Scholastic Announces New Children’s Book by Suzanne Collins
In a press release this morning, Scholastic announced that they will be publishing a children’s picture book by Suzanne Collins. Titled “Year of the Jungle”, the story is based on the year Suzanne Collins’s father served in Viet Nam, and will be available in stores this September.
The release also mentions that “Catching Fire” will finally be available in trade paperback form this summer!
New York, NY — November 29, 2012 — Scholastic, the global children’s publishing, education and media company, today announced the publication of Year of the Jungle (September 10, 2013), an autobiographical picture book by Suzanne Collins, author of the worldwide bestselling The Hunger Games trilogy, with illustrations by James Proimos. Scholastic also announced plans to publish the trade paperback edition of Catching Fire (June 4, 2013, ISBN: 978-0-545-58617-7, $12.99), as well as repackaged paperback editions of Collins’s bestselling The Underland Chronicles, a five-book series about Gregor the Overlander, featuring all new cover art (Summer 2013). Scholastic will publish and deliver the books through all of its distribution channels.
Year of the Jungle ($17.99, ISBN: 978-0-545-42516-2), to be published on September 10, 2013, is an autobiographical picture book for ages 4 and up, based on the year Suzanne Collins’s father served in Viet Nam. The book is illustrated by James Proimos, an acclaimed picture book author-artist and television writer/animator. Longtime friends, Collins credits Proimos for initially suggesting she write books for children while they were working in children’s television together.
In Year of the Jungle, when young Suzy’s father leaves for Viet Nam, she struggles to deal with his absence. What is the jungle like? Will her father be safe? When will he return? The months slip by, marked by the passing of the familiar holidays and the postcards that her father sends. With each one, he feels more and more distant, and when he returns, Suzy must learn that even though war has changed him, he still loves her just the same.
You can read more of the release here.
Source: Scholastic
This is fascinating! I am very intrigued with this book, for two reasons.
(1) It seems “Suzy” is Suzanne Collins herself, and that this story will be heavily autobiographical. So perhaps we’ll get more insight into SC’s background from this book.
(2) I will be very curious as to how SC will keep the story age-appropriate. The idea that “Suzy” must find learn that “though war has changed him, he loves her just the same”, hints at the nightmares and PTSD that SC has said her father suffered from in real life. So, the themes of the story seem quite dark for an “age 4 and up”. Writing for a young audience can be quite challenging, and I am hoping SC can pull it off.
That being said, I applaud SC for tackling an issue that Katniss and Peeta wrestle with themeselves at the end of MJ; how to tell their children about their pasts without alienating them or scaring them to death. Hope it works!
Wow, James proimos is the person on the “thank you” page of the hunger games
Or, rather, the “for….” Page
Isn’t it written Vietnam, not Viet Nam? Or is that a make believe country based on Vietnam?