Chapter+4--YA+Lit+and+Web+2.0

is that you can take it to bed with you. ~ Daniel J. Boorstin ~
 * A** wonderful thing about a book, in contrast to a computer screen,

(Photo by Maggie Nerney. Used with permission.) Marvel, Maine's Virtual Library offers many opportunities for students to explore books by themes and lexiles. One common myth about young adult literature is that they are all easy reads. Using sites such as Marvel, students can search the books by their lexile or look up the lexile of books they are interested in to better match their choices with their personal reading levels and reading goals. That makes the challenge more engaging and rewarding.✰◆ ⇧

[|GoodReads] is a place where teens can log on, read and share book reviews and talk about books they enjoy. They can build a virtual book shelf of books they have read and they can also share their thoughts and find new books similar in theme or tone to novels they have read. A similar site is [|Shelfari]. Both of these sites are social media, like Facebook or MySpace, but focused on books and reading. A perfect match for teens with the added benefit of not being blocked in most schools.✰◆ ⇧

A fun website to use examining the lives of teens in the 19th century is [|NineteenTeen]. This blog is written by two YA authors who specialize in writing about the 19th century, Marissa Doyle and Regina Scott. This blog provides excellent historical background for Regency and Victorian England.◆ ⇧

Another fun blog is [|McLeanSpace], the blog of author Sarah McLean. Not only does it contain information about her and her work, she also does "interviews" with characters from other Young Adult Literature. It makes for fun reading.◆ ⇧