An Interview with Author Jeannine Atkins
Jeannine Atkins is the author of several historical fiction books and biographies for young people, including Aani and the Treehuggers , Becoming Little Women , and Mary Anning and the Sea Dragon . Here Jeannine talks about her latest title, Anne Hutchinson's Way . I'm not sure if we choose our stories or if they choose us. What was the case with Anne Hutchinson's Way ? My heart seems to beat a bit harder when I hear of someone who does something great and never got quite enough attention for that feat, or was too much forgotten. While Anne Hutchinson’s name appears in many American history textbooks, I wanted to give her a book of her own which could bring out more aspects of her uncommon courage. What were the challenges in bringing Anne's story to life for children? Picture books, even those aimed at readers age six and up, don’t often deal with the finer points of Puritan theology or colonial laws! I tried to simplify these issues and still give them respect. How w...