One green thing I wish everyone would do:
Give up plastic bags. It’s hard, I know, to remember to carry a bag into a store. I wish we could give up other forms of plastic, like the blister packs encasing everything from Barbie dolls to Bic pens. Back in the days of five and ten stores, it was so nice to simply pick an item out of a bin or off a shelf, pay for it, and not wrestle with tin snips to get it open.… more
The book I wish everyone would read:
I love Make Way for Ducklings written and illustrated by Robert McCloskey, and I wish every parent and child would read this ageless picture book together. Why do I love Make Way for Ducklings? Let me start with the fact that my family is from Boston and Make Way for Ducklings takes place in the city of Boston. In… more
Author Lesa Cline-Ransome is known for her picture book biographies of poets, anti-slavery crusaders, musicians, athletes, and mathematicians. Her novel Finding Langston received a Scott O’Dell Historical Fiction Award and a Coretta Scott King Author Honor. We impatiently waited for the companion novel, Leaving Lymon, which was published in early 2020. Lesa is a wonderful storyteller and a stellar nonfiction researcher and author.… more
Author and poet Jen Bryant is known for her picture book biographies of artists, poets, wordmongers, composers, and playwrights. Her verse and prose novels are well-researched, often focused on an historic event like the Scopes trial or the Lindbergh kidnapping trial or Captain Kidd’s buried treasure in New Jersey. Always focused on her next book, we’re thankful Jen took time from her schedule to answer our Skinny Dip questions. … more
We welcome author Catherine Friend to our Skinny Dip column this month. You may know her for her picture books The Perfect Nest and My Head is Full of Colors, or her chapter book Barn Boot Blues. You may have thought about becoming a farmer after reading Hit by a Farm, Sheepish, and The Compassionate Carnivore.… more
Storyteller adept Susan Fletcher’s mind has given us The Dragon Chronicles, Alphabet of Dreams, the startling Falcon in the Glass, and most recently Journey of the Pale Bear. As you’ll read below, she has traveled to amazing locations and had enviable experiences as she researched her novels. Susan taught at the Vermont College of Fine Arts’ Master of Fine Arts in Writing for Children and Young Adults program but now she lives full-time in Texas.… more
To begin our year of Skinny Dippin’ for 2020, and in the coldest month of the year (brrrrr), we interviewed Caroline B. Cooney, the author of so many beloved books.
This month we welcome author Cheryl Minnema to our Skinny Dip tradition, learning more about this Ojibwe author who has published two picture books, Hungry Johnny and Johnny’s Pheasant.
We’re pleased to welcome author and poet Brian P. Cleary for a Skinny Dip this month. His books have made kids guffaw and chortle, all while learning parts of grammar or math! Impossible, you say? Not for Brian, whose brain just works this way.
One of my all-time favorite books is Up North at the Cabin. There is something quintessential about the cabin experience for many people who live in the Upper Midwest. This book, by our Skinny Dippin’ author Marsha Wilson Chall, has engaged readers and listeners for 27 years! Marsha has created many picture books that showcase her storytelling talents, including Bonaparte, One Pup’s Up, and The Secret Life of Figgy Mustardo.… more
We’re pleased to welcome author and illustrator Kenneth Kraegel for a Skinny Dip this month. His newest book, Wild Honey from the Moon, is due to be published on November 5, 2019. School Library Connection said, “The rich and luscious illustrations are what make this book so special; readers will want to examine every detail on every page.… more
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 much-praised story about old-time fiddlers inspired by the lives of renowned fiddlers Melvin Wine and Jake Krack.… more
We’re pleased to welcome author Carla Killough McClafferty to our Skinny Dip column. She is known for her fine and carefully researched nonfiction books, such as The Many Faces of George Washington: Remaking a Presidential Icon; Something Out of Nothing: Marie Curie and Radium; Fourth Down and Inches: Concussions and Football’s Make-or-Break Moment and her most recent Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington’s Mount Vernon.… more
We’re pleased to welcome author Padma Venkatraman, whose every novel I have found delightful. Her perspectives as a world citizen and an oceanographer and a person who cares fervently about children’s well-being give a powerful depth to her writing. We asked Padma to answer the Skinny Dip questions that appealed to her:
How many bookcases do you have in your house?… more
We’re pleased to welcome author Nicola Davies to our Skinny Dip column. She writes such fine books about our natural world. Her most recent book, The Day War Came (Candlewick Press), relates the story of a refugee child who realizes that war follows her in the closed doors and turned backs. It is through the kindness of other children that she finds hope.… more
