Tween Violence Archives - Saltwater Taffy by Eric DelaBarre

SALTWATER TAFFY and the Culture of Violence

The culture of violence in America is killing our children…literally. As a children’s book author, I have always believed in the ideal ‘if you build it, they will come.’ The question I have is, why do children respond to the culture of violence in our socity more than they do to a theme of inspiration or adventure?

While we have been a mildly successful award-winning adventure book for tweens by selling 5000 copies of Saltwater Taffy across the country, it appears in order to enjoy best-selling success, you either need Read more

MIDDLE GRADE FICTION: Bang, Bang, YOU’RE DEAD

Middle grade fiction, middle grade students, and middle grade literacy is the reason I became a children’s book author in the first place. The problem I have is all the violence we are feeding our middle grade children.

Over the weekend, my wife and I walked into a pizza joint to eat dinner and this was the first thing we saw; little boys holding guns while playing the arcade games. There is nothing wrong with arcade games, don’t get me wrong, but the image of this Tween holding a gun was…