Branching Plot Books
A book series is a sequence of books having certain characteristics in common that are formally identified together as a group. These characteristics are often easy to identify. For example, Goosebumps is the famous children book series that depicts fictional children being involved in scary situations. Another example is the Choose Your Own Adventure books that allow readers to assume the role of the protagonist and making choices that determine the main character’s actions and the plot’s outcome. The characteristics that bind the books in Branching Plot Books is much less obvious. On the surface, Branching Plot Books are just a bunch of unrelated books. However, Branching Plot Books is a small but growing series of books that can be read in a variety of ways, depending on the reader. Each book’s plot and premise can be seen differently, depending on the readers’ mood, experiences, and values. To create this effect, Branching Plot Books focuses on the literary technique double entendre and on the use of interactive fiction. Double-entendre is a phrase that could have two meanings or that could be understood in two different ways. Literally, a double-entendre is limited to a phrase or figure of speech but in Branching Plot Books, a whole book could have a double meaning and be understood in two different ways. For example, in The Empty Lot Next Door, children and young adults might see the story as a ghost story while older adults see the story as a young child coping with bullies and with a dysfunctional family life. In The Haves and Have Nots, progressive readers will relate to the blue jay named Javlin and despise the greedy chipmunk named Mitch while conservative readers will rally behind Mitch because of his hard-working attitude and will see Lavlin as a lazy freeloader. Some readers believe the struggle has nothing to do about political ideologies but instead the book is really about race or immigration issues. Therefore, in both The Empty Lot Next Door and The Haves and Have Nots, the plots and the premises can be seen differently, depending on the readers’ mood, experiences, and values. Some books within Branching Plot Books make it more obvious the reader can change the plot and take charge of the premise. For example, The Crawl Space has 24 choices and 11 alternate endings, allowing the reader to decide for him or herself how the storyline should flow. Different readers may take different paths, which can change the readers’ impressions of the story. There is no right or wrong way to interpret Branching Plot Books because the book series is tailored to every reader. Branching Plot Books is where the reader becomes the author.