This past weekend, we at Clothes Pony and Dandelion Toys had a huge book event where local famous authors came to share their stories! We had Lauren Myracle, Ingrid Law the author of Saavy (see the book review blog here!), Mark Hoog, Nathan Kumar Scott, and Theresa Funke. It was so cool to meet these nationally acclaimed authors who live right here in Fort Collins!
Lauren Myracle read an excerpt from her book Eleven which is a story about Winnie and her experiences as an eleven year-old. Winnie’s biggest adjustment comes from her changing friendships. Her best friend Amanda is changing and Winnie is having a hard time adapting. Amanda is now into boys and being noticed whereas Winnie just want things to stay the same. She wants Amanda to not be weird about playing elaborate imaginative games. In addition, Winnie has a growing relationship with Dinah. Dinah is a sweet girl who is young for her age (she still collects kitten stickers and smells a little like a strawberry pop-tart) but Winnie is learning to enjoy her company. The resulting struggle comes from Winnie’s torn alliances. Amanda doesn’t like Dinah because she is socially awkward but Winnie wants Dinah to feel comfortable. The whole story is one we all remember: growing up and finding that things can’t always remain the same.
When I was reading this book I found myself having sudden flashbacks from my own life. I was shocked to remember some of those more embarrassing experiences. I also had a friend named Amanda and she was much more mature than I at eleven. And the same awkward moments that Winnie experiences with Amanda, I did too! (It was usually about boys; a topic that I didn’t really want to talk about, especially because I would end up using the word “cooties” and then get mercilessly made fun of). The fact that Lauren Myracle could recall those stories was surprising. Eleven clearly articulated what it is like to grow older and the frustrating tension one feels between childhood and young adulthood.
Lauren Myracle has also written the next few years of Winnie’s life in Twelve and Thirteen. And Lauren just told us that she is in the process of finishing Fourteen! Myracle just won the Children’s Choice Book Award for her book Thirteen and we are so happy and proud for her.