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Starting With "I" : Personal Essays by Teenagers
"Impressive in their candor and poignancy. Sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking.... a rich and varied collection."― School Library Journal 35 essays written by teenagers, plus writing and revision techniques.
- GenresTeachingYoung Adult
199 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1997
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 30, 2009
Adrianna Cora
March 30th 2009
[3rd marking period:]
I have read the book Starting With I. It is a really great book and I enjoyed every minute of it. It basically consists of many short stories about the lives of regular teenagers just like me. It has their perspective on certain issues like abuse, first love, being single, raising a child young and more. Almost evry issue is talked about in this book. It is really good.
One of my favorite stories is How to Survive Shopping With Mom. It is written by a 17 year old guy. And I honestly didn't know that some guys still go shopping with their mothers. I think of them being embarrassed by that. But any way, this story is very funny. The way its written is like a rule book or a warning on what to avoid. For example, he says "Mom will stop and explain that your aunt's friend's cousin has a roomate who has a brother who thinks this 'store is the greatest thing since sliced bread'". I find that line very funny and cute, because it is sort of true.
Another one of my favorites is Home is Where the Hurt is. This one is written by a 16 year old Indian girl. She explains that her parents beat and abuse her. They don't allow her to do certain things and they hit her for no reason. But she is afraid to tell anyone. But when she does they tell her "its not that bad", "theyre probably overprotective", or "they feel bad when they do that to you, so just be a good child." So she instead keeps it inside and deals with the internal pain along with the physical pain. Then she decides to do a report for school on child abuse and when her parents find out, they beat her for that also. They threaten to send her to India, but she wants to stay in America and study so she can help other people who are in her situation.
Another good story is Growing into Fatherhood. It is written by a 18 year old guy (obviously). He got his girlfriend pregnant when he was 16 and she was 15. He says how he had always wanted a child, but he never expected it to be so soon. He stood up and became a father though. Instead of running away, like many other guys choose to do. But it became difficult because him and his girlfreind broke up so they just took turns watching the baby. I think he is a great guy just for sticking by her side even though they weren't together.
I enjoyed almost all of these short stories in this book. They all are different in their own ways. They also are interesting because they are told from different points of view. No two people say the same thing or have the same opinions. And these are real life stories and reality. Nothing in this book is fiction so I love it. I would dedictae this book to teenagers and adults. Teenagers, so they can relate. And adults, so they can see what we go through instead of thinking that we got it so easy.
March 30th 2009
[3rd marking period:]
I have read the book Starting With I. It is a really great book and I enjoyed every minute of it. It basically consists of many short stories about the lives of regular teenagers just like me. It has their perspective on certain issues like abuse, first love, being single, raising a child young and more. Almost evry issue is talked about in this book. It is really good.
One of my favorite stories is How to Survive Shopping With Mom. It is written by a 17 year old guy. And I honestly didn't know that some guys still go shopping with their mothers. I think of them being embarrassed by that. But any way, this story is very funny. The way its written is like a rule book or a warning on what to avoid. For example, he says "Mom will stop and explain that your aunt's friend's cousin has a roomate who has a brother who thinks this 'store is the greatest thing since sliced bread'". I find that line very funny and cute, because it is sort of true.
Another one of my favorites is Home is Where the Hurt is. This one is written by a 16 year old Indian girl. She explains that her parents beat and abuse her. They don't allow her to do certain things and they hit her for no reason. But she is afraid to tell anyone. But when she does they tell her "its not that bad", "theyre probably overprotective", or "they feel bad when they do that to you, so just be a good child." So she instead keeps it inside and deals with the internal pain along with the physical pain. Then she decides to do a report for school on child abuse and when her parents find out, they beat her for that also. They threaten to send her to India, but she wants to stay in America and study so she can help other people who are in her situation.
Another good story is Growing into Fatherhood. It is written by a 18 year old guy (obviously). He got his girlfriend pregnant when he was 16 and she was 15. He says how he had always wanted a child, but he never expected it to be so soon. He stood up and became a father though. Instead of running away, like many other guys choose to do. But it became difficult because him and his girlfreind broke up so they just took turns watching the baby. I think he is a great guy just for sticking by her side even though they weren't together.
I enjoyed almost all of these short stories in this book. They all are different in their own ways. They also are interesting because they are told from different points of view. No two people say the same thing or have the same opinions. And these are real life stories and reality. Nothing in this book is fiction so I love it. I would dedictae this book to teenagers and adults. Teenagers, so they can relate. And adults, so they can see what we go through instead of thinking that we got it so easy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 20, 2010
I like that this book is a compilation of real personal essays by real high schoolers who live in an urban setting (Brooklyn). I wouldn't say that all of the essays are written well, but they are realistic and they've served as good conversation starters and examples for my students as we write personal narratives in class. My students (and I) really liked the essay, "A Girl Takes Control," and were hot and cold about "Revenge in the Hood." There are only a couple other essays I'm considering as class readings. The intro and the concluding interviews might serve as good class material too.
July 19, 2007
I recently taught 9th graders about Gender Driscrimination and used several of the essays from this book. The kids LOVED them! Some asked for copies to take to friends of theirs. I'm reading the rest of the essays now. It makes for good Metro reading. Every Youth library should have this book in it. It has essays that explore many topics from the "N word" to vegetarianism. There's even a section at the end written by teens that gives writing advice for other teens.
August 24, 2010
Always nice to hear students telling their stories, but to be honest, only a few of these essays really caught my eye or my heart. Will definitely use some as models in my classroom; the interviews at the end of the text are particularly useful!
April 5, 2009
i read this in the 6th grade during the spring
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews