Literature at High School

Actress visits city school to spark interest in literature
Watertown Daily Times, Tuesday, November 17, 2009
written by: Jamie Munks

Kathryn E. Erbe of 'Law and Order: Criminal Intent' and writer Thomas P. Kelly take questions from students Monday at the launch of the Actors and Writers Book Club at Watertown High School.
Photo: JUSTIN SORENSEN / WATERTOWN DAILY TIMES

Actress Kathryn E. Erbe of "Law and Order: Criminal Intent" discussed literature with Watertown High School students Monday, kicking off the Actors and Writers Book Club.

The book club is a new organization that will send an actor and a writer to high schools to discuss works of literature with students, in an effort to get students excited about reading and writing. Ms. Erbe said she decided to get involved with the book club because she loves to read and she thought it would be a good opportunity to talk to youths.

"I've been a voracious reader since I was 13, so that's why I got involved with the book club," Ms. Erbe said. "And I know high school can be hard, so I wanted to talk to kids of that age, too."

Book club founder Thomas P. Kelly discussed literature with Watertown students. Mr. Kelly is a novelist who wrote the book "Payback," and is the literacy director for the Writers Guild of America, East.said.

Watertown High School was chosen for the launch of the program because of a collaboration between Mr. Kelly and Watertown English teacher Emily G. Sprague. Watertown is also the type of location the book club wants to target, because it's far from a major metropolitan area, Mr. Kelly said

"We're staying away from places like New York City, because there, you can throw a stone 10 feet and hit actors and writers," he said. "We want to go to places like Watertown, where it might be more exciting for someone to come to talk to students."

Ms. Erbe read an excerpt from the book "The Rules of the Game," written by Amy Tan. Then Mr. Kelly discussed the piece from a writer's perspective. The book centers on a young girl whose family moved from China to San Francisco's Chinatown.

Ms. Erbe used books as an escape when she was growing up, and as a way to better learn about herself and other people, she told students.

"I love this book because the way she talks about the emotions of these characters and their interactions with family members moved me," Ms. Erbe said.

English 12 students read part of the book during a short-story unit, Mrs. Sprague said. Mr. Kelly and Mrs. Sprague chose that book because the English students are familiar with it, and because Ms. Erbe loves the book.

Mr. Kelly and Ms. Erbe took some questions from students after their talk.

Students asked Mr. Kelly: "When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?" and "Can you explain your writing process?"

Mr. Kelly told students that he decided to become a writer when he was 16, and that he wakes up every morning to write when he's working on a novel because they take years to write.

Students asked Ms. Erbe about her acting career with questions such as: "What was it like to be in one of the 'Mighty Ducks' movies?"

Ms. Erbe told the students that making the movie was a lot of fun, and that she had to be careful in a lot of scenes so she didn't look taller than her co-star, Emilio Estevez.

After just a few questions, the bell rang and students filed out of the auditorium to their next class. Even though the speakers had less than an hour with the students, Mr. Kelly was happy with the first meeting of the book club.

"We want to spark the interest of students in reading, writing and storytelling," he said. "And to let them know that these things can be fun."