In our one-on-one interview, British author (and HarperCollins UK children’s book editor) Lake opens up to SLJ about his reaction to the YMA win, his inspirations for such a complex undertaking, the importance of staying true to oneself, and his next projects on the horizon.

What was your reaction to the Printz win? Are you familiar with that award?
I’m ashamed to confess that, though I knew of the Caldecott and the Newbery, I had only vaguely heard of the Printz and it wasn’t enormously on my radar. And anyway, I just assumed that The Fault in Our Stars or Code Name Verity  would win it… and I’m still living in fear of John Green fans turning up on my doorstep with pitchforks. [laughs] I assumed that the fact that [In Darkness] was obscure was why they had chosen it, that The Fault in Our Stars had enough of the purse, I guess.

Did you know that many in the audience at the YMAs were shocked Fault did not win?
I’m not surprised! I could kind of tell from Twitter as well, and because I work in publishing, I just thought it was an absolute lock for that award. I haven’t read Code Name Verity  yet but it is on my pile to read, and I read The Fault in Our Stars and I loved it. He is kind of an inspiration.

I think of anyone who writes young adult fiction, [John Green] changed what it was possible to do in a young adult book. When I started out at HarperCollins, Looking for Alaska was one of the first books I read, and I read all of his books. 

What inspired you to write this story?
It was two separate strands. The first: I did a Masters in linguistics and one of the nodules was on Creole and those kind of languages and so that got me interested in Haiti and reading about people like Toussaint L’Ouverture, and reading Wade Davis and Zora Neale Hurston. That was 10 years ago but that fascination with Toussaint L’Ouverture was kind of percolating at the back of my mind.

He is this absolutely extraordinary figure. He was 53 when the revolution started; he had, up until then, looked after horses. And he taught himself to read, taught himself to write, and ended up becoming a general very quickly and then rose to lead the revolutionary army. He was a very intelligent, driven man; he defeated not only the French army but also the British and the Spanish as well, and he ended up freeing the country. For a long time I just thought that was absolutely extraordinary that a man who is 53 could just completely reinvent himself in that way. So for ages I wanted to do something about him but I wasn’t quite sure what it would be, and I didn’t want to write a biography.

The second thing was the earthquake—and the utter horror that most people felt, that this terrible humanitarian tragedy happening to a country that had already had such a bad history. And particularly, it was when two or three days later, the news started doing stories on people who had dug out of the rubble. I saw one of them being interviewed on TV and they said ‘There was a point there where I couldn’t tell whether I was thinking thoughts or speaking aloud.” And I thought that was just the most extraordinary thing for someone to say. In fact, I stole it and used it for Shorty in the book.

How did the interwoven story start to flow for you?
I just became fascinated—or obsessed—with the idea of what that might be like and, since I couldn’t arrange for my house to fall down around me, I thought the only way that I could experience it was to write it down and explore it imaginatively. So I just started writing the story of Shorty and his voice came very quickly, and then I just had this unshakeable idea that was also the story of  Toussaint L’Ouverture. I just was convinced that there was something that linked these two characters.

Toussaint died in a French dungeon, so at a certain point in time this boy and this man are metaphorically and literally in the same place—they’re both trapped underground in the darkness.

The only thing that is dividing them is the mere fact of 200 years of time. I think time can sometimes be kind of porous and thin, so it was that idea of these two people who are in the same place. And then as well, I am very interested in voodoo—real voodoo as opposed to movie zombie voodoo, this whole notion of being ridden by spirits and being possessed.

It all just fit together then because I thought suddenly, that there’s an explanation for why, at the age of 53, he abruptly [became] this great military leader. So lots of things suddenly fit into place and in quite a satisfying way, and I just had to sit down and write furiously for about 6 weeks.

This book is so complex and so dark; were you surprised that it became a YA book?
I was more surprised that anyone wanted to publish it at all! With the “Blood Ninja” books, I approached it as someone who worked in publishing, and I was thinking that there are lots of books like Twilight but there isn’t as much for boys, and everything about it was very conscious and deliberate, trying to design something that might suit the market. Whereas with In Darkness I was writing it for me, really. I think, to be honest, that my agent didn’t really think anyone would want to publish it either. But Bloomsbury were hugely enthusiastic from the outset. Here I was completely ignoring what publishers might want and suddenly they very quickly wanted it. Maybe there’s a lesson in there.

In  Darkness  in the UK was published as an adult book and a young adult book. It’s the same book but with different jackets; it’s increasingly something that is done in publishing in the UK. Maggot Moon by Sally Gardner has young adult version and now it’s coming out as an adult edition, and they do that with people like Patrick Ness. I think people are still trying to work out this genre and where the boundary lies between young adult and adult. I didn’t really know who the book was for, and neither did my agent. So it was sent to adult lists and young adult lists. Essentially, I’ve always written for younger teenagers, and this was the first young adult [title].

Can you speak about the role of hope in the story?
I very consciously wanted it to be a hopeful book. I don’t know if I one hundred percent succeeded because a lot of reviews focused on how incredibly miserable and violent the book is—and it is in many ways—but I always saw it as a hopeful book, and it doesn’t have an unhopeful ending. So that was always very much the intention, and consciously the intention. Everyone has difficult things that they’ve gone through in their lives and, for several years before I wrote the books, there were several difficult things in my life and I’d moved beyond them.

And so I supposed I wanted to, without wanting to sound too evangelical, say something to teenagers about how you can move past bad things that happen. And yeah, I very much wanted it to be a message; we ended up using it as a strapline on the UK edition of the book, this idea that—on this planet anyway because we circle the sun—there’s always light on the other side of darkness and you don’t have to wait for very long for darkness  to be replaced by light.

What projects are you are most excited about working on next as author or editor?
Ooh…There are two actually, one that I’m editing for HarperCollins that’s coming out early 2014 is a YA, beautifully written book by a young, male British writer, who I kind of think could be the British John Green. And that’s amazing. It’s a debut, and it’s astonishing.

And the other thing is my book, which hasn’t come out in the states yet, called Hostage Three (Bloomsbury, fall 2013). That’s about a girl who lives in London; her father is a banker. He’s lost his job and he buys this super yacht and decides that they’re going to sail around the world with the girl’s stepmother. Her mother has died in uncertain circumstances not that long before; she hates the step mother so it’s kind of a fairytale element and then they get about 3 months into their journey and they’re kidnapped by Somali pirates. Then to add to all the complications she thinks she’s falling in love with the youngest pirate…and it all just then goes horribly wrong, obviously, as it would. It’s much more of a straight thriller than In Darkness but I’m proud of it, so hopefully people will like it!

And so I’m kind of two books on from In Darkness, weirdly, and the thing that I’m most excited about, that I’m writing now, is tentatively called Your Little Princess; it’s actually set in America. The entire story is constructed around a massive twist; the teenage protagonist gets hit by a car, this then triggers her mum discharging her from hospital, bundling her into the car with all their belongings and saying ‘we’re going on the run.” And the mystery is why they suddenly have to run.

So I’m sticking to the genre of thrillers with an emotional first-person core to them.

Has the experience of being an author changed you as an editor?
Yes, it has actually. Mostly in the sense that it has made me much, much more sensitive in the way that I couch what I’m saying, because I am hyper aware now how even the most softly phrased suggestions can feel devastating for an author. It’s made me express things very carefully, and as much as possible in conversation rather than in writing. It’s made me very, very aware. I can’t edit myself, and so I absolutely have to have someone else who reads it who can say ‘the shape of this isn’t quite right’ or ‘there’s something missing here.’ I genuinely think that all writers need an editor.

Since the YMAs, have you seen an increased interest from the U.S.? The awards are critically important to the library and publishing worlds.
So I terrifyingly gather! I [have] spent a lot of time on the phone to people, lots of sudden renewed interest and I gather that they’re reprinting it. It does make an impact in that way. I didn’t quite realize that at first, but it does seem that suddenly I’m spending a lot of time on the phone, which is nice!

Photo credit: John Bramley

Since there are already disparaging online reactions regarding the hair color of the actresses in the film version of the paranormal romance Beautiful Creatures (Little, Brown, 2009), eyebrows are bound to be raised over many of the other changes in this tale of dark desires under the elms.

Readers should expect that extraneous characters or subplots will face the chopping block, especially when the source material—the first in the four-book “Caster Chronicles”—is more than 500 pages long. But in terms of the story, a lot has been transformed here, with the blessing of authors Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. The numerous nips and tucks are a departure from the recent efforts by filmmakers to ingratiate loyal readers, sometimes following a book too literally (like a few of the “Harry Potter” films) or faithfully going by a lean-and-mean road map (The Hunger Games). The result here is a draw.

Photo credit: John Bramley

The series, although very popular, doesn’t have the broader readership of Stephenie Meyer’s “Twilight” saga or Suzanne Collins’ “The Hunger Games Trilogy,” which hooked a larger, more adult readership. This film really needs the solid support of its fan base, the narrower young adult demo, if it wants to launch a franchise.

Director/adaptor Richard LaGravenese’s retelling remains true to the spirits (no pun intends) here and there of this first book, especially in capturing the Southern setting of faded Greek Revival mansions, drooping Spanish moss, Bible thumpers, and where everyone is “surgah.” Gatlin, South Carolina, is a town with no Starbucks (if only, some may wish), 12 churches, and one library (which gets a big wet kiss in the film; the local branch is praised as “holy,” a bastion of ideas). Popular guy-next-door Ethan Wate plans to get the heck out of his hick hamlet as soon as he graduates high school. In the meantime, Ethan armchair travels through the books of Kurt Vonnegut, Henry Miller, and Jack Kerouac.

Photo credit: John Bramley

For months, he has dreamed of a dark-haired girl in a flowing dress wandering on a Civil War battlefield—but he’s killed by a bolt of lightning before he embraces her. Lo and behold, her doppelganger arrives as the new student in his English class: Lena Duchannes (Alice Englert), the niece of the wealthy recluse Macon Ravenwood (Jeremy Irons). Rumor has it he’s a devil worshipper.

Fully aware of all the whispering behind her back, she’s aloof at Ethan’s courtin’ attempts, not believing he really wants to know her, but he stands up for her against the hostile cliques, and eventually makes her smile. However, she really doesn’t fit in—she’s a Caster (technically not a witch) with supernatural powers, and on her 16^th birthday, she will endure the Claiming, when her true nature will emerge, either for the light or (gulp) dark, and murky forces are at work to turn her to the dark side, by using Ethan as a heartthrob pawn.

Some of the book’s, ahem, magic is lost: Ethan also has powers to overcome curses, and the teen lovers are telepathic, reading each other’s thoughts whether they are near or far. On screen, Ethan’s purely mortal. The various special abilities of Lena’s family are not very well explained, leading to a few confusing moments.

In one of the book’s best (though not very original) subplots, Lena and Ethan have to reign in their hormones. Otherwise when they kiss, an electric charge zaps the boy. If they go all the way, the kid will fry—nature’s chastity belt. And the script thwarts suspense by revealing early on what mischief Emma Thompson’s Christian crusader is really up to—though by showing her character’s dementedly demonic side early on, Thompson has more opportunities to chow down on the scenery, leaving Jeremy Irons in the dust. Packed with a lot of plot and action, the series would have been a sure thing as a TV series for the YA friendly CW network, like a teen Walking Dead or True Blood.

If the film survives the poxes and put-downs from fans, it will be due, in no small part, to the breezy charms of actor Alden Ehrenreich as Ethan. He has the looks of mid-1950s Tony Curtis and a goofy affability. Ethan likes a good laugh, but the easy-going Ehrenreich never winks to the camera. Leave that to Thompson, who seems as though she could break out in a giggle fit at any moment.

Photo credit: John Bramley

The biggest departure is that the baddies upstage the cursed couple. The bad girls have all the fun—and the best wardrobe, compared to Lena’s baggy long-sleeve blouses. Their glee is infectious, and that’s especially true for Lena’s wayward and vampy cousin Ridley (Emmy Rossum), a Southern belle Siren, who can make others think and do anything, especially inexperienced teenage boys. She first appears speeding through the countryside in her red BMW convertible, with her hennaed hair slicked back and Ray Bans on. She later morphs into Rita Hayworth from Gilda. She’s not only Old Hollywood ultra-glam, she makes evil joyous.

Directed by Richard LaGravenese
Rated PG-13
123 min.

You have to be in it: The 2013 Samsung K–12 “Return on Intelligence” Gift Programs have been announced by Samsung Techwin, a manufacturer of document cameras. The Superhero Program competition encourages students to prepare a 1–3 minute digital video (camera phone quality is acceptable) in which they portray their favorite historical character. The deadline for entries is May 31. The contest is opened to students in grades K–12 and the video will be judged on presentation performance, character and content accuracy, and content quality. The winner will receive $500 and the student’s class will get a SAMCAM 760 document camera.

To enter the Scholarship Program, high school students must write an essay of no more than 300 words in response to the question: What do you think about technology advancements and how they will change the way we learn in the future? Is it for the better? The deadline for submissions is May 15. Essays will be judged on the basis of original thinking, relevance to the real world, and writing quality. All applicants must be sponsored by a teacher. Five winners will be announced on May 31 and will receive a $1,000 award.

Under its 2013 Grant Program, ten teachers will each have the opportunity to win a SAMCAM 760 document camera for use in school by writing a fun lesson plan of 100 words or less in which they use the camera. The deadline for submissions is May 1, The top 20 finalists will then have to submit a video showing their lesson in the classroom using the SAMCAM 760. Ten winners will be selected on June, and their school district will also keep the camera.

Freebies

Teaching guide: Hurry up and get your free copy of Brother Sam and All That: Historical Context and Literary Analysis of the Novels of James and Christopher Collier (Clearwater Pr., 1999) from AudioGO. The lessons compiled in this companion teaching guide provide teachers and librarians with information about how to use historical fiction in the classroom—just what the Common Core Standards require—and tips for teaching the novels by James and Christopher Collier. AudioGO publishes audiobook and ebook versions of more than 50 novels by James and Christopher Collier, including the classroom favorite, My Brother Sam Is Dead. The first 100 people to email michell.cobb@audiogo.com will receive this teaching guide at no cost.

Publishing News

Trade picture books: This spring, Capstone Young Readers, an imprint of Capstone, is launching a collection of fully illustrated picture books. “We are excited to introduce a range of picture books in both paper-over-board and trade paperback formats,” says Ashley Andersen Zantop, Group Publisher and General Manager. “We believe that quality illustrated titles provide an important stepping stone to reading and an opportunity to inspire imagination, creativity, and a love for good books.” The titles and series scheduled for publication in February 2013 are: Flood by Alvara F. Villa, “Princess Heart” series written and illustrated by Molly Martin, “The Other Side of the Story” series by Nancy Loewen (classic fairy tales), and Charlotte Gullain’s “Animal Fairy Tales” series.

And more picture books: Hank Finds an Egg (ages 3–8) written and illustrated by Rebecca Dudley will be published by Peter Pauper Press in May 2013 as their initial venture into publishing children’s trade picture books for children. The wordless picture book tells the story of a young boy who finds an egg on the forest floor, helps it return to its home in a tree, and is rewarded by his new forest friends. Three additional titles are scheduled for publication: Bruce Arant’s Sheep Won’t Go to Sleep! (Fall 2013), Digby Differs by Miriam Koch (Fall 2013), and Sarra J. Roth’s Not the Quitting Kind (Spring 2014). If you’re a picture book author, Peter Pauper Press is accepting unsolicited submissions online, or you can send your manuscript to Mara Conlon, Senior Editor, Peter Pauper Press, 202 Mamaroneck Ave., White Plains, NY 10601.

Peter Pauper Press has been publishing gift books, references, travel guides, children’s activity books, and other products for adults since it was founded in 1928.

Children’s Lit Conference

Digital Lit: Librarians, teachers, and others who love books are invited to attend e-Looking Glass: Children’s Literature in the Digital Age, a full-day conference to be held at Carthage College Hedberg Library in Kenosha, WI, on April 13, that will explore “how books are being reinvented to create visual and interactive experiences that printed books cannot provide.”  Topics will include the changing landscape of texts (interactive ebooks, book apps, learning products, and online communities), how to integrate this new technology into the classroom, and the design and development of these new types of books. Among the speakers are Brandon Oldenburg, award-winning illustrator and co-founder of Moonbot Studios; Umesh Shukla, animation director and founder of Auryn, a digital publisher of apps; Denise Johnson, author of The Joy of Children’s Literature; William H. Teale, Professor of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago; and others. Undergraduate continuing professional education credit is available. The cost to attend the conference is $65, and $40 for students. You can register online. The cost of one credit hour is $50; to view the syllabus, contact Marilyn Ward at mward@carthage.edu.

Milo and Jazz Mysteries: The Case of the Stinky Socks
© 2009 by Amy Wummer.

Mysteries provide a perfect entree for exploring a wide variety of critical thinking skills. With their emphasis on clear observation, logical thinking, and well-drawn conclusions, mysteries support many Common Core State Standards (CCSS). They also lend themselves to an array of interesting writing assignments, an important component of the CCSS and one on which many states are placing particular emphasis.

This month’s column features some of our favorite mysteries, along with ideas for expanding the learning possibilities presented by each title and/or series. Employing the Common Core State Standards doesn’t mean that learning can’t be fun. Kids love mysteries, so why not use them to teach new skills in thinking, researching, and writing? We guarantee that these titles will spark student interest.

Elementary School

A to Z Mysteries, Books D-G (The Deadly Dungeon, The Empty Envelope, The Falcon’s Feathers, The Goose’s Gold). Written by Ron Roy. Narrated by David Pittu. 3 CDs. 3:25 hrs. Listening Library. 2005. ISBN 978-0-3072-0735-7. $30. K-Gr 3
From A to Z, these beginning chapter book mysteries maintain a comfortable format with each audiobook combining three or four stories from the series. Each “case” title is a letter of the alphabet and continuity is nicely incorporated with Pittu narrating them all. His conversational and friendly voice fits the pacing as Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose band together to solve each case. Listeners will be asking for all the letters of the alphabet.

Common Core Standard: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.1.2 Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.

Instructional Extension: Connecting the theme or subject of a story to research can strengthen both the listening experience and learning. For example, to discover more about the birds in The Falcon’s Feathers, use the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s All about Birds website (www.allaboutbirds.org). Enter the search term “falcon” to find information about the peregrine falcon, gyrfalcon, and prairie falcon.

Encyclopedia Brown Finds the Clues. Written by Donald Sobol. Narrated by Greg Steinbruner. 2 CDs. 1:18 hrs. Recorded Books. 2007. ISBN 978-1-4281-7221-0. $25.75. Gr 3-5

This title, one in the classic series about 10-year-old detective Leroy “Encyclopedia” Brown, features ten new cases for the Idaville mystery solver. Encyclopedia, his police chief dad, and his group of friends follow the trail of each case to its satisfying end. The familiar format of presenting clues for listeners to put together gives opportunities for thinking and problem solving. Steinbruner’s pacing is comfortable, highlighting the simple sentences and pausing before each solution to build suspense,

Common Core Standard: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.9 Compare and contrast the themes, settings, and plots of stories written by the same author about the same or similar characters.

Instructional Extension: The University of North Carolina’s excellent Learn NC website (www.learningnc.org/lp/pages/3031) offers several activities to enliven lesson plans for the first book in this series, Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective. The rubric for a good mystery story and the Mystery Worksheet are adaptable to any book in the series and provide a jumping-off point for writing projects.

The Great Cake Mystery: Precious Ramotswe’s Very First Case: A Number 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency Book for Young Readers. Written by Alexander McCall Smith. Narrated by Adjoa Andoh. CD. 1 hr. Listening Library. 2012. ISBN 978-0-4490-1142-3. $15. K-Gr 3

Intrepid female detective, Precious Ramotswe, is introduced here as a child, solving her first case. Andoh’s excellent narration presents the lilt, cadence, and authenticity of Botswana culture. Adult fans of the well-known #1 Ladies Detective Agency will be listening along to find out how Precious came to become a world-famous detective. Sure to provide fun for family and classroom audiences.

Common Core Standard: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.2 Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths, from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.

Instructional Extension: Classroom discussion and research about Botswana could follow listening to this mystery. Facts and information about the country can be found in many online encyclopedias, books, and the Botswana embassy website (www.botswanaembassy.org) where the country’s history, a video gallery, and visitor attractions are included. Students may choose one topic to share with the class to highlight any study about Africa.

Milo and Jazz Mysteries: The Case of the Stinky Socks. Written by Lewis B. Montgomery. Narrated by Chantale Hosein and Vinnie Penna. CD. 48 min. Live Oak Media. 2012. ISBN 978-1-4301-1199-3. $15.95. K-Gr 3

Milo has just received his Dash Marlow Super Sleuth kit when he discovers his first mystery. Working, somewhat reluctantly, with new neighbor Jazz, these two young detectives set out to determine who stole Jazz’s brother’s lucky socks from his high school locker. The pair use their critical thinking skills to find the socks before the big baseball game. Penna and Hosein’s performances are appropriately young and their pacing heightens the tension and excitement of this first mystery in Montgomery’s series.

Common Core Standard: CCSS.ELA-Literacy. RL.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

Instructional Extension: Dash Marlow instructs his followers to use these “Super Sleuthing Skills: Observe, Think Logically, Draw Conclusions.” A fun writing project can be built around any one of the “Milo and Jazz Mysteries” by using flow maps to organize the sequence of events with the goal of producing a summary of the story that includes at least three details from the book to answer the questions posed in the standard.

Middle/High School

The Case of the Case of Mistaken Identity. Written by Mac Barnett. Narrated by Arte Johnson. 3 CDs. 2:55 hrs. Listening Library. 2010. ISBN 978-0-3077-1042-0. $30. Gr 4-6

When 12-year-old Steve Brixton, a fan of Bailey Brothers detective novels, is mistaken for a real detective, he must elude librarians, police, and the mysterious Mr. E as he seeks a missing quilt containing coded information. Arte Johnson gives Steve’s predicament a matter-of-fact, almost sardonic tone, with methodical pacing and understatement that provides listeners with laugh-out-loud enjoyment of this wholly improbable story. Fans will also enjoy the other titles in this series, The Ghostwriter Secret and It Happened on a Train, also available from Listening Library.

Common Core Standard: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.7 Compare and contrast stories in the same genre (e.g., mysteries and adventure stories) on their approaches to similar themes and topics.

Instructional Extension: Visit this go-to website that provides thorough information and multiple ideas for classroom extensions as well as descriptions of mystery series, novels, and picture books: Carol Hurst Children’s Literature—Mysteries in the Classroom Fiction, Non-Fiction and Activities for Pre-School through Ninth Grade (www.carolhurst.com/subjects/mysteries.html).

Pair the following two titles for an interesting comparison of Victorian and contemporary girl sleuths:

The Case of the Missing Marquess, an Enola Holms Mystery. Written by Nancy Springer. Narrated by Katherine Kellgren. 4 CDs. 4:31 hrs. Recorded Books. 2006. ISBN 978-1-4193-8985-6. $51.75. Gr 5-8

Smart and resourceful, 14-year-old Enola is determined to avoid the finishing school her older brothers, Mycroft and Sherlock, have selected for her when her mother suddenly vanishes. Setting off for London on a bicycle, Enola stumbles upon another missing person’s case—a young marquess who seems to have been kidnapped. Kellgren delves into this adventure with her customary gusto and superb pacing, providing a host of excellent 19th-century character voices. Lucky for listeners, this is just the beginning of a long series, all narrated by the incomparable Kellgren.

The London Eye Mystery. Written by Siobhan Dowd. Narrated by Paul Checquer. AudioGo. 2010. ISBN 978-1-4056-5462-3. $25. Gr 6-10

Ted’s cousin Salim comes to visit from Manchester before moving to New York with his mother, and Salim’s only wish is to ride the London Eye, the massive wheel erected to mark the new millennium. Ted (whose brain is “wired differently”) and his older sister Kat watch Salim board the Eye and are stunned when he doesn’t get off. What follows is an intricate, intriguing, and thrilling race against time as Ted uses his keen observation skills to find his cousin. Checquer’s measured pacing accurately portrays Ted’s personality and reinforces the family conflicts, and his variety of British accents provides context for American listeners.

Common Core Standard: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.7.3 Analyze how particular elements of a story or drama interact.

Instructional Extension: After listening to this mystery, students may be interested to learn more about “Interesting Things You Never Knew about The London Eye” by visiting http://ow.ly/gHXMI. The LondonNet site (http://ow.ly/GHXEM) not only includes facts, but also provides links to other London attractions such as the Tower of London. This is a good place to start a class project investigating London’s most important historical places.

The Red Blazer Girls: The Ring of Rocamadour. Written by Michael D. Beil. Narrated by Tai Alexandra Ricci. 6 CDs. 7 hrs. Listening Library. 2009. ISBN 978-0-7393-7960-8. $50. Gr 4-6

Three friends attending the all-girls Catholic school, St. Veronica’s, become embroiled in a mystery of major proportions when they try to help a strange older woman who lives next to the church. A precious artifact has gone missing and the girls must use their best math and language skills to discover its whereabouts and expose the villain. Ricci personifies the voices of the young sleuths and creates believable voices for the supporting characters. Listeners may want to follow along with or refer to the print edition to see the graphs, charts, and other puzzles that serve as clues. Three more mysteries featuring these girl detectives provide additional fun.

Common Core Standard: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct from personal opinions or judgments.

Instructional Extension: Girl detectives are an interesting group, from the classic Nancy Drew to Harriet the Spy to the young women in the previous two examples. Students can prepare a chart to compare and contrast the similarities and differences between girl and boy detectives in their methods of solving cases, leading to an interesting writing project.

Sharon Grover is Head of Youth Services at the Hedberg Public Library, Janesville, WI. Lizette (Liz) Hannegan was a school librarian and the district library supervisor for the Arlington (VA) Public Schools before her retirement. They are co-authors of Listening to Learn (ALA Editions, 2011).

John Green at Carnegie Hall for “An Evening of Awesome” on January 15.

On Thursday, February 14 at 4:50 p.m. EST, popular young adult author John Green will participate in a Google+ “fireside” Hangout with President Obama, following up on the State of the Union address to Congress. A group of participants, including John Green, will ask the president their own questions as well as those submitted by the public.

Viewers can tune in via the White House Google+ page or YouTube channel, and submit questions of their own via video or text through the channel. The deadline for submission of is 11:59 p.m. EST on Wednesday, February 13.

John Green is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Looking for Alaska, An Abundance of Katherines, and The Fault in Our Stars.

Google+ Hangouts allow up to 10 people to “hang out” via video chat. This is the President’s second time answering Americans’ questions via Hangout. In order to participate in a Hangout, a user has to sign in to Google+ and create a simple profile page.

I was listening to NPR, and I heard a review of Carolina Clay [The Life and Legend of Slave Potter Dave] by Leonard Todd. I thought, this is just an incredible story. It’s hard for me to know why it affected me so much, but my daughter’s a potter, and I’ve worked with clay all my life. He was a writer and I’m a writer, but I’m not heroic like Dave.

What made him heroic?

He dared to write on pots at a time when he could have been killed for that, and he signed his name. That’s just an amazingly courageous act—and subversive. But it’s also quiet, because he wasn’t saying anything—he was writing it. His ability and his talent gave him that kind of confidence and power, because he knew that if he was killed, who was going to make the 40-gallon jars?

You grew up in Cincinnati during the height of the Civil Rights Movement. Did that help draw you to Dave’s story?

Oh, absolutely. I grew up in a neighborhood where I still live, close to downtown Cincinnati, which was predominantly African American at the time. All my friends were African American. We all remember the race riots, which happened about a block away from where we lived. I remember hearing things breaking and being with my African-American friends, and their parents being super-nervous and coming out all the time and telling us to stay on the grass and not to leave the yard.

Not much is known about Dave. How’d you find so many details about him?

It’s funny, I was talking to a friend of mine who writes biographies, and she doesn’t put anything in them that isn’t a fact. My biography really crosses that line and some people may not consider it a biography, which is fine with me.

The Library of Congress calls it a biography.

I couldn’t write the story of Dave without putting in things that I didn’t know he said or anyone else said, because there isn’t any record of that. There isn’t really another way to write the story, because all you have are bills of sale [of slaves] and these cryptic couplets [that he etched] on pots.

Your book feels so incredibly personal.

It’s interesting that you said that. When I worked on this book, I spent a lot of time feeling choked up and I couldn’t talk, or if the phone rang, I choked up.

What touched you the most?

It was the separation, the scenes where people are separated from people they love.

So many children and spouses—including Dave’s—were sold at the drop of a hat, and they never saw one another again.

That’s what really choked me up more than any sort of physical violence.

Do today’s kids understand how dehumanizing slavery is?

In a lot of ways, we’re failing our kids. Just recently, I went to a school to talk to a group of fourth graders, and one asked what I was working on.

I told her a little bit about Dave, and I showed her a slide of the woodcut of him on the auction block that’s in the book, and she said, “You mean he was being sold?” They’d done a whole unit on slavery, but she didn’t know that. And I said, “Yeah, slaves were bought and sold,” and she was stunned. Then she looked at me, and said, “Well, I hope the people that bought him were nice.”

What do you hope kids take away from the book?

I just want kids to realize there are a lot of ways to do what you believe is the right thing to do, and it doesn’t have to be screaming and yelling and fighting, or in any way violent.

There’s a woman who saved my mother during the Holocaust. She was a very quiet person and nobody’s ever heard of her. If I had to pick somebody, she’s the hero of my life. But she did what she did because she thought it was the most ordinary thing to do.

It’s very ordinary to want to write and read and express yourself. But because of the times, Dave couldn’t do that. So he became a quiet hero. If more kids knew about things like that, maybe they’d feel stronger themselves—and they could also do the right thing.

To read a starred review of Etched in Clay (Lee & Low), turn to page 117.

The event, which was delayed by a day after 30 inches of snow fell in the area, was selected “because we wanted to focus on teaching and learning,” Principal Donna Page tells School Library Journal.

Kid lit authors/illustrators at Sandy Hook Elementary School pose for a quick photo after a day spent interacting with the kids. Back Row: Alan Katz, Bruce Degen, Tad Hills, Katie Davis, Vincent Kirsch, Bob Shea, Meghan McCarthy. Front Row: Susan Hood, Mike Rex, Tracy Dockray, Marc Tyler Nobleman, Daniel Kirk.

Fairfield-based Susan Hood and Newtown resident Bruce Degan, creator of The Magic School Bus (Scholastic) series, filled in for author/illustrators who had conflicts with the rescheduling.

Planning for the event took shape immediately following the tragedy, when Marc Tyler Nobleman reached out to Isabel Almeida at the United Way of Western Connecticut and offered to organize the group visit as part of the process of returning to normalcy. Nobleman is author of more than 70 books, including Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman (Charlesbridge, 2012).

Normalcy was evident when Tad Hills, Bob Shea, Katie Davis, and Mike Rex visited kindergarteners who welcomed the visitors with smiling faces and the enthusiasm of any 5 year old. “You are a good drawer,” exclaimed one kindergartner, as Bob Shea created various animals from jellybean-shaped figures. “I have a book of yours at home,” said another, when Tad Hills shared the trick of drawing his famous duck from his Duck and Goose (Schwartz & Wade) books.

The only reminders of the December tragedy noticeable by visitors are the many snowflakes sent to the school from around the country, and hand prints on the wall of the lecture center from places like Winchell Elementary School in Kalamazoo, MI, and the Queen Anne’s County HS in Sudlersville, MD.

The class visits were followed by two assemblies to grades 1-3 where the group presented an author/illustrator variety show complete with a guitar and song solo from Daniel Kirk, the creator of the Library Mouse (Abrams) series. Silly poems and songs followed from Alan Katz, author of Take Me Out of the Bathtub (S&S, 2001). Vincent Kirsch brought a toy theater to retell the story of his book The Chandeliers (FSG, 2012).  And Tracy Dockray did a hip-hop reading of Fran Manuskin’s The Tushy Book (Feiwel, 2008), which Dockray illustrated.

Non-fiction then took center stage when Meghan McCarthy demonstrated how she uses You Tube to help with her research on topics such as bubble gum, aliens, and astronauts.

“Anytime we can have authors and illustrators in front of kids is a good thing,” says Yvonne Cech, the school librarian who helped coordinate the day.  “So many of our students are writing and drawing their own stories and it’s inspiring to have these people here.”

The group also visited the other elementary schools in the district and met with teachers.

Together with DreamWorks Pictures and Fox/Newscorp, Participant Media will be funding the efforts with Disney In-Home to create special packaging for the DVDs, which will include an Educator’s Guide for teachers as well as complete lesson plans relating to the significance of Abraham Lincoln’s leadership and the importance of that period in our nation’s history. Disney Educational Productions will handle distribution.

The timing of the announcement coincides with Lincoln’s birthday and the launch of Participant’s new “Stand Tall: Live Like Lincoln” campaign, which will bring the film to eight U.S. towns all named Lincoln, followed in mid-March with screenings at 15 Lincoln high schools across the country in largely underserved communities, according to the company.

Each school hosting a screening will receive new audio-visual equipment to best experience Lincoln and any future films screened at the school, including a 120-inch portable screen, Blu-ray and DVD player, a projector, and new speakers. The screenings will be followed by moderated conversations and distribution of Disney’s educational curricula.

“As more and more people began to see the film, we received letters from teachers asking if it could be available in their classrooms,” director Steven Spielberg says. “We realized that the educational value that Lincoln could have was not only for the adult audiences—who have studied his life in history books—but for the young students in the classroom as well.”

Adds Participant Media CEO  Jim Berk, “Before the film was released, we engaged Penn Schoen Berland to conduct a research study to help inform the focus of our Social Action campaign…Among the findings of the study was that more than half of Americans think it’s important to learn about Lincoln, but two thirds say they know little to nothing about him. While I’m sure that’s changed thanks to the tremendous popularity of the film and all the surrounding attention, it still clearly indicated the need to better educate our students about the 16th President’s accomplishments.”

To further explore the relationships depicted in Lincoln and learn about the film’s production, you can download the free app Lincoln: Discover the Story (David Rubel and Disney Editions, iBooks, Free, Gr 6 Up), which was reviewed in this week’s Touch and Go column.

The album, inspired by their canoe trip down the Mississippi River, features original mostly folk, country, and bluegrass numbers enhanced by virtuoso performances on a variety of instruments, including accordion, auto-harp, rhumba box, fiddle, udu, drums, pots and pans, tuba, trombone, and many others. According to a recent review in School Library Journal, “this unique, outstanding musical performance should have a place in every library.”

The two childhood friends took a month-long journey on the Mississippi, but never dreamed that their voyage would take them to the Grammys. About to board a plane home to Minnesota, Mailander told SLJ, “We are thrilled that the recording academy chose our album to represent the quality music that’s being made in the children’s genre right now. All the nominees were deserving and we’re honored to be in such great company.”

Four other children’s albums were nominated for a Grammy this year by the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences in the Best Children’s Album category: Bill Harley’s High Dive and Other Things That Could Have Happened (Round River); the JumpinJazz Kids’s A Swinging Jungle Tale (JumpinJazzKids), narrated by James Murray and featuring Dee Dee Bridgewater, Al Jarreau, Hubert Laws, and various artists; Little Seed: Songs for Children by Woody Guthrie (Smithsonian Folkways), re-imagined renditions of classic Guthrie favorites by Elizabeth Mitchell; and the Pop Ups’s (Brooklyn-based music duo Jason Rabinowitz and Jacob Stein) Radio Jungle (CDBaby.com).

Back in the classroom, there will be much to discuss, including why the amendment was necessary on the heels of the Emancipation Proclamation (1863), the political maneuvering necessary to secure the amendment’s passage, and the medium’s depiction of the event and the historical figures. To further explore the relationships depicted in Lincoln and learn about the film’s production, download the free app Lincoln: Discover the Story (David Rubel and Disney Editions, iBooks, Free, Gr 6 Up). Your students will be intrigued.

Six chapters delve into topics such as the “Players on the Stage of History,” “The Conflict,” and “The President” discussing the Civil War, those who fought for and against the amendment, Lincoln’s presidency, and more. Incorporated into the text are quotes by Lincoln and his contemporaries, archival images, and other primary source material.Throughout the text are black-and-white period photos, sometimes juxtaposed against shots of similar scenes re-created for the film (in color), and embedded videos offering commentary by Spielberg, the actors, and others who worked on the film.

In the videos, Spielberg speaks to Lincoln’s relevancy today as a “most vivid model of a leader, of leadership,” who advocated for “things that we hold dear today.” Daniel Day-Lewis, who plays the president in the movie, comments on Lincoln’s accessibility—the “ever-open door of the White House.” Other actors discuss their research in preparation for their roles—and their challenges—including  Sally Field who plays Mary Todd Lincoln, Gloria Reuben as Elizabeth Keckley, the “personal modiste” of the First Lady, and  David Strathairn as William H. Seward, Lincoln’s the Secretary of State.

Much notice has been paid to the film’s authenticity. In the chapter, “Bringing History to Life” viewers hear from Rick Carter, the production designer, on scouting sets and props, and Joanna Johnston, the costume designer, who dressed the 140-member cast. Johnston mentions Mary Todd Lincoln’s outfits, many of which were “exact replicas” of those she wore in life….”  (“For the president, clothing was purely a way of keeping out the weather.”) Ben Burtt’s narrative addresses his quest to “research and record historic sounds” and to re-create those he could from the ticking of the portico clock to the off-screen bombardment of a cannonade. Museum officials allowed Burtt to record the sound of Lincoln’s actual watch, heard in the film.

Page turns and video runs are fluid and readers will be guided through this production by a table of contents and discreetly placed icons. The app ends with a film clip and link to the iTunes page to purchase tracks from the motion picture. In all, a production for fans of the president and the film, and, to be sure, something for visual learners.-Daryl Grabarek, School Library Journal.

For some recently published books for students on Lincoln, see Vicki Reutter’s Whiskers, Dreams, and Grave-Robbing Schemes.

HEST, Amy. Charley’s First Night. illus. by Helen Oxenbury. Candlewick. 2012. ISBN 9780763640552. JLG Level: K : Kindergarten (Grades PreK–K).

Sometimes a character’s voice, is so strong it transcends the page and pulls at a reader’s heartstrings. Henry has that kind of voice. The little boy finds a stray puppy on a cold snowy day. “We were new together and I was very, very careful not to slip in the snow and I thought about his name. Charley. Charley Korn. My name is Henry. Henry Korn.” Later he brings the puppy home to his parents, and we hear that voice again, “I would be in charge of walking Charley, they said, and I couldn’t wait to walk Charley forever.” Henry wants his new friend to sleep in his room, but his folks have another idea―probably a good one, as the illustration shows the boy should have taken his pet for a quick walk. As the family makes a bed for their recent addition in the kitchen, Henry fits the nook with his own beloved bear and a tick-tock clock, which provides “another little heartbeat in the night.” Night falls and Charley howls when he wakes. Henry tries to follow his parent’s rules, but the puppy wants to sleep on the bed. When both friends get sleepy, the reader can predict the outcome. Oxenbury’s gorgeous illustrations are framed by a border, helping to pace the gentle tale that warms your heart, even in the cold of winter.

MARKLE, Sandra. Snow School. illus. by Alan Marks. Charlesbridge. 2013. ISBN 9781580894104. JLG Level: NEK : Nonfiction Early Elementary (Grades K–2).

Markle’s latest informational picture book focuses on weeks-old snow leopard siblings. Mother has left them unattended when the inquisitive male cub is nearly captured by a hawk. Lesson learned: “Outside the den, it’s a dangerous world.” The two cubs follow their mother over the course of a year as they witness survival lessons in their snow school. One day they will catch food for themselves, so they learn to be quick on their feet, guard their prey, and quiet while hunting. Told in simple narrative vignettes, Markles’s text is illustrated by watercolor scenes that vary from rough-housing between the cubs to the mother’s kill.

PRINGLE, Laurence. Ice!: The Amazing History of the Ice Business. Calkins Creek. 2012. ISBN 9781590788011. JLG Level: NE: Nonfiction Elementary (Grades 2–6).

Heavily sprinkled with primary sources, Pringle’s latest nonfiction work centers on the history of the ice business. Even in Caesar’s time, ice was brought from cold regions to cool a beverage. In 1805 Frederic Tudor lived on a pond in New York when he decided he could profit from shipping ice to the West Indies. Tudor hired Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth who invented a horse-drawn ice cutter, making ice easier to harvest and transport. Icehouses sprang up along Rockland Lake to store the product for shipping. To lessen the chance of the ice melting, railroads were built to quickly get it to New York City. The ice business soon became an integral part of everyday life. With the invention of the icebox and ice delivery wagons, ice became more affordable for everyone. As an unexpected result, the invention of refrigeration hearkened the end of the ice harvesting industry. It took time to get electrical service across the country, so even until the 1950s, the ice man came. Today, ice festivals celebrate the carving of ice, but the giant icehouses that began it all stand empty or in ruins.

Pringle’s fascinating narrative is as clear as the ice he writes about. Readers will be amazed at the effort it took to bring the frozen commodity to their homes. Photographs, painted postcards, and vintage ice card signs bring a century-old industry to life.

WRIGHT, Johanna. Bunnies on Ice. Roaring Brook/Neal Porter. 2013. ISBN 9781596434042. JLG Level: K : Kindergarten (Grades PreK–K).

Time passes slowly when a champion ice-skater waits for winter to arrive. With a Christmas Eve-like feeling, an excited bunny runs with skates-in-hand to wake her parents for the first big circle around the ice. With scores of fans watching, bunny practices figure eights, leaps in the air, and pirouettes. Wright uses simple sentences to slow the pace of a beautifully illustrated family story. Heavily-textured oils on canvas flow across double-page spreads, allowing the reader time to examine the family’s activities. Humor is scattered throughout the story. The family “eats a balanced diet” while they roast marshmallows in the fire. Muscles are kept loose while playing in a bubble bath. A ballerina-skirted scarecrow looms over the family tending the garden. A perfect combination of art, humor, warmth, and text create a Caldecott-worthy read aloud.

For ideas about how to use these books and links to supportive sites, check out the Junior Library Guild blog, Shelf Life.

Junior Library Guild is a collection development service that helps school and public libraries acquire the best new children’s and young adult books. Season after season, year after year, Junior Library Guild book selections go on to win awards, collect starred or favorable reviews, and earn industry honors. Visit us at www.JuniorLibraryGuild.com.

In recognition of the Caldecott Medal’s 75th anniversary, librarians at School Library Journal‘s Leadership Summit shared their favorite winners and discuss beloved picture books that were overlooked for this honor but still stand the test of time.