I Am a Pencil

"When worn-down and somewhat cranky children's-book writer Sam Swope agreed to give a writing workshop in Queens, he became so energized by his twenty-eight students that he "adopted" the class. For three years, he became their writer-in-residence, guiding them through cosmic adventures and too-real troubles as they began to compose the crazy, magical, and often moving stories of their lives. Almost all the students were new Americans - there were kids from twenty-one countries, who spoke a total of eleven different languages - and Swope was drawn deep into their real and imaginary existences, their problems, hopes, fears, and fantasies." "In I Am a Pencil, Swope follows his troop through all the trials and triumphs of their days together, coaxing out words and feelings; watching talents blossom, explode, and sometimes fizzle; holding his breath as the children's families brave new lives in the big, strange city. Moving from nature poems, to metaphors, autobiography, and beyond, Swope shows the children how to deal with their experiences by being creative." "Along the way we meet MeiKai, whose mom is a Taoist priest, ruled by the dictates of the Queen Mother of the West; Aaron, who