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Enter to win a hardcover copy of Skink—No Surrender, by New York Times bestselling author Carl Hiassen. Giveaway begins November 19, 2014, at 12:01 A.M. PST and ends December 18, 2014, at 11:59 P.M. PST.

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#1 New York Times bestselling author Carl Hiaasen talked recently to Newsday about bringing Skink — the beloved vigilante ex-gov of Florida whose unique brand of swamp-justice has made him a star of six Hiaasen adult novels — to YA readers “before he got too old and cranky.”

Long listed for the 2014 National Book Award, Hiaasen’s first book for teens, Skink No Surrender, features the ragged, one-eyed renegade helping 14-year-old Richard rescue his teenage cousin Malley, who has run off into trouble with an older guy she met on the Internet.

Why Skink for kids? Hiaasen told Newsday:

“Skink knows his way around the wilderness. That’s the kind of person you want with you if you’re trying to do a rescue. He’s his own scruffy version of SEAL Team Six. Kids like characters who can sometimes defy authority if it’s for a good cause. Skink is not a model citizen. But he does have character traits. He does have honor. He does have a strong moral compass. These are all good things for kids to find in a character. I’ve had people show up at book signings dressed as him. They’ll have a shower cap and an eye patch.”

When asked how he managed to capture and maintain the voice of a 14 year old writing in first person as Richard, Hiaasen answers, “I’m lucky because I’ve got a built-in test market in the family. One of the things that you learn as a reporter, or you better learn, is you learn to listen. Driving kids around in a car, you listen to how kids talk, the cadence, what they’re talking about.”

In Skink No Surrender, Newsday’s Beth Whitehouse notes, Hiaasen emphasizes the importance of the environment and protecting species. Skink hands Richard a copy of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring.

“Silent Spring is an important book. It’s as important a book now as it was in the ’60s. I’m not proselytizing about it. If five kids go read that book, those five kids are going to be changed by it. But I don’t do it in a preachy way. I do it in a casual way.”

Carl Hiaasen has read his audience right. Skink No Surrender is set to debut on the New York Times bestseller list this weekend.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

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Here are some awesome books for your "Little Humans." As usual, we've picked five kids books that we feel represent some of the best new kids stories

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We’ve collected the books debuting on Indiebound’s Indie Bestseller List for the week ending September 28, 2014–a sneak peek at the books everybody will be talking about next month.

(Debuted at #7 in Hardcover Nonfiction) How Google Works by Eric Schmidt, III & Jonathan Rosenberg: “The authors explain how technology has shifted the balance of power from companies to consumers, and that the only way to succeed in this ever-changing landscape is to create superior products and attract a new breed of multifaceted employees whom Eric and Jonathan dub ‘smart creatives.’” (September 2014)

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New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

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By Mary Van Akin of Random House Children’s Books
Published: June 29, 2012

Two long-awaited conclusions to bestselling series!

RAPTURE

By Lauren Kate

The long-awaited, astonishing conclusion to the FALLEN series is here! To stop Lucifer from erasing the past Luce and Daniel must find the place where the angels fell to earth. Dark forces are after them, and Daniel doesn’t know if he can do this–live only to lose Luce again and again. Yet together they will face an epic battle that will end with lifeless bodies and angel dust. Great sacrifices are made. Hearts are destroyed. And suddenly Luce knows what must happen. For she was meant to be with someone other than Daniel. The curse they’ve borne has always and only been about her–and the love she cast aside. The choice she makes now will be the only one that truly matters. In the fight for Luce, who will win?

Random House Children’s Books | 978-0-385-73918-4 | June 12, 2012 | $17.99 | Ages 12-17 | 464 pages

Check out Fallen Books on Facebook!

THE ENCHANTRESS

By Michael Scott

The sixth and final book in the New York Times bestselling Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel Series.  This internationally known series introduces readers to legendary historical and mythological figures—weaving history, myth, folklore, and magic together seamlessly. The twins of prophecy have been split. Nicholas Flamel is near death. John Dee has the swords of power. And Danu Talis has yet to fall. The future of the human race lies in the balance–how will the legend end?

Delacortes Press | 978-0-385-73535-3 | May 22, 2012 | $18.99 | Ages 12 and up | 528 pages

Check out The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel Series on Facebook!

Read the book that everyone is buzzing about!

WONDER

By R.J. Palacio

An emotional and beautiful novel about being the new kid.  August (Auggie) Pullman was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to a mainstream school–until now. He’s about to start 5th grade at Beecher Prep, and if you’ve ever been the new kid then you know how hard that can be. The thing is Auggie’s just an ordinary kid, with an extraordinary face. But can he convince his new classmates that he’s just like them, despite appearances? R.J. Palacio has written a spare, warm, uplifting story that will have readers laughing one minute and wiping away tears the next. With wonderfully realistic family interactions (flawed, but loving), lively school scenes, and short chapters, Wonder is ac

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By Bianca Schulze, The Children’s Book Review
Published: March 1, 2012

Here’s the scoop on the most popular destinations on The Children’s Book Review site, the most coveted new releases and bestsellers.

Award-Winning Illustrator Marla Frazee & the Best Interview Ever

Author Interview: Gary Paulsen

Newbery Medal Winners, 2012

How Picture Books Play a Role in a Child’s Development

Wonderful Winter Books for Kids

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THE NEW RELEASES

The most coveted books that release this month:

The Berenstain Bears: We Love Our Mom!

by Jan Berenstain

(Ages 3-7)

Tickle Time!: A Boynton on Board Board Book

by Sandra Boynton

(Ages 0-3)

Secret Agent Splat!

by Rob Scotton

(Ages 3-7)

Big Nate Goes for Broke

by Lincoln Peirce

(Ages 8-12)

Chomp

by Carl Hiaasen

(Ages 10-12)

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THE BEST SELLERS

The best selling children’s books this month:

PICTURE BOOKS

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The Children's Book Council hosts the Children's Choice Book Awards. The favorite book finalists for this year were determined by close to 15,000 children and teens. I highly recommend checking out these books!

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One week from today, voting for the Children’s Choice Book Awards will be closed. Everyday this week, we’ll be sharing some information about the finalists in every age category and we’ll be starting off with the finalists for the Author of the Year.

Author of the Year

Suzanne Collins for Catching Fire (Hunger Games, Book 2)
The Hunger Games is a trilogy of books by author and TV show writer Suzanna Collins that are based by the Greek Myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. Catching Fire is the second book of the trilogy and has been on the New York Times Bestseller list for more than 60 weeks.  In addition to the Hunger Games, Ms. Collins has also written The Underland Chronicles, Fire Proof: Shelby Woo #11, When Charlie McButton Lost Power, and Breaking Barriers.

Carl Hiaasen for Scat
Carl Hiaasen is an accomplished investigative journalist, and author of both adult and young adult novels. Scat is a mystery novel about a missing teacher and the two students that do everything in their power to find her. Mr. Hiaasen’s other young adult works include Hoot and Flush. Hoot won a Newberry Honor in 2003.

Jeff Kinney for Diary of a Wimpy Kid: the Last Straw and Dog Days
A full-time writer and online game designer, Jeff Kinney is the author of the successful series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid. This past March, the Diary of a Wimpy Kid movie was released to great fanfare. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: the Last Straw sees the main protagonist of the series Greg Heffley in the second half of seventh grade.  Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days follows The Last Straw and is about Greg’s summer between seventh and eighth grade.

Rick Riordan for The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson & the Olympians, Book 5)
The Last Olympian is the final book in Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. In it, demigod Percy Jackson and his friends defend Mount Olympus from the Titans. This year, the first book in the series has been made into a movie Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief. Mr. Riordan is an accomplished author, also writing the Tres Navarre adult mystery series, and he is currently working on a new series The Kane Chronicles which is based on Egyptian myths.

James Patterson for Max (A Maximum Ride Novel)
A popular adult fiction writer, James Patterson has also found success as a young adult author. His series Maximum Ride is about a ‘flock’ of teenagers led by Maximum Ride (“Max”) who are 98% human and 2% bird, running from the scientist who created them. Max is the fifth book in the series and finds the Flock helping the government discover why fish are dying and ships are being destroyed off the coast of Hawaii.

Vot

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Florida Swamp photo by Peter Long www.flickr.com

*Middle-grade to tween (there’s some language in here–FYI ) contemporary fiction novel
*Middle-grade students Nick and Marta as main characters
*Rating: A good eco-mystery for kids with a quirky cast of characters, similar to Hoot and Flush by Carl Hiaasen.

Short, short summary:

Scat has a main plot and a pretty important sub-plot that is timely and will appeal to many kids. First the main plot: Bunny Starch, a feared biology teacher, goes missing after a field trip to Black Vine Swamp. Many people are pointing their finger at Duane Scrod, also known as Smoke. But Nick and Marta, two kids in Mrs. Starch’s class, aren’t sure what’s going on in Black Vine Swamp because there seems to be a lot. Nick took some video the day of the field trip, and he and Marta aren’t sure what they see moving among the vegetation–is it the rare, endangered Florida Panther, a man, or even Smoke? Nick and Marta’s curiosity gets the better of them, and they get mixed up in the Black Vine Swamp events after a visit to Mrs. Starch’s house to try to find out what is actually going on. The sub-plot of Scat by Carl Hiaasen is about Nick and his father. Nick’s father is in the National Guard and had to serve in the War in Iraq. He is injured, and Nick has to deal with his father’s injuries and the fear that comes with having a parent in the war.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. One of the most obvious activities to do with this book and the other Carl Hiaasen books in this series is to talk about the “green” issues that the author brings up. Scat is a great book to go along with a science unit on habitats or to read around Earth Day. Without giving away too much of the plot on this post, you can discuss with students endangered species such as the Florida panther, saving swamp land and why it’s important to food chains/webs, and animals and plants in Florida/warm climate habitats. Children and students can write down facts they learn about these topics while reading Scat, or they can use the Internet or other resources to learn more.

2. Nick’s father in the war may be an issue that some of the children in your class or your family are also dealing with at this point in their lives. If not a parent in the war, then they may know someone else in the war or who has been injured or killed. Before reading this book with these children, you may want to discuss the issues that will be surfacing to make sure children are okay with reading about this topic. Books like Scat by Carl Hiaasen can open up discussions about topics that are bothering children, but some children may still not want to openly discuss upsetting issues in class. You can always give students the option of writing in their reading response journals instead or providing two or three writing or discussion prompts with one being a “safe” topic.

3. Carl Hiaasen tells this story from several different viewpoints. There are many important characters in this book that he develops. As children meet a new character in the text, ask them to write the character’s name in their reading response journals and then some details about him. This will help students keep track of the characters and use their names during discussions and writing assignments. At the end of the novel, ask students to pick their favorite and least favorite characters from this list

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Columnist, journalist and novelist Carl Hiaasen uses news headlines and stories, a healthy dose of satire, and his own passion for environmentalism to fuel his writing for both children and adults.

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