Category Archives: Reading

Why Read a Book More Than Once?

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Joanna and I were discussing our favorite books recently, and Joanna mentioned a few books she liked so much she has read them multiple times. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book more than once. Why is that? The short answer is: I don’t have time.

The longer answer is that I have many books I absolutely love. I keep a small collection of my favorites on the bookcase in my living room. I would like to read them again, but many of my favorites – Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, etc.- are over 900 pages long. So the chances of me finding time to read that many pages on a short period of time is slim. I might set aside the needed time, but my list of “want to read” is very long. So I choose to discover a new story instead.

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I may like the new book, or I may not. It might get donated, or I might find room for it with my other favorites. Perhaps I will think of my bookcase as a collection of stories for a future day when my obligations are less and my free time is greater.

Do you read books multiple times? If so, what books are they? Please share in the comments.

What Are You Reading?

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As a children’s book writer and a mother of 2 young kids, I read a ton of children’s books. We add a new batch of picture books to our reading list each week when we visit the library, and the kids eagerly expand their personal libraries when they get bookstore gift cards. I have a long list of “want to read” books, which include new books that have been recommended and classics that somehow escaped my childhood education.

My son and I are slowly working our way through the chapter books and young novels on the list, reading a few chapters each night together. We just finished The Borrowers (which my daughter also liked listening to), and now we are on to Holes. I like when there is a film version to show them afterwards. It results in some lively discussions about how the version on screen is similar of different than what they had built up in their minds. The Japanese anime movie The Secret Life of Arrietty is based on The Borrowers, which we’ll watch next week.

With all of these children’s books to read, sometimes I want a break to return to the adult world of literature. I have a big stack of writing craft books and a Jim Henson biography waiting for me, but my go-to books help me escape to somewhere else entirely. My favorites are fantasy, science fiction, and suspense/thrillers/crime.

Sometimes the categories blur a little between adult and young adult, like in the case of Harry Potter, Eragon, and The Lord of the Rings (all of which I absolutely loved). I just finished a Terry Pratchett novel called Snuff, featuring the complex and tell-it-like-it-is Commander Sam Vimes. Terry Pratchett is a comic fantasist, weaving dry humor, social commentary, and human nature into his Discworld novels. I have thoroughly enjoyed nearly everyone of his books, and his characterization of Death cracks me up every time.

I’m starting J.K. Rowling’s book, The Casual Vacancy, and then I’m on to some crime novels. I especially like Swedish crime novels right now (like Three Seconds), which I got interested in after reading The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo trilogy. Luckily, I’m a fast reader, because there are so many more books I want to read!

What are you reading right now? Who are your go-to authors? Please share your suggestions… I’d love to keep supplementing my list with good recommendations!

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Gifts for Your Favorite Book Lovers

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Yes, it’s true. There are 18 shopping days left until Christmas. But don’t despair! If you have book lovers in your life, I have some great ideas for you. I have several nieces and nephews who are avid readers, and I searched high and low this year for something creative to get them. I always get them a gift card for Barnes and Noble, but what could I get them that would be interesting and unique?

  1. Zipper pouches, Bags, and T-shirts made with classic book cover images: Vintage Books
  2. Clip-on Booklights
  3. Journals: There are so many kinds, you can choose one that really suits your reader/writer. There are small ones ideal for backpacks or purses, larger format ones with room for sketching or doodling, and even ones for beginners like the one my son chose. There are even ones with writing prompts to get you started!
  4. Story Cubes: I bought these for my niece who is a budding writer. Each set has different images. To get you started on writing a story, you just roll the cubes and write something about whatever turns up.
  5. Personal Library Kit, with date stamp included: I wish I had one of these when I was young. I made up my own version for my personal “library.” My brother was never particularly good at returning my books on time.
  6. In the Library Perfume: Really.
  7. Tablet covers and Purses that look like book covers
  8. Car Window Decals: I thought I had seen all versions of the family decals, but I was pleasantly surprised to discover the Reading Family decals!Xmas bulbs 2013

Best wishes in your shopping endeavors. I’m heading to my local independent bookstore next week to snag some other creative gifts.

What are you buying the readers and writers in your life this year? Share in the comments!

From the Minds of Babes

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At baseball games, we moms take turns holding a new baby. Some of us wish for more babies of our own (not me), or we drink in his sweetness and then return him to his mom. We were discussing what he might look like as he gets older. Would he look like his older brothers? Would he want to play baseball too? Would he like the same music and books?

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I know each child is different, but I have been struck by the books that both my kids enjoy, and where their tastes are different. Some of the differences are based on topic. When he was younger, Aidan liked books about cars and construction vehicles, and Elizabeth loves Fancy Nancy and The Very Fairy Princess… really anything princess.

But some books both love – those filled with humor, creativity, wit, and great illustrations. We have dogeared You Are a Lion, One Cool Friend, and Elephant and Piggie.

So what books will this future little boy read? Which ones will he love so much that he takes them to bed with him?

I hope he loves reading as much as my kids do. Perhaps one day he’ll read a book I’ve written! (I can dream, right?)

Is Bigger Really Better?

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We live in a super-sized world. We innately believe (with a little product marketing help) that things are better when they are bigger, taller, more extensive, or more expensive.

But that’s not always the case. The Harry Potter books aren’t great just because they are long. To be great, they also have to be engaging, creative, and suspenseful. For a book to be superlative for you and other readers, it has to connect with you, regardless of how many pages it is. Do you remember special books that you loved, and read over and over again? I’m sure they had many characteristics in common, but I bet page count was not one of them.

I was reminded of this a few weeks ago when planning a trip to the zoo with my kids. I had originally planned to take them to the Bronx Zoo, which is a full day trip for us and isn’t cheap. It’s a wonderful zoo, and we have loved all of our other visits. But due to the threat of rain, I decided we would try our state zoo instead.

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It is much smaller than the Bronx Zoo, but it was perfect for that day and this time in my children’s young lives. We explored the whole zoo in 2-1/2 hours, seeing plenty of exciting animals including tigers, alligators, and a little bird who wanted us to take him home. It was surprisingly fun, and just the right size for two young kids and one tired mommy. It was a quality zoo, regardless of its size. And we connected with it, going back to see the tigers (our favorite) again and again.

We’ll certainly be back to the Bronx Zoo again some time, but I’m glad there’s also a place for the smaller, charming, quality experience.

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Writing From the Heart

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This summer, amongst the nature hikes, bike riding, dips in the pool, and visits to the museum, my son and I are working on his writing skills. Last summer we worked on reading. We read together over and over – fiction, non-fiction, adventure, science, humor – until it clicked. One day, he started to love reading. He felt proud of his ability to read by himself. Not without challenging words here and there, but it was FUN.writing

This summer, I’m hoping for a similar aha moment. We’ve done journalling about the week’s adventures, but no excitement so far there. Now we’re trying letter writing.

Aidan gets to choose who he writes his letter to. Last week he chose Grandma and Pa. He could write whatever he wanted. So he wrote:

Dear Grandma and Pa-

I love my family, and I love you.

Love, Aidan

It was short certainly, but very sweet. No mixed messages or confused syntax there. Just “here’s how I feel.”

It remains to be seen if this will get him excited about writing. We’ll see how he does on his next letter. It does, however, inspire me to write a little today. Not for any direct purpose, but just to write. How I feel today. What I’m thinking.

I won’t be mailing it off to Grandma and Pa, but maybe knowing it’s really not going anywhere will make me more uninhibited.

Take a few minutes on this hot summer day to write. A poem, a story, a few lines. You might be surprised what’s on your mind. And where it takes you.

Congratulations to the Crystal Kite Award Winners

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What is the Crystal Kite Award? Isn’t it called the Golden Kite Award? No, I haven’t gone jewel blind (really, I would love any jewels… ) The Golden Kite Award is given by the SCBWI each year to recognize the best in 4 children’s literature categories. The Crystal Kite Award are also given by the SCBWI, but it is the “regional complement” to the Golden Kite Awards. All 70 regions across the globe were put into one of fifteen divisions, and then each division voted for their favorite children’s book by a SCBWI member in their region for that year.

I am in the New England US region, so I eagerly awaited the email notification for each round of voting. There were so many books that I liked on the New England list, and I was especially pleased to see that these great stories were written somewhere in my part of the world.

The winners were recently announced, with Jo Knowles taking the prize for New England with her novel, See You At Harry’s. I had the pleasure of taking a workshop from Jo last October, so I was thrilled for her to get this extra recognition (the book has already received much praise and interest).

In looking at the complete list of world-wide winners, there were other favorites I recognized, and some others that are on my increasingly long To Read List: The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate (which also received the Newbery Medal this year), Creepy Carrots by Aaron Brown (a Caldecott Honor Book), Boy + Bot by Ame Dyckman, and 15 Days Without a Head by Dave Cousins. Admittedly, I am intrigued to read that last one by the title alone.

Have you read any of the other Crystal Kite winners? Any that you would recommend? Please share!

Congratulations to the Crystal Kite Award winners for having their work praised by their peers, a choosy group with very high standards (right?).

My local library reopens Monday after being closed for 6 weeks for a long-awaited renovation. I’m off to see how many of my To Read List books I can jump into this month. Wish me luck!

Revisiting the Classics

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I was reading a message board the other day concerning classic picture books that make you wonder how they ever got published. Part of the discussion centered around how the children’s book market has changed over the years. The approach to children’s education and the state of the children’s book market was quite different seventy, fifty, or even twenty years ago. I wrote a previous blog post on some of the classics, and how they hold up.

Classic Books

What was most interesting to me about this discussion was not the different opinions about why classics are classics, and why some hold up throughout the years, and some do not. What I saw when I read each post was this: Everyone likes something different.

Several specific books were mentioned, especially Madeline. There were some pretty strong opinions on why they loved the book, or not.  Some loved it, some hated it. I myself don’t get the appeal of Madeline. The character strikes me as a spoiled brat who is put into a variety of unrealistic (but not fantasy) situations.

Regardless, I may not like it, but clearly others do. Some people may find several of my favorite books annoying or dated. But we all, as readers (children and adults alike) like something different.

Editors and publishers today may focus primarily on what will sell the most copies. They must analyze and assess the market of today, and what meets the needs of the bookstore, online, and school markets. I don’t envy them the challenge of trying to float a ship on the changing tides of pop culture and educational theory.

As I writer, I have had many arguments with myself (quietly, I promise) about whether to ditch the story I really love in favor of something more commercially viable. As I advance my craft, I strive to create stories that meet both my personal requirements and the needs of the current market.

But I must start at the beginning: writing what is in my heart. Perhaps what I write will be sellable someday (hopefully!). But if I don’t write what is in my heart, I believe it won’t speak the truth or touch my readers in any way. And if everyone likes something different, perhaps instead of trying to speak to everyone, I should strive to speak to someone.

So in the end, whether a story meets the technical requirements of today’s market or not, it must start in a personal place. And that’s good news.  The joy of writing down the stories that are begging me to be written, those that occupy a special place in my heart and mind, are why I write in the first place.

Review: Race You to Bed

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Race You to Bed

Race You to Bed

Written and Illustrated By: Bob Shea

Katherine Tegen Books, 2010, Hardcover Version

Target Audience: Ages 4-7

Genre: Fiction

How We Discovered This Book

We found this at our local bookstore, and fell in love with the bunny main character.

Summary

A fuzzy bunny races the reader to bed – running, on a boat, on a plane. All in charming rhyme.

What I Liked

The text is fun to read aloud for adults and kids, using nontraditional rhyme. The main character is drawn with big feet and fuzzy all over, which makes him visually interesting. Each page is a surprise to see what he’s going to do next.

What Did My Son Aidan Think?

Both my son and my daughter love this book. It is in frequent bedtime rotation at our house. Unfortunately, it does not make them hurry off to bed. Our favorite part is a personal one. At one point in the story, the bunny comes across his Uncle Ted. My kids also have an Uncle Ted, who  is a snappy dresser himself.Race You to Bed

Resources

If you enjoy this book too, and would like have more fun with it, here are some ideas to supplement the story:

– Which Version is Your Favorite? Read the book to your favorite child reader with your best bunny voice, and then challenge them to read it creating their own voice. You can even check out a video version made by Bob Shea. Then vote on which one was your favorite.

– The bunny has to overcome many obstacles to make it to bed. Talk about what obstacles they might have in their day. Or even what gets in their way as they get ready for bed.

Goal! – Sports in YA Lit.

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Let me be frank. I am not a sporty person. Yes, I love the Olympics. Yes, I watched horse racing as an eighth-grader, even reruns. Yes, I did train for a triathlon once. But would I ever have anticipated reading and enjoying a novel with a sports theme so strong it constitutes its own character? In two letters, no.

But I love Chris Crutcher. And every one of his books — the ones I’ve read at this point — are sports books.

I first heard about Mr. Crutcher at the SCBWI NYC Winter 2012 Conference. He was a key note speaker, and man did he ever rock. He talked about the importance of using humor in order to write about grief. The audience was laughing and crying, almost simultaneously, as he pulled us down to the darkest depths of an emotional experience, only to lift us up through some unexpected, humorous twist. I’ve since read a good handful of his books, and each has provided me with the same wondrous blend of dark and light. Crutcher is a master, that’s for sure.

And he loves sports. Whether it’s swimming, cross-country, football, or basketball, Crutcher’s ability to develop sports into a character of its own is pretty remarkable, and that’s coming from someone who is not a sporty person. At times, his blow by blow narration of sporting events can be overwhelming for non-sporty people. Truthfully, I have to tune some of it out. That’s because I have no idea about layups and sweeps and off-sides. Even so, Crutcher uses sports to showcase his characters and their personalities, and even a non-sporty like me can understand the positive influence that sports can have on a person, in this case a teenager.

My favorite book so far was Stotan! This book is about four boys — the only members of their high school swim team. Being a swimmer, or should I say someone who enjoys a lap swim now and then, I could relate to this one a bit more. The boys enlist in a training exercise put on by their coach, and it’s a b&#$^ of an exercise. Somehow, even though I’ve never swum for four hours straight, doing sprints and pyramids and crab-crawls on the rough poolside, I understood how the boys were going to be stronger because of this challenge, more able to withstand the grief that Crutcher puts them through.

If you like sports and you also like YA novels, I highly recommend Crutcher’s books. If you like see protagonists face the gritty grief of real life and come out of the water still breathing, then read his books.