Fresh Approaches: Scholastic Relaunches 'Dear America'

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By Joy Fleishhacker March 22, 2011

Many a middle grade reader has taken his or her first steps into historical fiction—and perhaps had a first look at a particular historical event or period—by enjoying a volume in the popular and much-lauded "Dear America" series. Written in diary format and told from the point of view of girls living at different times throughout American history, these books have long been staples on library and classroom shelves.

This past fall, Scholastic began a relaunch of the series that combines all-new titles with reissues (complete with updated covers) of classic volumes. This publishing program is also supported by a new interactive website that includes historical content from the Library of Congress.

Lisa Sandell, executive editor, Scholastic Press & "Dear America," provides a bit of background about the series, which launched in 1996 to "tremendous critical acclaim" and has sold over 14 million copies. "When Scholastic first began to publish this series, the mission was to figure out a way to make history alive and interesting and meaningful to young readers, particularly girls—who might otherwise feel alienated from the subject by the sheer absence of female figures from our nation's historical narrative. But women and girls obviously did play an important role in building America and contributing to its growth and life over the past three hundred plus years, from numbering among the first colonists who landed at Plymouth Rock to joining the workforce during World War II. The 'Dear America' diaries allow authors to show young readers the ways in which girls and women have influenced this country and the fact that, even if the parts they played were in the background, they were there. The story of America does not just belong to one gender or one race or any single group. It is a story of many, and these books very poignantly help illustrate that."

Though publication of the "Dear America" series ceased in 2004, with many of the titles going out of print, there was always talk in-house about reviving it. According to Sandell, it seemed like the perfect time: "Now, when blogging is so prevalent and popular, the diary format feels more resonant than ever. And the stories are so beautifully rendered, they are classics—we knew they would never feel outdated or old. Most of all, we have continued to receive requests from parents, booksellers, teachers, and librarians to bring the 'Dear America' books back. It was this clamoring and this outpouring of love for the series, more than anything, I think, that propelled us into action."

Several "Dear America" standbys have been reissued, including Kathryn Lasky's A Journey to the New World, Kristiana Gregory's The Winter of Red Snow (both 1996), and Ellen Emerson White's Voyage on the Great Titanic (1998) in the fall. Patricia C. McKissack's A Picture of Freedom (1997), Karen Hesse's A Light in the Storm (1999), and Barry Denenberg's When Will This Cruel War Be Over? (1996) will be released spring 2011, with more in the works.

In addition, brand-new titles have also been published, including Kirby Larson's The Fences Between Us (2010), a story that takes place in the Pacific Northwest during World War II that focuses on the internment of Japanese Americans, and Lois Lowry's Like the Willow Tree (2011), a novel set in 1918 that describes the experiences of an 11-year-old girl orphaned by the deadly Spanish influenza and raised in a Shaker community.

All of the books—reissues and new titles alike—have a handsome design with covers that feature an appealing full-color portrait of the narrator set against the monochromatic backdrop of an historical photo or illustration, all elegantly embellished with decorative lines and gold foil detailing. According to Sandell, "...we wanted to find a look that would feel fresh and up-to-date, and that would appeal to contemporary readers, while still maintaining some vestige of the old designs. We thought that commissioning an artist to paint portraits of each of the girls would help make the characters seem more accessible to readers, and it has allowed us greater freedom than the old design did. Originally, we used portraits from various sources that dated from the respective time periods—and believe me, those weren't always easy to find! Now we have the great fun of seeing how an artist imagines each of the 'Dear America' girls. Overall, though, we just wanted the books to be beautiful and collectible and appealing, while reflecting their historical rootedness."

Why does the series continue to win over young readers? Sandell says, "...at their core, they are fantastic stories. The authors of the 'Dear America' books are the very best in children's literature, and first and foremost, they are marvelous storytellers. Plus, history is fascinating—especially when you come at it from such a personal and sympathetic place. The diary format allows readers incredibly personal access to the protagonists of the stories...it opens up each heroine's heart and soul—their hopes and dreams and fears are all laid bare...I think it allows readers to identify and empathize with the characters, and thus form a close connection to them."

The titles have also proven useful in a classroom setting. According to Sandell, "We always hear from educators that they use the 'Dear America' books to teach American history...These stories allow teachers to make history feel real and accessible to their students." Helpful resources are built right in; each volume includes an appended "Life in America" section that provides additional information about the book's time period with a lengthy historical note; reproductions of contemporary photos, illustrations, and documents; maps; and more. Sandell explains, that these materials "...help to ground the stories, and what could otherwise feel like flights of fiction, in reality. The photographs and historical notes, especially, help to contextualize and to root the diaries in the eras during which they're set, and they allow the readers to fully grasp the fact that each moment in time that one of the 'Dear America' stories encompasses is real—it really happened."

Scholastic has also created two dedicated websites to support the series. According to Sandell, "...today's readers are extremely active online, we knew that creating a rich web presence that would allow readers a great taste of what the books are, and that would also be a fun place to hang out was critical."

Designed to entice book fans and extend the reading experience, the "Dear America" website Sandell explains, "...offers a lively interactive experience framed within the device of virtual scrapbooks that were supposedly created by each of the characters, which contain historical photographs, recipes, games, polls, chat boards, and various other activities. It's a beautiful site and one that's very fun to navigate and play around in."

In addition, a dedicated educators' website has remained a much-traveled destination for "...all kinds of educational resources, from lesson plans to games for downloading. We wanted to revisit this site, preserve what was there and also add to and enhance it," says Sandell. Both sites have been created with historical content from the Library of Congress.

What was it like to collaborate with this venerated institution? Sandell states, "Working with the Library of Congress has been amazing. They've been so generous in identifying and collating archival images for our scrapbooks on the kids' site, as well as online slideshows for both teachers and kids, and, of course, the Library has such a vast treasure trove of resources—different collections, exhibitions, etc.—that we have tried to gather on our educators' site. When we thought about what the 'Dear America' books mean to both readers and teachers and librarians as a tool for teaching and learning history, collaborating with the Library of Congress seemed like a natural. Both Scholastic and the Library are endeavoring to bring history to life and to put readers and users in touch with this nation's history, so it's come together perfectly."

With well-researched content, connections to curriculum topics, an accessible format, and appealing readability, the "Dear America" series continues to go strong. Check your shelves to replace tattered copies of older titles, consider acquiring the new offerings, and point your readers and teachers to the dedicated websites.

Two new books are slated for publication later this year: Gregory's Cannons at Dawn (a sequel to The Winter of Red Snow) and Andrea Davis Pinkney's With the Might of Angels, as well as reissues by Mary Pope Osborne, Joyce Hansen, and Lisa Rowe Fraustino.

Publication Information

Reissues:

LASKY, Kathryn. Dear America: A Journey to the New World. 2010. PLB ISBN 978-0-545-26233-0; Tr ISBN 978-0-545-23801-4.

GREGORY, Kristiana. Dear America: The Winter of Red Snow. 2010. PLB ISBN 978-0-545-26234-7; Tr ISBN 978-0-545-23802-1.

WHITE, Ellen Emerson. Dear America: Voyage on the Great Titanic. 2010. PLB ISBN 978-0-545-26235-4; Tr ISBN 978-0-545-23834-2.

MCCKISSACK, Patricia C. Dear America: A Picture of Freedom. 2011. PLB ISBN 978-0-545-26555-3; Tr ISBN 978-0-545-24253-0.

HESSE, Karen. Dear America: A Light in the Storm. 2011. PLB ISBN 978-0-545-26554-6; Tr ISBN 978-0-545-24245-5.

DENENBERG, Barry. Dear America: When Will This Cruel War Be Over? April 2011. PLB ISBN 978-0-545-27944-4; Tr ISBN 978-0-545-27598-9.

New Volumes:

LARSON, Kirby. Dear America: The Fences Between Us. 2010. PLB ISBN 978-0-545-26232-3; Tr ISBN 978-0-545-22418-5.

LOWRY, Lois. Dear America: Like the Willow Tree. 2011. PLB ISBN 978-0-545-26556-0; Tr ISBN 978-0-545-14469-8.

Ea vol: Scholastic. PLB $16.99; Tr $12.99.

This article originally appeared in the newsletter Extra Helping. Go here to subscribe.

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