Hormone Jungle: Coming of Age in Middle School - Softcover

Brod Bagert

4.27

44 ratings by Goodreads

9780929895871: Hormone Jungle: Coming of Age in Middle School

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0929895878 ISBN 13: 9780929895871

Publisher: Maupin House, 2006

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Open Christina’s scrapbook and enter a world where girls rule and boys drool, where hormones rage, and where poetry captures the impassioned, lovesick, humiliated, and hilarious voice of the middle school student. College-bound Christina Curtis scrapbooks her years in middle school as a member of the Digital Poets, a group of students who find their voices through verse. Weaving her own narrative into the poems of her peers, Christina tells the story of her friendship with Steven Gilley, the obnoxious, girl-teasing, and “unbearably immature” boy who incites her to write her first poem. But Steven holds a secret that makes him wise beyond his years, leaving Christina to wonder if there isn’t more to this “unbearable” boy than meets the eye. From best friends and crushes, to underarm hair, and an all-out battle-of-the-sexes poetry war, the varied voices of the Digital Poets reflect both the humor and angst of middle school students coming of age in the Hormone Jungle. Hormone Jungle won the Association of Educational Publishers' 2007 Distinguished Achievement Award, the 2007 Independent Publisher Gold Book Award, the 2008 International Reading Association's Young Adults' Choices Award, and the 2009 Gold Mom's Choice Award!

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About the Author:

Brod Bagert's poetry captures a myriad of voices that speak to adults and children alike. Brod visits schools and conferences across America promoting performance as the best way to teach poetry. He is also the author of ten books of poetry, including Reainbows, Head Lice, and Pea-Green Tile (Maupin House, 1999), a collection of poems written in the voice of the classroom teacher, and Giant Children (Dial, 2004), which was nominated for the 2005 K-3 Children's Choice Award.

From School Library Journal:

Grade 5-8–Eleven classmates become Digital Poets after a school librarian encourages their writing, which began as a girls vs. boys poetry slam. The book is designed to look like the scrapbook of Christina Curtis, one of the students, who is now about to enter college. The 68 poems are divided by school year, from sixth grade through eighth, and illustrated with photos, drawings, and graphics from an actual middle school class. They are accompanied by Christina's running commentary on the events and on her fellow classmates. The result is a portrait of adolescence. In particular, it is about a special, life-changing friendship between Christina and Steven, who has leukemia. He and his philosophy-professor father turn to poetry as a way to cope with his illness. His love for Christina is also pure and respectful–Just above the trees,/There burned a star so bright,/That all the others seemed dim./And it made me think of you,/Christina strong and tall/Of all the girls who ever lived,/The brightest star of all. While the poems and characters aren't memorable as individual creations, the book as a whole may motivate readers to get a blank notebook and start recording their own observations about their lives and friends.–Kathleen Whalin, York Public Library, ME
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