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Book trailers get based on all sorts of things, but I have never encountered one that took its cue from the book’s own cover.  And not in a cheap way either.  This rather breathtaking trailer for Adam Gidwitz’s A Tale Dark and Grimm somehow manages to be precisely the right length with precisely the right tone (difficult in and of itself) and on top of all that feels . . . professional.  That voiceover is fantastic.  Can’t wait to find out who does the audiobook.  Or did one already come out?

I’m a hands on kind of children’s librarian.  I know that I have Pages to shelve books for me, but I really like getting in there and keeping the middle grade fiction in line.  It gives me a sense of peace.  It also gives me a good sense of what’s out there (and is probably why I had at least heard of Moon Over Manifest before it won the big gold).  When you shelve fiction you begin to wonder about the folks you’re putting together.  Has Cornelia Funke ever met Neil Gaiman?  I mean their books sit right next to one another.  Does Tom Birdeye know Jeanne Birdsall?  And then there are the authors that take up large swaths of space on my shelves but that I’ve never met in person or even seen a picture of.  Wendelin Van Draanen is an excellent example of this.  I dutifully tend to her Sammy Keyes books, but who the heck is that woman?  Well, fortunately for me Mr. Schu was on hand to snap some video of the author herself as she discusses the last Sammy Keyes book and what makes her cry.

Thanks to @MrSchuReads for the link.

Dutch author Truus Matti recently won a Batchelder Honor for her remarkable book Departure Time.  Recently I learned that she happens to be married to one Wouter Van Reek, the creator of another Dutch title Keepvogel (translated in the states by Enchanted Lion Press as “Coppernickel”).  Here you can see one such story brought to life.  Pretty lovely, I must say.

Thanks to Claudia Zoe Bedrick for the link.

Librarians and teachers have one thing in common: When authors and illustrators come to visit with our kids we sometimes have no idea if they’re going to be stellar or if they’re going to make us ashamed to be members of our respective professions.  So to see Barney Saltzberg having so much fun with the kids in conjunction with his book Beautiful Oops . . . well, it does the heart good.