MotherReader

I thought that I might continue to update the blog in my free time in New York City, but now I’m seeing that as pretty unlikely. Both the updating and the free time. Yes, though I’ve managed to carve out a few minutes this evening to say that I could TOTALLY LIVE HERE! And by that, I mean in my cousin’s apartment with its wide-open rooms and eight- ten-foot ceilings and intricate wainscoting (I think that’s the right word; I’ll have to look it up).

The tween was happy with her first day at Broadway Artists Alliance, even though it seemed a bit overwhelming as we went in — for both of us. It’s going to be a little tough getting her there because it definitely involves a bus or subway transfer, and I’m not crazy about either. But I’m learning. I took in the American Museum of Natural History with the teen, though I could have benefited more from going in one of the many spas we saw along the way. Seriously, how many spas does one city need?

I may be back during the week, and I may not. But if not, I didn’t want you to worry.

By now, many of you have heard of the blog Ripple, where illustrators donate their art for donations to causes to help the wildlife in the Gulf Coast disaster. I’ve been following the project since the beginning, and am excited to report that it has raised over $8,500 in funds — most of it one $10 card at a time. I have five myself.

I’ve noticed many artists listed as children’s illustrators, and recently the site has offered $50 cards from authors of published children’s books. So far, all the contributions from Tom Warburton, Janeen Mason, Susan Miller, Aaron Zenz, Vanessa Brantley-Newton, Mo Willems, Stephen Marchesi, Maggie Swanson, and Jarrett Krosoczka have sold. Upcoming featured illustrators include Matt Phelan, Dan Santat, and Don Tate. I hope that more illustrators will lend their name and art to the cause.

With the extra publicity in July, the other $10 cards have sold very well. But there are a bunch of cards from June still available. Consider buying one for the chance to contribute as part of our community.

How about: The Sea was Filled with Color

Or Seagulls

Or a print of Still Life

Or Black Shells

Or any of more than 150 unclaimed cards. Even if you find your contribution to be less for the art and more for the charity, go find one and make a difference for the Gulf and maybe even for an artist. You’ll see the whole list of titles at the bottom of Ripple. Some unclaimed cards include:

609, 610, 611. Brown Blues
614. Mermaids and Jellies
619. Help!
628. Spirits of the Sea
636. Black Shells
642. Precious
646. Ladyfish
647. Smothered
651. Pelican and Fish
654. Wisdom of the Dolphins
657. Cleanup Effort
663. We Are One
664. Swan Song
665. What Greed Can Do
667. Can You Hear Us?
671. This Is Wrong
677. Spot on the Sea
678. Blanket of Oil
684. Mamma Are We Surrounded
686. Slick Willie
688. In the Hands of Hope
690. Starfish and Octopus
705. Save a Couple of Birds
714. Remember
718. Babe in Arms
722. Those Aren’t Urchins
731. The Enemy of the Anemone
734,735. Ducks
738. Cranewife
741. Behind the Illusion
745. Escape
746. Who Did This?
776. A Bird’s Fate
777. Pirate

Three months ago my mother had a stroke. She was lucky in that her impairment wasn’t severe, and physically she recovered quickly. To be more accurate, her body excluding her brain recovered quickly. Her brain relearned some things within a week; many other things are still behind a locked door. She struggles to read and comprehend more than a paragraph. She mixes up numbers, can’t do any math, and forgets the time. She can get confused in new situations, and in those times her speech also loses some coherence. There remain a number of surprises as we learn some new, discrete impairment.

This weekend offered one of those moments. My mom came up to see my tween in her summer musical theatre performance, where she was featured in several numbers and had the Maria solo in “I Feel Pretty.” The logistics of the travel arrangements weren’t easy, but it was very important to my mom that she make it to this show, so we made it happen. My daughter gave a wonderful performance, both in dancing for songs from Hairspray and in her solo. I wasn’t sitting next to my mom, but she seemed to be enjoying the show. It wasn’t until the end that she shared that she hadn’t recognized her granddaughter during her solo. She was light about it, but it broke my heart. She came all the way here to see my daughter perform, and then didn’t realize that was what she was seeing. I tried to make sense of it — because certainly she recognizes us — and came to the conclusion that with the costumes, and without the context of a familiar setting, her stroke-impaired brain couldn’t make the connection between the lovely singer and her own granddaughter.

These are the times when I understand how much has been lost, and how surprising some of the losses are. Also that I began to worry about what is still in store. One of the findings from all the brain scans was a benign tumor that is pressing on her optic nerve and other sensitive areas. Surgery looks likely, but is tricky and possibly dangerous. One of the hardest parts is that it may fall to me to make or at least to finalize some of the decisions, because this kind of problem solving is exactly where my mom struggles. It’s scary.

I’ve found some help and comfort in My Stroke of Insight, by Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D., and am talking about the book in a separate post for NonFiction Monday here.

When my mother had a stroke, I turned to books as my usual source of comfort. Or, better put, comfort in information. Mostly it was a frustrating experience, as strokes are so individualized that I didn’t find much that felt helpful to our situation. The best source came from a memoir of a stroke written by a brain scientist, My Stroke of Insight, by Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D.

One morning this neuroanatomist got the ultimate brain study experience — seeing a stroke from the inside. She details the progress of the stroke as various parts of her brain shut down, and then takes the reader through her own journey to recovery. This is an amazing book for several reasons. First, it is an inspiration to stroke survivors to see the complete recovery of someone who had a massive stroke. Second, it helps stroke survivors and their families cope with the often-present question of “Why didn’t she call 911?” (Answer: The stroke knocked out that logical approach.) Third, it details assistance to recovery in a readable and personal way, while also offering a handy list of recommendations at the end of the book.

And fourth — and in many ways most important to the book and to the author — it shows us the beauty and divine spirit of our right brain. What the author found was that as the entire left hemisphere of her brain was shutting down from the ruptured artery, she was experiencing the world through her right brain and was astonished by the immense joy and peace she found there. In fact, at a point she would rather have given up on this life and let go, but for a found purpose to share with the world that this sense of spiritual oneness is within us.

If you want a preview of the book, and her intense experience, watch the video of her presentation. It will certainly make you think.


Nonfiction Monday is hosted today at In Need of Chocolate.

Today at PBS Booklights I’m sharing thirteen chapter books that take place during the summer. I tried to include a mix of styles, genres, and characters, but in general, I went with a lighter tone in the books I selected. There were many more titles that could have been included, and I think I’ll do one more list of tween/teen selections. I hesitate to commit because making each of these lists took a long time — much longer than I thought it would.

Anyway, last week I wondered here if there were an ideal way to indicate race and culture in very short reviews. This week I come with a new problem that perhaps you — yes, you, author person — can solve: I couldn’t find many summer stories that feature kids of color. Can someone get on this, please?

Oh, and here’s last week’s list of Summer Picture Books again — because, as I mentioned, it took a long time to make so I need to get like, double credit for it.

In my first minutes at Girl Scout camp, a child got off the bus and threw up at my feet.

Sometimes things start off pretty much the way they are going to continue. I’d call this camp experience one of those things. I was glad to be able to help. I had a nice group of girls, and I did like the teen leaders. But it was continually annoying how disorganized the camp was. I didn’t have much to do as a chaperone, so the days were long and boring. And for reasons of economy they fed us like we were all preschoolers — in food type and amount. Seriously, can you call one piece of cheese on white bread a sandwich?

Certainly spending my days in the heat and humidity left me little energy to attend to this blog. I only managed personal hygiene out of necessity. I wasn’t going to have a post today until I ran into a gem on Facebook — the Old Spice guy gives a few words regarding libraries. Enjoy.

Hey — TeenReader here, bringing you a fabulous review of the equally fabulous book, The Strange Case of Origami Yoda, by Tom Angleberger. The first thing I noticed about this book was the unusually large number of references to the dorky kingdom (Lord of the Rings, Spiderman, and of course Star Wars). The second thing I noticed? I get every one of them. It’s a real eye opener. Now if you’ll excuse me, my tribble named Gandalf and I need to watch a Buffy marathon in nerdy peace.

But really, I did like the book. Basically, an oddball sixth grader creates a Yoda finger puppet out of origami and begins to predict fortunes with it and give advice, which often seems to work out spookily well. The story was compelling and easy to follow. The book itself was meant to be a case file on “origami Yoda,” with different students telling stories about how “Yoda” has helped or hindered them. The collection of short stories kept an otherwise static plot moving in a good flow. The writing styles and thought process really did seem to convey the minds of sixth graders. I also love the slight surrealistic element to it. Not enough to creep you out, but just enough to make you wonder…

My only small problem with the book is that the setup kind of reveals the payoff. Wookiee mistake (I’m sorry — I couldn’t resist). I don’t want to reveal too much, but the book started by letting us know there was a problem, and went into more detail about what exactly the problem was. And as soon as I found out exactly what the problem was, I (correctly) predicted the solution. So either I’m a better fortune teller than origami Yoga, or this needs to involve a few more unconventional twists to keep us guessing. But I could just be very clever.

On the whole, however, this was a really fun, light, and enjoyable read for all my nerdy brethren out there. I would definitely pick it up. I found it to be more enjoyable than blowing up a Death Star. And blowing up a Death Star, that’s fun.

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MotherReader here just to add a “What she said!” to this review. I enjoyed the book very much myself — which is one of my key requirements to passing it on to TeenReader. All I can really add is that I particularly appreciated the shout out to the KidLitosphere in the acknowledgements. That’s certainly a first, and I loved it.

Today I have a picture book about poetry, which counts for Poetry Friday, I believe.

Bella & Bean
by Rebecca Dotlich, illustrated by Aileen Leijten

Bella writes poetry every day “at a small desk, beneath a small window, shaded by a canopy the color of plums.” When her friend Bean comes by to show off her new hat and to invite Bella for a walk to the pond, Bella stays in to write. While Bean does things, Bella writes things, until she realizes that she’s missing out on sharing these moments with her best friend. Her revelation leads to a better balance of action and friendship. The illustrations are lovely — lots of teal green backgrounds to reflect this year’s hot color — and a general prettiness to the characters and scenes. Overall, it’s a great story of friendship and balance, but also a view into the writing and poetry process. As an example, here’s a section from where Bella puts together things from her talk with Bean and things that she observes as Bean walks away:

She wrote words that reminded her of the river:
bend, flow, gurgle, and rush.
She wrote words that remind her of the moon:
white, round, silver, and bright.
She wiggled just right in her chair and added:
flower, bonnet, sun and breeze

Then Bella wrote this poem:

The river gurgles ’round the bend.
It rushes like the breeze.
The sun is a silver bonnet.
The stones are its flowers.

You’ll have to keep reading the book to find where the moon words fit in. Poetry Friday round-up is hosted today at Carol’s Corner.

Today I’m sharing thirteen of my favorite picture books about summer over at PBS Booklights. I worked hard to make a list that showed the many different ways that kids enjoy summer, even though I found I could easily find that many books on the beach alone. As a beach lover, I worked against instinct to include only two, maybe three choices that covered the shore. Maybe the next list will be all beach books.

I also worked to incorporate diversity into the list. I had a number of books in mind that featured children of color, and at the same time I still wanted to show a variety of summer settings. I did come across an issue that I’d like to put up for discussion. With a one-sentence summary to work with, should every book that features a child of color be identified as such? On the one hand, I’d like to make sure that people know that there are books showing African American children. On the other hand, I don’t label all the other books as featuring Caucasian children. What makes sense to you?

In one book, I reference the Spanish words in the text, which fairly implies a Hispanic family. Another book shows a visit to India, which establishes a multicultural title. But I handled the three books about African American children differently and without knowing which is most correct. In one book, Come On, Rain! I didn’t mention it at all other than that it was an urban setting. In Think Cool Thoughts, I didn’t mention race, but I did include a picture of the cover. In Summer Sun Risin’, I did say that it was an African American family because I felt like people might not expect that in a book about a farm.

So my question to you is how do you think race should be addressed in a quick review?

On Monday morning, I was so tired that I didn’t think I’d make it to one more day at ALA. But my teen encouraged me to go, reminding me how much I would enjoy being around my friends. Boy, does she ever know me well.

I knew there would be a slower pace on Monday, with a little more time with friends and authors, and more relaxed time to explore the booths. Running a bit behind schedule, I quickly made my way to Tanita Davis’ signing of Mare’s War. We chatted for a bit before we realized that we could meet over lunch for a more extended visit. That much better plan allowed me time to see E.B. Lewis and get a copy of Jackie’s Gift. I wish I had brought my copy of The Negro Speaks of Rivers, but I did get to tell him how much I loved his work in that book. And then it was over to Candlewick to get a copy of Roger Sutton’s A Family of Readers. Can’t wait to read it!

Though I had seen Grace Lin all weekend, I really wanted her to sign my copy of Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. I was lucky to find that her signing — actually for a different book — wasn’t too crowded, which allowed me to get a picture and give her a necklace I made as a little gift. And a hug, because she’s the sweetest lady in the world. Later, when I went back to that booth an editor there told me how touching it had been to see our meeting, which made me feel good for having brought a tiny bit of happiness into what had to be a long day for those booth workers. Yup, I’m a giver.

I checked back with Tanita, where she had gathered other friends for a lunch break. I was happy to spend some extra time with Laura Purdie Salas, Kelly Fineman, and Charlotte Taylor. Tanita’s mom had come to town as well, and was delightful and so proud of her daughter — as she should be. Tanita’s husband David was the trip photographer, capturing this happy picture of us. We had a nice time visiting, and I was sorry not to be able to spend more time with this fun group, but they were all headed their separate ways, and I had a few more folks to see.


Specifically, I was headed to a signing of Will Grayson Will Grayson, by John Green and David Levithan. The signing on Sunday had an outrageous line, but this one from BWI hadn’t been promoted, so I was able to get through the line pretty quickly. The distributer was giving away free copies, which attracted a different sort of people. Namely, the people who wanted free books, whatever they were. Instead of getting to gab with fellow Nerdfighters, I found myself behind a rather cranky lady who didn’t know anything about the book and was annoyed that the wait was so long. If she hadn’t been like seventy years old, I might have smacked her. I didn’t have much time with the authors, of course, but I did pick up the free copy and had the one I had purchased signed as well. (Which led the irritable lady to ask how I got two books. Le sigh.)

Then it was over to the Charlesbridge booth to to chat with Emily Mitchell — editor and blogger of Emily Reads — and get my copy of The Day-Glo Brothers signed by Chris Barton. As we talked, I found that Walter Dean Myers was signing at the next booth. Surprisingly, there was no line at all, so I picked up a copy of Looking Like Me and we chatted about kids today. I suggested that his son seemed to have grown up okay, having illustrated the book I was buying. He liked that. I was able afterward to pick up a copy of Anything but Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin — a book I really enjoyed — and make a very specific compliment to the book. I’ve heard authors like that.

Now it was about 2:00 and I was beginning to fade. I was taking a quick walk through as some booths were starting to unload their display copies, and stumbled on two more signings. The first was a book by Joyce Sidman that I liked, but never got around to buying — partially because it’s kind of sad. But seeing illustrator Pamela Zagarenski signing, it seemed like the right time to take home This Is Just to Say. The second surprise signing was Lane Smith for It’s a Book. Actually, there were a couple of surprises there. A free tote bag, and the last line of the book. Oh, you’ll see.

At that point, my bag was full and I was ready to head home. On the Metro ride back, I realized that people approached ALA in different ways. Some were there for the sessions, of course. Some were excited to see the different award presentations. Others wanted to get as many books as they possibly could, while still others went to hang out with a group of friends. For me, I wanted to meet as many authors and bloggers and librarians as I could, especially the ones I knew online. The signings certainly made it easier to find authors, but I also enjoyed spotting them “in the wild” of the exhibit floor. I even approached a few that way. The whole time there I was also running into fellow bloggers, and even a few MotherReader fans. Overall, it was one of the best weekends I’ve had in a long time, and I’m only sorry that I couldn’t extend my time to enjoy the Printz Awards on Monday evening and Coretta Scott King Awards on Tuesday morning. But my real life was calling, and it was calling collect.

When we last left our heroine, she was headed to the Convention Center bathroom to let a black silk top (finally, a chance to wear it), Prada shoes (bought on eBay!) and a feathered fascinator (yeah, a new word for me too) make her fancy for the big night...

I headed to the hotel in conversation with Jenny Schwartzberg and with a book-fiiled suitcase taking up my legroom in the cramped shuttle. After checking the hefty bag, I was ready to make the rounds at cocktail hour. I quickly ran into Jennie, who challenged my fascinator with her most awesome one. That alone would have forced us together for the rest of the evening. We found many other kidlitosphere folk and many impressive authors and illustrators as the party got started. As we got closer to the magic hour, we hovered close to the entrance to the banquet room. Apparently, when the ropes came down there would be a running of the librarians that we needed to join if we wanted a prime seat.
It was our preparation that put us in a good place to snag a table with fellow morning presenters Travis and Liz, plus bonus fellow blogger Adrienne. I took pictures of them, but I was using my daughter’s camera, with apparently all the wrong settings. Sorry. But I do have one — or can lift one — of Grace Lin’s buddies from The Blue Rose Girls — Anna Alter, Alvina Ling, Elaine Magliaro, Libby Koponen, and Meghan McCarthy. I should have sat down and actually visited, but I was in mom mode, making sure that everyone had a seat.

Susan Kusel had helpfully arranged a huge table buyout, so we were guaranteed good company all around. A table over from mine included Tanita Davis — I mean, Coretta Scott King Honor Award winner Tanita Davis — and her husband David, who had a awesome camera, by the way. Many of the poetry crew sat there, including Sara Lewis Holmes, Kelly Fineman (pictured), Laura Salas, and Tricia Stohr-Hunt, with occasional visitor Joyce Sidman. I mean, Caldecott Honor Award winner Joyce Sidman.

I believe it was this cheerful group who alerted me to an improbable alignment, when the table in front of me — yes, even the seat in front of me — was occupied by one Mo Willems. Unbelievable, but true.

He was very gracious in his greeting, and was only mildly annoyed when I almost blinded him with my stupid camera flash settings. He doodled at times during the presentation, and I know this because he was in my eyeline during the whole speech thing.







You see, my view of the stage was this:

But if I looked to the JumboTron screen, I saw this:

Which means I pretty much couldn’t help but be looking toward Mo the entire time that people were talking. Oh, and I had tried to be so good this conference in repairing my stalker image. I hadn’t gone to his signings, I didn’t go to the book cart drill that he was emceeing. But yet, here he was so close that I could have flicked butter pats at him all night. Not that I did. That totally wasn’t me.

There were indeed speeches from Caldecott winner Jerry Pinkney and Newbery winner Rebecca Stead. The speeches were contained on the CDs on our table, and we had a lovely program designed in the theme of The Lion & the Mouse. Given our long kidlitosphere connection with Grace Lin, our tables were particularly enthusiastic about her chance to accept the Newbery Honor award. (Read her lovely version.)

There was a receiving line at the conclusion of the banquet, but since I had said something to all of the winners at some point during the weekend, I decided to hang around and socialize. Besides, those open bottles of wine left on the publishers’ tables weren’t going to drink themselves. (Kidding! maybe...) I was able to say a quick hello to Holly Black, Jon Scieszka, and Tobin Anderson. I found myself in a conversation with Charles R. Smith, the photographer for My People, after saying, approximately, “Who are you?” Because I’m subtle like that.

At that point my chariot was about to turn into a pumpkin, meaning that Metro stops running at midnight, so it was time to go. As will happen, it took longer to get out and all than we thought, and Jennie was soooo kind to drive me to my car at the King Street station. (I owe you a scone at the next book club meeting!)

I’m visiting my mom, brother, and niece in Virginia Beach right now, which is making it harder to finish my ALA recap. Especially since I shouldn’t even have Internet access at my mom’s house, but by some wireless miracle I’m online. But the access is inconsistent and the beach is calling, so rather than work up the extensive post I need to do on the uber-exciting Newbery/Caldecott banquet, we’re taking an intermission with this awesome video done by Katie Davis. And I’m not saying it’s fantastic because I’m in it — though I am, and I rock it — but because her question was a perfect way to elicit interesting responses from some notable children’s and young adult authors. Enjoy!

Yes, my presentation, Children’s and Young Adult Book Blogs: Enhancing Library Services, was at 8:00 a.m. on Sunday morning. Which meant that for my part, I couldn’t guess whether I’d see two people in the audience or two hundred. It turned out to be pretty much in the middle, with about 130 people.

Doing the presentation with Liz Burns and Travis Jonker made it fun. We had a few laughs, and I hope that we all learned a thing or two. For instance, I learned that the Metro doesn’t open until 7:00 a.m. on Sunday. Seriously, Liz and Travis made for a fabulous team, and I think that we did a great job. The slide show is available at SlideShare and the handout will be posted at KidLitosphere Central.

After our session, I raced to the exhibit hall to see if I could catch some of my priority author signings. I was running late after visiting with some of the folks who came to our presentation, but I did get two of my books signed in the ten o’clock hour: All the World, by Liz Garton Scanlon and Marla Frazee, and A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams, by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet. I had nice things to say about both books, but I had a special connection to All the World, having been on the Cybils panel that put it through to the short list and rooted for its win.

The next hour was packed, but through some kindness of strangers I managed to get a lot more done than I should have expected. I got in line for Jerry Pinkney to sign The Lion & the Mouse and was assigned number fifty. The signing was taking a bit to get started, so I asked the nice man in line behind me if he would mind if I ran over to a signing one aisle over. He was fine with it, so I scooted over to get Tom Angleberger to sign my ARC copy of The Strange Case of Origami Yoda. When I went back to the Pinkney line, it had barely moved. So I asked the man again if he minded if I stepped over to get one more signing. Since he didn’t mind, I waited to meet Barbara O’Connor in person — after years of loving her books — and get two books signed: her new title in ARC form, The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester, and How to Steal a Dog. We talked just long enough that I began to worry about my Pinkney line, but I got back in plenty of time and was happy to tell him how much I loved the book.

My next hour was free for lunch, and I just happened to run into three friends of mine from my old library. We grabbed a bite to eat down the block, and I came back in time to pick up Countdown from Deborah Wiles. Then it was off to Charlesbridge to catch Mitali Perkins signing Bamboo People. Mitali was doing a fun thing, taking pictures of all the folks who stopped by with their favorite book of the day. I had dumped off my morning haul already, but had a copy of another ARC I was hoping to get signed during the day. Here I am, obviously, but head to Mitali’s blog to see many other familiar faces.

Another important signing on my agenda was Joyce Sidman and Pamela Zagarenski for Red Sings From Treetops. I had to share that I generally don’t buy poetry books, but that this one was so beautiful I had to have it. I told Joyce that I was so touched by every perfect, necessary word in her poems and told Pamela that I want to live in the world she draws. It was definite gushing, but I hope nicely done.

Okay, let’s blitz through the other signings. I saw Cynthia Lord for the ARC of Touch Blue, but also bought a paperback of Rules. I had Libba Bray sign my copy of Going Bovine, and also picked up a paperback copy of A Great and Terrible Beauty. I was excited to tell Francisco Stork how much I loved Marcelo in the Real World, and was happy to get a copy of Holly Cupala’s Tell Me a Secret.

Amidst the signings, I was looking at the new books, talking to the marketing folks, running into bloggers and authors. I picked up a few ARCs, but very few. Also, my scarf got a lot of compliments. Best book-related accessory in existence. Expect to see a lot of them at your next book event.

I passed on the book cart event to quietly wander the aisles and then to repack my suitcase of books. The Convention Center bathroom served well to make my preparations for the Newbery/Caldecott dinner. My bag was packed, my energy was high, and I was ready for the big night.

Best. Weekend. Ever.

I have been looking forward to the American Library Association conference because going to ALA is always a blast. But not being an actual librarian needing to go to actual meetings, I can rarely justify crossing the country to attend. But — hello? — when it’s in my backyard, then of course I’m going to be there. Still better this year was the collection of authors and illustrators winning awards, because lots of those were kidlitosphere folk. And I was giving my first big presentation. And I was going to the Newbery/Caldecott dinner. A recipe for a perfect weekend.

But let’s start back at the beginning. I missed the Friday evening activities — including the Kid Lit Drink Night — to attend my tween’s dance recital. She had another one on Saturday morning where she was singing as well as dancing, so my Saturday ALA experience started off slowly. I went to the convention center to pick up my badge, and decided I had time for three quick book signings — as opposed to the ten I’d listed on my Saturday plan.

I was in time to get a copy of The Night Fairy, by Laura Amy Schlitz. I have the ARC and loved the book, but was excited to get the copy with full color illustrations. There I ran into Betsy Bird — on crutches from her earlier ankle injury. I had meant to bring Kate Messner’s book The Brilliant Fall of Gianna Z. with me, but was pleased to find that I could get an ARC of Sugar and Ice signed by her. It was a pleasure to meet someone that I’ve only seen online.

My highest priority signing of the day was of When You Reach Me, by Rebecca Stead. I had met Rebecca at a NYC Kid Lit Drink Night years ago, and we had such a great conversation. I was more than happy to read and review her debut book, First Light. At another NYC trip, another Kid Lit Drink Night, we talked about her upcoming book — which turned out to be this Newbery Winner. I couldn’t be happier for this honor to go to such a wonderful person, and I wanted to make sure I saw her at her signing because I knew that she would be one busy lady during the conference. And indeed, I never saw her again. I mean, other than on stage accepting her medal. Yeah!

After that very brief time at the convention hall, I went to the lovely home of Tami Lewis Brown, where she was hosting a tea for Children’s Literature Ambassador Katherine Paterson. As soon as I entered the party outside, I found myself in conversation with Mrs. Paterson and M. T. Anderson. I don’t remember what we talked about, but it wasn’t fangirl gushing. I was in a prime placement for people arriving to the party, so I was able to give lots of hugs as my kidlitosphere friends arrived. At some point I circulated away, so as not to dominate the coveted space around both Katherine Paterson and M.T. Anderson. I do try to be good.

I’m not sure how I can even list all the authors and kidlit bloggers that I saw during those couple of hours. The guest list could have been plucked from my Facebook friends — which was the coolest thing ever. One big highlight was meeting Grace Lin for the first time in person. I’ve commented on her blog and reviewed her books for years. I gushed so much love for Where the Mountain Meets the Moon that I should have been collecting kickbacks. To meet her for real was simply wonderful, and the sweetness that rings through in her blogs and books was just as evident in her face.

I was also extremely happy to meet another online friend whose book I adored: Liz Garton Scanlon, author of All the World. She was absolutely charming, and I gushed a bit about the book, but I think in a normal-person way. As opposed to my meeting with Nancy Werlin, where I went all fangirl and even quizzed her on the titles of her own books so that I could remember which one I wanted to rave about — because that’s cool. (It was The Rules of Survival , but the recent book Rules of Attraction kept blocking the title for me.)

Lots of members of my DC Kidlit Book Club were there, including the founder Susan Kusel, Sara Lewis Holmes, Jama Rattigan, Caroline Hickey, Jacqueline Jules, Amy Brecount White (who gave me a ride to the metro, thanks!) and Julia Younkins. I chatted with friends I was seeing again — like Holly Cupala, Tricia Stohr-Hunt, Terry Doherty, Cheryl Klein, Cynthia Cotten, Alvina Ling and Kekla Magoon. I also met for the first time in real life Mary Quattlebaum, Laura Purdie Salas, Kelly Fineman, Carrie Jones, and Rita Williams Garcia. (If I left your name off and we had a long conversation and you’re reading this like, “Hey, what about me?” I have to beg your forgiveness, but this was a few days and hundred people ago, and it was amazing I pulled together this much information.)

While some bloggers headed out to a quiet dinner together, I went home to regroup for the big day on Sunday. A day that would start with my presentation at eight flippin’ o’clock in the morning and would end with the Newbery/Caldecott dinner.

Last year TeenReader did a book trailer for Ash, by Malinda Lo, as part of a contest. Sadly, she didn’t win the contest, but I’ve always been impressed by what she came up with completely on her own. Well, my voice and my husband’s hand are in there, and occasionally we pointed the camera where she told us to. But she did everything else, and I love that she did an ambitious, storylike version.


Recently, she got a comment asking why she didn’t include the character of Kaisa in the video. The reason was really logistical — she didn’t involve anyone else in her project — but it made me think about whether that was an essential thing to include. After all, Ash’s love for the huntress is what really set this book apart from other Cinderella stories. Made it the book with a twist, as it were.

But in thinking about it, what I liked about Ash — and the twist — was how matter-of-factly her love for another woman was handled in the story. It was a conflict for the character, certainly, but it wasn’t an Issue. Her choice wasn’t mired in wrestling with her sexual identity, but more of a struggle between holding on to the past or moving on, more about either escaping from the real world or diving into it with joy. The love story was true and beautiful and essential to the story. But maybe not in the book trailer, because that would have made it seem more of the point than it really was. In any case, it’s a lovely, haunting book and a good book trailer — in my humble opinion.

Let me start by saying that while I was glad to attend the Book Blogger Convention, I cannot call it the first Book Blogger Convention, as came up in Publishers Weekly. I mean, I suppose it is the first with that name, and associated with BEA, and that was open to a variety of book bloggers. However, having been at three conferences for book bloggers in children’s and Young Adult literature, having organized one here in D.C., and now getting to announce the fourth one — well, I can’t call this one the first.

What do I mean about announcing the fourth one? Oh, silly me — I guess that I’ll do that now. KidLitCon 2010 will be held on October 23rd in Minneapolis, hosted by Andrew Karre (Carolrhoda), Ben Barnhart (Milkweed Editions) and Brian Farrey (Flux). There will be a Friday reception, workshops on Saturday, and a dinner. They are taking proposals for sessions now, so scoot over to the official blog for more information.

But back to the Book Blogger Convention of May, where Betsy Bird and I struck out across town to represent the kidlitosphere among a range of bloggers of books. Maureen Johnson was the keynote speaker, and was funny and altogether delightful. I approached her later just to say hello and tell her how much I enjoyed her talk. Ron Hogan presented a wonderful session on ethics and blogging, which is available at Beatrice.

He joined Betsy and me and Terry Doherty — also there to represent — at lunch, where the lively discussion of ethics and blogging continued. There were no black-and-white cookies at lunch. I just thought you should know.

The afternoon was for panelist sessions on Writing/Building Content, Marketing, Social Responsibility, and Author/Blogger Relationships. I most enjoyed the session on social responsibility, which got into issues of white-washing covers, lack of representation of minorities in books, book challenges for GLBT content, and more. I was particularly impressed with Zetta Elliott, not that I was surprised given her online presence. There was also a notable component that focused on doing good work in fundraising and literacy advocacy.

As the day was over, we collected swag bags filled with books and fun stuff. I wasn’t able to take all of it home on my flight, but I took a few things. (Back home, BBC organizer Michelle of Galleysmith gave me some extras for prizes and for KidLitCon 2010. People don’t always take their swag.) That evening, Betsy was generous in sharing her apartment, cooking a nice dinner, and introducing me to Modern Family — which is totally my family.

I flew home the next day, but not before I was able to meet my cousin for brunch. He hadn’t been around to host my visit, but it was good to see him before I left. I was low-key about this fact, but I guess I should mention that my cousin is this guy.

All in all, a great — if completely exhausting — trip to New York City. And now here I am, days away from a similar book-filled event, but without the travel. Looking forward to seeing all of you ALA attendees!

Join me in a journey back in time — all the way back to May 27th — to visit my BookExpo America Experience. It starts with an flight to NYC leaving at 7:00 a.m. By the time you even read that sentence, you realized what I didn’t consider — that a 7:00 a.m. flight from National Airport was going to require an ungodly early wake-up time. True, but it did get me to BEA for the whole day on Thursday. Very important, as I’d already decided to pass on Wednesday to reduce my time away from home.

Once I got to the Javits Center and collected my pass, I was off to get books. I had come with the idea of meeting authors and getting books signed, rather than collecting ARCs. That said, there were a few I couldn’t resist along the way. Namely Monsters of Men, by Patrick Ness; The Fences Between Us: The Diary of Piper Davis (Dear America), by Kirby Larson; Philippa Fisher and the Fairy’s Promise, by Liz Kessler; The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend, by Kody Keplinger; Clara Lee and the Apple Pie Dream, by Jenny Han; and President of the Whole Fifth Grade, by Sherri Winston. There were a some others that I gave out as prizes in the 48 Hour Book Challenge, but these I still have.

I had looked through the online signing schedules exhaustively to plan my day, only to find that they handed me an all-too-useful spreadsheet when I arrived. Argh. I knew that my own listing was way too ambitious, but I knew my priorities and guessed at my time limitations.

My ridiculous flight meant I was early enough to catch even the 10:00 a.m. signings, and three of my top morning choices were Elizabeth Bluemle for How Do You Wokka-Wokka?, Adam Rex for Fat Vampire, and David Wiesner for Flotsam. Mission accomplished. I was dying to see James Howe, but the line was way too long. Then a quick stop to say hi to Mo Willems, get a poster signed, and pick up Knuffle Bunny Free: An Unexpected Diversion. Then a dash to get a copy of Trickster: Native American Tales: A Graphic Collection signed by Matt Dembicki — a local illustrator who came to my library a few years ago to do a drawing session for kids. We talked for a while there, and I was happy to see him on the BEA floor with this great new book.

I decided to skip the Jeff Kinney signing because the line was crazy long, and I hoped I could catch him later at the Guys Read session. I did wait for Laurie Halse Anderson because I really wanted Forge, the sequel to Chains. That said, I haven’t read it yet. C’mon, I’ve been really busy. I also had to pass by a few others on my list, but I ended up in the right place, right time to catch Barney Saltzberg to sign All Around the Seasons.

Then it was the quickest food grab ever to make it to the Guys Read session with Jon Scieska, Adam Rex, Mac Barnett, Eric Luper and Jeff Kinney. This was the highest priority of my day, and I enjoyed it throughly — from the banter among the panelists, to the video, to the Groucho glasses on my chair. Having no shame, I marched up to each of the Guys, introduced myself, and had them sign the book Guys Read: Funny Business. (Yeah, I haven’t read it yet either. Don’t judge me!) I got a few pictures, several handshakes, and a copy of The Brixton Brothers: The Case of the Case of Mistaken Identity, by Mac Barnett, with illustrations by Adam Rex.

Afterward, I barely caught Gretchen Rubin’s signing of The Happiness Project, but she was very nice about it. And I was so excited to get the book! I spend the next hour kind of wandering. I hit a few signings randomly and caught some good ARCs as publishers were clearing out their stash of holdbacks (see above). I had been sorry to miss Roger Sutton’s signing, but a copy of A Family of Readers was among Candlewick’s last handouts. Sweet.

Betsy Bird and I were going to meet up at an Author’s Tea she was attending, but due to no-shows I was able to get a seat at the table. The table occupied by Richard Peck, that is. Betsy was our table hostess, but we didn’t need much help to keep the conversation going with such an iconic children’s author. I got a copy of his new book, Three Quarters Dead, which looks like a real departure from the Peck books I know. After the tea and cookies, I was able to catch Sara Pennypacker and Marla Frazlee to sign a copy of the ARC Clementine: Friend of the Week and was glad to have the chance to gush like a madwoman. I also met Jan Brett for a brief signing of The 3 Little Dassies — but long enough for me to mention how much I loved The Easter Egg, along with the video on Amazon. On the way out of the tea, I was able to get a copy of The Red Pyramid, but unfortunately missed the author himself.

With a bagload of books, I went to the shipping center, and then I was back to the same hall for the Book Blogger Convention reception. By this point, I was exhausted and remember very little as to the specifics of who I met or what I talked about. I can say with some certainty that I chatted with a marketing person, an author I’ve met before, and a very pregnant woman wearing heels. I can also confirm that I grabbed at least four of the little black-and-white cookies before the staff cleared the tray. No sense in them going to waste.

Other than a quick dinner in a noisy bar, a bus ride to the upper West side, and a well-appreciated stay at the home of Betsy Bird, that concludes my BEA day. Next up, Day Two: Book Blogger Convention 2010.

It’s most definitely wrong to do a post looking forward when this week is all about wrapping up. But maybe it’s because I’m so submerged in wrapping-up activities that I can’t stand to write about it too. The school year is closing out... or dragging out, as seems a more appropriate phrasing. The last day is Thursday, and the teen has her big Geometry final tomorrow and the tween has her last day of literature circle on Wednesday. Wednesday! Nothing like squeezing in the last bits of learning into the overworked, summer-ready brains of these kids. Both girls are exhausted and more than ready for the summer break. Me, too.

I’m wrapping up the Girl Scout troop finances for the year — or would be if I could just get in the last registration checks from parents. I’m ready to send out 48 Hour Book Challenge prizes, if I can just find the packing tape. I’ve finished my mom’s surgical consultation, to find out how much can’t be done now. Closing the book on anything is frustrating today, so let’s talk about the future.

Not far in the future, mind you, but to the next weekend of American Library Association festivities. Ah, I can’t wait. I won’t be there for everything, but I have some great events marked off on my schedule. And the book signings! I can’t wait to bring my copies along and meet some of these fabulous authors and illustrators.

The high point for me will be the presentation I’m doing on Sunday morning at 8:00 a.m. on Chidlren’s and Young Adult Book Blogs, with the idea being to share our incredible community with librarians. I’m working with Liz Burns and Travis Jonkers for a presentation that is going to be most excellent. Here’s the description:

Enhance collection development, keep current on trends and titles, and provide better readers’ advisory using the collective, valuable resource of book reviews, industry news, and author interviews of children’s and young adult literature blogs. Learn how to utilize this dynamic, online world of fiction and nonfiction, poetry and prose, picture books and teen titles, authors and illustrators, writing and reading, publishing insight and programming ideas.

Doesn’t that sound like something you’d want to attend? You betcha! Then I’ll probably hit the variety of book signings, spaced out with publisher booth visits. I have a list of the ones I’m going to try to make, but here are some highlights: (The ** mark denotes books I own; the * shows books that are being given away as ARCs.)

10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

• Simon & Schuster, Inc. · booth 2644
  Liz Garton Scanlon, author, and Marla Frazee, illustrator: **All the World
  
• Eerdmans Books for Young Readers · booth 2612
  Jen Bryant, author, and Melissa Sweet, illustrator: **A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams
  
• Bloomsbury/Walker & Co. · booth 2800
  Jessica Day George, author: **Princess of Glass
  Carrie Jones, author: Captivate
  

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon

• Penguin Young Readers Group · booth 2500
  John Green and David Levithan, authors: **Will Grayson, Will Grayson
  
• Little, Brown and Company · booth 2713
  Jerry Pinkney, author/illustrator: **The Lion & the Mouse
  
• Abrams/Amulet/STC · booth 2732
  Tom Angleberger, author/illustrator: **The Strange Case of Origami Yoda
  
• Farrar Straus Giroux · booth 2816
  Barbara O’Connor, author: *The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester (arc)
  

1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

• Charlesbridge Publishing · booth 2710
  Mitali Perkins, author: **Bamboo People
  
• Simon & Schuster, Inc. · booth 2644
  Brian Floca, author/illustrator: Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11
  Jon Scieszka, author: SPHDZ Book #1!
  
• Scholastic · booth 2624
  Deborah Wiles, author: Countdown
  

2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

• Houghton Mifflin Harcourt · booth 3152
  Joyce Sidman, author, and Pamela Zagarenski, illustrator: **Red Sings From Treetops: A Year in Colors
  
• Scholastic · booth 2624
  Cythina Lord, author: *Touch Blue (arc)
  
• HarperCollins · booth 2512
  Amy Brecount White, author: Forget-Her-Nots
  

It’s difficult for me to even spend so much time on these book signings with the sessions I’ll be missing. I’m interested in the 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. session Notable Books for a Global Society Awards AASL and positively fascinated by the 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. session Not So Extreme Makeovers, which plans to “take a positive spin on those oft-depicted items in the library staff member’s closet — focusing on enhancement rather than change.” Love it. Of course there’s always the Sixth Annual Book Cart Drill Team Championship, as emceed by Jon Scieszka and Mo Willems.

That evening, I’ll be attending the Newbery/Caldecott Awards Banquet in the table-hopping vicinity of seventy KidLitosphere folk — bloggers and authors I’ve known online forever. Like all of the Blue Rose Girls, for example. So awesome.

I’m thinking that I’ll be bunking with someone on Sunday night so that I can make a day of it on Monday as well. There are some book signings to attend, but a lazier schedule which may allow me more time to visit. I would like to go to the ALSC Awards Presentation and Membership Meeting where they present the Batchelder, Carnegie, Geisel, and Sibert Awards. I don’t have a full pass that day, but can someone slip me in?

So who’s going? What are you most looking forward to? And most importantly, where will I find you?

I was going to come back after BEA and then 48 Hour Book Challenge and then Bloggiesta with all this verve and vigor. And posts. You know, like actual posts. About books and stuff. But what can I say? I’ve been overwhelmed with end-of-the-school-year events, including a variety of things with wrapping up the Girl Scout troops for the year. Throw in a little Drama and the continuing parent health saga, and I’ve had one heck of a month.

So next week. That’s the one to watch. I’ll be posting reviews, talking about BEA (finally, maybe), and preparing for the exciting ALA schedule ahead.

For now, entertain yourself skimming through the pages at Ripple — where artists contribute sketchcards and you contribute money to help the Gulf, and then you get the card to keep. Cool, huh? If you don’t find that special piece of art, but want to make a donation to help the wildlife, then consider selecting one of the pieces submitted by kids. You’ll certainly make someone’s day by choosing their artwork — and maybe inspire a future picture book illustrator! How about the work of this eleven year old?