Teach Reading and Writing Issue 19

TR&WYou’ve written across a variety of genres. How much does your process and writing persona differ depending on the work that you’re doing? JSW ‘Writing persona’ is a great phrase! In face-to-face conversation, I’m a slightly different person depending on who I’m talking to. In writing, my persona also shifts depending on the reader that I’m imagining. But whether I’m speaking out loud or on the page, I always ask myself the same questions: How do I see the world? How does my audience see the world? What must I do to bridge the gap between us? When I’m writing non-fiction for adults, the only difference between me and my audience is that I’ve researched a certain subject, and they haven’t. To bridge the gap, I just need to convey information in a clear and entertaining way. In that case, my writing persona ends up being pretty close to who I actually am. But when I’m writing fiction, I’m often conveying something more complex than mere facts. To do so, it sometimes helps to have a narrator who sees the world differently from Through my mother’s story, I was able to talk to my kids honestly but gently about the cost of hatred. My mother’s story helped me begin a difficult but necessary conversation with my kids. I thought it could help others begin that conversation as well. How would you like teachers to use What Rosa Brought in the classroom? Although What Rosa Brought tells a complete story, it’s meant to raise questions. Some of these revolve around the facts. After leaving Vienna, why did Rosa never see her grandmother again? Other questions require grappling with matters that baffle even philosophers. How do we find hope when bad things happen? I would like teachers to use What Rosa Brought as a starting point for approaching those questions. Different children will be ready for different kinds of discussions, and I trust teachers to know how much of the world’s unfairness a specific classroom is ready to face. I see What Rosa Brought as an early step on a lifelong voyage of grappling with difficult questions. either me or the reader. By standing apart from either of us, the narrator gives me and the reader a common reference point. When I’m writing for children, there’s not just a gap in research or perspective; there’s a gap in life experience and even in brain development. I think carefully about how to bridge that, and sometimes it takes me a few tries to get it right. I wrote the first draft of The City of Secret Rivers in an arch third-person voice, and when I gave it to some young friends of mine, they stopped reading after a few chapters. So I rewrote it in a more personal, emotional first-person voice, and suddenly kids loved it. It was still the same story, but I had found the right bridge to transport children into it. At other times, the narrative voice comes more easily. What Rosa Brought sprung out of the family stories I told my children, and I knew I wanted to write it in the simple but honest tone that I strove for in discussing difficult issues with them. What prompted you to write your latest book, What Rosa Brought ? There came a time when my children were ready to start learning about prejudice and where it can lead, but they weren’t ready to face the full horrors of the Holocaust. As it happened, we had the right family story for that moment. My family is Jewish, and my mom was a little girl during the Nazi occupation of Vienna. Miraculously, she and her parents escaped to America before the worst happened. Author and scriptwriter Jacob Sager Weinstein on his new novel about the Holocaust, and how he connects with his readers ‘How do we find hope when bad things happen?’ TALK I NG L I TERACY 6 | www.teachwire.net Jacob Sager Weinstein is the author of several books for adults and children. He has written for HBO, the BBC, The New Yorker and The Onion . What Rosa Brought (£12.99) illustrated by ElizaWheeler is available now.