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You are viewing the most recent posts from the 1518 blogs currently in the JacketFlap Blog Reader. These posts are sorted by date, with the most recent posts at the top of the page. There are hundreds of new posts here every day on a variety of topics related to children's publishing. We have provided a variety of ways for you to navigate through the blog posts. Click the dates in the calendar on the left to view blog posts from a particular date. Scroll down through the list of Recent Posts in the left column and click on a post title that sounds interesting. Click a tag in the right column to view posts about that topic. You can view all posts from a specific blog by clicking the Blog name in the right column, or you can click a "More Posts from this Blog" link in any individual post.
Charlie Redmayne, the CEO of J.K. Rowling's Pottermore, sat down for an interview with Bookseller. Mr. Redmayne is going to be a keynote speaker for The FutureBook Conference. Charlie Redmayne talks about all the work that has gone into Pottermore this past year, the Wonderbook: Book of Spells, and more. FurtureBook.net reports:
“I don’t think people always understand the scale of what we have done in the past 12 months. The level of work has been very intense,” says Redmayne. “What we’ve done with Pottermore is harness a fanbase of millions of the biggest Harry Potter fans. In terms of producing value to all of the rights holders—be it J K Rowling, Bloomsbury, Scholastic, Warner Bros, or indeed our sponsor Sony—that’s an immensely valuable thing as any new books, content or products come out. For any launch we have a direct relationship with those fans already, who we can then engage with.”<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" ?>
Registration for the limited beta release of Pottermore opened on 31st July 2011 (Harry’s birthday) with the site then opened to all this April. Redmayne says his job now is to “take what we’ve done with the browser experience to other platforms, be it YouTube, app stores, the gaming world.” He explains: “What we built initially was for hardcore fans, but what we will be shaping out now is how to engage with new fans. There are X million new eight-year-olds in the world who are discovering Harry Potter every year—how do we engage with them? How do we make sure Pottermore is an important part of that discovery of Harry Potter? “So there will be more interactivity, more community elements—this is critical for us if we are to engage with these new fans. You’re going to see stuff being developed on other platforms and you might also see things happening in the app and enhanced e-book space.”
Last week saw the launch of the Book of Spells, an augmented reality spell-book for the PlayStation3, released as part of Pottermore’s relationship with Sony. When it comes to rolling out the Pottermore world to other platforms, Redmayne is very open to working with the “right brands”, explaining that “if you have a brand that is very relevant to 11 to 15-year olds, it is clear to me they consume more content on YouTube than on TV, for example. So therefore we have to think very carefully about what we do for Harry Potter and Pottermore in that environment.”
“The convergence of media challenges existing rights structures that were put together at a time when there was clear blue water between what publishers did and what film companies did.
There is a lot in the middle that you could do great stuff with, if the film and publishing companies got together and said ‘your rights, my rights, lets put them together and do something amazing on YouTube, with in-flight entertainment, or on tablet devices’. But in many cases, they look across suspiciously at each and don’t speak to each other, so that stuff in the middle drops through. Pottermore is about doing all of those things in the middle.”
The rest of the article can be read here.
After over thirty days of visiting schools around the country, it's GREAT to be home.
These notes along the way helped!
By: Nathan Bransford,
on 11/26/2012
Blog:
Nathan Bransford
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It's official: We're all getting old!
It's time for the SIXTH ANNUAL poll on our e-book future, which I have asked every year since 2007 when the original Kindle was barely a newborn.
Yes, caveat: I'm aware this is an unscientific poll. Entertainment purposes only.
Here are the past polls:
2007
2008 (technically beginning of '09)
2009
2010
Here is 2012.
Do you think there will come a time when you buy mostly e-books? Do you already?
Click through for the poll if you're reading via e-mail or in a feed reader:
More images on my Facebook artist page here: https://www.facebook.com/lizjonesbooksart?ref=hl
$25 per digital print, plus shipping, payable via paypal. Message me to place order.
Happy Shopping! :D
By Julie Daines
Show don't tell. It's a phrase we hear over and over again. But how can you know if you have too much telling and not enough showing?
Here is a quick list of signs that indicate you are telling instead of showing:
* Using too many adverbs. A few well placed adverbs are great. Less is more.
* Using inactive verbs. Such as to be, including was, am, is, are etc. "She was running through the trees" is weaker than "She raced through the trees."
* Using look or feel. A sign that you're taking the easy way out. "Angie looked sad" or "Mark felt tired" are both weak and telling. See my post on never naming emotions and using an objective correlative instead of telling.
* Using cliches. "flashing a perfect set of white teeth" or "steely gray eyes" tell us what the teeth and eyes look like, but not anything deeper about the character. Find a better, more meaningful way to show it. A way that makes us care.
* Too many adjectives. Just like with adverbs, less is more. Find a better way to write description. When in doubt, limit description passages anyway.
This list is from author Deborah Perlberg's book Writing for Young Adults.
As an author and father, one of my driving passions is to help children, especially those that do not have help. One small thing I am trying is eBay Giving Works. I have listed a paperback copy of The Empyrical Tales Book I: The Fourth Queen on eBay and set it up to donate 90% of the sale to Family Giving Tree - Fulfilling Wishes, Changing Lives.
I know many of us do not have the extra money right now, but if you do have some to give to a good cause, this is a great one.If you are curious about the title, the highly coveted Nintendo Wii U is hard to get anywhere. There are people on eBay listing homemade cardboard cutouts. When we have children in our own neighborhoods that might not receive any Christmas, there are people bidding on, not only the overpriced video games, but also the imitation cardboard cutouts that have no real value.
By: Brian Minter,
on 11/26/2012
Blog:
First Book
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I wanted to take the opportunity to let you know that the books we received from your organization last spring were appreciated more than I can possibly convey.
I work for the University of Texas at Dallas and we hold day camps for homeless children each summer. For the first time ever, at the end of the camps last summer, we handed out a book to each child. They were beyond thrilled. They held onto those books like little treasures. They asked me to “sign” their books with my name and their name so that everyone would know that the book belonged to them to keep.
I am quite sure that many of them had never owned a book before. When asked at the end of camp what their favorite part was, the most common answer was “getting my very own book!”
What your organization does is having a fantastic, positive impact on 400 homeless children from the Dallas area. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
Molly Dickinson
Thanks for sharing, Molly! And thanks for the work that you’re doing in Dallas. First Book exists to provide books and resources for educators like you.
You can bring new books to children like Molly’s. Click here to support First Book’s work. Every $2.50 donation provides a brand-new book for a kid in need.
to celebrate the wonderful winter weather that is ahead of us (my FAVORITE) i am offering 25% of all custom orders! perfect for Christmas/holiday gifts!
yeah, i LOVE winter THAT much! ;)***25% OF ALL CUSTOM ORDERS NOW UNTIL FRIDAY NOVEMBER 30TH. JUST ENTER THE COUPON CODE WELCOMEWINTER AT CHECKOUT***
Recommended for ages 6 and up.
As an art history major in my former (and more and more distant!) college days as well as a lover of children's literature, I am inevitably drawn (no pun intended!) to picture book biographies of famous artists.
The life and art of French artist Henri Rousseau are vividly brought to life in a recent release by author
Michelle Markel and illustrator
Amanda Hall. Rousseau is best known for his post-impressionist paintings depicting jungle scenes, although he never left France. Rousseau, we learn from Markel's succinct yet poetic text, wants to be an artist, even though he is 40 years old, a toll collector, and has never had any art training. "Why? Because he loves nature. Because when he strolls through the parks of Paris, it's like the flowers open their hearts, the trees spread their arms, and the sun is a blushing ruby, all for him."
With no money for art lessons, Rousseau studies the paintings at the Louvre, photographs, illustrations, animals at the zoo, and leaves, plants and flowers from the local botanical garden, where he is particularly enraptured by the tropical plants. Although his work is ridiculed by the art critics, Henri perseveres, spending all his money on art supplies and supplementing his income by giving music lessons. Although the art establishment continues to belittle his work, several younger artists, including the already well-known Picasso, eventually recognize his talent. Now, of course, his paintings are in museums world-wide, and he is recognized as an artistic genius.
The illustrations by Amanda Hall pay tribute to Rousseau's "primitive" style, with its flattened shapes, vivid colors, detailed leaves and plants, and unusual perspective. Many of the illustrations draw directly on Rousseau's paintings for inspiration, and adults will recognize some of his most famous works such as "Sleeping Gypsy." Even the endpapers echo Rousseau's easily recognizable style, with its jungle leaves, flowers, and animals. To better emulate the feel of Rousseau's paintings, Hall worked in watercolor and acrylics. She also incorporates some of his famous friends into her illustrations, and in the afterword a key is provided to see who is who in those spreads.
I would have liked to see some reproductions of Rousseau's actual paintings in the afterword, but these can easily be found
online for those who would like to explore further the fascinating works of this self-taught artist.
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By: James Gurney,
on 11/26/2012
Blog:
Gurney Journey
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Here are some pen and marker sketches for the cover of James Blaylock's 1984 science fiction novel "
Digging Leviathan." Blaylock was one of the originators of the "
steampunk" movement.
The fish-shaped digging machine was made from spare parts found around the house: a garbage can, a roller skate, a brace and bit, a bicycle, some shovels, and an old umbrella. The character was inspired by the "subterranean prospector" device that he read about in E. R. Burroughs' novel "At the Earth's Core."
While still in the idea generating stage, I find it helps to draw something over and over again, because each time new ideas emerge.
The final cover
was a combination of the best of these sketches.
--------
Previously:
Digging Leviathan, showing an unused color sketch.
Wikipedia on
"The Digging Leviathan"
Here we are at the last week of National Novel Writing Month and the big question looms: how's your word count? If you're falling behind (like me), take heart. We still have a good five days to catch up, and I suggest we grab those pens and/or open those Word files right now, or at least as soon as you finish reading this post!On the other hand (and there always is another side to every story), you may have reached the point in your manuscript where you're thinking it doesn't matter whether you make it to the required 50K or not. You've done your best to write when you could during the month; you've made a great start to your story; and you got what you came for: inspiration. That's a good result too. It would still be nice if you could cross the finishing line, but there's more to Nanowrimo than just printing out your winner's certificate on 11/30. Some of my reasons for participating regardless of whether or not I win include:- Nanowrimo is an excellent break and time-out away from my regular schedule of editing and rewriting my current WIP.
- It's a chance to re-discover and reconnect with my writer's soul.
- I get a new book out of it!
- It reminds me of why I do any of this: I can't wait to find out what happens next. And if I want to know, I have to write it.
- I can turn it into a writer's retreat during what is usually a very hectic month and time of year.
- It's a meditation.
- It's a chance to practice a new genre or style I might not ordinarily explore.
- I get to do some artwork. Whether it's a collage with my magazine cut-outs grouped together for writing prompts, or a drawing of one of my character's homes or ball gowns, it's all creative expression.
- Nanowrimo is community. All those other writers in the same boat; it's the one time of year when we can seriously discuss our progress, problems, plans and ideas.
- It's an opportunity to throw "publishing" and all it entails out the window. Yay!
- It renews my writer's license: I can make left-hand turns! Parallel park! Reverse! Easy-peasy. So take THAT, Inner Critic!
No matter where you are in your manuscript this week--and many of you may have already reached your goal (my hearty congratulations to you)--the main thing to keep in mind is, you're a creative genius. The fact you signed up for Nanowrimo is the proof in the pudding. Now all you have to do is choose whether you want chocolate, butterscotch, or pistachio. And ... keep writing.Tip of the Day: Five days, people. You can do a lot with that. If you're feeling a little blah about everything, here's an idea: get on over to Polyvore.com and make yourself a digital collage that illustrates a scene in your story. I did that last week with the picture heading this post. The autumn leaves and violet earrings matched a section of Four Girls and Six Colleges perfectly and got my pen moving in the right direction--toward THE END.
We took a wee break. Now we’re back with a Tale of Epic Proportions.
The Baby-Sitters Club is back! The girls have made the jump into the digital age, with the first twenty books in the series being released as eBooks on Saturday, December 1st. The books will have not only the original covers, but also the original text, and that preservation makes me very happy.
This calls for a poll!
Want to know why I love these books?
Find out what the BSC means to me.For more fan feedback, check out
The Baby-Sitters Club: Survey SaysWant to see the girls animated?
Pick up Raina Telgemeier's awesome (and Scholastic-approved!) BSC graphic novels.For additional blog posts about Kid-Kits, perms, diabetes, Tigger, and more,
click through my BSC tag.
By: Jacob Tomsky,
on 11/26/2012
Blog:
PowellsBooks.BLOG
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Mr. Diggs is squinting at his computer screen, scrolling down a bottomless page of hotel options, before he discovers an option to sort by price. Slamming his index finger down hard to select that option, he is refreshed back to the top of the page and chooses the first, cheapest option. Mr. Diggs, a credit [...]
By: Shannon Hale,
on 11/26/2012
Blog:
squeetus blog
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This summer I took my girls to a toddler splash pool, which was daring of me frankly. We rarely go anywhere. But it was summer, and hey, it was worth a shot. With one walking around the shore trying to break into other people's treat bags and the other adventurously leaping to her possible death in 2 feet of water, I kept busy. The other mothers kept looking over at me. At first I thought it was the natural "that poor lady has twins" gaze that I've gotten used to. But there was more staring than normal. And it seemed somewhat annoyed. Were my girls exceeding the allowed toddler rambunctiousness?
Finally I said to the nearest mother, "Please let me know if my girls are bothering your kids."
She said, "Oh no they're fine."
A beat.
"So, did you make that yourself?"
Make what?
This is how slow I am. It never even occurred to me that they were all staring because I was wearing this:
-minus the husband.
Going to the splash pool had been a last minute decision, and frankly, I hadn't had time to shave. So I was like, hey I'll wear that swimming costume with bloomers I don't get enough use out of. It was cute and also conveniently cover-upper-y. I put it on and didn't think about it again, which seems odd, I know. I guess my whole mind was occupied with toddler twins.
I looked back on the stares, the concern, the apprehension and annoyance from the moms, and finally realized they were simply reacting to my outfit. They didn't know what to make of me. I was wearing an odd costume to a splash pool! Without showing any shame! Or at least breaking out into the Charleston. Was I a lunatic? An attention freak? A sister wife?
The truth was so much simpler. I was a frazzled mother of twins that hadn't had time to shave.
I hope everyone in the US had a great Thanksgiving. Today, I am sooo excited to take part in the "Dragon and Dangerous Princess" blog tour with authors Jim Averbeck and Dashka Slater. My kidlets and I have been fans of theirs for a few years, and we read their books often. Check out my review of Jim's In a Blue Room and Dashka's The Sea Serpent and Me. Now, the two are back with two WONDERFUL picture books that would make perfect gifts for the little readers in your life!
First, Oh No, Little Dragon!
is both written and illustrated by Jim Averbeck. In the book, the super energetic Little Dragon is super mischievous and gets himself into funny antics that had my littles laughing out loud. Through a funny story and adorable illustrations, Jim Averbeck successfully weaves in the overarching theme of a mother's love for her child.
Here's what Jim has to say about the book, reading with kids, and more:
In 2008, you visited The Well-Read Child to talk about your first book, In a Blue Room. What have you been up to since then?
A lot! I was honored to illustrate a book for Linda Sue Park called A Long Walk to Water. It was a serial novel that appeared in newspapers. Then I both wrote and illustrated Except If which came out last year. Then, of course, this year I finished Oh No, Little Dragon!
Where did you get the idea for Oh No, Little Dragon?
It started with the name of the character. When I was traveling in China, my guide’s name was Xiao Long, which he said meant “Little Dragon.” I thought that sounded like a fun name for a character in a picture book and I spent the rest of the vacation thinking about it. When I was taking a shower in the hotel, I swallowed some water and started coughing. That got me to thinking about what would happen if a dragon swallowed water. The story grew from there.
I have two rambunctious “little dragons” in my house. Is the Little Dragon character based on anyone in your life or maybe yourself when you were a kid?
I think I’d have to own the title “rambunctious child” much to my mother’s chagrin. One year I was so rambunctious that I broke my arm three times in the space of twelve months. The police actually had to investigate my home life, for fear that I was being abused. My poor mother, pinned under the unwavering gaze of the law! I’m sure when I told the police how I liked to play “tightrope walker” on the narrow pipe at the top of the swing set, or “paratrooper” from the top of the apple tree, they decided my mom was innocent.
What is your favorite mythical creature?
Besides dragons, I would have to say pegasuses. Or is that pegasi? Anyway- winged horses. They seem like the most useful of mythical creatures, good for traveling long distances, carrying heavy loads, easy to stable and feed. But in honesty, I’d just as soon stick with my plain old, non-mythical pet dog Bella, who is licking my arm as I type this response.
You are an author AND an illustrator. What do you love most about writing and illustrating your own books?
The interplay of words and pictures. I love the ability to tell a large part of the story with the art. For example, the last image of Oh No, Little Dragon lets us know that Little Dragon has learned a thing or two from his adventure in the book, but it isn’t stated explicitly. It’s all in the visual. So, telling much of the story with the art let’s me concentrate on picking only the best words, since I will need so few of them.
What do you love most about writing for children?
I think I love the way it keeps me connected to my own inner child. It enables me to continue to view the world with a sense of wonder, and get paid for it!
Why do you think it’s important for adults to read with the children in their lives?
For most people, their world doesn’t extend too far past the place they were born. Reading is really the only way to open the world up for them, to expose them to different cultures and ideas. Children need to have reading modeled as an activity that’s good, worthwhile and enjoyable, so they can become readers for life. The best way for that to happen is for the adults in their life to read to them or with them. An adult who reads to a child is giving them the world.
A lot of people ask for tips about turning reluctant readers into lifelong readers. Do you have any suggestions?
Start with their interests and work outward. So, for example, if your reluctant reader likes Spiderman movies, go out and buy him a trade paperback of a good Spiderman story arc. Or if he likes sports, get him a biography of a top player. Look for any inroad you can find. And even if one book doesn’t pique his interest, keep looking. Also- be sure to buy age appropriate books. If you buy books too advanced for your reluctant reader, he may lose interest. Keep feeding that interest then branch out. So from Spiderman, introduce him to other great graphic novels, working up to ones with more depth. And then maybe to books that deal with similar subject matter- fantasy etc. I think the important thing is to use their interests to guide what books to give them, rather than trying to use books to interest them in something they don’t care about.
What kinds of things do you like to do when you’re not writing or illustrating?
I’m a city boy. I’ve lived in metro areas since I was 18. Recently my partner and I decided we needed to spend at least three nights each week enjoying the city of San Francisco. I like to find weird little performance venues for an evening of cheap, unusual entertainment. So I guess one answer is “nightlife.” I also like to run on the beach with my dog, work out, hang out with friends and explore the great restaurants here in the city.
What can we expect to see from you next?
My next book to be published will be The Market Bowl. It’s an original folktale set in Cameroon, where I was a Peace Corps Volunteer. I was recently informed that it is a Junior Library Guild Selection, which is great news. It’s the story of Yoyo, who loses the blessing on the bowl her family uses to collect money for the goods they sell at market. No blessing means no money, so she has to find a way to get that blessing restored.
I’ve also written a novel called A Hitch at the Fairmont which my agent is currently presenting to editors. Several are interested, so I expect it to sell soon.
Next, Dashka Slater's Dangerously Ever After
features a really tough Princess named Amanita. Princess Amanita loves to do dangerous things, and when her neighbor Prince Florian gives her a bouquet of roses, she scoffs until she sees that they have thorns. She wants to grow rose seeds of her own, but instead of roses, she grows really loud, sneezing, sniffling noses that threaten the peace of the kingdom. So Amanita sets out on a dangerous adventure to get rid of the noses. I really love this story of an "unconventional" princess with a taste for adventure.
Here's what Dashka Slater had to say about the book:
Where did you get the idea for Dangerously Ever After?
When my son was in first grade, he announced that he had a funny idea for a story about a queen who wanted to plant rose seeds and ended up planting nose seeds. As soon as he described it to me, I could picture the hilarious possibilities that could ensue – Sneezing! Snoring! Snot! For days I pestered him to write the story himself, but he never did. Then I was forced to wrestle with the ethics of stealing story ideas from a small child, particularly my own. At last I sat down with him and suggested we write it together. He was mildly interested in the project, but eventually wandered off to build something with blocks, leaving me to finish it on my own.
Princess Amanita is a pretty tough little princess. Why do you think it’s important for children’s books to have strong female characters?
Children’s books are all about possibility – they allow children to try on different personalities and imagine themselves living through different scenarios. And while the words “role model” have been so overused as to have lost their meaning, I think it’s important for children of every variety to be able to see themselves as strong and capable and even a little dangerous – and that means that there have to be stories featuring strong, capable and dangerous girls. One of the surprising things I’ve discovered is that boys love Dangerously Ever After. I never set out to write a princess book for boys, and yet I keep getting letters from parents telling me that their sons can’t get enough of it. I love that because conventional wisdom has it that boys won’t read books about girls.
Are Princess Amanita and Prince Florian based on real people in your life?
My son had a friend in elementary school who was very much a dangerous princess. She dressed like a goth in kindergarten and was profoundly attracted to anything with a whiff or risk to it. I have a very vivid memory of standing mortified in the supermarket as she loudly announced that her favorite drink was Kahlua. “Kahlua!” she sang happily. “Kahlua! Kahlua!” All eyes turned to me, the adult clearly responsible for turning this adorable child into a souse. I’m sure she’d never tasted Kahlua in her life, but she did know how to get a reaction. Princess Amanita definitely embodies some of her edgy persona. Prince Florian is a lot like my son, who is a pretty gentle soul.
Aside from Princess Amanita, do you have another favorite princess or fairytale?
I was raised on the Oz books which feature the wise Princess Ozma, the girlish princess who started out as a boy (just in case you thought there were no transgender characters in classic children’s books). But probably my favorite princess tale is E. Nesbit’s Melisande, about the princess whose hair won’t stop growing. Melisande is a very sensible princess and the story not only features three white roses, but also a very nice prince named Florizel.
What did you think when you saw Valeria DoCampo’s illustrations?
I thought, “So that’s what nose flowers look like!” Valeria had found a way to make them look so perfectly botanical – like some kind of sub-tropical orchid, but perfectly recognizable as sneezing, snorting noses, too.
What do you love most about writing books for kids?
Children’s literature is pure storytelling. When you write for children, you write entirely for the purpose of creating a moving, exciting, rewarding experience for the reader. You’re not writing to impress anyone, or to give anyone something to discuss in their graduate seminar. You’re writing to have fun – and to create fun. What could be better?
Why do you think it’s important for adults to read with the children in their lives?
Reading a book together is pretty much the coziest experience you can have with another human being. Not only are you snuggled up together in bed or on the couch, but your minds are snuggled up too – you’re sharing a whole world together. Those worlds will become touchstones and common references forever and ever. And when you share a book that you love, you’re letting someone else see a little bit of the inside of your head and heart. You’re saying, ‘This is what moves me,’ or ‘This is what interests me,’ or ‘This is what I think is funny,’ or even, ‘This is how I wish I could be.’ And your child is saying the same to you.
Do you have any suggestions or tips for helping reluctant readers learn to like reading?
Read aloud! We get very hung up on independent reading, which means that we’re confusing the mechanics of reading (decoding, phonics, etc.) with the content of reading. Books that we have read to us often go much deeper than books we read ourselves and kids who are social by nature are more apt to enjoy a book that’s read together, even if they can read it perfectly well themselves. Find a book you think your kid will like and read it aloud together, or listen to a recording of it on your next long car ride or cross-country flight (the double headphone jack is key here).
What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
I spend so much time hunched over a computer that I try to spend the rest of my time outside and moving! I love taking long bike rides, swimming, kayaking and hiking and I also do yoga. I love urban walks too, particularly walking around Oakland’s Lake Merritt, where I almost always see something remarkable, whether it’s a cowboy wedding or an osprey with a fish in its mouth. I’m also a huge baseball fan and am always happy to watch a game, whether it’s my beloved Oakland A’s or my son’s tournament team.
What can we expect to see from you next?
I'm currently working on several new picture books as well as my first middle grade novel, called The Roving Trees Railway. Which one will be ready for publication first is anybody's guess!
Thank you so much Jim and Dashka for your very thoughtful answers. I wish you both the best of luck with these books and your future books. I am honored to participate in the tour.
Check out other stops on the tour:Lori CalabreseRead, Writ, Repeat Monkey PoopElizabeth O. Dulemba Charlotte's Library Design of the Picture BookKatie Davis-------© Jill Tullo and The Well-Read Child, 2007-2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Jill Tullo and The Well-Read Child with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
The product links in this post are affiliate links. With every purchase you make through clicking on these links, you are helping support The Well-Read Child.
Thursday we had a real nice, lazy Thanksgiving, didn't eat turkey until like 5 o'clock. But had an olive, cheese and sausage feast about noon...
courtesy of
Whole Foods, which we hit in Colorado Springs last weekend, when Jon was up there to speak at the Colorado County Attorney's conference. Since we don't have the glorious grocery store anywhere near us, when we do get to one, we sort of go crazy...
We got our free range turkey there, and some wonderful chicken to stick in the icebox, and a whole lot of bread, regular sour dough, rosemary sourdough, pretzel bread- if you were wondering. Cheese- Gouda and another stinky cheese.
I slowly and purposefully browsed the aisles as Jon just kept bringing back olives and cheese- said the lady "manning" the free cheese samples" got testy.
I don't like whole olives, but when in LA for the publishing conference, we live at the hotel bar, and they have an olive spread to die for- found it! at Whole Foods- so good with those olive oil crackers or with Peta bread triangles.
Been loving my "peace sign" to go cup, many of our old ones have "just disappeared" in a house of teenagers. Daughter #1 was spying it, but it is still here and she headed back to college yesterday.
Daughter #2 wanted to try to make fried calamari- no place to get that here- so bought some squid frozen and experimented Wednesday night, while Daughter #1 and I tried to figure out popstickers like the kind at
Panda Express- something else that is always a must on a trip since not here in the Four Corners.
It was wonderful, having the girls in the kitchen and Jon helping, even if he did let the "white beast" eat the tops off my homemade rolls.
My pecan and apple pies turned out wonderfully and the dogs didn't get them!!
"The Boyfriend" was around and made it feel more festive, as was Grandpa, though he just came in mostly to eat and then headed back out to his horses and cats. I take that back- a rousing card game of Michigan Rummy was played by all- I don't think I ever got out of the negative numbers!
I love the big Thanksgivings too, where the women are all in the kitchen and many know what and how to get down all the cooking- we need to get over the mountain to be with my mom next year, though she and I were on speaker phone several times chatting, both in our kitchen's cooking.
Friday was lazy where Daughter #1 went to "the Boyfriend's" house for a second feast and then Saturday we were back together and headed up to Telluride, where because of the mild weather, the kids snowboarded and Jon biked the valley floor in shorts- no joke! I spent the day sketching, the above scene of Telluride's Courthouse and the rugged box canyon beyond it. Sat in our truck on the street with the windows rolled down.
Where people were debating between something "hot" or something "cold".
Then it was time to head back home...
Now it is Monday and the challenge is to get ready for Christmas and keep the "bliss" - if I stay out of Walmart, I might be able to!
By: aquafortis,
on 11/26/2012
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Cybils
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Carol Wilcox, who brings us today's featured book review, is another Cybils regular. A literacy coach and reading intervention teacher, she's been blogging at Carol's Corner since 2007, and in addition to posting a variety of reviews, she also participates in Poetry Friday. Fun fact: her very first blog post mentions wanting to be a judge for Cybils!
Recently, she reviewed a couple of Cybils poetry nominees that both teach and entertain--one of them was Take Two!: A Celebration of Twins by J. Patrick Lewis and Jane Yolen, illustrated by Sophie Blackall. Whether you have twins, are a twin, or just know a twin or two, this one's sure to amuse. In her review, Carol gave a brief description of the contents:
There are sections about "Twins in the Waiting Womb," "Twinfants," "How
to be One," and "Famous Twins." And each two page spread includes at
least one twin fact.
Read the full post and a sample poem
here, as well as a brief review of Cybils-nominated title
unBeelievables by Douglas Florian.
By: Tatjana Mai-Wyss,
on 11/26/2012
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paperwork
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This subject reminded me that I need to practice my grownups, men in particular. That'll be the theme here for a while : gentlemen, with and without whiskers.
Teen librarianship isn’t always the most glamourous of positions in the library world. Fortunately, the back-up we have available to us through YALSA and the many awards they offer feel priceless to the winners. As Katie George, winner of the 2011 MAE Award for Best Literature Program for Teens, puts it, “Receiving recognition like this from teen-serving peers… at this level… is a shot in the arm. It reminds you, ‘Yes! You are making a difference! Keep going!’”
Katie’s “Pass the Book” program at the Howard County Library System in Columbia, MD, started in 2009 and involved passing around over 600 copies of Scott Westerfeld’s The Secret Hour. Teens would then read the book, log the book number on the program’s website, and pass the book along. According to Katie, “Pass the Book appealed to teens’ interest in participating in an exclusive activity, yet encouraged them to connect with other teen readers by sharing books and participating in the website.” She also pointed out that this program gave the public library another opportunity to branch out into locals schools, where some books were distributed in school media centers. While the program is no longer actively giving out new books, the titles are still being logged today – over 616 times on five continents.
For Katie and the other teen librarians, winning the MAE Award for Best Literature Program for Teens gave them “a boost of confidence” and allowed them to “experience renewed enthusiasm for our jobs.” If you’re still considering applying for the MAE Award, take into consideration these wise words from Katie: “Give yourself credit, be brave, and apply. What may be “all in a day’s work” for you, might be a groundbreaking idea to someone else. Your work may be just the inspiration someone else needs… and they’ll never know about until you share.”
Applications for the 2013 MAE Award for Best Literature Program for Teens are due December 1, 2012. Check out the YALSA website for more information.
Posted on behalf of Mary Haas and the MAE Award Jury.
By: Karen Maxwell,
on 11/26/2012
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Write From Karen
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Happy Monday!
I’m sort of glad to be back at work because WOW, I spent a ton of money this past weekend.
I haunted several online sites and pretty much took care of all of my Christmas shopping by taking advantage of sales and coupons.
I love it when I find “deals” on things I would have bought anyway.
So yeah. The boys are done, Kevin is done(ish) and I even have the stocking stuffers, save for the candy, which I’ll buy a little at a time over the next few weeks.
The boys didn’t really want that much this year. And I’ve reached the point where I’m not really sure what to buy them since they’re young men now and are getting too old for “toys”, per se.
But, Christmas wouldn’t be fun without a toy here and there, so I did end up getting the boys a PS3 game, and a controller. The game is co-op, which means they can play together, as a team, and you can never have too much together time, right??
The other game is a DS game, and they can share that one, too.
Jazz wants money to put on his Steam account so he can buy more computer games (shock) and Dude … well, he didn’t really give me very many ideas, so I ended up buying him several nice shirts to wear to Kevin’s office since he’s now “technically” employed there. The guys are supposed to fill out an I9 and other forms today. Dude is filling out all of the paperwork that he would with any other employer and Kevin will be taking out federal, state, Social Security taxes as well.
That should be a real eye opener for Dude.
But. This means the boy will be making some boo-coo bucks in the coming weeks and he’ll be making enough on his own to buy the computer upgrades that he’s wanting to make, so, I’m sort of thinking of things to give him that he wouldn’t normally buy on his own.
And clothes is definitely on that list.
I don’t know if I’ve mentioned or not, but Kevin gave me an HTC Android phone for my birthday. I had been fighting the upgrade for YEARS because I know me, I get obsessed over new toys like that. And this is no exception. I LOVE THIS PHONE!!! It’s soooo cool. I can watch movies, make a voice recording, make a video, use it as an iPod (which I transferred all of the music that I could to my phone over the weekend, but alas, there are quite a few songs that I bought through iTunes that won’t transfer because of the funky format, so I’m not too happy about losing all of the money I spent on those songs. I did download Amazon Cloud, which stores all of my music on their servers, so even if I change phones or want to put my music on another device, it will allow me to do that. That’s the biggest reason I dislike Apple products – they’re control freaks. Either use their products or screw you), and so, so much more. There are apps for everything and I’m having a BLAST playing around with them.
Anyway. Kevin noticed that my phone was on sale on Virgin Mobile’s website, like $150 LESS than what he paid for mine and since the boys routinely complain about their phones being crappy, we thought, WHY NOT?!? The deal was too good to pass up – so they’re both getting HTC phones for Christmas.
And that’s enough.
We’re going to pay Dude’s monthly fee for six months, and then he’ll be responsible for taking it over after that – if he chooses to. We’ll pay for Jazz’s until he gets his job, and then he can pay for himself.
I’m excited for them. There are so many game apps, it will blow their minds. I’m confident they will become as obsessed as I’ve become.
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By: Andrew Karre,
on 11/26/2012
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Carolrhoda Books Blog
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The headlines and tweets about the new Harper Collins YA imprint perplexed me this morning:
Wait, aren’t there a half dozen HC imprints that do YA? What are they aiming at? (I thought I was the only one with my sights set on the debauched an impoverished corner of the YA market).
But then I read the New York Times piece and the specifics of the imprint’s plan cleared up my confusion. But the article went beyond that even.
“Readers of Y.A. have embraced digital reading in a big way,” [President and publisher Susan] Katz said. [Emphasis mine.]
Up until very recently, you could rely on that statement to begin“Teens have embraced….” This is, I think, a meaningful part of a shift toward open acknowledgment that the main character of a book need not mirror the reader of that book for the match to be a happy one. So, that tweet is wrong on one important level. They’re not aiming at a market of young adults. They’re aiming books about young adults at a market of readers who are interested in these stories--stories with a certain genre commonality (makes for an inelegant tweet, I agree). Wonderful, couldn’t agree more. “About not for.” Blah, blah.
So why then is anyone still talking about “New Adult”? Doesn’t everything you’ve come to understand about the popularity of young adult tell you that making books for a demographic is madness?
"His mother had often said, When you choose an action, you choose the consequences of that action. She had emphasized the corollary of this axiom even more vehemently: when you desired a consequence you had damned well better take the action that would create it."
Lois McMaster Bujold, writer (b. 1949)
By: Alice,
on 11/26/2012
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By Gordon Thompson
Fifty years ago, the Beatles recorded their arrangement of “Please Please Me,” a lilting lover’s complaint transformed into a burst of adolescent adrenaline. On 26 November 1962, after repeated attempts to capture just the right balance of frustration and anticipation, George Martin informed them over the studio intercom that they had just recorded their first number-one disc. But the path to the top of the charts would not be easy.
John Lennon remembered the afternoon he began writing the song, sitting in the bedroom at his Aunt Mimi’s, playing Roy Orbison’s “Only the Lonely” over in his mind, and beginning a song that would include word play from a Bing Crosby record. He had studied the architecture of Orbison’s music and the American’s affinity for torch-song “climbers” (e.g., “Running Scared,” 1961) in which melodies gradually ascend to a dramatic climax. The young songwriter in “Please Please Me” shows he has learned the lesson well, the chorus and the refrains to the melody climbing to falsetto peaks. Another technique comes from the Everly Brothers from whose records Lennon and McCartney had learned about “wedge” harmonies (where one voice holds the top note while the other descends against it). The principal verse phrase of “Please Please Me” illustrates the same device heard in “Cathy’s Clown” (1960), McCartney pinging the top note as Lennon’s declaration tumbles.
When they first played Lennon’s song for artist-and-repertoire manager George Martin on 4 September, the tempo would have more closely approximated an Orbison slow-rocker, with a dragging backbeat and wide-open spaces between phrases. The producer recommended that they increase the tempo, which surprised the band, both because the new speed worked and because the word “tempo” was unfamiliar to them.
When they returned a week later to record a new version of “Love Me Do” and “P.S., I Love You,” they brought out a faster and improved version of “Please Please Me,” probably with an introduction and coda that they had fashioned with George Martin on the earlier recording date. With Ringo Starr observing, session drummer Andy White now improvised tom fills in the gaps that the Beatles had left after the end of the second verse and after the first phrase of the chorus. Ron Richards, who sat in that day for George Martin, would have known that the performance had potential, but that it lacked essentials.
The Beatles needed to work on their arrangement, which they would do during a pre-arranged (but inconvenient) return to Hamburg where they would be appearing with American legend Little Richard. Lennon remembers rehearsing the song over and over again, speeding it up, changing the words, and generally tightening the arrangement until they were happy with it. Moreover, for sonic continuity with their first recording “Love Me Do,” Martin wanted Lennon’s harmonica to proclaim the song’s recurring motif. They would spend afternoon hours in the Star Club rehearsing in anticipation of their next visit to the EMI Recording Studios in St. John’s Wood.
Back in the UK, unimpressed with the promotion that publishers Ardmore and Beechwood and recording company EMI had given “Love Me Do,” Brian Epstein engaged music critic Tony Barrow to help create buzz for the band and their recordings. Barrow had been one of the first in the media that Epstein had contacted in his efforts to get a recording contract and he now hoped the writer could get the Beatles the attention of the press.
Returning to the UK from West Germany, the Beatles entered a small studio in EMI’s Manchester Square offices on 16 November to record an appearance for the program “Friday Spectacular” that the company would broadcast with time purchased on Radio Luxembourg. “Love Me Do” had defied expectations, continuing to climb the charts and leading EMI to take begrudging interest in the band and to book airtime on the one station where Britons could hear more than a few hours of pop music. As host Muriel Young began announcing the band to the studio audience, teens screamed and rushed the stage; Barrow rightly interpreted the event as portending something special.
On 26 November, with the tempo increased again, a vocal response added to replace an awkward gap in the chorus, and Lennon’s harmonica proclaiming the song’s motif, “Please Please Me” was ready to rock. Capturing the best performance would not be easy and the Beatles would work through eighteen takes to get the recording right. In the end, Martin felt sure they had a hit, but a hit requires more than a good recording: it needs promotion, and neither their record company nor their publishers had given “Love Me Do” much support. Manager Brian Epstein, new disc in hand, set out to find someone who could change his luck.
On 27 November, the day after the Beatles had recorded “Please Please Me,” Epstein headed to the heart of London’s publishing district in search of a publisher who could deliver. There, in a redbrick building at the corner of Denmark Street and Charing Cross Road, the manager walked into the offices of the publisher who would help the Beatles reach a national audience. As a singer in the 1950s, Dick James had scored a modest hit (with George Martin as his producer) with the television theme for Robin Hood; but as his teenage appeal and hairline receded, James proved more successful at finding good songs. Indeed, he had been responsible for Ron Richards (and subsequently George Martin) hearing Mitch Murray’s “How Do You Do It?”, and Epstein hoped that the eager new publisher would give the Beatles the attention they deserved.
Back in October, the band had appeared on People and Places, a regional television program out of Manchester. On 23 November, needing national exposure, they had auditioned for BBC Television, but were unsuccessful. Brian Epstein wanted another chance and Dick James would give it to him. Listening to “Please Please Me,” James immediately offered to publish the song; but Epstein remained true to his original goal of making the Beatles successful recording artists, not just successful songwriters. Picking up the phone and talking with Philip Jones, producer for the British ABC television show Thank Your Lucky Stars, James held the handset up to the record player in his office. After a short listen, Jones let the publisher know he would book them for January. James had secured a spot on the show for the Beatles and for himself in history.
Epstein rightly felt optimistic, but January now seemed oh so far away.
Gordon Thompson is Professor of Music at Skidmore College. His book, Please Please Me: Sixties British Pop, Inside Out, offers an insider’s view of the British pop-music recording industry. Check out Gordon Thompson’s posts on The Beatles and other music here.
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Image credit: Please Please Me single cover used for the purposes of illustration under fair use. Via Wikimedia Commons.
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Since I have to do book reviews, I find it's much cheaper to by the e-book version of what I need to read than it is to buy the print version.
To whit, I have a $50 gift card to B&N and with only half spent, I've purchased 8 books. Those same eight definitely wouldn't have cost me $25, but more like $100.
For personal reading though, I'll stick to print until I'm pushing up the daises. Won't purchase it 'cause it's just too expensive, so I'll just keep using the public library.
I'm at a point where if I'm buying a book, it's an ebook unless it's a graphic novel. However, I do still read a lot of normal books these days, because I borrow more books from the library than I actually purchase. I'm pretty comfortable iwth both.
There's one thing I miss about paper books though--being about to snoop on other people on the metro in the morning to see what everyone else is reading!
There are only 2 reasons I buy a paper book anymore: If it's a cookbook or similar reference book, or if I know I'm likely to run into the author and want them to sign a copy. The rest of the time? Ebooks all the way. I don't have enough storage space for all the books I read otherwise.
You need to add the "I already do" option...I guess welcoming the overlords is the most applicable of these.
Can you consider yourself one of the ebook overlords if you self-publish lol!!
Last year I read 42 books, only two of which were p-books.
I'm with T.M. I already do.
In fact, I picked up a physical book today, thumbed through it and it was an odd, nostalgic experience. Oh, this is what they used to be like!
I'm a convert. E-books are just too convienent and easy to read. I love the backlighting. I love being able to read anywhere, anytime. I love carrying over 300 books in my phone in my pocket.
Technology is wonderful. :)
We moved from a 3 bedroom split level to a smaller 3 bedroom single floor to a 2 bedroom apartment all in less then 6 months. I HAD to get rid of books and we picked up a Nook so I could replace some of the ones I got rid of and could still have new books to read. I'd still prefer to have a huge library of paperbacks, but have to admit, the first thing I grab to read at night? The Nook. And no, it's not the one with the light, and yes, I do have a small stack of hard copies by the bed waiting to be read. lol
I'm almost entirely ebooked now, but that's because my husband is military, which forces us to move a lot. We just donated over 300 books, and we still have three bookcases full. We're slowly culling all of our things that can be moved to digital media (CDs, DVDs, books) just because, now that we have kids, we need the space for their toys, not ours. I'll wait for the books I've loved most and will reread over and over to come to B&N's bargain prices, and I have quite a few of the leather editions. But for a book I'll only read the once, either because I didn't like it or it just isn't something loved enough to go back to, there's no reason for me to have a paper copy. I'm also really careful about having paper around now anyway after our apartment was flooded out three springs in a row and destroyed too much of our stuff. Ebooks don't get flooded out.
I'm almost entirely ebooked now, but that's because my husband is military, which forces us to move a lot. We just donated over 300 books, and we still have three bookcases full. We're slowly culling all of our things that can be moved to digital media (CDs, DVDs, books) just because, now that we have kids, we need the space for their toys, not ours. I'll wait for the books I've loved most and will reread over and over to come to B&N's bargain prices, and I have quite a few of the leather editions. But for a book I'll only read the once, either because I didn't like it or it just isn't something loved enough to go back to, there's no reason for me to have a paper copy. I'm also really careful about having paper around now anyway after our apartment was flooded out three springs in a row and destroyed too much of our stuff. Ebooks don't get flooded out.
I don't leave my horse at the livery stable, but I do buy pretty much 100% e-books. There will come a time when this discussion will look silly.
Because we've moved a number of times in the 16 years we've been together, during our last move hubby threatened to leave my boxes of books behind because he was tired of moving them. He told me I could buy even more books than usual without complaining even once if I bought them for my e-reader & he didn't have to move them anymore.
The only way I get eBooks is DRM-free, and convertible between formats.
Heaven forbid the Apocalypse comes and I haven't bought a solar charger for my Kindle. Most everything I buy is ebook, unless the paper is full of color illustrations, less expensive, or somehow compelling in print. Why? I'll be retiring soon and only the best books of my thousands will be kept, because downsizing is in my near future. Because I can read a huge novel and not irritate my carpal tunnel or get too fatigued to read it in bed. Because I can carry them all with me all the time. Because a Kindle leaves one hand free for lunch or petting chihuahuas. I have hundreds of Kindle titles now, and I'm not stopping any time soon. Both have their place, but Kindle is here to stay.
I don´t have an ebook reader so I don´t really know if I´ll like ebooks at all. Then there´s the problem of me spending a lot of time in places where paper books still rule without questions. Wouldn´t bring my Kindle into the pool or on the beach. It wouldn´t do too well in a hot sauna or a tub either. That doesn´t mean I wouldn´t like a Kindle, it just means I quite like both kinds of books.
I own a first gen Kindle. I purchase somewhere between 250-300 fiction ebooks a year. The only books that I buy in hardcopy are reference books...I'm still old school when it comes to my guides and reference material.
But I just don't see the need to keep an entire forest of fiction sitting around in my house.
Purchased my first paperback book in three years a week ago and I still feel guilty about it. Though I love the feel on one in my hand, I love the Earth more. It's worth the sacrifice.
Because I am visually impaired, I read only e-books - as they are the only ones that I CAN read (long live large font sizes!). Yes, I know you can get the odd book in large print, but they do not tend to be my kind of books, and mean traveling a long way to get.
I agree with all those saying that the DRM needs to come off; I bought a non-fiction book via my son's kindle (my own had a fault at the time) and now find I cannot transfer that title to my own...
You should make a gif of changing responses with years.
I mostly read ebooks but still also have many paper books. Ebooks are much easier for me to read, especially on public transport and aeroplanes, and deal with because I travel a lot and don't currently live in the same country as most of my books.
I buy mostly ebooks now to avoid adding mediocre titles to my already huge collection of paper books. If I read an ebook and choose to add it to my library to re-read and have on hand for my children, I'll buy a nice hardcover.
I still buy paper books but this year I bought a new Kindle Touch and I have to admit most of the books I buy now are for my Kindle.I still buy paper books because I read constantly and have a fear of my Kindle not working and all of my beloved books disappearing,therefore I find myself buying both versions if I really love the story.I now have my original Sony E-Reader,my new Kindle and hard copies of my favorite books because I not a trusting soul and can't go even one day without reading:)
Licensed e-books fill my Kindle,
But my bookshelves will not dwindle.
I love my Kindle 'fore I sleep,
But not for those to cherish/keep.
I think at this point I'm buying mostly e-books. With a new baby, it's easier to shop on my kindle then get to a bookstore, and it took me a while but I'm beginning to like my kindle. (Of course, the lack of physical space to keep books I already own could have something to do with this).
I have yet to buy an e-book. I'm too attached to the tangible nature of real books to give them up. Plus, I enjoy looking at my collection on the shelves.
I'm on my second e-reader. They are getting better. I buy ebooks of titles that are throwaways. I buy real books for the ones I want to own and keep.
I mostly use my e-reader for things only available online. I just love paper books!
I'm already buying mostly ebooks. I love my Kindle and I love carrying my entire library along with me when I go anywhere.