Luncheon talk celebrates the power of stories

Jeanette Ingold and Bruce Coville, the speakers at the Young Adult Literature Luncheon held Tuesday at IRA's 51st Annual Convention, told the assembled conferees about how they became writers, and in the process offered insights into the ways literature engages readers' emotions.

Ingold, who discovered her love of writing while working as a newspaper reporter, has written nonfiction books that she says help young people understand that life is sometimes difficult, but other young people have reacted to challenges with bravery and dignity.

Coville described his reaction to the first time his father read to him. The book he read, a Tom Swift novel, was not great literature, but Coville said he "was caught and held by that story. It swept me away to another world."

Reading is often promoted for its practical usefulness in career success, and its pleasures are given less emphasis, Coville said. But he pointed out that no 8-year-olds care what college they will go to. The pleasure they take in reading is what spurs their efforts to read better. "Story is the key," he said. "It's how we engage kids." He added that children enjoy fun books more than the uplifting ones they are often given, but those same fun books should have enough depth to extend their understanding.