As y’all know, I’m a Library Science student at University of North Texas. This semester I have the pleasure of taking an AWESOME class called Seminar and Trends in YA! This semester the focus is YA books! One of the things we have to do is read some books from a list my Prof has provided us and then make up a blog and post reviews or features of what we have read!
MODULE 12:
FANTASY, SCIENCE FICTION, AND STEAMPUNK!
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
Published by: Henry Holt and Company
Book Summary:
Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.
Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.
Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.
Shadow and Bone is the first installment in Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha Trilogy.
My favorite thing about fantasy, science fiction, and steampunk is being able to start from scratch and make up an entire world and make them a bit better than what we’re used to. All the freedom is what appeals to most fantasy readers, myself included. I love world-building, and it’s even better when it’s fantasy because the author just WANTS you to know more about them.
And because of the awesome world-building, fantasy and it’s sub-genres are normally the most fun genre to recreate. Whether it’s a small piece or a larger one, there is always something that can be re-created from the fantasy world that teens or children will love to do in a program! Here’s a few examples:
Fantasy:
1. I had a friend tell me about a Harry Potter program that her library once threw. She got about 30 hangers from the cleaners and only took the little brown cardboard part off the bottom. She then went to the craft store and got all types of things like feathers and strings and glitter, and more and helped each of the children or teens that came through make a wand.
Science Fiction:
2. I could see myself using Illuminae and Gemina for this one. I would start by looking at all types of technology and look at all the ways it’s still growing and getting bigger and bigger. For a program, I thought a STEAM program in coding would be pretty cool and would keep the students pretty interested. This may seem like a good program for adults as well!
Steampunk:
3. This one would be a great one to introduce a MakerSpace. There the children could make their own “something” that resembles something in the book. It could be something “clockwork” like in the series by Cassandra Clare.
I'm interested in that master's program myself so it is so neat to hear what you are doing in your classes! Sounds like fun!