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July 16, 2009

In This Issue

In the News

  • 'Potter'-phernalia: The Latest on the Boy Wizard
    Enthusiastic Harry Potter fans turned out in droves at midnight Wednesday for the premiere of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. We've got a round-up of all the latest Potter news, including record-setting box office numbers, a fantasy tie-in promotion from Random House, and a trailer that’s being shown at Half-Blood Prince screenings that’s attracting attention in its own right. more » » » 
  • ALA in Chicago: The Joint Was Jumping
    With a record-breaking attendance of nearly 29,000, scores of competing parties and breakfasts, plenty of big-name author signings, and an array of programs, it was easy for librarians and publishers at the ALA Annual Conference to forget—if only for a few delicious moments—that yes, we are in the midst of a serious recession. True, many of the librarians paid their own way, there was more pizza than prosciutto at the receptions, and the number of exhibitors was off by more than 1,000. more » » » 




  • Picture This: Bookshelf's ALA Photo Essay
    With a record number of attendees turning out for the ALA's annual conference last weekend, there were plenty of photo-ops with children's book authors. Read on to peruse our ALA photo essay, in which we’ve rounded up some of the highlights of the author appearances, featuring Ashley Bryan, Florence Parry Heide (who celebrated her birthday at the show), Neil Gaiman, Lauren Myracle, Kadir Nelson, Sharon Robinson, Brian Selznick, Lane Smith, Melissa Sweet and many others. more » » » 
  • Scholastic Stars Read, Joke with Librarians
    "Cher? Cher who?" But Avi—that’s a one-word name my 12-year-old daughter knows. She got to speak with the Newbery winner last Sunday, at Scholastic’s author brunch during ALA. But before Jazzy met Avi, she and more than 300 librarians waited and talked outside Ballroom E at the Marriott in downtown Chicago. "Those librarians are just as loud as the people they tell to be quiet," Jazzy noted. more » » » 
  • HarperCollins and Jim Henson Partner on Sid the Science Kid Series
    HarperCollins Children’s Books and the Jim Henson Company are launching a publishing program for Sid the Science Kid, based on the Emmy-nominated animated TV series that began airing on PBS Kids last fall. The books will feature full-color stills from the series and will launch in December 2009, with three titles targeting preschoolers ages three to six. more » » » 

Blogs

Book News

  • Cover of the Week: 'Geektastic'
    If you look closely at the cover of Geektastic: Stories from the Nerd Herd, edited by Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci (Little, Brown, Aug.), you’ll notice that many of the avatars look exactly like M.T. Anderson, Kelly Link, Scott Westerfeld and other well-known writers. No coincidence, since the 20-odd writers on display on the jacket all contributed stories to the collection. We spoke with designer Ben Mautner about the idea and execution for the book’s cover image. more » » » 
  • Hoping for 'Runaway' Success
    A parody of a well-known children’s book may, at first, seem designed to appeal more to adults: Goodnight Bush put a political spin on the bedtime story, while Pat the Husband found humor in spousal relationships. However, one recent parody found its place with kids as well: Goodnight Goon, a monster-infused parody of the Margaret Wise Brown and Clement Hurd classic Goodnight Moon, though it is by no means the only classic ripe for child-sized parody. more » » » 
  • Galley Talk: ‘When You Reach Me’
    Stephanie Anderson, manager of WORD in Brooklyn, N.Y., talks about a favorite summer galley, When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead.

    When You Reach Me is a novel about Miranda, a middle-school girl from New York, whose favorite book is A Wrinkle in Time. She starts receiving notes, left outside her apartment, that creep her out. She has no idea who is writing them. In the meantime, the story is also about her relationship with her best friend. more » » » 

In the Media

  • From the Independent:
    A group of British children’s authors and illustrators—including Philip Pullman, Anne Fine, Anthony Horowitz, Michael Morpurgo and Quentin Blake—will stop visiting schools in protest at a new government plan that requires them to register on a database in case they pose a danger to children. more » » » 
  • From the Wall Street Journal:
    The release of the new Harry Potter movie gives rise to the question of whether Harry’s fans have grown up and away from the boy wizard, transferring their affections to the "cooler, edgier" Twilight franchise. more » » » 
  • From the Financial Times:
    A 15-year-old bank intern in London was asked by Morgan Stanley’s European media analysts to describe his friends’ media habits. His report, they said, proved to be “one of the clearest and most thought-provoking insights we have seen. So we published it.” Read on (PDF download) to see what insights the teenager had to share. more » » » 
  • From the Los Angeles Times:
    An obituary for author and publisher Jane Weinberger, who passed away at the age of 91; she was married to former Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger, and ran a children’s publishing company in Maine, called Windswept House. more » » » 
  • From Entertainment Weekly:
    From Entertainment Weekly: Yen Press will publish Twilight in graphic-novel form (pub date has not yet been sent). According to EW, Korean artist Young Kim is creating the art, and author Stephenie Meyer is heavily involved. The magazine also gives the first look at the art for the project.

    Click here to see our full list of In the Media stories. more » » » 

In Brief

  • Shel Silverstein Day in Chicago
    This past Monday evening, more than 8,000 people flocked to Chicago's Millennium Park to take part in "SHELebration: A Tribute to Shel Silverstein," in honor of the Chicago-native poet and artist. The SHELebration events included 17 musical acts as well as poetry readings and the unveiling of a previously unreleased Silverstein poem, "Birthday," which will be available in A Light in the Attic Special Edition (HarperCollins, Sept.) along with 11 other new poems. Here, Bobby Bare of the Bare Family Band plays for the Campus Kids from Miss Lori's Campus (PBS Kids). Photo: Jerry Goldner. more » » » 
  • Calling All Fan Boys and Goth Girls
    In the sequel to The Astonishing Adventures of Fan Boy and Goth Girl, the troubled heroine of the first book takes center stage, but fans won't be left out of the action: with the release of Goth Girl Rising (Harcourt, Oct.), Barry Lyga is hosting a book trailer contest which will run until August 31. To enter, readers will need to film a trailer for one of Lyga's previous books. The creator of the winning trailer will receive a signed ARC of Goth Girl Rising and have a chance to make the official Goth Girl Rising trailer; other entrants receiving a signed book, T-shirt or another prize. Official entry guidelines and links to the current submissions are available at Barry Lyga's Web site. more » » » 
  • Here There Be Dragons
    Aspiring minstrels and fire-breathers take heed: with last month's release of Green Dragon Codex, the latest in R.D. Henham's fantasy series, readers ages 8—14 and hosting libraries are invited to enter the "Green Dragon Lyrics Writing Contest," which runs until August 9. Sponsored by Wizards of the Coast and Mirrorstone, the contest asks fans to create lyrics based on the story of the Green Dragon. The winning lyrics will be recorded to music and posted on Mirrorstone's Web site, and the winner (or members of the winning team) will receive a copy of A Practical Guide to Dragons and Green Dragon Codex. The winning library will also receive two copies of each of the dragon titles, as well as other merchandise. Complete entry information is available at Wizards of the Coast's Web site. more » » » 

Q & A

  • Q & A with Elizabeth Bluemle
    Formerly editorial director of a small press, creative director of a book packager and a school librarian, and currently a bookseller, author and blogger, Elizabeth Bluemle knows publishing from the inside out. Bookshelf managed to catch her at a rare quiet moment, to ask her about juggling her various book-related pursuits and about her third picture book. more » » » 

Featured Reviews

  • Do Not Build a Frankenstein!
    Neil Numberman. Greenwillow, $16.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-06-156816-9
    There's a new kid in town, and he's a walking cautionary tale. As his peers listen raptly, he launches into a series of flashbacks, all designed to reinforce the lesson of the title. Sure, he says, a monster of one's own is fun at first (it turns out monsters are not averse to wearing drag when playing dress-up), but pretty soon the monster's enormous strength and relentless energy make it clear that emulating Victor Frankenstein is never a good idea (“He'll chase away your friends... and your pets... and he'll break all your toys”). more » » » 
  • A Season of Gifts
    Richard Peck. Dial, $16.99 (176p) ISBN 978-0-8037-3082-3
    The type of down-home humor and vibrant characterizations Peck fans have come to adore re-emerge in full as Peck resurrects Mrs. Dowdel, the irrepressible, self-sufficient grandmother featured in A Year Down Yonder and A Long Way from Chicago. Set in 1958, his new novel is told from the point of view of 12-year-old Bob Barnhart, Mrs. Dowdel's new neighbor, who is distraught about having to move from Terre Haute to a “podunk” town, where his Methodist minister father has been called to shepherd a meager sprinkling of parishioners. more » » » 






Rights Report



Disney has bought film rights to Wings, a YA novel by Aprilynne Pike, to develop as a vehicle for Hannah Montana star Miley Cyrus, according to Variety. The book, which HarperTeen published this spring, revolves around a sheltered, homeschooled 15-year-old as she begins life in a regular high school, and discovers that she is a fairy. Wings is the first in a four-book series.

David Frankel (Marley & Me) will direct an animated adaptation of Septimus Heap: Magyk, the first volume in the fantasy series by Angie Sage. Variety reports that Rob Lieber will adapt for Warner Brothers, which bought screen rights to the seven-book series back in 2007. The books revolve around two babies switched at birth: a boy who's the seventh son of a seventh son and a girl destined to be a princess. Book five in the series, Syren, is due out from HarperCollins this September; the books have sold more than one million in the U.S., and have been translated into 28 languages.

Nancy Conescu at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers acquired North American rights to Suddenly Supernatural: Crossing Over, fourth in Elizabeth Cody Kimmel's tween medium series, for publication in spring 2010. Marcia Wernick of the Sheldon Fogelman Agency was the agent.

People

Yves Saada has been named v-p, Digital Media, Disney Global Book Group, a new position. He will be responsible for the management and strategic oversight of digital media within Disney's global book group, and will develop and manage all digital strategy, including leveraging existing book content across new forms of digital delivery. Previously he was v-p, interactive media at Pokemon USA, and has also worked at Mattel, Microsoft and children's Web site BrainPop.

David Linker has joined HarperCollins Children's Books as executive editor for HarperFestival. David will be handling all movie and TV tie-in programs, superhero tie-in programs and Fisher-Price. Formerly he was editorial director at Innovative Kids, and executive managing editor, Global Books at Disney Publishing.

Gretchen Hirsch has been named associate editor at Simon & Schuster, for the Atheneum and McElderry imprints. She was associate editor at HarperCollins Children's Books, and before that had worked at Harcourt Children's Books.

In the Winners’ Circle



The Branford Boase Award for an outstanding debut novel for children in the U.K. was awarded on July 9 to The Traitor Game by B.R. Collins, edited by Emma Matthewson of Bloomsbury UK. On the award's Web site, the novel is described as "a powerful debut that explores the way boys create friendships and how fragile these relationships can be." Bloomsbury's U.S. imprint published the book here in August 2008.

Contact Us

Dear Bookshelf Readers, Hope you enjoyed this week's issue. We'd love to hear from you with any comments and suggestions—please drop us a note here.
 


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PW Children's Bookshelf
Editor: Diane Roback
Associate Editor: John Sellers

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