Dreams and Wishes: Essays on Writing for Children

Susan Cooper is probably best known for writing the superb Dark Is Rising sequence of five children's novels, one of which garnered the Newbery Medal and another a Newbery Honor. This book, however, is not fiction but about fiction, at least primarily. The essays and speeches contained here discuss experiences from Cooper's own childhood (in World War II England), the piercing nostalgia brought on by finding a new copy of a long-beloved though mostly-forgotten storybook, the author's experiences with the theater (and friendship with Jessica Tandy), and many other topics. The tone is often introspective, but never arrogant, and the book can be read in segments or in a single sitting. Definitely worthwhile for anyone with the slightest interest in children's literature . . . there is far more here than one might expect.