Mind the Middle Project: Long Form Nonfiction, Authors Weigh In (part 2), a guest post by author Deborah Hopkinson

When I set out to write a guest post about long form nonfiction for middle grade and young teen readers for SLJ’s Teen Librarian Toolbox, I didn’t realize how much I (and others) would have to say! So, welcome to the second part of this discussion, and once again, thanks to friends and colleagues for sharing their observations on this topic.

In Part One, we ended with SLJ Heavy Medal blog moderator Steven Engelfried noting that nonfiction titles don’t seem to generate much interest from the community of educators and book enthusiasts who participate in Heavy Medal mock Newbery discussions.  

Our focus in Part Two will be on hearing from authors and highlighting some new and recent titles that I hope will spur readers’ interest—and perhaps expand awareness of some of the exceptional titles they might have missed.

I’d like to set the stage with some thoughts about middle grade nonfiction and educators’ role in promoting it from my fellow Oregonian, Dr. Marie A. LeJeune, Associate Dean of Clinical Practices and Partnerships and Professor of Literacy Education at Western Oregon University.

“So much of students’ reading is inspired by what we, as educators, model for them. Our book talks, classroom libraries, literature circle selections, etc. influence what students pick up and what ‘sells’ them on literature. If we don’t include long form nonfiction in those selections—if we don’t promote it, assign it, and talk about it, many students will miss out on the amazing texts available to them,” said Marie.

“This is regrettable when so many students love nonfiction and so much great nonfiction is written for them as readers. Although excerpts can be fine in spaces throughout the curriculum, students also need opportunities to read full length long-form nonfiction as this is what will enthuse and grow readers much more than a short excerpt will. Longer selections not only increase reading stamina, they provide connections to other content area subjects and relate deeply to topics students are passionate about.  

“Long form nonfiction also provides spaces for us to model and discuss the research process, particularly interesting and essential within the world of AI. Some educators I’ve spoken with have the mistaken understanding that nonfiction authors for children or adults may ‘invent’ some aspects of the text; when I insist that actually all the authors I know who write for young adults are scrupulously accurate in their research (and their backmatter and acknowledgments), many are surprised to hear that children’s nonfiction adheres to the same rules of all nonfiction—no content can be re-imagined or invented,” Marie said.

“This then is an essential model for adolescent writers who need to learn the rules around nonfiction writing—not only for their own writing but for the reading they will do to educate themselves about important facts in science, history, politics, etc.”

Authors Weigh In

Along with discussing the health of long form nonfiction, I wanted SLJ Teen Librarian Toolbox readers to hear from authors. I also wanted to highlight just a few recent and new books—books that I hope adult readers will want to enjoy, share, and talk about. So I’m delighted to share the perspectives of several incredible authors who write long form. We’ll begin with someone who brings the highest standards of research and writing to everything she does: award-winning author Candace Fleming.

Candace Fleming

“I don’t read nonfiction,” is a sentence I hear repeatedly. – Candace Fleming

“I’ve been thinking a lot about my job lately. Why do I bother to write nonfiction, especially long form nonfiction?  It doesn’t appear, at least from where I’m sitting, that it’s a particularly popular genre. Kids are forever telling me they hate history.  Sometimes, an adult will, too.  “I don’t read nonfiction,” is a sentence I hear repeatedly. So why don’t I just toss in the towel and write something else? 

“Because I can’t.  Not only do I enjoy the creative challenge of long form narrative nonfiction (and it is a creative endeavor), I also believe it has an important purpose. Let’s face it, kids literally have all the facts to hand. But those facts lack context. What do they mean?  What’s the bigger story? That’s where long form nonfiction comes in. It provides badly needed context, and it does it in ways that even the best nonfiction picture books cannot.

“Now, don’t get me wrong.  Nonfiction picture books are great – I write them myself. But the book’s form (illustrated, typically 32 pages) is self-limiting. An author can do little more than tell a slice of the story. Context is minimal, and the darker aspects of the story are usually ignored.

“But when I write long-form nonfiction the world is my oyster (well… if it’s true and properly attributed). I can tell a layered, more expansive, fuller account.  For example, in Enigma Girls: How Ten Teenagers Broke Ciphers, Kept Secrets and Helped Win World War II, I not only chronicle personal lives of a handful of young women, but I set their lives against the backdrop of major World War II events, and I show how their secret work at Bletchley Park influenced happenings hundreds of miles away.  I couldn’t have done that with a shorter form.

“Additionally, by writing narratively, I can make the unfamiliar world of codebreaking commonplace for modern-day readers. I can write so the story unravels in the reader’s mind like a novel does. To do that, I use the same craft as fiction writers; use of quotations as dialogue, using simple, direct exposition when filling in backstory, using scenes, especially transitional ones to make the story move. I spend a lot of time looking up the weather on certain dates, or peering at photographs to add authentic, sensory detail. And I break up chapters into readable bites so that the story maintains a brisk pace that draws readers on with ease.

“Last, but not least, long form nonfiction allows me to delve into the darker aspects of a topic. I believe young readers deserve the whole truth, now more than ever.  We can’t just ignore parts of the story that we might find unsavory.  In our past, we can discover the answers to our most persistent questions.  We can learn how to live in the here-and-now, but we must be willing to look at the whole.  The truth isn’t just found the glory of history.  More often it’s found in its ugliness.  Charles Lindbergh was a white supremacist.  Eleanor Roosevelt was an antisemite until she grew in understanding.  Benjamin Franklin owned enslaved persons.  What do readers make of that?  How do those facets fit with what they already? 

“Too often we teach history as little more than a string of heroes who triumphed over hardship. But that isn’t history. That’s passive reverence. Shouldn’t history involve rigorous inquiry?  I believe so.  History should be disputed and debated, its premised questioned and examined, its arguments countered. Long-form nonfiction allows me to introduce provocative questions and invite readers to draw their own conclusions.  I purposefully do not connect all the dots for them – as if that’s even possible.  Rather, I present the story as honestly and fully as possible, then trust them to grapple with the complexities and complications, the contradiction and messiness.

“That’s history as inquiry—invigorating, interactive, connective, personal.  And that’s why I can’t stop writing narrative, long form nonfiction.  It’s too important.  It’s also good reading.”  

Elizabeth Rusch on The Twenty-One: The True Story of the Youth Who Sued the U.S. Government Over Climate Change

“Middle grade and early teen readers devour long novels with developed characters, plots, action, and meaningful themes. I wanted to give them all this plus an important true story in my recent nonfiction book The Twenty-One: The true story of the youth who sued the U.S. government over climate change, which brings to life the ongoing federal climate change lawsuit Juliana v. United States. The “characters” are all real people.

“To tell the story I interviewed in-depth five of the young plaintiffs in the case and curated moments to help readers understand and engage with each as the case unfolds. Another major “character” is Julia Olson, the small-town environmental lawyer taking on the powerful and well-funding U.S. government. She and the youth are like the Erin Brockovich of climate change.

“The “plot” is the battle of the case, so I wrote it like a legal thriller with the true-to-life twists and cliff hangers that the young people faced. There are also subplots of what’s happening the kids lives and actions that they take outside the case (struggles with friends, school, a broken arm, an arrest.) Themes of fighting against all odds, working together to make change, and identity and self-determination hum throughout the book.

“Yes, young readers will learn about the climate change, the U.S. Constitution, the three branches of government, and the legal system, but what will sear the material into their minds is caring about these incredible young people and the sacrifices and challenges they have faced. Rather than just inform young readers I hope the book inspires them.”

Pamela S. Turner on How to Build a Human: In Seven Evolutionary Steps

“I don’t think there’s any substitute for long form nonfiction. My book How to Build a Human: In Seven Evolutionary Steps focuses on the seven most important physical and cognitive changes to the human lineage over the past seven million years.

“And yes, I could have delivered the material in little bites, substituted infographics for text, and created a catchy collection of factoids. But I wanted my reader to develop an emotional connection to our ancient ancestors; I wanted my reader to be moved by their struggles and recognize the humanity in the not-quite-human. I wanted my reader to understand not just the bare bones of evolution, but its complexities and nuances.

“Long form nonfiction allowed me to create a narrative arc that provided a scientific story with meaning and context. It’s certainly no coincidence that final step in How to Build a Human is: “We Become Storytellers.” Ever since the first group of humans told a hunting story around a campfire, we’ve been using long form narrative as a memorable way of sharing information others need to know.”

New and Forthcoming Titles

There is an incredible array of new nonfiction books being published by some of the most talented writers working today. The ever-amazing Steve Sheinkin continues to dazzle readers with compelling nonfiction titles, including Impossible Escape: A True Story of Survival and Heroism in Nazi Europe, a Sydney Taylor Book Award Honor Book. And here are just two noteworthy titles coming in early 2024: American Wings: Chicago’s Pioneering Black Aviators and the Race for Equality in the Sky, is a collaboration by award-winning authors Sherri L. Smith and Elizabeth Wein released in January 2024. This is an exciting look at the hidden history of pioneering Black men and women in aviation, which features rare historical photographs.

Another dynamic collaboration, out in April 2024, is Made in Asian America: A History for Young People by three-time Newbery honoree Christina Soontornvat and award-winning historian Erika Lee. This book shines a light on the generations of Asian Americans who have transformed the United States and continue to shape what it means to be American.

Also in April from Joshua M. Greene and Scholastic Focus is The Girl Who Fought Back: Vladka Meed and the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. This is the true story of a young Jewissh woman instrumental in the uprising. Vladka and her husband, Benjamin later were among the founders of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. (I can’t wait to read this one as I wrote about Vladka in We Must Not Forget: Holocaust Stories of Survival and Resistance.)

A Final Personal Note

I stumbled into long form nonfiction twenty years ago. While working on a historical fiction book about the Triangle factory fire, I had compiled so much research I proposed a middle grade nonfiction book to my editor, Lisa Sandell. Shutting out the Sky: Life in the Tenements of New York, 1880-1924 was published in 2003. I’ve been fortunate to work with Lisa on a dozen long form titles since then.

In Fall of 2018, Scholastic launched a narrative nonfiction imprint, Scholastic Focus, with Lisa as editorial director. She notes, “We started Scholastic Focus with the intention of helping to equip young readers with knowledge—historical and contemporary—as well as the analytical and critical thinking skills necessary for forming their own opinions and ideas and participating in the big discussions of our day.”

To find Scholastic Focus titles, some of which include downloadable educator guides, visit: https://www.scholastic.com/site/scholastic-focus.html. 

A final personal note. The question Candy posed is mine as well: “Why do I bother to write nonfiction, especially long form nonfiction?”  Along with the excellent reasons she enumerates, I would add another, simple one: When I engage deeply with history, I learn so much. I always tell students at author visits that when you write about something, it helps you learn. And the joy of learning is lifelong.

As a writer, it is an honor to bear witness to the past. I try to connect my readers with the individuals they’re reading about by including links to oral histories and interviews. I want them to touch the past.

Most of all, I want young readers to know that it takes courage to tell a personal story, and that their own stories and their family’s story are important. Without that courage, without the experiences and voices of individuals, we only get part of history. As Dr. Carter G. Woodson wrote in 1940, “The teaching of the whole truth will help us in the direction of a real democracy.”

My next long form narrative nonfiction for middle grade readers is forthcoming in 2024. In October, Scholastic Focus will publish They Saved the Stallions, part of a series entitled “World War II Close Up.” I hope this book about the rescue of the Lipizzaner horses of the Spanish Riding School will appeal to a wide range of readers. It includes a special contribution by Candy Fleming, who attended a performance in Vienna and shares that experience. It includes photos from the families of US servicemen who risked their lives to, as one put it, “do something beautiful.”

And while I’d love to tell you more about Stallions right now, all this blog post writing has made me behind on my next book. So I’d better get back to it.

Thank you for reading—and thank you for all you do for young readers. 

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Deborah Hopkinson is the author of many books for young readers including picture books, middle grade historical fiction, and long form nonfiction. She lives in Oregon. You can find more about Deborah Hopkinson and her books at https://deborahhopkinson.com/about/

Filed under: Middle Grade, Mind the Middle, Mind the Middle Project, Nonfiction