JOHN FEINSTEIN—BESTSELLING AUTHOR, COLUMNIST AND SPORTS COMMENTATOR—IN CONVERSATION WITH GUILD PRESIDENT FRED BOWEN
Bestselling sportswriter John Feinstein slam-dunked his first try at writing for children with Last Shot, which won the 2006 Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery. He has since published six more YA sports novels, including his latest, Foul Trouble, which was released in November 2013."The best thing about writing for kids, put simply, is the kids,” Feinstein says. “I love the way they respond to stories and the very smart questions they raise about the characters and the issues I try to make a part of my kids’ books. When I write, I want them to be entertained--so they'll keep reading--but if I can educate them a little on the issues that exist in sports and the difference between good guys (writers, for example) and bad guys (all agents) that's a bonus. I also love getting the chance to interact with kids who have read the books. They're a lot more fun, generally speaking, than adult audiences."
Foul Trouble has scored starred reviews from Booklist
and Kirkus, which calls it, "a must-read.” School Library Journal
describes this story about Terrell, a number-one national high school basketball recruit
as “A riveting, cautionary tale about behind-the-scenes, big-money pressures
confronting talented high school athletes....Timely hot topics are embedded
in this action-packed sports story. Readers will breathlessly await Terrell’s
final decision.”
Feinstein
may be one of the busiest, most productive writers in the United States. Since the 1986
publication of his first book, A Season
on the Brink, which has sold more than two million copies, he has published more
than two dozen titles for adults. His next, Where Nobody Knows Your Name: Life In the Minor Leagues of Baseball, will appear in March 2014. In
addition to his books, he writes regularly for the Washington Post, is a contributor to the Golf Channel and hosts a three-hour
weekday morning sports talk show on CBS radio. He has also contributed to Sporting News and Golf Digest, and has worked as a regular commentator for NPR,
ESPN and other networks.
Please
join us at Busboys & Poets on December 12 to hear John Feinstein discuss his
writing for young audiences, including his latest YA novel, Foul Trouble. Feinstein’s program will
take the form of an interview in a conversation with Fred Bowen, the 2013-14 president
of the Children’s Book Guild. Bowen, a prolific author of sports books for
kids, has published 18 middle grade novels and a nonfiction picture book
sports biography and is the weekly sports columnist for the Washington Post
KidsPost.
Date: Thursday, December 12
Time: 11:30 a.m. "social hour"; noon luncheon
Place: Busboys and Poets
1025 Fifth Street NW (at K Street)
Menu: All choices $25 ($26 when paid online via PayPal)
Time: 11:30 a.m. "social hour"; noon luncheon
Place: Busboys and Poets
1025 Fifth Street NW (at K Street)
Menu: All choices $25 ($26 when paid online via PayPal)
:: CHOICE OF SANDWICH (all sandwiches served with a salad of baby greens and house-made kettle chips) ::
• Falafel Sandwich (vegetarian/vegan) with house-made hummus, cucumbers, lettuce, tomato and onion on whole-wheat pita, served with tahini sauce (vegan without tahini sauce)
• Home-Roasted Turkey Sandwich with Havarti cheese, Dijonnaise, lettuce, tomato and onion on wheat bread
• Grilled Chicken Panini with chipotle mayo, caramelized onions, pepper jack, lettuce and tomato on ciabatta
• Portabella Mushroom Panini (vegetarian) with pesto, roasted red pepper and fresh mozzarella on herb ciabatta
:: DESSERT ::
Assorted Cookies (family style)
:: BEVERAGES ::
Fountain Drinks (unlimited soft drinks and iced tea), fresh coffee and organic tea
• Falafel Sandwich (vegetarian/vegan) with house-made hummus, cucumbers, lettuce, tomato and onion on whole-wheat pita, served with tahini sauce (vegan without tahini sauce)
• Home-Roasted Turkey Sandwich with Havarti cheese, Dijonnaise, lettuce, tomato and onion on wheat bread
• Grilled Chicken Panini with chipotle mayo, caramelized onions, pepper jack, lettuce and tomato on ciabatta
• Portabella Mushroom Panini (vegetarian) with pesto, roasted red pepper and fresh mozzarella on herb ciabatta
:: DESSERT ::
Assorted Cookies (family style)
:: BEVERAGES ::
Fountain Drinks (unlimited soft drinks and iced tea), fresh coffee and organic tea
IN THIS ISSUE:
1. Nancy Feresten on National Geographic Kids
2. Frostburg's Storybook Holiday
3. The Guild's Holiday Party
4. Poverty in Children's Books
5. Member News
AN INSPIRING AFTERNOON WITH NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC'S NANCY FERESTEN
by Jennifer O'Connell
On
November 21, Guild member Nancy Feresten wowed the crowd at Busboys and Poets with a lively presentation
on how National Geographic is successfully forging ahead with its media for
children. Feresten, who is its senior vice president of Kids Publishing and
Media, gave an overview of the National Geographic Society’s history. National Geographic, which began as 33
white-bearded men in 1888, now employs 15,000 people and reaches millions.
Its story is one of impressive flexibility and adaptability.
Feresten explained how a simple but crucial factor helped National Geographic improve its magazines
for children: listening. It recruited 2,000 kids to routinely give
feedback that helps steer its magazines in the right direction. “Our formula is
photos, facts, fun and all things animal,” said Feresten.
Feresten showed a video featuring footage from National Geographic’s exciting “Critter-cam” project, in which cameras
are strapped on the backs and heads of all sorts of animals to give viewers the
animals’ views. The audience learned about “Animal Jam,” an online kids’ game; a kids’
digital channel; and a brand new premium subscription website. They also learned
about National Geographic’s successful mass-market books: Fun Animals, the hugely successful Kids Almanac and the
popular Weird But True series.
It
was reassuring to hear from Feresten that even with all these new offerings, “it
looks as if books will stay around for a while.” Indeed, she noted, with the arrival of the
new Common Core Standards, National Geographic may be publishing more books.
“We
experiment, stay flexible and listen to our audience,” said Feresten. In doing so,
National Geographic fulfills its mission: “to inspire people to care about the
planet.”
Thank
you, Nancy Feresten, for inspiring us!
STORYBOOK HOLIDAY: JOIN IN THE FUN!
Bundle up and join in the winter festivities at this year’s
Storybook Holiday, in Frostburg, Md., on Saturday, December 7, 2013! A variety of activities for
children will be offered at City Place, Broadway Parking Lot and the
Main Street area. Many restaurants and shops will be offering specials
throughout the day. What is more, the featured guest will be children's author CYNTHIA COTTEN! End the day with the 2013 film A Christmas Tree Miracle at the town’s Palace Theatre. (Tickets may be purchased in advance at Main
Street Books.) Make sure you don’t
miss out on this wonderful event! For more information, please contact the
Children’s Literature Centre at clc@frostburg.edu
or (301) 687-3133. Check out the webpage at www.frostburg.edu/clc.
THE GUILD'S HOLIDAY PARTY
CHILDREN'S BOOKS ARE OVERLOOKING THE POOR
At the Guild's October meeting, Jason Low reminded us that although people of color account for 37 percent of the U.S. population, only 10 percent of children's books feature multicultural characters and content. But other groups are underrepresented in literature for young people as well. Jane Kelley, Ed. D., a children's literature specialist and associate professor of education at Washington State University, points out that at a time when more than 20 percent of children under 18 in the United States live in poverty, very few children's books reflect their experiences. Kelley and her work are featured in the winter 2013-2014 issue of Washington State Magazine: http://wsm.wsu.edu/s/index.php?id=1077#.UnWIThTD_mQ
Kelley has also created an online list of picture books that present poverty realistically, feature characters who take positive action, and are engaging to read: http://wsm.wsu.edu/s/we.php?id=368#.UnWItRTD_mQ
MEMBER NEWS
PAMELA DUNCAN EDWARDS will be signing books at the University Club of Washington's Holiday Evening, on December 4.
ANN MCCALLUM will give a presentation and sign books at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History on December 14, at 1 p.m. There will be a family story/activity hour with a book signing to follow.
The Association for Library Service to Children has appointed EDIE CHING to chair the Notable Children's Book Committee for 2014-15.
UMA KRISHNASWAMI's chapter book Book Uncle and Me is on the shortlist for the Crossword Children’s Award in India.
KATHERINE JANUS KAHN writes: "What a wonderful Sunday I had on November 3, celebrating Sammy Spider's 20th birthday! The Northern Virginia Jewish Community Center had a character luncheon for their book fair, and the character was Sammy himself! The dance director (Chris Dalen, who had been a dancer and costume maker for the Kennedy Center and now heads up the JCC dance department), made a fabulous 'Sammy" costume, which was worn by a charming young woman sitting on a beautiful armchair on the stage. Like Santa Claus, she took each child on her lap. The stage also had a three-tiered birthday cake with electric candles and a backdrop with a mockup of the Passover Jewish star that Sammy made. There were also two other young women from the dance department on stage as helpers for Sammy. There were loads of really imaginative Sammy games (we played "Sammy says") and crafts, and the food was all taken from the Sammy books, with each station having its own Sammy book beside it!
"Concurrently with the book fair I have 25 illustrations from the Sammy and Ziz books up in the JCC's 'art gallery/corridor.' JACQUELINE JULES, the author of the Ziz books, has heard from several friends who came upon the show by chance and called her!"
"Susan and I together presented at the American Association of School Librarians. We led and enjoyed a session with librarians who created picture books from news stories, using origami books made from one of SUSH MAZUMDAR’s templates (see a whole range of them, complete with videos, here: www.smithsonianeducation.org/heritage_month/books/index.html).
A day later we were featured during story time at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Mass. Every member of the audience, down to the tiniest toddler, quieted and sat mesmerized during Susan’s perfectly silent, perfectly creative collage demonstration.
Please come to the Children's Book Guild winter potluck, on January 11, at 7:30 p.m., at the home of Laura and Allan Melmed. Significant others are welcome.
RSVP to lauramelmed@yahoo.com, specifying whether you'll be bringing a main course, salad, side dish or dessert.
At the Guild's October meeting, Jason Low reminded us that although people of color account for 37 percent of the U.S. population, only 10 percent of children's books feature multicultural characters and content. But other groups are underrepresented in literature for young people as well. Jane Kelley, Ed. D., a children's literature specialist and associate professor of education at Washington State University, points out that at a time when more than 20 percent of children under 18 in the United States live in poverty, very few children's books reflect their experiences. Kelley and her work are featured in the winter 2013-2014 issue of Washington State Magazine: http://wsm.wsu.edu/s/index.php?id=1077#.UnWIThTD_mQ
Kelley has also created an online list of picture books that present poverty realistically, feature characters who take positive action, and are engaging to read: http://wsm.wsu.edu/s/we.php?id=368#.UnWItRTD_mQ
MEMBER NEWS
SUSAN STOCKDALE is excited that Stripes of All Types has been selected as a NSTA/CBC Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children and won a California Reading Association 2013 Eureka! Nonfiction Children's Book Gold Award. Susan will be reading and signing Stripes and her other titles at a family book party at Room & Board (1840 14th Street NW, Washington, D.C.) on Saturday, December 7, from 10 a.m. to noon. Guild members and their families and friends are warmly invited!
TURNING THE PAGE thanks SUSAN STOCKDALE for an engaging, colorful and inspiring author visit at King Elementary School on November 14. During this Community Night program, Susan read her book Stripes of All Types to parents and children, and then answered questions about everything from how to nurture creativity in children to why flamingos sleep standing up.
PAMELA DUNCAN EDWARDS will be signing books at the University Club of Washington's Holiday Evening, on December 4.
ANN MCCALLUM will give a presentation and sign books at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History on December 14, at 1 p.m. There will be a family story/activity hour with a book signing to follow.
DEBBIE LEVY has a new nonfiction picture book out in December: We Shall Overcome: The Story of a Song, with illustrations by Vanessa Brantley-Newton and published by Disney-Jump at the Sun. Debbie’s previous book with Disney, The Year of Goodbyes, received a 2013 Eureka Nonfiction Honor Award from the California Reading Association. Also, Debbie’s young adult novel, Imperfect Spiral, published by Walker/Bloomsbury this past July, came out this fall in a paperback edition from Scholastic Book Club.
On November 30, from 10 to 11:45 a.m., MARY BOWMAN-KRUHM and AMY S. HANSEN will participate in Indies First, a call for writers to help independent bookstores during the Thanksgiving weekend shopping extravaganza. Mary and Amy will sign their own books and recommended others to patrons at Frederick, Md.'s newest bookstore, the Curious Iguana, on Market Street.The Association for Library Service to Children has appointed EDIE CHING to chair the Notable Children's Book Committee for 2014-15.
UMA KRISHNASWAMI's chapter book Book Uncle and Me is on the shortlist for the Crossword Children’s Award in India.
KATHERINE JANUS KAHN writes: "What a wonderful Sunday I had on November 3, celebrating Sammy Spider's 20th birthday! The Northern Virginia Jewish Community Center had a character luncheon for their book fair, and the character was Sammy himself! The dance director (Chris Dalen, who had been a dancer and costume maker for the Kennedy Center and now heads up the JCC dance department), made a fabulous 'Sammy" costume, which was worn by a charming young woman sitting on a beautiful armchair on the stage. Like Santa Claus, she took each child on her lap. The stage also had a three-tiered birthday cake with electric candles and a backdrop with a mockup of the Passover Jewish star that Sammy made. There were also two other young women from the dance department on stage as helpers for Sammy. There were loads of really imaginative Sammy games (we played "Sammy says") and crafts, and the food was all taken from the Sammy books, with each station having its own Sammy book beside it!
"Concurrently with the book fair I have 25 illustrations from the Sammy and Ziz books up in the JCC's 'art gallery/corridor.' JACQUELINE JULES, the author of the Ziz books, has heard from several friends who came upon the show by chance and called her!"
 |
| Kathy and Sammy
|
And here is an update from KAREN LEGGETT: "November was a glorious month for Hands Around the Library. SUSAN ROTH and I had the honor to accept the Arab American
Book Award in Dearborn, Mich., and the Children’s Africana
Book Award (CABA) at the National Museum of African Art, here in Washington.
In both cases, we had a chance to observe how other organizations celebrate
their children’s literature awards–including an elegant and personally
stamped Middle Eastern tile from the Arab Americans and a hand-stitched kinte
cloth from CABA. CABA, whose founder and
passionate promoter is retired librarian Brenda Randolph, featured a
superlative performance by the Haynes Middle School marimba band. Brenda also initiated an Africa Reading
Challenge this year for kids through adults–a great way to find excellent
books about African countries. And
Brenda arranged for me to be on Michel Martin’s NPR program Tell Me More with
Nigerian children’s writer Ifeomo Oynfulu–what fun to be on the other side of
the microphone!
"Susan and I together presented at the American Association of School Librarians. We led and enjoyed a session with librarians who created picture books from news stories, using origami books made from one of SUSH MAZUMDAR’s templates (see a whole range of them, complete with videos, here: www.smithsonianeducation.org/heritage_month/books/index.html).
A day later we were featured during story time at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Mass. Every member of the audience, down to the tiniest toddler, quieted and sat mesmerized during Susan’s perfectly silent, perfectly creative collage demonstration.
"Last but not least, Susan and I have launched Global Friends on our Hands Around the Library website, providing websites and email addresses for children’s authors, artists and librarians around the world. You never know when you might need a contact to validate part of a story or want to have tea while traveling abroad. If you would like to be added to our list, just send a note to me at Leggett@comcast.net."
NOTE ABOUT THE CHILDREN'S BOOK GUILD NEWS: Would you rather print your newsletter than read it online? Current and past issues now available for printing on the Guild's website at http://www.childrensbookguild.org/guild-newsletters. Look for the "Newsletter" tab on the left side of the Guild website. There is also a "Printer Friendly Version" link on the top left hand side of this blog.
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| Eric Carle's very hungry caterpillar covers the very small VW bug outside the Carle Museum. |
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Tweet Your News!
Do you have a publication date for a new book, a local appearance coming up or an award nomination to tout? Don't be shy! The Guild has its own Twitter account (@ChildrensBookGuild) and is looking for news to tweet. Just send your news to Caroline Hickey (carolinesmithhickey@gmail.com
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NOTE ABOUT THE CHILDREN'S BOOK GUILD NEWS: Would you rather print your newsletter than read it online? Current and past issues now available for printing on the Guild's website at http://www.childrensbookguild.org/guild-newsletters. Look for the "Newsletter" tab on the left side of the Guild website. There is also a "Printer Friendly Version" link on the top left hand side of this blog.
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