Four Reasons to Teach Gordon Korman’s Novel Linked

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When I read Gordon Korman’s new book Linked a few months ago, I knew immediately that it would make for a perfect book club pick – and that’s why we’re reading this book next week. Most of Gordon Korman’s books are funny and easy to read with some sort of positive lesson, but Linked is his strongest book yet. I can’t wait to discuss the many themes of history, free speech, connectedness, and why history and truth matter with my kids.

That’s really one of my favorite things to do with books. I love when a book brings up themes or events that are controversial enough for us to have really deep discussions about them without being too heavy or depressing, and despite the fact that this book delves into the Holocaust and touches on KKK rallies, Korman walks the perfect line of respectful balance between these two huge events and his young readers.

Linked provides excellent opportunities for having these discussions. There are many openings for how to handle past events that are uncomfortable, how to consider the perspective and feelings of other people, and what to do when you’ve gotten your feelings hurt and have hurt the feelings of others.

If you prefer a more hands-on approach to your book clubs or classes, there are many ways to bring this story to life, whether you want a full unit study or simply plan to spend an afternoon recreating some of the more fun aspects of the story. From simple paper chaining to research, tech, or cooking, there are lots of options here.

I also love that this book is presented as a coming-of-age story in many ways as Link wrestles with what it means to be a man, yet the book is perfectly clean and respectful towards everyone. Unlike many contemporary books with these themes, Link’s general questions concern maturity, respect, and future goals, and these are appropriate for kids of all ages to consider, but ones that definitely deepen with growth.

Because compassion, truth, and good manners are traits that everyone needs. Even though this book deals with heavy topics, it’s written in an easy to read manner, and it’s accessible to a wide range of ages. If you have older students who aren’t ready to read the usual Holocaust texts, I feel that Linked is a great alternative because many of the issues and themes are still there – just in an easier-to-read format.

We’re reading Linked next week, and since I’ve done all of the planning for our club meeting, I wanted to share my work with you! I’ve created a resource with discussion and creative writing prompts, and you can find it here. There are more than 100 questions perfect for discussion, whether in small groups, whole classes, or families, and they’re also reorganized for you into a format that works well for assessment, study, or homework. The creative writing prompts ask students to create chapters for new situations, write simple essays, journal entries, newspaper articles, ads, to turn a scene into a graphic novel page, and more. Included are rubrics to make scoring each type of writing simple.

To recap? Here’s why your students will benefit from Gordon Korman’s Linked:

1. It provides natural opportunities to discuss weighty issues, like dealing with painful past events, both on personal and historical levels.
2. It’s easy to read, making it accessible to readers of all skill levels.
3. It’s a clean coming-of-age story with themes of respect, maturity, compassion, and empathy: traits that everyone should consider.
4. There are easy ways to extend this story in hands-on and interdisciplinary ways.

How do you use discussion to deepen novel studies and story time?