I love Katherine Paterson. This book is a collection of essays and speeches about writing for children. I hate reading books about writing, but Katherine Paterson has such a beautiful style and worthy ideas about writing for children, it encourages me to try harder to write quality stories.

Very inspirational.

This book is an amazing hidden treasure writing by Katherine Paterson. Within this collection of essays and speeches you find out more about her life as a child growing up in China, her missionary parents, her faith, family and of course, her books. I read this book at he same time as my sister and we discussed the chapters on the phone. You should definitely have a book buddy to reach this book with. Want to one this one for sure.

The Invisible Child (subtitled "On Reading and Writing Books For Children") is a collection of speeches and essays written by Katherine Patterson over the course of her career. I have mixed feelings about some of her books, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one; I was particularly impressed with how integral her faith is to her writing. All her books are ultimately about characters who are homesick for Eden.

A choice quote:

On good writing: "I suppose it would be possible to write a book whose plot jumped all around like a frog on pep pills, but that's not what books are about. If that's the kind of writing you want to do, I think you should be in a more hectic medium. Books are meant to be read slowly and digested. These days people don't pray much or go to services of worship, they don't commune with nature - why, they hardly go to a national park without a TV set, a laptop, and a cell phone. The book is almost the last refuge of reflection - the final outpost of wisdom. I want children to have the gifts that books can give, and I don't believe they can get them from a book that attempts to imitate the frantic fragmentation of contemporary life." (p. 55)

I couldn't put it down. when I started it, I thought it was a book about writing. I was half wrong. It's a book about thinking. About peering into the unreadable parts of a book and noticing what remains with us when the words are forgotten.

This book is a collection of talks and essays by Katherine Paterson. I love finding out the story behind her stories, even if the seed from which they were born were sad. I marked every page; I loved every word.

An enthusiastic 5 stars. The book is a collection of her speeches at various events over the course of 20 years, lending itself to some repetitiveness. It is a great reading for anyone who is in the position of giving books to children, and at least a few of the essays should be required for children’s librarians and educators. A great encouragement to provide children with quality literature that feeds their imaginations and souls, and not just the milksop that is so prevalent today in the name of “education.”

I like how thought-provoking the essays are about reading and writing books for children. This is a book of substance that causes a writer to rethink characters and revise for more depth.

It inspired me a lot.

Just a wonderful book to read especially while reading her other books like Bridge to Teribithia and The Great Gilly Hopkins. I am addicted to Katherine Paterson books right now! They are fantastic...krb 1/31/18

Many of these essays are speeches she has given. I'm sure I would have enjoyed any of them as speeches, but as a collection, I prefer her memoir or any of her stories!

I was only able to read a handful of essays from this book before I had to return it to our library. Everything I read was fantastic. It's a master writer talking about the craft. I especially enjoyed reading her acceptance speeches for various awards. They were formal, yet entertaining; insightful and heartfelt.

Lovely collection of essays and speeches from a master storyteller.