Publishers Weekly

On page 132 of the July 19th, 2010 issue of Publishers Weekly is an essay that every children's writer, every teacher, every person who cares about gifted children and anyone who loves books MUST read. All children's writers need to read it to see what an impact they make when they take the time to reach out and communicate with readers and how important it is to visit schools.

"Tour of Duty: Why one children's author keeps visiting schools" by Lynne Jonell is worth the price of this issue. I read it to my husband. The first paragraph is what every first paragraph should be and after I read that to him, he agreed to listen to the rest. I didn't get very far before I started choking on tears since I feel passionate about gifted children. I had to stop more than once. It is a powerful essay. Gifted children should be taught in schools on three levels--at their academic level in all subjects and above their level to challenge and for enrichment. Review should not predominate but be kept to a minimum. Now in most public schools throughout the country, gifted children only review. Sad and tragic! President Obama is working hard to encourage excellence in schools but there are few takers for the incentives. I guess we care more about protecting teachers than in protecting the rights of children to learn and to encourage teachers who motivate. Oregon rejected it.

Lynne Jonell's latest book is HAMSTER MAGIC. After reading this article, I can see that her books need to be on the top of the list of all book buyers for children. President Obama bought her book, THE SECRET OF ZOOM for his daughters.

Publishers Weekly is a must read for writers to keep current with what is happening in book publishing. Anyone who loves books can use it as a list of what to read. What I love most are the interviews and articles about and by writers.