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Cold winter weather provides the perfect setting for putting on headphones to listen to a good book. For over 50 years, Search Institute, a nonprofit organization, has worked to improve the lives of young people by examining and offering ideas to combat risky behaviors and determining what kids need to succeed. They were early adopters of the adage “It takes a village to raise a child,” believing that the entire community must band together to help [...]
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Best Books 2012
Bringing together the best reading of the year among 17 book reviewers resulted in a wonderfully varied group of titles that combines excellence and appeal to young adults. All of these books were originally reviewed on SLJ’s Adult Books 4 Teens blog, which can be found at blog.schoollibraryjournal.com/adult4teen.
There were a few trends in addition to the plentiful coming-of-age fiction and nonfiction memoirs. We ended up with three powerful debut novels about modern war–The Yellow Birds, Billy [...]
The breakdown of this year’s list reflects the realities of the publishing world—YA continues to dominate in terms of output and sheer heft, but there was a noticeable uptick in the numbers of fine middle grade novels. There were several terrific picture books with engaging characters and dynamic art.
Adapting any children’s classic to a new format is tricky. Purists will scream it’s not the original, others will be delighted to discover a new way to enjoy an old favorite. The good news is, we aren’t being asked to choose between formats.
Amid the sparkle of bling and sounds of cha-ching, visitors to Las Vegas, NV, last week caught sight of thousands of educators from around the country wending their way through Metro Golden Mayer Grand complex toward its conference center for the 102nd annual National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) convention November 15-18.
Carter’s Unfocused, One-Track Mind. By Brent Crawford. 7 CDs. 8:06 hrs. Brilliance Audio. 2012. ISBN 978-1-61106-285-4. $59.97.
Gr 9 Up–Will Carter returns as a sophomore to Merrian High after summer vacation, and his 15-year-old male hormone induced ADD is at a record high. He’s still in love with Abby, who has been accepted into the prestigious New York Drama School. She encourages Carter to apply, much to the initial dismay of his mother—he’s leaving “just when he is getting fit to [...]
Check out News Bites for the latest information on what authors are doing to help out victims of Hurricane Sandy, the latest changes at Random House, a literacy campaign for kids in need, and more.
Our annual cover on the theme of “stars,” illustration by Jon Klassen.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Foundation has filed suit against a Utah school district that removed “In Our Mothers’ House,” a picture book about a family with two mothers from school library shelves.
World of Wonder. CD. 32 min. CDBaby.com. 2012. ISBN unavail. $12.97.
PreS-Gr 3–San Francisco-based singer/songwriter Alison Faith Levy, formerly the lead singer of the kindie band The Sippy Cups, returns to the kid music scene with her first solo album. Each song has Levy’s trademark big production sound, whether a sensitive ballad, an up-tempo rocking number, or a middle-of-the-road tune. Lyrics of the ten original songs are smart and have lots of kid appeal. Highlights include a large-sounding rendition of “Itsy [...]
Sandra McLeod Humphrey, 76, an award-winning author of children’s books on character development, was killed in a house fire on November 23.
Christopher Harris shares his thoughts on how rural districts—with an average size of 1,100 students and less than half the budget of the average New York school district—are, in effect, subsidizing the state’s large, wealthy, suburban systems, which are purchasing the same content at the same cost per building.
Bruce Coville recently became the twenty-third recipient of the Empire State Award for Excellence in Literature for Young People. The author of many humorous middle-grade novels, Coville was celebrated at the New York Library Association annual conference earlier this month.
PARKER, Marjorie Blain. Colorful Dreamer: The Story of Artist Henri Matisse. illus. by Holly Berry. 32p. further reading. CIP. Dial. Nov. 2012. RTE $16.99. ISBN 978-0-8037-3758-7. LC 2011035446.
Gr 2-5–This picture-book biography covers Matisse’s entire life but focuses on his career aspirations and achievements. The straightforward text takes a lighthearted approach by including details such as young Henri’s dream of becoming a magician and his skill with a peashooter. Berry’s illustrations are the star of the show; dignified black-and-white drawings [...]
Two School Library Journal articles took gold and silver prizes at the 2012 annual Eddie Awards, sponsored by FOLIO: magazine and recognizing editorial excellence in magazines and websites.
BERK, Ari. Nightsong. illus. by Loren Long. 48p. CIP. S & S. 2012. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-1-4169-7886-2; ebook $12.99. ISBN 978-1-4169-8552-5. LC 2009026608.
K-Gr 3–Not since Janell Cannon’s Stellaluna (Harcourt, 1993) have readers been introduced to such a charming young bat learning to navigate his world. Night closes in and Chiro’s mother tells him it’s time for him to fly alone; he will succeed if he uses his song, otherwise known as his “good sense,” to guide him. Though timid [...]
The idea of a book within a book is not a new idea—The Book Thief, Inkheart, and Fahrenheit 451 all explore this theme. It’s fun to think that the characters you are reading about may show up in your living room, ready to interact and share their literary lives with you. In some cases, such as Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore, the books become characters themselves. For a light-hearted and quick read, check out It’s a Book by Lane Smith. Although it’s a children’s picture book, the humor will definitely appeal to teens.
In the 3D film adaptation of Yann Martel’s “Life of Pi,” a teenager named Pi squares off with a hulking and hungry Bengal tiger, the the only other occupant of a lifeboat adrift in the Pacific Ocean.
Web applications that make it easy to create records in appealing formats for sharing, selected by Richard Byrne, School Library Journal’s Cool Tools columnist.
COLE, Henry. Unspoken: A Story from the Underground Railroad. illus. by author. 32p. CIP. Scholastic. Nov. 2012. RTE $16.99. ISBN 978-0-545-39997-5. LC 2011043583.
Gr 3-8–Gorgeously rendered in soft, dark pencils, this wordless book is reminiscent of the naturalistic pencil artistry of Maurice Sendak and Brian Selznick, but unique in its accurate re-creation of a Civil War-era farm in northwestern Virginia. On the dedication page, readers see a star quilt on a split rail fence, symbolizing the North Star. Confederate soldiers [...]
