Login or Register for free to create your own customized page of blog posts from your favorite blogs. You can also add blogs by clicking the "Add to MyJacketFlap" links next to the blog name in each post.
Blog Posts by Tag
In the past 7 days
Blog Posts by Date
Click days in this calendar to see posts by day or month
Viewing: Blog Posts Tagged with: cecil castellucci, Most Recent at Top [Help]
Results 1 - 21 of 21
How to use this Page
You are viewing the most recent posts tagged with the words: cecil castellucci in the JacketFlap blog reader. What is a tag? Think of a tag as a keyword or category label. Tags can both help you find posts on JacketFlap.com as well as provide an easy way for you to "remember" and classify posts for later recall. Try adding a tag yourself by clicking "Add a tag" below a post's header. Scroll down through the list of Recent Posts in the left column and click on a post title that sounds interesting. You can view all posts from a specific blog by clicking the Blog name in the right column, or you can click a 'More Posts from this Blog' link in any individual post.
The video embedded above features appearances from the contributors of this comics collection. This group includes Krosoczka, Jennifer L. Holm, Matthew Holm, Jeffrey Brown, Cece Bell, Nathan Hale, Jason Shiga, Cecil Castellucci, Sara Varon, and Peanuts.
Krosoczka and the Holm siblings served as the editors of this project. Random House Books for Young Readers has scheduled the release date for Jan. 26.
I was very pleased to uncover this site. I need to to thank you for your
time for this particularly fantastic read!! I definitely loved every bit of
it and i also have you saved as a favorite to
check out new stuff on your blog.
Not going to NYCC this year? Sure you could spend hours hunched over the computer waiting for the latest news to come out of the Javits center or if you like a little punk rock with your reading you can spend that Saturday enjoying a full day of art, literature, and music in San Bernardino CA […]
0 Comments on While NY Geeks Out Next Weekend, So Cal Goes Punk as of 1/1/1900
Enter to win a prize pack with 6 of the listed Candlewick titles from TIME Magazine's Top 100 Young Adult Books.
Giveaway begins January 15, 2015, at 12:01 A.M. PST and ends January 31, 2015, at 11:59 P.M. PST.
When we last spoke with graphic novelist Gene Luen Yang, his advice for writers is to “give up TV.” Since then, he has been hard at work on a collaborative project with artist Sonny Liewreviving the story of an Asian American superhero called The Green Turtle. First Second, an imprint of the Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, released the print edition of The Shadow Hero earlier this week. We spoke with Yang (pictured, via) to learn his insights on diversity, collaboration, and mapping out a career in publishing. Here are the highlights…
Q: How did you land your first official book deal? A: My very first book deal was for a two-issue comic book miniseries called Duncan’s Kingdom. It was written by me and drawn by the amazingly talented Derek Kirk Kim. It was published by Image Comics in the late 90’s. The story is now a part of The Eternal Smile, published by First Second Books.
A friend of ours named Jimmie Robinson was already published by Image. Jimmie has done several comics through the years, including Bomb Queen, Evil & Malice, and Five Weapons. He sent our submission directly to his editor. Throughout my cartooning career, friends have played key roles.
Theodora swims balancing a teacup on her head, enjoys mango salsa with her duck pellets, and exercises her wings every morning (yet never flies). Claude dyes his feathers strange colors, constructs crazy art projects in his yard, and spends his nights gazing at the stars. So which duck is the odd one?
Cecil Castellucci has written a touching and sophisticated graphic story about two friends who learn to appreciate the other's nonconformity. Readers see the story through Theodora's POV, from the day that Claude moves into the empty house next door--disrupting her routine--to their gradual realization that "even though they were very different, they felt the same way about most things."
Then one day as the pair waddle past a group of snickering ducks, they overhear one remark, "Look at that odd duck." Theodora and Claude each assume the comment was meant for the other. Their fallout drives them back to their respective houses and appears to end the friendship. But Theodora finds life isn't the same without her odd friend and ultimately comes to a realization about herself.
Books about friendship are big with six to ten year olds, the group this book is clearly aimed at. Young readers will find much to enjoy in the six short chapters. And the illustrations are a joy, with hundreds of details for readers to ponder in the duck universe that Varon creates. In fact, pairing Castellucci, best known for her YA graphic novels, with Varon (Robot Dreams) was an inspired choice. Both are rather odd ducks themselves (in the best possible way) and their collaboration is proof that birds of a feather flock together!
Odd Duck by Cecil Castellucci illustrations by Sara Varon First Second, 96 pages Published: May 2013
0 Comments on Odd Duck as of 6/12/2013 10:37:00 AM
The Los Angeles Review of Books (LARB) celebrated Banned Books Week with a series of essays by YA authors called “Getting Banned.”
The authors in the Getting Banned essays have all had their work banned or challenged at some point. Follow these links to read essays by Ron Koertge, Ellen Hopkins, Susan Patron, Sonya Sones and Lauren Myracle. LARB‘s YA editor Cecil Castellucci explained: “YA authors are on the front lines of today’s censorship battle.”
The web publication will also publish a two-part essay by English professor Loren Glass about the 1960′s obscenity trials Grove Press faced for publishing William Burroughs‘ Naked Lunch and Henry Miller‘s The Tropic of Cancer. Nickel and Dimed author Barbara Ehrenreich will also publish a Banned Books Week essay on Saturday.
Well, grades have been posted, so it looks like I will graduate this weekend! Wahoo!
And now here are reviews of 3 of the final 4 Minx titles. I haven't read Token yet, and that's the last one. (But, um, if someone wanted to hook me up with a copy of that, I wouldn't complain. My library doesn't have it yet and the library that does won't ILL it to me. :( )
It's shaping up to be the most boring summer in history for boring geek girl Emiko. Her friends are off at camp and she's spending all day babysitting a small drooly baby for the all-American picture-perfect couple. *yawn* Then she discovers Freak Show, a variety cabaret that she might be a little too normal to be hanging out at, but it's the most exciting thing going on. Maybe... maybe she could perform, too? Be a little freaky? Then when she finds the diary of the woman she's working for and starts to see that maybe the couple isn't as perfect as they look. With that information, Emiko has an idea...
LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE this one. It's quiet on the surface--Minx novels are pretty short after all, but there is SO MUCH going on underneath. Just the right amount of angst. Emiko is a believable character that made believable choices and I never once wanted to whack some sense into her. My favorite Minx title. I must go find a copy of Tanaki's Skim!
The P.L.A.I.N. Janes are back, and still trying to save through art. Our main Jane is caught between Damon, Miroslaw, or her new secret admirer. All the other Janes also have their romantic issues, trying to catch their interests’ eyes in their own ways—Theater Jane’s romantic letters, Polly Jane’s direct frankness, and Jayne’s scientific analysis. There are other love stories, too.
But there is the negative—Damon has community service hours to serve after New Years, and Officer Sanchez still thinks P.L.A.I.N’s art is vandalism. What’s even worse is the state of the world. Terrorism is still rife in Metro City, and an anthrax attack kills a friend of Jane’s mother. After the attack, Jane’s mom won’t leave the house, and leaves the mail on the lawn, too afraid to open it.
I thought the first Janes novel tried to do too much, and would have worked better as a regular novel as opposed to a graphic novel. This one, however, fits in the comics medium better. Fans of the first novel will want to check this one out.
Riley lives her whole life attached to her PDA Blackberry/iPhone thing, to the point where she lacks interaction with the flesh and blood humans in her life. After starting college and reconnecting with her estranged sister, Riley realizes she has to have some human contact, but it’s hard.
An interesting story with an ambiguous ending—and I am a fan of those. There are a lot of loose ends with the other characters that could have turned into serious subplots in a longer novel. I wish that this would be the first of a series, and we’d get a total of four books—one for each of Riley’s group of friends, but with the demise of Minx, it doesn’t seem likely. I'd be really into this if it were the first in a series, but as it will end up being a stand-alone, I'm a little disappointed.
1 Comments on Minx Roundup, last added: 12/20/2008
There is no nonsense on a smoke filled day In a city with fires raging all around the sun burns a pretty color in the sky orange there is unruly heat and the need for umbrellas to make some shade I’ll have another glass of water there is talk of less wind I’ll toast to no more sparks
Cecil has been busy since the release of Beige and The Plain Janes earlier this year (May 2007). According to Cecil, "I’ve got a bunch of exciting things on the horizon. I have my first fantasy short story in the (Wizards of the Coast) and an essay about one of my first kisses (bloomsbury). I have a picture book called Grandma’s Gloves (Candlewick) and also an early chapter book series called Odd Duck (Candlewick). I am also working on a sequel to The Plain Janes, called Janes in Love due out in 2008. And don’t you worry, there will be a new YA novel on the horizon!"
This fun-spirited "general troublemaker" as she calls herself in her YouTube podcasts, was named a Flying Start in 2005 by Publisher’s Weekly (along with pal, John Green). She also received an Honorable Mention in PW’s annual cuffie awards as Most Promising New Author in 2005 (check out the other honorable mentions). Boy Proof, Cecil's first novel, was honored as an ALA (American Library Association) Best Books for Young Adults; ALA (American Library Association) Recommended Books for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, Quick Pick; New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age; and a Book Sense Children's Picks List Selection. The Queen of Cool was recognized as a New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age.
I've read two of Cecil's books so far. Boy Proof (from the library) and Beige (from the publisher) both have girl protagonists who are a bit withdrawn from the social environment they live in. Cecil breathes in a fresh voice and lots of heart into her characters. She creates stories of young teens who were comfortable in their own world until they meet people who push their buttons. They reluctantly venture out into the strange territory of self-discovery and find it is possible to change and still be true to themselves. Teens will relate well with these books and find them to be easy reads.
Come and stay awhile to find out what Madeleine L'Engle wrote to Cecil, her writing advice to wannabe writers, and more...
HWM:What made you realize you wanted to write children’s (YA/Graphic) books? Cecil: I always wanted to write for young adults because I always thought that those were the coolest books. I suppose that it’s for a number of reasons, for example, that was when I fell in love with reading. Also, that was a time where I really felt the potential of a book to transport me to another world, make me lead another life. As I grew older, I think that I just realized that the voice inside of me was that of a young adult. It’s a very charged time, everything is new, everything is raw. Figuring out how you are going to become who you are is an interesting point in a person's life. Perhaps the most interesting. I am concerned with identity, and so writing characters that are moving from childhood to adulthood is very compelling.
HWM:How did you get your “break” into children’s books? Cecil: A character that really spoke to me as a young girl was Meg in Madeleine L’Engle’s A WRINKLE IN TIME. I was the daughter of scientists with mousy brown hair and glasses and a brilliant younger brother. That character really felt very close to me, so when I was about 25, I wrote Madeleine L’Engle a letter, confessing that I wanted to write for kids as well. She wrote me back and said that if I wanted to write books for kids, I should just do it. That really set me on the path.
A few years later, I enrolled in a writing for kids class at UCLA extension. There I learned about SCBWI and I joined. I went to the So Cal working writers retreat and there I met my agent Barry Goldblatt and Liz Bicknell from Candlewick Press. While she ultimately didn’t become my editor, she took an avid interest in me and my work. Candlewick became my future publisher.
HWM:Tell me what inspired your novels. Cecil: Different things inspire me. It’s always a question. Like for Beige, I was considering my neighborhood in Los Angeles, where everything is so music, and so punk. Especially when I first moved here. I was wondering how it would be to not be that cool, and not even want to be in that world, and yet have it surround you. I wondered what it would be like if your parents were punks and you weren’t. I wondered what it would be like if you didn’t like music, but everyone around you did. I wondered about feeling bland, boring and beige.
The Plain Janes was a query about fear and how to deal with the madness of the world. I wondered about how a girl might go about trying to save herself through a radical experience and how that would affect her. Perhaps if she were popular, she might seek a different set of people. I wondered about how she would make the world beautiful after being involved in something so ugly. I wondered about outsiders and how they can come together. I wondered about what friendship is.
HWM:When did you know you had the right ending for your books? Cecil: I always know pretty much how the book is going to end when I start writing it. That ending is like my North Star. It may not end exactly how I thought, but usually it ends right next to where I thought.
HWM:Which character is most like you? Cecil: They are all like me. I’m not even kidding. Even the boys.
HWM: Who was the toughest character to write about? Cecil: Katy in Beige was the toughest because she is a withholding person and I’m not. She also doesn’t like, or get, music. And I couldn’t understand that at all.
HWM:Which book, if any, would you change if you had the chance, and why? Cecil: I would make The Plain Janes longer. It was a bit weird and new for me to have an exact page count. I felt a bit rushed at the end. Luckily, Jim and I are doing a sequel.
HWM:You have such an interesting life and have traveled all around the world. You’re an indie rock musician, film maker, author, instructor. I’m in awe. Is there anything you can’t do? Cecil: I can’t paint. I can’t dance on pointe. I can’t rub my tummy and pat my head at the same time. Well, OK, I can do that…
HWM:What do you enjoy about your different careers? Is there anything you’d like to try next? Cecil: I’d like to do something really fantastic in theater. Direct or write an amazing play. I’d like to do more performance pieces. Also, I’ve been doing some kind of stand up-y things. Not telling jokes, but a couple of performances where I tell a story about my life or on a theme for 15 minutes. I’ve really enjoyed doing that and I’d like to do more. I have a performer's heart, I think.
HWM:Do you outline or free form? Cecil: I am free form all the way! I just plunge in. I do not recommend it. It is not for the faint of heart.
HWM:Where do you like to write? Cecil: I like to write in my fave café. My sunny porch. And in bed.
HWM:What is your writing process or ritual? Cecil: I wish I had one. I just write. And then I mull. I take a walk. I think. I try to leave the page open and just arrive at it. Sometimes I binge write.
HWM:How long does it take you to write the first draft? Cecil: One million years. Also I hate first drafts. So, I just always call it the second draft. That makes me feel slightly better.
HWM:What has been the biggest challenge of your writing career and how did you tackle it? Cecil: Now that I have four books out, I’ve been doing a lot of traveling, which I love. But it seems as though I get home and then have to leave again for a few weeks all the time. This past year I’ve had a bit of unsettledness about me. I get ready to leave, travel, then decompress for a week and then just as I’m settling into my routine at home, I have to get ready to leave again. It makes it hard to focus. It makes it hard to write. It makes it hard to have a real day to day existence at home. I think the way I am sort of tackling it is that I have to try to just plough through and get the stuff done that I need to get done and just grab the writing moments when I can. I’ve been a bit luxurious about it in the past. I also am looking at next year as my-writing-and-not-traveling-so-much year since I only have one book coming out, The Janes in Love.
HWM:What has been the biggest surprise of your writing career? Cecil: I got an e-mail from a girl whose mom had bought her Boy Proof and she said that it was the first time that her mom really got her and got her something that she liked. She said that they talked about the book and it was the best conversation she had with her mom. That was pretty incredible and it blew me away.
HWM:If you could share any unique writing tip to aspiring writers, what would it be? Cecil: Don’t be so precious about your work that you never send it out. Learn how to put your best ears on so you can listen to what people are saying about your work and not take it as a personal criticism. Have fun, because you are an artist and you are making up stories.
HWM:What was the best writing advice anyone ever gave you? Cecil: Relax. ------------------------------- HipWriterMama's Curiosities HWM:Why do you blog? Cecil: I’ve been blogging since 2000 and have had a website that I updated with little thoughts and poems since 1995. At first it was just for friends and fun, and in a weird way I found a community. I love that my mom and dad read my blog and know what’s going on. I love that I can read about my friends who are far away and keep up with their news. I like to think of it as a way of having a social tea with my far flung friends, strangers and anyone in the world who cares to drop in and get to know me a little bit.
HWM:How much time do you take to write one of your posts? Cecil: I don’t sweat over it. I just post from my heart. Sometimes I go back and correct it because there are typos and stuff. Maybe I should proof read them better, but, hey, it’s supposed to be fun and light!
HWM:If you found a way to go back to your teen years as one of your characters, what would you do differently? Cecil: I would try not to take everything so seriously. Also, I might not write all that dark angsty poetry. Or, I might write more of it, because it’s so bad that it makes me laugh buckets now.
Oh, you mean as one of my characters. Hmmm. I think all my characters would pretty much behave the same way that they do in their respective books as they would in my teenage years. I would probably have some classes with them, and I’d probably invite them /go to their parties. And also copy their homework.
HWM:What makes you laugh? Cecil: Everything. There is something pretty funny in everything. Unless I have my cranky pants on. Then nothing is funny. At all!
HWM:If you were a superhero, what powers would you want and why? Cecil: I would want to be like Superman, because, you know, faster than, stronger than, leaping, flying, bullet bouncing and also, an Alien.
First drafts torture me, too. I'm going to try that renaming it "second draft" thing. If it works, I'm naming a character Cecil in my next book!
Did you happen to see in my post about returning from the Chicago bloggers conference that my husband read Boy Proof while he was waiting an eternity for my plane to arrive? He loved it.
m. thompson said, on 11/2/2007 6:43:00 AM
I haven't read any of her books, but am so intrigued now. What a go for it type of gal! I envy the letter from Madeleine L'Engle. Wow.
p dog said, on 11/2/2007 7:17:00 AM
CANNOT wait for "Janes in Love"!
Kelly Fineman said, on 11/2/2007 8:56:00 AM
Terrific interview. I heart YA, and Cecil too.
jules said, on 11/2/2007 9:15:00 AM
Love that L'Engle story! Thanks for a great interview.
TadMack said, on 11/2/2007 10:35:00 AM
Writers are dreamers and do-ers. Few people would write a letter to an author at twenty-five, outside of being forced to do so for an assignment -- what awesomeness!
And I, too, toast to no more sparks. And I can't wait to read the next Janes book!!!! I can imagine a picture book by her would be made of awesome as well. I hope to have that much range as a writer someday!
Erin said, on 11/2/2007 12:49:00 PM
Really fantastic interview, Cecil and Vivian! Very inspiring.
Mary Lee said, on 11/4/2007 5:50:00 AM
Thanks for this great resource! I'm getting ready to review Plain Janes, a Cybils GN nominee, and this info will be so helpful! I'll definitely be linking!
Anonymous said, on 11/6/2007 4:24:00 AM
Fantastic interview. How does one person get all the talent? Somehow that seems too unfair...
This was a great session during which author Cecil Castellucci had attendees do some writing exercises with the intent of learning more about their characters and making them more complex and interesting. She started by reading the beginnings of several books to illustrate just how much an author can give to readers about a character in just a few lines. Check out Speak; Tyrell; Ironside; Tale of Despereaux; Millicent Minn, Girl Genius; An Abundance of Katherines (author John Green was in the audience); and her book Boy Proof.
Cecil suggested all characters are like Superman--they are all heroes with some sort of special power; they all have a flaw (their own Kryptonite); they all have a LexLuthor-type enemy, whether a person or a circumstance that holds them back; they all have a place, a fortress of solitude of their own; and they all have something they love, their own Lois Lane. She also feels that readers learn about characters in two ways--from their voice or how they view themselves, and from the way the world views them.
For some writing prompts recommended by Cecil, visit Jo Knowles blog at the start of every week for her Monday Morning Warm-up exercises. (You can find plenty throughout her blog archives.)
0 Comments on Cecil Castellucci on Creating Characters...
This ... as of 8/3/2007 9:48:00 PM
Between that and the fact that First Among Sequels: A Thursday Next Novel is currently sitting on my doorstep (well, Dan's probably home from work and I sure he moved it into the house) AND! I'm seeing Jasper Fforde tomorrow at Politics and Prose the book part of my brain is more than a little... preoccupied.
Anywho... this spring, DC Comics launched the Minx line of comics. Unlike most of DCs other stuff-- which tends to be the serialized comic book (DC's imprint Vertigo publishes Fables which regular readers know I love. Also ooo! New Jack of Fables available for pre-order!) But I digress.
Back on Topic. Minx is a series of one-off graphic novels, aimed at teenage girls (although there are a surprising few number of girls writing and illustrating these books.) These aren't the 'high literature' type of graphic novel I tend to associate with one-offs (think Maus or American Born Chinese) but they're still very good-- the art is more "comic booky" than "manga-y" and there's no color. Color would be nice.
The first one published was The Plain Janes by Cecil Castellucci and Jim Rugg.
Jane's parents move her from Metro City to Surburbia after she was injured in a terrorist bombing. As the country becomes more and more scared by more and more frequent attacks in large cities, Jane tries to fit into her new small town life. The cool girls want to be her friend, and once upon a time, before, she would have accepted. This time though, she eschews them to form a band with the other Janes, social misfits with a common name. They're not overly eager to accept her either.
Once they do, they form a group called PLAIN (People Loving Art in Neighborhoods) that do random art attacks. But then these art attacks (like putting hats on parking meters) are deemed terrorist attacks and things unravel... (no pun intended.)
At the same time, Jane is writing letters to a John Doe coma victim from the terrorist bombing she was a victim of. Writing to him becomes her way of processing every thing that has happened to her.
I really enjoyed it, but I agree most with Emily Reads's Haiku... I wanted more to the story and more to the characters-- I think the story was too much for the format and would have worked better in a more standard novel setting.
That said, I can't wait to read the rumored sequel.
Next up in Minx's August offering (out August 1st) is Derek Kirk Kim and Jesse Hamm's Good as Lily. Kim has written graphic novel's before, so his story is a better fit.
On Grace Kwon's 18th birthday, she gets whacked in the head with a pinata and the next thing she knows, she's surrounded by her 6, 29, and 80 year old self. She doesn't want any spoilers about her future but obviously, there's something each of them has to figure out before they can go back to where they're supposed to be.
Meanwhile, funding's been cut for the school play (in which Grace has the lead) so they need to find a way to save the play and to stop the other Graces from ruining current-Grace's life!
Overall, I do like this imprint and want to read the other titles in the series, but with a new one coming out every month at $10/pop (not a bad price, but it adds up) I can't be buying them, so I need to get my local libraries to get on this... Clubbing, especially, looks good.
Full disclosure: Both titles reviewed were given to me by the nice people at the DC Comics book at ALA.
0 Comments on This, that, and the other... as of 1/1/1900
When I went to the library last week, (which, BTW, was packed with people) I searched for it in the library's computer catalog. The catalog said it was on the new JFIC shelves, but I couldn't find it anywhere. A live (no other description needed here) librarian helped me search for it.She eventually put in a hold request for me, and assured me that when it showed up, I would be emailed. She checked my email address and corrected an error in it. Today, the email arrived, and I'm off to pick up my book.
This is quite different from when I was a kid. Then, I would troll the shelves for interesting reads, find as many books as would fit in a stack between my cupped hands and my chin, and take them to the librarian at the checkout desk. She didn't have a bun, but she was old and rather tiny, and I adored her. I'm trying to remember why I adored her, and I can't even recall her name. I guess it was because I saw her as: SHE WHO WILL GET ME MY BOOKS.
The more modern librarian the other day also GOT ME MY BOOK.
I will discretely stare at your tattoo if you have one. I will give you bonus points if you have cute little artsy glasses. I may check out your shoes. But if you can't GET ME MY BOOK, then you don't fit my stereotype of a librarian.
0 Comments on She Who Will Get Me My Book as of 1/1/1990
Jules said, on 7/12/2007 8:40:00 AM
Oh thank you for that link. I enjoyed reading that commentary on the need to stop obsessing about librarian stereotypes.
Robin Brande said, on 7/12/2007 1:42:00 PM
I know what you mean about how it used to be--that image of you carrying as many books as you could fit between your cupped hands and your chin is perfect!
Now it seems we rush in, look up, get it, leave. Not all that browsing anymore. Although I do browse at bookstores. So why don't I do that at libraries anymore? Do you browse much, Sara?
Sara said, on 7/12/2007 2:19:00 PM
The library is a big time suck for me. I go in there, and two hours later, I'm still nosing around. This last time, though, I had Lebanese takeout waiting in the car, so I had to drag myself away. But then I got to read while scarfing down veggie kabobs and the most creamy garlic sauce ever!
Sara said, on 7/12/2007 2:26:00 PM
jules, glad you liked the link. I thought it was well-argued and fun to read. Much better than, say, the NY Times piece...
Jennie said, on 7/12/2007 5:57:00 PM
I will also say, the kids still do come in and get stacks of books up to their chin and then walk veeeeeeeeeeery carefully up to the desk. Some things never change.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been pretty excited about this new Minx line from DC Comics since I first heard about it.
The new titles are inspired in part by the fast growth of translated Japanese comics called manga. While gory and violent themes aimed at boys are staples of manga, fantasy and romantic storylines meant to appeal to girls have helped manga capture the attention of female readers, an audience comic publishers have long struggled to attract.
Since I happen to have my very own comic book geek handy, I’ve had the first two Minx books, The Plain Janes and Re-Gifters, delivered to me without even having to ask. Stuff for me on new comic day! Who’da thunk?
The Plain Janes was written by Cecil Castellucci, author of Boy Proof and The Queen of Cool. I’ve never read either of these books, but I’m definitely interested now!
The main character, Jane (of course), moves from the city to the suburbs after being injured in a bombing. Jane rebels against the fear and complacency of her new life by banding together with a group of misfits (all named Jane) to start P.L.A.I.N. (People Loving Art In Neighborhoods). Their escapades cause some trouble in the town, but the girls refuse to give up.
I really, really enjoyed this book. I found myself rooting for the Janes, hoping they would get through to their community without getting in too much trouble! My only complaint was that it ended a bit too abruptly, I thought. I wonder if the author was limited to a certain number of pages in which she had to end the story.
Re-Gifters was written by Mike Carey, a comic book writer who wrote the fantastically adorable My Faith in Frankie.
Re-Gifters is the story of a young Korean girl, Jen Dik Seong (Dixie to her friends). Dixie practices hapkido, and she has a crush on her fellow competitor Adam. She spends the money she’s supposed to be using to enter a martial arts competition to buy Adam an expensive birthday present, setting into action a series of misunderstandings and catastrophes that end with Dixie facing off against Adam in the finals of the competition.
Dixie is cute, spunky and utterly likeable. Of the two releases so far, I liked Re-Gifters better, but The Plain Janes isn’t without its merits. Looking forward to the new titles!
0 Comments on DC Comics-Minx as of 1/1/1900
Other blogs at erin-go-blog! said, on 6/21/2007 4:56:00 AM
[…] I recently posted about the new Minx line from DC Comics. You can check it out here. […]
Well, that was the original intention, anyway. I was going to find a series of interesting links involving authors and their daily lives. For example, here is the charming Cecil Castellucci talking about her life as it relates to her new YA novel Beige. I love, Ms. Castellucci. She stopped by my library one day in search of Mo Willems (this is true) and I had the opportunity to chat with her. I want to be her friend.
Remember, I don't review YA, so I'll never be able to give my opinion on her newest, but for a book that I DID review, check out her new graphic novel The Plain Janes, which is completely child appropriate and deserves a glance.
Moving on, proof positive that Neil Gaiman is charm incarnate.
Two facts come to mind. The fact that he evinces no fear of the large furry rodent flying about his head proves that he IS Neil Gaiman. The fact that he has a bat in his house establishes that, yes, he does indeed live in the Midwest.
Well, so that was my intention with today's Video Sunday. And then I saw that Galleycat had posted the YouTube preview of the French adaptation of Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis. The French speakers amongst you will appreciate this.
After that, everything broke down completely. Animation seemed a good way to go. Eric Berlin had linked to a nice and wholly illegal version of Calvin & Hobbes (which tied in nicely to the Chicken Spaghetti discussion on old C&H earlier this week. I was going to put it here. Heck, I copied the URL and everything. But look what happens when you click on it now.
Looks like old I-won't-sue Watterson actually brought action against whoever created this. Color me disappointed. Only a book trailer for a picture book could cheer me up now.
That's the stuff. Sent by illustrator Brian Floca himself no less.
And, for those of you who may have been a bit disappointed by the latest Spiderman film, take comfort. Here's a look at a bit of Spiderman ala Japan that is so oddly charming, I know I would have adored this film as a kid.
Because what is more children's literature related than comic books? This came from the Sandbox with love. I love how the woman could only memorize one line for the show.
4 Comments on Video Sunday - Authors in their Natural Habitat, last added: 5/20/2007
Alkelda the Gleeful said, on 5/20/2007 11:07:00 AM
One wee correction: bats aren't rodents. They belong to the order called Chiroptera, which means "hand-wing." They've more in common with humans than they have with mice (though many of them have those cute mouse-like faces).
Neil Gaiman is gallant, though.
Katie said, on 5/20/2007 12:59:00 PM
Second correction: Persepolis was originally written and published *in* French, so it's the English edition that's the adaption. The French is the original.
Do bats not happen in other parts of the country? I just thought that was normal. I live very near Gaiman, so bats are a fairly normal thing here, but it never occurred to me that they may not be normal elsewhere.
Anonymous said, on 5/20/2007 2:24:00 PM
Then again, since Persepolis is being made into a film from a book, it is an adaptation. And since it's citizens of France who are doing the adapting, it is French. So one could say that it's a French adaptation. If one were looking for an out.
fusenumber8 said, on 5/20/2007 4:42:00 PM
One is. One is indeed.
I think the bats-are-rodents idea harkens back to the Calvin & Hobbes where Calvin keeps insisting in his "report" that they are, in fact, insects.
I've held off on reviewing The Plain Janes, by Cecil Castellucci and Jim Rugg, because it won't be released until May. But, seriously, enough is enough.
I hope that The Plain Janes will put to rest the endless (and fruitless) debate about whether or not graphic novels can be or are as good as "regular books." Because this one made me turn back and reread and reconsider as much as any great novel would.
(Main) Jane is a popular girl in Metro City. Then "something" happens in the big city--an explosion, or a bombing--and Jane falls in the streets. Nearby is a man with an "Art Saves" sketchbook, a book Jane rescues when she regains consciousness and returns home.
Jane's reaction to her city's crisis is different from her parents. Jane cuts off her blond hair, dyes it black, and sees in the mirror "a girl who can handle anything." Her parents pack up the home and move themselves with Jane to the suburbs. As Jane says, "Here we go. Nothing worse than starting the school year six weeks late. Remember it's just four years. Om, and all that."
Jane is a hard-headed kid and serious about changing her life. True, she can't move back to Metro City on her own, but she can take charge. When the "cool" girls make overtures to her in the dreaded cafeteria on day one, she decides to branch out. She seeks shelter with three other girls, who happen to be named Jane, Jayne, and Polly Jane.
Before long, Main Jane has convinced the other Janes to create P.L.A.I.N. (People Loving Art in Neighborhoods), a group formed to set up anonymous street art. Their first project--pyramids formed where a new strip mall was set to go up. They left a hand painted sign, stating, "Art Saves. THINK BIG. THINK P.L.A.I.N."
P.L.A.I.N gets everyone talking, but not always in a good way. Residents of Kent Waters.Suburbia fear the anonymous art installations. Soon the high school kids are on full lockdown, a lockdown that results in, of course, their growing closer together as a group.
The Plain Janes is a thought-provoking novel about fear in the modern age, the beauty and power of art, and the imagination and heart of youth. One thread I found particularly compelling concerned Main Jane's fascination with John Doe, the man with the "Art Saves" sketch book who fell next to her in Metro City. She continues to visit him in the hospital, to write him letters, to find a kindred spirit in the man with the "Art Saves" notebook.
Main Jane is a great heroine. She's determined, smart, and a dreamer. I hope we'll learn more about the other Janes in future volumes.
The Plain Janes is highly recommended for kids ages eleven and up.
I have just read your review, and I have just read the breaking news - horrific.
I feel for the victims, their families and friends.
These kinds of things should not happen.
Lazygal said, on 4/16/2007 2:10:00 PM
You're so right to rave about this book. I'm not usually one to enjoy the graphic novel genre (is it a genre?) but I was able to read this and very much enjoy it.
Even better, I loaned my ARC to a select few students (aka, my GN advisory group) and they loved it. Coming from them, I knew it was high praise because they usually only go for the manga-style, not the novelizations.
Even though it's a May release, I'm hoping to get it for next week's Book Fair, because it's sure to be as big a seller among the girls as the new Warriors GN will be among the boys.
As for the news, my heart goes out to those that are there, but I'm so disgusted by our 24/7 coverage I could scream.
Hi Kelly, Thanks for the review--I am currently shopping for graphic novels for my library and just posted a plea for suggestions over at my blog! thanks, Charlotte
Robin Brande said, on 4/17/2007 9:02:00 AM
I need, need, need that book. I appreciate you waiting until now to spring the review, because if you told me it was coming out in December I would scream.
As for the news, I always wish those assholes would skip the first step of shooting everyone else, and go right to shooting themselves. What a waste of a life. His, I mean.
So Cecil Castellucci comes into the library yesterday and we get to chatting about stuff. And since I've just been doing a little "professional development", I cannot help but notice Miranda July's website for her upcoming book. It is, not to put too fine a point on it, perhaps the most original site for a book I've seen. Period. I mention it to Cecil and she has, of course, seen it and agrees with me that it is neat. Blogworthy, perhaps.
I should mention that Ms. Castellucci had come to the Central Children's Room to see Mo Willems perform in my branch (TONIGHT: AT SIX). He once was, and this is true, her mentor. Honest-to-God. Swear to howdy. The kidlit world intersects with the teenlit world at the oddest of junctions sometimes. I will, tonight, inform Mo that he will have to wait until TLA to see her. *sigh*
5 Comments on Castellucci, Perfect Websites, and the Pigeon/Plain Jane Connection, last added: 4/14/2007
What a kick! I sat here all by myself laughing out loud as I went through Miranda July's site!
Thanks for the laugh, gail
gail said, on 4/12/2007 4:18:00 PM
I liked the site for July's new book much more than I did her regular website.
Lisa Yee said, on 4/12/2007 7:18:00 PM
I LOVE her website!
I also LOVED You and Me and Everyone I Know, the movie. Or was it, You and Me and Everyone We Know?
Either way, loved it. Love her.
Brooke said, on 4/13/2007 6:57:00 PM
I think that all author websites should include images of the writer reenacting scenes from history in their living rooms. I would pay good money to see . . . um . . . Grace Lin driving in the Golden Spike or M.T. Anderson's rendition of the Teapot Dome Scandal. In their living rooms.
Libby Brin is the Queen of Cool. She has the cool friends, the cool clothes, the cool attitude, the cool everything. If she tapes pencils to the front of her shirt before homeroom, at the end of the day everyone else will have have done the same.
She's been feeling a little weird lately, though she hasn't quite figured out exactly why.
I wake up on Monday morning, and my bedroom is the same, and the view outside the window is the same, and the smell of breakfast coming up from down the hall is the same. Only I feel different.
At lunchtime, in the pavilion, I sit at the usual table, and I am eating the same lunch I have every day (fat-free, sugar-free yogurt and a Diet Coke), while everyone else is talking over one another.
They are all talking. And nobody is listening.
That very same day, she does something very out of character. She signs up for an internship at the least-cool place on earth -- the Los Angeles Zoo. Suddenly, she's not spending all her time with the beautiful and hip -- she's spending a whole lot of it with the acne-prone and tragically unhip.
And she isn't hating it.
Okay, it's official. I'm ready and willing to join the Cult of Castellucci. Her books just RULE. My library doesn't have them*, so I ordered them for myself -- partly because I want them to read and re-read, and partly because I want to have them on hand to lend out to trusted friends.
The stories (or, at least the stories in Boy Proof and Queen of Cool**) are familiar. We've all come across the teen-finds-herself-and-grows-as-a-person book and the teen-broadens-her-horizons-and-grows as-a-person book. It's CC's telling of them that's special. Her characters are great, yes, and her voices, but even more than that, it feels like Cecil Castellucci has a real respect for her readers. She doesn't feel the need to spell everything out. She gives us the numbers and lets us do the math. Love it. Hooray.
Oh, AND. I ESPECIALLY loved it that Libby's transformation took TIME. She doesn't work a day at the zoo and all of a sudden miraculously appreciate Tina and Sheldon and the others (including Sid, who I loved). It was a slow process, and I got the feeling that Libby was aware it was happening, though A) she didn't want to admit it was happening and B) she fought it. All that complexity and yet, light enough for beach reading. Way impressive.
*I asked the YA librarian to order them all today.
**I haven't read Beige yet, though I have the ARC at home. And before Chrissy drives up here and stabs me with a fork, yes, I will hold my write-up back until we're a bit closer to the pub date.
In my various canoodlings on the series of tubes sometimes known as the internet, I stumbled on this interesting little posting by one Cecil Castellucci (author of this year's Boy Proof).
That's right, ladies and gentlemen. Move over NYC Kidlit Drink Nights. There are NYC Teen Lit Drink Nights carrying on right under our very noses. In actual fact, I believe the Teen Drink Nights came first. I recall Cheryl Klein once mentioning that the whole reason we even chose Sweet and Vicious as a good location was that editors and YA authors were already meeting there.
The real crime here? Seems to me that Coe Booth and Siobhan Vivian of the Longstockings blog should be posting recaps of these YA meetings. I mean, we're talking big teen authors here. Picture moments like Libba Bray discussing matters with E. Lockhart (a.k.a. Emily Jenkins). This constitutes useless gossip and as the harbinger of gossip in all its uniquely useless forms I, for one, wanna know when this kind of thing goes down. Heck, I didn't even know Libba Bray was local.
0 Comments on There's a Teen Drink Night Out There Too? as of
In honor of watching the movie today, I am wearing my best Egg outfit. Long white cloak, white pants, white shirt. Hair freshly shaved to a buzzed perfection. Pale white skin. Colored eyebrows. Neutral lips. In the future there is no lipstick. Thank goodness for that. I'd be quite content with a world that doesn't force women to wear makeup to be beautiful. I'm sure it would destroy my mom though.
"How can you leave the house without your face on?" Mom says over and over again.
"My face is on," I have to say to her. "My plain, not beautiful, just normal, no-makeup-on face."
"Ugh, you make yourself boy proof on purpose," she always says.
And that's what I am. Boy proof.
Victoria Jurgen (she prefers to be called Egg) is the daughter of divorced parents. Her mother is a has-been actress best known for her work a decade and a half ago on a cult sci-fi show and her father is an Oscar-winning special effects artist.
Egg dresses, talks and sometimes even thinks like the super-badass (and bald) heroine of her favorite movie:
I look up at the clock. It's two-twenty. I watch the second hand inch by the face. I concentrate on it and try to bend time like Egg does in Terminal Earth. No such luck. Time won't move any faster for me.
She is extremely bright, and likes people to be aware of that fact. She likes routine and she likes to be in control. She likes to be seen as a loner. Although she's a photographer for the school newspaper and is a member of the sci-fi club, she avoids much interaction with her fellow students. She isn't (that) rude -- she will talk to them if asked a direct question, but she doesn't generally initiate conversation. She's comfortable with the way things are.
I fell for this book immediately. Ron Koertge called it "compulsively readable", and I agree. I read half of it last night, then tossed and turned for ages before I finally gave up on sleep and got up to finish it. Thanks a lot, Cecil Castellucci. Now I'm going to be zombified all day. Patrons beware.
Oddly, it took me a little longer to fall for Victoria. For me, falling for a book and falling for a character usually happen at the same time. But Victoria was different. She's... prickly. There were moments towards the beginning when she didn't seem to let herself in, let alone anyone else.
Max, on the other hand (the book is called Boy Proof, people, OF COURSE there's a boy in it), won me over very early on. Odd, because I'm not usually a fan of idealistic Latin-spouting deep-thinking artist-types. But he had pink Japanese Kleenex. How could I resist that?
It could be described as your basic teen-finds-herself-and-grows-as-a-person story, but for me, it was more than that. Partly because I know that if I'd had this book as a teen, I would have identified with Egg in a big way. And partly because I appreciated the fact that Cecil Castellucci trusted her readers enough to refrain from spelling everything out.
For example: Max's reaction upon discovering that Egg skipped a grade: "Oh, that explains a lot." Nothing more was said. I think a lot of other authors would have added more, like a lame lengthy interior monologue sequence in which Egg lists all of the difficulties of skipping a grade, and how so much of her current behavior stems from that. But no. Max says, "Oh, that explains a lot" and drops it. It was a fabulous moment.
So I forgive you for my lost hours of sleep, Cecil Castellucci. I'm tired but not cranky. (I can't guarantee my mood in a few hours, though. It might be a rough day.)
The Los Angeles Review of Books (LARB) celebrated Banned Books Week with a series of essays by YA authors called “Getting Banned.”
.jpg?picon=848)
She's been feeling a little weird lately, though she hasn't quite figured out exactly why. 
I was very pleased to uncover this site. I need to to thank you for your
time for this particularly fantastic read!! I definitely loved every bit of
it and i also have you saved as a favorite to
check out new stuff on your blog.