We are Not Free vs All Thirteen (Team 3)

 

We immediately gravitated towards favoring We are Not Free.  We enjoyed the intersecting stories of characters, though sometimes we only hear from cetain characters in a limited capacity.  The way each character stands out in some way (ie Yum Yum's blond wig) was nice to read and allowed a way to remind orselves of which narrative we were following. With so many characters, it would have been nice to have had some of the small characters flushed out (side note: the audiobook has unique narration for each character which was great), but it as nice to stay connected to Minnow, a wonderfully human character.  We also appreciated how elements from regular life (crushes, school, dances) was infused into the story of internment, and how the excitement about more "fluffy" things (like Betty), lent the book a certain verisimilitude (especially for teens) that one doesn't always encounter in these types of stories.  Throughout, hope was very present, and the author balances this with the bleak injustice of the internment. The direct moralisitic elements closer to the end didn't seem to be needed, but it would help students nail down themes. 

In HS, we would likely not buy a class set of We Are Not Free but instead use the novel as an option in a lit circles situation. Alternatively, excerpts from this novel would work well as mentor texts. For instance, we really enjoyed Minnow drawing his neighbors and separating people from different origins, as well as the scene early in the text where Japanese citizens are having to sell off their posessions (lots of chances for amazing conversation and symbolic dicussions).  Plus, Minnow being gay acts as a reminder that this part of our population is represented in all aspects of history, including this terrible time.  

And now, onto All Thirteen. While the heroic rescue was certainly a fascinating time in our modern history, one of our team put it well when it was stated that this felt like more of a type of book you'd find in a doctor's office waiting rooom.  "Yup they got...yup they got rescued; I remember when that happened."  The map that was included about the cave system gave some wonderful perspective of the sheer size of the challenge.  Still, we felt that some of the charts (like what happens when you have hypothermia) seemed inserted in a clunky way.  This was more of a niche interest  - how many of our students have been in a cave - for a library.  Though we enjoyed the cultural elements that were present, the undelrying culture didn't seem to be as much at the forefront as it could have been. We felt that perhaps more of a memoir format would have been a bit more impactful. SThere was a nice balance of the hope.  A reversal of narration, with the majority focused on how these athletes survived emotionally and kept hope alive (with pershaps the informational charts being used to talk about the logistics of the rescue) would have made for a more compelling, authentic narrative.

Thus, overall, our vote is for We Are Not Free in this round of smackdown.