TOWSON, MD – Before choosing your reading selections for the summer, please consider the following 10 titles written by Grade 12 students in the George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology’s literary arts prime. All of the books are available for purchase on Amazon.com.Pieces of the Pastby Makayla B. Bess of Woodlawn“Life’s best-learned lessons come from the smallest of memories. This collection is a compilation of key components in young women’s lives that shaped them into the people they are today. From a teenage girl finding comfort in the memory of her grandmother, to the strength of a 60-some-year-old marathon runner, these seemingly insignificant moments served more importance than one could ever realize.”Mirrors by Autumn A. Burton of Towson“Mirrors is a collection of short stories and creative nonfiction with settings that are not connected by location, but by the struggles against systemic oppression that tend to be dissociated from mainstream media: child prostitution, drug trafficking, environmental racism, and more. You will be taken on a journey around the globe from Baltimore, one of the birthplaces of American society, to the developing [world]. Through it all, you will discover that you haven’t traveled too far and that the question remains the same: what does it truly mean to be free?”The American Girl: A Collection of Poetry on Seemingly Insignificant Things byAdrienne Edwards of Owings Mills"The American Girl is a collection of poetry about growing up and accepting yourself. It's about my personal struggle with depression, identity, and finding out what I could do to make my life the best it could be." 3725 RomeobyEmily S. Federico of Cockeysville“3725 Romeo celebrates the importance of small moments and the preservation of innocence in this complex and changing world. It's about sneaking a kiss with your girlfriend at 95 years old or kayaking out to catch the last glimpse of the sunset. It's about finding that beauty and never letting go.”Rogue by Megan McGraw of Towson“Everybody wants to be a hero, but when Nora tracks down the child of a demon named Rinah and discovers the world is at risk of being torn apart, she learns the saving portion doesn’t exactly come easy. With a looming apocalypse, a surprisingly likable half-demon, and admittedly questionable motives, Nora is forced to quickly deal with the consequence of trying to play savior.”Comic Sans by Katie Mlinek of Upperco“Comic Sans follows the life of James Watterworth, a high school junior who has always had a cozy life. He likes eating dill pickle chips, riding his bike, and feeling the cool wind underneath his armpits. But when his father loses his job as a truck driver and James develops a crush on Eleanor, the responsible, self-driven girl in his English class group, he starts to see his life in a new perspective. James sets out to find a job and himself in the process, all while still seeing the inherent humor in this ‘Comic Sans’ world.”Killing the Wilderness by Sam Owens of Cockeysville“Sigis has spent his entire life within the high walls of the Bastion, the isolated fortress that he calls home. But when a journey into the nearly endless Wilderness that surrounds the castle brings him face to face with a monster, Sigis is thrown into a new life, training constantly to fight the mysterious beasts that lurk deep in the woods. When an emissary from a faraway land comes to the Bastion hoping to make contact, Sigis is launched on a journey that will take him far from everything he knows and back again, ultimately teaching him how to conquer the Wilderness inside himself.” Culture Shock by Elana Rubin of Pikesville“Seven years ago, Elana Rubin moved from her Jewish Day School in Baltimore, Maryland to Israeli public school in Tel Aviv. One hundred years ago, her great grandfather left his wife and children in Russia to begin a new life in America. Three thousand years ago, Abraham followed the word of an unknown God to journey to Canaan and father a great nation. Culture Shock tells the story of uprooting and navigating unfamiliar worlds, following the personal story of a teenager growing up and finding her place in the context of thousands of years of history.”Baltimore Rock & Roll: Stories from the Breathing City by Rebecca E. Schuman of Reisterstown“While people don't usually connect Baltimore to classic rock 'n' roll, this little city has a hold on the heart of music history. Rock 'N' Roll Baltimore: True Stories from the Breathing City takes a closer look at the street corners, local dive bars, and underground clubs where iconic music moments exploded, interwoven with fans recounting their experiences. Rock 'n' roll swung through Baltimore just like any other city. The only difference? All these years later, no one in Baltimore forgot.”The Day the Music Died by Ruthe Lynn Wink of Catonsville“The Day the Music Died is a collection of poetry that celebrates the life of Robert Wink. These poems are about the complexities and beauties of family.”
Suzanne Supplee, Carver Center’s literary arts department chair, created this initiative five years ago, when she took over as department chair. “I felt that the students needed to have something of substance to show for their completion of the program – a single work to reflect who they are as writers,” Supplee said. “I wanted them to have the experience of creating and sustaining a work of length. So many writers want to complete a book, but they get involved in school, work, life, and never find the time.”
Beyond writing the work, Supplee says that the project offers a comprehensive lesson in self-publishing using Amazon’s CreateSpace. “They have to figure out spacing, fonts, acknowledgements, author’s notes, print runs…,” she said. “They have to write bios and arrange for cover art.” Some of the students create their own covers; some work with Carver Center’s visual arts students or reach out to family or friends for artwork.”
One of last year’s projects, a novel titledThe Art of White Roses, by 2016 Carver Center grad Viviana Prado-Núñez, just won the fourth annual CODE’s Burt Award for Caribbean Literature. The award recognizes outstanding writing for young adults by Caribbean authors. For her first place finish, Prado-Núñez, who was born in Puerto Rico and is now a freshman at Columbia University, will receive a $10,000 prize and 2,500 copies of her book will be donated to schools, libraries, and community organizations throughout the Caribbean.
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