America's Young People Have Lost a Champion

"Every American should have the opportunity to receive a high quality education, a job that respects their dignity and protects their safety, and health care that does not condemn those whose health is impaired to a lifetime of poverty and lost opportunity."

Senator Edward Moore Kennedy 1932-2009

For over forty years he fought for all of our children. He never gave up. He never wavered.

He championed Head Start, Early Head Start, and fought to reauthorize and expand Head Start programs over the years to include Native American children, and the children of migrant workers. He fought for the Keeping Children and Families Safe Act that expanded funding and supported state programs for abused and neglected children. He sponsored the Military Child Care Act to increase funding for child care in the armed forces. He worked continually to make college more affordable and accessible for young people eager to learn. He worked continually to get federal dollars into public schools and libraries.

He brought his favorite books to schools and read to children on a weekly basis, loving every minute of it. He fought for federal funding to support Reading is Fundamental and worked with First Book to create a National Book Bank for Children.

He cared for black children and white children and every shade in between. He cared for children with intellectual disabilities and physical challenges. He cared for poor children, rich children, immigrant children, and native born. He cared for the tall and the small; the weak and the strong. His heart was big enough to hold them all.

Because of the life work of Edward Moore Kennedy all of our children lead healthier, safer lives--all of our children have a better chance to fulfill the gifts given to them by their Creator.

Thank you Senator Kennedy.

Mary Brigid Barrett
President
The National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance

To read Senator Kennedy’s full record on educational issues, go to:

http://kennedy.senate.gov/issues_and_agenda/issue.cfm?id=e156cb3b-204a-4edb-b487-c9ee07cde3a9

To hear Senator’s Kennedy thoughts on young people’s civic education, go to:

http://bigthink.com/tedkennedy/ted-kennedy-on-education-and-democracy

ALA Announces 2009 Great Website for Kids

NCBLA's OurWhiteHouse Website

Named a Great Website for Kids!

The National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance is thrilled to announce that its educational website ourwhitehouse.org has been selected for inclusion in the American Library Association’s Great Web Sites for Kids, located at: www.ala.org/greatsites. The ourwhitehouse.org website is now listed with other distinguished sites in the "US History-General" category.

Great Web Sites for Kids are those considered the best websites for ages birth to 14, outstanding in both content and conception. As applied to websites for young people, “great” should be thought to include sites of especially commendable quality, sites that reflect and encourage young people’s interests in exemplary ways. The ALA's selection criteria can be found at: http://www.ala.org/ala/alsc/greatwebsites/greatwebsitesforkids/greatwebsites.htm.

The NCBLA developed www.ourwhitehouse.org to support and expand the content of its literature and art anthology Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out. With a guiding mission of creating a book that would encourage young people to read more about America’s rich history and culture, to think more about America’s future, to talk more about our nation’s leadership, and to act on their own beliefs and convictions, the NCBLA worked with a dream team of over 100 authors and illustrators to create Our White House. Our White House is available in libraries and bookstores everywhere.

Learn more about the book and discover its rich online supplemental materials at: www.ourwhitehouse.org.

The Adventure Begins This September!

Join the Library of Congress and the
National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance on the Hilarious Exquisite Corpse Adventure!

Come along with National Children s' Book Ambassador Jon Scieszka and his award-winning motley crew of authors and illustrators--M.T .Anderson, Natalie Babbitt, Calef Brown, Susan Cooper, Kate Di Camillo, Timothy Basil Ering, Nikki Grimes, Shannon Hale, Daniel Handler aka Lemony Snickett, Steven Kellogg, Gregory Maguire, Megan McDonald, Patricia and Fredrick McKissack, Linda Sue Park, Katherine Paterson, James Ransome, and Chris Van Dusen-- as they embark on a rollicking story adventure game to discover The Exquisite Corpse!!!!

Jon Scieszka will reveal the first Exquisite Corpse episode at the National Book Festival on Saturday, September 26, 2009. Joining Mr. Scieszka on stage in the Children's Pavilion will be fellow Exquisite Corpse contributors Kate Di Camillo, Nikki Grimes, Shannon Hale, Steven Kellogg, and Megan McDonald all participating in a special launch event moderated by NCBLA president and founder, Mary Brigid Barrett.

The Exquisite Corpse Adventure will continue over the course of one year with each new episode and illustration appearing on the Library of Congress's new READ.gov website every two weeks!

With the assistance of the Butler Children's Literature Center at Dominican University, the NCBLA is developing educational support materials for the The Exquisite Corpse Adventure which will be posted on special pages on the NCBLA's home website, www.thencbla.org beginning September 26th. The NCBLA hopes that every episode of the Exquisite Corpse will inspire young people to find more great books to read and is thrilled that Thomas Barthelmass, Curator of the Butler Center and new Association for Library Service to Children (ALA) President, is creating an annotated bibliography for each Exquisite Corpse episode. In addition, Assistant Dean of Dominican University's Graduate School of Education Marilyn Ludolph will be working with faculty and students to develop educational activities and discussion questions for the use of parents, teachers, and librarians.

The National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance and the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress hope the Exquisite Corpse Adventure will introduce young people to the new Read.gov website, and we also hope it will encourage young people to read books just for the fun of it . . . and read more!!!!

For more information about the Library of Congress National Book Festival, go to:
http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/

For more information about the NCBLA, go to: www.thencbla.org

For more information about the Butler Children's Literature Center at Dominican University,
go to:
http://www.dom.edu/events-news/newsroom/press_Releases/2008-12/article_0003.html

Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award Finalists Announced

ALAN Announces Finalists for
Young Adult Fiction Award

The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents (ALAN) of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) recently announced the finalists for the inaugural Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award for Young Adult Fiction. The honored titles for 2009 (in alphabetical order by title) are:

After Tupac and D Foster, by Jacqueline Woodson (Putnam)

Graceling, by Kristin Cashore (Harcourt)

The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman (HarperCollins)

Me, The Missing, and the Dead, by Jenny Valentine (HarperCollins)

My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins, and Fenway Park, by Steve Kluger (Dial)

This year’s winning title will be announced at an open reception and reading at the 2009 ALAN Workshop in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Established in 2008 to honor the wishes of young adult author, Amelia Elizabeth Walden, the award allows for the sum of $5,000 to be presented annually to the author of a young adult title selected by the ALAN Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award Committee as demonstrating a positive approach to life, widespread teen appeal, and literary merit.

Learn more on the ALAN website.

First Book Rallies Nation to Celebrate United We Serve's Education Week

Celebrate Education Week July 27-31

The nonprofit organization First Book invites Americans across the nation to celebrate United We Serve's Education Week next week by advocating for literacy activities. How can you participate? Read with a child, volunteer at a library, or organize a book drive. Even small gestures can make a difference in the reading life of a child.

United We Serve is is President Obama’s call to nationwide community service. This is a challenge to all Americans to engage in sustained, meaningful service because ordinary people can achieve extraordinary things.

“Economic recovery is as much about what you’re doing in your communities as what we’re doing in Washington -- and it’s going to take all of us, working together.”
- President Barack Obama

The mission of First Book is to put new books in the hands of children in need. As one of fourteen national nonprofits on the United We Serve Education Team advancing book distributions, summer learning opportunities, and library card registrations, First Book is leading efforts to dramatically increase access to books for our nation’s disadvantaged children. The United We Serve initiative culminates in a day of service and remembrance on September 11, but is intended to remain a sustained, collaborative, and focused effort to promote service as a way of life for all Americans.

On Politics and Baseball and Summer Reading

President Obama Throws--and Talks--Baseball!

Even the United States president needs a day of fun and games. Yesterday President Obama donned casual clothes and enjoyed a day away from the tough topics of universal health care and nuclear proliferation to join throngs of other baseball lovers at the 80th Annual Major League Baseball All-Star Game in St. Louis. Before throwing the first pitch to open the game, the president met with journalist Bob Costas to discuss all things baseball. You can watch the interview on the White House website here.

Use Your Kids' Passions to Target Summer Reading

If you are are a parent or guardian who is finding your best attempts to get your kids reading this summer thwarted, think about your kids' other passions--such as baseball and other summer sports--and the opportunities they might provide to focus the kids' reading choices. Children's book author and illustrator Mary Brigid Barret writes in "Home Run Reading: Baseball and Books for Kids," "The best way to connect kids to reading is to build on their passions and interests. If you have kids who love baseball--or as I do, have kids who like to go to the ballpark to eat hot dogs, ogle the players, eat fried dough, start the wave, eat hot pretzels, cheer, and eat some more--use that interest to get them reading." Read more of Barrett's suggestions, as well as a great reading list geared toward baseball lovers of all ages, here. Why not start by watching the president's interview with your kids? What do your kids think of his favorite team and players? How do they compare to your family's favorites? Have they heard of Willie Mays and Jackie Robinson? Use this as an opportunity to learn more about our country's great athletes--past and present--by visiting your local library!

Connect American History and Baseball

Baseball lovers will also enjoy reading about the long association between baseball and the presidency in Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out in the essay "The First Pitch" by Stephanie True Peters. Our White House is a literature and art anthology created by the National Children’s Book and Literacy Alliance to encourage young people to read more about America’s rich history and culture; to think more about America’s future; to talk more about our nation’s leadership; and to act on their own beliefs and convictions, ensuring this great democratic experiment will survive and thrive. Our White House is available in libraries and bookstores everywhere.

To learn more about what presidents and their families do to relax and have fun together while living in the White House, check out "Stress Relief: Exercise and Relaxation at the White House" on http://www.ourwhitehouse.org/toc.html.

Libraries Endangered by Funding Cuts

Ohio Governor Threatens Drastic 50% Cut
to its Libraries

Last week Ohio Governor Ted Strickland made headlines when he announced his intentions to reduce state funding to its public libraries by fifty percent as a means to balance the state budget. The public outrage was immediate as Ohioans rallied for its libraries in public demonstrations, as well as an onslaught of phone calls and emails to the governor's office. According to the Ohio Library Council, such a dramatic reduction in funds would force the state to start closing libraries.

As states struggle to balance their budgets with decreased federal funding and tax income, many are looking to reduce funding to their libraries. But president of the American Library Association Jim Rettig recently stated about the situation in Ohio, "A projected 50 percent reduction in funding for Ohio’s libraries would result in unprecedented national disaster. We understand that in a recession difficult choices must be made, but libraries are part of the solution when a community is struggling economically, and are a necessity in efforts to get Americans back on their feet. From coast to coast, libraries have been first responders to the national economic crisis. They have been inundated by job seekers and users looking to better their lives through education. This also is the case in Ohio, as Ohioans are depending on their local libraries for free Internet access, employment services, personal finance resources, small business development and education and cultural programs." Read more at "Ted Strickland Vilified for Proposed Cuts to Ohio Public Libraries."

In the meantime, the Ohio Senate is considering less drastic cuts to library funding. As of this morning, the Associate Press reports that "the $227 million in library cuts proposed by Gov. Ted Strickland would be reduced by two-thirds." The Ohio Library Council noted that a lesser reduction in funds might prevent them from having to close libraries. In fact, Lynda Murray of the Ohio Library Council said about the latest budget plan, "That's something we can live (with), but people will still see a drop in services." Read more at "Less cuts proposed in new budget."

Stay Informed!
The ALA is constantly tracking issues related to library funding. For the latest updates on school, public, and federal library funding, refer to "Funding News @ Your Library" on the ALA website.

THE NCBLA'S NEW READING OUTREACH PROJECT

The Library of Congress and the
National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance Invite You to the Library Of Congress' Booth
at the American Library Association
National Conference in Chicago, July 11-14th
to find out more about the
EXQUISITE CORPSE ADVENTURE!

Check this NCBLA blog throughout
the summer for updates!!

The Exquisite Corpse Adventure begins
September 26, 2009!!!

The Best Kids' Books Ever??

New York Times Columnist Declares Favorite Books--
and His Readers Sound Off

The school buses are off the roads, the textbooks are stacked in storage, and educators and parents across the nation worry about how to keep our kids' minds engaged. Rightly so. As New York Times columnist Nicholas D. Kristoff writes in "The Best Kids' Books Ever," "American children drop in I.Q. each summer vacation — because they aren’t in school or exercising their brains. This is less true of middle-class students whose parents drag them off to summer classes or make them read books. But poor kids fall two months behind in reading level each summer break, and that accounts for much of the difference in learning trajectory between rich and poor students."

The fact that kids fall behind in the summer is not new news. Teachers have been trying to counteract this for years by requiring students to read over the summer. But what to read?

Kristof's list of thirteen recommended books hit a nerve with many of his readers because their personal favorites did not make the cut. What about Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Phantom Tollbooth, and The Bridge to Terabithia?! In a follow-up column, ("In Which I Apologize to Roald Dahl….") Kristof apologizes and reports how he "was taken aback by the reaction" to his list. In fact, he further notes that never before had readers posted even 1,000 comments to one of his columns, but the reaction was so overwhelming to this column that he received over 2,350 comments.

Educator Monica Edinger reacted to Kristof's piece in her blog educating alice, "Like so many similar well-intentioned pieces, this column bugged me. Not only are the books Kristof recommends unlikely to end up in the hands of one of those “poor kids” this summer, even if they were in their hands, they might not speak to them at all. The suggestions pouring in from his readers seem equally myopic— I see next to none considering what the actual reality is for those at-risk children."

We noted the erupting controversy about WHAT kids should be reading versus educators' expectations in last week's blog ("Summer Reading Lists Promote Reading for the Fun of It"). Many teachers do recognize the diverse needs of kids and have sought to transform the standard summer reading list to extend beyond the classic cannon of white men to include more multicultural works and popular favorites. Read more in the Boston Globe article, "Sands Shift in Summer Reading."

What should kids be reading? Should kids read what they want? What do you think?

The Adventure Begins This September!

American Library Association Members:
The Exquisite Corpse Adventure begins!

Going to ALA's National Convention in Chicago? Make sure you stop by the Library of Congress booth to find out more about the LOC's and the NCBLA's new riveting reading outreach project----

The Exquisite Corpse Adventure!

"This story starts
with a train
rushing through the night . . ."

RIF and Macy's Team Up to Promote Literacy

Go Shopping and Make a Difference:

Book A Brighter Future Campaign Launched

For a second year, Macy's is helping to raise funds for RIF by offering all its customers an opportunity to give $3 to RIF and get a $10 off coupon for their next in-store purchase of $50 or more. Shoppers can take advantage of this opportunity through August 31. Macy’s will donate 100% of every $3 to RIF.

Last year, Macy’s customers raised more than $3.1 million for RIF and set a new record for the largest customer-supported campaign in RIF’s 42-year history. This year, RIF needs your help to beat this record!
You can help by taking advantage of this shopping opportunity and by spreading the word!

Learn more about Book a Brighter Future.
Learn more about RIF and its programs on the RIF website.

Pop Lit or Classic? Meyer or Melville?

Summer Reading Lists Promote Reading
for the Fun of It

Although educators may disagree about what kids should be reading this summer, all assert the profound need for kids to read something!

In the June 25 Boston Globe, staff reporter Lisa Kocian writes in "Sands Shift in Summer Reading" about the dramatic changes being made to assigned reading lists and educators' reasoning behind the revisions. At many high schools, educators are promoting reading lists with a more diverse selection that limits the classics and includes more popular books, such as Stephanie Meyer's best-seller Twilight and Dan Brown's sensation, Angels and Demons.

Donna Johns, a library teacher at Newton North High School explains, “I’m concerned about turning reading into work. Sometimes you do read for work, for information, for class, but sometimes you really should just be reading for pleasure.’’

On the other side of the table are those who believe the summer reading list is an ideal way to introduce students to the beauty of classic literature. Heather Mac Donald, a fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, states that the removal of classic books from summer reading lists is "heartbreaking." She further notes that such an elimination avoids the "cultural responsibility to keep this literature alive.’’

What do you think? Read more...

The National Ambassador for Young People's Literature
Provides Tips to Motivate Kids to Read
Regarding his goals as National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, Jon Scieszka states, "My mission as Ambassador is to get kids excited about reading. Recent surveys and statistics show kids reading less, and getting worse at it. My experiences as an elementary school teacher, a children’s book writer, and the founder of a literacy initiative for boys called GUYS READ, have all taught me that kids will read if they are motivated to want to read."

Jon further states, "There is no one book that is right for all kids. But there are all kinds of crazy, interesting, and amazing books out there. It’s our job to help kids find that book that will inspire them to want to become readers. " Read more...

Additional Resources for Summer Reading Ideas Are Widely Available!
If you would like to pursue books beyond your child's or student's assigned list, visit your local library and check out these fun lists:

Association for Library Service to Children 2009 Notable Children's Books

The Horn Book's Summer Reading List for Kids and Teens

The National Endowment for the Humanities Summertime Favorites

Helpful advice for parents who struggle with getting their kids to read can be found in "Getting Your Tweens and Teens Reading This Summer!" on the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance website, which features a variety of articles geared at parents, teachers, and librarians who are invested in reading and literacy for kids.

“Libraries raised me."

Famed Author Ray Bradbury Fights for His Neighborhood Library!

“Libraries raised me,” Mr. Bradbury said. “I don’t believe in colleges and universities. I believe in libraries because most students don’t have any money. When I graduated from high school, it was during the Depression and we had no money. I couldn’t go to college, so I went to the library three days a week for 10 years.”

Public and school libraries across the country are suffering hugely in these dire economic times. The irony is that in tough economic times free public libraries and library services are needed more than ever providing essential tools and information, as well as computer and Internet access, for the unemployed and struggling families. Libraries also provide a vast array of books and media that offer constructive escapes from what can seem like overwhelming pressures.

I can readily identify with Mr. Bradbury's strong allegiance to public libraries for in my young life my school and neighborhood library were my safe havens, not my home. It was at the public library that I found books that taught me how to cook, how to sew, how to take care of a house, and how to take care of children, adult tasks that I had to take on at a much too early age. Now, more than ever, we adults need to make sure that all of our children, especially young people challenged by poverty, challenged by family circumstances or health issues-- all children in need ---have a safe haven in their communities and schools were they can find stories and heroes that encourage them to hope and dream and give them the information and tools they need to achieve their dreams. Those safe havens are their school and public libraries.

The NCBLA urges all caring adults to find out the status and health of your community's school and public libraries. Fight for these remarkable community assets to be level-funded on a town, county, state, and federal level. Write an old fashioned letter, call, fax, and email your local, state, and national officials and let them know your feelings. Fight to keep trained library professionals in your school and neighborhood libraries. Work with Friends of Library Associations to ensure that this generation of young Americans has access to one of America's greatest gifts to world culture, something we adults have come to take for granted--- a free neighborhood public library!----Mary Brigid Barrett, President, The National Children's Book and Literacy Aliance

To read more about Ray Bradbury's committment to libraries, go to:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/20/us/20ventura.html?em

To find out more about what you can do to support literacy and your neighborhood library, go to:
http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/index.cfm
http://www.thencbla.org/BPOSpages/activistshandbook.html

Father's Day Is Sunday, June 21

Celebrate with Stories for and about Fathers

Author Jon Scieszka Shares Stories of His Dad

National Ambassador for Young People's Literature Jon Scieszka (which rhymes with Fresca) is the playful and cheeky author behind The True Story of the Three Little Pigs and The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales. You can read Scieszka's tribute to his dad in his essay "Playing with Dad" written for Reading Rockets in celebration of Father's Day 2009. Also, be sure to check out his video interview with Reading Rockets, in which Jon talks about his "weird" style and his concern about boys and reading.

Suggested Book Lists About Fabulous Fathers and Grandfathers

If you are looking for heartwarming stories to share with fathers, grandfathers, and the other loving men in your life, be sure to check out the annotated lists of book recommendations compiled by Reading Rockets. Find the books you would like to share this Father's Day weekend on the Fabulous Fathers list and Reading with Dads list. Both lists include beloved books that celebrate fathers and grandfathers--books that are perfect for sharing with kids through age 12.

AND...Why Not Send an E-Card?!

Download your own Father's Day e-card, which features the delightfully bold artwork of Javaka Steptoe. Steptoe is a young artist, designer, and illustrator. His debut work, In Daddy's Arms I Am Tall: African Americans Celebrating Fathers, earned him the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award.

2009 Boston Globe–Horn Book Awards for Excellence Announced

Two NCBLA Board Members Honored!

The Boston Globe and Horn Book announced their 2009 Awards for Excellence in Children’s Literature today. Presented annually since 1967, the Boston Globe–Horn Book Awards reward excellence in children’s and young adult literature and are given in three categories: Fiction and Poetry, Nonfiction, and Picture Book. The 2009 winners are:

Fiction and Poetry
Nation by Terry Pratchett (HarperCollins)

Nonfiction
The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary by Candace Fleming (Schwartz & Wade/Random House)

Picture Book
Bubble Trouble by Margaret Mahy, illustrated by Polly Dunbar (Clarion)

Two honor books were also named in each category, and the NCBLA is thrilled that the work of two of our distinguished board members--M. T. Anderson and David Macaulay--was selected for this honor! Anderson's novel The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves was selected along with Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book for Fiction and Poetry honors. Macaulay's The Way We Work (written with Richard Walker and illustrated by David Macaulay) was selected for Nonfiction honors, along with Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream by Tanya Lee Stone.

Congratulations to all the winners for this exceptional honor!

To learn more about this year's winners and their books, please visit the Horn Book website.

To learn more about the NCBLA, please visit thencbla.org.

You may also want to check out our educational website ourwhitehouse.org.

The website ourwhitehouse.org provides a treasure trove of supplemental primary and secondary source material for our printed art and literature anthology for readers of all ages titled Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out. Be sure to read "The Back Story – Creating the Cover: David Macaulay’s Preliminary Sketches" on ourwhitehouse.org. And pick up a copy of the book, available in libraries and bookstores everywhere, so you can read M. T. Anderson's story of ghosts haunting the White House in his informative and humorous piece, "The House Haunts."

Summer Opportunity for K-12 Teachers

American Antiquarian Society Sponsors Defining Freedom:

A Professional Development Project

The Defining Freedom summer professional project will examine how Americans conceived and promoted both individual and communal liberties and responsibilities from 1763 through 1863. The project seeks to create a series of professional development experiences in which participating teachers will examine the imperial crisis, the American Revolution, the Early Republic, the antebellum period, and the Civil War.

Defining Freedom is a collaborative professional development project presented by the American Antiquarian Society (AAS), the Massachusetts Historical Society (MHS), and the Worcester Public Schools (WPS). PDPs and graduate credit available.

An important component of Defining Freedom will be to familiarize teachers with the online resources available and to encourage the development of media literacy among their students. Teachers will not only explore the materials available on the AAS sponsored website Teach U.S. History (http://www.teachushistory.org/) and those developed by the MHS, including The Coming of the American Revolution (www.masshist.org/revolution); they will also play a role in making suggestions for adding materials to both websites. Teacher’s curriculum units and assessment strategies may also be added and/or linked to these sites so that additional teachers in other districts can access them as well.

Dates: July 22, 23 & 28, 29, 30, 2009

Place: The American Antiquarian Society (Worcester) &
The Massachusetts Historical Society (Boston)

To register, please contact:

Amy Sopcak-Joseph
Education Coordinator, American Antiquarian Society
email: asopcak@mwa.org
Phone: 508-471-2129

Visit the Defining Freedom website to learn more.

Literacy Programs Thrive Across the Nation

Brooke Jackman Foundation Giving Books to Kids in Need

The Brooke Jackman Foundation, a non-profit children's literacy organization in New York, is working to provide 5,000 books in 50 days to needy kids for the summer so they can maintain their reading while they are away from school. To learn more about this ambitious and worthy fundraising campaign entitled “$10&Change,” please visit the Foundation's website. The Brooke Jackman Foundation was created in October 2001 in response to the September 11 World Trade Center attack that claimed the life of Brooke Jackman, age 23. The Foundation honors Brooke’s legacy: a deep love of reading and a profound interest in helping children by funding extensive literacy programs in the NY area.

Teenager Launches Nonprofit to Donate Books

Adele's Literacy Library seeks to empower people of all ages through the world of reading by donating millions of brand new books and bookmarks to various schools, libraries, and charitable organizations. Quite simply, founder Adele Taylor would like to "make a difference" in the lives of others through a book! Learn more on the ALL website.

RIF Reading Challenge Continues

Reading Is Fundamental's exciting 2009 Read with Kids Challenge continues, with almost three million minutes spent reading so far! You can join the challenge, which continues until June 30. Not only will you be entered for a chance to win a family vacation, but you will also help discover the joy of reading! Visit the RIF website to learn more and join the challenge! The website also provides helpful advice and booklists for educators, as well as tips and activity suggestions for parents and other adult caretakers.

Voices from Our White House: Gigi Amateau

Contributor answers questions about "Wanted: Magnanimous, Exquisite Woman!"

Welcome back to the NCBLA blog's weekly feature, Voices from Our White House, a series of interviews with some of the talented contributors to the art and literary anthology Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out, conducted by NCBLA high school intern Colleen Damerell.

Our White House was created by the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance. A collaborative effort by over 100 authors and illustrators, the book is the product of a desire to encourage young people to learn and read about American heritage. For more information, please visit ourwhitehouse.org and thencbla.org.

This week we feature Gigi Amateau, author of Chancey of the Maury River and Claiming Georgia Tate. She shares authorship of her Our White House piece with her daughter Judith; it is a conversation between them about the need for a female president. Here's an excerpt:

Judith: A woman just needs to step up and do it, no matter what anyone else says. She needs to not let anyone talk her out of it and not listen to anyone who says "You can't" or "You shouldn't." She should just say, "I'm going to run for president," and be mag-mag-magnanimous! See? I remembered that word. Mom: Magnanimous, good word. What does it mean? Judith: To be bigger than the negativity.

We asked Ms. Amateau a few questions about her piece:

NCBLA: You wrote "Wanted" as a conversation with your daughter, Judith. Did you base the piece on a conversation that actually happened? Did Judith contribute personally to this piece and its concluding poem?
GA: "Wanted" came out of a big discussion about women in the White House at the dinner table between Judith, my mom, my husband, and me. We enjoy a lot of political, or issue-based, talks at our table, and we occasionally bend the rules of civility. No subject is off limits for us! I think I typed the first draft of our piece while Judith and I talked through how we wanted it to flow on paper. We played Exquisite Corpse at the dinning room table together, using words and images from the family discussion about women in the White House.

NCBLA: Judith states that "A woman just needs to step up and do it." Are there any women in particular that you and Judith would like to see run for president in the next election? Perhaps someone you see as being "magnanimous?"
GA: You know, before the next election, I look forward to a magnanimous, exquisite woman joining the Supreme Court! The Green Party 2008 Presidential Candidate, Cynthia McKinney, is someone who I think is brave, visionary, and often, right. She consistently raises important issues that we'd rather not think about--such as contemporary slavery and human trafficking in the world. Her voice is important for us.

NCBLA: Why do you think no woman has been elected president yet? Were you rooting for Hillary Clinton?
GA: A political analyst could offer a way better answer to be sure, but I would say one reason why no woman has been elected president yet is because it takes a big, old boat load of money to elect our presidents and most political donors are men. I think men still tend to give their money to men. Without a well-funded campaign, even the very best candidates will have to work that much harder for voters to even know them. I also believe that, in America, we still tend to judge the same action differently based on whether it's taken by a man or a woman. I have to correct myself, even, from falling into patterns such as thinking a woman is being overly aggressive, whereas I might just think of a man as acting strong or with conviction. I go through the campaign season rooting for everybody! I like it when any candidate has a breakthrough moment of vision, honesty, and humanity. And, yes, absolutely, I rooted for Hillary Clinton. During the primaries, we were a split household, then we unified behind Barack Obama.

NCBLA: Though no woman has ever been president, many first ladies such as Eleanor Roosevelt, who was mentioned in your piece, have been influential figures in Washington. How do you think Michelle Obama can contribute to that legacy?
GA: Michelle Obama is exquisite and magnanimous! I think she already influences millions of kids by making them want to be super-smart like she is. Her example helps me to be a better mother and to give priority to my family and our health. Maybe we'll all be healthier, smarter, and happier if we take the First Lady's lead!

NCBLA: Who is your favorite past president? Why?
GA: Well, I do love John Adams. BUT, I remember how when I was a girl, President Jimmy Carter taught us to conserve energy, turn off the lights we weren't using, and be gentle with the earth. He is my favorite because he made me care about my country and the world when I was young. One day, I'd like to visit Plains, Georgia and sit in on his Sunday School class. (Is that even still possible?) Or even better, maybe one day I'll get the chance to build a Habitat house with him and Rosalynn.

Amateau's most recent book, A Certain Strain of Peculiar, is now available in bookstores and libraries. For more information about Gigi Amateau and her work, please read her OWH bio, her website, and blog.

In the Backyard of Massachusetts

A New Library Will Rise!
Public Invited to Bring Their Shovels to Groundbreaking Ceremony

The Town of Westhampton, MA is inviting everyone who supports public libraries and loves reading to join their groundbreaking ceremony in Westhampton's town center on Saturday, June 6 at 1:00 PM--rain or shine!

Library building committee chair, Phil Dowling, noted about this novel event, "Libraries bring communities together and build community. We couldn't think of a better way to hold a groundbreaking event than to have everyone get involved and help dig the first ceremonial shovelfuls.” Free, colorful sand shovels will be given to the first 50 children.

The ceremony is being organized by the Friends of the Westhampton Memorial Library. For more information, please contact Laurie Sanders (413-527-5903), Phil Dowling (413-527-8574), Bill Tracy (413-527-1731), or Euthecia Hancewicz (527-6498).

Book lovers everywhere should check out the newly updated and expanded ilovelibraries.org website, a project of the American Library Association, which features news about libraries from around the country, with a focus on particular services and collections from all types of libraries. Read a book review or learn how you can advocate for your public library on ilovelibraries.org!