well-versed

When we last visited I commented on a wonderful novel for kids called Reaching for the Sun, written by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer. While this is a terrific book and one I am very pleased to mention to you, believe me, there are, indeed, many others that I feel are worth a look! I love to mention this type of book, for example, to grade school kids who may be challenged by ordinary prose novels, as these unrhymed verse novels are among the most accessible books mainly because they do not rely on standard puctuation or resemble a sea of text. Most are short, but so full of good writing. As I said, I like all kinds of books, but I what I love best are discovering new writers, new approaches, new ways of expressing similar feelings. . .I am hoping you'll also enjoy your "discoveries"-

First of all, Hearbeat by Sharon Creech is a powerful, but gentle look at changes. Twelve-year-old Annie ponders the many rhythms of life the year that her mother becomes pregnant; her grandfather faces age challenges while her best friend (and running partner) becomes distant. This book, like the others I am mentioning here, is told in verse. Creech is a terrific writer ~ this is a bold brilliant map of the many moods adolescents experience.

Again, Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson is a bittersweet, but gentle study of eleven-year-old Lonnie who writes about his life, after the death of his parents. He has been separated from his younger sister, is now living in a foster home, and finds his poetic voice at school. This novel's story is a tough one, quite an emotional read, but one that rewards the reader.

Crazy Man by Pamela Paige Porter is the as spare tale of life on the Saskatchewan prairie. the novel is rich in its yield of what matters – understanding, forgiveness, friendship and a faithful dog – Pamela Porter’s The Crazy Man is impossible to put down. Porter explores large issues such as prejudice, fear, and disability with grace and honesty. While there are shining moments of hope in this verse novel, it is also a remarkable yet empathetic look at the disabled-touching and meaningful-book that defies description.

Pieces of Georgia by Jennifer Bryant is a collection of journal entries written to the narrator's mother, a gifted artist recently passed away, quite suddenly. Thirteen-year-old Georgia McCoy reveals how her life changes after she receives an anonymous gift membership to a nearby art museum. Heartfelt, this is a healing tale; this richly textured novel layered with realistic characters is an emotional story and its satisfying ending will stay with the reader for a very long time.

My goal was to introduce you to five of these terrific novels, though, believe me, there are many more worthwhile, stunning examples of this type of novel. All these authors are very accomplished and talented. The last novel but definitely not the least, is my final choice: North of Everything by Craig Crist-Evans. A family who relocates from Florida to Vermont for the simpler life on a farm becomes closer to nature - this is a wonderful attempt to portray the changes one boy and his family experience - through the shifting seasons and in their own lives. A lovely, deeply sincere novel given to us by an enormously gifted writer who was a "Poet in the Schools for Colorado" 1992 to 1997 and taught an independent program entitled Global Awareness & the Writing Process in eight different school districts throughout Colorado. Finally, he served as a contributing editor for the Bloomsbury Review from 1990 until his untimely death in 2005.

Please enjoy one, some or, hopefully, all these novels-you will not be sorry. What you'll probably ask is "where can I find more?" Look to Karen Hesse's Out of the Dust; Maria Testa' Almost Forever; Lindsay Lee Johnson's Full Moon Soup and Susan Taylor Brown's Hugging the Rock & read, read and read some more. . . enjoy!