Letters About Literature Contest

Sorry for the long silence, but I’ve been very busy with my schoolwork. I’m back and happy that the winter break is soon approaching.

I’ve read the most gut-wrenching books this past trimester. The kind that stretches your mind and makes you really wonder about the greatness of human beings and how low and terrible we can be. Two such books that I read which explored the Holocaust were Elie Wiesel’s Night and Art Spiegelman’s Maus: A Survivor’s Tale. After reading these books, I had many questions and comments for the writers. I had personal insights I wanted to share with them. I wanted to just hug them and let them know that their experiences and the books they wrote about them have made me want to be even a better person, a kinder person and a person who challenges head on any intolerance. There are opportunities for me and for you to share with a writer how much his or her book has profoundly influenced us.

The Library of Congress’s Center for the Book invites students in grades 4-12 to write a personal letter to an author describing how that author’s work changed their view of themselves or their world. Works may include fiction and nonfiction books, short stories, poems, essays or speeches.

Six national winners will be chosen from three different grade groups, and winners not only will earn cash prizes, but also a $10,000 Reading Promotion Grant for the school or community library of their choice.


The deadline is soon. December 12, 2009. For more information go to www.lettersaboutliterature.org

Suzan-Lori Parks at Bryn Mawr College

Last night I went to Bryn Mawr College to hear the playwright and Pulitzer Prize Winner, Suzan-Lori Parks. She was the first African-American woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. She received it for her play Topdog/Underdog. She is such an inspirational speaker that I left the auditorium that night thinking: I WANT TO WRITE.

As a poet myself, I found Ms. Parks to be very helpful, because she answered so many of my unanswered questions, in such little time. For example, she started out as a playwright, and her very first production took place at a gas station and three people came, but that night became the most important night of her life. That night she felt she had made it as a playwright. ( She told us later the three people who came to the play were her mom, her dad, and the homeless man in the neighborhood, which still did not phase her. She had an audience who saw her play.) That story taught me, you have to believe in yourself and love yourself if you want to succeed, which Ms. Parks exceptionally did, and now she is a Pulitzer Prize winner, a MacArthur Genius Award winner and a well-known writer.

Also, Ms. Parks told a story of how she found herself. She told the audience about her senior year in high school, when she took an AP English class. Every week her class would have a spelling test, and every week she would fail, because she was not very good speller. At the end of the year, her AP English teacher and she were having a conversation about college. Her teacher asked her what she wanted to major in, and she answered, “I want to major in English Literature, since I love to write”. Then her teacher opened up her grade book and read all of Ms. Parks' spelling test grades and answered, “I don’t think you should major in English, you should major in something you are good at”, and Ms. Parks listened. So, when she entered college ( Mt. Holyoke) she majored in Chemistry. She hated this subject and later switched to English, which was her passion, which led to her encounter with the great writer James Baldwin. This story made me realize you have to listen to yourself and go with your gut, because others can not make your decisions for you or feel your passion.

When Ms. Parks finally switched to English, she took a short story class with James Baldwin. During the class they would read stories out loud and of course Ms. Parks being the drama queen that she is, read her stories with so much enthusiasm, and even stood up from her seat to read them. When Mr. Baldwin could take it no longer, he asked her a simple question: “Have you ever considered the theater, Ms. Parks”? From that moment on, she knew she had found her place. I thought the lesson of this story was important because it shows that sometimes you have to “test the waters” to find out what you really want. She is a wonderful person, an inspirational and entertaining speaker and writer I look forward to reading.

Ms. Parks appeared at Bryn Mawr College as a part of its 2009-2010 Creative Writing Program Reading Series.

Diana:A Celebration at the National Constitution Center

Last Thursday afternoon, I had the awesome opportunity to be part of the press luncheon for the National Constitution Center’s new exhibition-Diana: A Celebration. In preparation for this event, I had a lot fun reading and learning about Princess Diana. What a personality? What a person? What an exhibition?

Diana: A Celebration will give visitors the opportunity to learn about Diana, Princess of Wales and her work, especially her humanitarian projects. The exhibition is so fun and inviting that those of my age, who probably know very little about Diana, will immediately be impressed by her accomplishments and commitments as well as by her fashion and jewelry.

Diana; A Celebration covers more than 10,000 square feet of more than 150 artifacts organized in nine categories which include Childhood, Spencer Women, Engagement, Royal Wedding, Tiara Gallery, Style and Fashion, Her Work, Tribute and Condolences.

Being my girly girl self, of course my favorite section was the one that featured her wedding gown. It has more than 10,000 tiny mother-of-pearl sequins and pearls. The wedding gown’s silk train is 25 feet and it is the longest in Royal History and it was made from six different fabrics. I have a lot of stories and fun facts to share about this gown and other more important things about Diana and this exhibition. I will blog about them in several posts.

The items in this exhibition are on loan from the Althorp Estate, the Spencer Family’s 500-year-old home in England. Before her marriage to Prince Charles, Diana was Diana Frances Spencer. Charles Spencer, her brother, representing the Althorp Estate, attended the press luncheon as well. One of the above photographs is of him and me. The photograph was taken by Carol Feeley.

The exhibition opened October 2nd and runs until December 31, 2009.

Here are the basic facts you need to get down to the National Constitution Center and see Diana: A Celebration. Admission is $23.00 for adults, $21.00 for seniors and $15.00 for children ages 4-12. Active military personnel and children ages 3 and under are free. Please visit the center’s website to learn about the special speakers, family activities and other events which are tied to this exhibition.

The National Constitution Center
525 Arch Street
Independence mall
Philadelphia, PA 19106
www.constitutioncenter.org
Ticket information/215-409-6700

Taking A Stand Across a Bridge

It’s funny how once you learn a new word or about a new person, all of a sudden you see or hear that word or person everywhere. I told you last week that the One Book, One Philadelphia Committee chose The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi as its 2010 selection. Little by little I am becoming familiar with Iran and my interest in it is growing. My aunt sent me this link of Iranians, who now live in North America, who demonstrated last week in New York City. They were protesting Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s visit to the United Nations.( I have a hard time pronouncing his name.) He is the President of Iran, but many people feel that he helped to rig the election in his favor. This past summer, Iranians had a chance to vote for a president and their choice was not honored. When they protested that the elections were unfair, they were abused by the military.

Anyway, here is the link to people taking a stand and not just accepting what they know is not right. I admire this!

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2009/09/24/world/middleeast/1247464817780/a-ribbon-of-green.html?scp=1&sq=green%20ribbon&st=cse/

2010 One Book, One Philadelphia-The Complete Persepolis

Kudos(I love this word) to Mayor Michael Nutter and all those who helped to persuade those who needed persuading to pass a budget that keeps our libraries open. Such an event like last night’s is why I love the Free Library of Philadelphia.
I got to see and listen to one of my favorite writers-Marjane Satrapi. She is an Iranian writer who wrote The Complete Persepolis. I read Persepolis I during the Great Books Program I participated in this past summer.

Marjane Satrapi appeared at the Central Branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia Wednesday evening to not only talk about her graphic novels and this particular medium of telling stories, but to celebrate her book’s selection as part of the 2010 One Book, One Philadelphia. The Complete Persepolis is a graphic novel and memoir of Marjane Satrapi’s life growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution and the war with Iraq, her life in Europe and her return to Iran. It’s a must read. There is also an animated movie of Persepolis which Marjane Satrapi helped to create.

Keep you eyes and ears open to learn of the many events around town sponsored by One Book, One Philadelphia. Its goal is to get the whole city of Philadelphia reading The Complete Persepolis and to learn that the people of Iran are very much like the rest us.

Ringing Out Love-Mary Travers of Peter, Paul & Mary

The main reason why my mom likes me to participate in chorus is because I get to learn and love songs that are not played on the radio or listened to by most of my friends. One of those types of songs I learned at Overbrook Elementary with Mrs. James. It was called If I Had a Hammer and I loved the way Peter, Paul and especially Mary sung this song by Peter Seeger.

Mary Travers died yesterday because of health problems. She was amazing not only because she had a great voice, but because she used her voice to challenge injustice. Today, I’m going to teach my little brother how to sing If I Had a Hammer.

Here is a link to Peter, Paul and Mary singing this song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UKvpONl3No&feature=related

Here are the lyrics to help you sing along. Let’s give a sing-out to Mary.

IF I HAD A HAMMER (The Hammer Song)

words and music by Lee Hays and Pete Seeger

If I had a hammer

I'd hammer in the morning

I'd hammer in the evening

All over this land

I'd hammer out danger

I'd hammer out a warning

I'd hammer out love between my brothers and my sisters

All over this land

If I had a bell

I'd ring it in the morning

I'd ring it in the evening

All over this land

I'd ring out danger

I'd ring out a warning

I'd ring out love between my brothers and my sisters

All over this land

f I had a song

I'd sing it in the morning

I'd sing it in the evening

All over this land

I'd sing out danger

I'd sing out a warning

I'd sing out love between my brothers and my sisters

All over this land

Well I've got a hammer

And I've got a bell

And I've got a song to sing

All over this land

It's the hammer of justice

It's the bell of freedom

It's the song about love between my brothers and my sisters

All over this land

©1958, 1962 (renewed), 1986 (renewed)TRO-Ludlow Music, Inc. (BMI)

Please Act To Save The Free Library Of Philadelphia

Urgent! Urgent! Urgent! Tonight, I went to the Central Branch of the Philadelphia Free Library for a poetry reading. My mother read this evening along with several other female writers as part of an event in celebration of women writers. The event was great, but one of hosts of the evening, poet Tamara Oakman, told the audience that The Philadelphia Free Library’s Central Branch and all other branches are scheduled to close on October 2, 2009 because of lack of funds. I believe the Pennsylvania State budget has not yet been passed.

Follow this link to learn more about these closings and what you can do to help keep our libraries open. I am also asking my readers to share a story of a special time they had in one of the many branches of the Philadelphia Free Library and I will post them and past them on to our elected officials. Here’s the link. Do your duty!!! Let’s act!!!
http://libwww.freelibrary.org/closing/

Happy Birthday, Constitution!

Happy Birthday, Constitution. On the September 17th is Constitution Day. On this date in 1787, the Constitution was adopted right here in Philadelphia. The National Constitution Center is planning lots of activities to commemorate this event. To learn more go its website: http://www.constitutioncenter.org/ncc_progs_Constitution_Day.aspx

One of the planned activities is a naturalization ceremony where immigrants from around the world take the Oath of Citizenship to become citizens of the United States. I attended such a ceremony when my Uncle Osman became a citizen. It was an awesome experience for me to witness this.

Now, I’m curious! How many of you could pass the test to become a United States citizen? Here is the link to some sample questions found on the Naturalization Test.
Let me know how you performed.
http://www.constitutioncenter.org/naturalization-test/

Teenager: Anne Frank-Up on the Roof

This past Saturday, I was on top of the city, standing on the rooftop of the Parkway House apartment building, 13 stories high. The open space and the breathtaking view of Philadelphia’s nighttime skyline made me feel invincible and that all things were possible for me. I took this seemingly indomitable energy and sat down on a milk crate, alongside other audience members and we watched an actress, Anna Watson, transform into a girl just a year and some months older than me. There was Anne Frank, 15, all teenager, contained in an 8-foot-by-8 foot cube, telling us of her life in hiding from the Nazis.

The contrast between the open space of the rooftop and Anne’s cage-like cube made a physical impression on me; made me appreciate the physical restrictions of Anne’s life in hiding. But the play, Teenager: Anne Frank, presented by the 2009 Philadelphia Fringe Festival and Theatre In Between , made Anne Frank more of person I could identify with as a teenager. As a result of reading The Diary of Anne Frank, Anne was always a heroine to me, someone completely out of my league. But this play, directed by Frank Bruckner, makes Anne a girl who shares the same interests and problems that I have. When we first meet Anne, she is excited about her first kiss with Peter van Pels. She’s excited by love just as she is often angry at her mother for numerous things. Does this sound familiar? This is the success of Teenager: Anne Frank; the play makes Anne so familiar and Anna Watson’s portrayal of Anne makes her someone that you genuinely care about.

I find now that my reaction to Anne’s life and death and the Holocaust, in general, is much stronger because I can see myself in Anne Frank. This play should definitely be seen by young students to not only make them care about Anne, but to help them begin to think of ways to challenge injustice and intolerance.

I would like to thank Richard Watson for giving me the opportunity to review this play.

Show Details
September 15-20, 2009

8pm (all dates)

Runtime: 60 minutes

Price: $15

Location: Parkway House, 2201 Pennsylvania Ave, Philadelphia,PA

For Tickets: call 215-847-7365 or visit the Philly Fringe website

Teenager: Anne Frank Presented by the 2009 Philly Fringe Festival

Understanding the horror of the Holocaust is difficult for any decent human being, but it is especially hard for children to process this event. I find reading books or seeing films that are from the perspective of young people about their Holocaust experience makes history real and relevant for me. Reading books like The Boy in the Striped Pajamas or The Devil’s Arithmetic helped me to care about what happened in the past and makes me challenge intolerance now. Of course, the book most of us read as our introduction to the Holocaust was Anne Frank’s Diary. How we all loved Anne and sympathized with her. It was Anne who caused me to start to care about injustice and intolerance.

But Anne was also a teenager. I can’t imagine coming into my own sense of myself under the circumstances Anne did. Thanks to actress Anna Watson and director Frank Bruckner audiences can get a glimpse of Anne Frank, the teenager and not simply Anne Frank, the icon.

As part of the 2009 Philadelphia Fringe Festival, Teenager: Anne Frank will be presented. I will review the play for you in a couple of days. In the meantime, here is more information about the play.

Teenager: Anne Frank (Philly Fringe Festival)
Performed entirely in a PVC cube, on the roof of a 13-story building, this one-woman show explores the awakening sexuality, isolation, and hopes of the teenager who became the iconic Anne Frank. Presented by the German artists, actress Anna Watson and director Frank Brückner, as part of the 2009 Philly Live Arts & Fringe Festival.

SHOW DETAILS 8:00pm, Sept 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18

Parkway House, 2201 Pennsylvania Ave.

Tickets: $15 general / $10 students Call 215-847-7365 or

go to THEATRE INBETWEEN to learn more

*Painting 'The Face of the Holocaust" by Aaron Douglass

Photo-Anne Frank

Photo- Anna Watson performing in Teenager:Anne Franck