February 16, 2013

ALA Midwinter: SLJ Resources on the Youth Media Award Winners

Newbery_IVAN

With the Youth Media Awards having been announced Monday January 28, buzz around the Caldecott-winning This Is Not My Hat (Candlewick), the Newbery-winning The One and Only Ivan (HarperCollins), and the Printz-winning In Darkness (Bloomsbury), is higher than ever. School Library Journal has compiled a list of relevant blog posts, reviews, interviews, and articles related to the winners and honor books.

SLJ Reviews for Top Youth Media Award Winners

Grouped-Winners_1

Katherine Applegate’s The One and Only Ivan and Jon Klassen’s This Is Not My Hat may have won the Newbery and Caldecott on Monday, January 28, but they were already stellar titles for School Library Journal’s Book Review editors. Both books made SLJ’s Best Books of 2012 list, as well as many of the other ALA’s Youth Media Award-winners. Check out SLJ’s reviews for the top prizes.

On the Radar: Top Picks from the Editors at Junior Library Guild: Caldecott Contenders: Star-Studded Choices

chloe

With the announcement of the Caldecott winners less than a week away, Junior Library Guild examines some of 2012′s front-runner picture books.

News Bites: Win Big with Verizon’s App Challenge

verizon

Verizon’s App Challenge is designed to increase student interest in STEM while offering a project-based experience that develops teamwork among students. Groups of 5-10 students are encouraged to develop an app that addresses a need or problem in their school or community.

On the Radar: Top Picks from the Editors at Junior Library Guild: New Books to Make You L-O-L

Illus. book cover with little girl and lion

Amidst all the stories filled with angst, broken hearts, and vampires, books that make you laugh-out-loud are a welcome respite. This fall offers many selections for young readers that will tickle their funny bone. Be sure to read these aloud. We could all use a good laugh from time to time.

Pick of the Day: This Is Not My Hat

Fish wearing a hat on a black background

KLASSEN, Jon. This Is Not My Hat. illus. by author. 40p. Candlewick. Oct. 2012. RTE $15.99. ISBN 978-0-7636-5599-0.
PreS-Gr 1–With this new creation, Klassen repeats the theme from I Want My Hat Back (Candlewick, 2011), but with a twist. The narrator here is the thief–a small, self-confident fish who has pilfered a little blue bowler from a big sleeping fish. He wastes no time or words in confessing his crime as he swims across the page announcing, “This hat is not [...]

Video Sunday: “Guys, smell 11 Birthdays”

Strike that

I think it fitting that I follow up the last Video Sunday bit of teacher enthusiasm with this subsequent sneaky teacher taping.  “We’re just smelling books, Mr. Lewis.”  That would be Mike Lewis and though they acknowledge him at the start, it’s pretty clear they don’t know he’s taping until much later on.  This should [...]

This Is Not My Sequel: Just Wait Till You See This New Book from Jon Klassen | Under Cover

Photograph of Jon Klassen

In This Is Not My Hat, a minnow steals a big fish’s bowler hat while he’s asleep. Part of what makes your art so striking is that the water, or background, is black instead of blue.

Initially, it was more of a mid-tone, like a teal, or a green. But I was fighting it value-wise. Also, since the fishes’ eyes are such a big part of the storytelling, the darker you can get behind them, the more their eyes are going to pop.

SLJ 2012 Day of Dialog: Pushing the Picture Book Envelope

(l. to r.) Amy Krouse Rosenthal, Jon Klassen, Tom Lichtenheld, D.B. Johnson, & Mac Barnett

The picture book isn’t dead—in fact, it might be entering a golden age, say some of the most talented and innovative children’s book creators during SLJ’s Day of Dialog.