Debbie Ridpath Ohi's Blog, page 16
June 1, 2018
#BookADay: BECOMING MADELEINE by Léna Roy and Charlotte Jones Voiklis
Where you can find out more about BECOMING MADELEINE:
Becoming Madeleine book page on Macmillan's site
Becoming Madeleine audiobook (which is how I read the book)
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More info: Donalyn Miller's #BookADay Challenge - My #BookADay Archives (also see my visual #BookADay archive on Padlet).
May 28, 2018
Advice for young writers, debut picture book SUN DOG, deals with the universe: Deborah Kerbel answers three questions
I met Deborah Kerbel through our local Torkidlit group. Deborah is the author of eight books for young readers. She was born in a police station, smack-dab in the centre of London, England but moved to Canada before she was old enough to cultivate a love of marmalade. She’s the proud mom of two book-loving teens and a rescue schnoodle named Fred. You can find Deborah at DeborahKerbel.com, on Twitter and on Facebook.
I was super-excited to hear that Deborah not only has a new middle grade, but also her first picture book! SUN DOG is written by Deborah and illustrated by Suzanne Del Rizzo (see Suzanne's amazing plasticine creation process in her Inkygirl interview from 2013).
PUBLIC LAUNCH EVENTS: For those in Ontario, there are two different launch events. One is on Sat. June 2nd, 2-4 pm at Indigo in the Yorkdale Shopping Centre (FB event page) and the other is on Sat. June 23, 2-4 pm at A Different Drummer Books, 513 Locust Street in Burlington, Ontario (FB event page).
Synopsis of SUN DOG (picture book written by Deborah Kerbel, gorgeously illustrated by Suzanne Del Rizzo, published by Pajama Press, for ages 4-7):
Juno is an arctic sled-dog pup who loves to play. How can she be expected to fall asleep with the Midnight Sun shining through her window? One night, she slips outside to find a playmate but discovers danger instead. Can young Juno summon her courage in time to save her beloved boy?
Excerpt from the review on Kirkus: "Kerbel weaves facts about the Arctic Circle within a tender story of the devotion between a boy and his dog. Del Rizzo’s vibrant, colorful polymer clay and acrylics capture the beauty of their home....Juno may be a puppy in the Arctic Circle, but children everywhere will relate to her."
Synopsis of MY DEAL WITH THE UNIVERSE (middle grade novel written by Deborah Kerbel, published by Scholastic Canada, launching May 29, 2018 in Canada, for ages 8-12):
When your house is a ‘Jungle’ overrun with vines and weeds, it’s hard to fit in. If 12 year-old Daisy could make a friend, cultivate some courage, and figure out how to save her brother, she’s convinced life will finally be normal. Except...what if “normal” isn’t all it’s cracked up to be?
Q. Could you please take a photo of something in your office and tell us the story behind it?
Of the many bookcases in my house, this is the one closest to where I write. (Does that count as one thing?) I love the sentimental clutter of shelves filled with beloved books, children’s artwork, and treasured photos. The portrait my daughter drew of me (when she was six) is one of my most favourite things.
Q. What advice do you have for young writers?
I know it’s a cliché but I’m going to say it again because it’s THAT important and really can’t be repeated enough: read, read, read! Anything and everything that interests you. Feed your muse a steady diet of gloriously delicious words and you’ll be inspired (and bursting) to get writing your own. And then, when you’ve finally got a finished draft of your own gloriously delicious words, ask for feedback…and listen to it. Writers can never experience their stories the way readers do, which means fresh eyes are a writer’s BFF! Being part of a good critique group is one of the most invaluable resources out there.
Q. What are you excited about right now?
It probably goes without saying that I’m ridiculously excited about the publication of my debut picture book, Sun Dog. It’s something I’ve been dreaming of and working towards for years and I’m so lucky to have had the brilliantly talented Suzanne Del Rizzo bring my words to life with such vivid, eye-popping illustrations. And if that wasn’t thrilling enough, my new picture book has a sibling…my third MG novel which is scheduled for release just a few days later. Twin book babies! Double book launches! Cue the chocolate and champagne!
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For more interviews, see my Inkygirl Interview Archive.
Donalyn Miller's 10th Annual Summer #BookADay Challenge has launched!
(Shortcut to this page, until next year's updated post: http://inkygirl.com/bookaday)
Woohoo! Donalyn Miller has launched her 10th Annual Summer #BookADay Challenge. See the archived Facebook Live event here, on the Nerdy Book Club Facebook Page.
As Donalyn points out in one of her kickoff videos, it's not a competition. It's about rediscovering your reading mojo. From one of her blog post from a couple years ago: "The summer #bookaday event endures as an annual opportunity to hit the reset button on our reading lives, connect with other readers, celebrate books, and remind ourselves how much reading matters to our lives and the young people we serve."
"It doesn’t matter if you actually read a book every day or not. Dedicate more time to read. Celebrate your right to read what you want. Make reading plans. Share and collect book recommendations. Connect with other readers.The #bookaday challenge is personal, not a competition. Finish that series. Tackle that epic historical your mother gave you for your birthday (last September). Try audiobooks. How would you like to grow as a reader this summer?"
For you educators out there: Donalyn also mentions Jillian Heise's #ClassroomBookADay challenge, which you might consider for the next school year: the goal is to read a loud a picture book every day of the school year, to students at any grade level.
What I do: I read books I haven't read before but I also reread books as well, including picture books. I listen to audiobooks while I'm doing housework or other repetitive activities. I embrace all formats, not just print. I have books on-the-go everywhere in our house. Here are some of my tips for busy bibliophiles who have trouble finding time to read.
I do read all year round, but I find the #BookADay event a fun extra excuse to do some extra reading, plus I love the community aspect and book-sharing suggestions. You can see my own #BookADay archives here as well as on Padlet:
Here's where you can find more info about #Bookaday:
Donalyn Miller's #BookADay kickoff video on the Nerdy Book Club FB page
Donalyn Miller's blog post about the history of #BookADay plus guidelines
Browse #bookaday posts on Twitter
If you're interested in encouraging lifelong reading habits in young people and haven't read The Book Whisperer and Reading In The Wild, I encourage you to do so!
Teachers, librarians and others who work with young readers: I'm collecting useful resources to help encourage summer reading as well as providing free print-read summer book recommendations sheets.
May 22, 2018
SCBWI Success Story, Creative Process and Jen Betton's upcoming debut solo picture book, HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG (June 19, 2018)
I first met Jen Betton at the 2012 SCBWI Summer Conference in Los Angeles when she came up to introduce herself. She said my blog post about getting an Illustration Mentorship Award at the Portfolio Showcase inspired her to attend (!). Up to that point, she'd always thought of the SCBWI primarily for writers but my post made her realize that there was so much for illustrators. Here's a photo taken at her first conference, where we first met:
I was THRILLED when I found out Jen had won a Mentorship Award (see the lion in the lower left corner?):
Fast forward to this year, when Jen has two books coming out. The first was TWILIGHT CHANT, written by Holly Thompson and illustrated by Jen, published by Clarion:
The next is HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG, which will be Jen's DEBUT as a picture book author/illustrator! Hedgehog comes out from G.P. Putnam's Sons Books For Young Readers on June 19, 2018. You can find out more about Jen and her books at JenBetton.com plus follow her on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram. Jen and I also both participate in the KidLitArtists blog.
Jen was kind enough to answer a few questions about her debut picture book.
SYNOPSIS of HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG (for 4-8 year olds):
"Everyone needs hugs, even if they're prickly. When Hedgehog wakes up feeling down in the snout and droopy in the prickles, he knows a hug will make him feel much better. But none of his animal friends are eager to wrap their arms around Hedgehog's prickles, and he's too smart to fall for Fox's sly offer. Then Hedgehog gets a surprise: Another animal in the forest is feeling exactly the same way. Luckily, both are kind and brave enough for the perfect hug."
Q. HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG is your first solo picture book. How was the experience writing and illustrating your own story different from illustrating someone else’s story?
Well, it takes me a LOT longer to both write and illustrate a book!! When I get a manuscript someone else has written so much work is already done - the story structure is all there, and the images start to flow in my head like a film. I still have to figure out the pacing, page breaks, composition, etc but because the story is already figured out, and I have a delicious manuscript to inspire me, it takes me a lot less time than when I'm doing it from scratch. I'm also a very slow writer! (Although I'm getting faster.) There are just more moving parts when you're doing both the writing and illustrating - which is exciting, but also takes time.
Q. What was your creative process?
So it all started with an idea - what if a hedgehog wanted a hug? I love books that have the character's desire creating the conflict, and when I got this idea I knew it was a story I wanted to write! From there I gradually hammered out a story outline, exploring different endings for my story. It really helped to think about what was the underlying nature of my character and what was the heart, or core theme of HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG? It's about wanting a hug, but it's also about being rejected (for something you can't change about yourself) and wanting a friend. Once I focused on that core theme of rejection and empathy it was much easier to write the ending.
Initially, I'd thought of having Hedgehog share a hug with an animal who couldn't be hurt by him - like a turtle, another hedgehog, or a small bug, but once I dug into what was underneath, the story became about empathy and skunk immediately popped into focus. I felt like that ending resonated more for me - Hedgehog has to overcome his own reluctance to share a hug with someone who he might rather keep his distance from. Figuring out the underlying themes of rejection and kindness was really helpful later, too, when I had some critique suggestions that didn't feel right. Thinking about the heart of the story helped keep me on track.
Once I had that outline of the story I plopped it into a storyboard, and even just in outline form I could tell it was too long! This was tremendously helpful to do early on because I could just cut a scene without ever having to really write it. From here I started going back and forth between pictures and words, trying to polish both at the same time.
My awesome agent, Jen Rofé, gave me some really great feedback about the manuscript, and how it needed more emotive language. I rustled up some great mentor texts and I tinkered with my text for a long time, trying to incorporate what I'd learned from those books.
At the same time I was finishing up the storyboard. The storyboard is really the heart of the picture book - it may be tiny and rough, but all my key decisions happen there! Page count, page turns, composition, how the story arc rises and falls, it's a puzzle where every part that changes affects the rest! Once the storyboard is done – even though a LOT of work is yet to come – I feel like the book is mostly there
Next I turned the storyboard into a dummy book, which is a rough mock-up of the finished picture book. For this stage, I cleaned up my thumbnail drawings, and worked on things like character expressions.
I also did a couple sample images. At this point I sent it off to publishers and waited. After a while I got the incredible news that Penguin decided to purchase HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG. After that I worked with a fantastically talented and wise editor and art director to make some changes, and then progressed to finished drawings, color studies, and finally the paintings.
After the paintings were done HEDGEHOG left my hands and went to the designers and production team to be transformed from art and words into a finished book!
Q. What advice do you have for young writers and illustrators?
Read good books! Read good books that are like the kind of books you want to make. Then draw or write as much as you can. It all comes down to absorbing good stories, good art, and then practicing your own writing and drawing. If you are at a point where you want to take some classes, try to seek out instructors whose work you admire, and ideally who are doing what you hope to do someday. SCBWI can be a really great resource for finding and meeting folks in the KidLit community.
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For more interviews, see my Inkygirl Interview Archive.
May 21, 2018
May 14, 2018
Interview with Helaine Becker and Dow Phumiruk about COUNTING ON KATHERINE: HOW KATHERINE JOHNSON SAVED APOLLO 13 (Launches June 19)
I met Helaine Becker through Torkidlit and Dow Phumiruk through the SCBWI, and I was so excited when I found out that they were collaborating on a picture book: COUNTING ON KATHERINE: HOW KATHERINE JOHNSON SAVED APOLLO 13. Their book is geared toward ages 5-9, launches from Holt Books For Young Readers on June 19, 2018 and has already garnered praise from publications like Kirkus and the Junior Library Guild.
Helaine and Dow were kind enough to answer some questions for me about their new book.
Q for Helaine: What inspired you to write COUNTING ON KATHERINE?
I was writing a book about Space for National Geographic Kids when I came across Katherine Johnson. Now this was well before Hidden Figures - there was almost nothing on Johnson, anywhere. I was gobsmacked, and utterly angry on her behalf. How come such an amazing woman, and such an important player in the rescue of Apollo 13, didn't get a mention anywhere (let alone a role in the film)? I decided to rectify that matter.
It wasn't easy to get a hold of Katherine - she was 96 at the time and didn't exactly have a huge web presence or email addy. I sleuthed a bit and found what I thought was her home address and sent a snail mail letter telling her how much I admired her and asking if she would like me to write a book about her. About a month letter, I got a snail mail letter back from her daughter saying yes! They'd checked me out and decided I was an ok person to do the project since her grandson had a few of my books on his shelves and they were good. Whew! We kept in touch as I continued researching, and finally met in person a few months later when Katherine received a lifetime achievement award from the Women's History Museum. I interviewed Katherine by phone a few weeks after that.
It was during this time that I got another letter that mentioned another "lady" who was writing a book about Katherine. That turned out to be Margot Shetterly, the author of Hidden Figures.
Q for Dow: How did you become illustrator for COUNTING ON KATHERINE?
I had just turned in final art for Jeanne Walker Harvey's Maya Lin: Artist-Architect of Light and Lines for Christy Ottaviano Books. Christy thought we could follow up that book with another picture book biography of a strong and inspiring woman. She chose Helaine's project for me. I've been counting my lucky stars for both of these opportunities, and for the privilege of working with Christy. When I read the description of Counting on Katherine, I was amazed both at learning about Katherine Johnson's life story and at Helaine's brilliance in seeking out an interview of this woman and her family for a book project.
Q for Helaine: What was your process for writing COUNTING ON KATHERINE?
I researched like a madwoman. I dug through the depths of the internet to find everything I could about Katherine and her work - I had to understand what she did in order to explain it clearly to children. I also interviewed Katherine and her daughters, looking for the personal details that make a book come alive. And I watched hours of video - interviews etc., and made notes of at what point certain quotes were said so I could provide them to the fact checker.
When I sat down to write, I tried to summon up what I sensed was Katherine's remarkable personality - a cool intelligence with a wry sense of humor and strong ethical core. I hope this picture of her comes across in the book. She may have been a math whiz, but she was a person first.
Q for Dow: What was your illustration process for COUNTING ON KATHERINE?
There is much research involved in drawing for nonfiction (or historical fiction) projects, from choosing appropriate background (scenery, props, and apparel styles/colors) to drawing a likeness of real people. This project challenged me with finding reference images for Katherine's childhood in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, from early in the 20th century. I asked my editor if I could contact Helaine for references that she used to write her manuscript. Having her work combined with my own research was helpful. I read the Hidden Figures narrative nonfiction book by Margot Shetterly for more insight (she even described how Katherine would pose while she was thinking, which I incorporated into a drawing!). I looked through fashion ads for the era. I reviewed the history of NASA and our space program. And lastly, I started looking for sources for the math and technical data I would use in some of the art. I was able to find some charts that early computers filled out with their calculations and added my replica of those to a spread. I guess both Helaine and I researched like crazy!
After research, I cut and pasted Helaine's text on top of a storyboard layout template and drew thumbnails. Then I sketched out each of the spreads, thinking about Katherine's personality as I created the dummy. I cleaned up initial very rough drawings before submitting. After feedback and revisions on the dummy (see rough color sketch below), I started on final art.
My art for this project was digitally created with paint textures scanned in. For example, I experimented with splattering acrylic paint to use for the Apollo 13 service module explosion and handwrote some of the math used on chalkboards throughout the book.
For our cover, I submitted several sample sketches But ultimately our book designer, Carol Ly, knocked it out of the park with the best version for our cover using art from my interior images. I loved her choice of colors! It is great reminder that books are created collaboratively. The art wouldn't be nearly as polished without input from the team.
Q for Helaine: What advice do you have for those who are writing non-fiction picture books?
Research is paramount. Our facts need to be as accurate as possible - kids will carry the information you give them for the rest of their lives, and if you say something like "a pearl is made when a piece of grit gets inside an oyster," they will believe the falsehood for the rest of their lives. So know your subject inside and out. Second - readers need to be able to care about the subject of the book. Always put yourself in a reader's chair and ask yourself the questions that a reader might ask. Then answer them.
Q for Helaine: What advice do you have for young writers?
Write. All the time. The more you write, the better you will get. Don't expect your work to be good - no one's beginner work is much good. But what can you perfect if you have nothing on the page to revise? Write - and read. Then Write some more. Go back and revise your earlier work in light of what you have learned. Gradually, your writing will improve. Also - get some basic business skills. Writing and publishing is a business and if you don't know the first thing about the sales process or about how publishing companies make money, you will have a much harder time threading your way to successful publication. This goes for traditional publishing as well as indie publishing. Last but not least - Writing is hard work - but so is everything else. If you're willing to work at it - and throw out whatever doesn't fit, a hundred times in a row if need be, eventually you will create something of value. Be brave. BE determined. And at all times, be close to chocolate.
Q for Dow: What advice do you have for young illustrators?
PRACTICE: Though you may be born with talent as an artist, there is still a journey to success in the industry you choose to pursue. In children's books, you have to practice and achieve a marketable style, ideally one that tells a story and has wide appeal. Children's book publishing, though full of some of the most vibrant and caring people, is still a business that must be sustainable.
If you are just getting started, practice by drawing anything you like! Experiment with all different types of media. You don’t necessarily know what your style is until you’ve teased it out by drawing all you can, and your work is recognizable. Also, practice will establish a solid foundation for art concepts like line, shape, value, and composition. You need this to create successful art! Then you can move on to the next bits of advice.
SHARE: Your work must be out into the world for editors and agents to find you. Keep that website updated. You will want to join the book creator community and hear the issues that are important to us. Network at conferences like SCBWI's regional or international events or via online websites like KidLit411.
ADAPT: It's a big responsibility to make a solid first impression with your art so that people will choose to pick up a book and proceed to read the great story behind the images. I can't stress enough that you must be able to receive feedback thoughtfully and objectively. A friend of mine stated wisely (I am paraphrasing verbosely): if your art isn't interpreted as you intended (no matter how good it is and what your own opinion of it is), you will want to contemplate if you can revise to convey your meaning in a way that is more universally readable and understood.
PERSIST: This is a handy word of late, and very practical for life. Many give up on the bumpy road to publication that has no guarantee of success. But if you stay in the game, growing your skills and knowledge base all the while, you will be ready for if and when that dream agent or editor looks your way.
ENJOY: Be patient, define success by your growth, and enjoy the journey. Remember that you are making the world a more beautiful place with your art!
MORE ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR AND AUTHOR:
Dow Phumiruk is an author and illustrator of children's books. Dow is originally from Thailand but grew up in the United States. She now lives in the Lone Tree, Colorado with her husband, girls, and assorted small pets. When she is not creating, Dow teaches medical students and enjoys hiking. She is a member of the Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators and is represented by East West Literary Agency. She is the illustrator of Maya Lin: Artist-Architect of Light and Lines, by Jeanne Walker Harvey (Christy Ottaviano Books), which has received attention as a Junior Library Guild Spring Selection 2017, an Amazon Best Book of the Year 2017, a recipient of a starred review from The Horn Book, and an NSTA Best Stem Book of the Year. In addition to Counting on Katherine, her other 2018 books include Mouse's Christmas Gift, by Mindy Baker, which she illustrated (Zonderkidz, October 2018), and the recently released Mela and the Elephant, her author debut, illustrated by Ziyue Chen (Sleeping Bear Press). You can find out more about Dow and her work at her portfolio website, blog, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Helaine Becker is the bestselling author of 80+ books for children and young adults, including the “enduring Canadian Christmas classic,” A Porcupine in a Pine Tree, and the giggle-inducing Ode to Underwear. Helaine’s award-winning STEM-related nonfiction includes Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13, Monster Science and Lines, Bars and Circles: How William Playfair Invented Graphs. She received the JLG nod for Worms for Breakfast and Zoobots and won the Silver Birch Award and Lane Anderson Award for Science Writing several times; she’s also won the Canadian Picture Book of the Year, the Information Book of the Year, California’s Eureka Award, and the Sydney Taylor Notable Book Award. Laugh out loud funny, Helaine is in high demand at schools and festivals internationally. Helaine volunteers for literacy organizations and charities including First Book, ABC Literacy, CODE and Librarians without Borders. She’s also a certified pyrotechnician, so expect fireworks at any time. You can find Helaine at her website, her blog, Twitter and Facebook.
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For more interviews, see my Inkygirl Interview Archive.
May 9, 2018
May 7, 2018
"Don't be afraid to be weird." Advice for young writers from WEAVE A CIRCLE ROUND's debut author, Kari Maaren in a Three Questions interview
I met Kari Maaren through a filk music convention, and fell in love with her song Being Watson (which almost always makes teary-eyed). She also is cartoonist with a webcomic, West of Bathurst, and an active one, It Never Rains. After being a fan of her other work, I was VERY excited to find out she was writing a book.
Her debut novel for young readers, WEAVE A CIRCLE ROUND, is a thoroughly engaging read with an irresistible main character (I love 14-year-old Freddy Duchamp's voice, both inner and outer) in a fearless and original take on time travel and coming-of-age. If you want to read what others say about the book, I encourage you to check out the Globe & Mail review, the starred Kirkus review, starred Publishers Weekly review, starred School Library Journal review.
Also, don't you love the cover? It was designed by Jamie Stafford-Hill with the help of Tor editor Diana M. Pho:
You can find out more about Kari Maaren and her work at KariMaaren.com, Twitter, her blog, current webcomic, YouTube channel and Bandcamp.
Synopsis of WEAVE A CIRCLE ROUND: Fourteen-year-old Freddy's complicated life becomes even more complicated when two strange new neighbours move in next door. Her subsequent adventures involve mythology, unfinished poems, pipe-organ music, and the repeated breaking of the rules of physics.
Q. Could you please take a photo of something in your office and tell us the story behind it?
My "office" is my living-room couch. I live in a tiny apartment. One benefit of the cramped quarters is that I get to do my writing two feet from my harp.
I started learning the harp about three years ago, and it's a great instrument to play when you are drowning in stress. Granted, harp fingering and technique can cause stress too, but it's a different kind of stress. Just being in the same space as a harp makes me happy. Also, when I lose my temper and shout at the computer screen, the harp strings resonate, and the harp underlines the screaming with ghostly, whispery music.
Q. What advice do you have for young writers?
Don't be afraid to be weird. Everybody thinks there's a secret formula for succeeding as a writer, and published writers all know it and meet in caves at the dark of the moon to chant arcane rituals about it. Unpublished writers tend to be afraid they're breaking the rules of this secret formula if they deviate from the standard advice: follow the market, give the publishers what they want, concentrate completely on writing to the exclusion of everything else in your life so you become a master of your artform, search for an agent in X way, don't break Y taboo, and so on. The truth is, however, that there's no secret formula. I got a book deal by writing a song entitled "Beowulf Pulled My Arm Off." I wasn't trying to get a book deal when I wrote the song. I mean, sure, I very much wanted a book deal, and I was trying to get one, but I did that by attempting to guess and adhere to the secret formula, just like everybody else. Yet the right person heard the song, and then he talked to a friend of mine who knew I also wrote novels, and everything just sort of went from there.
So be weird. Produce things you want to produce. Don't go, "I guess no one will ever want this story about talking bears because there aren't any talking-bear stories on the market right now." The market now and the market in several years, when your book is likely to appear, may be very different. Also, who cares if there aren't any talking-bear books? Maybe that's a good thing. Maybe an editor will love how different your book is. Maybe your book is astounding. If you want to write about talking bears while you balance paper clips on your nose, go for it. I wrote an old-fashioned kids' book that was set now but could, with a bit of tweaking, have been set in 1985. I was sure editors would feel it was outdated. It was published a few months after the second season of Stranger Things was released.
Sometimes, weird is fine.
Q. What are you excited about right now?
Weave a Circle Round has been nominated for the Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction or Fantasy Book, so that's pretty exciting. I'm also excited by the fact that I'm writing another book, though I can't tell you anything about it yet. Chocolate excites me quite a lot. I get excited when birds land on my fingers. Friends of mine (including David Nickle, Kate Blair, Stephen Michell, Rati Mehrotra, Kelly Robson, Sarah Henstra, Aaron Tucker, and-drumroll-Debbie Ridpath Ohi) keep publishing their books, and that's exciting too. I'm excited by student essays that go in unexpected directions, by getting to try new musical instruments, by my webcomic, by other people's webcomics, by my recent discovery that making weird little bookmarks is fun, by the things my sister's kids do, and by Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea Cycle, which I've been reading through for the first time.
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For more interviews, see my Inkygirl Interview Archive.
May 5, 2018
HOW TO CODE A SANDCASTLE by Josh Funk and Sara Palacios - Highly recommended!
If you don't have time to read the rest of my post, that's fine. Here's a one sentence summary: I love everything about HOW TO CODE A SANDCASTLE by Josh Funk and Sara Palacios, and I can't wait until it launches from Viking Books For Young Readers and Girls Who Code on May 15, 2018!
Once upon a time, my full-time job was a computer programmer/analyst for a financial institution. My educational background is in computer science; I graduated with a B.Sc. from the University of Toronto, with majors in Computer Science and Psychology. One of my favourite courses at the U of T was a grad course in A.I. (Artificial Intelligence); in a different life, I think I might have pursued AI.
I was delighted (ok, I begged Josh) to have a sneek peek at HOW TO CODE A SANDCASTLE, written by Josh Funk and illustrated by Sara Palacios. LovelovedLOVED this picture book so much!
Not only does HOW TO CODE A SANDCASTLE do an excellent job at explaining basic coding concepts to kids, but it does so with a fun story with immensely engaging illustrations. Fabulous art design. So much to look at, so much to discuss....yet the story is simple and entertaining enough that it can also be just a great read-a-loud. SO MUCH TO LOVE.
I know I'm gushing, but I can't help it. I just love this book so much, and I'm also excited for the young readers who become interested in coding because of it.
One of the many details that helped me fall in love with this book: The robot's name is PASCAL, which was the first computer language I learned in university. :-)
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More info: Donalyn Miller's Book-A-Day Challenge | Archives of my #BookADay posts.
