Hostile Territory: A Public Reading

I was fortunate to be able to do one public reading for my newest novel, Hostile Territory, before the pandemic. Since then, for obvious reasons, I’ve had several events cancelled.

Here’s a short version of that reading, recreated from my home. It is posted on my You-tube channel at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpW5PwyxufQ&feature=youtu.be

 

Paul Greci is the author of The Wild Lands (Macmillan 2019) and Surviving Bear Island (Move Books 2015), a 2015 Junior Library Guild Selection and a 2016 Scholastic Reading Club Selection and Hostile Territory (Macmillan Jan. 2020). Forthcoming is Follow the River (Move Books Summer 2020) . You can order all of Paul’s books here.

Thanks for stopping by.

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Hostile Territory Hits the Shelves

My third novel, Hostile Territory hits the shelves today.

Here’s a couple snippets from reviews, spoilers excluded:

“In Greci’s intense survival tale with a thriller component, four teens endure a harrowing trek across the Alaskan wilderness . . . It’s clear that Greci (The Wild Lands) knows his landscape—Alaska’s beauty and natural hazards become their own vivid character in his handling.” —Publishers Weekly

“Readers will feel like they are in Alaska alongside the characters… Recommended for teenagers who like postapocalyptic adventure or are fans of Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet.” —School Library Journal

Paul Greci is the author of The Wild Lands (Macmillan 2019) and Surviving Bear Island (Move Books 2015), a 2015 Junior Library Guild Selection and a 2016 Scholastic Reading Club Selection and Hostile Territory (Macmillan Jan. 2020). Forthcoming is Follow the River (Move Books April 2020) . You can order all of Paul’s books here.

Thanks for stopping by.

 

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Alaska Dispatch Favorite Books of the Year

Surviving Bear Island has been listed in the Alaska Dispatch News as one of their Favorite Alaska Books of the Year.

I’m thrilled to be on this list along with Alaskan authors Alexis Bunten, Kim Heacox, Catherine Holder Spude, Rosemary McGuire, Camille Seaman, Margaret Thomas, Chad and Darin Carpenter, Lee Goodman, Stuart Archer Cohen, Seth Kantner, Linda Martin, Jeremy Pataky, Eva Saulitis, and Dan O’Neill.

Below is a quote from the article regarding Surviving Bear Island:

Fairbanks author Paul Greci has received widespread and deserved national attention for his young-adult novel “Surviving Bear Island.” The book’s teenage narrator, Tom Parker, becomes stranded on an uninhabited island far out in Prince William Sound after a sea kayaking accident separates him from his father. With winter closing in, Tom has to survive off the island’s minimal bounty while encountering bears, enduring mishaps and coming to terms with the death of his mother and the unknown fate of his father. Greci gets inside his protagonist’s head, offering a fully believable character who gets put through hell. This is no happy romp in the forest. Like all the best young-adult fiction, “Bear Island” is a book for adults, too.–David James

Thanks for stopping by.

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What Some Teens are Reading

Okay, the semester is almost over. In my seven-student class (two girls and five boys, all sophomores and juniors) here’s what they chose to read for independent reading time.

My class is an ELL (English Language Learners) class comprised of students with roots in Micronesia, the Philippines, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and a few villages in rural Alaska. Some have been in this country their entire lives and some have just arrived a few months ago.

Anyone who reads books in a second language is a reading superhero.

We had 15 to 20 minutes of in-class reading time two or three times a week, and students had the option of taking their books home to read as well. The girls often took their books home; the boys did not.

This is pretty much the OPPOSITE of what I do in my classroom where kids can sit or lay on the floor during reading time if they please.

I did not require them to do any writing assignments in relation to their independent reading, or read a certain number of pages. I allowed them to stop reading a book if they wanted to just like us adults do. It was a no-strings-attached approach. For more details about my ideas regarding fostering reading in the classroom see this post.

I had a wide selection of young adult fiction and other books for my students to choose from. They were also allowed to bring books from home or the library.

In no particular order, these are books my students enjoyed and finished, or are about to finish.

Jumping Off Swings by Jo Knowles

Deadline by Chris Crutcher

Last Chance Texaco by Brent Hartinger

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Cut by Patricia McCormick

Trapped by Michael Northrop

Pinned by Alfred Martino

Wrestling Sturbridge by Rich Wallace

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

The First Part Last by Angela Johnson

Raiders Night by Robert Lipstyte

Right Behind You by Gail Giles

Sweethearts by Sara Zarr

Popular by Alissa Grosso

Cheating Death: Amazing Survival stories from Alaska by Larry Kaniut

Someone to Love Me by Anne E. Schraff and Paul Langan

As you can see from the list above, my students tended to gravitate toward contemporary, realistic stories.

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Possession Contest Winner

A big thank you to everyone who entered my Possession ARC, Smoked Salmon and Organic Chocolate giveaway and everyone else who stopped by to check it out.

The winner was chosen by Randomizer (pictured below):

And his side kick, who goes by the clever name, Side-kicker:

At my suggestion, they employed the services of RANDOM.ORG to choose the winner. I’m glad they listened because last time I had a contest Side-kicker put the comments in my screen saver, closed his eyes and delivered what he assured would be a light kick. Randomizer was supposed to watch and see which comment he’d connected with. Well, you can guess the rest.

Yeah, sometimes it’s hard to get good help, but I do love their spirit of enthusiasm.

Congrats to our winner Sarah Allen !!! Yay Sarah!!

Please email me at paulgreci(at)yahoo(dot)com with your mailing information and I’ll send you your prize.

Thanks again to all who participated and stopped by. Have a great weekend!

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