Talk, Talk : A Children's Book Author Speaks to Grown-Ups - Hardcover

Konigsburg, E.L.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689319932 ISBN 13: 9780689319938

Publisher: Atheneum, 1995

Synopsis

In TalkTalk E. L. Konigsburg presents a selection of speeches she has given over a period of 25 years. In her introduction to the first speech, and to the book as a whole, she explains:"While each of my books has been written because I had a story I wanted to tell, these speeches were written because I had something I wanted to say. The audience for the former is children; for the latter, adults.... I recognize -- with a measure of amused detachment -- that some were written as a reaction to trends; others, to fads.I have given these talks in cafetoriums, auditoriums, and the public rooms of Holiday Inns. Even though I have not always been on a stage when addressing an audience, I have tried to set the stage. Between talk and talk, I have written passages connecting the speeches to the time in which they were written and to one another. And that is TalkTalk."Always a thought-provoking speaker, she has chosen nine speeches that capture the essence of her years as a writer for children. When brought together, they enrich one another and provide a chance to look back at what children's books have been, to observe where they are now and to offer an insightful look at what books may continue to mean to children in the years to come. Written by an outstanding author, these speeches, individually and together, represent a vision of the need for books and the role books have played and should continue to play in the lives of children.

About this title

About the Author:

E.L. Konigsburg E.L. Konigsburg is the only author to have won the Newbery Medal and be runner-up in the same year. In 1968, From the Mixed- Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler won the medal and Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth was named Honor Book. She has also written and illustrated three picture books: Samuel Todd's Book of Great Colors; Samuel Todd's Book of Great Inventions; and Amy Elizabeth Explores Bloomingdale's. Her most recent book for Atheneum is the novel T-Backs, T-Shirts, COAT, and Suit.

After completing her degree at Carnegie-Mellon University, Mrs. Konigsburg did graduate work in organic chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh. For several years she taught science at a private girls' school. When the third of her three children started kindergarten, she began to write. She and her husband live on the beach near Jacksonville, Florida. Their children are all married.

From Booklist:

Chatty, funny, and learned, the speeches in this collection are an entertaining introduction to why children's books matter. From her 1968 Newbery award acceptance speech for Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley and Me, Elizabeth to her comments on censorship in the 1990s, Konigsburg draws on art, science, psychology, literature, and her own intimate experience to show how stories bring you home. She connects the speeches with brief essays that provide an overview of what's been happening in children's book publishing over three decades. Never heavy, Konigsburg respects her craft and the children she writes for. One of her speeches says it best: she finds the courage to disturb the neighborhood. An excerpt from this book will appear in Booklist's ninetieth anniversary issue, June 1/15 1995. Hazel Rochman

About this edition

• Publisher: Atheneum
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 0689319932
• ISBN 13: 9780689319938
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 192