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Volume 30, Number 3, February 2003

Overcoming the obstacle course: Teenage boys and reading

Patrick Jones & Dawn Cartwright Fiorelli

Almost any school or public librarian who has visited a secondary school classroom to booktalk could tell the tale about the student, always a male, who will defiantly and proudly announce to the librarian that he doesn't read. Chances are much of that is for show, to mark turf and to challenge. Chances are that boy does read. But not the stack of novels the booktalking librarian no doubt has in front of her; instead, that male is probably reading newspapers (especially comics, sports and entertainment), magazines (same list of subjects, but throw in video game magazines for younger teens) and maybe even heavily illustrated nonfiction.

After years of neglect, there is now a growing body of research to explain the reading and non-reading habits of boys. In the first chapter of Michael Smith's indispensable book Reading don't fix no Chevys is a quick review of a dozen major findings of that research related to boys (not just teens) and reading:

• Boys don’t comprehend narrative (fiction) as well as girls
• Boys have much less interest in leisure reading than girls
• Boys are more inclined to read informational texts
• Boys are more inclined to read magazine and newspaper articles
• Boys are more inclined to read comic books and graphic novels than girls
• Boys like to read about hobbies, sports and things they do or want to do
• Boys tend to enjoy escapism and humor
• Some groups of boys are passionate about science fiction or fantasy
• The appearance of a book and cover is important to boys
• Few boys entering school call themselves “non-readers” but by high school, over half do
• Boys tend to think they are bad readers
• If reading is perceived as feminized, then boys will go to great lengths to avoid it

Thus, the boy at the booktalking session saying he doesn't read might simply be saying that he doesn't read what libraries offer.

Most young adult sections in public libraries are filled with fiction; there is little recreational non-fiction. If there is recreational nonfiction, it is more than likely to be self-help, health-related, about teen issues or pop star biographies. There might be magazines, but the chances are they are aimed more at girls than boys. Comic books are more than likely not to be there, and graphic novels, if collected, are not featured. There probably isn't a newspaper lying around. Boys who venture into the YA area will find shelves so jammed that they won't have a catchy cover catch their interest and it is doubtful if anything but new books (which again, no doubt are all fiction) will be on display. Given these choices, the teen boy, especially a younger one, will opt for something safe like a series (boys like brands) only to get the message from a teacher, parent or maybe even a librarian that the book is okay because "at least they are reading something."

Secondary school libraries, which rarely and mystifyingly don't even have young adult areas to highlight materials to be read outside of the curriculum, offer boys just as few options. Thus, for most boys finding something to read in a library is like running an obstacle course.

What boys see as obstacles

A national survey conducted as part of YALSA’s 2001 Teen Read Week celebration netted more evidence about what boys see as obstacles to reading. One question on the survey (see full results) asked, "If you don’t read much or don’t like reading, why?" These are the responses of teenage boys; the average age of the survey respondent was 14:

• Boring/not fun 39.3%
• No time/too busy 29.8%
• Like other activities better 11.1%
• Can’t get into the stories 7.7%
• I’m not good at it 4.3%
• Makes me tired/causes headaches 2.5%
• Video games/TV more interesting 2.3%
• Too much school work 1.4%
• Books are too long 0.09%
• Friends make fun of me 0.01%

What is interesting is that virtually no teen boys responded that negative peer pressure served as a major obstacle. The rest of the obstacles can be overcome, but not by doing more of the same, which is building young adult areas filled with teen problem novel fiction; that is not what most boys want to read.

But more than research, the library world is filled with case studies (also known as anecdotal evidence). As a teacher-librarian in a middle school in New York, co-author Dawn Fiorelli learned to be creative and theatrical in her approach to booktalking, putting on quite a show to prompt boys to want to pick up a book, check it out of the library and then actually read it. One of her favorite experiences was with Shawn, a “very cool” seventh grader. Dawn was booktalking Harris and me by Gary Paulsen and told the class that it was the funniest book she had ever read. Shawn said, "Books can’t be funny," to which Dawn replied, “Oh yeah? I bet if you read this book you’ll laugh out loud.” He shrugged his shoulders, took the book and read it! Satisfied to simply get a book in his hands, she was ecstatic when he returned it and said “Yeah, pretty funny.

Dawn then moved on to her current position as a Young Adult Librarian in a public library in an affluent town in Connecticut where she spends lots of time showing moms books that their sons may enjoy. Parents have ideas about what appeals to their children and I always wonder about the conversation that goes on at home after they leave the library. She recalls a recent encounter involving a parent telling her that her son, in Grade 8 and a skateboarder, “would not be interested in the Tony Hawk biography because it was too long.”

After she left, Dawn realized that if the customer had simply had a list for her to take home, her library experience would have been more productive in many ways. She could have taken it home to her son, he could read over the list and choose for himself, and maybe some of those books would get into his hands. That experience prompted Dawn to ask fellow YA librarians across the country what their “sure thing” titles for boys were. The list (appended at the end of the article) is rich in its variety and provides one more opportunity to connect our boys with books. Creating such a list for both boys and parents of boys is one simple thing every library could do to help males jump the hurdle of finding a good book.

What the teacher-librarian can do

Here are 10 other things which teacher-librarians can do this week to increase reading behaviors and improve attitudes toward reading among teenage boys. Few of these items involve additional resources; almost all involve rearranging priorities.

1. Link from the library web site to the guysread.com web site which contains list after list of books recommended by guys for guys.
   
   
2. Plan at least one program aimed just at boys, which may or may not be directly related to reading. For example, have a martial arts demonstration and workshop, but make sure on every chair in the meeting room is a book or magazine about the subject. Take a look at Kirsten Edwards' Teen library events (Greenwood, 2001) and RoseMary Honnold's 101+ teen programs that work (Neal-Schuman, 2003) to learn more about planning exciting teen programs.
   
   
3. Get into the classroom and booktalk, including lots of nonfiction. Don't just hold up the covers; use PowerPoint to show the covers and illustrations. Boys want to see stuff, not just hear about them. See Jennifer Bromann's Booktalking that works (Neal-Schuman, 2001) to learn the tricks of the booktalking trade.
   
   
4. Buy every ALA Read poster featuring a male. Given that within their school the majority of English teachers and librarians are likely female, any example of a male reading is worth something.
   
   
5. Engage the coaches of the boys' sports teams in a Guys Read project. From read-alouds on the bus to away games to having athletes read to younger children, get coaches (of whom most are teachers; few are librarians) involved.
   
   
6. Buy a few less novels and put that money into periodicals: magazines, comic books and newspapers, particularly USA Today and at least one tabloid such as the Weekly World News. See Do it right (Neal-Schuman, 2001) for information on teen magazines.
   
   
7. Actively recruit teenage boys to volunteer and work in your library. Related, make sure that the teenager, often male, who is volunteering at your library because of community service gets to do more than stamp date due cards; give them a chance to have an experience with reading, from reviewing web sites to reading book reviews to whatever you can imagine. Recruit first for volunteers in the short term; recruit for the profession in the long term.
   
   
8. Ask teen boys about their reading. Find out any book they have ever read and learn what they liked about it. Do this not by asking "What did you like about it?"; rather, ask them to tell you the story of the book. Seek suggestions, do surveys, but talk one-on-one with boys whenever you can about reading and leave the "at least you are reading something" back in the 20th century where it belongs.
   
   
9. Teen boys do use libraries: they use computers, copiers and study tables, but the books are on the shelves. Put the books where the boys are. Move next to the computers the books about subjects which boys are looking at online: sex, sports and animation.
   
   
10. Buy books that boys want to read.

Building a guy-friendly collection

So what are those books? Lists abound in print and on the Internet. In the forthcoming Creating a core collection for young adults (co-written with Patricia Taylor and Kirsten Edwards; to be published by Neal-Schuman), there are lots of fiction and nonfiction for guys ages 12 to 18. YALSA’s annual "Quick Picks" list (among the lists featured at http://www.ala.org/yalsa/) is put together by a committee which seeks books that teens will pick up on their own and read for pleasure. The list is geared to the teenager who, for whatever reason, does not like to read. Teen input is a vital aspect in the final decision of the committee. The visual appearance of a book and the standard considerations in the quality of content is equally important when selecting books for reluctant young readers. While the list is not "books for boys" per se, the majority of the titles on the list DO have high guy appeal, especially for those boys who struggle with reading. No one wants to do anything they associate with failure, so libraries need books that allow boys to succeed at reading. The "for more information" list at the end of this article contains numerous books and articles, most of which provide suggested titles, such as Kathleen Odean's Great books for boys: More than 600 books for boys 2 to 14

The tools and titles are there; the research is there, and the need is there staring us right in the face. One more statistic: in the United States, one in 32 people is in or has been in the criminal justice system. One in 32 people in the United States according to the Justice Department is currently in jail, in prison, on probation, on parole or has been one of these things. The majority of these people are male. The majority of the male prison population has limited education; many are high school dropouts. The limits of education are almost always related to reading problems. If we want young men to have their hands clutching a graduation diploma rather than the bars of cell, then it is time to start overcoming the obstacles course we've set up in school and public libraries in order to ensure that guys read.

Twenty great fiction books for Grade 7 boys

We've listed only one title for each author, but most have several titles with high boy-appeal.

1. Downriver. Will Hobbs, Atheneum, 1991. 0689316909
2. Enders game. Orson Scott Card, T. Doherty, 1985. 031293208
3. Harris and me. Gary Paulsen, Harcourt Brace, 1993. 0152928774
4. Heart of a champion. Carl Deuker, Joy Street, 1993. 0316181668
5. His dark materials trilogy. Phillip Pullman. Knopf. Golden compass, 1996, 0679879242; Subtle knife, 1997, 0679879250; Amber spyglass, 2000, 0679879269
6. Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy. Douglas Adams, Harmony Books, 1989 (anniversary edition). 0517542099
7. Last mission. Harry Mazer. Delacorte, 1979. 0440057744
8. Maniac Magee. Jerry Spinelli. Little Brown, 1990. 0316807222
9. Monster. Walter Dean Myers, HarperCollins, 1999. 0060280786
10. Net force series. Tom Clancy.
11. No more dead dogs. Gordon Korman. Hyperion, 2000. 078682462
12. Oddballs. William Sleator. Dutton, 1993. 0525450572
13. One fat summer. Robert Lypstye. Harper & Row, 1977. 006023895X
14. Raven of the waves. Michael Cadnum. Orchard, 2001. 0531303349
15. Silent to the bone. E.L. Konigsburg. Atheneum, 2000. 0689836015
16. Slot machine. Chris Lynch, HarperCollins, 1995. 0060235853
17. Soldier's heart. Gary Paulsen. Delacorte, 1998. 0385324987
18. Stormbreaker. Anthony Horowitz. Philomel, 2001. 0399236201
19. Tangerine. Edward Bloor. Harcourt Brace, 1997. 015201246X
    
20. Touching spirit bear. Ben Mikealsen. HarperCollins, 2001. 0060291494

Nonfiction areas of interest to guys, in Dewey order

000/100/200s: World records / Computers / Bigfoot / UFOs / Unexplained / Monsters / Parapsychology /Mythology

300s: Scary stories / Urban legends/ True crime / Forensics / Military / Study guides

500s: Dinosaurs / Snakes / Sharks / Wolves // Outer space / Reptiles / Natural disasters / Math riddles

600s: Anything with wheels (bikes, cars, trucks, etc) / Sex / Electronics

700s: Almost any sport, both professional and participatory / Gameboy codes / Magic / Drawing / Comics / Optical illusions / Hip hop / Rock music / Cartoons / Star Wars / Special effects / Puns

800s: Jokes / Poetry / Story collections / How to write poetry / Riddles

900s: Wars / Biographies of athletes, musicians, actors and explorers

References

Aronson, M. (2001). Exploding the myths: The truth about teenagers and reading. Landham, MD: Scarecrow Press.

Baxter, K. (1999). Gotcha!: Nonfiction booktalks to get kids excited about reading. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited.

Barrs, M. (2000). Gendered literacy. Language Arts, 77, 287-93

Brooks, B., O'Dell, K., & Jones, P. (2000). Will boys be boys? Are you sure? Voice of Youth Advocates, 23, 88-92.

Brozo, W. (2002). To be a boy, to be a reader: Engaging teen and preteen boys in active literacy. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Brozo, W., & Schmelzer, R. (1997). Wildmen, warriors, and lovers: Reaching boys through archetypal literature. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 41, 4-11.

Cart, M. (2000). What about boys? YA novels with male protagonists. Booklist, 96, 892.

Crowe, C. (2002). An antidote for testosterone poisoning: YA books girls—and boys—should read. English Journal, 91 (3), 135-138.

Cox, R. (2001). Lost boys. Voice of Youth Advocates, 24, 172-173.

Flynn, J. & Rahbar, M. (1994). Prevalence of reading failure in boys compared with girls. Psychology in the Schools, 31, 66-71.

Gorman, M. (2002). What teens want: Graphic novels. School Library Journal, 48 (8) 42-44, 47.

Gurian, M. (2000). What stories does my son need?: A guide to books and movies that build character in boys. New York: Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam.

Jacobson, L. (2002). Longitudinal study finds gender and race gaps among 1st graders. Education Week, 21 (27), 7.

Jones, P. (2001). Teen nonfiction: The real stuff. School Library Journal, 47 (4), 44-45.

Langerman, D. (1990). Books & boys: gender preferences and book selection. School Library Journal, 36 (3), 132-6

Lodge, S. (1999). Get ready for 'boy power'. Publishers Weekly, 246 (32), 212-13.

McGillian, J. (2002). Get boys crazy about books! Creative Classroom, 16 (6), 30-32.

Maynard, T. (2002). Boys and literacy: Exploring the issues. New York: RoutledgeFalmer.

Murphy, J. (2001). Boys will be boys. School Library Journal, 47 (1), 31.

Nilsen, A. (2001). It's deja vu all over again! School Library Journal, 47 (3), 49-50.

Nicolle, R. (1989). Boys and the five-year void. School Library Journal, 35 (3), 130.

Nodelman, P. (2002). Who the boys are: Thinking about masculinity in children's fiction. New Advocate, 15 (1), 9-18.

Odean K. (1998). Great books for boys: More than 600 books for boys 2 to 14. New York: Ballantine.

Orellana, M. (1995). Literacy as a gendered social practice: tasks, texts, talk, and take-up. Reading Research Quarterly 30, 674-708.

Robb, D. (2001). Crossing the water: Eighteen months on an island working with troubled boys – a teacher’s memoir. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Simpson, A. (1996). Fictions and facts: An investigation of the reading practices of girls and boys. English Education, 28, 268-79.

Smith, M. (2002). “Reading don't fix no Chevys”: Literacy in the lives of young men. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook.

Wilhelm, J. (2001). It's a guy thing. Voices from the Middle, 9 (2), 60.

Young, J. (2001). Displaying practices of masculinity: Critical literacy and social contexts. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 45, 4-14.

Young, J. (2001). Boys will be boys, or will they? Literacy and masculinities. Reading Research Quarterly, 36, 316-25.

Patrick Jones is author of several books on library service to young adults, including the forthcoming Creating a core collection for young adults (Neal-Schuman, 2003). He can be reached at patrict@connectingya.com. Dawn Cartwright Fiorelli is a young adult librarian with Scranton Library in Madison, CT. She can be reached at fiorellid@madisonct.org.