Adapting 'The Boys In The Boat' For Young Adult Readers

Daniel James Brown‘s book about the University of Washington’s eight-oar rowing team, “The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics” was a bestseller for months when it was published in 2013.

Brown says that over the past couple of years, he started to see a lot of young adults at his readings. They told him that they loved the book because it was about young people who set goals and have to overcome obstacles to attain them. Now he’s adapted the book for a YA audience. “The Boys in the Boat (Young Readers Adaptation): The True Story of an American Team’s Epic Journey to Win Gold at the 1936 Olympics” comes out on September 8.

Though he has simplified some of the details of the book, Brown told Here & Now’s Robin Young, “I really wanted to make sure that the emotional experience of the book, the heart of the book remained there because that’s what makes it worth reading.”

• Read an excerpt of the original book, and hear our 2013 interview

[Youtube]

Guest

• Daniel James Brown, author of “The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Olympics.”

Copyright 2015 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.