Robert Jergen: Man or Myth? An Exercise in Credibility

Who is Dr. Robert Jergen, author of the book The Little Monster, which is a memoir about living with ADHD as an adult?
I started reading this memoir in preparation for a series of booktalks. As I began reading this book, a few alarms went off.
He begins by saying that he was born in "Beach Grove, Illinois, a suburb 25 miles due west of Chicago." I have lived in the suburbs for most of my life, and I have never heard of Beach Grove, Illinois. I am, as some people know, a Google Maps fiend, so after reading this first sentence, I immediately went to Google Maps and typed in "Beach Grove, IL" Nothing. "That's odd," I thought. I tried scouring the map and zooming in, to what looked like 25 miles west of Chicago. I figured it would be somewhere near Geneva or Saint Charles. No Beach Grove. Then I googled Beach Grove. My search yielded no results.
I thought that if this place existed, it would at least have a web presence. Jergen stated that his town had 40,000 inhabitants, and this was in the '70s. That wasn't so long ago. Eventually, I found that Beach Grove Road does exist in Antioch, IL. Antioch, however, is nearly 60 miles northwest of Chicago, near the Wisconsin border.

Aside from geographic concerns, I was mostly interested in Dr. Jergen himself. His short author note at the end of the book merely states that he is a professor at a university in Wisconsin, and his contact email is a yahoo! email address.
Since we have been talking a lot about credibility and how students assess credibility, I decided to check out my source. I googled "Robert Jergen." The only results that came up were reviews of the book, The Little Monster. I also found an NPR feature on adults with ADHD featuring Dr. Jergen. I was surprised to see that they quoted him as being a professor of special education at the University of Wisconsin. Was this a typo on the people at NPR's fault?
I listened to the NPR story, which featured of Dr. Jergen, which I have provided here

I decided to look into finding out information on Dr. Jergen's academic career. I went to the University of Wisconsin-Madison's website and looked at the special education faculty web page. There was no information on Robert Jergen. I also searched the UW-Madison web page and could not find any references. I then googled the name again, and found a mention of Dr. Jergen and the University of Wisconsin-Osh Kosh. I looked at the Osh Kosh webpage, and also found no mentions of Dr. Jergen.

In the NPR interview, Jergen mentions that he writes 2 books a year. I looked on Amazon.com, which I consider one of the most comprehensive book sites on the web, and found only the book The Little Monster.

So, feeling utterly confused, I did another Google search. I search "robert jergen book" A website came up listing 2 books-The Little Monster and Mental Retardation Doesn't Mean Stupid: A Guide for Parents and Teachers. Delighted that I was finally getting somewhere, I clicked on the link for the book. Robert Jergen was listed as the author, and a link to purchase the book was available on Amazon.com. I clicked on this link, feeling even more confused, because I had searched for Dr. Jergen in Amazon earlier. When the book came up, the name Robert Evert Cimera was listed as the author. This was my "ah-ha!"moment. Feeling inspired, I googled Robert Evert Cimera. The first link that came up was a bio page for Robert Evert Cimera at the University of Wisconsin-Osh Kosh. And, to my surprise, I saw that Dr. Cimera received his PhD from the University of Illinois, which is of course my own dear alma mater.

So I have reached a conclusion: "Robert Jergen" is indeed a myth. It makes sense why he would want to use a pseudonym. His other writings are more academically focused and The Little Monster is a memoir of his life. But still, it seems like he went through a lot of trouble to hide his true idenity-making up the name of a town, making up a pseudonym, providing no contact information. Of course, I have no real proof that these two men are one and the same, but all evidence seems to point that way.

This whole exercise was an exercise in credibility judgments. If it takes me, a savvy information professional (wink wink), the better part of an hour to find out the true credentials of the author of a book, how long will it take the average high school student? Would the average student even care? Would they give up after finding no good results in Google? I wonder...

I wonder what the best way of teaching "persistence" in online searching is. I used nothing more than Google to do all of my searching, but it took a lot of tweaking and looking at links other than the first ones listed. I was interested in this topic, so of course, I didn't want to stop until I had answers. So now, I shall spend some time thinking of how I can apply my own credibility research to students.

As Simple as Snow

I just had to mention one of the books I read over winter break-As Simple as Snow by Gregory Galloway, a 2006 Alex Award winner. I first heard about it while attending Michael Cart's presentation on books for YAs. It intrigued me then, and I finally got around to reading it about 2 weeks ago.

This book, while featuring the familiar premise of a weirdo "goth" girl getting together with a slightly nerdy "regular" boy, is far from formulaic. It's rather hard to describe in a few words, but the basic idea behind the book is that the girl, named Anna, amuses herself by writing obituaries for all the members of a small sleepy town. When she finishes writing the last obituary, she mysteriously disappears. Along the way, Anna befriends a boy and leaves a lovely mess of confusing clues for him to figure out.

The book is accompanied by a website, http://www.assimpleassnow.com/, which really helps immerse the reader in the world the Galloway has created. This world is filled with interesting topics such as shortwave radio numbers stations, seances, Alistair Crowley, codes, Harry Houdini, and a complete listing of all of the songs featured in the story. A most unusual mix!

I have found very few books that can effectively maintain an atmosphere of mystery without compromising the integrity of the story. This review from People magazine sums it up pretty well: "[T]his strange tale manages to creep deeply under your skin, and to stay there for some time."

Another review compares it to Jeffrey Eugenides' The Virgin Suicides, and I think that it is an appropriate comparison. Both books provide a haunting atmosphere that leaves the reader wanting more.

I plan on using this book for my booktalks, perhaps accompanied by Looking for Alaska and The Virgin Suicides. I love books that make you want to know more, and this one definitely did the job!

Sherman Alexie

I watched this video on the Goddess of YA Literature's blog, and I thought I'd embed it here. It's very funny and will make you want to read The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian.

Censorship and the ALA

I finally read the article that Lippy Libby posted in her recent post "Flaunting It." I normally don't think of the ALA as an "extreme advocate" of banned books. I think Kinzie school acted abominably, but is the ALA to blame? Doesn't the ALA argue for a review board so that librarians and teachers can deal with parental complaints fairly? Maybe having a "banned books" week is enough to make Byrne call the ALA "extreme," but I thought he could have done a better job educating the reader about the proper procedures schools should take when a book is challenged.

I'll be sharing Byrne with a sophomore English teacher who does an annual banned books project. Each student reads a banned book and then uses the ALA's Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom to research each challenge. This year, these students will not be writing a paper. Instead, they'll be debating this question: "should this book be taught in middle school?" This article is perfect for them!

Stephen King

In her last post, SuperStarLibby talked about the publishing industry being all about profit. I've been thinking the same thing, but I've been contemplating one author--Stephen King. His name really sells books...and short stories....

In our recent "Halloween Reading" promotion, Stephen King was the most popular author....with faculty. I knew students really liked him, but I was a bit surprised that several adults picked him. Could it be that they are thinking back to their experience reading him and find it really memorable? Or did they read him recently? I guess it doesn't really matter. He is definitely a bestselling writer. It will be interesting to see circulation statistics after this display comes down.
I haven't read King's horror novels in over 20 years, but I do read his columns. I try to catch his Entertainment Weekly column, and I really enjoyed this essay in the New York Times Book Review: "What Ails the Short Story" (Sept. 30). He jokes about his experience editing the Best American Short Stories anthology and says that he found himself crawling on the floor in bookstores' periodical sections for the latest literary magazines. He explains that short stories do not get the prime shelf space, and reflects upon why. (The next time you are in a bookstore, check it out---do you have to crawl on the floor to browse lit magazines while the knitting 'zines, Cosmo, and Time are all at eye level?) Maybe with King's influence, the short story's status will change. There are already signs that it has. A couple of weeks after his essay was published, the Best American Short Stories made the NYTimes paperback bestseller list! Last week, it was #20; this past week, it was at #15, right in between two Jodi Picoult books. The NYTimes has more categories than ever for these lists, and they now list the top 20 instead of 10, so maybe the anthology's appearance isn't because of Stephen King, but he probably helped. After all, in his essay, he says "There isn’t a single one in this book that didn’t delight me, that didn’t make me want to crow, 'Oh, man, you gotta read this!'” He was probably picked to BE the editor because he would be an effective bridge between the hoity-toity short story reader and the popular culture reader. It worked for me. I'll be reading this collection.

YA and Adult Books: A Perspective

Today I had the opportunity to attend a conference presented by Michael Cart, who is a well known expert on YA books. He was fantastic! The presentation was on adult books that appeal to YAs, and I must say, by the end of the day, I wanted to go out and read nearly every book he mentioned! His descriptions were marvelous. I will definitely be scouring Baker & Taylor with my bibliography in hand. I was pleased that I had heard of at least a few of the books mentioned, and that they were in the GBN library. The ones I was most familiar with were:
The Book Thief
I am the Messenger
The Lovely Bones
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Tamar
Goat
Diamond Dogs
Water for Elephants.

So I'd say we are on track! :-)

Here are some books that I am dying to read. I highlighted quite a few, but these stuck out:
Mistik Lake by Martha Brooks
Someday This Pain Will be Useful to You by Peter Cameron
This is all: the Pillow Book of Cordelia Kenn by Aidan Chambers (this was a Booklist starred review)
As Simple As Snow by Gregory Galloway
Brother, I'm Dying by Edwidge Danticat
The Dead Father's Club by Matt Haig
The Beautiful Miscellaneous by Dominic Smith
When We Get There by Shauna Seily

Two other points about the conference:
1. The definition of YA books is flexible and is really more of a marketing term for publishers than anything else. Michael Cart emphasized that teens and young adults will read what interests them, regardless of its labeling. If a book has a strong narrative thread, features a young adult character, addresses the developmental needs of young adults, features a story about a media personality, or is a nonfiction account of a great adventure, then it will probably appeal to a young adult. So that's something to keep in mind.

Also, in regards to the YA labeling of 12-18....well, Michael Cart pointed out that in some cases, YA can mean up to 25...or even 30. This amused me because I fit in that age group. After some thought, I decided that it is essentially true. I am a young adult! I am in my first job, living on my own, and learning how to live in the real world. I say this because I spent the last 6 years out of high school living on a college campus and acquiring degrees. It is quite different from the realities of a full time job! So I am definitely facing a lot of similar issues to many YA characters...searching for identity, establishing relationships, establishing one's place in the world, etc. I don't want to get all philosophical-metaphysical, but I think there is some merit to the idea of childhood/YA-hood being extended well into the 20s. Perhaps I can do a sociological study someday....

And now, on to point #2:
The publishing industry is all about marketing and profit. Perhaps that sounds obvious, since publishing is a business, and all businesses seem to be about marketing and profit. It was fascinating to hear Michael Cart's insider view on the publishing industry. Publishing books is a risky business, and editors essentially have to predict what books will sell. It's a lot like movies, I suppose, but with far smaller profit margins. I also never realized that certain publishers get paid by advertisers for product placement in their books. This makes sense, especially in the Gossip Girl context. Every Gossip Girl book is full of designer labels and names. I never thought publishers could be so devious! I guess I am just too trusting. My ideal view of publishers publishing the best books, solely based on their literary merit has been shattered! However, I am now developing an interest in the publishing industry. I hope to write a book someday, so I think it's a good idea to gather as much information about publishing as possible.

I was very happy to be able to go to this conference! I enjoyed meeting librarians from around the area, and I am looking forward to reading the pile of books that will soon be appearing on my desk!

Flaunting it?

This article from yesterday's Chicago Tribune raises the perennial parental challenge of required reading titles. Though the particular title and the grounds for objection are not new, this is the first time I've read anyone who has voiced anger at educators (including librarians) who seem to flaunt banned books. On reflection, it seems an accurate assessment. Are we doing this to appeal to the rebel in our students? To agitate? Probably so...after all, we want to capture kids' attention and passion. Nothing better than a "forbidden" book!

We librarians are fortunate because, unlike classroom teachers, we do not generally require students to read a particular title, excusing us in a way from most challenges. High school librarians are even more fortunate because some of our students are 18 years old--legal adults. The value in this article is the admonition that we need to be sure to take our displays/flaunting beyond attention-grabbing and agitation. We have the obligation to help kids understand that meaning is conveyed in many ways and that they should learn to be discriminating. If not, I would say parents are entitled to be angry.