book club: Father And Young Son Reading Book Together At Home

Opinion: Book Club Can Save The Kids in Your Max Unit

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“My teen years were ones of drugs, shootings and beatings, and arrests. I was around when South Central Los Angeles gave birth to the Crips and Bloods. By the time I turned 18 years old, 25 of my homies had been killed by rival gangs, police, drugs, car crashes and suicides.”

—Luis J. Rodriguez

“Always Running” is a book that I recommend to everyone. It is one of the best books written by Luis J. Rodriguez and for many years was on the banned book lists throughout the country. 

When I arrived at the juvenile court school library, it was off the banned list and one of the most sought-after reads. I brought it to book club on many occasions.

book: Book between mountains gap.

Incarcerated Youth Need Books to Combat Their Increased Isolation

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As a society, we owe a special commitment to youth in custody. Incarceration of any kind causes very real trauma and doing so at a time when young people are growing and learning only compounds the trauma. Our juvenile justice system must seek not to punish, but to support these children’s social, emotional and educational development. 

In normal circumstances, our national juvenile justice system does not always serve these children properly. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, we are failing our community’s children. With the current health restrictions around the pandemic, youth in custody have extremely limited or no in-person visitation from family and friends.

Where Have All the Readers Gone?

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You would think that my husband and I would be voted most likely to raise readers. Our home is filled with thousands of books. We both read every single night. Steve has books in his car and even takes them with him on appointments. We’re both authors – we WRITE books for gosh sakes.

Shining a Light in the Darkness of Prison

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Reading saved my life. I can only guess at how many books I read in my nearly 25 years of incarceration. I feel certain that it is easily over a thousand. For me, the longer and more detailed the book was the better. One perfect book was To Kill a Mockingbird.

Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy Offers Grant to Encourage Reading

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The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy is offering a grant to support reading skills. Some of the requirements for this grant include,  literacy instructions for kids pre-K to the third grade, intergenerational literacy and literacy for adults. No grant request should exceed $65,000. The deadline for this grant is September 9, 2011.  

Grant to Help Kids Read

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Target is offering a grant to help nurture the love of reading and build strong families. This grant supports, schools, libraries and nonprofit organizations. These grants are worth $2,000 and are accepted between March 1 and April 30.