Columbus Day is coming up and it seems to me that this is a bigger “holiday” on the East Coast than in the West and Southwest, but that may just be my impression. A new book raises the question, “Who Discovered America?” Of course, we know that there were people living in the Americas [...]

I’m a big fan of Daniel Pennac’s Readers Bill of Rights.  As a librarian- but mostly as a reader- it comforts me and has often empowered me to put down a book I wasn’t enjoying.  In case you haven’t seen it in a while:
1. The right to not read
2. The right to skip pages
3. The [...]

Barbara Jean Hicks is the author of the 2006 ALSC Notable Children’s Book, Jitterbug Jam: A Monster Tale (Farrar, Straus and Giroux). Barbara lives in Oxnard, California.
What is your personal history and how has it informed your work?
I grew up in a small farming community in Washington State, the middle of seven children. My parents [...]

I’m hoping that these books will be good enough for you…

Home-baked goods are always a welcome treat, but cookie exchanges and cake/cookie gifts are particularly popular in the winter.  Although the sun hasn’t yet risen, Mrs. Bear and her son, Sam, are busily baking cakes. Sam is eager to deliver them to their friends, but [...]

Ken Mochizuki is the author of Passage to Freedom: The Sugihara Story (Lee & Low Books), a 1998 ALSC Notable Children’s Book as well as a 2001 ALSC Notable Children’s Recording which he narrates (Live Oak Media). The 2000-2002 ALSC International Relations Committee included his book Heroes (Lee & Low Books) on its The American [...]

by Allison G. Kaplan
Although I have been active in ALA for many years, this is my first time attending the ALSC National Institute. What a great first experience! There were about 250 participants from across the country (and even one from Bermuda!). The participants were mostly in the trenches children’s librarians but there were also [...]

Deborah Hopkinson is the author of the ALSC 2005 Notable Children’s Book, Apples to Oregon: Being the (Slightly) True Narrative of How a Brave Pioneer Father Brought Apples, Peaches, Pears, Plums, Grapes, and Cherries (and Children) Across the Plains (Simon & Schuster/Anne Schwartz). Her book Sky Boys: How They Built the Empire State Building (Random/Schwartz [...]

Kirby Larson is the author of the 2007 Newbery Honor Book, Hattie Big Sky (Delacorte Press). She lives in Kenmore, Washington.
What is your personal history and how has it informed your work?
I’m the oldest of 4, so I’m great at being bossy, a trait that comes in very handy when I need to order myself [...]

The ALSC Blog has been invited to participate in a “blog interview tour” next week. Interviews on blogs are inexpensive ways for librarians, teachers and students to access authors and illustrators. Jenny, Aimee, Diane and I discussed how/if participation would work for our association’s blog. We agreed that interviews with authors/illustrators who have had works [...]

   One of the things I love about fall is that we get some really great, sweet, crisp apples! A new book about Johnny Appleseed recently arrived with my review copies and then I saw a reminder that his birthday is coming up (September 26).  Jane Yolen’s new book uses a call and response format [...]