Those Pesky Hyphens!

Apparently hyphens once were used very rarely, and some people think they still should be. How do you know if it really is a good time to use a hyphen or not?

Here is what Diana Hacker’s Pocket Style Manual (4 th ed., 2004) tells us: You must look in the dictionary to find out whether to treat a compound word as a hyphenated compound (water-repellent), one word (waterproof), or two words (water ballet). If you don’t find it in the dictionary, treat it as two words. More examples: cross-examine, notebook, looking glass. What a bother! The reason there isn’t a clear and simple rule about compound words is because if they are used more and more commonly, the hyphen may be dropped. For example, audio-visual has become audiovisual and both are acceptable at the moment.

However, when there are two or more words functioning together as an adjective, especially when the compound comes before the noun, use a hyphen. For example: She is a well-known candidate. BUT: The candidate is well known. Similarly: too-cute curls BUT: curls that are too cute. But do not hyphenate an adverb modifying an adjective: A slowly moving truck has no hyphens. [Contrast that with: slow-motion which does use a hyphen.] The ones we editors see most frequently in this publication include: six-year-old child and double-page spread.

Now, you may hate suspended hyphens as much as I do, but it is the proper method of writing a series of adjectives that would be hyphenated if there were only one: Perfect for first-, second-, or third-grade students. And: Not all 15- and 16-year-olds will care.

Then there are fractions and numbers: one-fourth, twenty-one through ninety-nine. That is simple and clear!

And finally, SOME prefixes and ONE suffix: all-encompassing, ex-wife, self-effacing, president-elect. That is to say; all-, ex-, self-, and –elect use hyphens. [But only if the word to which the prefix or suffix is attached carries that meaning on its own. For example, by example, we don’t mean former ample, but we can use ex- to modify a person’s status, role, or whatnot, as in ex-director, or all-knowing, self-cleaning, ex-goddess.

Unfortunately, our computer spell-check function isn’t smart enough to tell us if our use of a particular hyphen is appropriate, so we each must puzzle this out on our own. Hyphen-users unite -- We have nothing to lose but our chains!

The following review is purely hypothetical and should NOT be used as an example of exemplary writing style. However, the hyphenation is correct:

The Return of the Czechoslovakian-American Post-mortem Hyphen-users by Uri Kozilkowski-Rainier.

  This long-lost translation, by the well-known author of many popular high-tech short stories, is here finally released to English-speaking audiences.  Featuring the all-but-forgotten, anti-war brother-and-sister team in a well-thought-out, sermon-like portrait of a restoration-era, marionette-loving super-rich tycoon.

  The story details how the ill-fated twosome two-times their gum-chewing preschool teacher, in a pre-dawn raid using their super-powerful self-esteem-building weapon against the erstwhile-educational superpower.

  The mixed-media collages employ a jewel-toned hodge-podge of cut papers, combined with forty-three varieties of gouache, to ill effect.  Non-offensive, yet only half-realized, this gothic mystery will please all but the most hard-core crank-cases. Buy only if budget-conscious administrators will allow this over-wrought indulgence.

Websites Helpful for Storytime Planning

Just Listening: Audiobooks

By Kathryn Shepler

Aurora School , Oakland

Meyer, Stephanie. Twilight. Performed by Ilyana Kadushin, unabridged, 11 CDs, 12 hrs, 51 mins. Listening Library, 2005, $48, ISBN 0-307-28090-X. Grades 9-up.

Isabella Swan has fallen irrevocably in love with mysterious Edward Cullen. Edward is coldly beautiful, is supernaturally gifted – and Edward is a vampire. The audio production is silky smooth and maintains the suspenseful and alluring nature of Meyer’s words. Kadushin brings a young voice to the character of Isabella, but also has a smooth masculine tone for Edward. The listener will cling to this audio edition, anxious to listen to the last thrilling moment.

 

Paver, Michelle. Chronicles of Ancient Darkness, Book 1: Wolf Brother. Performed by Ian McKellen, unabridged, 6 CDs, 6 hrs, 30 mins. HarperCollins Audio, 2005, $27.95, ISBN 0-06-075838-4. Grades 5-9.

Prehistoric tribes fight their harsh physical world and the spiritual beings they believe surround them. Twelve-year-old Torak and his wolf-cub are predestined to play a special role in this fight, despite his feelings of inadequacy. McKellen’s classically trained voice is the perfect vehicle to deliver this story of dark forests and epic quests. (McKellen played Gandoff in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy movies.) His deep resonant voice lends a sense of far history and yet he can lighten the characterization to capture the young man or his sprightly wolf-cub. Listeners will find this the perfect narration to bring this world of 6,000 years ago to life. An excellent choice for all libraries.

 

Board Book Round-up

Penny Peck, San Leandro Public Library

Sabuda, Robert and Reinhart, Matthew. Encyclopedia Prehistorica: Sharks and Other Sea Monsters. Candlewick, 2006. $27.99, ISBN 076362229-X.

In this companion to Encyclopedia Prehistorica: Dinosaurs, Sabuda and Reinhart cover water creatures using 35 pop-ups, and clear text passages. Although far too delicate to circulate in libraries, some may find it works as a “in the library only” book. The information is relatively difficult to read; it really is a science book for those 4 th grade and above. The focus is on prehistoric ocean creatures, with just a few like the shark that are not extinct.

 

Saltzberg, Barney. Goodnight Kisses: A Touch and Feel Book. Harcourt/Red Wagon, 2006. $8.95, ISBN 0-15-205647-5.

“Who likes fluffy goodnight kisses?” Open the flap and see a zebra, complete with an inlay of fuzzy fake fur. A dragon has a purple tinfoil tail, a bear has a velvet nose, a bug exhibits a squeaky toy sound, and the sky has glittery stars. A nice tactile book to accompany Pat the Bunny.

 

Carter, David A. Who’s Under That Hat? Harcourt/Red Wagon, 2005. $13.95, ISBN 0-15-205467-7.

Rhyming clues hint at what is under the flap made by each hat: a dalmatian under the fireman’s hat, a pop-up lion under the safari hat, a parrot under the pirate’s hat, etc. This is large enough to appeal to a baby lapsit storytime group so it may be useful as a library purchase.

Radice, Frank and Vida. Sam Katz On The Loose! Illus. by Charles Fazzino. Random House, 2005. $14.95, ISBN 0-375-83120-7.

Not a traditional pop-up book, this should appeal to fans of “Where’s Waldo?” and other look-and-find puzzle books. Each opening has rhymed couplets on the left, describing what to look for in the facing illustration. The picture on the right has two layers - pull the tab to make a one-inch panel rise slightly above the main illustration below. This gives each picture a faux 3D effect. Each picture shows a place visited by the cat of the title – a zoo, rainforest, city, etc. The rhymes are pedestrian but readers will enjoy looking in the pictures for the items.

 

Reissues Worth Revisiting

Moss, Marissa. Amelia’s Notebook. Simon & Schuster, 1995/2006. $9.95, ISBN 1-4169-0905-2.

Moss, Marissa. Amelia’s Bully Survival Guide. Simon & Schuster, 1998/2006. $9.95, ISBN 1-4169-0907-9.

Originally published by Tricycle Press in Berkeley, California, the “Amelia Notebooks” are being reissued by Simon and Schuster. The originals measured 8” by 10” but the new editions are smaller; 6 ½” by 8 ½” but still with the notebook-style marbled black and white covers. For a full list of the series, see http://www.simonsays.com/content/search_summary.cfm?tab=4&spid=523097&string=amelia#series

Amelia’s Bully Survival Guide was originally titled “Amelia Takes Command.” But only the size and title has been changed, all the text and the little drawings remain the same. Amelia is beginning 5 th grade, and dealing with a class bully. She also attends Space Camp, and her class does several science experiments.

I couldn’t compare the new Amelia’s Notebook with the earlier edition; all three of my library’s copies were missing, which is testament to the popularity of the series! In Amelia’s Notebook, her family is moving so she starts a notebook diary to help her make the transition to a new school and new friends. These appeal to the same readers, especially girls, as “Junie B. Jones,” “American Girl,” “Judy Moody,” and other transitional books as well as readers of comics and graphic novels for younger kids like “Babymouse.” Amelia is a likable character who likes science and art, and the unique format will appeal to reluctant readers.

 

Professional Reading

Travers, P.L. Mary Poppins from A to Z. Illus. by Mary Shepard. Harcourt, 1962, 2006. $14, ISBN 0-15-205834-6.

For “Mary Poppins” fans only, this salute to the magical nanny is a small gift book. The main change to this new edition is that the illustrations are in full color; the original pen and ink drawings now have color tints, so they still keep the traditional look of Shepard’s “Mary Poppins” illustrations. For each letter of the alphabet, there is a short one or two page vignette about Mary Poppins and the Banks family. The reader needs to already know the characters, and the Briticisms will work fine for fans but confuse the uninitiated.

Penny Peck, San Leandro Public Library