Book Review – Seeing the Blue Between

Young Adult Writers Give Advice and Inspiration to Young Poets

Jul 5, 2009

Thirty-two writers in the Young Adult genre share their work and words of encouragement in an effort to get young poets writing the right way.

As a book that leads to encouraging young poets, Seeing the Blue Between (Candlewick, ISBN: 0763608815, 2002, compiled by Paul B. Janeczko) is wise to avoid the route that emphasizes craft over creation. While learning the craft of poetry (a concept that is very real) is important, the 9-12 year old audience of this collection is more likely to be impressed with the brief letters of wisdom addressed to them personally. While the wisdom is sporadic, the hearts of the writers are definitely in the right place.

An Emphasis on Reading and Revision

Nearly all of the poets encourage reading as the prime way to heighten creativity, inspiration, and a general knowledge of what pleasurable writing looks like. An attentive reader will be able to recognize the qualities she enjoys about a piece of writing, making it easier for her to visualize and identify those traits in her own work.

None of the contributors come right out and say this, of course (and really, creativity and imagination often come from literature, but are often very rich when found elsewhere, too). However, the sheer number of references to reading, ranging from the sly to the soapboxing, is enough to imply some sort of importance on it.

Revision is another big issue made by numerous writers, and rightfully so. The will to revise is a problem not just in young writers, but in writers of all ages. By far the best advice in the book is a comment on revision, where the contributor points out that by breaking down the word, we find that another draft isn’t just a tweaking of ideas, but an entire new vision of the concept. A fantastic point of view to have for any poet.

Included Poems

In addition to each author's personalized letter to the reader, there is also a sampling of said author’s work. The poems range from humorous to serious, rhyming to free, conceptual to straightforward. As an adult reading the poems, their meaning may seem lost, especially for the more literally inclined readers.

With the included poems, the tone of the books wavers between encouraging a mere start to a child’s writing path and an emphasis on shaping his or her writing for a more professional style later on. While it may be easy for the academic sect of adults to side with the latter, there is a lot to be said for simply getting a young adult to start writing and seeing in poetry, a task more difficult than it seems.

A Poetic View

While some writers appear to be phoning in their letters to the youth, many take the idea to heart, churning out level advice that treats the audience like adults without going over their heads. With a refreshing focus on the cultivation of the self and the pure enjoyment of poetry, Seeing the Blue Between serves to not only inspire young poets, but show adult readers the joys of a less-academic approach to poetry writing.

The copyright of the article Book Review – Seeing the Blue Between in Writing for Children is owned by Ryan Werner. Permission to republish Book Review – Seeing the Blue Between in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.