Overview
In this highly readable and provocative book, Thomas Newkirk explodes the long standing habit of opposing abstract argument with telling stories.Ā Newkirk convincingly shows that effective argument is already a kind of narrative and is deeply "entwined with narrative."
--Gerald Graff, former MLA President and author of Clueless in Academe
Narrative is regularly considered a type of writingāoften an āeasyā one, appropriate for early grades but giving way to argument and analysis in later grades. This groundbreaking book challenges all that. It invites readers to imagine narrative as something moreāas the primary way we understand our world and ourselves.Ā Ā
Ā āTo deny the centrality of narrative is to deny our own nature,ā Newkirk explains.Ā āWe seek companionship of a narrator who maintains our attention, and perhaps affection.Ā We are not made for objectivity and pure abstractionāfor timelessness.Ā We have āliterary mindsā that respond to plot, character, and details in all kind of writing.Ā As humans, we must tell stories.ā
When we are engaged readers, we are following a story constructed by the author, regardless ofĀ the type of writing. Ā To sustain a readingāin a novel, an opinion essay, or a research articleā we need a āplotā that helps us comprehendĀ specific information,Ā orĀ experience the significance of an argument.Ā Ā As Robert Frost reminds us, all good memorable writing is ādramatic.āĀ
Minds Made for Stories Ā is a needed corrective to the narrow and compartmentalized approaches often imposed on schoolsāapproaches which are at odds with the way writing really works outside school walls. Ā
This book title, Minds Made for Stories (How We Really Read and Write Informational and Persuasive Texts), ISBN: 9780325046952, by Thomas Newkirk, published by Heinemann (August 14, 2014) is available in paperback. Our minimum order quantity is 25 copies. All standard bulk book orders ship FREE in the continental USA and delivered in 4-10 business days.
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