2012 Common Reader: “Leadership” by Rudy Giuliani

Amarillo College is pleased to announce the 2012 Common Reader selection, Leadership by Rudy Giuliani.

This book goes hand in hand with the 2012-2013 Institutional Theme, ‘Be the Change…’  Many organizations across the AC campus will be working to implement this important idea into their programming and conversations.

Common Reader 2011: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Book Discussions

I hope that by now you’ve had a chance to pick up your free copy of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close from the Advising Center (Washington Street Campus).

The next activity you can participate in is a Book Discussion, tomorrow at 12 noon in Library 112.  Whether you’ve read two pages of the book, or have finished it, our conversation will be a good opportunity to meet new people and talk about Oskar’s crazy life.

One lucky participant will walk away with a gift certificate to Roaster’s Coffee and Tea!

For a list of all other Common Reader Book Discussions, please click here.

Writing Competition

If you have finished the book, this is a good time to begin writing your entry for the Writing Competition.  This year’s prompt is:

Jonathan Safran Foer’s second novel, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, tells the story of Oskar Schell, a precocious and an unconventional nine-year-old boy, whose mental and emotional turmoil in the wake of his father’s death on 9/11 propels him on a remarkable journey to uncover the mystery of the key he finds in his father’s closet a year after the World Trade Center attack.  Traversing the tragedy of 9/11, as well as the fire-bombing of Dresden in WWII, the experimental and compelling Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close thrusts readers into a landscape of fear and love and the pain of loss.

With that in mind, write a personal narrative, short story or poem in which you explore how you have been affected by one or more of the issues in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.

Don’t Forget! Jonathan Safran Foer on Campus!

One of the biggest events of the Common Reader program is the author visit.  Jonathan Safran Foer will be on campus, Wednesday, November 2, 2011.  He’ll be spending time with AC students at the Amarillo Museum of Art at 2:30 p.m. and speaking to the entire community at 7 p.m. at the Globe News Center for the Performing Arts.  We hope you’ll join us!

Visual Arts Competition

In the spring, we will host a Visual Arts Competition.  Check back for more details!

2011 Common Reader Selection

AC’s is proud to announce Jonathan Safran Foer’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close as the 2011 Common Reader.

Please visit the main page for the most current information about activities and faculty resources.

Common Reader 2011: Third Discussion

We had a great conversation on Friday, January 21, 2011 about two of the books on our consideration list:

• Where Men Win Glory
• The Ground Truth

We had a great crowd turn out for our first Thursday meeting.

Here are the thoughts of the group on Where Men Win Glory:

Click here to hear the author speak at the 2010 NCCWSL Woman of Distinction (her comments begin at 4:27).  Also, here to view ESPN’s tribute.

Where Men Win GloryDiscussion on:

• If you can get to the political stuff at the end it gets back to Tillman’s story
• reminds him about Greg Mortenson, the guy who’d wrote felt compelled to include EVERYTHING
• Full of random facts
• not easily read, yes, easily read
• “read the first chapter and then, well, umm, I didn’t read the second.”  Time thing was an issue – it wasn’t something that I couldn’t put down
• liked the way it showed the time line of things.  don’t know if you must have this book to show that
• bookmark of ‘terms’ – like that
• don’t know if you must have this book
• explained the political part pretty easily if you didn’t understand any of it
• thought it was ironic how the Bush administration used Tillman (how patriotic) used Tillman to tell his views on the war.  He was used more than once.
• The whole thing – agnostic
• Krakauer does a lot of editorializing.  The part about the spies, the conspiracy the cover-up, it was really dis-heartening.
• That was the point.
• Am I supposed to like one person here?
• May have to shift our paradigm of what this event looks like.
• This is a war story.
• It’s high-profile, author, subject, if trying to get the freshman to read, this might be the book to do it
• the easiest to read history of the topic – tried to read the other books and can’t, Looming Towers, Ghost Wars, read that part and went WOW!
• None of the other books have really talked about the history – theme is WHY?  This gives the rise of al Qaeda, why they hate us?  Readable way, first of the ones that explains those things
• Does it talk about why we responded why the way we did?  Yes – conspiracy theory, spin his politics by the way he discusses.  Pat Tillman’s journal discusses that he doesn’t believe in this war
• the battle scenes doesn’t seem to overpower, but most of it
• He entered because of Afghanistan, but then he ended going to Iraq.
• Think it would be a good book to pick for the men
• like a metaphor, misguided war and his misguided journey where he thought that he didn’t know the army was populated by 19 year-old, and misguided cover-up.  He thought he was bullet-proof through his whole life
• like the appeal of his wife speaking
• didn’t know anything about Army culture, look at him and the decisions he made, his wife’s reaction, a look at the culture.  Become acquainted with it.
• how in the army your told to do something and hows there’s no negotiating
• painted the picture that he doesn’t care about money.  stayed with the cardinals because of loyalty
• had sense of self-grandeur, don’t want them parading his name through the streets
• if it was something else don’t think he’d want the attention
• suicidal tendencies?  adrenaline junkie?  Join the Army, in the front, with the action – wanting to die, be a martyr at some point
• probably shocked when he did die
• I’m invincible
• proven the youth, have the foot soldiers
• friendly fire, dropping the bomb on them, thought they’d past the line, but dropping bombs, the guy who did shoot him saying he didn’t do it?
• what about his brother who’s offered the opportunity to get out, but he goes back?
• exposes infotainment – goes on the whole side story, not in a good way, people to realize how much information is skewed, but people think what they’re saying is the truth, don’t check the facts, into the whole propaganda, talking to graphic arts students about how that is still going on
• well if you listen to a particular station then it’s gospel
• critical thinking skills?  the basis for propaganda is people not thinking about what’s the truth – they aren’t ever asked ‘why do you think that way?’
• Conversation has alluded to critical thinking skills
• think this book has lots of areas for potential, why would I want to read that story, as I read it, it moved to the top of my list, something they can get their heads around.

Here are the thoughts of the group on The Ground Truth:

Click here to hear the author speak via telephone and also on The Colbert Report.  Also, here’s a FRONTLINE report on ‘post 9/11 terrorism-industrial complex – and its growing reach into the lives of ordinary Americans.’

The Ground Truth Discussion on:

• It’s the unedited version of what really happened
• how the CIA and FBI had no communication between each other
• people on the ground had no ability to make decisions – had to go up chain of command
• how at every turn they were blocked
• told Bush months before it happened to be wary – covering your a**
• undermines the ground truth – exercise in finger-pointing
• fascinated that we had the dots, but they just weren’t connected,
• stuff that should have been fixed at the end of 9.11, but that’s not
• this is how the machine works, but it’s broken
• compares it to Katrina – stuff that still wasn’t fixed, Zeitoun
• sat on the 9/11 commission, why didn’t he fix it then, he said that they changed the truth,
• goes back further than Bush, it goes back to Clinton, not so much conspiracy theory, just that all of the information parts weren’t connected
• one of the most wanted no fly list was never given to the FAA
• FBI has information about this group, multi-entry visas, didn’t pass it along because of jurisdiction,
• basically like a turf war
• PBS show, the same theory, part of the reason why we have budget problems is that we have some many budget problems, no one knows what everyone’s doing there’s so much duplication creating large budget issues, Frontline
• Clinton tried to fix it – CIA to train under FBI, basically no one knows everything, folks just know pieces
• New Homeland, was supposed to have budgetary control of FBI, CIA, new entity has no power, but can’t do it’s job, as if it’s a band-aid
• do we really want to go down this road, end up arguing the mechanics,
• think it’s an interesting discussion, but not the main point
• It’s starts getting to the point…
• readability – hmm?
• We liked Touching History, yet the man who sat on the 9/11 commission says its bogus
• if we’re going to go that route, there’s probably a more interesting book
• positive setting – about the democratic process, what does it mean
• don’t like saying that it’s ‘lying’ when most folks that day did what they could
• Why so much information has been skewed, this group said it was this
• ‘Infotainment’ in news-making
• think there would be a fist fight if we choose this book
• there would definitely argument, more arguments than discussion
• It’s an important concept, it asks more questions than it answers
• work to encourage them to read it, but then do something with it, discussion, talk, read it, what now?  More book club like -
• Purchasing t-shirts, ‘future AC graduate’ have shirts to give-away,
• Do like a ‘house-party’ thing where we put together the information, and make it easy for them to do
• Not supposed to just lecture, encourage writing skills, have every class write a paper,
• Can involve students to help out, more students involved to help out, committees honors students led discussions,
• think it has valid information, but not a common reader

Common Reader 2011: Second Discussion

We had a great conversation on Friday, January 21, 2011 about two of the books on our consideration list:

• Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
  
• Touching History
  

We had a great crowd turn out (23) and delicious treats thanks to Mark’s group.  Frank’s Bakery – yummo.  I have pictures, but my mom always told me it wasn’t polite to brag.

Here are the thoughts of the group on Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close:

Click here to  hear the author speak. I love the name Oxana (weird I know).

• Yes, it’s theme-related
• Yes, it’s readable
• Student: ‘would read it for fun, read it even if you didn’t make me’
• love the flip book at the back
• 9 in the group liked/loved the book
• sat and stared after finishing it
• took a minute to figure out how to read it
• regret and grief, a universal thing, kept washing over me
• look at how everyone rallied around Oskar
• mom wrapped up in his own grief
• to close to the events, have a very different perspective of the events, who here wouldn’t help a kid helping him
• Why does it resonate?  Because it’s the perspective of the child, didn’t see the big picture because you didn’t know there was a big picture
• how relevant is this for students to read – overwhelming loss, loosing dreams, did that speak to you?
• This happened at the ‘age’ of our incoming freshmen  Really enjoyed it, even reading it didn’t see it as the main common reader book.  Didn’t seem to fit with all of the goals.  The programming aspect of that – didn’t seem CR material
• everyone’s journey to overcome
• when Oskar did the play – there were these strangers there that he’d met
• concerns about fictional book, get the creative perspective.
• the whole time Oskar and his mom are keeping secrets from each other to protect each other
• even dad
• magical thinking of the child – ambulances
• It hurt my head to read it
• really liked it
• ‘grandparent sex’ – that’s the fictional part
• the father/son relationships
• the pictures were crazy, the falling man (Google it)
• composer of classical music, about the couple who jumped and held hands – about their descent (Falling Dreams, Kevin Matthew Puts)
• review of the book – the only book that they could stand to read.  Only form that he could stand to read
• didn’t pick up on father/son relationship
• answering questions with hands
• if Oskar started wearing white after it?  Why only white?
• Having a book discussion – wasn’t that it was bad, not a common reader, creative minds enjoying it, don’t see everyone else enjoying it, have to be pulled in from page 1 without having to coach them through it
• the idea of the grief process
• surprised by the group that surrounded Oskar, how you building programming, not worry about activities
• the idea of selling it with the theme,
• programming – this is how he dealt with it, how did you deal with it, what’s your story, what happened to you, what happened to the people around you?
• think about story telling, the humanity of storytelling what your story – how did that affect you, relationships, what did that mean you to personally, people’s tenacity
• what’s the call to action
• This is so layered – what is the outcome other than
• pull this into the class, culture, death and dying,

Here’s how the book stacked up against the criteria:

Theme Related: 3.6
Readability: 2.86
Discussion: 3.0
Programming: 2.2
Importance: 2.45

Total: 2.82

Here are the thoughts of the group on Touching History:

Lynn Spencer’s website
Interview with Lynn Spencer (YouTube audio)

Here’s how the book stacked up against the criteria:

• Yes – theme related
• Readability – This was an easy read, got my adrenaline pumping, reading it in 6 hours.  talk about the first plane,
• my recommendation don’t read it on a plane
• have an author who was a female, who tells the story
• almost ‘required’ reading, but once got into it – I liked it
• It jumps between people, just read it for the story, i.e., it doesn’t matter that you know this person’s name
• the story of the pilot grounded only minutes before take-off with the four young Muslim men sitting in first class
• the part where commanding officers went to each pilot to see if they could do it (‘it’ being the ability to shoot down a commercial airliner filled with civilians) – to a man they all said they could do it
• really want a positive story, there are good people
• the guy in charge of everything at the FAA – it’s his first day.
• challenge everyone’s thoughts
• Loose Change – movie, contends that the US knew what was happening.  People who were supposed to fly, convince people, show them a bunch of different things, what we’re told about the Vietnam war, Alex Jones (from Austin)
• Learning about how the infrastructure – reading though it, why was that the case then, whole 9/11 mentality, could see the trees and the forest at the same time.  know the details and the big picture – why is it set-up that way.  the result is apparent, did some good things that day – if those changes have been made, did we do things that are beneficial, know what’s happened so far
• hind-sight is 20/20, how can we do it better, shouldn’t expect us to get everything right – opportunities to learn about changes we can make in the future
• Our response, another programming issue is why did it happen, why did they do it to us?  Bin Laden – who’s bin Laden. doing the acts of terrorism, if you’d been paying attention you’d know who it probably was – still haven’t addressed the reasons why they hate us, have books on this
• The Islamists who became a fundamentalist through college, talks about his father as a devote Muslim, lose relationships with mother/father, see the internal conversation, look at the mosques in London, it’s a powder-keg
• we’re understanding this – just this year, gave group tour, get into the criminal justice areas, start talking to students about homeland security, they ask ‘what do we need homeland security for?’, their world is here – they don’t care, how do you start with the basics, the whole bizarre thing, technology and computers is less knowledgeable (but they know who’s at Frazzleberry’s) – we go to what we like
• don’t go to opposing viewpoints, don’t like politics, don’t like history, then the internet makes it where you don’t have to Interact with them.
• have news feeds on AC Online
• one of the important things, but as a whole, they’re bad, we’re good, don’t want to diminish the good/evil thing  if you turn them into ‘humans’ it’s harder.  the Christians and crusaders, Western Europe’s actions are still affecting us.
• Have you seen anything about how the rest of the world thinks about 9/11

Theme Related: 4.0
Readability: 3.6
Discussion: 3.6
Programming: 3.5
Importance: 3.5

Total: 3.64

Looking forward to tomorrow’s discussion!

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close	Discussion on:  Theme Related? Readability? Discussion? Programming? Importance?	LIMITED TO 45 MINUTES	Yes, it’s theme-related Yes, it’s readable, Hoz – would read it for fun, read it even if you didn’t make me love the flip book at the back 9 like/love sat and stared after finishing it took a minute to figure out how to read it, regret and grief, a universal thing, kept washing over me – look at how everyone rallied around Oskar mom wrapped up in his own grief so close to the events, have a very different perspective of the events, who here wouldn’t help a kid helping him Why does it resonate?  Because it’s the perspective of the child, didn’t see the big picture because you didin’t know there was a big picture how relevant is this for students to read – overwhelming loss, loosing dreams, did that speak to you? This happened at the ‘age’ of our incoming freshmen  Really enjoyed it, even reading it didn’t see it as the main common reader book.  Didn’t seem to fit with all of the goals.  The programming aspect of that – didn’t seem CR material everyone’s journey to overcome when Oskar did the play – there were these strangers there that he’d met concerns about fictional book, get the creative perspective. the whole time Oskar and his mom are keeping secrets from each other to protect each other even dad mafical thinking of the child – ambulances It hurt my head to read it really liked it ‘grandparent sex’ – that’s the fictional part the father/son relationships the pictures were crazy, the falling man (Google it) composer of classical music, about the couple who jumped and held hands – about their descent review of the book – the only book that they could stand to read.  Only form that he could stand to read didn’t pick up on father/son relationship answering questions with hands if he started wearing white after it?  Why only white? Having a book discussion – wasn’t that it was bad, not a common reader, creative minds enjoying it, don’t see everyone else enjoying it, have to be pulled in from page 1 without having to coach them through it the idea of the grief process surprise group that surrounded Oskar, how you building programming, not worry about activities the idea of selling it with the theme, programming – this is how he dealt with it, how did you deal with it, what’s your story, what happened to you, what happened to the people around you? think about story telling, the humanity of storytelling what your story – how did that affect you, relationships, what didi that mean you to personally, people’s tenacity what’s the call to action This is so layered – what is the outcome other than pull this into the class, culture, death and dying,
Touching History	Discussion on:  Theme Related? Readability? Discussion? Programming? Importance?	LIMITED TO 45 MINUTES	Yes – theme related Readibility – This was an easy read, got my adrenaline pumping, reading it in 6 hours.  talk about the first plane, my recommendation don’t read it on a plane have an author who was a female, who tells the story almost ‘required’ reading, but once got into it – I liked it It jumps between people, just read it for the sotry the story of the pilot with the four pilots the part where commanding officers went to each pilot to see if they could do it – to a man they all said they could do it really want a positive story, there are good people the guy in charge of everything – it’s his first day. challenge everyone’s thoughts Loose change – movie, contends that the US knew what was happening.  People who were suppsoed to fly, convince people, show them a bunch of different things, what we’re told about the VietNam war, Alex Jones (from Austin) Learning about how the infastructure – reading rhough it, why was that the case then, whole 9/11 mentality, could see the trees and the forest at the same time.  know the details and the big picture – why is it set-up that way.  the result is apparent, did some good things that day – if those changes have been made, did we do things that are beneficial, know what’s happened so far hind-sight is 20/20, how can we do it better, shouldn’t expect us to get everything right – opportunities to learn about changes we can make in the future Our response, another programming issue is why did it happen, why did they do it to us?  Bin Laden – who’s bin Laden. doing the acts of terrorism, if you’d been paying attention you’d know who it probably was – still haven’t addressed the reasons why they hate us, have books on this The Islamists who became a fundamentalist through college, talks about his father as a devote muslim, lose relationships with mother/father, see the internal conversation, look at the mosques in london, it’s a powder-keg we’re understanding this – just this year, gave group tour, get into the criminal justice, homeland security, what do we need homeland secuirty, their world is here – they don’t care, how do you start with the basics, the whole bizarre thing, technology and computers is less knowledgeable (they know who’s at Frazzleberry’s) – we go to what we like don’t go to opposing viewpoints, don’t like politics, don’t like hisotry, then the internet makes it where you don’t have to Interact with them. have news feeds on AC Online one of the important things, but as a whole, they’re bad, we’re good, don’t want to diminish the good/evil thing  if you turn them into ‘humans’ it’s harder.  the christians and crusaders, Western Europe’s actions are still affecting us. Have you seen anything about how the rest of the world thinks about 9/11 students thinking more globally – don’t have the desire to go to Dallas/Chicago – everything I need is right here.  Disheartening to have stagnant or unwilling.    Done lot of thinking, history curriculum taught in silos.  Instead of doing it that way, do it across the world lot of good programming discussion today outside of the book we choose – those points should be brought forward – really great topics7u77777777877777778888888788887777777777777777777777777777787777777777777777777777777777888888888888888888878788888788888888888778878888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888878778777u77u88878888888888888888888888888888878888888888888uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888777787777777777777787777887788888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888u87uuuu8888888788888888788888888888887777777777777777777777777777777877777787777747u7u7u7u77u87777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777787777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777778888777777888887777777787777887777788888888888888888777877778888888888888888888888888888888888888887787777778778877888888887888888878777777787777887877778777787778777787777888888877777778777877777787777877778778877777888888887888878888887888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888878877u 1q

Common Reader 2011: First Conversation

We had a great conversation on Friday, January 21, 2011 about two of the books on our consideration list:

• Last Man Down
• Blue Hole Back Home

We had a great crowd turn out (23) and brownies.   Sounds good, right?

Here are the thoughts of the group on Last Man Down

Click here to  hear the author speak.

• Got mad
• Liked it, in your face, he was blunt, didn’t make apologies for it, made reading about it easier to read
• The title doesn’t represent what really happened
• See where many east campus student would appreciate the book
• Programming – the fire tower, a lot of activities
• This is very small perspective of the event – one mans view.
• Nando Part II
• The book’s all about the man, the man’s all about the man.
• It’s okay – but there are other books
• Story was interesting – but it could have been better
• Watched the tower fall video again
• This is the kind of guy you want in charge – whether it’s right or wrong -
• No apologies, no taking it back
• The beauty is that it’s not touchy feely – it doesn’t tell you how to feel
• Of the books read the only one that made cry
• In his defense enjoyed a peak into the man cave – ax to grind with the system – don’t think it’s wrong to point it out – still not fixed, cost him personally
• The author’s comments about ‘I’m done – retire -’
• Just did his job
• Not on audio…
• It was easy to read, no how well his personality would do here
• ‘He’s an a**hole’
• Enjoyed seeing a different perspective of what happened that day – after the towers were hit – then what happened, climbing out reminded of Nando,
• Commendable of ‘all in a days work’
• Got out in less than 24 hours
• Find elements that we like in 102 minutes
• To students: after the last program – when you’re trying to engage students, do we base decisions on? Personality? If you didn’t like his attitude would you attend events?
• Got tired of him telling him the same story again – stop explain the procedure, or department code, get involved in analyzing it and lose the story to tell
• General students won’t have as much interaction with him – a select group of students – could be different – play the hero part
• Dedication of first responders,
• The power of the towers
• Couldn’t afford to live in the city they served
• A thought about the different aspects of the different things going on that day – the interactions between the different books. Instead of having the lecture as the beginning of the conversation, but we throw in some companion books, to see the different perspectives between the relationships
• Look at book reviews in touching history, people who were working – touching history, serve better on that theme, flight attendants, pilots, etc. military jets – protect the people on the ground -
• We don’t have any ideas of what happened behind the scenes – had no idea that they didn’t know where those planes were. Real turning point for us to realize – totally unprepared for what happened. What are their jobs really like?
• A quick read about one man’s journey through the day – really good one to hand to the guys
• Liked it, but didn’t like him very much – his perspective -
• His commentary afterwords
  
• If i need a fireman, would you call him a task manager – everything became a tool.
• What programming would we do?
• East campus, West campus
  
• How does this help us reconstruct 9/11? What theme do you go with? Is the theme one man’s perspective, hero-worship
• The inside story, understanding more of what happened from people who were actually there.
• The theme serves as a launching pad for something else
• Prepared for normal everyday things. What if something happened at Pantex, Bell Helicopter, preparedness programs,
• We’re out of comments in 45 minutes and we’re supposed to program for a semester
• Another hero semester

Here’s how the book stacked up against the criteria:

Theme Related: 3.4
Readability: 3.2
Discussion: 2.0
Programming: 1.9
Importance: 1.9

Total: 2.48

Here are the thoughts of the group on Blue Hole Back Home:

Click here to hear an excerpt from the book.

• Does racism have something
• Weird nervous feeling
• Looks at Muslim, happening in late 70s early 80s, pushes it back toward 50s and 60s and learning that it continued into the time that i was born, burning crosses, people actually dying –
• Any cultural aspects – how do Americans deal with different cultures,
• Mosque at 9/11
• Lumping them all together, from some place completely different
• The little girl talked about her father, who wrote about and mocked the KKK, here she was in the middle of this turmoil, had taught her to not be a racist but didn’t give her any tools to give her to fight racism, well let’s wait for a better time….  maybe it’s not really happening or it’ll go away
• An aside of the story – at a loss that people felt this way
• In an English class, talking about things that things presidents have done, talking about rounding up Japanese-Americans and putting them into internment campus – didn’t see a problem with that – chills
• An example of another thing that was going on behind the scenes.  Terrible thing
• Shows what fear can do
• Why did everyone accept it?
• Look at the other side, that’s what lead to the Holocaust itself.  Black and white, good vs. evil thing
• Explained the history in a very simple way
• Interesting how our conversation has come full circle – all comes from this book that has nothing that to do with our topic…
• How did we react to the folks who
• If we’re going to talk about racism then there are better books
• Open up the topic of racism, or do we start educating a Muslim,
• The person being discriminated against never gets to speak
• Like having the Muslim perspective – how did 9/11 affect them…
• Has to be a clear distinction between radical Islam and Islam.  Had conversation with students after doing Persian poetry, they’re murderers.
• Racism had nothing to do with it
• Not showing that it’s not about religion – just radicals,
• Don’t want to pick a book that brings together a larger theme
• Didn’t think it was that good, but it didn’t carry it  to work so hard to tie it back
• Don’t see it as being the best one
• Readable – miss the characters
• The concept of community – run around in their neighborhoods, knew where their kids were  Most of the stereotypical, don’t know their kids friends
• Another aspect, the whole scene of where the preacher wouldn’t stand and come to his sons defense, tie to radicalism
• Liked the book, it was readable.  the whole racism thing is going to be here, choosing a book isn’t going to change it, but as a students
• Struck me that this is the way it is and it’s never going to change.  to me, to study a cultural embrace, how to accept other cultures
• If you get it to cultures, remove bias and discrimination
  
• We’re going to have tolerance, bush speech, these were not Muslims – he started how we need to look at it also
• It’s up there in important book,
• Glad that it’s fiction
• Like the fact that it was an easy read, kinda fun to read, even though the subject matter
• What worries me – the author will come and speak about the creative process, rather than the topic of the book.

Here’s how the book stacked up against the criteria:

Theme Related: 2.3
Readability: 3.7
Discussion: 3.4
Programming: 2.7
Importance: 2.7

Total: 2.96

Hope to see you next week.  We’ll be discussing Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and Touching History.

What do you think?

(C) Courtney G. Milleson, M.Ed.
courtneymilleson@gmail.com

Location:S Washington St,Amarillo,United States

Blue Hole Back Home

Discussion on:  Theme Related? Readability? Discussion? Programming? Importance?

LIMITED TO 45 MINUTES

does racism have something weird nervous feeling looks at Muslim, happening in late 70s early 80s, pushes it back toward 50s and 60s and learning that it continued into the time that i was born, burning crosses, people actually dying – any cultural aspects – how do americans deal with different cultures, mosque at 9/11 lumping them all together, from some place completely different the little girl talked about her father, who wrote about and mocked the KKK, here she was in the middle of this turmoil, had tuaght her to not be a racist but didn’t give her any tools to give her to fight racism, well let’s wait for a better time….  maybe it’s not really happeneing or it’ll go away an aside of the story – at a loss that people felt this way in an English class, talking about things that things presidents have done, talking about rounding up Japanese-Americans and putting them into internment campus – didn’t see a problem with that – chills an example of another thing that was going on behind the scenes.  Terrible thing shows what fear can do why did everyone accept it? look at the other side, that’s what lead to the Hollocaust itself.  Black and white, good vs. evil thing explained the history in a very simple way interesting how our conversation has come full circle – all comes from this book that has nothing that to do with our topic… how did we react to the folks who if we’re going to talk about racism then there are better books open up the topic of racism, or do we start educating a muslim, the person being discriminated against never gets to speak like having the muslim perspective – how did 9/11 affect them… has to be a clear distinction between radical Islam and and Islam.  Had conversation with students after doing Persian poetry, they’re murderers. Racism had nothing to do with it not showing that it’s not about relegion – just radicals, don’t want to pick a book that brings together a larger theme Didn’t think it was that good, but it didn’t carry it  to work so hard to tie it back don’t see it as being the best one readable – miss the characters the concept of community – run around in their neighborhoods, knew where their kids were  Most of the stereotypical, don’t know their kids friends another apsect, the whole scene of where the preacher wouldn’t stand and come to his sons defence, tie to radicalism liked the book, it was readable.  the whole racism thing is going to be here, chosing a book isn’t going to change it, but as a students struck me that this is the way it is and it’s never going to change.  to me, to study a cultural embrace, how to accept other cultures if you get it to cultures, remove bias and descrimination we’re going to have tolerance, bush speech, these were not muslims – he started how we need to look at it also it’s up there in important book, glad that it’s fiction like the fact that it was an easy read, kinda fun to read, even though the subject matter what worries me – the author will come and speak about the creative process, rather than the topic of the book.

Week Three: Heroes

Flags of Our Fathers frequently reminds readers of their mortality. While death is not mentioned on every page, it is there in spirit.  So if sixty-five years later we can still sense the fear in the pages of a book, what must it have been like to live in the moment?

After reading about the battles Mike, Ira, and Harlon had already encountered prior to Iwo, I am struck with the idea that they willingly went back into the line of duty. Harlon, for example, would take long walks out in the orchards before going back—to catch malaria from the mosquitoes.

But they, like so many others in WWII and American soldiers today, did go back knowing full well that new and familiar horrors would be waiting for them.

Mike, Ira, Franklin, Don, Harlon, and Rene are heroes.  I don’t know what kind of mental stamina it takes to overcome that basic instinct to flee from danger.  I don’t have a warrior’s heart.  Yet plenty of Americans have had that heart before me.  As the American poet Alan Seeger, who fought and died in WWI, famously wrote,

But I’ve a rendezvous with Death
At midnight in some flaming town,
When Spring trips north again this year,
And I to my pledged word am true,
I shall not fail that rendezvous.

The service members who heed the call of duty are true heroes to me; however, if you were to ask the men and women who are serving or who have served, I believe they would say that they are not heroes.

But if they are not heroes, then who is? What does it take to be a hero?

Surely Seeger’s speaker recognizes the danger in front of him.  He still continues on the path, pledging to meet up with death, no matter the odds.  The men who fought on D-Day, Siapan, Tarawa, and Iwo Jima all faced similar rendezvous.  Was death for them just as palpable and certain as it seems to be for this speaker? Even so, they gave everything they had—mentally, spiritually, and physically—to overcome the obstacles in front of them, to keep their rendezvous with death a long way from home.

So what then is a hero? Perhaps, in the broadest sense, a hero is one who sacrifices self for the sake of others, and the degree to which the sacrifice goes determines, in part, the value of the heroism—hence “Doc” Bradley’s belief that the true heroes are the ones who do not come back. Whatever one’s definition of a hero might be, the value of their sacrifice is inestimable and humbling.

Though many of us will not be in the position of having to sacrifice our lives, there are daily sacrifices we can and should make for the sake of others.  What kind of hero could we become in the life of someone else?

Courtney G. Milleson & Frank Sobey