What are Teenagers Reading? - Extra Credit!

Today's presentation dealt with the topic of what teenagers are reading. The presentation was based on a research forum that the Dean of HEHD has been working on over the past four or so years. Students of different ages were interviewed to find what kids/teens were reading and what they were finding enjoyable. The research looked at if students found what teachers were assigning them as books they could consider enjoyable. The majority of books assigned by teachers were not found in the books that they really enjoyed. This was due to the books being too long, boring, and not applicable to the individual reader's life. These assignments were also found to be a factor possibly as to why kids and teens are reading less on their own due to having so much of the assigned reading to do. Books that were found popular to teens seemed to be novels that came in series, comics/graphics, and magazines. They were said to be able to relate more to series since it was continuous and liked magazines because it dealt with things of today that could be found interesting and enjoyable. The Dean encouraged us all to not stop reading for our individual enjoyment.

Baptizing the Gun

This story was quite different to me. The story begins with it seeming like one misfortune after another is occurring. When the man's car dies and he ends up with the Lagosian, I became more interested to see what was going to happen. A large part of this story was the mood that was created while reading it. From the moment of introduction for the Lagosian, a more ominous feeling sets throughout the story. It seems like a lot of the details were acting as foreshadowing, such as the gun and the man's different sweating and anger-like moments. There are also a lot of mentions of death and different people who are seen or talked of in that sense. It sets up the reader to believe that the priest is going to end up wounded or dead and that the Lagosian would be a "bad guy." The surprise ending of the two men actually having very wrong thoughts on one another was an ending I would have never guessed but made the story more interesting and unique. I thought it was funny how the "gun" was actually nothing more than his handkerchief. While the stranger began as something that did nothing less than terrify the priest and keep him on edge, he ended up also being the one to bring him peace towards the end with the priest concluding with "as [his] passenger faded into the night, his laugh [was his] absolution."


coiffure - a style of arranging or combing the hair, a head covering; headdress
"The chef, sporting stretch jeans, a T-shirt, and a Grace Jones coiffure, is dancing for the crowd."