Midwest Book Review
2020-07-31 03:34:45 UTC
The Writing/Publishing Shelf
Write Through the Crisis
Samantha Shad
Axillar Books
www.samanthashad.com
9781733865210, $11.99 paperback, $6.99 ebook
Write Through the Crisis comes from a "veteran of living through crises" and provides a powerful approach for unprecedented times, showing readers how they, too, can use the tools of writing to stave off depression, isolation, and ennui. Samantha Shad wasn't broke or quarantined, but she did survive living with a psychopathic mother who committed infanticide and created a life that always teetered on the edge of chaos and crisis after crisis. Shad turned to writing to mitigate the damaging effects of these constant challenges, and here advocates writing as a technique any literate person can use to heal themselves. She notes: "You don't have to like living in disaster-mode, but you can use it to make your life better. I did. This book tells you how to make the best out of a crisis by using it to write yourself to a richer soul." This approach advocates finding your own healing process and writing 'voice' and demonstrates how to do so by better understanding storytelling options, writing forms, how ideas and dreams are germinated to result in positive goals, and more. Psychology, creative writing tips, and self-help healing skills are woven into an account that should be a blueprint for those facing Covid who want to see and reach towards a light at the end of a challenging tunnel of darkness. As Shad discusses the mechanics of creating characters, plots, and themes, readers will be encouraged to put pen to paper to follow their own dreams. Why not? Those under quarantine now have all the time in the world to write their way to a better perspective, and with the lively, accessible Write Through the Crisis, they now have the tools to do so.
Creating Confident Writers
Troy Hicks & Andy Schoenborn
W. W. Norton & Company
500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10110
www.wwnorton.com
9780393714166, $27.95, PB, 208pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Connecting their classroom experience to research about writing, as well as to framing documents in the field, in the pages of "Creating Confident Writers: For High School, College, and Life" two seasoned writing teachers distill the lessons they've learned about creating confident adolescent and young adult writers.
Troy Hicks and Andy Schoenborn outline a fundamental stance to their approach (to invite, encourage, and celebrate students' writing) that is then echoed in "Creating Confident Writers" three-part structure. There are numerous classroom activities and assignments on topics from creating writing goals to supporting revision, examples of student work, and questions to guide teachers' reflections.
"Creating Confident Writers" is an ideal curriculum textbook for any teacher of writing, from middle school through college. "Creating Confident Writers" invites students and other aspiring writers to try strategies -- and allow students' voices to emerge, while discussing with colleagues how these approaches might work for them, too.
Critique: Enhanced for academia with the inclusion of an eight page listing of References, 10 black-and-white images, and a seven page Index, "Creating Confident Writers: For High School, College, and Life", with its underlying message that writing should be for an audience beyond that of a teacher, and for a purpose beyond that of getting a grade, is an especially and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library Writing/Publishing collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.
Editorial Note: Troy Hicks is a Professor of English and Education at Central Michigan University. He directs both the Chippewa River Writing Project and the Master of Arts in Learning, Design & Technology program. A former middle school teacher, Dr. Hicks is an ISTE Certified Educator and regularly leads workshops related to writing and technology for schools, districts, and professional organizations.
Andy Schoenborn is an author and high school English teacher in Michigan at Mt. Pleasant Public Schools. He's a also the co-facilitator of the monthly #TeachWrite Twitter chat, past president of the Michigan Council of Teachers of English, and a Regional Representative of the Michigan Reading Association. Schoenborn is also a contributing author of Using Technology to Enhance Writing (Solution Tree, 2014) and Continuing the Journey 2 (NCTE, 2018). In November 2019, he was honored with the 2019 Linda Rief Voices from the Middle Award for outstanding publication for his article, "Reclaiming the Arts in English Language Arts". He is a teacher consultant for the Chippewa River Writing Project (NWP) site.
EDITOR'S NOTE:
The Midwest Book Review is an organization of volunteers committed to promoting literacy, library usage, and small press publishing. We accept no funds from authors or publishers. Full permission is given to post any of these reviews on thematically appropriate websites, newsgroups, listserves, internet discussion groups, organizational newsletters, or to interested individuals. Please give the Midwest Book Review a credit line when doing so.
The Midwest Book Review publishes the monthly book review magazines "California Bookwatch", "Internet Bookwatch", "Children's Bookwatch", "MBR Bookwatch", "Reviewer's Bookwatch", and "Small Press Bookwatch". All are available for free on the Midwest Book Review website at www (dot) midwestbookreview (dot) com
Anyone wanting to submit books for review consideration can send them to:
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive
Oregon, WI 53575-1129
To submit reviews of any fiction or non-fiction books, email them to Frugalmuse (at) aol (dot) com (Be sure to include the book title, author, publisher, publisher address, publisher website/phone number, 13-digit ISBN number, and list price).
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
Write Through the Crisis
Samantha Shad
Axillar Books
www.samanthashad.com
9781733865210, $11.99 paperback, $6.99 ebook
Write Through the Crisis comes from a "veteran of living through crises" and provides a powerful approach for unprecedented times, showing readers how they, too, can use the tools of writing to stave off depression, isolation, and ennui. Samantha Shad wasn't broke or quarantined, but she did survive living with a psychopathic mother who committed infanticide and created a life that always teetered on the edge of chaos and crisis after crisis. Shad turned to writing to mitigate the damaging effects of these constant challenges, and here advocates writing as a technique any literate person can use to heal themselves. She notes: "You don't have to like living in disaster-mode, but you can use it to make your life better. I did. This book tells you how to make the best out of a crisis by using it to write yourself to a richer soul." This approach advocates finding your own healing process and writing 'voice' and demonstrates how to do so by better understanding storytelling options, writing forms, how ideas and dreams are germinated to result in positive goals, and more. Psychology, creative writing tips, and self-help healing skills are woven into an account that should be a blueprint for those facing Covid who want to see and reach towards a light at the end of a challenging tunnel of darkness. As Shad discusses the mechanics of creating characters, plots, and themes, readers will be encouraged to put pen to paper to follow their own dreams. Why not? Those under quarantine now have all the time in the world to write their way to a better perspective, and with the lively, accessible Write Through the Crisis, they now have the tools to do so.
Creating Confident Writers
Troy Hicks & Andy Schoenborn
W. W. Norton & Company
500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10110
www.wwnorton.com
9780393714166, $27.95, PB, 208pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Connecting their classroom experience to research about writing, as well as to framing documents in the field, in the pages of "Creating Confident Writers: For High School, College, and Life" two seasoned writing teachers distill the lessons they've learned about creating confident adolescent and young adult writers.
Troy Hicks and Andy Schoenborn outline a fundamental stance to their approach (to invite, encourage, and celebrate students' writing) that is then echoed in "Creating Confident Writers" three-part structure. There are numerous classroom activities and assignments on topics from creating writing goals to supporting revision, examples of student work, and questions to guide teachers' reflections.
"Creating Confident Writers" is an ideal curriculum textbook for any teacher of writing, from middle school through college. "Creating Confident Writers" invites students and other aspiring writers to try strategies -- and allow students' voices to emerge, while discussing with colleagues how these approaches might work for them, too.
Critique: Enhanced for academia with the inclusion of an eight page listing of References, 10 black-and-white images, and a seven page Index, "Creating Confident Writers: For High School, College, and Life", with its underlying message that writing should be for an audience beyond that of a teacher, and for a purpose beyond that of getting a grade, is an especially and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library Writing/Publishing collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.
Editorial Note: Troy Hicks is a Professor of English and Education at Central Michigan University. He directs both the Chippewa River Writing Project and the Master of Arts in Learning, Design & Technology program. A former middle school teacher, Dr. Hicks is an ISTE Certified Educator and regularly leads workshops related to writing and technology for schools, districts, and professional organizations.
Andy Schoenborn is an author and high school English teacher in Michigan at Mt. Pleasant Public Schools. He's a also the co-facilitator of the monthly #TeachWrite Twitter chat, past president of the Michigan Council of Teachers of English, and a Regional Representative of the Michigan Reading Association. Schoenborn is also a contributing author of Using Technology to Enhance Writing (Solution Tree, 2014) and Continuing the Journey 2 (NCTE, 2018). In November 2019, he was honored with the 2019 Linda Rief Voices from the Middle Award for outstanding publication for his article, "Reclaiming the Arts in English Language Arts". He is a teacher consultant for the Chippewa River Writing Project (NWP) site.
EDITOR'S NOTE:
The Midwest Book Review is an organization of volunteers committed to promoting literacy, library usage, and small press publishing. We accept no funds from authors or publishers. Full permission is given to post any of these reviews on thematically appropriate websites, newsgroups, listserves, internet discussion groups, organizational newsletters, or to interested individuals. Please give the Midwest Book Review a credit line when doing so.
The Midwest Book Review publishes the monthly book review magazines "California Bookwatch", "Internet Bookwatch", "Children's Bookwatch", "MBR Bookwatch", "Reviewer's Bookwatch", and "Small Press Bookwatch". All are available for free on the Midwest Book Review website at www (dot) midwestbookreview (dot) com
Anyone wanting to submit books for review consideration can send them to:
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive
Oregon, WI 53575-1129
To submit reviews of any fiction or non-fiction books, email them to Frugalmuse (at) aol (dot) com (Be sure to include the book title, author, publisher, publisher address, publisher website/phone number, 13-digit ISBN number, and list price).
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review