Why I Picked It Up:
Buzz Kill is one of the books on the 2015 Lone Star List. In preparation for another successful Battle of the Books, I am beginning to read the chosen texts. I should probably start with the ones that don’t necessarily speak to me, but I’m not there in my personal growth yet. Instead, I chose a book that wasn’t necessarily one of my top choices but only slightly outside of my comfort zone. It was about a girl in high school with a crush, not typically one of my favorite things to read about, but since she was solving a murder mystery, that part was definitely my cup of tea.
Why I Finished It:
Truthfully, as I’m studying for a major exam, it took me longer that it should have. The story is a light-hearted, easy read. That being said, there is the mystery that Millie is trying to solve. She is a great character for students to analyze. She has so many things going on, dealing with her mom’s passing, trying to exonerate her father by solving a murder mystery, keeping a bully at bay, and falling in love. Millie’s love interest, Chase Albright, is also complex. As the story continues, you begin to learn more about his past and how that has shaped who he is today. I must admit, I didn’t solve this crime until Millie did, which motivated me to read and find out how it would end.
Who I Would Give It To:
This is a perfect book to be on a middle school classroom shelf. I foresee my son’s seventh grade teachers gift. While the characters in this story are high school age technically, it reads more like they are middle school students. This book is better suited in a middle school classroom as it would not be engaging to high school students or adults.
Integration Ideas:
Characterization and Making Connections:
This is a perfect time to have students analyze the actions, dialogue, and events that either Millie or Chase have throughout the book. Each character changes and reacts strongly to different events. Have students write in their notebooks character traits for the character they are following. Once they decide on the character traits, use a dictionary to look up the definition (throw in some dictionary practice), and then have them support the character trait with evidence. Was it something the character said, did, or thought that made you decide on that trait?
Don’t stop there! Have students then connect this character to their own life. Have they ever felt the way the character did in the story? What events in their lives made them feel that way? Did they act the same or different as the character in the book?
Theme and Guiding Questions:
As Millie is continuing through this murder mystery there is a definite sense of her learning her identity. Her identity has been shaped by events of the past and is continued in being shaped by events that are occurring. Her identity is tied to her relationships. As students read, they could answer the following guiding questions: How do relationships create identity? How do you know if a relationship is helpful or hurtful?
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