My friend Rachel sent me this gorgeous video by 4th Estate:
Books are magical.
Category: Books
Ethnic Studies Vanishing in Tuscon Schools
The Tucson Unified School District is losing books on ethnic studies, which even includes Shakespeare’s The Tempest. More importantly:
“In a school district founded by a Mexican-American in which more than 60 percent of the students come from Mexican-American backgrounds, the administration also removed every textbook dealing with Mexican-American history, including “Chicano!: The History of the Mexican Civil Rights Movement” by Arturo Rosales, which features a biography of longtime Tucson educator Salomon Baldenegro. Other books removed from the school include “500 Years of Chicano History in Pictures,” by Elizabeth Martinez and the textbook “Critical Race Theory” by scholars Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic.”
Banning books is never a good idea. Please stop.
More Visits to the Library
Another reason libraries are more important than ever:
“These are some of the findings of the Institute of Museum and Library Services’ report on the FY2009 Public Library Survey (PLS), a census of American public libraries.
The Institute’s analysis of the data showed that per capita visits to libraries rose by 24 percent in the century’s first decade, while circulation increased by 26 percent. In 2009, libraries were visited a record-breaking 1.59 billion times. Libraries have defied the conventional wisdom that Google, Wikipedia, and the like would make them obsolete. That’s because they’ve recognized and responded to the evolving ways in which people use libraries.
Those who prematurely announced the demise of libraries at the hands of the Internet failed to anticipate the symbiotic relationship that would develop between the two institutions. As revealed byInterconnections: The IMLS National Study on the Use of Libraries, Museums, and the Internet, Internet users are much more likely to visit public libraries than non-Internet users.”
The article goes on to talk about the important services libraries provide to people who are unemployed. Very much hoping that more studies like this one come out and throw support to public libraries.
Links Galore
A few more fun links to take you into the weekend:
- It’s been a mild winter so far in Boston. I’m getting my snow fix from this round-up of picture books about snow.
- At Kiss and Tell, Suzanne Kaufman Kalb shares cool wish traditions from around the world. Road trip, anyone?
- A guide to getting the most out of your book reading attendance.
- This post about favorite picture books brings back so many awesome reading memories.
Friday Fifteen
I’m back with the second edition of Friday Fifteen, in which I review fifteen books in fifteen words or less.
1. The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
Good, but mostly I remember the puppy.
2. A Sick Day For Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead and Erin E. Stead
One of the cutest, coziest books ever, with lovely art.
3. The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides
Read it obsessively for a while, then found it lacking.
4. The Giver by Lois Lowry
The first book I can remember really making me think. A forever favorite.
5. On Beauty by Zadie Smith
Felt more like a collection of ideas than actual characters or plot.
6. Kate’s Camp-Out (Sleepover Friends #6) by Susan Saunders
90s tween series about sleepovers. I think this one was a kind of ghost story?
7. The Magic School Bus Lost in the Solar System by Joanna Cole
This book taught me about mass vs. weight. Miss Frizzle’s class meets the universe.
8. Sophie’s World by Jostein Gaarder
The novelization of the history of philosophy. Awesome, but the end got really weird.
9. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
The second book to make me cry. More sadness about puppies.
10. Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle by Betty MacDonald
The first in a series. Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle helps parents manage their obnoxious kids, hilarity ensues.
11. The Ghost in the Attic (Haunting with Louisa #1) by Emily Cates
Non-scary ghost tale with a historical fiction twist. The only one I read in the series.
12. The Food You Want to Eat: 100 Smart, Simple Recipes by Ted Allen
Impressed my family with Allen’s recipes. Not too hard, but not too basic either.
13. Jacob I Have Loved by Katherine Paterson
Read this a lot, but I wanted to shake Louise and punch Caroline. Patterns understands isolation.
14. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Chilling and captivating. I liked this way better than Capote’s short fiction.
15. The Best American Travel Writing 2006 by Tim Cahill and Jason Wilson
First foray into travel writing. Now terrified to sail alone (not that I planned to).
I didn’t get to finish The Fault in Our Stars for the Friday Fifteen, but I might end up giving that a full review instead. Or I’ll save it for next week. Either way, feel free to share your own fifteen-word reviews in the comments.
Blazing Trail(ers)
When I first heard the term “book trailer” I was wary. We’re not making movies; why do we need trailers? But when I got to see some real examples, I was impressed by how much they can bring to a book’s release and how creative they can be.
Of course, book trailers don’t just appear, and I’m sure most writers don’t know how to put one together. Fortunately, Hazel Mitchell has put together a fantastic step-by-step guide for putting together your very own book trailer. I think this might work best for picture books, which have a lot of lovely illustrations already, but lots of helpful advice even for novelists. Check it out and put together your very own book trailer today!
Manor House Mashup
One of my current favorite TV shows is Downton Abbey. It’s full of drama, awesome costumes, and plenty of snark. Brilliant! Unlike so many Masterpiece shows, it’s not based on a classic novel. But Book Riot has taken care of that with their literary casting.
My favorites: The Earl of Grantham as Henry Dashwood and The Dowager Countess as Lady Catherine de Bourgh. But I disagree with Lady Edith as Fanny Price (Fanny is not so ineptly evil!) and Lady Sybil as Marianne Dashwood (Sybil seems like a combination of Marianne and Eleanor, actually).
Check out the whole list for your daily dose of British fandom.
Links Galore
A little more literary fun for the rest of a rainy day:
- I was too scared to read R.L. Stine’s books when I was young, but this interview with the Goosebumps author isn’t scary at all. My favorite part: ““People say, ‘What advice do you have for people who want to be writers?’ I say, they don’t really need advice, they know they want to be writers, and they’re gonna do it.”
- Advice how to avoid making common mistakes at conferences.
- The children’s publishing world is getting into rock & roll. Parents might enjoy these even more than the kids.
- A look at horribly miscast literary roles. Alexis Bledel, you’re awesome, but you’re so not Winnie Foster.
A Letter from James or Charlie Would Brighten My Day
These Roald Dahl stamps would certainly make me want to write more letters.
Matilda is my favorite. Click through to see the whole set. If you’re in the UK, you can get yours now!
Love Advice from a Nobel Prize-Winning Author
A few years ago I read East of Eden and loved it. It was thrilling and engaging and touched on major emotional issues. So this letter from John Steinbeck to his son Thom about the nature of love warmed my heart. The whole letter is beautiful and touching, but here’s one part in particular I liked:
“There are several kinds of love. One is a selfish, mean, grasping, egotistical thing which uses love for self-importance. This is the ugly and crippling kind. The other is an outpouring of everything good in you—of kindness and consideration and respect—not only the social respect of manners but the greater respect which is recognition of another person as unique and valuable. The first kind can make you sick and small and weak but the second can release in you strength, and courage and goodness and even wisdom you didn’t know you had.”
Make sure to read the whole letter. I want to print it up and post it above my desk, it’s so lovely (the letter, not my desk). It’s from Steinbeck: a Life in Letters, which I am putting on my immediate to-read list. Usually I don’t delve into the private life of authors, but in this case I think I’ll make an exception.