Journeys: Young Readers' Letters to Authors Who Changed Their Lives.

Journeys: Young Readers' Letters to Authors Who Changed Their Lives.       Candlewick Press          2017   226p.  $9.99            ISBN 978-0-7636-9578-1          ms/hs  Letters  VG

Letters About Literature is an annual program hosted by the Center of the Book in the Library of Congress that solicits letters from students in grades four through twelve to authors who have impacted them in some way. The book is a collection of those letters arranged by age and “stages of a journey: destination, realization, and the return home”. The letters are very personal, drawing connections between novels and poems and daily life, family history, bullying, escaping reality, career inspiration, race, etc. The young authors write inspiring and heart-wrenching messages to the authors of the works they relate to, confessing deep feelings, fears, concerns, and connections to literary characters. The collection could be used in lessons for similar projects within a classroom or to encourage participation in the national program.                          

Summary: Letters from readers to authors reveal the impact of literature on young lives.         

Biography, Language Arts                                    --Stephanie Pennucci