The Writing of Branta and Other Affections

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On Walt Wangerin’s blog there’s a fantastic series of posts about children and the power of stories. If you love stories (for adults or children) this is a great opportunity to sit at the feet of a master and soak in some wisdom.

One:  Wild Things

Maurice Sendak once told me of the furor that followed the publication of his children’s book, Where the Wild Things Are.  By pictures and elementally simple language, the story follows a small boy to bed, and then into his vivid, funny, and sometimes disquieting imagination as the bedroom itself morphs into a terrible woods and frightening creatures appear: the wild things.  Many parents and some reviewers were downright upset that small children would see such stuff.  They believed it would damage the children, implanting frights and fears in innocent brains, inspiring nightmares.  Sleep?  Sendak hath murdered sleep. [Read the entire series at Walt’s blog.]

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Pete Peterson is the author of the Revolutionary War adventure The Fiddler’s Gun and its sequel Fiddler’s Green. Among the many strange things he’s been in life are the following: U.S Marine air traffic controller, television editor, art teacher and boatwright at the Florida Sheriffs Boys Ranch, and progenitor of the mysterious Budge-Nuzzard. He lives in Nashville with his wife, Jennifer, where he's the Executive Director of the Rabbit Room and Managing Editor of Rabbit Room Press.


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