A note from the author
At a recent young adult literature conference in Minneapolis, a high school teacher stood up to address a panel of authors on which I was speaking. “But where are the novels for kids who love cars and hate their English classes?” she asked. “I’ve got lots of boys in my school—and some girls, too—whose lives revolve around auto racing. They have their favorite NASCAR drivers, they go to races, some of them drive stock cars at the local dirt track. Cars and racing are their life. We need something for these kids to read!” The audience laughed, then clapped loudly. Afterward I spoke privately with the teacher. I told her about Saturday Night Dirt and my forthcoming Motor series from Farrar, Straus and Giroux. She actually hugged me. “My students are going to eat those books up!” she said. “I can’t wait for the next time one of them says, ‘There’s nothing for me to read.’”