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The Kidlitosphere has been energized by the holidays and the start of a New Year, and there are many items worthy of your attention. Thus, I bring you my Sunday afternoon visits post one day early, before it takes over my blog completely.

Tarie has the preliminary schedule for the Sydney Taylor Award Blog Tour (in which she'll be participating) at Into the Wardrobe. It promises to be an excellent tour.

The new issue of Through the Looking Glass Book Review is now available, thanks to Marya Jansen-Gruber.

The Saturday Review of Books is up at Semicolon, featuring one my favorite quotes (from my favorite book, D. E. Stevenson's Listening Valley).

Congratulations to our own Miss Erin, who will have a six-word memoir included in a published book. Published before she's 18. Pretty impressive stuff!

Congratulations also to Mitali Perkins, who will be writing about children's literature for her local newspaper for the next few months. She shares the first post here, about all of the ways that her town (Newton, MA) champions children's books. I especially enjoyed this article, because some of my favorite people in the world live in Newton. Also, Mitali's new novel, Secret Keeper, is coming out next week. As previously mentioned, I'll be at the book launch party at Not Your Mother's Book Club on January 15th, and hope to see some of you there (Hi, Becky!).

A special thank you to Melissa at Book Nut for including my blog as one of her favorites for the latest Weekly Geeks. It's especially nice to be included in this edition, because this is (I believe) the first Weekly Geeks event since Dewey (the founder) passed away last month. I'm in great company on Melissa's list, too.

Thanks also to Lenore from Presenting Lenore, for including my blog in her recent Awards post. She gave me the "Most consistently amazing book reviews award", and while this might be more a reflection on the similarity in our tastes than the true quality of the reviews, I was still quite pleased. The other awards in the post are fun and creative, well worth a look.

Another fun set of awards is Darla D's Golden Hammock Awards at Books & other thoughts, with categories like "best alternate history" and "best boarding school story".

I've seen several mentions of Grace Lin's new Small Graces initiative to help fund author visits to underserved schools. I think that Elaine Magliaro has the most comprehensive scoop at Wild Rose Reader, though you can also find details in the sidebar of the Small Graces blog. Small Graces offers people a chance to support a great cause, and acquire a one-of-a-kind piece of art each month.

MotherReader reports that this is National Delurking Week. I'm catching the announcement a bit late in the game, but I did try to make a few extra comments to say hello. If you're a typically quiet visitor to this blog, and you feel inclined to comment, I'd love to hear from you. You can name a favorite book from your childhood, or something.

Maureen links to and discusses an interesting article at Confessions of a Bibliovore. The article in question is by Michelle Slatalla in the New York Times, and is about how the author wishes she could "read like a girl." After watching her daughters immersed in books, Slatalla says: "I miss the days when I felt that way, curled up in a corner and able to get lost in pretty much any plot. I loved stories indiscriminately, because each revealed the world in a way I had never considered before." Like Maureen, I could quibble over some of the details in the article - I don't think that one must outgrow the ability to suspend disbelief and enjoy books - but I do see what the author is driving at. While I'm overwhelmingly glad to be reviewing books, I do find sometimes that I stop and think about what I'll say about a book, instead of remaining immersed in the story. And I'm nostalgic for the Jen who didn't do that.

Denise Johnson posted an article from The Chronicle Review at The Joy of Children's Literature. The article, by literature professor Andrew Martino, is about wonder rediscovered in children's books. There's a funny bit about the author skulking around the children's section, afraid that people will suspect that he is "a potential threat". Martino speaks about how children's books are "every bit as complicated and thought-provoking as the texts I included on my syllabi", and "he texts I was reading told their stories in an economical and exact style, without the unnecessary burden of digression or overexplication". It's worth a read.

On the topic of people discovering children's literature, the ESSL Children's Literature blog has a fun list of children's books written by authors famous for writing adult fiction. 

BestBooksIHaveNotRead announced a fun new feature: Mystery Authors. She says: "Starting this upcoming week I am going to begin posting one clue each day (four total) about an upcoming KidLit author who has agreed to a “blog interview”. The clues will start general and get more specific with each day. If you can guess the identity of the author in a posted comment before the day of the “reveal” you will be entered into a drawing to receive a new book by that author."

Speaking of fun, Betsy Bird met some actual Sesame Street performers. She even got to see Oscar, in the ... fur? You can read the whole scoop at Fuse #8. But the highlight for me was: "Oscar is larger in real life than you might expect. He is also incredibly well articulated. His eyebrows move almost fluidly. It's eerie." With pictures. And, if you're looking for book suggestions, look no further than the whole slew of bite-sized book reviews that Betsy recently posted at Fuse #8.

Librarian Nan Hoekstra recently announced the 2009 Anokaberries: "Our selections for the best books of 2008 for middle-grade readers, ages 8 to 14." It looks to me like a solid, diverse list, though I haven't had the opportunity to read all of the titles. A number of the authors included have left lovely comments, too.

Speaking of author appreciation for awards, do check out my recent post at the Cybils blog, with quotes from various authors about their joy in being Cybils finalists. For me, reactions like this make being involved with the Cybils all the more rewarding. We should have printable versions of the Cybils shortlists available soon.  

Jill has the results of her first Reading Roundtable at The Well-Read Child, with several contributions from readers about their family reading routines. Personally, I like the fact that so many people were interested in sharing. This is a heartening post, for those of us who want to see all children have the chance to grow up as bookworms. 

And that's all for today, if I'm ever to find time to meet my goal of exercising this afternoon. Hope that you're all having a peaceful and book-filled weekend!

A few tidbits for you to brighten the first work-week of the year:

Tasha Saecker reports at Kids Lit that TeenReads.com, in association with the Children's Book Council, is "giving you the opportunity to vote for your five favorite books of 2008! The five books that receive the largest number of votes will then become finalists that will again be voted on. The ultimate winner will be announced in May."  You can vote here. I also very much enjoyed this post at Kids Lit, in which Tasha thanks the publishers for her review titles. Can I just say "Ditto". She says it all.

Betsy Bird reports at Fuse #8 that the Children's Literary Cafe at the New York Public Library is recommencing. Here's her description: "The Children’s Literary Café is a monthly gathering of adults who are fans of children’s literature.  Professionals, librarians, authors, illustrators, publishers, booksellers, teachers, and anyone else interested in the field are welcome to attend our meetings.   The Literary Café provides free Advanced Readers galleys, a rotating series of talks with professionals in the field, and great conversation." It's almost enough to make me wish I lived in NY. Except for that whole big city with snowy weather thing.

Speaking of Betsy Bird, she was recently interviewed over at Just One More Book! (well, she was interviewed by Mark Blevis at the Kidlitosphere conference last fall, but the interview is now available).

Little Willow has the early announcement for the second annual Operation Teen Book Drop event, hosted by Readergirlz. She says: "Last year, the first-ever Operation TBD was a huge success. YALSA and readergirlz organized a massive, coordinated release of 10,000 publisher-donated YA books into the top pediatric hospitals across the country and encouraged people to donate books to hospitals, schools, libraries, and gathering spots in their communities."

Over at The Tiger's Bookshelf, Janet posts about the Books for Laos program, "a labor of love that the Cotterills (Jessica and Colin) have been involved in for years, distributing books written in the Laos language to schoolchildren in conjunction with Big Brother Mouse" (an organization that strives to make literacy fun).

Regular readers of this blog may know that I usually stay away from "challenges" (with the recent exception of Pam and Lee's Comment Challenge). I find keeping up with my reviews and regular features, in combination with keeping caught up on my job, quite enough of a challenge. However, I decided to make an exception for HipWriterMama's new 2009 New Year 30 Day Challenge. The idea is to choose a new habit that you'd like to work on for 30 days, publicly proclaim it, and check in at Vivian's every week with a status update. And since I already have a goal of exercising more, I put up a tangible goal related to time spent riding the exercise bike. I'm hoping this helps me to stay motivated (along with watching past seasons of 24 on NetFlix while I bike). Lots of other people have already joined up, and I'm sure it's not to late to join in.

In honor of their three-year blogiversary, Mary Lee and Franki are holding a festival of threes at A Year of Reading. Here's part 1, and part 2. They have great mini-lists here, like their three favorite wordless picture books, and three new favorite versions of old favorites. Do stop by to enjoy the festivities, and wish Franki and Mary Lee many more years of blogging. See also Franki's new article at Choice Literacy on The Year's Best New Read-Alouds (from 2008).

And if you'd like more lists, check out last week's Saturday Review of Books at Semicolon. For this year-end edition, Sherry Early offers a "special edition of the Saturday Review of Books especially for booklists. You can link to a list of your favorite books read in 2008, a list of all the books you read in 2008, a list of the books you plan to read in 2009, or any other end of the year or beginning of the year list of books. Whatever your list, it’s time for book lists." This is a great resource. And, of course, don't miss The Best of the Best: Kids' Books '08 from Susan Thomsen at Chicken Spaghetti.

Also not to be missed is a 2008 7-Imp Retrospective that Jules put together over the long weekend. Jules adds: "yes, do I hear you saying this is the LONGEST POST IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD? Why, it is at that, but it’s oh-so skim-able — and mostly full of wonderful stuff at which to look. Sit back and enjoy. Pick your favorite interview and read a snippet. Find your favorite illustrator and kick back to soak in their skills. Choose your own adventure." I'm a little afraid to delve into this post, I must admit, for fear I'll never resurface...

Yet another controversy has erupted over the Newbery Award, this one about the question of diversity. I'm not going to get into it, but you can find an excellent analysis by Liz Burns at A Chair, A Fireplace and A Tea Cozy.

Trevor Cairney offers a detailed discussion about how online reading is different from print reading at Literacy, families and learning, addressing a recent research study by Jakob Nielsen. Trevor's take is that "While I'm a great believer in the value of the Internet, the over-use of screen-based 'reading' via the Internet has the potential to change the type of texts that people read." He has lots more to say on this, so do check out the post.

And last, but not least, a thoughtful post by The LiteraBuss on "WHY I Teach Literacy". "I DO NOT teach literacy in order to have my students score better on a test, any test. I teach the way I do because I want my students to develop a love and/or appreciation for reading and writing, and to further their own critical thinking skills. I want my students to enjoy the things they read, and seek out more. I want them to become independent, quick (and slow) minded thinkers". They sound like excellent reasons to me!

That's it for today. I'm off to ride that exercise bike! Happy reading!

Clearly, people are back at their blogs this weekend, after many a holiday hiatus. My Google Reader is hopping on this rainy afternoon. I thought I'd share a few announcements of potential interest, before I shut down the computer to start a movie marathon with Mheir (he's out picking up the Chinese food right now).

Omnivoracious has an in-depth tribute to author Donald Westlake, who died Wednesday night. Mystery fans from around the world are saddened by his passing.

Leila from Bookshelves of Doom is starting an ambitious new project: TBR Tallboy. She says: "TBR Tallboy is a very low-tech chapbook-style fiction magazine. A more detailed description will follow, say, after the first issue has been printed." She's seeking submissions now, explaining: "I’ll consider middle grade and YA fiction of any genre* as well as adult fiction that could have crossover potential, anywhere from 500 – 5,000 words." My guess is that TBR Tallboy will be a lot of fun.

Author Mitali Perkins is launching her new book, Secret Keeper, on January 13th. She says: "I'll be reading, signing books, and offering writing workshops in the San Francisco and Seattle areas, as well as just plain partying in Bellevue, Palo Alto, and Newtonville." I'm planning to attend her Palo Alto event: Book Signing and Chai, Thursday Jan. 15, 2009, 6:00 - 7:00 pm, Not Your Mother's Book Club, Books Inc., Town & Country Village, 855 El Camino Real #74, Palo Alto, CA. Phone: 650-321-0600. This event will be followed by a writing workshop, and promises to be fun all around. I hope to see some of you there!

Loree Griffin Burns reports that 2009 is the Year of Science. She has all of the details, including the themes for each month. She adds: "In thinking of ways that I might join the celebration, I have decided to adjust my reading for the year. I’d like to explore these topics each month through the books I read, and I will share the best of them here on my blog." Sounds cool, doesn't it?

Over at The Well-Read Child, Jill is hosting a Parents Roundtable (where she uses "parent" loosely, to include anyone who has a reading relationship with a particular child). Her question is: "Do you have a reading routine with your child? If so, please describe it. For example: When do you read? Do you read out loud? What types of books do you read?". There are already several responses, and I hope to see lots of people participate.

Today's Poetry Friday Round-Up is at A Year of Reading. Also at A Year of Reading, an announcement that The Electric Company is returning to PBS in January.

Last but not least, this year's Golden Fuse awards are now up at A Fuse #8 Production. The Fuse awards are Betsy Bird's always-entertaining take on the year's children's books, with categories ranging from Best Endpapers to Worst Mother of the Year. My favorite section is "weirdo trends and similarities between books". Don't miss this post! 

Happy reading! Hope that you're all relaxing and enjoying a lovely four-day weekend.

Happy New Year to all! (Photo by Paul Anderson, shared at MorgueFile, and technically from July 4th, but relevant to today) It's been another great year of blogging, one during which many new authors and parents and teachers and librarians and book fans joined the Kidlitosphere. I'm back from a densely-packed nine-day trip to Boston (spending Christmas with the families), and have been slowly catching up on the doings of the Kidlitosphere. Thank goodness this is a relatively slow time on the blogs! Still, I have a few things to share with you.

Over at the NCFL Literacy Now blog, Meg Ivey is collecting family literacy resolutions. She says: "It’s that time of the year when everyone is making positive changes in their lives. But instead of resolving to eat fewer desserts or exercise more, how about making a family literacy resolution? ...Whatever your resolution is, please let me know!". Meanwhile, at The Tiger's Bookshelf, Janet asks that people remember to give the gift of reading for the New Year. She says: "Please think of how different would be without the joy of reading, and think of how you can be sure that somewhere, somehow, a child will learn to experience that same joy." I, naturally, agree with them both.

Another post that I enjoyed was by Susan from Wizard's Wireless, about "how to write a book by your favorite author in ten steps or less." She outlines, for example, the structure found in most of the Harry Potter books (with a few admitted deviations), concluding with "Harry deep in thought about whatever happened during the climax, takes the train home and dreads another summer with the Dursleys." Then she moves on to other favorite authors who have relatively predictable story structures.

My friend Cory emailed me the other day about a New York Times story by David Streitfeld on the changes in the book publishing industry caused by people buying deeply discounted used books on the Internet. Walter Minkel comments on the same article, and on what he sees as the future of book publishing, at The Monkey Speaks. For example, he thinks that in the future "We’re much more likely to be reading books from a mobile phone than from specialized e-book-reader devices like the “Readius”. Interesting stuff all around. I'm a die-hard fan of the printed book, but I do agree that a higher percentage of electronic reading is coming, whether we like it or not...

Tons of people are publishing their end of the year reading lists, "best of 2008" lists, and/or reading resolutions for 2009. There are far too many to link to (though a few books have been popping up enough to convince me to read them, like The Knife of Never Letting Go). But do check out this post at Fuse #8 for a link to a site that Jim Averbeck set up for tracking people's mock Newbery, Caldecott, and Printz lists. I also especially enjoyed Sarah Miller's "completely subjective, unordered, and unorthodox mish-mash of my various favorites from 2008", featuring categories like "Book I would feel remiss if I didn't mention" and "Book that prompted the most sniggering". Fun stuff!I also found that Jackie Parker's list, for Readergirlz, of ten "best girl-power books that we read this year, regardless of copyright date" really resonated with me. Speaking of Readergirlz, congratulations to the newest postergirl, Shelf Elf. 

Another year-end post that I enjoyed was Just One More Book's 500th podcast, in which Andrea and Mark talk with their daughters, Lucy (9) and Bayla (7) about their thoughts on favorite chapter books read during 2008. It's a true pleasure to hear from two young girls who so clearly love and appreciate books, including remarks like "Eva Ibbotson usually writes about orphans, that is something I've noticed" and "I would really really love to read it" on the prospect for a third Penderwick title. Great stuff! Here's wishing JOMB 500 more posts.

Congratulations, also to Esme Raji Codell for her 200th post at Planet Esme. She shares her personal appreciation for the book A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (which I have to admit I don't think I've ever read, though clearly I should). And, congratulations to Kirby Larson and Mary Nethery. Their book Two Bobbies was recently featured on NPR's All Things Considered. Also, happy one year blogaversary to Trevor Cairney for Literacy, families and learning.

In sadder news, the Disco Mermaids are signing off. Oh, they'll each have their own blogs, but it won't be quite the same... Do check out their final post, though.

And finally, I received a couple of nice compliments for my blog this week (in addition to the many wonderful comments from the recent carnival/birthday post). First, Nadine Warner from Kiddos and Books gave me a Butterfly Award, for having a "cool" blog. She did accuse me of being a robot, but trust me, it was a compliment. I actually passed along this award a while back, so I won't do it again, but it definitely brightened my Christmas weekend. And then Donalyn Miller, the Book Whisperer, named my blog as one of her Reading Rabbit Holes, saying: "I have some gems in the rabbit hole—Websites that make my eyes glaze over with reading bliss, and surprisingly, enhance my classroom instruction and my conversations with students about books." It's an honor to be one of Donalyn's rabbit holes.

And that's it for today. I look forward to reading many more of your posts in 2009. Happy New Year to all!! And stay tuned for the Cybils short lists announcements tomorrow!

This might be redundant after the enormous Birthday Carnival of Children's Literature from Wednesday, but I've saved up a few Kidlitosphere links from this week that I'd like to share with you all. Besides which, sitting at my kitchen table, listening to Christmas music, and visiting a few blogs seems like a nice way to spend some time, after an expectedly stressful work week.

First up, kudos to author Mitali Perkins for launching Kids Heart Authors Day, a celebration of authors and independent booksellers scheduled for Valentine's Day. As announced on the project website:

"Bookstores, authors, and illustrators are teaming up to make V-Day 2009 an unforgettable one for New England families. Bundle up your brood and head to your community bookstore on Saturday, February 14th, where local authors and illustrators will gather from 10 to 12 a.m. to sign books for kids and teens. Bookstores will provide bunches of books, and authors and illustrators will personalize them and answer any and all questions about writing and drawing."

It's almost enough to make me wish I still lived in New England. And this time of year (I am NOT a snow person), that's really saying something.

And speaking of taking kids to bookstores, author Sara Lewis Holmes recently announced plans for going on a Reading Date with her daughter. She says: "Don't you want to make a Reading Date with someone you love?" I'm going to see if I can work one in over the holidays.

You can find book recommendations everywhere this time of year, of course, especially on the Books for the Holidays blog. (For the record, I bought a TON of books this year, and I purchased most of them by going through the Cybils blog). I'm particularly taken with the book lists on BookKids Recommends (the Book People children's book blog). They've been offering first recommendations for "dudes" of various age ranges, and more recently for "girlie-girls", from picture books through teen books. These are fun, up-to-date lists, and are a perfect example of the specialized services offered by independent booksellers. I also liked this list of 10 great gifts for dads that read to their kids (and don't you wish that category included all dads?) from BookDads.

See also this anecdotal piece by Janet Brown at The Tiger's Bookshelf (the PaperTigers blog) about the pleasure of giving a book. Janet says: "Snuggling with your father, hearing his voice directed especially toward you, seeing the glow of colors and the excitement of new shapes as the pages turn, what could be better than that? Nothing, except perhaps for the delight of choosing a book that can help this experience be as good as it can be–and then hearing about it later from a happy parent." I certainly agree!

Jama Rattigan has two posts about literary cookbooks for kids (and short grown-ups). Very fun! They are here and here. She has lots of delicious posts about things like Christmas cookies, too.  

As linked by many people, this past week was Girl Week at Reviewer X, featuring guest posts about girls and book reviews of girl-friendly titles. Another good place to look for gift ideas, I'd hazard.

I've pretty much had my fill of children's book controversy by this point in the year (who knew there would be so much, honestly?). But if you're still interested in discussions, the Washington Post has jumped on the Newbery Award criticism bandwagon (actually going so far as to imply that recent Newbery award selections have been hurting reading enjoyment among kids). Lots of people have written about this article, including Mitali Perkins (who writes more generally on the impact of adult recommendations on kids), and Donalyn Miller at the Book Whisperer.

I tend to agree with Donalyn that "The limited allure of recent winners doesn’t marginalize reading, it marginalizes the award and reveals a missed opportunity by the Newbery committee to celebrate books that are not only well-written, but also attractive to readers." I know that kid appeal isn't part of the criteria of the Newbery, but I do think that there are plenty of books that have kid-appeal and are well-written. Happily, the Cybils short lists will be out on January 1st!!

And, discussing one more publishing controversy that I think is going to pick up steam in 2009, 100 Scope Notes talks about PDFs and eBooks being sent to reviewers. There's some discussion in the comments. Personally, I am NOT up for more time in front of my computer. So eBook review copies would mean either getting a Kindle-type decide, or just not accepting review copies at all. I'll be interested to see how things shake out.

And I'm not even going to comment on the recent New Yorker article that dissed young adult fiction even while reviewing a particular YA title in a positive light ("I tend to think of young-adult fiction as sort of facile—a straightforward style, uncomplicated themes and morals—but this had a complexity, an ambiguity, that surprised me"). See the comments there, or this post by Brian from the Flux Blog.

On a lighter note, Lisa Chellman has a fun post about Fictional Parents with Interesting Jobs. Click through to see which character's father is a funeral director, a punk rocker, or a mathematician.

And for lots of fun tidbits about the past year in children's literature, check out this very fun post at 100 Scope Notes. Travis is predicting a trend of "tiny characters" in 2009. What do you think? See also his Best Confirmation That a Character is Indeed Awesome in the post. Can you guess?

Mary Pope Osborne (of Magic Treehouse book fame) has just completed a blog tour at The Well-Read Child. Jill has direct links to the four previous stops. For a different type of interview, author James Preller recently interviewed Karen and Bill from Literate Lives (source for many book recommendations that catch my eye). It's more of a conversation than an interview, and definitely a fun read.

Libby shares some children's literature love at Lessons from the Tortoise, quoting a couple of recent articles in which authors recalled and rediscovered their appreciation for children's books. Tricia also posted a response to one of the articles at The Miss Rumphius Effect.

Kudos to Andrea and Mark from Just One More Book for helping to get a favorite book re-printed. They'll also have a blurb on the reprinted book: Sleeping Dragons. See here and here. It's nice to see tangible evidence that book advocacy can make a difference.

Mary and Robin at Shrinking Violet Promotions are doing a lovely 12 Days of Christmas - Introvert Style series. The gifts that they recommend introverts seek out this time of year include earplugs, soothing drinks, and "a nice quiet place to be." They're also giving out a gift each day, to previous commenters. I find that their blog is a nice quiet space that I want to visit.

Speaking of blogs that I want to visit, would you like to know about a blog I that actively seek out, and am disappointed when there are no posts? Not Always Right: Funny & Stupid Customer Quotes. Some of the posts are hilarious. I forget where I discovered this site (Finding Wonderland? Bookshelves of Doom?), but I love it. If you need a little humor, it's definitely worth checking out.

And that's it for Kidlitosphere links until after the holidays. Happy reading!

I find myself with a bit of time to spare this afternoon, before what promises to be a hectic weekend, so I thought that I would share a few Kidlitosphere links with you.

Fresh off the comment challenge, MotherReader has been coming up with her usual amazing lists of ways to give a book. These are lists pairing books with something else, "to give it that fun factor". You can find the lists here, here, here, here, and, the newest one, here. The suggestions include things like "What else can go with Monkey With A Tool Belt but a tool belt?" Can't argue with that one, Pam! You can also find links to tons of other lists of holiday book recommendations at Chasing Ray. Seriously. There is no excuse for NOT buying books for the holidays, with all the energy people have been putting into providing gift ideas through Colleen's 12 Days of Christmas event. I'm especially appreciating Sarah's Tween Book-Buying Guides at The Reading Zone, and Susan's tracking of "best of" lists at Chicken Spaghetti.

SolvangSherrie has a lovely little post about the joy of raising readers at Write About Now. Her first grade daughter reads aloud to the Kindergarten class every week, with great pride.

There are author interviews all over the place this week. But two interviews that I particularly enjoyed were of fellow bloggers. Maureen at Kid Tested, Librarian Approved interviewed Anastasia Suen, organizer for the Cybils Easy Reader committee, about what makes a book an easy reader, and how adults should use them with kids. Jon Bard at Children's Writing Web Journal interviewed Abby (the) Librarian about what she's learned from her blog, and what she likes to see in books. I'm completely with Abby about didactic books, and her recommendation of The Hunger Games.

Jill has a must-read guest post at The Well-Read Child. Author Maxwell Eaton shares 10 Tips for the Parents of Ricky the Reluctant Reader, in comic strip form. The tips for dealing with reluctant readers are dead-on, and the format is funny and engaging. As fellow commenter Jeremy said: "this 10-tips comic should be distributed far and wide." I really like the way Jill has been branching out from doing traditional author interviews to ask authors abut literacy and raising readers.

Authors thinking about starting a blog, or about what their goals are for their blog, might appreciate this sixth blog anniversary post by Shannon Hale. She talks about her goals for the blog, and her struggles. I especially liked: "I blog to promote ongoing literacy. I love to recommend books I'm passionate about, so that readers who like my books don't stop here but keep reading, or parents and teachers can get good suggestions for all kinds of readers." That's the kind of thing that keeps someone like me coming back.

There have been a few tempests in the normally cozy teapot of the Kidlitosphere this week. One was started by The LiteraBuss, with a post called "Must NOT Read List For Elementary School (Books That Were Once Great But Have Become Irrelevant)". I mean, anyone who is going to call To Kill A Mockingbird "trash" (admittedly in the context of classroom reading, but still...) is going to raise a few eyebrows. See follow-on posts at The LiteraBuss here and here, and at Charlotte's Library.

A School Library Journal article by Gail Giles has also triggered some conflict. Addressing the question of why boys generally don't read as much as girls do, Gail comes to the conclusion that boys don't have enough male role models demonstrating reading. She's pretty blunt about it: "Now, this is purely my opinion, but children copy their elders. They want to be what they see. A boy doesn’t want to be a woman. He wants to do what a man does. And if he doesn’t see a man reading, he won’t read." Colleen Mondor begs to differ at Guys Lit Wire, saying "I do not think that boys (or girls) read or don't read because of what other people do (or don't do) in their homes." Carlie Webber, on the other hand, thinks that Gail raises a valid point, concluding "I think that male role models are only one of many factors in getting boys to read, but they're an important factor." Tricia at The Miss Rumphius Effect asks "Why do we give boys so little credit? Why the gross generalizations?" She has a bit of a discussion going in the comments, if you'd like to participate.

In other interesting chat, there's discussion about why "girl books" focus on home (see Kids Lit), what girls want in literature, and when a personal area of expertise leads to a "fail" moment when you're reading. Lisa Chellman has links for those last two. Doret also writes about what's NOT urban lit at TheHappyNappyBookseller. And, though this isn't particularly controversial, Stacy DeKeyser proposes a definition of young adult fiction at Reading, writing, and chocolate.

In closing, two reminders to appreciate each day. Well-known blogger Dewey from The Hidden Side of a Leaf passed away over Thanksgiving weekend. There have been various tributes across the blogs, and you can read an outpouring of comments at Dewey's blog. And, as if she hadn't had enough loss for one year, Amanda from A Patchwork of Books lost her mother, unexpectedly. Amanda expects to be back to blogging soon, though, because it helps her to have something normal in her life. So, in memory of Dewey, and of Amanda's son and mother, show a little extra appreciation for the people in your life this weekend. You won't regret it.

I have to get to work, but I do have a few quick things to share this morning:

Judy Blume started a blog tour yesterday at Big A little a. I don't see how my stop on the tour (Thursday) can possibly measure up to Kelly's post. Or Little Willow's interview today, for that matter. But I hope that you'll tune in on Thursday anyway. As I commented at Kelly's, it's a bit surreal to be interviewing someone who seemed mythic and unreachable when I was a child. But very cool.

I was honored to be included again in Jon Bard's Children's Literature Blog Posts of the day video at Children's Writing Web Journal (for yesterday's children's literacy round-up). Also, for those who subscribe to Children's Book Insider, don't miss the guest article from Pam Coughlan (MotherReader). It's content that Pam has presented at the Kidlitosphere Conferences, about taking your blog to the next level, but it's always worth another look.

Big news from Readergirlz. First, they'll be featuring Meg Cabot this month, and discussing her novel How To Be Popular. [One of the recommended companion reads by the Postergirlz is A la Carte, the lovely first novel by our own Tanita Davis (TadMack from Finding Wonderland). I was also pleased to see Jennifer Ziegler's How NOT to be Popular as a companion read, because it's selection pleases my sense of symmetry.]

The other news from Readergirlz is the launch of Readertotz. The email announcement explains: "Co-founded by readergirlz diva and author/illustrator Lorie Ann Grover and author/illustrator Joan Holub, the blog site aims to raise the awareness and esteem of infant-toddler books. Visit the site for a monthly community service, a playlist, a recommended read for the older sibling, and weekly recommends for baby readers." Very nice!

And finally, don't forget to submit your favorite/best post of the year (related to children's literacy or literature) to the December Carnival of Children's Literature. You can submit by emailing me, or (ideally) use the form at the Carnival website. Please note that posts that have some overt agenda (e.g. religious or commercial), or seem unrelated to the carnival, may be excluded. The deadline to submit is the end of the day on December 15th. So, think about your best or favorite post of the year, or just a post that you would like to see given another look, and send it in. Thanks!

Greetings! I hope that you all had a lovely Thanksgiving. I'm dreadfully out of the loop on the doings of the Kidlitosphere, but here are a few things that I came across to share with you:

Lisa Chellman has the Thanksgiving Weekend edition of Poetry Friday, complete with an original Thanksgiving Rondeau.  

The Readergirlz Divas are hosting a blog scavenger hunt in honor of Native American Heritage Month. Cynthia Leitich Smith contributed several questions, and HipWriterMama has the details.

Trevor Cairney continues his series on key themes children's literature at Literacy, families, and learning, writing this week about a sense of place. He notes that "in some writing place has a special central role, almost as strong as the very characters that are interwoven in the plot. In some narratives, a sense of place is on centre stage, almost shaping the narrative and its characters." He also gives several examples of books that express, in different ways, a strong sense of place. A sense of place is part of my 6 P's of Book Appreciation.

I'm not sure how I missed this article myself, but Libby from Lessons from the Tortoise linked to, and commented on, a recent School Library Journal blog article about recent young adult books that are good for adults, too. The original article, by Angelina Benedetti, is called 35 Going on 13. I especially liked Benedetti's note that "The books being published for this market (YA) stand toe to toe with this year’s best adult reads—David Wroblewski’s The Story of Edgar Sawtelle or Marilynne Robinson’s Home being but two. The only difference is that books for teens generally feature teens and themes that resonate with them."

Inspired by her niece, Emily, Sara Lewis Holmes is "starting a library of camp and horse related books for Flying Horse Farms. Flying Horse Farms is a magical, transforming and fun camp for children with serious illnesses and their families." She has suggestions on her blog for people who would like to help.

Anastasia Suen is hosting an early 12 days of Christmas. Starting today, she'll be giving away a book a day for 12 days, on her various blogs. You can find more details here.

Speaking of giving books, Liz B. from Tea Cozy has a specific idea for holiday book-giving. She suggests "Give something not published in 2008. Give something that you loved, loved, loved, yet, somehow, was overlooked; something that did not get on any of the awards lists, but, in your humble opinion, should have been on those lists." She is also looking for suggestions.

And if you're buying books this Thanksgiving weekend, you can print out a voucher at the NCFL Literacy Now blog, with which Barnes and Noble donates a portion of sales this Saturday and Sunday to the NCFL.

And if you're looking for ideas of what books to buy, Doret, TheHappyNappyBookseller, has put together a fabulous, detailed list of African American children's books, including both African-American authors and illustrators, and titles featuring African-American characters. And Mitali Perkins shares several recent YA novels with Muslim characters.

That's all for today. I'll be back on Sunday with the Children's Literacy Round-Up, with literacy and reading-focused news. Wishing everyone a peaceful and book-filled weekend.

It's a beautiful day here in San Jose. So beautiful that I'm sitting out in my backyard this afternoon, with the computer on my lap, because I just can't bear to be inside. It's a bit hard to read the screen, though, so I'm not sure how long I'll last. But it's about 75 degrees, with blue skies, there are occasional prop planes flying by and late roses blooming, and if I lean forward a tiny bit, I can see cows out grazing. Yeah, it would be hard to leave California.

Anyway, there has been a lot going on in the Kidlitosphere this week:

The Comment Challenge is still going strong. MotherReader has the full list of participants here. If you're new to the Kidlitosphere, and looking for a list of active bloggers, this is a great place to start.

Via Rick Riordan's blog, I learned that registration opens for Camp Half-Blood in Austin tomorrow (Monday). You can find more details in the Austin-American Statesman, or at the BookPeople website.

There have been lots of great posts at or around the Books for the Holidays blog. If you're looking for motivation or ideas related to giving people books as gifts this season, do head on over to check it out. I especially liked this post by Becky Laney, with mini-reviews of children's and YA titles, from bargains to books to get kids hooked on a series. See also Tricia's post at The Miss Rumphius Effect about gift books for kids who love animals, and Elaine Magliaro's post at Wild Rose Reader with links to various book lists.

Speaking of the gift of books, Tanita from Finding Wonderland shares a lovely Emily Dickinson poem about "precious words". She's also giving some thought to the idea that we can work together to create a culture of reading, and says "anyone can become a reader." I agree 100%. You can find a full Poetry Friday round-up at Yat-Yee Chong's blog.

I already posted the schedule for the Winter Blog Blast Tour (which launches tomorrow). As if that weren't enough organizing for anyone, Colleen Mondor just announced another cross-blog event, in which everyone is welcome to participate. It's called the 2008 Holiday Season Book Recommendation Event. Colleen explains: "If you want to join in then you send me the exact url of your first Holiday Book Recs post. I'll link to that on a master list and then from there, if you want to keep posting for however many days of the 12 (all or part or whatever), then you need to update your own first day post to reflect that."

Over at The Well-Read Child, Jill shares her Cybils nonfiction evaluation criteria. She includes age-appropriateness, layout, writing style/tone, appealing story, visual elements, and (with a nod to Tricia from The Miss Rumphius Effect) references. This is a post that I think would benefit anyone analyzing nonfiction titles for kids.

Speaking of judging books, Carlie Webber from Librarilly Blonde identified a cringe-worthy sentence in a review of John Green's Paper Towns by Monica Watson from the Ithacan. Watson says: "The young-adult genre has been riddled with uninspiring novels that lack any kind of creativity or originality. Shuffling through the mundane “Gossip Girl” spin-offs and “Twilight” rip-offs has made finding a substantive novel as easy as finding a needle in a haystack." How sad is that? See Carlie's rebuttal.

On a lighter note, Kim and Jason over at the Escape Adulthood website are running a tournament to decide the all-time greatest childhood food. They started with 16 options, from mac and cheese to chocolate chip cookies, and voters select the winners in a series of rounds. You can find more details here.

I saw this link first at Guys Lit Wire. Publisher's Weekly shares an opinion piece by 13-year-old Max Leone about what kinds of books teenage boys would like to see published. Here's a brief taste, but you really should click through and read the article, especially if you are an author or a publisher: "The selection of teen literature is even more barren now that the two great dynasties, Harry Potter and Artemis Fowl, have released their final installments. Those two massive successes blended great characters, humor and action in a way that few other books manage. When they went for laughs, they were genuinely funny, and their dramatic scenes were still heart-poundingly tense, even after I'd read them dozens of times." Other parts of the article are hilarious. And probably true.

Shannon Hale shares the latest installment of her books and readers series, discussing "good book vs. bad book". She says "It would be so convenient if we could classify books as either good or bad, as vegetables or candy, as Literature or Dross. Sometimes I really want to... I think it’s good to question the merit of what we’re putting into our minds. But I also think it’s wise to challenge how we determine the value and quality of a book." As usual, she says smart things, and generates tons of interesting comments. I especially liked this part: "But something happens, some profound chemical reaction, when a reader is introduced. The reader takes the text and changes it just by reading it. The reader tells herself a story from the words on the page. It is a unique story only for her."

Over at A Year of Reading, Franki Sibberson shares the second installment of her "books I could read a million times" feature. Think about the power of a person who does read the same book aloud multiple times a day, to different classes, identifying books that she still enjoys, reading after reading. Those are books that parents should buy.

And while we're on the subject of reading in the classroom, Bestbooksihavenotread shares an idea, originally suggested by Beth Newingham, about bringing a mystery reader into the classroom. She explains: "Parents sign-up for a slot (about 20 minutes) to come in and share a favorite book with the class. The week leading up to their visit, the teacher reads one clue that points to the reader’s identity." The idea is to use the mystery to get kids extra-excited about the read-aloud.

And that's all for this week in general Kidlitosphere news. I'll be back today or tomorrow with the children's literacy and reading news round-up. But now, the cows have gone in for the day, and I believe that I will, too.

I had a bit of trouble keeping up with the blogs this week. This was partly because I had a three-day business trip to Colorado Springs (though it is lovely there). But mostly it's Pam Coughlan and Lee Wind's fault. You see, they started this blogger comment challenge. The idea is to increase community within the Kidlitosphere, by encouraging participants to comment more on one another's blogs. Pam says:

"Since it is said that it takes twenty-one days to form a new habit, we’re going to run the Comment Challenge for the next three weeks — from today, Thursday, November 6, through Wednesday, November 26, 2008. The goal is to comment on at least five kidlitosphere blogs a day. Keep track of your numbers, and report in on Wednesdays with me or Lee."

I've been participating, and it's been a lot of fun. And since I tend to jump in with both feet to things like this, I'm averaging more like 10+ comments a day. But stopping to click through and comment is wreaking havoc on my ability to skim through lots of blog posts, quickly, in my Google Reader. Ah well. It's still fun. And not too late to join in, if you're interested. Read more here. On to other news.

Dewey just announced the second annual Book Bloggers' Christmas Swap at The Hidden Side of a Leaf. It's kind of a Secret Santa thing between bloggers. If you'd like to participate, check out the details at Dewey's.

This week's well-organized Poetry Friday round-up is at Check It Out, Jone MacCulloch's blog.

The International Reading Association blog links to an article about the 10 coolest public libraries in the United States. Is your library on the list?

It's only November, but the "best of 2008" lists are already coming out. I guess this isn't so premature when the people making the lists have access to advanced copies of books anyway. Becky from Becky's Book Reviews shares and discusses Publisher's Weekly's Best of Children's Fiction 2008. It seems like a pretty good list to me. Just about every book is one I've either read and recommended, or have on my radar to read. Amazon has also been coming out with "Best of" lists. I was especially happy to see, on Omnivoracious, Bonny Becker's A Visitor for Bear topping the list of Best Children's Picture Books of 2008. It was certainly one of my favorites of the year.

Of potential interest to mystery fans, Kyle Minor has a guest essay at Sarah Weinman's blog, Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind. It's about whether or not mysteries count as literature. He says "If forced to trade, I’ll take one Dennis Lehane, one Richard Price, one George Pelecanos, one James M. Cain, one Big Jim Thompson or Raymond Chandler or Dashiell Hammett—any one of them, any day—over any ten “literary” writers." I agree.

Rose's Reading Round-Up at the First Book Blog links to a National Post article by Misty Harris about how teen books are being read by people of all ages. It's a little bit condescending ("Like many addicts, Paige Ferrari hides her compulsion behind a carefully chosen facade. The 26-year-old has been known to wrap teen novels - her guiltiest literary indulgence - inside an issue of The Economist while reading in public."), but I've seen worse. I did like this quote: "most of the adults who are reading these books likely already have them in their homes. They're reading what their kids are reading."

At Lessons from the Tortoise, Libby asks readers for help in differentiating young adult literature from children's literature and from adult literature. Both MotherReader and I commented that we thought that the age of the protagonist had a lot to do with it. Pam also remarked on the wide age range of YA books today. Libby wrote a followup post with some other input from her students, but she's still struggling a bit with a formal distinction between YA and adult fiction (beyond "I know it when I see it). Feel free to head on over there and share, if you have input on this.

In related news, The Brown Bookshelf lauds the recent decision by independent bookstore Politics and Prose to configure a separate section of the store for books for older teens. The author (I'm not sure whose post it is) says: "Yay!!!!!! Whenever anyone focuses on teen readers and thus YA literature, I feel like I’ve won a lottery…except without that whole winning a lot of money thing." I feel the same way (except for me it's books for kids of all ages).

November is National Adoption Month. Terry Doherty offers up some resources and personal experience at the Reading Tub's blog. Don't miss the comments, either. At the ESSL Children's Literature Blog, Nancy O'Brien suggests books about adoption, categorized by age range.

Brenda Ferber has a lovely post about the inspiration for her book, Julia's Kitchen, and the way that online connectedness helped her to get in contact with one of the boys whose story inspired her.

At the PBS Media Fusion blog, Gina Montefusco has a detailed article about the ways that the new PBS KIDS Island will help to promote early reading skills. Gina, who was instrumental in the development of PBS KIDS Island, says "reading doesn’t – and shouldn’t – have to be an intimidating process that turns off all but the most gifted students. With online games, kids are introduced to new skills in a light-hearted, silly way, allowing them to learn at their own speed and stay engaged. Everything from the alphabet to phonemes can be fun. Really. We promise." I look forward to working more with Gina in the near future.

Trevor Cairney continues his series on key themes in children's books at Literacy, Families, and Learning, discussing the theme of "being different." He notes that "the struggle the be different is a common theme in children's books from early picture books right through to adolescent novels", and discusses how books can help "parents and teachers to sensitively and naturally raise some of these issues."

Book Scoops is a new blog run by two grown-up sisters, Cari and Holly, who love books. Their about page says: "Our blog focuses on children and adolescent literature (even though we do read a broad range of books) because we are still young at heart." You can see why I added them to my reading list. I especially enjoyed this recent post: Ode to Reading Grandparents. Cari explains: "Part of why we love reading so much also has to do with our grandparents reading to our parents and taking them to the library. So we thought we’d give a thank you to our grandparents (who also let us eat lots of ice-cream)."

Reviews of Cybils nominees are starting to crop up all around the Kidlitosphere. There are far too many to link to here, but one post that especially stood out for me was this one at Readerbuzz, featuring short reviews of a plethora of nonfiction nominees.

The ALSC blog has a nice post by Ann Crewdson about how "our fondest wish is for our patrons to read together, aloud and often with their children. And don’t forget to suggest that they point out words when they read, put on a play with puppets, and sing the ABC. Here are some tried and true companion books you can recommend without going wrong." There are recommendations by age range.

And finally, if you haven't had your fill yet of children's book information, today's New York Times Book Review has a children's books special issue. I especially liked John Green's article about two of my favorite dystopian novels from this year: The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer and The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

That's all for today. Happy blog-reading. And don't forget to comment as you're out and about on the blogs. As Mary Lee pointed out, "The world gets changed by doing something small over and over again." Like telling someone that you paid attention to what they had to say.

I don't have TOO much Kidlitosphere news for you today, because I did a visits post on Wednesday night. But a few things since then have caught my eye.

There's lots going on at the Cybils blog (thanks to fabulous Deputy Editor Sarah Stevenson and the equally fabulous committee organizers). I'm especially enjoying the Meet the Panelists posts. So far we've met the YA Fiction nominating panelists, the Fantasy/Science Fiction nominating panelists, and the Middle Grade Fiction nominating panelists.

Cynthia Lord mentioned a neat new literacy program on her blog this week. The New Hampshire Humanities Council is using children's books in discussion groups with new American citizens. The Connections program "discussions offer adult new readers an opportunity to read interesting, beautifully-illustrated books and discuss them with other adult new readers and a trained facilitator." Titles mentioned on the Connections website include The Not-So-Star-Spangled Life of Sunita Sen, by our own Mitali Perkins.

OK, still no politics on the blog, but I did appreciate this post by MotherReader about how there were three references to reading in Barack Obama'sinfomercial the other night. I'm glad that Pam is on top of this stuff.

Susan has a way fun Children's Book Pop Quiz at Chicken Spaghetti. How can a pop quiz be fun, you ask? Well, there's a gorgeous graphic of a pencil... OK, I'm a geek. But I thought it was fun. There are blanks for the answers, and if you click on them, they're really links.

Maureen from Confessions of a Bibliovore linked to a Chicago Tribune article by Tara Malone about how schools are trying to balance classics with contemporary fiction. What's a bit sad, though, as Maureen points out, is that the contemporary fiction mentioned is all adult fiction, rather than YA. Like Maureen, I would prefer to see a balance there, too.

From Linda Ernst at the ALSC blog I learned about the Maureen Hayes Author/Illustrator Visit Award. "The award provides up to $4,000 towards the honorarium and travel costs of a writer/illustrator to visit a location where children might otherwise never have this amazing opportunity."

I have good news for all the non-MySpace people out there. The Readergirlz Divas are now also blogging at BlogSpot. And they have a new Diva - Melissa Walker of the Violet on the Runway books. The new Readergirlz featured title for November is, appropriately, Long May She Reign, by Ellen Emerson White (about the daughter of the President). It's a great book (plus Ellen is a die-hard Red Sox fan, so I'm extra happy to see her featured). Finally, congratulations to the newest Postergirl, ShelfElf.

I also have good news for Babymouse fans. I learned from Matt Holm's blog that the Babymouse series has the number one graphic novel circulation in Metrowest Boston's library network (according to School Library Journal and Robin Brenner.

The Blog the Vote roundup is now available at Chasing Ray. Tons of bloggers have shared their stories about voting, and their reasons behind and enthusiasm for getting others to vote. I have to admit that I don't have anything to add to their contributions. But I'm happy to send you to Chasing Ray to read other people's smart workds on this topic.

And finally, the November Carnival of Children's Literature will be held at Mommy's Favorite Children's Books. The theme is The Gift of Reading (including gift books). Coincidentally, I wrote a post on that very subject yesterday, though it's a guest post that will be up at Shelf Space, instead of here. Anyway, I'll be hosting the Carnival in December.  

And that's all for today. Happy November!

I was away this weekend, attending a lovely wedding down in Los Angeles, and I'm still catching back up (I think it's a sign of being over-committed when taking a couple of days away from the computer completely throws things completely out of kilter). But there has been plenty going on around the Kidlitosphere.

Jill posted the October Carnival of Children's Literature at The Well-Read Child, suggesting that readers "grab a cup of hot apple cider, a warm blanket, and join me in a look at some great snuggle-worthy children's literature from around the blogosphere." She has tons of well-organized and interesting posts for your reading pleasure.

Charlotte from Charlotte's Library just announced a lovely tribute that she's organizing in honor of Amanda Snow's son Jacob, who died much, much too young. The talented Katie Davis has designed a downloadable bookplate. If you would like to honor Jacob's life, you can download the bookplate here, print out copies, and put them in books that you donate. Amanda suggests in particular that people donate books to Ronald McDonald House. As Charlotte explains "the children's book blogging community has come together to give books away to places where they will bring happiness to other children and their parents." But anyone is welcome to participate. You can find more details here. I'm planning to take some books up to the Ronald McDonald House in Palo Alto.

Terry Doherty has a comprehensive October 27th reading round-up at the Reading Tub's blog, filled with children's literacy and reading news. I found this tidbit especially interesting: "The National Literacy trust just issued Literacy Changes Lives: An Advocacy Resource, a report about the relationship between a child's literacy ability and their success later in life." I haven't had a chance to read it yet, but Terry promises "Lots of great snippets to reinforce the need to read." I also really liked this: "Randy Astle, who is not associated with PBS Kids, wrote a very detailed post about how PBS Kids is raising readers." It's a great post.

Lots of bloggers from around the Kidlitosphere are banding together to encourage readers to vote next week. Even the organization is a group effort. Lee Wind and Gregory K both have the scoop. The master list of participants will be maintained by Colleen Mondor at Chasing Ray. Sarah Stevenson developed the neat graphic. Personally, I voted late last week (I'm a permanent vote by mail person in California). I don't like to talk politics on my blog, but I will say that I wanted to get my vote in before heading out to the lovely wedding that I mentioned, the wedding of two dear friends who both happen to be male. I would not have missed it for anything.

5 Minutes for Books recently had their Kids' Picks Carnival for October. Seventeen participants chimed in with posts about what books their kids have enjoyed. I love this idea by site editor Jennifer Donovan, and enjoy checking out the posts each month.

In author news, Cynthia Lord shares some tips for librarians about "Including and Serving Patrons with Autism and Asperger's Syndrome at Your Library."  There's also a nice interview with Rick Riordan in Texas Monthly. And via Bookshelves of Doom, I learned that Holly Black has the coolest hidden library ever. Yes, the door is a bookshelf. Someday...

On a non-book-related note, I enjoyed this post by Robin from The Disco Mermaids about finding your special "spot", someplace outdoors where you can go and think and clear your head. I have had spots like that in my life, though I don't have one now that's near to where I live. But what I LOVED about the post are Robin's pictures of her son enjoying nature. There's one of him skipping down a path in the woods that is positively magical. Seriously, if you could use a little pick-me-up, just click through to the post, and scroll down.

And last, but definitely not least, Deanna H, on a new blog called Once Upon A Time, writes about reasons for adults to read children's literature. She dug up quotes from David Almond and Jonathan Stroud about the power of the narrative in children's books - and I do think this is a big part of why I've always enjoyed kids' books so much.

That's all for today - I expect to be back with more news and reviews over the weekend.

Quite a few things worth mentioning have come up around the blogs since I prepared my Saturday Evening Visits post the other day.

Donalyn Miller, The Book Whisperer, lists eight "fiction books that include readers and books in their plotlines.. all-time favorite books about books and readers". She asks readers "Do you have any favorite books where readers, writers, librarians, or books take center stage?" She does, of course, mention the Inkheart series. I would add The Thirteenth Tale, by Diane Setterfield.

Just in time for fall, Sherry from Semicolon shares nearly 100 "pumpkin suggestions for reading, eating , creating, and just goofing around." She has pumpkin-themed activities, books, and foods to choose from.

Alan Silberberg (Pond Scum author, Thurber House Children's Author in Residence, and fellow Red Sox fan), writes that Thurber House is currently accepting applications for the 2009 Author in Residence. Alan says: "Why would you want to apply? Well, unless you don't need 4 weeks of uninterrupted writing time, your own apartment in the historic home of one of America's funniest Writer/Cartoonists, and the opportunity of a lifetime - let me try and help with some possible reasons..."

The Longstockings are having a "knock our socks off contest". They explain: "every month we will ask a short, off-the-wall, book related question. Not trivia questions, but creative ones where you try to make us laugh out loud with your supreme cleverness. And if your answer knocks our socks off, you win!" This month's question is: "What would your very favorite book character dress up as for Halloween?".

Jen Funk Weber just announced: "The Needle and Thread: Stitching for Literacy 2009 Bookmark Challenge is just five months away. My goal for this year is to have at least 1,000 bookmarks stitched, turned in to shops, and donated to libraries and schools." If you're interested, or have ideas to help her promote the event, you can comment at Needle and Thread to let Jen know.

Tasha reports at Kids Lit that the 2008 Teens' Top Ten has been announced by YALSA. It's an interesting mix, from Stephenie Meyer's Eclipse to Jennie Downham's Before I Die.

Jill just issued a reminder that submissions are due for the October Carnival of Children's Literature, to be hosted at The Well-Read Child. She says "please submit it at this site by this Friday, midnight EST."

Gwenda Bond links to a NY Times article about "Columbia's self-appointed people's librarian, Luis Soriano, and his two donkeys, Alfa and Beto". Or, as Gwenda says "Viva la biblioburro!"

Responding to a Chicago Tribune article by Tara Malone about the challenges faced by English teachers, Mitali Perkins asks how teens are getting their story fix, if they are reading fewer books. She suggests "they're filling the universal human hunger for story through films and video games instead of books." Click through to see her other links and ideas on this topic. Mitali also shares an impromptu discussion that she's been having with some other writers about whether or not authors should discuss a character's race.

The Boston Globe reports, in an article by John Laidler, that library use is rising as the economy falters. ""As the economy takes a turn downward, more people are rediscovering their local public libraries and the services and resources they offer," said Kendra Amaral, chief of staff to Amesbury Mayor Thatcher W. Kezer III." Thanks to the International Reading Association blog for the link.

Hope you find something of interest!

I'm still distracted by the Cybils and the baseball playoffs (Go Sox!), and my reviews have dropped off a bit, but I have saved up some Kidlitosphere links from this week.

Speaking of the Cybils, TadMack has an excellent graphic at Finding Wonderland. This is a visual, do click through to see it. Also, Sarah Stevenson has put together a gorgeous Cybils double-sided flyer that you can download from the Cybils site and print out. Say, if you were planning on attending a conference, and wanted to be able to tell people about the Cybils. You can find it available for PDF download here.

Lee Wind has a detailed post about the upcoming Blog the Vote event that he's organizing with Colleen Mondor. This is a nonpartisan event - the idea is to encourage people to vote, whatever their convictions.

At In Search of Giants, Aerin announced the winner of the contest that she did during Book Blogger Appreciation Week, based on my Reviews that Made Me Want the Book feature. Congratulations to Alyce of At Home with Books. Alyce chose Graceling as her prize.

At Guys Lit Wire, a. fortis published a list of "not just gross, but actually scary horror books" of interest to teens. My favorite from the list is The Shining by Stephen King. I also recently enjoyed World War Z (about zombies).

Jenny from Jenny's Wonderland of Books has a fabulous post about Alexander Key, one of my favorite authors. I recently reviewed Key's The Forgotten Door, and also recently watched the 1975 movie version of Escape to Witch Mountain. Jenny says: "While Key often shows children fleeing villains and in danger, there is always a happy ending with children returning home and winning out over their enemies. He also portrayed children with ESP and from other worlds." She includes a bio and a detailed list of books written and illustrated by Key (I didn't even know that he was an illustrator). For Alexander Key fans, this post is a huge treat. And I join Jenny in hoping that the upcoming (2009) Witch Mountain movie will spark a renewed interest in Key's work.

At I.N.K. (Interesting Nonfiction for Kids), Anna M. Lewis writes about VERY interesting nonfiction for kids: Graphic Novels. Anna notes (relaying feedback from a conference session that she attended) "A fifth- grade, reluctant reader would rather not read than carry a first-grader’s picture book… but, give him a graphic novel at his reading level and he reads… and still looks cool!". Good stuff. But I didn't know that graphic novels were classified as nonfiction in libraries.

Also at I.N.K., Jennifer Armstrong writes about the nature deficit: "more and more children staying inside, choosing electronic screens over not only books (our focus here) but over authentic experience of the natural world. It's a mounting crisis with implications for the environment and for children's health, for social networks and political movements, among other things." She'll be working with the Children and Nature network to help find books to combat this problem.

Betsy Bird v-blogs the Kidlitosphere Conference at A Fuse #8 Production.

The Longstockings have a nice post by Kathryne about getting started for very beginning writers. Kathryne offers several tips and also recommends books for writers. There are additional suggestions in the comments.

Liz Burns responds at Tea Cozy to a New York Times article by Motoko Rich about using videogames as bait to hook readers. The article quotes a reading professor who says that we need to do a better job of teaching kids how to read. Liz says: "My knee-jerk response to this is that it's not about teaching kids HOW to read; it's teaching kids to love reading". I could not agree more! Walter Minkel also responds to the Times article at The Monkey Speaks. Walter's interpretation is that "that media companies are now headed down that road that leads to a largely bookless future." This is an idea which I find too depressing to contemplate.

And speaking of the future of books, Audiobooker has a report about a new audiobook download company that sends books to people's cell phones. British novelist Andy McNab is the co-founder of the company, GoSpoken.

I ran across several responses to the recent Duke University study that found a link between reading a certain Beacon Street Girls book and weight loss. Maureen from Confessions of a Bibliovore says "I found it a fundamentally flawed study. Let me say this: it's one book. I'm the last person to say it's impossible that a book can change a kid's life, but this is pushing it." Carlie Webber from Librarilly Blonde says "I'm intrigued as to what it is about this particular Beacon Street Girls book that encouraged weight loss... at what point does a book make kids change their ways and can other books have similar effects? Where does a book like this become didactic?" Monica Edinger from Educating Alice says "Suffice it to say I’m NOT a fan of “carefully” crafting novels this way. In fact I’m skittish about bibliotheraphy in general." I actually did read and review the BSG book in question (Lake Rescue) back in 2006. Although I'm generally quite critical of books that are written to promote a particular message (regardless of whether I agree with the message), I gave this one a pass at the time, because I thought that the characters were sufficiently engaging. But I think it's a very tricky thing.

Via HipWriterMama comes the news that "In celebration of Young Adult Library Services Association’s (YALSA’s) Teen Reed Week™, readergirlz (rgz) is excited to present Night Bites, a series of online live chats with an epic lineup of published authors." Vivian has the full schedule at HipWriterMama. The games begin on October 13th.

Laurie Halse Anderson opens up discussion on whether booksellers have a "need to further segment the children's/YA section of their stores to separate books that appeal to teens that have mature content and those that don't." If you have thoughts on this, head on over to Laurie's to share.

On a lighter note, Alice Pope is taking an informal poll to see who among her Alice's CWIM Blog readers is left-handed. I am. As will be our next President (either way).

Mary and Robin from Shrinking Violet Promotions are working on an Introvert's Bill of Rights. I'm kind of fond of "Introverts have the right to leave social events "early" as needed." You can comment there with your other suggestions. The SVP post also links to an excellent essay on introverts by Hunter Nuttall, whose blog I'm now going to start reading. Nuttall includes pictures of various famous introverts (I'm not sure who classified them as such, but it's still fun to see). I especially enjoyed a section that he did on "why introversion makes perfect sense to me", starting with "I don’t see the need for untargeted socialization". Hmm... I wonder who the famous left-handed introverts are, and how many of them have resisted "untargeted socialization".

Roger Sutton reports at Read Roger that "The complete Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards ceremony is now up for your viewing and listening pleasure." This, combined with the baseball playoffs, is almost enough to make me wish I still lived in Boston. But not quite...

Happy weekend, all!

It's been a tough week for me to keep up with the blogs, between the Cybils and the start of the baseball playoffs (how 'bout those Red Sox!!). And I never really caught up after being away at the Kidlitosphere conference last weekend. Which means that I have many pieces of news to share with you.

But first, a mildly funny word thing. Earlier I tried to email someone about something "boggling the mind", but my fingers really wanted to type "bloggling" instead. Shouldn't bloggled be a new word? As in, to be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of blog posts in one's Google Reader. I am bloggled!

OK, back to the blog news. First up, my thanks to Kristine from Bestbooksihavenotread and Bill and Karen from Literate Lives, both of whom were kind enough to give me the "I (heart) your blog" award. I also got kind of an honorable mention from Esme Raji Codell. I already passed this one along last week (though I neglected to go around and comment, so some people might have missed it), so I'm just going to say THANK YOU! These awards have come at a particularly nice time, when I've been struggling to keep up, and I especially appreciated a bit of validation.

There's a new issue up at Readergirlz. "In celebration of YALSA's Teen Read Week™ Books with Bite, readergirlz is excited to present Night Bites, a series of online live chats with an epic lineup of published authors! The five themed chats will take place at the rgz MySpace group forum, October 13-17, 2008, 6:00 pm PST/9:00 pm EST." This month, Readergirlz will also be featuring Rachel Cohn, co-author (with David Levithan) of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. This choice is quite timely. Not only is there a recently released motion picture based on Nick and Norah, but the book also won the first-ever Cybils award for Young Adult Fiction in 2006. You can find more details about this month's Readergirlz activities at Bildungsroman.

Speaking of Readergirlz, Diva Lorie Ann Grover was featured this week on GalleyCat. She spoke of the passion for reading that she sees within the Readergirlz community. GuysLitWire, focused on teen boys and reading, also got a positive mention. The GalleyCat piece even inspired a followup at the Christian Science Monitor's Chapter & Verse blog. Thanks to Mitali Perkins for the links. 

Also in time for Teen Read Week, Sheila Ruth shares a couple of very detailed lists of Books with Bite at Wands and Worlds. The lists are based on input from teen members of the Wands and Worlds community. One list is focused on animals, the other is focused on "creepy creatures". Sheila has generously prepared pdf, text, and widget forms of the lists, so that other people can use them.

Jill will be hosting the October Carnival of Children's Literature at The Well-Read Child. Jill says: "In my part of the world, we're finally starting to experience the cool, crisp air of Fall - the kind of weather that makes me want to snuggle up with a good book and read all day. So, this month's theme is "Snuggle Up With a Good Children's Book." Submit your posts here by Friday, the 24th, and I'll post the Carnival on the 26th. Happy reading and snuggling!"

I never got my post up about the Kidlitosphere conference last weekend. Honestly, so many people have written about the conference, that I'm not sure that I'd have anything useful to add. But I did want to share a photo that Laini Taylor took late on Saturday night. I was wiped out from the conference, and Mheir (who kindly accompanied me on the trip) had tired himself out hiking to Multnomah Falls, and we were just beat. Here are a couple of posts about the conference that I particularly enjoyed, by Mark Blevis, Lee Wind, Greg Pincus, and Laini Taylor (who had great photos). Also not to be missed are Sarah Stevenson's live-action sketches from the conference.

Speaking of conferences, Sara Lewis Holmes recaps that National Book Festival. She made me want to attend, one of these years (perhaps next year, when the Kidlitosphere Conference will be held in Washington, DC...).

There's been quite a lot of discussion on the blogs this week about a piece that Anita Silvey wrote for the October issue of School Library Journal. The article is called "Has the Newbery Lost Its Way?" In light of some critical comments about the Newbery Award, Silvey asks "Are children, librarians, and other book lovers still rushing to read the latest Newbery winners? Or has the most prestigious award in children’s literature lost some of its luster?" She interviewed more than 100 people, and shares statements like "School librarians say they simply don’t have enough money to spend on books that kids won’t find interesting—and in their opinion, that category includes most of this century’s Newbery winners." Of course, as has been pointed out on many blogs, popularity isn't a criterion for the Newbery in the first place. I particularly enjoyed Carlie Webber's post about the article.

Speaking of the Newbery Awards, blogger WendyB recently decided to read all of the Newbery winners that she hadn't read already. She then prepared a detailed three-part post about her experience. I thought that the most interesting was part 2, in which Wendy shares some statistics about the winners, like the stat that " 59%, of the Newbery winners are either historical fiction or plain historical" and three books are about "orphaned or semi-orphaned boys traveling through medieval England and meeting colorful characters typical of the period." Fun stuff!

Lisa Chellman has a useful post about ways to offer "better library service to GLBTQ youth". She recaps a conference session "presented by the knowledgeable and dynamic Monica Harris of Oak Park Public Library", and includes suggestions from the session attendees, too. For example: "Don't assume that because books aren't circulating heavily they're not being used. Books on sensitive topics often see a lot of covert in-library use, even if patrons aren't comfortable checking them out to take home."

Colleen Mondor and Lee Wind are organizing a non-partisan effort to encourage people to vote. "The plan is to run a One Shot event on Monday, November 3rd where all participants blog about why they personally think voting matters this year. You can write a post that touches on historical issues or policies of significance today. Anything you want to write about that expresses the idea that voting matters is fair game. The only hard and fast rule - and this is very hard and fast - is that you do not get to bash any of the four candidates for president and vice president."

PBS Parents recently launched a parenting blog called Supersisters, "Three real-life sisters sharing their kids' antics, milestones and adventures through this crazy journey called motherhood". Supersister Jen had a post recently that I enjoyed called "seven sensational things to do when you're not feeling so super". My personal favorite was "Create your own personal chocolate stash and stock it." 

Shannon Hale has another installment in her fascinating How To Be A Reader series, this one about morals in stories. Her main question is "Is an author responsible for the morals a reader, especially a young reader, takes from her book? I can say, I never write toward a moral. But then again, some writers do." She also asks (about morals in books): "Is the book powerful in and of itself, the carrier of a message that can change a reader’s life? Or is it just a story, and the reader is powerful by deciding if and how the book might change her life." Ultimately, as a writer, Shannon comes down on the side of telling the story.

I'm not a big fan of memes (which are basically the blog equivalent of chain letters). However, I can get on board with this one from Wendy at Blog from the Windowsill. It includes this final step: "Carry the secret of this meme to your grave". So, that's all I can say about it, but it's my favorite meme so far since I started blogging. So go and check it out.

And finally, this past week was Banned Book Week. The ALA website says: "Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read is observed during the last week of September each year. Observed since 1982, this annual ALA event reminds Americans not to take this precious democratic freedom for granted. This year, 2008, marks BBW's 27th anniversary (September 27 through October 4). BBW celebrates the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one’s opinion even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular and stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints to all who wish to read them. After all, intellectual freedom can exist only where these two essential conditions are met." I did not, alas, read any banned books this week, but I've appreciated the people who did. The poster to the left is from last year, but I like it.

And that is quite enough catching up for one evening. I'll be back with literacy and reading news over the weekend.

I just did a Kidlitosphere round-up post on Sunday. But since then, a bunch of things have come up that I'd like to share with you.

First up, in Cybils news, the middle grade/YA nonfiction committee has been announced. Also, my official new title within the Cybils organization was announced: Literacy Evangelist. I'm not sure who thought of it, but I do love it. I might get business cards made up. But seriously, I'll be working to get the word out about the Cybils, so that more people can participate in nominating titles, and more people will learn about our fabulous winners and short lists. Evangelizing, if you will, for the Cybils and for literacy. And finally, do check out Liz B's reasons for liking the Cybils, and seeing them as important, at Tea Cozy.

• At Grow Wings, Laini Taylor shares some reasons for authors to blog. Laini and I will be discussing the bridge between authors and reviewers at the Kidlitosphere Conference in Portland this weekend, and I'm sure that we'll be talking about author blogs as part of that discussion. Some additional logistical details about the conference from Jone MacCulloch can be found here.
• Franki shares the first of what promises to be a series of "Books I Could Read A Million Times" at A Year of Reading. She's learning about these books because she's working as a librarian, and reading the same book to several different classes. She explains "I got this idea from Bill at Literate Lives. My hope is that by reading the same book to all of the kids in the school, we have anchors to talk about--books that can be talked about at dinner tables at home, books that can be talked about with friends in other classes, etc."
• At Kid Lit Kit, Hannah Trierweiler shares some thoughts on boys and reading. While she acknowledges variation in readers, she highlights two titles that she thinks will work particularly well for boys.
• I almost forgot! Tomorrow is National Punctuation Day. I was reminded by a post at the International Reading Association blog. Here's the first part of the press release on the topic: "Why is punctuation important Jeff Rubin the Punctuation Man and founder of National Punctuation Day explains that without punctuation you would not be able to express your feelings in writing not to mention know when to pause or stop or ask a question or yell at someone" ... and so on.
• Also via the IRA blog, applicants are being sought for the Teachers in Space program. "The nonprofit Teachers in Space program is seeking two Pathfinder Astronauts who will become the first astronaut teachers to fly in space and return to the classroom."
• At TheHappyNappyBookseller, Doret shares some concerns in response to an article by Denene Millner, the author of the new young adult series Hotlanta (and people who dismiss the series as street fiction because of how the cover looks).
• I don't like to write about politics on this blog. But I did want to mention a post by TadMack at Finding Wonderland that expresses some concerns about the recent launch of the YA for Obama site. TadMack's issue (and there is a great discussion going in the comments) is not about the candidates themselves, but about whether or not a group of popular YA authors talking with teens in this way about a particular candidate constitutes "undue influence". Colleen Mondor summarized the part of this that bothers me: "This is a bunch of YA authors who have joined together to do two things: get under-18s interested in democracy and help Barack Obama get elected. TadMack wonders if you accomplish both those goals while not allowing any room for positive discussion of John McCain (and the folks who support him)."
• The sad news came out this week that L. M. Montgomery, author of the Anne of Green Gables series (and other beloved books) committed suicide. I first heard about this at Sarah Weinman's blog, and I've also seen reactions at Charlotte's Library and Bookshelves of Doom. You can find the full story in the Globe and Mail, in which "Kate Macdonald Butler reveals a long-held secret about her grandmother, one of Canada's most beloved authors." Butler says "I have come to feel very strongly that the stigma surrounding mental illness will be forever upon us as a society until we sweep away the misconception that depression happens to other people, not us – and most certainly not to our heroes and icons." I completely respect her decision to share the news, but it is sad to think that someone who brought so much joy to the world was that depressed.
• On a brighter note, I know that I mentioned it before, but the Just One More Book! interview of Jon Scieszka, our National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, is simply fabulous. Do give it a listen, if you can spare a few minutes.

And that's all for today. Hope you find some food for thought!

I did a couple of pretty comprehensive Sunday Visits and Literacy Round-Up posts yesterday. But a few things came up today that I simply must mention:

• The 2008 Cybils panelists will be announced over the next couple of weeks, starting tomorrow. Stay tuned! And isn't the new logo pretty?
• Becky from Becky's Book Reviews reminds readers about her Google reading group: Reading with Becky. There are 20 or so members, and the group is currently reading The Count of Monte Cristo.
• Book Blogger Appreciation Week has officially started at My Friend Amy. In the first daily raffle (today) you can win books and chocolate. Comment on this linked post for an extra raffle entry. And in general, stay tuned at My Friend Amy. There's a ton of interesting stuff going on. Amy is encouraging people to highlight, on their own blogs, the blogs that they love that weren't short-listed for awards. I'll say (again), check out my Sunday Visits posts. All of the blogs that I mention deserve to be noticed.
• Terry has another great installment of her Reading Round-Up at The Reading Tub's blog. Of particular note: "Tonight on PBS Judy Woodruff hosts Where We Stand: America’s Schools in the 21st Century. The show airs at 10:00 PM." Reading Today Daily has a link to the trailer.
• Librarina reports that September 19th is International Talk Like a Pirate Day. I can't say that I do a lot to celebrate this day, but I'm glad that it exists. The website is quite fun, too.
• The Readergirlz reported on their MySpace page that Libba Bray has had to postpone being their featured author for October (she was called away to a book tour in Germany and Italy - the author's life is rough sometimes). But they have an amazing replacement in Rachel Cohn. As Readergirlz Diva Lorie Ann Grover said: "The very month her and David Levithan's book Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist launches onto the big screen, she's going to be talking with you each at the group forum. WOOT!"

Hope that everyone has a great week! I'll be back tomorrow with more Cybils news.

Do you find that you still remember important birthdays from your childhood, even if the people in question aren't in your life anymore? I have trouble getting new birthdays to stick in my head, but the ones from childhood, up through college, are stored in my permanent memory. So, as I wrote the date today, it reminded me that it was my childhood best friend's birthday. I'm not sure where she is now - we haven't been in contact in several years - but I still think of her every year on September 7th. Happy Birthday, Carol!

Anyway, it's been a quiet weekend on the blogs, and I just did a round-up on Thursday, so I only have a couple of tidbits for you this afternoon.

• Doret has an extensive round-up of baseball books at TheHappyNappyBookseller. She includes links to reviews of many of the books (her own reviews and reviews by others). I had already flagged this post to link to (because I love baseball books) when I noticed that Doret had linked to my reviews of My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger (which she rightly categorizes as a book that "include some beautiful baseball") and No Cream Puffs by Karen Day. If you like baseball books, do check out this post. I would also add Heat by Mike Lupica.
• I'm a pretty laid back person about recommendations in general, and I don't like to get into politics on this blog, but Maureen Johnson has written a post that I really think should be required reading for teenage girls. Inspired by the media response to Bristol Palin's situation, Maureen takes on, in detail, the issue of sex education for teens. She is blunt and passionate about this topic, but she keeps her discussion couched in language that teens will relate to. For example: "The simple, plain old fact is . . . you really don’t have to get pregnant. No, REALLY. We have had the technology for MANY, MANY DECADES now to prevent pregnancy." But go and read the whole post. There are already more than 150 comments, and I hope that hundreds of other teenage girls read this post, too. I think that Maureen does a nice job of respecting choice, while urging education.
• At The Miss Rumphius Effect, Tricia has more to say about the "canon" of literature and its relevance to teenage readers. Responding to a Washington Post article by Jay Mathews, Tricia says "my concern is not for the kids who enroll in A.P. English. It's for all those kids still struggling to read (decode) and comprehend. Unfortunately, many of them exist at the high school level. How do we select books that will help them improve their skills as readers while learning to appreciate the written word? This is where I think all the arguments fall short." Libby responds in the comments, suggesting that the place to work on this is actually in the earlier grades, so that kids don't get to high school unable to decode complex literature. I don't have any answers, but I've been following the discussions between these two caring educators with interest and hope.

And that's all for today. Happy Sunday!

I would normally wait until Sunday to do my round-up of Kidlitosphere news. But I've flagged so many links to highlight that it seems ridiculous to wait.

• The title of Rick Riordan's fifth (and final) Percy Jackson book has been announced. The book will be called The Last Olympian and will be published on May 5th, 2009. And if that's not enough RR news, check out Becky Levine's post on a writing thought from Rick Riordan. I got a particular kick out of reading this post because I was standing next to Becky when she heard the tip.
• I also got a kick out of this post by Gail Gauthier about how she made a book recommendation that went viral (from her hairdresser to several others). The book was Twilight, and whether you like the Twilight books or not, it's still neat to for Gail to be able to trace the path that her recommendation made.
• Have you been reading YA Fabulous? This is a relatively new blog, but the author's dedication to young adult literature shines through. A feature that I particularly like is the regular YA Links Posts (most recent one here), in which YA for Great Justice rounds up various links to book reviews (with excerpts) and author interviews. The ones so far have been very comprehensive, and are not to be missed by YA fans.
• Another new blog that I like is Muddy Puddle Musings, written by a middle school literature teacher named Chris. Chris recently announced "This year I'm going to try to go to the Teachers as Readers Book Club, which is sponsored by the Tucson Reading Association... The reading list for the year has been chosen from the IRA 2008 Young Adult Choices list." How great is that? A Teachers as Readers Book Club, reading great YA titles!
• The Book Whisperer is back, after a bit of a summer break, talking about connecting kids with books. Donalyn Miller says: "I realized that I am not engaged in a race with a shaky start in August and a finish line taped across June. I am traveling an endless journey with my students, all of us readers together, with no beginning and no end. There is only the next child, the next book, and the next opportunity to connect the two. Teaching kids to love reading is not about me and what I can (or cannot) do; it is about the children and what they can do." Do go read the whole post - Donalyn is always inspiring.
• At Librarilly Blonde, Carlie Webber takes on the recent discussion around the blogosphere about an article in Good Magazine: Anne Trubek on Why We Shouldn't Still be Learning Catcher in the Rye. I especially enjoyed Carlie's take on people who reject all books since Catcher in the Rye as not relevant: "One would never teach history and ignore events that happened after 1955. One would never teach science and stop at discoveries made after 1955. Music history doesn't stop with John Cage. Film studies classes include Fellini and Hitchcock, but they also include the Coen brothers. Given all this, why do you deem it all right and even a best practice in education, to not teach literature with teen protagonists written after 1955? I have never understood this need to teach classics and only classics and classics all the time." Me neither.
• At The Places You Will Go, Daphne Lee takes on the question of whether or not children's authors are required to be role models. She says: "I don't see (and fail to see how anyone could see) what a writer's personal life (although for some, personal and public are one and the same) has to do with the work he/she produces. If a writer is responsible for stories that inspire and excite, intrigue and provoke, touch and move, it can hardly matter what his hobbies are, how many wives he has, or what he likes to stick up his nose (or other body parts, for that matter). Of course I realise that as mere humans its not easy for us to be totally objective... " I feel the same way that Daphne does on this subject.
• A new issue of The Prairie Wind, the newsletter of the SCBWI-Illinois Chapter, is now available. I especially enjoyed Margo Dill's interview with our own Betsy Bird from A Fuse #8 Production. The post includes some recommended KidLit blogs and also has advice "on blogging and how it can help a children’s author’s career."
• Over at Tea Cozy, Liz B. has a bit of a rant going, inspired by a new children's book by a celebrity author (well, the author is the wife of a celebrity, anyway). My favorite part: "Just once, I want a celebrity author to say, "you know, as I was reading with my kids, I fell in love with children's books, and rediscovered just how awesome children's books are" or something like that, rather than "the books suck, so I was forced to write."" I think that Liz has a pretty good idea for a consulting service to offer celebrities, though (at the end of the post).
• Little Willow has the scoop on the Readergirlz plans for September, featuring "Good Enough by Paula Yoo and celebrating the theme of Tolerance."
• I've seen several blogs address the results of the recent poll that found Enid Blyton the UK's "most cherished" writer (followed by Roald Dahl and then J. K. Rowling). I especially enjoyed Kelly Gardiner's post on the topic at Ocean Without End, which includes some lessons learned by the selections. Like "The books we love as children - the books that introduce us to reading as a mania - stay with us forever." So true. I adored Enid Blyton's books when I was a kid, even though they were relatively hard to come by in the US. When I traveled to England for work when I was in my mid-20's, I bought up every book that I could find from certain Blyton series. I also still read Inez Haynes Irwin's Maida books on a regular basis. I have no idea if they're any good or not, but I love them anyway.
• Speaking of classics, Leila from Bookshelves of Doom is hosting the third edition of The Big Read, focusing on A Tale of Two Cities. You can find the details here. I'm not personally up for a re-read right now, but I listened to the book on tape a few years back and enjoyed it quite a bit. If you've ever wanted to read A Tale of Two Cities, this would be a good time...
• I don't usually highlight book giveaways, but Cheryl Rainfield is giving away three copies of one of my absolute favorite titles from recent memory: The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. You can find the details here. My review of The Hunger Games is here. All you have to do to enter is comment at Cheryl's.

And that's all the news for today. I'll most likely be back with more over the weekend (though I'm also a bit behind on my recent reviews, so that will take first priority).

I was away for much of this past week, attending to a (now under control) parental health crisis. This weekend I have guests coming in from out of town, and I doubt I'll get much blogging in. But I managed to scrape up a bit of time to share some links with you this afternoon. There has been, and will be, a lot going on in the Kidlitosphere.

• First up, the official call has been made for 2008 Cybils judges. If you actively blog about children's and/or young adult books and you're interested in participating, check out the detailed requirements and responsibilities on the new and improved Cybils blog. This year there will be a new category, Easy Readers, headed by the terrifically qualified Anastasia Suen. More details, and a call for judges, can be found here. I'm hoping to be involved in the easy reader category this year, too. I think that finding quality books for the very earliest readers is an important task (as does Gail Gauthier).
• September 15-19 is Book Blogger Appreciation Week, hosted at the blog My Friend Amy. Amy says: "Acknowledging the hard work of book bloggers and their growing impact on book marketing and their essential contribution to book buzz in general, I am excited to announce the first Book Blogger Appreciation Week. Think of it as a retreat for book bloggers and a chance for us to totally nerd out over books together. And of course, shower each other with love and appreciation." The categories are listed here, and do include Best Kidlit Blog and Best Young Adult Lit Blog, among many others. Nominations are made by email, and you can nominate up to two blogs per category. You do not need to have a blog to nominate, and although there's a concept of registering, I don't think that you have to register to be included in the nomination process. Anyway, there has been lots of buzz about this, so if you are interested, check out the nomination post.
• Linda Salzman reminds I.N.K. (Interesting Nonfiction for Kids) readers that there is only one week left to enter the I.N.K. "Spectacular Fifteen Book Blast Give-away." The contest is open to "teachers, librarians, homeschoolers, writers, or anyone else from across the country who is promoting nonfiction."
• Over at Books Together, Anamaria shares news about the new Ballet Shoes movie (based on the Noel Streatfeild book). I thought that Ballet Shoes was magical when I was a kid. Though I enjoyed several of the other books, Ballet Shoes was always special. I look forward to seeing the movie, which co-stars Emma Watson. 
• At BookMoot, Camille shares some thoughts for school librarians as the school year begins. She shares some aspirations, and says: "I salute the librarians who work so hard to teach important research skills, stoke young people's imaginations and instill a love of books and reading in their students. Your joy and passion for your job is contagious." I will never forget my elementary school librarian, Mrs. Betty Tuttle, who made a difference in my life, and in my reading. Here's to all of the other Mrs. Tuttles out there. You do make a difference.
• Also in back-to-school land, Elaine Magliaro shares links to back to school picture books and poetry at Wild Rose Reader. And at The Miss Rumphius Effect, Tricia has some suggestions for teachers to improve communication with both parents and students.
• In a post called Girl Books, Boy Books, Justine Larbalestier writes about the tendency that many women have to read mostly books by women, and men to read books by men. She concludes: "Women are far more mixed in their reading. Even me. I read way more books by women than by men, but I’ve still read a tonne of boy books. Some of there are even quite good. I’d even recommend them to my little sister. Maybe . . . What about youse lot? Do you notice a tendency one way or the other in your own reading? Do you have idea why? Or do you just read the books that look cool." As is often the case with Justine's posts, this one has sparked quite a bit of discussion.
• On the ALSC Blog, Kiera Parrott shares suggestions for conducting storytimes for autistic children. After giving several concrete suggestions, she notes: "Without a doubt, storytimes with autistic students have been some of the most rewarding programs in my career so far.  The kids are smart, surprising, and each time I see them, I learn something new."
• At Librarilly Blonde (which is rapidly becoming one of my favorite blogs), Carlie Webber shares thoughts about methods of teaching young adult literature which rely on analysis, and take away the joy of reading. Carlie was inspired by a Washington Post article by Nancy Schnog about teaching YA literature. Among other things, Schnog says: "As much as I hate to admit it, all too often it's English teachers like me -- as able and well-intentioned as we may be -- who close down teen interest in reading." What a sad commentary that is. But there's clearly some truth to it. Schnog also says, late in the article (after presenting evidence to support her thesis): "The lesson couldn't be clearer. Until we do a better job of introducing contemporary culture into our reading lists, matching books to readers and getting our students to buy in to the whole process, literature teachers will continue to fuel the reading crisis." And there you have it, folks. Be sure to read Carlie's thoughts, too, as well as those of Terry from the Reading Tub, Colleen Mondor from Chasing Ray, Tricia from the Miss Rumphius Effect, and Libby from Lessons from the Tortoise.
• And on the subject of people trying to make books interesting and relevant for young adults, Laurie Halse Anderson has extended the deadline for her book trailer contest (for Speak or Twisted). The contest is only available to "people who will be 21 years old or younger on October 31, 2008." And I especially love rule #6: "Contest is open to anyone on the Planet Earth. Teens working aboard the space station are welcome too. Entries from other planets and galaxies will be considered, as long as they can be watched on Earth-created technologies." If you know any creative teens, I would definitely recommend sending them in Laurie's direction.
• School Library Journal has a nice article by Michael Sullivan about boys and reading. He starts out with "If we want to transform boys into lifelong readers, we need to discover what makes them tick. Equally important, we need to have a better grasp of the kind of reading that attracts them." He concludes (after a number of concrete suggestions and examples): "Although boys often do not become successful readers, the cost is too high to allow this trend to continue. It's time to give boys more options, to respect their preferences. Boys can become readers: I've seen it with my own eyes."
• At Five Minutes for Books, Lauren writes about reading for story ("Not for the character development and interaction. Not because of the descriptive, emotive powers of the writer. Not because of deep, literary meaning hidden beneath layers of metaphor... (but) because you want to know what happens next"). Personally, I've always been all about story. I'll appreciate a book more if it's well-written, of course, with complex characters, fully realized setting, and lyrical writing. But if it doesn't have that "what happens next" sense of story (whether the book is fiction or non), I won't read it at all. Of course this isn't true for everyone, but it does seem to be true for most of Lauren's commenters.
• This week's Poetry Friday round-up is at Charlotte's Library.
• At Bookshelves of Doom, Leila shares her 20 essential picks for YA. She has some of my favorites on her list (though others are not - clearly this is a very personal thing). But if you're looking for some good suggestions from someone who really appreciates young adult fiction, you should definitely check out Leila's list. There are other suggestions in the comments, too.
• At Library Stew, Kathy has a post for parents on how to find a good book. Among other down-to-earth advice, she says: "Students are more likely to enjoy reading when they are reading about something that interests them.The best thing in choosing books for you students is to have them be part of the process, take them to the bookstore or library and have them tell you what they are interested in reading." 
• Rick Riordan is going to be on the Today Show on September 8th, talking about the launch of the 39 Clues series. I've set this to record on my DVR (not even for Rick will I get up at 7:00 to watch television, on what will already be tape-delay here in California). But I am interested to watch the segment. 
• At Tea Cozy, Liz B. brings her customary insight to a Washington Post article by Bob Thompson (and a snarky Booksl** comment) about the business side of graphic novels. Liz says that the Post article is a must-read because "It talks about things like distribution and how comic book sales are different from book sales. Unless you're content to not publish your work, or have a trust fund or well-off spouse, or don't care about things like insurance and paying rent, it is important to remember that publishing (including comic books and graphic novels) is a business." I also liked the way that she pointed out that although the idea that graphic novels are big isn't exactly news to the KidLit blogger community, it IS news to many members of the Washington Post's audience.

And that is quite enough for one day. Wishing you all a lovely Labor Day Weekend.

I find myself with a bit of time to spare this afternoon, and a few links saved up, so I thought that I would share:

• Regular readers know that I love Kim and Jason's Escape Adulthood website. This week, I especially appreciated a post by Kim about finding reasons to celebrate,and then celebrating them. The post starts with a couple of sad stories about loss, but Kim takes the positive view, saying "Human nature tricks us into believing that we’ll all die from old age, but it’s simply not true. Don’t wait until a tragedy happens to realize that your life is meant to be lived to the fullest today. Don’t wait until your anniversary to surprise your spouse with a night out on the town. Don’t wait until your birthday to allow yourself the permission to pick up that ice cream cake from Dairy Queen. (Yum!) Don’t wait until circumstances are perfect before you plan that spontaneous camping trip. Celebrate today!" I'm not always good about this, but Kim and Jason provide regular and excellent reminders, which I really appreciate. What have you celebrated lately?
• Betsy Bird shares ten children's novels that would make good movies at A Fuse #8 Production. She offers an exceptionally wide range of titles, all described with Betsy's trademark voice. Here's an example, on Kiki Strike: "So let us consider making a movie for tween girls, starring tween girls, and doesn't involve them wearing short skirts, shall we?  Or indulging in bad movie banter.  I know, I know.  I'm probably asking too much with that latter requirement.  Fine, if you make the film you can fill it to the brim with banter. Just show girls doing something other than teaming up with boys in an action movie and I'll never complain again."
• I don't generally highlight author interviews from other blogs, because I tend to focus more on the books than on the authors. But Jules and Eisha have posted a truly impressive interview with Jane Yolen over at 7-Imp, which I would like to bring to your attention. There is discussion, there are dozens of links to more information, there are interesting tidbits about the author, and there are fabulous pictures. This is the kind of interview that becomes a resource for the author herself, because Jules and Eisha have collected so much information into one place. Do check it out. 
• At PaperTigers, Janet shares some examples from the new edition of Mem Fox's book, Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever. Janet says: "After reading her essays about the true magic that comes from reading aloud, I don’t think this lady is exaggerating. If reading aloud to children can turn them into smart, inquisitive, creative people, then reading aloud may well hold the key to solving all of the world’s woes." I just might have to pick up with new edition.
• For all you book reviewers out there, Steph at Reviewer X has a question: "which of the reviewers are also writers? There’s some stereotype that says all reviewers (or book bloggers, or something like that) are aspiring authors. Accurate?" A brief perusal of the comments reveals that, as with many stereotypes, there's some truth, but by no means universal adherence.
• Colleen Mondor writes about the value of the color gray at Chasing Ray. The discussion is in the context of Colleen's review of two YA titles set in alternate futures: Cory Doctorow's Little Brother and Nick Mamatas's Under My Roof. Colleen notes that Under My Roof "is a book where the good and bad guys are never clearly defined" (in contrast to the more clear-cut Little Brother) and says that "Reading these two books had made me realize just how uncomfortable the shade of gray can be for most people."
• At BookKids, the BookPeople children's book blog (from the famous Austin bookstore), Madeline discusses modern mysteries aimed at kids. She says: "I have to admit that I think there is a lack of really great new kid mystery series. There are some good stand alone books like Elise Broach’s Shakespeare’s Secret, but not the kind of series where you just want to read nine or ten of the books in a row. In fact, I could only think of three current mystery series at all. However, I fortunately like all three series, and I can heartily recommend them as great chapter books for kids and teens." Click through to see what she recommends, and other discussion in the comments.
• Via School Library Journal, as "part of the 10th anniversary celebration of the U.S. release of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Scholastic, the U.S. publisher of the wildly popular Harry Potter series, is inviting fans of all ages to its New York City headquarters to take part in “Harry Potter Cover to Cover Day,” an all-day muggle read-a-thon."
• A Guardian piece by Louise Tucker on boys and reading has sparked discussion between Tricia from The Miss Rumphius Effect (here and here) and Libby from Lessons from the Tortoise (here). Tricia asks (in direct response to the article): "Why are we so blessed concerned with the "right" books instead of the process of immersing kids in books that they will love? Shouldn't the goal be developing readers?" It's all interesting stuff - well worth checking out.
• Last, but not least, I've seen this in several places, but Jackie has the full details at Interactive Reader. Readergirlz have launched rgz TV on YouTube. Here's a snippet from the press release: "rgz tv is broadcasting interviews with Rachel Cohn, Jay Asher, Sonya Sones and Paula Yoo. The uploaded videos have been shot and edited by the readergirlz founders and members of the postergirlz." Pretty cool!

And that's all for today. Hope you find some tidbits of interest.

I'm off to ALA tomorrow, which means that blog posts will be pretty sparse for the next few days. But I leave you with a few tidbits:

• Trevor Cairney has a nice post at Literacy, Families and Learning about The Importance of Play. It's actually the third part of a series, but it stands alone just fine. He includes "Some thoughts on playing creatively with young children (in particular with toys)". In a perfect world, we wouldn't need help figuring out how to play creatively with kids, but I'll bet a lot of people find this post useful.
• Cheryl Rainfield shares a "fun, creative way to get your child interested in a book". It involves anonymously sending the child books in the mail. I have to admit that I have mixed feelings - it seems a bit deceitful - but we did at one time mail books to our nieces, and that was a hit.
• Susan Taylor Brown recently published the June Carnival of Children's Literature at Susan Writes. The theme is fathers in children's literature, and these is some great material there. If you only check out one thing, check out that post.
• Sherry Early is trying something new at Semicolon: author celebrations. She was already taking note of author birthdays, but she recently asked herself: "why not have blogosphere-wide celebration for certain of my favorite authors on their birthdays? I pick an author with an upcoming birthday, let folks know about the celebration, and if you enjoy that author too, you can post about his/her books: reviews, the time you met Author X, or whatever is related to that particular author, maybe a list of read-alikes for other adoring fans." The first author celebrated is Charlotte Zolotow.
• I.N.K. (Interesting Nonfiction for Kids) is having a book blast giveaway. They say: "To support the children's nonfiction community, our fifteen published authors have each agreed to DONATE A SIGNED COPY OF ONE OF THEIR BOOKS. That's FIFTEEN books all to ONE LUCKY WINNER." Check out this post for the quite reasonable rules.
• Big news for author Rick Riordan. He recently announced: "It's a big day for 39 Clues. Scholastic announced today that DreamWorks has purchased the film rights to the series. Deborah Forte and Steven Spielberg will produce, and Steven Spielberg is considering directing the project." Way cool! The first book in the 39 Clues series, Maze of Bones, will be published September 9th.
• I'm way behind on my literacy round-up news (and won't get to it now until next week sometime, though I'm saving links). Meanwhile, Terry has you covered at The Reading Tub blog with her June 23rd Reading Round-Up.
• Colleen Mondor's recent post about "whether or not boys are emasculated by YA literature that does not allow them to be the hero" has sparked quite a bit of discussion. See her followup post here (with links to the original, and to some of the controversy). Kiera also has some links on the topic at Library Voice. The whole thing is fascinating, though depressing in many ways.
• For another interesting discussion, check out this post at Chicken Spaghetti. Susan asks some tough questions, in light of the even increasing number of KidLit blogs, like "Is it hard for a general non-kid-lit-affiliated person to know where to start reading? Are we bloggers reaching our target audience, and, if not, how do we do so?" Do check out the discussion in the comments.

And that's it for today. Happy reading!

There is so much going on around the Kidlitosphere this week that I hardly know where to begin. But here you go:

• The 2008 Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards were just announced. You can find the details here, at Read Roger. Also, the Association of Jewish Libraries has just named the 2008 Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award winner. The press release is here. And, for a different type of award, the Queen's Birthday Honours List in in England includes people who received honors for services to Children's Literature and Children's Literacy. The Old Coot has the details.
• Never one to shy away from expressing opinions, Betsy has posted her early 2009 Newbery and Caldecott predictions at A Fuse #8 Production. There is much discussion in the comments.
• Colleen Mondor has a must-read post over at Guys Lit Wire in response to a discussion between Ted Bell and Glenn Beck about whether or not books that feature strong female protagonists are emasculating for boys. Colleen says things like this (in response to the notion that the boy needs to save the girl in fiction): "I'm sure the sociologists would have a field day over all this but I can't believe that anyone in the 21st century would believe that such antiquated notions of what it means to be a hero have any place in a worthwhile discussion. Save the world - yes! Save the animals, save the environment, save whatever needs saving in your books. But the girl MUST be saved by the boy for the boy to feel powerful? How do these gentlemen think it makes the girl feel to have to wait to be saved? Have they ever thought about that at all?" Click through for more details. It's well worth your time.
• Did you notice how I just quoted Colleen above? If Colleen wrote for the AP, however, I could have been in big trouble for quoting her so entensively. It seems that the AP is going to try to start charging bloggers if they quote more than four words, and possibly even if they link to AP articles. I first heard about this from Kelly Herold at Big A little A, where Kelly linked to the story at Boing Boing. Melissa Wiley then linked to Michael Arrington's response at the Washington Post's TechCrunch blog. It seems pretty clear to me that they're trying to overstep the bounds of Fair Use, but the whole thing is pretty scary.
• Another controversy around the blogs was started by Frank Cottrell Boyce, who recently made some very negative comments about YA as a genre. He said (as quoted on Tea Cozy): "We have already ghettoised teenagers' tastes in music, in clothes and - God forgive us - in food. Can't we at least let them share our reading? Is there anything more depressing than the sight of a "young adult" bookshelf in the corner of the shop. It's the literary equivalent of the "kids' menu" - something that says "please don't bother the grown-ups". If To Kill a Mockingbird were published today, that's where it would be placed, among the chicken nuggets." Needless to stay, this has stirred up a host of responses, at Read Alert and Bookwitch, for example. But start with Liz B's remarks in defense of YA reading. I'm with her. 
• A Year of Reading has a nice interview by Franki of Shelley Harwayne, author of the upcoming professional book Look Who's Learning to Read. I don't normally highlight reviews, but this was has lots of great information about raising readers, including suggestions like: "Children need choice. They love to be part of making decisions" and "Children deserve the finest literature. We need to be fussy about the books we borrow or buy for them."
• And at Lessons from the Tortoise, Libby links to another interview that talks about raising readers. She says "In Literary Mama this month, Lisa Harper interviews Lewis Buzbee about his writing and his parenting. It's a fabulous interview." I agree with Libby. It's a great interview. Buzbee (a middle grade author) says things like "What I enjoy so much about middle readers is not merely the complexity of vocabulary or complexity of ideas, but also the complexity of emotions." He talks about why he writes for this age range, and the importance of letting kids read the books that they're interested in.
• Over at Bookshelves of Doom, Leila is collecting suggestions of classics that are likely to please a voracious teen reader. There are tons of suggestions in the comments.
• The First Book Blog has a guest post by Dale Brown from LDOnline about "encouraging reading this summer with some particular emphasis on supporting children who have a hard time in the classroom during the school year" (e.g. kids with dyslexia and other learning disabilities).
• Also along the lines of summer reading, Anna M. Lewis at I.N.K. recommends some of her favorite nonfiction titles "to help keep kids happy this summer".
• In the interest of "practicing what (they) publish", staff members from Charlesbridge spent Friday picking up trash along the Charles River.
• Over at the Tiger's Bookshelf at PaperTigers, Janet shares book recommendations from two British boys (aged nine and a half and seven and a half).
• And speaking of books that boys like, Charlotte shares some thoughts at Charlotte's Library about boys and reading. Specifically, she talks about the difficulty that she sometimes has as a parent purchasing books for her sons that aren't the sort of thing that she would ever want to read, saying "it is hard, sometimes, for me to put the books my boys want into their outstretched and eager hands. It is much easier to buy books that appeal to me, than books that really truly don't." I actually think this dilemma is a major issue for a lot of people in getting boys reading - often the books that boys want to read just aren't the ones that inspire the people who are guiding their reading choices.
• There's a bit of a mixer going on right now between Readergirlz and Guys Lit Wire. Via Guys Lit Wire, I learned that Readergirlz Diva Justina Chen Headley has invited "the readergirlz to list YA novels they wish all guys would read to understand girls". Little Willow has asked on GLW for readers to head over to the Readergirlz MySpace forum and make the discussion a two-way street. She says: "Tell us what YA novels you wish girls would read to understand guys, and vice-versa! Also tell us what YA novels "get" BOTH sides of the story.
• At Pixie Stix Kids Pix, Kristen McLean has a series of tips for success in the children's book industry. She has links to tons of great resources about writing and publishing children's books.
• And finally, sadly, I learned via Sharon Levin that author/illustrator Tasha Tudor passed away today. I'll never forget her for as long as I have the editions of The Secret Garden and A Little Princess that she illustrated (well, that copy of The Secret Garden was lost, but I just ordered another one). She leaves a truly magical legacy.

That's all for today. I think I'm going to go look through my copy of A Little Princess now.

Is it just me, or are there more and more interesting blog posts out there every day? Here are a few things that have caught my eye since last weekend:

• PBS Parents has a new guest expert, literacy and education consultant Julie Wood. Julie is talking with parents about "instilling a love of words in your child." She discusses her own experience reading aloud with students, and notes that "A love of words and a rich reservoir of word knowledge are essential for children. Word knowledge allows children to understand what they read and to express themselves in writing and speaking." Do check out the post, and the intelligent comments and questions entered by various parents.
• Mitali Perkins has an interesting post (inspired by a discussion on the YALSA-BK discussion list) about religious authors and children's fiction. She notes (responding to a previous comment by Pooja Makhijani): "An author's religious worldview definitely shapes his or her fiction, but I worry about assumptions that drive such a discussion in the realm of children's literature." She also posits that "Children love stories because for once they sense equality in a relationship with a grownup." Make sure you read the comments on the post.
• Liz B. from Tea Cozy can be glimpses in an MTV report on an American Sign Language story hour at the NJ Library for the Blind and Handicapped. She has the link here.
• Jenny has a must-read post at Read. Imagine. Talk. about how her passion for encouraging readers was influenced by her experiences teaching in an inner city school. She says: "For now, I am content to be able, for the first time, to trace my thinking about literacy to a moment in time.  My love for helping kids fall in love with books is not because I love books, but because it is painful to watch kids who have no interest in or knowledge of books." Here's hoping she shares more in this series, however.
• At The Reading Tub blog, Terry shares her plans for the upcoming BEA conference, and outlines three items on her "influence agenda" for people she talks with at the show. She calls for specific shifts in focus for the publishing industry to help nurture developing readers (e.g. "We need more sensory books for emerging and semi-independent readers").
• Congratulations to Bonny Becker! Her picture book, A Visitor for Bear (which I LOVED) was just awarded the Hicklebee's Book of the Year Award. Hicklebee's is my local independent children's bookstore (in San Jose), and it's run by people who adore books, and want kids to adore them, too. That makes this award a huge honor, but one that is well-deserved.
• After preparing for a summer school class that she's teaching, Tricia shares an excellent post about The Importance of Math in Our Lives at The Miss Rumphius Effect. She asks readers of the blog: "What do you do to help your students (young or old) think about the importance of math in their lives?"
• Speaking of summer, over at Chicken Spaghetti, Susan asks readers: "what's on your summer list". She shares some of her planned reading, and several others contribute in the comments. How about you? Do you have any books lined up for summer reading?
• See also Donalyn Miller's post about the summer reading slump, and what she's doing to combat it, at The Book Whisperer. She says: "I believe that the most important books my students will read are the ones they read after school is out. Choosing to read during the summer proves my students are independent readers who don’t need my modeling or expectations to keep reading. They read because they want to, not because they have to." Donalyn also shares some titles from her own summer reading list, and asks readers to share theirs. 
• And for a special twist on summer reading, April Pulley Sayre writes at Interesting Nonfiction for Kids (I.N.K.) about how it's sometimes good for kids to be trapped through circumstances (like a vacation house) into reading books that they wouldn't ordinarily read. She concludes: "Nonfiction is perfectly suited to this kind of spontaneous reading. Seed your surroundings with such books and see what happens!"
• Via TadMack from Finding Wonderland (who always has the scoop on the important things), I learned that Colleen Mondor has another project brewing, this one open to anyone who would like to participate. She ""is going to be highlighting young adult books that cover political subjects Wednesdays this August, and invites interested bloggers to join her... Topics are these: August 5th - Race in America; August 12th - The environment; August 19th - Class divisions in America; August 26th - US foreign policy."
• PJ Hoover asks an interesting question over at Roots in Myth: "Why is Charlie (Bucket, from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) worthy to become the heir? He made a mistake just like all the other kids. Sure, he didn't get carried off by Oompa-Loompas, but he still disobeyed the rules." Read the post for PJ's son's thoughts, and the comments for various other responses.
• Although relatively new to blogging, Natasha from the Maw Books blog shares an extremely helpful post filled with Blogging Tips for the Book Blogger. She covers everything from motivation to branding to blogging and blog reader platforms, with many other topics in between. Some other tips from readers can also be found in the extensive comments.

Happy reading to all!

It is pretty quiet out there on the blogs this weekend. I hope that you're all outside, enjoying the holiday weekend (in the US it's a holiday weekend, anyway). My friend Cory is here, and we thought that we would be sitting outside sipping margaritas right about now, but it's unseasonably cold, and the air is smoky from a fire nearby (not near enough to be a danger, but near enough for the air to be smoky, and for my heart to go out to the people who have lost their homes this week). So anyway, we're inside, Cory is reading, Mheir is hard at work assembling the new grill, and I figured I would share a few links:

• Tasha Saecker recently published two excellent posts related to literacy at Kids Lit. In the first, she responds to Esther Jantzen's OpEd piece in the L.A. Times (which I mentioned in my last literacy round-up). She says, among other things, "The best part of the article is its call to action. How do we as caring adults, involved citizens and librarians get our communities investing in literacy, educating parents and really addressing this monumental issue? Well, it can't be to sit in our comfortable offices and work cubicles and moan about it. We have to be out working with Headstart children, WIC families, and visiting those areas of our community where we worry about safety.  If children live there, then we can venture there." Great stuff! Please go and read the whole post. In her second post, she talks about the reading habits of teachers. She links to an article "on research into teacher reading habits by the Centre for Literacy and Primary Education which finds that many teachers do not regularly read children's literature and therefore tend to select books from a narrow band on authors." I agree with Tasha that there seems to be an opportunity for children's librarians to fill the gap, and help the teachers to recommend a wider range of books for kids.
• As part of the second anniversary of Just One More Book!, Andrea and Mark are redesigning their website, and seeking artwork that promotes a love of reading. Various artists have submitted logo-like illustrations in this vein, and JOMB now has a Love of Reading Gallery. There's some great stuff there already, so do check it out. Also, congratulations to Just One More Book! and Chicken Spaghetti for being "Best of Blogs" finalists. You can find links here at JOMB to vote for them (they are in different categories, so you can vote for them both). Go Susan, Andrea, and Mark!!
• In other blog redesign news, Jill from The Well-Read Child is seeking feedback from readers about what they are looking for from her blog. If you have any input on types of books that you'd like to see Jill review, or other types of content, you can find the survey here.
• I know, I know, I keep linking to Jackie Parker's guest posts at ForeWord Magazine's Shelf Space blog. But she keeps getting better and better over there. In her latest post, Jackie discusses the way that blogging has changed her reading habits, and asks readers: "What are you reading? What are you looking forward to? How has blogging or blogs affected your To Be Read pile?" If you have time to comment, I know that she would appreciate your input. (Though I must say that I swear that I left a long comment, and I don't see it there now... Maybe I got filtered somehow.)
• At the conclusion of the Summer Blog Blast Tour, Colleen Mondor answers some questions about how the whole thing was put together, and why these cross-blog interview events aren't open to the general public for participation (though other events that she organizes are). She also offers to give pointers, if anyone else wants to organize a similar event. You can find the full SBBT wrap-up, with links, at Lectitans.
• I haven't participated in Weekly Geeks yet, mostly because I'm barely keeping up with the things I'm already doing on my blog, such that I simply can't take on anything new. However, I have been watching with interest. Every week Dewey at The Hidden Side of the Leaf suggests a topic, and various people blog about that topic. Last week's topic was "Choose a political or social issue that matters to you. Find several books addressing that issue". And I could not resist linking to Becky Laney's response, in which she writes about the importance of literacy, and shares various books to help people raise readers (such as the Read-Aloud Handbook, of course, but she has many others). This is one to save, and share with new parent friends. See also Jenny's post about equality in education at Read. Imagine. Talk.   
• And last, but definitely not least, there's going to a Scaredy Squirrel television show!! 100 Scope Notes has the scoop. Personally, I think it's a great idea. Scaredy is a very engaging character to young children. And perhaps, since he started out in a book, he'll be able to recommend other books, too. See my interview with Scaredy's author Melanie Watt here. I had asked if there would ever be Scaredy stuffed animals, and it seems like the answer is probably yes now.

And that's it for today. I think I have time to read some Percy Jackson before our other guest come over. I wish you all a weekend of peace.