The Pirate Tree: Social Justice & Children’s Literature

Young adult authors Ann Angel, Nancy Bo Flood, Lyn Miller-Lachmann, Peter Marino and J.L. Powers are the collective of writers at The Pirate Tree, a site for literature and writers for children and teenagers that delve into themes of social justice and social conscience.

The title, The Pirate Tree, comes from a picture book that Lyn Miller-Lachmann once wrote about two children whose grandfathers fought on opposite sides of a war. The children were prohibited from going into each others’ yards, but they figured out a way to meet and play pirates together by climbing a tree with limbs and branches above both their yards.

“Like the story suggested, we are interested in books and writers that question and rebel against the status quo, argue for peace and reconciliation, take the side of the marginalized and powerless, and use creative solutions to overcome obstacles.”

Current topics include: Economic Justice/Poverty/Immigration; Environment; Out of the Mainstream: Gender, Ethnicity, and Disability; and Violence/War & Peace/Refugees.

Review recommendations, suggestions for topics, interview subjects, and guest writer inquiries are welcome.