discuss with their peers.
The Great Stories CLUB (Connecting Libraries, Underserved teens and Books) of 10 Summit High School alternative-program students last week finished its first book, “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” by Sherman Alexie.
“The book seemed realistic but funny at the same time,” said student César Gonzalez, 16. “It was pretty cool.”
The students read the book together, out loud. Gonzalez said this approach offered him a vision of the characters and their expressions through his peers’ minds as well as his own.
He said that after the class was through with the book, he loaned it to a friend.
“I really liked the book, so I told him to read it,” Gonzalez said.
The program is developed by the American Library Association and funded through Oprah’s Angel Network. The Great Stories CLUB in Summit is one of more than 250 in libraries across the country.
Friends of the Summit County Libraries provides local support.
Summit library branch manager Janet Good said the group met last week to finish off the book with some Indian fry bread and root beer.
She said the book discussions included racism and Native American reservation issues.
The group this week is planning to crack into “Black and White” by Paul Volponi. The book regards an inter-racial friendship in high school.
Good said the books get the students involved in reading outside of their regular school assignments.
“These are kids who ordinarily don’t read on their own,” she said. “I think it’s helping them learn that reading can be fun.”
The book club’s participants were selected by SHS alternative program director Lucy Adams, who said the students “enjoyed it enormously.”
Robert Allen can be contacted at (970) 668-4628 or rallen@summitdaily.com.
The program provides three books — each focusing on a character struggling with a “serious challenge” — for teens to read and discuss with their peers.
The Great Stories CLUB (Connecting Libraries, Underserved teens and Books) of 10 Summit High School alternative-program students last week finished its first book, “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” by Sherman Alexie.
“The book seemed realistic but funny at the same time,” said student César Gonzalez, 16. “It was pretty cool.”
The students read the book together, out loud. Gonzalez said this approach offered him a vision of the characters and their expressions through his peers’ minds as well as his own.
He said that after the class was through with the book, he loaned it to a friend.
“I really liked the book, so I told him to read it,” Gonzalez said.
The program is developed by the American Library Association and funded through Oprah’s Angel Network. The Great Stories CLUB in Summit is one of more than 250 in libraries across the country.
Friends of the Summit County Libraries provides local support.
Summit library branch manager Janet Good said the group met last week to finish off the book with some Indian fry bread and root beer.
She said the book discussions included racism and Native American reservation issues.
The group this week is planning to crack into “Black and White” by Paul Volponi. The book regards an inter-racial friendship in high school.
Good said the books get the students involved in reading outside of their regular school assignments.
“These are kids who ordinarily don’t read on their own,” she said. “I think it’s helping them learn that reading can be fun.”
The book club’s participants were selected by SHS alternative program director Lucy Adams, who said the students “enjoyed it enormously.”
Robert Allen can be contacted at (970) 668-4628 or rallen@summitdaily.com.
