OK, a quick round-up!My great friend and colleague Pamela Freeman's fantasy trilogy, The Castings Trilogy, was reviewed on Radio National's Book Show yesterday by somebody who apparently is a constitutional law expert. So THAT'S who you have to be to get a gig on The Book Show! (Actually, not having yet had the chance to listen to the review, but knowing the books, it may well be that the fact that George Williams is a constitutional law expert is probably extremely pertinent, dealing as they do with with power and colonialism and dispossession of peoples, so I'll stop being sarky now. It's…
Children's Literature
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Misrule
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News! Views! Events! Blogs! and other stuff
3 Nov 2009 | 1:11 am -
The Possum Wars
2 Nov 2009 | 4:46 amI recently reposted on Facebook and retweeted on Twitter my last blog post, in which I asked for people's thoughts on my ethical dilemma about blogging about books. Comments have started to come in again (there were only a small handful straight after the post went up), plus I chatted about the issue with three writer friends over dinner last night, and consensus seems to be I should feel free to talk about books however I like and not worry about offending or appearing to play favourites... unless I was in fact offensive (which I hope I never have been, about books and writers at least) or… -
Links!
22 Oct 2009 | 4:39 amI generally use Facebook and Twitter to post children's book links (and cat videos) these days. It's so quick and easy to do so compared to the blog, you can throw on a comment and Bob's yer social media maven. You should friend me or follow me if you're on either platform. This blog I am still using for longer posts and observations, when I have something to chat about at length, which I know is not every day/week by any means. (Or else I'm just lazy.)However, I do want to share a few lovely links I've come across lately:I recently read Kate DiCamillo's sad, atmospheric but utterly gorgeous… -
Shaun Tan Kids' Night In Art Auction
14 Oct 2009 | 4:15 amLast week I mentioned that cover the artwork by Shaun Tan for Kids' Night In 3 would be up for sale by auction, but I didn't know when or how. I have since been advised by the good folk at Penguin (thanks, Kristin!) that the auction will go live at 9 am on October 21. That's a week from today, if my pathetic mathematics is correct. The auction will run for ten days and the details will be on the Kids' Night In site. What I forgot to ask is whether or not you can bid if you're not in Australia, but as it's an ebay auction, I guess it might be possible. Depends on the shipping, I guess. Anyway,… -
Kids Night In 3
1 Oct 2009 | 6:02 amBook launch tonight for Kids Night In 3: a collection of poems, short prose and illustrations gathered together into one hefty volume by the good folk at Penguin Books Australia. Cover by Shaun Tan. Contributions by our finest children's writers and illustrators, some welcome ring-ins from the world of grown-up books, and the occasional rock star. Proceeds to War Child. Go buy it! Here is the book:You can apparently bid in an auction for Shaun's cover art, but I can't find the link. Anyone know where it is? And here are the contributors who were at tonight's launch (sans Ursula Dubosarsky,…
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Big A little a
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Poetry Friday
29 Oct 2009 | 6:46 pmJennie of Biblio File is hosting this week's Poetry Friday. Head on over and leave your links! -
Poetry Friday here!
23 Oct 2009 | 5:19 amHappy Friday to One and All!Today's Poetry Friday roundup will be held here at Big A little a. Leave your links in the comments, and I will roundup throughout the day. -
Poetry Friday
15 Oct 2009 | 5:54 pmThis week's Poetry Friday is hosted by Laura Purdie Salas. Head on over and leave your links! -
Poetry Friday
8 Oct 2009 | 5:28 pmAnastasia Suen is hosting this week's Poetry Friday at Picture Book of the Day. Head on over and leave your links! -
Poetry Friday
1 Oct 2009 | 8:59 pmThis week's Poetry Friday roundup and the October-December calendar will be posted at Crossover. Head on over and leave your links!
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Publishers Weekly - ShelfTalker: A Children's Bookseller's Blog
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Is Sarah Palin's Book the Year's Best Read-Aloud??
In a word, NO. At least, not if you trust the opinions of the kids John Oliver read aloud to in a hilarious clip featured Wednesday on&nb... -
Display Ideas That Make Money
The holiday season is upon us. While this means increased sales and traffic, it also means seasonal displays must be created. I have to confess tha... -
Special Orders... More Than You Wanted to Know
As the holidays get closer, the number of special orders we take rises exponentially. I thought I'd take a moment and trace how a special order goe... -
In Memory of the Amazing Esther Hautzig
Esther Hautzig wrote one of the most beautiful, unique contributions to WWII children's literature—The Endless Steppe. It was a story based o... -
In-Flight Illustrators
I didn't expect to share my recent flight home from Nebraska with any book illustrators other than my husband, but by chance three o...
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Read Roger
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One question or two?
19 Nov 2009 | 5:10 amSo, what does it mean--if anything--that Phillip Hoose's National Book Award winning Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice is ineligible for the Coretta Scott King Award (because Hoose is white) and Jerry Pinkney's Lion & the Mouse is in the same position because it isn't about black people? Does it not matter, or have the CSK awards painted themselves into a corner? -
Too damned long
17 Nov 2009 | 8:36 amI see that PW has followed up on Betsy Bird's thoughts on the Amazon Vine program; their speculation that membership in Vine might be a perk for good customers is intriguing if not substantiated. What seems oddest to me is that this program--for which publishers and other producers pay for the privilege of having their products evaluated--is being criticized for eliciting cluelessly negative reviews, which does not seem to serve the purposes of either publishers or Amazon. It's not like the books don't otherwise get customer reviews, but perhaps the Vine reviews post early enough so that any… -
We skipped the maple candy, too
16 Nov 2009 | 7:41 amBack from Vermont--we did get to visit the Patersons (that Katherine bakes a mean scone and gave us plenty to take back to our Killington chalet, no snow but there was a hot tub) but not JRL as poor Buster was by then too exhausted and disoriented to either move or leave behind. (He is better now but still, twenty.) Our chief entertainments were books in the daytime (me, a Joy Fielding--never again--and the second Stieg Larsson mystery; Richard, Possession (and finally skipping the poetry like I told him to) and The Godfather movies in the evenings. (How had I missed all three of those?) Like… -
I hope it isn't ALL Ben & Jerry's
11 Nov 2009 | 5:54 amGoing to Vermont for a few days; hoping to see Katherine Paterson and HB reviewer Joanna Rudge Long (who lives not near but ON the Appalachian Trail) but otherwise just r&r, Roger and Richard, and Buster, who at twenty is too old for any trailwalking but we hope will enjoy the fireplace. Lots of reading planned--Richard gave me the latest Arthur Phillips for my birthday and I've got the second book about the tattooed lady (as well as the new Vanity Fair which promises a hatchet job on same by Christopher Hitchens) and the new Isabel Dalhousie "mystery" on audio. All that and a hot tub!And… -
Lions are . . .
9 Nov 2009 | 9:38 amThe New York Times Best Illustrated Books list is out, along with my review of The Lion & the Mouse. What a great book--I wish they had given me twice the space. When I sat down with it and my two young neighbors, the two year old boy announced, looking uncertainly at the cover, "lions are scary." His more intrepid four-year-old sister took over the narration from there ("Look out for the bird!") until the end, whereupon the two-year-old said, "lions are NOT scary." Now it's his favorite book, so we gave him a copy for his birthday, along with a little plastic lion he can carry around in…
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Publishers Weekly - Children's Books News
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Children's Book Reviews: 11/16/2009
16 Nov 2009 | 4:00 amIn this week's children's book reviews: picture books from Peter McCarty, David McPhail, Sandra Boynton, and Arnold and Adrianne Lobel; fiction from Iain Lawrence, Mike Lupica, James Patterson, and Peter Lerangis; and a round-up of the latest pop-up books to hit the market. -
Web Exclusive Children's Book Reviews: 11/11/2009
11 Nov 2009 | 9:30 amThis round-up of web-exclusive children's book reviews from Publishers Weekly includes new books by Harriet Ziefert, Alan Armstrong, Claire Zulkey, and Julie Anne Peters. -
Children's Book Reviews: 11/9/2009
9 Nov 2009 | 4:00 amThis week's children's book reviews include picture books from Petr Horácek, Laurence Anholt, and Colin Bootman; fiction from Ying Chang Compestine, David Almond, and Margaret Mahy; and a round-up of novelty books for young readers. -
Children's Book Reviews: 11/2/2009
2 Nov 2009 | 4:00 amThis week's reviews include picture books from Alexandra Day, Peter H. Reynolds, and Andrea Davis Pinkney and Brian Pinkney; starred reviews for new fiction from Katherine Sturtevant and Jean-Claude Mourlevat; comics from Lark Pien and Holly Black; and books to invigorate minds and imaginations. -
Children's Book Reviews: 10/26/2009
25 Oct 2009 | 10:00 pmPicture books from Claudia Rueda, Laura Leuck& Marc Boutavant, Sharon Werner & Sarah Forss, and more; fiction from Audrey & Akila Couloumbis, Helen Stringer, Andrew Auseon, Mal Peet, others; plus a jumbo roundup of Christmas titles.
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Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
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7-Imp’s 7 Kicks #142: Featuring Amy Schwartz
21 Nov 2009 | 10:01 pmI’ve said this before here at 7-Imp, and I’ll say it again today: I’m a big fan of Amy Schwartz’s picture books and the understated charm and humor of her stories and illustrations. I’ve occasionally told myself, Self: Why don’t you write a sort of Amy Schwartz Appreciation at the blog? But I guess I have discussed a few of her titles before here at 7-Imp, so we can consider my Ode to Amy a perpetual work-in-progress. I’ve also said before that I love the seeming simplicity of both her writing and illustrations, but there’s really a lot going… -
Final Day of the Winter Blog Blast Tour
20 Nov 2009 | 2:30 pmHere’s the schedule for this, the last day of the Winter Blog Blast Tour. I’m late gettin’ to it, but better late than never: Pam Bachorz at MotherReader Alan DeNiro at Shaken & Stirred Joan Holub at Bildungsroman Sheba Karim at Finding Wonderland R. L. LaFevers at HipWriterMama Lisa Schroeder at Writing and Ruminating -
Seven Questions Over Breakfast(the Winter Blog Blast Edition) with Jim Di Bartolo
18 Nov 2009 | 10:01 pmFreelance illustrator Jim Di Bartolo is one happy man. First, if we’re keeping our priorities straight, there’s his brand-new daughter, Clementine Pie, who—as you can see below—is so STINKIN’ adorable that he’s considering having her for breakfast. He’s also getting RIGHT TO his daughter’s introduction to Neil Gaiman’s world, as you can see left. He’s not gonna waste any time, no sirree. Smart. (more…) -
Today’s Winter Blog Blast Tour Schedule
18 Nov 2009 | 10:39 amAnnie Barrows at Great Kid Books Sarwat Chadda at Finding Wonderland Beth Kephart at Shelf Elf Sy Montgomery (part one of the interview) at Chasing Ray Jacqui Robbins at Bildungsroman Cynthia Leitich Smith at HipWriterMama See you tomorrow with my own actual interview… -
What Lightsabers, Cloning, and Chicken PuppetsHave to Do with Today’s WBBT Schedule
17 Nov 2009 | 6:30 amHere is today’s WBBT (Winter Blog Blast Tour) schedule: * * Patrick Carman at Miss Erin. * * Ann Marie Fleming at Chasing Ray. Jacqueline Kelly at HipWriterMama. (How much do I want to read The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate? A lot. Still waiting on my library copy.) Video interview (pictured here), which possesses an awesomeness that extends in about seven different directions (and which may have something to do with this post’s title), with the very funny and clever Dan Santat at A Fuse #8 Production. Or perhaps two versions of Dan. Good music is involved, too. * * Laurie Faria…
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Finding Wonderland: The WritingYA Weblog
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Turning Pages: Supersweet Superheroes
21 Nov 2009 | 1:10 pmThis is a favorite genre subdivision -- epic heroes and heroines. Not quite as good as X-men, or the MiB, none of these novels have quite the same feel as comic book pages beneath one's fingers... but you've gotta admit, they're pretty darned close.Warrior priestesses are pretty much superheroes.Of course, Zira doesn't think of herself as that. She has just as much practice to do as anyone in learning swordplay, and her teacher, Deo, would soon correct any arrogant attitude on her part. She's just one of the other novices, living at the House of God, doing her best to worship in the proper… -
Turning Pages - A Wing and a ...Prayer. Sorta
20 Nov 2009 | 6:41 amThis year's Cybs have popped out an unusual crop in the paranormal teen novel category -- angels. Maybe it's only unusual to me -- I never thought of angels as having lives, romances, disputes, but hey -- science fiction and fantasy is all about "What If," right? We had Starfire Angels who were kind of vaguely sci-fi, Strange Angels wherein no angels actually even appeared and then two books where the angels were a little more... unexpected. Here are the two titles that stuck with me.Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne Selfors, is one of my favorites in the angel genre -- and because the first… -
Winter Blog Blast Tour: Five Questions for Sheba Karim
20 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am- from Macmillan Books:If Nina Khan were to rate herself on the unofficial Pakistani prestige point system – the one she’s sure all the aunties and uncles use to determine the most attractive marriage prospects for their children – her scoring might go something like this:+2 points for getting excellent grades–3 points for failing to live up to expectations set by genius older sister+4 points for dutifully obeying parents and never, ever going to parties, no matter how antisocial that makes her seem to everyone at Deer Hook High–1 point for harboring secret jealousy of her best… -
Turning Pages: Bring on the Shorts
19 Nov 2009 | 9:42 amIt's sort of an open secret, my obsession with anthologies.I love short stories and think there should be way, way, WAY more short story collections for young adults and teens, and heck, adults and science fiction lovers and fantasy fiends. I think genre fiction has kind of stolen the short story, handed it to Raymond Carver, and effectively blocked out everyone else. I mean, think about it: the words "short story" make some people break out in a graduate-school induced pox, a flash-fiction induced fever. They hear the words and expect Pretentious. Insanely ambiguous. Boring. And that's not… -
Turning Pages: Don't Judge the Book by its Cover
19 Nov 2009 | 8:46 amScience Fiction and Fantasy, my peeps, can produce some staggeringly bad, bad, BAD covers.Not that they're not the apex of graphic design. Not that they're not a genius of artistic achievement. No, nothing like that - and props to all of your graphics people out there. It's just sometimes? I think that whomever gives you the "this is what the book is about" write-ups should do just a tad more work. That might make a difference.With their carefully arranged dead in bright primary colors, the Generation Dead books look... amusing. Comedic. Yet Kiss of Life, the one I just read was not. Folks in…
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A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
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Round 'Em Up!
22 Nov 2009 | 5:26 amCharlotte of Charlotte's Library is rounding up this week's reviews of Middle Grade Science Fiction and Fantasy Books. If you like reading these books (or know readers who do!) click through for the roundup. If you reviewed a Middle Grade SF/F book, click through and comment to add your title to the roundup.This is week two of what promises to be a weekly feature. As Charlotte explains, she wants any posts about SF/F for the Middle Grade; so if you had an interview, a rant, musings, well, you know the drill.I've always thought of Middle Grade as that time period in between early readers and… -
Pigeon & Pigeonette
20 Nov 2009 | 7:41 amPigeon & Pigeonette by Dirk Derom, illustrated by Sarah Verroken. Enchanted Lion Books. 2009. Official book website. Review copy provided by publisher. Picture book.The Plot: Pigeonette, small, can see but not fly; Pigeon, large, can fly but cannot see. What will happen when these two become friends?The Good: Pigeonette's small wings means she is left behind in winter, hopping across the snow. Pigeonette cannot see. Eventually they realize teamwork will save the day, with Pigeonette shouting instructions ("Flap!" "Turn Right!") as Pigeon flies. Pigeon and Pigeonette is a beautifully… -
Encouraging Reading
19 Nov 2009 | 4:42 amIn December, 2007 and again in April, 2009 I did some guest blogging at ForeWord Magazine's ShelfSpace Blog. While ForeWord Magazine is going strong, they have discontinued doing that guest blogging. So, I am going to rerun those posts here at Tea Cozy. Any edits to remove confusion about things like dates is in brackets.Encouraging ReadingThis past November [2007], the National Endowment of the Arts published a report, To Read or Not to Read: A Question of National Consequence. The picture it presents is not pretty. Time spent reading is decreasing, and along with that, reading scores. -
Doing Write-Ups, So I Don't Have To
18 Nov 2009 | 4:48 amSo how was that Children's Literary Cafe at New York Public Library on Saturday, November 7?As someone sitting in the front of the room, it was terrific! It doesn't get any better than talking about something you feel passionate about: books, blogging, community. We only had an hour; and while we covered a lot of things, an hour is like a blink of the eye.The photos were taken by Melanie Hope Greenberg and I copied them from Betsy at Fuse #8. Left to right, we are Betsy aka Fuse #8; Susan aka Chicken Spaghetti; me; Anne Boles Levy aka Cybils organizer; and Pam aka MotherReader.The other… -
The Witch's Guide to Cooking with Children
17 Nov 2009 | 3:46 amThe Witch's Guide to Cooking with Children: A Novel by Keith McGowan; illustrated by Yoko Tanaka. Henry Holt Books for Young Readers. 2009. Brilliance Audio, 2009. Narrated by Laural Merlington. Review copy supplied by Brilliance Audio.The Plot: A modern retelling of Hansel and Gretel. Sol and Connie Blink's father and stepmother have decided they don't want their children around anymore; luckily, there's a witch who will take care of the children for them.The Good: "I love children. Eating them, that is." So begins the tale of Faye Holaderry, witch.Hansel and Gretel is one of the more…
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educating alice
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Smart Kid Reviews: First in a Series
20 Nov 2009 | 4:20 amI started a Book Bloggers Club this year for kids who had blogs with me when they were in 4th grade. So far I’ve got six 6th grade girls in the club (one brings a friend who brings a friend, etc) and we are all enjoying it very much. One of our first events, as some of you know, was to see and review the Where the Wild Things Are movie. They are also reading and reviewing other new and forthcoming books. Here are links to some of their reviews: C16km thinks Kate DiCamillo’s The Magician’s Elephant is a, “a very haunting but amusing read…” Read her full… -
Yes!! Claudette Colvin Wins Young People’s National Book Award
19 Nov 2009 | 1:25 amCongratulations to all involved in the creation of this year’s young people’s winner of the National Book Award, especially author Phillip Hoose, editor Melanie Kroupa, and Claudette Colvin herself. As I think I made clear in this post, Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice is one of my favorite books of the year. Hurray! I’m a big fan of the runners-up too: Deborah Heiligman, Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith (Henry Holt) David Small, Stitches (W. W. Norton & Co.) Laini Taylor, Lips Touch: Three Times (Arthur A. Levine Books/Scholastic) Rita… -
A Blog After My Own Inappropriate Heart
16 Nov 2009 | 10:01 amPhilip Nel just pointed out to me that Lane Smith and Bob Shea had scooped me on the “Andy Warhol, Children’s Illustrator” post with an actual picture book the wiggy guy did. More importantly it is on their blog, Curious Pages: Recommended Inappropriate Books for Kids. A blog I didn’t know about till Phil told me about it a few minutes ago. A blog full of my favorite snarky, subversive, weird, dotty, bizarre, clever, and not-your-usual children’s book books. They’ve got stuff by Gorey, Hoffmann, Belloc, and a whole bunch more. -
Megan Whalen Turner on Jewel Boxes, Writing Advice, and Sulky Characters
16 Nov 2009 | 1:57 amAll I can say is that endings are very important to me as a reader and so they are important to me as a writer. I really resent stories without endings. I was once very flattered to be lumped in the same category as Frank Stockton, but that’s because of The Griffin and the Minor Cannon. Don’t get me started on “The Lady or the Tiger?” (Megan Whalen Turner) For those eagerly waiting for A Conspiracy of Kings, check out HipWriterMama’s excellent interview with she-who-stays-out-of-sight-much-of-the-time, Megan Whalen Turner. -
Andy Warhol, Children’s Illustrator
15 Nov 2009 | 8:27 am253. WARHOL, Andy (1928 – 1987) Best in Children’s Books Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1957-1959. Small 8vo. Volumes 5, 15, 27 and 33. Condition: dust jackets lightly worn with some minor chips. Early in his career, the Pop Art icon Andy Warhol illustrated several volumes of the popular series Best in Children’s Books issued by the Doubleday Book Club between 1957 and 1961. But these light, childlike pictures are generally unknown to admirers of his famous pictures of Campbell’s Soup Cans and Marilyn Monroe. (4) est. $500 – $600 While I knew Warhol had done commercial work (his…
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Chicken Spaghetti
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Claudette Colvin Bio Wins a National Book Award
18 Nov 2009 | 8:17 pmPhillip Hoose's book Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice won the National Book Award for Young People's Literature. Colvin, a previously unsung civil rights-era heroine, accompanied Hoose to the ceremony. Upon accepting the award, Hoose said, "I thank this woman beside me whose story was about to disappear. We got to tell an untold story." (Thanks to School Library Journal's Rocco Staino[@RoccoA] for his Twitter reporting.) The citation at the National Book Foundation's web site reads, in part, "How could we not know of this courageous teenager and her… -
Children's Literature Cafe at the NYPL
18 Nov 2009 | 7:06 amOn November 7th I took part in a panel discussion at the New York Public Library. What an honor to have been asked! Led by Elizabeth Bird, NYPL librarian and moderator extraordinaire, our group of bloggers—Pam Coughlan (MotherReader), Anne Boles Levy (Cybils), Elizabeth Burns (A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy), and I—talked about the Cybils awards, children's book blogs in general, and recent book controversies. There was a lot to cover in an hour. I mentioned how much I appreciated the reviews of the books nominated in the various Cybils categories. The blogs Carol's… -
Wish Lists: Holiday Gift Ideas
17 Nov 2009 | 7:20 amJust published at PBS Parents Booklights blog: "Wish Lists," my short guide to great book lists for kids. An online resource for holiday gift ideas! -
Overheard Kid Conversation
9 Nov 2009 | 5:22 amThe scene: Two boys, both around 10, watching a kitten play.Boy #1 (with a sigh): Wouldn't it be so cool to have a tail?Boy #2: Yeah. And retractable claws.From the archives: Guys Read, 1st Grade Version -
New York Times' Best Illustrated, Carnegie Long List, and More
7 Nov 2009 | 5:54 amIn tomorrow's New York Times Book Review, look for the Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2009. If you can't wait until then, check them out online now! News from the UK: the Kate Greenaway Medal and Carnegie Medal long lists. The Greenaway is the equivalent of the US's Caldecott and the Carnegie the same of the Newbery.A new lineup of the year's best science books for children was announced by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books collected a large number of titles for its 2009 holiday gift…
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Chasing Ray
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"My internal editor is a cranky old Catholic nun. SO not helpful."
20 Nov 2009 | 11:34 pmAnd here we go with Day #5! Don't forget to look back at the entire week's entries in the master schedule, all updated with quotes and direct urls. Friday, November 20th Lisa Schroeder at Writing & Ruminating : "Cupcakes are little bundles of happiness with frosting on top! Just thinking about cupcakes makes people happy, right? " Alan DeNiro at Shaken & Stirred: "Of course these horrific displacements with refugees take place all over the world, but the way Katrina's human disaster impinged on the American experience, and into the common thread of the nation's discourse...it kicked my ass… -
"Perhaps", she suggested (and people think I have made this up but I swear it is the truth) "you could learn to be a trucker."
19 Nov 2009 | 11:39 pmAnd here is Day #4................. Thursday, November 19th Sy Montgomery Pt 2 at Chasing Ray: "Grief sucked and writing while grieving was very very hard. But this book kept getting more personal as I wrote and became a book about family. Family isn't about blood or genetics; it's about love and that is what the book is about and now Christopher is visiting the world." Laini Taylor at Shelf Elf: "I love naming characters. When I was a kid this was my favorite part of writing, and often was as far as I got. Now, I have lists in various notebooks—weird names I hear in the news or see in film… -
WBBT Day #4: "Eating was his performance art."
19 Nov 2009 | 5:09 pmAnd now for Part 2 of the Sy Montgomery interview. (See Part 1 yesterday.) But first I have to relate one of the more surprising things that came up when I set out to do this interview. I looked up Sy's web site to get a bit more background info. She shares the site with her husband, author Howard Mansfield and when I saw his name and then his book The Bones of the Earth I couldn't believe it. As it turns out, I have been a fan of Howard and Sy's for years and both of their books are in my library (albeit on opposite sides). Bones is an essay collection about cultural memory - buildings and… -
"We need more friends, more loud mouths who advocate for quality Native voices and visions and well-executed cross-cultural additions to the body of youth literature."
18 Nov 2009 | 2:57 amAnd here is Day #3!!! Wednesday, November 18th Sy Montgomery Pt 1 at Chasing Ray: "You have to listen for truth when writing and sometimes that truth is cloaked in myth or story." Jacqui Robbins at Bildungsroman: "Hmm. It just occurred to me that all three of my current projects deal with the war between girls and boys. Don't tell my husband." Sarwat Chadda at Finding Wonderland: "I hate the 'kill and quip' style of comedy violence where brutal things happen and the hero walks away with a smart one-liner. Death has consequences. I needed to establish that on the first page, on the first… -
WBBT Day #3: Science and story tell us mirroring truths; listen to both."
18 Nov 2009 | 1:13 amI first discovered Sy Montgomery's work in her children's nonfiction book from the Scientist in the Field series, The Quest for the Tree Kangaroo (see my review). From there I read her earlier entries in the series and eagerly sought out the reissues of her older adult titles when they appeared this year from Chelsea Green (two of which were reviewed as my "Cool Reads" in a column in May). I find her writing style to be quite compelling, especially the way in which she blends careful animal research and an anthropologist's glee-filled curiosity about the people who study and live among them.
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Arthur Slade: Writing for Young Adults
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A Peek @ Hunchback II Canuck Cover
21 Nov 2009 | 3:02 pmThis it what it'll look like...mostly. Still a bit more work to be done. Love the crazy steampunk hand...Art -
Hunchback Worldwide Virtual Tour stop #3!
20 Nov 2009 | 8:22 amYep, today I visited 42°54′22″N 74°34′19″W! Can you believe it! It was the 3rd stop in The Hunchback Assignments Half Hour Virtual Tour of the World! I took the SKYPE train to the Canajoharie Library and Arkell Museum and spoke to 100 grade five students (or fifth grade students) from Canajoharie Middle School. As you can see they kept the library dark so that the students could close their eyes and be lulled into a sleep as I told them stories of assassins, goth queens, and steam powered monstrous creations. I recommend a Google street view of the library, it looks like a very cool… -
Greystone School Launch
20 Nov 2009 | 5:27 amHad an absolutely wonderful time launching The Hunchback Assignments at nearby Greystone School. 500 students! Forced to listen to me! It was especially fun because it was the first time I played the "book" trailer live and they applauded. Thanks Greystone!ArtPS: Here's the trailer one more time: -
Miami Book Fair!!!
19 Nov 2009 | 5:56 amWell, last Friday I plopped myself on a plane and ended up in Miami for the Miami Book Fair (actually it was a bit of a longer trip than that, as I first flew to Colorado then on to Miami, but I thought I'd skip telling you every detail...you know what kind of snacks I had, the amount of turbulence, did I fasten my seatbelt, did I read magazines etc..). We landed. I was eager to learn more about Miami (this being my first trip), but was pretty sure I already knew most everything from watching Miami Vice (it's like CSI: Miami, but everyone dresses better) and Dexter. As my cab pulled up to the… -
Hunchback Worldwide Virtual Tour stop #2!
12 Nov 2009 | 7:08 amThe Hunchback Assignments Half Hour Virtual Visit Tour (AKA as HAHH!) steamed it's way to Beaverlodge School in Winnipeg, MB, Canada. Ah, home to the mighty Bluebombers, wheat fields, and incredibly intelligent students. I read. I pontificated. I burbled. I extrapolated. Of course, I discussed The Hunchback Assignments. And threw all the Victorian factoids I could at them. The class listened intently. See here's proof:And we ended it all by singing "God Save The Queen." Err, well maybe I just hummed a few bars quietly to myself. Once again another free signed book and bookmarks were received…
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Original Content
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I Missed The Real Fun
20 Nov 2009 | 4:55 pmCheck out Marc Tyler Nobleman's blog post about the Connecticut Children's Book Fair. Be sure to scroll down to the photographs that look as if they were taken at a crime scene. By the time all this was going down, I was back from my trip to the ER, had finished my calm down reading, and was asleep. It's probably a toss up as to who got more sleep that night. -
Reading Is Manly
18 Nov 2009 | 4:22 pmThe Art of Manliness has an article up called 50 Best Books for Boy and Young Men. I can't help but notice that I've read maybe half of them.This site intrigues me so that I'm going to sit down right now and send a link to all the men in my family. -
Doesn't This Make You Want To Run Out And Find One Of Her Books?
18 Nov 2009 | 4:11 pmI've never read anything by Enid Blyton, at least, that I'm aware of. However, learning that her work was banned by the BBC for thirty years make her sound very desirable to me. Evidently, her work was disliked by many people. And, yet, one of these articles says she is supposed to have sold over 600 million books. Hmmm. -
Less Canoodling, More Dogging
18 Nov 2009 | 3:25 pmIt is Cybil season, and while I am not cybilizing, myself, I am fondly recalling days when I was. Thus, when I stumbled upon Bloodhound: Beka Cooper, Book Two by Tamora Pierce, I jumped right on it because I liked the first book in the series, Terrier, which was nominated for a Cybil...oh, I don't know. Back the year I was a panelist for scifi/fantasy.The Beka Cooper books have a lot of things going against them as far as I'm concerned--made up worlds and words and names and societies. (No fairies or dragons so far, thank God.) What makes them so very readable for me is that they are police… -
Would She Have Loved Him If He'd Lived In A Box And Walked To School?
18 Nov 2009 | 11:39 amFair Hypocrites: Twilight By Way Of Pamela is a really interesting take on the Twilight books by Emily Colette Wilkinson. It appears at The Millions, which I only recently discovered. However, I was directed to this particular article by someone at Adbooks.
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Booktalks Quick and Simple
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Patterson, James. WITCH AND WIZARD
21 Nov 2009 | 4:16 amPatterson, James. WITCH AND WIZARD -
Yount, Lisa. THE FATHER OF ANATOMY
18 Nov 2009 | 4:16 amYount, Lisa. THE FATHER OF ANATOMY -
Winter, Jonah. STEEL TOWN
17 Nov 2009 | 4:16 amWinter, Jonah. STEEL TOWN -
Wing, Natasha. AN EYE FOR COLOR
16 Nov 2009 | 4:16 amWing, Natasha. AN EYE FOR COLOR -
Wilson, Karma. BEAR FEELS SCARED
15 Nov 2009 | 4:16 amWilson, Karma. BEAR FEELS SCARED
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Books for Boys
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Lemony Snicket, Book # 1 FREE
20 Nov 2009 | 1:39 pmFor a limited time, book # 1, The Bad Beginning, by Lemony Snicket, is available FREE! Check it out while you can!Read it nowhttp://browseinside.harpercollinschildrens.com/index.aspx?isbn13=9780064407663 View Lemony Snicket’s video response to this latest unfortunate event.http://www.lemonysnicket.com/ Max Elliot AndersonAuthor of Action-Adventures & Mysteries...especially for boys. -
Interview about my Books for Boys
18 Nov 2009 | 8:53 amA new interview has been posted about my action-adventures and mysteries at: http://jadaykennedy.blogspot.com/2009/11/max-elliot-anderson-author-of-reluctant.html -
Literacy, families and learning
16 Nov 2009 | 12:20 pmAnother blog that offers solutions, ideas, and help for the reluctant readers in your family, classroom, or cirlce of friends is called Literacy, families and learning. Find it at http://trevorcairney.blogspot.com/2009/11/getting-boys-into-reading-through.html -
National Struggling Reluctant Reader Week
12 Nov 2009 | 11:49 amOkay, so it's actually National Young Reading Week November 9 - 13. However, I'm taking it a step farther in calling it National Struggling Reluctant Reader Week. Why? Because if we don't reach out to struggling, reluctant readers, then there isn't much use in simply setting aside a week to highlight reading.Last month I wrote an article, Help for Struggling, Reluctant Readers. You can get a FREE copy of that article by emailing me at mander8813@aol.comSo, this week, please do something to identify a struggling reader in your family or circle of friends, and do what you can to help them… -
Veterans Day
11 Nov 2009 | 5:41 pmReceived several nice emails and phone calls today, thanking me for my military service. Nice. But it seems like a hundred years ago now. I was drafted into the army in 1969 and served until 1971. I didn’t go to Vietnam, because I already had an older brother there. My younger brother went to Okinawa.But when I returned to work in my father’s film production company, where do you think my first film project was? VIETNAM. I couldn’t believe it. The project was a film for Venture For Victory with locations in Japan, Taiwan, Korea, and Vietnam.All of my basic training had been geared to…
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About.com Children's Books
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What Is SCBWI?
21 Nov 2009 | 4:01 pmDo you know what SCBWI is? SCBWI stands for the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. I have attended several interesting SCBWI workshops on writing children's books, finding a publisher and getting a children's book published. I think that the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators is a very helpful resource for aspiring children's book authors and illustrators. Do you have any experience with SCBWI? What do think of the organization? Click on "Comments" below and share your opinion.What Is SCBWI? originally appeared on About.com Children's Books on Sunday,… -
Best Children's Books About Thanksgiving
19 Nov 2009 | 4:01 pmCheck out my brief reviews of some of the best children's books about Thanksgiving. The books range from the nonfiction book 1621: A New Look at Thanksgiving to humorous children's Thanksgiving picture books to books about the beauties of nature. What are your family's favorite children's books about Thanksgiving? Click on "Comments" below and post your recommendations. (Cover art courtesy of National Geographic)Best Children's Books About Thanksgiving originally appeared on About.com Children's Books on Friday, November 20th, 2009 at 00:01:56.Permalink | Comment | Email this -
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
18 Nov 2009 | 4:01 pmThe Tale of Despereaux, by Kate DiCamillo, is an odd and engrossing novel-length fairy tale. In fact, it has a lot in common with Grimm's fairy tales. The hero, Despereaux Tilling, is a mouse with large ears. The Tale of Despereaux is not only a excellent book for 8-12 year olds, it is also a terrific read aloud for younger kids. Kate DiCamillo was awarded the Newbery Medal for this very entertaining novel, which was first published in 2003 by Candlewick Press. The Tale of Despereaux continues to be very popular with children and families, as well as with elementary school teachers who use it… -
Spotlight on Ezra Jack Keats
17 Nov 2009 | 4:01 pmEzra Jack Keats was born on March 11, 1916. He died on May 6, 1983, at the age of sixty-seven. The talented artist and author is remembered as something of a pioneer in his use of African American children as main characters and in his use of mixed media collages to illustrate his stories. Ezra Jack Keats was awarded the Caldecott Medal in 1963 for his picture book The Snowy Day, which is still popular today. The Snowy Day is also included in Keats's Neighborhood, a collection of popular stories by Keats. Do you and your kids have a favorite picture book by Ezra Jack Keats? If so, click on… -
We Are Extremely Very Good Recyclers
16 Nov 2009 | 4:01 pmIf you are looking for a good book to introduce your 3- to 6-year-old children to recycling and what they can do to help protect the environment, I recommend We Are Extremely Very Good Recyclers. This picture book features big brother Charlie and his "small and funny" little sister, Lola, and wonderfully quirky mixed media collages. You may remember Charlie and Lola from the picture book I Will Not Ever Never Eat a Tomato, for which British author and illustrator Lauren Child received the prestigious Kate Greenaway Medal in 2001 or from I Am Not Sleepy and Will Not Go To Bed or I am Too…
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Wands and Worlds
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Cybils 2009 Nominee Widget
21 Nov 2009 | 9:00 amTracy Grand of Jacketflap has once again created this terrific Cybils nominee widget. It rotates through the Cybils nominees and displays a different one each time the page is loaded. You can get the widget for your own blog here. The best part is that it's completely customizable! You can choose the colors and the categories that you want to display. I set mine to display the Fantasy/Science Fiction nominees, of course, and I also included the Graphic Novel nominees since some of them have SFF themes. -
Book Review: Tiger Moon
17 Nov 2009 | 11:38 amTiger Moonby Antonia MichaelisTranslated by Anthea BellWhen Safia becomes the eighth wife of the Rajah Ahmed Mudhi, she knows that she will die. Safia's name means "virtue," but Safia is not a virgin, and when the Rajah finds out that he has been deceived, he will kill her. Luckily, the Rajah is ill right after their wedding, and Safia has a few more days to live. Like Scheherazade, Safia tells stories while she waits to die. But Safia's listener is not her husband, but a young eunuch called Lalit. A young thief named Farhad Kamal finds a silver amulet in a lotus flower, which marks him as… -
2009 Cybils Nominees: Fantasy/Science Fiction Teen
10 Nov 2009 | 11:55 amThe following books were nominated for the 2009 Cybils in the Fantasy/Science Fiction category at the Teen level: Soulstice (The Devouring #2)by Simon HoltLittle, BrownNominated by: MelanieReviewed by: Nettle Academy 7by Anne OsterlundSpeakNominated by: Mia ThompsonReviewed by: Nettle Amaranth Enchantment, Theby Julie BerryBloomsbury USANominated by: Stacey (AKA Aubrey)Reviewed by: Gwenda007 Another Faustby Daniel And Dina NayeriCandlewick PressNominated by: Finn ArchEnemy (The Looking Glass Wars)by Frank BeddorDialNominated by: Shannon Messenger As You Wishby Jackson… -
2009 Cybils Nominees: Fantasy/Science Fiction Elementary/Middle
10 Nov 2009 | 11:48 amThe following books were nominated for the 2009 Cybils in the Fantasy/Science Fiction category at the Elementary/Middle level: 11 Birthdaysby Wendy MassScholasticNominated by: Maggi IdzikowskiReviewed by: Charlotte | Eva Any Which Wallby Laurel SnyderRandom House Children's BooksNominated by: Sarah NealReviewed by: Charlotte | Eva Brotherhood of the Traveling Underpants (Melvin Beederman, Superhero), Theby Greg TrineHenry HoltNominated by: Sherrie Petersen Camp Alien (Alien Agent)by Pamela F. ServiceCarolrhoda BooksNominated by: Elizabeth DingmannReviewed by: Eva Candle Man, Book One: The… -
Cybils Time
10 Nov 2009 | 11:37 amI'm sorry that I haven't been posting much lately. The 2009 Cybils awards are in full swing, and Cybils duties have been keeping me pretty busy. For those of you who don't know, the Cybils are the Children's and Young Adult Bloggers' Literary Awards. A group of children's book bloggers, led by Anne Levy and Kelly Herold, created the award in 2006 to honor the best children's and young adult books of the year. Our goal is to recognize children's books that have both literary merit and "kid-appeal," and the award was founded on a firm belief that good children's books can have both.This year…
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American Indians in Children's Literature
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Dene writer blogs about HOUSE OF NIGHT
20 Nov 2009 | 4:32 pmSending you to "displaced Dene," a blog run by Tenille Campbell. She's got some things to say about the House of Night series... Tenille Campbell is Dene (First Nations) from Northern Saskatchewan. From reading her site, I gather Campbell is studying writing at the University of British Columbia with the AWESOME Richard Van Camp. Regular readers know I think Richard's work is terrific. If I'm not mistaken, Nicola I. Campbell also studied writing with Richard. As noted earlier today, Nicola's book, Shin-chi's Canoe just won a major literature prize. So! We should keep an eye out for Tenille… -
Congratulations to Nicola I. Campbell... Shin-chi's Canoe wins major award
20 Nov 2009 | 2:53 pmSending my congratulations to Nicola I. Campbell, author of Shin-chi's Canoe. In the news today... "Residential school story wins $25,000 kids' book award." -
Thanksgiving, 2009
19 Nov 2009 | 5:52 amIn this morning's "Google Alert" email (the one I set up using "Debbie Reese" +blog), I learned that Carol Rasco, the CEO of Reading is Fundamental, had blogged about Thanksgiving on her RIF blog. There, she wrote about American Indians in Children's Literature, and how it has impacted her thinking about Thanksgiving. (I must say, though, that as I read the excerpts she used from my site, I saw how unpolished my writing can be.)Some time ago, I was invited to be on the Reading is Fundamental Literature Advisory Committee. Prior to that, I had come across the RIF's page for November and was,… -
What Debby Edwardson said...
15 Nov 2009 | 2:12 pmI've spent the last week engaging in an online conversation on a site called Through the Tollbooth. There, like on American Indians in Children's Literature, I push writers to think about appropriation. Some people understand what I mean, others do not. It may be a failing in the way I say things. Debby Edwardson, one of the hosts of that week-long conversation, has some closing thoughts that I am sending you to read. She understands issues of appropriation, stereotyping, power, retellings of stories... And, she did a terrific job of laying them out for her fellow writers on the… -
First response: HOUSE OF NIGHT SERIES
13 Nov 2009 | 4:45 amFor some time now, I've been aware of the HOUSE OF NIGHT series of vampire stories. I picked one up in a bookstore and skimmed it, but put it back down. I did not want to spend time on it. I am still not sure how much time I will give to it... Here's the final words from the first chapter of the first book. Reading this online from the House of Night website:I stared at the exotic looking tattoo. Mixed with my strong Cherokee features it seemed to brand me with a mark of wildness... as if I belonged to ancient times when the world was bigger... more barbaric.From this day on my life…
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Archimedes Forgets
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"...you will allow to be impossible, when you understand my affections have long been engaged elsewhere"
15 Nov 2009 | 11:14 amNo, I'm not leaving you for a Miss Gray with 50,000 pounds.Just admitting that I have to put blogging on hold for a few weeks. I have a grad school personal statement to write, and even though (or perhaps especially because) I'm not making much progress on it, I shouldn't spend that writing time on a blog post.But I have loads of Cybils books to write about, along with the next few Trixie Beldens - not to mention thoughts on bookselling and politics and whatever else comes to mind - so be patient, por favor, and I'll be back soon.(Post pic is me studying AP U.S. History back in high school,… -
Tinker v. Sleepyside-on-Hudson
1 Nov 2009 | 7:12 amThe seventh Trixie Belden book, The Mysterious Code, was published in 1961. That means we have to take a little legal-framework field trip back to the days before Tinker v. Des Moines.Tinker, decided by the Supreme Court in 1969, holds a pretty secure place in lists of significant Supreme Court decisions. It's got some great pull quotes, like "It can hardly be argued that either students or teachers shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate" and "In our system, state-operated schools may not be enclaves of totalitarianism. School officials do… -
The James Herriot of bookselling
30 Oct 2009 | 6:25 pmOr something like that. -
The Bob-Whites added Arizona to "Places I've Been"
12 Oct 2009 | 1:23 pm(In other words, Sarah Schmelling's Ophelia Joined the Group Maidens Who Don't Float is definitely worth a read. And maybe a place in English classrooms, for when you need a break from comparing Poe's brand of horror to that of Ambrose Bierce.)Sorry about that. Totally unsolicited (and uncompensated) book plug over.Actually, Trixie could use a dose of lit humor in The Mystery in Arizona, since she starts the book by announcing"I'm not passing math and English, and it's all your fault, Honey Wheeler. I would have spent more time studying if I hadn't been having such fun up at your place… -
What's your limit?
22 Sep 2009 | 3:11 pmMine, in this case, was two words.More to the point, two wrong words.I was enjoying Jay Winik's American Upheaval, a massive book that deals with US, Russian, and French affairs after the American Revolution - until I got to this line on page 478:"Ironically, where Jefferson was a magnificent populist, Hamilton was alternatively derided as pseudo-aristocrat (he married Jane Schyler, a daughter of one of America's wealthiest families)..." [emphasis mine]Um, that would be Elizabeth Schuyler.After slogging through 477 pages - which were really very interesting, filled with stuff I was mostly…
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Bildungsroman
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New Moon chat Saturday, November 21st at readergirlz
20 Nov 2009 | 6:30 pmrgz LIVE!We will have not one, not two, but three live events at the readergirlz blog this month.<On Saturday, November 21st, beginning at 6 PM PST/9 PM EST, we'll be talking about New Moon. Feel free to talk about the book versus the movie and anything else about the Twilight Saga, and tell us if you're on Team Edward or Team Jacob. We'll be joined by the TwilightMOMS. Join the fun for a chance to win a Twilight necklace from Gypsy Wings and other fantastic swag! This month's featured author, Marlene Carvell, will be chatting live on Tuesday, November 24th, beginning at 6 PM PST/9 PM EST. -
Teen Programs at Monterey Bay Aquarium
19 Nov 2009 | 6:34 pmMonterey Bay Aquarium is one of my favorite places on Earth. On a recent visit to their website, I learned that they offer various programs for teens. I wish I had had such opportunities when I was a teenager. They sound so cool! Take this one, for example:Young Women in Science (YWS)This week-long, summer day-camp is designed to get young women excited about and involved in science, the ocean and conservation. Through a variety of hands-on field activities, we strive to increase their knowledge and to spark a personal connection with the natural world that will lead them to become future… -
Interview: Thomas Randall
18 Nov 2009 | 6:28 pmIf you think I'm busy, you should see Christopher Golden's schedule. As I type this, he is probably in the middle of writing one book, revising another, and plotting a third, each of which are diametrically different from the others. He has authored or co-authored over 100 novels, novellas, short stories, comics, graphic novels, and more. Christopher writes every single day, no matter what. I greatly admire his writing talent as well his dedication to his craft.For his latest series, The Waking trilogy, he has adopted a pen name: Thomas Randall. In our previous interview, he explained why he… -
National Family Volunteer Day on Saturday, November 21st
18 Nov 2009 | 8:37 amReprinting from the November issue of readergirlz and the readergirlz blog:In Marlene Carvell's Sweetgrass Basket, Mattie and Sarah long for family. The two sisters would probably agree with Alex Haley, who said, "In every conceivable manner, the family is link to our past, bridge to our future."Link with your family on Saturday, November 21st for National Family Volunteer Day. Volunteering as a family is the perfect way to spend quality time with your loved ones while doing meaningful work in your community.Visit http://www.serve.gov for a searchable database of volunteering opportunities… -
Interview: Jacqui Robbins
17 Nov 2009 | 6:35 pmBefore she became a full-time writer, Jacqui Robbins was a first and second grade teacher, a drama teacher and director, an SAT tutor, and a bookseller, among other things. Is it any wonder that we get along so well? I met Jacqui earlier this year, when she hired me to design her website. We had fun painting her virtual walls with stars and stripes. I was glad that she was willing to take part in the Winter Blog Blast Tour, so I could help spread the word of her delightful picture books and forthcoming works.All of your previous and current professions incorporate reading, writing, and…
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bookshelves of doom
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And the National Book Award for Young People's Literature goes to...
19 Nov 2009 | 4:16 am...Philip Hoose's Claudette Colvin: Twice Towards Justice. -
Un-dislikable.
18 Nov 2009 | 1:52 pmIs that a word? Well, whatever. You know what I mean. Anyway, I'm talking about Robert Pattinson. Who is quoted on cover of the current issue of Entertainment Weekly as saying, "The hair is 75% of my performance." I'm so happy he still refuses to hire a publicist. -
How NOT to pull me in with your advertising campaign, #24.
18 Nov 2009 | 9:00 amThis blurb... "Have you ever closed The Scarlet Letter and yearned to see what the future holds for Hester Prynne and her headstrong daughter Pearl?" ...makes me want to run screaming. Is the Austen fanfiction not enough? Must we really be subjected to Hawthorne fanfic, too?? OH, THE HUMANITY. -
Sky Coyote: The Company, #2 -- Kage Baker
18 Nov 2009 | 8:01 amIf you're unfamiliar with Dr. Zeus, Inc. and what it does, see this post. 1699. Facilitator Joseph, who has just spent many years with the Church in various roles -- not the least of which was serving with the Spanish Inquisition -- has been given a new assignment: to appear to the Chumash people as their trickster god, Sky Coyote, and to convince them to avoid annihilation at the hands of the coming white men -- by leaving their own world forever. Before even picking it up, I was worried that I wouldn't enjoy Sky Coyote as much as I'd enjoyed In the Garden of Iden. … -
Many, many lookalikes.
6 Nov 2009 | 5:20 amA great gallery of art used again and again (and, holy cow, again some more) on book covers.
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the excelsior file
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The Great and Only Barnum
20 Nov 2009 | 1:20 amThe Tremendous, Stupendous Life of Showman P.T. Barnumby Candace FlemingRandom House 2009Assuming you've read nothing about his life, what do you know of P.T. Barnum? That he was a huckster and a flim-flam man? That his name was the first name in three-ring circuses for a good portion of the 20th century? That he said "There's a sucker born every minute?That's about as much as I knew – or -
Secret Subway
18 Nov 2009 | 1:47 amThe Fascinating Tales of an Amazing Feat of Engineeringby Martin W. SandlerNational Geographic 2009This is the odd tale of a man named Alfred Ely Beach and his plan to construct the first underground transit system in New York City in the late 1800's. Well illustrated and explained, curious readers will be treated to a world full of secret digging, corrupt politicians, unwieldy inventions, and -
When You Reach Me
12 Nov 2009 | 1:04 amRebecca SteadWendy Lamb / Random House 2009I'm going to punt on the review here. People have been talking, and mostly raving, about this book for the better part of this year so I don't know that I have much to add. Because I agree, it's good, and because I think others have said pretty much what I would have said. So in the interest of not clogging the blogosphere with more arterial review -
The Snow Party
10 Nov 2009 | 1:03 amby Beatrice de Regniers1959 Pantheon edition illustratedby Reiner Zimnik1989 Lothrop, Lee & Shepard editionillustrated by Bernice MyersToday, a little compare and contrast between two editions of the same book separated by three decades.Snowed in on and old farmhouse in the Dakotas, a lonely woman begins to fantasize about having a little company. The man, her husband, points out that they don't -
Amulet, Book Two: The Stonekeeper's Curse
5 Nov 2009 | 1:02 amby Kazu KibuishiScholastic 2009Here's a problem. If you're an author of a series, you would want your readers to have such vivid memories of your previous books to be able to delve right into the new one and get their bearings instantly. But, if you were creating a strong, well-developed story and it was taking you longer than they usual book-a-year grind that most series require, you would
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Jen Robinson's Book Page
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Children's Literacy and Reading News Round-Up: November 16
16 Nov 2009 | 7:20 amThis week’s children’s literacy and reading news round-up, brought to you by Jen Robinson’s Book Page and Scrub-a-Dub-Tub, a Reading Tub blog, is now available at the Reading Tub. I've been traveling for most of the past week, but Terry Doherty has stepped up to the plate, and has tons of news about literacy & reading-related events; literacy and reading programs and research; 21st century literacies; and grants, sponsorships & donations. Sorry that my blog and Twitter account and Facebook page have been so sparse for the past few days. I find when I'm… -
Growing Bookworms Newsletter: November 9
9 Nov 2009 | 1:52 pmToday I will be sending out the new issue of the Growing Bookworms email newsletter. (If you would like to subscribe, you can find a sign-up form here.) The Growing Bookworms newsletter contains content from my blog focused on children's books and raising readers. It is sent out once every two weeks (if you are getting daily Feedblitz updates, you might prefer to sign up for the Growing Bookworms newsletter instead, and only receive one email every two weeks). There are currently 961 subscribers to the newsletter. (I know that it's just a number, but I'm really hoping to… -
Queste and Syren (Septimus Heap 4 and 5): Angie Sage: Middle Grade Book Review
9 Nov 2009 | 12:33 pmBook: Queste (Septimus Heap, Book 4) and Syren (Book 5)Author: Angie SageIllustrator: Mark ZugPages: 624, Age Range: 9-12 I recently read the fourth and fifth books in Angie Sage's Septimus Heap series. I never reviewed books 1 through 3, although I enjoyed them, because I listened to them on audio (and I find I need to be able to flip back through flagged passages to write a proper review). The Septimus Heap books are a solid middle grade fantasy series, well-suited to kids who like the early Harry Potter books or Sarah Prineas' Magic Thief series. They are light and fun, filled… -
Children's Literacy and Reading News Round-Up: November 9
9 Nov 2009 | 10:11 amThis week’s children’s literacy and reading news round-up, brought to you by Jen Robinson’s Book Page and Scrub-a-Dub-Tub, a Reading Tub blog, is now available at the Reading Tub. This week Terry Doherty and I have collected plenty of content for you about literacy & reading-related events; literacy and reading programs and research; 21st century literacies; and grants, sponsorships & donations. Terry's added a special section to the roundups, which we'll have for the rest of the year: Literacy & Book-centric Holiday Events and Activities. I'm guessing… -
Sunday Afternoon Visits: November 8: Kidlitosphere Links and News
8 Nov 2009 | 12:47 pmIt's been a fairly quiet weekend on the kidlit blogs, for whatever reason. However, I have run across a few things of potential interest for you. At Scrub-a-Dub-Tub, Terry Doherty shares a monthly roundup of new literacy and reading-related resources. The new resources section was something that we spun out of our weekly children's literacy roundups, in the event of streamlining those, and Terry's been collecting ideas for this monthly column. I hope you'll check it out. She's got lots of useful tidbits. The NCBLA blog reports that the fourth episode of The Exquisite…
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Writing and Ruminating
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Six Things on a Saturday
21 Nov 2009 | 8:05 pm1. I met Julie Andrews yesterday. Yes, really. She was doing a signing at Children's Book World, and I'd ordered my copy of the poetry anthology edited by her and her daughter, Emma. My book is signed by the both of them, and I was thrilled to be able to tell her how very much I loved her book, MANDY, when I was a girl. Guess what? She appeared genuinely thrilled to hear it - in fact, she lit up and said that she couldn't think of anything she might hear that would please her more. That made my day. Seriously. And I may or may not have gotten a wee bit weepy about it when I got to my car. 2. -
New Moon opening
20 Nov 2009 | 9:03 am12:15 this morning found me settling in to watch the opening of NEW MOON along with angeladegroot and my girlies, M & S. The movie was, as you might expect, sold out, as were the 12:01, 12:05 and 12:10 shows. This crowd wasn't nearly as squealy as the one from last year's TWILIGHT opening.But again there was plenty of fun. Including unintentional hilarity during what ought to be the moments of highest drama.So, early in NEW MOON, the Cullens leave town. Edward tells Bella they're going, and then, this happens:BELLA: I'm coming.EDWARD: Bella, I don't want you to come.Angela and I may have… -
2009 Winter Blog Blast Tour, Day Five
20 Nov 2009 | 8:40 amToday's stops on the Winter Blog Blast TourPam Bachorz at Mother Reader, talking about subliminal mind control to control teens. Er, make that "discussing Pam's book, Candor."Alan DeNiro at Shaken & Stirred discusses his novel Total Oblivion: (More or Less).Joan Holub at Bildungsroman, discussing her latest picture books and her forthcoming series for tweens.Sheba Karim at Finding Wonderland, discussing her novel Skunk Girl, Islam and more.R.L. LaFevers at Hip Writer Mama talking about her Theodosia books, and with an ARC giveaway.Lisa Schroeder right here at Writing and Ruminating. -
A WBBT Interview With Lisa Schroeder
20 Nov 2009 | 12:37 amToday for Poetry Friday, an interview for the Winter Blog Blast Tour with an author who writes novels in verse.I've known Lisa online since before her first novel's publication, and had the good fortune of meeting her in person at the 2007 national SCBWI Conference in Los Angeles. Lisa's first published novel, I Heart You, You Haunt Me was written as a novel in verse for the teen market in January 2008. Her second verse novel, Far From You was published in hard cover at the end of last year. Come January of 2010, her third novel in verse, Chasing Brooklyn, will be published. Also on the slate… -
2009 Winter Blog Blast Tour, Day Four
19 Nov 2009 | 6:46 amToday's stops on the WBBT are as follows:Illustrator Jim DiBartolo at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast in another of the gobsmackingly gorgeous posts we've all come to expect from Jules and Eisha. This one is chock full of Jim's original art, including a few of his co-productions with his lovely and talented wife, Laini Taylor, who is interviewed by Kerry at Shelf Elf today (see below): Art from National Book Award finalist, Lips Touch: Three Times and their adorable baby girl, Clementine Pie.Christopher Golden (writing as Thomas Randall) has been interviewed again at Bildungsroman,…
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The Miss Rumphius Effect
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McSweeney's, Twilight, and a Bit of Wuthering Heights
20 Nov 2009 | 5:30 amYou know I love me some McSweeney's. Take a look at Catherine and Heathcliff Audition for Twilight. I dare you not to laugh. -
Poetry Friday - Hand Shadows
19 Nov 2009 | 9:01 pmThe poetry stretch this week was to write about games of childhood. One of my favorite things to do was make shadows on the wall, though I was never very good at it. Here is a wonderful poem about just such a pastime.Hand Shadowsby Mary CornishMy father put his hands in the white lightof the lantern, and his palms became a horsethat flicked its ears and bucked; an alligatorfeigning sleep along the canvas wall leapt upRead the poem in its entirety.The round up is being hosted by Julie Larios over at The Drift Record. Do stop by and take in the wonderful poetry being shared. Before you go, be… -
Quick Hits - Some Posts of Interest
19 Nov 2009 | 11:54 amI'm way behind on my blog reading. I haven't read a single post in the Winter Blog Blast Tour (WBBT for short) yet! But, I am saving those for the weekend, when my computer and I shall be united for too long to mention. Until then, here are two short posts that caught my eye.John Green - On Liking TwilightRoger Sutton - One Question or Two? -
Poetry Stretch Results - Childhood Games
19 Nov 2009 | 11:25 amThe challenge this week was to write a poem about a childhood game or pastime. Here are the results.Jane Yolen left this poem in the comments.JacksI was no Jill at Jacks,tumbling gracelessly down a hill.Instead I swiped the little iron-legged tokenswith a quick hand, snagged the ball,was on to the next round with hardly a wasted motion.Champion of my camp, of my elementary school,I privileged jacks over real boys,keeping my winning streak goinguntil my first kiss the summer I was thirteen.The next time I played jackswas with my own childrenwho could sit on the floor with an easeI scarcely… -
Gifts for the Readers and Writers in Your Life - Part One
18 Nov 2009 | 2:21 pmIt's about time for me to begin searching the nooks and crannies of my house for the holiday gifts I've been buying throughout the year. I still have a few folks left, but my recent online searches have me convinced that it will be easy to please the readers and writers in my life. Here are some of the things I've come across that may make my gift list this year.New York Review Watch - The band may be plastic, but who could snub a watch with the Bard on its face? This one features a caricature by David Levine.Writer's Pencils - Alright, I know a lot of folks write on the computer, but there…
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MotherReader
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Winter Blog Blast Tour: Pam Bachorz
20 Nov 2009 | 4:58 amI’ll admit that I read Candor because the author is in my DC Kid Lit Book Club. I didn’t really think that the sci-fi, mind-control theme was going to be up my alley. So wrong! Once I started, I couldn’t put the book down. The storyline is gripping, the characters are compelling, and the town of Candor is so perfectly conceived. Plus the book made me think. And not teen angst stuff like girl trouble or rotten parents or a dead brother — though all of those elements are included — but about the constitution of an individual, the obligations of a parent,… -
Giving Books, Booklights, NBA, and WBBT
19 Nov 2009 | 7:07 amThe holiday shopping has already begun in earnest, so let me point you to my suggestions for 105 Ways to Give a Book with updated shopping links. You'll find vetted books along with toys and other gift suggestions for children, teens, and adults. I'm working on new additions for 2009 and looking at making one huge list to make it easier to promote across the blogosphere. Stay tuned.I'm talking turkey at Booklights today with Thanksgiving picture books. I went with my old favorites, so I'd love newer titles that you'd recommend. Head over to make suggestions in the comments. Raise your hand if… -
Winter Blog Blast Tour 2009
18 Nov 2009 | 12:25 pmToday’s Winter Blog Blast Tour interviews:Sy Montgomery (Part 1) at Chasing RayJacqui Robbins at BildungsromanSarwat Chadda at Finding WonderlandCynthia Leitich Smith at HipWriterMamaBeth Kephart at Shelf ElfAnnie Barrows at Great Kid BooksAnd yesterday’s, since I forgot to post them:Ann Marie Fleming at Chasing RayLaurie Faria Stolarz at BildungsromanPatrick Carman at Miss ErinJacqueline Kelly at HipWriterMamaDan Santat at Fuse #8Nova Ren Suma at Shelf ElfLinks to material on Amazon.com contained within this post may be affiliate links for the Amazon Associates program, for which… -
Bargain Books for Holiday Shopping (or for You)
17 Nov 2009 | 10:36 amSo with a million things to do last night, I turned to an old time-waster — hunting for bargain books at Amazon. You can browse — and buy — for hours. How so? From the Amazon Books department, choose the tab at the right that says Bargain Books. Then in the Browse Bargain Books list to the left, select Children’s Books (or whatever you want, I suppose). You’ll get an amazing amount of stuff that also includes anything from resellers. I’ve found that you can eliminate most of these by selecting — in the left-hand column —… -
Literacy Projects for the Win
16 Nov 2009 | 5:17 pmWith more than five hundred dollars raised with the charity raffle at KidlitCon, we gave two projects at Donors Choose a huge boost. Now with additional contributors, both DC school literacy projects have been fully funded! Here are the teachers’ notes to us: Dear KidlitCon09,I am most grateful for your generosity. My students will continue to develop their love of reading and curiosity with your gift. The picture dictionaries and thesauri will be a tremendous help in developing students’ vocabulary. The Washington D.C. books are going to provide additional support in teaching the…
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Pinot and Prose
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"Take me to bed or lose me forever!"
16 Nov 2009 | 7:10 amYeah, that's right - I said "Take me to bed or lose me forever!" Anyone who can tell which movie that's from is my new soulmate for life.So I never thought I'd say something like this, but I got a hot book-related link from the ladies over at Go Fug Yourself. Go figure. Apparently their site is good for more than just snark and fashion. They linked to "15 Literary Characters We'd Totally Sleep With." I can't get on board with Heathcliff - that is just too, too much crazy. And he crosses the line to mean...and I don't do mean. Same with the Phantom - I would never sleep with someone who scares… -
NCTE/ALAN 2009
15 Nov 2009 | 5:52 pmSo this week is my first conference since I have joined HarperCollins Children's Books: NCTE, followed shortly by ALAN. Part of my day-to-day job, among other things, is to coordinate our booth at conferences. So as you're walking up and down those aisles and you see the booths, consider that someone had to make sure the books arrived on time. Someone orders the furniture, the carpeting, the big signs. And the author signings? Someone organizes that schedule, avoiding overlaps and making sure everyone is where they need to be at the right time. And those various meals that you get invited to… -
La Parisienne
14 Nov 2009 | 12:05 pmI'm certain I've mentioned this before, but I'm a bit of a Francophile. I've always wanted to be French: dress like a Frenchwoman, speak like a Frenchwoman, and eat & drink like a Frenchwoman. It's the simple glamor of it all, the Audrey Hepburn of it all. It's why I loved From Here You Can't See Paris so much or Madame Pamplemousse and Her Incredible Edibles so much. Or French Woman Don't Get Fat, which I credit with inspiring me to eat and live better.And then there is the "conversion experience" (which I wrote about here, among other places): Julia had it, Alice had it, MFK Fisher had… -
Poetry Friday
6 Nov 2009 | 8:49 amI don't normally take part in Poetry Friday - other than Walt Whitman, I'm just not a fan - but I'm just feelin' it after the week I've had. Here's my contribution:A Dream Deferred What happens to a dream deferred?Does it dry uplike a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore-- And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over-- like a syrupy sweet?Maybe it just sags like a heavy load. Or does it explode? ~ Langston HughesI first read this poem in high school and, while I loved it then, I didn't "get it". Because most of what high school students are forced to read won't… -
Not a graham cracker in sight
5 Nov 2009 | 1:39 pmAshley over at Not Without Salt posted this intriguing, mouth-watering recipe for an Applejack Rabbit cocktail, circa 1965. The photo is tantalizing, no? Ashley takes amazing pictures:And I'll bet it tastes a lot better than my now-notorious crappy pumpkintini.Here's another:Calvados is one of my favorite beverages. A few years ago, I went to dinner with a bartender friend of mine and I ordered an apple crumble for dessert. I wanted an after-dinner drink. Damon heartily recommended the Calvados with the apple crumble, particularly when he discovered I had never tried the brandy. It was a…
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Poetry for Children
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LBH at the Kerlan
13 Nov 2009 | 10:27 amEarlier this fall, I had the opportunity to return to my alma mater, the University of Minnesota, and spend a day at the fantastic Kerlan Collection (part of the Children’s Literature Research Collections, CLRC)one of the nation’s premiere special collections in the field of children’s literature. It houses thousands of manuscripts, galleys, art, correspondence and more surrounding the creation of at least a century’s worth of children’s books. I had spent many happy hours there as a graduate student and even done some research on the German writer and illustrator Wilhelm Busch, but… -
Birth of the Zeno
30 Oct 2009 | 5:53 pmI’m on a JPat roll at the moment, happy to share news of another contribution of J. Patrick Lewis. He has invented a new poetic form, the zeno! Tricia scooped the news at The Miss Rumphius Effect earlier this week, but I think it bears repeating. I know teachers enjoy introducing the form of poetry to kids, as they model for children the different ways a poem can look and sound. And kids often enjoy this aspect of poetry too—approaching it as a puzzle to solve and understand. And I know poets themselves approach the form and structure of poetry with great intentionality and I’m always… -
Riddle poems and Spot the Plot
28 Oct 2009 | 7:58 amI’m a big fan of riddles and love sharing them with kids. Riddles exercise those higher level thinking skills and stretch young minds to use logic, deduction, analysis, and problem solving skills. Plus, I’ll never forget when my son, age 4 (and now 21), first realized that riddles usually followed a regular formula: Pose a question, suggest attributes, offer clues, wait… and provide answer. Unfortunately, he didn’t realize that riddles also involve subtlety and indirectness—so he would pick an object in the room, describe it, and ask us what it was—all while staring at said… -
Poetry for Teens
24 Oct 2009 | 2:29 pmHere's a big shout out to my former students, Cynthia Bartek and Heather Schubert, who are now UberLibrarians in Austin (Texas) and have launched the first Austin Teen Book Festival TODAY! What a terrific event they have planned. I had hoped to go, but it didn't work out. But I promised them a poetry booklist for teens, which I am sharing with you here. It focuses on a few titles (mostly published post-2000) in a few fun categories with a focus on maximum teen appeal. Enjoy! Crazy Awesome Poetry for Teens 1. Engle, Margarita. 2008. The Surrender Tree. Henry Holt. 2. Frost, Helen. 2003. -
e-poetry news
16 Oct 2009 | 9:27 amA variety of electronic tidbits have crossed my desk recently, so I thought I might gather them all here to share. It's a hodge podge of blog world news, best lists, book plugs, and downloadable readings. Check it out!Poet David Harrison has launched a new blog and is featuring a "Word of the Month Poetry Challenge" (along with links for young aspiring poets). He joins the likes of Tricia Stohr-Hunt, Elaine Magliaro, Greg Pincus, among others, in helping nudge along the poetry writing process for those who care to join in. So many poets writing for young people have joined the blogging fray…
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children's book news - Google News
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Symphony, PAC, libraries join forces to put books in kids' hands - Appleton Post Crescent
22 Nov 2009 | 2:25 amSymphony, PAC, libraries join forces to put books in kids' handsAppleton Post CrescentThe centerpiece of "Holiday Pops" 2009 is orchestral accompaniment to the narration of an award-winning children's book, "Uncle Mugsy and the Terrible Twins and more » -
Winnebago County Sheriff's Department use books to comfort children - Appleton Post Crescent
22 Nov 2009 | 2:25 amWinnebago County Sheriff's Department use books to comfort childrenAppleton Post CrescentThe Winnebago County Sheriff's Department's 23 marked patrol squads will now be equipped with lime green backpacks filled with children's books. and more » -
Children's book event Saturday - Maui News
22 Nov 2009 | 12:21 amChildren's book event SaturdayMaui NewsPAIA - Maui Author Marci Winters will read from her new children's book, "Giraffe Juice," from 11 am to 1 pm Saturday at Mandala Ethnic Arts, 29 Baldwin Ave -
Waldo Hunt dies at 88; entrepreneur revived the pop-up book as art form - Los Angeles Times
22 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amLos Angeles TimesWaldo Hunt dies at 88; entrepreneur revived the pop-up book as art formLos Angeles TimesWhile strolling down Fifth Avenue, he became mesmerized by a children's pop-up book from Czechoslovakia displayed in a toy store window. -
Author's dream led to new book's characters - Redlands Daily Facts
21 Nov 2009 | 11:57 pmAuthor's dream led to new book's charactersRedlands Daily FactsThey sold about 70 percent of the books and now the Redlands store carries them in the children's department, Varner said. The couple hopes to sell the book and more »
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Kids Lit
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Grumpy Grandpa
20 Nov 2009 | 10:07 amGrumpy Grandpa by Heather Henson, illustrated by Ross MacDonald A little boy talks about his grandpa who is always grumpy. Every year he and his parents drive to spend two weeks on his grandpa’s farm. The little boy has to be quiet and not disturb his grandpa. He tries to stay out of grandpa’s way so that he isn’t yelled at like the TV or the dog, but it’s not so easy. Every afternoon, after a nap, Grandpa leaves the farm alone. The little boy wonders where he goes. Then the next day, Grandpa takes the boy along. They head to a boat on a pond… -
Muktar and the Camels
20 Nov 2009 | 8:58 amMuktar and the Camels by Janet Graber, illustrated by Scott Mack Muktar lives in a Somalian orphanage after his parents have died. His parents had roamed Somalia with camels before the drought and war changed everything. Now all Muktar has of his old life is a withered root that his father gave him and told him to use wisely. Then one day, a man arrives with three camels loaded with books. Muktar is asked to help unload the camels and as he does, he notices a wound on the foot of one camel. The librarian is too busy to listen to his concerns, so Muktar creates a… -
Oh Crumps!
19 Nov 2009 | 1:34 pmOh, Crumps! by Lee Bock, illustrated by Morgan Midgett Farmer Felandro is so very tired. He has a lot to do tomorrow: milk the cows, fix the fence, mow the hay and climb the silo. And morning comes so early. As he is falling asleep, he hears the goats Maahing outside. Oh crumps! So he puts on his boots and heads out to put them in their pen. Back in bed, he goes through his list of chores for tomorrow mixing his words up, and then hears the dogs barking. On go the boots, out to the barn, gets the dogs settled, back in bed, list of chores, and another… -
Imogene’s Last Stand
19 Nov 2009 | 1:21 pmImogene’s Last Stand by Candace Fleming, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter Imogene lives in a tiny town in New Hampshire called Liddleville. She loves history more than anything else, so begins to tidy up the town’s historical society. Once it is all clean, she waits eagerly for crowds to come and tour. But no one comes except for one workman who puts a sign in the front yard saying that the house will be torn down. The mayor wants progress and new, not old history. How in the world will Imogene be able to save history from the stomp of progress? Perhaps… -
More Movie News
19 Nov 2009 | 1:05 pmAll from the great movie blog /Film. An incredible voice cast has been announced for the 3D animated movie of Guardians of Ga’Hoole. Voices include Sam Neill, Geoffrey Rush, Hugo Weaving and David Wenham. The film is based on the first three books of the series. It will be released in September 2010. You can check out the new trailer for Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief at the official site. It will be released on February 12, 2010. Transformers producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura will produce a big screen version of Michael Scott’s…
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Cynsations
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Craft, Career & Cheer: Anita Silvey
20 Nov 2009 | 7:32 amAnita Silvey's latest book is Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Children’s Book: Life Lessons from Notable People from All Walks of Life (Roaring Brook, 2009).So far, what’s the most fun you’ve ever had working on a book? Why?I know that many authors suffer from the "my newest baby is my favorite baby" syndrome. Certainly, that defines my state of mind at the moment.From beginning to end, Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Children’s Book provided more happiness and excitement for me than any book I have worked on.The moment Lauren Wohl of Roaring Brook Press… -
Cynsational News & Giveaways
20 Nov 2009 | 7:04 amAuthor Round-up: Writing Around The Holidays by Tina Ferraro from YA Fresh. Peek from Sydney Salter: "I exchange knowing glances with the other café regulars and I buckle down and write as fast as I can for an hour or two while sipping a peppermint mocha."Native American Spirituality in Children's Books by Debby Dahl Edwardson from Through the Tollbooth. Peek: "The question you, as a non-Native writer, should ask yourself is this: why don’t Native writers put overt references to Native religion, spirituality and worship in their books? Take a minute to think about it. This is important."… -
Donate an Item or Service to the Upcoming Bridget Zinn Auction
20 Nov 2009 | 6:20 amFrom Jacqueline Houtmanauthor of The Reinvention of Edison Thomas (Front Street, 2010)Artists, authors, business owners...Please consider donating an item or service to sell in an auction to benefit Bridget Zinn [see right, click for blog] and Barrett Dowell.Bridget is a 32-year-old YA writer and librarian who was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer in March. She and Barrett, who have been together since they were teenagers, were married in the hospital just minutes before she went into surgery to remove a large tumor on her colon. She is now undergoing expensive treatment to shrink--and we… -
Editor Interview: Lyn Miller-Lachmann on MultiCultural Review
19 Nov 2009 | 5:35 amLearn about Lyn Miller-Lachmann, author and the editor-in-chief of MultiCultural ReviewHow did you come to devote your professional life to literature for young readers?I attended graduate school in the late 1970s to become an academic historian, but I quickly realized I didn't enjoy academic writing, and I spent more time in the library talking to friends than conducting research.So I quit and became a high school history teacher in the New York City public schools. I loved teaching at the high school level and getting to know the kids and their stories, discussing books and movies with… -
Craft, Career & Cheer: Mahtab Narsimhan
18 Nov 2009 | 6:42 amLearn about Mahtab Narsimhan, and read her blog.How do you psyche yourself up to write and to keep writing?I set a reward before I start writing and will allow myself that reward only if I finish the quota for the day.Normally that entails surfing the Net or writing a nice long e-mail to a friend; stuff that usually makes me feel extremely guilty if I have written nothing on any given day!I’m very strict with myself. No quota=no reward.On the other hand, when I finish the word count for the day and go a little over, that itself is a huge reward. I’m then compelled do it all over again the…
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Blog from the Windowsill
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found art
7 Nov 2009 | 11:50 pmI enjoy reading "what was that book?" sites, except I am often baffled by the incredible illiteracy displayed by the people asking. It's hard to believe that some of them have ever actually read a book. But I just now got it. The lack of punctuation and run-on sentences and ungrammatically jumbled together bits of information... it's all a (subconscious?) representation of the memory itself, in its randomness and vagueness. As if by putting forth the memory as close to how it appears to them as possible, it might strike a chord more in a reader. I doubt it works, but it's kind of beautiful in… -
Speaking of Jean Webster
21 Oct 2009 | 4:04 pmas I was, once upon a time, I just started The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society and I suspect the authors are channeling her. Will be interesting to see where it goes.(I see that Nancy Pearl sees more of a Helene Hanff thing going on. That's good too.) -
Another reason people write fanfic?
10 Oct 2009 | 10:23 amI reread Jean Webster's Dear Enemy the other day -- it's hard to judge a book you've loved for around 30 years, but I think it hold up tremendously well despite being around a hundred years or so old -- and got a craving to reread just the ending of Daddy-Long-Legs. And when I did, I noticed something I don't think I've ever noticed before. Judy, the heroine of DDL, is a dedicated writer and has just published a book as that story ends. Judy is a prominent character in DE -- both books are in epistolary form and most of the letters written in DE are written to her. We hear a fair bit of… -
Reading with Ben - Poetry Saturday
3 Oct 2009 | 8:49 pmMy son tends to find his own books, and very selectively too, so it was a little thrill to see him reading something I'd put on his shelves, Making Friends with Frankenstein. Tonight his dad was out of town, so rather than the usual installment of Harry Potter with voices, I picked up MFwF and read him some of it. What a fascinating experience it is to read comic poetry with a highly intelligent autistic child. He wanted me to explain many of the jokes, especially the puns, but then he found them just hilarious.He's reading to himself now and I can hear almost constant laughter.It doesn't… -
I dunno, this might be better than what they actually did do
9 Sep 2009 | 3:05 pmxkcd on filmed children's classics.
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BookMoot
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'Hail Freedonia'
17 Nov 2009 | 12:31 amThanks to Joe Craig @ Turkey On The Hill - The Joe Craig BlogToday is "Duck Soup Day"in honor of the Marx Brother's classic Duck Soup which was originally released 17 November 1933.Celebrate as you see fit! -
Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle
11 Nov 2009 | 6:39 pmA beautiful story for Veterans DayNubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle by Major Brian Dennis, Kirby Larson, Mary Nethery, Little, Brown, 2009What a terrific story! So happy Major Brian Dennis and Nubs appeared on the Tonight Show this week. Conan gave him a nice block of time.I really loved this part of the story. (Not an exact transcript)An Iraqi came up and he asked me why we were so interested in the dog...[when Major Dennis speculated about what had happened to the dog's ears the man said--]"Yeah, I cut his ears off.""You're the one who cut his ears off?""Yeah, I cut… -
My Debut Picture Book Cover
9 Nov 2009 | 10:24 pmwww.flickr.com/photos/57271605@N00/3060245183100 Scope Notes Covers Week Challenge, Nov. 9-13CREATE YOUR DEBUT PICTURE BOOK COVER1 – Go to “The Name Generator” or click http://www.thenamegenerator.com/Click GENERATE NEW NAME. The name that appears is your author name.2 – Go to “Picture Book Title Generator” or click http://www.generatorland.com/usergenerator.aspx?id=243Click CREATE TITLE! This is the title of your picture book.3 – Go to “FlickrCC” or click http://flickrcc.bluemountains.net/index.phpType the last word from your title into the search box followed by the word… -
NonFiction Monday: Winter's Tail
8 Nov 2009 | 3:02 pmDewey: 639.97Winter's Tail: How One Little Dolphin Learned to Swim Again told by Juliana Hatkoff, Isabella Hatkoff, and Craig Hatkoff. Scholastic, 2009 (publisher supplied review copy)The Hatkoffs' Owen & Mzee: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship was a popular choice for school libraries with its theme of survival and friendship between two unlikely companions, a baby hippo and a giant tortoise.Like Owen the hippo, Winter the baby dolphin, was also in distress when she was found, entangled in the ropes of a crab trap. Although she was rescued and well cared for, Winter eventually… -
The Legend of Ninja Cowboy Bear
6 Nov 2009 | 9:16 pmThe Legend of Ninja Cowboy Bear by David Bruins; illustrated by Hilary Leung, Kids Can Press, 2009 (review copy supplied by publisher)As I approached the school where I was to do a storytelling gig last week, I noted that the school's marquee was featuring the character program trait for October, Individuality. This book came to mind and it occurred to me that this is a perfect book to share that message.The Ninja, the Cowboy and the Bear are good friends but they argue and face off against each other in a series of contests. Each one has a strength or ability, unique to them. Bear can build…
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Read Alert
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A thousand words and a couple of handy dance moves
18 Nov 2009 | 6:43 pmThis Saturday in Melbourne sees the inaugural Thousand Words Festival of Children’s Stories. In addition to a galaxy of authors including Martine Murray, Sally Rippin, Tony Wilson and CYL’s Lili Wilkinson on YA fantasy, you can also polish up your go-go moves! Anna’s Go-Go Academy will be providing a free half-hour class to work on your watusi, [...] -
ONE DAY LEFT
18 Nov 2009 | 3:40 pmVOTE! VOTE! VOTE! (and make sure you get all Creative Reading Prize entries in by the end of tomorrow) -
Thinking ’bout your holidays
16 Nov 2009 | 3:27 pmMy wife recently brought home this graphic novel, found in the travel section of a local bookshop. French Milk is the story of a young twenty-something comic book artist and her mother on vacation in Paris. Yes, it’s a catalogue of all the cool things Paris has to offer, but also a cool and charming graphic [...] -
Funny man, Philip Ardagh
12 Nov 2009 | 8:55 pmBefore the Bookgig today with Tristan Bancks, I was talking to Kathy from Readings about funny books. Why is it that some authors, who are massively popular in some territories can’t be given away elsewhere. She highly recommends Nanny Piggins by Australian writer RA Spratt. Kathy says they are for younger readers (middle to upper [...] -
Has the future of e-books passed already?
12 Nov 2009 | 3:10 pmIs the e-book market being trashed by greed? As writers and retailers rush for market share are they devaluing their core product?. At present, 44 of the top 50 titles sold via Kindle are free. What is this doing for the perceived value of e-books? Will we really want to pay for e-book content? See ireadreview [...]
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The PlanetEsme Plan: The Best New Children's Books from Esme's Shelf
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NED'S NEW HOME (PICTURE BOOK)
16 Nov 2009 | 8:48 amPICTURE BOOKNED'S NEW HOME by Kevin Tseng (Tricycle) When a worm's real estate value plummets (i.e. his apple starts to rot), it's time to go house hunting. A pear? Too wobbly. A watermelon? Sometimes bigger isn't better. And life is anything but a bowl of cherries when he finds himself riding fruit that has been plucked by a bird. They say you'll know your true home as soon as you enter it, and so it goes for Ned; he finds the perfect place to lay his welcome mat, and a clever surprise ending suggests even a feathered foe has been added to Ned's friend list. This book does everything right… -
BOO TO YOU! (PICTURE BOOK)
23 Oct 2009 | 4:41 pmPICTURE BOOKBOO TO YOU! by Lois Ehlert (Beach Lane)A raccoon or a squirrel might bite a veggie,But a cat loves meat, and that makes us edgy.The mice are planning an autumnal celebration, but guess who they didn't invite? Their nemesis will have to crash that party, but at his peril, as these mice are prepared to scare! Busy collage illustrations camouflage the turquoise torn-paper mice, but nothing can hide the pumpkin seed teeth of the cat against a midnight black background. One part spooky and two parts seasonal, visuals are this story's strength, and the last page sports a double page… -
THE MONSTEROLOGIST: A MEMOIR IN RHYME (POETRY)
22 Oct 2009 | 7:54 amPOETRYTHE MONSTEROLOGIST: A MEMOIR IN RHYME "ghostwritten" by Bobbi Katz, illustrated by Adam McCauley (Sterling)Greasy green lizardsAnd raw chicken gizzards,Spell-binding spellscast by spell-casting wizards.Dead mice and head liceand flapping bat wings--these are a few of my favorite things!Yes, even Rogers and Hammerstein takes a Halloween hit in this erudite collection of rememberances by one who has spent his life chasing the most famous of creeps. This poem is a good representation of the work because it underscores the poet's distinct lyrical quality, with a wit, sophistication and… -
THE YELLOW TUTU (PICTURE BOOK)
9 Oct 2009 | 7:19 amPICTURE BOOKTHE YELLOW TUTU by Kirsten Bramsen, illustrated by Carin Bramsen (Random House)Too-too adorable. While that should probably be the summation line of a review, the degree of darlingness of this book dictates that adjectives go first. When Margo receives a lovely yellow tutu for her birthday, she decrees that the garment is better suited for wearing on her head, and is shocked and wounded when her circle shirks her fashion-forward thinking. Luckily, by putting her true self out there, she is able to locate an equally true friend, who appreciates a little creative couture. The… -
REDWOODS (NONFICTION)
7 Oct 2009 | 7:48 amNONFICTIONREDWOODS by Jason Chin (Roaring Brook)In this effective melding of picture book format and nonfiction content, a redwood forest sprouts from a book that a boy finds in a subway station. A Thanks to a fertile imagination, the facts carry him off into the world of the tallest living things on the planet, rising over three hundred feet in the air. Through the perils of a forest fire, encounters with things that creep and leap and soar (follow the little flying squirrel from page to page!) and a majestic climb into the crown of the Titan tree, the boy comes to appreciate the survival of…
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childrens-book « WordPress.com Tag Feed
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Cute Cartoon Skating Kangaroo Merchandise- Cheerful Madness!! online shop
21 Nov 2009 | 11:57 amA cute and sporty cartoon kangaroo rolling around on wheels. All products are fully customizable. Special offers and discounts apply. See more at Cheerful Madness!! online shop Cheerful Madness!! online shop UK Cheerful Madness!! online shop Canada Cheerful Madness!! online shop Australia Cheerful Madness!! online shop New Zealand Cute Cartoon Skating Kangaroo T-Shirt by Lioness_GraphicsMore Roller skates T-Shirts Cute Cartoon Skating Kangaroo Women T-Shirt by Lioness_GraphicsDesign custom tee shirts on Zazzle Cute Cartoon Skating Kangaroo Children T-Shirt by Lioness_GraphicsBrowse more… -
Two Cute Cartoon Kangaroos Merchandise- Cheerful Madness!! online shop
21 Nov 2009 | 11:25 amA cute pair of cartoon kangaroos featured on T-Shirts, mousepads, mugs, greeting cards, accessories and gift items. All products are fully customizable. Special offers and discounts apply. See more at Cheerful Madness!! online shop Cheerful Madness!! online shop UK Cheerful Madness!! online shop Canada Cheerful Madness!! online shop Australia Cheerful Madness!! online shop New Zealand Two Cute Cartoon Kangaroos T-Shirt by Lioness_GraphicsMake a customized tshirt online at zazzle Two Cute Cartoon Kangaroos Women T-Shirt by Lioness_GraphicsView more Cartoon T-Shirts Two Cute Cartoon Kangaroos… -
My Best Friend
20 Nov 2009 | 8:27 amSeptember 1850 Dear Children, As promised, I wanted to tell you about my best friend, Catherine McGuirk. She was Terry’s only sister, the second in the family after him. Unlike me, she managed to convince her big brother to bring her along when they set sail from Ireland in early 1844. Of course, she had Terry wrapped around her little finger, even though they were as different as night and day. Where Terry was conservative and careful, Cath was fun loving and adventurous. Where he was shy, she was gregarious and outspoken. They had the same mesmerizing blue eyes, but on Cath they left a… -
Opportunity comes knocking ...
19 Nov 2009 | 4:57 pmWeary of his circumstances as third crow on the fence, Friedrich decided to hitch a ride with the first eighteen wheeler and accommodating driver that came along with the hopes of gaining advantage by getting some windshield time while sitting on a dashboard, warm, refreshed and perhaps being the first on the scene for any squirrel mishap that he knew was common to such conveyances……. -
The Tale of Despereaux
19 Nov 2009 | 7:01 amBrave Despereaux prepares to leap into the unknown. (Universal) Starring the voices of Matthew Broderick, Dustin Hoffman, Robbie Coltrane, Sigourney Weaver, Kevin Kline, Emma Watson, Tracey Ullman, William H. Macy, Stanley Tucci, Ciaran Hinds. Directed by Sam Fell and Rob Stevenhagen It is far easier to judge someone on the way they look than on the way they act. It is also not uncommon for people of smaller stature to be overlooked. Still, it’s not the size of the mouse in the fight but the size of the fight in the mouse. The kingdom of Dor is a wonderful, magical place ruled by a king and…
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School Library Journal Breaking News
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The Twilight Saga: New Moon
19 Nov 2009 | 11:00 pmDirector Chris Weitz’s film adaptation of Stephenie Meyer’s New Moon (Little, Brown, 2006) is an improvement over last year’s franchise launching Twilight, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, and will no doubt leave fans of the series eager for the next installment, while leaving others perplexed by the hoopla surrounding the critic-proof film series. -
Oklahoma Needs School Librarians
19 Nov 2009 | 11:00 pmFor qualified media specialists, the state of Oklahoma is a boomtown—there are more positions available than librarians to fill them. -
FL School Board Wins Battle to Keep ‘Vamos a Cuba’ Off Library Shelves
18 Nov 2009 | 1:05 pmSchool board members in Miami have won their fight to keep Vamos a Cuba (Heineman, 2001) off school library shelves because the book paints too rosy a picture of life in the communist nation. -
Teens Still Text and Drive, Pew Report Says
18 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pmTexting and driving are a dangerous mix, yet one in four American teens of driving age say they’ve texted while driving, and half of all teens ages 12 to 17 say they’ve been a passenger in a car while the driver has texted behind the wheel, say a new report. -
A Conversation with Mo Willems
17 Nov 2009 | 11:00 pmAward-winning author and illustrator Mo Willems talks about his third and final Knuffle Bunny book, a musical based on the lovable stuffed animal, and what to expect in 2010.
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School Library Journal - Nonfiction Matters
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The Mixed Messages of Standards and Education Reform
More Facts or More Thoughts? Last night I met with two experts on education and education reform. They have both been working with the governmen... -
NBA story
The Times coverage of last night's NBA awards fits our interests perfectly -- note the speech from the adult NF winner and the focus on the young r... -
The Unforgiving Minute -- A Soldier's Education
"Question the Answers" Time out for a quick book report -- you'll see, there is a reason for this: My men's reading group meets in a ... -
Fort Hood and Us -- Another Real World Responsibility
My Doctoral Adviser Once Said of Historians, "We Are the Elders; We Pass On the Knowledge of the Past" If you know something, it is yo... -
NF and Reviewing
More Fallout from the CCBC Discussion Sorry to be late posting today, over the weekend I got caught up in the CCBC thread on reviewing where bot...
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School Library Journal - A Fuse #8 Production
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Review of the Day: Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon By Grace Lin Little, Brown and Company $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-316-11427-1 Ages 8-12 On shelves now. When an ... -
Librarian Preview: Lerner Publishing Group (Spring 2010)
This has been a season of firsts. I did my first Albert Whitman preview a week or so ago. I'll be doing my first National Geographic pr... -
2009 WBBT: Friday Schedule
And all too soon it's over. Here's the last of the best of the week, my loves. Lisa Schroeder at Writing & Ruminating Alan DeNiro at ... -
WBBT: Michael Hague Interview
I'm allowed to be a fangirl once in a while, I think. Now I don't often get a chance to interview an author or illustrator from my own youth.... -
2009 WBBT: Thursday Schedule
Here's who's on the menu today! Sy Montgomery Pt 2 at Chasing Ray Laini Taylor at Shelf Elf Jim DiBartolo at Seven Impossible Things Before Br...
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washingtonpost.com - Michael Gerson
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Michael Gerson on Obama's dysfunctional decision making
19 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pmIn the beginning, the Obama administration directed a spotlight toward its careful, thoughtful decision-making process on Afghanistan. National security meetings were announced, photographed and highlighted in background briefings to the media. President Obama would apply the methods of the academy to the art of war -- the University of Chicago meets West Point -- thus assuring a skittish public that deliberation had preceded decision. -
Michael Gerson on the decision to try 9/11 suspects in N.Y.
17 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pmEric Holder -- distinguished prosecutor, judge, foe of public corruption, basketball enthusiast, mentor to disadvantaged youth -- seemed a reassuring choice for attorney general. When Holder affirmed during his confirmation hearing that America remains at war with terrorists, Sen. Lindsey Graham enthused, "I'm almost ready to vote for you right now." -
Michael Gerson on how U.S. policy fails Darfur
12 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pmT he genocide in Darfur is no longer a trendy, breathless global cause. But the women of Darfur haven't gotten the message. -
Michael Gerson on how Obama must show wartime leadership
10 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pmThe decision on President Obama's Afghanistan strategy -- expected during the next few weeks -- finally seems close. After a process attacked as dithering and praised as deliberative, all the serious options appear to include a larger American commitment. -
Michael Gerson on Obama ceding the center
5 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pmDuring long campaign swings in Virginia's recent gubernatorial campaign, Bob McDonnell's staff would count the cars that sported both Obama and McDonnell bumper stickers. These ideologically confused motorists turned out to be an important demographic. On Election Day, according to exit polls, about one in 10 voters who supported Barack Obama in 2008 voted for McDonnell, the Republican.
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Semicolon
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Saturday Review of Books: November 21, 2009
20 Nov 2009 | 7:18 pm“Desultory reading is delightful, but to be beneficial, our reading must be carefully directed..”~Seneca The question, of course, is directed by whom or by what plan? How is your reading directed? Welcome to this week’s Saturday Review of Books. Here’s how it usually works. Find a review on your blog posted sometime this week of a book you’re reading or a book you’ve read. The review doesn’t have to be a formal sort of thing. You can just write your thoughts on a particular book, a few ideas inspired by reading the book, your evaluation, quotations, whatever. Now… -
Giving Books: Audiobooks Are Books, Too
19 Nov 2009 | 10:31 pmBill at Thinklings spotlighted this new production from Focus on the Family Radio Theater: You can purchase The Screwtape Letters (audiobook dramatized performance)here or here. I’ve definitely got this one on my list for someone who shall remain nameless. (If you’re on my giving list, and you want it, you’d better get your request in soon. Otherwise, I may give it to myself!) We’ve been listening to lots of audiobooks around here since Z-baby (age eight) can’t read at anywhere near the level she can understand. A few of her favorites, played, repeated and almost… -
Poetry Friday: Giving Thanks
19 Nov 2009 | 9:33 pmWe plow the fields, and scatter The good seed on the land, But it is fed and watered By God’s almighty hand; He sends the snow in winter, The warmth to swell the grain, The breezes and the sunshine, And soft refreshing rain. He only is the Maker Of all things near and far; He paints the wayside flower, He lights the evening star; The winds and waves obey him, By him the birds are fed; Much more to us, his children, He gives our daily bread. We thank thee, then, O Father, For all things bright and good, The seedtime and the harvest, Our life, our health, our food: No gifts have we to… -
Read Aloud Thursday: Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
18 Nov 2009 | 10:40 pmZ-Baby has been listening to the audiobook CD version of Kate DiCamillo’s award-winning book about India Opal Buloni, her smiling dog, and her preacher daddy all week long. The narration by Cherry Jones is great, with a thick Southern accent and different voices for all the characters. Me: What made you laugh in this book? Why? Z-baby: Well, what was kind of funny was that her dad called her by her middle name, Opal, which was her dad’s mom’s name. And it’s the same with me. I have my dad’s mom’s name for a middle name. And she called the Dewberry boys… -
Giving Books: For the nieces and other girls in your life
18 Nov 2009 | 9:24 pmThe Anchoress has a post up about her Christmas shopping thus far, and she asks for book suggestions for her nieces, ages eight and twelve who have “some reading disabilities.” I’m inspired to make this list of possible gift ideas for all of you who have similar girl-type people to buy for this Christmas. For an eight year old girl: Alvin Ho: Allergic to GIrls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look. Semicolon review here. Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking and Other Natural Disasters by Lenore Look. Dessert First by Halllie Durand. Semicolon review here. Ruby…
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childrens-book-illustration « WordPress.com Tag Feed
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Kathleen Rietz at the Doodle Diner!
7 Nov 2009 | 9:56 pmHi everyone! I am Kathleen Rietz and Have been a part of this group since the beginning, but I have spent a large majority of the past year illustrating children’s books and traveling. I am finally posting for the first time at the Doodle Diner! Yay! 1.If you could only use one colour to draw or paint with forever and ever, which colour would you use? Dark Sepia 2.What do you most often draw when on the phone? I doodle faces mostly…sometimes circles and boxes when I am trying to organize my thoughts. 3.Your studio is… Full of brushes, pencils, paints, inks, paper, drawings and… -
new book beginnings ~ db
22 Oct 2009 | 12:21 pmMore details from the last page spread sketch, a little further along in the drawing process. (pencil on tracing paper) -
Yoga Done Right
21 Oct 2009 | 5:45 pmYesterday, I explained how to rush through the whole Ashtanga primary yoga series in just a couple of short pants (as in breaths, not trousers.) Below is an illustration of Ashtanga yoga done right, with steadiness, cheefulness, balance, and most importantly, an elephant. (Also practicing are a little white dog and a yogini mouse.) The pose depicted is trichonasana (triangle pose). The animals are really quite good at it, particularly considering all the extra legs. Elephant - Dog - Mouse Trichonasana (All rights reserved. Karin Gustafson) Unfortunately, the elephant-dog-mouse yoga… -
new book beginnings ~ db
21 Oct 2009 | 1:03 pmthis is a detail of the other side of the spread I posted yesterday. -
new book beginnings ~ db
20 Oct 2009 | 2:45 pmpencil on tracing paper sketch detail from the last spread of the book. still got a long way to go. My reference is from a bunch of photos I shot at the Round Pond in Kensington Gardens a few years ago. In addition to the swans, Kensington Gardens is also home to Peter Pan.
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Mad Woman in the Forest
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Bookstore Events and Book Awards, Oh My!!!
19 Nov 2009 | 8:56 amSince Laurie is running around like a Mad Woman, and being true to her inner Mad Woman in the Forest, I thought I would share, once again, her bookstore schedule for this weekend! Yes, it is time for her to travel to Philly for NCTE (no, she is NOT packed yet!). Besides the wonderful conference, she is scheduled to appear tomorrow (Friday) night at a Public Event at Doylestown Bookshop from 7PM until 9PM!! Can you be there? If you are in the area, please stop in and say hello! She would LOVE to see all her friends!On Saturday, Laurie will be doing conference book signings and an Author Blog… -
Shhh...
18 Nov 2009 | 3:15 amI'm writing.Come back tomorrow.Scribble...scribble...scribble... -
Philly-bound!
16 Nov 2009 | 5:08 amI revised all weekend. What about you? If you are working on NaNoWriMo or just putting pedal to the medal to finish a draft, you might want to read the Tips on Writer's Block I wrote for the NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program.Because of the intense revision schedule I'm on, I need to issue a blanket apology to all my friends for not answering email or phone calls right now. I'd grovel too, except I'm too busy writing.It's almost Thanksgiving and that means... The National Council of Teachers of English/ALAN Conference is just around the corner. This year it's in my old stomping ground, Philly. -
Behold! My writing cottage unveiled!
11 Nov 2009 | 7:23 am::sounds a fanfare::Without further ado, I bring you the greatest gift a writer can ever receive: -
Marvelous Monday!
9 Nov 2009 | 4:31 amThis is how to start the week off with a smile: CHAINS has been nominated to the longlist of the Carnegie Medal! What is the Carnegie Medal, you ask? It is the top award for children's novels in England, sort of a combination of the Newbery and the National Book Awards. I am completely blown away by this - honored, stunned and very, very happy. British hardcover British paperbackI had a blast…
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Holly Black, No Longer Dry Like a Martini
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Happy Halloween!
31 Oct 2009 | 4:23 pmHope you are having a fabulous night. I am newly back from Mexico and in no mood to do anything but sleep, but I trust out there you are partying such to raise the dead.Now to sprawl on my couch like a corpse. -
Back on the Road in the Morn
24 Sep 2009 | 8:30 pmI have been home for a week, running around trying to finish White Cat copyedits and clean my clothes for the second leg of the Spiderwick tour. Soon I better repack my suitcase.We are also dog sitting. Or, well, what passes for dog sitting around here. My favorite part of this picture is the ominous rubbery cat in the background.And here is me, writing the acknowledgements to White Cat with the mysterious white cat on my armchair. Yes, I look apocalyptically tired. I am. -
Canada Appearances with Scott Westerfeld and Cassandra Clare - updated!
24 Sep 2009 | 11:50 amI will be in Canada, talking about my teen books with Scott Westerfeld and Cassandra Clare. Good Neighbors 2: Kith should be out by the time of these appearances and, of course, I will sign anything (even Scott & Cassie's books--my research for White Cat has increased my forgery abilities):Wednesday November 4th - Montreal7pmChapters Pointe-Claire6321 Trans-Canada Highway, unit 1410(514) 428-5500 Thursday November 5th - Ottawa7pm Chapters Rideau47 Rideau Street,Ottawa, Ontario(613) 241-0073 Friday November 6th - Toronto7pmTrinity St. Paul's United Church427 Bloor Street Westwww.ticketweb.ca**… -
Listing of White Cat on Amazon with Hilarious Summary
4 Sep 2009 | 7:08 pmThe White Cat introduces Holly Black's new world! Cassel has always known he killed Lila, but now the pieces are starting not to fit.Well, it's not wrong, but uh, it seems kind of random. Also, exclamation pointy. -
Goodies for You Guys
3 Sep 2009 | 3:48 pmI am bringing a White Cat-related thingie with me on Spiderwick tour and it can be yours just for asking - at least so long as supplies last.All you have to do is come up during any of the September Spiderwick events and say: "Do you have a thingie for me?" I will immediately fork it over.So, if you're coming out, don't forget to ask!Event dates and locations here.
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ALLY CARTER
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Congratulations, Lyla A.!
21 Nov 2009 | 11:14 pmLyla A. of Ontario, Canada is the winner of the 2009 T-Shirt Logo Design Competition with this wonderful design!The judges (who included writer friends and people at my publisher, Disney-Hyperion, as well as my literary agent) and I all loved how clever, clear, and beautifully executed the design was!Well-done, Lyla. And thanks to EVERYONE who took part! We had over 100 entries, and I promise you there were some great designs.(But, no, I'm sorry. I won't be posting any of the runner-ups because I don't have permission from the owners to do so. Also, it's not a popularity contest, and I'm… -
BIG news!
20 Nov 2009 | 10:33 amHi Everyone,Well, I guess it's official: Gallagher Girls 4 (title to be announced) will be in stores June 15, 2010.Does that make you happy? Because it makes me pretty happy.In other happy news, I will be doing a signing on December 12th from 11-1 at The Book Exchange in Pryor, OK. The Book Exchange was my local bookstore growing up, so I'm very, very glad to be going back there to do my one and only holiday 2010 event.Maybe you can't make it to Pryor, OK but would like to pre-order an autographed book? Don't worry--they're set up to do that too. Just contact the store for details.I hope to… -
Miniblog: Soon...
19 Nov 2009 | 3:11 pmVery, very soon I will be able to share the winner of the T-Shirt design contest!You see, I had narrowed it to my top three and kept going back and forth, but today I just sat down with my assistant and talked through the pros and cons of each and we have a winner!I'm going to reach out to her via email first (don't want her to hear it from someone other than me), and then I'll post the winning design and links to buy t-shirts featuring it here.Later gators,Allyps...don't forget, the Heist Society countdown design contest is still open! -
The Heist Society playlist (aka--you guys are gonna think I'm weird)
15 Nov 2009 | 10:24 amHey everybody,I hope you're having a great weekend! I must admit I had every intention of revealing the winner of the t-shirt contest today, but indecisive me STILL hasn't decided (we got so many great entries!), so instead I've decided to give you something else today that might be sort of cool. Or interesting. Or just plain weird:The Heist Society playlist!Now, first let me remind everyone that I'm not a music person. I don't follow obscure bands and treasure vinyl and (despite my love of John Cusak) I was lost through a large portion of High Fidelity.But occasionally I do put together a… -
FAQ--mini blog style
13 Nov 2009 | 12:04 pmHey everybody!You know how sometimes I make a list of frequently asked questions and give really thorough answers? This is not one of those times.Nope. It's FAQ mini blog time, so the questions will be short and the answers will be brief. Are you ready? Are you?Go!HOW DO YOU MAKE A WIDGET--I'M SO CONFUSED!Well, if you'll do a little research about the last widget contest you'll see that I don't know how to make one either. But you have a HUGE advantage this time because you can look at the previous winners (and the websites where they were made) and start from there.It's going to take some…
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John Green's Weblog
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On Liking Twilight
19 Nov 2009 | 7:49 amOkay, briefly, because I'm trying to do NaNoWriMo:The Washington Post* has published a story that basically argues that enjoying Twilight, like getting your period, is just an unfortunate fact of womanhood. (The piece also argues, albeit subtly, that women are weak-will creatures who will cannot help but give in to their lesser, shameful urges.)And I just want to say: I am a man. I am a reasonably intelligent, well-educated adult man, and I think Twilight is insanely fun to read. Of course, I am glad we do not actually live in a world where it is socially acceptable for 107-year-old… -
The Whole National Book Awards and the Death of Genre and Stuff
15 Oct 2009 | 6:14 am(This post is for publishing nerds only. And probably not interesting for anyone other than me. But anyway, please come see me live and in person at the Main Library in Columbus, Ohio on Tuesday at 6:30. There will also be a smaller event at the Hilliard Branch of the public library at 1 PM that day. 4772 Cemetery Rd / Hilliard, OH 43026.)So, okay. The National Book Award finalists were announced yesterday, and one of the finalists in the books for young people category, David Small's STITCHES, was not published as a children's books and arguably is not a children's book. This has led to a… -
Upcoming Appearances
12 Oct 2009 | 7:03 amTOMORROW, Tuesday Oct. 13th, I'll be in LaGrange, Illinois Tuesday, October 13 at 7 PM at the LaGrange Borders. (1 N. La Grange Road) This event will also be livecast at Penguin's cool new web site, www.pointofviewbooks.comNEXT TUESDAY, October 20th, I'll be in Columbus, Ohio, at the Main Library, at 6:30. (96 S. Grant Ave. Columbus, OH)Hope to see you! -
Hey Hoosiers
7 Oct 2009 | 5:14 amThe Indianapolis public library is currently doing this amazingly awesome thing with my books called Pass the Book. Hoosier readers should check it out and participate; in fact, anyone working in libraries should check it out, because you should totally steal this idea. -
Banned in My Hometown: What's a Kid to Do
29 Sep 2009 | 8:08 amSo my hometown (or at least my home region, since Orlando is not so much a place as a series of interconnected geographical ideas) is dealing with a challenge to many books, including Looking for Alaska.The challengers involved say that my book would meet Florida's legal definition of obscenity, and that it shouldn't be available to teen readers in the public library of Leesburg. First, just let me note that I am not a pornographer:Let me make this clear: An individual scene from a novel cannot be read out of context. It won't make sense. It will seem other from what it is. You cannot know…
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Maureen's Blog
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THE LOST SYMBOL READERS’ GUIDE: THE FINAL INSTALLMENT
12 Nov 2009 | 12:55 pmFriends, it’s been almost a month since I have delivered an installment of this saga. The delay was mostly due to my move. You can’t move and absorb the mysteries of The Lost Symbol, because the human psyche is only capable of so much. So if you need a refresher, here are parts one, two, three, four, and five.When we last left them . . . Mal’akh had gotten everything he wanted and had Katherine and HSRL in the basement of his evil lair. Katherine was hooked up to something you mind find at an evil bloodbank . . . a machine that slowly drained her dry. And HSRL WAS DEAD! We saw his body… -
NANOWRIMO DAY EIGHT: BY THE NUMBERS
8 Nov 2009 | 9:20 pmshopoholic309 asks: I only have 1000 words written for NANO. Problem? Should I give up already?Give up? GIVE UP? On the 8th of November? When you have 22 days to go? Think about it this way: so, you have 49,000 words left to write. Originally, you had to write approximately 1,666.6 words a day. Now you have to write 2,227.2 words a day. Which is a difference of just 560.6 words a day. 560.6 words? That’s, like, a sentence! Okay, it’s like a paragraph. Maybe a page. Okay, it’s like a blog answer. I will MAKE this answer 560.6 words long to show you that it is not a big deal to do that… -
NANOWRIMO DAY THREE: POINTS OF WHAT?
3 Nov 2009 | 7:49 amNANOWRIMO DAY 3: POINTS OF VIEWHello, friends! Today I come to you LITERALLY from the middle of the move (on a STOLEN SIGNAL). I am sitting on the floor, in the corner, with my computer on my lap as men come in and out and take my things away. At some point, they may just pick me up and take ME away, so if I cut off abruptly, that is what happened. So forgive if today is a little short. But there is a fine, fine question to be answered:April asks: How do I decide what point of view to write from?I’m assuming you all know what POV is, right? A quick explanation if you don’t:First person:… -
NANOWRIMO DAY TWO: WHERE THE SUCKMONSTER ROAMS
1 Nov 2009 | 5:30 pmListen you guys . . . I am about to lay something critical on you. I am probably not supposed to be telling you this. I am going to get myself in trouble with the League of Real Writers. But you know that I am always compelled to tell you the truth. I won’t tell everyone, but I will tell YOU, friends. Just you. So here goes.If you want to be a Real Writer, you must learn the fine art of the excuse. Observe:So, you know how I said yesterday, on the first day of NaNoWriMo, that I would try to give advice EVERY DAY? Well, you may have to cut me SOME slack this week because I am moving… -
NANOWRIMO BEGINS
1 Nov 2009 | 7:56 amCan you believe it! It’s November, which means it’s time for NaNoWriMo—National Novel Writing Month, in which something like 100,000 people have signed up to sit in a chair (or stand, if you like, or recline, or maybe suspend yourself from the ceiling, as I would like to do) for an entire month and string together approximately 1,666 words per day. That’s 50,000 words by the end of the month.It’s time to BUCKLE YOUR SEAT BELTS and GET IN THE CHAIR.Since writing is WHAT I DO, and since I love to provide SERVICES, I will be answering NaNoWriMo advice questions and attempting to…
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Among Amid While
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Some people like to be challenged
21 Nov 2009 | 12:39 amAnd Biblioaddict is one. She's just acquired 7 new books, and one of them isTender Morsels by Margo Lanagan. I’ve wanted to read this book for so long that it’s almost impossible to believe that I actually finally have a copy. ... I can’t wait to read this, if only to satisfy my curiosity about my reaction to this book. The subject matter in Tender Morsels isn’t usually my cup of tea, but I’m excited to be challenged by this book. I think it’s always good to make sure I’m challenging myself on a regular basis. How else do I learn when my tastes have changed? How else do I learn… -
YALSA Best Books list
17 Nov 2009 | 11:22 pmTender Morsels didn't make the Top Ten, but it did make the main list.(via Perry at Matilda) -
About women's work, particularly their writing work
11 Nov 2009 | 3:30 pmHere. Yes.Three other depressing stories: Sheng Keyi's story (trans. Eric Abrahamsen) 'An Inexperienced World' in the latest HEAT (the beginning of which is available, Jonathan points out in the comments, online—thanks, Jonathan!). Something depressing about this being the first item in the issue, but mainly it's the story itself. It's about a women 'well past thirty and possessed of a certain experience of life', which suggests to me that the author might well be under thirty ('born in the 1970s' says an online bio) or just on the cusp of it. I seem to have recently read quite a lot of… -
Sydneysiders, particularly of the Inner West!
11 Nov 2009 | 2:50 amTomorrow night (Thursday, that is) at Berkelouw's Books in Norton Street, Leichhardt, Richard Harland will be doing the honours and launching the Keith Stevenson-edited novella collection X6, from Coeur de Lion. ALL SIX of the authors AND the Editor Himself will be there, so if you want a fully signed copy of X6, tomorrow night's the night to get it.The shenanigans start at around 7pm. Some of us will read, some of us will natter, and some will just stand about looking enigmatic. God knows what Richard will do—possibly fouettés or backflips, or a little mime. -
It's almost as if I was there!
10 Nov 2009 | 12:57 amHey, look here! It's me giving my Printz Honor speech, back in July! So weird to watch yourself like this. Daniel Kraus, author of a splendid YA novel, The Monster Variations, filmed it.
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Justine Larbalestier
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NCTE Events + Public Event in Philadelphia
21 Nov 2009 | 5:46 amI’m in Philadelphia at the National Council of Teachers of English convention. Such larks! If you’re here you can find me in the following places today: Saturday, November 21st 10:00-10:45AM Signing at Andersons (booth #544) 2:00-3:00PM Signing at the Bloomsbury (booth #609-611) 4:15-5:30PM “Authors’ Blogs: Connections, Collaboration, and Creativity” with chair Denise Johnson, Laurie Halse Anderson, Maureen Johnson, me, Barbara O’Connor, and Lisa Yee Room 103A, Street Level If you’re in Philly but not at NCTE I have one public event. Just me and some of the most… -
NaNo Tip No. 20: Don’t Wait for the Muse to Strike
20 Nov 2009 | 9:25 amIt’s day twenty and I’ve seen some talk on NaNoNoWriMo blogs of muses showing up or, more often, not. I’m sure for some of you muses are a very useful metaphor for your creative process. However, sitting on your arse waiting for them to show up? Frequently not a good approach to actual writing. “Oh noes! My muse is not here! I cannot write! Instead I will play Left 4 Dead 2 until muse shows up.” This method will leave you with kickarse zombie killing skills but will not be much chop when it comes to, you know, writing. Now, I’m not a very spiritual or… -
Liar Question
19 Nov 2009 | 4:12 pmI keep being asked the same basic question about Liar so I thought that I would answer it here before pushing it across to the Liar FAQ. My answer is not a spoiler as it touches on stuff that is revealed in the first few pages. The question is: Q: What do I know is true that Micah tells us? A: It’s not straight forward for me to answer this question. What I thought I knew about Micah changed as I wrote the book. But I can tell you that all Micah’s fundamentals are absolutely true. Her race, her age, her gender, her neighbourhood—she is from the East Village of New York City,… -
NaNo Tip No. 18: Breaking with Stereotypes
18 Nov 2009 | 11:42 amYesterday’s post led to Kilks suggesting that I base a NaNo tip on it, which I am now doing. One of the biggest flaws in beginner writing is a reliance on stereotypes and cliches which produces characters who never come to life because they lack verisimilitude. The female protag faints and is afraid of spiders. The male one is brave and strong. Or vice versa. And that’s all there is to them. They’re thinner than paper. What do I mean by a stereotype? Let’s look at one that frequently shows up in US teen movies and books: the dumb jock. Now am I saying that you… -
Blank Page Heroine
17 Nov 2009 | 4:19 pmRecently, the brilliant Sarah Rees Brennan talked about her love of romance and reviewed a few in her inimitable style.1 She mentioned in passing her least favourite kind of heroine: I truly hate the Blank Page Heroine. She is in a lot of books—I don’t mean to pick on romance, because sadly I have seen her in every genre, including my own—and sometimes she seems to be there as a match for the hero who won’t bother him with things like ‘hobbies’ and ‘opinions.’ Sometimes she is carefully featureless (still missing those pesky hobbies and…
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Writing in the margins
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Saving lives and stories
21 Nov 2009 | 1:00 amSomeone at work yesterday asked me who was the most important person in the twentieth century (for the Western world, at least). I said Alexander Fleming, the man who invented antibiotics. One of my colleagues shook his head, and said, Hitler; the other said, of course it should be Fleming, or the person who made Fleming's discovery widely available. The person who saves lives wins. Right?I have severe rheumatoid arthritis*: it's something that I don't often discuss, because of the general misunderstanding of what rheumatoid is and does, and also because I get tired of people suggesting… -
Apology to bogan suburbs
6 Nov 2009 | 8:21 pmI had a rollicking great time with the talented young writers who attended the Youth Literature Days at the Fremantle Children's Lit Centre this week. They asked very astute questions, and produced some absolutely cracking pieces of writing (some of the best were heart-wrenchingly sad, but hell, there's nothing wrong with that. Writing shouldn't be insipid: give me pain over boredom, any day!)But, Lesley Reece did very kindly point out to me that in my expository bit (why/how I became a writer and all that) I may have been a little less than kind to the ghetto suburb in which… -
Advice to a young writer
1 Nov 2009 | 12:45 amFor two days this week I will be in residence at the Fremantle Children's Literature Centre as part of its Youth Literature program. This has led me to ponder what advice I would give to young writers (if they even want advice: I'm not sure I would have taken much at 16, so I don't expect they will either). Anyway, if I had any, it would be:1) Keep going.2) Sit outside a lot.3) Read poetry (not the talented earache of modern poetry, as John Forbes memorably put it, but poets with heart and soul. WA poets like Sarah French, Morgan Yasbincek, Marcella Polain, Barbara… -
Markus Zusak
28 Oct 2009 | 2:33 am... came to deliver the Leslie Rees lecture at the Fremantle Children's Literature Centre last night. Judi J wrote a great summary of the talk here, but one of the (many) things that made me think was his comment about hearing his parents tell the stories that ended up being in, or contributing to the texture of, The Book Thief. There are a quite a few writers around who have used their parents' stories in their fiction, the latest being the inimitable Gabrielle Wang in Little Paradise (which actually features a photo of her mother on the cover). I did the same in… -
Age of consent
16 Oct 2009 | 6:24 pm29 January 1892, Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)PROTECTION OF WOMEN AND GIRLS BILLClause 4 - Defilement of girls under 14 years of age:THE ATTORNEY GENERAL (Hon S. Burt) said that upon a reconsideration of the question of fixing the age of consent at fourteen, the Government came to the conclusion that this age was rather high, and they proposed to reduce it to twelve, which was the age adopted in Queensland.
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I Have a Bed Made of Buttermilk Pancakes
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Dreaming of Amelia
3 Nov 2009 | 9:04 pmMy new book, Dreaming of Amelia, is now out in Australia and New Zealand. It will come out in the UK in April next year, and in the US and Canada in June (but there, it will be called The Ghosts of Ashbury High). It's about two new characters, mysterious strangers named Amelia and Riley, who've just transferred to Ashbury. And it's a ghost story. Another thing: I'm getting a website. It's almost ready. My brilliant brother-in-law named Steve is designing it. I have other things to talk about. I keep overhearing conversations about robberies, for instance. There was a curious day with a… -
Melbourne
3 Sep 2009 | 2:36 amLast night, I dreamed that I was on a flight to Melbourne and somebody phoned from the airline to tell me that my flight would be free. This meant I had to sit on a long, purple, comfortable couch. I saw my friend Michael. He was coming to join me on the couch, because the same thing had just happened to him. ‘Isn’t it great?’ I said. ‘I’m just thinking of all the things I am going to do with the money now that I don’t have to use it for this ticket.’ But Michael said he wasn’t sure he liked it. ‘Yes,’ I said, thoughtfully, ‘I see what you mean. If we are not technically… -
Boys on the Beach
3 Sep 2009 | 2:10 am -
1.
27 May 2009 | 1:57 amSo I just glanced sideways and these words caught my eye: the hours dissolve.Somewhere in the junkmail on my bookshelf.I panicked. I thought: YES. YOU ARE RIGHT. THE HOURS DO DISSOLVE. I MUST UPDATE MY BLOG! And therefore, here I am.It’s been so long!I feel overwhelmed and shy. I feel like a cold day practising piano: everything stilted and uncertain. -
2.
27 May 2009 | 1:56 amBeside me on the desk is a bowl that once contained: a mandarin, an apple, and some chocolate. But now it’s just peels and a core. It’s been so long, but I remember this: I’m always going on about the bowl of fruit and chocolate on my desk.
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westerblog
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Nano Tip #21: Writers Re-read
21 Nov 2009 | 8:43 amBeing a writer should change your daily life. You should scan the newspaper for story ideas, deconstruct old fairy tales in the shower, and eavesdrop shamelessly in the name of dialog development. And being a writer should also change the way you read. The next time you read a scene that makes your socks roll up, make yourself stop and learn. Even if it interrupts your readerly pleasure, take a moment to wonder. How did the author just make you cry? Which elegant phrase or shameless trick jerked those tears from you? At what point in that action scene did your heart start pounding? What was… -
Nano Tip #19: Read Out Loud
19 Nov 2009 | 1:55 pmIf you ever take a linguistics class, you will hear this catechism from the first day on: 1) Speech is primary. 2) Speech is universal among human cultures, and separates us from other animals. 3) Speech is innately acquired-–-unlike writing, which is a skill that must be learned. 4) Therefore speech (not writing) is the primary material for linguistic study. Yes, dear NaNoWriMor-ers, writing is important. But speech is the bee’s knees. So when you want to measure your burgeoning novel against a basic human yardstick, read that sucker out loud. Every week or so, Justine and I read… -
Nano Tip #17: Make Writing a Habit
17 Nov 2009 | 9:56 amOne of your brain’s jobs is to turn frequent actions into habits. If you force yourself to turn the lights off every time you leave a room, it eventually becomes automatic. If you open the fridge door every time you’re in the kitchen, that too will become hardwired. You don’t have to think when you tie your shoes or say thankyou; those actions are ingrained. But what about more complex activities? Can writing be a reflex? I am here to tell you yes. Make writing a habit. But writing requires higher brain functions! you protest. It demands one’s full attention! The… -
Chatting is over . . .
16 Nov 2009 | 9:06 amDone and done. Thanks for coming. There were 216 of you! You can still read the chat here at Suvudu.com. ___________ This evening at 7PM I’ll be doing an online chat with Naomi Novik, author of the amazing Temeraire series (also known as His Majesty’s Dragon). To join in the chat, just go to Suvudu.com at 7PM eastern time tonight. See you there! -
Nano Tip # 15: Take a Day Off
15 Nov 2009 | 6:30 pmThat’s right, NaNoWriMo-ers, take at least one day off this month. About now is good, because we’re halfway through November and your brain needs a rest. So take a day off and do nothing! I know I just did.
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Deborah Wiles - One Pomegranate
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the mechanicals are here
21 Nov 2009 | 8:20 amHere it is. Thanks so much for all your opinions. We've got the mechanicals! I'm reproducing them here, but keep in mind that the color is a bit washed out in these photos -- the final product will be deep and rich and layered and... all that jazz. :>When you open the CD package, this will be inside the front cover:This will be opposite it, inside the back cover, and under the cd tray:This is the back cover:And -- ta da!The front cover:We loved all your input, and we can't wait to hold the actual CD in our hands. It's the best yet, full of surprises and outstanding jazz compositions played by… -
long week's end
20 Nov 2009 | 7:08 amThese young gentlemen are part of Club Bili, a boys-only reading club in two middle schools in the D.C. area (Alexandria, Va.). They were guests of the Children's Book Guild of D.C. yesterday, where they told their stories about how "real men read." Charming doesn't begin to describe these guys. They made us laugh with delight and hope.Read the article in the link above to see how Club Bili works. See if it doesn't make you smile. We met and listened to the dynamic reading resource teachers behind this program, Jodie Peters and Rob Murphy, who, I am convinced, never sleep. If you want to know… -
the ghosts of story
19 Nov 2009 | 3:05 amI almost called this post "when worlds collide" because it's a bit like whiplash, careening from one world to another this week while I'm in D.C. But it's not a collision of worlds that's happening. It's a realization of ghosts. Everything has its season, then passes on. See if you don't think so, below.Twenty four hours in three different worlds:Teaching at St. Patrick's in Washington, D.C. These students are gathering their stories, their personal narratives. We tell our stories in song, dance, art, words and more. How will these students choose to save their stories... or will they?Walking… -
st. patrick's episcopal day school
17 Nov 2009 | 3:54 amLoving these two days at the St. Pat's annual book fair. I worked with the fabulous Seymour Simon yesterday, and go solo today.Yesterday: sixth, second, first, and kinders. We wrote and told stories.Kinders ready to go on a field trip right after our time together:But not before they dance to ONE WIDE SKY:Got to go! Today: fourth, fifth, seventh, and eighth graders. Thanks so much, everyone at St. Patrick's! -
midland's battle, and mine
15 Nov 2009 | 5:22 amThis was the scene on Saturday morning in Midland, Michigan, where I spoke to 500 fourth and fifth graders and their parents, in two sessions, for their annual Battle of the Books kickoff, sponsored by the Grace A. Dow Memorial Library. To say I was floored is an understatement.I mean, we're talking Saturday morning (and afternoon) on a sunny, balmy Michigan November day full of basketball games and family obligations. These families came to the library.This is the 31st year the library has sponsored Battle of the Books. Fourth and fifth graders wait eagerly for this November Saturday every…
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the thinkings of a lili
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NaNoWriMo: Half way
15 Nov 2009 | 4:39 pmSo yesterday was the half-way mark for NaNoWriMo.I'm on track, with 27 000 words under my belt. It's certainly the most I've ever written in such a short time. I'm not sure if any of it's any good, but I think some of it will be salvagable. I'll need to put it in a drawer for a month or so and then spend some serious time reworking it, but as I always say, it's much easier to turn a crappy story into a great story than it is to turn a blank page into a great story.But I have to say I'm kind of enjoying the pressure. I like only having to write a small amount each day (1667 words). I like… -
Jellyfish
15 Nov 2009 | 2:24 pmI have a friend who is a jellyfish*.I've known her since I was born (she is a couple of months older than me).We used to play a game called Hawaiian Grandmother. It involved some wire-rimmed glasses and a hula-skirt.When we were about 4, we climbed up her chest of drawers, pretending we were scaling a mountain. We pulled the whole thing down on top of us.Now we are grown up, my friend Jellyfish lives next door to me. Sometimes mean people pull her tentacles, and that makes her a sad Jellyfish.Which is annoying because she is not a poisonous jellyfish, and she doesn't sting.My friend Jellyfish… -
NaNoWriMo
4 Nov 2009 | 4:04 pmWhen I was in the UK I read an article in one of the Sunday magazines. And like the very best lazy-Sunday morning reads, I thought - that'd make a great book.So I've put the murder-mystery-in-a-natural-history-museum on hold for a month, and am delving into NaNoWriMo - National Novel Writing Month. The goal is to write a 50 000 word first draft in the month of November - 1667 words per day.So Michael (who has also signed up) and I headed down to the Great Ocean Road for a few days to get some serious, internet-free, no-distractions writing done.pretty place makes pretty writing?I know… -
Alan Turing and Bletchley Park
12 Oct 2009 | 10:00 pmWhen I was in the UK, I made a special visit to Bletchley Park. This was part-research for a percolating book-idea, but mostly I went there for wholesome nerdy awesome. And Bletchley delivered.Ever since I read Neal Stevenson's Cryptonomicon I've wanted to visit Bletchley Park. It's an hour and a bit out of London, and there's a fascinating (and pleasingly lofi) series of museums and things there, including the National Museum of Computing. Also, Ian Fleming used to work there as a gopher, and obviously got some good spy-related ideas because he ended up writing some books that became quite… -
Three things you might not have known about SLOTHS
8 Oct 2009 | 12:40 am1. There are two kinds of sloth, the Two-toed Sloth and the Three-toed Sloth. The Two-toed sloth, rather confusingly, has three toes (but two fingers). The two kinds pretty much look the same, do the same things and live in the same places.2. The sloth is the only animal in the world to not have seven cervical (or neck) vertebrae (apart from manatees). BUT the Two-toed and Three-toed sloths have a DIFFERENT number of vertebrae. The Two-toed has six and the Three-toed has NINE.3. This crazy vertebrae inconsistency is because the Two- and Three-toed sloths do not have a shared ancestor until…
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ACHOCKABLOG
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Book corner | Finn Family Moomintroll
22 Nov 2009 | 1:43 amBook Corner - Finn Family Moomintroll Lucy Mangan brought her excellent "building a brilliant children's library" feature to a close yesterday by selecting one of Tove Jansson's Moomintroll titles: The Moomin books (there are nine in all) are full of subtle humour, wisdom, compassion and melancholy and the attraction they held for me as a child has only grown with the years. Moominland and its methodical inhabitants form an oasis of calm and clarity in a world that frequently threatens to overwhelm us. Just as the Moomins are always ready to curl up in a warm patch and snuggle down for a… -
Guardian Review
21 Nov 2009 | 2:01 amGuardian Review Two Good Thieves by Daniel Finn (aka Will Gatti) Baz and Demi are vivid and appealing characters, a boyish girl who can't help telling the truth and a swaggering, self-confident boy who is ready to take on anyone. As the forces ranged against them grow larger and more violent, and the two children have to fight harder to stay alive, they reveal themselves to be intelligent, resourceful, loyal, compassionate - and perhaps even good. JOSH LACEY -
Booktrust Teenage Prize Winner: Neil Gaiman
18 Nov 2009 | 12:21 pmNeil Gaiman Wins Booktrust Teenage Prize Neil Gaiman has won the Booktrust Teenage Prize see the other shortlisted books -
Michelle Paver Feature
17 Nov 2009 | 10:58 pmMichelle Paver feature Excellent feature by Damian Whitworth She has never run with the pack. For a year, at the age of 10, she was bullied at school. "I had a disastrously short haircut so they called me Cave Boy. It was a year of utter misery." Eventually her chief tormentor left but the experience informed the character of the outsider Torak. She also realised "that I could live in books and get through. I just ignored everybody else. The imaginary world became my support". As a teenager "I wasn't happy. No big reason -- I was just an overweight, spotty teenager." She devoured Norse and… -
Louise Cooper obituary
14 Nov 2009 | 3:59 amLouise Cooper Guardian obituary... Louise Cooper was prolific author of children's and adult ficiton. The obituary writer, Emily Thomas, was the editor of many of her Young Adult fantasy novel.s
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Between the Lines Book Blog
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Lady Macbeth's Daughter
18 Nov 2009 | 2:10 pm -
Thirteen Reasons Why
13 Oct 2009 | 9:17 pm -
Blood Promise: A Vampire Academy Novel Vol 4
31 Aug 2009 | 9:59 pm -
Beatle Meets Destiny
12 Aug 2009 | 9:58 pm -
Raw Blue
21 Jul 2009 | 11:38 pmHi everybody! First of all, wow. Thank you so much for taking the time to comment. Raw Blue has been getting some good reviews, and while that’s a relief, getting feedback from readers like you has given me a buzz...
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Bookwitch
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Hand over the money!
22 Nov 2009 | 12:56 amOr rather, please don’t. Following close on yesterday’s reviewing thoughts, here is another problem I found on Rutger’s Child Lit Request the other day. The subject is book review ethics. The person who asked had been shocked to hear of a friend who’d approached someone for a review of her book and had been told that it would be ‘$25, please’. The question is whether this is OK, and how common it may be? $25 for a review could be seen as an advertising fee, and depending on where it appears, it’s fairly cheap. But how could you ever trust a review… -
Giving it away
21 Nov 2009 | 12:52 amReviews. How hard can they be? Quite difficult, actually, which is why I do my own version of the things, carefully avoiding a lot of intelligent musings on a variety of literary stuff. In short, I don’t know how, so I cheat. But I do know not to just list the plot, step by step, or to tell the end in detail. I never did get round to reading the Striped Pyjamas, because I hated being told the ending in the Guardian review. Didn’t even see it coming. These days I squint carefully at a review if the book is still waiting to be read hereabouts. In fact, I was a little annoyed at… -
Tsunami boy
20 Nov 2009 | 12:59 amBlast that Michael Morpurgo! First he has me reading Running Wild, sort of enjoying it, but grumbling to myself that the voice is all wrong. Then I decided that it was OK, because the message was important and that’s what mattered the most. And in typical Morpurgo style he had me crying for the last 27 pages, at the end of which the man comes up with an explanation as to why the voice was all wrong. Double blast. OK, so I should have paid more attention when Michael was talking about this book in Edinburgh. I know he wanted to write a ‘tsunami novel’, but had to wait until… -
Nation and London
19 Nov 2009 | 9:26 amIt was my second tsunami of the week. (Although you have to wait until tomorrow for the first one. Wrong order, I know, but it can’t be helped.) It’s funny how things just happen like that. With madness running in the witch family, Son dug himself out of his Uppsala bed pretty early (3.15 GMT, as he kept pointing out) and flew over to London for Random’s preview evening of Nation at the National Theatre last night. (For carbon footprint purposes this didn’t actually happen…) Lovely evening. Free drinks and nice company, and the play was very good, too. But if you… -
The Booktrust Teenage Prize 2009
18 Nov 2009 | 5:35 amJust a brief extra snippet for today, in case tomorrow’s blog runs late. I’m off to London this morning and will be some time. Most likely until Thursday afternoon. I may post a blog before I get back. Then again, I may not. So, the good news is that Neil Gaiman has just been awarded the Booktrust Teenage Prize for The Graveyard Book. Very nice for Neil, and a wonderful book. Though some of the other extremely good shortlisted books have authors who probably could do with the £2500. There’s something biblical there, I think. Goes with graveyards, perhaps. A pity I…
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Collecting Children's Books
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The National Book Award Finalists
18 Nov 2009 | 6:57 amThe National Book Awards will be announced tonight in New York. I learned long ago that there is little point in trying to second-guess these awards, as the least likely titles often come out on top. Last year is a good example. Although I very much liked Judy Blundell's WHAT I SAW AND HOW I LIED and had it ranked second highest in my critique of the top five, very few people expected it to win. Here are my thoughts on this year's nominees, beginning with what I consider the least successful book and working up to my favorite of the five finalists.JUMPEDby Rita Garcia-WilliamsHarperTeenFirst… -
Brunching by Moonlight
15 Nov 2009 | 11:10 pmI’ve been busy working on another project...so Sunday Brunch is a little late today. In fact, it’s being served by moonlight. Today’s entry counts Caldecotts, reviews a new book, and reports on the shunning of Pooh’s friend Piglet.POOR PIGLETEver since H1N1 hit the scene, a number of cartoons utilizing children’s book characters have hit the web. There’s this take-off on A.A. Milne:as well as this one:What’s next -- a cartoon of Wilbur in his pen with the web above him spelling out, “Get Your Flu Shot”?BOOKS FOR DOGSDid you hear about Willow? This twelve-year-old mixed-breed… -
Finders Keepers?
11 Nov 2009 | 6:59 amI knew it would happen.It was practically inevitable.Nearly two years ago, I began writing this blog with the philosophy that every book has at least three stories:* One is the story you read between the covers of that book. * Another is the story of how and why the book came to be written by its author. * The third story is the history of the particular volume that you have in your hands.If you collect old books you're aware that each one was previously owned and presumably loved by someone else. I enjoy looking at the faded inscriptions inside and speculating on the individual journeys… -
Sunday Brunch, Punctuated by Gasps
8 Nov 2009 | 12:34 pmToday’s Sunday brunch contains a Newbery mystery, a book ID request, and one of those long lists that everyone will probably scroll right past. SABOTAGE!It’s not often that a blog makes me gasp outloud.But it happened yesterday when I read Fuse #8’s tribute to the recently deceased author Esther Hautzig. Born in Poland, but deported to Siberia with her family as a young girl, Ms. Hautzig eventually came to the United States, where she worked in publishing and became a professional writer. She wrote a number of well-received books, but is best known for her autobiographical work THE… -
My Friend Irma
5 Nov 2009 | 6:57 amBeginning a new job is a bit like starting to read a novel by jumping right into the middle of the book. Suddenly you're in the midst of a scene and you have no idea who is who or what is what. You don't know the characters, you don't know the plot, and your head starts spinning just trying to keep up.That's how I felt when I started my current job nearly twenty years ago. Everyone in the library knew each other and shared a history of sorts. As a newbie and outsider, I listened to their memories of a beloved former director who would hire anyone who personally requested a job in the library.
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Confessions of a Bibliovore
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Winter Blog Blast Tour
18 Nov 2009 | 7:38 pmSo, I'm a dingbat. You know this already, but today I'm a dingbat because we're halfway through the Annual Winter Blog Blast Tour and I'm just now realizing it. So far my favorite interview has been with Megan Whalen Turner at HipWriterMama,MWT is one of my favorite fantasy authors, and one whom I routinely recommend to adult fantasy readers who go "Euww, teen books. Icky! It'll get all over my hands!" Then when they gush to me, I laugh evilly.Here's my second-favorite exchange of the interview: HWM: What is your writing routine?Megan Whalen Turner: Routinely, I wish I had one.Snork! But… -
Reviewers, Amateur and Otherwise
16 Nov 2009 | 6:07 pmA few weeks back, Betsy Bird posted a piece at Fuse #8 about the Amazon VINE program, which offers free books to members in return for reviews. She discussed certain things that unsettled her about the program, the titles were offered to participants, and the reviews generated. A lot of people who are part of the program stopped by and weighed in.Now, Amazon VINE and similar programs are being discussed on other blogs. I'll leave that to them. Myself, I wanted to take note of a certain tone that seemed to run through the comments.One of Betsy's initial concerns was about--well, let her say… -
Book Review: My Life as a Rhombus by Varian Johnson
7 Nov 2009 | 4:51 pmBook: My Life as a RhombusAuthor: Varian JohnsonPublished: 2007Source: PaperbackSwap.comRhonda Lee is the most serious, studious girl at her school. Her idea of a hot evening is math tutoring and Chinese takeout. She has a plan for herself: graduate with honors, go to Georgia Tech, become an engineer, and most of all, don't waste her time on the popular crowd. But she can't avoid Sarah Gamble, the queen of the populars, the daughter of an important Georgia Tech alumnus, and her newest student.Rhonda and Sarah are becoming tentative friends when the other girl's symptoms become… -
Reading Roundup October 2009
1 Nov 2009 | 5:07 pmBy the NumbersTeen: 23Tween: 15Children: 14Something I've forgotten to note lately: because of books that fall into multiple categories, sum > total number of books read. Just in case you think I go without sleep or meals to read. I eat.Sources(New category! Just to give you and the FTC an idea of where I get my books)Review Copies: 3Swapped: 8Purchased: 1Library: 32StandoutsTeen: Catching Fireby Suzanne CollinsTween: Al Capone Shines My Shoes by Gennifer CholdenkoChildren: The Runaway Dragon by Kate CoombsBecause I Want To AwardsMost Entertaining Apocolypses: Death From the Skies! by Philip… -
YA, MG, and Blurry Borders
28 Oct 2009 | 11:16 amBack in August, the blog MiG Writers assembled a number of opinions about YA, MG, and what makes them different. They discuss such distinctions as the age of the protagonist, the wordcount of the novel, and the focus of the story itself. There are a lot of differing opinions gathered in one place. For instance, the definitive wordcount of YA novels is given as anywhere from 40k to "oh, heck, these days anything goes." Check out the post for more thought-provoking contradictions. There is a wind-up at the end of the article that seeks to distill and resolve it all.The article is aimed at…
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life or books?
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On being cool, pretension and personal integrity
21 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pmSo it occurred to me this morning (in the car for a change), that being cool is all about the being able to conform with your subcultural norms effortlessly. Or at least so that it appears effortless from the outside to the other people in that subculture. I say this as a person who never was cool, partly because I never could quite decide which subculture I thought I should be part of while still desperately desiring the approval of people who seemed to occupy a consistent subcultural position. So I often came across as very, very pretentious as a young adult because I was desperately… -
Not remembering the past
20 Nov 2009 | 2:41 amThrough Vanessa de Lacy's blog I found Lark, selling all kinds of witty and fun home make things. Including magnets made out of swap cards from the 1970s which makes me want to buy them very much and also makes me want to unpack my cardboard boxes full of stuff I never look at but shift from house to house to see if my very own swap cards are still in there or if my very own swap cards didn't make the cut some time in the past and if I did buy these magnets I would, in fact, be buying back my very own swap cards.I think it's more likely that it's just that nearly everybody in the 1970s had… -
In which it is hot on the bus
18 Nov 2009 | 1:19 amOn Monday evening I was coming home from the Gender Rights are Human Rights* exhibition at the Legislative Assembly on the bus. Actually, imagine for a moment that I am stepping on to the bus, inserting my monthly ticket into the bip-beep machine and then sitting down on the side of the bus that I habitually sit on. I have consumed half a glass of sparkling red wine and two canapes (one chicken, one unidentified but tasty).The bus is an airconditioned bus. But OH NO! The airconditioning is not working. It is hot on the bus. It may not be 37 degrees on the outside, my friends, but oh it most… -
Junior book fan
14 Nov 2009 | 9:52 pmThe Noodle has started his own blog. Because why not?It is called 'Books I Love by Eddie Nedwards' and it's in the sidebar over there under 'Books I Love'.In case you don't guess he loves Harry Potter!!!! -
Happiness
14 Nov 2009 | 2:59 pmIn which I am happy to have the kind of life where one of these does not seem needful.
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We Heart Books
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When We Were Little
22 Nov 2009 | 1:35 amKatie has mentioned the beautiful illustrations of Margaret Tempest before in her When We Were Little post on Allison Uttley’s Little Grey Rabbit. It was interesting because that post generated so many comments from fellow children’s literature lovers who remembered the series about the Little Grey Rabbit and many who in particular loved the illustrations. Margaret Tempest began illustrating in the 1920’s and illustrated the Little Grey Rabbit and Fuzzypeg the Hedgehog books for Allison Uttley. It is interesting that in some reading I have done on the Grey Rabbit books it is… -
Little Prince
21 Nov 2009 | 1:39 pmWhen I visited France, many moons ago, I loved seeing all the Little Prince merchandise and at any chance I sent a Little Prince postcard home. Today I found a lovely store called rougestore via Mathilda’s Market that stocks a whole range of beautiful Little Prince merchandise and now I just want everything! My favourite is these party invitations, they are in French but how gorgeous. They stock a whole collection of Little Prince as well as some great Asterix and Obelix bowls and mugs on their Big Cartel store. They will have the character ware at Mathilda’s Market in Hawthorn… -
Why is the Sky Blue?
17 Nov 2009 | 11:22 amMy favourite book of 2008 is still a favourite. -
A Christmas Carol
17 Nov 2009 | 2:11 amNed’s dad and I were watching At the Movies the other night when Margaret and David reviewed the new animated - Performance Capture animation - film version of A Christmas Carol. We both agreed that we thought the story was very dark and not really appropriate for little kids, although maybe many people will be drawn in by the fact that it is animated - so beautifully. I guess it is the same question about audience that has been debated with the Spike Jonze film version of Where the Wild Things Are. A Christmas Carol is a dark and grim story that I have never really related to… -
We heart Marc Boutavant
17 Nov 2009 | 1:21 amMarc Boutavant is one of our very favourite new illustrators. We were first introduced to him through Around the World with Mouk, a true visual feast of quirky characters and amazing colours. So we were very excited to hear about not one but two new books illustrated by Marc - Lou first posted about For Just One Day here and he has another new release called All Kinds of Families. The cute concept at the heart of All Kinds of Families is that you can find a family in all sorts of everyday objects - the food in the fridge, buttons on a shelf and fingers on a hand! Dozens of types of…
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ReadPlus Review Blog
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Revolver by Marcus Sedgwick
20 Nov 2009 | 10:27 amOrion, 2009. ISBN 9781842551868. (Age 12+) Recommended. A chilling, historical thriller, Revolver gripped me from the first page where Sedgwick introduces 15 year old Sig Andersson, sitting alone in a cabin looking at his dead father who has frozen out on the lake. When a huge bear of a man comes knocking at the door asking for his father, I had to continue reading to the end. What did the man want? Was using the old Colt revolver that was hidden in the pantry Sig's only way to ensure his safety? Would help arrive in time? Sedgwick has written a compulsive story. By writing interspersed… -
Your mother didn't do that! by Sharon Holt
20 Nov 2009 | 10:24 amIll. by Brian Lovelock. Walker Books, 2009. ISBN 9781921150173. (Age 3-7) Holly is unhappy when her mother has to go out, but Dad consoles her with a bedtime story about the night she was born. When Holly asks if she was hatched out of an egg, Dad tells her that a hen would have fluffed up her feathers to protect her and her mother didn't do that. Holly follows with questions about what would have happened to her if her mother were a kitten, an owl, a shark, a kangaroo and a seahorse. She discovers how mothers look after their babies and learns that her mother held her 'close to her heart and… -
The Crime Club Scene Series: Fact and Fiction by Kenneth McIntosh
19 Nov 2009 | 7:05 pmMason Crest, 2009. Heinemann. Cashing in on the obsession with solving crime with forensics, this series of 6 books, nos. 7-12 in the series, have the novel idea of being both fact and fiction. Being about two thirds fiction they will be undoubtedly be catalogued as such, but this type of 'faction' may well be the new novelty. Appealing to both genders, the first part of the book is the adventures of the teen group, the Crime Club, who learn forensic science. Each book deals with a different aspect of forensics. The last third of the book explains the concepts and vocabulary used, chapter by… -
How to get dumped by Pat Flynn
18 Nov 2009 | 9:36 amPuffin, 2009. ISBN 9780143303947. (Ages 10+) The very funny Pat Flynn is at it again, this time getting into the mind and heart of a year nine boy, overwhelmed with the problem of dumping his overbearing, manipulative girlfriend, Ashleigh. Tony has landed Ash, but she decides early on in their relationship that she must restrain from kissing for a month to be able to write a poem about sacrifice. Tony has just made the grade and likes kissing so it distressed to find this avenue of fun things to do cut off. But when he realises that she has manipulated him into spending lunch times, the only… -
Z.Rex by Steve Cole
18 Nov 2009 | 9:33 amDoubleday, 2009. (Age 10+) Be careful not to confuse Z.Rex with Steve Cole's hugely successful Astrosaurs series. The latter are a fun filled romp, perfect for boys age 7 up. Z.Rex is made of sterner stuff - the sometimes bleak, but always action packed story of thirteen year old Adam who finds himself captured by a new breed of dinosaur - the terrifyingly intelligent Z.Rex. Zed is a complex creature, partly because his creator is Adam's scientist Dad, who actually embedded some of Adam's personality traits into the dinosaur. Just imagine a dinosaur seething with teenage hormones and you have…
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Young Adult (& Kids) Books Central Blog
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Up for Auction: A full YEAR of advertising on YABC!
19 Nov 2009 | 8:06 amPlease see http://community.livejournal.com/kickstart_tu for all the details!There's an auction going on to support Tu Publishing and help raise the necessary funds. I've posted two auctions: one is for a 10 page critique and the other is for a full year of advertising on www.yabookscentral.com. Bidding starts at just $20!Support a new multicultural press & then advertise for a year! -
Review: Purple Heart
18 Nov 2009 | 1:31 pmIn Purple Heart, Patricia McCormick follows Private Matt Duffy through his ordeal of TBI, Traumatic Brain Injury after being 'on the business end of an RPG-rocket propelled grenade' in Iraq. He has no memory of the incident. TBI can cause loss of memory, mood swings, difficulty in assimilating new information.Matt goes through a variety of emotions and thought processes as he tries to remember what happened, gain back his strength and get back to his squad.Patricia McCormick has written an absorbing book about a real issue-the impact of war on soldiers. She has continued the tradition of her… -
YABC Needs a New Logo...(contest!!)
17 Nov 2009 | 1:08 pmOkay, I really do think it is time for a brand spankin' new logo for Young Adult (& Kids!) Books Central. So it's time for a contest, people.WHAT: you design a new logo for the site and submit it to me at kim@yabookscentral.com in either .gif, .jpg, or .tif format or what the heck, .psd is fine too.HOW: Any way you want. Any colors. Any look. Anything! You can create it on the computer or you can draw it and scan it in.WHO: Open to anyone in the U.S. or Canada (or anyone who has someone they know in the US that can accept the prize for them).WHEN: Submissions are due by December 31, 2009. -
16 Nov 2009 | 1:26 pm
16 Nov 2009 | 1:26 pmHumberto loves to read. Problem is Humberto is often alone. The other animals don't get him and don't understand why he doesn't want to play with them. Then one day a storm comes and destroys the animal's homes and most of Humberto's books. HUMBERTO THE BOOKWORM HAMSTER discovers that maybe having friends is important too. Read more of my review of this adorable picture book at YA Books Central. -
Winter Blog Blast Tour (WBBT)
16 Nov 2009 | 7:21 amFor the past two years, Colleen from Chasing Ray has organized series upon series of author interviews. These blog tours, hosted and posted at various blogs, have been dubbed the Summer Blog Blast Tour (SBBT for short) and Winter Blog Blast Tour (aka WBBT). Each event is one week long and involves a multitude of authors, bloggers, and readers. I conducted five interviews for WBBT, one of which will posted at my book blog, Bildungsroman, each weekday morning this week. I kicked things off this morning with author Courtney Sheinmel, the author of My So-Called Family and Positively.Visit Chasing…
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avengingsybil
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Yes I Said The Cleveland Show
20 Nov 2009 | 11:22 amSomebody recommended Terra Elan McVoy's Pure to me months ago, and I thought it was time I finally got around to reading it. I was really impressed--I found it to be a cool book that treats a popular media-baiting subject in a measured, respectful manner. It's not a heavy book by any means, but it's also a novel of substance. Pure could easily have been a "lesson" novel, or a sensationalized parental panic tract, but instead it's the very readable story of young people and the relationships they have with friends, significant others, parents and other adults, and… -
Footsteps
11 Nov 2009 | 9:27 amVeteran's Day always puts me in an appropriately introspective mood, as I think of all of those who have served in the military so that--among many many other things--I can sit here and mouth off on the internet about the lack of realistic portrayals of sexuality in adolescent literature. Thinking about it in those terms doesn't make my crusade any less important to me, but it prompts me to keep mindful that the free expression that I take for granted (as well as the luxury to make my intellectual pursuits and feminist values a priority) wouldn't be a given without those who… -
Frustration Contemplation
3 Nov 2009 | 11:55 amI didn't love Castration Celebration. It had its moments, but I definitely had some problems with it.The good: the dialogue. The language was crass and sexually explicit, but I felt that Wizner definitely captured the way teenagers really speak to one another. I liked a lot of the clever, flirtatious banter. Plus I'm a sucker for stories about artsy, creative kids and their pursuits. The Twilight-themed spoof is a sick delight. And big props for making the central project a musical. HOWEVER, I can't get on board with the book's overall treatment of male or female… -
...Because They Keep Trying to Ban Him
21 Oct 2009 | 11:32 amHappy (halfway over) Teen Read Week!Weirdly enough, it always seems like I'm not reading YA books when this week rolls around, and this year is no exception (I'm just about to get started on Castration Celebration though). The important thing is that I am reading, and I know that teens everywhere are doing the same, no matter what the material.It breaks my heart to hear of a brand-new challenge issued against I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, but what breaks it even more is that there are teens who could miss out on Maya Angelou's seminal work under the guise of it being for… -
Would I Lie To You?
15 Oct 2009 | 9:55 amJustine Larbalestier, I don't even know what to do with you. Liar was such a mindfuck! I mean that in the most complimentary way possible. I went into the book knowing that a twist was coming, but when it arrived I was still totally blind-sided by what I read. At the same time, I didn't feel like it came out of nowhere-- it wasn't a cheap reversal or a manipulation. The author earned the "OH MY GOD" that she got from me.I'm so glad I went into the book unspoiled, kudos to the entire team who made this book happen and made sure that nothing leaked in the process…
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Maureen Johnson's Posts - YA for Obama
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WELCOME
Hello and welcome to YA for Obama! The YA for Obama project is closed. We stopped accepting members and adding blog posts a few weeks after the election. Forums are now closed and the site is an archive. Feel free to look around, however! There's plenty to read! Happy New Year! -
THE MOMENT OF JOY
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THE AMERICAN JOURNEY OF BARACK OBAMA
Thank you for all of your ideas about what to do with this site! I am still working on a plan, but in the meantime, there are twelve gorgeous books to give out. The winners of The American Journey of Barack Obama by the Editors of LIFE Magazine are: Adam Philpott Eileen Oboefae Jessica Goodman Mags Karolina Merrg PolitcalChickTayler Kurtis SupernovakGirl Genevieve Max To get your copy, please send a note with your full name and mailing address to me here on the site. Many thanks to the publisher for sharing this great new book with our members! -
GRACIOUS
This morning, I was sitting there with my cup of tea, reading the news. And the news, I have to say, was kind of fabulous. There were some incredibly enjoyable things on there, things that would have DESTROYED THE FABRIC OF MY MIND just three days ago. Like Bill O'Reilly, for instance, going on for FIVE ENTIRE MINUTES on Sarah Palin's incompetence. Like how she didn't know Africa is a continent, not a country. Or what countries are in North America. This was on FOX. "Tee hee," I said to myself. "Tee hee hee hee hee hee hee. Also, that's what we've been telling you for two months." Wonderful… -
IDEAS FOR THE FUTURE
To celebrate this historic day, I have ten copies of The American Journey of Barack Obama by the Editors of LIFE to give away, courtesy of the publisher. To enter to get one, post a blog with your ideas about what you would do if YOU ran this site from now on. How can we transform it?
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I'm Here. I'm Queer. What the Hell do I read?
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Two Gay Teens MURDERED in the last week: Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado & Jason Mattison Jr. We have to STOP this anti-gay violence!
20 Nov 2009 | 3:05 amJorge Steven Lopez Mercado, left, and Jason Mattison Jr.Jorge was murdered in Puerto Rico. He was 19. He wanted to be a fashion designer. He was well known in the gay community of Puerto Rico, and "very loved.""The police agent that is handling this case said on a public televised statement that 'people who lead this type of lifestyle need to be aware that this will happen.' As If the boy murdered (Jorge Steven Lopez) was asking to get killed." Jason was murdered in Baltimore. He was 15. A Sophmore in High School. He was out, gay, popular, and flamboyant.Their murders were violent, horrible,… -
Absolute Brightness
19 Nov 2009 | 3:04 amBy James LecesnePhoebe's cousin Leonard is 13. And he's OUT. Gay. Flamboyant. Weird.So when he comes to stay with them in small town New Jersey, 15 year old Phoebe's not thrilled.And just Leonard has won most of the town over... he disappears.Everyone else assumes he ran away. But Phoebe can't let go. She has to find out what happened to him, and why.Cool fact about the author: James' short film "Trevor" won an Academy Award. He also co-founded the Trevor Helpline, a 24-hour suicide-prevention hotline for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, and questioning teens.There's a review of… -
The Twilight Gods
18 Nov 2009 | 3:03 amBy Hayden ThorneA Coming Out/Historical/Ghost story!London. 1851.Norris Woodhead is 15. His family is poor. And then, one day, Norris notices shadows moving in the streets. They're moving independently of the people around them. And he understands. They are ghosts.But no one else can see them. With the help of the strange widow who rents a room in his family's house, Norris comes to terms with the shadow's secrets. And his own.Add your review of "The Twilight Gods" in comments! -
Uncle Bobby's Wedding
17 Nov 2009 | 3:02 amBy Sarah BrannenChloe's worried that when her Uncle Bobby gets married, she won't be his favorite person... er... guinea pig any more.As she hangs out with Uncle Bobby and his boyfriend, the man... er... guy guinea pig he's going to marry, Chloe starts to think it might be cool to have TWO uncles that she gets to do special things with.She even gets to be their flower girl!"Uncle Bobby's Wedding" was the #8 most challenged book in the U.S.A. last year - and the entire reason it's been challenged so much is that the wedding is between two guys... er... guy guinea pigs. That "homosexual"… -
The Power Of A Ten Year Old: A GSA Monday Inspiration
16 Nov 2009 | 3:00 amI think a lot of the frustrating part about being a kid, and about being a Teen, is the sense of being disempowered.There are all these HUGE issues going on in the world around you, and yet, what can you really do to help solve them? Adults rarely listen to kids, and all too often dismiss an idea not based on its merits, but instead on whose idea it is.A great example of this is the study that showed a birds eye view of how people in a museum didn't walk from painting to painting, instead they walked from label to label. As if it were more important for them to know WHO painted it rather than…
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School Library Journal - Practically Paradise
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The Ugliest Cover we've seen this year
Having students help review books means they feel greater responsibility for the titles and for the impact their words have on the books. Recently ... -
Sometimes you do something right
We work hard. Few people on our staff understand us or what we do. But sometimes, we do something right and receive rewards far beyond what we expe... -
Girls' Lunch group of the Library Club
How do these things keep happening? We had too many students who wanted to be part of the library club during advisory period so we divided into se... -
I challenge you! (and I need your help)
I would like to challenge you to donate $10, $6.50, $5, or even $1 to the Spectrum Scholarship program. You talk about helping bring others t... -
b There virtually - YES You CAN!
I hope to see all of you at the AASL National Conference in Charlotte, NC. (Tell me that you read this blog please because I get insecure and think...
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Something Different Every Day
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Under construction
20 Nov 2009 | 8:07 amMy youth services department has been under construction for 500 years, give or take. Along the way, I have learned a few things which I thought I’d share with anyone feeling foolish enough to want to attempt a library construction project of their own. I’m starting with the most important thing: 1. Be willing to be annoying. This is not the time to be nice, to be flexible, to be accommodating, to be respectful of other people’s busy schedules. This is the time for you to nail down, preferably in writing, every single detail about your project. This is the time to… -
I miss Sharon
13 Nov 2009 | 2:16 pmLike most of the people reading this, I miss Sharon Ball. Sometimes it takes me completely by surprise. I’ll be driving up Milwaukee toward NSLS and all of a sudden remember, “She’s gone!” And then I think, “That’s impossible. How can that be?” Premature death is always a shock even after long illness, and when the person was as alive as Sharon was, it is all the more startling. I still hear Sharon’s voice and laugh so clearly in my mind. NSLS has a wonderful staff, and they serve their librarian patrons very well, but Sharon was the… -
Why you should attend the Sutherland
26 Apr 2009 | 2:30 pmI swore to myself last year after attending the annual Zena Sutherland lecture at the Harold Washington Library that I would hound my fellow NSLS youth services people to go next year. And here it is next year already! Here’s why you should go: 1. Christopher Paul Curtis is the speaker this year. A great writer, an excellent speaker, talking about some of the books kids love the most–The Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963; Bud, Not Buddy; Elijah of Buxton–don’t you immediately remember those characters, those voices? 2. The speaker is introduced by the inimitable… -
Hunting for Poetry
17 Apr 2009 | 2:49 pmBack in 2001, I was inspired by the CTA’s project where they posted poems throughout the transit system for people to read as they ride. I thought it would be a very cool thing to plaster the Youth Services Department at the Niles Public Library with poetry. But I knew that without some incentive, many children would walk past the poems without reading them, and so began our annual Poetry Scavenger Hunt. On April 1st, I come in early and hang up 40-50 poems throughout the Youth Services Department, with a couple more spilling over into the Young Adult area outside the door. Each… -
Yay! It’s the ALA Awards!
27 Jan 2009 | 4:05 pmThe morning that the ALSC/YALSA Youth Media Awards are announced is one of my favorite days of the year! In past years, I’ve watched the streaming video and enjoyed it immensely. But this year was even more fun being there in person, hearing the cheers for my committee’s picks. SO MUCH FUN! I have to say that I am very proud of the work the Geisel Committee did this year! It’s really odd to be on a committee with such a short history–this was only its fifth year. But that was also a cool thing, because it made you examine very carefully what the criteria for…
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CMIS Evaluation Fiction Focus
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Oxford: city of stories
19 Nov 2009 | 5:08 pmFrom Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll, with illustrations by John Tenniel. Macmillan and Co, London, 1898. The roll call is impressive – Lewis Carroll, Kenneth Grahame, J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, William Horwood, Mary Hoffman, Philip Pullman, all writers who have lived (or are living) in Oxford and all of whom have brought us great literary treasure. So it’s fitting then that Oxford is to become the home to a new museum of story and storytelling, to open in 2014. The virtual Story Museum is to become tangible, thanks to an anonymous benefactor and £2.5… -
National Book Awards
19 Nov 2009 | 1:46 amClaudette Colvin The winners of the National Book Awards (US) were announced earlier today, with the winner for Young People’s Literature going to Phillip Hoose for Claudette Colvin: Twice Towards Justice. We may or may not see this important, true story published here in Australia, but let’s hope we do. It tells of a little-known teenager who stood up for what she believed in during the dark days of the 1950s and the fledgling Civil Rights movement. A week or so ago, Monica Edinger posted in her blog about a book event where Phillip Hoose spoke about the making of the book and… -
BBYA update
18 Nov 2009 | 6:10 pmMust admit to feeling a tad confused about how the whole YALSA BBYA (Best Books for Young Adults) process works. Earlier this month, in this post, we congratulated all the Australian authors who had been nominated. The list that these were extrapolated from is here. Nominations only. That was clear enough and reason enough to rejoice. There was no Margo, no Melina. We did wonder, but ours is not to reason why. Now this undated list has popped up, which appears to be the final goods, and yea, both appear on it. Good news indeed. So does Juliet Marillier, but we’ve lost all the other… -
And another win for Neil Gaiman
18 Nov 2009 | 5:29 pmNo surprise that it’s The Graveyard Book. The award is The Booktrust Teenage Prize, announced last night. Have you read it yet? No? Really, you must. Here’s our Trailer Tuesday feature from a few weeks ago. Add the Booktrust to the list of awards. As The Guardian says, Gaiman is now buried under awards. And while we are on things Gaiman, here’s two-for-the price-of one, with Terry Pratchett thrown in for good measure. Alas the free audio download is not for us down under, but the interviews with the voices behind the Gaiman / Pratchett audio readings give us a different… -
Melina Marchetta speaks
18 Nov 2009 | 5:14 pmHere is the last of the Printz Award speeches, and the biggie: Melina Marchetta’s acceptance speech for winning the 2009 Michael L. Printz Award for [On the] Jellicoe Road, courtesy of BookList Online and YALSA. Our other posts about this award, including links to other 2009 acceptance speeches, can be found here.
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CMIS Evaluation Primary Focus
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A conversation with Mo Willems
20 Nov 2009 | 8:28 pmHere’s Mo Willems, the Knuffle Bunny and Pigeon man, in conversation over at School Library Journal. And here’s an annotated list of some of his books from our CMIS Resource Bank. If you’d like more, check out: his rather Willems-ish website his blog his other blog his Pigeon website or, follow the Pigeon on Twitter listen to this radio interview from the Eric Carle Museum watch him on YouTube for a whole 25 minutes as he speaks entertains at this year’s National Book Festival in Washington DC For those times when too much Mo Willems is never enough. -
Oxford: City of Stories
19 Nov 2009 | 5:12 pmFrom Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll, with illustrations by John Tenniel. Macmillan and Co, London, 1898. The roll call is impressive – Lewis Carroll, Kenneth Grahame, J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, William Horwood, Mary Hoffman, Philip Pullman, all writers who have lived (or are living) in Oxford and all of whom have brought us great literary treasure. So it’s fitting then that Oxford is to become the home to a new museum of story and storytelling, to open in 2014. The virtual Story Museum is to become tangible, thanks to an anonymous benefactor and £2.5… -
Picture Books revisited
12 Nov 2009 | 12:49 amThere is still some misapprehension that little children need to “graduate” from picture books to “real” books. Forty years ago this may have been the case but since then a thriving quality industry in children’s and adolescent books has burgeoned and with it the quality and sophistication of picture books. School curriculum reflects our very visual age and the importance of visual literacy in its designated “Viewing” strand within the English learning area. Students need to be taught to observe and read pictures and their nuances, from the very… -
Roald Dahl Funny Prize 2009
10 Nov 2009 | 4:07 pmThe winners of the second annual Roald Dahl Funny Prize were announced last night. Winner in the category of books for the Under Sixes was Mr Pusskins : Best in Show, one of our 2009 Primary Focus Fiction selections. And for older readers, it was Grubtown Tales : Stinking Rich and Just Plain Stinky (Philip Ardagh and Jim Paillot). ‘Disgusting and horrible‘ is how former Children’s Laureate and one of the two judges Michael Rosen called it, so it is sure to appeal to lots of readers. If you are looking for funny, the shortlist from which these winners came is here. -
So where is the Green Sheep?
8 Nov 2009 | 8:11 pmTeachers may like to use this cute video of the “Green Sheep’s” travels as a visual literacy or ICT exercise. Perhaps a Buddy system activity for older and younger students? Thanks to Penquin for reminding us what a cute sheep it is. You will find it listed on the CMIS “Books not to be Missed!” selection.
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Literacy, families and learning
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The Importance of 'Simple' Play
22 Nov 2009 | 1:30 pmThe erosion of time for playAs I wrote in a post last year, children's play is seen by psychologists, educators and paediatricians as so important to optimal child development that it has been recognized by the Office of United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights as a right of every child. But in a clinical report to the American Academy of Paediatrics, Kenneth R. Ginsburg concluded that many "....children are being raised in an increasingly hurried and pressured style that may limit the protective benefits they would gain from child-driven play."Major child rearing agencies, early… -
Getting Boys into Reading Through Fiction
17 Nov 2009 | 12:45 amI wrote a post about getting boys into books through non-fiction recently (here) and thought I should do a second post in relation to fiction.Helping boys to become readers of literatureWe all know that boys can be more reluctant to read. They tend to speak later and read later than girls. As well, boys are less likely to want to be read to or spend time looking at books. But as I have said before (here & here), we also know what it takes to get them more interested. While using non-fiction is a great way to get boys actually reading, it is also very important to raise their interest in… -
Improving Comprehension: 'Sketch to Stretch'
8 Nov 2009 | 8:10 pmHow and why do we teach comprehension?Some see ‘comprehension’ as an old fashioned term that has lost its relevance in the ‘digital age’. I don’t see it this way. Helping children to comprehend better involves helping them to remember, understand, enjoy, learn from and critique what they read (or see, hear or experience for that matter). It is a term that recognizes that the creators of literature, non-fiction books, film, video games, performance and so on, have meaning intent and purpose in mind when they have done so. In a previous post (here) I said:“I think the term… -
Asterix turns 50! More than a Comic.
31 Oct 2009 | 3:46 amAs a child aged 11 or 12 years I can recall looking curiously at a new series of cartoon books. The name itself was intriguing - Astérix. As a typical boy of the age, I loved comics - Phantom, Donald Duck, Superman, Mickey Mouse and many others were devoured. I bought comics, collected them and swapped them with my friends. To be honest, comics were just about all I that read outside school. This was the 1960s and some schools had banned comics. So it was with surprise that I found the books in my small school library, and it was an even greater surprise when I tried to read them. The… -
Firsthand Experience, Literacy & Learning
25 Oct 2009 | 4:30 pmI have written previously about the 'The Language Experience Approach' to literacy on this blog (here). It is a term known primarily by teachers and educators and probably had its genesis in the creative activities of many teachers who drew on children’s firsthand experiences when structuring early literacy. Typically, these were teachers of young children who grasped just how powerful real life experience is to the stimulation of children's language and learning:The squelch of mud between toes on a wet day in the back yardRunning on a sandy beach for the first timeWatching a worm wiggle in…
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The Graphic Classroom
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IN THE CLASSROOM THIS WEEK
21 Nov 2009 | 7:32 amFrom the Editor It is almost December and it is time to think about how to be a hero in our community. I am thinking about THE HALL OF HEROES comic book club and I wonder what we can do to connect our comic literature to our real lives. Super heroes answer the call of service when those in need cry out and so I want our club to think up ways we can be heroes in our community of Nixa, MO. What can we do to help others? What does our community need that we could provide? December is the perfect month to think about service learning and giving to others. I see it as a teaching moment, one where… -
GROWN-UPS ARE DUMB! (NO OFFENSE)
21 Nov 2009 | 7:26 amBy Kevin Hodgson Staff WriterSTORY REVIEW The title of this book is catchy and, written just below the author's name, is this blurb: "The World's Youngest Professional Cartoonist." That had me intrigued and so I sat down one night with GROWN-UPS ARE DUMB! (We're not! Really? We just seem that way sometimes, kids) and fell in love with the comic mind of young Alexa Kitchen. GROWN-UPS ARE DUMB! is not a graphic novel but a collection of comics created with loving care and quirky humor by a 10-year-old comic artist. Kitchen (who must live in my area because her bio says she resides in… -
TALES FROM THE CRYPT: DIARY OF A STINKY DEAD KID
21 Nov 2009 | 7:12 amBy Chris Wilson Editor-in-Geek Authors: Stefan Petrucha, Maia Kinney-Petrucha, John l. Lansdale, Jim Salicrup Illustrators: Rick Palmer, Miran Kim, James Romberger, Marguerite Van Cook Cover Art: Mr. Exes Publisher: Papercutz Genre: Horror, parody Format: Softcover Volume: 8 Pages: 96 Color: Full color ISBN-13: 978-1-59707-163-5 REVIEW TALES FROM THE CRYPT Vol. 8 takes back the parody genre, lampooning DIARY OF A WIMPY KID and TWILIGHT. I no more than opened the book when my fourth grade daughter snatched it and read the entire book in one sitting. When we went to the park later that… -
PRESS RELEASE: READING WITH PICTURES SEEKS COMIC ART DONATIONS
17 Nov 2009 | 5:32 pmReading With Pictures, an educational non-profit that promotes the use of comics and graphic novels in the classroom, is actively soliciting donations of original art, prints and commissions for an art auction fundraiser to be held in December.RWP is also accepting proposals for 1-10 page short stories (both story and art) to be included in a full-color, all-ages benefit anthology intended for publication in the summer of 2010. The proceeds from both will be used as seed money for the organization and will be put toward its application for 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.The earnings will also be… -
IN THE CLASSROOM THIS WEEK
14 Nov 2009 | 8:54 amFrom the Editor A few weeks ago I ordered two Flip Video cameras ($150 total) for my classroom from digitalwish.org. I no more than got them in and told the kids in one of my fourth grade sections that one piped up and suggested we use it in THE HALL OF HEROES comic book club. We didn’t have time to flush out his thinking – what he envisioned – but my mind is exploding with ideas. We could promote our club on YouTube. We could video the kids’ excitement of reading and document it here. We could create our own live action comic movie using the students’ own comic book characters.
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Kids' Comics
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Comics for Kids at KingCon
9 Nov 2009 | 8:14 amYesterday I was lucky enough to sit on a panel moderated by Brian Heater, with Matt Loux, Raina Telgemeier, Dave Roman, Sara Varon, about "the past, present, and future" of comics for kids! Three real live kids attended, and I'm not sure how into our discourse they were, but I gave them a couple TOON Books, and we saw "kids love comics" in action.Raina Telgemeier, artist behind the graphic novel Babysitters Club series, talked about target age ranges, and how adding a graphic component makes it possible for a younger reader to access the same book that's targeted for someone older.Dave Roman… -
Reading a Comic Strip
2 Nov 2009 | 7:16 amHave you checked out TOON in the Classroom lately? Not only can teachers find lesson plans and activity sheets, but you can also watch kids act out Luke on the Loose, and listen to your favorite TOON Books read aloud by the authors in the TOON Reader! Hear Otto's Orange Day read by artist Frank Cammuso, and Little Mouse Gets Ready, read by Jeff Smith!We loved finding the blog of Mrs. Clarken's class. To teach a lesson on reading a comic strip, she assigned Otto's Orange Day, and asked the students to comment on what makes a comic different from a picture book. One child wrote in:"Mrs. -
Have you seen Little Mouse?
30 Sep 2009 | 6:41 amTo celebrate our newest bestseller, Jeff Smith's Little Mouse, we are offering a limited number of the ultimate collectible, a handmade plush animal by renowned dollmaker Sabrina Cho. The perfect gift for a very precious young child or a loved one, the doll is available exclusively at TOON-Books.com, and comes with a certificate of authenticity, as well as a copy of the book autographed by Jeff Smith. -
Busy week for TOON!
14 Sep 2009 | 7:13 amOn Thursday night, a fantastic crowd of fans, friends, and aficionados turned out at the Strand to see Art and Françoise launch their newest endeavor, The TOON Treasury of Classic Children's Comics, just out from Abrams! Check out the Book Bench for images from this "unprecedented collection of the greatest comics for children," and then get your own copy!Our TOONmania continued into the weekend, when Geoffrey and Leigh read at the Brooklyn Book Fest on Sunday afternoon. See pictures below from our post-reading puppet-making!Stay tuned for information about TOON authors near you! -
Eleanor Storms Chicago
17 Jul 2009 | 8:17 amLast weekend, Eleanor Davis flew to Chicago for the 2009 American Library Association conference. While there, she signed some books at The Magic Tree, drew a slew of monsters, and accepted a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor for Stinky! We're tickled by the turnout, and pleased to share these photos from her windy city tour!Extra special thanks to Debra Mitchell at The Magic Tree, and John Shableski from Diamond Books.If you'll be in San Diego for ComicCon, please stop by Cartoon Books booth #2109 at 12:30 on Friday, July 24th, for an opportunity to get a signed copy of Jeff Smith's Fall 2009 TOON…
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The Book Bench
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Foodie Friday: Clementines Are Here!
13 Nov 2009 | 2:53 amI am soooo happy! Why, you ask. I'll tell you why. I am so happy because clementines, or as my children sometimes call them, clementimes, are n the groceries stores of the northeast once again. From now until January, I will have an easier time packing school lunches and I will feel better about my parenting. I will feel like a parent who dispenses citrus fruit rather than leftover candy as an after school snack. If we have company coming over, I throw a bunch of clementines in a bowl and tell myself I've created a Martha Stewartesque centerpiece. If I haven't really done that, please don't… -
It Always Comes Back to T-Shirts
8 Nov 2009 | 9:21 amI'm up to my eyeballs in research on Edgar Allen Poe. I want to do a good job preparing these lessons because a) I've never taught Poe before and b) Some of my students have told me they are looking forward to reading his works, and I don't want to disappoint them. Of course I keep thinking of the awesome Simpson's version of "The Raven." While I can mention it and maybe even show it, I think I need more than that. I've found some great ideas and biographical information on Poe, which is good, but as is so often the case, I end up at cool t shirt websites. I love this Nevermore Raven, but I… -
Everything is Relative
6 Nov 2009 | 7:04 amOur current family nightly read is the first Hardy Boys book. My sons are very interested and my daughter hates it. She has no interest whatsoever in Joe and Frank Hardy with their motorcycles and sleuthing skills. It's just not her thing. It has gotten us talking however, about how different people view the same thing in different ways. Besides the Hardy Boys, a recent example is my daughter's Halloween costume. She made a candy button costume and kept it secret from her friends until the big day. About a week before Halloween we were at a neighbor's house and the kids kept asking me and… -
Happy Halloween!
31 Oct 2009 | 7:53 amHappy Halloween! While I LOVE these homemade costumes my children are wearing this year, none of them are particularly bookish. You could argue that my little guy's Frankenstein is inspired by Mary Shelly's novel, but it's not. He doesn't know the book exists. He just wanted to look creepy. I have seen some other people in good book-inspired costumes this year. One of my older son's fifth grade classmates is going dressed as a thesaurus! How great is that? A student at the high school where I work dressed as the other mother from Coraline, carrying around big buttons, a needle, and thread… -
In A Dark, Dark Room
29 Oct 2009 | 3:26 pmEvery summer, my children attend a camp out on the beach at our local lake. They enjoy setting up tents, roasting marshmallows, racing around in the dark with friends, and two of my three children love to hear and tell ghost stories around the campfire. Ghost story fever stays with them from the time of the camp out until Halloween. They spend those months on the lookout for new ghost stories. I try to find good ones at the library, but it is a difficult task balancing high interest with low fear factor. They don't want any "babyish" books, but I don't want to be woken up by children crying…
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3 Evil Cousins
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Double Helix by Nancy Werlin
5 Nov 2009 | 5:18 pmEli Samuels, high school senior, soon to be high school graduate, is looking for a job. On a drunken impulse, he writes an embarrassing email to Dr. Quincy Wyatt, the most famous geneticist in the world, asking for a job at Wyatt Transgenics, Dr. Wyatt’s company. Eli regrets the email as soon as he sends it. He does not expect that he will actually get the job- after all, he hasn’t even graduated yet, and he’s planning to take a year off before going to college. Incredibly, Dr. Wyatt gives Eli the job. For a while, it seems too good to be true. Though it’s only an entry-level,… -
The Risen Empire by Scott Westerfeld
19 Oct 2009 | 3:39 pmMillennia in the future, light-years away, the Risen Empire spans eighty planets. To the people of the empire, the Risen Emperor, inventor of immortality, and his eternally young sister, the Child Empress, are more than rulers- they are gods. They have ruled for sixteen hundred years, and the empire seems as immortal as they are. But the empire is not alone in the galaxy. The Rix are a civilization of cyborgs, and their domain lies just outside the Risen Empire. The Rix have no leader and no culture. They are a Spartan civilization with only one goal- to propagate an artificially intelligent… -
How to Say Goodbye in Robot by Natalie Standiford
4 Oct 2009 | 11:14 amHow to Say Goodbye in Robot, by Natalie Standiford, is the story of Beatrice Szabo and her very unique friendship with Jonah “Ghost Boy” Tate. Bea’s family moves all the time, so when Beatrice is told that they are moving to Baltimore for her senior year, she readies herself for yet another year of gossip and parties and shallow friends. Instead, she meets Jonah, nicknamed “Ghost Boy” by his taunting peers, and the two of them embark on a relationship that cannot appropriately be pinpointed by words such as “friend” or “boyfriend.” To Bea and Jonah, their togetherness is… -
Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman
24 Sep 2009 | 3:47 pmNoughts and Crosses, by Malorie Blackman is the tale of a world with a clear class distinction, an alternate universe in which racial and social roles are completely reversed. The world is run by the dark-skinned Crosses and served by the white Noughts—hatefully called daggers and blankers, respectively. The story is that of Sephy Hadley and Callum McGregor , whose love and friendship struggle against the wide gap between their social standings. Sephy, a Cross, is the daughter of one of the most powerful politicians in the country, while Callum is a low-class “blanker,” and would never… -
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
31 Aug 2009 | 10:31 pmThe Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins, was the wildly popular dystopia novel released last year. Catching Fire, the eagerly awaited sequel, was equally as riveting—full of extraordinary twists and turns as well as further fleshing of conflicts introduced in its predecessor. For those unfamiliar with The Hunger Games, the story centers around Katniss Everdeen, who takes her young sister’s place in the The Hunger Games. The Games consist of twenty-four “tributes,” or teenage citizens, who are put in an arena and forced to kill each other off in the hopes of being the last one standing.
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Toad Hill Reviews
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8 Nov 2009 | 5:22 am
8 Nov 2009 | 5:22 amHey Readers! Us toads want you to know a little more about us. Here is our first toad-ally awesome autobiography by Boodle!“Hi, I’m Boodledoo, and I’d like to introduce myself and some hobbies of mine. First of all, I love to read. I even have my special little reading place under Grandpa Toadsie’s big daisy in his backyard. I live on toad hill, and my house is right on the giant marsh. I recently began wearing big square glasses, and my favorite red sweater is now too small. L I am 11 toad years old, and I have a twin sister, Poppy D. Niggles. I got my nickname, Boodledoo, because… -
20 Feb 2009 | 5:19 am
20 Feb 2009 | 5:19 amFREE BASEBALLBy Sue Corbet Take me out to the ball game… Young Felix of eleven is absolutely obsessed with baseball. His father was a famous Cuban player on a professional team. Obsessed as he is, he is at a baseball game, the Miracle against another team, (My little toad mind can’t remember the name of the other team, but you can read it to find out,) when a little incident happens. Well, more like an incident that makes the whole story a story. He runs away. None of my toad friends or I would ever do THAT, at least I wouldn’t, of course. He is mistaken inside the Miracle’s dugout as… -
THE TALES OF BEEDLE THE BARD By J.K. Rowling
4 Feb 2009 | 4:21 amBefore I even start talking about how phenomenal this book was, I would like to say that J.K. Rowling is my all time favorite author ever because of her famous series of Harry Potter, the best books IN THE WORLD, and I am a Harry Potter fanatic. I worship the books. OK, now that that's settled, let's get on with the actual review. This amazing collection of wizard fairy tales is a pleasure to read. We (being toads) are familiar with, Snow White and the Seven Warty Toads, and Cinderella the Fly and her Two Toad Step-Sisters, but "the wizarding world children" are familiar with the stories in… -
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF A THIRD WORLD KIND
3 Feb 2009 | 3:51 amOk you toads; put those hands together and give this book a round of applause. Ladies and gents (and toads too), let’s give a hand to… Close Encounters of a Third World Kind! Now, this awesome novel is filled with suspenseful incidents. Annie is a young girl of twelve. Her father is a medical doctor, and when he is going to take the family on a business trip to Nepal, about the only thing that Annie thinks she won’t miss is school. Of course the readers know that Nepal is a small country in Asia, in between China and India. In Nepal, Annie and her younger sister, Chelsea, meet a ten… -
CORALINE By Neil Gaiman
2 Feb 2009 | 5:23 pmThis awesomely scary book is being turned into a stop motion movie, directed by the director of The Nightmare Before Christmas, so if you see it, expect it to be good. When Coraline moves into her new house, she has to put up with some put-up-able stuff, such as some old ladies calling her Caroline. That soon changes to more serious problems. Coraline is an explorer, so when her mother goes out shopping for groceries, Coraline grabs a ring of keys, and goes to a forbidden door. When Coraline steps through, she sees many strange things such as talking animals, singing rats, and worst, the…
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Dulemba.com
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GelaSkins - Create your own mobile art
22 Nov 2009 | 5:00 amI've been following GelaSkins for some time now. Partly because I think their product is a cool idea (art you can attach to your cell phone or laptop), and partly because they feature some really interesting artists. Well now they're representing all of us. You can now create your own GelaSkin. How cool is that? You could have the cover of your book on your laptop, or a family photo on your cell phone. Or you could just get a skin by some of their wonderful artists. I like using the images for my iPhone wallpaper. Pretty groovy. -
How I Work
21 Nov 2009 | 5:00 amI recently received an email from Cathy F. asking about my current equipment set-up and method. It's been a while since I talked about it, and I recently upgraded, so I thought I'd reply publicly.... For those who have any idea what this means... I currently work on a Mac Pro Tower OSX Version 10.5.8, 2 x 2.26 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processor, 10 GB 1066 MHz DDR3 Memory (the tower is beyond the end of my desk - somewhat hidden) with a 9x12" Intuos 3 Wacom Tablet and dual monitors (one is an Apple Cinema Display). I often lean my Wacom tablet against the edge of… -
My SCBWI Speakers Bureau Video is LIVE!
20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 amAt this summer's SCBWI National conference in LA, several of us had the opportunity to shoot video to be posted in the new SCBWI Speaker's Bureau. Mine just went live! Have a looksie... (hubbie says I'm a goof). Click here to learn more about my speaking engagements! :) -
Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2009
19 Nov 2009 | 5:00 amThe New York Times recently put out their list of "Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2009" - in their opinion. Some of the choices I whole-heartedly agree with (like "Tales from Outer Suburbia" by Shaun Tan - above), but as usual, some have me stumped. What's your opinion? -
Savannah Children's Book Festival Wrap-Up
18 Nov 2009 | 5:00 amThe weather was perfect, the crowds were huge. It couldn't have been a better weekend for book lovers and readers at the Savannah Children's Book Festival this past weekend. Friday evening the Live Oaks Library threw a low-country boil with some of the best shrimp I've ever had. They also let us illustrators loose in a special corner of the kids library - we got to draw on the walls. That knight needed a dragon by golly! Here I am with Joe Davich of the Georgia Center for the book, and my kind hostess Janet…
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The Book Chook
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World Hello Day
20 Nov 2009 | 10:58 amDo you know what day it is today? It's World Hello Day! This day was started in response to the conflict between Egypt and Israel in 1973. People use it as a way to express their desire for world peace.Today would be a great time to look at some different cultures with your kids. Dawn Morris at MomsInspireLearning has some wonderful ideas for using Picture Books for Peace. To develop tolerance, we need to "walk a mile in another's shoes", and literature helps us understand how other people live, feel and dream.How many different ways can you say hello?I counted six for me:Ni hao (Chinese)Bom… -
Mutapic
19 Nov 2009 | 2:01 amOh dear! After going public yesterday in my blog comments about reining in my obsession with web 2.0 gems, I stumbled across Mutapic again. The first time I found this web site, I dismissed it, as I had no idea what I was doing. The only thing I was sure of was that I couldn't explain how to use this image generator to readers of The Book Chook.Last night I found it when I was searching through my bookmarks, and gave it another chance.My conclusion? I still have no idea what I'm doing but IT'S FUN! There are three big buttons on the left, a row of filters, a screen of tiles, and some cryptic… -
Happy Birthday, Book Chook
15 Nov 2009 | 9:07 pmToday I am celebrating a birthday. The Book Chook blog first arrived at Blogger one year ago. In those twelve months, I have been thrilled not just to see the number of my readers and followers increase, but also to have the chance to get to know them. I want to thank you all for your support, and hope we can continue celebrating our love for children’s literature and literacy into 2010.As my gift to you, I have made a mini book of the skipping and clapping rhymes, the chants and songs from my Literacy in the Playground posts. I hope you’ll give it to the children in your life, not just… -
Literacy in the Playground (4)
13 Nov 2009 | 10:40 pmAs well as favourite games in Literacy in the Playground (1), we've looked at clapping games in Literacy in the Playground (2), and skipping games in Literacy in the Playground (3). These next games involve songs, chants, movement and, as usual, lots of fun.The first was sent in by Farida Dowler of Saints and Spinners."This is a game my daughter learned at her Waldorf school. I like it because it reminds me of the Three Wise Men, and because it’s a cooperative game. While the group is saying “NO!” the first two times to the three travelers, those three children on the outside form a… -
Surfing the Google Wave
11 Nov 2009 | 8:25 pmHave you heard about Google Wave? Maybe you might remember my post, Goggling over Google Wave, when I mentioned being really excited about its advent? Well, it's here and I've been playing with it.Google Wave is the latest Google invention. It's a web application and a computing platform. It's also a realtime conversation and a document. To me so far, it's like a morph of IM and email, with bling. The bling is all sorts of things you can embed in your communication, like "bots" that will translate into other languages, maps, games, polls, videos etc. There's a heap of stuff on Youtube about…
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Reading Rumpus
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Joey Fly, Private Eye author & illustrator explain the graphic novel process
21 Nov 2009 | 2:22 amYesterday I told you all about a great new graphic novel, Joey Fly, Private Eye in Creepy Crawly Crime, and today I have an excellent classroom addition written by author Aaron Reynolds and illustrated by Neil Numberman explaining the whole process of how a graphic novel gets made. Without further ado:BUG MAKES IT BIG IN GRAPHIC NOVELS…HERE’S HOW by Aaron Reynolds and Neil Numberman (Interior. Aaron Reynolds, a writer of children’s books and graphic novels, is sitting at his writing desk. He’s typing, but suddenly stops when a shadow falls over his screen. It’s a kid, about… -
Joey Fly, Private Eye by Aaron Reynolds with illustrations by Neil Numberman
20 Nov 2009 | 1:52 amOlder readers and graphic novel lovers will find a lot to like in Joey Fly, Private Eye in Creepy Crawly Crime. Told with the style and verve of hard-boiled detective fiction, Joey Fly, Private Eye in Creepy Crawly Crime has all the traditional fittings of the genre. There’s the cocky assistant, Sammy Stingtail. There’s the curvaceous dame in distress, Delilah. There’s even the gritty street scenes of a city painted in shadow. It seems Delilah has lost her precious diamond pencil box and she wants to hire Joey to find it. But as Joey and his new assistant will find out, not all is what… -
Silverstein and Me: A Memoir by Marv Gold
25 Oct 2009 | 5:54 pmInformation on the reclusive, but dearly loved, Shel Silverstein is rare. Students seeking information on the author will find few interviews given and little written about him. Shel Silverstein would be happy that this is the case. A man of wildly divergent talents, Silverstein wanted his body of work to do the speaking for him. Enter author Marv Gold. Gold’s Silverstein and Me: A Memoir begins with a dead Shel Silverstein haunting his boyhood pal via song. From there, Silverstein’s life is recalled from their meeting at six years of age to Silverstein’s death. Though a tiny final hint… -
The 13 Days of Halloween by Carol Greene with illustrations by Tim Raglin - book review & teaching ideas
24 Oct 2009 | 12:08 amThe Thirteen Days Of Halloween is the perfect Halloween picture book for the little ghouls and goblins in your life. The text follows the same rhyme scheme as the famous Christmas song (12 Days of Christmas) and the illustrations offer wonderfully bizarre scenes of mayhem to support the text.The Thirteen Days Of Halloween is an excellent book for emergent readers. Rhyme and repetition, as well as predictable language, are important tools in learning the sounds and patterns of language. The Thirteen Days Of Halloween is just the sort of book that should be read over and over as young students… -
National Geographic Kids Almanac 2010
8 Oct 2009 | 4:48 amStudents are going to pour over the fabulously stuffed-to-the-brim National Geographic Kids Almanac 2010. Is it possible to pack any more animals, geography and culture into a book? This book is great for mini-reports or beginnings of further exploration on an amazing array of topics. The only criticism, from a reluctant reader standpoint, is the small text and overwhelming content. Teachers and parents might offer the sections in small chunks to these sorts of readers. 5th - 8th grade readers, especially gifted or strong readers, will have no difficulty, and find the amazing array of…
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Brimful Curiosities
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Busytown Mysteries series on CBS / Richard Scarry books
20 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm“I’m not interested in creating a book that is read once and then placed on the shelf and forgotten. I am very happy when people write that they have worn out my books, or that they are held together by Scotch tape. I consider that the ultimate compliment.” - Richard ScarryRichard Scarry's books get plenty of attention in our home. Let's just say we have one of those taped together books of his, well loved and read often. See the photo to the right-case in point! Every time the kids and I read one of his books we discover something new. Scarry's books contain so much detail and the his… -
Full to the Brim - Kid's Book Giveaway List (11/20/09)
20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 amMust be getting close to the holidays. The list is quite large today. Have fun browsing!Please check out my other "Full to the Brim" posts as well. Many contests are still underway. I publish "Full to the Brim" every Monday and Friday. Thanks for visiting my blog and come back soon!Fish for more children's book giveaways at Lori Calabrese's Fish for a Free Book linkup each Friday My Book Related Giveaways (see sidebar for all giveaways):Alfred Nobel: The Man Behind the Peace Prize by Kathy-Jo Wargin [picture book giveaway] Ends 11/23/09America's White Table by Margot Theis Raven [picture book… -
Rebecca Frezza & Big Truck: Rockin’, Rollin’ and Ridin’ - CD Review and Giveaway
19 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm"Clap like thisSwing like thatTwist like thisMove like thatShake it shake it shake it like thisshimmy shimmy shimmy like thatRock like this you got to rock like that" - "Rock Like This" song by Rebecca Frezza & Big Truck: Rockin’, Rollin’ and Ridin’ If a top kids party/dancing music list exists, Rebecca Frezza & Big Truck's latest CD, Rockin’, Rollin’ and Ridin’ should be up at the top of the charts. With funky rock guitar riffs and great dance tunes, kids (and adults) can't help but get on their feet, shaking and shimmying to the beat. This newest album even includes a song sung… -
Kids bored? Here are some fun contests and activities
19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 amThe Search for Flat Stanley’s Next BIG Adventure” Contest - Ends 11/30/09Win an awesome Adventures by Disney 2010 season Vacation worth $10,000+! Entrants choose a destination, print out a destination entry pack, and write a story of one-hundred fifty (150) words or less about Flat Stanley’s adventure in the destination. Those ages 7 and 12 can enter. For more details make sure to read the official rules.The Putumayo Kids Dance-Off Video Contest - Ends 12/15/09Capture your kids dancing to their favorite Putumayo Kids songs on camera and win the full Putumayo Kids Collection including… -
Wordless Wednesday - Turkey Cookies
18 Nov 2009 | 2:13 pmMy daughter was friend of the day in school earlier this week. I spent the entire day helping out in her classroom. (Still covered in green paint from the turtle project!) Anyway, since they're discussing the letter "T" this week we made turkey cookies for snacktime. Found the idea on Betty Crocker. We made homemade sugar cookies instead of using a mix. Find more of this week's Wordless Wednesday (or Wordful) posts at 5 Minutes for Mom or Seven Clown Circus.
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Brimful Curiosities
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Busytown Mysteries series on CBS / Richard Scarry books
20 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm“I’m not interested in creating a book that is read once and then placed on the shelf and forgotten. I am very happy when people write that they have worn out my books, or that they are held together by Scotch tape. I consider that the ultimate compliment.” - Richard ScarryRichard Scarry's books get plenty of attention in our home. Let's just say we have one of those taped together books of his, well loved and read often. See the photo to the right-case in point! Every time the kids and I read one of his books we discover something new. Scarry's books contain so much detail and the his… -
Full to the Brim - Kid's Book Giveaway List (11/20/09)
20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 amMust be getting close to the holidays. The list is quite large today. Have fun browsing!Please check out my other "Full to the Brim" posts as well. Many contests are still underway. I publish "Full to the Brim" every Monday and Friday. Thanks for visiting my blog and come back soon!Fish for more children's book giveaways at Lori Calabrese's Fish for a Free Book linkup each Friday My Book Related Giveaways (see sidebar for all giveaways):Alfred Nobel: The Man Behind the Peace Prize by Kathy-Jo Wargin [picture book giveaway] Ends 11/23/09America's White Table by Margot Theis Raven [picture book… -
Rebecca Frezza & Big Truck: Rockin’, Rollin’ and Ridin’ - CD Review and Giveaway
19 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm"Clap like thisSwing like thatTwist like thisMove like thatShake it shake it shake it like thisshimmy shimmy shimmy like thatRock like this you got to rock like that" - "Rock Like This" song by Rebecca Frezza & Big Truck: Rockin’, Rollin’ and Ridin’ If a top kids party/dancing music list exists, Rebecca Frezza & Big Truck's latest CD, Rockin’, Rollin’ and Ridin’ should be up at the top of the charts. With funky rock guitar riffs and great dance tunes, kids (and adults) can't help but get on their feet, shaking and shimmying to the beat. This newest album even includes a song sung… -
Kids bored? Here are some fun contests and activities
19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 amThe Search for Flat Stanley’s Next BIG Adventure” Contest - Ends 11/30/09Win an awesome Adventures by Disney 2010 season Vacation worth $10,000+! Entrants choose a destination, print out a destination entry pack, and write a story of one-hundred fifty (150) words or less about Flat Stanley’s adventure in the destination. Those ages 7 and 12 can enter. For more details make sure to read the official rules.The Putumayo Kids Dance-Off Video Contest - Ends 12/15/09Capture your kids dancing to their favorite Putumayo Kids songs on camera and win the full Putumayo Kids Collection including… -
Wordless Wednesday - Turkey Cookies
18 Nov 2009 | 2:13 pmMy daughter was friend of the day in school earlier this week. I spent the entire day helping out in her classroom. (Still covered in green paint from the turtle project!) Anyway, since they're discussing the letter "T" this week we made turkey cookies for snacktime. Found the idea on Betty Crocker. We made homemade sugar cookies instead of using a mix. Find more of this week's Wordless Wednesday (or Wordful) posts at 5 Minutes for Mom or Seven Clown Circus.
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Moms Inspire Learning
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Thanksgiving Picture Books and Such
20 Nov 2009 | 6:03 pm©iStockphoto/Brandy TaylorSince I haven't had a chance to write a detailed post with Thanksgiving picture book recommendations, I thought I'd share a couple of links with you. Here they are: PBS Booklights' Thursday Three: Thanksgiving The Mailbox blog's Thanksgiving Books You might also be interested in Finding Dulcinea's Thanksgiving For Kids: Crafts, Recipes and Learning Tools, which was brought to my attention by Susan Stephenson of The Book Chook blog.Have a wonderful weekend! -
American Indian Perspectives on Thanksgiving
19 Nov 2009 | 1:38 pmAre you a teacher, a parent, or a librarian who is interested in exploring Thanksgiving in detail over the next week? You'll love National Museum of the American Indian's Teacher and Student Resources for American Indian Perspectives on Thanksgiving. I found it through School Library Journal.By the way, when we were down in Washington D.C., we visited the National Museum of the American Indian, and it was well worth the visit! From its design, to its artifacts, to the healthy food in the cafe, it's really worth taking time out to spend a few hours there.Museum trips are so much better than… -
Putting the thanks and the giving back in Thanksgiving
17 Nov 2009 | 2:29 pmI don't know about you, but I can't believe we're celebrating Thanksgiving next week! Time goes by quickly, doesn't it?It seems we're all so rushed these days that we don't always remember to stop and think about those two little words that make up this delicious holiday: thanks and giving. So, today I thought I'd just share a few small ways you can help everyone in your family to really reflect on the true meaning of the holiday. If you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, you can still use the ideas! Here we go:1. Take an empty tissue box, or cut a hole in any type of box really, and make it… -
Jen Robinson's Tips for Growing Bookworms
16 Nov 2009 | 9:13 amMost of you know that I rely on Jen Robinson and Terry Doherty for the latest literacy and general Kidlitosphere news, and I visit Jen's Book Page quite often for her great YA book reviews as well. I apologize for not posting any of my own in recent weeks, but I just haven't been able to get to them. That's why I did my survey, which I'll talk about soon enough.Anyway, Jen wrote a lot about raising readers back in 2007, and I am happy to tell you that she has brought one of her old posts back to life at PBS Booklights recently. You can find the original post, as well as two new posts, which… -
Friday Photo Fun: What Does It Take to be Great?
13 Nov 2009 | 7:11 am©iStockphoto/AndyLCan a child be born to be great? ©iStockphoto/Mark Evans (mevans)Or, is it all about the effort?Why do we always try to reduce things to black and white? It seems to me that there's more to the recipe for success than meets the eye... © iStockphoto/Janne Ahvo (jpa1999)If you'd like to read more about this topic, here's CNNmoney.com's What it takes to be great, which I found via DailyGood. Have a wonderful weekend!
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Gail Carson Levine
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Do Over
18 Nov 2009 | 8:17 amLast week Maggie asked, Do you have any tips on self-editing? Like where to begin? Or a process I should follow?Self-editing sounds a little punitive to me, like correcting mistakes, so I’m going to call it revision, which seems broader, although correcting mistakes is part of revision. But often I’m expanding or condensing or deepening what I have.I know of only two absolute rules for revision. One: Always save your earlier versions in case you need to go back. Two: Fix the basics - spelling, usage, and grammar - before sending your work into the world of publishing. If spelling and such… -
Describing description
11 Nov 2009 | 6:33 amBefore I move on, I’ve thought of a few more things to say about chapters: Although no editor has ever commented on the length of my chapters, I have gotten many edits on the length of scenes, usually that they’re too long. And sometimes I’ve been asked to cut a chapter entirely.About ending a chapter with a crisis, I’ve been asked by editors sometimes to end with the crisis plus my main character’s reaction. Here’s an example: Tammo said, “As he was breaking free, he said he wanted to crisp fairies most of all.” Gwendolyn gripped her branch to keep from falling.A dragon is… -
The End of a Chapter
4 Nov 2009 | 6:40 amAfter my last post, Freak of Nature asked how long a chapter should be and how many chapters a book should have. I wrote back that a book can have any number of chapters, and each one can be almost any length. But I’ve been thinking that there’s more to say on the subject.As a child I was a major reader, the kind who reads while brushing her teeth. I read anything, no matter how long or short. But after I became a writer I became less of a reader - much less, for a bunch of reasons, like editing as I read and reading books I didn’t like to keep up with children's lit. Lately I’ve been… -
Playing with Blocks
28 Oct 2009 | 11:33 amAfter the post two weeks ago, Debz asked about writer’s block and ways to overcome it. Also, a friend has asked about self-loathing in connection with writer’s block.Self-loathing first, I always say.Several months ago I applied for admission to an advanced poetry workshop and sent along six of my poems that I like a lot. I was rejected. The professor takes only ten students. The woman who gave me the bad news said that sixty people had applied, which wasn’t much comfort. Six million applicants would have been comfort, a little.The rational one percent of my brain told me that this… -
Whose Eyes? Whose Voice?
21 Oct 2009 | 10:48 amAfter my last post, Kim wrote,How do you choose the point of view for a particular story, and what, to you, are the pros and cons of 1st person versus 3rd person POV?My last novel was in the 3rd person, but my work in progress is (currently) in 1st person. I can't seem to get the voice right--it feels a bit pretentious, to tell the truth, because I'm trying to write a lyrical piece--and I've considered going back to the 3rd person. Do certain novels scream a particular POV to you as you're working on them? I noticed in this post that you bounced around in the POV you chose until you selected…
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Kids Lit
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Grumpy Grandpa
20 Nov 2009 | 10:07 amGrumpy Grandpa by Heather Henson, illustrated by Ross MacDonald A little boy talks about his grandpa who is always grumpy. Every year he and his parents drive to spend two weeks on his grandpa’s farm. The little boy has to be quiet and not disturb his grandpa. He tries to stay out of grandpa’s way so that he isn’t yelled at like the TV or the dog, but it’s not so easy. Every afternoon, after a nap, Grandpa leaves the farm alone. The little boy wonders where he goes. Then the next day, Grandpa takes the boy along. They head to a boat on a pond… -
Muktar and the Camels
20 Nov 2009 | 8:58 amMuktar and the Camels by Janet Graber, illustrated by Scott Mack Muktar lives in a Somalian orphanage after his parents have died. His parents had roamed Somalia with camels before the drought and war changed everything. Now all Muktar has of his old life is a withered root that his father gave him and told him to use wisely. Then one day, a man arrives with three camels loaded with books. Muktar is asked to help unload the camels and as he does, he notices a wound on the foot of one camel. The librarian is too busy to listen to his concerns, so Muktar creates a… -
Oh Crumps!
19 Nov 2009 | 1:34 pmOh, Crumps! by Lee Bock, illustrated by Morgan Midgett Farmer Felandro is so very tired. He has a lot to do tomorrow: milk the cows, fix the fence, mow the hay and climb the silo. And morning comes so early. As he is falling asleep, he hears the goats Maahing outside. Oh crumps! So he puts on his boots and heads out to put them in their pen. Back in bed, he goes through his list of chores for tomorrow mixing his words up, and then hears the dogs barking. On go the boots, out to the barn, gets the dogs settled, back in bed, list of chores, and another… -
Imogene’s Last Stand
19 Nov 2009 | 1:21 pmImogene’s Last Stand by Candace Fleming, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter Imogene lives in a tiny town in New Hampshire called Liddleville. She loves history more than anything else, so begins to tidy up the town’s historical society. Once it is all clean, she waits eagerly for crowds to come and tour. But no one comes except for one workman who puts a sign in the front yard saying that the house will be torn down. The mayor wants progress and new, not old history. How in the world will Imogene be able to save history from the stomp of progress? Perhaps… -
More Movie News
19 Nov 2009 | 1:05 pmAll from the great movie blog /Film. An incredible voice cast has been announced for the 3D animated movie of Guardians of Ga’Hoole. Voices include Sam Neill, Geoffrey Rush, Hugo Weaving and David Wenham. The film is based on the first three books of the series. It will be released in September 2010. You can check out the new trailer for Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief at the official site. It will be released on February 12, 2010. Transformers producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura will produce a big screen version of Michael Scott’s…
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Moms Inspire Learning
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Thanksgiving Picture Books and Such
20 Nov 2009 | 6:03 pm©iStockphoto/Brandy TaylorSince I haven't had a chance to write a detailed post with Thanksgiving picture book recommendations, I thought I'd share a couple of links with you. Here they are: PBS Booklights' Thursday Three: Thanksgiving The Mailbox blog's Thanksgiving Books You might also be interested in Finding Dulcinea's Thanksgiving For Kids: Crafts, Recipes and Learning Tools, which was brought to my attention by Susan Stephenson of The Book Chook blog.Have a wonderful weekend! -
American Indian Perspectives on Thanksgiving
19 Nov 2009 | 1:38 pmAre you a teacher, a parent, or a librarian who is interested in exploring Thanksgiving in detail over the next week? You'll love National Museum of the American Indian's Teacher and Student Resources for American Indian Perspectives on Thanksgiving. I found it through School Library Journal.By the way, when we were down in Washington D.C., we visited the National Museum of the American Indian, and it was well worth the visit! From its design, to its artifacts, to the healthy food in the cafe, it's really worth taking time out to spend a few hours there.Museum trips are so much better than… -
Putting the thanks and the giving back in Thanksgiving
17 Nov 2009 | 2:29 pmI don't know about you, but I can't believe we're celebrating Thanksgiving next week! Time goes by quickly, doesn't it?It seems we're all so rushed these days that we don't always remember to stop and think about those two little words that make up this delicious holiday: thanks and giving. So, today I thought I'd just share a few small ways you can help everyone in your family to really reflect on the true meaning of the holiday. If you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, you can still use the ideas! Here we go:1. Take an empty tissue box, or cut a hole in any type of box really, and make it… -
Jen Robinson's Tips for Growing Bookworms
16 Nov 2009 | 9:13 amMost of you know that I rely on Jen Robinson and Terry Doherty for the latest literacy and general Kidlitosphere news, and I visit Jen's Book Page quite often for her great YA book reviews as well. I apologize for not posting any of my own in recent weeks, but I just haven't been able to get to them. That's why I did my survey, which I'll talk about soon enough.Anyway, Jen wrote a lot about raising readers back in 2007, and I am happy to tell you that she has brought one of her old posts back to life at PBS Booklights recently. You can find the original post, as well as two new posts, which… -
Friday Photo Fun: What Does It Take to be Great?
13 Nov 2009 | 7:11 am©iStockphoto/AndyLCan a child be born to be great? ©iStockphoto/Mark Evans (mevans)Or, is it all about the effort?Why do we always try to reduce things to black and white? It seems to me that there's more to the recipe for success than meets the eye... © iStockphoto/Janne Ahvo (jpa1999)If you'd like to read more about this topic, here's CNNmoney.com's What it takes to be great, which I found via DailyGood. Have a wonderful weekend!
