Welcome to WOW Reads, a podcast that centers voices of middle and high school readers.
Worlds of Words Center of Global Literacies and Literatures is committed to creating an international network of people who share the vision of bringing books and children together, thereby opening windows on the world. We encourage thoughtful dialogue around global literature so that children can reflect on their own cultural experiences and connect the experiences of children across the globe.
Worlds of Words Reading ambassadors engage in a university experience of children's literature within the University of Arizona's College of Education. Reading ambassadors learn about literature for young people under the direction of faculty and staff with expertise in children's literature, education, library science, and marketing.
We respectfully acknowledge the University of Arizona is on the land and territories of indigenous peoples. Today, Arizona is home to 22 federally recognized tribes, with Tucson being home to the O’odham and the Yaqui. Committed to diversity and inclusion, the university strives to build sustainable relationships with sovereign native nations and Indigenous communities through educational offerings and partnerships and community service.
My name is Rebecca Ballenger. I'm the associate director of Worlds of Words and this summer I'm going to organize books. How about you?
I'm Gabriel and I've been on the middle school podcast, so yay!
I'm Graham, and this summer I am going to San Diego.
I'm Christian and this summer I am going to Universal Studios.
I'm Lily and this summer I'm going to Michigan.
I'm Rebecca, and this summer I'll be helping my sister move into her new home in Illinois.
I'm Quinn, and this summer I'm going to be finding I'm going to be biking around Tucson.
My name is Janesha, and this summer I'm going to be traveling to Canada.
So this is our bonus podcast, where we look over the past year and all the books that we've read. Each group -- the middle schoolers read four novels, the teens read four novels. And we're just going to start out by, recapping what the year was like for us. Does anybody want to start?
Well, we had ups. We had ups. The whole year was mostly ups. Well, it was pretty fun. Throughout the the whole thing. Some books I will admit were better than others. Personally, I feel like we we've hit a lot of key points.
Let me ask you this, Gabriel: One of the things that you have mentioned were the bonus books.
The bonus books. Yeah. You see, when some authors came, a few of their wives or there were prequels to those books. So, like Monsterious by Matt McMann or the prequel to Alebrijes, The Last Cuentista. And of course, also the sequel, Kingdom of the Sea, The City Beyond the Stars.
Okay. We'll put all of those books in our show notes. Anyone else?
Personally, for me this year, my favorite event that we did was meeting Ellen Oh the author of The Colliding Worlds of Mina Lee. She was really cool, and she opened our eyes to a lot of injustices that are being done right now and how they're affecting the publishing world, like how banned books are affecting how much diversity is being put in books.
I also thought it was very cool to hear how, all the authors saw problems with banned books, and other problems with the publishing community. and one of the experiences that I participated in was. I volunteered at the World of Words tent in the Tucson Festival of Books, and it was just, great experience to, promote the club and to, you know, share the activities that we've been doing, with other people.
I participated in working at the tent as well, and that was one of my favorite things that we did this year, because one of the we had an interactive set up where kids could come up and write their own stories based on different fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm. And some of these kids had the most creative things ever, and we got to keep them and displayed them at the tent.
So a lot of what we do around the festival is about that ambassador piece of our role as reading ambassadors. So all of the authors and all of the illustrators who are coming here are coming here, on a book tour, typically, we are, promoting the books that we're currently reading. Did you guys ever feel connected to any of those authors in that capacity when you're talking about the importance of reading in your lives?
Well, personally, I feel like sometimes it's it's nice to to read a good book. It gives you a bit of hope. You need to hit all the key points. Sadness, happiness, the ending and how the story plays out. And the authors we've talked about have done that in very good ways.
I thought it was, interesting that they all, have said that, most of them, they they didn't really start out with an extraordinary book. They, they all had humble beginnings, I guess. And, how they learn from different authors. I can't think of a specific example, but. Well, we we met with Adam Rex earlier, and he talked. He showed us drawings that he did as a child and how those evolved over time. And then he talked about, when he finally did get to the point in his career where he was going to, actually try to submit some of these as books.
Quinn, would you like to address that?
Yeah. He talked a lot about how he'd improved in both his artwork and his writing skills. Like, one of the things he said was he thought he had his write- his ability to write, books down, and he didn't need to take class. But then once he did, it opened about, how much more he needed to do. And he learned a lot from publishers and how how what he needed to improve upon. And that led him to being so successful later in his career.
He also said about his illustrations that that he did pretty good with them. And, in kindergarten he was already drawing like four figures while I was over here trying to draw a circle and shade it [in]. He talked about how when he was struggling with, like, thinking of a new idea for a book, he would go and reread books that he, thought were like, really good. And what he liked about, what he liked about them and implement and implement them into his own book.
What have other authors said about their writing process?
So Ellen Oh has said that she always writes the ending first, and she has had multiple drafts that different things happen to get to that ending that she wrote. For example, in the Colliding Worlds of Mina Lee, she said that one was that Mina got sucked into her webcomic.
The other was that she got transported to an alternative reality, which involved studying quantum theory. I remember Matt Mendez, who wrote the Bro Cards, ended up mentioning that he, more more of a piece of life advice. If anything, he was talking about how you have to find what you're passionate about and then just go along with that.
You have to. And that's kind of what led his book. He figured out some of these characters passions and then had them pursue those and figure out what they really wanted to do. I know Hailey Alcaraz, since hers was a retelling, she said that her writing time was shorter, but it was, a little bit difficult to get publishers to pick up the books. And so it was a retelling of what was the book again?
Gone With The Wind.
Yes. Okay, so they write these books, and then these books go out into the world, and then what? And then the books are there for people to pick them apart, whether it's positive or negative. Yeah. And that must be something terrifying to go through as an author, because here you've just written a book, and now you have to tell the people to read it.
And even, like you yourself, might not feel very confident about how it's going to do either. So there has to be a lot of self-doubt involved, and then you end up and yeah, getting it promoted is what needs to happen next in order for the book to even be noticed and be picked up by readers. One of those examples was Adam Rex because he said he was like, socially awkward.
So I could just imagine him getting his book out there being like a little bit awkward, but still being a cool guy that you would probably want to check out his book. But yeah, I also think it's I kind of sympathize with the authors that we, like the books that we read. they they, go to, they come to Arizona or where they zoom, with us and, they basically are being volunteered to be picked apart by middle schoolers and high schoolers.
So as part of the program, you receive a book for yourself that you get to keep and read and enjoy, and it's just a private thing that you do by yourself. But you also receive a book that you have to distribute in your other context, in your school context, or your social context. What is what? Talk about what you guys did with that extra book.
I'm just going to tell the truth here. Out of the four books we had, I only got one to the school library. I'm not sure about my the other guys in my school and what they did with the books, but I only got one to my school library.
Well, okay, so there are multiple reading ambassadors, at your school. So your school just got the one book. So the time that you went to your library with the book, what was that like to say?
The truth. It wasn't easy. It was pretty hard. And then after, practically nobody noticed, it was as if they'd forgotten. so another problem is that we don't have a library.
So if you don't have a library or if your library can't accept it, because that came up a lot this year, too, with the amount of scrutiny school libraries had, they couldn't just take any books. The options were to, share it in your English class or share it with another group that you had.
I actually my library is based our library for our school as basically just a shelf. So yeah, but I really didn't, like, give the books to my teacher. It was my friend that my the other person that went to this ambassador program.
So I basically was like one of those people that didn't even do anything. I was so, yeah, I know that I can't relate to your school library, but I know for me, it was intimidating to approach my librarians since I just recently joined my school this year as a freshman, and unlike my middle school, I wasn't routinely working in the school every day, so it was sort of terrifying and wracking for me to go up to the library and and explain.
But they were always very kind and understanding about it, and I was able to get books. My librarian was always pretty understanding about it. I just said, like, I have a book here from World Records, and she's like, oh, and that was it. But, but our library, I think we have the opposite problem we have. We have a big library.
So nobody really notices when new books are put on the shelves. But, you know, they're there for anybody who wants them. So. So for me, I feel like it wasn't that hard. I was just, like, a little bit scared. I when I go to the teacher, she's like, oh, that's really nice. And then I don't know, I haven't like I couldn't find it, but I think it's somewhere there. I think it's somewhere I don't really know where.
So let's bring all of, let's bring those two things together. Let's think about that author or illustrator who has a new book out, and it's going out into the world, and people are going to look at it and how difficult it might be for them in that situation and think about you. You're just trying to get one book into the hands of another reader. Talk about, speculate a little bit about on the relationships there.
Well, on the one hand, it's hard to get on your feet. But once you do like famous authors like Jeff Kinney, Rick Riordan from there, I mean, once you managed to publish a bit, then then suddenly it becomes easy as pie.
I agree with that. It's like if you get once you get like the ball rolling, it just like, keeps on going. Like, I feel like once you get started, it does get easier. I still I can't imagine the anxiety that they go through at every publishing. I know that I do write a little, and whenever I give it to say, a close family member to read, I feel like my stomach is I feel like I'm going to vomit.
Yeah, I'm I consider myself a bit of an artist. So if I if I'm really proud of a piece of work. But, I'm really timid when it comes to, like, showing it to people, so maybe I'll just, like, leave it on the kitchen counter for someone to walk by and maybe see and then tell me what they think about it, but I never I hate the feeling of going up and asking someone about it, so I can't imagine how these I can kind of relate to how these authors feel when they're going up to publishers time and time again, but getting rejected or critiqued every single time.
I so, I like to draw a little bit, and I always find it hard to share work, even if I've been working on it for weeks. And, I just can't imagine, the authors going up to a publisher and saying, read my book, please. So let's talk a little bit about our missteps.
Of course, I think every single one of you is perfect, and exactly the way that you should be. But sometimes we don't always hit that mark as an ambassador or in the program. Let's talk about instances, where we left room for our own growth.
I think one of those instances is in podcasts where we have an idea of everything we want to say, but we sometimes have trouble just remembering it in the moment. So an example of this would be we were when we did our podcast with About Adam Rex, one of the major things in his book was the fact that he had all of these beautiful illustrations throughout it, and we did not talk about that at all, not in the podcast face to face.
He did, but not yes, correct. There were more than a few tangents gotten off on. Yeah, sometimes we're a bit quiet or we don't know. It's says we keep repeating the same thing and then we realize, oh shoot, I don't know what I'm talking about anymore.
Sometimes. And so progressing on, adding on to that, sometimes we don't progress to new territory. Sometimes then we just draw springs and then whoops, we're back to where we started.
So we're a mixed group here. We have some middle school reading ambassadors and we have some teen reading ambassadors. What questions do you have for each other?
So after teen, do you guys know where you go from there?
The adult world. I'm a junior in high school, so I will be a senior soon. And I do have to think about that actually a lot. And it's really stressful. but and just thinking about going into college, and I think that this program has helped a lot, not only on my resume, but, but also just that it's helped me learn how to talk to adults and just ask questions in like an interview setting.
So, okay, but the big question is, what is high school like? High school?
For me, it's actually pretty easy. It's not that stressful. But then again, I also, I like to take advanced classes, but they can be boring for me, so I don't know how to explain it to you guys for me. I don't really have that many social problems, so.
But everyone has different experiences that you need to remember that. Well, well, socially, things, they always seem like they're okay. I'd say, don't put yourself in a situation where you're the center of any drama whatsoever, because that is so stressful. but if you're able to just focus on you, your academics, then things are easier. You go better.
I could academically, it is finals week. I'd like to remind you that it is stressful. I have a math exam on Monday and I'm freaking out about that. So the end of the year and the end of semester stuff is kind of scary. But yeah, it's it's a fun experience overall. Yeah, I think apps are the worst. I had four apps and I think like in those two weeks it's like, why did I take those classes?
But they're fun. But it's just the the end of that class. You're like, oh my God, it's really stressful. But I think high school is really fun. You have a lot of freedom. I like everything about finals week.
I think we're, all us middle schoolers are thinking in our heads. What? What's it what's the transition like between middle school and high school?
It's definitely stressful. You don't know what to expect. And if, let's say the high school screwed your schedule up, you feel like your head's going to explode and you're just like, oh my gosh, I have this whole unknown new territory. I have to go into, and my schedule screwed up.
Is the stuff they put on TV. True. Like, what do you swap?
Not just on TV, but in some of the books we read.
Yeah.
No, that does not happen. You don't have to worry about that. People aren't insane like that. Oh yeah. The only song and dance number I've ever seen in high school is like when we have pep rallies and they're like, just cheerleaders going along with the dance routine there.
There have been a few fights at my school? That's what you mean? and those can get pretty crazy. But there's never, like, this one. Like crazy bully just walking in the hall with, like, a bunch of, like a, there's, like an entourage of people behind them, and everybody's just terrified. We don't have lockers, really. At my school, you can shove anybody into it.
So that takes away from that. It's nothing like the movies. So don't think that you're just gonna walk in. And then suddenly there's Zac Efron bouncing a basketball at you. Yes. The boys are not attractive girls. Boys. Okay, not to offend you, but, boys in high school are not the most adept at making intelligent decisions.
That that sounds like a callback to some of our discussion around the Adam Rex’s book. But let me ask you a different question. Let me ask you, when you're taking these AP classes and you have all of the extracurriculars, that you're going through, whether it's sports or music, we have an amazing violinist in our presence, how do you make time to read for fun?
Okay. Personally, when I am getting ready in the morning and I'm eating breakfast, I usually have a book right next to me, and just for 20 minutes, I sit there, with a little, like waking or the colliding words of Mina Lee.
And I've read it's just in little intervals every single day, or when I'm about when I'm going to bed at night and I'm trying to fall asleep, I just take out a book.
Yeah, I don't have a lot of extracurriculars, but I know that I can be definitely busy sometimes. So after bedtime, I usually just pull out a flashlight in my book and read it for a couple hours.
Yeah, time management is one of the most important things you can do. especially during finals week with the exams. When you get an assignment, the first thing I do is I try to get done as soon as possible because I know if I put it off, then it's all going to stack up, and then I'll have to read a book for the Reading Ambassador program.
I'll have to do something for robotics. I'll have an AP exam the next day and I'll be really stressed out. Don't procrastinate. I know a lot of my classmates tell stories like it. Science finals are tomorrow and they haven't even studied, so they're staying up until 2 a.m. to study. Don't procrastinate. Personally, at the school I go to, I still need to stay. I have to tell it to I am all right.
Let's let's up by going around the table and saying one favorite thing about the Worlds of Words Reading Ambassador program.
The bagels were yummy.
Thank you. Thank you so much.
It definitely, got me out of my comfort zone. And I definitely felt like, I am I can enjoy reading a little bit more after this program.
I feel that I became a better reader and a better person overall. Just listening to all these authors problems and how they solve them, and I just feel like I can put this into my own life, and that these core lessons could really help me go through life. I love meeting a bunch of different people who like to read like me, and then hearing the advice from the authors is very beneficial.
I personally just love the WOW Center. I think it's really beautiful and cozy in there, and there's just so many books, and I think that's really a really amazing opportunity. Yeah, I like getting to see that over like we, we work with a lot of diverse authors too, and getting to hear their perspectives and what they think about a lot of different topics is really amazing.
And eye opening. My favorite part of this program was probably the different experiences we had to go through.
I 100% thought that 1 or 2 of you was going to say that you got to meet R.L. Stine.
Oh, right. Oh, I never got to meet him, but it seemed like it it was pretty epic. First, for some people.
I also like like how we managed to like me authors that I didn't really know. It expanded my sense. I definitely thought the R.L. Stine, meeting R.L. Stine was definitely an added bonus.
Yeah, definitely. I remember waiting in line just seeing it start to stretch around the block. but I think one regret that I have from that experience, though, is that I was so starstruck in the moment that I didn't say I had been thinking about what to say to him and all that. It was just small talk like, hi, how are you? Good. How are you?
All right. Well, thanks to each and every one of you. I appreciate this last year that you spent with us in this program and the connections that you made, the insights that you shared.
I'd like to thank Vianey Torres, our coordinator, Liam Arias, our sound engineer, The University of Arizona College of Education tech team.
We are currently recording in DIALL, the digital innovation and learning lab.