Lafayette students and staff recommend ten books to encourage others to read. The list includes award winners such as “Scythe” by Neal Shusterman and timeless classics such as “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” by J.K Rowling.
Readers at LHS share their favorite page-turners
Avid readers in LHS stress importance of reading, recommend books
From curling up on the couch, rapid page turns and plot twists that send stories in unimaginable directions, books are a source of joy, inspiration and wonder for many.
They don’t have to be boring or stuffy, they don’t have to teach life lessons or have a theme to find in a language arts class. Most of the time, books are a source of entertainment to turn to in boredom, much like music, movies and television.
The Lancer community is full of avid readers who are seeking the next best story but they didn’t always have it figured out. Most of the time, it was just looking for a decent book in a specific genre that will satisfy.
Librarian Jane Lingafelter’s reading has changed over the course of her life. She first began reading crime fiction and mysteries due to their intriguing and complex natures but her taste has evolved through certain stages of her career as well.
“When I had kids of my own, many of those [crime fiction] books felt too disturbing and real. I switched to read a lot of realistic fiction and historical fiction and even romance,” Lingafelter said. ¨As a middle school teacher, I always read books my students were reading so I could recommend a good book for independent reading. I loved getting ideas from students because I learned so much about what different kids enjoy. Moving to high school, I have a whole new world of books to read, and our library is packed full of favorites.”
Despite the many diverse options in the Lafayette Library, some students still have trouble finding the right book for them. For language arts teacher Tracy Gladden it’s become a personal challenge to encourage students to find the right book for them, and help to advise and encourage them for when they do choose to read.
“Reading changes your brain structure, it’s empowering, teaches new words, improves focus and concentration, keeps your mind open, relaxes you,” Gladden said. “I recommend that students slow down when they read, and try to do a couple of ten-minute reading chunks a day. If they ever tell me they don’t like to read, I tell them they haven’t found the right book yet, and encourage them to find other genres.”
The importance of reading doesn’t only lay in educational use. While it may help students become academically successful, it also can help the reader’s mental health.
For librarian Nicole Ballard-Long, she believes that reading books provides a way for students to escape the realities of life, even if it’s just for a little while.
“I think reading offers us opportunities to escape, but also allows us to see lives like our own. Sometimes we read to know we are not alone. Other times we read to learn about lives that are different from ours,” Ballard-Long said. “Right now, especially, we need to read diverse stories and escapist stories, watching the news can be overwhelming, but reading is a gentle, yet powerful way to open your mind to the experience of others.”
The Lafayette Library staff, along with other teachers and students, are encouraging others to pick up a book during the holiday season and join the winter reading marathon the library is hosting. In the winter reading marathon, students can sign up for “races”, such as reading for 26 hours for a full marathon among others. The hours spent reading don’t have to be consecutive. Below are recommendations from the librarians, some teachers and a couple of students to get started.
