Author Archives: Victoria Waddle

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About Victoria Waddle

Victoria Waddle is a Pushcart Prize-nominated writer and has been included in Best Short Stories from The Saturday Evening Post Great American Fiction Contest. Her books include a collection of feminist short fiction, Acts of Contrition, and a chapbook on grief, The Mortality of Dogs and Humans. Her YA novel about a polygamist cult, Keep Sweet, launches in June 2025. Formerly the managing editor of the journal Inlandia: A Literary Journey and a teacher librarian, she contributes to the Southern California News Group column Literary Journeys. She discusses both writing and library book censorship on her Substack, “Be a Cactus.” Join her there for thoughts on defiant readers and writers as well as for weekly library censorship news.

Grendel

Posted on October 29, 2007 by Victoria Waddle

I’ve always thought that Beowulf would make a great movie because it has all the elements of high drama—friendship and betrayal, good v. evil, monsters and murder. Now that a film version of Beowulf is coming soon, I think that … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Literary Read Alike | Leave a comment

The Color of Water

Posted on October 29, 2007 by Victoria Waddle

The Color of Water is a dual biography of a man and his mother. By telling his mother’s story, says author James McBride, he is learning about his own. The narration alternates between McBride telling of his life growing up … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography/Memoir, Multicultural, Non-fiction | 4 Comments

Cold Mountain

Posted on October 29, 2007 by Victoria Waddle

Cold Mountain, by Charles Frazier, is the story of a Confederate soldier during the Civil War, Inman, who decides to walk home to the Blue Ridge Mountains after participating in the fighting at St. Petersburg. Although not historical fiction as … Continue reading →

Posted in Adventure Stories, Fiction, Junior Project | 1 Comment

Into the Wild

Posted on October 29, 2007 by Victoria Waddle

Soon to be a movie, Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer is the story of Chris McCandless’s adventure in the Alaskan wilderness. It includes several others of Chris’s adventures in order to show the reader that Chris was not an … Continue reading →

Posted in Adventure Stories, Biography/Memoir, Environmental Issues, Non-fiction | 1 Comment

Water for Elephants

Posted on October 29, 2007 by Victoria Waddle

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen is the story of a young man who joins a traveling circus during the Great Depression. It’s well researched and includes period photos. It’d be a really fun book to use as the starter … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Junior Project | 3 Comments

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter

Posted on October 26, 2007 by Victoria Waddle

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, by Kim Edwards, has had a nice run on the bestsellers’ list, I think, because it deals with the ways in which making a single bad decision can wreck lives. To be honest, it was difficult for … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Junior Project | 2 Comments

Ordinary Wolves

Posted on October 24, 2007 by Victoria Waddle

Although my copy of Ordinary Wolves tells me it’s a best seller, unlike The Kite Runner, I don’t know anyone else who has read it. Like The Kite Runner, it’s a good choice when a teacher asks for a ‘multicultural’ … Continue reading →

Posted in Environmental Issues, Fiction, Junior Project, Multicultural | Leave a comment

The Road

Posted on October 24, 2007 by Victoria Waddle

  One of the comments you’d never see in a professional book review is “The book is graphic enough to appeal to high school guys.”  I hate to admit it, but this is something I think about when I’m reading. … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Movie Tie-In, Sci-Fi/Futuristic | Tagged , | 2 Comments

A Map of the World

Posted on October 22, 2007 by Victoria Waddle

I just finished a book by Jane Hamilton entitled When Madeline was Young. It’s about how crazy accidents alter life, about family rivalries and how very ordinary, undramatic incidents lead to severing ties. I’m not sure that it would interest … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction | Leave a comment

The Red Badge of Courage

Posted on October 17, 2007 by Victoria Waddle

When I was asked to discuss The Red Badge of Courage with this year’s Academic Decathlon team, it had been at least thirty years since I’d read it. I figured another reading was in order if I hoped to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Historical Fiction/Historical Element, Junior Project | 3 Comments