Jake was one of my favorite books as a kid. My mom was a middle school librarian, and I never wanted for great books to read. I remember when she brought Jake home for me, I was so excited. It was about a kid my age, and the setting was my home town. And, it was about baseball!. I didn't know it at the time, but my mom was a master at doing book talks, and matching readers (in this case, me) to texts.
I hadn't thought about this book in probably close to 20 years. So I was thrilled to find an article about the book on Grantland.com. The article features Bill Simmons reaction to a short film about the book, and the first two chapters of the book, which has been out of print since 1981. Reading those chapters transported me back to a time when I was learning to love to read. I was lucky to have parents who encouraged and celebrated reading.
The article contains a link to a short film by Jonathan Hock, in which he interviews the author, Alfred Slote, now 86 years old. If you're looking for an example of an author talking about his writing process, this is pretty great. You also get a true sense of how meaningful the work was for him. These are two things we should be talking to students about: developing a writing process that works for them, and writing about something truly meaningful.
I hadn't thought about this book in probably close to 20 years. So I was thrilled to find an article about the book on Grantland.com. The article features Bill Simmons reaction to a short film about the book, and the first two chapters of the book, which has been out of print since 1981. Reading those chapters transported me back to a time when I was learning to love to read. I was lucky to have parents who encouraged and celebrated reading.
The article contains a link to a short film by Jonathan Hock, in which he interviews the author, Alfred Slote, now 86 years old. If you're looking for an example of an author talking about his writing process, this is pretty great. You also get a true sense of how meaningful the work was for him. These are two things we should be talking to students about: developing a writing process that works for them, and writing about something truly meaningful.
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