SLJ SummerTeen

I just finished a session at School Library Journal’s SummerTeen program, an almost all day webinar. There were many virtual exhibit booths from publishers featuring new and future releases and a keynote about his writing from Jason Reynolds, the recipient of the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent for When I was the Greatest. Several breakout sessions followed. One that I attended was moderated by Marc Aronson and focused on some non-fiction for middle and high school students. 

First, Paula Ayer discussed Foodprints which she wrote in order to “nudge the reader towards action” and healthy eating.  While the cover and some illustrations seem a little young, I did like the use of full page “Infobites” or infographics like the example to the right about changes in farming in the US. The statistics in Foodprints could easily be used in class presentations, displays and reports. Ayer subtitled her book “The Story of What We Eat” and included chapters about the manufacturing and marketing of food, plus suggestions (many with recipes) for further reading and an extensive list of source notes.   

Next, M. T. Anderson (Feed) shared some of the story behind his first non-fiction work Symphony for the City of the Dead which deals with the composition of a symphony during the WWII era siege of Leningrad.  Anderson discussed how the power of music can change the world and is fundamental to being human.  His comments about the story and the students for whom he was writing were very inspirational. Finally, Susan Campbell Bartoletti explained what she learned when creating Terrible Typhoid Mary. Primarily targeting middle school students, Bartoletti has written numerous fiction and non-fiction titles, including the award-winning Black Potatoes, Hitler Youth, and They Called Themselves the K.K.K.