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Reviewed by:
  • Jacqueline Woodson: “The Real Thing.” Virginia Euwer Wolff: Capture the Music of Young Voices
  • Sharon M. Scapple (bio)
Jacqueline Woodson: “The Real Thing.” By Lois Thomas Stover . Scarecrow Studies in Young Adult Literature, No. 11. Latham, Maryland, 2003.
Virginia Euwer Wolff: Capture the Music of Young Voices. By Suzanne Elizabeth Reid . Scarecrow Studies in Young Adult Literature, No. 12. Latham, Maryland, 2003.

Although two critical studies of two different authors may be regarded, at first sight, as unlikely bedfellows to reside within one book review, Lois Stover's Jacqueline Woodson and Suzanne Reid's Virginia Euwer Wolff do fit together, principally because they are two volumes in the Scarecrow Studies in Young Adult Literature series, 11 and 12 respectively. Stover and Reid have experience writing other author studies in the Twayne Young Adult series, and each offers a sound, biographical-critical author study characteristic of the Scarecrow Studies. Each draws reasonable conclusions about the relationship between a writers' lives and the texts they write and each is passionate about her subject, a woman author who is highly regarded as a "writer to read" in young adult literature. Throughout the writing, Stover and Reid acknowledge and illuminate their subject's contribution to young adult literature.

They diverge, quite expectedly, in their approaches and theses. Lois Thomas Stover tracks the evolution of Jacqueline Woodson as writer and artist and proclaims that Woodson is "The Real Thing," a writer of distinction. And, writing in high praise of Virginia Euwer Wolff as an "extraordinarily dedicated writer" (Acknowledgement), Suzanne Elizabeth Reid emphasizes the relationship between Virginia Euwer Wolff's life and her writing, particularly how music is central to both her life and her art.

In Jacqueline Woodson, Stover uses her subtitle: "The Real Thing" as a framing device, beginning and ending her text with the claim that Woodson has become and will be the real thing, that she is a writer who "gives us characters and stories that teach us more about how to negotiate the world on our own while reaching out to others in the process" (xii). This expression, the real thing, was written to Jacqueline by her seventh grade teacher, who wrote it in comment about Woodson's first story. Stover concludes that Woodson has contributed significantly to the young adult literary world, that she is deserving of acclaim, and that she continues to grow as a writer.

The fact that Woodson "continues to evolve" (171) seems to be a primary concern for Stover. Throughout her analysis, she is intent and rather serious about directing her readers along the path of Woodson's development from the "Contents" onward. In her [End Page 219] chapter titles, she repeats the word "On" to signal the progression of Woodson's writing and those life experiences that influenced her writing. In chapter one, she begins with, "On Becoming—and Staying—a Writer"; then "On Being Powerless and Invisible"; eventually to "On Maturing as a Writer." The serious aspect of the text's organization rests with Stover's transitional announcements that often tell readers what is to follow in the next section and her numerous chapter subheadings. Although these signals are helpful and enable readers to stay focused, they do, at times, interrupt the momentum of the writing.

Regarding Woodson's maturity as a writer, Stover notes that Jacqueline's partnership with Wendy Lamb at Delacorte was instrumental in freeing her to write what she knew best, writing as an outsider and moving characters and self into the realm of visibility, of becoming "seen and valued" (47). Then, with the writing of I Hadn't Meant to Tell You This (Coretta Scott King Honor Book, 1994), Woodson refines her ability to create a sense of place and shows development in dialogue that reflects the reality of her characters. Stover further posits that with From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun (1995) and The House You Pass on the Way (1997), Woodson exhibits maturity in her skill to create characters and to use "increasingly lyrical, poetic use of language" (100).

Overall, Stover writes critically, almost intimately, about Woodson's craft. She has produced a wealth of criticism in Jacqueline Woodson and laces her analysis with anecdotes...

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