Some Things Worth Sharing

Here are a few things I've heard and/or read this week that warrant passing along.

Have you taken time to participate in Operation Teen Book Drop yet? You can help expand the school libraries serving Apache and Navajo teens. These schools are in desperate need of books, so if you can help, please do. I bought my books today and you know what? It feels great!

Neil Gaiman shares the trailer for the picture book of his poem Instructions. The book will be released at the end of the month.

Speaking of book trailers, have you seen this one for SVT? It's fabulous! (If you haven't seen the book, Shark Vs. Train is awesome!) If you teach writing, this is a mentor text you MUST HAVE. I can just imagine the scenarios kids will come up with to extend the competition.

Check out Poetry Story at Write Now in Room 204. Annie Campbell is a gifted writer and an amazing teacher. In this post she asks readers to share their poetry stories--those moments that define our relationships with poetry (love it or hate it).

With Good Reason, Virginia's statewide public radio program devoted yesterday's episode to poetry. There is a particularly good segment on nonsense poetry (near the end), but the entire episode is worth a listen.

At the beginning of National Poetry Month, SLJ posted a fabulous article by Marilyn Singer entitled Knock Poetry Off the Pedestal: It's time to make poems a part of children's everyday lives.

Bruce Black of wordswimmer shares the thoughts of the Cybils first round poetry judges in a post entitled Music and Magic: A Conversation About Poetry. (Okay, this last one is a tad bit self-indulgent, but it IS an interesting conversation!)

Happy reading!

Forsythias, Extreme Librarian Quote and Link Love

Four days. I've been gone four days and the world around me has changed. The pear trees and forsythia bushes are blooming, the geese and ducks at the lake seem to have magically tripled in number, and the birds have returned en masse to the back yard. I love spring nearly as much as fall.

I did a bit of reading while I was away and must share. Here are the first lines of each book I finished and a favorite excerpt.

Book 1
First Line: A boy with a parrot on his shoulder was walking along the railway tracks.
Excerpt: He felt a mounting sense as they headed down toward Bethnal Green Road—a sense that had obscure roots in that vanished market morning when he had passed amid the hectic stalls of the dealers in animals—they were penetrating to the heart of some authentic mystery of London, or perhaps life itself: that at last, in the company of this singular old gentleman whose command of mystery had at one time been spoken of as far away as Kerala, he might discover some elucidation of the heartbreaking clockwork of the world.
Title and Author: The Final Solution: A Story of Detection by Michael Chabon

Book 2
First Line: In an unremarkable room, in a nondescript building, a man sat working on very non-descript theories.
Excerpt: "I'm Margarita Staples." She bowed in her harness. "Extreme librarian. Bookaneer."
Title and Author: Un Lun Dun by China Miéville
**Sidebar** - Bookaneer?! Now THERE'S a blog name if I ever heard one! I hope someone snaps it up toot sweet.

Book 3
First Line: Dear Poet, How can I become a better writer?
Excerpt: For me, writing is like playing a wonderful game, the kind where you lose track of time and your father or mother has to stand out in the streets after dark, calling you to come home. (Liz Rosenberg, p. 98)
Title and Author: Seeing the Blue Between: Advice and Inspiration for Young Poets compiled by Paul Janeczko

Finally, the Share a Story, Shape a Future blog tour for literacy continues today with a focus on visiting libraries. Here is the schedule.

• From Cozy to Cool - Library Spaces for Everyone - Eva @ Eva's Book Addiction
• Lions and Marble and Books, Oh My - Betsy Bird at A Fuse #8 Production
  
• How to Make the Library Work for YOU - an interview with Adrienne of What Adrienne Thinks About That conducted by Jules at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
• The World Beyond the Library's Walls - Melissa @ Librarian by Day
• ABC Storytimes: Taking the Library Home - Pam Coughlan @ MotherReader

I was traveling yesterday and failed to link to day three activities. In case you missed it, yesterday's topic was reading aloud.

Yes, I'm Here

William has gone back to school and I have gone back to work, yet the lethargy of winter break still tugs at me. I need a vacation from my vacation. I did not read as much as I wanted, wrote even less (though I did get those cards out after the holiday), and accomplished little. I suppose there is something to be said for good old-fashioned "down time."

I'll be back soon (perhaps even today!) with more book reviews, thematic lists, poetry stretches and the like. Stay tuned ...

Some Things to Keep You Busy

Here are some things I heard and read this week that you might enjoy.

Ursula LeGuin was this week's essayist for the series You Must Read This on NPR. She discusses Dr. Zhivago in her piece entitled Pain, Betrayal and Love in Old Russia. In it she says:

Only now do I realize how much I learned about writing a novel from Pasternak — the way a writer can leap across miles and years, so long as you land in the right place; the way accuracy of detail embodies emotion; the way that leaving more out allows you to get more in.

J.K. Rowling delivered her Commencement Address at the Annual Meeting of the Harvard Alumni Association. The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination is an interesting piece. As she begins, she says:

On this wonderful day when we are gathered together to celebrate your academic success, I have decided to talk to you about the benefits of failure. And as you stand on the threshold of what is sometimes called ‘real life’, I want to extol the crucial importance of imagination.

Over at Chicken Spaghetti, Susan shares an original by J. Patrick Lewis. It's a wonderful piece called I'm Learning to Speak English.

The latest Horn Book podcast takes listeners along for a night out in New York with Roger, Elizabeth Law (Vice President and Publisher, Egmont USA), Douglas Pocock (Executive Vice President, Egmont USA), and Newbery Medalist Richard Peck.

Some Things to Chew On

I have been mulling over book reviews, some topics I want to write about, and frankly, still trying to recover from the frenetic pace of posting during April. I never imagined writing a post a day would be so hard! Not only did I write 30 posts on poetry in the classroom, but posted an additional 33 entries for the month.

There is much worth reading about these days, so please forgive me for sending you on to some pieces worthy of your attention.

Yesterday on Weekend Edition there was a story about Isamu Fukui, a teenager who has written a book called Truancy. I was a bit surprised by some of the comments of his editor. Do take a few minutes to listen. It's interesting stuff.

My friend and colleague Libby Gruner has a terrific piece up over at Literary Mama on The Arrival and The Invention of Hugo Cabret. By the way, she's also posting once a week (Tuesdays, I think) over at Mama PhD.

The Summer Blog Blast Tour is underway. You can see the full schedule at Chasing Ray.

The May issue of The Edge of the Forest is out and packed with lots of thoughtful pieces.

Just down the road from me at William and Mary, Denise Johnson has started a blog entitled The Joy of Children's Literature to accompany her book of the same name. She's been posting since March, but it took me a while to find her. Welcome, Denise!

That's all for now. I'm off to bake cookies with my son. I'll be back soon with some posts of actual substance.

New Blogs and Fun Stuff

New Blogs
One of the things I love about Poetry Friday is that we often have new people join us, and when they do, I learn about new blogs. Today I found my way to these two blogs that I'll be keeping a close eye on and visiting regularly.

Paper Doll - Lara, this blog's author, worked at one of the oldest literary agencies in the country for nearly 3 years, and before that interned at an educational publisher and was an independent contractor for a well-known children's publisher. She is willing to answer questions about agents, submissions, or children's publishing in general if you e-mail her. I predict lots of mail in her future.
Oh, and by the way, her mother is this amazing writer!

Audiobooker - Mary, this blog's author, is a middle school teacher-librarian, audiobook addict, and author of Book Link Magazine's audiobook column "Voices in My Head." Her post today highlights the book Blues Journey, by Walter Dean Myers and his son, Christopher. It includes an audio sample that is simply lovely. I must have this book in both print and audio format!

Fun Stuff
Horton Hears a Who - Teachers can register to receive a free animated e-book for this year's Read Across America event. This looks like great fun. (Thanks to Audiobooker for the link.)

Reading Level of TMRE

Well, crap! Now I know why I'm having so much trouble writing for kids. Me thinks I've been writing for academics way too long! Or, as William's teacher would say, I'm good at writing fat sentences.

Thanks to educating alice for the link.

Odds and Ends

I'm in the midst of grading papers and other craziness at work, so this will be short, but sweet. Here are some things of which you must take note!

HipWriterMama has a very cool contest going to win an adorable, handmade sock monkey. Here's the deal. You must think of an author's name (living or dead), and then create a name and cool personality of a character based on the author's name. Put your thinking caps on and then join in.

I got my first piece of mail today addressed to Miss Rumphius. It made my heart melt!

Check out the renga being written right here as part of this week's poetry stretch. It's awesome! Come and contribute your own 2- or 3-line stanza.

The last day of Blogging for a Cure is Sunday, and I have the most amazing interview to share with Teri Sloat. It's going to be damn hard sitting on it until then.

Looking for a Christmas or Hanukkah gift for the poetry lover on your list? Try Poetry on Record. If you haven't shopped at Acorn before, you should. They have great stuff. Last year I received these lovely gargoyle bookends. (And yes, they're reading!)

That's all for now. I'll be back!

Connections

I've been rereading Harry Potter (again, again, and again) in preparation for the impending release of Book 7. Lately when I read, I've been noticing thematic connections across seemingly unrelated books. Here's one that has me thinking about truth.

From Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (J.K. Rowling)
“The truth.” Dumbledore sighed. “It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution.”

From The Book Thief (Markus Zusak)
Therein lay the problem. Life had altered in the wildest possible way, but it was imperative that they act as if nothing at all had happened. Imagine smiling after a slap in the face. Then think of doing it twenty-four hours a day.

Euphoria! (Random Musings After Grading)

It's done! I just posted my last grade and can happily say that I won't be reading anything academic for at least two weeks. Hurray!

In yesterday's mail I received from amazon.co.uk a copy of The Diamond of Drury Lane. It was excruciating not even cracking the cover, but now that I am finished, this will be my first book of the break. (In fact, I will start as soon as this entry is complete!) Here is a taste for you from the prologue, page 1:

"Reader, you are set to embark on an adventure about one hidden treasure, two bare-knuckle boxers, three enemies and four hundred and thirty-eight rioters. It is told by an ignorant and prejudiced author-me. My name is Cat Royal, though how I came to be called this, I will explain later. For the moment I will start with the riot, for that was where the story really began."

OH JOY!

I received three e-mail updates from Borders today, all announcing what those familiar with the worlds of MuggleNet and The Leaky Cauldron already know: Book 7 is now titled Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. While I am anxious for the conclusion, I know that I will be very said to see it end, though as I do now, I am sure that I will continue to re-read.

While I generally read every day, during finals and the grading madness, I'm lucky if I look at a newspaper, let alone set aside time for a literary diversion. I must get better at making time for this, as I think it would see me through these "dark days" with fewer frayed nerves and, perhaps, a cheerier disposition.

I did take time out today to visit the library with William. He received his very own library card today and promptly signed out 10 books. Okay, so he went a bit overboard, but it was his first time. I did tell him that on subsequent visits he must select his top three choices, but that we can stay and read books for at least an hour or so. Every book came from the nonfiction section, with three of them written by Gail Gibbons. We will be reading about firefighters (4 titles), airplanes, kites, dinosaurs, trains, elephants and reindeer.

Hats off to Maureen Johnson, author of 13 Little Blue Envelopes. I purchased this book for my niece for her birthday, and Maureen was kind enough to send a birthday note for me to include with the book. The card is fabulous, and with the silver stamps of Parisian scenes, the young lady who spent a week in Paris just before Christmas 2005 will be thrilled. Thanks, Maureen!

I am quite confident that my best friend doesn't read this blog, so I can freely say that the mittens I ordered her from the Sundance catalog have arrived, and they will look smashing with the dog hat she bought to wear at recess. However, today they are on sale for $11.00 less than what I paid! Go figure . . . . . Perhaps I need a pair!

The children's literature portfolios turned in by my students were particularly good this semester. As usual, they have taught me much, and I can't wait to spend some of my Christmas cash on new books for my collection. (Christmas cash you say? Yes! I can brag that all my gifts this year were paid for with cash and that I even have some funds left over. They have already been earmarked for cookbooks (if they don't appear under the tree) and other literary treasures. I may even throw some of it at my iPod.)

That's all for now. I am going to curl up in front of the fire with Cat Royal and read for a good long while. Goodnight!