BARB LANGRIDGE: IN SEARCH OF WONDER
When NBC executives decided not to interview the Newbery-winning author and the Caldecott-winning illustrator on the Today show this past January to make time for reality TV-star Snookie, they made a strong statement about who they think we are and what they think we need in our lives.
What is wrong with their picture? What are our children looking for that Snookie can't give them? Join Barb Langridge on Thursday, October 20, as she shares her perspective on the missing ingredient: wonder. Langridge will discuss her quest to reconnect children to wonder--the wonder in the world around them and the wonder in themselves. Books are a powerful tool that does just that.
Barb Langridge draws on her long experience as an independent children's bookseller and public library children's specialist. Her website, abookandahug.com, features a wealth of information about children's literature. She is an on-air book reviewer for the NBC affiliate in Baltimore, and she interviews authors and illustrators for her own cable show, Books Alive.
THURSDAY, October 20, 2011
Time: 11:15 Social Hour; Noon Luncheon
4238 Wilson Blvd., Arlington
Menu: We will enjoy a buffet luncheon offering choices for omnivores and vegetarians.
Cost: $25
IN THIS ISSUE
1. 2011 Nonfiction Award Winner: Peter Sís
2. Ezra Jack Keats Exhibition
2. Ezra Jack Keats Exhibition
3. Uma Krishnaswami Visits the Guild
4. Member News
5. Fall Pot-Luck Supper
PETER SÍS: 2011 WINNER OF THE CHILDREN'S BOOK GUILD NONFICTION AWARD
The Nonfiction Award Committee is proud to announce that Peter Sís has been selected to receive the Guild's annual Nonfiction Award, to be presented on April 21, 2012. Sís has won multiple awards as a brilliant illustrator and fiction writer; the committee voted, however, to recognize his work as a highly acclaimed nonfiction author. Sís has written numerous nonfiction books, including several biographies. Each page of every book reveals multiple layers of information about the subject, all enhanced by Sís's unique artistic style. We look forward to applauding him in person next year.
An internationally acclaimed illustrator, author and filmmaker, Sís was born in Brno, Czechoslovakia, in 1949. He attended the Academy of Applied Arts in Prague and the Royal College of Art in London. He began his career as a filmmaker and won the Golden Bear Award at the 1980 West Berlin Film Festival for an animated short. He has also won the Grand Prix Toronto and the Cine Golden Eagle Award, and in 1983 he collaborated with Bob Dylan on You Got to Serve Somebody. His film work is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York.
In 1982 the Czech government sent Sís to Los Angeles to produce a film for the 1984 Winter Olympics. But the film project was canceled when Czechoslovakia and the entire Eastern bloc decided to boycott the Olympics that year. Ordered by his government to return home, Sís decided to stay in the United States and was granted asylum. A correspondence with Maurice Sendak led to a meeting and Sís's introduction to children's book editors, and he moved to New York City in 1984 to begin a new career.
Sís quickly became one of the leading artists in the field with the publication of the 1986 Newbery Medal winner, The Whipping Boy, by Sid Fleishman. With more than 20 books to his credit and almost as many honors, Sís is a six-time winner of the New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Book of the Year--for Rainbow Rhino, Beach Ball, Follow the Dream, Komodo!, The Three Golden Keys and The Tree of Life: Charles Darwin. Komodo! and A Small Tale from the Far Far North were each named a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Honor Book. Sís won a Society of Illustrators Gold Medal for Komodo! and a Silver Medal for The Three Gold Keys. His book Starry Messenger: Galileo Galilei was a 1997 Caldecott Honor Book and has been published in English, French, German, Czech, Portuguese, Greek, Japanese, Chinese, Korean and Spanish. Madlenka, Madlenka's Dog and The Tree of Life: Charles Darwin were all named New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Books of the Year.
In 2003, Sís was named a MacArthur Fellow. This honor, bestowed by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, recognizes "talented individuals who have shown extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative pursuits and a marked capacity for self-direction." In addition to his prolific career as an author, Sís has contributed more than a thousand drawings to the New York Times Book Review, and his illustrations have appeared in Time, the Atlantic Monthly, Newsweek, Esquire and many other magazines published in the United States and abroad.
He has designed many book jackets and posters, including, in 1984, the famous poster for Milos Forman's Academy Award-winning motion picture Amadeus. More recently, he has completed a mural for Baltimore/Washington International Airport, a poster for the New York City subway system and a stage set for the Joffrey Ballet. He lends his art to many mediums and will sometimes paint on any surface he can find: chairs, walls, eggs, boxes, seashells, even hats. Sís recently created a mural for New York City's 86th Street-Lexington Avenue subway station, working with the city's Metropolitan Transit Authority. His work has been exhibited in Prague, London, Zurich, Hamburg, Los Angeles and New York, in both group and one-man shows.
Guild members visiting New York City before January 29, 2012, won't want to miss the exhibition "The Snowy Day and the Art of Ezra Jack Keats" at the Jewish Museum, 1109 Fifth Avenue at 92nd Street.
“Crunch, crunch, crunch, his feet sank into the snow.” Final illustration for The Snowy Day, 1962, collage and paint on board.
Ezra Jack Keats Papers, de Grummond Children's Literature Collection, McCain Library and Archives, The University of Southern Mississippi. © Ezra Jack Keats Foundation.
Keats (1916-1983) wrote and illustrated award-winning--and sometimes groundbreaking--children's books, among them Whistle for Willie, Peter's Chair, and The Snowy Day. This, the first major U.S. exhibition of his work, will feature more than 80 pieces, from preliminary sketches to final paintings and collages, some well known and others less familiar. Learn more at http://www.thejewishmuseum.org/exhibitions/the-snowy-day-and-keats-exhibition.
UMA KRISHNASWAMI ON HUMOR AND TRUTH
by Catherine Reef
In her September 23 presentation to the Children's Book Guild, Uma Krishnaswami asked a provocative question: "Why are multicultural books so very serious?" She pointed out that characters in children's books whose cultural tradition is outside the mainstream American experience tend to suffer oppression if they live on foreign soil. And if they live in the United States, they generally are working at finding themselves and becoming American. Until we allow characters from all backgrounds to make mistakes, be villainous or act foolishly, we reinforce stereotypes, Krishnaswami said.
Lest her own talk become so very serious, Krishnaswami switched gears to talk about humor. She said that as a child in India, "books were my friends, and I liked them funny." At age 11 she encountered P. G. Wodehouse, who has been a strong influence on her work. His novels introduced her to a world that was distant, yet familiar. And funny. "Funny isn't something we're taught to respect," she observed, although she thinks we should be.
That Krishnaswami respects and values the humor in life is evident in her middle-grade novel The Grand Plan to Fix Everything (Atheneum, 2011), which tells the story of Dini, an Indian American girl who leaves her best friend and familiar home in Takoma Park when her physician mother signs on to work for two years in southern India. In a place called Swapnagiri ("Dream Mountain"), where all kinds of people come with their dreams, Dini pursues her love of Bollywood films, encounters mischievous monkeys, makes new friends and stays connected to the old. So that new cultural references fit seamlessly into the story, The Grand Plan to Fix Everything contains no glossary or italicized foreign words--at the author's insistence. Children can handle the unfamiliar, Krishnaswami believes. As she told her fellow Guild members, "We have to trust young readers. They are smarter than we think."
Krishnaswami alerted the audience to watch for a sequel, in which Washington, D.C., will become an exotic hotspot, an elephant will escape from the National Zoo, and a Bollywood film will open at the Smithsonian. In closing, she affirmed her dedication to young readers, saying, "When all else seems to be on the verge of catastrophe, it is the young who give me hope."
MEMBER NEWS
Amy Hansen is proud to announce publication of her first two graphic nonfiction books, which explore science mysteries for children in kindergarten through second grade: Where Does the Sun Go at Night? and How Do We Stay on Earth? Both books are from Capstone Press.
Two Guild members collaborated on a new nonfiction picture book about early exploration of the Chesapeake Bay. Written by Rebecca Jones and illustrated by former Guild president Linda Shute, Captain John Smith's Big and Beautiful Bay has been released by Schiffer Books.
On Sunday, October 23, from noon to1:30 p.m., in the Launch Zone of the National Children's Museum, Lulu Delacre will read Jay and Ben, written by Katharine Swanson and illistrated by Lulu, and explain how she created the illustrations. Lulu will then lead the participants in creating their own books using sequential panels of pictures. The program has been specially developed for military families with a parent abroad, but all families are welcome. A book sale and autographing follow the free program.
Jane Harrington will be doing an author visit on October 8 at "Mountain Day," a big festival in the small city of Buena Vista, Va., nestled along the edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains. She will share some critters and crafts that go with her book Extreme Pets (Scholastic) and will also begin connecting local teachers with a very new, very fun study guide for her YA novel Four Things My Geeky-Jock-of-a-Best-Friend Must Do in Europe (Darby Creek/Lerner). Tanya Anderson at School Street Media created the guide and tied it quite neatly to national educational standards.
Mary Quattlebaum's new picture book The Hungry Ghost of Rue Orleans, with stunning art by Patricia Castelao, is just out from Random House. The playful tale, about a ghost who haunts a jazzy-snazzy restaurant, was praised by Kirkus for its "interplay among the characters" and by Booklist for its "pacing and patterns" and "atmospheric and fun" illustrations.
Susan Stockdale reports that her picture book Bring On the Birds has been nominated as a 2011 ALA Notable Children's Book. Also, Pomegranate Publishers is publishing a coloring book of bird images and text from three of Susan's picture books, titled Susan Stockdale's Birds: Coloring Book, and Peachtree Publishers is publishing a 22-page board book of her picture book Fabulous Fishes in spring 2012. Susan has been presenting and signing books at a number of local events (several with esteemed Guild members!), including the Alexandria Story Festival on September 17; the Fall for the Book Festival on September 18; and the Baltimore Book Festival on September 25.
Ann McCallum recently demonstrated of one of the recipes from her book Eat Your Math Homework:Recipes for Hungry Minds with Peggy Fox of WUSA Channel 9. To view the segment, follow this link: http://dc.momslikeme.com/members/JournalActions.aspx?g=190035&m=18073903&source=stream_home.
Moira Rose Donohue is excited to announce that she has been hired to write six biographies for State Standards Publishing. These biographies will track the Virginia Standards of Learning fourth-grade requirements.
Katy Kelly's newest book, Melonhead and the Undercover Operation, came out on September 14, from Random House/Delacorte.
On Sunday, October 23, from noon to1:30 p.m., in the Launch Zone of the National Children's Museum, Lulu Delacre will read Jay and Ben, written by Katharine Swanson and illistrated by Lulu, and explain how she created the illustrations. Lulu will then lead the participants in creating their own books using sequential panels of pictures. The program has been specially developed for military families with a parent abroad, but all families are welcome. A book sale and autographing follow the free program.
Jane Harrington will be doing an author visit on October 8 at "Mountain Day," a big festival in the small city of Buena Vista, Va., nestled along the edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains. She will share some critters and crafts that go with her book Extreme Pets (Scholastic) and will also begin connecting local teachers with a very new, very fun study guide for her YA novel Four Things My Geeky-Jock-of-a-Best-Friend Must Do in Europe (Darby Creek/Lerner). Tanya Anderson at School Street Media created the guide and tied it quite neatly to national educational standards.
Susan Stockdale reports that her picture book Bring On the Birds has been nominated as a 2011 ALA Notable Children's Book. Also, Pomegranate Publishers is publishing a coloring book of bird images and text from three of Susan's picture books, titled Susan Stockdale's Birds: Coloring Book, and Peachtree Publishers is publishing a 22-page board book of her picture book Fabulous Fishes in spring 2012. Susan has been presenting and signing books at a number of local events (several with esteemed Guild members!), including the Alexandria Story Festival on September 17; the Fall for the Book Festival on September 18; and the Baltimore Book Festival on September 25.
Ann McCallum recently demonstrated of one of the recipes from her book Eat Your Math Homework:Recipes for Hungry Minds with Peggy Fox of WUSA Channel 9. To view the segment, follow this link: http://dc.momslikeme.com/members/JournalActions.aspx?g=190035&m=18073903&source=stream_home.
Moira Rose Donohue is excited to announce that she has been hired to write six biographies for State Standards Publishing. These biographies will track the Virginia Standards of Learning fourth-grade requirements.
Katy Kelly's newest book, Melonhead and the Undercover Operation, came out on September 14, from Random House/Delacorte.
The Global Fund for Children’s first picture puzzle book, I Am Different!, has just been released. Paired with each picture puzzle is the question “Can you find me?” in one of 16 languages. Children will have fun trying out Hebrew, Arabic, French, Swahili and American Sign Language. Kirkus Reviews applauds I Am Different!: “A tour de force…. A substantive, engaging title for multilingual education. Bravo!” Faith, a Global Fund for Children book on religious diversity, is the 2011 winner of the Rodda Book Award, given by the Church and Synagogue Library Association (http://blog.globalfundforchildren.org/index.php?option=com_mojo&Itemid=30&p=750). Book Guild friends Patty Steelman and Wendy Lukehart and Wendy's brother, Doug, joined the fund's August 9 brown-bag discussion on African children's literature and the Golden Baobab Prize (http://www.goldenbaobab.org/).
Jacqueline Jules is happy to announce that her Thanksgiving book, Duck for Turkey Day, was selected as a 2012 Tennessee Volunteer State Book Award nominee, Primary Division.
Catherine Reef will be in Nashville on Sunday, October 16, to speak at the Southern Festival of Books.
Brenda Seabrooke writes: "I was thrilled to learn in Karen Leggett's posting in the last newsletter that Wolf Pie had been named to the CCBC's 2011 recommended reading list (http://www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/books/choices.asp)!" Wolf Pie is now available in audiobook, narrated by Andy Watts for Recorded Books. “Seabrooke’s first-rate dialogue is consistently fresh ….[It] will have children laughing and wanting more” (Publishers Weekly).
Mark your calendar for a
FALL GET-TOGETHER
To celebrate one another
Guild members, spouses and significant others are invited to a pot-luck supper at the Chings' home in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Saturday, November 5
6:00 to 9:30 p.m.
RSVP to Edie (edie.ching@verizon.net)
or Peggy (peggyjack@aol.com)
Please specify the dish you'd like to bring to share.
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