Breakfast on Mars and 37 Other Delectable Essays

Battling against the rigid, five-paragraph essay structure, the editors of this compilation claim they have “let essays out of their cages, and... set them free. We’ve allowed them to go back to their roots.” The result is a refreshing and useful tool for every middle- and high-school writing teacher to keep handy. Thirty-eight short essays—many humorous, some poignant—come from Sloane Crosley, Sarah Prineas, Ned Vizzini, Scott Westerfeld, Rita Williams-Garcia, and more. Assigned a genre (personal, persuasive, etc.) and topic (“What made your upbringing unique?” “What makes someone or something ‘cool’?”), the contributors write essays that inspire and entertain, as well as reveal familiar authors in new lights (here is Kirsten Miller arguing for the existence of Sasquatch; there is Marie Rutkoski on memories and memory loss). In the final essay, “Break the Rules,” Ellen Sussman cleverly encourages students to get creative with their writing: “What if I get an F in English? F is for Fear! F is for Fraidy Cat! F is for Funless!” Funless? This collection is anything but. Ages 10–up. Agent: Lindsay Edgecombe, Levine Greenberg Literary Agency. (June)