Weiss, M. Jerry and Weiss, Helen S. (editors). (2002). Big City Cool: Short Stories about Urban Youth. New York: Persea Books, 181 pp.

Grade Range: 6-12

Genre: short stories

Summary and Critique

M. Jerry Weiss and Helen S. Weiss have compiled a magnificent collection of short stories about growing up in the city. They have selected stories that are diverse in culture, city, and subject, though all share the common theme of the many varied lives and experiences of a young person in urban America. Each author brings his/her own experiences to these poignant stories of racism, poverty, ambition, music, fear, expectations, and friendship.

Amy Tan, author of the award winning The Joy Luck Club, introduces readers to Waverly Jong, otherwise known as MeiMei in "Rules of the Game." MeiMei becomes a master chess player at a very young age but is overwhelmed by, frustrated by, and eventually rebellious toward her mothers desire to frequently praises her.

The rhythms of the city are felt and detailed in "Blues for Bob E. Brown" by T. Ernesto Bethancourt. This story of a young boy's love of the Blues and his discovery that his Grandfather was a great Blues musician pulsates with the astonishingly real club performance by Robert Moreno, a.k.a. Bob. E. Brown. The undertones of family dysfunction and choosing music outside of your culture (Robert is Puerto Rican) add complex yet satisfying layers to this tune.

"Blue Diamond" by Neal Shusterman is a depressingly real account of one boy's realization that his current adventure with a friend will be their last before his friend commits suicide.

This collection should be present in every language arts classroom library. The stories are appropriate for group discussion, written response, and individual contemplation. Urban high school students might find a timely story for their lives, while those outside of the city can get a glimpse into urban life. Each story consists of many layers and complexities more suitable for older readers. However, as read-aloud, these stories would work well in middle school, too. The topics are poignant, timely, and real but should be handled with care. Critics call this one of the best reader-friendly collections of stories about urban youth available.

Themes/Topics

Families

Friends and Enemies

Generations

Race, Ethnicity, and Culture

Challenges and Triumphs

The Individual vs. Society

Author/Illustrator/Editor Information

M. Jerry Weiss is Distinguished Service Professor of Communications Emeritus at New Jersey City University. He has taught language arts, reading, and English in colleges and high schools. Helen S. Weiss works as a freelance editor and writer. The Weisses have successfully worked together to organize several anthologies. They live in Montclair, New Jersey.

For more information on the Weisses:

http://www.threeinvestigatorsbooks.com/MJWeiss.html This site offers personal information for M. Jerry Weiss as well as detailed career notes. A bibliography is provided.

Media Connections

Movies/Documentaries

Bomb the System (2002) Focusing on graffiti and New York City, this movie follows a 19 year old graffiti artist after his graduation from high school. With no real drive, he"bombs" the city with graffiti.

North Carolina Muslims (2001) Following September 11, Muslim Americans were viewed differently by most Anglo Americans. This documentary examines a Muslim congregation that decided to reach out to the non-Muslim community in Raleigh, NC after the attacks.

Game Over: Kasparov and the Machine (2003) Kasparov is considered the greatest chess player of all time. In 1997 his opponent was Deep Blue, an IBM computer. The events of the match and those leading up to it are presented from Kasparov's perspective, including the psychological aspects of the game.

Dear America: Dreams in the Golden Country (1999) A Jewish immigrant girl, Zipporah Feldman, pursues her dream of acting while growing up in New York City in the early 1900's.

River Runs Through It (1992) This is the true story of the two sons of a rural Montana preacher. One son is rebellious while the other is typically cautious and conservative. However, both share a love of fly fishing. A great movie about distinctly different brothers growing up in rural America.

Television

Laguna Beach – MTV (the daily happenings of privileged Anglo youth in Orange County, CA)

The Cosby Show – any episode (family relationships, growing up)

Music/Audio Recordings

"I Want to go Back to Michigan." Lyrics by Irving Berlin. From Time-Life Treasury of Christmas. Time Life, 2001. A singer in the city longs for his home on a Michigan farm. Students could reverse the context – in the country longing for the city.

Online Resources

http://east-harlem.com/ This site includes news, events, photos, community information and a forum about East Harlem, NY.

http://www.eh.net/Clio/Publications/flight.shtml The movement of minorities into the suburbs caused what some people termed"white flight," or Caucasians leaving the neighborhoods that were becoming more racially diverse. This article discusses this phenomenon from its beginning following World War II.

http://www.chessvariants.com/d.chess/chess.html This site offers illustrated rules for playing chess as well as a link to rules for kids.

http://afroamhistory.about.com/library/weekly/aa030501a.htm For historical information on Blues music, this site provides a nice write-up.

http://www.safeyouth.org/scripts/Teens/suicide.asp This Web site provides facts about suicide and information about preventing suicide.

http://www.bestplaces.net/col/col.aspx This site allows for comparisons in cost-of-living, neighborhoods, crime rate, climate statistics and other information between cities/towns.

Related Texts

Nye, Naomi Shihab. The Space Between Our Footsteps. New York: Simon & Schuster's Children's Publishing, 1998. This collection of poems from Middle Eastern poets reflects on many themes in Big City Cool from the perspective of countries and cities in the Middle East rather than urban America.

Crutcher, Chris. Athletic Shorts: Six Short Stories. New York: Harper Tempest, 2002. Crutcher uses sports as the Weisses use the big city. In the six short stories, athletes address difficult issues like homophobia, parents, and racism.

Cart, Michael. Necessary Noise: Stories About Our Families As They Really Are. Harper Tempest, 2003. With so much of a teenagers life focused on family issues, Cart's collection shows youth dealing with"family" as it applies to them, within their own experiences.

Heynen, Jim (editor). Fishing for Chickens: Short Stories About Rural Youth. Persea Books, 2001. This book, considered a companion book to Big City Cool, has sixteen stories about growing up in rural America.

Wyeth, Sharon Dennis. Something Beautiful. New York: DoubleDay Books for Young Readers, 1998. This picture book highlights the idea of seeing things the way you want to or need to like so many characters in Big City Cool. A young girl sees only the negative aspects of her neighborhood until she learns the word"beautiful" at school.

Peck, Richard. A Long Way From Chicago: A Novel in Stories New York: Puffin Books, 2000. Chicago city kids spend their summers with Grandma Dowdel from 1929-1942. Peck offers humorous stories of adventure in the country with Grandma.

O'Dell, Scott. Sing Down the Moon. New York: Laurel Leaf, 1997. Depicting the racism of a much earlier time, O'Dell tells the story of Bright Morning, a fourteen year old Navajo, who is forced from her land by Spanish slave traders.

Hampton, Wilborn. September 11, 2001: Attack on New York City: Interviews and Accounts. Candlewick Press, 2003. Critics have labeled this as one of the best books about September 11 for young adult readers. Hampton chronicles the day from his perspective as well as from the perspective of several other observers, including victims, rescuers, and perpetrators.

Teaching Ideas

(1) "Picture Writing" Purchase, find, or borrow enough black and white photos to provide an ample selection for students in your class. Have students choose one photo. Share an old picture of yourself and have the class brainstorm the activities happening prior to the photo as well as after the picture. Then have students carefully look at the photos they have chosen, studying facial details, expressions, background objects, and the relationships between people in the photo. Each student then should write a short story about their photo, addressing why the picture was taken or what was happening to the people. Students share their opening paragraphs only to build suspense. During the next class period, display photos and have volunteers read their stories.

[Summarized from "Picture Writing" by Kristina Hoyer in Ideas Plus Book 14. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, 1996, pp. 7-8.]

(2) "Language With a Beat" This activity helps students to appreciate structure and language through music, and it works well with novels, short stories, or poetry. As a class or in small groups, students discuss and explore songs relating to the theme or mood of the literary work to encourage deeper understandings and connections to the reading. Have students choose songs from a variety of musical categories that are related to the literary work. Students may suggest favorites, but the lyrics must be easy to find and classroom friendly. When the list is narrowed down, put students in small groups and give them a copy of one song's lyrics. The groups discuss words and meanings as well as choosing phrases they like best, phrases that do the best job of creating a mood or image, and how the song relates to the text. They can also discuss their interpretation of the author's message. The group can brainstorm other songs that fit the theme or mood of their song and later discuss and make comparisons. Finally, the students write a paragraph about what the song means to them. Interestingly, this activity often leads to students writing their own lyrics.

[Summarized from "Language with a Beat" by Vilma Cordova-Lopez in Ideas Plus Book 18. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, 2000, pp. 40-41.]

(3) "Writing to Share Cultures" The following activity encourages cultural communications in a pleasurable, social, supportive, and non threatening way.

Have students bring in a small item that is, in some way, a part of their culture. The item should not be valuable or fragile. On the day that students are to bring their token, emblem, ornament, etc. bring extras from your home for students who were unable to bring an item or who forgot. Place the items in a couple of large shopping bags and have two volunteers redistribute one item to each person, ensuring no one receives their own item. Then, based on their knowledge of the item in front of them, students may write a short physical description about their object as well as its functionality. If the object is foreign, the student should generate at least three questions and a speculative paragraph about the potential function and/or cultural meaning. Allow 10-15 minutes for the writing.

Students then share their responses or questions and receive feedback and/or answers from the item's owner. Responses can be recorded on the board for categorizing at the end of the sharing time. Possible categories to look for are good luck emblems, toys, prosperity, etc.

Extension: Invite a panel of parents or community members to share more about the objects, the community, and/or their culture.

Extension: Create a culture museum with changing exhibits. The class can learn curatorial skills, author a catalog, publicity, and act as docents.

[Summarized from "Writing to Share Cultures" by Rose Reissman in Classroom Notes Plus. Urban, IL: National Council of Teachers of English. December 1997, pp. 1-2.]

(Review written by Carrie S. Bert and edited by Jennifer E. Moore)