From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up–Composed of artistic submissions by middle and high school students, this book is a knockout. The content is often heavy with the weight of adult situations that these young people face. Such is our world. Yet the literary work, compositionally, is aesthetically lovely and filled with the candor of youth. Living Like That offers a take on the confused emotional state of growing up in and out of war-torn Jerusalem, while I Kept Looking is a reflection on the effects of living through the trauma of 9/11. This book will be well used as peer examples, motivating students to step up and celebrate their own artistic talents. As one young writer puts it, Reading a well-written book sometimes puts me into a state removed from the larger reality but awed by what I just finished.
–Alison Follos, North Country School, Lake Placid, NY Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Gr. 8-11. The talented young writers and artists in this anthology have been selected from the winners of the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards program. The offerings range from an intense recollection, "What Cancer Meant," to a whimsical dictionary of words that don't exist but should, such as
armnesia ("when you raise your arm in class and forget what you're going to say once you're called on"). The poetry is especially good-- personal, yes, but often homing in on the feelings of the authors' peer groups. The volume, which is about the size of a trade paperback, also contains an insert picturing works from winning artists. The reproductions are small, but the talent is apparent; more art appears on the cover. This collection is a real boon for budding writers and artists, who will feel the encouragement and see the possibility of publication. REVWR
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