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Despite George Washington's shivering Victory or Death brinksmanship in New Jersey at the beginning of the year, 1777 was wicked tough for the Americans' rebellion. Still, the gents at the embattled Continental Congress found time 237 years ago this week to take care of a particular bit of business. For one thing, they appointed John Paul Jones to captain the USS Ranger and use her eighteen guns to hassle the hell out of England. For another, the Congressmen, in a stripey and stellar bit of acting 'as if ye had faith,' came up with happily worded resolution. On Saturday, June 14, they "resolved that the flag of the thirteen United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white, that the union be thirteen stars, which in a blue field, representing a new constellation."
I bring this up for a couple of reasons, maybe more. As they occur to me. (1.) "A new constellation" is such a beautiful, artful phrase, written at such a God-almighty high stakes harrowing time.
(2.) My post is due in the morning. What could I write about? As it has more than once, the calendar came in handy. At his writing, Flag Day was yesterday. And Flag Day was a bit of a big deal in our house because it was on another Saturday, June 14, 1947, that my folks met, on a blind date. (Got married two months later.) And did you know that it was on June 16, 1858 that Abraham Lincoln gave his House Divided speech? And the 17th will be another anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill and the 18th will mark ten years since my one novel got accepted? Or that next September will make 200 years since Francis Scott Key wrote the words to the the Star-Spangled Banner? Well, there you go. The calendar is absolutely stiff with junk worth remembering. A veritable parade full of floats, history-wise.] And there's going to be a book of mine [about the history of flags, as a matter of fact].
(3.) Do I write about what's really on my mind? Don't think you want to hear about the diet I need to be on or any of my get-rich-slow schemes, including my half-written murder mystery. You don't need to know my thoughts on Amazon's megalomaniacal practices [except, well, if you've got a local bookstore, by God support it!] This isn't the place to discuss the sickening, scary situations in Iraq and Syria or the toxic, constipated condition of the present-day Congress or our country's plague of guns, and most of its treasure going to the wealthy, who've managed - guess what - to hijack our secular/sacred, hard-won system of government. The Game of Thrones? (Thank God for artful escapism. Never followed the series until here lately when I've seen almost every available episode.) The I've been picture book I'm trying to design? Speaking of which, you knew, right? That James and Dolley Madison gave Wednesday evening "Drawing Rooms" at the White House? All sorts of people showed up - Washington Irving, for instance.  |
| Dolley Madison |
(4.) I could write about the end of this particular collective. That would be timely. It was at the U. of Central MO's annual children's literature festival where clever, stylish Jan Greenberg asked if I'd be willing to contribute to a group blog. Bless her and I was so pleased. Had I not said yes, you all would have missed some this and that. But what would I have lost? These chances to really think about what my various subjects. To get to know some of my fellow writers a little better. To have a better sense of who all's out there: Readers and toilers in the messy gardens of teaching and learning to the constant geek chorus yammer beyond the garden walls, bless your sturdy hearts and minds. And so we bumble onward.
Long live books. Long live the republic.May our constellation shine as long as the stars. 
I am not a fearless woman. I’m actually quite timid. I like order and predictability and rules. When I was a magazine editor, I started each editing task by making sure the fonts and margins and other formatting issues were right. Only then could I tackle the content.
I’ve been thinking about this lately because in the author bio of my most recent book, Roller Derby Rivals, my editor at Holiday House wrote, “Sue Macy loves to write about sports and fearless women.” And it’s true. Nellie Bly got herself committed to an insane asylum so she could write an expose. Cyclist Dora Rinehart rode more than 17,000 miles in 1896 through the muddy, rocky, mountain roads around Denver. Midge “Toughie” Brasuhn (right) regularly careened around Roller Derby rinks with no concern about injuries—and ended up with eight broken noses during her career. To me, these accomplishments are alternately inspiring and terrifying.
As someone who was trained as a journalist, I find it perfectly acceptable observing and writing about fearless women while remaining out of the fray myself. I am moved by women who have the drive and determination to overcome society’s taboos or their own fears in order to follow their dreams. I’ve listened to scores of women who played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League talk about their motivation, and the common thread among all of them is the passion they had for the game. Over and over again, they’ve said, “They were paying me, but I would have played for free.”
When people are really passionate about what they’re doing, they grab my attention. At the start of my research on Roller Derby history, I went to a contemporary bout between the Garden State Rollergirls and a visiting team from Maryland. I barely knew the rules of the game at that point. What’s more, the announcer was muffled by an inadequate sound system and the action was so fast and furious that it was hard to follow. But one woman stood out. She was a New Jersey skater, covered with tattoos on just about every visible patch of skin, and she was magnificent. She wove in and out of the opposing skaters, lapping the field and then passing her opponents to score points. Her Derby name was Jenna Von Fury and her skill convinced me that Roller Derby was indeed a sport worth writing about.
Late last year, the computer search engine Bing produced an awesome TV commercial highlighting some of the female heroes of 2013. To the tune of Sara Bareilles’s song, “Brave,” Bing celebrated several fearless girls and women, among them the young Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai; marathon swimmer Diana Nyad; and Edie Windsor, who brought the Supreme Court case that that struck down a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act. It was an impressive example of the never-ending parade of fearless women whose achievements have made an impact on the world, and a virtual shopping list of topics for a writer seeking to be inspired.
So as I finish my final post for I.N.K., I promise to continue producing books about women who made their mark as they challenged the status quo. I'll also occasionally blog on my Web site, suemacy.com. Check it out when you get the chance. Or follow me on Twitter @suemacy1. And thanks for reading.
David Schwartz has entered the world of e-publishing with •The Hidden World of the Forest
•The Hidden World of the Pond
• The Hidden World of the Meadow
These are close adaptations of print books with way cool interactive features including audio, slide shows, zoom, etc., Galloping Turtle Books.
Marfé Ferguson Delano, Explore My World: Butterflies, National Geographic, June
Marfé Ferguson Delano, Explore My World: Frogs, National Geographic, June
Sue Macy, Roller Derby Rivals, Holiday House, July
April Pulley Sayre, Rah Rah, Radishes board book, Little Simon, July 15
Karen Romano Young, TRY THIS!, National Geographic Kids, August
Cheryl Harness, Flags Over America, A Star-Spangled Story, Albert Whitman, September
Sue Macy, Sally Ride: Life on a Mission, Aladdin, September
Steve Sheinkin and Jim Murphy have stories in Guys Read: True Stories,
Walden Pond Press, September
Dorothy Hinshaw Patent, Super Sniffers:
Dog Detectives on the Job,
Bloomsbury, September
Steve Jenkins, Creature Features,
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, October
Elizabeth Rusch, Scientists in the Field: The Next Wave:
The Quest to Harness the Power of the Oceans,
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, October
• Junior Library Guild selection
Dorothy Hinshaw Patent, Decorated Houses, Charlesbridge, January 2015
April Pulley Sayre and Steve Jenkins, Woodpecker Wham, Holt, Spring 2015
April Pulley Sayre, Raindrops Roll, Beach Lane Books, Spring 2015
AWARDS
Steve Jenkins: 2014 Boston Globe/Horn Book Honor book for Nonfiction for The Animal Book
Dorothy Hinshaw Patent: The 2014 Edward O. Wilson Biodiversity Technology Pioneer Award For Exemplary Advocation of Biodiversity Through the Authorship of Children's Science Literature from the American Computer Museum
Dorothy Hinshaw Patent: Dogs on Duty: Soldiers’ Best Friend on the Battlefield and Beyond
• ALA Notable Children’s Book
• 2013 Best Children’s Books, Children’s Book Committee
• 2013 IRA Teachers’ Choices Reading List
• 2013-2014 Great Lakes Great Books (Michigan Reading Assoc.)
• NYSRA 2014 Charlotte Award
• Rebecca Caudill Young Readers’ Book Award 2015 list (IL)
• 2015 Bluestem Award list, Illinois School Library Media Association
APPEARANCES
June 14 Sue Macy, Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum, Adams, Massachusetts, 3 p.m.
June 20-22 Vicki Cobb and Dorothy Hinshaw Patent are presenting at the Children's Nonfiction Conference, New Paltz, NY.
June 22 Susan E. Goodman, Picture Book Project Seminar, The Narrative Arc of the Nonfiction Picture Book, Lesley University, Cambridge, MA, 12:00-1:30
June 24-25 Deborah Heiligman: 2014 Children's Literature Conference, Shenandoah University
June 24 Steve Jenkins: 2014 Children's Literature Conference, Shenandoah University
June 28 Gretchen Woelfle: ALA Conference, Las Vegas, NV: signing Write on, Mercy! The Secret Life of Mercy Otis Warren at Boyds Mills booth, 11-12; Mumbet’s Declaration of Independence at Lerner booth, 2-3
June 30: Jan Greenberg: ALA Conference, Las Vegas, NV, ALSC Book and Media Awards Program, including Sibert Awards 8:30-10; signing The Mad Potter: George E. Ohr, Eccentric Genius at Macmillan Booth 10:30-11:30.
NEW BOOKS
Ann Bausum, Stubby the War Dog: The True Story of World War I's Bravest Dog (National Geographic for Kids)
Ann Bausum, Sergeant Stubby: How a Stray Dog and his Best Friend Helped Win World War I and Stole the Heart of a Nation (National Geographic, YA)
Steve Jenkins, Eye to Eye: How Animals See the World (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Dorothy Hinshaw Patent, Dogs on Duty: Soldiers' Best Friends on the Battlefield and Beyond (paperback, Walker)
• Flicker Tale Award in nonfiction, Dakota Library Association (Childrens' Choice Award)
AWARDS
Cheryl Harness, 2014 Missouri Humanities Award: Distinguished Literary Achievement for writing and illustrating historical non-fiction books for children, (see Events below)
Elizabeth Rusch, Eruption!: Volcanoes and the science of saving lives (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
• YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction nominee
• Orbis Pictus recommended
• Pennsylvania Readers Choice Award nominee
Elizabeth Rusch, Electrical Wizard: How Nikolas Tesla Lit Up the World (Candlewick)
• CBC/Bank Street College Best Book 2014
Deborah Heiligman, The Boy Who Loved Math (Roaring Brook)
• Winner, 2014 Cook Prize for best STEM picture book, Bank Street College
Melissa Stewart, No Monkeys, No Chocolate (Charlesbridge)
• Honor book, 2014 Cook Prize for best STEM picture book, Bank Street College
EVENTS
May 4 – Susan Kuklin: Cooper Union, New York, NY, PEN/World Voices Literary Festival YA/Children's Panel
May 10 – Gretchen Woelfle: Ashley House, Sheffield, MA, with illustrator Alix Delinois, presenting Mumbet’s Declaration of Independence.
May 14 – Susan Kuklin: Simmons College, Boston, MA, CBC/CBB Diversity Committee Children’s Book Week
May 15 – Vicki Cobb: White Plains, NY, PACE University School of Education Conference: Rethinking STEM-D Education: Innovative Practices from the Field; Videoconferencing with Alexandra Siy, Dorothy Hinshaw Patent and Carla Killough McCafferty, in a panel discussion: Science That's Fun to Read and Teach
May 17 – Ann Bausum, author program and family event "Stubby the War Dog and his Favorite Doughboy," Westport Public Library, Westport CT
May 17 – Ann Bausum, Booksigning and reception West Haven Veterna’s Museum & Learning Center, West Haven, CT.
May 17 – Cheryl Harness: Missouri Humanities Council, St. Louis, MO., presentation of 2014 Humanities Award: Distinguished Literary Achievement
May 17 -- Deborah Heiligman: Gaithersburg Book Festival, Gaitherburg, MD, Writing Picture Book Biographies
May 18 -- Deborah Heiligman: Temple Emanu-El, New York, NY, Conference on Jewish Story
May 18 – Barbara Kerley: Concord Bookshop, Concord, MA, with illustrator Edwin Fotheringham, presenting A Home for Mr. Emerson
May 22 -- Deborah Heiligman: Cook Award presentation, Bank Street College, New York, NY
This week, I went back to high school. I was part of a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) panel for career day. The other two members on the panel were nuclear engineers, having just graduated from college last year. We had seven sessions, so I listened to their presentation seven times. And, I still couldn’t tell you what a nuclear engineer does. At the very least, there is no way that I could explain it to a group of teenagers. My left brain almost exploded.
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| STEM Presentation Panel- with 2 Nuclear Engineers |
My author presentation audience is usually elementary and middle school students, and 40-45 minutes long with about a 15-minute question period. For this high school crowd, I had to shorten it to less than 10 minutes and tailor it more towards STEM. And, present 7 times, once every half hour.
The high school students seemed very interested in engineering fields --- even asking very complicated questions about nuclear engineering, which showed me that they understood the material presented to them. If these are the hands and minds that will create the future, then it looks like we are in great shape.
I love this quote:
“If we’re going to out-innovate and out-educate the rest of the world, we’ve got to open doors for everyone. We need all hands on deck, and that means clearing hurdles for women and girls as they navigate careers in science, technology, engineering, and math.”
-- First Lady Michelle Obama, September 26, 2011
With all the media attention that has been given to engineering, I thought I’d share a part of my introduction to the Engineering chapter from
Women of Steel and Stone here to explain the engineering field and the current statistics, and also mention the different areas.
Soon, I will have PDF handouts of the introductory chapter on
my website for teachers, librarians, and students. The handout will explain all 12 of the engineering categories and the disciplines, and the top engineering schools at the moment.
Women in Engineeringfrom Women of Steel and Stone: 22 Inspirational Architects, Engineers, and Landscape Engineers, Chicago Review Press, Jan 2014
Today, engineers apply scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials, and processes. There are 25 different engineering and engineering technology majors offered in American universities. Engineering used to be dominated by men, and though the statistics are getting better, there is still a long way to go. The National Science Foundation’s Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering report reveals that in 2008, 41 percent of male incoming college students planned to major in science and engineering, compared to 30 percent of incoming female students. In 2010, the numbers remained similar: 44 percent of men and 33 percent of women planned to major in the sciences. In biology and social and behavioral sciences, there are more women enrolled than men; whereas in engineering, physics, and computer science, men greatly outnumber the women. In addition, the Congressional Commission on the Advancement of Women and Minorities in Science Engineering and Technology Development reported in September 2000 that women are about twice as likely as their male colleagues to leave the engineering workforce after a few years (25 percent compared with 12 percent). Of the 60 to 80 students who take professor Angela Bielefeldt’s civil engineering class at the University of Colorado at Boulder, she says, only 10 to 12 are generally women.While master’s degrees in engineering awarded to women hovered at 22.6 percent in 2010, a slight dip from 2008 and 2009 levels, bachelor’s degrees in the engineering field among women climbed to 18.1 percent, and more engineering doctorates—22.9 percent—were awarded to women than any time in the past, according to the American Society for Engineering Education.With a rapidly growing population and aging infrastructure, our nation needs all our creative and technical minds, male and female. As the pioneers in these pages prove, women can build too. Engineering and Engineering Technology College Majors
The National Academy of Engineering has organized 12 engineering categories. Members are required to select a primary and, if needed, secondary affiliations. The scope of each discipline incorporates a diverse area of work.Four main disciplines account for two-thirds of the degrees handed out each year: civil, computer, electrical, and mechanical engineering. The next four disciplines account for one-fifth of all degrees handed out each year: aerospace, biomedical, chemical, and industrial/manufacturing engineering. Fewer than 10 percent of engineering degrees handed out each year include those in agricultural, architectural, engineering management, engineering physics/engineering science, environmental, general engineering studies, materials, mining, nuclear, and petroleum engineering.
Last Saturday, I attended a terrific conference put on by the Foundation of Children’s Books (FCB) at Lesley University. It’s a regular event and this year it concentrated upon nonfiction. The speakers were nonfiction all-stars including Michael Tougias talking about adapting to write for middle grade after being an adult nonfiction author, Kathy Lasky reflecting upon the evolution of the nonfiction part of her career, Jason Chin finding the narrative arc of science through words and illustrations, and Steve Sheinkin being wildly entertaining while discussing books about very serious subjects.
I was especially pleased, however, to listen to fellow I.N.K. contributor Melissa Stewart. She appeared in the middle of the lineup, and that’s when you could hear pens scratching on notebooks. Melissa was there to discuss “Nonfiction Books You’ll Love” from 2013 and 2014.
The way that she presented them would do any nonfiction writer proud. She organized her info into topics that provided context to her audience. She gave just enough description about each book to inform and create the desire for further research. Her enthusiasm for her subject/s was infectious. She even supplied back matter: a takeaway list of 30 books arranged in alphabetical order by title and by year.
I guess what impressed me most besides Melissa’s careful curation was the generosity of her presentation--praise, yes, but also ways we could appreciate and use the books she mentioned. That’s why authors in the audience were writing down titles as potential mentor texts while teachers and librarians were listing books to add to their collections.
I remember a post Melissa did a while ago, saying that Common Core is here to stay and one of the best things writers can do (if they have the time and interest) is to give teachers easy ways to use their books to teach these standards. Then she helped us further by providing 10 ways to help educators, complete with with examples of these ideas.
During her presentation at the FCB, Melissa showed us a new idea she is using, a multimedia revision timeline that chronicles the very long road she took to finally publish her book, No Monkeys, No Chocolate. It was a fabulous way to show students and beginning authors that effortless writing takes an enormous amount of steps and work.
Now, she has given us 11 ways to help educators.
Who could resist an invitation like this:
3 July 1872
Dear Mr Thayer,
Come be a brave good cousin, and face our heats and solitudes on Friday eve… and we will give you a cup of tea, and piece of a moon and all the possibilities of Saturday….
Your friend, R. W. Emerson
This sweet, quirky invitation was one of the first things I read as I began researching the life of Ralph Waldo Emerson. And as soon as I read it, I thought, ‘I’ve got to write this book!’
Not that I knew what ‘this book’ was, of course—not at first. (It was only after months of reading and thinking and writing that
A Home For Mr. Emerson began to take shape.)
But from the start, I was inspired by this man who believed that each of us can create the life we dream of living.
Emerson, that was a life centered on friendship and home.
In his study, brimming with books and journals, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote many letters to friends far and near. Come to my home in Concord, he invited them. Come on the four o’clock train.
I love how Edwin Fotheringham’s illustration invites readers into Emerson’s home AND into a book about his life.
And this invitation sums up in a nutshell my sense of what a picture book biography is meant to do: to invite young readers into a new life, to meet someone they might like to know better.
If you think about it, all nonfiction for kids is an invitation. Here’s something interesting, a nonfiction book says. Here’s something you might like to know about. Come on in.
I’ve been lucky these past few years to work in concert with the other authors on INK, issuing invitations to kids—offering them through our books a “piece of a moon and all the possibilities of Saturday.”
And I’ve loved getting to know the readers of this blog, folks just as passionate about nonfiction as I am.
This is my last post on INK, brainchild of the amazing
Linda Salzman. The past five years have been an honor and a pleasure. Thank you, all.
NEW BOOKS
Beneath the Sun by Melissa Stewart, ill. by Constance Bergum (Peachtree)
A Place for Butterflies by Melissa Stewart (revised edition, Peachtree)
LATEST AWARDS
The Mad Potter: George E. Ohr, Eccentric Genius by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan (Roaring Brook)
• Orbis Pictus Recommended
• Booklist Best Book
• School Library Journal Best Book
• CBC/NCSS Notable for Social Studies
• Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award Master List
The Animal Book by Steve Jenkins (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
• John Burroughs Riverby Award
• featured title, New England Book Show eBook category.
The Mystery of Darwin's Frog by Marty Crump, ill. by Steve Jenkins and Edel Rodriguez (Boyds Mills)
• John Burroughs Riverby Award
Animals Upside Down by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
• featured selection, New England Book Show
Eruption!: Volcanoes and the Science of Saving Lives by Elizabeth Rusch (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
• 2014 CCBC Choices
Volcano Rising by Elizabeth Rusch (Charlesbridge)
• 2014 CCBC Choices
Rotten Pumpkin, by David Schwartz (Creston Books)
• 2013 Distinguished Book, Association of Children's Librarians of Northern California
Courage Has No Color, by Tanya Lee Stone (Candlewick)
• NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literature for Youth/Teens
APPEARANCES
April 3-5 Melissa Stewart will speak at the National Science Teachers Association conference in Boston, MA.
April 7: Deborah Heiligman will speak at the Simons Foundation in New York City: Lyrical And Logical: A Reading of Children's Books About Math.
April 9: Steve Jenkins and his co-author Robin Page will speak at the TLA (Texas Library Association) Conference in San Antonio, TX.
April 10-11 Melissa Stewart will speak at the Massachusetts Reading Association annual meeting in Quincy, MA.
April 10-11: David Schwartz will speak at the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics National Meeting, New Orleans, LA.
April 10-12: Deborah Heiligman will speak at the Festival of Faith and Writing, Calvin College, Grand Rapids MI.
April 26: Steve Jenkins will speak at the 32nd annual Spring Festival of Children’s Literature at Frostburg State, MD.
April 26: Susan Kuklin will be guest speaker at the 2014 Stamford Literary Competition Award Ceremony, Stamford, CT.
NEW BOOKS
Beneath the Sun by Melissa Stewart, ill. by Constance Bergum (Peachtree)
A Place for Butterflies by Melissa Stewart (revised edition, Peachtree)
LATEST AWARDS
The Mad Potter: George E. Ohr, Eccentric Genius by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan (Roaring Brook)
• Orbis Pictus Recommended
• Booklist Best Book
• School Library Journal Best Book
• CBC/NCSS Notable for Social Studies
• Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award Master List
The Animal Book by Steve Jenkins (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
• John Burroughs Riverby Award
• featured title, New England Book Show eBook category.
The Mystery of Darwin's Frog by Marty Crump, ill. by Steve Jenkins and Edel Rodriguez (Boyds Mills)
• John Burroughs Riverby Award
Animals Upside Down by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
• featured selection, New England Book Show
Eruption!: Volcanoes and the Science of Saving Livesby Elizabeth Rusch (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
• 2014 CCBC Choices
Volcano Rising by Elizabeth Rusch (Charlesbridge)
• 2014 CCBC Choices
Rotten Pumpkin, by David Schwartz (Creston Books)
• 2013 Distinguished Book, Association of Children's Librarians of Northern California
Courage Has No Color, by Tanya Lee Stone (Candlewick)
• NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literature for Youth/Teens
APPEARANCES
April 3-5 Melissa Stewartwill speak at the National Science Teachers Association conference in Boston, MA.
April 7: Deborah Heiligman will speak at the Simons Foundation in New York City: Lyrical And Logical: A Reading of Children's Books About Math.
April 9: Steve Jenkins and his co-author Robin Page will speak at the TLA (Texas Library Association) Conference in San Antonio, TX.
April 10-11 Melissa Stewart will speak at the Massachusetts Reading Association annual meeting in Quincy, MA.
April 10-11: David Schwartz will speak at the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics National Meeting, New Orleans, LA.
April 10-12: Deborah Heiligman will speak at the Festival of Faith and Writing, Calvin College, Grand Rapids MI.
April 26: Steve Jenkins will speak at the 32nd annual Spring Festival of Children’s Literature at Frostburg State, MD.
April 26: Susan Kuklin will be guest speaker at the 2014 Stamford Literary Competition Award Ceremony, Stamford, CT.
Thanks to my occasional INK book reviews, I sometimes get presents from publishers. Opening an envelope from Chronicle and seeing JOSEPHINE by Patricia Hruby Powell, illustrated by ChristianRobinson, nearly took my breath away. When I began reading it, I had to sit down to still my heart. Which is rather counterproductive because Powell’s book is all about dancing! It’s a gorgeous book, with text, artwork, design perfectly matched. As a biographer, I’m delighted to see it expand the genre of picture book biography. To learn more about the genesis of Josephine, I asked author Patricia Hruby Powell – a professional dancer herself – a few questions.
Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker breaks a lot of boundaries. It is a 104-page picture book biography divided into chapters, 3800 words long – way beyond usual picture book length. Is this the length and format that you had in mind before you began writing?
No, not at all. It began as a picture book, 1475 words long, which is too long for a PB, so I got it down to 1000 words. After taking it to a workshop I revised it as a 7500 word book for YA, imagining b & w illustrations along the lines of the Paul Colin poster art whose work helped launch Josephine’s rise to fame. I know, there’s really no such brief illustrated YA genre, but I was writing what impassioned me.
That odd manuscript won me my agent. After we received many complimentary rejections, my visionary editor-to-be at Chronicle Books asked if the author would cut it down to about 3000 words and make it younger for a picture book reader. I got it down to 3400 and that manuscript was purchased by Chronicle and in the editing process we added back some stanza/paragraphs.
The SLJ review lists it for grades 2-4, Booklist, for grades 5-8. What do you think?
I think it works for 2-4 and 5-8 and even high school. I know it’s being used for all those ages.
This book is so rich and multi-layered. It’s the story of one African American woman’s life. It’s the story of the racial climate of the U.S. vs. Europe. It’s the story of the evolution of an artist. What drew you to JB? Any dark nights of the soul along the way?
Way back in 2005, while on duty as a children’s librarian, I got to know a group of unfocused African-American preteen girls who showed up daily and pretty much wreaked havoc in the library. I thought Josephine Baker would be a great role model—with her high spirits which she channeled into great success (dancer, singer, star, civil rights worker, pilot, spy for the French, mother of 12). As I said, JOSEPHINE won me my agent at the end of 2009, and the book sale in 2010. At that point there was not really an awful lot of editing to do except for adding stanzas back in and tweaking here and there.
Darn those dark nights of the soul. We must talk about that.
Did you always intend to write in free verse?
Yes and no. The language was always razzle dazzle, but the line breaks came over time. What you write evolves, and as the words became more rhythmic I followed that rhythm and it became more important over several drafts. And the line breaks enhanced the understanding and the rhythm.
You’re a dancer, so you have a deep understanding of body and rhythm. Did you dance while you were writing this?
I did dance while I wrote—occasionally—I mean I’m always dancing. If you dance for a lifetime or if you’re born wanting to dance, the rhythm just lives inside you. I watched early footage of the magnificent young Josephine and was wowed. I tried to translate that into words on the page.
The design and illustrations are glorious: the bright colors, the typography, the illustrations showing figures against a blank background. Were you involved in any of those decisions?
I was, actually. I had veto power over the publisher’s illustrator choice—a privilege rarely given to a non-star writer. Later, after Christian Robinson was chosen, my editor and I would sit over his early sketches (sent online) and we discussed the accuracy, the energy, the placement in the story—all very cool. And then we worked together on the placement of words on the page (how they sometimes cascade down the page) and the “shout out” words—those in caps. The designer got the final word, but I got to participate in that. What a great experience. I love Chronicle and I love my editor (who is way too busy so I’m keeping her name under tabs so we can get back to my next piece together ;-). And the publicity people and the designer--great. And I love Christian’s illustrations. Just magnificent.
How do children respond to the book, and to your dancing the Charleston for them?
Kids appear to be mesmerized by the book. I love seeing black kids seeing themselves in the illustrations. As for dancing, it certainly draws their attention. In our culture we don’t do enough dancing. I always encourage kids to dance. And to draw, paint, sing, write, tell stories, anything that offers self-expression. I’ve done a couple events where we’ve all danced together. Very fun.
Did your research on Baker lead to other book projects?
Struttin’ With Some Barbecue – another biography in jazzy verse about Lil Hardin Armstrong, jazz pianist and composer, Louis Armstrong’s wife – has not yet sold, but I think it will.
Loving vs Virginiais scheduled to come out with Chronicle in Fall 2015. This is a documentary novel for teens in verse about the interracial marriage between Mildred Jeter (black) and Richard Loving (white) in 1958 Virginia, when miscegenation was illegal. It’s a beautiful love story set against a backdrop of the civil rights movement.
I have a couple of other picture book biographies in the works and I look forward to getting back to a jazz age novel. Thanks for asking, Gretchen.
For a pitch-perfect trailer of Josephine by illustrator/animator Christian Robinson, click here
For the story of the Christian Robinson’s illustrations, including post-it sketches and paintings, click here.
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You can’t judge a book by its cover? Rightly or wrongly, we all do. In the children’s book market, trim size matters too. And, when you’re a nonfiction picture book author, these two criteria create a complicated mix.
Here’s why I’ve been thinking about this subject. Last year, Penguin’s paperback imprint, Puffin Books, approached me and illustrator Elwood H. Smith about combining our books, The Truth About Poop and Gee Whiz, into one digest format edition for the middle grade market. Why not? Where Elwood’s original illustrations were vivid and lovely, they were just as funny in black-and-white and worked well in this 5 x 7 ½ trim size.
PLUS
EQUALS
Furthermore, this new edition was in a format that says to kids, “You’re older now, grown up enough for a big person’s paperback. Welcome to middle grade and the road to adulthood.”
The Truth About Poop is remaining in print; in fact, it’s soon celebrating its tenth anniversary. I’m happy to say it’s still selling, being reviewed on Amazon and hopefully offered in brick-and-mortar bookstores around the country. But I realize that these two versions, that share the same text and drawings, are for different audiences.
There comes a day in every child’s life when it’s no longer okay to carry a teddy bear outside or hug Mom in public. For most kids, there’s also a time when reading landscape-format or square-shaped picture books with bright illustrations becomes taboo—at least in public or outside the classroom. The same material that can amuse, amaze and be shared in black-and-white and portrait-shaped rectangles doesn’t cut the middle grade mustard when it’s in color.
But, here’s the rub. So many nonfiction picture books in these sizes and shapes are written for this age group and even older. This short length is just the right sized introduction to an idea or subject that can become an abiding interest. Beautiful pictures or photographs not only bring these subjects gloriously alive, they are a “working vacation,” providing additional information while they also give respite, letting a young reader stay involved while absorbing what was just read. And our readers may need this rest. We often write about complex situations or questions with high level language and abstraction. We talk about the ingenuity of Ben Franklin, the eccentricity of mathematicians and Thelonius Monk, the stuff that stardust is made of.
The Truth About Poop and Pee just came out on March 6th and I couldn’t be happier. It translates well into its new format, and snuggles comfortably into its new home on bookstore shelves where every book is the same dimension. If it reaches new readers this way, I’m very delighted. I’m glad I can nurture an interest in biology, chemistry, sociology, history while kids just think they are reading about poop and pee.
But I also hope these same readers won’t be so ready to “put away childish things” and will still be willing to explore the wonderful world of nonfiction picture books in living color.
<!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE <![endif]-->
You can’t judge a book by its cover? Rightly or wrongly, we all do. In the children’s book market, trim size matters too. And, when you’re a nonfiction picture book author, these two criteria create a complicated mix.
Here’s why I’ve been thinking about this subject. Last year, Penguin’s paperback imprint, Puffin Books, approached me and illustrator Elwood H. Smith about combining our books, The Truth About Poop and Gee Whiz, into one digest format edition for the middle grade market. Why not? Where Elwood’s original illustrations were vivid and lovely, they were just as funny in black-and-white and worked well in this 5 x 7 ½ trim size.
PLUS
EQUALS
Furthermore, this new edition was in a format that says to kids, “You’re older now, grown up enough for a big person’s paperback. Welcome to middle grade and the road to adulthood.”
The Truth About Poop is remaining in print; in fact, it’s soon celebrating its tenth anniversary. I’m happy to say it’s still selling, being reviewed on Amazon and hopefully offered in brick-and-mortar bookstores around the country. But I realize that these two versions, that share the same text and drawings, are for different audiences.
There comes a day in every child’s life when it’s no longer okay to carry a teddy bear outside or hug Mom in public. For most kids, there’s also a time when reading landscape-format or square-shaped picture books with bright illustrations becomes taboo—at least in public or outside the classroom. The same material that can amuse, amaze and be shared in black-and-white and portrait-shaped rectangles doesn’t cut the middle grade mustard when it’s in color.
But, here’s the rub. So many nonfiction picture books in these sizes and shapes are written for this age group and even older. This short length is just the right sized introduction to an idea or subject that can become an abiding interest. Beautiful pictures or photographs not only bring these subjects gloriously alive, they are a “working vacation,” providing additional information while they also give respite, letting a young reader stay involved while absorbing what was just read. And our readers may need this rest. We often write about complex situations or questions with high level language and abstraction. We talk about the ingenuity of Ben Franklin, the eccentricity of mathematicians and Thelonius Monk, the stuff that stardust is made of.
The Truth About Poop and Pee just came out on March 6th and I couldn’t be happier. It translates well into its new format, and snuggles comfortably into its new home on bookstore shelves where every book is the same dimension. If it reaches new readers this way, I’m very delighted. I’m glad I can nurture an interest in biology, chemistry, sociology, history while kids just think they are reading about poop and pee.
But I also hope these same readers won’t be so ready to “put away childish things” and will still be willing to explore the wonderful world of nonfiction picture books in living color.
NEW BOOKS
Welcome to the World: A Keepsake Baby Book by Marfé Ferguson Delano (National Geographic)
The Truth about Poop and Pee, by Susan E. Goodman (Penguin), a new edition that brings together two of her best-selling books.
A Home for Mr. Emerson, by Barbara Kerley (Scholastic)
APPEARANCES
Deborah Heiligman will be speaking at the Virginia Festival of the Book March 21-23
Anna Lewis, author of Women of Steel and Stone: 22 Inspiring Architects, Engineers, and Landscape Designers, will be speaking at the Bellefonte, PA Art Museum on March 22, which has installed a large Anna Keichline exhibit.
AWARDS
The Animal Book: A Collection of the Fastest, Fiercest, Toughest, Cleverest, Shyest--and Most Surprising--Animals on Earth, written and illustrated by Steve Jenkins (HMH)
• The Horn Book 2013 Fanfare List of the Best Books for Young People
• NPR 2013 Great Reads
• Book Links Top 30 Titles from 2013
• Junior Library Guild Top 10 Books for Youth 2013
• ALA Notable Book 2014
Who Says Women Can’t Be Doctors by Tanya Lee Stone (Henry Holt)
• NPR Great Reads
The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdos, by Deborah Heiligman. (Roaring Brook)
• Orbis Pictus Honor Book
• Book Links Top 30 Titles from 2013
Eruption! Volcanoes and the Science of Saving Lives, by Elizabeth Rusch. (HMH)
• Book Links Top 30 Titles from 2013
Courage Has No Color: The True Story of the Triple Nickles, America’s First Black Paratroopers, by Tanya Lee Stone. (Candlewick)
• Book Links Top 30 Titles from 2013
The Nature Generation has announced the shortlist for its 2014 Green Earth Book Awards. The award honors authors whose books best convey the environmental stewardship message to youth.
Eat Like a Bear, by April Pulley Sayre, illustrated by Steve Jenkins (Henry Holt)
Here Come the Humpbacks, by April Pulley Sayre (Charlesbridge)
No Monkeys, No Chocolate, by Melissa Stewart and Allen Young(Charlesbridge)
A Place for Turtles, by Melissa Stewart(Peachtree Publishers)
My “inner blogger,” which I discovered six years ago when Linda Salzman started this blog, is now in full flower at the Huffington Post. Since September I’ve tried to post twice a week. My initial mission was to add my two cents to the national discussion on education. But a second mission has emerged—to shed light for the general public on our genre, children’s nonfiction literature. To that end I’ve requested that my colleagues send me their most recent books. I read them and write posts that show a book’s timeliness to current events or where it fits into the curriculum. I am not a book reviewer as all of my posts are unabashed cheers for the brilliance of these authors. As an author, myself, there is a conflict of interest for me to act as a critic. But I have no problem endorsing the creativity and insights of my fellow authors.
The adoption of the Common Core State Standards has created an opening for public awareness of our genre. It has helped to create a readership for this blog. When I first read the CCS standards, I saw them as an opportunity for teachers and educators to bring their own passions and creativity to classrooms through, among other things, the use of our books. Children need to know there are many voices out there so they can develop voices of their own. But this opening for diversity has been hi-jacked by standardized testing and the demand that teachers constantly document how they are meeting the CCSS—yet another chore that competes with instructional time. One of the more absurd examples of the implementation of the CCSS is the lesson on close reading of the Gettysburg Address by focusing on text only, with no background knowledge of the Civil War.
Diane Ravitch is leading a movement against the CCSS. I’ve been a faithful subscriber to her amazing blog (she posts 5,6,7 times a day!) and she and her followers are gaining traction. Meanwhile, NY State, for example has a huge contract with Pearson for their textbooks and their texts. Granted, they and McGraw Hill and other textbook publishers are buying rights to our books to excerpt in their publications (and/or in the tests themselves) along with lesson plans making nice, convenient packages for harried teachers and furthering the notion that their books are the only books kids need to read to pass the tests, although their ethics in this are currently being questioned (in the example I've linked above).
My intent through my Huff Post blogis to join Diane's fight against the huge corporations that have dominated classroom reading for many years, the standardized teaching and testing and their ties to teacher evaluation. Instead of emphasizing the horrors of turning teachers in to robots, all teaching the same page at the same time, I want to show the exciting alternatives that our genre offers. So I invite the readership of this blog to join me. This means you need to use social media to spread the word. So "follow," "tweet," "share," and "like." It's the way business is being done these days. So many people out there are still unaware of our existence. This is one positive way we can all help save public education. I’m showing you the covers of the books I've given a shout-out to, so far. The titles below the images are links to my posts. Please join the "resistance" and spread the word.
In the post that went live last Thursday (Here Come the HUMPBACKS!), I featured April’s three recent picture books. I gave a shout-out to all of us who write for this blog and on the iNK website. Keep those (virtual) cards and letters coming!!!
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