An Introduction to Novels in Verse

Out of the Dust, True Believer, The First Part Last—Newbery, National Book Award, and Printz. Each is bound by the emotional rhythm and cadence found only in a verse novel. The verse novel phenomenon is a wildly popular choice for both middle-grade and young-adult readers. With intense emotional scenes, use of white space, and often edgy content, verse novels are flying off the shelves and into the hands of both reluctant and voracious readers! Join celebrated verse novelists Linda Oatman High (Sister Slam and the Poetic Motormouth Road Trip and Planet Pregnancy); Sonya Sones (Stop Pretending and What My Mother Doesn’t Know); and Virginia Euwer Wolff (Make Lemonade Trilogy, including National Book Award winning title, True Believer) as they introduce you to this epic genre. You will have time to write, revise, and confer while building your understanding of what makes the verse novel a masterpiece in the young-adult arena. Prerequisites: Participants are encouraged to bring novels in progress or collections of poetry.