By: Aline Pereira,
on 3/19/2012
Announced today at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair:
2012 Hans Christian Andersen Award Winners:
Maria Teresa Andruetto (Argentina) – Author
Peter Sis (Czech Republic) – Illustrator
IBBY-Asahi Reading Promotion Award Winners:
Abuelas Cuentacuentos – The Grandmother Storytelling Programme (Argentina)
and
By: Aline Pereira,
on 3/16/2012
I had an amazing day yesterday at the opening of the latest exhibition at Seven Stories in Newcastle, UK: A Squash and a Squeeze: Sharing Stories with Julia Donaldson.
The exhibition is a glorious extravaganza where fans of Julia‘s books will be able to revel in the worlds of all their favorite characters. Each section takes you into one of her books and as always at Seven Stories, there’s something for everyone – plenty of interactive activities to absorb the youngest visitor while older children and the grown-ups revel in the archival material such as Julia’s notebooks and the original artwork on display. There are buttons at toddler height; lots of opportunities for dressing up; and a house full of animals to get squashed and squeezed in. There’s a monster-sized Gruffalo and even a gruffalo stage with lots of costumes, and a juke box playing Julia’s songs – I think that’s one of Julia’s favourite displays. It is very special to see so much original artwork by her illustrators: Axel Scheffler of course, and also Karen George, Emily Gravett, Lydia Monks, David Roberts and Nick Sharratt (who also figures prominently in Seven Stories other current exhibition about Jacqueline Wilson). One of my favorite bits is a letter from Julia to her publisher about Room on the Broom, which was and is my dad’s favorite book to read to my two. In it Julia asks for the witch to look more scatty as she’s come to realise the witch is based on her as far as putting things down and not remembering where she’s put them! Another gem is the film entitled The Gruffalo’s Mum, a mini-documentary about Julia, with a specially written poem that she enacts to takes us through her day, with a few surprises along the way. I don’t think you can say “typical day” for Julia…
As Julia said in her speech to declare the exhibition open, she is “thrilled that it encapsulates some of my themes as Children’s Laureate” – namely music, drama and making stories accessible to deaf children. For Bessie-Belle, the partially deaf fairy in Julia’s Freddie and the Fairy guides visitors through the exhibition; Seven Stories has worked with ITV Signed Stories to produce signed films of some of the stories profiled; and visitors can learn to handsign book titles and key words from the stories.
Here’s a selection of photos from the day. The good ones, with an asterisk, are kindly provided by Seven Stories.
I paused on my drive north for a coffee at the lovely White Rose Books in Thirsk and lo and behold, was straight into the Gruffalo theme…
First stop at Seven Stories: their bookshop…
One of
By: Aline Pereira,
on 3/16/2012
Our bags are packed and in a few hours both Marjorie and I will be flying to Italy to attend the 2012 Bologna Children’s Book Fair! As we all know, the Bologna Children’s Book Fair is the most important international event dedicated to children’s publishing. 2012 marks the 49th edition of the fair and will take place March 19th – 22nd. Over 20,000 square meters of exhibition space have been booked, over 1,200 exhibitors from over 66 countries are confirmed, and a jam-packed programme of events has been released. A small sampling of the highlights:
The 2012 Guest of Honor at the Illustrators Exhibition will be Portugal. Portugal will present an exhibit entitled Como as cerejas (Like cherries), a selection of works by well established illustrators for children’s books as well as works by young artists presenting the finest in contemporary Portuguese illustration.
The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award announcement will be broadcast live to Bologna from Sweden on March 20th. This is the 10th anniversary of ALMA and is especially exciting for us as PaperTigers is a nominating body for the award.
Bologna Children’s Book Fair – SM Foundation International Award for Illustration. This winner of this award, reserved to young illustrators (under 35) selected for the 2012 Illustrators Exhibition, will be announced on March 21.
Illustrators Exhibition. Once again, a wealth of works by illustrators (well-known professionals and emerging talents) will be on display. The 2012 international jury has selected 72 illustrators from 2,685 participants and 360 illustrations will be exhibited.
BolognaRagazzi Awards. This initative rewards the best books in terms of graphic and editorial design and this year, along wit
By: Aline Pereira,
on 3/7/2012
Have you already started? Or is your pile of books ready to go? Who are you going to read to? Who is going to read to you? If you haven’t registered yet, head over to LitWorld right away…
We’ll be reading to each other in the car and at home, and imagining a world where everyone can read…
By: Aline Pereira,
on 3/2/2012
I’m posting my week-end book review a day early to clock in with Poetry Friday as a couple of days ago I received a review copy of Kate Coombs and Meilo So‘s new book Water Sings Blue, which Kate gave us a glimpse of back in January when her first copies arrived (and if you don’t know Kate’s blog, Book Aunt, it’s well worth a read). It arrived just in time to squeeze it into our Water in Multicultural Children’s Books theme…
Poetry Friday this week is hosted by Dori at Dori Reads…
Kate Coombs, illustrated by Meilo So,
Water Sings Blue: Ocean Poems
Chronicle Books, 2012.
Ages 4-11
The finely tuned observation in both the poetry and illustrations of Water Sings Blue draws young readers into that world of the shoreline where time just seems to disappear and exploration offers up endless possibilities for discovery. Kate Coombs’ poems are satisfyingly memorable, with their cohesive patterns of meter and rhyme that, nevertheless, contain plenty of surprises – like, for example, the alliteration and internal rhyming at the end of “Sand’s Story”, in which mighty rocks have turned to sand:
Now we grind and we grumble,
humbled and grave,
at the touch of our breaker
and maker, the wave.
… Not to mention the witty pun on “breaker”: and the gentle wit of Coomb’s verse also lights the imagination throughout this collection.
Turning the pages, readers encounter a vast array of sea characters, starting in the air with the seagull; then listening to “What the Waves Say” before diving down to meet the creatures of the deep: like the shy octopus author (think ink…), or the beautiful but self-absorbed fish whose tail and fins act as brushes, and who concludes his/her soliloquy with the wonderfully evocative: “I’m a water artist. / You wouldn’t understand.” As well as creatures like sharks and jellyfish, there are poems about fascinating, less well-known fish – “Oarfish”, “Gulper Eel” and “Nudibranch”: they could become a follow-up project by themselves! There’s also a deep-sea shipwreck, and back on the sea shore, a gnarled “Old Driftwood” telling stories “to all the attentive / astonished twigs”, and a property agent hermit crab with a salesman’s patter.
Bringing all the poems together in a visual feast are Meilo So’s gorgeous watercolors. As well as her depiction of jewel-colored corals and waves in every shade of blue imaginable, her illustrations are clearly also influenced by direct observation of the shoreline around her Shetland Isle home, from fishermen’s cottages to diving gannets.
Just like in real beachcombing, young readers will lose track of time as they pore over So’s seashores for
By: Aline Pereira,
on 2/27/2012
It’s been a wondewrful few days here in Vancouver. Serendipity was fabulous – and many thanks to the Vancouver Children’s Literature Roundtable for hosting us and for putting together such a great program. I’ll be heading for the airport shortly, on my way back to the UK, and taking with me some wonderful memories, as well as a suitcase full of books…
Here’s a selection of the many photos I took -
Friday’s Gala Dinner:
Allen Say and Lisa Yee:
Our table, lef to right: Corinne, our lovely “Guardian Angel” for the conference Kat Thomson, Lisa’s “Guardian Angel” Rob Biittner, Lisa Yee and me behind.
Saturday – Serendipity 2012 at the Neville Scarfe Building, University of British Columbia – “The Year of the Dragon”
Paul Yee and Lisa Yee:
PaperTigers’ Paper Tiger meets Peepy Peep:
Getting our presentation set up…
Allen Say’s prsentation – here with his photograph with Sensei Noro Shinpei:
Making dragons at the lunchtime workshop with Origami Master Joseph Wu:
Then waking everybody up post lunch with some dancing from Shiamak’s Bollywood Dancers – billed to “rouse your inner dragon” – they sure did!
Saturday evening –
By: Aline Pereira,
on 2/20/2012
By: Aline Pereira,
on 2/17/2012
Looking back at 2011 one of my highlights was attending the Asian Festival of Children’s Content (AFCC) in Singapore. I met so many lovely people and learned so much more about what was happening in the world of Asian children’s literature at this world class event that I would not hesitate to recommend the AFCC as a “must do” to anyone that is able to attend. The organizers did a fabulous job of putting together a program that was jam packed with informative sessions conducted by speakers from around the globe. Stats show that the 2011 AFCC attracted over 600 participants from 23 countries in the 3 days festival, which comprised of 4 key conferences, 7 Tracks, 70 Sessions, 70 Speakers, 1 Children’s Literature Lecture and 2 literary awards. In addition, another 400 participants attended the free events held in conjunction with the AFCC. President Jose Ramos Horta President of Timor – Leste delivered the Children’s Literature Lecture and presented the literary awards. To get a feel for what I experienced at the 2011 Festival read my posts here and visit our PaperTigers’ July issue which focused on Singapore and the Asian Festival of Children’s content.
The 3rd Asian Festival of Children’s Content will be taking place May 26 – 29, 2012. Venue is to remain the same: the historic Arts House in Singapore. Organizers are hard at work planning a program that I’m sure will be as successful than 2011. For more information head on over to the Asian Festival of Children’s Content website or visit their facebook page. Illustrators take note – last week the call went out for submissions of published work to be showcased at the Book Illustrators Gallery. Closing date for submissions is March 31. Email afccbig (at) gmail (dot) com for more details.
By: Aline Pereira,
on 2/13/2012
PRESS RELEASE:
International Book Giving Day (February 14th)
International Book Giving Day is a day dedicated to getting new, used, and borrowed books in the hands of as many children as possible. Tomi Ungerer, Judy Bloom, Katrina Germein and several other great authors are participating. It would be great to have you participate too!
We hope that we can connect people from around the world via International Book Giving Day’s website, facebook page, flickr group, and work together to focus on a good cause: getting books to kids.
Three simple ways you can celebrate International Book Giving Day:
1. Give a Book to a Friend or Relative.
Is there a child in your life who would enjoy receiving a book on February 14th? In lieu of or in addition to a card or box of chocolates, choose a good book from a bookstore or public library to give to your child, grandchild, friend, or neighbor.
2. Donate a Book.
Wrap up a box of children’s books that your kids have outgrown and get them in the hands of children who could really use a book or two. Donate your books to your local second hand store, library, children’s hospital, or nonprofit organization working to ensure that all kids have access to books.
3. Leave a Book in a Waiting Room or Lobby.
Choose a waiting room where kids are stuck waiting and there are few to no good books available. Purchase a good book, and deposit your book covertly or overtly in your waiting room of choice. The goal here is to spread the love of reading to kids, so choose a fun book, nothing controversial.
Let us know that you are participating, and we will add you to our list of people giving books for International Book Giving Day: http://bookgivingday.blogspot.com/2012/02/were-giving-books-for-international.html
It would be fantastic to have your help with encouraging others to participate – especially others outside of the U.S. and U.K. Please, consider inviting authors, friends, and family in countries around the world to take part in International Book Giving Day.Let’s see how many people we can get to commit to giving a book to a child by February 14th!
Organizers: Amy Broadmoore and Zoe Toft
By: Aline Pereira,
on 2/1/2012
Black History Month~ Canada
African American History Month~ USA
National African American Read-in~ USA
National Year of Reading~ Australia
National Storytelling Week~ ongoing until Feb 4, United Kingdom
Kolkata Book Fair~ ongoing until Feb 6, Kolkata, India
Japanese Children’s Literature: A History from the International Library of Children’s Literature Collections~ ongoing until Feb 12, Tokyo, Japan
Taipei Book Fair~ Feb 1 -6, Taipei, Taiwan
28 Days Later: A Black History Celebration of Children’s and YA Lit~ Feb 1 – 29, USA
Children’s Literature Symposium: The Same Text but Different: Variants in Children’s Media~ Feb 3 – 4, Sarasota, FL, USA
2012 Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour~ Feb 5 – 10
The Association of Writers and Illustrators for Children (AWIC) Presents an International Conference on Book Therapy~ Feb 9 – 11, New Delhi, India
Imagine Children’s Festival~ Feb 10 – 26, London, United Kingdom
Writer-in-Residence Launch: Meet Sarah Ellis~ Feb 11, Toronto, ON, Canada
47th ACELT Conference: Reading Ourselves, Reading the World~ Feb 11, Manila, Philippines
2011 Cybils (the Children’s and Young Adult Bloggers’ Literary Awards) Winners Announced~ Feb 14
First Nations Public Library Week~ Feb 14 – 19, Province of Ontario, Canada
Chapter & Verse’s (A Book Club for Adults Discussing Children’s Lit) Discussion of ALA/ALSC Award Winners Feb 15, USA
Sun Gallery’s Twenty-third Annual Children’s Book
By: Aline Pereira,
on 1/30/2012
Excitement is building in London, England as the city gets ready to host some once in a lifetime events this summer! Athletes from over 200 countries will converge in London July 27 – August 12 to take part in the 2012 Summer Olympics. Two weeks later (August 23 – 26) children’s literature enthusiasts from around the world will gather at London’s Imperial College for the 33rd IBBY (International Board on Books for Young People) International Congress. Here at PaperTigers excitement is also building as we have just learned our editor, Marjorie Coughlan, has been chosen to present her paper at the 33rd IBBY International Congress Parallel Sessions!
The main theme of the 2012 Congress is Crossing Boundaries: Translations and Migrations. Participants will explore how books and stories for children and young people can cross boundaries and migrate across different countries and cultures. The congress will look at issues such as globalisation, dual-language texts, cultural exchange and the art of translation. The programme outline has just been released and can be seen here.
Marjorie’s paper, Escaping Conflict, Seeking Peace: picture books that relate refugee stories, draws attention to picture books in English from around the world about children and young people who have been forced from their homes because of conflict. These are important stories that need to be told, whether they are biographical or fictionalised accounts, for understanding of the past, healing in the present, and hope for the future. Her paper arose in part from PaperTigers’ August 2010 issue that focused on Refugee Children and the abstract for her paper can be read here….
These days we hear statistics bandied about for every aspect of our lives. We have become inured to ever-larger numbers being thrown at us on both domestic and international news. It is often hard to envisage what these figures actually represent in real terms – and when they represent people caught up in a disaster somewhere far away on the other side of the globe, the sheer size of what we are hearing can be insidiously numbing. How, then, to make sense of them? And how do we help children to take on board their human significance, without inflicting on them their trauma-inducing enormity? The answer is books. Thankfully, there is an increasing availability of quality writing for children and young adults, which draws out individual stories of young people caught up in disasters not of their making. These books provide a well-researched background giving readers insight into events that can either be pinpointed in history or are a realistic representation of what it means to be a refugee. They promote empathy, a thirst to know more and an urge to do something. Picture books provide visual impact: illustrations often provide a link with the cultures represented, through the style or artistic techniques adopted and in some cases take the place of words. Picture books provide access to difficult stories, not only for young children but also for older children and teenagers: in recent years, there has been a noticeable growth in picture books aimed at teenagers, with high quality artwork that challenges and demands a reaction.
This paper will draw attention to both the narrative and artwork in picture books about children whose lives have been turned upside down by conflict. Examples will be given of books set in different cult
By: Aline Pereira,
on 1/23/2012
Earlier this morning the American Library Association (ALA) announced the 2012 youth media awards winners. A full list of the winners can be found here.
Highlights from the list include:
John Newbery Medal for the most outstanding contribution to children’s literature: Dead End in Norvelt, written by Jack Gantos.
Two Newbery Honor Books also were named: Inside Out and Back Again, written by Thanhha Lai; and Breaking Stalin’s Nose, written and illustrated by Eugene Yelchin.
Randolph Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished American picture book for children: A Ball for Daisy, illustrated and written by Chris Raschka.
Three Caldecott Honor Books also were named: Blackout, illustrated and written by John Rocco; Grandpa Green, illustrated and written by Lane Smith; and Me … Jane, illustrated and written by Patrick McDonnell.
Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award recognizing an African American author and illustrator of outstanding books for children and young adults: Kadir Nelson, author and illustrator of Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans.
Two King Author Honor Book recipients were selected: Eloise Greenfield, author of The Great Migration: Journey to the North, illustrated by Jan Spivey Gilchrist; and Patricia C. McKissack, author of Never Forgotten, illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon.
Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award: Shane W. Evans, illustrator and author of Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom.
One King Illustrator Honor Book recipient was selected: Kadir Nelson, illustrator and author of Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans.
Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement: Ashley Bryan.
Pura Belpré (Illustrator) Award honoring a Latino writer and illustrator whose children’s books best portray, affirm and celebrate the Latino cultural experience: Diego Rivera: His World and Ours, written and illustrated by Duncan Tonatiuh.
Two Belpré Illustrator Honor Books were selected: The Cazuela that the Farm Maiden Stirred illustrated by Rafael López, written by Samantha R. Vamos; and Marisol McDonald Doesn’t Match /Marisol McDonald no combina, illustrated by Sara Palacios, written by Monica Brown.
Pura Belpré (Author) Award: Under the Mesquite written by Guadalupe Garcia McCall.
Two Belpré Author Honor Books were named: Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck written by Margarita Engle; and Maximilian and the Mystery of the Guardian Angel: A Bilingual Lucha Libre Thriller, written by Xavier Garza.
By: Aline Pereira,
on 12/14/2011
Last week after I posted about Shaun Tan‘s book The Arrival being set to a musical score, I spent some time searching the internet to find out about other children’s books which had been set to musical scores. Interestingly enough the first event that came up on my search was for a January 2012 production of another Australian author’s book: The Race for the Chinese Zodiac by Gabrielle Wang. I had been just been in contact with Gabrielle a few weeks ago when we posted our review of her book The Garden of Empress Cassia so I quickly sent off another email to her and she provided me with the following details on the event which is taking place at the Melbourne Recital Centre in Melbourne, Australia:
THE RACE FOR THE CHINESE ZODIAC
Date: 11 am, Sat. Jan 21. For ticket info click here.
Based on the picture book The Race for the Chinese Zodiac by Gabrielle Wang (author), Sally Rippin (illustrator) and Regina Abos (designer) and inspired music by the Australian Chinese Music Ensemble, led by Wang Zheng-Ting, this concert will delight and amaze children and their families as they enjoy one of China’s favourite fables.
The Jade Emperor has declared a great race: the first animals to cross the river will win a place in the Chinese Zodiac. Thirteen animals line up along the shore. But there are only twelve places to be won. Who will miss out?
The story of how the animals of the Chinese zodiac came to be is told through music and projected images. Learn about the story behind the Rat, the Snake, the Horse and other endearing characters of this traditional tale and discover the sounds of Chinese instruments.
CHINESE PAINTING WORKSHOPS FOR CHILDREN
Date: Sat. Jan 21, Sun. Jan 22. Click here for times and ticket info
Gabrielle studied Chinese painting at the Zhejiang Academy of Fine Art in Hangzhou, China. In this workshop she will teach children the four treasures of the painting studio and the basics of Chinese brush painting with plenty of hands on practice. Come join Gabrielle and leave with a finished Chinese painting of your own.
DRAGON TALES
Date: Sat. Jan 21 Click here for times and ticket info.
Celebrate the new year of the Dragon by taking a special Dragon tour. Gabrielle Wang, award-winning author of The Race for the Chinese Zodiac, will teach you how to draw these mythical animals, and then make a scale to place on the dragon that will wind up the Chinese Museum’s staircase.
By: Aline Pereira,
on 12/13/2011
International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) has just posted the latest regional newsletters from IBBY Asian and IBBY Europe. When you have moment, be sure to give them a read. The newsletters, which are written in English, contain a wealth of information on the events that IBBY national sections were involved with during the past year as well as plans for 2012. For those of you that are on Facebook many of the IBBY national sections now have Facebook pages. Do a Facebook search for IBBY, “like” the pages and the postings will automatically be delivered to your Facebook newsfeed.
By: Aline Pereira,
on 12/5/2011
Thanks to Zoe Toft at Playing by the Book for alerting me to this video of Shaun Tan’s award winning book The Arrival set to a musical score on the Sydney Opera House’s website.
Watch highlights of Shaun Tan’s visual masterpiece The Arrival featuring a live score by Ben Walsh and The Orkestra of the Underground.
The Arrival is a migrant story told as a series of wordless images. With his Orkestra of the Underground, Ben Walsh pooled a diverse range of musical talent and composed a score to accompany Tan’s beautiful illustrations in a rare and unique audio-visual experience.
Click here to watch
By: Aline Pereira,
on 12/1/2011
Click on event name for more information
I Have a Dream | Writing for Social Change by Pooja Makhijani~ ongoing until Dec 2, Singapore
Salon du livre et de la presse jeunesse~ ongoing until Dec 6, Montreuil, France
The Children’s Bookshow: Stories From Around The World~ ongoing until Dec 7, United Kingdom
Guadalajara Book Fair~ ongoing until Dec 4, Guadalajara, Mexico
The Original Art: Celebrating the Fine Art of Children’s Book Illustration~ ongoing until Dec 29, New York, NY, USA
Adventures in the Soviet Imaginary: Children’s Books and Graphic Art~ ongoing until Dec 30, Chicago, IL, USA
2012 South Asia Book Award~ entries accepted until Dec 31
16th Annual Family Trees: A Celebration of Children’s Literature~ ongoing until Jan 1, 2012, Concord, MA, USA
21st Annual Children’s Illustration Show~ ongoing until Jan 1, 2012 Northampton, MA, USA
Budding Writers Project~ entries accepted until Jan 6, 2012, Singapore
Growing Every Which Way But Up: The Children’s Book Art of Jules Feiffer~ ongoing until Jan 22, 2012, Amherst, MA, USA
A Journey Without End: Ed Young~ ongoing until Jan 28, 2012, Abilene, TX, USA
The Snowy Day and the Art of Ezra Jack Keats Exhibition~ ongoing until Jan 29, 2012, New York, NY, USA
Exhibits of Winning Entries from the 2011 Growing Up Asian in America Contest~ ongoing until Feb 2012, USA
Book Week 2012 Writing Contest for Kids & Teens~ submissions accepted until Feb 28, 2012, Canada
* * * * *
A Game That Calls Up Love and Hatred Both: The Child, the First World War, and the Global South~ Dec 1 – 4, Sydney, Australia
Malaysia Art Book Fair~ Dec 1 – 15, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
SCBWI France International Conference for Writers and Illustrators~ Dec 2 – 3, Paris, France
By: Aline Pereira,
on 11/28/2011
The 2nd Children’s Poetry Festival was celebrated in El Salvador, November 16 – 18, 2011. Talleres de Poesia hosted the event at the National Library in San Salvador where a number off well-known poets including Jorge Tetl Argueta, Francisco X. Alarcon, Margarita Robleda, and Holly Ayala worked with Salvadoran children, youth and teachers in a blend of poetry readings and workshop presentations. The theme of the workshops this year was the importance of reading and significance of peace for Salvadoran children and youth. The event was a resounding success; check out the smiles on the participants’ faces and the video of the event.
By: Aline Pereira,
on 11/23/2011
Take some time today and head on over to author Cynthia Leitich Smith’s blog Cynsations to read her Guest Post with author Holly Thompson entitled “Holly Thompson on the Perfect Setting & Orchards“.
Orchards is Thompson’s debut novel for young adults and is written in verse. It tells the story of Kana Goldberg, a half-Jewish, half-Japanese American teenager who, after a classmate’s unexpected death, is sent to her family’s farm in Japan to reflect on her participation in the events that led up to the classmate’s suicide.
Orchards has been receiving rave reviews since it’s release this past Spring (read PaperTigers’ review here) and is included on the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) Best Fiction for Young Adults Nominations list.
Holly has been keeping extremely busy this year (click here to visit her blog) and has just returned from the Manila International Literary Festival where she presented three panel discussions:
“Writing for Young Adults” with author Perpi Alipon-Tiongson and publisher RayVi Sunico;
“The Many Forms of the Novel” in which she spoke about writing in verse and read an excerpt from Orchards; and
“The Stranger Experience” on writing away from home, cross-cultural experiences, and the multi-faceted immigration experience with Gemma Nemenzo and Pulitzer Prize winner Junot Diaz. The immigrant’s experience plays a vital role in Junot’s work and I have to share this amazing quote from him that I found on Tarie Sabido’s blog Asia in the Heart, World on the Mind:
“You guys know about vampires? … You know, vampires have no reflections in a mirror? There’s this idea that monsters don’t have reflections in a mirror. And what I’ve always thought isn’t that monsters don’t have reflections in a mirror. It’s that if you want to make a human being into a monster, deny them, at the cultural level, any reflection of themselves. And growing up, I felt like a monster in some ways. I didn’t see myself reflected at all. I was like, Yo, is something wrong with me? That the whole society seems to think that people like me don’t exist? And part of what inspired me, was this deep desire that before I died, I would make a couple of mirrors. That I would make some mirrors so that kids like me might see themselves reflected back and might not feel so monstrous for it.” — Junot Diaz
By: Aline Pereira,
on 11/16/2011
Picture Book Month is an international initiative to designate November as Picture Book Month, encouraging everyone to celebrate literacy with picture books. Founder, Dianne de Las Casas (author & storyteller) and Co-Founders, Katie Davis (author/illustrator), Elizabeth O. Dulemba (author/illustrator), Tara Lazar (author), and Wendy Martin (author/illustrator), are putting together their worldwide connections to make this happen.
In October 2010 The New York Times published an article, “Picture Books No Longer A Staple for Children.” The controversial article incited a barrage of responses from the children’s book industry, many in defense of the venerable picture book. In addition, the digital age has ushered in an unprecedented amount of ebooks and, with devices like the iPad, the color Nook, and the Kindle Fire, picture books are being converted to the digital format. In this digital age where people are predicting the coming death of print books, picture books (the print kind) need love. And the world needs picture books. There’s nothing like the physical page turn of a beautifully crafted picture book.
Each day during November picture book authors have contributed a short essay on Why Picture Books Are So Important. The Picture Book Month website also features links to picture book resources, authors, illustrators, and kidlit book bloggers. So stop by and check out the essays, and all the rest of the material (including calendars and celebration ideas and much more) for Picture Book Month at www(dot)picturebookmonth(dot)com. Join the celebration and party with a picture book!
By: Aline Pereira,
on 11/7/2011
Bookshelf #24:
Mia Wenjen (Pragmatic Mom)
Boston, MA, USA
Mom of three, Mia Wenjen is better known in the kidlit blogging world as Pragmatic Mom. She blogs on “picture books through YA with a special focus on Newbery/Caldecott/Printz quality books, Asian & people of color characters/authors, special needs, graphic novels and math/science.”
“I started reading children’s lit again…when I realized I was giving my oldest Newbery Award Winning books that were her reading level, but were inappropriate because of content. As my middle child started reading independently, she was so picky that I had to wrack my brain to get her books she likes. And my youngest, who is just starting to read, has gone on a reading strike lately. So, there you have it. It’s always a challenge to find “just-right” books and that has become my life.”
Submitted by: PragmaticMom, Education Matters. You can also follow her on Twitter (PragmaticMom) and Facebook (PragmaticMom)
For details on how to submit a photo of your child’s bookshelf to our Around the World in 100 Bookshelves, click here.
By: Aline Pereira,
on 11/1/2011
Click on event name for more information
American Indian Heritage Month~ USA
National Novel Writing Month: NaNoWriMo for Youth~ Australia
ALA Online Course: Introduction to Graphic Novels for Children~ongoing until Nov 4, USA
Kuala Lumpur Children’s Book Festival~ ongoing until Nov 4, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
The Art Institute of Chicago Presents: Artful Alphabets: Five Picture Book Artists~ ongoing until Nov 6, Chicago, IL, USA
2012 PBBY-Salanga Prize~ entries accepted until Nov 11, Philippines
31st Santiago International Book Fair~ ongoing until Nov 13, Santiago, Chile
The Children’s Bookshow: Stories From Around The World~ ongoing until Dec 7, United Kingdom
The Original Art: Celebrating the Fine Art of Children’s Book Illustration~ ongoing until Dec 29, New York, NY, USA
2012 South Asia Book Award~ entries accepted until Dec 31
Budding Writers Project~ entries accepted until Jan 6, 2012, Singapore
Exhibits of Winning Entries from the 2011 Growing Up Asian in America Contest~ ongoing until Feb 2012, USA
* * * * *
NAME’s (National Association for Multicultural Education) Annual Conference~ Nov 2 – 5, Chicago, IL, USA
Children’s Literature Council Fall Gala~ Nov 5, Los Angeles, CA, USA
15th Annual Rochester Children’s Book Festival~ Nov 5, Rochester, NY, USA
OKI (Ohio Kentucky Indiana) Children’s Literature Conference~ Nov 5, Crestview Hills, KY, USA
Once Upon A World Children’s Book Award Ceremony~ Nov 6, Los Angeles, CA, USA
21st Annual Children’s Illustration Show~ Nov 6 – Jan 1, Northampton, MA, USA
National Young Readers Week~ Nov 7 – 13, USA
Northern Children’s Book Festival~ Nov 7 – 20, United Kingdom
Bookaroo in the City~ Nov 8 – 24, Delhi, India
By: Aline Pereira,
on 10/27/2011
If you scroll down our blog page and look at the widgets on the right-hand side you will see one entitled “Around the World in 100 Bookshelves”. What is this you ask?
We started our Around the World in 100 Bookshelves project in 2009 in the hopes of featuring 100 of our reader’s bookshelves from, well, around the world! It is our hope that our combined photos will offer a glimpse of a big world made smaller through books and reading. So far we have received pics from India, Canada, UK, Philippines, Hong Kong, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, Jamaica and the USA (click on the “Around the World in 100 Bookshelves” widget or here to see all the photos submitted to date).
Whether your child has too many or too few, in 
shelves or piles, tidy or scattered on the floor, we would love it if you could send us a photo of their books! Email the photo in .jpg format along with your child’s first name, age, city and country, to corinne(at)papertigers(dot)org and we’ll post the photo here on our blog. If you have a kidlit blog please let us know and we will include that link too. Don’t worry about capturing the whole bookshelf/book collection in the photo. A partial image, along with a reading-related anecdote and/or a few lines describing the bookshelf’s content, should be enough to help us connect across languages and cultures. We hope to feature bookshelves from all over, so please help us spread the word!
By: Aline Pereira,
on 10/25/2011
On October 26th Hindus all over the world will be celebrating one of their most important festivals of the year: Diwali. Also known as the Festival of Lights, Diwali involves the lighting of small clay lamps filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil. To Hindus, darkness represents ignorance, and light is a metaphor for knowledge. Lighting a lamp symbolizes the destruction, through knowledge, of all negative forces. Diwali is celebrated by Hindus of all ages and during the festival celebrants wear new clothes and share sweets and snacks with family members and friends.
If you are looking for children’s books about Diwali check out Chad Stephenson’s Personal View piece Diwali: The Hindu Festival of Lights, and the following PaperTigers’ blog posts:
Poetry Friday: About Diwali and its Poetic Origins in the Ramayana
By: Aline Pereira,
on 10/7/2011
Award winning author Mitali Perkins has just posted the winners of her 2011 Teens Between Cultures Poetry Contest and 2011 Teens Between Cultures Prose. Head on over to Mitali’s website, Fire Escape, to read the winning submissions.
Submissions for the 2012 contest are now being accepted.
Do you love to weave words together?
Were you and/or one or both of your birth parents born in another country?
Do you live in the United States or Canada now?
Are you 13-19 years old?If you answered yes to ALL of the questions above, YOU qualify to enter the Fire Escape Writing Contests! Submit an original, unpublished poem or piece of prose (fiction or non-fiction) that reflects some of the joys and struggles of growing up between two cultures in America. Mitali’s Fire Escape will only consider one poem and one piece of short fiction per person, so send your best work.
For more information, click here.
By: Aline Pereira,
on 10/1/2011
Click on event name for more information
Reading Association of Ireland Annual Conference: Creating Multiple Pathways To Powerful Literacy In Challenging Times~ ongoing until Oct 1, Dublin, Ireland
Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read~ ongoing until Oct 1, USA
Appledore Book Festival (featuring Michael Rosen)~ ongoing until Oct 2, Appledore, United Kingdom
Wigtown Book Festival~ ongoing until Oct 2, Wigtown, United Kingdom
Bath Festival of Children’s Literature~ ongoing until Oct 2, Bath, United Kingdom
National Young Writers’ Festival~ ongoing until Oct 3, Newcastle, Australia
Mirror, an Exhibition by Children’s Author and Artist Jeannie Baker~ ongoing until Oct 11, Ipswich City, Australia
Hispanic Heritage Month~ ongoing until Oct 15, USA
2012 Scholastic Asian Book Award~ entries accepted until Oct 17, Singapore
23rd Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava~ ongoing until Oct 26, Bratislava, Slovakia
Once Upon A Wartime: Classic War Stories for Children~ ongoing until Oct 30, London, United Kingdom
4th CJ Picture Book Award~ entries accepted until Oct 31, Seoul, Korea
E-Mote Digital Storytelling Competition: When We Put Aside Our Differences~ entries accepted until Oct 31, Singapore
ALA Online Course: Introduction to Graphic Novels for Children~ongoing until Nov 4, USA
The Art Institute of Chicago Presents: Artful Alphabets: Five Picture Book Artists~ ongoing until Nov 6, Chicago, IL, USA
2012 PBBY-Salanga Prize~ entries accepted until Nov 11, Philippines
The Children’s Bookshow: Stories From Around The World~ ongoing until Dec 7, United Kingdom
2012 South Asia Book Award~ entries accepted until Dec 31
Budding Writers Project~ entries accepted until Jan 6, 2012, Singapore
Exhibits of Winning Entries from the 2011 Growing Up Asian in America Contest~ ongoing until Feb 2012, USA
Canadian Library Month: Your Library: A Place Unbound
