Young Critics Who Carry Clout

The Young Critics' Club has been featured on Shelf Awareness, an e-newsletter for the book trade, in an article entitled "Young Critics Who Carry Clout."

Long before Oprah's Book Club, there was the Young Critics' Club in Old Greenwich, Conn. For 25 years, what began as a group of 20 fifth-, sixth- and seventh-graders has been meeting after school on alternate Fridays at Perrot Library. Why? Because they want to get publishers' brand new galleys before anyone else, said Kate McClelland, founder of the club and former assistant director of the public library (she's recently semi-retired, but said she will not give up the club). "They're just as eager to read the new stuff as adults are," McClelland said. "The galleys make them feel like insiders." Only three galleys of any one title circulate so that students are reading and commenting on a variety of books.

Read the rest of the article here: http://news.shelf-awareness.com/msgget.jsp?mid=2008523