Betsy Bird's Blog, page 186

Book Trailer Reveal: Eye Spy by Guillaume Duprat

People are on to me. I seem to have given away the game. Looking at me you’d never know I harbor a sweet spot for Nonfiction, but my love goes down and deep.

Now I know I just did a book trailer premier yesterday. I don’t want you to think I’m getting sloppy on you or anything and this should be the last one for a while. But it’s animal eyes and how they see! What is not to love? So, to close out this whirlwind week, please enjoy the following:

Book Trailer Reveal: King Alice by Matthew Cordell

Yesterday I produced my Fall Prediction listing of 2019 Caldecott and Newbery contenders. But what if one of those books wins the Caldecott or Newbery Award proper? You know what happens in these cases, don’t you? Either the poor winner is so overwhelmed by the question “What’s Next?” from a populace expecting brilliance that they freeze up, or they already have something coming out that isn’t an ideal follow-up to their previous medal-worthy work.

When Matthew Cordell won for Wolf in the Sno...

Newbery/Caldecott 2019: Fall Prediction Edition

Yeah. I have no idea.

I kid, I KID!

Actually I don’t kid. This year is crazy, people! The books are all over the place. We’re seeing some shockingly strong Nonfiction contenders, and a plethora of good Caldecotts too. Yet, just like last year, the Newbery potential in the middle grade fiction is just okay. Not overwhelming particularly. I kept saying that last year and what did we end up with? Just one middle grade Award winner, and three Honors consisting of two YA titles and one picture boo...

Cover Reveal: Hedy Lamarr’s Double Life by Laurie Wallmark, ill. Katy Wu

A show of hands. How many of you first heard of Hedy Lamarr by watching copious amounts of Blazing Saddles (where the villain Hedley Lamarr is constantly called Hedy Lamarr by accident)? No? Just me? In between that and confusing her with Dorothy Lamour I was a pretty confused kid when it came to all things Hedy. It would have been nice if I’d known a little bit about her. Like the fact that she was a glamorous movie actress on the one hand, and the inventor of the radio guidance system found...

Fuse 8 n’ Kate: The Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night by Peter Spier

I run a blog for my job at Evanston Public Library on the side. The way I tend to distinguish it from this site is that the blog is mostly concerned with adult titles and other library-related affairs. Well, recently I reprinted my favorite Ogden Nash poem of all time Don’t Cry, Darling. It’s Blood All Right. The poem declares loudly the bloodthirsty nature of little children. And speaking of bloodthirsty, I’ve pretty much found the bloodiest Caldecott Honor winner out there (though you’re al...

Review of the Day: The Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night by Peter Spier

I run a blog for my job at Evanston Public Library on the side. The way I tend to distinguish it from this site is that the blog is mostly concerned with adult titles and other library-related affairs. Well, recently I reprinted my favorite Ogden Nash poem of all time Don’t Cry, Darling. It’s Blood All Right. The poem declares loudly the bloodthirsty nature of little children. And speaking of bloodthirsty, I’ve pretty much found the bloodiest Caldecott Honor winner out there (though you’re al...

Press Release Fun: The Eric Carle Museum Presents the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Awards

I can’t help it, folks. This is just too cool not to post.

 

     Give Join Making Art sandys@carlemuseum.org

The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Celebrates 50 Years of the Coretta Scott King Awards with Our Voice: Celebrating the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Awards

Amherst, MA (September 13, 2018)–An exhibition depicti...

Review of the Day: Louisiana’s Way Home by Kate DiCamillo

Louisiana’s Way Home
By Kate DiCamillo
Candlewick Press
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9463-0
$16.99
Ages 9-12
On shelves October 2nd

There once was a book called Raymie Nightingale. Not a big flashy book with glitter on the cover and fonts that look like escaped balloon animals. Just a quiet book set in the late 1970s in Florida, patiently following various characters. Not a plot forward book, that one, though there was an interesting through line involving a cat. I liked Raymie Nightingale but I di...

Book Trailer Reveal: Waiting for Chicken Smith by David Mackintosh

The summer is dying. Every night the crickets sing. I haven’t had to turn the air conditioning on in my home for weeks and just yesterday morning my daughter begged me to consider increasing the heat (it was 65 degrees inside so . . . no). But summer isn’t quite done with us yet so let’s watch a book trailer that seems calculated to make you miss something you still have (if only for a little while).

In the UK, Mr. David Mackintosh is a well-known graphic designer, art director, author, and i...

Saving Winslow: An Excerpt and Interview with Sharon Creech

I’ve always taken a great interest in observing how publishers promote children’s books by longstanding, award-winning authors. Consider the case of Sharon Creech. Sure, she won the Newbery Medal for Walk Two Moons, the Newbery Honor for The Wanderer, and the Carnegie Medal for Ruby Holler, but as any writer will tell you, true children’s book authors don’t rest on their laurels. This puts her publisher, Harper Collins, in an interesting position. They could offer a blogger, like myself, the...