Find Great Gift Books for Your Kids This Holiday Season!

Holiday Gift Books: How to Find Just the Right Books for the Young People in Your Life!

When you give a book to a child or teen at Hanukah, Christmas, or Kwanza it helps create emotional bonds that link love, family, and tradition to reading. It also sends a message that books and story can be as enjoyable as toys! Especially if you take the time to read that gift book together!

We asked Natacha Pouech, librarian and book buyer, for some pertinent suggestions about choosing and buying books for holiday gift giving. Natacha has many years of experience connecting kids to books. She was the Children’s Services Librarian at the Hinesburg Public Library in Hinesburg, Vermont and was responsible for buying all the children’s, middle grade, and young adult materials servicing children from toddlers through to high school students. Natacha has also worked as the children’s book buyer for a number of independent book stores.

Finding a special book for the child you love can be an overwhelming task given the huge selection available at your neighborhood bookstore. Natacha offers the following advice:

Find out what the child or teen has already read. Ask what authors he or she likes to read. Discover the subjects and topics that interest him or her. Does he or she prefer fiction or nonfiction, fantasy or reality?

Don’t be afraid to ask your neighborhood children’s librarian or children’s bookseller for suggestions or advice.

Read your local newspaper’s book section. Many newspapers and magazines feature books suggestions this time of year.

Be consumer savvy. The books with the biggest marketing budgets are not necessarily the best books for your child or teen. And conversely, a book you’ve never heard of may contain the story that changes your child’s or teen’s life. Natacha says, “We all fall victim at one time or another to ‘judging a book by its cover.’ Just because a book jacket may look promising does not mean the story is going to live up to the cover. However, an interesting looking book jacket is always reason enough for me to open it up! And remember to take into consideration the book’s content—is it pertinent to the age level of the child? I think great care needs to be taken when choosing a book, especially if a young reader is at a higher reading level. Just because a child reads at an older level does not necessarily mean that he or she is ready for ‘mature’ subject matter or content.”

Consider all the possibilities: great literature and fun, entertaining books. Natacha says, “Think of books in terms of chocolate mousse and a Hershey Kiss. There are moments for both!”

Holiday Reading!

Great Seasonal Reading to Share With the Young People in Your Life!

For a great list of new holiday books, check out The Horn Book Magazine's timely suggestions for seasonal reading with your kids! Make a pot of hot chocolate and cuddle up together for family reading fun!

Find The Horn Book Magazine's recommendations for great holiday reading-- and be sure and review The Horn Book's fascinating website, at:

http://www.hbook.com/magazine/reviews/group/holiday08.asp

Great Family Field Trips!

The Season Abounds With
Great Children's Book Illustration Exhibits!

Take a break from mall madness: grab your kids and escape into a world of of children's book illustration art! You will discover great art and great books to share with the young people in your life, making your holiday season all the more memorable!

At the Art Institute of Chicago Museum in Chicago, Illinois:

The Bill Peet Storybook Menagerie
August 23, 2008–May 24, 2009
Galleries 15–16

Overview: After a 27-year career working as Walt Disney’s principle animator and main “storyman,” Bill Peet devoted himself full-time to writing and illustrating children’s books. Along with sketches and storyboards from his Disney days, this exhibition features original works of art from 14 of Peet’s 34 published books, including Buford the Little Bighorn, The Caboose Who Got Loose, Capyboppy, Chester the Worldly Pig, Cowardly Clyde, Ella, How Droofus the Dragon Lost His Head, Kermit the Hermit, Pamela Camel, The Wump World, and the Caldecott Honor Book Bill Peet: An Autobiography.

For more information go to: http://www.artic.edu/aic/

At the Morgan Library and Museum in New York City:

Drawing Babar: Early Drafts and Watercolors
September 19, 2008, through January 4, 2009

A dignified elephant, dressed in a green suit and wearing a yellow crown, walks upright across the page. This image—both absurd and endearing—has become instantly recognizable to several generations of readers throughout the world. The exhibition Drawing Babar returns visitors to the two essential moments of Babar's creation: when Jean de Brunhoff and, years later, his son Laurent, set down their initial thoughts on paper. Their earliest drafts, shown in juxtaposition with their finished watercolors, allow viewers to track the changes, both subtle and substantive, that both men made as they refined their work, bringing together word and image with elegance and exuberance.

In 2004 the Morgan acquired the working drafts and printer-ready watercolors for Histoire de Babar, le petit éléphant (1931), the first book by Jean de Brunhoff (1899–1937), and Babar et ce coquin d'Arthur (1946), the first book by Laurent de Brunhoff (b. 1925). Together these two collections—shown virtually in their entirety for the first time—provide an extraordinary record of the working methods of the two men, both painters turned storytellers. From the naming of Babar himself (first called simply "Baby Elephant") to the introduction of the beloved character Queen Celeste—not present in Jean de Brunhoff's first draft—these early sketches and watercolors provide an intimate look at the creation of an enduring fictional world.

Supplementing the Morgan's important collection of manuscripts and drawings are splendid copies of first editions of the earliest Babar books, notable for their large format and stunning graphic appeal.

For more information go to: http://www.themorgan.org/exhibitions/exhibition.asp?id=4

At the Eric Carle Museum in Western Massachusetts:

Over Rainbows and Down Rabbit Holes: The Art of Children's Books
November 11, 2008 - March 8, 2009

This exhibition features over 80 works of art created specifically for children’s books, drawn exclusively from the outstanding collection assembled by Les and Zora Charles. These original works of art will inspire the imagination and celebrate the creativity of making picture books for readers of all ages. Selections include examples from Beatrix Potter’s The Tale of Peter Rabbit and Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, but the majority of the exhibition focuses on the genius of this genre working in the post-World War II period. Artists on view include: Chris Van Allsburg (Jumanji); Kinuko Y. Craft (Cinderella); Maurice Sendak (The Bee-Man of Orn); Leo and Diane Dillon (Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears); Trina Schart Hyman (Little Red Riding Hood); Gerald McDermott (Arrow to the Sun); Barry Moser (Jump On Over); and Jerry Pinkney (John Henry).

For more information go to: http://www.picturebookart.org/Home


At The Rhode Island School of Design Museum in Providence, Rhode Island:

Building Books: The Art of David Macaulay is the first in-depth museum exhibition devoted to this prolific author and artist. Macaulay [RISD '69, Architecture] has demystified the workings and origins of everything from simple gadgets to elaborate architectural structures. A favorite with readers of all ages, the Caldecott Medal-winning artist and MacArthur Fellow is the subject of an exhibition that takes a look at his artistic process and extensive body of work, including The New Way Things Work, Castle, Cathedral, City, Mill, Ship, and Mosque. Building Books presents a diverse range of exhibition materials, including original works of art, studies, sketchbooks, book dummies, manuscripts and correspondence, artifacts (including hand-built ship models), stuffed specimens, reference materials, travel mementos, and a video documentary about the artist, produced for the exhibition. Macaulay's books bring together the worlds of art, history, science and fantasy.

For more information go to: http://www.risdmuseum.org/

At the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington DC:

Picturing Words: The Power of Book Illustration

Nov. 21, 2008-Jan. 4, 2010
This exhibition showcases the richness of illustrated books through history. Pictures influence, inform and inspire in many ways. They add beauty, color and life to the printed page, offering a feast for the eye as well as food for the mind. Visitors may explore the power of pictures through 40 featured rare books from the Smithsonian Libraries' collections in science, history and art, as well as objects from the Museum’s Graphic Arts Division.

For more information go to: http://americanhistory.si.edu/index.cfm

Our White House Named One of the "BEST BOOKS" of 2008!

OUR WHITE HOUSE: LOOKING IN,
LOOKING OUT
is named one of the best books for young people in 2008!

Both Publisher's Weekly and Amazon have named Our White House Looking In, Looking Out one of the best books for young people in 2008! Hurrah! Thank you PW and Amazon!!!

Read more about all of the terrific books named by Publisher's Weekly and Amazon as great books for young people; go to:

For the Publisher's Weekly list:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6610357.html


For the Editor's Choice List at Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=amb_link_7803252_5?ie=UTF8&plgroup=1&docId=1000297221&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=left-1&pf_rd_r=1J8MQ2QEPJBM01N60YAV&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=457473601&pf_rd_i=1239030011

NCBLA NEWS ITEM

Dominican University's Graduate School
of Library and Information Science asks the
National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance
to serve in an advisory capacity for their new
Butler Children's Literature Center!

Susan Roman, the Dean of Dominican University's Graduate School of Library and Information Science, has asked the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance to serve on the advisory board for their recently established Butler Children's Literature Center. The NCBLA is thrilled and honored to serve and will be represented at Advisory Board Meetings by NCBLA president and executive director Mary Brigid Barrett.

Established in 2007 with a gift from the Butler Family Foundation, GSLIS’s forthcoming Butler Literature Center seeks to become one of the nation’s premier centers for the study of children’s and young adult literature. The Butler Literature Center will serve as an examination center for children’s and young adult books published annually in the United States, and as an historical collection of the best children’s and young adult literature published nationally and internationally. The Center will also serve as an evidence-based, best practices professional collection in support of the application and integration of children’s and young adult literature in classrooms, libraries, childcare centers, and homes. Open to educators, scholars, researchers, librarians, teachers, parents, and other care providers for children, the Center plans to offer a robust selection of programs, conferences, continuing education courses, web resources, and research opportunities. University partners include the School of Education and the Rebecca Crown Library.

For more information visit
Dominican University's Graduate School
of Library and Information Science website at:
http://www.dom.edu/academics/gslis/home/

Great Event In New England!

Celebrating James Marshall and
Humor in Children's Books!!!

Tuesday, November 18, 2008, 7:00 P.M. Free admission
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Stata Center, 32 Vassar Street (corner of Main Street)
Cambridge, Massachusetts

Please join this lively celebration! In honor of the new collection, George and Martha: The Complete Stories of Two Best Friends (Houghton Mifflin), we will share an evening of appreciation for its author, James Marshall, and an exploration of humor in children’s books. A panel discussion will include several authors who contributed essays to the book. What was the creator of George and Martha like? What is the influence of James Marshalls work? How do children respond to his books? What makes a book funny?

Roger Sutton, editor in chief of The Horn Book Magazine, will moderate this discussion. He will be joined by authors and illustrators Susan Meddaugh and David Wiesner, children’s literature expert Anita Silvey and Cambridge school librarian Susan Moynihan, who introduces first graders to George and Martha each year.

This event is free and open to the public. No tickets are required. Books will be available for purchase and autographing. Co-sponsored by Houghton Mifflin Company, the Cambridge Public Library, The Foundation for Children’s Books, The Horn Book, Inc. and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
For more information, please call 617-349-4409 or check

http://www.cambridgepubliclibrary.org

David Macaulay Creates Cover Illustration for Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out!

Award Winning Author/Illustrator
David Macaulay
Shares Sketches of
Our White House:
Looking In, Looking Out
Book Jacket Cover at www.ourwhitehouse.org!

See the way David Macaulay thinks! Take a look at the visual evolution of Macaulay's wry and witty cover for the NCBLA publication Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out! Children of all ages find Macaulay's sketches fascinating. You can find Macaulay's preliminary sketches at the NCBLA's Our White House companion educational website www.ourwhitehouse.org

And after you check out David Macaulay's sketches, be sure to wander through the rest of the www.ourwhitehouse.org where you will find stories, poetry, historical resources, and much more!

The sketches you see here are copyrighted by David Macaulayand the NCBLA. To see many more of David Macaulay's preliminary Our White House sketches go to:
http://www.ourwhitehouse.org/dmsketches.html

To explore the Our White House website, go to:
http://www.ourwhitehouse.org

Get the Scoop on Presidential Puppies in Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out!

President Elect Obama is Looking for a Puppy for Sasha and Malia!

The First Presidential Pups Belonged to George Washington!



George Washington's hounds-- Sweet Lips, Tipsy, Tipler, Loe, Searcher, Taster, and Drunkard never got to live in the White House. The illustration you see of George and his hounds was done for Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out by Steven Kellogg. When your read Our White House, you will find out why neither Washington or his animals had the opportunity to reside in the presidential mansion. And readers six to sixty will enjoy reading Steven Kellogg's presidential pet piece! Take a long look at Kellogg's delightfully detailed drawing of all the presidents and the animals that roamed the White House grounds. Pick your favorite for "Best in Show" and see if you can find Jimmy Carter's "killer rabbit."


All royalties from the sale of Our White House benefit the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance who created Our White House to promote literacy and historical literacy. All the contributors to Our White House, gifted their work to this creative tour de force that offers a dynamic view of more than 200 years of American history. Please note that the provocative, witty book cover art for Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out was done by nationally renowned illustrator David Macaulay.

And be sure and check out the companion educational website for Our White House at:
www.ourwhitehouse.org

Find out more about the presidential pets in
Our White House:
Looking In, Looking Out
available at your local library or bookstore!

★ “Powerful. . . .Fascinating. . . . Challenging.”
— School Library Journal
(starred review)


★ “A blue-ribbon choice for family sharing during an election
year.” — Publishers Weekly
(starred review)


★ “Unique bits and pieces . . .create a browser’s dream as readers explore the nooks and crannies of American history.”
— The Horn Book (starred review)

Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out Encourages You to Involve Young People in this Year's Historic Presidential Election!

Get Your Cool Blue and Red Hot Presidential Candidates Stickers and Finish the OurWhite House: Looking In, Looking Out Presidential Timeline!!!

Barack Obama and John McCain! Who Will Be Our Next President?

The NCBLA asked talented illustrator Bob Kolar to design presidential candidate stickers of Barack Obama and John McCain to encourage young people, their parents, grandparents, guardians, teachers, and classmates to follow this historic presidential election together, talk about the result, and then download the candidate stickers from the Our White House website--- www.ourwhitehouse.org-- and finish the book by adhering the winning presidential candidate sticker to the last spot, NUMBER 44, on Bob Kolar amazing presidential timeline on pages 224 and 225 of Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out.

And have a great time guessing who all the other presidents are on the timeline, as well as the significance of the object they are holding! Because Bob Kolar's engaging timeline is a trivia game, too!

Bob Kolar has generously donated both his original Our White House illustration and the his candidate illustration to the NCBLA's Our White House book project that links literacy, historical literacy, promoting civic engagement----as have all of the 108 esteemed writers and illustrator contributors to Our White House! All royalties from the sale of Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out help the NCBLA continue its education and advocacy goals. Be sure and check out www.ourwhitehouse.org to find out about all kinds of presidential election information from the evolution of campaign buttons to how the electoral college works!

For Barack Obama and John McCain presidential candidate stickers go to:
http://www.ourwhitehouse.org/OWHStickerSheet.pdf

To get more presidential election information, as well as election activities for young people, go to: http://www.ourwhitehouse.org/intro.html

Our White House:Looking In, Looking Out --Kennedy Center Broadcast!

The NCBLA's Book
Our White House
Looking In Looking Out Featured in
Kennedy Center for Performing Arts Series!

Telling Stories: Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out T
hursday, November 6, 2008
Grades 5-8

Nationally recognized creators of books for young people, Katherine Paterson, Steven Kellogg and Mary Brigid Barrett, share insights into a recently released book titled Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out. This book is a compilation of history, historical fiction, personal essays, poetry, drama, and original art by 108 renowned authors and illustrators that offers a view of American history as seen through the eyes of the White House. Our White House was created by the National Children’s Book and Literacy Alliance, NCBLA, in an effort to combat illiteracy and to get students excited about reading. This facinating discussion is moderated by Maria Salvadore, nationally recognized young people's literature consultant and expert.

For more information about the Kennedy Center's Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out program go to:
http://www.kennedy-center.org/education/pwtv/

Click here for a comprehensive study guide for Our White House program:
http://www.kennedy-center.org/education/pwtv/studyguides/OurWhiteHouse.pdf


The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, in cooperation with the Prince William Network, offers arts-based educational programming free to teachers and students across the country through the Performing Arts Series. Programs feature artists and companies who perform at the Kennedy Center and explore the areas of music, dance, theater, and literature.
This year's schedule also include programs with jazz musician Dr. Billy Taylor, the Martha Graham Dance Company, and a performance of Twelve Angry Men starring Richard Thomas and Randall Mell.

To read the Kennedy Center for Performing Art's complete educational outreach performing arts schedule and to find out how you can subscribe for FREE, to the series, go to: http://www.kennedy-center.org/education/pwtv/

You Finish Our White House!!

Involve Kids and Teens in This Year's Historic Election!

Finish the Presidential Timeline in Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out!

Bob Kolar's double page spread illustration at the end of Our White House Looking In, Looking Out is both a trivia game and a presidential timeline. The last space was left blank to give readers the chance to finish the book themselves---a great opportunity to involve young people in this remarkable race to the presidency. Adults and kids can discuss the election results together and complete the presidential timeline in Our White House!



Go to http://www.ourwhitehouse.org/ enter the site and click on the red Presidential Candidate sticker at the top of the page. Follow the directions on the sticker page and finish Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out! And while you are on the site: explore!

Remember read about the election in newspapers and news magazines in both traditional and electronic formats and discuss the election results with the young people in your life!



Remember:
Literacy + Historic Literacy = Civic Engagement!

Go to:
http://www.ourwhitehouse.org

http://www.ourwhitehouse.org/OWHStickerSheet.pdf

Our White House Raves Continue!

PW's Bethanne Patrick Recommends Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out on NY1!

Bethanne Patrick has been reporting about books and authors long enough that her galley shelf is stacked three deep -- yet she still worries about being short on reading material. A PW Contributing Editor and a member of the National Book Critics Circle, Patrick reads, writes, and rants (occasionally all at once) from the Washington DC area.

To hear Bethanne Patrick's recommendation of Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out and other great kids' books for fall watch this great NY1 newsclip and read Bethanne Patrick Publisher's Weekly blog go to:

http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/670000267/post/740035474.html

In Case You Missed It!

Watch the Library of Congress National Book Festival Webcast of
Katherine Paterson,
Steven Kellogg,
Jon Scieszka,
and special guest
Lynda Johnson Robb
Reading from
Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out!

If you could not attend the Library of Congress National Book Festival, you can still see and listen to the NCBLA's Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out presentation on a LOC webcast!

Katherine Paterson and Steven Kellogg, NCBLA Vice-Presidents ; Jon Scieszka, the Library of Congress Children's Book Ambassador; Mary Brigid Barrett, NCBLA President ; and special surprise guest, the former First Lady of Virginia and RIF uber-advocate, Lynda Johnson Robb read from their contributions to the NCBLA's new book Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out at the LOC National Book Festival. We were delighted that LOC's Center for the Book director, the amazing John Cole, introduced our presentation and only regret that he did not have a chance to read from his contribution to Our White House--his delightful essay about First Lady Laura Bush founding of the National Book Festival.

We invite you to view the LOC Book Festival webcast at:
http://www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/feature_wdesc.php?rec=4398

You may also want to check out the LOC Book Festival's Young Reader Tool Kit. The Tool Kit offers suggestions from authors and illustrators to help young people become better readers, writers, and artists!

Katherine Paterson at:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_kpaterson.html

Steven Kellog at:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_skellogg.html

Jon Scieszka at:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_jscieszka.html

Mary Brigid Barrett at:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_mbbarrett.html

Family Field Trip!

Illustrator David Macaulay Art Exhibit at
The Rhode Island School of Design Museum
and Don't Miss the Macaulay Lecture!

Building Books: The Art of David Macaulay is the first in-depth museum exhibition devoted to this prolific author and artist. Macaulay [RISD '69, Architecture] has demystified the workings and origins of everything from simple gadgets to elaborate architectural structures. A favorite with readers of all ages, the Caldecott Medal-winning artist and MacArthur Fellow is the subject of an exhibition that takes a look at his artistic process and extensive body of work, including The New Way Things Work, Castle, Cathedral, City, Mill, Ship, and Mosque. Building Books presents a diverse range of exhibition materials, including original works of art, studies, sketchbooks, book dummies, manuscripts and correspondence, artifacts (including hand-built ship models), stuffed specimens, reference materials, travel mementos, and a video documentary about the artist, produced for the exhibition. Macaulay's books bring together the worlds of art, history, science and fantasy.

Thirty-Third Annual Gail Silver Memorial Lecture: David Macaulay

RISD Auditorium, Canal Way, Providence

6:15 PM - 8:15 PM.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Author/artist David Macaulay (RISD BArch 1969; former RISD faculty) presents this year's Gail Silver Memorial Lecture. His books, including The New Way Things Work, Cathedral, Ship, Rome Antics, and Mosque, have demystified the workings and origins of everything from simple gadgets to elaborate architectural structures. They have won him a gold and two silver Caldecott medals, not to mention a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship in 2006. His soon-to-be-released book, The Way We Work, explores the human body. The lecture is free and open to all.

For more information go to: http://www.risdmuseum.org/

Our White House educational companion website now live!

www.ourwhitehouse.org




www.ourwhitehouse.org is launched!

Stage one of the Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out's companion educational website www.ourwhitehouse.org is live and ready for your perusal!

In www.ourwhitehouse.org, you will find expanded book content for Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out, as well as ideas, activities, and discussion questions related to book topics. Also included is an American history resource and literacy center, a guide to presidential field trip destinations, and an extensive young people’s bibliography. We will be continually adding to the site to include more book-related content and activities, as well as information on civic education and media literacy.

Please, check out the new partner website for Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out at:
http://www.ourwhitehouse.org/

Another Starred Review for Our White House!

The Horn Book Magazine
Gives
Our White House:
Looking In, Looking Out
a STAR Review!


The NCBLA's extraordinary publication
OUR WHITE HOUSE
receives its third starred review!

The Horn Book Magazine writes:


Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out
242 pp. Candlewick 9/08 isbn 978-0-7636-2067-7 $29.99 (Intermediate, Middle School)

From Natalie Babbitt to Jon Scieszka and from R. Gregory Christie to Steven Kellogg, 108 contemporary writers and artists use a variety of stories, poems, and historical records to take readers on a virtual tour of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Starting from the ground up with the construction of the President’s House and first residents John and Abigail Adams, these voices and images, roughly chronologically arranged, recognize those living and working inside and those observing from the outside. Unique bits and pieces (including Jefferson’s fascination with fossils and William Henry Harrison’s purchase of a national cow) create a browser’s dream as readers explore the nooks and crannies of American history. Other entries deal with somber topics such as death, war, and protest; the text of a few, such as Charles Dickens’s 1842 observations and FDR’s Four Freedoms, are not original to the book. Occasionally, connections to the White House are tenuous, and historical links may require an adult intermediary, a joyous job that opens up avenues of discussion on topics from politics to pets. Appended with biographical notes (of contemporary contributors only), an index, and a supporting website (http://www.ourwhiteouse.org), this handsome book concludes with a portrait of an empty chair in the Oval Office that signals the yet-to-be-written future. b.c.

Parents, teachers, and librarians will find The Horn Book Magazine is an exemplary guide to the best in children's literature and will also find their website of great interest.
At: www.hbook.com/

Also of interest is The Horn Book's Editor-in Chief, Roger Sutton's provocative blog READ ROGER at: http://www.hbook.com/blog/

Our White House Looking In, Looking Out

On the Road with
Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out!

Join authors Patricia and Fred McKissack, Lynda Johnson Robb,
and author/illustrator
Mary Brigid Barrett at The Southern Book Festival in Nashville, Tennessee, October 10-12 talking about Our White White House: Looking In, Looking Out!

On October 10-12, Nashville's Southern Festival of Books: A Celebration of the Written Word will be temporary home to approximately 250 authors from across the nation.

Join Our White House contributors Mary Brigid Barrett, Patricia McKissack, Fredrick McKissack, and Lynda Johnson Robb on Saturday October 11, 2008 in Room 12 at the Legislative Plaza on Nashville's War Memorial Plaza to celebrate American history and hear readings from Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out!

Fredrick McKissack and his wife, Patricia McKissack, have written more than 100 books about the African-American experience. They have won countless awards and received much critical acclaim, all the while bringing enjoyment and information to young readers.

Lynda Johnson Robb is the elder of the two daughters of United States President Lyndon Baines Johnson and his wife Lady Bird Johnson. She served as First Lady of Virginia from 1982 to 1986 and as Second Lady of Virginia from 1978 to 1982. She served as chair of the board of Reading is Fundamental, the nation's largest children's literacy organization, from 1996 to 2001. In 2002 she received the Ella Dickey Literacy Award for her work in promoting literacy.

Mary Brigid Barrett is a children's book author and illustrator; a professional educator; and the founder, president, and executive director of the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance (NCBLA). She has won numerous awards for her books, including an Oppenheim Gold Award and the National Storyteller's Association's "Best Book of the Year" award.

For information about the festival, go to:
http://tn-humanities.org/festival/current.php

For the complete list of children's and young adult events, go to:
http://tn-humanities.org/festival/children.php

NCBLA Board Member Illustration Exhibit

Family Field Trip:
David Macaulay's Illustration Exhibit
"Building Books the Art of David Macaulay"
at the Museum of Art
at Rhode Island School of Design

Running from September 27, 2008- February 11, 2009, Building Books: The Art of David Macaulay is the first in-depth museum exhibition devoted to this prolific author and artist. David Macaulay has demystified the workings and origins of everything from simple gadgets to elaborate architectural structures. A favorite with readers of all ages, this Caldecott Medal-winning artist is the subject of this exhibition that takes a look at Macaulay's artistic process and extensive body of work, including The New Way Things Work, Castle, Cathedral, City, Mill, Ship, and Mosque. The exhibition presents a diverse range of exhibition materials, including original works of art, studies, sketchbooks, book dummies, manuscripts and correspondence, artifacts (including hand-built ship models), stuffed specimens, reference materials, travel mementos, and a video documentary about the artist, produced for the exhibition. Macaulay's books bring together the worlds of art, history, science and fantasy.

Parents and grandparents will enjoy visiting this show with their children and teens. And this exhibit would make a wonderful field trip for teachers and their students. For directions, exhibit hours, and all other information call 401-454-6500, or go to: http://www.risdmuseum.org/exhibition.aspx?type=forthcoming&id=15266

Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out!

Rave Reviews for
Our White House:
Looking In Looking Out!

Critics, Parents, Teachers, Librarians embrace Our White House! Read below to find out what people across the country are saying about the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance's Our White House! You can find Our White House at your local library or bookstore, and then write us and tell us what you think about it!


School Library Journal: *Starred Review*-


"The pairing of words and art is often inspired, as in Maybelle Mayer’s paper doll cutouts from 1938 that accompany Nancy Willard’s poem about White House dresses. There are powerful visual moments as well, such as the dazzling series of spreads featuring visual interpretations of Roosevelt’s "Four Freedoms," each by a different artist. . .

Some readers will progress straight through from Jane Yolen’s imagined conversation between John and Abigail Adams to the first National Book Festival in 2001, while others may browse and jump about; either way, this entertaining introduction to the White House is full of fascinating information, challenging ideas, and appealing artwork. "

Read more at: http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6591908.html


Publisher's Weekly: *Starred Review*-
"Among the most provocative entries are works by artists who “look in” on the White House with a demonstrably personal vision: David Small shares color sketches of “backstairs at the White House,” a study in contrasts; Bob Kolar arranges the presidents as if on a board game, with clever annotations (who knew President Arthur held a yard sale while in office?); Peter Sís supplies 37 characteristically enigmatic portraits to illustrate freedom to worship. . . . the volume makes the invaluable point that history does not have to be remote or abstract, but a personal and ongoing engagement."

Read more at: http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6593070.html?industryid=47139 http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6587034.html?nid=2788




Scripps Howard News Service-"a stunning gathering of children's-book stars..."

Let's just say it flat-out: "Our White House" is a stunning gathering of children's-book stars, all with a single goal of illuminating a national treasure for young readers...."Our White House," a coffee-table-size book with unusual intellectual and artistic heft. With each piece of text just three pages or less in length, it's perfect for reading aloud or just dipping into as time permits.

Read more at:
http://www.shns.com/shns/g_index2.cfm?action=detail&pk=CORNER-BOOKS-10-01-08


Notes from The Horn Book Magazine-"sumptuous new anthology Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out"
Of far more durable interest, and with something for adults and children alike, is the sumptuous new anthology Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out, compiled by the National Children’s Book and Literacy Alliance. More than one hundred essays, poems, short stories, and paintings explore the White House and its inhabitants, history, and significance. . . .A fascinating, eminently browsable, and accessible entrance into the People’s House. "

Read more at: http://www.hbook.com/newsletter/index.html



ForeWord Magazine: . ."impressive compilation of text and images by 108 authors and illustrators."

"What makes this compilation a stunning achievement are the host of illustrations, ranging from realistic to dramatic and satirical, by Brian Selznick, David Small, Roxie Munro, and other award-winning illustrators. Our White House is not meant for one sitting; instead, entries should be savored one at a time. While written for older children and teens, they should be shared with parents and educators, who can add their own personal stories to the experience."

Read more at: http://www.forewordmagazine.com/reviews/viewreviews.aspx?reviewid=4349&rssref=20080930


Children's Book Page- "a spectacular anthology"

"Eight years in the making, as a special project of the National Children's Book and Literary Alliance, the arrival of Our White House is truly a major event in children's publishing. The book is a treasury of essays, personal reflections, letters, poems, speeches and comics, demonstrating that the most celebrated house in America is simply bursting with stories."

Read more at: http://www.bookpage.com/0809bp/children/our_white_house.html

Kirkus Reviews- "even brief dips into this will leave readers with the clear sense that we do have a national history, and it's worth knowing too."

"In this sumptuous pro bono volume, 108 children's authors and illustrators (with the occasional celebrity, president or other official chiming in) contribute original art, personal reminiscences, short stories, poems and historical vignettes about the White House and its residents."


Richie's Picks- "This is a collection of uber talent."

"OUR WHITE HOUSE is a rollicking literary and visual excursion through the
history and mythology, the hijinks and tragedies, and the family moments that
have accrued over the course of two centuries of presidential life at 1600
Pennsylvania Avenue."

Read more at:
http://lists.sjsu.edu/pipermail/calibk12/2008-June/004591.html

Our White House at the National Book Festival!

OUR WHITE HOUSE:Looking In, Looking Out at the
Library of Congress National Book Festival!!

NCBLA Vice-Presidents Katherine Paterson and Steven Kellogg, with special guest Jon Scieszka, the Library of Congress Children's Book Ambassador, and NCBLA President Mary Brigid Barrettwill discuss NCBLA's new book Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out at the LOC National Book Festival. The Festival takes place Saturday, September 27, 2008 on the National Mall in Washington D.C., between 3rd and 7th streets from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The festival is free and open to the public.

Katherine, Steven, Jon, and Mary Brigid are looking forward to sharing Our White House with Book Festival middle grade readers, their friends, family, and all who share an interest in our nation's rich history!

Katherine, Steven, Jon, and Mary Brigid have also participated in the Festival's great educational outreach project, the 2008 National Book Festival Young Readers Toolkit, now available online at www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/. Bringing the festival into libraries, schools and homes across the country, the Toolkit features information about National Book Festival authors who write for children and teens, podcasts of their readings, teaching tools and activities for kids. This interactive resource also shows educators, parents and children how they can host their own book festival.

For more information about the LOC Book Festival go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/

For Katherine's toolkit interview, go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_kpaterson.html

For Steven Kellogg's toolkit interview, go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_skellogg.html

For Jon Scieszka's toolkit interview, go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_jscieszka.html

For Mary Brigid Barrett's toolkit interview, go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_mbbarrett.html

And discover all the great festival author/illustrator toolkit interviews at:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/

OUR WHITE HOUSE LOOKING IN LOOKING OUT: AUTHOR APPEARANCE!

Our White House Contributors
Katherine Paterson,
Steven Kellogg,
Lynda Johnson Robb, and
Mary Brigid Barrett at
Politics and Prose
Book Store
in Washington D. C. this Friday!


Come By, Visit, Chat and Take at Look at
Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out!

On Friday afternoon, September 26 at 4:30 P.M. hear
award-winning authors Katherine Paterson and Steven
Kellogg, along with Our White House contributors Lynda
Johnson Robb and Mary Brigid Barrett read from their
contribution to Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out!
Then stay and participate in a discussion of Our White House,
an anthology of original art, poetry, and prose that uses the
White House to tell the story of America!

Katherine Paterson, twice the winner of both the National Book
Award and the Newbery Award and Steven Kellogg, an award
winning author and illustrator, are two of the most
's book creators in America. Lynda Johnson Robb is
Reading is Fundemental's Chairman Emerita, former First Lady
of Virginia, and daughter of President Lyndon Baines Johnson and
First Lady Claudia "Lady Bird" Johnson. Mary Brigid Barrett is an
author, illustrator, teacher, and the president of the National
Children's Book and Literacy Alliances the literacy organization
that, with 108 gifted contributors and publisher Candlewick Press,
has created Our White House Looking In, Looking Out, a creativetour de force that will energize and inspire young readers on their journeys to becoming the civic leaders of tomorrow!

For more information about the NCBLA event at Politics
and Prose, go to:
http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/
community/eventdetail.html?
sid=1425&cal=3&eventid=489df7d765
For more information about Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out go to:
http://www.thencbla.org/ncblanews.html

Our White House!

Our White House Podcast:
A Not to Missed Interview!

NCBLA Board Member
Natalie Babbitt interviewed by
First Book about
Our White House:
Looking In,Looking Out

Esteemed writer Natalie Babbitt, author of Tuck Everlasting, Kneeknock Rise, Goody Hall, and most recently the delightful Jack Plank Tells Tales, talks about the mysteries of her home state of Ohio, the joy of illustrating, and her latest work, “Seven From Ohio,” featured in the new book Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out just published by Candlewick Press!

P.S. Don’t forget — if you plan to be in the Washington, D.C. area on September 27th, don’t miss other contributors to Our White House when they discuss its creation at the National Book Festival on the Mall!

For more information go to:
http://blog.firstbook.org/2008/09/22/first-book-podcast-tuck-everlasting-author-natalie-babbitt-chats-with-first-book/

Our White House

Our White House
Looking In, Looking Out:
Part of the Performing Arts Series
at the
Kennedy Center!

Telling Stories: Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out

Thursday, November 6, 2008 Grades 5-8 Nationally recognized creators of books for
young people, Katherine Paterson, Steven Kellogg and Mary Brigid Barrett, share insights into a recently released book titled Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out. This book is a compilation of history, historical fiction, personal essays, poetry, drama, and original art by 108 renowned authors and illustrators that offers a view of American history as seen through the eyes of the White House. Our White House was created by the National Children’s Book and Literacy Alliance, NCBLA, in an effort to combat historical illiteracy and to get students excited about reading. The program will be hosted and moderated by children's literature and library expert, Maria Salvadore.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, in cooperation with the Prince William Network, offers arts-based educational programming free to teachers and students across the country through the Performing Arts Series. Programs feature artists and companies who perform at the Kennedy Center and explore the areas of music, dance, theater, and literature.

For more information, go to:
http://www.kennedy-center.org/education/pwtv/

Rave Review for Our White House!

Children's BookPage calls
OUR WHITE HOUSE a "spectacular anthology," a "glorious and multifaceted collection that showcases the talents of more than 100 acclaimed authors and illustrators."

Children's book reviewer Ellen Trachenberg at Children's BookPage says, "Eight years in the making, as a special project of the National Children's Book and Literary Alliance, the arrival of Our White House is truly a major event in children's publishing."

For BookPage's full review of
OUR WHITE HOUSE: LOOKING IN, LOOKING OUT, go to:
http://www.bookpage.com/0809bp/children/our_white_house.html

Our White House Author Appearance

OUR WHITE HOUSE at the
Library of Congress National Book Festival!!

NCBLA Vice-Presidents Katherine Paterson and Steven Kellogg, with special guest Jon Scieszka, the Library of Congress Children's Book Ambassador, and NCBLA President Mary Brigid Barrettwill discuss NCBLA's new book Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out at the LOC National Book Festival. The Festival takes place Saturday, September 27, 2008 on the National Mall in Washington D.C., between 3rd and 7th streets from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The festival is free and open to the public.

Katherine, Steven, Jon, and Mary Brigid are looking forward to sharing Our White House with Book Festival middle grade readers, their friends, family, and all who share an interest in our nation's rich history!

Katherine, Steven, Jon, and Mary Brigid have also participated in the Festival's great educational outreach project, the 2008 National Book Festival Young Readers Toolkit, now available online at www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/. Bringing the festival into libraries, schools and homes across the country, the Toolkit features information about National Book Festival authors who write for children and teens, podcasts of their readings, teaching tools and activities for kids. This interactive resource also shows educators, parents and children how they can host their own book festival.

For more information about the LOC Book Festival go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/

For Katherine's toolkit interview, go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_kpaterson.html

For Steven Kellogg's toolkit interview, go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_skellogg.html

For Jon Scieszka's toolkit interview, go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_jscieszka.html

For Mary Brigid Barrett's toolkit interview, go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/authors/bio_mbbarrett.html

And discover all the great festival author/illustrator toolkit interviews at:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/2008/toolkit/

Our White House in the Washington Post....

Splashed Across the Kid's Post Pages
in The Washington Post:
Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out!

Read about the NCBLA's new book, Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/05/AR2008090502752.html

Great News!

Our White House:
Looking In, Looking Out
named a National Endowment for the Humanities
We the People Bookshelf Selection!

The NCBLA is honored that the National Endowment for the Humanities has named
Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out as a We the People Bookshelf selection for 2009-2010, when the book shelf theme will be “Picturing America.” The NEH has indicated that they will be purchasing 7,000 copies of Our White House to make them available for school and public libraries in need across the country.

The We the People Bookshelf is a set of classic books for young readers from kindergarten through high school. Each year the NEH identifies a theme important to our nation's heritage and selects books that embody that theme. This collection of theme-related books is the Bookshelf. In addition to introducing young readers to good literature; the Bookshelf promotes understanding of abstract or general ideas through the power of particular stories. NEH awards these Bookshelves to libraries across the country for use in programs primarily for young people. U.S. public and school (K-12) libraries are eligible to apply for Bookshelf grants. In return for receiving a Bookshelf, libraries organize programs that highlight the theme and encourage young readers to explore the selected books.

The American Library Association(ALA) collaborates with NEH to deliver this program. ALA staff and libraries help to select the books, and work directly with the nation's libraries to disseminate information and to encourage libraries to take part in the We the People Bookshelf grant program.

For more information about the NEH's Bookshelf program and information concerning grant applications go to:
http://www.wethepeople.gov/bookshelf/picturingamerica.html
http://publicprograms.ala.org/bookshelf/

Children's Literature Lovers

Maurice Sendak's 80th Birthday Celebrated Next Monday in New York by Wild Things of Many Varieties!

Interesting don't miss article on Maurice Sendak in the New York Times. If you are not familiar with his work, Mr. Sendak is a decidedly brilliant creator of books for young people, a genius author and illustrator of picture books. He is also an Honorary Board member of the NCBLA.

To read the NYT's article go to:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/10/arts/design/10sendak.html