Our Library program is about learning to love to read, and part of that effort is creating an interactive experience that allows students to talk to writers of the books they love.
"Right now we have 10 students writing their own books," said WSNO Librarian Lesley Rubenstein. "My goal is to keep that enthusiasm going, and one way to do that is to provide opportunities for them to have direct conversations with writers."
On November 15, our students met Author Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes via Skype. Dr. Rhodes is the author of Ghost Boys, Towers Falling, and the Louisiana Girls Trilogy: Ninth Ward, Sugar, and Bayou Magic. Her middle-grade books have won the Coretta Scott King Honor, the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award, and more. She is also the Virginia G. Piper Endowed Chair in Creative Writing at Arizona State University, and has written many award-winning books for adults.
Students spoke with her after our first all-Middle School read Bayou Magic, a book set in the Louisiana bayous. Each student had the opportunity to ask Ms. Rhodes a question about her work. There were so many thoughtful questions, and Ms. Rhodes answered them all with enthusiasm and detail. We also discovered that Dr. Rhodes is planning to update the cover of Bayou Magic. She has invited our students to design their own covers for the book, which she will forward to her editors!