REBECCA STEAD REDUX Peter Sieruta talks about the first printing. Monica Edinger talks about genre mashups.  And Studio 360 interviews the author. LOOKING BACK Well, it’s been five months of stimulating, enriching book discussion with me playing Sue Sylvester to Nina’s Will Schuester, but now it draws to a close.  I’d like to thank everybody, not only for generous participation in the [...]

Monica and I both recall reading Rebecca Stead’s First Light the year we were on the Newbery Committee together. My impression was that it was a highly provocative and promising and flawed first novel.  It was the favorite–bar none–of a twelve-year-old reader whose opinion I was "using" that year. It was at Midwinter 2009 that [...]

I had hoped to be able to comment on THE MOSTLY TRUE ADVENTURES OF HOMER P. FIGG, but I have been unable to retrieve my copy from the student, and my hold at the public library has not become available yet, so my commentary on that book will have to wait. Historical fiction, as many of [...]

"I have another picture book for your consideration–one with a longer, more independent text…" That was our first sign: The excerpt Sign number 2: Jonathan’s analysis. An easy analysis to make, in Jonathan’s case. Sign number 3: I got on the bandwagon And sign number 4, …buried in the comments, Jonathan and I note how [...]

Nina and I will be posting through the end of January–just one more week–before Heavy Medal goes on hiatus for the spring and summer. INSTANT REPLAY If you missed the ALA webcast of the announcements then you can still view it.  You can also catch the winners on the Today Show if you missed that, too.  And [...]

Many of you who followed the Almost Astronauts kerfuffle in all its permutations here may have been surprised to see it swipe the Sibert.  Jonathan remarks: I could have seen a dozen books winning outright which is why I refused to make a prediction here.  ALMOST ASTRONAUTS has taken a beating on this blog in [...]

ARBUTHNOT So many possibilities.  Who would you want to hear?  I think the appeal of an author or illustrator is really sexy, but oftentimes I think the editors give even better speeches, and librarians . . . If K.T. Horning’s speech was anything like her CLNE lectures! It seems obligatory that if you’ve won two Newbery [...]

I’m always pleased to see good New York Times coverage of the awards. I was up at 6:30 this morning to read:  Very New York Novel Wins Newbery Medal.  Motoko Rich’s article focusses mostly on Rebecca Stead, with a a nice secondary piece on Jerry Pinkney, and couple of mentions of other awards.   I do have a kneejerk [...]

Newbery WHEN YOU REACH ME CLAUDETTE COLVIN THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE  WHERE THE MOUNTAIN MEETS THE MOON THE MOSTLY TRUE ADVENTURES OF HOMER P. FIGG   Caldecott THE LION & THE MOUSE  ALL THE WORLD  RED SINGS FROM TREETOPS  Geisel BENNY AND PENNY IN THE BIG NO-NO I SPY FLY GUY LITTLE MOUSE GETS [...]

You can get a great sense of the ALA Midwinter bustle from Monica Edinger or Betsy Bird. I’m sitting this one out, and spending the warm drizzly California Sunday in my armchair with the paper and cup of ginger tea. And the Newbery Committee? Well they are–done. By noon, Boston time, they’ll have delivered their [...]