Ch-ch-changes

Well, it's official so I figure that I can share it here: I'm leaving my job at HarperCollins.  It's nothing dramatic or even that interesting.  I'd like to cut down on my travel - five conferences a year became more than I wanted to commit to.  I'd also like more time for blogging - that's how much I love hanging out with all of you.  Lastly, I haven't totally given up on culinary school...maybe I'll go back.  Who knows.  New adventures await.

Next week is my last in the office and it's already becoming difficult, as it certainly wasn't an easy decision and I'll miss so much about working there.  It's going to be a challenging couple of weeks.




So imagine how thrilled I was when I read at Modish today about Susannah's August Break 2011.  I think it's the perfect way to transition, collect myself, take stock, and regroup.  The idea behind August Break is that you post one photo (or more) a day for the month of August.  And that's it.  It's a break from all the text, not to mention that it's a new way for us bloggers to share our experiences and lives.  I can't wait!

I have one recipe that I'm going to share with you this week (I mean, the rules of August Break aren't that strict, right?).  But other than that, I'm all about the photos.  We'll start here:

Eat, drink, and welcome change.

My Other Non-Food-and-Wine Blog

We recently started a new blog at work: THE PAGETURN. Well, the full name is actually THE PAGETURN: AN INSIDE LOOK AT BOOKS. It's specific to teachers and librarians, highlighting the books and authors that resonate with that market. It's super-new - we started it in July - so come over, say hi, and welcome us to the kidlitosphere!

When we started the blog, we knew we'd be blogging every weekday and, I have to admit, I was concerned that blogging everyday at work would steal away the last bit of energy and mojo I had left for this blog. Which hasn't been much in recent months.

But I'm so happy that I've been proven wrong. Instead, blogging every day at THE PAGETURN has reminded how much I love doing this, how much I love writing every day, and I feel all sorts of new energy for Pinot and Prose.

Eat, drink, and say hi to me at THE PAGETURN!

Author friends

One thing that happens at conferences is that authors stop by the booth who are either 1) Harper authors who, for whatever reason, aren't signing in the booth or 2) non-Harper authors who are just looking around the exhibit hall and stop by to say hi. At TLA and IRA, I had the opportunity to meet two fabulous authors.

First, at TLA, I had the pleasure of meeting Bettina Restrepo, author of our upcoming Illegal (Harper, March 2011). When Bettina stopped by the booth, I had already partially read the manuscript weeks before so I knew how special the story was (it very much reminded me of Esperanza Rising, which is just so stunning). It was a pleasure meeting Bettina and look for Illegal in the months to come.

While at IRA, I was thrilled to meet Danette Haworth. It was an odd moment meeting her because I recognized her name...but couldn't place it. Which is an occupational hazard, I can tell you! Then it came to me when Danette told me that she wrote Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning (Walker, 2008) - which was edited by my friend Stacy over at Walker Books. Aha! The connections were becoming clear! I had visited the Walker offices back in 2008 and Stacy gave me a galley of Violet Raines...and now I was finally meeting the author. Danette also has an upcoming book, The Summer of Moonlight Secrets. Here's the pretty cover:

I was lucky to score a galley...but when I asked Danette if the secret was that the girl was a mermaid, she wouldn't give up the info. So I'll look forward to reading it to find out.

And that's one of those things I love about what I do - accidental and unexpected meetings that happen at conferences, especially since most of what I do at conferences is so scheduled and planned out. As I'm planning ALA Annual (check out the HarperCollins' Teachers and Librarians website for some details that are already set, like our signings), I'm already getting excited to see who I'll meet this time around. Authors truly are some of the nicest and most welcoming people I've met, whether I meet them in the office, in a hotel lobby, or in a conference booth.

Eat, drink, and hang out with authors

NOTE: No disrespect to the illustrators out there, of course. Just put in "illustrators" where I wrote "authors" above...

The Dead Girl Genre

You book folks know exactly what I'm talking about. What's with all the dead girls lately? Do you know how many times someone has recommended a book to me and I have caught myself saying, "Another dead girl book?" What's up, publishers (including the one for which I work)?

But you know what happens? I end up reading each one. And I end up loving each one. Thus far, each book I have read has given me a new, fresh perspective and each book has made me feel something different, has provoked me in a different way. Rather than getting tired of the dead girl genre, I'm getting more and more excited by it.

It all started with Before I Die by Jenny Downham (David Fickling, 2007). Tessa is dying of cancer. I'm not giving anything away - the reader knows right off the bat how it will end. Heck, even the title gives it away. What I loved about this one was that the main character wasn't likable. But she was real. There was a rawness and a roughness to her that made you love her in spite of (or because of) all her imperfections. And what this story captured best was the struggle to die with dignity and grace, especially for a teenage girl who still has so much living to do.

Last year, I went to a librarians' preview at Penguin and heard about If I Stay by Gayle Forman (Dutton, 2009). This was the first time I remember thinking, "Another dead girl book?" But it was so much more than that. It was about family and love and choices. And what I loved most was the idea that we can decide, that it may seem like it's all random and out of our control...but we really do have a say in our ultimate destiny. Loved that. And in my GoodReads review, I wrote that this book successfully avoids the "three Ms: maudlin, manipulative, and melodramatic." Such a gorgeously written, beautiful book.

Then I started at HarperCollins and one of the first books presented to me was Lauren Oliver's Before I Fall (HarperCollins, 2010). Despite it being another dead girl book, you know what happened. Read it. Loved it. Again, this book had something new to say. Lauren's book isn't about a girl who has died. It is about the little things we do every day that affect others. Dying is the impetus for Samantha coming to this realization, and watching the ways in which Samantha changes and grows based on every single decision she makes on a single day is riveting. It changes your own life because you look around at your own world differently, wondering how your own actions and words are affecting those around you.

And it keeps going! I just finished reading the sky is everywhere by Jandy Nelson (Dial, 2010) and, again, I was floored. Lennie's older sister has died and this book examines the aftermath and the ways in which joy and self-discovery can arise from tragedy. I've never experienced great loss in my life so I can't attest to what heartwrenching grief truly feels like...but I imagine it feels like this book describes. Nelson makes grief so palpable until it becomes a living, breathing monster, threatening to consume everything in its path. It makes for a very intense read. But that aside, this story examines how sometimes we have to lose something to gain something. It is only through her sister's death that Lennie really lives. In the best, most beautiful way possible.

As an end to this discussion, I went to a birthday party last night and was talking about the dead girl genre with some friends. Molly made an excellent point: she said that teenage girls love this genre because each of these books, in some way, makes a case for being in control, even when we're not in control. Teenagers are accountable to everyone: friends, teachers, parents, siblings. They feel (and I remember this all too well) that they aren't in control of their own lives. But what these stories have in common is a theme of empowerment. Yeah, the shit may hit the fan but, ultimately, you decide what you're going to do with it. How will you react? What will you say? What choices will you make? What impression do you want to leave? In the midst of chaos, you can decide how it all plays out.

Don't knock it before you've tried it. Pick up a dead girl book for hope, joy, and inspiration.

And three other fantastic, critically acclaimed dead girl books I didn't discuss in this post (13 Reasons Why being the only one I haven't read yet):

The Everafter by Amy Huntley (Balzer+Bray, 2009; Morris YA Debut Award finalist)

Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin (FSG, 2005)

13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher (Razorbill, 2007)

The Brits: More Fun than Us

Proof that I might be working in the wrong HarperCollins office:



And then this one:



I'm thinking of jumping the pond...

Eat, drink, and play with your books.

NCTE Highlights

So two weeks ago was the NCTE conference, followed by the ALAN workshop. As I mentioned here, it was my first conference in my new job so I was nervous and excited and nauseous building up to the big event (come to think of it, I felt that way during the event too).

I'm happy to report that the conference was a fantastic experience, and I had little reason to worry; some hiccups aside, everything went fairly smooth, I think. Here were some highlights:

• Someone stopped by our booth and mentioned that Donna Jo Napoli was signing at Penguin's booth, which I could see from our HarperCollins spot. So I was able to hop away and have her sign a copy of The Smile for me. I'm such a huge fan of hers and she graciously allowed me to slobber all over her, going on and on about how Prince of the Pond was one of the first books I read as a children's librarian...blah, blah, blah. She was just brilliant.


• Do you remember how I mentioned in my earlier post that, if you were attending NCTE, you should stop by the booth and say hi? Well, someone did! I was so flattered and so happy and so relieved (cue Sally Field's Oscar speech). However, in all the hoopla and all the following days, I have forgotten my new friend's name. Monica? I think? Reintroduce yourself to me cyberly!


• I mentioned to a publishing cohort from another house that we HC gals were going to try to get better about taking breaks from the booth. Her response? "Oh, yeah, no breaks. You also forget to eat and to go to the bathroom. It's like your body shuts down when you're in booth!" Word up. Seriously, give your friends in publishing a hug next time you see them in a booth...or better yet, bring them food or drink. Chances are they have satisfied no basic bodily functions in hours.


• Lee Bennett Hopkins accepted the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry during the conference and ended his speech by reading Langston Hughes' "Dreams." It was beautiful.


• Jarrett Krosoczka. Yes, just that name. I saw him across the aisle, signing at Random House's booth and wanted to get over there to tell him what a HUGE fan I am of Lunch Lady and Punk Farm...but it was just too crazy. I saw him no less than ten more times during the course of the conference but, for a multitude of reasons, he remained elusive to me. I never got the chance to go all fangirl on him. So, Jarrett, I am publicly declaring that I'm a fan (I can actually spell your name from memory - how many people can do that?!) and it was a thrill just to see you from afar (over and over again) at NCTE.


• Speaking of fangirldom, I also got to talk in-depth with Matt Phelan and that was a pinnacle, truly. Eileen Spinelli signed in our booth and - would you believe it? - I never even got a chance to introduce myself, much less gush about how much I adore Where I Live. So imagine my surprise when I spontaneously met Matt in the lobby of our hotel! So I was able to ramble on and on to him about that book...and to find out that Matt is particularly fond of Where I Live as well. Chatting with Matt was a highlight of the conference for me. (Fun story: Matt and I talked at length about David Small's work, and Matt said he was lucky enough to win some original art by David Small during a silent auction at BEA. Apparently Matt hovered next to the sheet, determined to outbid anyone who dared sign their name to paper. And he was rewarded for his vigilance! I thought it would be too fangirl of me to point out to Matt that plenty of people feel the same way about his artwork!)


• A simple pleasure: watching the sunrise over the river from the 28th floor of my hotel, sipping green tea. When you're on a 5-day-long adrenaline rush, it's quiet moments like this that you treasure.


• Laurie Halse Anderson's keynote speech at the ALAN breakfast was inspiring and uplifting and funny and beautiful (she blogs a bit about it here). I've never had the pleasure of hearing her speak before and she had the whole room riveted. Likewise, Naomi Shihab Nye's speech at that same breakfast made me laugh and cry at the same time. Both of them made me want to be a better person and made me believe that positive change is possible and that there is good to be found in everyone. Seriously, no irony, no snark.

Lastly, the biggest highlight of the conference for me was our HarperCollins "family dinner" at Osteria. We had it at the "chef's table"...which, seriously, is a huge square butcher block table in a private room off the kitchen. You walk through the prep station to get to it. Around the table are sorbet machines, pastry blenders...the server said the table is actually where they make their pasta every day. The staff had lit candles all around and were playing "Italian pop music." And the food? Oooooh, the food. Superb in every way. Not only was this a highlight for the conference and my job thus far...it was a culinary highlight of my life, truly. An added bonus? Morimoto (!) actually poked his head in briefly to check out the space and we later saw him eating in the main dining room! Apparently he and the owners of Osteria are friends. And here are two subpar photos I took with my phone:

And did I take a moment during the dinner to reflect, like I said I would? Yes, I did. There was a minute or two when I was out of the conversations going on around me. I looked around at the table, watching everyone engaged in conversation, eating and drinking, everything aglow in candlelight. I loved that I had a part in making it happen, and I loved that food and drink allowed us all to slow down and enjoy each other. It would not be exaggerating to say that it was one of the best moments of my adult life, as it was professionally, creatively, and emotionally satisfying.

Eat, drink, and cheers to all of you - for sitting at my table (the blog, of course), for stopping by the booth to see me, and for taking this journey with me. You are so appreciated!

NCTE/ALAN 2009

So this week is my first conference since I have joined HarperCollins Children's Books: NCTE, followed shortly by ALAN. Part of my day-to-day job, among other things, is to coordinate our booth at conferences. So as you're walking up and down those aisles and you see the booths, consider that someone had to make sure the books arrived on time. Someone orders the furniture, the carpeting, the big signs. And the author signings? Someone organizes that schedule, avoiding overlaps and making sure everyone is where they need to be at the right time. And those various meals that you get invited to by publishers? Reservations are made, menus are decided on.

Ever wonder how that all happens?* That's me! At least at Harper...

So I've been at Harper for three months and this is my first time on the road. Am I nervous? Hell to the yeah. But I also think it's going to be a good time. Will I screw up? Drop the ball? Inevitably. My goal is to handle it all with grace, self-possession, and a wicked sense of humor.

Aside from the nausea and sleeplessness, on the bright side, I'm looking forward to two things in particular:

1. Meeting author superstars. Among them, Chris Crutcher, Beth Kephart, Patricia McCormick, Naomi Shihab Nye, Jerry and Eileen** Spinelli (though I've met Jerry before), and Gordon Korman. And this is just the beginning - there are a slew of other amazing authors I'll be working with at the conference and I can't wait, particularly since I've been exchanging emails furiously with most of them for weeks.

2. Dinner on Sunday night. On Sunday night (11.22), the booth will be all broken down. NCTE will be over. Whatever hiccups come my way will be dealt with by then. So Sunday night I get to enjoy the dinner I'm planning at a fabulous restaurant in Philadelphia; it's the HarperCollins Children's "Family Dinner" so it's just the editors, authors, and library marketing folks. The menu isn't completely finalized but there will be duck. There will be "squash tortelli with amaretti cookies and sage". There will be wine. It'll be fabulous and I hope to get a moment to myself so that I can forgive myself for whatever mistakes I made in my planning and congratulate myself for getting through a major career milestone.

So if you're going to be at NCTE and/or ALAN, be sure to stop by and say hi. We'll be in booth #213 - I'll be the curly-haired one with the smile on my face and the wildly beating heart.

Eat, drink, and face a trial by fire with style and humor.

* Okay, you probably haven't ever wondered. In fact, part of my job is to make sure everything is so seamless that you don't.

** I fully intend on GUSHING to Eileen how much I desperately loved Where I Live, her book illustrated by Matt Phelan. That book just got me where I live.

Ace of Cakes book

I didn't know until recently this was a HarperCollins book, but it is: Ace of Cakes: Inside the World of Charm City Cakes by Duff Goldman and Willie Goldman (William Morrow, 10.20.09). Naturally, the first thought in my head was "Duff has been in this building?" Followed shortly by: "Does that mean that Geof has been in this building?!" Because he's the one who really does it for me. Here's the book trailer:



I'm oddly obsessed with this show, as is Bug. Forget the glory days of my youth, watching "Growing Pains" and "Who's the Boss?" together as a family: these days, it's "Ace of Cakes" all the way. With Duff's chainsaw in the credits and all. I'm raising my child right.

Eat, drink, and - I'm so sorry but I have to - let them eat cake.

The Thirteenth Princess

I recently read Diane Zahler's The Thirteenth Princess, which is a HarperCollins book coming out in February 2010. I know, I know, it's a long ways off. What I want to talk about is the covers. Here is the original cover for the book:

After various discussions that I was not privy to, the cover was changed to this:


Rebecca's Book Blog has a discussion going on about it as well, and I was curious to know your thoughts. And I don't think it matters, at this point, that you haven't read the book because we're talking about what the cover looks like on the shelf and whether someone would be motivated to pull it off the shelf based on the cover (because we do that and we know children do that).

Which cover are you drawn to or would be more likely to read? More importantly, what about the kids in your library? Which would they like better? Some of Rebecca's commenters get at this, but I do think there is a big difference here as far as what kids will find attractive and what we adults like best.

It's a solid middle-grade novel, approriate for ages 9 - 14, I think. The new cover is a permanent choice but I still want to talk about it. Because the covers are just so different and really appeal to a different kind of reader.

Can you tell I'm censoring my opinion? Yeah, I am...kind of have to, right? But you can express away.

Which one do you feel is better?

Book mojo!

Don't you love those times - I know you've had them too - when every book you read just seems to be awesome? You seem to go through your books so much faster because none of them drags, none of them sucks? I'm going through one of those periods right now. And I'm wearily excited because, inevitably, I know it will end. Eventually, I'll pick up a stinker.

For now, though, I'm enjoying the ride.



Here are the Harper books I have loved (and I'm soooo sorry about the pub dates!):

• The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place by Maryrose Wood (2.10)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver (3.10) - I was not prepared for how compelling this would be. I'm still thinking about it days after I finished it.
  

• Splendor (final book in The Luxe series) by Anna Godbersen (10.09)

Here are the non-Harper books I have equally loved:

• Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (Scholastic) - Finally read it! And it was so worth the wait. Incredible, incredible stuff.
  
  
  
  
• 
  
  
  
• Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (9.09, Scholastic) - Equally as incredible
  
  
  
• 
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Liar by Justine Larbalestier (9.09, Bloomsbury) - The jacket controversy seems to have overshadowed the fact that this is a well-crafted, fascinating suspense thriller. Read it.
  
  
  
• 
  
• 
  
  
  
  
• The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly (Holt) - How can this NOT have something shiny on it come January?
  
  
• Dunderheads by Paul Fleischman, illustrated by David Roberts (Candlewick)

Great summer for reading! Now, all I need to do is get my hands on Dani Noir by Nova Ren Suma (per Molly's recommendation) and Winter's End by Jean-Claude Mourlevat, translated by Anthea Bell (per Chris Shoemaker's recommendation) and my August will ROCK!

Pinot and...I don't know...

I've been having a bit of a dilemma about my blog lately...and a sad one at that. As most of you know, I am no longer working as the children's materials selector at Queens Library, and I now work in school & library marketing at HarperCollins. This puts my book reviews and discussions in some limbo. While I'm thrilled about my new job, I'm realizing that I do have to give up quite a bit for it. In this case, I'm realizing I need to alter my blog.

Perhaps naively, I believed that I would go on blogging just as I have always blogged. Now I'm seeing that I really can't do that. I've mentioned books I don't like, and I've discussed aspects of books that I don't like. Obviously, I can't really blog that way in regards to Harper books anymore (that's a little thing they like to call conflict of interest), and it looks all wrong if I do it for others' books. Making me a biased and untrustworthy reviewer, n'est-ce pas? Which kills me. The idea that I could be considered as such. Nevertheless, that's how it goes. So where do I go from here?

1. I stop talking about children's books completely and become strictly a food blog. But I don't know if I'm hardcore enough for that. Books are a huge part of my life. Not to mention the "prose" part of my blog name...

2. The only children's books I feature are "foodie books for kids". Even then, I don't review them - I only bring attention to them, regardless of publisher.

3. I can still have general discussions about books and leave out specific titles. But I just don't know how effective that would be.

4. Have general book discussions and list books freely, as in the "What I'm Reading Now" type vein. Just steer clear of reviews.

So I'm at a loss. This is officially an identity crisis for Pinot and Prose. For now, I'm looking to Molly at Ten Block Walk who I think does a nice job of discussing books and keeping that separate from her job as a children's book editor. On that note, Brenda Bowen has also been successful at maintaining that balance.

Or I could chuck it all and create an anonymous blog, à la Editorial Anonymous, and just let my freak out. It's already my second week and I could already tell quite a few stories...perhaps covering myself in a veil of secrecy is the way to go...if I'm prepared to be fired should I be found out...and I'm awful with secrets anyway...

Maybe not...

Help!

Queens Library Mock Caldecott Discussion

Recently Queens Library had its first Mock Caldecott discussion for the year. In the past, we've had our first meeting in June. We review what has come out so far, and we eliminate some possibilities to make our discussions in December and January a little smoother. Here are some of the books we discussed a couple weeks ago (in no particular order):

• The Fabulous Feud of Gilbert and Sullivan by Jonah Winter, illus by Richard Egielski (Arthur Levine)
  
• Tsunami by Kimiko Kajikawa, illus by Ed Young (Philomel)
• Redwoods by Jason Chin (Roaring Brook)
• A Book by Mordecai Gerstein (Roaring Brook)
• Birds by Kevin Henkes, illus by Laura Dronzek (Greenwillow)
• You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?! by Jonah Winter, illus by Andre Carrilho (Schwartz & Wade)
• Higher! Higher! by Leslie Patricelli (Candlewick)
• Hook by Ed Young (Roaring Brook)
• Mermaid Queen by Shana Corey, illus by Edwin Fotheringham (Scholastic)
• Goldilocks and the Three Bears by Genadii Spirin (Marshall Cavendish)
• Cuckoo's Haiku: and Other Birding Poems by Michael Rosen, illus by Stan Fellows (Candlewick)
• All in a Day by Cynthia Rylant, illus by Nikki McClure (Abrams)
• Chicken Little by Rebecca and Ed Emberley (Roaring Brook)
  
• Sparrow Girl by Sara Pennypacker, illus by Yoko Tanaka (Hyperion)
• The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau by Dan Yaccarino (Knopf)
• A Chair for Always by Vera B. Williams (Greenwillow)
  
• Dinothesaurus by Douglas Florian (Beach Lane)
• Curious Garden by Peter Brown (Little, Brown)
• Bird, Butterfly, Eel by James Prosek (S&S)
• One Red Apple by Harriet Ziefert, illus by Karla Gudeon (Blue Apple)
• Down, Down, Down: A Journey to the Bottom of the Sea by Steve Jenkins (Houghton Mifflin)

We had some "easy" ones to get rid of, such as Higher! Higher! and Chicken Little. While we loooooved them for storytime, we agreed that they weren't "Caldecott worthy." Some other books went fairly easy under the category I-Get-What-They-Were-Trying-For-But-It-Wasn't-Entirely-Successful: The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau, You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?!, Down, Down, Down, and The Fabulous Feud of Gilbert and Sullivan. Under the "Whaaa...?!" category, our committee threw in All in a Day and Sparrow Girl.

** At this point, let me remind you that I speak for my whole committee and these "categories" I've made up don't necessarily reflect my own thoughts on these books - I only share our consensus.**

We adored the artwork in Cuckoo's Haiku, but some felt it was better suited to adult Audubon fans than children. Goldilocks was described as inaccessible. And let's just say that A Chair for Always didn't have anyone standing up for it.

There were two books we eliminated but, oh man, was it contentious! One Red Apple and Birds were the most divisive books! One Red Apple is just gorgeous with all kinds of lovely details and textures, but there is a foldout that has all kinds of design problems. Take a look: you'll know

what I'm talking about. And we all agreed that Birds is stunning; however, we got really hung up over the idea that the reader is an active participant throughout the book...and then you get a whammy at the end with the appearance of a girl and suddenly you realize that the story isn't about you and the birds at all but it's about this girl and the birds. The storytelling does a switcheroo and rips the reader right out of the story. It's jarring. Oh, the arguments over all this!

So here is the final group that will move on to our final considerations in

December:

• Tsunami by Kimiko Kajikawa, illus by Ed Young (Philomel)
• Redwoods by Jason Chin (Roaring Brook)
• A Book by Mordecai Gerstein (Roaring Brook)
• Mermaid Queen by Shana Corey, illus by Edwin Fotheringham (Scholastic)
• Curious Garden by Peter Brown (Little, Brown)
• Hook by Ed Young (Roaring Brook)

Is there an illustrator busier than Ed Young these days? I think not...

As many of my readers know, I actually will no longer be working at Queens Library as of July 1st. I have accepted a position with HarperCollins as their School & Library Marketing Manager! So if you're going to ALA in Chicago, be sure to stop by the booth

and say hi. As far as how this changes Pinot and Prose, I really can't say right now. Stay tuned!

Is it November yet?

I just spotted the cover art for Splendor:

Now the waiting and pining begins...

Reviewing Foodie Books for Kids!

So I've been doing some reviewing for School Library Journal and sort of enjoying it...

...however, I recently shared with the reviews editor that my passion was food and food writing, and I (professionally, of course, because I am nothing if not professional) begged her to give me food-related books to review.  So in the mail today, I received THREE books to review...all

 FOOD-RELATED!  So coming up:

- Sylvie by Jennifer Sattler (Random House, May 2009)

- I Love Chocolate by Davide Cali, illustrated by Evelyn Daviddi (Tundra, Feb 2009)

- The King's Taster by Kenneth Oppel, illustrated by Steve Johnson & Lou Fancher (HarperCollins, June 2009)

Want to know what I'm most excited about?  That there are three upcoming food-related books for kids...and those are just the ones I'm reviewing, let alone the multitudes that I am not!  Between that and the Disney Channel episode this morning, among other things, I'm feeling wildly optimistic today.

Queens Library's 2nd Annual Mock Caldecott Event!

Yesterday Queens Library held its 2nd Annual Mock Caldecott Event! As reported earlier, we discussed 6 books:

Baseball Hour by Bill Thomson

Before John Was a Jazz Giant by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Sean Qualls

Cat and Mouse by Ian Schoenherr

The Dog Who Belonged to No One by Amy Hest, illustrated by Amy Bates
Don't Worry Bear by Greg Foley

Wabi Sabi by Ed Young

And our two Mock Honor books are:

Cat and Mouse by Ian Schoenherr (Greenwillow)

and

Wabi Sabi by Ed Young (Little, Brown)

Our Mock Caldecott Award goes to...

Baseball Hour by Bill Thomson (Marshall Cavendish)

As we all know, this is anybody's year for the award and this was reflected in our voting: it was verrrrrry close. And I am thrilled with the results, as Baseball Hour is action-packed, dramatic, well-executed, and distinguished. It is stunning in its perspectives and it pulses with movement. Lastly, it has wild amounts of kid appeal, which is a nice bonus.

More than 60 librarians came together to discuss the books and vote on them. I was lucky enough to flit and float between the 7 groups and listen to what everyone had to say. The depth of the discussions, as well as the enthusiasm for the event, was thrilling and gave me much-needed inspiration to get through my day-to-day job. We used voting ballots and followed the actual voting criteria of the Caldecott committee (we took it straight from the handbook).

It was a fantastic day, and I look forward to doing it again next year!

Sometimes it's fun to come back from vacation...

I need to forewarn you that I'll be blogging little this week - I'm working all week, my mother-in-law is in town, and I'm cooking and eating a lot.

I do want to share a couple of book-ish things that greeted me at my desk this morning. First, I was ecstatic to have a galley of Almost Astronauts waiting for me. I'm ultra-excited about this one!

Second, I had a galley of this book waiting for me:

And that cover scares the sheez-it out of me. Make it go away! Which is probably the vibe the designer was going for...and they succeeded.

Lastly, I found out that the new Georgia Nicolson book is coming out June 2009!!!! Blimey O'Reilly! At this point, HarperCollins isn't giving up a name, only "Georgia Nicolson 10" and this is the only cover art I've seen:

Between this and The Luxe*, HarperCollins is showing little regard for how impatient I can be! Oh, the long wait begins...

* ONLY FOUR MORE WEEKS!

More foodie books for kids

It’s official – food has infiltrated children’s literature! And children’s lives! Kids are hearing about nutrition and obesity in schools; they’re studying the food pyramid and doing more physical activity. Numerous organizations are diligently working to improve school lunches in our country. Even Brian Jacques, during his wildly entertaining speech at NYPL’s Bookfest (see Betsy’s recap), spent a significant amount of time discussing the role of food and feasts in his Redwall series.

So it’s not surprising that I have a list of food-related children’s books I’m currently trying to read:

- Madame Pamplemousse and her Incredible Edibles by Rupert Kingfisher, illustrated by Sue Hellard (Oct 2008). I have yet to see a copy, but Booklist compared it to Roald Dahl’s work and Kirkus gave it a star. How darling is that cover?

- Kitchen Dance by Maurie Manning (Oct 2008). This is the one I’m most looking forward to – it just looks and sounds jubilant. The reviews are glowing. Quite frankly, I’m hoping that it will reflect the kitchen in my own home, where I’ve laughed endlessly with Adam, where I have sung the entire High School Musical catalog with Kiddo while emptying the dishwasher, and where we always end up hanging out with guests…even though the kitchen is closed off, tiny, and barely fits 4 people. I have high hopes that this book will celebrate the kitchen as the center of a family’s life.

- Little Bunny Can Bake by Janet Stein (March 2009). I heard about this one at the Random House Spring 2009 preview so I haven’t seen it yet. It’s another darling cover.

Unrelated to this particular title, I do have to ask – what’s with the baking trend? Why is it kids and baking are always paired together but cooking gets shorted? I just find that inexplicable. Perhaps publishers are hesitant because of the sharp-knives-so-we-have-to-include-a-safety-warning thing? Disturbing to see a bunny wielding a 10-inch wide-blade Wüsthof (god, I love mine)? I can’t speak for all kids, but I can tell you that Kiddo had just as much fun watching the gratins get crispy in the oven last night as she would have watching cookies bake. And I didn’t have to compete with a sugar crash. The food and the book itself do not necessarily need to be precious to have kid appeal.

- The Year the Swallows Came Early by Kathryn Fitzmaurice (Feb 2009). I picked this up at the HarperCollins Spring 2009 preview and have yet to read it. It does trump my earlier question – the main character, an 11-year-old girl, cooks. I like that this one is a full-fledged fiction title and, as soon as I’m finished reading Suite Scarlett, I’m reading this one. An early review is already up at Kidliterate.

One more question: where are the boys cooking? Are we only to look to Sam Stern as the bastion of young males in the kitchen?

Eat, drink, and share food and books with our children


NOTE: Here are my previous posts on foodie books for kids: here and here.

The One Where Fortune Cookies Amaze Me

So a couple weeks ago, HarperCollins had a shindig at Dylan’s Candy Bar to celebrate the release of The FactTracker by Jason Carter Eaton. Unfortunately, that was when I was in the middle of sick-me-sick-daughter-hell-on-earth so I was unable to go to the event. I told Elyse at HarperCollins that I couldn’t make it. End of story.

But wait, there’s more! I get a lovely little package in the mail today from Elyse. It’s a copy of the book with a nice note from her, and she included a goody bag with M&Ms printed with “Facttracker” on them. There were also four fortune cookies in individual packages: two plain, two chocolate. Hm. I’ve never had a chocolate fortune cookie! So I cracked it open and ate a piece.

Okay, wow. It was completely fresh and crispy and crunchy – the chocolate flavor wasn’t too sweet or cloying, and it was mild enough that I could still taste that typical vanilla fortune cookie flavor. And it was so light that I didn’t feel like I was being overindulgent.

But wait, there’s more! An hour later, I decide to try one of the plain ones. I take a bite, expecting that vanilla-with-a-touch-of-lemon flavor. But not here, nuh-uh. It’s coconut! There’s this earthy, creamy coconut flavor! With the same crispy lightness! And of course, I could still taste the vanilla. This was no ordinary fortune cookie – this was a truly special example of what a fortune cookie can be.

I once had someone tell me that they never ordered crème brulée because crème brulée always tastes the same. She said, “Even now, I can close my eyes and imagine the exact flavor and texture of it. There’s no need to ever eat it.” Naturally, I thought she was crazy. How many times have I ordered crème brulée and been bitterly disappointed at the lack of *crack* in the caramelized crust? Or took a bite of the custard and been surprised by the presence of orange zest? And I love, in particular, taking a spoonful of the custard and seeing those gorgeous specks of black vanilla bean. No, crème brulée is anything but boring and ordinary. And now I know the same is true for fortune cookies.

Need further proof that I haven’t lost my mind? Read this about fortune cookies from the NYT Dining section a few weeks ago.

HarperCollins Spring 2008 Preview

It’s that time of year! Publisher events galore! Autumn is like Christmas for us book loving people! I went to the HarperCollins Spring 2008 preview last Wednesday, and I just RSVP’d for an event with Shaun Tan and a party to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Redwall. And I have nothing to wear to any of them. And I believe I’m one of the few librarians who actually worries about such things. Don’t believe me? Check out the fashion at an ALA conference. I rest my case.

So…the HarperCollins preview. First off, it was the first publisher event I’ve been to since I started this job where I felt completely comfortable. I don’t feel like the new person anymore who knows no one or nothing. Instead, I got to single-cheek-kiss Michael Santangelo and have Kate McClelland tell me how beautiful I am (*blush*). I got to congratulate Patty Rosati on her new baby and talk about the cover of Melissa Marr’s next book with Anne Hoppe. Needless to say, I exhaled a huge sigh of relief.

So what goodies did I see? So many, soooooo many. This is going to be a long post.

1. The next Septimus Heap book, Queste. Unfortunately, I don’t have a cover but, nevertheless, this is going to make lots of kids (and librarians) happy come April 2008.

2. Roscoe Riley Rules, a new intermediate series by Katherine Applegate, promoted as “Junie B. Jones for boys”. We’re always in need of more “boy books” so I’m thrilled with this one. (June 2008)

3. You’re a Bad Man, Mr. Gum! by Andy Stanton, described by Michael Stearns as Monty Python-esque. I don’t know if that’ll help its kid appeal, but I know I’m excited for it! Check out the link for an excerpt. (March 2008)

4. A new picture book by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Gris Grimly: The Dangerous Alphabet. Unlike Wolves in the Walls, the editor says this will be a “true picture book”, in that it will actually be appropriate for the younger crowd. (May 2008)

5. Erin Hunter is also coming out with a new series: Seekers. The first book is The Quest Begins. It’ll be huge, of course. (June 2008)

6. I got goosebumps over the cover of the sequel to The Secret History of Tom Trueheart by Ian Beck: Tom Trueheart and the Land of Dark Stories. The plot sounds awesome – lots of strong female characters, per the editor – and the cover is super dark and foreboding. Chills! (June 2008)

7. Kevin Henkes has a new novel coming out: Bird Lake Moon. I don’t have a pic of the cover for you, but I thought it was a bit too subdued. Nevertheless, I expect greatness inside. (May 2008)
8. I got really excited about a debut author, Jody Feldman, and her book The Gollywhopper Games, which was described as “Encyclopedia Brown goes to Charlie’s chocolate factory.” Ooooh, intriguing! I have the galley and can't wait to read it. (February 2008)

9. The pièce de resistance! Fancy Nancy: Bonjour Butterfly! I’m such a Fancy Nancy geek and this one does not disappoint. It’s trés magnifique! That’s a fancy way of saying it’s wonderful. (February 2008)

10. And I’m just at the tip of the iceberg! I didn’t talk about Gail Carson Levine’s Ever, the Kanns’ Purplicious (sequel to Pinkalicious), Not a Stick by Antoinette Portis, or Laurence Yep’s Dragon’s Child. Not to mention an adorable picture book called Woolbur by Leslie Helakoski and illustrated by Lee Harper. Keep your eyes open because you will no doubt see Woolbur with face-out placement on B&N’s ubiquitous wall o’ picture books.

Phew! I’m exhausted. I still didn’t tell you about everything, but I think this is enough for now.

Note: A big thank you to HarperCollins for all these links and photos!

Lunch with Melissa Marr 9.17.07

So last week, Monday, I went a lovely lunch hosted by HarperCollins. It was an opportunity to meet Melissa Marr, author of the young adult novel Wicked Lovely. I was eager to go because I had heard that Melissa was super nice and I also wanted to hang out with the HarperCollins folks, who I previously have not had a chance to get to know.

It was a very small group – Melissa, Dina Sherman (HC publicity), Melissa’s editor (whose name, unfortunately, has escaped me), LuAnn Toth (of School Library Journal), and me. So five of us. I was initially intimidated – small groups means that I have to keep up my end of the conversation a little better – but I had no need to worry.

We talked about Wicked Lovely and Melissa’s next book in the series, Ink Exchange. The good news is that Ink Exchange is not really a sequel but, rather, it’s a companion novel about two of the less major characters in WL. She's also working on a manga book as well. We also talked about Melissa’s kids and the types of books they’re reading. And we talked a lot about MySpace and the up-and-coming generations that would rather chat with friends over the computer…and will not have the ability to hold a conversation with an actual person. Oh, and of course, we talked about tattoos. Melissa is fond of piercings and tattoos – I think she has an ink guy in every major U.S. city and maybe even some in Europe – so it was fun to talk about those. Often publishers will have these lunches because they know their author represents themselves so well and makes a wonderful impression. That was the case with Melissa. She's wicked smart - pardon the play on "wicked" - and really fascinating to talk to.

The food was very good, of course. LuAnn somehow scored a different menu than the rest of us and was able to order a gnocchi that really wasn’t supposed to be served. Lucky gal!

Overall, it was a wonderful jaunt into the city, and I enjoyed the conversation. I can recommend Wicked Lovely, particularly to all you Stephenie Meyer fans. WL is like Twilight, but with really evil fairies instead of vampires. Enjoy!