The New York Times list of top children’s books of the year doesn’t tend to include Latino authors, listing only one Latino author in the last ten years.
So the group Latinas for Latino Lit has remedied that by creating their own list of the best children’s books by Latino authors. Two members of the group appeared on NPR and talked about both the books on their list and other issues like what language those books should be in.
Better Nate Than Ever by Tim Federle
Nate lives in Jankburg, Pennsylvania probably as far from Broadway that you can get. But Broadway is where he dreams of being. So when an opportunity to go to an open audition for E.T.: the Musical comes around, he and his best friend figure out how to get him to New York City without anyone knowing. It involves taking an overnight bus from Pennsylvania, taking his mother’s ATM card, and fooling his older brother. Then when he reaches New York City, he has to figure out how to get to the auditions all on his own. There’s a lot that can go wrong in a plan like that, but Broadway and being a star is worth the risk!
Federle has created a tremendously cheery book that is filled with humor and a wonderful light-heartedness. Nate is a character that will speak to many kids who are interested in theater. He describes himself as “undecided” about his sexuality which makes this a very friendly book for middle schoolers who are either questioning their own sexuality or gay. Nate has a wonderful inner voice that he doesn’t allow to speak aloud. His funniest moments are things that he says to himself about circumstances and other people.
While the book remains consistently positive, Federle does also deal with deeper issues like bullying, being the kid at school who doesn’t fit in, alcoholism, and broken families. All of these issues are dealt with seriously and yet at the same time aren’t allowed to make the book dark in any way.
There is humor and hope everywhere in this book. It is a delight of a middle school read.
Reviewed from library copy.
The Tree Lady by H. Joseph Hopkins, illustrated by Jill McElmurry
Kate Sessions is the woman who made San Diego into the green city that it is today. She was a pioneering female scientist who grew up in the forests of Northern California. After becoming the first woman to graduate with a degree in science from the University of California, she moved to San Diego to be a teacher. San Diego was a desert town with almost no trees at all. So Kate decided to change all of that and began to hunt for trees that survive and thrive in a desert. Soon trees were being planted all over San Diego, but that was not enough for Kate who then worked to fill entire parks with her trees and gardens. Kate Sessions was a remarkable woman who helped San Diego become the great city it is today.
Hopkins takes a playful approach to this picture book biography. From the beginning he uses a format that ends each new event in Kate Session’s life with “But Kate did.” Not only does this create a strong structure for the story, but it shows Session’s determination to not be swayed by what others thought was possible. From the beginning, she was a unique person with a unique vision. It is that vision and her strength in the face of societal opposition that made her so successful.
McElmurry’s illustrations add a beauty to the book. She captures the lush green of the California forests and then allows readers to experience the transformation of San Diego from a barren desert to the lush green of Session’s many trees. She also shows all of the hard work that it took to make that transformation possible.
Sessions will be a newly found historical figure for most of us, and what an inspiration she is! Appropriate for ages 4-6.
Reviewed from copy received from Beach Lane Books.
Here are the links I shared on my Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr accounts this week that I hope you find interesting:
CHILDREN’S BOOKS
24 Children’s Books to Help Little Ones Count Down the Days to Christmas | Seira Wilson http://buff.ly/18fkM3A #kidlit
Better Book Titles for children’s Christmas classics – http://buff.ly/1g7FLu3 #kidlit
Celebrate International Day of Persons with Disabilities With These Books http://buff.ly/18jqChv #yalit
A Field Guide to the Eccentric Creatures of Classic Children’s Literature | Robert Paul Weston http://buff.ly/1eSHUH4 #kidlit
Holiday High Notes 2013 – The Horn Book http://buff.ly/IIxoXo #kidlit
Kent University ‘penitent’ after belittling children’s books | Books http://buff.ly/18Xv8py #kidlit
‘Miss Peregrine’ sequel ‘Hollow City’ trailer reveal | Shelf Life http://buff.ly/1cXSfPV #kidlit
Our 2nd Nerdversary and The 2013 Nerdy Award Finalists | Nerdy Book Club http://buff.ly/18ipESD #kidlit
Recommended Hanukkah picture books – The Horn Book http://buff.ly/IBeXE0 #kidlit
Robin Etherington’s top 10 comic books | Children’s books http://buff.ly/18jvxif #kidlit
The top 5 scariest children’s books – IOL Lifestyle http://buff.ly/18fkVUV – 5 unlikely picks! #kidlit
Where Are the Picture Books by Women? | GeekDad http://buff.ly/1g7A13u #kidlit
Who says children’s books can’t be great literature? | Books http://buff.ly/18fkI46 #kidlit
EBOOKS
Worldreader fights global illiteracy with e-readers http://buff.ly/1g7BJSy #ebooks #literacy
LIBRARIES
@ALAlibrary members – did you know you can apply for a $1000 award to attend an international conference? Yep – http://ow.ly/rmN0R
Libraries fear NSA is targeting their records | TheHill http://buff.ly/IHqHF2 #libraries #privacy #nsa
Mini Book Making at St. Ambrose University Library | Library as Incubator Project http://buff.ly/IHuphQ #libraries
Toy Libraries: A Place to Play | American Libraries Magazine http://buff.ly/1g7EdQW #libraries
Vatican, Bodleian libraries unite to put ancient texts, Bibles online http://buff.ly/IHqzoX #libraries
READING
Quebec to limit discounts on books sold in the province – Montreal http://buff.ly/IHupP3 #books #reading
Waterstones spoof Amazon drones with owls http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/10488368/Waterstones-spoof-Amazon-drones-with-owls.html … < great response!
Why Our Brains Make Us Click on Lists : The New Yorker http://buff.ly/190PnTr
TEEN READS
8 books that have stuck with Liz Burns from A Chair, A Fireplace and a Tea Cozy this year – what are yours? http://wp.me/ppv76-7ik
Fluttering Butterflies: YA Books I’m Dying to Read in 2014 http://buff.ly/190JWnf #yalit
The Hunger Games, Actual Teen Style: http://tashrow.tumblr.com/post/69032582456/thebaconsandwichofregret
Words with Wings by Nikki Grimes
Gabby has always been a daydreamer, but when her parents started fighting and then separated, she started retreating into her daydreams more and more. Now Gabby lives with just her mother, who is not a daydreaming type at all. So the two of them clash. Gabby also gets in trouble at school due to her dreamy ways and not paying attention to what is happening in class. But along the way, readers will see that Gabby is much more than a daydreamer, she is a poet. Eventually, her mother will come to terms with her way of thinking and she will find that she has a teacher who not only supports Gabby’s daydreaming but makes it part of his curriculum.
Grimes writes in short free verse, some of the poems only a handful of lines long. Yet because these are poems written by a master poet, they each speak truth. There are poems that talk about moving and autumn, others that celebrate family members, and at the heart of the book are the many poems that celebrate dreaming, lingering and Gabby herself. Grimes was clearly the sort of child who also daydreamed, since she captures it so well.
I deeply appreciate that this book does not “fix” Gabby’s daydreaming. Instead it is the adults who adopt a new attitude towards her once they realize that she is thinking and processing and writing in her head. Gabby is expected to change some of her behaviors in class and is supported in doing this by a very engaged and kind teacher who promises that she will have time to dream and to record those dreams she has. Gabby is the sort of heroine that one loves immediately, and she is also one that readers will cheer to see succeeding on her own terms.
Beautiful and strong poems support a world where imagination and creativity is accepted and poets survive their childhood intact. Appropriate for ages 9-12.
Reviewed from library copy.
Fossil by Bill Thomson
Thomson, author of Chalk, returns with a book that once again mixes fantasy with photorealistic art. In this picture book, a boy is walking along the water with his dog. He finds an interesting rock but then trips and the rock goes flying and breaks open revealing a fossil inside. As he picks it up and discovers the fossilized fern inside the rock, ferns start to grow around him. His dog digs up another rock and when the boy breaks that one open, a huge dragonfly comes to life. The dragonfly lands on another rock and readers will see the claws on the fossil before the shadow appears. With his dog in danger, the boy has to think fast about how to save him.
Done in a wordless format, Thomson’s art is the real draw here. His photorealism makes for images that are worth lingering over. He also uses unique perspectives throughout the book, such as the image on the cover. The books has the universal appeal of a sandy shore littered with large stones and drenching sunlight. That same sunlight somehow becomes threatening once the dinosaur appears, almost spotlighting the danger and creating deep menacing shadows.
Vivid and beautiful, this book offers a dynamic take on fossils and prehistoric life. Appropriate for ages 3-6.
Reviewed from library copy.
YALSA has announced that five books have been selected as finalists for the 2014 William C. Morris Award which is given to a book for teens written by a debut author. The winner will be announced on January 27th at the Youth Media Awards program at ALA Midwinter.
Here are the finalists:
Belle Epoque by Elizabeth Ross
Charm & Strange by Stephanie Kuehn
Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets by Evan Roskos
In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters
Sex & Violence by Carrie Mesrobian
The Horn Book has announced their 2013 list of the best books for young people. The selections range from picture books through books for teens. It’s a beautiful list and I’m looking forward to discovering the ones I haven’t read yet.
Deadline has the news that CBS Films will be adapting Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz into a film. The premise for the movie will be a group of outcast kids standing up their fears as their nightmares come to life.
Let’s hope that the films keep the feel of the illustrations by Stephen Gammell which manage to be creepy and wild rather than just jumpy scary.
Waking Brain Cells 