This year has been pretty nutso. All the chaos and news demanding our attention can make reading new books hard – at least it has for me. I’ve found myself turning more and more to books, movies and TV shows that I’ve already experienced – for comfort, for predictability, for the relaxation that comes with knowing what’s next.
Well, we Pennies decided that re-reading might make a fun series of posts. So welcome to the first in our new semi-regular series: Blast from the Past.
The gist: We will occasionally read (or listen) to a book we had loved as children but have not re-visited as adult writers. And then we’ll tell you about it.
How did the story hold up? Is the magic still there? What differences do we notice, both cultural and in storytelling techniques and how we respond as adult writers? Would our childhood faves appeal to kids today?
I’m starting out (and dating myself!) with The Girl With the Silver Eyes, by Willo Davis Roberts – a book Small Me read so obsessively that when I listened to the audiobook, I could still recite lines before they were read.
The Girl With the Silver Eyes is about a lonely nine-year-old who can move things with her mind. She discovers that there may be other kids like her and sets out to find them.
Culture Shock
Small Me thought the setting and the behavior of the adults and other children seemed very authentic, aside from the whole telekinesis thing. (I will admit to spending many hours in my bedroom trying to develop my own telekinesis abilities…sadly, that pencil I practiced on never budged once!)
Reading the book now, though, I found the cultural cues from 1980 America almost completely foreign.
The main character, Katie Welker, is a peculiar child who reads a lot, doesn’t ever cry or show emotion, and makes most adults and other children very uncomfortable – including her parents. A kid who acted like her today would likely have a team of specialists and an individual educational plan, but no one even considered taking Katie to the doctor for evaluation. And no one seemed particularly concerned about her feelings, only the feelings she engendered in them.
The way her mother treated her was borderline neglectful. As a kid raised in that era, I know that was pretty normal back then. (As evidenced by the many hours Small Me spent alone practicing telekinesis!) But it’s hard to imagine a 2020’s kid reading it and relating to how alone and unscheduled Katie is. The offhand mentions of child-free apartments and “people don’t really like kids” sentiments were absolutely a thing in the ‘80s, but seem bizarre now.
The most difficult thing to re-read was the few instances of blatant and very uncomfortable fat-shaming in the book. No wonder so many of us grew up with huge complexes about our weight! And while the attractive people were invariably good and decent, the ugly, bald or pudgy ones were definitely not. Gross!
The Good
The silver eyes thing is a great cue that something is off about Katie. It gives every person she sees something to react to immediately, which is fun. And the telekinesis! (Small Me tried so hard but my pencil never even twitched! So disappointing!)
The action was driven by Katie and her interpretations and misinterpretations of the world around her. The writing was accessible, but it included a lot of great vocabulary to challenge kids. There was some mild mystery and danger that for small me was probably heart-thumping.
The standout for me was how vivid and distinct the characters were. Aside from the aforementioned attractiveness principle, the author did an amazing job of painting personalities with just a few spare words. I was reminded of the acting advice to make sure your character is listening and responding to what they hear when other characters are talking – Roberts’ told so much about her characters through their reactions to the people around them.
The Less Good
The action unfolded pretty slowly. It is a short book, and it really doesn’t even get going until the 2nd half. The first half is jam-packed with flashbacks and some (kind of boring) exposition. I found myself wanting to race through a couple of sections.
Worse, it cuts out right when Katie finds the other kids and they discover that they can pool their powers to make them stronger. That’s it. Then the book is over! It was like ending Star Wars after Luke learns that tiny bit of The Force on the Millennium Falcon. I wanted more!
The Bottom Line
It brought back some of my childhood out of the past, and I pulled some good techniques I’m putting to use in my WIP. Plus, it reminded me to keep practicing…you never know when my latent talent for telekinesis might emerge!
We’d love to hear about your Blast from the Past reads, too. Have you revisited an old favorite? What did you think? Tell us in the comments or shoot us an email!