Write Up a Storm with the Polk Street School
by Patricia Reilly Giff
Reviewed by Laura Jacobsma

This book was a lot of fun to read. It was written in a very practical way that makes it helpful to teacher and student alike. It basically breaks writing your own story into eight pieces. These are: First you take a person. 2) Put him in a place. 3) Give him a problem. 4) Make him move. 5) Make him talk. 6) Make him worry about the problem. 7) And the problem gets worse and worse. 8) And in the end you solve the problem.

I would use this in my classroom if I was teaching the students how to write a story about a character of their choice. The author gives examples about how she does the process, and then turns around and encourages the students to do just what she did breaking it into the eight sections. She even finishes with them creating their own book cover and how to assemble their story in a book form. Super rating.