The Literacy Club

The Literacy Club

by Colleen Guzman

If you have been watching our show Geek Out SA you know that I am a teacher, so literacy is a topic that I feel strongly about. I love reading, my parents always read, and they shared books with me. I read to all three of my sons and now they are avid readers too. As a teacher I understand the importance of literacy and what it can lead to not only in a person's life as they move towards a future and a career but also as a way to use their imagination, leave this world, live for a moment in another one, and even relieve stress. I believe in the power of literacy, so I was extremely excited when we were contacted by The Literacy Club.

                                                                                                               The Literacy Club is an organization in California that is run by some very wonderful people; Jean and Doug Chadwick. We first met Doug through our shared love of tabletop gaming and creating tabletop games, then our relationship flourished as we discussed our desire to bring the gaming community together and to help the general communities around us. Doug told us about the project that he and Jean are champions of because they also believe in the power of literacy and the ability for books to be a safe place for children who may not feel like they have a safe place. Doug and Jean have built and installed over 30 libraries in the Los Angeles and Cleveland area; many of these libraries are in police stations where children can certainly use the safety and peace that books can provide. 

The Literacy Club does important work for the community and I would like to share some of their information with you:

The Literacy Club’s mission is to OPTIMIZE the future of our children by Cultivating Community and Knowledge through reading & education. 

Our focus is to ELIMINATE THE BOOK DESERTS by creating and distributing book filled small portable libraries which are located within the inner-city communities.  We work with community leaders and law enforcement organizations to identity the key locations to inspire and optimize!

I bet now you are asking yourself how can I get The Literacy Club to help me with my community. Here is some information on about how they can help you:

 The Literacy Club works diligently partnering with organizations raising funds to build the libraries and stock them with books.  However, funding may not always be available through The Literacy Club and in those instances we look to the organization(s) inquiring about a library to facilitate direct funding.

RLarge Custom Library:  $1600 and up (depending on size & theme)

(Includes:  Library Unit, Registration, 500+ Books)

RStandard House Library:  $1100 (custom themed) 

Approximate Dimensions (H 6’ x W 32” x D 2’)

(Includes:  Library Unit, Registration, 400+ Books)

RSmall Library:  $450 and up (depending on size & theme)

(Includes:  Library Unit, Registration, 50+ Books, Installation)

RSeating area and extra books available for an additional cost (Pricing various depending space and needs)

Book Drives

   If you engage the people at the location to bring in their age appropriate gently used books it creates a real sense of stewardship and pride for your library. 

  RAge appropriate

  RNew and gently used 

     Pick a Date to Unveil/Install & Promotion -  It’s important to get the word out about your library!   

  ïFind a date that works for all parties and of course when you can invite the children of the community to participate

ïEngaging the press (written or TV), press releases, local councilpersons, local businesses, etc. helps to create excitement around the library, it’s importance and value.

ïUse Social Media to create excitement

      Vincent and I have gotten a library donated to Geek Out SA thanks to The Literacy Club and they are sending us numerous Superhero books to use to fill our library. I will be writing a continuation to this blog to show you the progress on our library (not shown in this blog posts because it is a super secret project) and the books we receive once we receive them. We are excited to be a part of this initiative to encourage literacy and we hope that many more people will participate as well.

For more information visit The Literacy Club Facebook page at:

https://www.facebook.com/achanceforchildren.chadwickslittlefreelibraries/?fref=ts

Here are some examples of some of the libraries that Doug has built:

The Lunar Chronicles

The Lunar Chronicles

by Colleen Guzman

So we finally received the fourth book and what I thought was the final book in The Lunar Chronicles series. I read the book slowly, savoring every moment before I had to let the characters go forever. I can't express how much I loved this book series, how creative it is, how it takes those tales of smitten princesses and gives them a modern twist. In this post I am simply going to give you a short synopsis of each book in hopes that you will pick it up and read it too.

Cinder is the first book in the series. In this book we are introduced to our main character Cinder. We find ourselves entrenched in the life of a cyborg who is not treated very well by, you guessed it, her evil step mother and one of her sisters. In this version of the Cinderella story we find that Cinder does have one sister who loves her although that ends up being a relationship that harms her more than helps her. Cinder also has a robot friend Iko who keeps her company and loves her when no one else seems capable of it. We also have our beloved Prince Charming in Prince Kai. If you think the similarities end there then you will be surprised to read about the ball scene as well. This story has several familiar story themes that will help you feel connected to it and yet it has enough newness that you don't feel like you are just reading the same old story.

Next we are introduced to Scarlet who is not really a princess at all but is the fabled Little Red Riding Hood. This little red obviously lives with her grandmother on a farm in France where they grow some amazing tomatoes. Of course in the midst of all that is going on Scarlet meets the big bad Wolf, who turns out to be more like the huntsman than you would have thought. We find that Scarlet is actually the ferocious one and she is the one to be reckoned with even thought she too has a huge capacity for love and loyalty. 

Next we move into space to a far away maiden who is being held captive and made to work for evil, even though she is unaware. Cress is being held captive in a satellite by the evil queen's top minion who loves her in a strange way. In Cress we find our beloved Rapunzel, so sheltered from the world even though she has watched the world through the monitor feed on board her home, she has never left and so she has never been able to truly explore the world or have any human interaction. When she does finally gain some human interaction she struggles with the reality of it all and she trips over herself and often hides within herself. Her love interest is a dashing, yet devious and downright criminal captain who inadvertently endears himself to her even though he himself feels he has no redeemable qualities.

Finally we move to the end of our saga. The princesses and their princes have all come together and they are prepared to thwart the evil queen, but the task will not be so easy. They must push through a series of incredible maneuvers and try to outwit the queen at her own mad game. In the end we meet princess Winter who is kind and loving to all people and especially to animals. As is expected we have finally met our Snow White. This poor snow White however is so kind and gentle that she ends up being quite broken, although perhaps not as broken as she would seem. We hope that she will become less broken, that she will rise up and find her own strength and that she herself will overthrow the evil queen who has tormented her for her entire life. Your stomach is in knots each time they try a section of their plan because nothing can go right. You scream at them to make better choices to do things differently, to just think ahead, be cautious and daring and please just listen to you. In the end, well in the end is something that you have to find out for yourself.  In the end you will have to say goodbye to these characters you have fallen so in love with and that you hold so dear. Perhaps in the end they will all live happily ever after.

I am sure that people who read this will have something to say about the typical love story that happens in each story, that the Disney view of girl meets boy, girl instantly falls madly in love with boy, and boy carries her off in his dreamy arms is not the view of love that young people should have. I on the other hand enjoy that aspect of the stories because it does take me back to those Disney days. I realize that love is not like that in fact love is difficult and painful and harmful at times but isn't that what makes book and stories so great is the fact that you can read them and be in a nicer place, a different place, an unrealistic place. I love the fiction of it all. I love that Cinder is a cyborg, that Cress is trapped in a satellite, that Wolf is a bio-engineered super soldier, that Levana the evil queen is from the Moon, that she has special mental powers and that Winter is loosing her mind because she refuses to use her powers. If we can have all of this in one book series then why can't we have the fiction of instant love, of undying romance? I say we can that we must that it is okay for fairy tales to have these elements because they are fairy tales and real life is tough enough so why should fiction be too? 

I grabbed these character renditions from the internet because they spoke to me the most and seemed to really almost get the characters the way I saw them in my mind. If you love fairy tales you will love these books and it looks like she is writing more so I will surely be reading more. Good job Marissa Meyer, thanks for the entertainment.