Afterschool: November

Here's what I did with my Afterschool visits in November!

We read:

Zombie in Love by Kelly DiPucchio, illustrated by Scott Campbell. Atheneum, 2011.

The kids LOVE this book and even remembered it from last year and requested that I bring it again. I read this to the group I saw right before Halloween. A zombie, having no luck with the ladies, puts out a personal ad and invites anyone who would like to meet him to show up to the Valentine's Day dance, with hilarious results. The illustrations are slightly creepy and the kids go nuts over it. I only wish the book was a little bigger so they could see the illustrations better. The text is a perfect length for sharing with the afterschool crowd, too. With the popularity of zombies right now*, this is a book that will have wide appeal, even outside its school-age audience.

The Book That Eats People by John Perry, illustrated by Mark Fearing. Tricycle Press, 2009.

This book was suggested as I was collecting ideas for non-Halloween scary picture books and after reading it I decided I had to share it with my group. This was another creepy hit that was perfect for my visit right before Halloween (and, like the zombie title, will have wide appeal after October as well). I made sure to play it up big that I had to be very careful with this book and if they wanted to look at it after we read it, they couldn't have any food on their fingers. ;)

This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen. Candlewick, 2012.

I think I maybe like this one even better than I Want My Hat Back. Before we started, I asked the kids to look at the cover and tell me what they thought the story was going to be about. After we'd finished, I asked them what they thought happened to the fish who stole a hat (resounding chorus of "HE ATE HIM!!!"). Pair this one with Ugly Fish by Kara LaReau, illustrated by Scott Magoon and I'm the Biggest Thing in the Ocean by Kevin Sherry for a really fun underwater-animals-eating-each-other storytime. :)

For our craft this month, in an effort to do SOMETHING that's not scratch art, we made I-Spy collages. We had volunteers cut up tons of old magazines and catalogs and brought bags full of the pictures and half-sheets of cardstock for the kids to make small collages. We chose to do half-sheets to cut down on the craft time since we usually only leave 15-20 minutes for the craft, but the kids got into it and I think they would have loved to do full sheets. We also brought glue with us. We didn't have enough glue sticks for everyone to have one, so we brought liquid glue bottles and poured out small amounts into coffee filters and gave all the kids q-tips to use to spread the glue. This is a cheap and pretty easy way to do glue with large groups and then we could throw away the coffee filters and q-tips so we didn't have anything messy to pack back up. Glue sticks or glue dots would also work. The kids loved sorting through all the little pictures and picking out ones to add to their collage. They especially liked pictures of animals and of any kind of recognizable characters. This was a fun and cheap craft, definitely one that's going into our roster for the afterschool visits.

* TEAM UNICORN FOREVER!!!

My Favorite Nonfiction Books of 2012 (so far)

Or, What Is Up With That PW List??

'Tis the season for the Best Books of 2012 lists, which makes me really happy. I haven't read as much this year as in previous years, so I can definitely use all the help I can get in reading this year's best titles. Publisher's Weekly was one of the first major outlets to publish their "Best Of" lists, which I perused with great excitement...

until I got to the Children's Nonfiction list.

While PW's other children's lists included a large selection of excellent books (11 picture books, 25 middle-grade/YA novels), the Best Children's Nonfiction of 2012 included only 4 books. Now, I have no problem with the books that made their very brief list, but there have been SO MANY other great children's nonfiction books published this year! Here are some awesome children's nonfiction books that did NOT appear on PW's list:

A Black Hole is NOT a Hole by Carolyn Crimini DeCristofano (Charlesbridge). The humorous, conversational tone of this book gives it high kid appeal, helping middle-graders wrap their heads around the mysteries of space.

Bomb: The Race to Build -- and Steal -- the World's Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin (Flash Point). This National Book Award finalist is an espionage thriller starring physicists, army officers, and spies. It reads like fiction and has back matter that'll make your heart skip a beat (if you are a nerd like me).

Harlem's Little Blackbird by Renée Watson (Random House BFYR). This colorful picture book illustrates the life of Florence Mills, a popular black performer who entertained thousands in the early 1900s. The bright collage illustrations are paired perfectly with the text to bring this young performer to life for young readers.

Invincible Microbe: Tuberculosis and the Neverending Search for a Cure by Jim Murphy & Alison Bank (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt). I'm not kidding when I say that this biography of a disease has changed how I view so many different things. Tuberculosis is ALL OVER THE PLACE in books and movies and I never really paid it any mind until I read this book.

The Letter Q: Queer Writers' Notes to Their Younger Selves edited by Sarah Moon (Arthur A. Levine Books). This collection of letters from top authors is a must for library shelves. It's the type of book that will mean something different for everyone and it's an important contribution to this year's YA nonfiction.

Little White Duck: A Childhood in China by Na Lu and Andrés Vera Martínez (Graphic Universe). This graphic novel memoir introduces children to life in China in the 1970s through stunning, emotional art.

The Mighty Mars Rovers: The Incredible Adventures of Spirit and Opportunity by Elizabeth Rusch (Houghton Mifflin). This is an incredible story of science and perseverance, of problem-solving from millions of miles away. Stunning photographs and fantastic back matter round out the book.

Mrs. Harkness and the Panda by Alicia Potter (Knopf). Illustrated by my favorite, Melissa Sweet, this book tells the story of Ruth Harkness's journey to bring back America's first panda. I was especially pleased to find a line in the author's note addressing how opinions about taking pandas from China have changed since the 1930s.

Ocean Sunlight: How Tiny Plants Feed the Seas by Molly Bang & Penny Chisholm (Blue Sky Press). This nonfiction picture book shines a light on the tiny plants that contribute a surprising amount to our ecosystem. The authors present a giant concept in an accessible way.

Superman Versus The Ku Klux Klan: The True Story of How the Iconic Superhero Battled the Men of Hate by Rick Bowers (National Geographic Children's Books). This fascinating history books weaves two riveting origin stories together: the beginnings of Superman and the development of the Ku Klux Klan.

Temple Grandin: How the Girl Who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World by Sy Montgomery (Houghton Mifflin). This excellent biography of Temple Grandin succeeds in prose and layout, pairing visually appealing photos and sidebars with an interesting story about a largely unsung hero of animals. 

Now, this is a list of my favorite children's and YA nonfiction books of 2012, but I certainly have NOT read everything published this year. Please let me know which of your favorites I may have missed so I can get caught up!

THE 13TH SIGN Preorder Contest!

Welcome to DAY CANCER of 13 Days of THE 13TH SIGN Preorder Contest! 

You guys might remember how much I enjoyed Kristin Tubb's middle grade novel Selling Hope, so I was very excited to find out that she's got a new book coming out! The 13th Sign is coming out in January and here's a synopsis from GoodReads: 

What if there was a 13th zodiac sign?

You’re no longer Sagittarius, but Ophiuchus, the healer, the 13th sign.

Your personality has changed. So has your mom’s and your best friend’s.

What about the rest of the world?

What if you were the one who accidentally unlocked the 13th sign, causing this world-altering change—and infuriating the other 12 signs?

Jalen did it, and now she must use every ounce of her strength and cunning to send the signs back where they belong. Lives, including her own, depend on it.

This is definitely a book I'm looking forward to reading, so I'm happy to participate in the 13 Days of 13 SIGNS preorder contest! 

So. What is this contest all about?

If you preorder a copy of THE 13TH SIGN by Kristin O’Donnell Tubb, you will be entered into a contest! Where you can WIN THINGS! And there are new prizes every day!

And. EVERY preorder will be *matched* by a $1.00 donation to RIF, a literacy program committed to placing books in the hands of kids who need them most.

What can I win TODAY?

If you preorder THE 13TH SIGN today, Monday, November 26, you could win:

-key charm

-star-shaped art supplies

-signed THE 13^TH SIGN swag

-signed KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES by Shannon Messenger bookmark

-a FREE 1-hour Skype session with a school or writer’s group of your choice

-signed paperback of AUTUMN WINIFRED OLIVER DOES THINGS DIFFERENT by Kristin O’Donnell Tubb

-a 13^th SIGN tshirt

How do I enter?

Preorder THE 13TH SIGN! You can preorder it through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Indiebound, or through your local independent bookstore. Then email your receipt TO KRISTIN at ktubb@comcast.net. You will be entered into that day’s drawing, the grand prize drawing, and your purchase will be *matched* by a $1.00 donation to RIF!

Are there other ways to enter the contest?

Yep! You can be entered into the daily prize drawings by doing one or more of the following:
-Each preorder of THE 13TH SIGN = 10 entries into grand prize drawing and 10 entries into that day’s drawing
- Each person who blogs about the contest = 10 entries into that day’s drawing
-Each person who changes Twitter or Facebook avatar to cover = 5 entries into that day’s drawing (for each day it is present)
-Each Tweet or Facebook status mention of the book and contest = 2 entries for that day’s drawing (must include hashtag #the13thsign)
-Each RT of book and/or contest = 1 entry for that day’s drawing

BUT. You have to preorder THE 13TH SIGN to enter to win the grand prize and to have your purchase matched with a RIF donation.

ALSO. To make sure you get the correct amount of entries, please let Kristin know if you’ve done any of the above! You can email her at ktubb@comcast.net with everything you’ve done to enter.

What is the grand prize?

A Nexus 7 ereader! BOOM. The grand prize will be given away on Kristin’s blog (kristintubb.blogspot.com) on Friday, December 7th.

How long does the preorder contest last?

13 days total! You can visit these other blogs for each day’s prizes:
DAY ARIES: The Book Vortex
DAY TAURUS: The Housework Can Wait
DAY GEMINI: Magnet 4 Books
DAY CANCER: Abby the Librarian
DAY LEO: Mother Daughter Book Club
DAY VIRGO: S. R. Johannes/Market My Words
DAY LIBRA: Elizabeth O. Dulemba
DAY SCORPIO: Citrus Reads
DAY OPHIUCHUS: Young Adult Books Central
DAY SAGITTARIUS: Bloggers [heart] Books
DAY CAPRICORN: – Middle Grade Mafioso
DAY AQUARIUS: Smack Dab in the Middle
DAY PISCES: From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle Grade Authors

Good luck! And don’t forget to take THE 13TH SIGN quiz!

AudioSynced is coming up!

Reminder: November's AudioSynced Roundup will be posted here on Saturday! Did you get some listening in during your Thanksgiving travel this weekend or sometime this month? Review those audiobooks and send me a link so I can include it! Leave a link in comments or email to abbylibrarian@gmail.com. 

Happy listening!

Vacation!!

Howie and I thank you for reading. :) 

I'm on a much-needed vacation this week, so Abby the Librarian's taking a short break. To everyone in the States, have a happy and safe Thanksgiving holiday. I'm definitely thankful for readers like you that make this whole blogging thing fun and interesting. I'll be back next week!

A Look Back at Fall Storytime

Last week was our last week of Fall Storytime, so I want to take a look back at what we did.

Our library has traditionally offered registered storytimes in the spring and the fall. This year, we decided to split our storytimes into three 4-week sessions instead of two 6-week sessions. This was based on feedback from our patrons that it was easier for them to commit to a 4-week session than a 6- or 8-week session and also feedback from my staff that it was more manageable for them to plan and implement two 4-week sessions rather that one longer session.

I think it worked pretty well. We had a lot of the same kids sign up for both sessions, but we also had a handful that were no-shows for the first session, so after 4 weeks other families had a shot to sign up for those sessions. (We always try to get everyone in that wants to come and we very rarely have storytimes where everyone signed up shows up.)

This year, the way the schedule worked out we only had a week in between the sessions. I think it will be a little different next year when we'll have three weeks between the two fall sessions. Even though we asked families to sign up for each session, I know I had mostly repeats in my group and it did kinda feel like an 8-week session with a fall break.

We offered four different class times and families decided which to sign up for and attended at the same time each week. We offered:

• Mondays at 10:00am
• Tuesdays at 7:00pm
• Thursdays at 11:00am
• Thursdays at 4:30pm

In the spring, I think we will move our second morning session up to 10:00 because we had feedback that that was easier for families trying to fit lunch and naptime in. It's always a hard call because sometimes we have 15 different Head Start classes trying to schedule field trips to the library and all wanting to come at 10:00, but it seems like whenever we try to schedule our programs to accommodate this possibility, none of the Head Start teachers call for field trips.

In the spring, we will probably add another class time since we will FINALLY be back at full staff! Since we moved one of our baby storytimes to Monday afternoons, I think we will probably add a Wednesday morning session, but we'll just see how it goes.

Our evening class was very well-attended this time around and our afternoon class was okay. Hopefully by the spring we will have a better marketing plan in place and more people taking advantage of the programs we're offering.

For our fall sessions, we did storytimes on the following themes:

Session I:

• Mice
• Jungles
• Cows
• Penguins

Session II:

• Construction
• Clouds
• Pumpkins
• Homes

As you can see, there's no rhyme or reason to the themes we choose and I'm totally fine with that. I'd rather my staff have the freedom to pick a theme they're interested in and able to find lots of readalouds for than have them constrained to a larger theme. Plus, having a variety helps us ensure that there will be something of interest to everybody.

I asked my staff if they wanted to offer a winter series, but we elected instead to have several special programs (like library dance party and Lego Club) and to create take-home storytime kits while we're on our storytime break. So, goodbye to preschool storytime until the spring!

Eleanor & Park

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. Grades 8+ St. Martin's Press, February 2013. 320 pages. Reviewed from egalley provided by NetGalley.

It all began on Eleanor's first day at her new school. It began with a bus ride. Anyone who's ridden the bus to school knows that it's a battle ground. It's early and dark and no one wants to give up a seat to themselves. Park was the only one who would move over, so that's where Eleanor sat. Park wasn't even sure why he did it. It's not because Eleanor was pretty, with those weird clothes and frizzy red hair. But it started something. Pretty soon Eleanor was reading his comics over his shoulder when she thought he wouldn't notice. And pretty soon they were both enjoying the same music, Park making mix tapes for her. And pretty soon they were inseparable. But everyone knows that teenage love doesn't last... or does it?

Eleanor & Park is a high stakes love story. Reading it was remembering what it was like to fall in love for the first time, that desperate need to be together, that feeling that somehow this was all going to get taken away the moment you let your guard down. And for Eleanor & Park, there's a lot at stake here, as Rainbow Rowell builds up to a gradual reveal that all is NOT well in Eleanor's world. I don't want to spoil anything, but I'll just say that I think the plot builds on itself really well. The reader gets a sense of what's coming, but that doesn't make it anticlimactic.

We see both Park's and Eleanor's view of this relationship as the narration switches back and forth between them. This book's incredibly character-driven, so it was right up my alley. I love that the reader gets to know both Park and Eleanor so intimately that it feels like they're real people. The book is set in 1986, but the love story is really timeless. Pop culture, music, and technology references place the reader in the time period. The setting will feel retro to teens and pleasingly familiar to adults, and I think it gives this novel a lot of crossover potential.

This is definitely a love story, but it's not what you might think of as a typical romance story. There's a lot of meat to this book. I'd try it on fans of Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan or The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. The feel of the book is much different from Rowell's adult novel Attachments, but they're both character-driven and both set in time periods that will have 30-somethings reminiscing.

Eleanor & Park will be on shelves February 26.

Abby's Favorite Books for Baby Gifts

I don't know about you, but my friends seem to be exploding with babies lately. I guess we're just at that age where everyone's starting to have kids, which means that we're at the age to be buying plenty of baby shower gifts (not to mention the upcoming holidays). And what better gift for a children's librarian to give than BOOKS? I've posted a list of some of my favorite baby gift books before, but here are some of my recent favorites.

Babybug Magazine. A perennial favorite of the parents at my library, this magazine is the gift that keeps on giving the whole year. The rhymes and short stories are perfect for sharing with babies and young children and the baby in question will get something in the mail almost every month (9 issues a year).

Clare Beaton's Farmyard Rhymes by Clare Beaton. I love Beaton's beautiful textile illustrations and I love giving nursery rhyme books, so this one is a win-win. Clare Beaton has several other rhyme books, including a Mother Goose collection. All make nice gifts.

Fifteen Animals! by Sandra Boynton. Boynton's books are board book classics - so funny and catchy with cute cartoon animal illustrations. This is definitely one of my favorites with a high dose of humor and plenty of animals.

It's a Little Book by Lane Smith. This book is an especially fitting gift for your bookish friends. Remember the jackass in Lane Smith's It's a Book? Well, the board book version doesn't have any potentially controversial language.

Llama Llama Zippity-Zoom by Anna Dewdney. I love the Llama Llama picture books and they're big hits with kids. These new board books are a great introduction to the Llama Llama character and perfect for sharing with wee ones.

Quiet, Loud by Leslie Patricelli. Leslie Patricelli's super cute illustrations lend themselves well to her series of concept board books. These are books that will grow well with babies as they grow to toddlers and start practicing these concepts.

We Belong Together by Joyce Wan. The kawaii illustrations in Joyce Wan's board books are perfectly paired with adorable similes describing how much baby is loved.

You Are My Sunshine by Caroline Jayne Church. Not only do I love the adorable illustrations (and the shiny cover you probably can't see in this image), but a song book encourages parents to sing with baby, encouraging early literacy skills.

What are some of your favorite books to give as baby gifts?

Becoming a Ballerina

Becoming a Ballerina: A Nutcracker Story by Lise Friedman & Mary Dowdle. Grades 3-6. Viking Juvenile, October 2012. 44 pages. Review copy provided by my local library.

Thirteen-year-old Fiona has been dancing for years, but she's about to take the stage in her first major role - playing Clara in The Nutcracker. Butterflies dance in her stomach as she thinks about her journey to get here: years of work, dancing smaller roles over the past several years, multiple auditions. What if she forgets the steps? What if she falls down? No matter what, the show must go on!

Beautiful, full-color photos and a narrative text take the reader through the whole process, from Fiona's auditions to rehearsals to opening night. Young ballet fans will find much to appreciate here in the story of one girl's journey to the stage, and I especially appreciate that the authors featured a young Japanese-American dancer. Kids who aren't familiar with ballet may still appreciate the story, but occasional undefined ballet terms might throw them for a loop.

This would also be a great book to share with a class or children going to see The Nutcracker. It doesn't go over the plot in detail, but it does give a glimpse of the hard work that leads up to the performance. Fiona talks about how she has to act out everything that's happening because there are no words in the performance. The photos show dancers in various stages of costume, from earlier rehearsals in leotards to dress rehearsals to the performance. There's also talk of the use of props and Fiona practicing to hit the Rat King with her slipper. All of these tidbits would give kids a further insight into the play.

I would have loved to see some back matter - maybe a glossary of ballet terms, a list of ballet books for further reading, or an author's note explaining how they worked with Fiona to make the book. But even without those things, it'll serve quite nicely as supplementary material for children interested in ballet or going to see the show.

As we get nearer to the holidays, performances of The Nutcracker start up in many cities, so this is one to buy for your library shelves if it's a perennial topic in your community. Pair this with To Dance: A Ballerina's Graphic Novel by Siena Cherson Siegel or A Young Dancer: The Life of an Ailey Student by Valerie Gladstone.

Becoming a Ballerina is on shelves now!

Happy Nonfiction Monday! Check out this week's roundup at The Flatt Perspective!

Got an Awesome Teen Program?

Submit it for the Excellence in Library Services to Young Adults program! Thanks to Justin Hoenke for bringing this program to my attention. Best of luck to anyone applying!

From ALA.org:
YALSA will select up to twenty-five innovative teen programs from all types of libraries to feature at the 2013 ALA Annual Conference and to include in a sixth edition of Excellence in Library Service to Young Adults. Successful applications will focus on programs that address new teen needs or interests, or that address ongoing teen needs or interests in an innovative or unique way. The top five programs will receive cash awards of $1000 each. Up to twenty “best of the rest” programs will receive cash awards of $250. Each award will be presented to the applicant’s institution for use with future teen programs and/or for the applicant’s travel to the 2013 conference to participate in the YALSA President’s Program.

EligibilityThe program described in the application must be a library-sponsored event, inside or outside the library, which appeals to a group rather than an individual. A program can be informational, recreational, educational, or all three.

• The program described must have taken place in 2012 or be ongoing.
• The program must be targeted at teens within the 12 – 18 age range.
• All personal members of YALSA whose membership is current as of 12/17/12 are eligible to submit an application.
• Only one application per YALSA member may be submitted.

CriteriaEach application will be judged on the basis of the:

• Degree to which the program meets the needs of the teens in the community. (20 points)
• Originality of the program (creative, innovative, unique). (30 points)
• Degree to which the program reflects the ideals identified in YALSA’s national guidelines and competencies (at www.ala.org/yalsa/guidelines). (20 points)
• Overall quality of the program (well planned, promoted, organized, implemented, and evaluated). (20 points)
• Clarity of the application (10 points)

Instructions1. The application must include a statement of support from the director of the public library, school principal, or the building-level administrator which is emailed to lsmith@ala.org.

2. Entries must be models of clarity and completeness.

3. The application must be submitted electronically via the online form at http://ow.ly/eKh40.

4. All online forms and statements of support must be received no later than midnight (eastern) Dec. 17, 2012.

5. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

AnnouncementThe libraries selected with exemplary programs will be announced via press release the week of Feb. 4, 2013.

All of the selected programs will be invited to participate in YALSA’s President’s Program: Innovations in Teen Programming at the 2013 ALA Annual Conference. Prize money may be used to support travel and conference expenses.

All of the selected exemplary programs/services will be included in YALSA’s Excellence in Library Services to Young Adults, 6th edition, to be published in the fall of 2013.
Libraries receiving the cash awards will be recognized via press release and on the YALSA web site. A list of winning applicants will be included in the forthcoming book.

For questions contact: Letitia Smith, YALSA Membership Marketing Specialist, at lsmith@ala.org or 1.800.545.2433 x4390