The world's largest reviewer of books, multimedia, and technology for children and teens
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.
More than 280 authors attended the seventh annual Brooklyn Book Festival in New York on September 23 to celebrate books, free speech, and all things literary.
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.
During the last ten years, researchers have learned that elementary students are more likely to read and hear fiction in their classrooms more than informational text. However, if you ever visited an elementary school library, you’d see that far more nonfiction is circulated on average than fiction. Kids love to see the photographs and learn more about their world. Consequently, those books have the commonly known disease of the banana-peel spine. They’ve been read so much their spines are literally peeling off the book. With an increase in emphasis on informational text due to adoption of Common Core State Standards, nonfiction circulation is bound to increase. These new nonfiction releases will satisfy the standards while feeding your starved-for-information students and patrons.
Librarians now have another ally—psychic investigator Gilda Joyce has taken up their cause. The pint-sized protagonist in Jennifer Allison’s mystery novels was up in arms this week about the Chicago teacher’s strike, pointing out that, like educators, children need an advocate—and appointed herself Children’s Union Representative, while also stressing the importance of school librarians.
From September 30 to October 6 libraries, schools, and bookstores will celebrate Banned Books Week, an annual event that focuses on First Amendment rights. “During Banned Books Week, we hope to remind Americans that the ability to read, speak, think and express ourselves freely is a right, not a privilege,” said Maureen Sullivan, American Library Association President. “As we celebrate the 30th anniversary of Banned Books Week, it’s important to recognize that book banning does exist in this day and age. It’s up to all of us, community residents, librarians, teachers and journalists, to continue to stand up and speak out for the right to read.”
What’s the secret behind a successful picture book? Although the best ones are often informational, they’re also mischievous, subversive, and exhilarating, says Patti Lee Gauch, a former editorial director at Philomel Books who has edited three Caldecott-winning books.
Two new animated offerings—Frankenweenie and Hotel Transylvania—pay homage to classic Hollywood monsters with fresh interpretations and plenty of panache—just in time for Halloween.
The Follett Challenge is back—but this year the prize money has doubled and the pool of eligible applicants has expanded from just media specialists to all K-12 educators who best align their curriculum to teach 21st century critical thinking skills.
With the onset of September comes the roar of the crowd—the football crowd. From Pop Warner leagues to professional sports, there are plenty of games to attend or watch. Whether on the bleachers, in the field, or cheering from the living room couch, here are some new titles to fill in the gap during half-time.
SLJ talks to Dav Pilkey about the creative process behind his books, working with DreamWorks to turn Captain Underpants into a 3-D animated movie, and, of course, Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Return of Tippy Tinkletrousers (Scholastic)—the ninth installment of his sublimely silly novels.
We sat down with Susan Marston, editorial director of Junior Library Guild (JLG), which is owned by SLJ’s parent company, Media Source, to talk about the top upcoming books for kids and teens.
Baseball season may be coming to an end, but a true fan’s enthusiasm for the sport never wanes. Reason enough to consider two new digital products for your iPad: Ryan Woodward’s Bottom of the Ninth and The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. The first is an animated graphic novel, the second, a reference guide. Here’s what our reviewers had to say about these releases.
After a brief hiatus during the transition to our new website, our app reviews are back—with a few changes. First, you’ll notice they have moved from School Library Journal’s blog roll into a column, pushing out in our Extra Helping enewsletter. Archived reviews can be found on the SLJ website under “Blogs and Columns.” However, to ensure you receive all of our postings, be sure to add “Touch and Go” to your RSS feed.
AudioGO is inviting librarians to visit their offices in North Kingston, RI, on Friday, September 28 to celebrate their annual Librarian’s Day. Present at the festivities will be library advocate and supporter U.S. Senator Jack Reed and authors James R. Benn and Janet Taylor Lisle. Participants will tour the audiobook company’s recording studio, listen to narrators in action, and try their own hand at narrating. RSVP deadline is September 21 and everyone who fills out the form will be entered to win a selection of audiobooks worth $500.
Fans of the The Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence will be flocking to see her newest, The House at the End of the Street, opening September 21. Suggest these gripping tales as read-alikes, or consider making them part of a Halloween display or booktalk.
The Chicago Public Library is on hand this week to help absorb the influx of students who’ve been displaced as teachers continue their first strike in 25 years.
Every anniversary of 9/11, we often remember heroes—past and present. Some are elected officials or military personnel. Others are everyday folks who decided to take a stand or try something different. Still, other heroes remain nameless but made an impact, nonetheless. The following books are full of heroes from the American Revolution. Perfect for reading in a history class, most of these are short, informational works with well-researched back matter that shouldn’t be missed.
The issues and questions raised by Common Core are not only apparent stateside. Marc Aronson discusses how his trip to Barcelona revealed that there might be an opportunity to collaborate with the Spanish city, and other international locales, to inspire students to be innovators.
It’s here. Heavy Medal, SLJ’s mock Newbery blog, resumes September 4.
There, bloggers Nina Lindsay, supervising librarian for children’s services at Oakland (CA) Public Library, California and Jonathan Hunt, library media teacher for Modesto (CA) City Schools, return to discuss and debate potential titles in the running for this year’s Newbery Award. Bestowed annually by the American Library Association (ALA), the Award honors “the most distinguished American children’s book” of the year.
