SLIS 5420 13

Week Nine: Short Stories - 13 Thirteen Stories that Capture the Agony and Ecstasy of Being Thirteen

Book Summary: 

            This is an anthology of thirteen short stories (one is in the form of a poem) about being thirteen-years-old.  Stories range in topics from not having what other kids have and getting made fun of because of it, to a rather unusual Bar Mitzvah, to a kid realizing he is gay.  Each story shows the pain of growing up in a different way, and each is relatable in some way as well.  After reading all thirteen tales, the one thing I think most people would agree on is no one wants to be thirteen.  

APA Reference:  

Howe, J. (ed.). (2003). 13: Thirteen stories that capture the agony and ecstasy of being thirteen. New York, NY: Atheneum Books for 
          Young Readers. 

My Impressions: 

            As I was looking for a short story collection to read for class, I wasn’t overly excited about many on the list, but then I found 13.  I realized, after seeing the cover, that it was a book I had wanted to read years ago when it came out.  Although I love James Howe, he wasn’t entirely the reason.  When I saw it, I remembered all of the news commentary on this book being challenged in the DFW area.  I am sure it was all because of Alex Sanchez’s If You Kiss a Boy, which is a sweet story about a boy realizing he is gay after kissing his best friend in a movie theatre.  His horror of not knowing if his friend will ever speak to him again, or if his parents will accept him, is a real fear of so many kids, even if it has nothing to do with their sexuality.  I feel these stories are wonderful because they give teen readers reassurance that sometimes life really is horrible when you are thirteen. 

            There were many great stories is this collection, but my favorite was James Howe’s tale of a Bar Mitzvah gone bad told by each of the witnesses and participants in short one or two page mini chapters.  The different viewpoints confused me at first, but then I loved how I could know what each character thought about the story’s events. 

            Generally, this is a great collection of twelve short stories and one poem about being thirteen.  It’s an age few people have a good time with, so I feel it is a good book to reassure thirteen-year-olds as well as allow older readers to reminisce about how much they do not wish they were thirteen again.  

Professional Review: 

            The authors of these 13 original entries (12 stories and one poem) have one thing in common: each understands what it is like to stand in that murky bog between childhood and adulthood. Their writings, all of which feature a 13-year-old protagonist, poignantly and often humorously capture the excitement, angst and uncertainty that mark the experience of growing up. Lori Aurelia Williams's impoverished and taunted hero Malik considers joining a reputedly violent gang because they will give him the high-status shoes he covets; and Ellen Wittlinger's heroine, Maggie, a budding writer, tries out a new identity under a pen name. Others tentatively test the waters of romance or plunge into infatuations. For example, Murphy Murphy ("Yeah, you read it right.... It's like a family curse," he says of his name), the blinded-by-love star of Bruce Coville's "What's the Worst That Could Happen?" agrees to act in a skit despite his terrible stage fright, in order to impress his beloved Tiffany; several embarrassments, one Heimlich maneuver and an accident later, he lands in the hospital with a broken leg. Howe (who previously edited The Color of Absence: 12 Stories About Loss and Hope) orchestrates a lively assortment of voices; what readers may enjoy most, however, are the authors' comments on their own adolescences--accompanied by photos of themselves at age 13.

Roback, D., Brown, J. M., Bean, J., & Zaleski, J. (2003, November 17). 13: Thirteen stories that capture the agony and ecstasy of being
          thirteen [Reiew of the book 13: Thirteen Stories That Capture the Agony and Ecstasy of Being Thirteen edited by J. Howe.]    
         Publishers Weekly, 250(46), 65-66. Retrieved from http://www.publishersweekly.com

 
Library Uses:

           

            This book could be used as part of a display of short stories or of books about being an adolescent.