Children''s Bookshelf
Trouble viewing this email? Click here.
To ensure our emails reach your inbox, add ChildrensBookshelf@email.publishersweekly.com to your address book. Click here to learn how.
August 13, 2009

In this Issue

In the News

  • SCBWI's Annual Conference: Illuminating the Children’s Book Market
    More than 1,100 people gathered at the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles this weekend for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators 38th annual summer conference. "This is a record-breaking level of attendance," said SCBWI president and co-founder Stephen Mooser. "Despite the recession, artists and writers realize the worth in being here. The children’s book field is a very supportive, sharing community." more » » » 
  • Ripple Connects Families with Recorded Children's Books
    The Internet does nothing if not connect people, and Colorado-based Ripple has created a platform that uses the Internet to transport the intimate experience of reading a book to a child across long distances. Basically, Ripple is a Web-based audio recorder and player that also displays the pages of children's books. The idea is that a traveling parent, a long-distance grandparent, or a deployed soldier, for instance, could record the text of a children's book and then send a file... more » » » 


  • Book Parties on Twitter
    "The release of a new book is something to celebrate. Each story winging out into the world deserves a communal "HURRAH!," wrote children’s book author Mitali Perkins on her blog earlier this summer, to announce the launch of Twitter Book Birthday Parties (@bookbdays). In the intervening weeks since she threw down the e-marketing gauntlet to help other children’s book authors and illustrators, she has filled most of the 75 slots that she had set as her limit. more » » » 

Blogs

Book News

  • Diego Rivera’s Daughter Shares Memories of Her Father
    Born in 1886, muralist, painter and political activist Diego Rivera was one of Mexico’s most influential 20th-century artists. His daughter, Guadalupe Rivera Marín, has compiled recollections of her father and personal commentaries on 13 of his works in My Papa Diego and Me/Mi papá Diego y yo, a new bilingual picture book that reproduces paintings and murals featuring children, who were the focus of many of Rivera’s paintings. more » » » 
  • Teen-Authored Series Gets Live Web Show
    Marni suffers from Trichotillomania, a disorder that causes her to pull out her own hair. Chelsey’s father was murdered days before her 14th birthday. Emily has been diagnosed with West Nile Virus. Their stories are told, in their own words, in Louder Than Words, a new teen-authored memoir series from HCI Books. In support of the new series, HCI launched a weeklong live Web show, which premiered this past Monday on Kyte.tv. more » » » 
  • Tess’s Tree: Online Picture Book Moves to Print
    As the release date nears for the print edition of Jess Brallier’s Tess’s Tree (HarperCollins, Aug. 25), illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds, two questions remain: can a picture book with an online following succeed in print? And can lightning strike twice for a book originally "published" at FunBrain.com? (Hint: Jeff Kinney’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid already showed that a series of graphic novels can successfully make the transition.) more » » » 
  • McGuirk Dishes Up New Picture Book with Four Seasons Restaurateur
    Dog may be man’s best friend, but for children’s book author/illustrator Leslie McGuirk, he doubles as her artistic muse. In her latest title, Wiggens Learns His Manners at the Four Seasons Restaurant (Candlewick, Aug.), the Vero Beach, Fla.-based writer, best known for her Tucker series of picture books, pays tribute to her canine companions once again.more » » » 

In the Media

  • From the Guardian:
    Who was Arthur Ransome? British author, journalist, and creator of the beloved Swallows and Amazons books for children? Or Bolshevik sympathizer and Russian spy? more » » » 
  • From the Bookseller:
    "Staycations" in Britain this summer have helped boost children’s book sales—which is welcome news to publishers and booksellers alike. more » » » 
  • From National Public Radio:
    Author Lesley Blume recommended some classic titles for children, including The Phantom Tollbooth, Daddy Long-Legs andThe Twenty-One Balloons. more » » » 
  • Also from NPR:
    Jonah Winter, author of the picture book The Fabulous Feud of Gilbert and Sullivan,discussed the rocky relationship between the operetta composers, who reunited to create The Mikado. more » » » 
  • From the McLeod County Chronicle:
    The sheriff’s department in Minnesota’s McLeod County has added a backpack filled with children’s books to each of its eight squad cars, to help distract children who are involved in traumatic or upsetting situations. more » » » 

In Brief

  • When Harry Met Nanny
    Most authors dream of getting onto national TV shows to talk about their books. But the collaborators behind Harry and Horsie (HarperCollins/Balzer & Bray, Sept.) have the next best thing—a foreword written by comedian and Late Show host David Letterman. The connection? First-time author Katie Van Camp worked as an au pair for Letterman, caring for his son who, as it happens, is also named Harry. more » » » 
  • A 'Riot' of a Ride
    Last week, Egmont USA organized a bus tour of Manhattan with author Walter Dean Myers, in support of his new novel Riot (Sept.), set in 1863 during the New York City draft riots. Beginning at the New-York Historical Society, the tour visited numerous sites of historical interest, including the Irish Hunger Memorial, Castle Clinton, the South Street Seaport, the site of the former Five Points slum and the African Burial Ground. more » » » 
  • 'Everything' for a Sequel
    Four years after the publication of A Dog’s Life: The Autobiography of a Stray (Scholastic, 2005), Ann M. Martin’s follow-up, Everything for a Dog, arrives September 1 from Feiwel and Friends. Here, Martin (center) shows off a copy of Everything for a Dog—not to mention her own dog, Sadie—with F&F’s Jean Feiwel (l.) and Liz Szabla who, respectively, published and edited A Dog’s Life while they were at Scholastic. more » » » 
  • Today's Special: Poignant Reunions
    Jarrett J. Krosoczka recently launched his new Lunch Lady graphic novel series (Knopf, July) at a sold-out event at the Worcester Public Library in Worcester, Mass. Among the 150 fans in attendance was a pair of especially appropriate guests: Jeanne and Betty, two of the lunch ladies from Krosoczka’s Gates Lane elementary school in Worcester, where they had worked for a combined 70 years. more » » » 
  • Home Runs and Missing Thumbs
    Nathan Abercrombie, the hero of My Rotten Life, David Lubar’s new middle-grade novel, is a bit of a loser, and his bad luck might have rubbed off on the home team during the Lehigh Valley IronPigs’ first annual Reading Night this past Tuesday (the minor league baseball team lost 2–1 to the Louisville Bats). Prior to the game, Lubar read from My Rotten Life (Tor/Starscape, Aug.), first in his new Nathan Abercrombie, Accidental Zombie series. more » » » 

Q & A

  • Q & A with Jane Smiley
    Q: You obviously love horses. Is this the kind of book that you would have liked to have read as a child?
    A: Well, it's more or less the kind of book I did read. When I was a child in 1960 - I was 10 and 11 that year - there were plenty of horse book series. I loved them all and read them all. I read the Black Stallion series, and other Walter Farley books. I also read Nancy Drew and other series. That was what kids' literature was back then.     more » » » 

Featured Reviews

  • Stagecoach Sal
    Deborah Hopkinson, illus. by Carson Ellis. Disney-Hyperion, $16.99 (40p) ISBN 978-1-4231-1149-8
    A healthy dose of pioneer sass helps young Stagecoach Sal nab a notorious thief without firing a shot—she takes Poetic Pete ("the most polite bandit in all of California") onto the seat beside her, sings him to sleep and delivers him to jail. Hopkinson's (Home on the Range) winner of a tale is inspired by a historical figure (whose biography is supplied in an afterword), but the story of Sal's all-night singing marathon is Hopkinson's own. Ellis's (The Composer Is Dead) artwork forms an unexpected but effective counterpoint to Hopkinson's rambunctious prose.     more » » » 
  • Viola in Reel Life
    Adriana Trigiani. HarperTeen, $16.99 (288p) ISBN 978-0-06-145102-7
    Trigiani (Big Stone Gap) takes the familiar boarding school milieu and gives it some welcome nuance and a refreshingly grounded feel in her debut YA work, first in a proposed series. To her horror, 14-year-old aspiring filmmaker Viola Chesterton is forced to leave her family, her funky Brooklyn neighborhood and her "Best Friend Forever And Always" Andrew to spend her freshman year at Prefect Academy for Young Women in South Bend, Ind. But Viola soon finds much to like in her new roommates and rural campus, chronicling her experiences in a video diary.     more » » » 







What Are You Reading?

Throughout August we'll be featuring kids across the country, talking about the books they're reading this summer.


Hannah Frith, 13,
Cambridge, Mass.

The first book I read this summer was actress Kristin Chenoweth's autobiography, A Little Bit Wicked. It was very interesting; I learned a lot about my favorite actress. The second book I read was The Schwa Was Here, an AMAZING book, so well written. I was addicted from the first page. Then I read the most touching book, Saffy's Angel. My friend gave it to me as a gift for my birthday. Read more

Movie Alert


Based on Judi and Ron Barrett's picture book of the same name, an animated film adaptation of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs hits theaters September 18. Originally published by Atheneum in 1978, the story is set in the town of Chewandswallow (renamed Swallow Falls in the film), which is plagued by food and beverages that rain down from the sky on a daily basis.The film features the voices of Anna Faris (The House Bunny) and Bill Hader (Saturday Night Live) in the lead roles of weathergirl Sam Sparks and luckless inventor Flint Lockwood. Read more

Rights Report

Andrea Spooner at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers has bought world rights to Hands Say Love by George Shannon, a picture book about all the ways hands "love" as they hold, lift, tie, comfort and mend. Tentative pub date is fall 2011. Mary Cummings at Betsy Amster Literary Enterprises did the deal.

Jill Dembowski at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers has acquired world rights to Billion Dollar Soccer Ball, by Michael Williams, a YA refugee novel about love, violence and hope in Zimbabwe, scheduled for fall 2010. Wendy Schmalz at Wendy Schmalz Agency was the agent.

In the Winners’ Circle

At the Hugo Awards last Sunday night, Neil Gaiman won the top prize for best novel for his Newbery Award-winning The Graveyard Book. It was Gaiman’s fourth Hugo, and it was the first time that a book has won both the Hugo, awarded for science fiction and fantasy, and the Newbery, the highest honor in children’s books.

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.
 


Reed Business Information

You are receiving this email because you have requested either a newsletter or a magazine from Reed Business Information.

You are currently registered to receive Publishers Weekly enewsletters at #EmailAddr#.
Unsubscribe from this eNewsletter | Manage Your eNewsletters | Privacy policy

If this eNewsletter was forwarded to you, please go to our eNewsletter subscription page to sign up for your own copy.

Begin or renew Publishers Weekly magazine subscription


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

Send editorial questions about this enewsletter to: childrensbooks@reedbusiness.com
Send advertising questions about this enewsletter to: cbryerman@reedbusiness.com

For additional assistance, contact us by email or at the address below:
Publishers Weekly, Customer Service, 8878 Barrons Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129-2345 USA.

© Copyright 2009, Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc.
Advertisements