Book Tasting

We tried this yesterday and had tons of fun!

Book Tasting

Explanation: You are invited to sample a variety of anthologies as a way to introduce you to diverse literary works. The twin goals of a book tasting are to introduce students to a variety of terrific books, stories, poems, and essays and to start students on the road to self selection.

Steps:

1. Discussion--compare a box of chocolates to a selection of books. How are the two alike? Different?

Both are full of potential pleasures.

There are different flavors/types of chocolates just as there are different genres of novels--and most people have their favorites.

There are recognized "classics" in both.

When comparing individual chocolates to individual books, one finds that some chocolates/books are straightforward and uncomplicated--others are layered and complex--often praised by critics/gourmets and may be an acquired taste.

Some of the most common or popular flavors/genres fulfill our expectations.

Others, harder to categorize, surprise us)

2. Compare how you approach making a selection from a box of chocolates versus a group of books.

Most people agree that when approaching a box of chocolates we select the one that looks best, based on our previous experience.

We might do the same thing with a selection of books--looking at back or inside cover, the title, the picture on the front, the author's name.

We might figure out what type of book it is and, based on this, have some expectations of what the book will be like.

Some boxes of chocolates have a "key" on the inside lid, dramatizing the metaphor that we judge more than books by their covers.

But we really don't know what we're going to get--until we bite in (start reading).

3. Select a book and a chocolate. Read a section of at least three self-selected books and then answer basic questions about each one--
a. What kind of book is this?
b. What does it look like it is going to be about?
c. What do you expect will happen next?
d. Do you want to read further? Why or why not?

4. Based on the works chosen to sample, select a work and join a literature study circle focused on a common theme, genre, etc. Then discuss the different ways your books approach that theme or fit in that genre in a collaborative exploration of the significance of these similarities and differences.