Nonfiction Monday - Living Large

I love books that look at size and try to make the numbers concrete and understandable for kids (and adults). Here are three of my favorites for looking at how large (or small) something really is.

Actual Size, written and illustrated by Steve Jenkins - Do you want to go face-to-face (literally) with a Siberian tiger? How about an anteater's tongue? Would seeing a spider the size of a dinner plate frighten you? In this volume, Steve Jenkins turns his skills with paper toward illustrating entire animals or large features of others. Readers can not only place their hands against a gorilla's palm to see how it fits, but also compare themselves to a variety of other animals. The illustrated back matter depicts each animal (in full) and is accompanied by a description of the creature.

How Big Is It?: A BIG Book All About BIGness, written by Ben Hillman - How big is a polar bear? You can read all about how heavy and how big the world's largest carnivore is, but until you see it standing on its hind legs towering over an NBA regulation basket, it's hard to really understand. The beauty of this book is that in answering the question "How big is it?", Hillman shows readers by juxtaposing the thing under consideration with an object more familiar. Comparisons include the Quetzalcoatlus (extinct flying reptile) with an F-18 Hornet fighter jet, the Arecibo Radio Telescope with the Eiffel Tower stretched across its diameter, California redwoods against the Brooklyn skyline, and more. (You can view some excerpts at Hillman's web site.)

Is a Blue Whale the Biggest Thing There Is?, written and illustrated by Robert Wells - If you thought a blue whale was big, think again. Just the flukes of this creature are bigger than most other creatures on Earth. But how does the blue whale compare to other "big" things." How does it compare to Mount Everest? How does Mount Everest compare to the Earth? How does the Earth compare to the sun? Wells' illustrations show readers just how big some things in are universe really are.

This post was written for Nonfiction Monday. This week our host is Shirley at SimplyScience Blog. Do stop by and see what others are sharing in the world of nonfiction.

Poetry Friday - Miracles

In the wake of yesterday's plane crash (emergency landing) in the Hudson River, the word miracle is being uttered by nearly everyone who reports on it. When I hear the word miracle, I always think of Whitman. Today's offering comes from Leaves of Grass.

Miracles
by Walt Whitman

Why, who makes much of a miracle?
As to me I know of nothing else but miracles,
Whether I walk the streets of Manhattan,
Or dart my sight over the roofs of houses toward the sky,
Or wade with naked feet along the beach just in the
    edge of the water,
Or stand under trees in the woods,
Or talk by day with any one I love, or sleep in the bed at night
    with any one I love,
Or sit at table at dinner with the rest,
Or look at strangers opposite me riding in the car,
Or watch honey-bees busy around the hive of a summer forenoon,
Or animals feeding in the fields,
Or birds, or the wonderfulness of insects in the air,
Or the wonderfulness of the sundown, or of stars shining so quiet
    and bright,
Or the exquisite delicate thin curve of the new moon in spring;
These with the rest, one and all, are to me miracles,
The whole referring, yet each distinct and in its place.

The round up this week is being hosted by Karen Edmisten. Please stop by to take in all the great poetry being shared. Before you go, do check out this week's poetry stretch results. Happy poetry Friday, all!

Poetry Stretch Results - Ottava Rima

The challenge this week was to write in the form of ottava rima. Generally written in iambic pentameter, this form consists of a stanza of eight lines with the rhyme scheme abababcc. Here are the results.

Marianne Nielsen at Doing the Write Thing! shares a heartwrenching poem about her dad.

Jane Yolen left this hopeful poem in the comments.

America on the Eve of a New President
If our dear land can once again be great,
The beating green heart find its resurrection;
If we can chart the waters of our fate,
The ship of state now passing its inspection;
If we can find flense the flab of ignorant hate,
Rendering it free of all infection,
Then with our banners high we truly claim
Ourselves united in a single name.

Rick Mullin from Waiting for Cassowary shares a poem entitled Huncke.

Jacqueline also left a poem in the comments.

QUELIMANE
City of heat, and dust and rats
By what means do you beguile me?
Perhaps it’s gazing up at bats
floating upon water feeling free.
Or perhaps despite your many drat’s
It’s simply where I’m meant to be.
Summoned here by God above
To learn more truly how to love.

sister AE at Having Writ shares a poem that tugs at my alto heartstrings entitled Wanted: Contralto Solos.

The first ottava rima I wrote was nonfiction in nature. This one is no different.

This tiny seed betrays the full-fledged size
of what will someday grow. In forests old
they’re ever green and stretch up to the skies.
Gaze up at nature’s skyscrapers—behold!
Earth's tallest living species boldly rise.
From canopy to floor life is foretold,
as falling pine cones ring out hope anew,
each seed a promise of a giant true.

What am I? Follow this link for the answer. You can also view a spectacular image taken by Ralph Crane for LIFE magazine.

It's not too late if you still want to play. Leave me a comment about your poem and I'll add it to the list.

Little Mice for My Blogging Friends

Sometimes I see things on the web and I immediately think of someone I know only through blogging. Odd, isn't it? I saw these today and thought of:

Susan at Wizards Wireless

Harry Potter Mouse

Jama at Jama Rattigan's Alphabet Soup

Beatles Mice

Michelle at Scholar's Blog

Dr Who Mouse

Adrienne at What Adrienne Thinks About That and John Green at Sparks Fly Up and Nerdfighters

Abercrombie the Zombie Mouse
(because zombies are so much better than unicorns)

There are many other mice that might strike your fancy. There are several Harry Potter themed mice, Star Wars mice, a chef mouse (also appropriate for Jama), artist mice and more. Stop by the House of Mouse and check out these adorable creations. At the very least, you must look at the sad little one-eared Vincent Van Gogh Mouse. Now, if only there was Jane Austen mouse ...

Thanks to Julie at Children's Illustration for the introduction to this wonderful Etsy site.

Nonfiction Reading Power

Adrienne Gear's book Nonfiction Reading Power: Teaching Students How to Think While They Read all Kinds of Information has been on my desk and dog-eared for a while now. Not only does it contain terrific teaching strategies, but also some thematic lists of titles. The components of nonfiction reading power: (1) zooming-in; (2) questioning/inferring; (3) determining importance; (4) connecting: and (5) transforming, are all summarized in chapter two. Each component is then described in more detail in its own chapter. If you would like to preview it or read the entire book online, you can do that here.

Here is the publisher's description.

How can you help students find meaning in informational texts and become independent strategic readers and thinkers? Nonfiction Reading Power gives teachers a wealth of effective strategies for helping students think while they read material in all subject areas. Using the best children's books to motivate students, Adrienne Gear shows teachers how help students zoom-in, question and infer; find the main idea, make connections, and transform what's on the printed page. Key introductory concept lessons for each of the five reading powers provide valuable insight into the purpose of each strategy. The book also explores the particular features of nonfiction and offers lists of key books organized around strategies and subject areas.

Whether you teach kids at home or work with them in a traditional classroom setting, this book contains some fine suggestions for helping develop reading to learn skills.

For You Under 30 Writers of the World ...

This sounds like a terrific opportunity. I would love to avail myself of it, but I passed the land of "under 30" LONG ago!

Here are some details.

• Writers must be under 30 years of age at time of submission.
• Stories must be no more 1200 words in length.
• Submissions will only be accepted during the month of February.
• The final judge will be Richard Ford.
• Winners will be announced in late spring.
  
• The Kenyon Review will publish the winning short story in the Winter 2010 issue, and the author will be awarded a scholarship to attend the 2009 Writers Workshop, June 14th to the 21st, in Gambier, Ohio.

Learn more at the Kenyon Review Short Story Contest.

The Wind, the Words and the Meaning

On this day marking the anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday, our campus marked the event by sharing his words. In the cold and wind, pairs of students and faculty members stood in highly traveled campus spaces and read from various speeches. My partner and I read the "Give Us the Ballot" address that was delivered at the Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom on May 17th, 1957 in Washington, D.C.

As I stood in the Forum, the open air plaza overlooking the lake, throwing out his words to the wind and to any passersby who might listen, I was moved by the passion and compassion shown by this man. I was most touched by these thoughts that came near the end of the speech.

Go out with that faith today. Go back to your homes in the Southland to that faith, with that faith today. Go back to Philadelphia, to New York, to Detroit and Chicago with that faith today: that the universe is on our side in the struggle. Stand up for justice.

Sometimes it gets hard, but it is always difficult to get out of Egypt, for the Red Sea always stands before you with discouraging dimensions. And even after you've crossed the Red Sea, you have to move through a wilderness with prodigious hilltops of evil and gigantic mountains of opposition. But I say to you this afternoon: Keep moving. Let nothing slow you up. Move on with dignity and honor and respectability.

Despite the wind and the cold, I was happy to participate. I hope those who heard these words were touched in some way today. I know I was.

The Lure of the Cover

I'm a regular reader of the blog Jacket Whys. The author is a youth services librarian and former graphic designer. She(?) writes great posts, many of which are thoroughly fascinating discussions of cover art and design trends.

The most recent post is the first installment in a series on the best covers of 2008. Just looking at them made me want to read all three books. I'm particularly enamored of the cover for The Robe of Skulls, written by Vivian French and illustrated by Ross Collins. The cover is eerie, so I was a bit surprised to see the age range listed as 6-10. If you follow the link to the book (above), you can read an excerpt or the entire first chapter! It's good stuff (though I'm not sure about 6-year old readers).

Go check out the choices Jacket Whys has made to date and see what you think. I so like these selections that I can't wait to see the remaining seven.

Monday Poetry Stretch - Ottava Rima

I've floated this idea before, but folks rarely accept the challenge and I'm just not sure why. So, I'm going to offer up ottava rima one more time.

Ottava rima is an Italian form that consists of a stanza of eight lines with the rhyme scheme abababcc. In English, the lines are usually written in iambic pentameter. This form is generally associated with epic poems, but can be used for shorter poems. Here is an excerpt from Byron's poem Don Juan.

"Go, little book, from this my solitude!

I cast thee on the waters – go thy ways!

And if, as I believe, thy vein be good,

The world will find thee after many days."

When Southey 's read, and Wordsworth understood,

I can't help putting in my claim to praise –

The four first rhymes are Southey's every line:

For God's sake, reader! take them not for mine.

That's it. Your challenge for the week is to write a poem in the form of ottava rima. Leave me a comment about your work and I'll post the results here later this week.

Nonfiction Monday - Ice Bears

Imagine being born in the dark of winter, where the temperature outside is a frigid minus 50 degrees Fahrenheit. While the den is warmer by nearly 30 degrees, the cubs are practically hairless, blind and deaf when they arrive.

In this beautifully written book, Brenda Guiberson describes the struggles a polar bear and her young cubs as they face the challenges of the changing seasons and melting ice. Gorgeous illustrations by Ilya Spirin capture the beauty and harshness of the landscape. Here is an excerpt.

In June, with the sun in the sky both day and night, the arctic starts to thaw. As the sea ice thins, the mother bear searches even harder for seals. If she and the cubs don't pack on enough extra fat, they could starve to death by fall.

The deep ground, called permafrost, stays frozen solid, but the surface snow and ice melt. Drip . . . drip . . . dribble! Billions of mosquito eggs thaw. Bumblebee queens, the only bees to survive the winter, awaken. Lemmings swarm out from their crumbling snow tunnels. Plants poke through the softening snow already blooming for the short summer season.

I learned some very interesting and surprising facts while reading this book. Here are a few.

• Polar bear milk is 30% fat.
• Cubs are born weighing only a pound, but in the three months before they emerge from the den they put on nearly 20 pounds just by drinking their mother's milk.
• A polar bear can smell prey that is 10 miles away.
• Cubs love to wrestle, but on a day when the temperature is 20 degrees Fahrenheit, they quickly overheat!
• Polar bears cool down by eating snow and swimming in the ocean.
• After swimming, polar bears shake their fur and roll in the snow to dry off.

The book ends with a note on the melting arctic ice and information on how the earth's warming is threatening the survival of polar bears. Also included is a list of organizations working to help the environment, along with their web addresses.

This is a fine piece of narrative nonfiction that will teach readers much about polar bears. I highly recommend it. Teachers will be interested in the activity suggestions on Brenda Guiberson's web site.

Book: Ice Bears
Author: Brenda Guiberson
Illustrator: Ilya Spirin
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Publication Date: 2008
Pages: 40 pages
Grades: K-3
ISBN: 978-0805076073
Source of Book: Review copy received from the publisher.

This post was written for Nonfiction Monday. Head on over to Anastasia Suen’s blog and check out all the great posts highlighting nonfiction this week.

For related books, see this post on arctic life.

The Real Work Begins

I rarely write about religion or politics on this blog, but every so often I am so inspired by the words in a Sunday morning homily that I can't get away from them. These were shared this morning.

When the song of the angel is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the Kings and Princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flocks
The real work of Christmas begins.

To find the lost
To heal the broken
To feed the hungry
To release the prisoners
To rebuild the nations
To bring peace among brothers
To make music in the heart.

Father Fred shared this and told us he first read these words on a card he received years ago from one of his grammar school teachers. My blog searching tells me it was written by Howard Thurman.

Picture Books About Math and Numbers

Leave it to the New York Times Book Review to write about one of the topics I'm preparing for the first week of classes. Jim Holt has written an article entitled Numbers, Big and Small in which he reviews the following books:

• One Boy, written and illustrated by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
• The Real Princess: A Mathemagical Tale, written by Brenda Williams and illustrated by Sophie Fatus
• Greater Estimations, written and illustrated by Bruce Goldstone

I haven't read the first two, but I'm crazy about Goldstone's book. You can visit his web site to learn more about both books in the estimation series and test your skills with the Estimatron.

In Case You Were Wondering ...

If you heard a barbaric YAWP in the last few hours, it was me. I just learned that I (okay, my institution) was awarded a Picturing America grant. I wrote about this program back in October. Picturing America award materials include forty images mounted on twenty double-sided, laminated posters for display and classroom use and a teachers resource book.

The images will be displayed in our Curriculum Materials Center and available for our classes, for student teachers to use in their placements, and for local K-12 teachers to use in their classrooms. I am thrilled and can't wait to begin using these materials in my classes next fall.

On another note -- Did I mention that I recently had a 3-year, million dollar grant funded? (Yes, that's $1,000,000!) This is a renewal of a program designed to better prepare urban middle school students to take on advanced courses in math and science in high school. In this iteration we are adding a professional development piece to improve the content and pedagogical knowledge of the teachers who work with these kids.

So, I guess you could say the semester is getting underway with a bang. Let's just hope it doesn't go out in a whimper.

BCCB Blue Ribbons 2008 - Nonfiction

Each year the staff of The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books awards Blue Ribbons to the books they believe to be the best of the previous year's literature for youth. Last year they stated that nonfiction titles were "sparse" and that they would "rather sacrifice list length than standards," so the list was very short. They did much better in the nonfiction area this year. Here are the 2008 blue ribbon winners in this category.

Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek: A Tall, Thin Tale (Introducing His Forgotten Frontier Friend)
written by Deborah Hopkinson and illustrated by John Hendrix
(finalist for 2008 Cybils fiction picture book)
**I'm not quite sure I understand the placement of this one in nonfiction. Library of Congress categorizes it as juvenile fiction.**

Abe’s Honest Words: The Life of Abraham Lincoln
written by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated Kadir Nelson

Face to Face with Frogs
written and photographed by Mark W. Moffett

Falling Hard: 100 Love Poems by Teenagers
edited by Betsy Franco

Nic Bishop Frogs, written and photographed by Nic Bishop
(finalist for 2008 Cybils nonfiction picture book)

Punk Rock Etiquette: The Ultimate How-to Guide for DIY, Punk, Indie, and Underground Bands
written and illustrated by Travis Nichols

This Is Your Life Cycle
written by Heather Lynn Miller and illustrated by Michael Chesworth
(nominee for 2008 Cybils fiction picture book)

We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball
written and illustrated by Kadir Nelson
(finalist for 2008 Cybils nonfiction MG/YA book)

What’s Eating You?: Parasites—The Inside Story
written by Nicola Davies and illustrated by Neal Layton
(nominee for 2007 Cybils nonfiction MG/YA book)

You can read the entire list of winners, which also includes fiction and picture books, at BCCB-2008 Blue Ribbons. If you prefer you can download a brochure with the complete list of winners (annotated).

2009 AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prize Finalists

Now that I am reviewing books for my very own list on the best in science from 2008, I'm finding many of the titles nominated for a variety of awards. Today I thought I would bring to your attention the finalists for the 2009 AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prize for Excellence in Science Books. This prize "celebrates outstanding science writing and illustration for children and young adults."

Children's Science Picture Book

Eggs
written by Marilyn Singer and illustrated by Emma Stevenson
(nominee for 2008 Cybils nonfiction picture book)

Sisters and Brothers: Sibling Relationships in the Animal World
written by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page, illustrated by Steve Jenkins
(nominee for 2008 Cybils nonfiction picture book)

Nic Bishop Spiders
written and photographed by Nic Bishop
(Sibert Honor book for 2008)

Wings
written by Sneed B. Collard, III and illustrated by Robin Brickman

The Wolves are Back
written by Jean Craighead George and illustrated by Wendell Minor

Middle Grades Science Book

Cold Light: Creatures, Discoveries, and Inventions that Glow
written by Anita Sitarski

George Washington Carver
written by Tonya Bolden
(nominee for 2008 Cybils nonfiction MG/YA book)

How We Know What We Know About Our Changing Climate: Scientists and Kids Explore Global Warming
written by Lynne Cherry and Gary Braasch

Life on Earth--and Beyond: an Astrobiologist's Quest
written by Pamela S. Turner

What's Eating You?: Parasites-the Inside Story
written by Nicola Davies and illustrated by Neal Layton
(nominee for 2007 Cybils nonfiction MG/YA book)

Young Adult Science Book
Dinosaurs: The Most Complete- Up-To-Date Encyclopedia for Dinosaur Lovers of All Ages
Thomas R. Holtz and illustrated by Luis V. Rey

The Scent of Desire: Discovering Our Enigmatic Sense of Smell
written by Rachel Herz

The Telephone Gambit: Chasing Alexander Graham Bell's Secret
written by Seth Shulman

Welcome to Your Brain: Why You Lose Your Car Keys But Never Forget How to Drive and Other Puzzles of Everyday Life
written by Sandra Aamodt and Sam Wang

Hands-on Science Book

Animal Tracks and Signs: Track Over 400 Animals From Big Cats to Backyard Birds

written by Jinny Johnson

The Brook Book
written and illustrated by Jim Arnosky

Sound Projects with a Music Lab You Can Build
written by Robert Gardner

True Green Kids: 100 Things You Can Do to Save the Planet
written by Rior McKay and Jenny Bonnin

The Ultimate Guide to Your Microscope
written by Shar Levine and Leslie Johnstone

There are many terrific titles here, along with a few I haven't seen. While waiting for the winners to be announced, I'll be reading through these and making my best guess about the outcome. Won't you join me?

Poetry Friday - In a Wood

As hard as I tried, I couldn't turn my eyes from the wreck that is Tess of the D'Urbervilles this week. That got me thinking of Hardy, so today I'm sharing a bit of his poetry.

In a Wood
by Thomas Hardy

Pale beech and pine-tree blue,
    Set in one clay,
Bough to bough cannot you
    Bide out your day?
When the rains skim and skip,
Why mar sweet comradeship,
Blighting with poison-drip
    Neighborly spray?

Heart-halt and spirit-lame,
    City-opprest,
Unto this wood I came
    As to a nest;
Dreaming that sylvan peace
Offered the harrowed ease—
Nature a soft release
    From men’s unrest.

But, having entered in,
    Great growths and small
Show them to men akin—
    Combatants all!
Sycamore shoulders oak,
Bines the slim sapling yoke,
Ivy-spun halters choke
    Elms stout and tall.

Touches from ash, O wych,
    Sting you like scorn!
You, too, brave hollies, twitch
    Sidelong from thorn.
Even the rank poplars bear
Illy a rival’s air,
Cankering in black despair
    If overborne.

Since, then, no grace I find
    Taught me of trees,
Turn I back to my kind,
    Worthy as these.
There at least smiles abound,
There discourse trills around,
There, now and then, are found
    Life-loyalties.

The round up this week is being hosted by Anastasia Suen over at Picture Book of the Day. Be sure to visit and take in all the great poetry being shared this week. Before you go, do check out this week's poetry stretch results. Happy poetry Friday, all!

Poetry Stretch Results - My Mother's Kitchen

The challenge this week was to write a poem about your mother's kitchen. There were a few additional pieces suggested, such as including an oven, something green, something dead and a female relation. But as poetry is want to do, the words that come out don't always match the initial requirements. That's alright, since what does come out is usually much more honest. Here's what folks are sharing.

Jacqueline Leach Dove left her poem in the comments. She found her way here as many often do, through some kind of serendipitous search. Welcome, Jacqueline!

My Mother’s Kitchen
My mother’s kitchen has an ant farm
And confusing tins with tea.
A territorial cockatoo who struts about,
Causing unsuspecting toes alarm.

My mother’s kitchen is eclectic
More artist’s lair then cooks abode.
The pots upon the stove quite hectic,
Declaring with gusto their mother load.

My mother’s kitchen is at times
Heavy with unspoken words
As duty wrestles with desire
Amongst the whey and curds.

My mother’s kitchen is the place,
Visitors first spy as they arrive.
Flowers, art, bead work embrace
All with eyes to absorb it’s grace.

Hark, who is this whose skipping in,
Joanna clasping fresh-picked flowers
The daughter of the next-of-kin,
She who is destined for her own kitchen?

Marianne Nielsen from Doing the Write Thing! shares a poem entitled The Kitchen.

sister AE of Having Writ shares a poem called The New Kitchen.

On her FaceBook page, Jane Yolen wrote about her mother's cooking in My Mother's Kitchen.

D. Dina Friedman left this poem in the comments.

Kitchen
It is an airless place.
The walls are green.
On a dark table, meat
drips blood onto wax paper

There are bones, soup, smells,
dirt on the floor, dog hair
chopped meat in a gleaming silver bowl
where I must go in an add

bread crumbs, tomato, egg
and form flesh into perfect shapes.
It is a place of flesh,
of women’s voices and old pots,
family carcasses framed on the yellow refrigerator
the shells of ourselves. My wild brother sneaks in
and steals cookies.

Elaine from Wild Rose Reader shares a poem about her grandmother called A Home for the Seasons. She also shares five more memoir poems about her maternal grandparents.

I didn't exactly follow the rules this week either. Here's my poem.

Scenes From a Kitchen
I close my eyes and remember

Pegboard cupboards and uncovered baseboards
Gramma mixing German potato salad in the tulip bowl
Five of us at the kitchen table

Me in my mother's lap, mourning the loss of a grandmother
Cookies--sour cream, cut-outs and chocolate chip
Four of us at the kitchen table

Mom with her back against the oven on cold winter days
Spaghetti and meatballs every Saturday night
Three of us at the kitchen table

Chocolate molds hanging on the wall
Porcelain elephant holding Mom's rings on its trunk
Two of them at the kitchen table

Much too quiet now

It's not too late if you still want to play. Leave me a comment about your poem and I'll add it to the list.

First Poetry Sretch of 2009 - Your Mother's Kitchen

I've been reading The Practice of Poetry: Writing Exercises From Poets Who Teach for some time now, jotting ideas in the small journal I keep in my purse and trying them when I can steal a minute or two in the day. Last night I wrote a few words while waiting in line at the grocery store. This week I want to try an exercise from this book entitled Your Mother's Kitchen. Here's what Rita Dove writes:

Write a poem about your mother's kitchen. (It helps if you actually draw the kitchen first, with crayons!) Put the oven in it, and also something green, and something dead. You are not in this poem, but some female relation—aunt, sister, close friend—must walk into the kitchen during the course of the poem.

While I haven't drawn a picture of the room, I have pulled out several photos of my mother and grandmother in it. I'm going to let them inspire me. Will you join me in writing about your mother's kitchen? Leave me a comment about your poem and I'll post the results here later this week.

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 ...

Poetry Friday - Ring Out, Wild Bells

Originally titled "The Way of the Soul," the poem In Memoriam A.H.H. by Lord Alfred Tennyson took more than 17 years to write. The section below is particularly appropriate this time of year.

Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,
The flying cloud, the frosty light;
The year is dying in the night;
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.

Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.

Ring out the grief that saps the mind,
For those that here we see no more,
Ring out the feud of rich and poor,
Ring in redress to all mankind.

Ring out a slowly dying cause,
And ancient forms of party strife;
Ring in the nobler modes of life,
With sweeter manners, purer laws.

Ring out the want, the care, the sin,
The faithless coldness of the times;
Ring out, ring out thy mournful rhymes,
But ring the fuller minstrel in.

Ring out false pride in place and blood,
The civic slander and the spite;
Ring in the love of truth and right,
Ring in the common love of good.

Ring out old shapes of foul disease,
Ring out the narrowing lust of gold;
Ring out the thousand wars of old,
Ring in the thousand years of peace.

Ring in the valiant man and free,
The larger heart, the kindlier hand;
Ring out the darkness of the land,
Ring in the Christ that is to be.

The first two stanzas and the last can be found in the hymn Ring Out, Wild Bells. You can see and hear it at the interactive music player from the LDS Church.

You can learn more about the poem at Wikipedia.

The round up is being hosted by Franki and Mary Lee over at A Year of Reading. Do stop by and take in all the poetry being shared in the first days of this new year. Happy poetry Friday, all!

And the Finalists Are ... Cybils Nonfiction Picture Books

After weeks of reading and reviewing books, the shortlist for nonfiction picture books is in. HURRAY! I am so pleased to have been a part of this process. Working with Becky (In the Pages), David (Adventures at Wilder Farm), Jone (Check It Out), and Debbie (Readerbuzz), was a wonderful experience. I also can't forget to mention our fearless leader, author and blogger extraordinaire, Fiona Bayrock of Books and 'Rocks. Thanks to all!

This year we had the difficult task of selecting 7 finalists from a pool of 59 very worthy titles. We are thrilled to hand this list off to the judging panel, confident that they will have much to discuss in the days ahead. The folks who will work together to make the final decision are:

• Fiona Bayrock at Books and 'Rocks
• Andrea Beaty at Three Silly Chicks
• Emily Mitchell at Emily Reads
• Candice Ransom at Ellsworth's Journal and Books!Books!
  
• Andrea Ross at Just One More Book

Without further ado, here are the finalists in the Cybils nonfiction picture book category.

Astronaut Handbook
written and illustrated by Meghan McCarthy

Duel! Burr and Hamilton's Deadly War of Words
written by Dennis Brindell Fradin and illustrated by Larry Day

Fabulous Fishes
written and illustrated by Susan Stockdale

Nic Bishop Frogs
written and photographed by Nic Bishop

A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams
written by Jen Bryant and illustrated by Melissa Sweet

Wanda Gág: The Girl Who Lived to Draw
written and illustrated by Deborah Kogan Ray
Wangari's Trees of Peace: A True Story from Africa
written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter

Now that you've seen one list, do head on over to the Cybils and check out all of the finalists.

Books as Art - Breathing Books

Edith Kollath exhibited a breathing book show (yes, you read that correctly) at the Dam, Stuhltrager Gallery in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn from mid-November to mid-December.

Here is a short video of the show.
  Things - Edith Kollath Creates Books that Breathe from Bre Pettis on Vimeo.

For some reason I couldn't help but think about Harry Potter and The Monster Book of Monsters while watching the video. At least these books don't bite! Technology in the hands of an artist is an amazing thing, isn't it?

When Buying a Book Means Making a Difference

Way back in November, the amazing Sara Lewis Holmes floated a proposal to put books in the hands of some very deserving kids. Inspired by her niece Emily, an amazing young woman in her own right who's been battling cancer for over two years now, Sara suggested starting a library of camp and horse related books for Flying Horse Farms. Here's a bit of information about FHF.

Flying Horse Farms is a nonprofit organization committed to building a summer camp and year-round retreat center that inspires children with serious illnesses to reach beyond their diseases and embrace the healing power of unbridled fun!

This special place is located in the heart of the Midwest, Mount Gilead, Ohio. Situated on nearly 200 acres of gently rolling hills, lakes, woods, trails, meadows, and wetlands, Flying Horse Farms promises to help children and their families trade the restraints of hospital visits, blood transfusions, chemotherapy treatments, overwhelming stress, worry and fear with days of swimming, fishing, horseback riding, and nights of campfires and singing! All camp activities are designed to allow campers to experience success no matter what their disease or disability. The camp will focus not only on activities but also on building self-confidence, friendships and, of course, providing good old-fashioned fun... at no cost to the campers or their families.

You can participate and help breathe life into this dream by purchasing a book or two for Flying Horse Farms. Here are several ways you can contribute.

• Sara set up a wish list on Amazon. You can choose a book and donate it directly from there. The list is small now, but it will grow as the campers and counselors and the director add new requests to it.

• You may also buy from that list at your local independent bookstore and have them ship to the address below.
  Flying Horse Farms
  225 Green Meadows Drive South, Suite A
  Lewis Center, Ohio 43035

• You can blog about your favorite camp or horse related book. Sara will round up those posts and forward them to the director and consult them in expanding the Wish List.

• If you're an author or illustrator or publisher or blogger with a camp or horse related book, you can donate directly to the camp, but please remember that the camp serves kids ages 7-15 and your donation should reflect the needs of the camp. (Please, in all cases, only NEW books.)

In our house, stories with horses generally revolve around multicultural titles and folktales. Here are some of our favorites.

Fritz and the Beautiful Horses
written and illustrated by Jan Brett

Horse Song: The Naadam of Mongolia
written and illustrated by Ted and Betsy Lewin

The Magic Horse of Han Gan
written and illustrated by Chen Jiang Hong

The Lost Horse: A Chinese Folktale
written and illustrated by Ed young

We have purchased two of William's favorites, Fritz and the Beautiful Horses and The Magic Horse of Han Gan, for Flying Horse Farms. Won't you join us in sharing the gift of a book?

Thoughts on the Cybils

The list of nonfiction picture finalists has been signed, sealed and delivered to our intrepid organizer. It will be published on January 1st, along with the finalists in the seven other categories. I can't wait to see how the other groups of panelists have whittled down their lists.

Here are some of my initial thoughts about the Cybils in general and more specifically about working through the nonfiction picture book titles this year.

1. Where Does It Belong?
The organizers for all the categories worked behind the scenes as nominations rolled in to determine the eligibility of titles and to ensure proper placement of books. This required a lot of hard work and some intense discussion. In some cases, where a book belongs isn't evident until a panelist sees it first hand. One of our books was moved to fiction picture books because the note in the back of the book explained the book was "based on a true story." The cataloging information just wasn't enough go on when deciding where to place the book.

2. Is It Nonfiction?
During the nomination stage, a few titles were moved to the fiction picture book category. While they were clearly "informational" books, they weren't strictly nonfiction. I tend to think of these books as "faction"--a nice blend of fact and fiction. One example of this was Boycott Blues: How Rosa Parks Inspired a Nation, written by by Andrea Davis Pinkney and illustrated by Brian Pinkney. Narrated by a guitar-playing hound dog, it's a beautiful, blues-inspired account of the Montgomery bus boycott. Another example can be found in Fartiste, written by Kathleen Krull and illustrated by Paul Brewer. This biography of Joseph Pujol, a Frenchman who built a stage career using fart effects, reads on the cover, "an explosively funny, mostly true story." It's unfortunate this disclaimer appears so boldly from the outset, as it seems designed only to let readers know that the title relies on fact as well as legend in telling Pujol's life story.

There are always so many titles in the category of fiction picture books that I fear some of these more "information-oriented" books may get lost in milieu of more traditional stories.

3. First Person Narratives?
I was surprised by the number of titles that used first person in the writing. In some cases, the author included extensive notes that lent veracity to their use. However, in other cases there was no such information. How then, is a reader to take this information? Keep Your Eye on the Kid: The Early Years of Buster Keaton, written and illustrated by Catherine Brighton, is a fantastic biography of Keaton's early years, but it is written entirely in the first person. The author's note provides sources for further reading, as well as some Keaton films that are currently available on DVD, but she never explains the first person use.

4. Common Themes
Biographies abounded in the list of nominees this year. At least 25 titles were accounts of important events in the lives of historical figures or works that recounted a large portion of their life stories. Two very different biographies on Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Mathaai were included in this number. In addition to these, one title provided a biographical look at the Statue of Liberty!

Always popular, books about animals made a strong showing. Two of these animal titles were inspired by events following hurricane Katrina. There were also 2 books about bears, 2 about frogs, and 2 about ocean life.

I found it interesting that a number of the nominees contained photographic illustrations. These tended to be books on science (animal) topics.

5. Publisher Participation
Nearly one third of the nominated titles in our category were not sent to the panelists. (One panelist informed us that two titles arrived on her doorstep yesterday!) Fortunately, most of use were able to wrangle books through local libraries or interlibrary loan. In the end, there were only 2 books we never saw. I must say that I'm a bit puzzled by the lack of participation. Members of our panel highlighted nominees on their blogs. The titles got face-time at the Cybils site and even more publicity from the Cybils widget. Based on the strength of many of these titles, I purchased some for my own collection. I also took books into local schools and read them with kids. While there I made recommendations to classroom teachers and school librarians.

The positive press generated by the Cybils should not be underestimated. I'm not sure how we get more publishers to participate, but I would think that this kind of free advertising is worth giving away a book or two.

That's all for now. I still have more book reviews to post, so don't forget to come back and look for them in the new year.

Holiday Recap - Wandering Through the Days

On Christmas eve day we decided to start a new family tradition and went bowling. At 10:30 am we had the alley entirely to ourselves. We bowled two games each and had quite a bit of fun. We came home for lunch, watched some Animal Planet videos together, and then headed out for the chaos that is the "children's mass" on Christmas eve. The church was standing room only and so hot it was unbearable. (I learned today that the A.C. was even turned on, but you wouldn't have known it.) Dinner and the quiet that followed were terrific. We visited the NORAD web site to track Santa and then headed off to bed.

Christmas day was lovely and quiet. We spent it building and read lots and lots of books. While the overwhelming majority of them were nonfiction, the two picture books were huge hits. If you haven't seen these yet, you need to check them out.

Skunkdog, written by Emily Jenkins and illustrated by Pierre Pratt (You can see some excerpts and learn more about the book at Emily Jenkins' web site.)

Tadpole Rex, written and illustrated by Kurt Cyrus (You can preview some of the pages at Google Book Search.)

Here are a few pictures of the boy with some of his favorite gifts.

Today was filled with making art, constructing a LEGO fire station, and building more marble-run arrangements than we can count. This is one of our favorites so far.

Here are two of the projects we worked on. One used old toilet paper tubes while the other made good use of leftover tissue paper. The results were fairly nice and we had great fun making them. The directions were very easy to follow and are linked below.

3-D Snowflake Craft

3-D Designs

Unlike the folks in the Northeast, Midwest, and Northwest, we have no snow. It was nearly 60 degrees on Christmas, though it was much cooler today. We've been housebound (by choice!) for two days now. Perhaps we'll actually get outside before the week is out!

That's all for now. I hope everyone is enjoying the break as much as we are.