I mention to folks that in my new job I actually don’t work day-to-day with children’s books all that often anymore and they wonder how I’m coping. As it happens, I’m just ducky. Since my spare hours are just as chock full of kidlit as before, I honestly don’t feel like I’m missing too much. I still read my reviews and get my galleys. But occasionally something will be published and I’ll be hit by an overpowering wave of self-pity. This week’s, “Why Didn’t I See That?!” kvetch-fest? Peanuts: A Tribute to Charles M. Schulz by Charles M. Schulz, illustrated by Matt Groening, Raina Telgemeier, and Jeffrey Brown amongst MANY others. And it’s a 2015 title at that. Waaaaaaaant.
- Meanwhile, another very cool looking book was recently released. Jules at the Kirkus version of 7-Imp has the skinny on The Complete Alice a.k.a. what you can get me for Christmas.
- I think I could be happy if I just spent the rest of my life reading snarky reviews of that darn rabbit book. First there was Travis. Then Roger. And yes, I know that the more we talk about the bunny monstrosity the more time it will take before it goes away. But we have such a lovely literary community there of mutual appreciation that when we are actually allowed to dislike something, it has a tendency to go to our heads. Wascally wabbit.
- Sure, they’re a mammoth publishing entity of massive production and countless staff but . . . awww. Look what Harper Collins did for Harold’s birthday. Ain’t it sweet?
Hmm. Sounds good at first. The headline reads, “Tired of stereotypical characters in books for girls, this dad wrote his own.” Then it shows a book of various professions helmed by women in an abecedarian fashion. It’s no Rad American Women A to Z but it’ll do. Except . . . when you get to “L”. I don’t generally get all hot under the collar when folks stereotype my profession, but COME ON, MAN. Shoot, it’s images like that that kept me out of the profession in the first place.
- File this one away in the It Isn’t Just Me drawer. Some of you may be aware that before I post an episode of Fuse #8 TV, a series where I interview authors and illustrators in a free and easy manner, I always begin with a bit of “Reading (Too Much Into) Picture Books”. This is a series where I acknowledge (without actually saying outright) that when a parent reads a picture book too many times to a small child, they start to conjure up some pretty crazy theories about the text. Well, thanks in large part to a recent New Yorker profile of Sandra Boynton by Ian Bogost, I see that I am not alone. I’m actually in awe of his take on But Not the Hippopotamus. The North America vs. Africa vs. Central America theory? Brilliant! By the way, my most ambitious re-interpretation will preface my Fuse #8 TV episode this coming Thursday. Be prepared for a truly wacky one.
- Okay. That’s it. No one’s allowed to quit their blogs anymore. I like the blogs that I like. I may not check them every day but I like the reliability of visiting them and seeing something new. And I get very sad indeed when the best ones fall by the wayside. I mean, let’s say someone walked up to you and asked, “What’s the best children’s literature blog where real kids review real books . . . and it’s fun to read?” You would answer without hesitation (if you were me, that is), “Aaron Zenz’s Bookie Woogie blog, of course!” Well, here’s the thing. The blog? It’s had a nice run. Seven years worth, in fact. And now it’s done. Over. Kaputski. And we’re all just a little bit sadder today. *sigh*
- Me Stuff: First off, I want to bow down low and thank profusely all the folks who came out for my joint SCBWI-IL/Center for Teaching through Children’s Books welcoming party last week. It was, without a doubt, the BEST welcome party I have ever had, bar none. I even signed someone’s cookie (that’s a first!). If you live in the Chicago area and missed it, never fear. You could come on out to EPL and see me present on the topic of picture books rather soon. Yes, the very kind and talented Brian Wilson has allowed me to join him on his annual Best Picture Books Presentation. I’ll get to talk about some of my too little lauded favorites of 2015, which is just a joy. Finally, Chicago Magazine interviewed me recently. They’re using the same photo from my Chicago Tribune interview, which is confusing, but the talk is entirely different. It was awfully fun to do too.
In my interview I actually mention The Guinness Book of World Records a fair amount. Rather appropriate since I recently learned that the book Farmer Will Allen and the Growing Table has been selected by the Points of Light Foundation as the book to break Guinness World Record for the number of children being read to in a 24-hour period. Part of the Foundation’s “Read Across the Globe” initiative to raise awareness on the global literacy crisis, volunteers all over the world will read the book next Monday, October 19. Here’s a news article and a tv news report that say more about it. Thanks to Philip Lee for the links.
- Did you see? They’re releasing Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman. Wouldn’t be particularly notable aside from the fact that it’s always nice to see diverse books back in print . . . except something’s a bit different from the last time it was printed. Did you notice what it was? Debbie Reese most certainly did.
- In case you missed it (like me) there was a new brouhaha last week. This time it involved author Meg Rosoff. There’s a recap over at Reading While White which breaks it down. Aren’t recaps great? There should be more of them out there these days.
- Each year I try to write a review of at least one self-published book. It can be a tricky affair since so many of them make common missteps. That’s why I really appreciated the ShelfTalker piece When a Self-Published Book Is Done Right. There really are some great ones out there. Finding them is often the struggle, but when they work, they work.
- By the way, I just want to give a shout out to The Curious Reader Store over in Glen Rock, NJ. My buddy Tucker Stone was recently there and he mentioned that they had a particular love for Wild Things there. Thanks, guys (but particularly Sally)! We do appreciate it.
The title of this piece is 15+ Book-Inspired Pieces Of Jewelry For Bookworms, which you’ll see is a bit of a stretch. Still and all, I do like these Labyrinth earrings:
Morning, folks! I do believe my comments feature is busted at the moment, so please don’t be alarmed if you can’t get anything to go through. It’s frustrating for me as well. Feels like an echo chamber in here. Hm.
- Speaking of fellow SLJ blogs, I admit that I don’t often read the excellent Adult Books 4 Teens since the topic isn’t really in my wheelhouse. Still, recently Mark Flowers had a great post up on The Problem with Stories About Amnesia Solved by Robert Glancy and Jason Bourne. He gave a nice shout out to my husband’s blog Cockeyed Caravan in the post saying, “Anyone who cares about narrative, movies, or both should be reading Matt Bird’s Cockeyed Caravan blog. He spends most of his time there deconstructing the narrative structure of Hollywood movies and explaining how and why movies do (and don’t) work. But while he only discusses movies (and usually big-budget Hollywood ones at that), his insights are invaluable for anyone interested in the way narrative works in any kind of fiction. I’ve cited his ideas many times over on my personal blog and in conversations with other book lovers.” Love you, Mark! Thanks!
- And since I’m just on a bloggers-discussing-bloggers kick, I was so pleased to hear that Sue Bartle, Mary Ann Cappiello, Marc Aronson, Kathleen Odean, and Myra Zarnowski are restarting the excellent Common Corps blog Uncommon Corps. In an era where so many people are desperate for CCSS info, we’re all desperate for intelligent conversation on the topic. This blog provides that, as well as amazing curricular tie-ins you might not have otherwise known about. Read Compare & Contrast for a taste of what I mean.
- Awww. The Moomin characters are now regular dining companions of lonely Japanese restaurant attendees. I’d be game for eating with one. Just don’t seat me with Little My. I don’t trust that gal. Thanks to mom for the link.
- Hm. Maybe it’s a good thing I’ll be missing out on this year’s Book Expo. Granted, it’s exhausting even in the best of times, but I still get a bit of a kick out of it. Of course, this year there’s been a bit of a brouhaha with BookCon (which I have never even been aware of before). One of the problems with the internet is the fact that when controversies arise, few are willing to recap the troubles. Fortunately the Melville House post Wear shades to BookCon, it’ll be blindingly white in there tells you everything you need to know. And more!
- “When white writers come to me and ask if it’s OK for them to write about people of color, it seems as if they’re asking for my blessing. I can’t give them my blessing because I don’t speak for other people of color. I only speak for myself, and I have personal stakes in specific kinds of narratives.” Since author Malinda Lo co-founded Diversity in YA she’s been getting a lot of these questions over the years. Her piece Should white people write about people of color? is your required reading of the day. Many thanks to Phil Nel for pointing it out to me.
- By the way, in the course of looking at Malinda’s work I discovered the blog Disability in Kidlit which, somehow, I’d never run across before. Since it’s been around since June 2013 it’s hardly new, but I’m still going to call a New Blog Alert on it, since I’ve only just discovered it myself. It’s a blog about “Reviews, guest posts, and discussions about the portrayal of disabilities in MG/YA fiction.” There are a couple books out this year that I’d love their opinion of.
- Oh! This happened. So I’ll admit that I’m more of a podcast listener than a radio listener. And when NYPL’s lovely PR department asked if I’d be interested in talking on the Leonard Lopate show, I confess I didn’t quite know who he was. Fortunately I learned pretty quickly, and even was lucky enough to meet his replacement Andy Borowitz instead (whom I had heard of since he moderated the National Book Awards the year I got to go). Our talk is up and it’s called Our Favorite Children’s Stories. Mostly a lot of talk about classics, but I was able to work in some shout-outs for three more recent books. The comments section is where the recommendations and memories are really hopping, though. Good stuff is to be found there.
Take a gander at this article on WWI librarian uniforms and one thing becomes infinitely clear: Librarians during The Great War has it DOWN in terms of clothing, man. Look at that style. That look! That form! Oh, what the heck. Let’s bring them back! At the very least I’d love an ALA-issued arm patch. Thanks to AL Direct for the link.
Actually, this pairs rather well with that last piece. Sayeth Bookriot, Enough With the “Sexy Library” Thing Already. Amen.
That they are seriously considering making a film out of A Monster Calls is amazing enough to me as it is. That it may potentially star Felicity Jones and Liam Neeson? Having a harder time wrapping my head around that one. Thanks to PW Children’s Bookshelf for the link!
In case you missed it the Américas Award for Children’s & Young Adult Literature was announced recently. The winners? Parrots Over Puerto Rico illustrated by Susan Roth and co-authored by Susan Roth and Cindy Trumbore won the award proper while Diego Rivera: An Artist for the People by Susan Goldman Rubin and Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote illustrated and written by Duncan Tonatiuh took home the honors. Lots of great Honorable Mentions too, so check it out.
Whoo boy. The term “mansplaining” just seems loaded to the gills. That said, this piece from Inside Higher Ed tackles the definition itself with a look at the film version of The Wizard of Oz. I always liked the Scarecrow best too, and assumed that when Dorothy grew up she’d end up with Hunk. Feel free to pick apart the various ramifications behind that bit of childhood matchmaking, if you will.
I don’t usually quote from the Cynopsis Kids newsletters, and technically neither of these have much to do with children’s books, but there were two recent pieces that concerned children’s entertainment that I thought you might like to know about as much as I did.
Get ready for Hulu‘s first original kids series. Debuting this Friday is Doozers, the Fraggle Rock spinoff produced by the Jim Henson Co. that packs a full 52 episodes and will be available advertiser-free on both Hulu and Hulu Plus. The preschool series revolved around an animated gaggle of kids called The Pod Squad– Spike, Molly Bolt, Flex and Daisy Wheel–who learn to design and build different objects. Other Hulu Kids content includes Fraggle Rock, Pokemon and SpongeBob.
In a move more in line with kids’ bedtimes, beginning Tuesday, April 29, new eps of Syfy‘s original series Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge will air at 9p vs. their current 10p Tuesday slot. The competition series features 10 aspiring creature creators competing to out-imagine one another in challenges where they will build everything from mechanical characters to whimsical beasts. The stakes are high. Winner walks with $100,000 and a contract working at the world-renowned Creature Shop.
I think my brother-in-law Steve sent me this one. Don’t know where it’s from but I sort of adore it. Wouldn’t mind one of my own.
Ruh-roh. I’ve been having too much fun earning a living to leave enough time for blogging. Time yet again for a super quickie point-by-point-without-the-details Fusenews! Hold onto your hats . . .
Who are the artists overlooked by the Caldecott? Elizabeth Bluemle has the scoop.
An East Harlem bookstore needs your help! Thanks to Heather Scott for the link.
- Everything in this Horn Book article Board-book-a-palooza by Cynthia K. Ritter I agree with. Everything.
- Speaking of HB, Roger’s blog has a new format. Love that bow-tied avatar of his. Who drew it, I wonder?
- Don Tate has a fun piece about his time at the Highlights first illustrators intensive Founders workshop. He happened to stay in the same cabin that I did when I visited last summer. I had no idea I’d stayed where Floyd Cooper had. Fabulous!
- Don’t get me wrong. I love Where’s Waldo but how dedicated am I? Not this dedicated. Yeesh! Thanks to Molly O’Neill for the link.
- Dunno. If I were to find a title for this story of the 1500 pound Mo Willems sculpture of a pachyderm I think I would have gone with “Elephant and Piggie Iron”. But that’s me.
- Who knew that random stills of that old Spider-Man cartoon could be this fun? Particularly when they involve librarians.
Kseniya Yarosh, I tip my hat to thee.
- That’s it. I’m making my own Funny Book prize. This time for American books. Because, quite frankly, they’re hard to write and I’m jealous of the Brits for getting to have their Roald Dahl Funny Prize.<
Hmm. Sounds good at first. The headline reads, “Tired of stereotypical characters in books for girls, this dad wrote his own.” Then it shows a book of various professions helmed by women in an abecedarian fashion. It’s no Rad American Women A to Z but it’ll do. Except . . . when you get to “L”. I don’t generally get all hot under the collar when folks stereotype my profession, but COME ON, MAN. Shoot, it’s images like that that kept me out of the profession in the first place.
Wait — that’s ME! Thank you, Betsy – you’re a huge inspiration to me (honestly, it feels like the president just gave me a shout out during the State of the Union). And yes, we looooove Wild Things.
I am a huge Betsy Bird fan and an enormous Sally at The Curious Reader fan. Imagine my joy at seeing you both in the same place! Yay to book loving people loving each other!