From: 4joyces at mchsi.com <4joyces>
Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 22:42:25 +0000

For me, it was THE BAT POET by Randall Jarrell. My mom gave it to me when I was about ten, perhaps realizing something that I didn't. I loved reading about a creature who was different from all the rest, who went out into a new world (the daytime) and wrote poems about what he saw there. The wonderful poems are interspersed with the narrative, and Maurice Sendak's illustrations are perfect.

My original copy of this book still sits on my bookshelf, one of the few volumes that have survived from my childhood. I honestly think, looking back, that it started me down the road to being a poet.

Joyce Sidman


> What a great topic! The book that changed my life was Constance Greene's
> BEAT THE TURTLE DRUM. It's a beautiful novel about sisters and loss. I
> remember reading it both to myself and to my sister many times. The sisters
> in the story were so similar to Micky and me, and the book addressed our
> deepest fear in a way that made it safe to process. BEAT THE TURTLE DRUM
> touched my heart in a new way, and it sparked my dream of becoming a
> children's book author. I guess it's no surprise that my first novel deals
> with the subject of loss.
>
> Brenda Ferber
> --------------------------------------------------
> JULIA'S KITCHEN, Farrar Straus & Giroux
> www.brendaferber.com
>
>
>
>
>
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Received on Mon 22 May 2006 05:42:25 PM CDT