A few days ago on Twitter, Rachel Hartman (yes, you know, that Rachel Hartman, who brought us last year’s best debut — and one of last year’s best books, period), Seraphina, asked if we were doing a Morris shortlist roundup this year. The answer, sadly, was not really, because our Morris readership hasn’t been thorough [...]
A delightful and inspiring debut.
Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets by Evan Roskos. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2013. Personal copy. Morris shortlist. The Plot: James Whitcomb, sixteen, has nicknames for his parents: the Brute and the Banshee. That may be all you need to know about his home life. But here’s some more: his parents threw his older sister out [...]
The bright, detailed, full-page panels are covered with strange creatures and planetary objects that will catch and hold young readers’ attention, and the scientific information is simply presented and well-integrated into the dialogue.
Okay, not all the books, but three books for the price of one post: The Golden Day, Winger, and The Midnight Dress. (It was going to be four books, because I stayed up way too late reading More Than This the other night, but I think I need to sit on that for another day [...]
Here's a collection of picture-book biographies that introduces musicians and fine artists to children. The authors and illustrators have created engaging, child-friendly profiles that will hopefully lead readers to explore and seek out other materials about these amazingly talented individuals.
The Nazi Hunters: How a Team of Spies and Survivors Captured the World’s Most Notorious Nazi by Neal Bascomb. Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc. 2013. Library copy. YALSA Nonfiction Award Shortlist. It’s About: In 1960, a group of Israeli spies and operatives captured the Nazi fugitive, Adolf Eichmann. Eichmann had been in [...]
Everybody Paints! The Lives and Art of the Wyeth Family By Susan Goldman Rubin Chronicle Books $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-8118-6984-3 Ages 9-12 On shelves February 4th For years it was my pleasure to work in the New York Public Library’s Central Children’s Room, located in the Donnell Library. The Central Children’s Room was the crown jewel [...]
The President Has Been Shot! The Assassination of John F. Kennedy by James L. Swanson. Scholastic. 2013. YALSA Nonfiction Award Shortlist. It’s About: The assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963. The Good: The past November — the 50th anniversary of the assassination of JFK — I watched a lot of specials and documentaries about [...]