And It Was Lonely, To

Early On I Came To Realize Something, And It Came From The Mail I Received From Kids. That Is, Kids At That Pivotal Age, 12, 13 Or 14, They're Still Deeply Affected By What They Read, Some Are Changed By What They Read, Books Can Change The Way They Feel About The World In General. I Don't Think That's True Of Adults As Much.

I Would Say That Most Of My Books Are Contemporary Realistic Fiction... A Couple, Maybe Three, Fall Into The 'historic Fiction' Category. Science Fiction Is Not A Favorite Genre Of Mine, Though I Have Greatly Enjoyed Some Of The Work Of Ursula Leguin. I Haven't Read Much Science Fiction So I Don't Know Other Sci-fi Authors.

You Remember That I Told You It Was Safer Not To Know. But,' He Went On, As His Hands Moved Wuth Their Sure And Practiced Motion, 'i Will Tell You Just A Little, Because You Were So Very Brave.' Brave?' Annemarie Asked, Surprised. 'no, I Wasn't. I Was Very Frightened.' You Risked Your Life.' But I Didn't Even Think About That! I Was Only Thinking Of-' He Interrupted Her,smiling. 'that's All That Brave Means-not Thinking About The Dangers. Just Thinking About What You Must Do. Of Course You Were Frightened. I Was Too, Today. But You Kept Your Mind On What You Had To Do. So Did I.

The Man That I Named The Giver Passed Along To The Boy Knowledge, History, Memories, Color, Pain, Laughter, Love, And Truth. Every Time You Place A Book In The Hands Of A Child, You Do The Same Thing. It Is Very Risky. But Each Time A Child Opens A Book, He Pushes Open The Gate That Separates Him From Elsewhere. It Gives Him Choices. It Gives Him Freedom. Those Are Magnificent, Wonderfully Unsafe Things. [from Her Newberry Award Acceptance Speech]

The Writer After All Is Only Half The Book, The Other Half Is The Reader.