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For instance, Dootsie adores ketchup and Alvina wears a necklace with Winnie the Pooh dangling from it. One method of developing characters is through extensive use of details about each person.
Spinelli develops characters effectively in many ways. Their six children have given Jerry Spinelli a plethora of clever material for his writing.įor more information about the author, watch our video interview with Jerry Spinelli. While they write in separate rooms of the house, the couple edits and celebrates one another’s work together. He lives with his wife and fellow writer, Eileen, in Wayne, Pennsylvania. He made his picture book debut with My Daddy and Me, a loving tribute to fathers and sons. Jerry Spinelli is the author of more than a dozen books for young readers, including Maniac Magee, winner of the Newbery Medal, and Stargirl, a New York Times bestseller and an ALA Top Ten Best Book for Young Adults.
In the “longest letter ever” to her old boyfriend, Leo, Stargirl explores the magic in her new home and her decision to mark time in her own unique way. Stargirl, never one with an inclination to conform, empathizes with the outcasts, making many of them her new friends. She notices the agoraphobic neighbor, the seemingly homeless young boy, and others who do not fit in easily. Stargirl Caraway explores her new neighborhood with an eye for the unusual.