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It's still winter! The bone-shaking chill of a new January with its winds, ice storms, broken healthy resolutions and humourless deadlines (tax payments, school applications, etc) can make even the bravest of us want to curl up in a cave next to a blazing fire and hibernate until spring arrives.

And to some of us who suffer from depression (episodes of persistent sadness or low mood, marked loss of interest and pleasure) either constant or intermittent, winter can be one of the hardest times. Depression being a multi-headed hydra ranging from many states of unipolar to bipolar, I'm not suggesting that there is one single type of depression; for instance not all of us are affected by the winter or weather, while some people who don't even have depression in the clinical sense might be experiencing a mild case of the winter blues, or Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).

Creativity is like a fire that we can stoke to drive away the cold winter (whether physical or psychological, internal or external). So I'm deep in my cave trying to work out ways that I can stoke my creativity without resorting to biscuits!

Bibliotherapy's been around for a while now, and is the literary prescription of books and poems against a range of "modern ailments" - including depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem. A form of guided self-help, it's not exactly a new idea - the ancient Greeks spoke of "catharsis" - the process of purification or cleansing, in which the observer of a work of theatre could purge themselves of emotions such as pity and fear through watching and identifying with the characters in a play. All of us in the modern world can attest to the feeling of connection and joy when an author so precisely describes a state that we are ourselves experiencing, and the nail-biting, cliff-hanging state of knowing exactly what our heroine or hero is going through. We root for him or her because s/he represents ourselves battling our own demons in an idealised meta-state.

But how does bibliotherapy work? According to the various proponents, it helps perpetuate a shift in thinking, so that things are not so inflexible (black and white thinking, for all you cognitive-behavioural depressives out there!) which is crucial to tackling depression. Being able to gain distance and perspective by viewing problems through the lens of fictional characters means that in real life our fixed thought-patterns which contribute to our problems can start to become unpicked.

And of course, identification isn't the only joy to be found in books; good old-fashioned escapism is surely the reason why many of us read so avidly. A new world, a new family, a new life, perhaps even new biology or physics, takes us away momentarily from the mundane world so we can return refreshed, hopefully to see our lives with new eyes.

I've obviously been self-medicating for a long time, but I always called it comfort-reading. By comfort-reading I mean a well-known book that you can plunge into at will like a warm bath or a pair of slippers. At school when I was anxious about exams or bullies I would find solace in re-reading the heroic adventures of Biggles or the magical quest of Lord of the Rings; at university it was in the dreamy memories of Brideshead and the vicissitudes of Billy Liar or Lucky Jim. When I started my first office jobs I would read 1984 or Brave New World (odd choices for comfort-reads but I think it was to remind myself that things could actually be worse!) but when I started writing my own books, I ...er ... stopped reading for some years. I think my tiny little brain could only take so much exercise!

I started comfort-reading again when we first had our children; during long and frequently painful breast-feeding sessions my husband would read my childhood favourites Charlotte's Web and Danny the Champion Of The World to me as distraction and encouragement. And these days my prospective comfort list numbers hundreds of books; for me, reading is re-reading.

So what could I take to bolster myself against the winter chill? I've written myself a prescription but I'd be interested in hearing yours!

1) A dose of James Herriot's short animal stories, to be administered when needed (they are nice and short so you're not left hanging after a few pages) or chapters from Jerome K Jerome's Three Men In A Boat, or virtually anything by PG Wodehouse;

2) A daily dose of half an hour "joy-writing" - half an hour in the morning when I can sit down and let ideas spill out onto the page. (If it ends up with me writing about what happened last night then so be it. It can often lead to something more ...)

3) A small creative project on the horizon, easily identifiable and manageable, that I can look forward to; in this case getting a small group of actors together to read through a new draft of a play that I've written (there'll be a blog post on this soon so stay tuned!)

4) Connection with others - I'm a member of a local book group, which not only makes me keep on top of what new books are coming out, but also participating in the joy of discussion; there's nothing more frustrating than reading a good book only to realise that nobody you know has read it!)

So I think that's enough to start barricading myself up against the January snows!

But what about you? What kind of comfort-reads do you enjoy to drive the cold winter away?

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…to get in some leisure reading! Here’s what we’ll be reading during our lazy vacation days and holiday travel.

Katie: I have long flights to California and back. My preferred plane reading is adult mystery and horror, so I’m hoping to pick up Tana French’s Broken Harbor (the fourth book in her Dublin Murder Squad series) in the airport bookstore. And my dad — who, like me, is a Miyazaki fan — lent me Hayao Miyazaki: Master of Japanese Animation.

Shoshana: I will be rereading some of the All-of-a-Kind Family books by Sydney Taylor because life is terribly hard and I find myself forced, for work-related reasons, to revisit the first chapter books I ever loved.

Kitty: The book I’ve been carrying around in my backpack for months (and which I’ve started 3 or 4 times): The Secrets of Happy Families by Bruce Feiler (I should probably get cracking on that with school out until January 5). Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson, which Elizabeth Law recommended on Facebook.

Siân: I will be rereading Saga by Fiona Staples and Brian K. Vaughan, Volumes 1 through 3, over the holiday in preparation for Volume 4’s release. So excited.

Elissa: I’m reading Alice Hoffman’s The Museum of Extraordinary Things. And finally going to get to my holiday treat, As You Wish by Cary Elwes.

Martha: My reading plan is to start the Dublin Murder Squad series. Also, if I’m really lucky, Jane Smiley’s Some Luck.

Lolly: Normally everyone in my family gives each other books for Christmas and our vacation time together is spent reading those books. But I’m trying to stop acquiring new books and use the library more, so I have requested instead descriptions of whatever books they were considering buying me. Since I will be far away from my library that week, I will probably end up reading books given to other people in my family.

Roger: Ninjas, Eric Van Lustbader’s series from the 80s. And so my testosterone doesn’t go completely out of control, I’m listening to Anya Seton’s historical romance Katherine.

The post ‘Tis the season… appeared first on The Horn Book.

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Well, after the glorious, gleeful exhaustion brought on by the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, your intrepid intern still had a whole conference to attend.

For those of you who haven’t heard of LeakyCon, it originally started as a Harry Potter–themed fan conference in 2009, but has since morphed into an all-out geek-fest in which fan communities from all kinds of media platforms come together to celebrate the power of story and fandom. In fact, the conference has been renamed and will be known as GeekyCon from here on — opening up to the wide, wide world of geekdom!

It will not surprise any of you that I spent most of my time at the conference at the LeakyCon Lit panels. Organized by YA authors Maureen Johnson and Robin Wasserman, LeakyCon Lit brings together YA authors from all over to talk about writing, their books, and plenty of weird, awesome, totally unrelated things. This year’s speakers were Stephanie Perkins, Laurie Halse Anderson, Malinda Lo, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Holly Black, Gayle Forman, John Green, Varian Johnson, Kazu Kibuishi, Lauren Myracle, Rainbow Rowell, and Scott Westerfeld. With such a diverse group presenting, we got to hear about everything from designing love interests to killing off beloved characters, from graphic novels to world-building, from Stephanie Perkins’s morning jigsaw puzzle routine to Alaya Dawn Johnson’s near miss with quicksand.

The programming ranged widely between serious panels (such as “Diversity in YA” and the “War Against YA Lit”) to game shows (including Jeopardy and a variation on The Lying Game, an old British game show). Maureen Johnson interviewed John Green in a Between Two Ferns–eqsue style, providing a hilarious exposé of their friendship. Johnson also moderated the panel about killing off characters — which meant, unfortunately, that the audience didn’t get any new information about a certain beloved [spoiler] she killed off in [spoiler]. But we did have the opportunity to harangue some of the other authors, who discussed the tension between emotional attachment and resonance and deciding when a character’s death serves the story best.

The panel centered on diversity in YA was especially powerful. The panelists discussed YA literature’s erasure and misrepresentation of people with diverse gender identities and sexuality, people of color, and people with disabilities — as well as the kind of backlash faced by authors who create those characters. I found it provocative when the authors on the panel discussed a question they often get regarding their characters of color: “Why did you make that character a specific race if your story isn’t about racism…why bother?”  The discussion which followed emphasized the importance of recognizing the bountiful diversity of experience in the world and the role literature plays in representing that diversity to its readership.

While most of the programming at LeakyCon Lit this year was phenomenal, a couple of the panels were better in conception than they were in execution. One panel called “I Made You, You’re Perfect” focused on romance in YA and how to construct romantic relationships and compatible characters. The panel, however, was comprised entirely of straight women; this lack of diversity was particularly apparent during a mishandled question on asexuality. The “War on YA” panel was concerned with the way that YA as a genre has been either denigrated by the media as too sweet and too small (especially for adult readers) or lambasted as the source of all evil for young people. Rather than exploring this phenomenon and its impact in depth, however, the speakers on the panel mostly reiterated what many of us had seen them write on Twitter and their blogs in recent months.

Overall, however, LeakyCon Lit was a perfect mix of whimsy, banter, and critical discussion. The authors are all knowledgeable and engaging, and their comments and discussions were accessible and enjoyable. I’ve been attending this track for the past four years and I can say with certainty that there is plenty to enjoy for both teens and adults.

The rest of the LeakyCon is not devoid of book-related fun for kids and grown-ups, of course. The subjects of the panels range from investigations into Harry Potter canon and characters to sing-alongs and debates. Each night there’s a concert by bands who get their material from Harry Potter (or The West Wing, or Doctor Who, or a whole host of other awesome platforms and stories). Pemberly Digital, a production company which creates modern adaptions of well-loved classics, premiered the first two episodes of Frankenstein, M.D., which follows Victoria Frankenstein, a young doctor determined to prove herself in a male-dominated field. Pemberly Digital is the same group who created the Emmy award–winning adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Which you should watch right now. Don’t worry. I’ll wait!

Seriously though, they are really good – as is Emma Approved (adapted from Jane Austen’s Emma), which is currently airing on Pemberly’s YouTube channel.

By the time we woke up on Sunday morning, we were about ready to lounge the day away by the pool. But we were in Orlando, and there is no such thing as a trip to Orlando without a visit to the Magic Kingdom. We did have to put down all our new books and our new geeky swag…but books are always there when you get back!

The post Sometimes, reading the book just isn’t enough – LeakyCon Lit appeared first on The Horn Book.

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After the let’s-call-it fruitful debate a few months ago on this blog on the value of reading, I was left uneasy. I felt that the question I was truly interested in hadn’t been addressed; instead, the discussion revolved around ‘trash’ and ‘quality’ literature, which wasn’t what I felt to be central to my post.

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Something rather nice happened a few weeks ago. I hacking away at the coal face, trying to complete the edits for the third book in my Wild Thing series, when the publisher of my previous book, Wolfie, called to tell me that it had just won a prize – a Fantastic Book Award.

Writing is a funny kind of profession. It’s lonely, insecure, there’s no pension, and you never know if the next book will be taken on – but, being so unpredictable, it does produce its golden moments.

It was a real treat, winning the award. I got a certificate, a fountain pen, letters from the child judges. Best of all, I was invited to the presentation ceremony to meet some of the participating children. I heard what they thought about Wolfie, read their reviews, was stunned by their wonderful Wolfie board games and illustrations, signed their books and led a workshop brainstorming magic animal stories. (I’m tempted to steal some of their brilliant ideas!)

Celebrating the award!

I also got to meet the lovely folks at Lancashire School Library Services (Lancs SLS) who  actually run the award.

So, at this point, you’re probably wondering what this all has to do with the title – Emma supports School Library Services because they gave her a nice day out?

No, no, and no. Encouraging authors, nice though it is, is only a side effect of what School Library Services (SLSs) do. First of all, the point of regional book awards, like the Fantastic Book Award (FBA), is not really about the prize. It’s about the process. And that means the children reading, discussing – enjoying – the books. It’s all about bringing books and children together.  And that is what every School Libraries Service aims to do.

My winning book!

To which some might say – why can’t schools do this without a School Library Service? Just consider the following facts:

 - most primary schools don’t have a librarian
 - most primary schools have limited space for a library, and limited stock
- most primary school teachers are not experts in children’s literature, and so primary schools rarely have someone who can choose stock and advise children on which book to read.

 I know these things because I regularly visit primary schools, and have encountered many “libraries” that consist of little more than a handful of Roald Dahls and Dick King Smiths. I do meet teachers and teaching assistant who are passionate about children’s books and reading – but it is through their own personal interest. Wide knowledge of children’s books does not seem to be considered a key part of the job or its training. (I don’t blame hard-pressed teachers – I do blame an education system which has given so little priority to encouraging children’s reading.)

It’s the children that suffer. Here are some of the things that I have witnessed first hand, the result of primary schools without librarians:
  
 - a Year 3 child struggling and failing to read an ancient copy of Thackeray’s The Rose and The Ring from the school library. Nobody was aware that this was not in fact a young child’s read.
-  a boy giving up on a non-fiction book in disgust because its classifications of dinosaurs was decades out of date. 
- a school library that was revamped by parent volunteers, but where there was no library time, and no chance for children to borrow books, because there was no staff member to oversee this. 
- a school which was over 60% non-white, but where none of the books on the shelves had characters of the same ethnicity/religion as these pupils. 

Here, by contrast, are some of the things I’ve seen with a designated school librarian:

 - children’s reading being guided in a good way – e.g. if you like this, then perhaps you’ll like that: if you like The Rainbow Fairies, maybe you’ll like these books by Emily Rodda (also about fairies but more challenging).
- children able to say “I’m interested in Monet/dinosaurs/space/Greek Myths” and immediately being given something age appropriate that reflects their interest.
- regular library times, for quiet reading, but also finding out what library does and how to use it. 
- a wide range of stock which does not rely completely on just a few well established authors, and which reflects all ages, abilities and interests.

 It’s hard for individual schools to tackle these issues alone. The Society of Authors has been campaigning for every school to have a librarian, a campaign I HUGELY support, but the truth is it’s not going to happen any time soon.

Meanwhile School Library Services (SLSs) provide back up. They are the infrastructure on which individual schools can rely.

What does that mean in practice? Well, the first thing I saw when I visited my local SLS in Leeds was a huge warehouse full of books. There were shelves and shelves in all kinds of categories – and all of these books are available to, and regularly sent out by the box load, to the schools that subscribe to the service.

(A bad back must be an occupational hazard in a SLS!)

A school could phone up and say, “we’re doing a project on transport for Year 4” or “we’re struggling to find books for reluctant readers” or “we need books with Muslim characters” and the SLS would help. SLS staff know the stock. They can advise schools on how to access it, how to create a better school library, and how to create a reading culture in schools. They also organize author visits – so that children can meet authors face to face, and teachers can hear about new books too.

They also organize regional book prizes – like the Fantastic Book Award (FBA). For the schools and children involved, the FBA meant a chance to:

- meet in a weekly group to read and chat about the shortlisted books (chosen to reflect a range of abilities and interests)
- read purely for pleasure and to do other fun things, like post reviews online
- spread the word about the books in school
- let teachers know which new books are out there, and which their pupils enjoy
-  engage in activities like drawing the characters in the books, designing board games and eating chocolate muffins at lunch time! All these things help make reading “cool”.
- correspond with authors and meet them in person.

After the event, I was sent feedback from the children. Here’s a couple of quotes:

This morning was brilliant. Especially when we made the story with Emma Barnes, it was fantastic!

I think today was probably the best day in my life because I saw a real life author!






Unfortunately, School Library Services are closing.  Schools have to subscribe to their services – if they don’t subscribe, the service closes. Many parents don’t know what an SLS is or does, so won't protest – which must make them a soft target for cuts. In my own area, Bradford SLS closed in 2012, and  North Yorkshire SLS is to close next year. Who will step into the gap? Public libraries? They may try (I recently did a wonderful schools’ event organized by Oldham Libraries) but public libraries are also subject to deep cuts.

At a time when the value of reading for pleasure is being recognized and acknowledged – the research evidence for its benefits keeps mounting – it's bitterly ironic that the services needed to support it are being reduced.  I just hope that the politicians and public see what's happening before it's too late.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Emma's new series for 8+ Wild Thing about the naughtiest little sister ever (and her bottom-biting ways) is out now from Scholastic. The second in the series, Wild Thing Gets A Dog is out in July.
"Hilarious and heart-warming" The Scotsman

 Wolfie is published by Strident.   Sometimes a Girl’s Best Friend is…a Wolf. 
"A real cracker of a book" Armadillo 
"Funny, clever and satisfying...thoroughly recommended" Books for Keeps


Emma's Website
Emma’s Facebook Fanpage
Emma on Twitter - @EmmaBarnesWrite

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It's very easy to get depressed these days, as a children's author, simply by reading the news. Library cuts. Michael Gove. Screen time on the rise. Michael Gove. Book sales in decline. Michael Gove. Literacy rates in the UK worse than anywhere else. An unholy obsession with one book by John Steinbeck gripping the nation. Michael Gove.

Every day a new controversy seems to rage across the Twittersphere, with all the nuance, sophistication and depth a conversation conducted in messages arbitrarily composed of 140 characters can have.

So, here is my totally non-controversial guide on how to make reading for pleasure, and reading widely for pleasure, habits as instinctive for the next generation as texting and tweeting now are for us. (I have submitted this to the DofE for their comments but am yet to hear back.)

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This year, I’ve been fortunate to work in a school where the kids love to read for fun. Throughout the year, I’ve noticed a couple of standout books, the kind of book where there is waitlist for reading; the kind of book where if they can’t find a new book to read, they’ll reread one that they liked before; the kind of book that the students will hide in their desks so that no one else can have them. Intrigued, I snuck off with a couple copies and read them, noticing that all of them are part of a series.

Here’s what my 3rd graders are reading.

Geronimo Stilton series (Scholastic)
The main character, Geronimo Stilton, is a smart and cautious rat, surrounded by a various cast of characters.  It lays out exactly what a 2nd/3rd grader would like to read — mostly plot and minimal (funny) dialogue.  There are graphics on every page: colors are dominant throughout, the font changes to emphasize certain words, and pictures of characters and maps are scattered among the chapters. Though I understand why my students like it, I found the graphics and colors overwhelming. I prefer the Bad Kitty and Diary of A Wimpy Kid series, which is the same concept of a strong mix of graphic and text (and humor), but the  layout is less jarring.

Who was… series (Grosset & Dunlap)
Though the covers are cartoonish, the content and graphics inside are not. This nonfiction biography series clearly outlines the childhood, adult life, and successes of a famous historical person. I enjoyed reading this because the content was rich without oversimplifying. The graphics support the text well, and there’s even a timeline comparing the person’s life with the overarching historic events of the time. My students also eventually used these for their biography book reports, providing that rare mix of useful teaching tool and pleasure reading.

Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling (Bloomsbury)
Can anyone deny the power of this series? I’m not sure if it’s quite at their reading level, but I recommend the spinoff books (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them; Quidditch Through the Ages; The Tales of Beedle the Bard) as a good alternative for those looking for a “right fit.”

 

World’s Worst Monsters and Villains: Scary Creatures of Myth, Folklore, and Fiction by Kieron Connolly (Scholastic)
This isn’t a bestseller book. However, it hasn’t been on the library shelf for months. Whenever I walk by a student reading it, the pictures are so vivid that even I will stop to read over their shoulder! The book is divided into mythical monsters, classic folk tales, literary monsters, and gods and monsters. It then takes on a faux-scientific format, providing drawn diagrams dissecting physical characteristics, a short history of the monster, and size comparisons. What this book does well is that it is graphically pleasing and easy to read, and provides interesting myth and folklore about worldwide monsters. Though not meant to be a series, there are companion books (Mythical Monsters: Legendary, Fearsome Creatures and Dragons: Fearsome Monsters of Myth and Fiction) that follow the same format and some overlapping content.

By no means is this list supposed to be a list of quality “teachable” books. We have those already. We teach good literature all year. What can be more difficult to achieve are books that are the “right fit” and are fun to read. I hope this short list offers some more books to add to your library, and to help hook your students into reading for pleasure!

The post Third Grade Reads…a lot of series! appeared first on The Horn Book.

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I was jawing on the radio yesterday about Common Sense Media’s latest report on the woeful state of young people reading for pleasure. I dunno–kids have been reported to be reading less than they used at least ever since I got into this business thirty-five years ago. If this were in fact true, you’d think we wouldn’t have any readers at all left by now and yet we do. (In fact, one of the most enlightening things about the Common Sense report is that way down at the bottom they point out how much reading surveys contradict each other, becoming, like a fourth-grader’s report about Uruguay, “a study in contrasts.”)

The post I see you’re still reading appeared first on The Horn Book.

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Need suggestions for beach reading or books to bring to summer camp? We’ve hand-picked our top ten in each age range, all published 2013–2014, that are ideal for the season. Grade levels are only suggestions; the individual child is the real criterion. For a handy take-along list of titles, follow this link to a printable PDF.

Picture Books (Fiction and Nonfiction) | Early Readers and Younger Fiction
Intermediate Fiction and Nonfiction | Middle School Fiction and Nonfiction

High School Fiction and Nonfiction

Suggested grade level for all entries: 9 and up

He Said, She Said by Kwame Alexander (Amistad/HarperTeen)
Claudia Clarke — sharp, opinionated, and Harvard-bound — is the only girl who isn’t impressed by quarterback Omar “T-Diddy” Smalls. Omar takes a bet that he can win Claudia over, and when his usual seduction tactics fail, he applies his social clout to Claudia’s cause du jour. 330 pages.

All the Truth That’s in Me by Julie Berry (Viking)
Eighteen-year-old narrator Judith is ostracized from her claustrophobic village after a trauma that left her mute. Readers gradually learn “all the truth” about the incident and the village itself as Judith speaks directly (though only in her head) to her love, Lucas. 274 pages.

If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan (Algonquin)
Seventeen-year-old Sahar has been in love with her best friend Nasrin for years. But the girls live in Iran, where their love is illegal. When Nasrin accepts a marriage proposal, both girls must face the untenable future of their relationship; Sahar hatches a desperate plan for them to be together. 247 pages.

Maggot Moon by Sally Gardner; illus. by Julian Crouch (Candlewick)
Printz Honor Book
In an alternate dystopian United Kingdom, the Motherland regime consigns undesirables to the derelict housing of Zone Seven. When his friend Hector disappears, Standish sets out to rescue him and uncovers a shocking government hoax. 281 pages.

March: Book One by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin; illus. by Nate Powell (Top Shelf)
In this memoir told in graphic novel form, Congressman John Lewis — the last surviving member of the “Big Six” civil rights leaders — recounts his formative years, beginning with 1965′s infamous “Bloody Sunday.” From this violently chaotic event the narrative fast-forwards to the morning of Barack Obama’s January 2009 inauguration. 128 pages.

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart (Delacorte)
At fifteen, Cady survived an unspecified accident on the private island where her wealthy family and her love interest Gat spend their summers. Two summers later, Cady battles the resultant migraines and memory loss to piece together what really happened, building to a shocking reveal. 228 pages.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (St. Martin’s Griffin)
Change-resistant college freshman Cath holes up in her dorm room writing fantasy fanfiction. As the year progresses, she is pushed outside her comfort zone by her snarky roommate, her love interest, and her loving but dysfunctional family. 438 pages.

Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick (Roaring Brook)
Printz Medal Winner
Seven interconnected short stories progress backwards through the history of a remote Scandinavian island, from 2073 to a “Time Unknown.” Together the tales gradually reveal the ritual that brings bloody death and forbidden love to “Blessed Island.” 263 pages.

Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein (Hyperion)
This WWII-set companion to Boston Globe–Horn Book Honor winner Code Name Verity follows eighteen-year-old American pilot Rose Justice. Captured while delivering supplies and personnel, Rose is sent to notorious German women’s concentration camp Ravensbrück, where she’s befriended by victims of Nazi medical experiments. 360 pages.

Boxers & Saints by Gene Luen Yang; illus. by the author; color by Lark Pien (First Second/Roaring Brook)
This “diptych” of graphic novels (with touches of magical realism and humor) is set during China’s Boxer Rebellion. In Boxers, Little Bao learns to harness the power of ancient gods to fight the spread of Christianity, while in Saints, Four-Girl sits squarely on the other side of the rebellion. 328 and 172 pages.

For past years’ summer reading lists from The Horn Book, click on the tag summer reading.

The post 2014 Summer Reading from The Horn Book: High School Fiction and Nonfiction appeared first on The Horn Book.

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Need suggestions for beach reading or books to bring to summer camp? We’ve hand-picked our top ten in each age range, all published 2013–2014, that are ideal for the season. Grade levels are only suggestions; the individual child is the real criterion. For a handy take-along list of titles, follow this link to a printable PDF.

Early Readers and Younger Fiction | Intermediate Fiction and Nonfiction
Middle School Fiction and Nonfiction | High School Fiction and Nonfiction

Picture Books (Fiction and Nonfiction)

Suggested grade level for all entries: PS–2

Splash, Anna Hibiscus! by Atinuke; illus. by Lauren Tobia (Kane Miller)
Anna (Anna Hibiscus’ Song) and her family take a trip to the beach. Everyone else is too busy — reading, talking, digging in the sand — to go in the water, so she takes a dip by herself. Her ensuing joy entices the others. 40 pages.

Journey by Aaron Becker; illus. by the author (Candlewick)
Caldecott Honor Book
In the tradition of Harold and the Purple Crayon, this wordless story follows a girl who uses a crayon (red) to draw herself into other worlds. The worlds she enters are lush, detailed, and elaborate, and she gets pulled into a rescue mission involving a purple bird. 40 pages.

Mr. Tiger Goes Wild by Peter Brown; illus. by the author (Little, Brown)
Upright Mr. Tiger, bored in his very drab, very proper community, drops to all fours, sheds his clothing, and runs wild — and for the first time looks happy. The townsfolk are appalled…then they, too, unleash their animal natures. 48 pages.

Gaston by Kelly DiPucchio; illus. by Christian Robinson (Atheneum)
Dog Gaston looms over his teacup-sized poodle sisters. In the park they meet a family like theirs but in reverse: bulldogs Rocky, Ricky, Bruno, and petite Antoinette. Were Gaston and Antoinette switched at birth? And, if so, should they switch back? 40 pages.

Locomotive by Brian Floca; illus. by the author (Jackson/Atheneum)
Caldecott Medal Winner, Sibert Honor Book
Striking cinematic front endpapers describe the creation of the Transcontinental Railroad, then a historical-fiction-meets-travelogue narrative zeroes in on one family’s journey from Omaha to San Francisco. 64 pages.

Flora and the Flamingo by Molly Idle; illus. by the author (Chronicle)
Caldecott Honor Book
In this unique wordless picture book, a little girl mimics a flamingo’s graceful movements. The bird, at first annoyed, eventually relents and teaches her ballet. The book is cinematic, comedic, and balletic, with dynamic pacing and physical comedy facilitated by ingenious pull-down flaps. 40 pages.

Firefly July: A Year of Very Short Poems selected by Paul B. Janeczko; illus. by Melissa Sweet (Candlewick)
Child-friendly mixed-media illustrations enhance this collection’s thirty-six excellent brief poems. Most of the verses are by familiar poets (Carl Sandburg, Langston Hughes), including those known for their children’s verse (Alice Schertle, Charlotte Zolotow). 48 pages.

Niño Wrestles the World by Yuyi Morales; illus. by the author (Porter/Roaring Brook)
Belpré Illustrator Award
Pint-sized Niño, fearless luchador (and big brother), dons his red mask, ready to take on all comers. He battles a series of imagined foes from Mexican history and popular culture before facing the trickiest of opponents: las hermanitas! 40 pages.

Parrots over Puerto Rico by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore; illus. by Susan L. Roth (Lee & Low)
Sibert Award Winner
In this gorgeously illustrated history of the endangered Puerto Rican parrot, the blue-and-green birds witness early settlement on the island; decline disastrously in numbers due to human population growth and invasive species; then slowly make a comeback thanks to conservation efforts. 48 pages.

Mr. Wuffles! by David Wiesner; illus. by the author (Clarion)
Caldecott Honor Book
Housecat Mr. Wuffles toys with a tiny spaceship. The ship’s little green passengers, assisted by a ladybug, flee to the space under a radiator, which harbors a thriving insect civilization. Friendship ensues, food and technology are shared, repairs are made, and the cat is foiled. 32 pages.

For past years’ summer reading lists from The Horn Book, click on the tag summer reading.

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Educationalists will tell you how important it is for children to keep reading throughout the long summer break lest their ever-evolving literacy skills erode. Fine. That does not, however, excuse the frequently dreadful list of recommended or — eep — required reading that schools shoot out as one last salvo of homework just as everybody is looking forward to a nice break.

This list is not that list. Instead, the editors of the Horn Book hope you will find herein books kids — and you, too — will enjoy as part of the season’s leisure, every bit as delicious as ice cream. Dig in.

Picture Books (Fiction and Nonfiction) | Early Readers and Younger Fiction
Intermediate Fiction and Nonfiction | Middle School Fiction and Nonfiction
High School Fiction and Nonfiction

For a handy take-along list of titles, follow this link to a printable PDF.

 

 

Roger Sutton
Editor in Chief

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Need suggestions for beach reading or books to bring to summer camp? We’ve hand-picked our top ten in each age range, all published 2013–2014, that are ideal for the season. Grade levels are only suggestions; the individual child is the real criterion. For a handy take-along list of titles, follow this link to a printable PDF.

Picture Books (Fiction and Nonfiction) | Early Readers and Younger Fiction
Intermediate Fiction and Nonfiction | High School Fiction and Nonfiction

Middle School Fiction and Nonfiction

Suggested grade level for all entries: 6–8

Outside In by Sarah Ellis (Groundwood)
Lynn, raised by an irresponsible, unreliable bohemian mother, yearns for normalcy. After meeting Blossom, a girl whose family lives off the grid in a self-sufficient underground bunker, Lynn begins to see her city and her own experience through new eyes. 207 pages.

If I Ever Get Out of Here by Eric Gansworth (Levine/Scholastic)
Lewis, from the Tuscarora Indian Reservation in 1970s upstate New York, is beginning seventh grade at a mostly white junior high, and he’s tired of not fitting in. A friendship with newcomer George helps Lewis cope with loneliness and bullying. But does it constitute a betrayal of his identity? 360 pages.

The Clockwork Scarab [Stoker & Holmes] by Colleen Gleeson (Chronicle)
In alternate Victorian London, Mina Holmes (Sherlock’s niece) and Evaline Stoker (Bram’s sister) team up to solve a series of murders involving high-society girls, the British Museum, and ancient Egyptian artifacts. The story veers into sci-fi when an unwitting time-traveler, modern-day boy Dylan, arrives. 356 pages.

The Mad Potter: George E. Ohr, Eccentric Genius by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan (Porter/Roaring Brook)
Sibert Honor Book
“Eccentric” is an apt word for Ohr, a Mississippi blacksmith’s son (1857–1918) who reinvented himself as a potter. Greenberg and Jordan have produced a magisterial portrait that’s both a character study and an appreciation of their subject’s oeuvre. 56 pages.

Go: A Kidd’s Guide to Graphic Design by Chip Kidd; illus. by the author (Workman)
This overview makes graphic design immediate and accessible, posing questions and answering them in engaging ways. The first four chapters — “Form,” “Typography,” “Content,” “Concept” — tackle design essentials and some advanced ideas. The final chapter presents “10 Design Projects.” 160 pages.

Far Far Away by Tom McNeal (Knopf)
Jeremy has the ability to hear ghosts; long-dead Jacob Grimm becomes his mentor and guardian. With Jacob’s help, Jeremy becomes a whiz at school and charms his crush Ginger — but the presence of the malevolent “Finder of Occasions” gives the story a shiver of horror as dark as any of the Grimm tales. 373 pages.

Cress [Lunar Chronicles] by Marissa Meyer (Feiwel)
This fairy tale/sci-fi hybrid series continues with a “Rapunzel”-inspired story. Cress, taken from her Lunar parents as a baby, is forced to live alone on a satellite, spying on the Earthens for Queen Levana. But her real loyalty lies with cyborg Cinder’s plan to protect Earth by dethroning the queen. 550 pages.

The Cracks in the Kingdom [Colors of Madeleine] by Jaclyn Moriarty (Levine/Scholastic)
In this sequel to the Boston Globe–Horn Book Honor winner A Corner of White, Madeleine (in Cambridge, England) and Elliot (in the Kingdom of Cello) continue to communicate through a “crack” between the two worlds. When the Cello royal family goes missing in Madeleine’s world, Madeleine and Elliot attempt to cross over themselves. 499 pages.

When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds (Atheneum)
Ali’s thing is boxing, Noodles’s is comic books, and Needles’s is…knitting, to help control his Tourette’s syndrome. The three friends live in Brooklyn’s tough Bed-Stuy neighborhood, but the book also shows how zip codes are just one aspect of people’s lives. 232 pages.

Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan (Dial)
After her parents’ death, oddball twelve-year-old genius Willow Chance is taken in by her only friend, high schooler Mai Nguyen, Mai’s mother, and her surly brother Quang-ha. These initially disparate characters, plus cabdriver Jairo Hernandez, ultimately connect to form a new family. What sets this book apart are its lack of sentimentality and its truly multicultural cast. 380 pages.

For past years’ summer reading lists from The Horn Book, click on the tag summer reading.

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Need suggestions for beach reading or books to bring to summer camp? We’ve hand-picked our top ten in each age range, all published 2013–2014, that are ideal for the season. Grade levels are only suggestions; the individual child is the real criterion. For a handy take-along list of titles, follow this link to a printable PDF.

Picture Books (Fiction and Nonfiction) | Intermediate Fiction and Nonfiction
Middle School Fiction and Nonfiction | High School Fiction and Nonfiction

Early Readers and Younger Fiction

Suggested grade level for all entries: K–3

Big Bad Wolf and Itsy Bitsy Spider [Urgency Emergency!] by Dosh Archer; illus. by the author (Whitman)
New readers are in for a treat with these British imports set in an emergency room where Doctor Glenda (a dog) and Nurse Percy (a rooster) ably assist their nursery-rhyme- and fairy-tale-character patients. 48 pages each.

The Miniature World of Marvin & James [Masterpiece Adventures] by Elise Broach; illus. by Kelly Murphy (Ottaviano/Holt)
This amiable debut in an early chapter book series follows the friendship of beetle Marvin and human boy James (from Broach’s middle grade novel Masterpiece). Marvin helps James pack for a week-long trip to the beach, then has adventures of his own inside the house. 104 pages.

Dog Days [Carver Chronicles] by Karen English; illus. by Laura Freeman (Clarion)
In this companion series to English’s Nikki and Deja books, Gavin is starting to fit in at Carver Elementary School. On the home front, he and his new pal Richard accidentally break a snow globe belonging to Gavin’s sister, and Gavin must take on a challenging dog-walking gig to earn the money to replace it. 122 pages.

Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman; illus. by Skottie Young (Harper/HarperCollins)
A father goes out for milk for his children’s cereal. He’s abducted by aliens, escapes from pirates, and saves the universe from destruction. Dad arrives home safely and tells the shaggy-dog tale to his kids — who, naturally, don’t believe a word of it. 113 pages.

The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes; illus. by the author (Greenwillow)
Newbery Honor Book
Billy starts off on the wrong foot with his second-grade teacher; his seat isn’t next to his best friend; and he worries he may not be smart enough for school. The book is divided into four parts (each focusing on an important person in Billy’s life) that together offer a vivid portrait of a boy coming into his confidence. 229 pages.

Ling & Ting Share a Birthday by Grace Lin; illus. by the author (Little, Brown)
The terrific twins from Ling & Ting: Not Exactly the Same! are back in this birthday-themed offering, this time buying presents, baking cakes, and making wishes. Once again, young readers will enjoy spotting the differences (big and small) between these identical twin sisters with distinct personalities. 48 pages.

The Big Wet Balloon by Liniers; illus. by the author (Toon/Candlewick)
Matilda teaches her little sister Clemmie how to catch raindrops on her tongue, jump in puddles, and search for worms, as pictured in the panels of this early-reader comic. Amidst her excitement, Matilda mistakenly releases Clemmie’s precious red birthday balloon into the sky. 40 pages.

Lulu and the Cat in the Bag by Hilary McKay; illus. by Priscilla Lamont (Whitman)
Grandmother Nan is taking care of Lulu and her cousin Mellie, and they’re all staying at Lulu’s house so they can tend to her many rescued pets. When kindhearted Lulu finds a large cat on her doorstep, there’s a problem: Nan is not a cat person. 84 pages.

The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli; illus. by the author (Hyperion)
Geisel Medal Winner
A watermelon-loving crocodile imagines the worst after swallowing a seed: “it’s growing in my guts! Soon vines will come out of my ears!” After much fretting, the croc burps and brings the seed back up. Crisis over…until the next bite. 32 pages.

A Big Guy Took My Ball! by Mo Willems; illus. by the author (Hyperion)
Geisel Honor Book
Piggie is upset when a “big guy” takes her “big ball.” In fact, the ball belongs to a whale, who calls it his “little” ball. When Piggie and Gerald learn that the whale is lonely, they invent a new game for the trio to play together. 64 pages.

For past years’ summer reading lists from The Horn Book, click on the tag summer reading.

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Need suggestions for beach reading or books to bring to summer camp? We’ve hand-picked our top ten in each age range, all published 2013–2014, that are ideal for the season. Grade levels are only suggestions; the individual child is the real criterion. For a handy take-along list of titles, follow this link to a printable PDF.

Picture Books (Fiction and Nonfiction) | Early Readers and Younger Fiction
Middle School Fiction and Nonfiction | High School Fiction and Nonfiction

Intermediate Fiction and Nonfiction

Suggested grade level for all entries: 4–6

The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathi Appelt; illus. by Jennifer Bricking (Atheneum)
A gang of feral hogs is thundering toward Bayou Tourterelle, delirious at the prospect of wild sugarcane; raccoon Swamp Scouts Bingo and J’miah are ready for them. A human drama unfolds, too, as Chap Brayburn and his mother try to save the bayou from being turned into a theme park. 330 pages.

Doll Bones by Holly Black; illus. by Eliza Wheeler (McElderry)
Newbery Honor Book
Twelve-year-old Zach and his friends Poppy and Alice play an elaborate game with their dolls. When Poppy is haunted by dreams of a girl whose ashes are inside the game’s queen doll, the kids embark on an adventure to lay the girl’s ghost to rest. 247 pages.

Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo; illus. by K. G. Campbell (Candlewick)
Newbery Medal Winner
Ten-year-old Flora’s life changes when she saves a squirrel from a near-death experience with a vacuum cleaner. Flora’s lively imagination allows her to believe resilient “Ulysses” is bound for superhero greatness. There’s only one problem: her self-absorbed, squirrel-hating mother. 232 pages.

From Norvelt to Nowhere by Jack Gantos (Farrar)
In 2012 Newbery Medal winner Dead End in Norvelt, Mr. Spizz allegedly poisoned seven old ladies to get to his true love, Miss Volker. Now Miss Volker enlists narrator Jack to accompany her on a wild road trip as she hunts down Spizz . 278 pages.

The Thing About Luck by Cynthia Kadohata; illus. by Julia Kuo (Atheneum)
National Book Award Winner
Twelve-year-old Summer’s parents are helping relatives in Japan so they can’t go “on harvest” this year. Summer’s grandfather, Jiichan, comes out of retirement to drive a combine, while her grandmother, Obaachan, cooks for the work crew. When a crisis hits, Summer gathers her courage and saves the day. 273 pages.

Bluffton: My Summers with Buster by Matt Phelan; illus. by the author (Candlewick)
This graphic novel tells the fictionalized story of young Buster Keaton’s summertime stays in Bluffton, Michigan, with the Actor’s Colony. Townie Henry is enchanted by the acting folk, and begins to dream of joining the show. 227 pages.

Romeo Blue by Phoebe Stone (Levine/Scholastic)
This sequel to The Romeo and Juliet Code continues the adventures of Flissy and the Bathburn clan in 1942 Bottlebay, Maine. Though the Coast Guard is patrolling for U-boats, life goes on, with boy-girl crushes, school dances, and, as always, secrets. Then a surprise arrival upends Flissy’s expectations in ways that are breathtakingly complex. 350 pages.

One Came Home by Amy Timberlake (Knopf)
Newbery Honor Book
In this gripping and entertaining mystery set in 1870s Wisconsin, protagonist Georgie’s older sister Agatha is found dead (but unrecognizable). Sure there has been a mistake, Georgie and her sister’s unwelcome suitor Billy McCabe set off to find Agatha — or, at least, to find out how she died. 259 pages.

How I Became a Ghost: A Choctaw Trail of Tears Story by Tim Tingle (RoadRunner)
Narrator Isaac – a ghost – is alive and well at the start of this Trail of Tears story, beginning in the Choctaw Nation in Mississippi in 1830. But soon there is Treaty Talk, followed by the arrival of Nahullo (white) men, and the Choctaw must begin their journey west. 145 pages.

The Dolphins of Shark Bay [Scientists in the Field] by Pamela S. Turner; photos by Scott Tuason (Houghton)
In the ocean waters of Western Australia, scientists investigate the behaviors of the highly intelligent bottlenose dolphin, which, unique among the species, uses tools. The detailed descriptions of the scientists’ day-to-day activities provide a window into the practice of animal behavior studies. 76 pages.

 For past years’ summer reading lists from The Horn Book, click on the tag summer reading.

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Picture Books (Fiction and Nonfiction)
Splash, Anna Hibiscus! by Atinuke; illus. by Lauren Tobia (Kane Miller)
Journey by Aaron Becker; illus. by the author (Candlewick)
Mr. Tiger Goes Wild by Peter Brown; illus. by the author (Little, Brown)
Gaston by Kelly DiPucchio; illus. by Christian Robinson (Atheneum)
Locomotive by Brian Floca; illus. by the author (Jackson/Atheneum)
Flora and the Flamingo by Molly Idle; illus. by the author (Chronicle)
Firefly July: A Year of Very Short Poems selected by Paul B. Janeczko; illus. by Melissa Sweet (Candlewick)
Niño Wrestles the World by Yuyi Morales; illus. by the author (Porter/Roaring Brook)
Parrots over Puerto Rico by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore; illus. by Susan L. Roth (Lee & Low)
Mr. Wuffles! by David Wiesner; illus. by the author (Clarion)

Early Readers and Younger Fiction
Big Bad Wolf and Itsy Bitsy Spider [Urgency Emergency!] by Dosh Archer; illus. by the author (Whitman)
The Miniature World of Marvin & James by Elise Broach; illus. by Kelly Murphy (Ottaviano/Holt)
Dog Days [Carver Chronicles] by Karen English; illus. by Laura Freeman (Clarion)
Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman; illus. by Skottie Young (Harper/HarperCollins)
The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes; illus. by the author (Greenwillow)
Ling & Ting Share a Birthday by Grace Lin; illus. by the author (Little, Brown)
The Big Wet Balloon by Liniers; illus. by the author (Toon/Candlewick)
Lulu and the Cat in the Bag by Hilary McKay; illus. by Priscilla Lamont (Whitman)
The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli; illus. by the author (Hyperion)
A Big Guy Took My Ball! by Mo Willems; illus. by the author (Hyperion)

Intermediate Fiction and Nonfiction
The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathi Appelt; illus. by Jennifer Bricking (Atheneum)
Doll Bones by Holly Black; illus. by Eliza Wheeler (McElderry)
Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo; illus. by K. G. Campbell (Candlewick)
From Norvelt to Nowhere by Jack Gantos (Farrar)
The Thing About Luck by Cynthia Kadohata; illus. by Julia Kuo (Atheneum)
Bluffton: My Summers with Buster by Matt Phelan; illus. by the author (Candlewick)
Romeo Blue by Phoebe Stone (Levine/Scholastic)
One Came Home by Amy Timberlake (Knopf)
How I Became a Ghost: A Choctaw Trail of Tears Story by Tim Tingle (RoadRunner)
The Dolphins of Shark Bay [Scientists in the Field] by Pamela S. Turner; photos by Scott Tuason (Houghton)

Middle School Fiction and Nonfiction
Outside In by Sarah Ellis (Groundwood)
If I Ever Get Out of Here by Eric Gansworth (Levine/Scholastic)
The Clockwork Scarab by Colleen Gleeson (Chronicle)
The Mad Potter: George E. Ohr, Eccentric Genius by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan (Porter/Roaring Brook)
Go: A Kidd’s Guide to Graphic Design by Chip Kidd; illus. by the author (Workman)
Far Far Away by Tom McNeal (Knopf)
Cress [Lunar Chronicles] by Marissa Meyer (Feiwel)
The Cracks in the Kingdom [Colors of Madeleine] by Jaclyn Moriarty (Levine/Scholastic)
When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds (Atheneum)
Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan (Dial)

High School Fiction and Nonfiction
He Said, She Said by Kwame Alexander (Amistad/HarperTeen)
All the Truth That’s in Me by Julie Berry (Viking)
If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan (Algonquin)
Maggot Moon by Sally Gardner; illus. by Julian Crouch (Candlewick)
March: Book One by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin; illus. by Nate Powell (Top Shelf)
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart (Delacorte)
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (St. Martin’s Griffin)
Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick (Roaring Brook)
Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein (Hyperion)
Boxers & Saints by Gene Luen Yang; illus. by the author; color by Lark Pien (First Second/Roaring Brook)

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As de facto administrative assistant for the office, I’ve been hearing the name “UNICCO” (the facilities management company here at the Simmons College campus) quite a bit as we get settled into our new space. And it makes me think of nothing so much as…

That is, The Fantastic Adventures of Unico, an early anime film about — surprise, surprise — a baby unicorn with the ability to bring happiness to everyone he meets. I remember Unico fondly and vividly from my ’80s childhood, but by the time I was in college I was convinced I had invented it, since no one else I knew had ever heard of it. (Same with The Adventures of Mark Twain, another weirdo ’80s movie.) Happily, internet searching has proved it’s not a figment of my imagination, and maybe I’ll even get around to watching it again.

In libraries, bookstores, and on sites like “Stump the Bookseller,” there’s an abundance of people hoping to be reunited with a half-remembered book from childhood. Often what hazy memories they do have are of the book’s appearance or their emotional experience of it rather than the more prosaic bibliographic information that would help a bookseller or librarian with the literary detective work. And, like me with Unico, they may eventually conclude it never existed.

Are there any stories or books from your childhood you’ve been looking for? Or have you been reunited with any long-lost loves? A few of mine: The Girl with the Silver Eyes by Willo Davis Roberts, The Wednesday Witch by Ruth Chew, and The Wild Swans retold by Amy Ehrlich and illustrated by Susan Jeffers.

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I have no teaching qualifications. I'm not an educational expert. But simply through being a children’s writer (and in addition, a parent) I’ve been drawn into taking an interest in the latest raft of proposals about our children’s education.

It started with a phone call from my local radio station, BBC Radio Leeds. What did I think about children learning poetry by heart, they asked. Huh? Was my highly articulate reply. The truth was I didn’t have a worked out opinion, but learning poetry by heart is one of the proposals in the new Gove paper on primary education, and so (the radio station reckoned, not unreasonably) as a children’s writer, and one who regularly goes into schools, I really ought to have a view.

So, I read the proposals. I went on air. And I’ve been stunned by the conviction – almost vitriol – that seems to characterise the debate. Learning poetry was an essential art, inducting children into the rhythm of the language, giving them discipline and the lasting gift of verse that their grandparents enjoyed, one side thundered. Drilling kids in poetry was a regressive step, designed to humiliate them, and destroy their love of learning, thundered the other. The trouble is, as with most educational debates, it never seems to me as cut and dried as the opposing camps suggest. It could be a good idea. But a lot depends on the way it’s done.

Around the same time, the Children’s Laureate, Michael Rosen, was circulating a petition for children’s writers to sign, condemning the provisions on phonics in the same government document. (Read the petition here.) Once more, I felt uncomfortable. Rosen is one of the most articulate critics of Gove’s approach to education in general.

 But...my own impression is that phonics can be helpful. I doubt that - as Rosen sometimes seems to imply – exposure to storytelling and being surrounded by books is enough to get kids reading. Not at first. I’ve watched my own child learn to read. I’ve talked to other parents. And I’ve talked to dyslexia tutors, who often advocate a structured approach.

Above all, as a writer, I’ve visited plenty of primary schools, and met the children who are struggling to read at a level appropriate to their age. That’s desperately sad.

It’s left me feeling that, as a children’s writer, I’m not confident to weigh in on reading methodologies. The important thing is not ideology, but what works. I’d like others to make that decision, based on the very best evidence out there. (Not an easy task I know.)

Where I DO have a strong conviction, and where I strongly agree with Michael Rosen’s petition, is on the importance of reading for pleasure. Once children have mastered the basics of reading – by whatever methodology – they need to enjoy it. Otherwise they won’t read. And they must, if they are to become truly literate, educated people, capable of understanding the world around them – the world that lies beyond their own narrow experience.

As many people, including Michael Rosen and the Society of Authors, have pointed out, it is scandalous that the government, which is so ready to impose targets and objectives generally, is prepared to give no more than lip-service to the idea of “reading for pleasure”. The government acknowledges the vast body of research supporting its importance. Every school should be encouraging it, they say. Yet none of the concrete measures needed to encourage it are in place.

What is needed? It’s simple really.

1. Every school should have a library. Schools make space for computers – but books are far cheaper, and what children need if they are going to read is books.
2. Every school should have a librarian.Somebody on the staff of every school should have the job of understanding which children’s books are out there, choosing the stock, and guiding the children to the books that might interest them. That also means they need the budget and the training. It shouldn’t depend on luck – that there is somebody on the teaching team that has that special interest – as it does at the moment. 

It would make such a huge difference. It really would. So, I say forget about the ideology. The arguments about whether six year olds should be reciting Longfellow, or following whichever brand of phonics.

GET THE BOOKS TO THE CHILDREN 

It’s not rocket science. It’s something surely on which we can all agree.

Emma's web-site
Emma's latest book is Wolfie.

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Children’s Book Week is May 7–13, 2012. Visit the Children’s Book Council’s website for events and information.

You may also get a kick out of these early ads for Children’s Book Week. They came to us courtesy of K. T. Horning whose article in the upcoming July/August 2012 Horn Book Magazine examines the old-as-the-hills arguments about popular vs. distinguished when awards season rolls around.

 

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This is perhaps going to be the shortest blog I've ever written. But I wanted to share this with you.

Recently I visited friends who live in a small close-knit village. Last year one of my friends retired and has joined a number of local clubs. One of these clubs is the book club. They meet once a month, choose a book, everyone reads it and over tea and cake they discuss it.

Now last year BT decided the public phone, situated in the middle of the village was no longer viable so removed it. However they left the box, empty and uncared for. So the local book club came up with a wonderful idea. They have filled it with books looking for new homes. They have invited the entire  village to take part and enjoy using the new local 'library.'

Basically if you take a book you replace with a book you enjoyed reading and want to share. So far the system is working well and as you can see this small library is quite well stocked.
 

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You may already know all about this imaginative venture, but if not, I'll let the Unbound people tell you about it in their own words ...

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I can't imagine anyone has any time right now to read a long blog post. So I thought I'd take the opportunity to share with you some wonderful pieces I've read lately. Most of them are on a theme--nonfiction storytelling. I hope you take a minute or two between shopping, cooking, last-minute writing deadlines, last-minute paper-grading, etc., to sit down and treat yourself.

First, here is a lovely piece by Henning Mankell, whose books about the Swedish detective Kurt Wallander I love. It's called THE ART OF LISTENING. I adored this piece and if I could wrap it up and put it in a box and deliver it to each and every one of you I would. Well, maybe I just did.

Next is a piece that was in Friday's New York Times that might not have made it to other parts of the country. It's about a theater group that pairs teenagers with people over 60. It's inspiring for nonfiction writers and lovers, and a great idea for other communities. Sort of a twist on StoryCorps (always a good place to visit!). This one is called TRUSTING SOMEONE OVER 60. (Don't let the headline deter you.)

Another piece that walloped me from the Times was this one, WHAT WASN'T PASSED ON.  I won't say anything more about it so you can experience it for yourself.

Last week Jim Murphy wrote a great post about Recharging Batteries, and I referred in the comments to an article about the novelist Richard Ford that I loved. Read both when you can!

And because I can't help myself, I'm leaving you with my potato latke recipe. Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, and here's to a wonderful New Year -- 2012. That number seems like science fiction.

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There’s a new holiday in town. November is now Picture Book Month. Several picture book authors got together to create this event—and, good for them. As they said on their web site, Picture Book Month: A Celebration!, “We are doing this because in this digital age where people are predicting the coming death of print books, picture books (the print kind) need love. And the world needs picture books. There’s nothing like the physical page turn of a beautifully crafted picture book.”

I have written on this subject myself, a rebuttal to the attitude reported in The New York Times, of parents wanting children to leap past picture books to read chapter books in the quest to get them on the road to...what?

Each day on this site, another picture book author writes an entry titled, “Why Picture Books are Important.” Here are some excerpts from the entries so far:

I believe our first stories become part of our DNA forever. -Samantha Berger

Picture books are important because they are with us for life…No matter how many books we’ve read since, they will always have a place in our hearts…and a relationship that, whether we realize it or not, has shaped our lives. -Dan Yaccarino

When my now 11 year old girl, Eliana, was a preschooler, we bought the book, In My World, by Lois Ehlert. The illustrations are simple. The text is sparse. And yet, there is a magic about this book that completely captured her. It could have been the exquisite die cuts or the bright colors… It could have been. But it wasn't. It was the wondrous way the words and the pictures were married. One could not work without the other. Every night, Eliana read that book to me, putting her little hand, which fit perfectly, inside the die cut hand of the book. And every night I would tear up knowing that I was experiencing a magical moment in my daughter's life… -Diane de las Casas

Picture books have a special kind of magic in the hands of children. They open windows of opportunity — glimpses of new worlds — in the safest of places: in the library, in the classroom, or in their very own rooms. Kids can sound out one word at a time, breeze through full sentences or skip the words altogether to build stories of their own based on warm, vivid illustrations. Anything is possible… -Kelly Milner Halls

I have a sixteen-year-old niece, Sarah. A year ago my sister-in-law, her mom, died suddenly. A friend of the family gave my brother a picture book called Tear Soup to help with Sarah’s mourning.
One night, he walked into her room with the book under his arm. She took one look at him, rolled her eyes, and said, “Yeah, right. You’re going to read THAT to ME?”
“Yes,” he said. “Move over.”
She argued – what teen girl wouldn’t? – but grudgingly made room. They cuddled up and read the book. A couple of days later, Sarah asked, “Dad, whatever happened to all my picture books from when I was little?” My brother pulled a box out of storage and the next night came in with Caps for Sale.
A new tradition was born. For months, every night, he’d read a picture book to her from her childhood.
Picture books heal. No matter your age. -Katie Davis

I have looked up some of the other created holidays for November—International Drum Month, Peanut Butter Lovers Month, Aviation History Month. In my book, this one beats them hands down.

Spread the word.