So very apt

While organizing our series books, I came across this series and the title was so amusing to me that I had to post it here:Yes, that's right. The PONY-CRAZED PRINCESS. Series. I don't know what I like the most about it. The use of the word "crazed" in a children's book series title? Or the cartoon pony with a photo of a real horse hanging up in its stable?

Grace Lin!

I'm sure y'all remember how much I enjoyed Grace Lin's newest book Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. Well, I'm lucky enough to be the last stop on Ms. Lin's blog tour. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon came out this week, so be sure and stop by your favorite independent bookstore and pick up your copy! (And if you read it from an ARC like I did, you'll definitely want to check out the beautiful full-color artwork!)

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon is so different from your other novels. How was the writing process different for this book?

In some ways, this book felt like a natural progression from my other novels. "The Year of the Dog" and "The Year of the Rat" helped build my confidence as a writer and it was with this book I felt self-assured enough to write something without the support of a true-life personal narrative.

Before, research consisted of talking to my parents and relatives, comparably easy considering what I did for this book. This book needed much more research and consideration (which I talk about below).

It was also really important for me for all the stories to tie together, because of the red thread theme-- was how everything is connected. So, this book was a very consuming process. I was constantly thinking of how to link stories-- writing notes on scrap pieces of paper at the gym, post it notes all over my house, notebook scrawls at lunch. This was the first book that I've written where it was impossible to work on anything else at the same time.

What kind of research did you have to do for this book?

Researching for this book was quite enjoyable! I traveled to China and Taiwan and relived my trip to Hong Kong as a way for me to soak up the landscape and help create the imagery in my mind.

I also read and reread many Asian folktales and myths. Many times, I would read a myth that was little more than a line and would be unable to find more - which lead me to create the story in my head. For example, at Chinese New Year, it is common to find pictures of two plump children dressed in red decorating doorways. These children are called Da-A-Fu. Why? I researched and only found a very short summary of them: they were two spirits transformed as children sent to destroy a green monster that was terrorizing a village. There were no details of how or why or what village, but it was enough to spark my imagination. So with that, I created the twin characters of A-Fu and Da-Fu in Where the Mountain Meets the Moon who destroy the Green Tiger.

Even with the research, however, this book had its challenges. I am most definitely Asian-American, and probably more American than Asian. So capturing Chinese authenticity was something I struggled with as well as debated internally. The book is very much tinged with my Asian-American sensibilities. For example, I knew and learned more about foot-binding for young girls in China; but I made the conscious decision to leave that tradition out of my book. I try to make a point in my author's note that the book is an Asian-inspired fantasy, not full of historical truths or even traditional Chinese values. I hope people still enjoy it as such.

(**Pictures show a photo from China, the sketch inspired by the photo, and the final art that appears in the book. How cool is that?!)


How did you incorporate your own personal experiences into Where the Mountain Meets the Moon?

Well, when I first began writing this book, I had visited Hong Kong and Taiwan which were wonderful trips. Being Asian-American (and more American than Asian) it was a fascinating experience to be surrounded by a culture that was so foreign and familiar at the same time. Whenever I viewed the landscape, saw a temple or a sampan in the water, I suddenly would remember the Chinese folktales I had read as a child. I could see them happening in the setting around me and I knew in there was a book waiting to be written.

I was almost 3/4^th finished with the writing the book when I went to visit China. This was the perfect time to go, as I had an idea of what kinds of things I wanted to see and research there but the book was still open enough to be changed. And it was wonderful! Actually seeing China with my own eyes and experiencing it added such a rich layer to the story. For example, one of the excursions we took especially for the book was a visit to a tiny mountain village. I wanted to see a mountain village because I knew Minli (the main character in “Where the Mountain Meets the Moon” ) would be visiting one. The whole time we were there, we were freezing cold but the villagers were so friendly and red-cheeked (which I was to find out later was wind-burn, not good circulation). So, those element of mountain cold and a warm, friendly shelter became the back drop of the village Minli visits.

What are some of your favorite middle-grade novels?

Too many! The ones I loved as a child and still love are the “Shoes” books by Noel Streatfeild (I think my favorite is “Family Shoes”), anything by Rumer Godden (I love “Miss Happiness and Miss Flower”), anything by Beverly Cleary (“Ramona and Her Father” still makes me feel warm and fuzzy), the Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace, anything by Ruth Chew (“The Witch’s Buttons!”). I also LOVED “A Sundae With Judy” by Frieda Friedman (which was the absolute first MG book I read that had an Asian character in it), “A Search For Delicious” by Natalie Babbit, and, of course the Narnia Book and the Oz books.

I am ashamed to say I am not as well read on recently published books (I’m the kind of person that can read the same book over and over again, and I tend to read my classic favorites!). But some of the more recent books that I love are “Masterpiece” by Elise Broach, “Alvin Ho” by Lenore Look, “Blow Out the Moon,” by Libby Koponen and “Fame and Glory in Freedom, Georgia” by Barbara O’Connor.

Thanks so much for stopping by, Grace. I hope you had a great blog tour. It was a pleasure having you!

Want to know more? Check out Grace's Facebook page and the Where the Mountain Meets the Moon book launch page. And, of course, visit your local bookstore or library and pick up Where the Mountain Meets the Moon!

And be sure to check out the other stops on the tour:

Wednesday, June 24th: Bildungsroman
Thursday, June 25th: Shelf Elf
Friday, June 26th: Paper Tigers
Saturday, June 27th: MotherReader
Sunday, June 28th: Charlotte's Library
Monday, June 29th: Write for a Reader
Tuesday, June 30th: The Mommy Files
Wednesday, July 1st: Thrifty Minnesota Mama
Thursday, July 2nd: Creative Madness
Friday, July 3rd: Right here!

Percy Jackson

Last week I had Friday off and I spent most of the afternoon and evening reading The Last Olympian from cover to cover. I've said time and time again that I'm not a big series person, but the Percy Jackson books are a notable exception to that rule.

Y'know, I'm not going to "review" it since, if you're a fan of the series, you're going to read it and you'll have your opinion about it. I'll just say that I enjoyed it and I'll be looking for Rick Riordan's next Half-Blood series. I do want to point you to a couple of posts dealing with race in the series:

This post from The Happy Nappy Bookseller is slightly spoilerish, but the incident she discusses happens within the first couple of chapters of The Last Olympian. So consider yourself warned, but do click over there if you've read the book or don't mind slight spoilers. And Jennie's got a (spoiler-free) beef with the audiobook.

And hey, I know there are kids and adults all over the world just chomping at the bit for more about Percy, Annabeth, Luke, Grover, and all the rest. If you're one of them, you should definitely check out Demigods and Monsters: Your Favorite Authors On Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series. This collection of essays is edited and introduced by Mr. Riordan himself and includes essays by Sarah Beth Durst, Kathi Appelt, Jenny Han, and Rosemary Clement-Moore (among others!).

A particular favorite of mine is "Why Do So Many Monsters Go Into Retail?" by Cameron Dokey. She examines the many different shops operated by monsters in the series and why our heroes always seem to end up browsing the merchandise, be it waterbeds or garden gnomes.

So if you know someone who just can't get enough of Percy Jackson, check out this collection. And I'd venture to say that it would make an excellent prize for, say, a Percy Jackson trivia tournament or any kind of Percy Jackson program at your library.

Twenty Boy Summer WINNERS

Congratulations to CherylS22 and AuntRene, winners of the Twenty Boy Summer giveaway!

And thanks to everyone who entered!

Halfway through...

How are everyone's Summer Reading Clubs going?

My summer's been crazy, to be completely honest. I really hit the ground running, starting my new job in mid-May just a week before our SRC started.

We're doing Be Creative @ Your Library, like many other libraries across the country. One of the easiest and most fun things we've done is to provide paper and crayons and encourage kids to draw a picture to put up on the wall. We started out with a big, blank bulletin board but that was soon filled and we moved on to letting kids tape up drawings. Some of them have been really beautiful and it really encourages them to be creative. Plus, it gives the kids an activity to do while they're at the library.

I'm so happy to see so many kids signing up for Summer Reading (and so many kids reading SO MANY book!), but I'll confess that I'm glad we're about halfway through. ;)

So, how is your SRC going? Anyone want to brag about a fantastic program they've done this summer? Or something cheap and easy that's really added to the fun?

To Theme or Not To Theme?

Do you use themes for your storytimes?

I've been thinking about this since I started my new job. At my previous library, we didn't generally use themes for storytimes. The idea behind that is that it's better to read a handful of great readalouds than to stretch to find books that have to do with your theme. We kept track of the books we used in a database so that we didn't repeat them too often.

At my new library, we do tend to use themes. I've done storytime a couple of times now and to be honest, the kids could care less if all the books are about chickens or colors or whatever.

What are some advantages to using themes?

- It can make it easier to plan. There are a bazillion picture books out there, so which ones do you read at storytime? It's a little more manageable when you narrow it down to just books about dogs or eating or zoos. That said, it gets a little less manageable when your theme is so narrow that you can only find one book to read. I always keep in mind my good friend And. As in, "Today's theme is Cats and Dogs!"

- It might push you to include different books that are unexpected hits. Or maybe you don't normally look in the nonfiction section for your storytime books, but since your theme is "Milk", you decide to include a true book about where milk comes from. I'm always one for pushing the envelope and trying something new. And I'm a big advocate for including nonfiction books in programs and displays. If needing to stick to a theme will push you to try something new, I say go for it.

- Themed storytimes lend themselves to displays. Set up a table in your story room where you can display more books on your theme, and encourage attendees to check out the books. This is another chance to push your nonfiction and include some of those great picture books that aren't necessarily great readalouds.

All that said, does it really matter if we're reading books on the same theme? I'm thinking not. The more experience I get with this whole librarian thing, the more books I know about and the better I am at picking out books that'll work as readalouds. So that makes it easier to pick readalouds on certain themes.

And even if I do use a theme, I'm not afraid to go off-theme for a song or rhyme if need be. Throw a little Jim Gill in there or do some dancin' with Sharon & Brahm. The important thing is that you're sharing books with kids. That's why we love being librarians, right??

So, librarians, what do you think? Do you use themes for storytime? What are some of your favorites? Do you hate themes and all they stand for?

ETA (12:06pm): Seems we've heard from several supporters of themes for storytimes. Anyone want to make a case for not having themed storytimes? I know you're out there!

And parents, do you have a preference? Does your child? Why do you like themes (or dislike them)? Is there a reason you like stories that are connected in some way or does having a connection matter as long as all the books are fun readalouds?

(I am apparently full of questions today!)

Book Review: Beyond: A Solar System Voyage

Beyond: A Solar System Voyage by Michael Benson. (Grades 6-10.)

You know about the planets, but you've never seen them like this before. Using images shot by space probes over the last forty years, Michael Benson gives us an up close and personal view of even the farthest of the planets in our solar system. The photos are absolutely stunning and you should definitely pick up this book or the original adult version, Beyond: Visions of the Interplanetary Probes, to look at them, but there are some great facts about the planets tucked in there, too.

Did you know that there may once have been oceans on Venus? Or that the sun is so big that it accounts for 99.8% of all the mass in the Solar System? Or that Mars has a pink sky and sometimes has blue sunsets (the opposite of what we have on Earth)?

Beyond starts off with a history of astronomy from ancient times through the rapid technological advances of the 1940s, '50s, and '60s. Then Michael Benson explores each planet in detail, starting with stunning photos of the Earth. Seriously, you have to see these photos. They're huge photos of the Earth from space, but with such detail that you can see dust from African deserts blowing out to sea or a volcano exploding in Sicily. Very cool. Besides the planets, Benson also includes a section on the Sun and asteroids.

The text is a little much for recreational reading. There's a lot of it in big chunks and while some interesting trivia is presented, some of it is kind of dry. I ended up skimming some sections, but what the book lacks in text it makes up for in the photos. Benson includes a glossary, photo credits, a short bibliography, and an extensive index. This book would definitely be of service to kids and teens doing reports on planets, and the photos will hook browsers. I'd pair it with The Mysterious Universe for more spectacular space photography.

Happy Nonfiction Monday! Book Aunt's got the roundup, so check in and see what nonfiction everyone's reading this week.

Around the Interwebs: Really, Really (Part 2)

Okey doke, Around the Interwebs, Part 2.

Sarah's hosting a giveaway for Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson! Definitely head over there and enter because it's a fabulous book.

Liz posted a press release about Class of 2k9 member Albert Borris, author of the upcoming Crash Into Me, who suffered a stroke and is still recovering. The kidlitosphere's great at showing support, so do check out Albert's book.

Adrienne pointed me to this great interview with Jan Thomas, author of What Will Fat Cat Sit On? and Rhyming Dust Bunnies (among many other fabulous books).

And speaking of authors of my favorite storytime books, check out a sneak peek of Mo Willems's upcoming easy reader, Cat the Cat. And don't forget, Mo has the best dining room ever (I have such house envy).

Susan reminds us about the wonderful Mid-Continent Public Library's awesome listing of series and sequels. If you don't know about this site, you seriously need to check it out. It's my first resource to find out what the third Pony Pals book is or print out a list of all the Junie B. Jones books.

Carlie's wondering if Twilight and Harry Potter are the best choices for the preteens who want to read them. From the post:

I can sort of see why Harry Potter trickled down, though I personally refuse to recommend it to anyone younger than sixth grade. At its opening, it's a fun adventure-in-magic-school story. By book three, though, the layers have built so thick and dark that the book beyond its surface is best enjoyed by readers with more life experience. IMNSHO. I still think third-graders are better served by books other than Harry Potter.

And that's it for Around the Interwebs this time around. What have YOU been surfing lately?

Around the Interwebs: Really, Really

This is what happens when you don't think you have time to blog (is it blog flu? Nahhh...): you end up with over 20 starred items and all of them are really cool (in my opinion). Tell you what... I'll post the first half of this now and promise more interwebby fun for later tonight or tomorrow.

If you're looking for some great non-fiction to read this summer (I know I am!), check out ACPL's first 2010 Mock Sibert reading list. And better yet, join in the discussion of these titles on their Mock Sibert blog! If that still doesn't give you enough reading suggestions, check out which books made Sarah's sixth graders say "You HAVE to read this!"

Got a school/public library partnership that you're proud of? Submit it here. And speaking of the ALSC blog, I am pleased to see posts about programming for kids with special needs. This post, the first in a series, has a lot of great information and ideas!

Many of you are involved with it already, but if you're wondering what the point of Twitter is, John Green's happy to give you an answer.

TO BE CONTINUED....

Bok bok bok revisited

As those who have worked with me could tell you, I have a soft spot for books about wacky chickens. I don't know what it is, but I'm drawn to them. So, of course, I put together a chicken storytime.

I'd posted about chicken books previously, but here's what I did this week:

Chickens to the Rescue by John Himmelman - Every day of the week, something goes wrong at the farm. Luckily, there are chickens to put everything right again.

The Wolf's Chicken Stew by Keiko Kasza - When Mr. Wolf decides to fatten up a chicken for some stew, his delicious gifts have an unintended consequence.

Hungry Hen by Richard Waring - Every day, the hen eats and eats and gets bigger and bigger. When the fox on the hill can stand it no more, he rushes in for his dinner but gets a surprise instead.

Hattie and the Fox by Mem Fox - Hattie the black hen spies something lurking in the bushes, but none of the other barnyard animals care until she identifies it as a fox.

The Most Wonderful Egg in the World by Helme Heine (felt story) - The king will make one of the beautiful hens into a princess - whichever one lays the most wonderful egg. But how to decide?

Of course, we needed to sing and dance, so I also threw in a little Silly Dance Contest by the incomparable Jim Gill.

I turned The Most Wonderful Egg in the World into a felt story and that worked pretty nicely. I created felt pieces for the three hens, the king, a nest, the three eggs, and three princess crowns.

There are tons of great books about chickens out there, so here are some others you might consider:

This Little Chick by John Lawrence
Chicky Chicky Chook Chook by Cathy MacLennan
Dora's Eggs by Julie Sykes
Lottie's New Beach Towel by Petra Mathers
Minerva Louise by Jan Stoeke