We Need Diverse Books campaign

Such an interesting few days. There's a whole lot of chatter going on this week!

Check it out, folks. See all the great posts on the topic.
Here:
http://weneeddiversebooks.tumblr.com/post/83943947418/we-need-diverse-books-campaign

And here:
https://twitter.com/search?q=%23WeNeedDiverseBooks&src=hash

There's an excellent list of articles, precipitated by a HornBook piece on the topic HERE.

And this, in School Library Journal by K.T. Horning.
Books need buyers, that's the takeaway. 


Three terrific books I've read, recommended and reviewed recently.
Wouldn't it be great if there were lots more just like these?

 PINNED by Sharon Flake.


http://www.csmonitor.com/Books/Book-Reviews/2013/0107/Pinned









For DELTA MAGAZINE, a favorite novel for adult readers.

SECRET OF MAGIC by Deborah Johnson.

SILVER PEOPLE by Margarita Engle. 
(Review to come!)

He Had a Dream

Today's Book of the Day.
(Thanks to Random House for the review copy.)

Besides the stunningly beautiful paintings of Kadir Nelson which illustrate this oversized picture book, there's a CD of the speech included. A perfect book to share with your family or your classroom.


Click HERE to read a complete review.

If you are a writer or a reader considering the ways you can honor Dr. King's legacy, you might want to participate in the discussion of Race in Children's Books on Roger Sutton's blog. 

To see the Horn Book blog and the over 100 comments, so far, 
go HERE: http://www.hbook.com/2013/07/blogs/read-roger/a-very-good-question/

Links to other posts on the topic are HERE: http://www.hbook.com/talking-about-race/

What a winner!

And here's the amazing speech.
My fabulous editor, Andrea Davis Pinkney, accepting her Coretta Scott King Medal.

A must read.
Both the book and the speech.

http://www.hbook.com/2013/07/choosing-books/horn-book-magazine/coretta-scott-king-author-award-acceptance/

Quote of the Day, while creating story from mishmash

"That's what stories do. They connect the random dots of life into a picture. But it's all an illusion. Just try to connect the dots of life. You'll end up with a lunatic scribble."

Briony, in CHIME by Franny Billingsley

Particularly helpful to know others feel the same way I do about stories some days...

(I also like "I may be wicked. But I'm not bad." Same character. No relevance to my writing today. Just thought I'd share.)

And if you're interested, CHIME was just named an Honor Book in this years Horn Book Awards. Click here for the entire list.

So Many Books!

I fear my To-Review stack has far surpassed my ability to read and write about these books. I'll admit I've been a tad distracted with revising. I love love love revising my own novel, don't get me wrong. But books are beckoning!

Here's what I plan/hope to write about very soon:

The book that just won the Newbery Medal: MOON OVER MANIFEST. True confession. I read half of it and got bogged down and gave up. It's not that I don't like the book, I was just very distracted. In fact, I think I'll like it a lot, and not just because on Monday it won the biggest deal in the world of kids' books.

A fabulous Southern novel, out in paperback this week: BLOODROOT by Amy Greene. Absolutely adored this book! I will review this one, top of the list. Top of the pile. Way up there.

A book being overnighted to me for review by Delta Magazine, written by a fellow Mississippian. Stay tuned for more about this, but the title really has me. (haha- a teaser!)

And last but not least. I was sent an ebook of Frances O'Roark Dowell's upcoming novel, a Galley Grab her publisher is calling it. So as soon as I download the app, I can read that one, but it's not compatible with my IPad sadly. Reading on my computer just isn't the same. Though I've loved Dowell's other middle-grade novels, I'm not sure when I'll get the process completed for this one.

So far, I've not evaluated a true ebook or a kids' book app. I'm sure they are in my future.

As Roger Sutton remarked on his Horn Book email today:
For book reviewers, evaluating these new forms of “books” presents a challenge to our criteria and critical vocabulary (a phrase such as “moves right along” acquires new meaning), one that will remain in flux just as the media continues to change.

From the Horn Book editor

You can't get any more knowledgeable in the field of children's literature than Roger Sutton. This is from an article about choosing books for kids in the November/ December issue of Horn Book. Here's Mr. Sutton on helping good readers become passionate about books. And a word or two about parenting while he's at it:

Parents of an early expert reader — heck, parents of any kind of a reader, from reluctant to ambitious — are confronted with two sometimes-conflicting sets of expectations: what they want for their child and what their child wants for him- or herself. I would suggest that, ultimately, satisfaction will be found for the former by assiduous attention to the latter. Just because your child can read at a fifth-grade level doesn’t mean he needs to at all times. (Think about your own reading: just because you can read Henry James doesn’t mean you must, does it?) At the same time, of course, just because your child is seven doesn’t mean she can’t take a crack — if she wants to — at Harry Potter, either. Given access to a wide variety of reading — both print and pixeled texts — and given the proper tools and encouragement to wade through it and choose, children turn themselves into the readers their parents want them to be.