Offbeat Paperbacks for Your ClassroomAuthor(s): George J. BeckerSource: Journal of Reading, Vol. 15, No. 2 (Nov., 1971), pp. 127-129Published by: Wiley on behalf of the International Reading AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40009724 .

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Offbeat Paperbacks

for Your Classroom

GEORGE J. BECKER

Assistant professor in the College of Education at San Diego State

College, George Becker is dedicated to making reading interesting and

relevant to today9 s students. Among other experiences, he organized a

reading program for delinquent boys already institutionalized.

| The reading teacher is constantly on the lookout for appropriate and

inexpensive material with which to

supplement a reading program. Pap- erbacks are excellent for this pur-

pose. Their acceptance by the stu-

dents, their wide diversity of content, and their wide range of levels of read-

ing difficulty make them ideal read-

ing material for students at all grade levels.

The following list is representative of inexpensive ($1.00 or less) "off-

beat" paperbacks. The material is

offbeat in the sense that it is not us-

ually available through the numerous

excellent educational paperback book

clubs, children's reading sections in

book stores or libraries, and similar

conventional sources. For most stu-

dents, therefore, this material would

not ordinarily be available in the av-

erage classroom.

Some of the paperbacks listed

(such as Best Cartoons of the Year and Snappy Answers to Stupid Ques-

tions) are particularly suitable for old- er disabled readers because they combine a relatively simple level of

reading with a relatively sophisticated

127

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content and format. Some of the ma- terial (such as Why Did They Name It . . . ?) lends itself nicely to use with students of above average abil-

ity. In general, however, the ma- terial is appropriate for a wide variety of students. The paperbacks were selected on the basis of the author's evaluation of their probable suitability coupled with later favorable reports from student teachers and teachers who had used the material in their own classrooms.

It is hoped that the following list and brief descriptions will acquaint teachers with some of this material for their classes and encourage them to be on the lookout for similar ma- terial of this nature.

Campbell, Hannah. Why Did They Name It . . . ? New York: Ace Books, 1964, ninety-five cents. • The romantic stories of how pop-

ular brand names such as "Cam- els", "Noxzema", and "Dr. Pep- per" had their origins. Especially good for bright or average stu- dents to use as basis for class re-

port together with display of the actual product.

Jacobs, Frank. Sing Along With Mad. New York: Signet, 1970, sixty cents. • Cartoon sequences lead into story

situations which involve parodies of well-known songs such as "Give

My Regards to Broadway", "Hello

Dolly", and "Wouldn't It Be Lover-

ly?" Book is especially appropri- ate for junior and senior high school levels.

Jaffe, Al. Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions. New York: Signet, 1968, sixty cents. • Cartoon format depicts situation in

128 Journal of Reading November 1971

which an obvious or stupid ques- tion is asked followed by three in-

sulting responses and blank space for student to fill in his own ap- propriate response. Many of the situations involve relatively simple vocabulary and sentence structure, making it especially appropriate for

junior and senior high school stu- dents who are uninterested in

reading or who have reading prob- lems.

Lariar, Lawrence. Best Cartoons of the Year. New York: Dell, 1969, fifty cents. • This book is representative of the

numerous paperback compilations of cartoons (Charlie Brown, Dennis the Menace, and so on). It was selected because of its diversified content and wide range of reading levels, extending from first grade through high school.

Linkletter, Art. A Child's Garden of Misinformation. Greenwich, Connecti- cut: Fawcett, 1965, fifty cents. • Mr. Linkletter presents unusual

and comical mistakes, misconcep- tions and confusions of children

("The future tense of the verb to

marry is divorce"). The selec- tions offer good opportunities for brief oral reading practice.

Mad Libs. Los Angeles: Price, Stern, Sloan, 1968, one dollar. • Brief articles are presented with

designated parts of speech (noun, exclamation, verb, adjective, and so on) omitted. Leader asks for indicated parts of speech from dif- ferent members of class, writes in

responses, and then reads back entire story. The more unusual or exotic are the student responses,

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the more incongruous will be the

meaning of the completed story. Offers good practice for develop- ing vocabulary and the grasp of different parts of speech.

Tern pel, Earle (compiler). Classified Humor. New York: Pocket books, 1970, sixty cents. • Brief classified advertisements are

used to illustrate ambiguity and

misconception in meaning ("Now on the market: a new Remington cordless shaver for women with two heads"). Selections are excel-

lent for brief oral reading practice, analyzing grammatical structure, and developing writing clarity.

Tern pel, Earle (compiler). Humor in the Headlines. New York: Pocket- books, 1969, sixty cents. • Misleading and ambiguous mean-

ings are presented which result from summarizing into headline format ("Car Wreck Caused by Bee in Pajamas"). Selections are ex- cellent for brief oral reading prac- tice, analyzing grammatical struc- ture, and developing writing clarity.

Open Sesame ^^A

^» Open House

Open to Suggestion invites q ^ DoQr

your classroom ideas and ^

techniques.

^^^ How do you help problem q i j j readers? How do you approach ^ ^*

dialect differences? How did

you organize your last ^^

^^ successful unit, program, ^m

^^^L project or excursion?

^^^^ Spread the good word. Write ^ Open to Suggestion, JOURNAL

^^^k

^

OF READING, IRA, Six Tyre ^^A Avenue, Newark, Delaware 19711. ^^^^

BECKER: Offbeat Paperbacks 129

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