Review -- Nature and Nonfiction

I'm not a real bird enthusiast, but possess a casual interest. There's a pair of horned owls at our RV park and I don't tire of listening to their eerie sounds or trying to catch a glimpse of them nesting in the palm trees.  I've become more acquainted with birds of the desert as the park is full of doves, cactus wrens and, my favorite, Gambel's Quail. These three titles about birds caught my casual interest.

The Robin Makes a Laughing Sound: a birder's journal 
by Sallie Wolf, designed by Micah Bornstein
Charlesbridge 2010
Hardcover Nonfiction
Ages 9-12

This is a lovely book of poems and more about bird identification and behavior, a textual and visual record of observations designed like a actual journal. The poems are brief, only a few reach 16-18 lines, and are mostly descriptive with some thoughtful, emotional overtones. The ink drawings and watercolors leave an immediate, ephemeral feel as if they were swiftly done rather than studied. Quick but not sloppy. The arrangement is by season, beginning with spring. Alongside the free-verse poems are an occasional haiku, lists of birds seen, and short notes such as "April 23 -- First sighting of a white-throat -- I've been hearing them for about 3 days." The poems appear in a traditional serif font, while notes and lists are hand-written. The journal-like feel is carried throughout. A note reads "Illustrations done in watercolors and pen and ink on Sallie's original journal pages and on handmade paper, then scanned and manipulated in Photoshop." I appreciate the author sharing her love of nature in such a creative way.
from one of my favorite poems "Robins Take a Bath"
Fluffy fledglings preen their feathers.
Four birds fly away.
Freshly groomed and tidy robins,
finished for the day.

Nest, Nook and Cranny
by Susan Blackaby, illustrated by Jamie Hogan
Charlesbridge 2010
Hardcover Nonfiction/Poetry
Ages 9-12

This one's only peripherally about birds, really. It's focus is animals and their habitats. The chapter headings -- Desert, Grassland, Shoreline, Wetland, Woodland -- each have a double page spread illustrating representative animals in the habitat. The untitled poems are a combination of free verse and various forms. Rather than noting the forms on the page where the poem appears they are noted in the back matter in a section titled "Writing Poetry" which also includes useful information about ideas and writing techniques like alliteration. The effective, black & white illustrations, done in mixed media and pastels and charcoal, complement and don't overwhelm the poems. One I like begins "The sweetest home sweet home must be a hive,/Humming with activities of bees. They never wipe their feet when they arrive;/They track their tacky nectar where they please." A gratifying melding of science, art and literature.

An Egret's Day
by Jane Yolen, photographs by Jason Stemple
Wordsong/Boyds Mills, 2010
Hardcover Nonfiction/ Poetry
Ages 9-12

Here's another appealing combination of science, poetry and art informing readers about the striking Great Egret, a migratory bird of the heron family. Double-page spread include a poem, short paragraph of factual information, and one or more stunning photographs of the bird in flight, on trees, in the water. As the title suggests the finely-crafted poems follow egrets from morning through evening and provide thoughtful observation. "Close-up" begins "As conscious of his beauty/As any Hollywood star,/The egret poses." and is accompanied by a head-and-shoulders shot of the bird, white feathers tinted with a rosy glow. The image, words and design work beautifully together. This is Yolen's and Stemple's fourteenth book together and they are a fine team.

Thanks to Charlesbridge and Raab Associates (for Jane Yolen's title) for providing review copies.

Cactus Hotel

Because we are always working in the community recreation hall (where the good wireless signal is) lots of the park residents have gotten to know us and what the heck we are doing on our computers all day. The other day, the woman from the fifth wheel across from us came over and said to me “I know you work in children’s books, but I wondered if you write them, too?” I asked her why – she used to be a teacher – and she told me that two of the other women in the park had shown her an old saguaro cactus, with multiple holes in it, that seemed to be serving as home for a variety of birds. “I think that would make a great kid’s book,” she explained.

I walked down to see it, and she was right – there must be about half a dozen holes in the cactus and birds were busy flying in and out of them. Kind of like an apartment building, I thought and then Ding! I remembered this book – Cactus Hotel – which I used to sell when I was working in a kid’s bookstore. I remembered it as a beautifully illustrated book.

Off I went to look it up on the Internet – sadly, it seems to be out of print, but I found it here at Powell’s and it sounds just like I remembered. We’re going to visit Powell’s this week while we’re in Portland for PLA, so maybe I’ll look it up and bring it back as a gift to the campground’s library.

Review -- Where is Catkin?

                             

Where is Catkin?                         

Written by Janet Lord

Illustrated by Julie Paschkis

Peachtree Publishers, 2010

hardcover picture book

I'm a huge fan of Julie Paschkis' art -- her colors and imaginative decorations are a visual delight. And I embrace the idea of sisters' collaboration. (Julie and her sister, Janet Lord, have shared credit for two previous picture books.) And, though I'm definitely a dog person, I like cats well enough. So, Where is Catkin?, is a natural as a picture book that delights and engages me. The story begins with young Amy and Catkin against a background of fantasical lush flowers and a shining sun. "Catkin sneeks through the grass./He sees something shiny and small./ Kerik-kerik. Kerik-kerik./Catkin hops ..." and is off to the hunt! Double page spreads full of bright colors against a black background, framed bottom and top by a decorative border in gold and orange-red, follow Catkin on the chase through the garden, as the cat hears various sounds and goes after a frog, a mouse, a snake. The borders also follow the story's progress as the animals chased but not caught populate the borders. Then, as the action shifts and Catkin is caught in a tree, the borders' placement changes. The last page portrays Amy with resucued Catkin in her arms, borders on all four sides, everyone happy and safe. Ahhh!

Thanks to Peachtree Publishers for the review copy.

Serendipity! I just went to the wonderful Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast blog to check if there was an interview with Julie Paschkis I could link to. There is and it's dated today! Read it. Feast your eyes on images shown of art from Catkin.

The Redwall retirement plan

I’ve been thinking more about retirement these days, because we’ve spent the winter in Tucson with the snowbirds at Desert Trails RV park. There are a few others who are working like we are, but almost everyone else is retired, and they are making it look great: hiking, playing games, biking, swimming, bird-watching and a zillion other fun activities.

But I’ve decided to let Desert Trails go when my time to relax comes along. I’m going to go with the Redwall retirement plan. If you’ve read every single one of the books in Brian Jacques’ fabulous series, as I have, then you’ll remember that some of the most beloved characters are the old moles, badgers and mice – the wise ones, the ones who can no longer fight in the battles but are still treasured members of the Redwall community.

Most of the time, the old ones just sit in the sun, bounce the Dibbuns on their knees, tell stories and of course – eat! The feasts at Redwall Abbey are legendary, and I for one can’t wait to eat my fill of buttercream scones, slurp my way through a vat of Shrimp ’N Hotroot Soup, and drink my fill of October Ale and Summer Strawberry Fizz.

And if I do get tired of eating, talking and dozing in the sun – well, no doubt there will be a villain laying siege outside our walls any day now…

It's Babytime!

Last week I went to my very first Babytime. Different from the traditional storytimes which are standard fare at libraries, Babytime focuses on emergent literacy activities rather than listening to stories read aloud. There's generally music, rhymes, and movement led by a children's librarian and moms and caregivers take part too.

I went with a friend, Geri, her daughter Jeanette and Jeanette's son Wade, a lively 8 month old. Wade goes to Babytime once or twice every week and loves it.The Pima County Public Library has an extensive schedule of Babytimes and Storytimes and their efforts are supported by local agencies like Make Way For Books.

What a delightful time! Imagine 20 babies -- some sitting on laps, some walking around the room, some crawling on a huge colorful quilt in the center of the floor. There were 4 sets of twins! Using a rhyme and a big bear puppet the librarian introduced each child to the group; then the group recited various rhymes like "Eensy Weensy Spider" and "Where is Thumbkin" (those are the ones I remember because they're familiar) aloud with accompanying movements, all the adults engaging with the babies; and we listened to songs. The scheduled Babytime is followed by 30 minutes of free time when the moms and aregivers can talk together and babies can play while soft music plays in the background. There were lots of books around the room for anyone to pick up and look at (and check out too.) Maybe I'll get to go again before we leave Tucson!

Here are some favorite board books for babies:

Shine your creative light out into the world!

I’m sitting here paging through one of my favorite children’s books – I read it at least once a week, taking time to closely examine the pictures and laugh aloud at the simple text. It’s a very valuable book, a limited edition, called Kyra and Bobbie: Best Friends. Kyra is my 6-year-old niece, and a few years ago for my birthday my sister Jean (Kyra’s mom, a teacher and children’s book enthusiast) made this book for Kyra and I. We each have one – a print run of 2.

It’s the ultimate in niche publishing, isn’t it? A book with no marketing budget and very minimal production costs that’s guaranteed to reach (and delight!) its small audience – an instant classic destined to be read for years.

When I give talks about independent publishing to groups of would-be authors, I always make sure to say this: if all you want is to get your book or your story out into the world, you can do that yourself. You don’t have to wait for some far-off publisher to read your work, make a judgment about it and turn you down. With all of the print-on-demand technologies – heck, even with a color copier and a binding machine - you can be a publisher. And with the communication possibilities of the Internet and all of its accompanying social media, you can get your story out to its intended audience. Even if that audience is very, very small.

It’s time for a sequel to my Kyra book – her brother Keane was reading it with her and said to his mom: “I want to be in a book with Aunt Bobbie.” Start the presses…

Happy New Year!

Kidlit Cupcakes

KidLit Drink Night in NYC is well established and, though I don't drink, I hope to attend sometime when I'm in New York. Then there was Boston Kid Lit Pie Night and now, as reported by Fuse #8, there will be Pie in Salt Lake. Pie is great -- one of our WLCB mottos is "Eat Pie Now." However -- more time in Austin would definitely mean Kidlit Cupcake Night. Here's where we'd meet -- the incomparable Hey Cupcake!



We've sampled several and there are no bad choices. Choose yours here. Pay close attention to the Whipper Snapper.

Not all locations are in Airsteams, but that's our favorite.

NYT Best Illustrated

The New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books for 2009 were announced today. I think they’re great choices – I usually do. But sometimes, while I feel the choices are marvels of illustration, I wonder about real child appeal. Not so with this year. Several of my favorites are listed, including the gem All the World. The only title I don’t know is White Noise, but David Carter is known for some incredible pop-ups.

Austin Reads!

Austin is a book town -- we see people walking around with books everywhere. We've been to Bookpeople and will be there again and take some photos of the children's area. Haven't been to the library yet, but we'll get there.

Liz Garton Scanlon lives here and I fantasize about running into her.

Smile

We visited a comics shop in Ann Arbor and this sign made us smile.

Review -- The Secret World of Walter Anderson

The Secret World of Walter Anderson
Written by Hester Bass and illustrated by E. B. Lewis
Candlewick Press, 2009
Hardcover Picture Book

Sometimes books strike you in a particularly strong way and you might not know why. That's true for me with The Secret Life of Walter Anderson. I'm so enamored of this book!Yes -- the beach,nature, an artist, on an island -- it makes sense that I would like a book with these elements. But this book is more -- I want to know everything about Walter Anderson and his family, I want to visit the museum that holds his work, I want to see his work "in person". I'm fascinated with his story. I embrace the idea that someone living so simply could be so happy.

The opening lines express the essense of the man --

There once was a man whose love of nature was as wide as the world. There once was an artist who needed to paint as much as he needed to breathe. There once was an islander who lived in a cottage at the edge of the Mississippi, where the sea meets the earth and the sky.

But it's not just about an artist who loved to paint but something more universal -- its about following your heart.

The book focuses on his trips to Horn Island. Packing sparingly and leaving before dawn he'd row 12 miles out off the Mississippi coast and arrive on the island, greeting his animal friends. The uninhabited island had no electricity or buildings; food was scarce and the weather wild. Walter would spend weeks at a time on the island painting, writing and drawing. Though he was happiest here the work he created was kept locked in a cottage room and unseen until after his death. He was recognized for other works of art -- paintings, sculpture, carvings -- but what came from Horn Island was secret.

The illustrations are so atmospheric you can practically smell the salt air. Lewis' loose, impressionistic watercolors pull you right into Walter's solitariness and his intense focus on his subjects. The expressive well-crafted text portrays the character of the man and the natural world he was such a part of. Both art and text vividly capture his uniqueness.

An extensive author's note sheds more light on Anderson -- he was a troubled man and unable to live with his family. His brothers were also artists and founded Shearwater Pottery, though much of that legacy was destoyed by Hurricane Katrina. Horn Island is now protected as part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore.The author spent 7 years in Ocean Springs MS and her love for the area and admiration of Anderson are apparent. A bibliography is included.



These images are taken from the Walter Anderson Museum of Art website.

Thanks to Candlewick Press for providing a review copy.

Nonfiction Matters

Take a look at this amazing website put together by the authors who are a part of the I.N.K. (Interesting Nonfiction for Kids) blog. Now there's a searchable database of their titles linked to standards -- such a great resource!

Congratulations to our clients who are members of this innovative group of writers: Marfe Ferguson Delano, Deborah Heiligman, and Susanna Reich.

2009 National Book Festival

photo by Sally Lindsay
My friend Sally and I drove down to Washington yesterday for The National Book Festival.It was our first time at the annual event and even though the rainy day shortened our time there we experienced enough of the flavor of the festival. I love the idea of a national celebration of books and authors and the author line-up included many "big" names.

photo by Sally Lindsay

The highlight of the day was hearing Jacqueline Woodson speak. She is an amazing woman and writer and it was a privilege to listen to her talk about her work and recite from Locomotion, Feathers, Show Way, and Behind You.

PBS Kids had its own tent and it was packed! Chaotic really. My favorite Reading Rockets had a table. photo by Sally Lindsay

All in all I'm glad I went though I was a bit disappointed. I expected more exhibits -- local publishers, literacy organizations, why not the DC Public Library? I think it's wonderful that there were so many authors but what about lessor known and new names?
photo by sally Lindsay

Review -- Trouble Gum

Trouble Gum
Written and illustrated by Matthew Cordell
Feiwel and Friends, 2009
Hardcover Picture Book

This new picture book is about fun – pink fun, stretchy fun, bubble fun – yes, gum fun. And as the title states it’s a book about trouble too.

On a rainy day, Rueben and his younger brother are playing inside and soon the piglets’ raucous behavior unnerves their mother and visiting grandmother. Grammy offers gum while Mom invokes the three rules, “Don’t swallow your gum. Don’t play with your gum. And don’t blow big, sticky bubbles with your gum.” How long do you think it takes to break those rules? How long before fun becomes trouble? Cordell does a fine job with pacing and juxtaposing art with text so that readers are simultaneously laughing while exclaiming Oh no! The black line cartoon-y art with just small bits of pink, red and gray is perfectly placed against a white background. There’s plenty of room for changing perspectives, lots of action, and text that is both story and art. Some text in hand-lettered font -- SMAK! Stuuuuuuuuuurch Pop! -- creates a soundtrack of the misbehaving brothers. Cleverness and hilarity run throughout the story.

Thanks to Feiwel and Friends for the f & g given at their reception for bloggers during ALA.AND they gave us these terrific promo gifts -- guess what's inside the tiny box?


Click here to go to Matthew Cordell’s website.