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Santiago, Chile

Coordinates: 33 26 S 70 40 W

Population: 5,623,000 (2007 est.)

For Chileans, February 12th marks an important moment in the history of their country. On this day in 1541, Pedro de Valdivia, a Spanish conquistador, founded Santiago de Nueva Extremadura on Saint Lucia Hill overlooking the Mapocho River. Present-day Santiago eventually grew to fill most of the basin of the same name and currently ranks as the sixth largest city in South American and the tenth most populous in the Western Hemisphere. (more…)

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Brasília

Coordinates: 15 47 S 47 55 W

Population: 3,341,00 (2006 est.)

It will be another 27 months until this modern metropolis can truly celebrate its golden anniversary, but 2007 did give the Brazilian capital two reasons to celebrate nonetheless. First, the famed construction of Lúcia Côsta’s Plano Piloto began here on the plateaus of Goiás state fifty years ago, although work on the airport and the presidential palace had already started in 1956. (more…)

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Goodnight, Little Bear (1961) Chipmunk's ABC (1963) The Bunny Book (1955) by Richard Scarry Golden Books 2008 At first blush there isn't really much one can say about these classic picture books featuring early Richard Scarry artwork. The stories themselves are practically ur-picture book archetypes: the little bear that won't go to bed and "hides" on his father's shoulders; a basic animal ABC

To celebrate the holidays we asked some of our favorite people in publishing what their favorite book was. Let us know in the comments what your favorite book is and be sure to check back throughout the week for more “favorites”.

Erin Cox, Book Publishing Director for The New Yorker, avid reader and lover of books.

Wow, to pick just one is actually quite hard. So, I’m going to actually list a few. Some old, some new.

Evidence of Things Unseen by Marianne Wiggins is a book that I’ve long mentioned I would like to read, but never actually had. One stormy afternoon this fall, I finished a book and thought, okay, now is the time. I started reading and didn’t look up until the room was so dark I couldn’t see anything. I spent the next two evenings ditching plans and reading into the night. I had to see what happened to Fos and Opal and Flash, the main characters of the book, who live in Tennessee post-World War I and are all enchanted by light in all its many forms. (more…)

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Tokaj, Hungary

Coordinates: 48 8 N 21 27 E

Population: 5,028 (2007 est.)

Eastern Europe isn’t likely to be the first place most people think of when they hear “wine country,” but red and white grapes have in fact been grown on the slopes of the Carpathians for centuries. Perhaps the best-known region is Tokaj in northwestern Hungary, where the Bodrog and Tisza Rivers converge near the village that lends its name to this part of the country. (more…)

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I wasn't too sure where I would start with "CAPTAIN" and had a lot of thoughts. So I began making sketches of children.
This first thought was a bit far out, but I might persue it in the future. With the little goldfish as the captain.

But then I tried this little guy with a captain's hat and spyglass of his very own.

And then I thought, why not a group of little friends who want to come along for the adventure and bring some maps and a backpack for treasure digging and a picnic basket of goodies.

And why not one more eager friend with a better map in hand who doesn't want to be left out.


But, better yet, why not group them all together somehow with an interesting thing or two going on out at sea. So this is where I began to put the group into a little story all their own. I think they like it here.

And finally, the group sites something they didn't expect to find. But, then again, maybe someone in the group had an idea that there was more to this part of the sea than meets the eye.

©Ginger Nielson 2007

Meteor Crater, Arizona

Coordinates: 35 3 N 111 2 W

Diameter: 4,150 feet (1,265 m)

Each summer, movie screens nationwide (and increasingly world wide for that matter) are crowded with blockbuster flicks pitting man against other men, nature, and often alien life forms. Well, I think most people are pretty good at distinguishing science fiction from reality, but the truth is, planet Earth does get visitors from outer space every once in a while. Evidence of these occurrences is limited, but hard to miss. Take Arizona’s Meteor Crater for example. (more…)

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'Granma' left a comment to let me know that Pemberthy is a much loved resident at her house in Busselton. Wonderful news. Busselton is a nice beach-side town in the the South-West, a place I visit often. The map now looks like this, with the new dot the orange one on the South West coast. Have you seen my beautiful picture book, Pemberthy Bear? I'm tracking his progress around the country - you

I’ve been surfing the net and have spotted lots of copies of Pemberthy in libraries. How wonderful! The Bayside Library Service in Melbourne has not one but THREE copies – two in the Beaumaris Library and one in Brighton. And, joy of joys, my search of their catalogue showed they are all on loan. The Brisbane City Library Service has FIFTEEN copies of Pemberthy. The Ashgrove Library, Bulimba

Some days are so good you wish you could bottle them. Today’s been one of those days. I started with a buzz when I read my weekly Pass It On newsletter. First, there were two little articles in there that I'd written. Of course I knew these would be there, but it’s still nice to see stuff you’ve contributed appearing in your favourite newsletter. Then, in the reviews section was a glowing

Author: Jeanette Winter (on JOMB)
Illustrator: Jeanette Winter
Published: 1992 Dragonfly Books
ISBN: 0679819975 Chapters.ca Amazon.com

Saturated with colour and emotion, this beautifully illustrated book — like the song that inspired it — opens young eyes to the value of freedom and the price some pay to achieve it. Fact or fiction, it’s an inspiring read.

“Follow the Drinking Gourd” performed by The Brookfield High School World Voices Choir and Maria Hawkins used with permission of Jeannie Hunter. Learn more about The Brookfield Highschool World Voices Choir on this episode of The Electric Sky Podcast.

A work in progress... maps are hard work, phew!