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BOOKS
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Drop Everything and Write!
An Easy Breezy Guide for Kids Who Want to Write a Story
(E&E Publishing, December 15, 2010)
Kids who like to write, teachers, librarians, parents of homeschoolers, even adult writers – drop everything and take a look at this book, winner of the USA Book News Best Books 2010 Award (Young Adult Educational category).
In an easy-to-follow style, DROP EVERYTHING AND WRITE! shows readers how to mine their world for story-starters; how to collect details to enrich their writing; how to create characters, establish settings, construct plot, write dialogue ….and ultimately how to put all these things together into a complete, engaging, successful story. Instructive, enjoyable DROP EVERYTHING AND WRITE! exercises are scattered throughout the book. Here’s a typical exercise to try:
DROP EVERYTHING AND WRITE!
Describe an Archibald, a Rocky, an Agatha, and a Lulu. When you’re finished, rename the characters you’ve described. Do the descriptions still feel right to you? If necessary, adjust the descriptions to suit the new names.
Want a DROP EVERYTHING AND WRITE! mug? A DROP EVERYTHING AND WRITE! t-shirt? Visit Linda's store at www.cafepress.com/LindaStrauss for these and other products.
REVIEWS
"DROP EVERYTHING AND WRITE! by Linda Leopold Strauss has a number of exercises that can help young writers add sensory details to their writing. One activity is a 'Listening Walk,' in which the writer records all the sounds heard on the street such as shoes on the sidewalk or a car driving over a manhole. Her example of her own 'Listening Walk' would be a great read aloud model in the classroom. With entertaining anecdotes, Strauss warns against letting subplots or minor characters overrun a story and distracting the reader’s attention. She defines many important writer’s terms such as flashback, transitions, black moment, and voice. In a chapter entitled, 'Show, Don’t Tell,' Strauss explains the advantages of including details rather than summarizing the action. She encourages young writers to spice up their writing by describing an angry character’s actions rather than simply saying he was angry or setting a scene with images from all five senses. Finally, she says that stories benefit from 'drawer time' and gives a checklist for polishing a draft that teachers and students should find very useful." -- Jacqueline Jules, Pencil Tips Writing Workshop
“DROP EVERYTHING AND WRITE! is a book that should be bought in single copies AND classroom sets. Its inviting prose, thought-provoking exercises, and natural flow make it indispensable for aspiring writers and those who teach them.” -- David Richardson, book review columnist for International Reading Association’s Reading Today
“DROP EVERYTHING AND WRITE! was originally intended as ‘an easy breezy guide for kids who want to write a story,’ but I have found the book to be equally helpful for adult writers. I teach Writing for Children at a community college, and many of the ‘Drop Everything and Write’ exercises were perfect for my students. The format of the book is clear and easy to follow. My adult writers were inspired….Such a great book for new writers of all ages.” -- Andrea Cheng, author of Only One Year and Brushing Mom's Hair
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The Princess Gown
(Houghton Mifflin 2008)
Hanna’s family has staked its future on winning the kingdom-wide contest for the design of Princess Annabel’s wedding dress. The whole family has helped make the dress—everyone but Hanna, the youngest (and messiest) child, who may not go near the precious creation. But just before Papa takes the dress to the palace to be judged, he decides that even messy Hanna must be included in this once-in-a-lifetime project. Hanna takes the final stitch in the gown and sees…a spot! What to do? The queen is said to have eyes like a hawk. Will Hanna’s family wind up in the poorhouse? But then Hanna has an idea to save the day.
This picture book, with lavish illustrations by Malene Laugesen, got its start in the author’s family history, where in Victorian England, her husband’s great great great grandfather was Embroiderer to the Queen.
REVIEWS
"...practically edible. A tale fit for a princess, or at least an aspiring one." -Kirkus Reviews
"...Creating a nearly tangible, saturated texture...the pictures keep step with the well-paced tale." -Publishers Weekly
“…With its exquisite illustrations, clever text, and substantive content, The Princess Gown comes as a breath of fresh air in the crowded market of princess books." –Rutgers University Project on Economics and Children
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Really, Truly, Everything's Fine
(Marshall Cavendish, 2004)
Really, Truly, Everything's Fine...until Jill learns her father has been accused of a serious crime and faces up to ten years in prison. Jill's mom kicks Dad out of the house, and all at once everything isn't so fine, though that's what Jill’s mom wants others to believe. The problem is, none of the grown-ups tells Jill anything, so she has to figure out the truth on her own -- the truth about her dad; the truth about her mom, who avoids her feelings by working; the truth about her little brother, Markie, who looks to her for answers; the truth about the kids at school, who treat her differently when they read about her dad in the newspaper.
So what is the truth?
And how does Jill deal with it?
REVIEWS
“A positive portrayal of a young teen making a difference.” –School Library Journal
“[Strauss’s] portrait of an adolescent under enormous strain is both credible and empathetic, and snatches of Jill's diary, worked throughout the otherwise third-person narrative, give readers immediate access to Jill's analytical acuity. An honest portrayal of how hard it can be to ask for help.” -Booklist
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The Alexandra Ingredient
(New York: Crown, 1988; available now in iuniverse paperback). Nominee: 1991 Mark Twain Award, State of Missouri
Alexandra Plummer can’t seem to do anything right, even though everyone else in her family is super-organized and achieving, especially her “perfect” older sister Gloria. So when the Plummers adopt a grandfather, Alexandra secretly vows to reform, hoping that Mike, the new grandfather, will like her best of all her family. But looking before she leaps isn’t easy for Alexandra. The first time Mike comes to dinner, she practically sets the house on fire, and when she finds a kitten, she has to hide it at her friend Bethie’s house because her parents don’t think she’s responsible enough to have a pet. It’s not until Mike gets sick that Alexandra finally earns the respect of her family by giving Mike the special ingredient he needs to regain his will to live.
REVIEWS
“Strauss makes Alexandra’s problems wonderfully comic and real…. A first novel of considerable promise.” –Kirkus Reviews
“The character development and the emotional experiences in this novel are genuine….” –School Library Journal
A “warm and funny story about the trials of being ten-years-old….” –Children’s Book Review Service
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A Fairy Called Hilary
(Holiday House, 1999)
Hilary is a fairy who appears one day in Caroline’s family’s car when the family’s on its way to the Natural History Museum. Hilary is a real fairy – she can even fly, though she doesn’t have wings. But she can stay with Caroline and her family only on one condition - that no one besides the family (and their cat, King Arthur) can know she’s a fairy. So Caroline and Hilary must have their magic adventures in secret, because if anyone else finds out the truth about Hilary, she’ll have to disappear.
REVIEWS
“A very funny little book…a wonderful frolic… [in which Strauss] mingles ordinary events and enchantment with ease.” –Kirkus Reviews
“This book is great because it is full of surprises and made me laugh.” –Kaitlyn J. (age 9), Spaghettibookclub
“This light-hearted engaging novel will have every reader wishing for a personal fairy.” –Clark County School District Library Services
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