Monday, January 31, 2005
NEXT!
Moving right along to Mr William Sleator - here are some intro websites for your viewing pleasure.
+ One of his publishers, Penguin Putnam, has an autobiography online. He splits his living time between Bangkok and Boston. That's awesome; I want to do that!
+ Here's a pretty good fansite, The Green Futures of Tycho, that's taken one of Sleator's books for a title theme. (Tycho is the name of Sleator's youngest sibling who went without an official name for two years)
+ Sleator's not-very-large Official Home Page with contact info - anyone want to call?
+ Another fansite with a little bit of everything.
Sleator's written 30+ books, but I've only read one: Oddballs which is a collection of short stories about his childhood. It is HILARIOUS. The kind of think you laugh out loud about -- and I don't do that.
+ One of his publishers, Penguin Putnam, has an autobiography online. He splits his living time between Bangkok and Boston. That's awesome; I want to do that!
+ Here's a pretty good fansite, The Green Futures of Tycho, that's taken one of Sleator's books for a title theme. (Tycho is the name of Sleator's youngest sibling who went without an official name for two years)
+ Sleator's not-very-large Official Home Page with contact info - anyone want to call?
+ Another fansite with a little bit of everything.
Sleator's written 30+ books, but I've only read one: Oddballs which is a collection of short stories about his childhood. It is HILARIOUS. The kind of think you laugh out loud about -- and I don't do that.
Tuesday, January 25, 2005
Final Thoughts?
It looks like the discussion has died down regarding Hoot. If you have any parting thoughts before we put this book back on the shelf, please type them up! Next week we can post some non-spoiler thoughts about the Sleator book (and if you are having trouble getting a copy, I found two at a used book store and am happy to ship one to you).
Thursday, January 20, 2005
Florida: environment vs. urbanization (oh, and old people and hanging chads)
We all know states have stereotypes. Authors often play on these stereotypes because they a) believe them, or b) enjoy using them as satire. And I'm not going to argue that setting isn't important. I guess I'm asking, "How important is setting in Hoot? What's the deal with Florida?"
Roy is very aware that the state one is from gives that person a certain image. He wants people to think he's from Montana, even though he was born in Detroit.
A reviewer on amazon.com wrote, "[What Roy says] about his home in South Florida, which is just as applicable here in Northern Minnesota or anywhere else encroached by real estate development juggernauts: 'Ever since I was little... I've been watchin' this place disappear - the piney woods, the scrub, the creeks, the glades. Even the beaches, man - they put up these giant hotels and only goober tourists are allowed. It really sucks.' Hoot encourages concern for the environment and social conscience."
I'm not sure how much Hoot influenced my environmental ideals. I like to reach conclusions on my own instead of being hit over the head with a message. Carl Hiaasen is no Edward Bloor (Tangerine). Could Hoot be set anywhere in the United States?
Hiaasen may just be writing from what he knows. He was "born and raised in Florida" and has used the state as a setting for his other books.
Roy is very aware that the state one is from gives that person a certain image. He wants people to think he's from Montana, even though he was born in Detroit.
A reviewer on amazon.com wrote, "[What Roy says] about his home in South Florida, which is just as applicable here in Northern Minnesota or anywhere else encroached by real estate development juggernauts: 'Ever since I was little... I've been watchin' this place disappear - the piney woods, the scrub, the creeks, the glades. Even the beaches, man - they put up these giant hotels and only goober tourists are allowed. It really sucks.' Hoot encourages concern for the environment and social conscience."
I'm not sure how much Hoot influenced my environmental ideals. I like to reach conclusions on my own instead of being hit over the head with a message. Carl Hiaasen is no Edward Bloor (Tangerine). Could Hoot be set anywhere in the United States?
Hiaasen may just be writing from what he knows. He was "born and raised in Florida" and has used the state as a setting for his other books.
Tuesday, January 18, 2005
ALA Announces Award Winners
Newbery and Caldecott Awards, etc.
Clearer listing without the blah blah blah here.
Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata won the Newbery.
Honors to:
Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko
The Voice That Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights by Russell Freedman
Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt
Kevin Henkes won the Caldecott for Kitten’s First Full Moon.
Honors to:
The Red Book illustrated and written by Barbara Lehman
Coming on Home Soon illustrated by E.B. Lewis, written by Jacqueline Woodson
Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale illustrated and written by Mo Willems
Comments? I have lots.
The other awards are on the site - Printz, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Coretta Scott King, Sibert, etc.
Clearer listing without the blah blah blah here.
Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata won the Newbery.
Honors to:
Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko
The Voice That Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights by Russell Freedman
Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt
Kevin Henkes won the Caldecott for Kitten’s First Full Moon.
Honors to:
The Red Book illustrated and written by Barbara Lehman
Coming on Home Soon illustrated by E.B. Lewis, written by Jacqueline Woodson
Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale illustrated and written by Mo Willems
Comments? I have lots.
The other awards are on the site - Printz, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Coretta Scott King, Sibert, etc.
Another big general question
This post steers anyone in another direction, although I want to thank Meera for refreshing me on Nodelman and his definition of children's literature. It's interesting to think about with Hoot, although I feel like it's more complex than the Hoot characters are. I don't even know if this book deserves a critical argument like that. But I think I'm just copping out. Anyway...
So I was intrigued by the interweaving of the narratives and perspectives. I thought it was done okay at most times, like when Roy is in the hospital waiting for Mullet Fingers (seriously, is everyone else picturing a really dirty barefooted boy with a disgusting ratty mullet for a hairdo?) and he hears a siren, so he disappears for a while, and then we see the scene where the parents drive up to the hospital with Officer Delinko and his siren wailing, and the timing and pacing and sequence all kind of come together.
But I have another question: whose book is this? And if you so quickly and automatically answered Roy's, then why all the different perspectives? And if you want to argue for Mullet Fingers (and I can't call him Napoleon either, as that conjures up Dynamite images), is that possible when we never see the story from his perspective?
So I was intrigued by the interweaving of the narratives and perspectives. I thought it was done okay at most times, like when Roy is in the hospital waiting for Mullet Fingers (seriously, is everyone else picturing a really dirty barefooted boy with a disgusting ratty mullet for a hairdo?) and he hears a siren, so he disappears for a while, and then we see the scene where the parents drive up to the hospital with Officer Delinko and his siren wailing, and the timing and pacing and sequence all kind of come together.
But I have another question: whose book is this? And if you so quickly and automatically answered Roy's, then why all the different perspectives? And if you want to argue for Mullet Fingers (and I can't call him Napoleon either, as that conjures up Dynamite images), is that possible when we never see the story from his perspective?
Sunday, January 16, 2005
Hello? Is this thing on?
Lookit, losers, it's January 16, TWO WHOLE DAYS after our discussion was supposed to start, and now your favorite JoBiv, the girl who does not even own a computer, has to start the discussion? C'mon! Sigh... I should start with one of my famous JoBiv vs. Bloomers statements. Here are a few likely ones.
"I noticed, while I was reading, that Joycian telescoping you talked about before." (Then someone interrupts me to prove or disprove.)
"I know we don't usually talk about authorial intent, but I think this book might warrant that kind of questioning..." (Then someone interrupts me to prove or disprove.)
"I wanted to plunge head-first into this book, but couldn't help but get distracted by the..."
(Then someone interrupts me to prove or disprove... YES, before I get to say what distracted me.)
Does anyone here want to interrupt? I knew you did! Go for it!
(P.S. - Joycian telescoping doesn't really apply here, so you non-Children's Lit types should not feel like you're outside of The Loop. Hopefully the rest of us will never have to explain it to you.)
"I noticed, while I was reading, that Joycian telescoping you talked about before." (Then someone interrupts me to prove or disprove.)
"I know we don't usually talk about authorial intent, but I think this book might warrant that kind of questioning..." (Then someone interrupts me to prove or disprove.)
"I wanted to plunge head-first into this book, but couldn't help but get distracted by the..."
(Then someone interrupts me to prove or disprove... YES, before I get to say what distracted me.)
Does anyone here want to interrupt? I knew you did! Go for it!
(P.S. - Joycian telescoping doesn't really apply here, so you non-Children's Lit types should not feel like you're outside of The Loop. Hopefully the rest of us will never have to explain it to you.)
Thursday, January 13, 2005
Why I'm the newest hedgehog
10) Meera told me I had to make new friends, since my current cohort is too old for me.
9) Oprah books depress me, and I've already read all of Jane Austen.
8) I don't get enough mental stimulation at school.
7) I've already watched The West Wing seasons 1-3, and Gilmore Girls is on winter recess.
6) Though she was intimidating on first impression (wearing all black and huddled in the corner of Jenn's room at the beginning of college), Meera is actually quite huggable, and has good taste in people.
5) I am convinced that it might help me uncover the role of the SSU processome protein Utp6 in 18S rRNA biogenesis.
4) I have an explainable fascination with Owen.
3) I don't have nearly enough blogging experience.
2) Meera waved a knife at me because I was talking too much about dancing.
1) The cover of Hoot is blue, and that is my favorite color.
9) Oprah books depress me, and I've already read all of Jane Austen.
8) I don't get enough mental stimulation at school.
7) I've already watched The West Wing seasons 1-3, and Gilmore Girls is on winter recess.
6) Though she was intimidating on first impression (wearing all black and huddled in the corner of Jenn's room at the beginning of college), Meera is actually quite huggable, and has good taste in people.
5) I am convinced that it might help me uncover the role of the SSU processome protein Utp6 in 18S rRNA biogenesis.
4) I have an explainable fascination with Owen.
3) I don't have nearly enough blogging experience.
2) Meera waved a knife at me because I was talking too much about dancing.
1) The cover of Hoot is blue, and that is my favorite color.
Tuesday, January 11, 2005
and we are without
You may notice that the Chatterbox thing has been AWOL for the last two days - the site is down and I don't know when or if it will be back. So I am off to find another.
Saturday, January 08, 2005
Vote for our February Book
It is set up so you can vote every 24 hours; if you really want a particular book, take advantage of that fact.
Wednesday, January 05, 2005
February Book Ideas!
We haven't started discussion on our January text (how academic sounding!) but it would be good to decide on February so we have time to track it down. Here are a few suggestions I came up with; they are linked to Amazon so you can read about them if you've never heard of them before.
Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
House of Stairs by William Sleator
Stand Tall by Joan Bauer
Please post or comment in support of/crapping on these or with other suggestions by Friday. I'll set up a poll this weekend and we can vote on what we want.
Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
House of Stairs by William Sleator
Stand Tall by Joan Bauer
Please post or comment in support of/crapping on these or with other suggestions by Friday. I'll set up a poll this weekend and we can vote on what we want.
Monday, January 03, 2005
His Dark Materials Movie
The Film This could be a very good thing or a very bad one.
I don't know how much I agree with Pullman's last paragraph:
Is there a WRONG way? This isn't Harry Potter, you know.
I also want to discuss The War on Words but my brain is full.
I don't know how much I agree with Pullman's last paragraph:
But to understand that requires the sort of sophistication that you find in bright eleven-year-olds; it may be beyond the reach of some adults. There are more ways than one of telling the story of Lyra and Will, as anyone knows who's been lucky enough to see Nicholas Hytner's wonderful production at the National Theatre in London. That telling differs from the books in some details, but the script, by Nicholas Wright, is faithful to the spirit of the story as it rethinks it in terms of the stage; and I have every confidence that New Line, and whoever ends up directing the films, will be just as faithful when they rethink it in terms of the screen.
Is there a WRONG way? This isn't Harry Potter, you know.
I also want to discuss The War on Words but my brain is full.
Sunday, January 02, 2005
The Hedgehogiest Rumpus I Ever Did See
Happy New Year! Whoohooo! Yay! Yippee!
I can't tell you how hard it has been to keep myself away from Hoot until this very day. I knew I would rush through it if I didn't, and then my comments would not be fresh and exciting, but mostly bullshit, which was how I got through most YA Touchstone discussions. But we'll have none of that, thank you!
Are y'all as excited as I am??? I knew you were!!
I can't tell you how hard it has been to keep myself away from Hoot until this very day. I knew I would rush through it if I didn't, and then my comments would not be fresh and exciting, but mostly bullshit, which was how I got through most YA Touchstone discussions. But we'll have none of that, thank you!
Are y'all as excited as I am??? I knew you were!!
Friday, December 17, 2004
[pin drop]
Just to make some noise, I am reading A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver by Konigsburg, one of the many books I bought at The Tattered Cover. It's good! Entertaining! Funny! Not quite what I expected from what is basically a biography about Eleanor of Aquitaine. But she's a sassy lady, that Eleanor. I haven't read any of Konigsburg's books for younger people in such a long time - it's been her YA stuff, like at Simmons. I read her George last month and that was great, too. Any E.L. Konigsburg commentary?
Oh my good heavens. Someone just put books in the book drop, which is LIKE, 15 feet from the circ desk. I can SEE her! No eye contact, of course. Why put books in the drop when 20 seconds would mean I don't have to go out into the cold, unlock and pry the damn thing open, and fish around for the books? I bet they are overdue and that's why she won't come in - let's check.
- - - - - - -
Oh yes, can I call them or what? That's $7.75 in fines, a broken bag for the kids' book and tape combo and that's not even all they have out. No actual books, just magazines and books on tape. Light readers, they are.
Don't get me wrong - I love magazines. But I think they should be tempered with books.
Is anyone else reading?
Oh my good heavens. Someone just put books in the book drop, which is LIKE, 15 feet from the circ desk. I can SEE her! No eye contact, of course. Why put books in the drop when 20 seconds would mean I don't have to go out into the cold, unlock and pry the damn thing open, and fish around for the books? I bet they are overdue and that's why she won't come in - let's check.
- - - - - - -
Oh yes, can I call them or what? That's $7.75 in fines, a broken bag for the kids' book and tape combo and that's not even all they have out. No actual books, just magazines and books on tape. Light readers, they are.
Don't get me wrong - I love magazines. But I think they should be tempered with books.
Is anyone else reading?
Friday, December 10, 2004
Bloomers' Booktalk!
So, having seen no posters for Susan Bloom's booktalk, I decided to march right on up to the Children's Lit. office and ask some hard questions. On the door to the suite there were two announcements. One was some advertisement for an English course, the other was an inconspicuous poster for the booktalk. It was yesterday afternoon.
That's right, blame me, I missed it. I suck. I did, however, ask the secretary-esque girl if I could get a copy of the list. She had to print it out for me while I browsed books. Nice of her.
Here's the list, sans the promised notes. Bloomers called her talk, "Lost and Found: A Selection of the Best Children's Books of 2004." I would have loved to hear her creating a theme for all of these books to flow together. Alas.
I did take a look at the Virginia Hamilton book - it's a remade version, condensed into picture book format with new illustrations, of The People Could Fly. It's supposed to be a tribute to Hamilton, which is funny considering that they had to cut text to make it fit this format. Weird. But, of course, the Dillons did some beautiful work. Biased? Moi?
Books A La Bloomers:
Almond, David. The Fire-Eaters. Delacorte.
Balliett, Blue. Chasing Vermeer. Scholastic.
Browne, Anthony. In the Forest. Farrar.
Chen, Chih-Yuan. Guchi Guchi. Farrar.
Chodenko, Gennifer. Al Capone Does My Shirts. Putnam.
Crews, Nina. The Neighbordhood Mother Goose. Greenwillow.
Crossley-Holland, Kevin. King of the Middle March. Scholastic.
Farmer, Nancy. The Sea of Trolls. Atheneum.
Fox, Mem. Where is the Green Sheep?, ill. by Judy Horacek. Harcourt.
Freedman, Russell. The Voice That Changed a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights. Clarion.
Hamilton, Virginia. The People Could Fly, ill. by Leo and Diane Dillon. Knopf.
Hoose, Philip. The Race to Save the Lord God Bird. Farrar.
Jenkins, Steve. Actual Size. Houghton.
Kerley, Barbara. Walt Whitman: Words for America, ill. by Brian Selznick. Scholastic.
Leavitt, Martin. Heck Superhero. Front Street.
Martin, Ann. Here Today. Scholastic.
McKay, Hilary. Indigo’s Star. McElderry.
McWhorten, Diane. A Dream of Freedom: The Civil Rights Movement from 1954 to 1968. McElderry.
Montgomery, Sy. The Tarantula Scientist, ill. with photography by Nic Bishop. Houghton.
Nelson, Marilyn. Fortune’s Bones: The Manumission Requiem. Front Street.
Peck, Richard. The Teacher’s Funeral: A Comedy in Three Parts. Dial.
Pratchett, Terry. A Hat Full of Sky. HarperCollins.
Prelutsky, Jack. If Not for the Cat, ill. by Ted Rand. Greenwillow.
Rogers, Gregory. The Boy, The Bear, The Baron, The Bard. Roaring Brook.
Rumford, James. Sequoyah: The Cherokee Man Who Gave His People Writing. Houghton.
Sabuda, Robert. America the Beautiful. Simon & Schuster.
Schwartz, Amy. A Glorious Day. Atheneum.
Simon, James. Baby Brains: The Smartest Baby in the Whole World. Candlewick.
Thomas, Dylan. A Child’s Christmas in Wales, ill. by Chris Raschka. Candlewick.
Waddell, Martin. Tiny’s Big Adventure, ill. by John Lawrence. Candlewick.
Weeks, Sarah. So B. It. HarperCollins.
Willem, Mo. Knuffle Bunny. Hyperion.
Wolf, Allan. New Found Land. Candlewick.
Wormell, Christopher. Teeth, Tails & Tentacles: An Animal Counting Book. Running Press.
That's right, blame me, I missed it. I suck. I did, however, ask the secretary-esque girl if I could get a copy of the list. She had to print it out for me while I browsed books. Nice of her.
Here's the list, sans the promised notes. Bloomers called her talk, "Lost and Found: A Selection of the Best Children's Books of 2004." I would have loved to hear her creating a theme for all of these books to flow together. Alas.
I did take a look at the Virginia Hamilton book - it's a remade version, condensed into picture book format with new illustrations, of The People Could Fly. It's supposed to be a tribute to Hamilton, which is funny considering that they had to cut text to make it fit this format. Weird. But, of course, the Dillons did some beautiful work. Biased? Moi?
Books A La Bloomers:
Almond, David. The Fire-Eaters. Delacorte.
Balliett, Blue. Chasing Vermeer. Scholastic.
Browne, Anthony. In the Forest. Farrar.
Chen, Chih-Yuan. Guchi Guchi. Farrar.
Chodenko, Gennifer. Al Capone Does My Shirts. Putnam.
Crews, Nina. The Neighbordhood Mother Goose. Greenwillow.
Crossley-Holland, Kevin. King of the Middle March. Scholastic.
Farmer, Nancy. The Sea of Trolls. Atheneum.
Fox, Mem. Where is the Green Sheep?, ill. by Judy Horacek. Harcourt.
Freedman, Russell. The Voice That Changed a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights. Clarion.
Hamilton, Virginia. The People Could Fly, ill. by Leo and Diane Dillon. Knopf.
Hoose, Philip. The Race to Save the Lord God Bird. Farrar.
Jenkins, Steve. Actual Size. Houghton.
Kerley, Barbara. Walt Whitman: Words for America, ill. by Brian Selznick. Scholastic.
Leavitt, Martin. Heck Superhero. Front Street.
Martin, Ann. Here Today. Scholastic.
McKay, Hilary. Indigo’s Star. McElderry.
McWhorten, Diane. A Dream of Freedom: The Civil Rights Movement from 1954 to 1968. McElderry.
Montgomery, Sy. The Tarantula Scientist, ill. with photography by Nic Bishop. Houghton.
Nelson, Marilyn. Fortune’s Bones: The Manumission Requiem. Front Street.
Peck, Richard. The Teacher’s Funeral: A Comedy in Three Parts. Dial.
Pratchett, Terry. A Hat Full of Sky. HarperCollins.
Prelutsky, Jack. If Not for the Cat, ill. by Ted Rand. Greenwillow.
Rogers, Gregory. The Boy, The Bear, The Baron, The Bard. Roaring Brook.
Rumford, James. Sequoyah: The Cherokee Man Who Gave His People Writing. Houghton.
Sabuda, Robert. America the Beautiful. Simon & Schuster.
Schwartz, Amy. A Glorious Day. Atheneum.
Simon, James. Baby Brains: The Smartest Baby in the Whole World. Candlewick.
Thomas, Dylan. A Child’s Christmas in Wales, ill. by Chris Raschka. Candlewick.
Waddell, Martin. Tiny’s Big Adventure, ill. by John Lawrence. Candlewick.
Weeks, Sarah. So B. It. HarperCollins.
Willem, Mo. Knuffle Bunny. Hyperion.
Wolf, Allan. New Found Land. Candlewick.
Wormell, Christopher. Teeth, Tails & Tentacles: An Animal Counting Book. Running Press.
Thursday, December 09, 2004
I'm not shy...
You think people don't want photos of themselves on this site? Ha! I scoff at such an accusation! We are all confident, beautiful people who delight in sharing our shining faces with friends and strangers alike!
JoBiv, camera-shy? NEVOR! I know not what you speak of!
Just to prove it, I'm sharing the following photo:
JoBiv, camera-shy? NEVOR! I know not what you speak of!
Just to prove it, I'm sharing the following photo:
Pictures?
Okay, I am still jazzing away. I have another idea for the website. At first I wanted to put a picture bar (just a line of pictures next to each other) of all the bookclub members on the website, but then some people don't like their picture up, so THEN I thought of a really good idea (I like it anyways): I can make a picture bar of everyone's favorite author. So let me know what your fave author is and I will Google for a good image (unless you have a picture already saved as your desktop image, in that case just email me the pic: smimholt@yahoo.com).
Mr Hoot's Official Web Site
Carl Hiaasen's Official Web Site Do you want to get up close and personal? Not tons of info here, but it is his Official website.
He also writes a column for the Miami Herald.
Must clean up kitchen.
Q. Do you plan to write another novel for young readers?
Absolutely. I'll be starting on it as soon as finish the current book. I haven't decided yet whether it will be a sequel to HOOT, or whether I'll have a whole new cast of characters.
He also writes a column for the Miami Herald.
Must clean up kitchen.
Wednesday, December 08, 2004
Title Picture
Okay, since I am laid up with a bum foot, I have lots of time to 'jazz up' the Rules website. I have designed a title pic that will be on the page, but I wanted input as it is going to be a group page.
Do you like it?
No?
What don't you like?
Too much color? (or not enough? hey, some people like color)
Too wispy?
Don't like the clouds?
Don't like the rainbow lettering?
Don't like the font?
Let me know what you think. I can take it. I've got lots of time and resources and the only other thing I might be doing right now is a counted cross stich my Mom sent me.
Do you like it?
No?
What don't you like?
Too much color? (or not enough? hey, some people like color)
Too wispy?
Don't like the clouds?
Don't like the rainbow lettering?
Don't like the font?
Let me know what you think. I can take it. I've got lots of time and resources and the only other thing I might be doing right now is a counted cross stich my Mom sent me.
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
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