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Seedfolks
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From: Ginny Kruse <gmkruse>
Date: Wed, 28 May 1997 17:46:47 -0500
I returned to the neighborhood last weekend while rereading Seedfolks. A literal picture of the garden seems unnecessary, because the images remaining from that second reading of Seedfolks are so vivid.
Paul Fleischman, it was so helpful to have the background you developed for the CCBC-NET community while I reread Seedfolks. Don't feel sheepish about communicating with us this way while you've gone on record as still preferring "the pen." You're a natural in terms of writing within the virtual community...
During a second reading of Seedfolks, I noticed the secondary characters you integrated so skillfully into the primary 13 narratives. I became acutely aware of the roles you developed for former school personnel: teachers, a school custodian, maybe even a principal. They took charge and/or interacted in the garden just as they might have in their schools. I enjoyed the characters' interactions with each other: I loved the way Miss Fleck talked with Maricela about being part of nature, the way Sam enjoyed the Persian origin of the word "Paradise," Amir's reference to a Persian carpet, the fierce protective acts undertaken by Royce, the way Sae Young decided to buy a funnel for the rainwater, the amazing reference to the Holocaust experience of the Polish woman - yes, Paul, you and Sam have worked hard to repair the rips in the net - and the seams do not seem to show.
I also became appreciative of the wide age range of the main and secondary characters. It seems to me that the Seedfolks folks and their garden *will* appeal to young readers because Paul Fleischman did succeed in developing a drama, an adventure with suspense - and I'm thinking this because I absolutely raced through my first reading of Seedfolks. Why? Simply to find out what was going to happen. First and foremost: discovering the story. And then - the second time: noticing the makings of the story, thinking about the many individuals & their personal stories & perspectives. Yes, they are
"chewy;" that's a terrific adjective for the assemblage of individuals in the Seedfolks neighborhood.
Who else has read Seedfolks, and what do you think about some of the questions or comments you've read here or thought about yourself? Or Bull Run? Or Dateline:Troy? Or Joyful Noise? Or any one of the many, varied books written by Paul Fleischman? Hey, he's here and ready to respond to your questions and comments. Take advantage of this opportunity! Sincerely, Ginny
****************************** Ginny Moore Kruse (gmkruse at ccbc.soemadison.wisc.edu) Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) A Library of the School of Education University of Wisconsin - Madison 4290 Helen C. White Hall, 600 N. Park St. Madison, WI 53706 USA
Received on Wed 28 May 1997 05:46:47 PM CDT
Date: Wed, 28 May 1997 17:46:47 -0500
I returned to the neighborhood last weekend while rereading Seedfolks. A literal picture of the garden seems unnecessary, because the images remaining from that second reading of Seedfolks are so vivid.
Paul Fleischman, it was so helpful to have the background you developed for the CCBC-NET community while I reread Seedfolks. Don't feel sheepish about communicating with us this way while you've gone on record as still preferring "the pen." You're a natural in terms of writing within the virtual community...
During a second reading of Seedfolks, I noticed the secondary characters you integrated so skillfully into the primary 13 narratives. I became acutely aware of the roles you developed for former school personnel: teachers, a school custodian, maybe even a principal. They took charge and/or interacted in the garden just as they might have in their schools. I enjoyed the characters' interactions with each other: I loved the way Miss Fleck talked with Maricela about being part of nature, the way Sam enjoyed the Persian origin of the word "Paradise," Amir's reference to a Persian carpet, the fierce protective acts undertaken by Royce, the way Sae Young decided to buy a funnel for the rainwater, the amazing reference to the Holocaust experience of the Polish woman - yes, Paul, you and Sam have worked hard to repair the rips in the net - and the seams do not seem to show.
I also became appreciative of the wide age range of the main and secondary characters. It seems to me that the Seedfolks folks and their garden *will* appeal to young readers because Paul Fleischman did succeed in developing a drama, an adventure with suspense - and I'm thinking this because I absolutely raced through my first reading of Seedfolks. Why? Simply to find out what was going to happen. First and foremost: discovering the story. And then - the second time: noticing the makings of the story, thinking about the many individuals & their personal stories & perspectives. Yes, they are
"chewy;" that's a terrific adjective for the assemblage of individuals in the Seedfolks neighborhood.
Who else has read Seedfolks, and what do you think about some of the questions or comments you've read here or thought about yourself? Or Bull Run? Or Dateline:Troy? Or Joyful Noise? Or any one of the many, varied books written by Paul Fleischman? Hey, he's here and ready to respond to your questions and comments. Take advantage of this opportunity! Sincerely, Ginny
****************************** Ginny Moore Kruse (gmkruse at ccbc.soemadison.wisc.edu) Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) A Library of the School of Education University of Wisconsin - Madison 4290 Helen C. White Hall, 600 N. Park St. Madison, WI 53706 USA
Received on Wed 28 May 1997 05:46:47 PM CDT
