Review: Writes of Passage: Words to Read Before You Turn 13

Nicolette Jones is a writer, literary critic and broadcaster, and has spent many years as the children's book critic for the UK's Sunday Times. In Writes of Passage: Words to Read Before You Turn 13 she shares 100 pieces of writing she's found inspiring.

Writes of Passage is an anthology of writing, set out in chapters by themes. They include: On Childhood and Your Past, On Equality and Justice, and On Reading.

There's poetry and prose, fiction and non-fiction, with each chapter providing a number of extracts from books, speeches, essays, films, interviews, songs, and so on. 

They range in length from a sentence or paragraph, to a couple of pages, making them easy to read, and to dip in and out of the book.

Nicolette Jones has selected pieces of writing to reflect what she's 'learned in more than a couple of decades of reviewing books for the young -- that they encompass all the big themes ... they tell us what the world is like before we have seen much of it, and they equip us for the good and the bad in it.'

The passages include those written by people like Anne Frank, Michelle Obama, Tim Minchin, Oliver Jeffers, and Michael Rosen. Each passage is followed by a short contextual statement, providing some context related to the author and the passage, or their writing more broadly.

Writes of Passage: Words to Read Before You Turn 13 would make an excellent gift, and also a great discussion resource. As suggested by Nicolette Jones, it might also be an inspiration for readers to create their own 'commonplace book' or collection of favourite quotes.

Title: Writes of Passage: Words to Read Before You Turn 13
Author: Nicolette Jones
Publisher: Nosy Crow, $24.99
Publication Date: 30 August 2022
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781788005029
For ages: 10+
Type: Non-Fiction

from Kids' Book Review https://ift.tt/PR2TCa8