The National Post has an article covering the death of Andre Norton at age 93. She was a science fiction author who wrote over 130 books during her 70 year career.
Eragon Fan Site
Shurtugal :: A New Generation Of Dragon Riders is a wonderful fan site for the Eragon series. The second book in the series is Eldest and will be released in August. This site already has some information about the second book, a cool selection of international book covers, information on the characters and the author, fanfiction, forums, a newsletter and much more.
Manga Racy Fluff?
The Portland Press Herald has an article covering the two sides of the manga in libraries debate: Racy fluff or reading aid? Make sure you scroll down to the bottom to read at least some of the over 100 responses to the article by manga fans. Many of them demonstrate the intelligence and quality writing of manga readers.
Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award
Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award has been awarded to Phillip Pullman, author of many fantasy novels for children and teens, and Ryoji Arai, a Japanese illustrator of children’s books. The award is given to a person’s body of work regardless of thier language or nationality. The prize of five million Swedish crowns is the largest children’s book prize in the world.
Safe-Keeper's Secret
The Safe-Keeper’s Secret by Sharon Shinn.
Sharon Shinn is the author of the Archangel series for adults. I enjoyed the first several books in the series, but after that it got stale. I think that this book for young adults really returns to the freshness of her first Archangel books. The society she has created is unique and vivid. Her characters, including the adults, are complex and real. This is a real gem of a book where the reader may guess the secret from the beginning, but becomes the safe-keeper of the secret as well. It is a moving and magical book.
This would be a good booktalk book with its themes of secret keeping and dream making. Encourage girls who enjoy light fantasy in their books to try it. Also kids who like medieval stories will enjoy this one, because the touch of fantasy and magic is not overwhelming.
Ted Rand
Ted Rand, 1915-2005: A prolific and generous artist
Ted Rand, illustrator of many great picture books, died on Saturday at age 89. He didn’t enter the field of children’s books until age 65, yet he illustrated nearly 80 books. The article goes on to describe his life and considerable achievements.
Teen Library Hero
TimesDispatch.com | Library mission is honored
Caitlyn Day, at age 18, has just been honored by the Virginia Foundation for Women, for making Virginia history. Caitlyn grew up in rural Virginia in Craig County where there wasn’t a library. At age 15, Caitlyn decided that she could bring a library to her county. And she did!
Peter Pan Sequel
CNN.com – British author chosen for ‘Peter Pan’ sequel
Author Geraldine McCaughrean has won the right to create an authorized sequel to Peter Pan. The sequel will mark the centenary of the classic.
McCaughrean, overjoyed at being picked, told Reuters: “It scares the living daylights out of me but once the hype is behind me, I shall settle down and enjoy writing it.
“This is a thing infinitely worth doing.”
Manga Appeal
The Galveston County Daily News has a nice article about manga in the U.S. The writer obviously understands manga and its appeal, remarking on its sophisticated storylines and art. Nice to see an article that understands manga rather than questions it.
Waking Brain Cells 