rgz

readergirlz is a literacy and social media project for teens, awarded the National Book Foundation's Innovations in Reading Prize. The rgz blog serves as a depot for news and YA reviews from industry professionals and teens. As volunteers return full force to their own YA writing, the organization continues to hold one initiative a year to impact teen literacy. All are welcome to "like" us on Facebook!

Friday, September 9, 2011

rgz Newsflash: Happy Release Week, DEAR BULLY!


Dear Bully: 70 Authors Tell Their Stories released this week from HarperCollins, and I’m thrilled to be keeping company with so many brave, talented, and distinguished writers. Diva Melissa and I both have pieces in this bold anthology that addresses the hot-button topic of teen bullying -- but that's not the (main) reason you should check this one out!
You are not alone
Discover how Lauren Kate transformed the feeling of that one mean girl getting under her skin into her first novel, how Lauren Oliver learned to celebrate ambiguity in her classmates and in herself, and how R.L. Stine turned being the “funny guy” into the best defense against the bullies in his class.
Today’s top authors for teens come together to share their stories about bullying—as silent observers on the sidelines of high school, as victims, and as perpetrators—in a collection at turns moving and self-effacing, but always deeply personal.
My own contribution to the collection is a short-and-sweet list, but you’ll want to read all of the stories, heartfelt, heart-wrenching, and heart-breaking as they are. Congrats to all on a worthy and meaningful project, and yay for all of the positive buzz. From the New York Times: 
“This anthology of personal essays provides empathetic and heartfelt stories from each corner of the schoolyard: the bullied, the bystander and the bully himself are all represented. Their words will be a welcome palliative or a wise pre-emptive defense against the trials of adolescent social dynamics.”
Thanks also to editors Carrie Jones and Megan Kelley Hall for spearheading and editing the entire process. You guys rock!

1 comment:

Little Willow said...

Congrats to all involved.