February 16, 2013

Debut Author William Alexander Nabs 2012 National Book Award for Young People

William Alexander accepts the National Book Award for Goblin Secrets.

First time author William Alexander took home the National Book Award (NBA) for Young People last night for his book Goblin Secrets (S&S, 2012), about a boy who joins a theatrical group of goblins.

SLJ Summit 2012: Nonfiction Authors Address the Common Core

Authors Deborah Hopkinson and Barbara Kerley display their books.

At the School Library Journal Summit held October 26-27, authors Deborah Hopkinson, Barbara Kerley, Steve Sheinkin, and Sally M. Walker came together to share their views on their work and how they can address Common Core principles as they conduct research for their books.

Second Annual Picture Book Month Kicks off in November

Book display at Brook Forest Elementary School.

Librarians, authors and illustrators are gearing up for Picture Book Month in November. Events and activities include daily postings to the Picture Book Month site by authors and illustrators like Chris Raschka and Paul O. Zeinsky. School libraries will be featuring Mock Caldecotts and author visits.

Jane Addams Children’s Book Awards Honor Interned Japanese Americans

Winifred Conkling. Photo by Rocco Staino.

Two books with historical ties to the Japanese American internment during World War II won the 59th Jane Addams Children’s Book Award, recognizing books promoting peace, social justice, world community, and equality of the sexes and races. The winners gathered at the Jane Addams Peace Association’s headquarters in New York City for the October 19 ceremony.

SLJ Talks to Legendary Book Editor Frances Foster

Frances Foster accepting her Carle Honor. Photo by Johnny Wolf.

School Library Journal sat down with renowned children’s book editor Frances Foster to discuss her long, illustrious career working with children’s book stars like Roald Dahl and Peter Sís, her experiences coming across the manuscripts of a fourteen-year-old Polly Horvath, and how it felt editing the Newbery-award winner Holes.

Librarians Flock to New York Comic Con

Comiccon1

Digital comics, gaming, and, of course, costumes were among the draws for teachers and librarians who attended New York Comic Con’s (NYCC) Professional Day on Thursday, October 11, featuring panels by the American Library Association, among other organizations. Once again, as in past years, New Jersey librarians dominated as presenters at Professional Day, covering collection development, library programming, and the history of the science fiction and fantasy genres.

NY Districts Gain School Librarian Evaluation Tool

Fran Roscello

School librarians in New York State now have their own customized evaluation rubric, thanks to members of the New York Library Association (NYLA).

Irving Adler, Author of Kids’ Science, Math Books, Dies at 99

Irving Adler

Irving Adler, a social activist and prolific author of math and science books for children, died September 22 in Bennington, VT, from complication of a stroke. He was 99.

Romney Doesn’t Support Fed Dollars for Common Core

NBC's Brian Williams (left) with Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

What can we expect if Mitt Romney’s elected the next president? More school choice, absolutely no federal money devoted to helping implement the Common Core Standards, and an A to F grading system for all K-12 schools.

Fans Fete Kinney, Green at DC’s National Book Fest

Bryan Collier at the National Book Festival in DC.

More than 200,000 book lovers streamed onto the National Mall in Washington, DC, this weekend to attend the 12th annual National Book Festival, where children and YA authors from Jeff Kinney to John Green drew huge crowds of kids who lined up for autographs and brought gifts, letters, and cookies for some of their favorite writers.

Eric Carle Museum Hands Out 2012 Honors

From Left: Mo Willems, Eric Carle, and Joey Mazzarino

The Eric Carle Museum last Thursday handed out its 2012 honors to illustrator Lane Smith, Kent Brown, co-founder of Boyds Mills Press, Frances Foster, a longtime editor with an imprint at Farrar, Straus & Giroux, and Christopher Cerf, co-creator of the PBS program Between the Lions.

Children’s Sci-fi/Fantasy Writer Josepha Sherman Dies at 65

Author photo Sherman

Science fiction and fantasy writer Josepha Sherman died on August 23 in New Haven, CT, after a long illness, in which she battled dementia. She was 65. Sherman’s works include Gleaming Bright (Walker, 1994), a story of a resourceful young princess who goes in search of a magic box to avoid marrying a cruel king, and an adult fantasy, The Shining Falcon (Avon, 1989), a tale of love, hate, and magic that’s filled with Slavic mythology.

PA State Legislators Hold Hearing on Status of School Libraries

Mary Kay Biagini, an associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh, presents her study to PA State Legislators.

Although 94 percent of Pennsylvania’s 3,303 K-12 schools have libraries, the bulk of schools without media centers are in Philadelphia, says a new study that was presented to state legislators on August 22.

Two Picture Books Celebrate the Life of Julia Child in Time for Her 100th Birthday

Jessie Hartland cooking.
Photo: Isabelle Dervaux

Julia Child, the noted chef, author, and TV personality, would have turned 100 on August 15—and two picture books are now on sale in time for the big day.

Interview: Coville, Levy on Co-Writing New “Amber Brown’

CovilleandLevy

SLJ talks to writers Bruce Coville and Elizabeth Levy, coauthors of Amber Brown Is Tickled Pink (Putnam, 2012), a tribute to their dear friend and “Amber Brown” creator, Paula Danziger, who passed away in 2004.

Hasenyager Replaces Stripling as Head of NYC’s School Libraries

richard-hasenyager

Richard Hasenyager, the former director for library services at Texas’sNorth East Independent School District, was recently appointed director of library services for New York City’s department of education.

He replaces Barbara Stripling, who left the position at the end of 2011 to become a professor of practice at Syracuse University’s School of Information Studies (iSchool). Stripling held the position since 2005.

Interview: SLJ Talks to Former NFLer Tim Green about His Latest Novel

tim-green

Former NFL defensive end and practicing lawyer Tim Green discusses his latest novel, Unstoppable(HarperCollins, 2012), which was inspired by real-life cancer survivors, including Jeffrey Keith, who at 12 lost his leg to cancer but went on to play college sports.

SLJ Talks to S.E. Hinton On ‘The Outsiders’ Turning 45

s-e-hinton

SLJ spoke to Hinton about the 45th anniversary of her most popular novel, experience with writer’s block, and her most recent fascination with Twitter.

Collier, Frazee, Green Kick Off First SLJ/AAP Children’s Librarians’ Dinner

john-green

Bryan Collier, Marla Frazee, John Green, John Stephens, and Catherynne M. Valente spoke about their latest works, their love of libraries, and the importance of literacy in their lives during the first Children’s Librarians’ Dinner on June 4 at a New York City midtown hotel.

SLJ 2012 Day of Dialog: Keeping Middle Schoolers Engaged

From Left: Sharon Creech, Joan Bauer, Eoin Colfer, James Dashner, Jennifer Hubert Swain, Rebecca Stead

Middle school students are a “hormonally charged” bunch who are “full of complex contradictions” and just “want a voice,” say authors who participated in SLJ’s 2012 Day of Dialog on June 4 at New York’s Jacob Javits Convention Center.