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Libraries nationwide will highlight America’s rich literary history this week by exhibiting novels and book publishers that have been banned over the years.

In homage to the American Library Association’s annual Banned Books Week, UCSB’s library will be spotlighting books ranging from Harper Lee’s classic To Kill a Mockingbird to Stephanie Meyer’s best-selling Twilight series. The event provides students with the opportunity to study ideas and literary topics that have been repressed through history.

Aside from drawing attention to the practice of banning books, Jane Faulkner, Davidson’s librarian for the English and French collections, said UCSB’s nod to the ALA also reveals the appeal of forbidden fruit.

“[For the display in the library lobby] we actually had 25 or 30 copies of banned books,” Faulkner said. “Delightfully, half of the books that we had originally put on display are now [checked out]. Ironically, once a book has been banned, it flies off the shelf.”

Although ALA has hosted the event in years past, this is the first time that UCSB’s library has chosen to present an exhibition in honor of the week.

According to Janet Martorana, Collections Outreach chair — the committee that compiled the display — the exhibition allows the student body to appreciate the importance of banned books.

“I want students to read those banned books,” Martorana said. “It’s important to hear thoughts that one doesn’t necessarily agree with because it shows the bigger picture.”

Additionally, Martorana said the books, ranging from contemporary banned books of book publishers to infamous classics, were all chosen to reiterate the importance of being open minded at a liberal college.

“These are important thoughts not just in a democracy or society, but certainly on a university campus and in a free open library,” Martorana said.

The exhibition also presents surprising statistics about the types of books that are normally banned and the reason for their censorship.

“It’s always striking to learn why a book has been banned,” Faulkner said. “[For example,] Twilight has been banned for ‘religious viewpoint.’”

Breanna Smith, a fourth-year English major, said ALA’s Banned Books Week is fundamental to the preservation of intellectual freedom.

“I think that it’s important to highlight that books are being banned, because much of the time people are not aware that it’s being done,” Smith said. “We assume in today’s society that we can do or watch whatever we want, but it’s important to demonstrate that there is still censorship going on in America.”

Banned Books At Nationwide US Libraries

Coming in with fall are three major events at the Alamogordo Public Library Ð Banned Books Week, the One City One Book program, and the Fall Used Book Sale.

Banned Books Week is underway, and runs through Saturday. The local highlight will be the costume gala from 6-8 p.m. Wednesday at the library.

Plan your Halloween costume early, and let it double as an entry in the gala. Dress as a character from a favorite banned book. One of last year’s winners was library supporter Nola Jones, who came in mourning clothes as Aunt Polly from “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer,” by Mark Twain. Entry is free and refreshments will be provided.

“Anyone can attend, they don’t have to wear costumes,” said Amy Rivers, president of the Friends of the Library, which sponsors the costume gala.

Banned Books Week was started in 1982 by Chicago librarian Judith Kr

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This might be a first! The book Sleepy Kittens, labeled "as seen in the film Despicable Me from Universal Pictures," is a movie tie-in title that is really and truly featured in the actual movie. Talk about amazing and clever product placement. I love it when characters in a movie read or discuss books. When Meg Ryan's character mentioned Noel Streatfeild's children's books in You've Got Mail, I sure wanted to read them all. I bet I wasn't the only one. The 3-D, animated comedy Despicable Me releases in theaters today (July 9th) and, yes, the board book with cute finger puppet kittens is in the movie.

Three little kittens loved to play. They had fun in the sun all day. Then their mother came out and said, "Time for kittens to go to bed!"

Sleepy Kittens (Despicable Me) by Cinco Paul, Ken Daurio, Illustrated by Eric Guillon; LB Kids (May 2010); ISBN 9780316083812; 10 pages; Board Book
Book Source: Review copy provided by publisher

In Sleepy Kittens, a pink mama cat announces that it is bedtime for her three chubby little kittens. The kittens have other ideas and try their best to stall the inevitable. Smart mama cat, not to be outdone, has a few tricks up her pink paw and lovingly soothes them to sleep. The short text is written in rhyming verse.

If you watch this movie trailer, about two minutes into the video the Sleepy Kitten book appears. Gru, the villain, is reading the book to the orphaned girls. Ok, ok...so the actual book isn't exactly the same as the one in the movie but it is pretty darn close. The three finger puppets are there but you don't manipulate them through holes like Gru does. And, the text isn't exactly the same either but still it is pretty cool that kids can actually read the story for themselves and interact with the finger puppet kittens. Kids can even make the kittens drink the milk out of the milk bowl, just like in the movie. My kindergarten-aged daughter thought the book was fun to play with and even made up her own story while operating the puppets. My toddler son isn't able to manipulate the puppets as well as his older sister but seems amused by this novelty. One thing I noticed -- the roly-poly kittens have such short little legs I'm surprised they can do anything but sleep! The three finger puppets, made out of flat, felt-like material, are glued into the back cover and cannot be removed.

Other LB Kids Despicable Me movie tie-in books include My Dad the Super Villain

42 Comments on Despicable Me: Sleepy Kittens Book Review & Awesome Giveaway, last added: 7/13/2010

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"As Ana walked down the hall to her office, flipping through the pages of Your Quince magazine, something wilted inside her. The young girls in the magazine looked like women, not girls. Sí, her little girl was becoming a woman. She knew Carmen would grow up one day, but with all the drama and Carmen working to send her poor mother to an early grave, Ana still found herself thinking, 'How did it happen so soon?'" - Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz by Belinda Acosta

First of all, to understand the events in Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz, you need to know what the word quinceañera means. It's a celebration or coming-of-age party held on a girl's fifteenth birthday that typically begins with a religious ceremony. And it is apparently a good way for mothers and daughters to bond. At least, that is what Ana Ruiz hopes will happen as she tries to plan her daughter Carmen's quinceañera. Ever since Ana separated from her husband, Esteban, she's not been able to connect with Carmen. Rather, Carmen blames Ana completely for the separation and refuses to hold any sort of meaningful conversation with her mother. Ana's son, Diego and her niece, Bianca try to help smooth things over between mother and daughter, but despite the quinceañera planning, their relationship remains strained. Ana wants to tell her daughter the truth about Esteban, but she doesn't want to break daddy's girl's heart.

While Ana struggles to regain her daughter's love, she also struggles to regain confidence in herself. She has always been the strong one. She was the first girl in her family to go to college, and she managed to raise two kids at the same time. Yet, her separation from Esteban completely shattered her life. She doesn't know if she should try to reconcile or move on. To complicate matters further, a handsome and suave artist named Carlos Montalvo enters her work life. Over the course of planning the quinceañera, both Carmen and Ana grow up in their own separate ways.

When I picked up my copy of the book Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz, I was caught off guard. "Como se dice?" -- Umm, let me ask my translator, i.e. computer. Most of the book is written in English with a few Spanish terms effortlessly thrown in every so often to spice things up. While you can understand the story perfectly fine without knowing a bit of Spanish, I found it helpful to refer to my translator every once and awhile. That said, I'm glad I stepped outside my normal reading sphere because I learned about another culture and their traditions. Traditions like quinceañeras.

Using subtle humor and an almost narrative writing style at times, Acosta manages to successfully portray a strained parent/child relationship in her book, just as the colorful cover suggests. (Though I don't think Carmen's quinceañera dress was red?) There are a lot of tense situations and many situations where it is evident that the characters deeply love one another. This would make an appropriate YA cross-over book, especially for those interested in bilingual reads. Acosta's depictions of strained parent/child relationships are realistic, as are her portrayals of the strong emotions and resulting family stress that occurs when parents separate. At times I got frustrated at Ana because she refused to level with her daughter and discuss facts. However, as a parent I can also understand how she would wish to shield her child from all things ugly. Acosta succeeds in writing an appealing and touching book that explores the relationship between a mother and a teenage daughter.

Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz by Belinda Acosta. Grand Central Publishing (August 2009); 336 pages; ISBN 9780446540513
Book Source: Review copy provided for free by Hachette Book Group

Related Links:
Belinda Acosta - Author Website
Discussion Guide
Hachette Early Birds Blog Tours List of all the participating bloggers in Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz August Blog Tour
SpanglishBaby post on Quinceañeras (includes info about Verizon Wireless Quinceañera party giveaway worth $45,000)
Win a copy! This review is part of Hachette Early Birds Blog Tours, and Hachette Book Group has kindly offered to giveaway (3) copies of Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz to 3 Brimful Curiosities readers. 3 COPIES!

To enter, leave any comment relevant to this post. Thanks! Just out of curiosity, have you ever attended a quinceañera?

• For contact purposes, if you are a non-blogger or your email is not accessible in your blog profile, please leave a valid email address within the comment section.
• Contest is open to US and Canada only
• Contest ends on Monday, August 31st, 2009 at 11:59 PM CST.
• Winner will be chosen at random

Three ways to gain extra entries (Maximum total entries is 4):
1st extra entry: Follow Me! or subscribe by email or RSS reader
2nd extra entry: Blog about this contest then post your link in the comment section.
3rd extra entry: Follow me on twitter (iambrimful) and tweet about the contest.

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"I don't want a posh dog. A blow-dry-when washed dog. I don't want a bouncy dog. A jump-up-and-pounce-me dog." - I don't want a posh dog! by Emma Dodd

I conducted an experiment. For the first time since I've been reading stories to my daughter, I gave her a book that she had never seen before and asked her to tell me the storyline, using the pictures as her guide. She is a preschooler and doesn't read yet, though she can recite many, many books from memory. I thought the book I Don't Want a Posh Dog! written and illustrated by Emma Dodd seemed like a good candidate for my experiment, with its action filled, expressive and large illustrations. She took her time paging through the book, carefully considering each dog-filled picture. Her verdict? "The little girl is saying, 'Hmmm, What dog I want?'"

Impressive! My daughter nailed the gist of the story right on the head. That shows that Emma Dodd knows how to illustrate a picture book. The illustrations show a little girl as she searches for the perfect dog all the while discussing the traits she doesn't want her dog to possess. No uppity poodles or stylish purse dogs for her and especially no mean, growling, biting dogs. She just wants to find the right dog for her. The story, told in short rhyming verses, describes multiple dogs using silly and funny adjectives like scritchy, scratchy and greedy, pleady. Many different comically illustrated dogs are pictured, and, for better or worse, the story includes some generalizations regarding certain dog breeds.

Emma Dodd lives in England and has illustrated a large number of books including the "Amazing Baby" board book series. In I Don't Want a Posh Dog! her adorable illustrations show texture sometimes though the use of different mediums including an almost collage like style. This is great book for dog-loving preschoolers, and is especially appropriate for families that are planning to search for the perfect family dog. (Cat lovers should check out Dodd's I Don't Want a Cool Cat).

I Don't Want a Posh Dog by Emma Dodd. Little, Brown Young Readers (June 2009); 32 pages; ISBN 9780316033909
Book Source: Review copy provided for free by Hachette Book Group

Related Links:
I Don't Want a Posh Dog printable activity sheets [pdf]

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It means: People of color.

The Carl Brandon Society blog has been in existence almost as long as La Bloga. Their stated purpose: "dedicated to improving the visibility of people of colour in the speculative genres of science ffiction, fantasy, horror, magical realism, etc." This week in an article entitled "Magazines and Editors Who Want More Diversity in Their Slushpiles" Delia Sherman (I believe) explains how she asked magazine editors which of them was looking for more diversity in submissions to their mags.

Go here for more info.

I don't know about you, but my submissions are already sitting at the bottom of too many slush piles, as it is. I've probably received as many responses as I have never-answereds in my lifetime as a writer.

The other problem I have with announcements like this is that usually for editors on the other side of the Mississippi, color = black. Oh, maybe a PR makes it in every now and then, but Easterners sometimes don't know what a Chicano is, even after you explain it to them. "Oh, you mean you're a Mexican."

Jokes aside, Delia's mission is a noble one, and perhaps will help one of our readers to finally get that really great story published. There's a handful of well-known periodicals on the list. Go check the site.

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

And the winners are:

Here are the winners of the five copies of The Disappearance of Irene Dos Santos by Margaret Mascarenhas that will be provided by the Hachette Book Group. Go here for the original contest rules.

They are (more drumrolls): Emily S., Renee G, AValenzuela, BellaDonna1975 and Patti! (Yeah, I know Patti already won once, but these prizes are too hot to not share.)

If the winners will send me their U.S. surface mail address, no P.O. boxes please, Hachette Book Group will get them in the mail. (I'll also be contacting you individually.)

Our thanks to Hachette for providing these copies. And hope you enjoy them!

RudyG

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Built a contest, and they didn't come . . .

My attempt to give away a copy of the new Drollerie Press anthology, Needles & Bones, didn't produce a rush of contestants. It was supposed to officially end tomorrow, but I will invoke my right as contributor and extend it for one more week. Given that the original rules appear to have asked for too much, I'm changing those as well.

Since today's post replaces Manuel Ramos's usual wealth of literary fare, the new rules are simple: in the Comments below, submit the names of three of Ramos's novels, spelled correctly, and I will randomly draw the name of one winner. Contest ends (a la verdad) next Saturday, July 4th.

How 'bout a Latino book giveaway, instead?

While I'm in the mood to press my luck, Hachette Book Group has provided us with cinco--get that: 5!--copies of The Disappearance of Irene Dos Santos by Margaret Mascarenhas.

Here's a description of the book from the publisher's website:

"Irene dos Santos disappeared at age 15. Believed to have drowned while on holiday with her best friend, Lily Martinez, her body was never found. Now, years later, she appears ghostlike in Lily's dreams, prompting a quest for the truth behind her disappearance.

"Mysteriously, Lily, eight-months pregnant with her first child, slips and falls on the same day that the statue of Maria Lionza, Patron Saint of their Venezuelan town, cracks in two. Confined to her bed, Lily is surrounded by her family and closest friends, who agree that a Novena to Maria Lionza will guide the baby's spirit safely into the world.

"Together, through their nine nights of prayer, each offers a story to entertain Lily and her baby. What emerges is a vivid picture of Venezuela during a time of revolution and uncertainty and the unraveling of the mystery behind Irene dos Santos."

To avoid the errors of my last contest, the rules this time are much simpler: in the Comments below indicate the color of the female's dress (of the cover) and what country she's likely in. I'll randomly draw five winners from the correct entries, but they will have to provide us with a U.S. or Canadian address, not a P.O. box, to receive the prize. Contest ends July 11, 2009. (Wait to hear if you've won before providing your address.)

N.B.: for the only contestant so far in the Needles & Bones contest, even if she doesn't win that, I will send a special surprise for her effort to date.

Native American Joe Montoya Receives Award

And speaking of contests, from out Califas way come this news:
Calaca Press, the Red CalacArts Collective and Red Salmon Arts proudly announce that the winner of the First raúlrsalinas Guerrilla Chapbook Poetry Contest is New Mexico writer Vernon “Joe” Montoya.

In a close contest, judged by University of Minnesota Chicano Studies professor Louis G. Mendoza, Ph.D, Red Salmon Arts Executive Director Rene Valdez and Calaca Press publisher Brent E. Beltrán, Mr. Montoya edged out runner up Jonathan Gomez of East Los Angeles. By winning the first raúlrsalinas Guerrilla Chapbook Poetry Contest Joe Montoya will have his work published in chapbook form by Red CalacArts Publications and Red Salmon Press, receive 100 copies of the chapbook, a $500 honorarium and travel to and from book release readings in San Diego, California and Austin, Texas.

Joe Montoya’s poetry reflects the heartbreaking realities of life on the rez. Though pain and loss are a recurring theme his work also presents the beauty and joy of being Native in 21st century America. “We are proud to have him join our Calacaverse,” said Brent E. Beltrán of Calaca Press. “His voice is an important voice that needs to be shared with all.” Vernon “Joe” Montoya is a young Native American poet and short story writer born in Albuquerque, New Mexico and raised on the Santa Ana and San Felipe Pueblos. He was incarcerated on drug offenses and used his time in prison to read and write poetry. Joe has won several slam competitions and reads, lectures and teaches workshops in jails, prisons, juvenile facilities, middle and high schools. He is currently a student at the University of New Mexico and works with youth as a drug preventionist.

Calaca Press and Red Salmon Arts looks forward to publishing this talented young voice. The untitled chapbook will feature cover art by San Antonio, Texas artist Gerry Quetzatl Garcia. Stayed tuned for publication date and chapbook release reading information.

The raúlrsalinas Guerrilla Chapbook Poetry Contest was created to honor the lifework and interests of Xicanindio poet activist raúlrsalinas (1934-2008). By organizing this contest Calaca Press, the Red CalacArts Collective and Red Salmon Arts hope to inspire a new generation of activist writers to carry on the work of raúlrsalinas. The contest is supported in part by the Ford Foundation, JP Morgan Chase and Southwest Airlines through a grant from the NALAC Fund for the Arts. .

(Calaca Press is a Chicano family-owned small publishing house dedicated to publishing and producing unknown, emerging, and established progressive Chicano and Latino voices. With a commitment to social justice and human rights Calaca Press strives to bring about change through the literary arts.)

Ramos is off vacationing or surfing or something somewhere out there, but will return in July. Should you have the luck to find him in your village or monastery, please share a bit of pan seco or sangria fria with him, as he has just come from Denver, which seems to have global-warmed into Portland's humid weather. It's rained or tornadoed for weeks now. Everything's growing, even the rocks, but it's all soggy here.

Es todo,
RudyG

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On behalf of Hachette Book Group, I'll be hosting a Latino Book Month giveaway for the whole month of May!

Not here, but on TheExaminer.com.

In order to be eligible to win, all you have to do is leave a comment at the end of my Examiner post or any of my posts from May 1-31. You can leave as many comments as you wish and as many as you wish. The more you comment, the higher your chance to win.

I'll be drawing a winner at the end of each week (on Sunday) and each winner will receive the whole set of 5 books listed here.

I hope you'll stop by TheExaminer for a chance to win these great books!

Thanks,
Mayra Calvani

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