Friday, November 28, 2014

Hope Through Stories

By Do Some Damage.

By this point, you don't need us to tell you what's been going down in Ferguson, MO.

But something that we are telling you about is the work being done by a member of the DSD family, Joelle Charbonneau over at her own website.

To quote Joelle;

"As a parent and a young adult author, I can’t help but think of the youngest members of the Ferguson community.  I worry that they will see the hopelessness and unrest around them and turn their back on the possibility of a better future.  I worry that they will believe they don’t matter.  I am terrified they will lose hope. They need to be reminded that they are important and that there is hope even in the darkest of times."

Personally, and I can't say this often enough, I love the work Joelle does.  I've talked at length before about my slow start to reading, and how easily I could have been left behind, and I've seen first-hand the passion and energy Joelle puts into fighting for YA readers and trying to push open a door for them into our crime fiction community. If we can have more people like Joelle, then we'll also have a lot more people like me, who were pulled up out of trouble to join in the party.

Joelle has started Hope Through Stories, which is a drive for YA authors to send signed books to Ferguson library. The library has been doing amazing work at a time when schools have been closed, and in these most troubling of times, we get to see why it's so important that we fight for our libraries to stay open, to stay funded, and to stay accessible.

We'd like to extend the offer to you guys. To our readers, and to the crime fiction community at large. Sure, we may pause, we may worry whether our books are apropriate. But just think, what were you reading when you were young? Who got to make the decision on when you were ready? And hell, even if our books do prove to old or too dark for the younger readers, there are plenty of adults out there right now who need to feel included, engaged, spoken to.

I'm sending three of my own books, plus a bunch of my favourite comics.

If you're going to join us, then add your name in the comments, or email me at eejutATmac.com, and we can build a list here and maybe your names will be added to Joelle's list, too.

HOPE THROUGH STORIES

c/o Scott Bonner
Ferguson Municipal Public Library
35 N. Florissant Road
Ferguson, MO 63135

If you want to donate directly to Ferguson Library, you can do so through the website

2 comments:

Joelle Charbonneau said...

Thank you for giving this project a wider reach. It means the world to me. And yes! I am happy to add all the names you collect to my website list. You are awesome and I am so lucky to still be considered a member of the DSD family! XOXO

Kristi said...

Thanks for bringing this to a wider audience Jay.
Joelle, I hesitated to send my books as they aren't YA. What do you think, Joelle?
xo
PS You are always and forever a member of the DSD family.