SmartWriters.com
A sad update about Paula Danziger. Ms. Danziger died Thursday, July 8th from complications following a heart attack. She will certainly be missed.

JS Online: Education law lacks expected bite
Here in Wisconsin, No Child Left Behind doesn’t affect some schools since they don’t receive federal funding for children living in poverty. So instead the punishment most dreaded by those schools is being listed as ones that need improvement. I can imagine with our open enrollment policy that middle class families would opt to drive their children to a nearby school not on the list.

Star – French go potty over Harry’s politics
France is having a fabulous debate over the Harry Potter books. It is fabulous because so much of it is valid criticism. Yes, Harry Potter’s universe is a capitalist one. Yes, there are issues within the world that are disturbing. Read the article to find out more.

the Official Bruce Coville Homepage
Homepage for this author of several popular series for children, including The Magic Shop.

SmartWriters.com
SmartWriters has information on Paula Danziger, who recently had heart surgery and is having difficulty in her recovery.

A Perilous Power by E. Rose Sabin (0-765-30859-2)
This prequel to A School for Sorcery shares the same breakneck pace and impending feeling of danger. The books are set in a Victorian fantasy world where some people are born with magical powers and are feared and hated by those without them. Perilous Power is filled with vivid characters and a good story, but there is one nagging issue throughout the book, the love between Les (one of the main characters) and Miryam, a magically gifted girl. The love between the two seems to appear suddenly with no building and yet is the basis of a large amount of the book. Because the love story is weak, it weakens the rest of the tale. However, the action and adventure in the book still make it worth reading.
Recommend to teens who enjoy fantasy, especially boys who will enjoy two strong but very different male protagonists. There is no need to have read School for Sorcery first, though readers of that book will recognize characters.

AP Wire | 07/03/2004 | Ruth Heller Gross, a popular children’s book author, dies
Ruth Heller, author of children’s books like Many Luscious Lollipops died Thursday at age 81.

School Library Journal – Librarians Could Get a Break
SLJ reports on a new bill being proposed at a national level that would repay part of the student loan balance for school media specialists working in low income schools. Sweet!

Why books are back in fashion . . . thanks to television – The Herald
“In 1977, only 54% of Britons enjoyed a good book, while in 2002 the figure had risen to 65% for Britain and 67% for Scotland.” The article goes on to say that in Britain books and reading are considered sexy and that it is in part due to the national reading program, The Big Read, and partly to Harry Potter.