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bickie's review against another edition
3.0
Collection of short stories by well-known and talented authors. Some of the stories are better than others, but all provide voices that are not seen enough in literature.
johnnymacaroni's review against another edition
4.0
Gave it to my niece before I could finish all the stories. All the ones I read were superb!
beths0103's review against another edition
4.0
Open Mic is an amazing collection of voices that uses humor to talk about life between cultures. The only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 is because I wanted it to be longer. I wanted to hear more voices and read more cross-cultural celebrations. I REALLY hope this becomes a series. The world needs more stories that use humor to bridge the cultural divide.
caylieratzlaff's review against another edition
3.0
Good anthology but I can't see this being used for my 9th graders because of some of the content.
mz_olson_8's review against another edition
3.0
Good points. Some of the stories dragged a bit. Overall message important!
crey18's review against another edition
2.0
Interesting, funny, poignant, and ironic stories about what it is like to feel trapped or in-between cultures. A good read for anyone who may experience living across cultural boundaries or for those who wish to understand what that may feel like.
crystal_reading's review against another edition
4.0
Review copy: Library
Open Mic provides glimpses into that territory of straddling two cultures. Ten different authors used a bit of humor, remembrances from their past, and their writing talent to create a unique collection of works that spoke to me in different ways. I appreciated that there were even a variety of forms. The book contains poetry, non-fiction, a comic, and short stories to show readers what it can be like to live between cultures.
At the very beginning, Mitali Perkins shares a few rules about the humor in the stories. To view the rules, visit her guest post over at Cythia Leitich Smith's blog. She seems to believe that humor can make conversations more pleasant, less serious. I would have to agree.
As I look back over the ten stories, I notice that although many of them contained humor, a significant number of them were dealing with pretty serious issues. The line, "I thought I knew the face of racism" from "Confessions of a Black Geek" speaks volumes. Gene Luen Yang's comic is a fascinating look into a bit of activism delivered in a matter of fact tone. Other stories, simply tell about life as a teen and include some of the complications of living between cultures and facing typical teen issues.
The pieces that wrung my heart the most were "Confessions of a Black Geek" by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich, "Brotherly Love" by Francisco X. Stork, and "Lexicon" by Naomi Shihab Nye. The face of racism is exposed in one and a heart is broken, a boy sees himself through his sister's eyes in another, and the other shows the soul of a loving man, friend to all.
Others in this collection came with more laughter than tears. I loved the amusing game that a family plays on the subways and the stereotype defying characters in several stories. There are playful moments mixed with everyday events and on occasion ugliness. Overall, the stories are upbeat and encouraging. Beyond sharing cultural issues, the stories also speak to anyone who has been an outsider for any reason.
I would definitely recommend this book to readers of young adult lit. The pieces are fresh and meaningful without being preachy. I would love to see more works like this and am hoping for a second volume.
The original review was posted at http://readingtl.blogspot.com/2014/02/review-open-mic.html
Open Mic provides glimpses into that territory of straddling two cultures. Ten different authors used a bit of humor, remembrances from their past, and their writing talent to create a unique collection of works that spoke to me in different ways. I appreciated that there were even a variety of forms. The book contains poetry, non-fiction, a comic, and short stories to show readers what it can be like to live between cultures.
At the very beginning, Mitali Perkins shares a few rules about the humor in the stories. To view the rules, visit her guest post over at Cythia Leitich Smith's blog. She seems to believe that humor can make conversations more pleasant, less serious. I would have to agree.
As I look back over the ten stories, I notice that although many of them contained humor, a significant number of them were dealing with pretty serious issues. The line, "I thought I knew the face of racism" from "Confessions of a Black Geek" speaks volumes. Gene Luen Yang's comic is a fascinating look into a bit of activism delivered in a matter of fact tone. Other stories, simply tell about life as a teen and include some of the complications of living between cultures and facing typical teen issues.
The pieces that wrung my heart the most were "Confessions of a Black Geek" by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich, "Brotherly Love" by Francisco X. Stork, and "Lexicon" by Naomi Shihab Nye. The face of racism is exposed in one and a heart is broken, a boy sees himself through his sister's eyes in another, and the other shows the soul of a loving man, friend to all.
Others in this collection came with more laughter than tears. I loved the amusing game that a family plays on the subways and the stereotype defying characters in several stories. There are playful moments mixed with everyday events and on occasion ugliness. Overall, the stories are upbeat and encouraging. Beyond sharing cultural issues, the stories also speak to anyone who has been an outsider for any reason.
I would definitely recommend this book to readers of young adult lit. The pieces are fresh and meaningful without being preachy. I would love to see more works like this and am hoping for a second volume.
The original review was posted at http://readingtl.blogspot.com/2014/02/review-open-mic.html
turrean's review against another edition
5.0
A superb YA collection of short pieces on the theme of race relations in the modern world. Every piece is polished, distinct, and bang on target.