Native Realities
Small Press Medley
A literary superhero himself and an indigenous legendary comic creator, a proponent of Native Pop Culture, and creator of a new Native publishing venture, I am excited to introduce to you Dr. Lee Francis IV and his publishing house, Native Realities. What kind of press is this? Think Comics, books, interactive. Native American authors and [...]
Cozy Reading Chili
Cookology
We’ve been outside enjoying the summer and fall weather, but now it’s time to settle in for a winter’s worth of reading. Enjoy this yummy chili while you read.
Pass the Ps Please – an Evening with Dav Pilkey
Teach It Forward
Positivity, practice and persistence… a powerful approach to overcoming a multitude of challenges and unbelievably bad school experiences. The one and only, Dav Pilkey, shared several heartfelt stories to inspire kids (and adults) during his recent stop in St. Paul as part of his “Dog Man, Do Good Tour.” With humor and vulnerability, Dav explained [...]
Constance Van Hoven and Her Reading Team
October 2019
Raising Star Readers
This addition to Raising Star Readers features the theme “If you read it, they will come.” As Connie (Gigi to her grandchildren) explains: “Our reading team hit a bump in the road! On a recent trip to Colorado, I introduced the picture book Grumpy Monkey (written by Suzanne Lang and illustrated by Max Lang) to [...]
No Wraiths or Fetches Necessary
Big Green Pocketbook
To celebrate our fortieth anniversary this year, we decided to take a Big Trip. My husband suggested Paris. “Cornwall,” I said. “Someplace old.” Not that Paris isn’t old. Instead of a crowded city, I wanted winkles and pasties, lost gardens and standing stones, piskies and Tintagel castle. He agreed and I began putting together a [...]
Why Writers Love Their Agents!
Page Break
A peek inside the telephone exchange between a writer and her agent …
Winning the Road Race?
Writing Road Trip
For any writer, it’s important to understand that the act of writing, and being published are not the — same thing.
Riding a Donkey Backwards
Reading Ahead
The wise fool or the foolish wise man? As the authors explain, “Nasruddin is the wisest man in the village and also the biggest fool. … If he doesn’t make you laugh, he will certainly make you think — and perhaps think sideways instead of straight ahead.” Mulla Nasruddin is an ancient Persian folk character, discussed in [...]
Birds
Two for the Show
Watching birds is one of the joys of the outdoor year (or the indoor year, given the right window placement). Emily Dickinson notes the “independent ecstasy” of their songs. And we can discern personalities in certain birds. Jays will peremptorily take over a feeding station. Chickadees perkily fly in for a seed or two or [...]
Try Something New, Have a Blast!
Knock Knock
A few months ago my daughter, Aliza, came over after an evening out with her work friends. Aliza told us she and her friends had gone to the Minneapolis Bouldering Project or MBP, an indoor climbing gym where people climb “circuits” of up to 17 feet high without ropes or harnesses. She was so excited [...]
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Red Reading Boots
In my storytime bag this past month I’ve been carrying The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. I don’t always use it, but I like having it with me — I know it will always work. When I pull this book out of the bag, there are smiles, clapping sometimes, and always a chorus of “I have [...]
Beethoven in Paradise
Fresh Looklogy
Fresh Lookology features books published several years ago that are too good to languish on the shelf. Martin Pittman takes a reader’s heart and runs with it. He lives in a trailer park called Paradise, but his home life is anything but. Martin’s father is abusive, his mother completely cowed. He has no siblings. His [...]
When the Meteorologist Writes the Weather Books
Interviews
It’s not often that we get to interview a subject expert about a series of books on that expert’s area of knowledge. We’re pleased to talk with the author of the Bel the Weather Girl books, six of them, each presenting a weather topic that kids will feel better about if they understand it: clouds, [...]
McDuff Moves In
Reading Ahead
When I was young, my mother and I lived in a succession of apartments, none of which allowed pets. I had a fervent hope for a dog or a cat, an animal friend to love. Every year for Christmas, I received a new stuffed animal, usually a dog because my mother didn’t care for cats. [...]
Lucy’s Easy Vanilla Bean Rice Pudding
Cookology
Reading Ahead recommends McDuff Moves In, a picture book about a rescue dog’s search for a new family, written by Rosemary Wells and illustrated by Susan Jeffers (The Gryphon Press, 2019). This recipe is included in the book and featured here with the permission of the publisher. Print Recipe Lucy’s Easy Vanilla Bean Rice Pudding [...]
Welcome to Lizard Motel
Literary Madeleines
There is a special period of … childhood, approximately from five or six to eleven or twelve — between the strivings of animal infancy and the storms of adolescence — when the natural world is experienced in some highly evocative way … It is principally to this middle age range … that writers say they return in memory in [...]
Sense of Wonder
Two for the Show
In her book A Sense of Wonder, Rachel Carson wrote: If I had influence with the good fairy who is supposed to preside over the christening of all children, I should ask that her gift to each child in the world be a sense of wonder so indestructible that it would last throughout life, as [...]
Ann Angel and Her Reading Team
October 2019
Raising Star Readers
Raising Star Readers is delighted to introduce a new Reading Team centered around YA author and Wisconsin resident Ann Angel. Ann says: “One of my greatest pleasures as a grandparent is sharing a book with my grandkids that was a favorite with my kids when they were growing up. Another great pleasure is seeing my [...]
Skinny Dip with Sarah Sullivan
Skinny Dip
Bookology is delighted to welcome author Sarah Sullivan for an October Skinny Dip. Look for Sarah’s A Day for Skating, illustrated by Madeline Valentine (Candlewick Press, available November 5th), a lovely book to read out loud before you go skating or to explain what skating is. Sarah’s picture book Passing the Music Down is a [...]
Going Rogue
The Lamppost
“Exploration is really the Essence of the Human Spirit.” —Frank Borman ’Tis the season for fall themes such as pumpkins, leaves, and turkeys. As I was planning programs for October and November, I decided it was time to go rogue and think of new themes. I started searching terms such as “funny fall celebrations” and [...]
A Cat’s Guide to the Night Sky
Reading Ahead
A dearly drawn cat named Felicity — honoring Félicette, a stray cat in Paris who became the first cat in space on October 18, 1963 — takes us on an exploration of stargazing. As a book on observational astronomy, it’s an exciting book for kids and adults alike. Short paragraphs cover what to wear when stargazing, where to go [...]
Bee-bim Bop
Red Reading Boots
I’ve been on the storytime circuit this last month as I have a new picture book of my very own. Readers of this column know how much I adore storytime, so wherever I’ve gone to read my book, I’ve asked if I can do a whole storytime, the better to read other picture books, as [...]