Writing Radar

Writing Radar is about Jack Gantos, the silly stories of his youth, the funny things that continue to happen to him and the way he is able to weave this ability to snoop out stories to become an author. I really was looking for another "on writing" book for my reading and writing across the curriculum or English language arts methods course for college, but this one is geared more for the young tween.

Gantos' familiar storytelling style from his fiction pieces like the Joey Pigza books continues in this how to guide. I am sure that budding tween writers will be hooked in by the shenanigans of the author. For me, since I was really looking for the "how to" aspects, there is a drawing of a fountain pen with the words "Writing Tips" scrawled throughout the book. There are also bold faced headings and chapters like "Story Maps" and "Key Words That Lead to Ideas for Action in a Story" that almost mindlessly guide the reader to and fro and amongst the author's meandering storyline.

As a tip guide, the tips are solid, straightforward, user friendly and developmentally appropriate for the tween audience. As a story, the author understands the developmental style that tweens like. I get it. They need to write, write, write, so any way to entertain them while they do it is fabulous. I also know that we lose them as readers and writers in the middle grades if as teachers we are not vigilant to what will keep them from grabbing a pen or a book for their own pleasure. At the college level it is easier to coach a writer through when they write too much and show too much voice than when their writing is sparse, generic and lifeless.

That being said, I can't use it in my secondary teacher education courses, but I can see a 4th, 5th or 6th grade teacher using this as mini lessons in writer's workshop with their students.