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And we’re off, with the first book discussion of the season. We are trying to present the books more generally in order of publication this year, in hopes that readers will have a better chance of knowing the books as they’re discussed. We’re starting with a book that was published early in the year, in fact in January, to much excitement and praise.

Last Stop on Market Street is a lovely, warm picture book, with strong and commendable themes of intergenerational friendship, building community, and finding beauty in unlikely places. And other messages as well: the value of helping the less fortunate, how to grow up to be a good person (as guided by your Nana). Matt de la Pena’s text is both sensory and colloquial, with believable-sounding dialogue, and an equally believable relationship between grandmother and grandson.

But we’re here to talk about Christian Robinson’s art. The Horn Book Magazine review basically said that the book was channeling Ezra Jack Keats, “in spirit and visual style,” and I think that pretty much captures the book’s feel and appeal. The acrylic paintings and collage are artfully simple, and like Peter in The Snowy Day, CJ is an everychild — and a brown everychild. The colors sing, with eye-catching blocks of color throughout, all in perfect accord with one another. One of my favorite double-page spreads shows Nana and CJ walking to the bus shelter in the rain, Nana holding her orange umbrella aloft and CJ, in his highly individual yellow shirt (with blue and orange stripes on the sleeves), closer to the puddled street, which reflects those oranges and yellows beautifully. (In that same spread, note the way the tree behind them is composed of a collaged white trunk and painted green leaves, giving the tree remarkable texture and beauty.) On another spread, rectangles rule: the dark blue bus stop contrasts with the white sidewalk and bus, which contrasts with the green car, etc. It’s such a simple composition, but with its shapes and colors so artfully arranged.

I think few would argue that the most sublime spread is the one in which the guitar music CJ hears on the bus lifts him out of mundane reality, out of the busy city, and into a world of nature, where butterflies ‘dance free’ and waves crash against a sunset sky. Robinson does a remarkable job of not translating the text literally but completely capturing the “feeling of magic” CJ experiences: all with minimal colors, simple shapes, the trademark yellow sweater, and CJ’s profile front and center, eyes closed in concentration and delight.

I do have a few quibbles. Some might be silly, but may also be details a child (or the Caldecott committee) might notice. Where does Nana’s knitting come from? She is shown throughout carrying the tiniest of purses. Why is she sitting in the handicapped seat on the bus? That does not seem like something thoughtful Nana would ever do. Why does the blind man on the bus carry a cane and have a guide dog? I have some knowledge of the blind community and I have never witnessed someone using both. It would be a very cumbersome arrangement! (Also, the dog on this bus wanders freely around the bus – again, not something an actual guide dog would ever do. It’s clearly meant to be a guide dog, not just a pal, because the dog is shown with a harness attached.) And just in terms of continuity – I think it might disappoint some child readers that once Nana and CJ get off the bus there’s so little relationship between the people they see on the street and the people in the soup kitchen. We recognize Bobo, the Sunglass Man, and Trixie (although it’s sure a long time from the page Nana mentions them to the page we finally see them, without any kind of refresher or reminder in the text), but why aren’t the people queuing up outside shown inside the soup kitchen on the last spread? It’s not like there is a long line inside that’s preventing them from going in. It would have been satisfying and given the book some additional closure to see them inside seated at a table or being served food.

It may bear repeating, for newcomers and old hands alike, that looking at a picture book for your own pleasure, or a child’s, is very different from scrutinizing it the way the Caldecott committee does. I didn’t notice any of my quibbles until I looked at the book as carefully and critically as a committee member would. Remember how Jon Klassen (humorously) characterized the committee in his 2013 Caldecott Acceptance speech: “They are a group of beings assembled entirely to notice things.” Of course,  just because someone sees flaws in a book does NOT necessarily knock it off the Caldecott table. The committee may take note of flaws and still decide that a book’s strengths are enough to disregard any minor problems.

So, what are your thoughts? Last Stop on Market Street received three star reviews and a ton of early buzz. Is it holding up to its promise? Do weigh in below.

 

 

 

The post Last Stop on Market Street appeared first on The Horn Book.

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Last Stop on Market Street

Words by Matt de la Pena; pictures by Christian Robinson

 

Ah, the old neighborhood! Can you remember yours? Can you remember going “downtown” on a bus and taking in the flavor and fabric of its uniqueness? People and places were part of its specialness, if you were smart enough to take a good look around, and drink it all in with a practiced eye.

And that’s the lovely languor, nostalgia and wisdom filling Matt de la Pena’s “Last Stop on Market Street.” And Christian Robinson’s colorful art makes the people of Market Street come to life in a winning way. His take on CJ reminds me of Ezra Jack Keats’ look at a boy named Peter.

I hope this feeling still exists in towns and cities, for Mr. De la Pena has captured it perfectly in this book; the feeling of “when all you had was time.”

You had time to notice, time to converse, time to visit, time just to “be” in the moment, and whatever it brought. And it sometimes brought a great deal in the supposed ordinary everyday – if you were wise enough to notice. And if you were not, let’s hope that you had someone like CJ’s nana, to teach you the “practiced eye” for observing.

I hope young readers have someone in their young lives like nana, who can jolly them past grumpiness to gratitude for what is – and may never come again.

CJ wonders why they have to ride the bus, why wait in the rain for it, and go to the same place after church? CJ is filled with the eternal “why” of youth, but nana has the wisdom that goes with the “practiced eye.”

She is the one who can point out in the midst of a rainy downpour, that the trees, especially a big one, is “drinking through a straw.” CJ sees, but not really.

His neighborhood, like many, is filled with colorful characters that are unique human beings – if you take the time to listen and learn. And CJ, thank goodness, is on a very special learning curve, facilitated by nana. It’s the learning curve of life, of the real world. And I wanted to give this nana a big hug; for example is always the strongest teacher as she bids each person on the bus a “good afternoon.” And “She made sure CJ did the same.” Great!

Mr. Dennis, the bus driver, is a bit of a magician, pulling coins from behind CJ’s ear, and an old woman on the bus has butterflies in a jar, while a blind man, nana says, can “…watch the world with their ears.”

This is one lucky, lucky young man, though he may only realize it years later. He is getting an education in life.

It is a guitar playing musician that allows CJ to “feel the magic of music.” With eyes closed, (a nearby dog closes his, too), and in a magical moment, CJ is lifted beyond the space of his seat, to a place where he starts to “see” the people around him.

It is this richness of the unique in the everyday, that his nana patiently coaxes him into seeing.

Listen to this quote from nana that I long to have resonate with readers everywhere, for it is filled with hope for many people, “Sometimes when you’re surrounded by dirt, CJ, you’re a better witness for what is beautiful.”

What a great model Matt de la Pena must have had, to bear witness, in the final scene in a soup kitchen, to what is possible, if you teach children to “see” beyond a “selfie” and the tip of their nose!

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There is always so much going on in the children's literature world in Utah, which is wonderful and fun. But you might look beyond your borders to see what's going on elsewhere. For example, Idaho. We're just up the road a ways. And we seem to become a fantastic venue for kid lit authors to visit. Just in the last few weeks, we've hosted Markus Zusak, Jennifer Neilsen, and next week will be Sherman Alexie plus Andrew Smith.

I'm most excited, of course, about our Boise SCBWI conference in April, which we co-sponsor with the Boise State University Dept. of Literary, Language, and Culture and the Idaho Chapter of the International Literacy Association (formerly the International Reading Association).

This year we have several amazing speakers, including Matt de la Pena, Suzanne Morgan Williams, Utah's own Kristyn Crow, agent Sean McCarthy, and a fantastic panel of local authors.

Our theme is diversity in children's literature, which is a super hot topic right now, and worthy of our attention and examination. This conference is for all  who are interested in kit lit, whether teachers, librarians, students, parents, and, yes, authors and illustrators.

You can find more information here: http://bit.ly/1ErbbGu

And to register, scroll down that page and click on the link, or here: http://idcclw.com/

Boise in the spring is a magical place, and taking the time to get away from home and focus on your craft is worth every moment.


By Neysa CM Jensen
SCBWI regional advisor for Utah/southern Idaho

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 Today’s Diversity Read/Review falls into categories #1 and #2. The author Matt de la Peña  is half Mexican/half white and the illustrator Christian Robinson is African-American. Title: Last Stop Market Street Written by: Matt de la Peña Illustrated by: Christian Robinson Published by: G. … Continue reading →

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You can help make a difference by making a donation.

 

There are lots of things you can receive by contributing to the cause. Example: AGENT critiques and EDITOR critiques from editors at Big 5 publishing houses.

An unforgettable opportunity to have a private dinner in NYC with incredible bestselling & award-winning authors Jacqueline Woodson AND Matt de la Peña

Coming soon – a limited number of discounted registrations for Fans of SCBWI – including a VIP critique at their annual LA conference in 2015! Many thanks to Lin Oliver, Sara Rutenberg and Kim Turrisi for offering this. Can’t wait to see how quickly they go!

Here’s the link to the WNDB campaign: http://igg.me/at/diversebooks Maybe even find something you could give as a holiday gift with your donation.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

Filed under: Agent, authors and illustrators, children writing, Editors, Events, need to know, opportunity, Publishing Industry Tagged: Agent and Editor Critiques, Matt de la Pena, Private Dinner in NYC Jacqueline Woodson, SCBWI Discounted Registrations, We Nee Diverse Books

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Have you checked out the indiegogo for #WeNeedDiverseBooks? Matt de la Pena is such a great spokesman.

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/we-need-diverse-books


Diverse Campaign w Thanks Card from Undercurrent on Vimeo.

Here's what diva Melissa Walker recommends to encourage progress:

1. Request diverse books at your local library and bookstore. Make sure your booksellers and librarians know that you want to read about people from various backgrounds.
2. Join the Twitter activism with#WeNeedDiverseBooks -- the conversation is buzzing daily (onTumblr too).
3. Support the indiegogo campaign (video above, starring favorite authors like John Green, Matt de la Peña and Jacqueline Woodson) to help keep the movement growing.

One Founder of the movement, author Ellen Oh, explained to NPR, "We need the representation, but we also need white kids to read about us, to recognize us, and not push us off into the other...not to think of us as exotic or being so very different." Follow the hashtagand the tumblr to hear some powerful stories.

Even donating to the cause, less than a latte, can help the campaign. Think about it, rgz. As Matt says, "Books are mirrors and windows."

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author N.K. Jemisin

Will there be Latino authors in Big Book of Sci-Fi?

 

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The real question about Santa Barbara killings?

How some feel about diversity entering the SF/F world

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Matt de la Peña has released a new book. Infinity Ring Book 4: Curse of the Ancients is part of an MG series where each book is written by a different author. (A librarian’s nightmare to shelf!!)

Sera has a secret. She’s seen the future, and it is terrifying. Unfortunately, she can’t do anything to prevent the Cataclysm while stranded with Dak and Riq thousands of years in the past. Their only hope lies with the ancient Maya, a mysterious people who claim to know a great deal about the future. Is there more to these ancients than meets the eye?

I was surprised when he announced the release on Facebook because I hadn’t seen it coming. Looking at the age, it was recommending for ages 8-12. MG???

Sure, Matt wrote A Nation’s Hope: The Story of Boxing Legend Joe Louis and it appealing to younger readers, but having heard Matt speak twice, having read his books, I’d say his passion is YA.

He speaks about his own personal coming of age experience with his dad, how he connects with his high school readers and what it has been like growing up as a Latino, finding his own voice. He’s so personable that you realize storytelling comes natural to him.

And perhaps that’s how he found himself writing this book that publishers recommend for 8-12 year olds.Honestly, I’m glad to see anything Matt writes, I just can’t get over this 8-12 thing. Here’s why.

Publishers consider middle grade (MG) books written for ages 8-12. Upper middle grade books are 10-14 and young adult books are 12-18.

Educators identify elementary grades as 1-5, middle grades as 6-8 and high school as 9-12.

Depending on local laws and when birthdays fall, children can enter the first  grade at ages 5, 6 or 7.  Using, the median age, a child would be 6 in the first grade and 8 in the third grade. When a child enters middle grades (6^th grade) she would be 12 and 14 in the 9^th grade, a freshman in high school.

Essentially, they’re recommending Matt’s book for third graders. Up to my shoulders in YA books, I don’t quite have time to read Curse of the Ancients to see where I think it will fit best, but I may be able to work in The Living which releases in November. It’s a YA book, Matt’s fifth novel.

Matt de la Peña is the author of four critically-acclaimed young adult novels: Ball Don’t Lie, Mexican WhiteBoy, We Were Here and I Will Save You. He’s also the author of the award-winning picture book A Nation’s Hope: The Story of Boxing Legend Joe Louis (illustrated by Kadir Nelson). Matt received his MFA in creative writing from San Diego State University and his BA from the University of the Pacific where he attended school on a full basketball scholarship.

 de la Peña currently lives in Brooklyn NY.Matt received his MFA in creative writing from San Diego State University and his BA from the University of the Pacific, where he attended school on a full athletic scholarship for basketball. source

 

Filed under: male monday Tagged: Male Monday, Matt de la Pena, MG, YA

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If you're in Tucson next Tuesday (March 13, 2012), head over to the fundraiser for Save Ethnic Studies. Matt De La Pena is the featured guest. Matt's book, Mexican WhiteBoy is amongst those that former Mexican American Studies teachers can no longer teach "from a Mexican American Studies perspective."

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Tucson Unified School District has a long history of failing its Mexican American students. This is true elsewhere, too, across the country. The PBS documentary "Taking Back the Schools" (below) is primarily about Mexican Americans in East Los Angeles in the 1960s.

In the 1960s, tired of being tracked into vocational classes and feeling shame for being Mexican American, students in East LA decided to go before the school board asking for changes. They did a survey of fellow students asking them what they wanted to present to the school board. They wanted  bilingual instruction, Mexican American history courses, Mexican American teachers, and an end to corporal punishment. They also wanted access to college prep classes so they could go on to college.


Carmen Lomas Garza, author of In My Family/En Mi Familia, was a young child in the schools then. In the video (at the 5:45 mark) she talks of being made fun of when she took out her lunch of tacos with frijoles, meat, and rice. It was so bad that she didn't want to take that lunch to school anymore.

Her book won the Americas Picture Book Award in 1996, and in 1997 it received the Pure Belpre Honor Award, and was listed as a Notable Book by the International Reading Association.

In 1997, her book also won the Tomas Rivera Children's Book Award, which brings us back to the present and the ban of the Mexican American Studies Department in Tucson Unified School District. Tomas Rivera's books are among those that were taught in the MAS program.

Until it was shut down in January, the Tucson MAS program was doing precisely what students wanted in 1968, and it was doing precisely what college students are been taught in teacher education courses. Use multicultural literature and teach critical thinking!

The outcome? Students did better in school, graduated at higher rates, and went on to college at higher rates than students who were not in the MAS classes. They read Matt de la Pena's Mexican WhiteBoy.


Matt de la Pena

Matt de la Pena's Mexican WhiteBoy is amongst the books that were taught in the MAS literature courses, but it is more than that...  His book is mentioned on page 29 of the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) Kowal's decision about the program, in the section titled "Latino Literature." As such, it is evidence that the MAS program violates the law. Here's the text from that section:

Latino Literature
160. Drafts of the Pacing Guides for the MAS junior and senior Latino Literature courses demonstrate that elements of critical race theory and critical pedagogy encompass a significant portion of the course.
161. Propo

0 Comments on Chris Crutcher on Matt de la Pena's book being banned: "This is racism, plain and simple." as of 1/1/1900

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Guys Read (Thriller) edited by Jon Scieszka

Review by Chris Singer

About the editor:

Jon Scieszka is the National Ambassador for Children’s Literature emeritus and the bestselling author of more than twenty-five books for kids, including The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, Math Curse, Robot Zot!, and the Time Warp Trio series. Jon founded Guys Read to encourage a passion for reading among young boys, with the philosophy that boys love to read most when they are reading things they love. A former elementary school teacher, Jon lives in Brooklyn with his family.

About the book:

This is the second installment in Jon Scieszka’s Guys Read Library. If you’ve read volume one, Guys Read: Funny Business, you already know what you’re in store for: ten stories from young readers’ favorite writers. In Guys Read: Thriller, you’ll find a teenage terrorist, the world’s worst private detective, a roomful of snakes, and more, from the likes of M.T. Anderson, Patrick Carman, Gennifer Choldenko, Matt de la Pena, Margaret Peterson Haddix, Bruce Hale, Anthony Horowitz, Jarrett Krosoczka, Walter Dean Myers, and James Patterson, not to mention illustrations from Brett Helquist.

My take on the book:

This latest book in the Guys Read series is an incredibly entertaining anthology. I was really impressed with the diversity of the stories in this volume. The stories differ in style, location, ethnicity and moods. There’s a lot of variety in this collection and definitely something for every middle reader.

I was really pleased to see a few of my favorite authors included in this series (Walter Dean Myers and Jarrett Krosoczka). There were also a few authors in this anthology I wasn’t familiar with so their inclusion here was a nice introduction for me. I especially enjoyed Patrick Carman’s “Ghost Vision Glasses.” It was not only a terrific read, but a great way to end this collection. Another of my favorites was Matt De La Pena’s “Believing in Brooklyn.” De La Pena was completely new to me and this story has motivated me to check out more of his work.

Teachers and librarians should welcome this anthology into their classroom with open arms. The stories make excellent read-alouds and librarians can display other books written by the authors in this collection. Just maybe one of these stories could spark a middle reader to want to check out more books from an author they enjoyed, which is exactly the purpose of Jon Scieszka’s Guys Read series. Every story included in here has the potential to do that, which makes it a must-have in opinion.

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So let’s get a grasp on what exactly it is I’m talking about here.  Day of Dialog.  A day when School Library Journal and roughly 1.5 billion children’s book publishers (read: 16, give or take) get together and attendees (who are mostly children’s librarians and children’s booksellers) get to witness a variety of interesting panels and previews of upcoming children’s books for the Fall season.  It tends to be held on the Monday before BookExpo so that it doesn’t conflict with anything going on at that time.  And since my library was closed that day for it’s big time Centennial celebration, I thought to myself, “Why not go?  I could report on what went on and have some fun along the way.”

Of course I had forgotten that I would be typing all that occurred on Dead-Eye the Wonder Laptop: Capable of carrying at least two hours of charge in its battery . . . and then dying altogether.  So it was that I spent much of the day seeking out outlets and either parking myself next to them or watching my charging laptop warily across a crowded room.  Hi-ho the glamorous life.

I was hardly the only person reporting on the day.  Swift like the bunnies are the SLJ posts on the matter including the article BEA 2011: Paterson, Handler, Gidwitz a Huge Hit at SLJ’s Day of Dialog.

Day of Dialog is useful in other ways as well.  It means getting galleys you might otherwise not have access to.  It means sitting in a nice auditorium with a belly full of muffin.  Interestingly the only problem with sitting in the audience when you are pretty much nine months pregnant (aside from the whole theoretical “lap” part of “laptop computer”) is that you start eyeing the panelists’ water bottles with great envy.  I brought my own, quickly went through it, and then found myself wondering at strategic points of the day and with great seriousness “If I snuck onto the stage between speakers, do you think anyone would notice if I downed the remains of Meghan McCarthy’s bottled water?”  I wish I could say I was joking about this.

Brian Kenney, me boss o’ me blog and editor of SLJ, started us off with a greeting.  He noted that he had placed himself in charge of keeping everything on track and on schedule.  This seemed like a hazardous job because much of the day was dedicated to previews of upcoming books, and there is no good way to gently usher a sponsor off of a stage.  Nonetheless, Brian came equipped with a small bell.  Throughout the day that little bell managed to have a near Pavlovian influence on the panelists.  Only, rather than make them drool, it caused them to get this look of abject fear that only comes when you face the terror of the unknown.  For some of them, anyway.  Others didn’t give a flying hoot.

“It wasn’t wallpapering.”
Keynote Speaker Katherine Paterson

Luann Toth came after Brian to introduce our keynote speaker though, as she pointed out, “Does anyone really need to introduce Katherine Paterson?”  Point taken.  Now upon entering the auditorium this day, each attendee had been handed a signed copy of a new novel by Ms. Paterson and her h

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Dark Dude Oscar Hijuelos

Set in the late 60s, Rico is fed up with being the only Cubano in Harlem who's blond, light-skinned (he has freckles!) and hazel-eyed. Couple that with the fact that he was really sick as a child and spent a lot of time in hospitals and subsequently speaks messed up Spanish, and people have a really hard time believing Rico's Latino at all. He's sick of being beat up for his looks. He's sick of the kids at his school venting their frustration at whitey on him. When his friend Jimmy becomes a serious junky, Rico decides it's time to take a cue from Huck Finn, and runs away to a buddy's farm in Wisconsin.

In Wisconsin, Rico blends in and doesn't need to worry about his heritage, although he does miss his family. But Wisconsin isn't always the escape he thought it would be.

I loved, loved, loved Rico's voice and his believable vulnerability. This is a long book and it just flew by, but not in that fluffy-fast-read sort of way, but in that way that I just couldn't put it down. It wasn't gripping the way a thriller or mystery is, but I just wanted to keep hanging out with Rico and Jimmy and Gilberto and everyone else on the farm. One of Hijuelos's other book, Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love is an adult title that's been on my to-read list for awhile. It's getting moved way way way up.

Mexican WhiteBoy Matt de la Pena

With a Mexican father and white mother, Danny has never felt like he fits in. When he's in his predominately white neighborhood and school, he's just that Mexican kid, but when he goes down to National City to spend the summer with his father's family, he's the white kid.

Still, this summer, getting to know his father's family, playing baseball, will give Danny many answers about who he is.

This is a hard one to review. I mean, it's extremely well-written. It's an excellent book. There are a million and one things right with it. There is very little wrong with it except that it's about boys. And baseball. An excellent book that a lot of people will love, but just not my thing.

And that's ok.

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