From: Ginny Moore Kruse <gmkruse>
Date: Tue, 27 Jul 1999 09:22:55 -0500

Walter Dean Myers wrote a chilling story titled "Briefcase" for the anthology "Twelve Shots: Outstanding Short Stories about Guns" edited by Harry Mazer (Delacorte, 1997; pbk. Laureleaf, 1998). In his brief commentary immediately following the story, Myers wrote in part,
"...People who commit crimes usually have to envision themselves in the performance prior to the actual event. No one goes from perfect innocence to armed robbery. The physical act that has to be performed
- walking into the convenience store, getting up the nerve to say
'This is a stickup,' jumping over a bank counter - becomes a barrier to the act..."

Perhaps that statement by the author of "Monster" can assist us in reflecting upon Steve's guilt, innocence, or perjury. ...Ginny


Ginny Moore Kruse (gmkruse at ccbc.education.wisc.edu) Cooperative Children's Book Center (www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/) A Library of the School of Education, University of Wisconsin Madison
Received on Tue 27 Jul 1999 09:22:55 AM CDT