BayNews July, 2002

July 2002

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

Upcoming Events for Children's Librarians

Thurs., Aug. 8, 2002 ACL Meeting, 9:00am, Oakland Public Libr.

Summer Reading Exchange: Plan to bring your leftover summer reading program logs, booklists, bookmarks, game boards, etc. to the Sept. 12th meeting of ACL. Get new ideas for next year! Please bring approx. 50 copies of each item to exchange with colleagues.

Author Maia Wojciechowska Dies: Newbery-Award winning author Maia Wojciechowska died June 13 at the age of 73 from a stroke. She lived in Long Branch, New Jersey. Perhaps best-known for her novel, Shadow of a Bull, which was awarded the Newbery Medal in 1965 and concerns a young boy in Spain who wants to become a doctor but is expected to be a bullfighter like his father.

Her personal life was more dramatic than her books; at age 12 she fled her homeland Poland to escape the Nazis, and eventually moved to the United States as a teenager. She was an undercover detective, raced motorcycles, was a bullfighter in Mexico, and was a friend of Ernest Hemingway and two of his wives. She published 19 books in all, including an autobiography, Till the Break of Day: Memories, 1939-1942.

Bill Peet, author/illustrator, Dies:
Bill Peet died in May at his home at age 87. The long-time Disney animator did artwork for many film classics, including "Fantasia" and "Sleeping Beauty" before joining the picture book field. He created several books, including Wump World and Chester, the Worldly Pig, as well as the Caldecott Honor Bill Peet: An Autobiography.

REFORMA founder Arturo Trejo Dies: Dr. Arturo Trejo died on July 5, 2002, at his home in Arizona. He was a leader in the advocacy for library service to Spanish-speaking Americans, founding REFORMA and serving on Council for the American Library Association. In 2001, he was awarded Honorary Membership in ALA, the organization's highest honor.

Dolly Parton Gives Books: Dolly Parton, the award-winning country music artist and actress ("Nine to Five"), celebrates 5 years of "Dolly Parton's Imagination Library." This philanthropic program brings free picture books to thousands of preschooler who live in rural areas that don't have ready-access to public libraries. She reaches children in a dozen states, and Penguin Putnam, who distributes the books, expects to hand out nearly 300,000 this year. Parton has been nominated for Honorary Membership in the American Library Association.

New York Review Books plans to reissue children's favorites from the past: In the Spring of 2003, libraries will be able to replace worn or lost copies of some old favorites, due to a publishing project run by the New York Review Books. The recently had a similar program for "forgotten" adult books, bringing several titles back into print in hardback in a series called "New York Review Books Classics." The children's books they plan to reissue include Esther Averill's series about Jenny the Cat, The Little Bookroom by Edward Ardizzone, and The Island of Horses by Eilis Dillon. If you have other favorites to suggest, email [email protected].

You may have seen brochures or catalogs from this San Diego publisher, founded in 1994 but starting to get a lot of press. Michael Cart, the Booklist columnist, called Hungry Tiger a "publisher to watch. Its growing catalog of beautifully designed and durably produced books have enduring appeal…" Hungry Tiger specializes in Oz - related publications and recordings.

Co-founded by Eric Shanower and David Mazine, the house has issued several new Oz books, including The Rundlestone of Oz by Newbery Honor author Eloise McGraw. Several of these have been illustrated by Shanower. He is also the artisit/author of two graphic novels available from Hungry Tiger, Age of Bronze: Story of the Trojan Horse and Age of Bronze: A Thousand Ships.

The other founder, David Maxine, is the editor of an Annual called "Oz-Story," a celebration of all things Oz. It includes original stories, like a fanzine, but also older material written by L. Frank Baum, and is fully illustrated. The publisher's line of CDs are cast recordings or musical scores of Oz-related theatrical events; perhaps they can soon release Books on CD of their Oz publications. To check out this new publisher, visit www.hungrytigerpress.com.

Nixon, Joan Lowery. The Making of a Writer. Delacorte, 2002. $14.95. ISBN 0-385-73000-4.

Written for the same age children who read her mystery novels and historical fiction, Nixon had a childhood that seems made for the movies. She grew up in Hollywood, in a wonderful family, house, and neighborhood, in a time when Shirley Temple ruled at the box office and kids did what their parents told them to do.

Nixon wanted to be a writer, and was encouraged by several of her teachers. This is an episodic memoir; each chapter is a contained adventure from her childhood, with an ending paragraph explaining how the incident inspired her writing. For example, one chapter describes her first day in junior high where she meets Mary Lou, who is still her best friend. But she also describes one of her teachers, Mrs. Jones, who had published a novel. Meeting a real live author gave her the confidence that she, too, could be a published author.

Her father was an accountant and her mother a former kindergarten teacher, but they lived in the relatively glamorous Laughlin Park area of L.A., where W.C. Fields was a neighbor. Her book goes through her high school and college years during World War II, and ends with an Epilogue describing her own family and first book, The Mystery of Hurricane Castle, published in 1964. Her tone throughout the whole book is to show kids a little about her youth, and a lot about how any kid can use everyday events in their writing, like she did. It is very encouraging, and it will also give kids a chance to learn what it was like being a kid at the start of World War II. This entertaining book is very appealing, and will have a wide audience if introduced to budding writers.

Odean, Kathleen. Great Books for Girls: More Than 600 Recommended Books for Girls ages 3-14. Ballantine Books, 2002. $14.95. ISBN 0-345-45021-3.

In 1997, Odean delivered her first "Great Books for Girls," which she followed with Great Books for Boys in 1998 and Great Books About Things Kids Love last year. Now she has revised her first book, with nearly half of the 600 entries new offerings. And, of course, these are not just for girls but for anyone who enjoys great books. But as she states in her introduction, "Yet more than ever, girls need such heroines to offset the barrage of negative images society presents about females." She goes on to offer statistics about sexism in education and other data that shows the importance of finding positive female images in books.

Her entries are great, because she offers a paragraph about each book; enough to tempt the palate, but not enough to spoil the ending. Her criteria are relatively simple - there should be positive female characters at the heart of the story. Odean includes more historical fiction this time because she found so many new novels in this genre that fit her criteria. But there are still not enough sports books starring girls, or animal fantasy books, where the animals talk like in "The Wind in the Willows." Also, she only includes books that are in print, in either hardback or paperback or both.

Odean has divided the annotations under more subjects in her new edition. For example, she still groups book by age, including picture stories, beginning readers, and books for middle and for older readers. But under the last two, she divides the fiction into genres, like adventure, mysteries, fantasy, and more. She also divides the nonfiction sections for middle and older readers into topics, including biography, scientists and inventors, athletes, etc.

Near the end of the book, Odean has included suggested websites, Further Reading for Parents, tips on reading out loud and activities to go with books, and much more. The earlier edition really circulates when I suggest it to teachers, parents, and especially homeschooling families. This new edition is certainly worth the low price, so I plan to buy multiple copies. As before, her oldest book is Understood Betsy, written by Dorothy Canfield Fisher in 1917, but there are many 2001 titles included this time!

Janeczko, Paul B., compiler. Seeing the Blue Between: Advice and Inspiration for Young Poets. Candlewick, 2002. $17.99. ISBN 0-7636-0881-5.

Thirty-four poets offer advice by writing letters to an imaginary young poet. They encourage want-to-be poets to read a lot of poetry, write and recite and revise their poems, and to try all different types of poetry. Each letter is followed by one or two poems by the letter-writer. At the end of the book, there is a postage stamp-sized photo and paragraph about each of the poets.

Many will be familiar to the middle school audience at which this is aimed: Jane Yolen, Jack Prelutsky, Lee Bennett Hopkins, and Douglas Florian. Some will be unfamiliar. There are three Australian poets: Michael Dugan, Adam Ford, and Steven Herrick. There is an equal division between male and female poets, but only three poets of color: Nikki Grimes, Janet S. Wong, and Joseph Bruchac.

The letters often have examples of obstacles the writers have overcome; for example, Bruchac, a college athlete, was told by a professor that he would never become a writer. Two contributors wrote their letters in the form of a poem: Lee Bennett Hopkins and Michael Dugan. Sometimes the letters are prosaic, offering rote advice like "keep a journal," while others are creatively composed, like Alice Schertle's essay on the everyday-ness of a poem's subject matter. J. Patrick Lewis' letter has a great food metaphor and although it doesn't rhyme, it has a distinct rhythm. Two others direct the reader to Rilke's "Letters to a Young Poet."

The poems that follow the letters are usually short, maybe a page in length, so this doesn't work as a poetry anthology compared to all the other wonderful books out there. But it is perfect for middle school English teachers, as a device to inspire a creative writing lesson. As a children's librarian, maybe the best way we can get this book into the hands of children is to first place it in the hands of English teachers. But whoever checks it out will certainly have a thought-provoking experience.
Penny Peck,
San Leandro PL

Madsen, Gunnar. "Ants In My Pants," music CD. G-Spot Records, 2001, $15.98. www.gunnarspot.com or phone 510-524-4109.

Madsen, Gunnar. "Old Mr. Mackle Hackle," music CD. G-Spot Records, 1999, $14.98.

Berkeley resident Gunnar Madsen has had two music careers; he was the founding member of the a cappella group The Bobs, and is now a children's performer and recording artist. His latest CD, "Ants In My Pants," is one of the most professional recordings for children I have ever heard. From the arrangements and wonderful Doo-Wop-like background vocals, to the musical accompaniment and wealth of original songs, Madsen has it all. "Ants In My Pants" has cuts done before a live audience, like the opening title song that sounds a little like Elvis. "Don't Shake Hands With a One-Eyed Pirate" is a little Gilbert and Sullivan-like, sounding like a Broadway cast recording. "Ballad of the Lonesome Rider" is a stand-out, like something from The Riders in the Sky. I also enjoyed the ballad, "Are We There Yet?" which has a neo-folk, bluesy quality.

Madsen's music will please adults as well as kids, due to the clever lyrics, overall originality, and high production values. What is amazing is that Madsen provides all the vocals and plays all the instruments! He also wrote or co-wrote all the songs! "Ants In My Pants" has already been named a Top Ten recording for children by Tower Pulse Magazine, and has received a Parent's Choice Award. You can't go wrong with this CD, especially for parents who are tired of kids music that underestimates the taste of children. A sure hit!

If you haven't heard Madsen's previous CD, you may also want to pick up "Old Mr. Mackle Hackle," first issued in 1999. It, too, has received several awards, including a Parent's Choice Award and the 2000 Children's Music Web Award winner. It also contains original songs, all written or co-written by Madsen. These songs represent lots of genres, from folk, to country, to Leiber and Stoller-style rock and roll. With titles like "The Dinosaur Song" and "I'm A Little Twerp," you know this will have child appeal. To order CD's, phone 510-524-4109 or see the website at www.gunnarspot.com.

With the resurgence of "roots" music due to the Grammy-winning soundtrack for the film "O Brother Where Art Thou," and several other factors, you may want to revisit this recording from the Bay Area duo Just Kidding. Jill and Lynn are known throughout California for their library and school concerts that feature traditional American folk songs, or their original songs done in a folk vein, like the title track "Howdy Do!"

Winner of the 2000 Parents Choice Approval award, this CD has nine tracks that span the genre from "The Wabash Cannonball" to "Hole In The Bottom Of The Sea." Of course, they have included some songs they have written, and all feature their innovative arrangements that freshen up the songs without taking anything away from the songs' roots. Teachers will find this CD very useful in class, due to the Parent/Teacher guide sheet that suggests classroom activities to go with each song. Of course, they play all the instruments, which are authentic folk instruments like guitar, fiddle, mandolin, banjo, and bass. This type of music will never go out of style, and is enjoyable for all ages!