Pen to Paper: J. K. Rowling Announces New Book

In July of 2007, it was a bittersweet time for many readers.

     With the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, it was the end of an era that had seen children's literature transform from a novelty of publishing, to serious business for bookstores and publishers alike.

     Now, nearly five years later, J. K. Rowling is finally stepping back out into the literaryspotlight.

     Her career began with the prophetic words of "Every child in our world will know his name", but now J. K. Rowling, author of the phenomenally successful Harry Potterseries, faces a new test as she releases her first novel since the fateful conclusion of the series that made her a household name. However, will it sink or swim in the shadow of 'the Boy Who Lived'?

     When news of the as of yet untitled book's existence broke, it only took minutes for it to spread over the internet like wildfire, a far cry from the near silence that encompassed the release of the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, in June of 1997 (the American version, re-christened 'Sorcerer's Stone', appeared in summer of 1998.) Back then, children's literature — outside of R.L. Stine and classics like the books of Ronald Dahl — was nothing more than a side market to the more successful writers for adults like King, Grisham, and Steele. Rowling, against all odds, broke the mold, and proved how powerful children's literature can be.

     In many ways, the question "where were you when you met the boy wizard?" took on a power similar to "where were you when President Kennedy was shot?" By the release of the third book in the series, Harry Potter had established himself as a phenomenon the likes of which the world had not seen.

     For me, the story of the respected boy wizard came to me in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

     Shortly after the attacks, I had gone to college three hours away from my parents for the first time in my life, and failed so hard that I had only lasted a month before breaking down, defeated by stress and anxiety.

     My mom, a librarian, had the first four books, and after seeing an ad for the first film, I followed her advice, and grabbed the first book off the shelf.   

     By the next night, I had finished it, and for a moment, all of my troubles seemed less challenging in the face of the trials Harry had encountered. From that point on, Harry Potter was a part of my life.

     Now, as J. K. Rowling prepares to release her first post-Harry Potter book, the question is will it live up to the story that took her from obscurity, and made her the first billionaire writer.

     LBCC student, Sarah McClanahan, who in the last few years had discovered the series, spoke of how she felt about the news of a new book from Rowling:

"I am looking forward to reading more of her writing," said Sarah. "I know that she wrote amazing children's Literature that was more than just another 'Happily Ever After' ending. She really went the mile to make sure that it was raw and real, like life."

     When asked what she felt the new book might be about, she echoed the opinion of writer Ian Rankin.

    

"I actually feel like she could write a really great Murder Mystery." She went on to say.

     The excitement was not lost on others, such as Student Randy Chilcote:

"I think it's going to be really interesting." He said. "Her later Harry Potter books got really dark...and it will be interesting to see what she does with a book for adults."

     Whatever she writes, it is bound to be a success for booksellers, who had lamented the end of the series along with the fans in 2007.

     Always tight-lipped about her plots, J. K. Rowling has proven herself once more to be a master marketer. Even her announcement, as lacking in detail as it is possible to be, already has fans salivating at the prospect of a new work.

"Although I've enjoyed writing it just as much, my next novel will be very different from the Harry Potter Series." She wrote in a handwritten note posted to her soon to be updated new website, jkrowling.com.

     I wish I could say what I think her new book is going to be about, but from the woman who gave us 'Horcruxes' and 'Hallows', I think it is safe to say it is anyone's guess.

     I just know that when it hits shelves, I will be in line to get it the moment it goes on sale.

At a glance

First novel published (Britain, 1997, America 1998)

Has sold over 450 million copies

Film adaptation has earned 7.7billion dollars

Her novels translated into 67 languages

For more information, including inside information on the Harry Potter series, her other literary project, Pottermore.com, is set to open to the public sometime this April, along with the official release of the Harry Potter eBooks.

Students Grapple with Racial Diversity

Would you say that Oregon is a racially diverse place?

      It is a question we are not asked very often, and for a group of LBCC students and staff, a few weeks ago it was one many of us considered for the first time. In the end, the truth surprised us all.

     On February 23, Willamette University professor, Emily Drew visited the Fireside Room to give a presentation titled "White Out: the Future of Racial Diversity in Oregon." As the student coordinator for our campuses Gay Straight Alliance, I went, hoping to broaden my knowledge on issues of racial discrimination within our culture. Even with my own experiences of cultural and societal exclusion, I was as blown away as the rest of the attendees to learn how our perception of how far we think society has grown in regards to race and tolerance can be far off the mark of the reality of where we still are.

     I had grown up with stories of my grandmother, who had lived in Oklahoma in the 1930's, talking of towns with signs posted on the outskirts that told people of color "Don’t let the sun set on your ass in this town." Even with the heated rhetoric of the 2008 election cycle, and the Birther Movement, it was so easy to think that, for the most part, such things were in the past.

     However, have we really come as far as we think we have?

     The notion of a Sun-Down Town (as exemplified by the sign from my grandmother's memory) is one that is easy to overlook. However, even here in Oregon, there are places that though there are no outward expressions of it as visceral as a threatening billboard, still qualify as a place ethnic and racial minorities would not want to risk being out past sunset. Even our very own capital, Salem, appears on a list of Sun-Down Towns in our state.

     However, the question of how to deal with these inequities within our society can be hard to talk about openly. As the presenter put it:

"A starting point would be for us to be honest, and not afraid about our history, not push it away," said visiting professor Emily Drew, "I think that conversation is the hardest part. From the conversation, we can begin doing the work."

     Before the recent economic recession, the income gap between racial and ethnic groups was 1/8th the average wealth of a Caucasian family. It is an idea that is made even more startling and concerning when one considers that since the recession, the gap has grown to 1/20th of what the average Caucasian family brings in.

     As much as we would like to think our society has grown, and made progress, the reality is this journey is ongoing. We are not moving as fast as we think we are. Numbers, like those above, show us the systemic failures of our economic system. Those figures, like many in the presentation, drew surprised murmurs from the gathered crowd, and for this student, have been echoing in my head in the weeks since.

     One of our very own Communications instructors, Dana Emerson, who helped bring the presentation to LBCC, echoed the point:

"The first thing I think students really need to do is address their perception of apathy," she said of the need for discussion. "They need to figure out how they see it, and how it plays in their life, before they can begin a broader conversation about it."

     While the White Out presentation opened the eyes of attendees to issues oft overlooked, it also was a call to continue the discussion. Aside from classes exploring minority issues and perspectives, students can also actively participate in shaping the dialogue on campus about issues of diversity.

     The Diversity Achievement Center here on campus is always open to hosting events and discussion on a variety of subjects, and any student wishing to host such an event are welcome to stop by, and get a slot on the calendar.

            As a representative of the D.A.C. said of the need for student involvement in these discussions, she summed it up as "Reach one, teach one", as a philosphy that is at the core of what the D.A.C. seeks to do on campus.

     The students are in no way powerless to continue these discussions, and help broaden our perception of the realities diversity and discrimination pose.

At a Glance: Racial Diversity in Albany Oregon, Census 2010

Race & Origin (Hispanic)	%
Non-Hispanic
White	82.9
Black	0.5
Indian	0.9
Asian	1.3
Islander	0.2
Other	0.1
Two	2.6
Hispanic	11.4

Profile: Callie Palmer

When one first steps into Callie Palmer's Minority Literature course, nothing seems out of the ordinary. It looks like any classroom that you would step into, with its neat rows of tables and chairs, but once the class starts, it does not take much time to realize that this one is going to be different. The students are no longer simply there to learn, but also to inform, and even do a little teaching themselves.

    

"Frankly, I have always loved literature because it is a creative reflection of history, whether intended or not," said Palmer. "When a student, or anyone, for that matter, sees how they are a part of history rather than a footnote, they have more of a stake in their own lives."

     In many ways, this fuels her philosophy for teaching. Instead of simply standing before the class, lecturing, she lets the students take over, sharing their thoughts and interpretations on the assigned readings. With subjects as personal as race, religion, gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, there is always a risk of people finding themselves out of their comfort zone during such discussions when passions run high.

     Rather than shy away from such moments, Professor Palmer brings them to the forefront.

"I let students know how I will approach what we in the business call 'teaching opportunities', for example," she says,  "if someone makes a statement that others might perceive as racist or prejudiced, we unpack it as a group, and discuss how it can impact the room. We talk about assumptions we all make just by looking at each other, and how wrong these can be. I think a bomb squad would call this disarming the threat. It works."

     From this, the students bring their own experiences to the act of as a class reading and comprehending a work of fiction. However, it is not simply about fiction, but the way in which it represents a broader understanding of life and our cultural heritage.

     It is this approach to learning about sensitive, and at times, uncomfortable subjects that leaves her students at the end of term with not only a greater sense of reality, but the tools to approach subjects such as discrimination and inequity which make up so much of our modern political and cultural discourse.

     This is a quality not lost on her colleagues.

    

     "Callie Palmer is very professional, hard working, and committed to fostering conversation about multi-cultural and diversity," said fellow English Professor, Karelia Stetz-Waters.

     It is a drive that Professor Palmer has carried outside the classroom also.

     When flyers of a derogatory nature were posted on campus a few years back, she, and a group of other teachers, created a open letter for students to sign, denouncing the incident, and its attack on students and faculty members here at LBCC. She also is one of the current Gay Straight Alliance faculty advisors (along with Communications instructor, Trevor Setvin), working to bring awareness to issues and challenges involving LGBT students and their allies.

     Originally intending to get a law degree, she found her passion for literature when taking classes with writer Alex Kuo (who happens to be a writer some of her minority literature students might be familiar with), and never looked back. She has now been teaching for 11 years, helping students to broaden their understanding and enrich their perspectives of different culture, something she hopes is an idea that can fade away as we learn that we are far more similar than we think.

Interview:

1.When did you know you wanted to teach literature?

Teaching is an accidental career for me. When I returned to finish my BA after a 13 year hiatus, I planned on going to law school when I was done. I was repeating a Creative Writing/Poetry class with Alex Kuo for a better grade, with no expectation of anything other than that one semester, and I ended up taking every class Kuo taught for the rest of my time at WSU. I wrote a memoir for his Literatures of the American West course, and he told me it was the foundation for my Masters thesis. So I applied to the American Studies Program and was awarded a Teaching Assistantship. I knew this was what I wanted to do the minute I lead my own class. Alex's teaching style was very influential for me as well. He viewed students as active agents in their own learning, and so do I.

2. What compelled you to teach students about how to use literature to explore themes of Race, Gender, Religion, Ethnicity, and Sexual Orientation?

Frankly, I have always loved literature because it is a creative reflection of history, whether intended or not. These themes have always been present, since these are basic human orientations. Literature, at least in the traditional cannon, has primarily privileged a few, sort of like early accounts of history, but the real stories are there, embedded. I like finding all of us in these stories. When students, or anyone, for that matter, sees how they are a part of history rather than a footnote, they have more of a stake in their own lives. Fiction was a means for people whose voices were marginalized to tell their own histories. As Ralph Ellison wrote,"Good fiction is made of that which is real, and reality is hard to come by."

3. In the last few years, we have seen many events unfold, from the election of the first African American President, to the shifts in attitudes concerning LGBT citizens. Have the shifting views on social issues such as sexuality, race, and gender affected the choices of text for your minority literature classes?

No - what affects my choices of texts for all literature courses is great work. Excellent stories authored by people of color have always existed. One reason I majored in American Studies both as an undergrad and in my Masters was to learn about all the literature, rather than a select group. I felt a connection with these writers - they were part of "my" America. Consider Phyllis Wheatley and Benjamin Banniker, or Charles Eastman. These folks were writing about their experiences as Americans long before Faulkner or Hemingway. In my opinion, people like W.E.B. DuBois, Ida B. Wells and others paved the way for these attitudes to shift, by empowering people of color, and by empowering themselves. Also, these early activists empowered whites to become antiracism activists, like John Brown or Viola Liuzzo. The Civil Rights movement began as soon as people were forced out of their homes and onto reservations, before they were sold into slavery, before the border crossed them, as our Latino/a friends might say, and before Asian Exclusion Acts were legislated. The struggle that has culminated in the current political and social landscape we see today began a very, very long time ago. We just don't give them credit.

4. What is your philosophy for approaching the teaching and discussion of controversial subjects to students?

The very first thing that I do is create a safe space in the classroom for these discussions to take place. I have ground rules that are centered on respect for everyone in the room. When we silence each other, no conversation is taking place. So I let students know how I will approach what we in the business call "teaching opportunities" - for example, if someone makes a statement that others might perceive as racist or prejudiced, we unpack it as a group, and discuss how it can impact the room. We talk about assumptions we all make just by looking at each other, and how wrong these can be. I think a bomb squad would call this disarming the threat. It works.

5. If you had to make a pitch for why a non-English major should take a minority literature class, what would it be, and why?

Everyone should try it. Why not? My dream is to eliminate the need for multi-ethnic literature and incorporate these works into all literature classes. Really, the question isn't about non-English majors, right? It is about non-people of color being uncomfortable talking about people of color. I take issue with the term "minority" as well- it is a loaded term in itself, and technically no longer accurate, except in terms of political power. I think everyone should take a multi-ethnic literature class to begin the journey of understanding the world we all live in. After all, employers depend on people being able to work together, right?

6. Do you have any authors or specific books you would recommend a student wanting to explore minority themes on their own?

Of course I do. The problem is that there are so many to recommend, and people have such varying tastes. The first thing I would do is take a break from reading literature written about different ethnic groups by people who aren't part of that group - even books like The Help, To Kill A Mockingbird, Or The Secret Life of Bees. All very well written, but by white people. Try something in the genre you love by an author of color. For science fiction fans, try Octavia Butler. Westerns? Try Cogewea by Mourning Dove. Like pulp stories? Try The Magazine Novels of Pauline Hopkins. My favorites, and writers I use frequently, include Toni Morrison, Louise Erdrich, Junot Diaz and Alex Kuo, all for different reasons. If a person wants to learn about the problems people of color face, I have a whole host of non-fiction suggestions as well.

At a Glance:

Holds a B.A. and M.A. in American Studies from Washington State University.

Has been teaching for 11 years.

Recommended Authors:

Octavia Butler, Mourning Dove, Pauline Hopkins, Toni Morrison, Louise Erdrich, Junot Diaz and Alex Kuo, to name a few.