I have to confess: I read the books for this post over two weeks ago, but was so busy I didn’t get to write the reviews.  I spent last week helping direct a professional development week for German teachers and before that have been busy working on my upcoming poetry exhibit at the local library, so I’ve had a lot on my plate. On the bright side, that means my reviews will truly reflect what is the most memorable about those books. Enjoy!

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When I was in grade school, my big brother Teddy graduated from college and went on to graduate school in West Virginia. As his car drove away, I bawled:  despite the fact that he’d often teased me mercilessly, I idolized my big brother.  Years later, that hasn’t changed much: I’m still amazed by him and the way he captures the hearts of his students, his skills in everything from home repair to fly fishing, and now I’m proud to promote him as an author. His first novel, Never Alone, was released last month and is now available on eBook as well.  It’s easy to be biased as his sister because the book includes descriptions which clearly hint at family members and describe familiar places such as our family’s camp in eastern Maine. But there’s more to “writing what you know” than just putting your surroundings on paper. I asked Ted to share with my readers just a bit about the process of crafting this story, which is part of a larger saga, and about what he loves and hates about the writing process:

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“Never Alone has been a part of me for a long time. I began writing it back in 2004 when the Red Sox won the World Series. The book has evolved tremendously. In fact, it has split into three books. Strange Courage and Second Chances have peeled off from the original (Originally titled Forgotten Virtues). Two more books now follow (Promises Kept and Grandfather’s Way), so it has evolved into a 5-book family saga. I felt it necessary to split things up to add more detail. Part of it was originally told by a father to his son. I didn’t think that worked very well.

I originally got the idea for the survival book from a dream. I dreamed I was the only survivor of a plane crash in a desolate rugged snow covered place. After that, I thought a book might be in the works and Carl Shae was born. He was a big Carl Yastrzemski fan, but young Carl was born before Yaz became a member of the Red Sox. I don’t really consider myself Carl. I’m more of a composite between Carl and Red. I have Red’s corny sense of humor.

The only character who is a true replica of my family is Carl’s grandfather, Ernie Murphy. Ernie Murphy is Frank (Lawrence) Robinson through and through. Although some of Carl’s experiences closely match things my family did when I was young, Carl’s siblings don’t really match up with mine very much. I figured if they did I might offend someone.

In the thirteen years since I first started writing this I have seen my writing skills evolve. Still, I don’t consider myself some kind of wordsmith, nor do I really wish to be. I like to write manuscripts that are easy to read. If I have to read a sentence three times to understand it I have no desire to continue. Reading should be fun. Back in 2010 I began writing a weekly newspaper column. It started as a foraging column but seven years later I’ve have to expand things a lot. I think the newspaper experience has helped me to become a better editor. It’s made me tighten  my writing and make my words count.

Being a teacher, I’m inundated with writing material every day. Several of the later books are peppered with my teaching experiences. Names have been changed to protect the innocent of course. I also plan to use many of my columns to write a series of practical suburban foraging books called Backyard Treasures. I want to break things out into different geographical regions. My biggest obstacle right now is taking additional pictures. I’ve also written a tragic love story (Virginia) set in rural West Virginia just to prove to myself I can be versatile.

I think if I had to encapsulate the whole process, writing is the fun part. Enjoy that and never let the rest of the process make you quit. Submitting manuscripts is tedious and frustrating. I hate it.

I’m a storyteller. I’ve come to the conclusion that I write a better story than I do a query letter. If Never Alone and the books that follow are successful I’ll be thrilled. If they aren’t I’ve had a wonderful time writing them.”

-Ted Manzer

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Never Alone is available through Amazon and other booksellers. You can read Ted’s newspaper columns archived on his website and blog: https://tedmanzer.com/.  He is also on Twitter at @TedManzer.

 

When I was about 12, my parents and I went on a 3 week road trip across the country to visit my older sister in Colorado. In addition to my suitcase, I had a “carry-on” sized bag which was FILLED with books. I slowly went through them all on the course of the trip, reading my way though Indiana, Nebraska, Kentucky, etc. As a teenager, I remember staying up until 2am finishing a book one New Year’s Eve. Years later, I still consider myself a book lover, even though I don’t read nearly as much as I would like to. (I’m a teacher, so it’s really hard for me to find time outside of summer vacation).

The point here, is that when I hear people say they “don’t read” or “don’t like to read,” my heart sinks. I hear that from my students a lot, and it is like a punch to my gut, but since I don’t teach English, I try not to take it too personally.

When it’s your own kid? It’s a whole different story.

Thankfully, I haven’t yet heard the “I don’t like to read” line from my boys (they are 8 and 11), but the truth is, they are not yet truly “readers” in the way I would like.  Up until recently, getting them to read was a real chore and there were many afternoons when I had to cheat a bit when filling out the dreaded “reading log” for school. It hurt.

Mind you, reading aloud before bedtime was different– from picture books to Harry Potter to our obsession now with Percy Jackson, they love hearing me read to them. They clearly have respect and interest in storytelling, so that helps.  But a passion for the feel and smell of books? An addiction to grabbing the next book in a series and devouring it in a sitting? Not so much.

Until now. Without wanting to jinx anything, I can share that I’m starting to see the beginnings of a real love of reading in my boys, and for that, I am truly grateful to the authors of several fantastic series:

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John Lennon once said “Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.” I have been pretty busy lately, so I guess a lot of life has happened. I apologize for the lack of picture book reviews to those following my blog– they will have their triumphant return, I promise! I’ve been reading plenty of them, but the posts take a long time to put together. In the meantime, my literary life has been pretty full of other things (above and beyond my day job which right now involves scrambling to get grades in for the end of the quarter):

1. My first “open-mic night”: Tonight I was a guest reader at my local public library’s annual “Community Poetry Night” to celebrate National Poetry month. I read five of my poems — forgot how much I love performing!
2. Coaching my school’s Speech & Debate team: I am the assistant coach for our team and the past two months were filled with state competition and national qualifiers. Our small school is sending three competitors to nationals! I love working with these talented students and encouraging their love of words!
3. Entering a writing contest!  I am excited to announce that I was named a finalist in Michelle Hauck’s “PB Party”!  My picture book “The Great Holiday Cookie Fight” and 26 other finalists will be going in front of agents on April 5th! Wish me luck!

And finally…

4.  Sparking a love of reading in my sons!! That’s hands down the biggest accomplishment of the bunch! Both of my boys are quite bright but reluctant readers and BOTH have managed to find series they are thrilled with. Max just finished up the “Wimpy Kid” series (Jeff Kinney) and has read the first book in the Origami Yoda series (Tom Angelberger).  Meanwhile, Robbie (8) can’t get enough of Ursula Vernon’s “Dragonbreath” series. All three are great, creative, unique creations and I’m thrilled.

And in the category of not specifically literary, but definitely linguistic, I’ll be traveling to Germany and Austria next week with 20 of my German students. We will spend 12 days visiting the sights and spending time with our sister school outside Stuttgart.  Introducing these kids to the magic of travel and watching as they interact with a new culture is the best part of my job and a definite inspiration for future writing.

So, watch this space! I’ve got some great things planned once life slows down a little!