Book Review: October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard by Leslea Newman
I first heard about October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard from Terri Lessene at the 2012 YALSA YA Literature Symposium, who described it by saying:
My heart sank when I heard that. Matthew Shepard’s story was pivotal for me and many of my contemporaries. I was two years younger, three inches taller, and twenty pounds heavier than him when this slight, bright, trusting young gay man was beaten to death in a hate crime that would later play a part in national hate crime legislation. A number of of my friends and classmates were in the midst of coming out, and Matthew Shepard’s murder was a shattering event.
With the passage of time, most names and lives and stories will be forgotten, but this is one name, life, story, that needs to remain in the public memory, and this slim volume is a beautiful, powerful way to aid in this.
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Filed under: A Song for Matthew Shepard, Book Reviews, GLBTQ, Matthew Shepard, Nonfiction, October Mourning, Poetry

About Karen Jensen, MLS
Karen Jensen has been a Teen Services Librarian for almost 32 years. She created TLT in 2011 and is the co-editor of The Whole Library Handbook: Teen Services with Heather Booth (ALA Editions, 2014).
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Thank you for sharing this.
You're very welcome.
I got chills just reading your review.
Thanks for reading, Anique!
And just as an FYI, it was named a Stonewall Honor Award for the Children's Award and on the Rainbow Project (http://www.ala.org/news/pr?id=12331 and glbtrt.ala.org/rainbowbooks)