2010 SLJ Battle of the Books!!!

I'm STOKED. There are no words. Check out the info here from Fuse #8. Also check out SLJ's post and use @sljsBoB on Twitter.

The books on the list are:

CHARLES AND EMMA

CLAUDETTE COLVIN

THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE

FIRE

THE FROG SCIENTIST

THE LAST OLYMPIAN

LIPS TOUCH

THE LOST CONSPIRACY

MARCELO IN THE REAL WORLD

MARCHING FOR FREEDOM

PEACE, LOCOMOTION

A SEASON OF GIFTS

THE STORM IN THE BARN

SWEETHEARTS OF RHYTHM

TALES FROM OUTER SUBURBIA

WHEN YOU REACH ME

Last year's Battle of the Books was a blast, to be sure, but this year...this year, as opposed to last, I have a clear favorite. I know I should probably say The Lost Conspiracy is my fave since it's a Harper book and all, and I may find myself in a pickle for not claiming it as such.

But I cannot lie about books, and the book I'm championing is Fire by Kristin Cashore. Let's put aside the fact that I adore Kristin as a person and look at the book itself. In my mind, it's damn near perfect storytelling. I mean, Graceling was wonderful. But then Kristin showed us all what she was really made of with Fire. The world-building is rich and lush...but what I like about it (and what kept me interested) was that characterization isn't sacrificed or put on hold to create the world (this is a real problem I have with lots of fantasy).

I'm not articulating myself well, which is usually the case with the books I truly love (don't even ask me to tell you why Anne of Green Gables is my all-time forever favorite - I'll just start slobbering and muttering).

But Fire is my book and I'm taking it all the way to the Final Battle and Katherine Paterson WILL pick it.

In the meantime, as we get closer to the beginning of the battle (SLJ isn't giving dates yet, as far as I can tell), I'll post a quote from Fire daily. Just to remind you all how bad-ass it is and why it should win.

Out.

Blogging and drinking: these are a few of my favorite things!

I'm thrilled to see some of my favorite ladies on the cover of School Library Journal this month:

Betsy Bird (Fuse #8), Liz Burns (A Chair, A Fireplace, and a Tea Cozy), Monica Edinger (Educating Alice), Cheryl Klein (Brooklyn Arden), and Jen Hubert Swan (Reading Rants!). You all look gorgeous!

And check out the accompanying article!

Eat, drink, and cheers to my blogging cohorts!

SLJ Day of Dialog; or The Day I am Over-Chicked

The news is officially out: I am going to be on a panel at School Library Journal's Day of Dialog, which will take place before BEA begins. Here is all the info:

Panel I: THE BLOGGER, THE BOOK, AND THE BUZZ

Are bloggers having an impact on what we read, what we add to collections, what we recommend? Here what avid bloggers Liz Burns (A Chair, a Fireplace, and a Tea Cozy), Laura Lutz(Pinot and Prose), Cheryl Klein (Brooklyn Arden), and author Libba Bray have to say about it.

Moderated by Betsy Bird, SLJ blogger and librarian, New York Public Library

We'll be on from 9:15 - 10:15 a.m...which is wicked early for me to get from Queens to Brooklyn. Dang. The magic day is Thursday, May 28th.

So a few years ago, I did something awesome for the Husband...I don't remember what it was now. But Adam shook his head and said, "Dang, I am so over-chicked." I was, like, "What is that????" He explained that it was a phrase he picked up at work, and it is meant to describe a man who is with a woman who is just waaaaay too awesome for him. Or, for instance, when you see that couple out on a date and she's dressed up smash-bang beautiful-awesome...and he's the schmuck in jeans? Yep, he's over-chicked.

So I'm feeling insanely over-chicked on this panel. I mean, have you seen this group?! I'm over-chicked big time. It will take everything in me not to start laughing in the middle of it all and exclaim, "What am I doing here?!?!"

Nevertheless, I'll keep it under control, make sure to look really cute, and have a great time. With this group, I expect lots of sarcasm and laughter...not to mention that I'll learn a crapload of new stuff, I'm sure.

Be there or be square, dudes.


* Anyone else see the spelling error in the panel description? It's torturing me slowly and painfully...please change it ASAP, SLJ...before I lose it...

Thinking about the Honeysuckle Rouge...

It's that time of year. The time of year when I cease to get anything done and just start doing things for pleasure...or when I force myself to be idle for a change. My attention span is zero because there are just so many fun things to be doing and I want to do it all Now. With that in mind, here are a few of the things I've been looking at today:

- Let's start off with The One That Freaked Me Out. Apparently, my Biggest Phobia has come true. I got the link from Ananka's Diary (aka Kirsten Miller) butI can't bring myself to thank her for it. I'm terrified.

- Fuse #8 has a fantabulous review up for the new Sesame Street book, Street Gang: the Complete History of Sesame Street by Michael Davis. I'm with Betsy: that title is awesome and I can't believe they got away with it. I'm adding this title to the top of my teetering reading list...or very near the top.

- Apparently there are places in the world where it is not 28 degrees with 45 mile-per-hour winds. It's called Australia and Justine Larbalestier is bragging about all the lovely produce she's getting this time of year in her homeland. I'm not so jealous now, as I'm still enamored with butternut squash, apples, and pears. But come March...I'll be revisiting her post and turning green with envy.

- Thought my what-to-drink-with-children's-literature post was the mumblings of a functioning alcoholic? Not so fast! The New Yorker has come up with a cocktail - Honeysuckle Rouge - inspired by Winnie the Pooh. Tequila, honey, red wine reduction...oh my! See, I'm not the only one who comes up with stuff like this!

- I've been staying out of this whole debate about the Newbery award for multiple reasons. However, I have to link to this article at Slate: "Captain Underpants Doesn't Need a Newbery Medal" by Erica S. Perl. Yeah, what she said.

And that has been my morning. More to come this afternoon!

Eat, drink, and try a Honeysuckle Rouge.

KidLit Karaoke Night: you missed out, I did not

I need to send huge thanks to Fuse #8 for the excellent KidLit Karaoke Night this past Saturday. The Library Hotel (scene of the KidLit Drink Night last month) was classy and swanky, which is always a delight because I feel like I’m playing the role of academic sophisticate in places like that. Indeed, we talked about children’s books quite a bit that night.

The Karaoke KidLit Night, though? Well, that was just a crazy, laughter-filled, musical extravaganza. In fact, I’d put it in my ongoing list of Top 10 New York City Nights: nuns singing “Faith”, Betsy rocking “Shut Up and Drive” by Rihanna, and a guy with an "I Love Zack Morris"* shirt leading a sing-a-long to Meatloaf’s “I Would Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That).” To top off the perfect night, I somehow managed to catch an F train going express back to Queens…at 2:00 a.m. People, you don’t understand how rare and beautiful thing that is.

If you weren’t there, you’re square.

Eat, drink, and be glad you dragged your arse out to Brooklyn.

* Awwww yeah, baby! Check this guy's t-shirt!

Book Things

-- I had a fantastic time at Fuse #8’s KidLit Drink Night last night; in fact, I might chalk it up as the best one yet (for me, anyway). I spent a good chunk of time with Betsy and her husband Matt (who is just wicked smart), but I also was able to yell across the table to Heather Scott (who so understands my food obsession and recommended What to Drink with What You Eat to me). We also had the pleasure of chatting with authors Marie Rutkoski (The Cabinet of Wonders) and Donna Freitas (The Possibilities of Sainthood): their books are releasing on Tuesday, August 5th. One of the coolest parts of the evening for me? Seeing the Sony Reader and Amazon Kindle up close and personal, which I had not yet had the opportunity to do. I had shunned both devices, preferring to read a “real” book on the subway. Nevertheless, I’m swooning over the idea of traveling with one of these devices. No more books left in the seat pocket in front of me! No more bringing 5 books in my carry-on…only to discover I’m not in the mood for any of them! No more sore shoulders! No more sore back!

-- Thanks to Bookshelves of Doom, I got to see this poster of Nick and Norah:

I’m breathing a huge sigh of relief. Clearly, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist is not going to go all Entertainment-Weekly-hideous-Twilight on me:

-- I’m reading The Smile by Donna Jo Napoli right now. It’s taken me an age to get through it because I’m just savoring it; it’s one of those books. But this morning I read this lush passage and had to share it since this is also a food blog:

I rush downstairs and heat up the sauce I made this morning. It’s oxtail ground up with so much rosemary you can’t tell meat from herb. Vinegar and honey tease the tongue together…The smell is exquisite. I boil long, thick strands of pasta to serve it over. There will only be two dishes. The other is biancomangiare: pancreas and thymus in a chicken broth enriched with egg yolk, Vinsanto wine, almond paste, milk, cinnamon, coriander, nutmeg, and clove.

I’m guessing that Napoli did her research about the authenticity of this dish, and it just sounds sumptuous.

-- We did some talking about Twilight at KidLit Drink Night and Heather and I were in completely agreement on this point: no teen marriages!!!! Stephenie Meyer, as most people know now, has “given away” that there is a wedding between Edward and Bella at the beginning of Breaking Dawn. I do have a real problem with this notion of teen marriage, especially since I’m not convinced that it’s not agenda-pushing by Meyer.

Ultimately, though, it doesn’t matter: I just want to read a good story.

Joie de vivre and all other things French

I wrote on Fuse #8 this morning that Inga Moore’s illustrated version of The Secret Garden was the best thing to see while stuck in an office on a sunny Friday.

I was wrong.

The best thing to see is another one of Lucy Vanel’s market posts over at Lucy’s Kitchen Notebook. Today it’s La Marche de la Croix Rousse, and the photos are stunning (as usual). Lucy took a picture from the top of a hill, looking down on Lyon, and it actually makes you feel, if only for an instant, that you are in France as well. Feeling like some armchair travel today? Go visit Lucy.

This naturally fueled my fire for all things French, being a confessed Francophile. Last week, the New York Times Dining section had an interesting article, “There’ll Always Be a France, Especially in New York,” about the rebirth of old school French restaurants in NYC. For awhile it appeared that traditional French dining was dead in the city, doomed to cookie-cutter “bistros” where the same French warhorses are served year-round (steak au poivre, mussels in broth, frisée salads with lardons and poached egg, etc.). But there seems to be a resurgence of traditional, lovingly created French dishes, like cassoulet. We’ll see… My favorite part of the article, though, is when Alain Ducasse says, “[French cuisine] has never been trendy. That’s what makes it last.”

My latest issue of Bon Appètit (May 2008) is dedicated to travel, and much of that travel involves France. There’s an article, “Ten More Things We Love About France”, that lists, among other things, duck-fat fries! Did I ever post the picture of the duck-fat fries I made at home? Hmmm…I’ll find out and get back to you on that. But the best article was Molly Wizenberg’s “Cooking Life: Everyday Soufflé.” It’s a lovely article that tries to discredit the myth that soufflés are temperamental and difficult and argues that every home cook needs to have a soufflé in their repertoire. Having never tried to make a soufflé, this article completely inspired me to give it a try. I haven’t had time yet but it’s high on my list. Imagine my surprise when I called my best friend and fellow lover of all things French-related (though I speak French and she does not*) to tell her all about this soufflé thing and she nonchalantly says, “Oh, yeah. I’ve done a soufflé.” “You have?!” I asked her, incredulous. Apparently Ina Garten has a blue cheese soufflé that’s a cinch to make. Of course she does. Because Ina is not only a goddess, but the savior and inspiration for all us home cooks. Well, the home cooks I know anyway…

Last, but never least, La Tartine Gourmande has a beautifully photographed blog post up about mackerels. But since this is my French-related post, I have to point out the two phrases on her post: J’leur ai fait leur fête and J’suis cuit. I have never seen the j with the apostrophe like that before a word starting with a consonant. What is that? So I’ve written both phrases down and will have to ask my French professor next time we have class on April 28th. Unless someone can solve the mystery for me before then?

It’s such a stunningly beautiful Friday. Bon appètit, everyone!


*I only feel it necessary to point this out since she has made a soufflé and I have not.