February Carnival of Children's Literature

The February Carnival of Children's Literature is up at Picture Book of the Day! I must say it is an entirely impressive list of THE BEST bloggers out there! Congratulations on such a wonderful turnout. I am glad I decided last minute to get a review in there, I am proud to be part of the bunch!

2008 Dublin Literacy Conference

Saturday was one of the most enjoyable and thought provoking days I have had all school year. (Possibly longer) It was the 2008 Dublin Literacy Conference in Dublin, OH. Not only were there so many cool famous authors there, my blogging friends were too!
The neat thing about living so close to Columbus or CBUS as the cool kids call it, are all the AWESOME literacy giants who reside there. You would not believe all the literacy advocates who have come out of the Columbus area! So for the past I believe they said 17 years, the school district of Dublin has sponsored a Literacy Conference. This year the keynote speakers were Sharon Taberski and Pam Munoz Ryan. The other famous main attractions were: Jennifer Holm, Jennifer Roy, Melanie Watt, Jen Allen, Aimee Buckner (A fellow UD grad!), and Terry Thompson. (Thank you for the links, Mary Lee)
As if that was not enough, I went to three great sessions. I listened to Jennifer Holm talk about where she comes up with the ideas for many of her novels. So interesting. One of the most interesting things I learned was that it took 7 years for Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf to come to publication. 7 YEARS! I heard Max Brand talk about his book Word Savvy and his spelling program. I have the book, but I needed to hear about it in person. Seems doable. We'll see what we can do on that next year. Last but not least, I FINALLY met Mary Lee Hahn in person! So surreal! She spoke on the topic of Blogging the Kidlitosphere and specifically spoke of her blog she co-authors with Franki Sibberson A Year of Reading.
Many of you may know, Mary Lee was instrumental in helping me begin my blog. She took me under her wing, sight unseen. I emailed her with my questions and she willingly answered. She didn't even know me for gosh sake! May she live in Sainthood.
On that note, I will pay it forward and introduce another new blog which came about with help from Mary Lee. On Saturday I was introduced to Karen who co-authors the blog Literate Lives with her friend Bill. It is a super new blog and very quickly growing and becoming well known. Check it out!

Where Have I Been?-- Don't answer that..

Where have I been that I didn't get on Goodreads before? Two people have recently mentioned it, so I thought I would give it a try! Here is my profile link:

Checkout my reading list on Goodreads - where you can see what your friends are reading.

http://www.goodreads.com/friend/i?i=LTM2MDYxNjc4Mjg6MzIx%0

Friend Me!

Got a Question for Beverly Cleary?

Have you always had a burning question you wanted to ask Beverly Cleary? Now is your chance! In honor of D.E.A.R. Day, April 12th, Reading Rockets is sponsoring a contest looking for the best and most creative questions to present to Ms. Cleary. Questions must be presented by February 29th. Click HERE for more details.

The Rising Star of Rusty Nail by Lesley M. M. Blume

The wonderful cover shot is what drew me to this book, The Rising Star of Rusty Nail by Lesley M. M. Blume. Then the story itself did all the rest.
Franny Hansen and her friend Sandy ARE what is happening in small Rusty Nail, Minnesota. Besides being a prankster, Franny is a genius piano player, just ask her. In the small town there is also another budding piano star, Nancy. (Prancy Nancy) Franny thinks she has found her ticket out of Rusty Nail when she participates in what turns out as a piano-off with Nancy in front of the governor's wife. As it turns out, the governor's wife could have cared less. Next comes the mysterious Olga Malenkov, whom everyone in the town believes to be a "commie" but who turns out to be a famous piano player. Is Olga a communist? Does she help Franny with her piano playing? Will anything come of any of this? That you will have to read to find out.
What I loved about this book also drove me crazy! It is set in 1953-54 and as such contains lots of history. Yet, I am not sure all of the book would be considered historically accurate. I spent a lot of time while reading Googling facts. Most turned up pretty accurate, except some of the McCarthy references. I also could not get over the fact that Franny constantly called her mother and father by their first name. WHAT? Not many kids would do this and ESPECIALLY NOT IN 1953! I guess Ms. Blume could have been trying to evoke the feeling that this family was anything but traditional, but that is really unnecessary once you have met the characters. In some spots the dialect was strange. Minnesota does not elicit thoughts of country twang to me, but that is often what came up in the middle of nowhere. I thought the story was a bit long in places and may not be able to hold the attention of one of my students.
On the other hand, I did love the way the book was divided into three parts. I thought the characters were very well developed. I could not stop reading because of the suspense brought forth in the plot. I was completely satisfied with the ending. I am not really one to be upset about a book's historical inaccuracy when it is a fiction book to begin with. (I just felt I needed to point them out for anyone who that really matters to.) I am quite excited to see what else Lesley M.M. Blume has in store for her readers. Her newest book Tennyson sounds like a winner.
Other Reviews of The Rising Star of Rusty Nail:
Miss Erin
Semicolon
Miss Erin Interview of Lesley M.M. Blume

I'm Just Sayin...

I know about 200 people have already said this, but in case you live under a rock... CYBILS WERE ANNOUNCED TODAY! And I ain't braggin or nothing, but check out the "Nominated by" under the Picture Book Winner... I know I wasn't the first to think of it, but I was the first to nominate it, I'm just sayin. By the way, I hate when people give stuff away, so I am not writing any of the winning books on here, you'll have to check them out for yourself. I think I will leave up the nominated books widget awhile, cause I just like it, okay?

Happy Valentine's Day!

A Simple Way to Help

Tell your Representative: Books are Fundamental!
Here is the easiest way in the world:
CLICK HERE!

New teacher Tool

I just read about this on the IRA's Reading Today Daily. I have only brieftly checked it out, but I think it could be helpful in certain situations. Although, I did try the BookAlike (TM) system and I did not exactly get the results I wanted, but I bet it could happen.
Teacher Book Wizard (TM) by Scholastic

Isn't teaching wonderful?

This makes all the bad stuff of teaching seem so little...

Hi this is A*** ******* from last year and its kind of weird emailing my old teacher. I have a problem with finding a good book to read. Most of the time last year you knew what i liked to read and i was wondering if you found any more good books like the Watsons go to Birmingham and Harris and me. My teacher this year is new to our school and isn't my favorite because she doesn't give good book ideas like you did. I enjoyed all of the books you suggested and was hopping you could help. Also did you know Christopher Paul Curtis had a new book. I have read it and it is my favorite book.

If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period by Gennifer Choldenko

I recently finished If A Tree Falls at Lunch Period by Gennifer Choldenko... finally. I feel like I am the last person on earth to read this book. I was waiting on my library to have it available and it recently was. When I read Al Capone Does My Shirts by the same author, I was really impressed, so I figured this book would be equally as amazing. And let's face it, I had heard plenty about it by this time.
The book the teen life of the main character, Kirsten. Her parents are fighting, her sister is a the brainiac Kirsten wishes she were, and the girls at school are excluding her. At the same time the story also follows the life of Walk (Walker) who is a new black student in a predominantly white middle school. Walk deals with is mother who is a tad on the protective side, his cousin who is dabbling in some activities Walk is unsure of, and the new students he is meeting at the middle school. The best part of the book however, is when the plot takes a very interesting turn. As a matter of fact, it was so interesting I heard myself yelling to no one in particular, "OH NO SHE DIDN'T!" (Talking about the author)
The author's craft that makes this a great recommendation is the way Choldenko varies the chapters between Kirsten and Walk. This technique often seems to quite confusing for my age student, but I think it is quite appropriate for more experienced fifth grade readers and of course for sixth grade and up it would be totally appropriate. I must admit however, I did not particularly like the way Walk's chapters were written in a sort of third person voice. That seemed strange for me.
If you are looking for a tween book that is quite unassuming, this is a great book for you. It will have you saying, "Didn't see that coming" but that is what I loved about the book.

kidlitosphere

I LUV NYC!

Actually to be quite honest, I have never even been to NYC. (Beside some fly throughs and landing a cruise there.) Hard to believe, non? Well, it is true. However... some other's that I know have been there, and work there, and thrive there. Please take a moment to look at their pleas and see what you can do to help.
A Fuse #8 Production
A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
The Reading Zone
Big A, Little a
Class of 2k8
Cheryl Rainfield

kidlitosphere

Check it out!

Would you like to give free books to children? If so, check out this site. You have probably seen something similar for breast cancer, but this one is for books. I got the link from Kimbooktu. I tried to add a new button over in my sidebar, but the button didn't show up... Whatever, Even still you can click on the words and it does the same thing. And the banner I did at the bottom of the page works, so go there if you would rather.

By clicking here, you can get an overview of the program.
By clicking here, you can TRY to make your own button.

Letters From Rapunzel by Sara Lewis Holmes

When I started reading Letters From Rapunzel by Sara Holmes, I was also reading other books simultaneously. I was not putting my best effort forward and I even almost quit reading because I thought I could see where the story was going. I can admit when I am wrong! I WAS WRONG...
When the main character begins her journey in this story she is writing letters to a mysterious Post Office Box whom she believes is her dad's mentor in life. Instead of signing the notes from herself, she is using the alias Rapunzel. Not because she does not want to be named, but because it is how she is feeling at the time. As the letters move on, the reader hears about the strife going on in Rapunzel's life, including her father's "Evil Spell." (Clinical Depression) I cannot reveal what happens in the course of the story because I want you to read for yourself, but let me tell you, I was not expecting the events in the climax and resolution of the story.
I really liked the format because it is always easy to convince a student to pick up a book that comes in letter form. For some reason it doesn't seem like a real book to them, I guess their eyes can trick them that way. :) But what I also liked was that the book wasn't too heavy. (No not weight, but heavy, you know...) There are so many students out there who have family members going through similar stories. Heck, I am betting there are even fifth graders going through Clinical Depression, as sad as that sounds.
I am going to recommend it for students who have a keen sense of humor and also a strong heart. I think some of the content may go over my student's heads, but I guarantee enough of it will stick that they will be thinking about it for a long time to come.
Links for your liking...
Sara Lewis Holmes- Website
Sara Lewis Holmes Blog- Read, Write, Believe
And just about everyone in the Kidlitosphere has read and reviewed the book...


kidlitosphere

January Carnival of Children's Literature!

It is up, the January Carnival of Children's Literature! Wizards Wireless is the host, check it out!

Kimchi & Calamari by Rose Kent

One of the books in my recent What should I read poll was Kimchi & Calamari by Rose Kent. I am glad I finally got to it.
The story is of a teenage boy who is exploring his roots as a Korean adoptee in an Italian-American family. The exploration is spurred by an assignment his history teacher has given, in which you are to explore your family roots. On top of all this, Joseph, the main character and narrator, is also looking for a date to his 8th grade Farewell dance. Joseph is also struggling with his parent's inability to deal with the fact that he is truly Korean and not Italian as they see him.
I really liked the idea of the book. I am seriously having a weird streak of reading books with Italian-Americans... AND I LOVE IT! Although there were far less references to Italian-American heritage in this book than say Penny From Heaven, I really like how Kent talked a lot about Italian food! (My husband's family owns an Italian restaurant.) But, back to the idea behind the book, adoption. I think it is great that there are books out there, like this one, which explore issues of adoption. I also thought it was cool how the searching comes about from a very poorly thought out history assignment. I teach American History as well, and I would never give an assignment like this. It can bring about bad feelings and hardship for many reason, not just for adopted children. All and all the book had humor, sensitivity, teen issues, and a strong boy main character/narrator.
I think I would recommend this book for some of my students, but I believe it is more appropriate for say sixth grade. I thought is was great!
Other Reviews:
Jen Robinson's Book Page
Welcome to My Tweendom
Mother Reader
Class of 2k7 Blog- Author Interview

kidlitosphere

How Awesome Am I In Graph Form?

This is the most beautiful representation of my blog I have ever seen! I got this idea from Miss Rumphius Effect. I am showing you mine and urging you to try it for yourself! Click Here...

Here is what each of the colors means:

blue: for links (the A tag)
red: for tables (TABLE, TR and TD tags)
green: for the DIV tag
violet: for images (the IMG tag)
yellow: for forms (FORM, INPUT, TEXTAREA, SELECT and OPTION tags)
orange: for linebreaks and blockquotes (BR, P, and BLOCKQUOTE tags)
black: the HTML tag, the root node
gray: all other tags

To Do List For 2008

Okay, I haven't been around that long, so I am new at this. I have no idea how some people find out about books so fast, but I'm learning. So, for my list of books I would like to read this year, I looked at other's lists and picked what I would like. (Probably not an uncommon method, but I don't know any better way.)

Lifted From A Fuse #8 Production:

Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look, illustrated by LeUyen Pham

Lifted from Jen Robinson's Book Page:

Jeanne Birdsall: The Penderwicks on Gardam Street (Knopf)
Trenton Lee Stewart: The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey (Little, Brown) ~ Which means I need to also read The Mysterious Benedict Society, which I have not read.
Sara Pennypacker: Clementine's Letter (Hyperion)

Lifted from Barbara O'Connor's Page Greetings From Nowhere:

Trouble by Gary Schmidt
Bird Lake Moon by Kevin Henkes
The Life and Crimes of Bernetta Wallflower by Lisa Graff
Shooting the Moon by Frances O'Roark Dowell

Lifted From Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast:

* A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever by Marla Frazee (Harcourt);

Lifted from my own brain:

Greetings From Nowhere by Barbara O'Connor

ALA Award Announcements

Since I have searched the internet this morning for the winners, I thought I would post the best place to view everything... not just someone's favorites.
http://www.ala.org/ala/pressreleases2008/january2008/announce08.htmI knew I had a hunch about Elijah of Buxton, I'm just sayin'... it was a great book! I am also glad to see I had read a few of the other books as well.
Henry's Freedom Box
Wednesday Wars
The Inventions of Hugo Cabret
The Wall

ALA Anouncements

I know everyone is weighing in with their favorites for the Newbery, but I am too superstitious. I will listening online with everyone else tomorrow morning hoping for my favorites of the year, but I am not going to let on as to who I have chosen. Although, I did make one prediction this summer, and I stand by that prediction. (Hint, it was not a Newbery prediction.)
For a list of the awards and a short description, click here: ALA News
So join me here: http://www.unikron.com/clients/ala-webcast-2008 for the live webcast of the awards and keep your fingers crossed for all your favorites.

2 Very Different Books By One Author

I recently read two books by Jennifer L. Holm and they were both wonderful, but in two different ways!
First, I finally dug into Penny From Heaven which I should have read long ago, but just never got to it. This Newbery Honor book was a gem. I am a sucker for books about Italian Americans since I am married to one, but I didn't even know this was going to be about an Italian American family, so that was an added surprise!
The story takes place during the 1950's in New Jersey (I believe). Penny Falucci, the 11 year old main character, lives with her widowed mother and maternal grandparents. Her father's large Italian family also lives in the town. The novel follows Penny in her quest to find the truth behind her father's death as she deals with life as a tween and her mother's new relationship with the milkman.
I felt so close to Penny in the story. Even though it is another time and a completely different life than I lived, I related to her Italian family through what I have learned from my own husband's family. Holm was right on! She got the nuances of Italian American life so right, I found myself laughing out loud. (Especially at Nonny, Penny's Italian grandmother.) What I was so disappointed in was myself! I did not know enough about what Italian Americans went through during World War II and post-war. Now I plan to look further into this topic, as I am so interested.
This book is great for fifth grade. I am and will continue to recommend it to students in my class. It is awesome that it recently came out in paperback making it reasonable to add to my class library. In my recommendation I let students know if they like humorous books that may make them cry, this is the book for them. Of course they are all interested.
The second book by Jennifer Holm that I read was Meatloaf is Worse Than Middle School: A Year Told Through Stuff. I mean seriously, how can one author write two books that are SO DIFFERENT and nail them both? Although this book does have a plot and storyline, it is hard to retell or summarize. But the book is exactly what it says it is- "A Year Told Through Stuff."
The story shows itself on the face of notes to friends, lists, grade cards, post cards, even bank statements. This makes the book very easy to read and kept me completely entertained. Although the main character, Ginny is in the seventh grade, I think any student fifth grade to seventh or eighth grade could relate to the book. The story gives my fifth graders a good look at what they are up against getting ready to go to middle school.
I know I shouldn't compare two books in this way, but I told my students if the are looking for something that is similar to Diary of a Wimpy Kid with a girl main character, this book would probably appeal to them. I hope that is not a bad analysis, but having read them both, I think I am on target with that statement.
This just proves authors can be so diverse. I know Jennifer is also the author of the popular Babymouse series. I haven't read any of those yet, but I surely plan to now.

kidlitosphere