Words in the Dust by Trent Reedy

I'm looking forward to reading Words in the Dust by Trent Reedy, a middle grade novel set in Afghanistan. Words in the Dust will be published by Arthur A. Levine Books on Jan. 1, 2011. It sounds really interesting and I'm hoping it is a non-exoticized portrayal of Afghanistan and Afghan children. (It's a good thing the novel was vetted by several Afghans.)

Below are videos of Trent Reedy talking about the novel with his editor Cheryl Klein. Thanks to Cheryl Klein for sharing the videos through her blog Brooklyn Arden!

Trent Reedy and Cheryl Klein talk about Words in the Dust - Part I:

Trent Reedy and Cheryl Klein talk about Words in the Dust - Part II:

Comments

Ang INK Open for Applications

Ang Ilustrador ng Kabataan (Ang INK), an association of Filipino artists committed to the creation and promotion of illustrations for children, is open for applications! Application requirements: 1. Accomplished application form . 2. One illustration based on the story "Anong Gupit Natin Ngayon?" 3. Five sample illustrations from your portfolio. Deadline is February 29, 2012, 5 p.m. Email hello@ang-ink.org.

Book Trailer: Sidekicks by Dan Santat

Why I Started This Blog: The Danger of A Single Story

Shweta Ganesh Kumar shared with me this TED Talk from novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie about how "a single story" about another person or country can cause critical misunderstanding, and I felt that the talk really reflected why I started this blog. Please watch it below, if you haven't already: I sometimes teach creative writing to children and teens and have been very shocked to see that the first impulse of my students - all Filipinos or Chinese Filipinos ages 11-15 - is to write stories featuring characters with blond hair and blue eyes. It seems that, like the seven-year-old Adichie, my students have "a single story" about what literature is and do not think that people like them can exist in literature. (Needless to say, I am now trying to expose my students to more Filipino literature and literature from other Asian countries.) I blog because our students, nieces and nephews, children, grandchildren, and godchildren NEED AND DESERVE more than "a ...

Asia in the Heart, World on the Mind

Search This Blog