Writer of Historical Fiction Works with Students at Northwest Middle School

On Thursday, Oct. 24, author Laura M. Elliott worked with students at Northwest Middle School. Elliott wrote such books as Under a War-Torn Sky, A Troubled Peace and Annie, Between the States.

“Mrs. Elliott first visited Northwest two years ago and spoke to the Falcon Book Club about her books during a luncheon,” said Ronetta Snyder, the school’s media coordinator. “During this year’s visit, Mrs. Elliott had breakfast with the Battle of the Books Team while answering questions about her personal life and her professional life as a writer.  Mrs. Elliott’s book Under a War-Torn Sky is on this year’s Battle of the Books list for middle schools in North Carolina.”

Later, Mrs. Elliott spoke with all the seventh-graders in an assembly in the auditorium. 

“To begin with, Mrs. Elliott asked the audience questions about World War II to gauge their knowledge,” Snyder said. “Throughout the assembly, Mrs. Elliott focused on the soldiers in World War II. She mentioned how the soldiers fit in the B-24 bombers, how the French Resistance helped the Allies, and the clothes the pilots wore.  Periodically, Mrs. Elliott would answer questions from the audience.

“The assembly ended with Mrs. Elliott telling a story of how she researched the grain fields in France for Under a War-Torn Sky. She lay down in the field to imagine a soldier hiding from the Nazis. Then a huge bug crawled up her pants leg. She never finished this story…”