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NF, POV and interpretation
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From: Emily Townsend <etownsend_at_wisc.edu>
Date: Wed, 11 Jun 2014 15:31:48 -0500
I really liked Marc's enthusiastic and open assessment of non-fiction from an earlier post. NF, he wrote, is
"a dynamic field that is growing, trying new styles and formats, finding new voices, and -- most crucially -- shifting from Imparting Knowledge or, even, Telling a Story -- to Showing How We Know What We Know"
I've really enjoyed seeing the variety of styles and voices in NF this past year. One book I really admire is Arthur Flower's I See the Promised Land: A Life of Martin Luther King, Jr. Flowers' writing is based on Griot oral storytelling traditions and the accompanying illustrations are by Indian scroll artist, Manu Chitrakar. This book does something I love -- it works on many levels. There is the non-fiction content, the author's point of view, the style of the artist and the author and then the cultural traditions of their styles. So much to explore in one book. So many opportunities for engagement, learning and critical thinking.
I think John Lewis's March, Book One, and Maira Kalman's Thomas Jefferson, Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Everything have a similar sort of combination of style, voice and content, for me. I would also include the novelization of the Boxer Rebellion, Boxers and Saints by Gene Luen Yang in this group of books. Though Boxers and Saints are not NF, I've seen these volumes used with teens as an excellent gateway to historical, religious and philosophical reading and discussions. I see these books as authors' interpretations, yet they still have a firm tie to non-fiction -- which opens up the opportunity for discussions on any number of stylistic, critical analysis, and philosophical topics.
I'd love to hear what others find appealing and promising in the current, dynamic field of non-fiction.
Date: Wed, 11 Jun 2014 15:31:48 -0500
I really liked Marc's enthusiastic and open assessment of non-fiction from an earlier post. NF, he wrote, is
"a dynamic field that is growing, trying new styles and formats, finding new voices, and -- most crucially -- shifting from Imparting Knowledge or, even, Telling a Story -- to Showing How We Know What We Know"
I've really enjoyed seeing the variety of styles and voices in NF this past year. One book I really admire is Arthur Flower's I See the Promised Land: A Life of Martin Luther King, Jr. Flowers' writing is based on Griot oral storytelling traditions and the accompanying illustrations are by Indian scroll artist, Manu Chitrakar. This book does something I love -- it works on many levels. There is the non-fiction content, the author's point of view, the style of the artist and the author and then the cultural traditions of their styles. So much to explore in one book. So many opportunities for engagement, learning and critical thinking.
I think John Lewis's March, Book One, and Maira Kalman's Thomas Jefferson, Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Everything have a similar sort of combination of style, voice and content, for me. I would also include the novelization of the Boxer Rebellion, Boxers and Saints by Gene Luen Yang in this group of books. Though Boxers and Saints are not NF, I've seen these volumes used with teens as an excellent gateway to historical, religious and philosophical reading and discussions. I see these books as authors' interpretations, yet they still have a firm tie to non-fiction -- which opens up the opportunity for discussions on any number of stylistic, critical analysis, and philosophical topics.
I'd love to hear what others find appealing and promising in the current, dynamic field of non-fiction.
--
Emily Townsend, Librarian
Cooperative Children's Book Center
School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison
4290 Helen C. White Hall
600 N. Park Street
Madison, WI 53706
608-890-0258
etownsend_at_wisc.edu
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Received on Wed 11 Jun 2014 03:32:13 PM CDT
