A conversation between Sofie Dardzinski, 13, and Emma Hoff, 12, discussing Hoff’s poetry collection, An Archeology of the Future.
book contest
Your Saturday Newsletter: June 1, 2024
Spoons (pen and watercolor) by John Gabriel Sperl, 11; published in the May/June 2024 issue of Stone Soup A note from Emma Wood Hello, Stone Soup readers! As many of you know, Conner and I both teach English to undergraduates at Xavier University in Cincinnati. Our semester ended in early May, and while, yes, we have been relaxing a bit, enjoying spending more time outside—running, hiking, and exploring various parks with our kids—we were both extremely excited to have some extra time for… more work! But work of a different kind: our various personal writing projects. It’s often difficult to know how to classify creative work—though it often feels like play, it can look an awful lot like work, and though it can look like play once it’s on the page, it often feels like work in the process. That said, the less time I have (and we do not currently have much time in this phase of our lives!), the more I value the time I am able to devote to my creative work—and the better I become at using that time effectively. I hope many of you will take your summer break not only to rest and recharge but also to devote yourself to your own personal work—whether that’s poetry or painting, songwriting or dancing, or everything in between. To help facilitate this creative work-play, you might consider signing up for a summer camp with Society of Young Inklings. There is something for everyone—filmmaking, playwriting, novel writing, short fiction, poetry writing, literary editing, writing memoir, and more. These classes are filled with such fun, enthusiastic, smart, creative kids excited to make and discuss art—I love teaching them and hope to meet some of you there. Spaces are limited, so be sure to sign up soon! I also have other news to share with you: a few weeks ago, I let you know that the annual book contest was being delayed. I regret to inform you that we have decided not to hold the contest this year; we are taking the year off so that we can reevaluate and improve the experience for young writers. Nurturing young writers through the book contest has been such a rewarding part of Stone Soup for all of us on the team, and we look forward to bringing the contest back stronger than ever next year. As we dive into this summer of creativity, I’m excited to see the incredible stories, plays, poems, and films that you all produce. Thank you for being part of the Stone Soup community, and here’s to a summer filled with inspiration and storytelling! Warmly, Executive Director, Stone Soup Explore our summer camps Playwriting June 17–20; 9–11 am PT The goal of this course led by Conner Bassett is to produce one 10-minute play. To help you do this, we will approach playwriting as a form of craft—grounded in dialogue, character, voice, setting, tone, conflict, action, and plot structure. This workshop will also emphasize a play’s arc: its beginning, turning point, and ending. Reality Hunger: An Introduction to Memoir June 24–27; 9–11 am PT In this class, led by Emma Wood, Executive Director of Stone Soup, we will read and write memoir and personal essays—in short form. We will consider how they work, ask questions about the ethical aspects of writing nonfiction (What if my mom reads it? What if I hurt someone’s feelings? What if my memory is “wrong”?), and—most importantly—experiment in the form with daily in-class writing prompts, sharing our work in a supportive, fun community. Literature in Miniature: A Study of Micro Fiction & Prose Poetry June 24–27; 1–3 pm PT Sometimes, the biggest ideas are best expressed in the tiniest of forms. In this workshop taught by former Stone Soup Blog Editor Caleb Berg, you will learn to condense your horizons into a style of writing perfected by writers like Lydia Davis, Daniil Kharms, Gertrude Stein, and many others. You will write multiple discrete pieces per day and finish the class with enough writing to fill up a chapbook. Intro to Poetry: The Image and the Line July 22–25; 9–11 am PT Emma Wood will also teach a class on poetry. Immerse yourself in what a poem is and what it can do. Students will write their own poetry, shaking themselves out of established modes of thinking. Filmmaking as Dialogue August 5–9; 9–11 am PT In this class taught by filmmaker Isidore Bethel, we’ll use the camera to facilitate and enrich our interactions with others – friends, family, animals, plants, and the world around us. Writing texts with a partner, recording and sharing short videos, and interpreting their meanings aloud will be starting points for developing individual and collaborative approaches to filmmaking. Editing and Revising Fiction August 5–9; 1–3 pm PT In this class taught by Stone Soup Editor in Chief Diane Landolf, you’ll learn how to think like an editor and make your stories the best they can be. We’ll discuss first paragraphs, character development, dialogue, story arc, and what makes a great sentence. Click here to peruse the entire selection of camps available; our friends at Society of Young Inklings are teaching a variety of additional courses, and more courses will be announced soon! Stone Soup is published by Children’s Art Foundation-Stone Soup Inc., a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit organization registered in the United States of America, EIN: 23-7317498.
The Pipe Tree, Reviewed by Jeremy Lim, 11
When Ecláir the sparrow is forcefully shoved into a life in a cage, it is like a storm has come and swept away everything he has ever known. After years of living free in the wild, Ecláir is now entrapped inside an constricting and inescapable prison. But when his captor, a woman coined as “the handkerchief woman,” starts bribing Ecláir with muffins and bombarding him with stories from her daily life, he starts to grudgingly make a hesitant friendship with her. Such begins The Pipe Tree, the moving debut novel by Lily Jensen. It portrays the protagonist coming to terms with an uncertain future and friendship, with the easy choice between freedom and life behind bars suddenly becoming almost impossible as the relationship between the two becomes more and more complex. In short chapters set at Ecláir’s present-day Portland, Maine, he narrates the story of how the friendship between him and the handkerchief woman came to be, and what further steps he should take to gain trust- and potentially a route to freedom. Some of the novel, however, addresses the question of freedom itself, and testing whether their friendship is strong enough to hold themselves together. As a wild, pastry-loving sparrow, Ecláir easily falls to the temptation of a sweet treat, especially ecláirs and blueberry muffins. When he arrives at the apartment, he easily feels out of place, trapped in a mysterious world. Looking for potential ways to escape, he starts closely observing the woman’s routine, and the house around him. When, on the first few days after capture, he immediately notices the lack of extravagance in the apartment, especially when it comes to the dinners, in which the woman eats cereal. But Ecláir is particularly moved by the way the woman seemed to be missing something, just like he himself, something expressed in the way she talks and sings. Ecláir sees the sadness in her actions. Over the course of the next year or so, Ecláir and the woman find themselves intertwined in a friendship and history with connections far deeper than what meets the eye. Both sacrifice what is quite dear to them for the other in this heartbreaking friendship that was not meant to be. Ecláir sings for the woman every day, staying obedient otherwise, while the woman spends her tight supply of money for pastries and food for Ecláir. But escape is imminent as time ticks before a new cage is built, one with no physical bars anymore- but instead mental ones. As Lily King, the author of Euphoria and The English Teacher stated perfectly: “The Pipe Tree is a powerful act of imagination. Through the eyes of a bird, Lily Jessen explores the truths and contradictions of human nature in a tale full of humor, delight, and deep understanding.” While the Pipe Tree lies from the viewpoint of a carefree sparrow, Lily Jensen has tapped into a universal connection facing the importance of freedom and friendship with consequences and if well-meant acts of love can actually hurt the other, as well as yourself. The Pipe Tree by Lily Jessen. Children’s Art Foundation – Stone Soup Inc., 2024. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process!
