MARCH 2016

LEARN HOW CECE BELL DREW ON HER CHILDHOOD TO CREATE THE AWARD-WINNING EL DEAFO

Children's author and illustrator Cece Bell lives in an old church in the mountains of Virginia, and she works right next door in a new-ish barn. Her "graphic novel memoir," El Deafo, which chronicles her childhood experiences with hearing loss, received a Newbery Honor and an Eisner Award in 2015. Bell has said that she was inspired to write this book in part to satisfy her wish that there was a "manual" that could help hearing people understand and communicate with deaf and hard of hearing people. It turned out, though, that some of the readers who gained the most from El Deafo were deaf children, who were able to see themselves in a book and have others learn about someone like them.

Bell's other works include Rabbit & Robot: The Sleepover (a Geisel Honor book), Bee-Wigged, and the Sock Monkey series. She has also illustrated books written by her husband, Tom Angleberger, including the picture book Crankee Doodle, as well as the Inspector Flytrap chapter book series, coming out later this year. 

On March 17, Cece Bell will speak to the Children's Book Guild about the creation of El Deafo, and how she made her own childhood story a lot more interesting than it really was.

Date: Thursday, March 17
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) 

• Honey-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 
• Avocado panini with roasted red peppers and melted cheese on multi-grain bread

RSVP Now!

IN THIS ISSUE:
1. The April 9 Nonfiction Award Event: Register Now!
2. Reminder: Bring Books to Donate to Area Schools
3. A Summary of the February Business Meeting Featuring Gareth Hinds
4. The First Annual Walter Dean Myers Award
5. Volunteer for National History Day
6. Member News
7. "Quick Links"
8. Buy Local: Last Reminder!

It's time for Guild members to donate books to help local schools build their libraries. This year's recipients are: Whittier, Ketcham and Kendall Schools in Washington, D.C. These are the schools to which the Guild provided First Book Grants to help build libraries to serve their pre-k through eighth-grade students. A representative from each school will receive the book baskets during our annual nonfiction award luncheon, on April 9, 2016. You may bring your books (or books you have reviewed) to our meeting on March 17 at Busboys and Poets. You may also coordinate with Joan Waites, who is preparing the baskets. THANK YOU!

THE FEBRUARY MEETING OF THE CHILDREN'S BOOK GUILD, FEATURING A PRESENTATION BY GARETH HINDS
by Abby Nolan

Children’s Book Guild members met for their annual business meeting on February 18, 2016, at the Tenley-Friendship Neighborhood Library. Amy Hansen, president, announced the slate of officers for 2016-2017:

Kem Sawyer, president

Katy Kelly, vice president and incoming president for 2017-2018

Jean Halperin Diehl, recording secretary

Terry Catusus Jennings, treasurer

Maria Salvadore, Alison Morris and Karen MacPherson, program chairs

The slate was approved, and candidates were voted in unanimously.

Amy also mentioned that the Guild has donated $500 to each of three Washington, D.C., schools to help address disparities in the city’s school libraries.

Turning to internal Guild business, Amy noted that the executive committee is looking into lowering the fees for the member pages on the Guild's website. Also, Erica Perl will be sending around a survey about the speakers bureau and possible improvements.

After the business meeting, Guild member Gareth Hinds gave an engagingly visual presentation on his career as an illustrator and creator of graphic-novel adaptations of classic works such as Macbeth and The Odyssey.

Hinds began by talking about his childhood artistic pursuits. He drew himself as the hero of fantasy epics and then started creating comics, eventually getting a comic-strip in his high school newspaper. In art school at Parsons, one of his major projects involved adapting the brothers Grimm story "Bearskin," which he later self-published. He was able to win grants set aside for comic-book makers and to learn about all the elements of the publishing process. He next published Beowulf in three parts. It became his breakout book when Candlewick republished it in 2007.  

For each book, Hinds said, he finds a style that best suits the story and setting. For King Lear, for instance, he had the characters walk around the page as they would walk around a stage. Hinds showed how he moves from sketches to finished art, and he gave a quick look at his next project, which features the work of Edgar Allan Poe.

Hinds’s latest book, Samurai Rising, is about one of the most famous samurai in history. Hinds has long been interested in Japanese martial arts, so he was a natural choice to illustrate Pamela S. Turner’s text. The book’s three main forces--Hinds, Turner and its Candlewick editor--all have black belts in either kendo or aikido, which surely must be a first in children’s book publishing. Hinds showed how he combined digital tools with a brush-and ink style to create the book’s cover and interior illustrations.

Hinds also touched on his 10 years as an artist in the video-game industry, which he left behind to pursue his own creative visions and challenges. He said that he is aware of the age range of his audience but that he basically creates the books he wants to read. For the next two years, he will be working on a graphic-novel adaptation on The Iliad and seeing where his own writing takes him. The presentation was a great opportunity for members of the public and the Guild to see all that goes into Hinds’s artfully action-packed books.

WE NEED DIVERSE BOOKS ANNOUNCES THE WINNER OF THE FIRST ANNUAL WALTER DEAN MYERS AWARD

The winner of the first annual Walter Dean Myers Award for Outstanding Children’s Literature-Young Adult Category is the novel All American Boys, by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely. The judges also selected two honor books: Enchanted Air: Two Cultures, Two Wings, by Margarita Engle, and X: A Novel, by Ilyasah Shabazz and Kekla Magoon.

We Need Diverse Books will present the Walter Dean Myers Award on March 18, 2016, at 10 a.m. at the Library of Congress, in collaboration with the Center for the Book and the Young Readers Center. For event details, please contact Dhonielle Clayton: dhonielleclayton@diversebooks.org or 701-404-9632 (voicemail only).


NATIONAL HISTORY DAY COULD USE YOUR HELP
by Sally Canzoneri

For several years, I worked with kids in DC schools on preparing projects for National History Day. I used to begin my talks with the kids by saying, “History is not boring–no matter what you think from school,” and I'd tell them about all the cool things adult historians do: write and consult on movie scripts, write great nonfiction and historical novels for kids, make History Channel shows, create exhibits for museums, etc. Then I would go on to talk about how the National History Day program would let them do the same things.

As part of the National History Day program, middle and high schools hold History Day fairs where projects are chosen to go on to state fairs and then to a national competition held at the University of Maryland. Students write papers and create exhibits, dramas, documentaries and web sites on topics related to a theme. This year the theme is “Exploration, Encounter, and Exchange.”

One of the things that makes the National History Day program so special is the judging at the fairs. Volunteer historians interview the students, then review and evaluate the projects. The students get a chance to have their work taken seriously in a way that (sadly) isn’t always a part of the everyday school environment. It is a really extraordinary experience for children.

Though DC is not a state, it does have a district-wide fair, which will be held at the National Archives on March 23 and 24. Please consider volunteering as a judge. Missy McNatt is the DC National History Day coordinator, and you can contact her at mcnatt@nara.gov or call her at 202-357-5121 for more information. You can also register on line. Here are instructions from the email Missy sent me: Go to dc.nhd.org. Click "Online Registration" on the left side of the screen; then click "2016 National History Day in Washington, D.C." In the drop down menu, click "Judge" or "Volunteer." Click "GO." Click "Don't have a user name and password? Click here to begin." It really is a great program, and you’ll have a fun day if you become a judge. If you want to know more, please contact me.


MEMBER NEWS

PHYLLIS NAYLOR dedicated her new book from Delacorte, Going Where It's Dark, to her late husband, a speech pathologist, because a therapist and a stuttering boy play a big part in the plot. So do the limestone caverns in rural Southwest Virginia. Of the main character, Kirkus says,"When he sticks up for himself against the school bully, the retribution is swift and potentially deadly. Buck's hidden talents may be his only chance at survival. Naylor's signature ability to coax profound truths out of ordinary characters and familiar events shines...."  Going Where It's Dark is a Junior Library Guild selection.


This semester JANE HARRINGTON is teaching a children's literature class at Southern Virginia University, where she is an adjunct in the English Department (and also Writing Center director at the school). Says Jane, "If any Guild members find themselves in the Lexington/Buena Vista area in the coming months, I would welcome them to share books and wisdom with my students!"

JACQUELINE JULES is happy to announce that Sofia Martinez is back with three new stories in My Vida Loca. Even the most basic chores can be fun when Sofia is involved! From washing a car to cooking with Grandma, this smart and funny seven-year-old knows how to make every moment count. And watch out when Sofia decides she can be a singing superstar with a toy microphone! For more news on Sofia, visit her at Capstone Kids: http://www.capstonekids.com/characters/Sofia-Martinez/.

Three books by Guild members are among the Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People 2016, selected by the National Council for the Social Studies and the Children's Book Council. They are:

Swing Sisters, by Karen Deans...

The Fantastic Ferris Wheel,by Betsy Harvey Kraft...

and Noah Webster: Man of Many Words, by Catherine Reef.

LULU DELACRE writes: "The same week that I learned of Olinguito being selected as a Washington Post book of the month through a tweet from Dr. Kristofer Helgen, I found out that it had received another starred review. The tweet from Helgen was neat, not only because he has 3,127 followers, but because he is the curator-in-charge of the Division of Mammals at the National Museum of Natural History. I must say that the Washington Post review meant a lot to me. After being a subscriber for 27 years, I had the pleasure of reading about one of my books in the paper while drinking my morning coffee. It was School Library Journal that gave Olinguito its third star. Indeed, it was an excellent week!"

SUE FLIESS has two new picture books. The Bug Book, published by Grosset & Dunlap, is a paperback photographic picture book about the bugs in our world, featuring Sue’s rhyming text paired with photos of the creepy-crawly creatures. It was in bookstores starting February 23. Watch the book trailer: https://youtu.be/BywEYyTfTrA.

Calling All Cars is a playful rhyming book about all the cars we see, illustrated by Sarah Beise and published by Sourcebooks/Jabberwocky on March 1. Kirkus called the book "an infinite loop of automotive joys interwoven with a rather charming narrative." School Library Journal described it a "a lively read-aloud" and a "zippy, robust picture book."

Sue will participate in the Virginia Festival of the Book, in Charlottesville, on March 19. She’ll be on a picture-book panel and doing a session with other authors/illustrators on making book dummies. She’ll be doing school visits on March 1, and signing Calling All Cars

http://vabook.org/participant/sue-fliess/.

MICHELLE Y. GREEN informs us that the long-awaited movie based on her book A Strong Right Arm: The Story of Mamie "Peanut"Johnson took a giant leap forward in February. Two studios have expressed interest in producing the movie, pending a rewrite of one of the characters. The original script tells the backstory of how Michelle first met the only woman ever to pitch professional baseball while shopping for a baseball jersey for her son Evan, who was playing on a Little League team. The studios want to change her son into a daughter, whose name will be Jazmine. Evan, now 23, played baseball in high school until he tore his shoulder. He now is a graduate of the Berklee School of Music and recently ran the Ironman event. As a tradeoff, Evan will play the character Hank Bayliss, a ferocious hitter who gave Mamie the name “Peanut.” Michelle’s older son, Bryan--whom many Guild members met at the November luncheon--will be behind the camera. The rewrite is due to be finished at the end of March. The book is also an Audible.com selection.

Michelle also announces the launch of High Flight: The Tuskegee Airmen Legacy Project website and blog. The two-year project is a collaboration among the Greentree Group, Inc.; Tuskegee Airmen Inc.; the Daughters of Tuskegee Airmen Organization; a local community college; K through college educators; a multicultural publisher; children’s book authors and illustrators; videogaphers; and other strategic partners. The project seeks to locate, authenticate and publish the stories of original black pilots, navigators, bombardiers and support personnel. It is estimated that there are only 200 or so remaining of the more than 900 who served with distinction during World War II and beyond. Michelle’s father was tripled rated as a pilot, bombardier and navigator. He also flew in Korea and in Vietnam. Visit www.highflight.academy and sign up for the blog, which will post three times a week. The site will continue to build out until November 11, 2016, with interactive activities, curriculum and High Flight paraphernalia. For more, follow highflight.academy on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, or send a message to info@highflight.academy.

SALLY CANZONERI's solo exhibition, "NoMa: Changing Vistas--Changing Views," will continue in the lobby of 1200 First Street NE through March 18. There will be an artist reception on March 10, from 6 to 8 p.m, and Sally hopes interested Guild members will attend. The show is part of a series of exhibits sponsored by the Washington Project for the Arts and NoMa BID and focuses on changes in this neighborhood, which is not far from Busboys & Poets. Some pieces in the show are lenticular pictures. Archival photos and Sally’s photos of the same or similar sites are put together and folded accordion style, so that a viewer sees different images when looking at the pictures from different sides. For a video on how the lenticulars  work (and a bit about lenticular pictures and printing), check Sally’s website: www.sallycanzoneri.com. 

This is how one of pictures looks before it is folded.

Sally will have two pictures in "For the Record," an exhibition put on by the Historical Society of Washington, D.C. The exhibit will open on April 14 at the Carnegie Library in Mt. Vernon Square and run through June 19. The exhibit will feature artwork depicting Washington’s changing built environment. 

"QUICK LINKS"

Using Books and Stories to Strengthen Families

The Library of Congress convened a 2015 symposium on using culturally diverse literature to support families and teen literacy. DEBORAH TAYLOR moderated a panel of authors including KWAME ALEXANDER, MEG MEDINA, Ellen Oh, Gigi Amateau and Tim Tingle. You can listen to the entire symposium here: http://1.usa.gov/1mxqBDu.

#WeNeedDiverseBooks

LULU DELACRE and KAREN LEGGETT discussed the need for greater diversity in children’s literature on the Montgomery County Cable Access program “Connecting Our Community.” The program airs periodically on Cable Channel 21. It may be viewed online here: http://bit.ly/1QsfNPe. 

HELP BUY LOCAL! 
LAST CALL FOR MAILING/PUBLICITY LIST

Jacqueline Jules is trying to compile a mailing list of local librarians who annually invite authors to their schools. How can we get such a list? From you! If Guild members would share the contact information for local librarians who have invited them to speak at their schools in the last three years, we could compile a list of local schools that annually invite authors. This list will be used to send out a mailing (postal and/or email) advertising the Children’s Book Guild of Washington, D.C., as a great resource for contacting local children’s authors., particularly through our Buy Local brochure

http://www.childrensbookguild.org/images/stories/members/buy_local/buylocal.pdf

Individual Guild members should send contact information to Jacqueline at jjulesATjacquelinejules.com. Thank you!

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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 are 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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LITERARY EVENTS SPONSORED BY POLITICS AND PROSE: The literary calendar at Politics and Prose lists many upcoming programs that may be of interest to Children's Book Guild members: http://www.politics-prose.com/events. 

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