The Book That Made Me: A Collection of 32 Personal Stories

by Judith Ridge

Overview

Just as authors create books, books create authors — and these essays by thirty-one writers for young people offer a fascinating glimpse at the books that inspired them the most.

What if you could look inside your favorite authors’ heads and see the book that led them to become who they are today? What was the book that made them fall in love, or made them understand something for the first time? What was the book that made them feel challenged in ways they never knew they could be, emotionally, intellectually, or politically? What book made them readers, or made them writers, or made them laugh, think, or cry? Join thirty-one top children’s and young adult authors as they explore the books, stories, and experiences that changed them as readers — for good.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780763696719
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	03/14/2017
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Judith Ridge is internationally recognized as one of Australia’s leading experts on literature for children and young adults. In a career spanning more than twenty years, she has worked as a teacher, writer, critic, and editor. Judith Ridge has taught children’s literature at several universities and is currently working toward a PhD in Australian children's and young adult fantasy fiction. She lives in South Windsor, Australia.

Table of Contents

Introduction Judith Ridge ix

Shaun Tan Asks, Why Do You Read? Shaun Tan 1

A Feverish Desire to Possess Randa Abdel-Fattah 3

Twelve Reasons Markus Zusak 11

A Short Leap Cathy Cassidy 15

"What Happens Next?" Will Kostakis 21

The Great Sense of Unease Mandy Hager 29

Hooked (and a Bit Unsettled) Shaun Tan 37

Thwack! Fiona Wood 45

Becoming Human Bernard Beckett 53

Looking Where I'm Standing Felicity Castagna 61

This World Is More Than What Can Be Seen Ambelin Kwaymullina 65

What the Doctor Recommended Queenie Chan 71

Of Magic and Memory Kate Constable 83

The Big Scooby-Doo Reveal Rachael Craw 91

Sweet Dreams and Social Fails Simmone Howell 99

Every Disgusting Detail Benjamin Law 105

Challenging the Machinations of Racism Jared Thomas 111

Invested with Enchantment Alison Croggon 119

It Looks Like a Comic Mal Peet 125

My First Reader Ursula Dubosarsky 131

In Folded Arms Cath Crowley 133

What Would Edith Do? Emily Maguire 139

Putting the World to Rights Catherine Mayo 147

Beyond the Influence Ted Dawe 155

A Sense of Resolution Simon French 161

Only White People Lived in Books Catherine Johnson 169

Set My Senses Alight Sue Lawson 175

Happy Endings Brigid Lowry 183

You'll Go Blind: A Cautionary Tale About the Power of Reading Julia Lawrinson 191

Ingenious Decisions Sue McPherson 197

James Remembering James Roy 205

Seeing Red Jaclyn Moriarty 213

About the Authors 221

About the Indigenous Literacy Foundation 231

Books Mentioned in the Collection 232

Writers Mentioned in the Collection 239

Acknowledgments 240

Copyright Acknowledgments 241

Editorial Reviews

Pencil drawings by Shaun Tan as well as photographs of the authors when they were young are visually engaging...this will likely be a favorite for those wanting a glimpse into the secret world of writers as well as a handy resource for book reports. Candid and inspirational.
—Kirkus Reviews

A good discussion starter among readers, this volume will intrigue many fans of children’s and young-adult books.
—Booklist

Ridge asked thirty-two authors (mostly from Australia and New Zealand) about the books that influenced them, and the responses are engagingly varied...Cartoons by Shaun Tan punctuate the collection with answers (often characteristically bizarre) to the question “Why do you read?” from imaginary people and creatures drawn by Tan.
—The Horn Book

Impassioned and intimate, these essays create an eloquent ode to the power of story.
—Publishers Weekly

Many of the selections would work well as a classroom read-aloud...Inspirational and handy. Consider for narrative nonfiction high school collections.
—School Library Journal

The book’s best audience is potential writers curious about other cultures.
—VOYA

From the Publisher

01/16/2017
In a volume originally published in Australia, Ridge asked more than 30 writers (including Ted Dawe, Ursula Dubosarsky, Ambelin Kwaymullina, Jaclyn Moriarty, Mal Peet, and Markus Zusak) to share the book that “made them readers, made them writers—made them the person they are today.” Mandy Hager quotes George Orwell on the importance of “political purpose” as a motivation for his writing, while explaining how 1984 outraged and galvanized her “to make change for the better in my world.” Fiona Wood calls on the words of L.M. Montgomery’s characters in Anne of Green Gables to delineate eight “extremely useful things” she learned from that novel, including “Daydreaming is good for you” and “Feminism will save you.” Photos of the authors as children lend another personal touch to the essays, and Shaun Tan intersperses entertaining cartoons of “random strangers” answering the question, “Why do you read?” (“I like urban paranormal Victorian steampunk speculative romance. A lot more than your dumb questions,” snarks a young respondent). Impassioned and intimate, these essays create an eloquent ode to the power of story. Ages 14–up. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

02/01/2017
Gr 9 Up—A compilation of 32 pieces by various well-known YA authors about the books that inspired them to become writers. Ridge states that as a child growing up in Australia in the 1970s, she often wondered what stimulated her author idols to create stories: thus, this compendium of essays. The entries are deeply personal and are often accompanied by a photo of the subject from childhood. Readers will recognize such names as Markus Zusak, who loved S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders, and Shaun Tan, who read George Orwell's Animal Farm at an early age. The majority of the titles discussed are YA, more classic than contemporary, making this a great fit for high school readers. Educators could easily incorporate this volume into units on creative writing or use it as an accompaniment to a lesson on one of the featured authors or books. Many of the selections would work well as a classroom read-aloud. However, bits of Australian slang do appear throughout, which may be difficult for some readers to decipher. VERDICT Inspirational and handy. Consider for narrative nonfiction high school collections.—Jeni Tahaney, Duncanville High School Library, TX

School Library Journal

2016-12-14
Familiar children's and teen authors reminisce about the books that set them on their paths toward becoming writers.For Simmone Howell, books were a road map for how to find romance. For Benjamin Law, they were the assurance that humor is buried in even the most tragic situations. For Brigid Lowry, stories were an escape from her chaotic and sometimes-tragic life. Whether inspired by classics like Dr. Seuss, Tolkien, or Dahl or paperback favorites penned by Francine Pascal or V.C. Andrews, authors talk candidly about their love of stories and how they changed their lives. Young would-be authors, ardent bibliophiles, and fans of autobiographies will enjoy the intimate look at the many paths that lead to writing as well as the many ways stories affect readers. While the list of authors leans heavily toward Australians and New Zealanders (editor Ridge is Australian), creators such as Shaun Tan and Markus Zusak are known worldwide. Pencil drawings by Tan as well as photographs of the authors when they were young are visually engaging. Short biographies are included, giving further background on each author. Somewhat limited in its appeal, this will likely be a favorite for those wanting a glimpse into the secret world of writers as well as a handy resource for book reports. Candid and inspirational. (Nonfiction. 14 & up)

Kirkus Reviews