The Serpent King

 The Serpent King
Written by Jeff Zentner
Published in 2016 by Random House
Grades 9 and up
ISBN 978-0-553-52402-4

Book Review
The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner is a beautifully written, deeply moving book. It follows the senior year of three friends who live in a small Tennessee town. Over the course of the book, we see how grief can either ruin us or strengthen us. The character development is believable and engaging. The author develops quirky, incredibly likable characters. You will root for them as they navigate their senior year and deal with their worries about what the future holds. In one instance, the conversation between two characters about loss is so honest, so raw that you will want to reread it. Despite the fact that this book delves deeply into the impact of loss and grief, it is an overwhelmingly optimistic book.

Teachers and librarians will definitely want to add this book to their collections. Issues of identity, family, love, and loss will resonate with teen readers. This book will provide many opportunities for discussion about the influence of friendship and family on the choices we make.

Teaching Ideas/Invitations for Your Classroom

Building Background Knowledge (English)
Collaborate with an English teacher. Help the teacher choose an student-friendly blog platform. Use the blog to have students discuss and share their thoughts and ideas about the book. Begin by having the students discuss/read about rural communities (particularly if you are working with students from and suburban or urban area). Help the teacher locate resources about rural communities. Look at issues in rural communities and compare to their own. Continue with discussions about plans/expectations for after the students graduate from high school. Connect these discussions to issues raised in the book.  
SOL 9.4g Analyze the cultural and social functions of a literary text. 

The Influence of Music (Fine Arts: Music)
One of the main characters, Dill, is a talented musician. With the encouragement of his friends, he eventually pursues a college education in music. Consider musical traditions from the Tennessee region. Collaborate with a music teacher to search the library databases for resources about Tennessee music. Compare them to other styles, particularly contemporary music typically listened to by teens. Continue to collaborate with a music teacher to create opportunities and/or locate resources for students to either listen to a variety of styles of music. Discuss how students react to the different styles (possibly via the blog started in the "Building Background Knowledge" lesson).  .
SOL MII.18 The student will explore historical and cultural aspects of music by comparing and contrasting a variety of musical styles, using music terminology. 

Choosing a Career (Economics & Personal Finance)
All three of the main characters, Dill, Travis and Lydia, spend a lot of time thinking about their futures. Their personal circumstances have a major impact on each of their future aspirations. Investigate the possible career trajectories of a fashion designer, an auto mechanic, a lawyer, a musician, a teacher and a farmer. Use the library databases to locate current information about different careers. What skills does each career require? How much training is necessary? Which careers require a college education? How much can a person expect to earn?
SOL EPF.4 The student will demonstrate knowledge that many factors affect income by a) examining the market value of a worker's skills and knowledge.


Character Blogs (Computer Technology)
Lydia is an incredibly motivated and industrious character. As an example, she publishes a popular fashion blog, connecting her to all kinds of powerful people in the fashion industry. In this activity, students will connect literacy character analysis to computer technology. Begin by analyzing the character traits of one of the characters. Use this knowledge to create a blog for that character. Collaborate with an English teacher to find examples of blogs created by teens. Use these blogs as examples for the students.
SOL C/T 9-12.15 A) Use technology tools for individual and collaborative writing, communication, and publishing activities.

The Setting (Geography)
Consider the setting of the book - rural Tennessee. Investigate the history and culture of rural Tennessee. Work with an English teacher to locate resources in the library databases about the history and culture of rural communities, with an emphasis on Tennessee. Why (or why not) was this a good choice for the setting? What aspects of the setting contributed to the quality of the book? Would this book have worked as well in a different setting? Why or why not? .
SOL WG.6 The student will analyze past and present trends in human migration and cultural interaction as they are influence by social, economic, political, and environmental factors. 
   
Further Explorations
World of Fashion  Investigate the world of fashion. What does it take to "break into" the industry? Choose a designer and research his/her path to success. This is an engaging opportunity for students, some of whom may be "non-traditional" learners. 

Online chat rooms - Travis find both love and security through online chat rooms about his favorite fantasy series. In a particularly touching moment, his two friends introduce him in person to his favorite author. Investigate the real world of online chats. What are the pros and cons?

Joy Division  Lydia's favorite song is Love will tear us apart by Joy Division, considered a "post-punk" band from England . Investigate the song, the lyrics and the group to learn more about them. Why do the lyrics seems to resonate with Lydia and Dell in particular? This is another opportunity for learning for students who may not be as engaged in more traditional content areas.

Living on One Dollar (Documentary) This documentary will provide insight to what it means to live in rural poverty. This connects to the characters of Travis and Dill, who live in dysfunctional families that barely make ends meet.  This will also help students who do not live in rural poverty to have a better understanding of the situation.

Justin Timberlake + the Tennessee Kids (Concert Movie) - Like Dill, Timberlake is from Tennessee. Needless to say, Justin Timberlake has had an incredibly successful music career.  Many students will be interested in learning more about Justin Timberlake. His success speaks volumes regarding how popular he is.

Jesus Camp (Documentary) - Dill's father is imprisoned for child pornography, despite being an Evangelical preacher. This documentary provides a look at different perspectives of the Evangelical religion. This is likely to cause controversy, but is also eye-opening. It will provide another perspective for students. 

Author Study http://www.jeffzentnerbooks.com/ 
Excellent resource for students who enjoyed The Serpent King. Learn more about the author's background and motivation for writing.

Partner Titles
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV) - Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a teen favorite and with good reason. Buffy is a courageous teenager who will stand up to just about anyone. Lydia, one of the protagonists of The Serpent King, has a similar personality. They are both independent, feisty and strong female role models. While this is not considered strictly educational, it does resonate with teens.

Rich Hill (Documentary) - Grim documentary about three boys living in poverty. It gives a clear idea of how Travis and Dill live their lives - and will illuminate painful parts of the book.This adds accuracy and authority to the topic of poverty. 

Fan Girl (Book) - Highly acclaimed book that looks at the relationships of the main characters in a similar manner to The Serpent King. It also investigates the creative process. The book has literary merit and an appeal to teens that make it well worth adding to a collection. 

An Abundance of Katherines (Book) - Another acclaimed work of fiction highlighting strong and intriguing character development. This book is well worth adding to a collection based on its quality writing and appeal to teens. 

Never Always Sometimes (Book) - A book, like The Serpent King, that looks closely at the high school relationship of the characters. Highly recommended, it is a book that teens will certainly relate to and want to read. 

References
Alsaid, A. (2015).  Never always sometimes. New York, NY: Harlequin Teen.
Caruso, R. (Producer) & Demme, J. (Director). (2016).  Justin timberlake + the tennessee kids [Movie Concert]. United States: Live Nation Productions.
Curtis, I. (1979). Love will tear us apart. On Substance [record]. Stockport, England, Strawberry Studios. 
Ewing, E. & Grady, R. (Directors). (2006). Jesus camp [Documentary]. United States: A&E Indie Films. 
Green, J. (2006). An abundance of katherines. Boston, MA :Dutton.
Kirkus Review. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/jeff-zentner/the-serpent-king/. 
Palermo, A.D. & Tragos, T. D. (Producers & Directors). (2014). Rich hill [Documentary]. United States: The Orchard. 
Rowell, R. (2013). Fan girl. New York, NY: St. Martin's. 
Temple, C. (Producer). (2015). Living on one dollar [Documentary]. United States: Gravitas Ventures. 
Virginia Department of Education. (2010). Standards of learning. Retrieved from http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/. 
Whedon, J. (Producer). (1997). Buffy the vampire slayer [Television series]. United States: Mutant Enemy Productions.
Zentner, J. (n.d.). http://www.jeffzentnerbooks.com/ [Website].