The man behind the Bluford series may be a surprise, but the kids don't care
The New York Times reports on series popular with a group not usually associated with books: urban teens who struggle with reading. The creator and author of many of the books is white - but the kids don't care.
"During the summer of 1997, Mr. Langan was a recent college graduate working at Townsend Press, an educational publishing house founded by his uncle, John Langan, to produce textbooks like “Ten Steps to Improving College Reading Skills.” The younger Mr. Langan coordinated a reading program that summer for Philadelphia teenagers. Noting the teenagers’ resistance to books, he approached his uncle with the initial conceit for Bluford. His uncle had the vision and means to run with it.
"Unifying rules took hold as the series evolved. The books would feature black and Latino characters, and the characters’ conflicts and choices would ultimately model positive decision-making. The books would be written at a level that struggling middle and high schoolers could read (fifth grade), about topics they would want to read about (guns, theft, pregnancy), for a price they would pay ($1)."
Read more here.
"During the summer of 1997, Mr. Langan was a recent college graduate working at Townsend Press, an educational publishing house founded by his uncle, John Langan, to produce textbooks like “Ten Steps to Improving College Reading Skills.” The younger Mr. Langan coordinated a reading program that summer for Philadelphia teenagers. Noting the teenagers’ resistance to books, he approached his uncle with the initial conceit for Bluford. His uncle had the vision and means to run with it.
"Unifying rules took hold as the series evolved. The books would feature black and Latino characters, and the characters’ conflicts and choices would ultimately model positive decision-making. The books would be written at a level that struggling middle and high schoolers could read (fifth grade), about topics they would want to read about (guns, theft, pregnancy), for a price they would pay ($1)."
Read more here.
