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It's time for holidays! Your suitcase is packed, you're ready to leave, and cannot wait to get a proper tan to show on social media. Mark Twain used to say that “travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness”, but unfortunately the health problems we may come across while travelling are far less poetic. Danger is always lurking, especially in far-flung and unexplored destinations.

The post Around the world in 15 travel health tips appeared first on OUPblog.

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The sound of paddling pools, ice-cream vans, and sizzling barbecues means but one thing: summer is finally here. We caught up with four of Oxford University Press' most seasoned travelers to see which books they recommend for trips to Thailand, Cambodia, Germany, India, and France.

The post A summer reading list appeared first on OUPblog.

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Discover the art of Dmitry Narozhny, Cartoon Brew's Artist of the Day!

The post Artist of the Day: Dmitry Narozhny appeared first on Cartoon Brew.

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Inspired by a true story, One Step at a Time exposes the unfortunate reality of the global landmine crisis through the prism of a friendship between a young boy and an elephant. Writer Jane Jolly and artist Sally Heinrich handle this subject with such deftness and clarity to ensure young readers grasp the predicament facing […]

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Jackkrit Anantakul is a Bangkok-based graphic designer and illustrator.  With a client list that includes Monocle and Wallpaper he creates higly expressive work that is lauded for it’s experimental typography and often humorous imagery.  He previously served as senior art director at YouWorkForThem, but recently ventured out on his own with the launching of Hello I Am JK.

 

 

 

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Sponsor // Webydo: The leading online design studio that enables designers to create, manage and publish their client’s websites completely code-free.

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Maggie Steele, the storybook heroine who vaults over the moon, has been attracting thousands of visitors from around the world. So many visitors, in fact, that she’s using a time zone map to keep track of them all.* People are … Continue reading →

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Well, I did it.

I survived my first year teaching abroad. It was a challenging year, but through God's strength, I made it. The school year is finally over.

The students' last day of school was officially June 21st, though many stopped coming before then. Unfortunately for teachers, the last day was July 12th. Why the powers that be chose to have that 3-week gap, I don't know, but it was excruciating. At least for me. Many teachers spent the last three weeks doing absolutely nothing. Well except for working out (at school), eating, reading, or chillaxing.

Not us.

Our last few weeks were spent in PDs (professional developments), preparing for the next school year, blah, blah, blah. To be honest, I mentally checked out sometime around week one. I was done working. My body was there, but my mind had already gone on vacation. It was a struggle to get up in the mornings and go to work, but nevertheless, we did. And we're finished. Thank you, JESUS! I'm seriously contemplating getting a shirt that says, "I survived teaching in Abu Dhabi." I have that Destiny's Child song in my head. "I'm a survivor. I'm not gon give up. I'm not gon stop. I'm gon work harder." Describes this year perfectly.

My brain rejects anything school-like, so enough about school.

My vacation will consist of a trip to Phuket (pronounced Poo-ket) Thailand, home (the US), and Puerto Rico. I know, awesome, right???

Tomorrow morning, my friends and I leave for Phuket for a 6-day/5-night vacation. I so can NOT wait. There is fun - and relaxation - to be had. Next week, I leave for home. I can't wait to see my family! Oh, how I miss them so. Then, it's off to San Juan, Puerto Rico with the sis for a 7-day/6-night vacation. Seven days may not be enough, I know but we'll make the best out of the time we have. I can't wait to see the gorgeous men...uh, I mean the gorgeous beaches of Puerto Rico. Heehee. I spend the rest of my vacation back in Houston with the fam before I come back to Abu Dhabi for another great year of teaching.

I'm thinking this summer may turn out to be the best one yet.

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The first of The Adventures of BB and Sam, an ebook series from Dubai-based Bon Education, takes children to Thailand! I'm thinking of checking it out!

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Title: Nowhere Girl Author: AJ Paquette Publisher: Walker Books ISBN: 978-0802722973

 

May Contain Spoilers

From Amazon:

Review:

This was a fantastic read!  The cover made me think that Nowhere Girl would have some fantasy elements, which it did not, but I wasn’t disappointed in the least.  This is a contemporary drama about a young girl who is trying to find her place in the world.  If you follow the blog at all, you already know that I love books that explore this theme.  I think it’s because I am still trying to figure out just exactly where I fit in the grand scheme of the universe, so I feel like I’ve found a kindred spirit when I read a story with a similar theme.

Nowhere Girl is unusual because Luchi Ann has spent her entire life with her mother, a prisoner in a Thailand jail.  Luchi was born there, and it’s the only world she knows.  When her mother falls ill and suddenly dies, Luchi is left alone.  She doesn’t know who her father is, or who her mother really was.  Her life is a giant jigsaw puzzle, and Luchi is desperate to discover the one thing that she is missing – herself.  Her quest from the safe confines of the prison to the endless world of the outside, with its dangers and mysteries, is a huge step for her to make, all alone.  She has nothing, save for the memories of her mother, and box of mementos that she has accumulated while living in the jail. 

I loved this book.  I loved the language, and how lyrically AJ Paquette crafted her sentences.  They are a treat to read,  and the words skillfully caused a cascade of emotions to course through me as I compulsively turned one page after another.  I was quickly invested in Luchi’s quest – would she find the answers she sought, or was she traversing a path to heartbreak?  Luchi is a very complex character, and she has one flaw that causes her grief time and time again.  She is gullible and she is too trusting, having spent most of her life within the orderly confines of the prison.  I experienced her betrayals and her confusion as the people she encountered treated her with varying degrees of trustworthiness.

Though the ending was a bit too rushed, and a bit too rosy, I loved Nowhere Girl.  The setting is interesting, the emotions felt so real, and I was sad when I reached the last page.  This is one of the most underrated books of the year.  While it is marketed to Middle Grade readers, I think that it has a much broader appeal, and that older readers will find much to like about Luchi, and will b

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Vonlai knows that soldiers who guard the Mekong River shoot at anything that moves, but in oppressive Communist Laos, there’s nothing left for him, his spirited sister, Dalah, and his desperate parents. Their only hope is a refugee camp in Thailand—on the other side of the river.

When they reach camp, their struggles are far from over. Na Pho is a forgotten place where life consists of squalid huts, stifling heat, and rationed food. Still, Vonlai tries to carry on as if everything is normal. He pays attention in school, a dusty barrack overcrowded with kids too hungry to learn. And he plays soccer in a field full of rocks to forget his empty stomach.

But when someone inside the camp threatens his family, Vonlai calls on a forbidden skill to protect their future, a future he’s sure is full of promise, if only they can make it out of Na Pho alive.

Hi, everyone! :o) Today's interview is with the beautiful Laura Manivong, author of Escaping the Tiger (HarperCollins, 2010), a treasure for middle graders who want to do some "armchair traveling" and their teachers and librarians who want to integrate literature into a social studies or history curriculum.

The cultural and historical details in Escaping the Tiger feel natural and authentic, and its 1980s setting in Laos and Thailand is never exoticized. At first I was wary of the novel's presentation of America and France as the places of freedom where Vonlai and his family can escape the Pathet Lao and Communist Laos. I am always wary of stories that might portray the West as the "savior" for people in the "exotic" East, and thankfully Laura Manivong does not do this. Escaping the Tiger is nuanced, realistic, and ultimately balanced: while the rule of the Pathet Lao was more often than not cruel, Vonlai was happy in Laos and misses his home; the Na Pho refugee camp in Thailand is simultaneously a microcosm of all that is bad and all that is good in this world; and (spoiler alert!) Vonlai and his family start a very heartening new life in America, but encounter racism there.

While Escaping the Tiger raises social consciousness; teaches empathy and gratitude; and stimulates discussion on the refugee experience, it also a darn good yarn. Most of the story is about Vonlai's years of waiting and waiting and doing almost nothing in Na Pho, but it is never boring, the story has great pace and tension and suspense are nicely built. Young readers will find this an exciting refugee story about hope and strength and HOME.


Welcome, Laura!

What kind of young reader were you? What were your favorite books? Who were your favorite author

0 Comments on Author Interview: Laura Manivong as of 7/9/2011 12:23:00 AM

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Happy Friday to all!  The sun is out, spring is in full force and the weekend is almost upon us.  Get busy procrastinating with the links below and before you know it the day will be over.

There are dancers among us.

How I’d like to spend the month of June.

You can make a difference.

Coming soon to Thailand, Professors Without Borders.

How long can you go without sleep?

The Supreme Court may be coming to a television near you.

Watch the sky reboot.

Apple vs. Gizmodo.

Confessions of a poet laureate.

For the love of homemade maps.

Saving the world’s languages.

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I just spent the last 13 hours on a bus with a bunch of ten-year-olds on a field trip. I'm a bit worn out, so I hope this poem makes sense.

Today's prompt was to write about imperfections.

Vision of Imperfection

Sprawled out on the dentist's chair
every imperfection
highlighted
in fluorescent--
snow-capped zits,
bottle-cap glasses.

The dentist finished off the ugly painting
by adding
a mouthful of silver.

Me--
at my ugliest.

Two dental hygenists
with smooth brown skin
free of flaws
rubbed my arms
claiming I was
an American beauty.

by Marcie Flinchum Atkins
April 21, 2010

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Today's poem was about heroes. I give you an ode to my parents (heroes for many more reasons than just this one):

Ode to Book-Loving Parents

O, Mom and Dad,
you filled our house
with books,
encouraged the giggling
when Fudge finally turned Ben
into a story-lover,
stuffed mailbags
full of books,
paid exorbitant postage
so our new Thai home
would hold our favorite stories,
took extra time shopping
so I could speed-read
the latest Sweet Valley High
curled up in the store corner,
brought me every book you could find
when I was sick for a month--
forbidden to move
except to turn the page
of a book.
For all of these stories,
you are heroes.

by Marcie Flinchum Atkins
April 20, 2010

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Today's prompt was to write about a lightbulb moment--good or bad. I wrote about a chinchoke, a type of lizard that lives in houses in Thailands.

Here's my attempt:

Chinchoke

He scurried,
scaling walls,
dipping behind curtains,
wrangling mosquitoes.

I wanted to catch him.

I jumped high,
smacking walls,
flittering curtains,
poking sticks.

Then once
his lizard instincts
experienced a delay.
I held him in place,
finger on his tail.

He escaped--

leaving me,
with his tail
and guilt.

by Marcie Flinchum Atkins
April 19, 2010

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The Thailand Reading Association recently held a two day conference entitled “Reading Literacy for Quality Education”. One of the organizers, Tuk, has just informed me that photos and information from the conference (including downloadable speeches and reports) are available here on the Thailand Reading Association’s website and also here on Tuk’s blog.

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Professor Alan Whiteside is an AIDS researcher and author. He is Professor of Economics and Director of the Health Economics and HIV/AIDS Research Division at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and is a member of the Governing Council of the International AIDS Society. He has written several books on HIV and AIDS, including HIV/AIDS: A Very Short Introduction. In this original post below, Professor Whiteside discusses the recent encouraging results of HIV vaccine trials in Thailand.

The human immunodeficiency virus the cause of AIDS, is fortunately not easily transmitted. When it first appeared in 1981, there were fears of a global epidemic, some thought it would be on the scale of the impending Swine flu (H1N1) outbreak. This has not and will not happened. However those who are infected will eventually develop AIDS and in the absence of treatment will die.

There are an estimated 33 million people living with HIV in the world. The majority are in sub-Saharan Africa and more women than men infected. Most HIV transmission takes place through unprotected sexual intercourse. Some people are infected through drug abuse – sharing contaminated needles. If a woman is HIV positive and pregnant then there is a chance that her child will be born with the virus or infected while breast feeding (vertical transmission).

HIV transmission can be prevented. In injecting drug using populations provision of clean needles will halt the epidemic – as was done in a number of western cities. It is rare for vertical transmission to occur in the rich world, pregnant women will be given drugs and babies formula feed, in the poor world one dose of nevirapine will greatly reduce risk. New interventions are being developed and tried and it is likely that this form of transmission can be further reduced.

Preventing sexual transmission requires behavior change. Clearly not being sexually active will ensure a person remains HIV negative. This is not an option for humankind or most individuals. Having only one partner (who is faithful) will be effective but again, human nature being what it is, this is not a realistic goal despite what many faith-based organizations would have us believe. Condoms are generally effective provided they are used consistently and correctly. Unfortunately this too is not always an option. In some settings they are not available or are discouraged by religious leaders. Women may not be empowered to insist or even ask their partners to use them. And of course there are many who just don’t like them.

I believe that halting the HIV epidemic requires a mix of behaviour change and science. With regard to behaviour the key is developing respect. People should not enter sexual relations without respecting each other. If they do then they will either be faithful or they will want to protect their partner(s) by knowing their HIV status and/or using condoms.

Science has brought us drugs that keep people alive albeit at price. It is too science that we look in the area of prevention, here there are a few possibilities. Male circumcision provides a degree of protection for men. A microbicide, a substance that could be inserted into the vagina prior to intercourse that would kill viruses and bacteria would be female controlled and highly beneficial. A number are being tried. But the first prize would be an effective vaccine.

In 1983 when the virus was first isolated the then US Secretary of Health and Human Services announced confidently that a vaccine was imminent. This proved to be widely optimistic and in my book I said: “Despite rapid scientific advances there are no simple solutions. There will almost certainly not be a vaccine available by 2015 the date the Millennium Development Goals were to be met”. At the time of writing there were just four pharmaceutical companies with vaccines in trials; only one candidate had gone through all trials and it was not effective.

The news over the past week of developments in Thailand is extremely significant. The US Military HIV Research Programme and Thai Ministry of Health announced that a ‘combination of two vaccine candidates’ is at least partially effective in preventing HIV transmission. It was reported that the combination is 31% effective at preventing infection with HIV. Clearly this is not were we need to be but it is a breakthrough. More information will be given on 20th October this year at an AIDS vaccine meeting in Paris.

At this point those of us working in the field of HIV/AIDS are encouraged. It is in the words of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative’s Chief Executive “a significant scientific achievement. It is the first demonstration that a candidate AIDS vaccine provides benefits in humans”. It will lead to new investment and energy in the development of vaccines.

Although an effective vaccine is still some years off, there is at last good news on this front.

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Craig A. Lockard is Ben and Joyce Rosenberg Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.  In his new book, Southeast Asia in World History, he looks at Southeast Asia from ancient times to the present, paying particular attention to the region’s role in world history and the distinctive societies that arose in lands shaped by green fields and forests, blue rivers and seas.  To read more excerpts from books in the New Oxford World History series click here.

The largest and most powerful Golden Age state was the Khmer kingdom of Angkor in Cambodia, established by King Jayavarman II in 802.  The name Angkor derives from the Sanskrit term for “holy city,” and Jayavarman considered himself a reincarnation of Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction and fertility.  Jayavarman himself had lived many years at a Hindu court in Java before returning to Cambodia, indicating the widespread contacts among Southeast Asian states.  His successors consolidated the kingdom and conquered Dvaravati, a heavily Indianized and largely Buddhist Monk state in central Thailand.  One of the greatest Angkor kings, Jayavarman VII (who ruled from 1181 to 1219) was a devout Buddhist who boasted of his compassion for his people.  He expanded the empire, commissioned important artworks, built roads and sturdy stone walls, and sponsored the construction of monuments and temples.  His main legacy was the Bayon temple, which featured towers with large carved faces, probably of the egocentric king himself.

Angkor’s kings bragged about their achievements, and royal engravers gushed as they described on a monument King Yasovarman I in the late ninth century: “In all the sciences and in all the sports, in dancing, singing, and all the rest, he was as clever as if he had been the first inventor of them.”  Angkor flourished for half a millennium.  At its height in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, the kingdom was a loosely integrated empire controlling much of present-day Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Southern Vietnam.  Angkor carried on an active trade with China, with many resident Chinese merchants.  Zhou Daguan, a Chinese ambassador in Angkor in 1296, left vivid descriptions of the society and its leaders.  In a report back home, he outlined the system of justice presided over by the king: “Disputes of the people, however insignificant, always go to the King.  Each day the king holds two audiences for affairs of state.  Those of the functionaries or the people who wish to see the king, sit on the ground to wait for him.”

Zhou Daguan also observed a spectacular royal procession of the Angkor king, Indravarman, in 1296:

When the king goes out, troops are at the head of the escort; then come flags, banners and music.  Palace women, numbering from three to five hundred, wearing flowered cloth, with flowers in their hair, hold candles in their hands, and form a troupe…Then come other palace women, carrying lances and shields, the king’s private guards, and carts drawn by goats and horses, all in gold, come next.  Ministers and princes are mounted on elephants, and in front of them one can see, from afar, their innumerable red umbrellas.  After them come the wives and concubines of the king, in palanquins, carriages, on horseback and on elephants.  They have more than one hundred parasols, flecked with gold.  Behind them comes the sovereign, standing on an elephant, holding his sacred sword in his hand.  The elephant’s tusks are encased in gold.

The well-financed Angkor government supported substantial public services including hospitals, schools, and libraries…Some kings were noted as avid patrons of knowledge and the arts.  One wrote that having drunk the nectar of knowledge, the king gives it to others to drink.  Theater, art, and dance reflected Hindu values and stories…By the twelfth century the bustling capital city, Angkor Thom, and its immediate environs had perhaps as many as 1 million people, much larger than any medieval European city but comparable to all but the largest Chinese and Arab cities of that era.  This was clearly one of the major urban complexes in the preindustrial world.  The magnificent temples still standing today and a remarkable water-control network testify to prosperity and organization.

Many stone temple mountains were built by thousands of conscripted workers as sanctuaries and mausoleums, designed to represent the Hindu conception of the cosmos.  At their center was a replica of Mt. Meru, where Hindus believe that the gods dwell…The temple complex Angkor Wat was the largest religious complex in the premodern world, built by some 70,000 workers in the twelfth century, and surrounded by a four-mile-long moat, dwarfing the magnificent European cathedrals and grand mosques of Baghdad or Cairo.  The reliefs carved into stone at Angkor Wat and other temples provided glimpses of daily life, showing fishing boats, midwives attending a childbirth, festival jugglers and dancers, the crowd at a cockfight, men playing chess, peasants bringing goods to market, and merchant stalls  According to Zhou, women operated most of these retail stalls: “In this country it is the women who are concerned with commerce.”  Khmer society in this era was matrilineal, and women played a much more important role in the family, society, and politics than in most other places in the world.  Women went out in public as they like, and Chinese visitors were shocked at their liberated behavior.

Some royal women at Angkor were noted for intellectual activities or service to others.  Jayarajadevi, the first wife of King Jayavarman VII, took in hundreds of abandoned girls, training and settling them.  After her death the king married Indradevi, a renowned scholar who lectured at a Buddhist monastery and who was acclaimed in a temple inscription as “naturally intelligent…very pure…the chief teacher of the king.”  Women dominated the palace staff, and some were even gladiators and warriors.  Women were also active in the arts, especially as poets…

In addition to building temples, drafted workers also constructed an extensive hydraulic network of canals and reservoirs for efficient water distribution, demonstrating some of the most advanced civil engineering in the premodern world.  With the help of plows pulled by oxen or water buffalo, Khmer farmers brought a moderately fertile region into astonishing productivity…Although some scholars are skeptical, according to Chinese visitors, the Khmers may have had the most productive agriculture in history, producing three to four harvests a year, wheras elsewhere in the world only one or two was normal.  Only a few premodern peoples, such as the Chinese and Balinese, could even come close to matching Khmer farming capabilities…

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The recent issue of PaperTigers focuses on the power of children to change the world.  As I read it, I thought of a  book my sister gave me called The Umbrella Girl.  My sister works for The Leprosy Mission, an organization dedicated to treating leprosy victims and assisting those who suffer from its after effects.  The Umbrella Girl is the story of Mali.  Mali lives in Chiang Mai, Thailand.  While still young, she is struck down with leprosy and can no longer help with the family business of making umbrellas.  What will Mali do?  Where will she go?  How can she help the family when she is becoming sick?

The Umbrella Girl recounts the plight of many children in the world who are struck down by disease.  Innocent and vulnerable, often without access to medical care, they have little recourse in life to alter their circumstances.  Their mere survival is itself heroic.  In Mali’s case, The Leprosy Mission diagnosed and treated the disease.  After spending time in hospital, Mali returned home and according to reports from my sister who visited Chiang Mai recently, is now a healthy young woman.  Books like The Umbrella Girl are of two-fold purpose — to make children aware of the plight of other less fortunate children, and to enable them to make a difference to children like Mali by praying for them and/or by donating to these organizations.  The Umbrella Girl fell into my hands when my son needed a cause for which to be a ’superhero’ for his class’ SuperHeroes project.  In reading The Umbrella Girl, he came to know more about leprosy and the people it affects, and was able to transmit this information to his class.

The Umbrella Girl can be obtained by requesting it from The Leprosy Mission or the story can be found here in PDF format.

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Nine-year-old Kati lives an idyllic life in rural Thailand, cherished by her grandparents, surrounded by people who care about her, a modern girl whose days are shaped by customs that are steeped in tradition. Her world is secure and she is happy, except for the nights when storms blow in, lightning fills the sky and following the rumbles of thunder, Kati can hear cries of “heart-stopping despair” mingled with the sound of the rain.

Nothing in her life has ever been tinged with the sadness Kati hears in these cries–or has it? Is her imagination playing tricks on her or are these sounds emerging from forgotten memories? When Kati discovers the answer to these questions, she also discovers joy and the true meaning of family, as well as grief that few girls her age have to face.

This slender little book illuminates another culture while exploring the universality of love and loss. The 2006 winner of Thailand’s S.E.A. Write Award that is given annually for outstanding Southeast Asian literature, this is a novel that celebrates life’s everyday pleasures as thoroughly as it examines some of its deepest questions.

Please join us in reading and discussing The Happiness of Kati.

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On Friday I posted about reading at the Francelia Butler Conference at Hollins University. It was the first time I shared my poem publicly. I know, I know, I post poems here all the time. BUT there is a net of safety there. I don't have to see your faces when you read my poetry. I don't hear your comments like "She thinks she's a POET?!" And of course, I share my poetry with all of my fourth graders all of the time. But once again, there is a net of safety there. They think everything I write is wonderful, which is probably why I've continued to write poetry all of this time.

This summer I have been writing poems, not just for me, but I got brave enough to share with other people. I grew up overseas and the collection of poems I'm working on is based on some of my experiences trying to fit in and be comfortable in multiple cultures, yet still be who I am. The poems are set in Salem, Virginia, ChiangMai, Thailand, and Penang, Malaysia--three places I have spent significant time.

A few weeks ago I submitted some of these poems for consideration in the Francelia Butler Conference. My poems were chosen, which meant that I would be one of seven people with creative submissions to read aloud at the conference. Seven critical papers were chosen also.

I was a bundle of nerves because I knew there were poets in the audience, and I wondered if they would know I didn't know what I was doing.

This year's theme was a Dr. Seuss theme, because Philip Nel, author of The Annotated Cat:Under the Hats of Seuss and His Cats and Dr. Suess: American Icon, was the keynote speaker. Fellow students performed a Suessical Musical between readings, and it kept the day lively and fun. There was a silent auction, in which I won three things: a picture from The Tale of Despereaux, a lovely photograph of a clemetis donated by Sharon Dennis Wyeth, and a book of poetry by Billy Collins.

There is always a winner for each category: creative, critical, and art. After listening to the amazing stories crafted by my six other fellow readers, I knew I didn't stand a chance of winning. That's what's so amazing about Hollins--being in the company of so many good writers that you admire. I am always very impressed at how much good writing is produced in such a small group.

But when the winners were announced, they called my name! Yes, I won the Shirley Henn Award for Creative Scholarship. Wow! I was humbled and surprised!

Even if I hadn't won, this reading gave me a chance to share my work publicly. Several people came up to me during the break and shared how much they liked it. Two people introduced themselves: one is from Taiwan, and one lived in Malaysia, and both said they related to my poems. What a huge compliment. That's what I was hoping for. Other people were kind enough to just give me words of encouragement. Thank you! Thank you!

Hollins students are the ones who actually narrow down all of the submissions to a list of finalists. Then other writers actually judge the finalists. When I read the list of judges, I was so excited. The judges were: Bruce Coville, Steve Jenkins, Kerry Madden, Claudia Mills, and Janet Wong. I'm fans of all of their work, and it was an honor just to have them take the time to read something I had written.

The Memoir Monday prompt was to write about something that you did that you didn't think was possible. Believe it or not, this was it. I really never imagined I would share my poetry with anyone but my students. Now, thanks to a lot of encouragement from my friends at Hollins, I have the courage to share it with others.

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For the last five weeks I've been taking an Advanced Writing Tutorial at Hollins under the brilliant tutelage of Sharon Dennis Wyeth. I'm writing, critiquing, and moving forward with my class which consists of only five students. Our motto for the tutorial is "Write On!" and Sharon and my tutorial-mates have really pushed me to write on.

I'm working on a collection of poetry about growing up between cultures, which I have posted some of those early drafts here and here.

Hollins has a conference every year where students can read both critical and creative works. Only seven students are chosen for each category. I was surprised to learn I'll be reading my poetry tomorrow for the conference. It's the Francelia Butler Conference and this year, Philip Nel, Dr. Seuss expert, will be speaking.

The last time I read for the Francelia Butler Conference was when I was working on my M.A. Thesis on Vinnie Ream in 2003.

This is the very first time I've read this poetry out loud to adults (except for my tutorial). I read my poetry out loud to my students frequently, but this public poetry reading is all new.

Thanks to Nikki, Sharon G., Elissa, Jenette, and Sharon Wyeth for supporting my poetry beginnings!

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The Miss Rumphius Effect posted a Tuesday poetry stretch that challenged us to use the terms "loose change" in a poem. I must confess, I cheated. I wrote this poem the other day, but I knew the words "loose change" would fit better than the phrase I used. So I exchanged two of my words for two of her words and wah-la! Here it is:

Coke Man

The Coke man
parks his cart
by the school gates
waiting
for droves of children
hot, tired,
thirsty,
coins ringing
in their pockets.

Bottle pops open,
fizzy liquid flows into a
bag,
secured with a rubber band
in one corner,
a straw hole in the other.

I hand over my loose change,
and begin the hot walk home,
my bag of Coke bobbing
with each step.

ChiangMai, Thailand

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This date, April 2, has been established as International Children’s Book Day to commemorate Hans Christian Andersen’s birthday and “to inspire a love of reading and to call attention to children's books” around the world. The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY.org) is the sponsoring group and each year a different national section creates a promotional poster for this day. This year, it’s Thailand, with the theme of “Books enlighten; knowledge delights.” For a poetry tie-in look for Minfong Ho’s collection Maples in the Mist: Children's Poems from the Tang Dynasty (Lothrop, 1996) which she compiled and translated from the Chinese. Ho was born in Burma and grew up in Singapore and Thailand. She has authored several picture books and novels for young people set in each of these countries including: Rice Without Rain, Hush!: A Thai Lullaby, The Clay Marble, The Stone Goddess, Sing to the Dawn, among others. Here’s one of my favorite poems from Maples in the Mist.

Traveler’s Song
by Meng Jia

My loving mother, thread in hand,
Mended the coat I have on now,
Stitch by stitch, just before I left home,
Thinking that I might be gone a long time.
How can a blade of young grass
Ever repay the warmth of the spring sun?

From Maples in the Mist: Children's Poems from the Tang Dynasty (Lothrop, 1996) collected and translated by Minfong Ho

Tuck this one away and save it for Mother’s Day, too.

P.S. I’m excited to announce that Dr. Cathy Kurkjian (in Connecticut) and I will be serving as the next editorial team for Bookbird, the international journal of children’s literature, the quarterly publication of IBBY, beginning in January, 2009.

Picture credit: http://www.ibby.org/index.php?id=317

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Winter, Jeanette. 2004. SEPTEMBER ROSES. New York: Frances Foster, Farrar Straus Giroux. ISBN 0374367361

This beautiful, terrible memory of Sept. 11, 2001, is simple enough for young children, but powerful enough for adults to appreciate even more. Winter tracked down the story of the two South African sisters who created a tribute to the fallen World Trade Towers in the roses they had brought across the Atlantic to display at a cancelled flower show. Illustrated with simple, cartoon-like drawings, the middle third, which plunges into black and white chaos, is especially evocative of that time in our history.

Winter's text is spare, and completely integrated with the illustrations: "High in the air/ the two sisters sat dreaming/ of their roses" (the illustration surrounding the text shows a plane full of people flying among clouds and roses, while a very small sketch of the Manhatten skyline in the bottom right corner includes the two planes aimed at the Twin Towers); the page turns to "Then the sky turned black" (as huge clouds of gray and black smoke engulf obscure the buildings over the full two-page spread); and, after another page turn, "Their airplane landed" (a frantic and expressionistic view in black and white of people, including the two sisters, at the airport with three TV monitors carrying the events and banks of information monitors reading "cancelled" over and over). (n.p.) The School Library Journal review of 9/01/04 states in part: "The spare and poetic text, small-sized format, and simple drawings give these painful days a direct and personal resonance. . . Winter's offering captures the intensity of emotion that was felt that day and the healing human connections that soon followed."

This review is by Julie Brinker. Posted with her permission. It appeared originally in Librarians Choices 2004.

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