Bookmarked: Teen Essays on Life and Literature from Tolkien to Twilight

by Ann Camacho

In more than 50 essays, young people from a wide range of backgrounds reflect on how words from literature connect with and influence their lives, goals, and personal philosophies. The essays explore topics including suffering the death of a parent, facing a life-threatening illness, letting go of perfectionism, making friends, realizing goals, and grappling with questions of faith and sexuality. Books cited range from The Grapes of Wrath and The Great Gatsby to Twilight and Lord of the Rings. Each essay includes a brief biographical sketch letting the reader know where the essay writer is today.

Teachers, guidance counselors, and parents working with teens on personal essays— including for college applications—will find that the book presents a varied, intriguing group of essays to use as samples, models, and inspiration. Teachers of literature, writing, and language arts classes can also use these essays as a way to help teens explore literature—and their own responses to it—through writing. Following each essay are questions to prompt conversation, writing, and deeper consideration of the issues raised. The back matter includes tips and ideas for teachers and teens on how to use the book, including ways to use it as a jumping-off point for creating personal essays.

Genres: Nonfiction, School

225 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 12, 2012

Reviews

[Brandi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book's description to be misleading, or perhaps I just misunderstood. The essays included are not really about how literature has affected the students' lives, but rather about their personal beliefs/values/experiences related to a literary quote (sometimes rather loosely). I can't say I really enjoyed the experience of reading this book, though it could be quite useful in a classroom setting. Actually, it perfectly fits a request I received from a teacher last year for her creative writing class, but I wasn't familiar enough with the collection at the time to identify it. Some essays do deal with tough issues (parental drug use, death, etc.) so it's more suitable for mature readers and writers.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

All of the essays in this book deal with the lessons people learn from their favorite stories that have left an impact on their lives. Each person had a transforming experience to share, which reminds us that we are connected to each other. It's a reminder that every person has a story to share with others who are willing to listen to what they have learned along the way to becoming a mature adult. This book is for anyone who would like to appreciate the deeper meanings of life while embracing that we are not alone after all.

[Hannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

i read some essays and relized i dont like to read nonfiction even about books

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I decided to check out this book because I felt my teen needed to read some essays by teens. (She is in an essay writing class right now and is struggling to relate to and emulate the polished essays by professional writers that the teacher has had them read.) From the title and description I was hoping this would be a great tool. After previewing it myself I choose not to use it with her. The essays are all responding to the same assignment, first of all, so they all feel the same even though the editors have grouped them into various headings. Second, writers often refer to their high school days in past tense, and from the little biographies at the end of the essays we find that the writers are generally in college and most are majoring in some very prestigious stuff. I felt this would be a barrier for my daughter to be able to connect with these essays as being written by struggling 15 year olds like her.

[Emma-Kate Schaake · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of teen essays musing on life questions and finding answers in books. I liked the prompt and hope to use some as examples for my own students' writing.

[Ilib4kids · Rating 2 out of 5]

Y814.6 BOO

My review: this book can be used as sample for a personal essay for college admission. The reason I pick this book 1) I want to find out what kind of book teens read 2) how teens' reflection. This book has 5 parts. I did female vs. male essays statistics.
part 1: Essays on beliefs and ideas. 3 female , 7 male .
part 2: Essays on family, friends, and love. 8 female, 2 male .
Part 3: Essays on hard times and hope. 9 female, 1 male.
part 4: Essays on identity and self. 2 female, 8 males.
Part 5: Essays on goals, dreams, and the futures. 3 female, 7 males.
each part has 10 essays, total 50 essays. I like essay "Before I met the monster", what kind of monster do you have?

I only write down Books I did not know:
Death of a salesman by Author Miller
Barchester TowersBy Trollope, Anthony, 1815-1882, FIC TROLLOPE,YCD FIC TRO, sequel to "The Warden"
The Life of Reason: Or, the Phases of Human Progress, Volume 3By Santayana, George, 1863-1952 /191.9 SAN/1953
Walk in My Shoes: Conversations between a Civil Rights Legend and his Godson on the Journey Aheadby Andrew Yong 323.092 YOU, 2010
Scar Tissue By Kiedis, Anthony /2004, B KIEDIS/eAudio, lead singer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers,the price of success and excess
The Great Divorce By Lewis, C. S., 1898-1963, 236.2 LEW
Wuthering Heights By Brontë, Emily, 1818-1848, FIC BRONTE, 2009, PLAYER FIC BRO
As I Lay Dying By Faulkner, William, 1897-1962/FIC FAULKNER /eAudio, CD.
To Kill A Mockingbird By Lee, Harper/Fic Lee /eAudio
Crank By Hopkins, Ellen /Y HOPKINS, 2004,YCD FIC HOP, 2008
A Million Little Pieces By Frey, James, 1969- , 362.29092 FRE, CD 362.29092 FRE, 2003
Winnie-the-Pooh By Milne, A. A., 1882-1956, J MILNE, 2006, PLAYER J MIL (3 hours)
The Great Gatsby By Fitzgerald, F. Scott, 1896-1940, Y FITZGERALD, 2004, PLAYER FIC FIT,2007
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn By Twain, Mark, 1835-1910, PLAYER FIC TWA , 2006 (classic reading for middle school)
Walden And on the Duty of Civil Disobedience By Thoreau, Henry David, 1817-1862
The Grapes of Wrath By Steinbeck, John, 1902-1968 , Y STEINBECK , 2006,PLAYER 812.5 GALm 2007, 464p
A Light in the Attic By Silverstein, Shel, J811.5 SIL 2009, Originally published: 1981
The House on Mango Street By Cisneros, Sandra,FIC CISNEROS, 2009 /CD, eAudio
Of Mice and Men By Steinbeck, John, 1902-1968, Y STEINBECK, CD, eAudio
Huxley’s “Brave New World” (Fertilized and conditioned in early life)
East of Eden By Steinbeck, John, 1902-1968, Y STEINBECK/ CD, eAudio
The God Delusion By Dawkins, Richard, 1941-, 211.8 DAW, 2006

Can't stop the Shine by Hoyce Davis
Euclid's Elements
On First Looking into Chapman's Homer" is a sonnet written by the English Romantic poet John Keats (1795–1821) in October 1816.
In Memoriam, BY ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON (Poem)

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

First I should say I am not the target audience for this book. I don't usually like reading several essays in a row and I'm well out of my teens. But I signed up for the Goodreads Giveaway because books have changed my life and I wanted to see how they've changed others' lives as well. I won the Giveaway and was excited to try something new. The essays were interesting and I like how there was a little blurb about each of the writers after their essay. Some were a bit self absorbed and self important but I guess that's what an essay about oneself is supposed to be, right? Overall I would recommend this to people who generally like reading personal essays....just wasn't for me.

[Alicia]

This book was a little boring.I expected more, being an avid reader who reads so much I don't even remember all the books I've read. Anyway, when I read a book, one that I connect with, I connect with the entire storyline not just a quote! If there is a really good quote, I would like it but that won't connect me. The lessons taught are things I've learned the hard way in my life too, maybe not as drastic as some but about there. The stories weren't exactly fresh or provide me with new point if view. I'll rather read Chicken Soup for the soul. Well, this is just my opinion anyway. I'm of the target age group too by the way

[Will Plunkett · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a teacher, I see that these essays can be great sample essays for students to model (NOT copy) the style. As a student, I would realize that students CAN write well, that writing isn't boring when you insert yourself in the topic/prompt. As a parent of a student, it would tell me the impact that even little actions, comments, and attitudes have is significant.

[Kristin Staaland · Rating 3 out of 5]

This could be a good resource for a writibg teacher. Reading it wasn't fun necessarily, but it made me reflect on how meaningful writing and reading can be for my students. It made me want to dig through my old papers and journals. This is more of a resource than book to read, in my opinion.

[Diana · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reeeeally wanted to like this one. I think I checked it out from the library three times but couldn't get into it. Maybe you really have to actually be a teen to appreciate these essays, but I'm not...and I didn't. Honestly? I was bored. Very bored. And that made me sad.