School Library Journal» Dial

Pick of the Day: Counting by 7s

SLJ — Wed, 11 Sep 2013 09:00:29 +0000

SLOAN, Holly Goldberg. Counting by 7s. 384p. Dial. 2013. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-8037-3855-3. LC 2012004994.
Gr 5-8–Twelve-year-old Willow Chase lived with her adoptive parents in Bakersfield, California. There in the midst of the high desert, she grew a garden in her backyard, her sanctuary. She was excited about starting a new school, hoping this time she might fit in, might find a friend. Willow had been identified in preschool as highly gifted, most of the time causing confusion and feelings of ineptness in her teachers. Now at her new school she is accused of cheating because no one has ever finished the state proficiency test in just 17 minutes, let alone gotten a perfect score. Her reward is behavioral counseling with Dell Duke, an ineffectual counselor with organizational and social issues of his own. She does make a friend when Mai Nguyen brings her brother, Quang-ha, to his appointment, and their lives begin to intertwine when Willow’s parents are killed in an auto accident. For the second time in her life she is an orphan, forced to find a “new normal.” She is taken in temporarily by Mai’s mother, who must stay ahead of Social Services. While Willow sees herself as just an observer, trying to figure out the social norms of regular family life, she is actually a catalyst for change, bringing together unsuspecting people and changing their lives forever. The narration cleverly shifts among characters as the story evolves. Willow’s philosophical and intellectual observations contrast with Quang-ha’s typical teenage boy obsessions and the struggles of a Vietnamese family fighting to live above the poverty level. Willow’s story is one of renewal, and her journey of rebuilding the ties that unite people as a family will stay in readers’ hearts long after the last page.–Cheryl Ashton, Amherst Public Library, OH

Pick of the Day: Secret Pizza Party

SLJ — Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:00:04 +0000

RUBIN, Adam. Secret Pizza Party. illus. by Daniel Salmieri. 40p. Dial. Sept. 2013. RTE $16.99. ISBN 978-0-8037-3947-5. LC 2012025360.
Gr 1-4–Raccoon, paws and nose pressed plaintively to the glass, stares longingly into a pizza parlor. His nemesis, the Pizza Man, chases him off with a broom, and an unseen narrator rhapsodizes, “Ah, pizza… So beautiful, you could hang it on the wall of a museum. So convenient you could eat it in the bathtub.” Raccoon reappears looking forlorn, and the narrator suggests a pizza party at Raccoon’s house–a secret pizza party because, “When you make something secret, you make it special. Regular handshake: Boring. Secret handshake: Booyah!” Wearing stilts and a trench coat, Raccoon absconds with a stolen pizza only to discover an enormous SECRET PIZZA PARTY happening nearby. Unfortunately, he is unable to play it cool and blows his disguise as he rolls around in a pizza-induced frenzy. He flees from the broom-wielding mob (led by the Pizza Man), but his armload of pizza and giant grin prove that he has no regrets. Because the narrator converses directly with Raccoon, listeners are aligned with him and identify with the roguish creature. The skillful gouache-and-ink compositions are full of sly details and visual humor. It’s hard not to giggle at scenes like the lanky pizza man with angry eyebrows and a handlebar mustache rolling out dough while glaring at a “Wanted” poster featuring the raccoon. With a casually diverse cast of characters, Secret Pizza Party is a sure hit for primary-grade kids, who will appreciate the subtle humor and absurdity.–Anna Haase Krueger, Ramsey County Library, White Bear Lake, MN

Pick of the Day: The Mouse with the Question Mark Tail

SLJ — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 09:00:08 +0000

PECK, Richard. The Mouse with the Question Mark Tail. illus. by Kelly Murphy. 240p. Dial. July 2013. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-8037-3838-6. LC 2012027992.
Gr 4-6–Mouse Minor is the smallest mouse in the Royal Mews of Queen Victoria’s Buckingham Palace. Raised by kindly Aunt Marigold, he has no real family. He doesn’t even have a proper name–just a nickname. All he knows is that his mother was not a Mews mouse and that his oddly twisted tail marks him as different from his classmates at the Royal Mews Mouse Academy. Mouse Minor violates a cardinal rule of mouse society by accidentally allowing a human to see him dressed in his school uniform. Disgraced, he runs away, hoping to find some clues about who he is and where he came from. His quest takes him from the stables to the palace parade grounds to Victoria’s private chambers, but even the great Queen herself can’t give him all the answers he seeks. Set against the background of the 1897 Diamond Jubilee, the story portrays a secret animal society existing in the shadows of the human world. Mice, cats, horses, and other creatures have schools, armies, titles, and industries. Cultural attitudes and social ranks parallel the human ones, although because of the difference in life spans, the animal society moves a bit faster. Attractive mouse’s-eye-view drawings help establish the relationship between these two halves of Victorian society. With a plucky hero, exciting plot, and a satisfying, if somewhat predictable resolution, Peck’s latest is a gentle homage to old-school adventure tales.–Elaine E. Knight, Lincoln Elementary Schools, IL

Pick of the Day: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

SLJ — Wed, 03 Jul 2013 09:00:24 +0000

TUCHOLKE, April Genevieve. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea. 368p. Dial. Aug. 2013. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-0-8037-3889-8. LC 2012035586.
Gr 10 Up–With their beloved grandmother, Freddie, deceased and their artistic, absentee parents blowing the family money abroad, 17-year-old twins Violet and Luke are as neglected as Citizen Kane, their formerly grand and now dilapidated home on a seaside cliff. Antagonistic Luke and sultry neighbor Sunshine are Violet’s only company until she rents the guesthouse to enigmatic River West. His crooked smile, discerning palate, and penchant for lying leave Violet both enamored and distrustful. He is cavalier with the mind-manipulating supernatural power he is unable, and somewhat reluctant, to control. In a small town with its fair share of lurid tales, River’s appearance brings with it devil sightings, missing children, and disturbing deaths. Tucholke’s gothic tone, plot, and setting, complete with a deteriorating estate full of dark family secrets, is reminiscent of Daphne du Maurier or YA fare such as Kami Garcia’s and Margaret Stohl’s Beautiful Creatures (Little, Brown, 2009). Violet’s narration is frank and perceptive, livened with humor and an almost poetically descriptive lilt. She is a combination of naive and mature, having grown up in relative seclusion with limited supervision. Violet and River’s attraction is palpable, but their romance is tainted by his shifty morals and shady charm. Swearing and sexual situations are non-gratuitous. Adults are easily appeased and generally turn a blind eye. Give this one to fans of creepy mysteries, particularly tales that don’t skimp on the violence. They’ll appreciate the conclusion’s heart-pounding, bile-rising standoff.–Danielle Serra, Cliffside Park Public Library, NJ

Pick of the Day: Colorful Dreamer

SLJ — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 14:00:34 +0000

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 represent the artist’s dull youth and colorful paintings are introduced when his career takes off. The style of the artwork evokes Matisse more and more as the story progresses, ending, as his career did, with paper cut-out collage. While his life story is not particularly adventurous or exciting, young readers will be drawn in by the obvious affection the author and illustrator feel for their subject. There is not enough detail for reports, but the book may spark interest that can be followed up by further research. A must for art teachers, and a nice addition to history and biography collections.–Heidi Estrin, Congregation B’nai Israel, Boca Raton, FL

Penguin to Launch Kathy Dawson Imprint Targeting Middle School, YA Readers

Debra Lau Whelan — Sat, 22 Sep 2012 03:26:52 +0000

Keep an eye out for a new imprint that aims to deliver novels and series with hard-hitting issues that reflect the real lives of middle schoolers and young adults. Kathy Dawson, who was vice president and editorial director at Dial Books for Young Readers, is launching her own imprint, which will center around “emotionally-driven” books from various genres that focus on the human condition.

Kathy Dawson
Photo: Belathée Photography

Dawson, the editor of award-winning authors Kristin Cashore, Gennifer Choldenko, and K. L. Going, says she’s drawn to books “that matter” rather than those that just entertain.

“Life is complicated and humans have many levels, and I want books that express that,” explains Dawson, who plans to bring big-name authors along with her, as well as search for new talent.

Kathy Dawson Books will launch in the winter of 2014, with the release of nine titles in the first year. “We’re going for quality versus quantity,” says Dawson, adding that it will include a novel by Cashore that takes place in a boarding school and a middle grade book by Going called Pieces of the Puzzle Why, which is about a gospel singer in New Orleans who goes through emotional trauma and loses her voice. Others include a still unnamed fourth-grade series by Julie Bowe that focuses on a group of kids who do good for their community, a high school murder mystery by debut author Elle Cosimano, and a middle grade novel about a girl who can literally enter books by Django Wexler, who wrote it while his adult novel, The Book of A Thousand Names, was being edited. Wexler has already signed on for three or more additional novels.

Dawson says editing books with controversial subjects is important. “I really don’t worry about censorship,” says Dawson, who edited Going’s Fat Kid Rule the World, a 2004 Printz Honor Award book about an overweight teen, which was challenged in several school districts around the country for its profanity. “Kids need to find books that mirror the real world and help them navigate life.” Dawson added that although attempts to ban a book can lead to more book sales, other times it means kids just don’t gain access to the book. “It’s hard on the authors, and it breaks my heart when it happens,” she says.

That’s why librarians mean so much to Dawson, who calls them her “favorite” people because they don’t just follow trends, “they make sure that that right books get into the hands of the right kids.”

Dawson’s attraction to “honest and true books that kids can relate to” may be partly rooted in her upbringing; she grew up in a family with four children, one of whom has albinism and is legally blind. Her mother, who worked with children “who would otherwise never read” made tactile books for her sister out of felt and other materials. Dawson’s older sister is a psychologist who works with kids. So, she says, she and her family are “no strangers to psychological distress.”

The idea for Dawson’s own imprint came about when Don Weisberg, the president of Penguin Young Readers Group, approached her. Although she says it was a difficult decision to leave Dial because she “totally loved” working there, the “dream of editing and being able to focus on determining my own list was really exciting.”