Go to a safe place outdoors, sit somewhere, and close your eyes. Spend several minutes listening for all the sounds you can hear, and pay close attention to what you can smell in the air. When you open your eyes again, write some notes. Later, use those notes to write a poem or a personal narrative about your experience of the place through those two senses (smell and hearing).
Stone Soup Magazine for young readers, writers, and artists
Tiny Pretty Things, Reviewed by April, 13
From the outside, Manhattan’s most elite ballet academy is the epitome of perfection. Hundreds of girls masquerade in pink skirts and tight buns, their makeup heavy and smiles bright as they maneuver the many classrooms—arms graceful, legs light. People flock from far and wide to watch their esteemed seasonal productions. But, underneath the facade of beauty lies the dark side of ballet: the tear-soaked pillows, the bleeding feet, the spoons over eyes that have received barely an hour of sleep. For a few minutes under the spotlight, these young adults will do just about anything. But how far is too far? In Tiny Pretty Things by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton, three students from the ballet academy alternatively narrate a haunting tale of the things ballerinas do after dark. Bette is the first narrator. It’s fitting, really, since she’s been first her entire life—lead roles in all the ballets, a handsome boyfriend, a face that can charm, and a mouth that can manipulate. But then comes Gigi, the new girl at the academy. Optimistic and bubbly, Gigi brings Bette’s life crashing down when she lands the role of Odette in the fall production of Swan Lake. Suddenly, Bette’s pushed into the background along with June, the third narrator. Unlike Bette, June has always been the understudy, never good enough to land the best roles. But like Bette, she suddenly has reason to sabotage Gigi. If Gigi is taken down, Bette can gain back her pride, and June will gain the lead role she has always vied for. It’s time to sabotage their way to the top… As Bette, June, and a handful of other students scheme against Gigi, Gigi’s paranoia whirls out of control. She tries to maintain her composure, but when is it her turn to strike back? Swan Lake is drawing ever closer, and one ballerina must dance the part of Odette. Ballet isn’t just pointe shoes and pink lipstick—it’s about fighting your way to the top, no matter how many people you push aside on the way. Tiny Pretty Things was a truly addictive novel. From the lyrical writing style to the fantastic world-building, I couldn’t detach myself from the chaotic beauty of it all. What I loved most was that none of the characters were perfect—far from it—but the authors still managed to make me like them, despite their flaws. Especially Bette. She was vindictive, backstabbing, clingy, et cetera, et cetera, but heaven knows she was the most interesting character in the book. I also appreciated the heavier themes discussed in this novel. Situations involving racism and eating disorders, among others, were handled with care and awareness. Even just the competitiveness was admirable to me. It’s rare for a book to be so unfiltered and raw about negative human inclinations, yet this one depicted them perfectly. It’s certainly not pretty, but it’s real, which makes the book all the more fascinating to read. The one thing I would say is that, due to all the drama, the book moved at breakneck speed. There wasn’t much time for me to comprehend and react to the many sabotages, surprises, and romances. While it did amp up the intensity, it mostly had me scrambling to keep up with the events. Overall, however, this was an absolutely gorgeous novel brimming with action and emotion. If the premise of smiling, lipsticked ballerinas stabbing each other in the back (figuratively, of course!) isn’t enough to entice you, I hope the mention of multifaceted characters and moving writing will convince you to give this a try. Just make sure to brace yourself—especially for the cliffhanger at the end. Don’t say I didn’t warn you! Tiny Pretty Things by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton. Halperteen, 2016. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process!
Saturday Newsletter: September 11, 2021
BlueJay (Watercolor) By Zoe Campbell, 11 (San Francisco, CA) & published in the September 2021 Issue of Stone Soup A note from Emma Good morning, everyone! I’d like to thank William for his wonderful video celebrating the publication of Tristan’s novel last week. I have written about her novel a number of times—but in short, it is truly a wonderful read and an excellent book. I am so excited to share it with you and encourage you to go support this young author by buying your copy now. Refugee Project Fundraiser Overall, we are so thrilled at the response we’ve had to our refugee project fundraiser. Thank you to everyone who has donated so far! As further incentive, we’d like to announce that Spencer and Sabrina Guo—a former Stone Soup contributor and intern who was instrumental in launching the project—have generously offered to make a $3,000 matching donation. Thank you, Spencer and Sabrina! Classes Classes began today! Thank you to everyone who signed up and showed up. We are so exciting to spend this fall making art with you. For those of you who missed the initial call, please know that there is still space to sign up and that classes will be prorated accordingly. Weekend Project Right now, I’d like you to scroll down and read Benjamin Ding’s poem “Materialism.” . . . . . . Okay, welcome back. I love how this poem so perfectly pinpoints the absurdity of the world we live in—a world where we worry about our houses and work hard to make them livable while ignoring our larger home, the Earth, and all of its incredible inhabitants. Why do we spend money to repair an air conditioner, a machine that is itself contributing to the extinction of species like the Asian elephant, when we could get rid of the AC and donate that money to an animal conservation project? Benjamin calls this phenomenon “materialism.” Materialism is simply when our desire to buy and own things is greater than our desire to accrue experiences and strengthen relationships. In the US, we have a very materialistic society: many people work very hard so they can earn money and buy things. The time they spend working is time they cannot spend with their family or friends, or exploring new places, or reading books they love, or wondering about “species / on the verge of extinction.” While it is very hard to go against the current of mainstream culture, I urge you to try! As for your weekend project: I invite you to create a work inspired by a concept. This concept could be “materialism,” as in Benjamin’s poem, or it could be something totally different—maybe even one you don’t even understand, like string theory! It can also be something simpler, such as culture, family, happiness, love, time, reality, sanity, safety, or work. Try to think about what these things actually are to you versus what they are understood to be in our culture—and then write (or draw) around those ideas. Until next week, Back-to-School Sale Through 11:59pm Pacific Time, September 15th, take 25% all annual subscriptions when you use the code SCHOOL21 at checkout! Refugee Project Dear friends and supporters of Stone Soup, Since the launch of the Refugee Project, we have partnered with seven organizations providing on-the-ground support to children living in refugee camps, as well as those resettled in host countries. Through these partnerships, we have collected over 300 pieces of artwork and writing by refugee youth. These creative works are currently on display in our newly created web portal for the project, which you can explore here. As we have said many times before, the media so often portrays refugee youth as the subject of a narrative. The Stone Soup Refugee Project provides a platform for these young people to tell their own stories, in their own voices. To make this vision a reality, we need your help. We have set ourselves a target goal of $10,000 to pilot the program. These funds will go toward the development of workshops delivered to young people in refugee camps, the facilitation of creative exchanges between young people, and the work of collecting and publishing more material on the Refugee Project website. In addition, funds will be used to support our Refugee Project contributing organizations and the young people they serve in the ways in which they deem valuable, such as the purchase of supplies and possible scholarship funds. —Laura Moran, Refugee Project Director Contest News Flash Contest #35: Write a story about you, but in a parallel universe where you had a different life. Don’t forget to submit to this month’s Flash Contest, provided by contributor Molly Torinus, before tomorrow at midnight! To submit to this contest, please visit our Submittable page. Selfie Contest Since Stone Soup’s last selfie contest in 2017, the selfie has taken on a new form: the masked selfie. That’s why we’re enlisting you to participate in our 2021 Selfie Contest: With and Without Masks. As has always been the case, we want these selfies to tell us a story. Think about how masks can both aid and make more difficult the expression of thoughts and feelings. How can you show us who you are behind the mask, and how can you build off of that image once the mask disappears, or vice versa? Get creative! Try something you’ve never thought to try before! Surprise us, and—most importantly—surprise yourself! You may submit up to four selfies: two with a mask and two without. Deadline: October 3, 2021 To submit to this contest, please visit our Submittable page. Highlights from the past week online Don’t miss the latest content from our Book Reviewers and Young Bloggers at Stonesoup.com! Young Blogger Sofie Dardzinski wrote two beautiful and inspirational poems: one, “The Common Worker,” in celebration of Labor Day, and the other, “Coming Together,” about addressing climate change. Anandi, 11, wrote a scintillating essay in argument against Idaho’s transgender sports ban, “Brain, Not Body.” From Stone Soup September 2021
