Dear Fern,
Happy New Year! I hope this finds you well.
I wanted to share with you a short essay one of my 8th graders, a boy named Michael, wrote on his mid-year exam. The students were asked to write a paragraph about their favorite book we’ve read so far this year. While a number of students chose Is It Night or Day?, this essay really stood out, and I thought you would like to read it. Oftentimes kids write about whatever book they read last as it is most fresh in their minds, so I think it is a tribute to you as well that your book made such an impact on them that they remembered it months after finishing the story.
Here’s the paragraph:
“I think the best story we read so far this year was Is It NIght or Day?. The story shows the real world. It’s not about some little kid who gets into trouble a lot, but it’s about hardship and feelings. It shows how horrible people can be and how life can be altogether. What I liked best about it is it shows how tough your life really can be, which today kids seldom seem to understand.”
Michael clearly thought a lot about Edith, about other people who face hardships, and about himself and his place in the world.
Thank you for writing this book and for talking to us about it.
Happy 2012!
God bless you,
Beth Donofrio
English Teacher
Epiphany Cathedral School
Venice, Florida
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