Every baby should have this jewel among counting books. Not only is it an homage to the ecosystem of the Salish Sea, it’s a clear and kid-friendly introduction to the creatures who live there. I confess I’m partial to the page with “9 orcas hunting together”. But it’s when McClure takes us beyond ten that the book really shines. 100 sculpins, 500 dunlins, 10,000 plankton–readers of all ages are invited to contemplate the magnitude of the ecosystem both it’s immensity and it’s fragility. McClure’s trademark cut paper work, here beautifully paired with delicate watercolors, will delight the newborn drawn to the high contrast art, and satisfy the older reader with Its intricate design and satisfying composition.
Book Review: A Wolf For a Spell by Karah Sutton
Here are three things I love about this story. It’s has its roots firmly in Russian folklore, featuring the Baba Yaga character who is intriguing and funny and just a bit cranky and not at all beautiful. Sort of the anti-Disney princess. It has delightful illustrations. I am loving the trend toward more illustration in middle grade fiction. Cheers to artist Pauliina Hannuniemi for artwork that feels timeless. It features a wolf that feels suitably wolfish. And finally, it’s a saga to sweep you away without being one of these overblown 900 page doorstopper books that I’m finding a bit daunting to read at the moment. It’s fantasy on a human scale, a vivid and rollicking adventure, in the trappings of an old-world fairy tale, that proves a wolf doesn’t have to be big or bad to win the day!
Picture Book Review: The First Day by Phùng Nguyên Quang & Huynh Kim Liên
One of my goals for 2021 is to post more book reviews of the treasures I find at Annie Blooms Books where I work part time. I’m going to try to post a short review every week. These may be reviews that have been posted at the bookstore or on The Mixed Up Files of MG Authors where I have a regular column.
My inaugural review is for my favorite picture book of 2021 so far. It would be my pick for the next Caldecott winner but since it’s a translated book from Vietnam it’s not eligible for the top American picture book prize. Having lived overseas, I have special spot in my heart for translated work. And because many of our school children this month are having their first day of school outside their homes, The First Day seems particularly relevant. What better way to celebrate this milestone than reading this book about the first day of school. Our hero sets out alone early in the morning in a boat on “the great river, the Mother Mekong.” The paintings are luminous, and convey the child’s pride in being big enough to make this journey, his nervousness about the creatures watching from the mangrove forest, and his wonder at the beauty of the birds and fish around him. Best of all (and I’m sure this will resonate deeply with children) he is delighted to see his friends, the other boys and girls who have paddled to school. The text of the story is gorgeous too, spare but rich in metaphor. This book is sheer joy.
World Read Aloud Day
February 3, 2021 is World Read Aloud Day. I’ll be celebrating four ways. First, by reading aloud to 14 classrooms in Oregon, Washington, California, Texas, Illinois, Kansas, New York, and Georgia. I wish it could be 100!
If your classroom or homeschool group didn’t get an author visit for World Read Aloud Day, here is a video of me reading a two and a half minute piece from A Whale of the Wild. The link is right here. If you are a fan of A Wolf Called Wander there’s also read aloud link for that one. It’s a slightly longer segment at just over four minutes
I want to celebrate World Read Aloud Day by giving away ten copies of the brand new paperback edition of A Wolf Called Wander to teachers and librarians who have done so much to bring this book into the lives of children. I couldn’t do it without you all and I’m very grateful. If you are a teacher or school librarian and would like a free signed copy of the new paperback, please use the contact me feature on this website and send me the name of your school, and the address where I should send the book. Because teachers in the east will see this message hours before teachers in the west I’ll give away half to books to folks in the eastern and central time zones and half to the mountain and pacific time zone. I hope that will be fair to everyone.
And finally wonderful local bookshop Annie Blooms set up a book page for me in honor of World Read Aloud Day. It will be up for a week. Use this link and you can get any of my books. Let me know who you’d like me to dedicate the book to and I’ll sign it and send it your way. Thank you for supporting the indie bookstores who have supported my writing for many years!
And what am I reading aloud these days you ask? Well, I’m reading one very old book and one brand new one. Roughing It by Mark Twain is both hilarious and a useful window into what it was like to travel across country by stage coach and live in a mining boomtown in the 1860s. In a word–messy. It was published in 1872. I’m also very excited about a debut book that came out in December of 2020, A Wolf For a Spell by Karah Sutton. It’s a rollicking fable with elements of Russian folk lore. It’s got Baba Yaga of course, plus a wolf that was just minding it’s own business, a dastardly villain, stout-hearted girls, and compassionate boys. Delicious!
A new baby orca in the Salish Sea
It’s been a busy two weeks since A Whale of the Wild splashed down in bookstores on Sept 1st. Wildfires have occupied most of my attention this last week but I prefer to focus on much happier news. For example, there is a new baby orca in the Salish Sea! You can read all about it on the Center for Whale Research website. The photo below is by Katie Jones who helped me vet A Whale of the Wild.
Last Thursday I got to spend an evening with one of my favorite writers Janet Fox on the Books in Common NW writers series. We had a lovely chat about my book and hers, The Artifact Hunters. It was great fun and you can catch the whole conversation here. It starts a little slow because we are waiting for folks to join the zoom, so skip ahead a minute if you like.
I had hoped to create some science videos in my backyard here in Oregon this month as a supplement to school visits, but at the moment my back yard has the most unhealthy air in the entire world because of wildfire smoke, so I’ll be postponing that for now. Fortunately I haven’t had to evacuate yet and I’m grateful for all the help and prayers that people are sending.
If you are looking for a way to support people in my state, the Oregon Food Bank is going to have 40,000 extra folks to feed this month, so a donation there would be very welcome. If you are looking for more literature-specific aid, the Book Industry Charitable Foundation (BINC) gives direct aid to displaced booksellers and burned or shuttered book shops.
Thank you!