Today the American Library Conference in Chicago begins. It is the one of those rare times when casual observers can watch librarians running around like crazed chickens with their heads cut off. Tis a glorious sight. That said, I’d bet good money that a bunch of you are not attending and are, instead, in desperate […]
Beyond the Bright Sea By Lauren Wolk Dutton (an imprint of Penguin Young Readers) $16.99 ISBN: 978-11-101-99485-6 Ages 10-14 On shelves now. No author gets a free pass. Your last book have been a spot-on bit of brilliance, lighting up the literary landscape like a thousand Roman candles. Pfui. A writer is only as good […]
Happy ALA Conference Week! Starting this Thursday or Friday or so the librarians will descend en masse upon our fair Chicago. To better prepare you please be so good as to check out Andrea Vaughn Johnson’s piece for the ALSC blog Chicagoland Mini-Tours for Book Lovers. That will fill in any gaps you might have […]
Let me be clear – I don’t actually post every book trailer I’m asked to premiere. If I’m lucky, I may already love a book and then find myself offered the chance to debut it after previously falling for it hook, line, and sinker. How It Feels to Be a Boat by James Kwan fits […]
Did Betsy drop the ball in her last Spring Newbery/Caldecott Prediction post? Yes, Betsy did drop the ball in her last Spring Newbery/Caldecott Prediction post. Will Betsy do better with her Summer Newbery/Caldecott Prediction post? Yes, Betsy will do better with her Summer Newbery/Caldecott Prediction Post. Back in the spring I ran into a bit […]
It’s a little kooky to say, but as strange as it may sound I’ve jumped back into the podcast biz. Years ago I created a little personal project in NYC that was fun but exhausting! Today, I am pleased to announce that there’s a new children’s literature podcast in town. Called Fuse 8 n’ Kate, […]
Town Is by the Sea By Joanne Schwartz Illustrated by Sydney Smith Groundwood Books $19.95 ISBN: 978-1-55498-871-6 Ages 4-9 On shelves now There’s been a lot of talk lately about how a parent can engender empathy in their children. It’s a good question and worth a lot of discussion and listening. As a parent I’ve […]
We need diverse books. But it’s not as simple as you think. When I do presentations for up-and-coming authors and illustrators of children’s books I sometimes show them this slide: Impossible to read here thanks to the teeny tiny type, this is my breakdown of the different factions that make up children’s literature. To spare […]
This comes just on the tail end of graduation season, but I’m sure we’ve a couple schools going through the process here and there even now. And across this great nation, at graduation parties for high schoolers and college grads alike, gifts will be exchanged. And inevitably some of those gift will be children’s books. […]
To Do in 2017: Get The Winged Girl of Knossos back in print Watch America finally come to grips with the true glory that is Frances Hardinge Get America to now appreciate Monster Blood Tattoo . . . That’s the nice thing about a To Do list. You can always find something new to put […]
Real Friends By Shannon Hale Artwork by LeUyen Pham Color by Jane Poole First Second (an imprint of Roaring Brook Press, Macmillan) $12.99 ISBN: 978-1-62672-785-4 Ages 9-12 On shelves now. The autobiography assignment. I don’t pretend to know precisely why teachers give it out or what they hope child readers will get out of it. […]
I have, what you might call, a penchant for the peculiar. Particularly as it applies to books for children. To my mind, it is easy, oh so easy, to write a book that follows the “rules”. Color within the lines. Be nice to your fellow humans. Pick up after yourself. It is also easy, odd […]
Hey there, hi there, ho there, mouseketeers! Ain’t the weather lovely out there? Ain’t the politics insane? Don’t you want to forget about it for a second or two and indulge in some children’s literature news? Well now you can! I’ve some interesting tidbits for your consumption. Behold the following: I don’t know about […]
Once at NYPL I asked Marc Aronson to do a Children’s Literary Salon on the topic of the history of children’s nonfiction. It was eye-opening. It was extraordinary. It was not recorded for posterity so unless he does it again sometime (hint hint, Marc, hint hint) we have nothing to refer to aside from his […]
The Ethan I Was Before By Ali Standish Harper (an imprint of Harper Collins) $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-06-243340-4 Ages 9-12 On shelves now Southern Gothic children’s literature. Sounds crazy, no? But as weird as it might sound it’s a legitimate genre. You may think it’s all Flannery and Faulkner but kids have a delightful range to […]
Recent Comments