Monica Edinger's Blog, page 44

Learning About Africa: Coping with Ebola in Kenema

While Ebola seems to be off theNew York Times front page,the articles are still there. “If They Survive in the Ebola Ward, They Work On” features some heroic people in and around Kenema, an area I knew when I lived in Sierra Leone. (For a different sort of context,this is center Mende country where the Amistad captives of Africa is My Homewere from.)

Jennifer L. Holm’s The Fourteenth Goldfish

Who doesn’t enjoy a well-drawn curmudgeon? Children’s books are rife with them. From dour Eeyore moping about the Hundred Acre Wood to the irritable Mary Poppins, they come in all shapes and species. Proudly singular, such cantankerous characters are invariably exasperating, endearing and entertaining all at the same time. And now along comes Jennifer L. Holm with a doozy. Best known for her works of historical fiction, three of which have won Newbery Honors (“Our Only May Amelia,” “Penny Fro...

BBC Television Series of Susanna Clarke’s Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell

I was a huge fan of Susanna Clarke’s Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norell and have been keeping an eye out on the progress of the forthcoming BBC seven-episodeseries. I found this article about the filming with some images, one of which is below.There’s also a facebook page featuringmore images and stuff from the series filming. Evidently the filming is done and they are into post-production.

Bertie Carvel plays Jonathan Strange and Eddie Marsan plays Mr. Norrell.

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Coming Soon: Katherine Coville’s The Cottage in the Woods

I love fairy tale reworkings. At the same time their popularity of late has resulted in a lot of mediocre ones and so when I come across one I’m both excited and wary.Is it going to be agoofy-movie-Shrek-imitating-like thingor morein the vein ofMichael Buckley’s Fairy Tale Detectives,Christopher Healy’s Hero’s Guides, orAdam Gidwitz’s Grimm series? And if YA dark is it going to be lame bodice-ripper or something with heft, like Tom McNeal’s Far Far Away? And so seeing adescription of Katherin...

Learning About Africa: The Realness of Ebola in Sierra Leone

This blog is a platform I normally reserve for the important issue of fashion in Sierra Leone, but this week, I’m struggling to find a fashion angle. Unless you’ve been living on mars, you will know that West Africa is suffering the worst ever outbreak of the world’s most deadly disease – Ebola. I traveled to Kenema district last week for an assignment to write about the outbreak. I live in Freetown and before leaving, the epidemic hadn’t really kicked off here. ‘EBOLA!’ (said with a loud voi...

Learning About Africa: Ebola

Yet again Africa is in the news as the other, asa place of horror and misery. So just a few reminders:

Ebola is not throughout Africa. You don’t need to worry when coming into contact with someone from the continent or someone who has been there recently. Africa is a big continent and Ebola is not everywhere. In fact…

Ebola is currently in three West African countries:Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. But…

Ebola is not an air-borne illness. Youwill not contract it by being in the same plane or...

In the Classroom: Authors and Kids

I just saw something fromauthor/teacher Andrew Smith abouthow he answereda letter from a kid asking him to explain his book to him. Smith replied that the book stood on its own and that that the kid should trust himself to figure it out for himself. Here’s what I wrote in response (slightly edited for clarity and such).

Thank you, teacher Andrew Smith. And I hope somehow you can keep teaching as there aren’t too many high-visibility authors like you who can also speak from the POV of a current...

In Switzerland with Dog: So Far

My family started visiting Hasliberg in the Swiss Alps when I was still in high school. We rented a friend’s summer house the first year, but after that we always stayed at the Hotel Gletscherblick, a small family-run establishment that was around a century old at that point. My parents continued to go for the rest of their lives,my sister has gone regularly, firstwith my father (after my mother’s death) and then with her family. After my first year in Sierra Leone we all met there — what a c...

Alice in Paris (with Madeleine and others)

Just came across this remarkable movie featuring Ludwig Bemelman’s Madeleine as well as others from James Thurber, Crocket Johnson, and Eve Titus.

Coretta Scott King Book Awards

Over at the Nerdy Book Club today I’ve got a post highlighting this year’s Coretta Scott King award winners with the hope that it will help more learn about this important award.