This past weekend, I managed to catch the Atlanta March for Social Justice and Women while in town for the American Library Association’s Midwinter conference. If, like me, you marched (or couldn’t make one, yet wholeheartedly supported the notion of a march), you may wonder: What is next? I think a lot of people, women in particular, have this top of mind.
There was a theme, it turns out, to my Atlanta visit. Not only did I manage to catch ...
There is just a small number of things in life that I know for sure, and one of them is that children are way more resilient than a lot of adults often given them credit for. As Maurice Sendak once told Selma G. Lanes:
You must tell the truth about a subject to a child as well as you are able, without any mitigating of that truth. You must allow that children are small, courageous people who deal every day ...
During any given year, readers would be entertained and uplifted by Ruby Shamir’s What’s the Big Deal About First Ladies, illustrated by Matt Faulkner. The first in a series for children about American history, it’s an engaging, fact-filled celebration of the first ladies in the White House and the unique contributions each made to this country – and with such precise portraits that it’s great fun to linger over each page, spotting who’s who. Ruby, who believes in children’s ability ...
If I were an educator who taught poetry, I’d be pleased with the wide array of contemporary poetry selections out there today. From picture books, to illustrated middle-grade books, to free verse YA novels, to a few other options in between, there are talented poets in the field who are consistently innovating, working with publishers willing to try new things. To be sure, poetry may not always get as much attention as, say, fiction or graphic novels. But if you ...
Award-winning author Patricia C. McKissack (born in middle Tennessee, I proudly add) has had a long and distinguished career in the field of children’s literature. Not one to rest on her laurels—I believe she will turn 73 this year—she’s bringing readers this month a superb new book, a volume that I’ve no doubt we’ll judge later as one of the year’s best.
I think, in fact, that this one will have a great deal of staying power. Let’s Clap, Jump ...
Greg Pizzoli
The start of a new year is always exciting for readers. We envision brand-spankin’-new books from our favorite authors and new artwork from illustrators whose work we love to see. Look past our shoulders and you’ll see crossed fingers that our favorite writers and artists have something in store for us.
Most surprising of all is when we get a glimpse of a never-before-seen manuscript from a beloved author, long gone. A book from the acclaimed Margaret Wise Brown ...
Because it’s the holidays, I had some down time this week to look through some early-2017 picture book releases. At the same time, however, 2016 isn’t quite over yet, so today I’m going to tell you about two expertly crafted picture books – one out this week in the last gasp of this year and one that hits bookshelves just next week, as we’re kicking off 2017.
Lucky Lazlo, written and illustrated by Steve Light, was released this week. It’s ...
Over at NPR last week, I heard a pop culture critic talk (here) about what he calls his Ghost File, or the books, television shows, and movies he didn’t review during the year. “[I]t's the great frustration,” he said, “that every year I'm haunted by all the terrific things I haven't talked about ….”
He gave me an idea. As someone who writes about children’s books all throughout the year, I have my ...
