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The Book Bento: A Visual Literary Analysis Assignment

9-10 ELA Strategies

I first heard about Book Bentos a few years ago on Instagram. “Cute!” I said, then scrolled on. However, the image stayed with me. A few months later I sought it out with Google and saw a few images of Book Bentos.

A Book Bento is a flat lay photo of a book, surrounded by images that correlate with the plot, themes, or setting. Check out their Instagram page here!

I first heard about Book Bentos from the Instagram account. While these pictures are more aesthetic and less analytical, they did help me develop my version of the assignment.

For my first Book Bento assignment, I made it optional as one of several creative book reports during Covid. Only a few students did the assignment, but the ones I got were intriguing.

Last year, I assigned Book Bentos to my AP English Literature students and made it an option for extra credit to the rest of my classes. The results were amazing!

This quarter, I used it as a replacement for a timed writing (my choice: I’m swamped with grading). My students liked it so much they requested to do it for future assignments as well. I also beefed up my rubric to emphasize analysis more, so the responses I got were surprisingly analytic and text-based.

Student Examples

Here are a few examples of the book bentos I got for this assignment, with portions of their analysis included.

Dracula

“…In the right corner is an open journal to represent Johnathan Harker’s journal that he kept while he was at Count Dracula’s castle as well as Mina’s diary. Both of these are important because the majority of the book is told through both of their private writings. On the very bottom of the picture there is an old looking scrap of paper that says “Death is all we can highly depend upon.” This is a direct quote from the book that I decided to include because I thought it fit very well into the theme of the novel and it was a quote that stuck out to me immediately while reading…”

The Midnight Library

“In my book bento, I chose seven items to represent Nora and the different lives she reads about. The crumpled paper with “The Labyrinths” written represents the band she started with her brother. The reason why I crumpled it was to show that she left that life, and it caused a division in the relationship she had with her brother. The glasses right below the paper represent the librarian, Mrs. Elm, in the midnight library. She is also the librarian Nora confided in and knew when she was younger. The cat collar on the right represents Voltaire, Nora’s cat. Voltaire dies in the beginning, which is one of Nora’s regrets. She repeatedly thinks about how she wasn’t even a good cat owner. When she gets to the library, Mrs. Elm shows her a different life with Voltaire. She ultimately realizes that she gave her cat the best life…The shot glass above the collar represents the life Nora could have had with Dan, the man she left at the altar. He had a dream to own a pub, a dream Nora thought she shared but then realized that it wouldn’t have been the life she wanted. The very top has three items; a best friend necklace, a boomerang from Australia, and another best friend necklace. These are my favorite pieces from the book bento. The best friend necklaces are mismatched and don’t align. Izzy was Nora’s best friend, but they had a falling out in their relationship. Izzy moved to Australia, and
Nora did not join her. This is represented by the boomerang splitting up the mismatched best friend necklaces.”

Born a Crime

“I chose the black and white background because Trevor Noah was mixed race. His mom was Black and his father was white. This may not seem significant, however, he grew up in South Africa during the time of racial segregation called apartheid. It was illegal for the different races to engage in sexual relationships. Since he was a result of one of these illegal relationships, he was discriminated against and never felt like he belonged. He was stuck in the middle of the two cultures and traditions, just as he is in this picture….Lastly, I chose a mood and color-changing stone. With different amounts of heat, it is able to change colors. Trevor knew a lot of languages so was able to communicate with a wide variety of people. He was able to adapt to different circumstances just like the rock. Through his multilingualism, he was able to change others’ perceptions of him. When he spoke the same language as some of the blacks at school, they opened up to him. He adapted and started speaking a different language to blend in with a group of people who did not look exactly like him. His flexibility helped him succeed.”

Beartown

“…Bear patches: This book bento displays three bear patches, similar to the patches of a bear on the Beartown hockey jerseys. The bear itself is a common symbol of ferocious courage. In the small town, getting to wear this patch signifies that you are a part of the hockey program, and you are to be loyal to your fellow bears – no matter the situation. This pack mentality serves as another stepping stone into the difficulty that Maya and her family go through when revealing the truth…”

Room

“…The tv functions as Jack and his mother’s connection to the outside world. It is the vessel that holds real things and not real things in his eyes, and helps him grow an understanding of the world. Outside of room, the tv was his comfort. Jack has a favorite spoon called “Meltedy” because it was leaned against a hot pan. After he leaned the spoon against the hot pan, he realized it was “not the same.” Jack used that metaphor to describe his situation after leaving the room. He was like the spoon. He was not the same. The toothbrush represents teeth. Ma had terrible oral hygiene from being neglected and she had awful toothaches. This became a big part of her and Jack’s relationship. When one of her rotted teach fell out she gave it to him. It was so he had a part of her with him. As the story went on, Jack found less and less value in the tooth, until it held no meaning to him at all. This was a major contrast from the beginning of the story to the end…”

Why Bento?

There are several reasons to implement a book bento assignment into any of your classes this year.

  1. They require less grading than an essay. I got through a stack of 15 today in 20 minutes, when grading their on-demand essays usually takes over an hour.
  2. They integrate analysis in a way that goes beyond writing. This is a great assignment to allow creative and visual minds to shine. While writing is still included, it isn’t the sole requirement.
  3. It helps me get to know my students. I get to see the way their minds work and how they find items for their photo. While some students raided our theater department’s prop closets, most of the students used items from around their homes.
  4. Book Bentos are more challenging than they seem. The items for the book take a while to think up and find. But even more challenging is the layout and photography elements. Flat lays are difficult, especially when required to avoid shadows and glares. Most of my students tried several layouts and spent a long time editing on their phones before submitting.
  5. It’s fun! My students asked to see each other’s Book Bentos, so we did a little photo gallery so they could appreciate each other’s works. Many have already asked to do the assignment all over again!

If you’re interested in a simple rubric for scoring Book Bentos, here’s a file I created. For slideshow instructions, sample bentos, and a grid-style rubric, check out the no-prep resource you can purchase, here.

Book-Bento-RubricDownload

I hope this inspires you to try Book Bentos sometime this year in your classes. Be sure to check out my TpT store for other teaching resources, both free and paid, for 9-10 grade and AP Lit classes.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Karen French says

    This looks fun! Did they share a photo with you along with the write-up and then you created the gallery of photos for the class?

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