The Strange Night Writing of Jessamine Colter
by Cynthia DeFelice
Reading level: ages 9-12
Synopsis
From the acclaimed author of Weasel and Devil’s Bridge. Eleven-year-old Callie Williams befriends an elderly woman who introduces her to the exquisite art of calligraphy. But this pair of new friends shares something unique–a power to see into the future through a muse that directs their hands as they practice their art.
Awards
A Notable Children’s Trade Book for the Language Arts (National Council of Teachers of English)
An IRA Teacher’s Choice Book
A Note from the Author
This was my very first book. The idea for it came to me in a dream, one of the worst nightmares I’ve ever had. I had spent the day practicing the fancy writing called calligraphy, using an old-fashioned fountain pen that I dipped into a bottle of ink. That night I dreamed that my hand was floating around the room, not attached to me! That in itself wasn’t scary—until my hand reached for my pen, dipped it into the ink bottle and wrote, “You are going to die…tomorrow night…at ten o’clock!”
It seemed so real. My hand shook, ink spattered across the page, the paper ripped, and I woke up! My heart was hammering, and I was all sweaty and tangled up in the covers. Once I realized it was just a dream, I thought, “It was a bad dream, but maybe I can turn it into a good story….”
The Strange Night Writing of Jesamine Colter by Cynthia DeFelice
Paperback - 64 pages (February 1996)
Camelot; ISBN: 0380726637
Hardback – 51 pages (November 1988)
Atheneum; ISBN: 0027264513
