Celebrating Library Week, and Poetry Month, with a book that gave me hope

" I discovered that one could write one's own story, 

which is something that very few people even consider."

In 1998 I built the first rendition of Through the Looking Glass Book Reviews, and I did it myself, so you can imagine what it looked like! Back then I had no idea what TTLG would become in the years ahead. By 1999 I had got to know quite a few publicists in the publishing houses, and was getting review copies on a regular basis. One of the books I received was The Library, which was created by a husband and wife team. I fell in love with David Small's art and I sought out every book he had worked on. 

This Caldecott Honor book had a profound effect on me; I discovered that I was not the only book-mad person in the world. Here was a story about a real person who filled her house with books. I was not alone in my madness! I also saw how someone turned their passion into something that gave them, and so many other people, joy. I discovered that one could write one's own story, which is something that very few people even consider. If the lady in the story could do what she did with her life, why, I could do something that was untraditional too. 

The story is written in verse, so it is perfect title for Poetry Month.   

The Library

Sarah Stewart

Illustrated David Small 

Picture Book

For ages 5 to 8

Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1999, 978-0374443948

From the time when she was a very little girl indeed Elizabeth Brown loved books. She had no interest in dolls or in playing games. All she wanted to do was to read, and read, and read. This state of affairs did not change as she grew up. As more and more books came into her home, her collection of books got bigger and bigger and bigger until it was so enormous that the front door of her house was blocked by piles of books. Even worse was the fact that Elizabeth no longer had room for "one more" book.

   Then Elizabeth Brown found a solution to her problem, a solution that would make it possible for her to go on buying books, a solution that would also benefit the entire community.

   This wonderful story with its spare rhyming text and its emotive watercolor washed paintings, is a joy to read. The dedication in the front of the book tells us that the Elizabeth Brown in the story was in fact a real person who loved books and who was a good friend of the author and illustrator.

In honor of National Library Week, a review of I Believe in Unicorns.

 Michael Murpugo is one of my favorite writers. His books are written for children, but adults will find that his stories have something for them as well. The stories make you pause, and think. They explore issues that are far-reaching and universal. 
   When I review a book that really touches me, I keep it and put it on my 'favorites' book shelf. Most of Michael Murpurgo's books are there. His book War Horse was turned into a film and a play.

I believe in Unicorns
Michael Morpurgo
Illustrator:  Gary Blythe 
Fiction
For ages 7 to 10
Candlewick Press, 2005, 978-0763630508
Tomas is eight years old and more than anything he loves to roam the countryside having adventures and helping his father tend the beehives. He hates having to go to school and he despises books and stories. Books and stories belong in the school room and they certainly aren't any fun. So when his mother makes him go to the story hour at the library, Tomas is very annoyed and not in the least bit interested in listening to the librarian tell her stories.
   Tomas only has to listen to a little bit of the library lady's first story and he is completely entranced by her words. She sits on a lovely wooden unicorn reading to the children and telling them stories that she has made up. She tells them about her father who long ago, during a war, did his best to prevent evil people from burning books. Tomas finally begins to see that books are more than just pages of words and that they have a great deal to offer everyone, even him.
   When war arrives in Tomas' own peaceful valley Tomas and all the people in his village are suddenly faced with a terrible calamity - their library is set on fire by a falling bomb. Something has to be done to save the books and their beloved wooden unicorn. Soon everyone, even the children, are working hard to save the most valuable thing in the village.
   Many of us take books for granted, forgetting the many hours of pleasure that they have given us. In this book Michael Morpurgo reminds us that books and libraries are a treasure which should be fought for and defended. No one should be allowed to take away our books, for without our stories, poems, histories, biographies and scientific accounts our lives would be very empty indeed.

Beatrix Potter - Giving thanks on her birthday

When I was a little girl growing up on the island of Cyprus, I had a record that I listened to over and over again. It was a recording of Vivien Leigh reading some of Beatrix Potter's most well known stories. Soon Mrs. Tiggywinkle, Hunca Munca, Peter Rabbit, and Mrs. Tittlemouse were old friends of mine.

Many years later my soon-to-be husband bought me the Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter, and I read the stories to my students in a Washington D.C. public school. Though some of my children had very difficult lives and were quite tough and hardened, they could not resist hearing about the duck who almost got eaten by a fox, and about the bad rabbit who almost got turned into rabbit pie. They would pretend that they were not listening as I read out loud, but I knew they were.

Some years later I began to read Beatrix Potter's stories to my own daughter, and when we got a pet duck, she was called Jemima. I am sorry to say that our Jemima did not have much more sense than the original did. However she did give us many delicious eggs.

Today, on Beatrix Potter's birthday, I give thanks for Beatrix's beautiful illustrations and her memorable characters. I give thanks that Beatrix found the courage to defy her parents, and that she went ahead and wrote her timeless stories.

You can find a profile about Beatrix on the TTLG website and there is also a collection of her books, and books about her, on the Beatrix Potter feature.

Men on the Moon - Forty years ago

Forty years ago today, human beings walked on the moon for the first time. As millions of people watched, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon and took those first incredible steps. In honor of this anniversary, many publishers have put out new books for children about this extraordinary event. I have been lucky enough to review some of these books over the last few weeks, and now you can see my reviews on the Through the Looking Glass Book Review website in the Man goes to the Moon feature. There are some wonderful titles in this collection, and I hope you find a title or two that you would like add to your library.

Here is a video of that famous landing. Enjoy!

The School Library Journal Holiday Gift Guide

Batteries aren’t required. Plus, these items don’t need to be assembled. And there are never any missing parts. Let’s face it: books make the best holiday gifts. The trick? Picking the right ones for those children or teens on your list.
Luckily for you, the editors of School Library Journal—the world's largest reviewer of books for young readers—are here to help. They’ve come up with 21 titles (selected from among our 2008 Best Books) that are sure to make kids of all ages “ooh” and “ahh.”

So if you’re looking for that perfect picture book for a favorite preschooler or a work about exotic frogs for a budding young naturalist or a good dose of chick-lit or fantasy for a hard-to-please teen, rest easy—you’ve come to the right place.

Picture Book Charmers
From the cover image of a chubby-cheeked tot to pages bursting with sweet-faced babies of all backgrounds, Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes (Harcourt) will captivate wee ones. Mem Fox’s rhythmic rhymes and Helen Oxenbury’s endearing illustrations afford opportunities for cuddling and kissing, choral counting, and savoring the delights of a baby’s world (ages 1–3).
In Valeri Gorbachev’s Christopher Counting (Philomel), an exuberant bunny masters a new skill at school and quickly puts it into practice, totting up everything from the fish in his aquarium to bedtime yawns. Kids will relish the lively storytelling, sprightly artwork, and childlike celebration of accomplishment (ages 4–6).


Children adjusting to a new sibling will empathize with a disgruntled youngster who emphatically suggests several unpleasant fates for his unwanted addition—before discovering that being an older brother has its rewards. Balancing genuine emotions with exaggeratedly comical cartoons, Robie H. Harris and Michael Emberley’s hilarious picture book, Mail Harry to the Moon! (Little, Brown), is keenly tuned to its audience’s sensibilities (ages 4–7).
Action figure fans will relish Mini Grey’s Traction Man Meets Turbo Dog (Knopf) as the toy-size hero searches for his beloved pet (oh no! the mud-covered Scrubbing Brush has been deep-sixed by a hygiene-obsessed adult) while steadfastly refusing to accept a flashy new robot as a replacement. Imaginative play meets edge-of-your seat adventure in a humorous tale illustrated with luscious artwork (ages 4–8).

More than Just the Facts
Young naturalists will adore Wild Tracks! A Guide to Nature’s Footprints (Sterling), Jim Arnosky’s enthusiastic how-to on finding, identifying, and interpreting the tracks of various North American animals. Critter portraits are paired with family facts, big-as-life footprint sketches, and cool fold-outs (ages 7–12).

Nic Bishop showcases the wonders of Frogs (Scholastic) with lively text and breathtaking photographs. Kids will be mesmerized by action images of these amazing amphibians as a frog turbo-jumps out of the water to grab a caterpillar with it sticky tongue, a horned frog digests its dinner (a mouse tail dangles from its mouth), and a tadpole is captured by a giant water bug (ages 7–10).

Readers who are passionate about all things prehistoric will discover some astonishing new creatures in Timothy J. Bradley’s imaginatively illustrated Paleo Bugs: Survival of the Creepiest (Chronicle), including a seven-foot-long millipede, a familiar-looking though ancient cockroach, and a long-ago beetle that cleaned up Jurassic dung (ages 8–12).

Gifts for Family Sharing
Kadir Nelson’s stunningly illustrated We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball (Hyperion) weaves together entertaining quotes and anecdotes, historical tidbits, and thought-provoking insights to provide a revealing look at America’s favorite pastime. The book’s conversational tone (it’s narrated from the players’ collective point of view) and magnificent larger-than-life portraits make it a wonderful choice for reading aloud (ages 8 up).

With attention focused on January’s presidential inauguration, it’s the perfect time to share Our White House: Looking in, Looking Out (Candlewick), a collection of poems, short stories, essays, presidential speeches and letters, and artwork—all centered around 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and its residents. With contributions from 108 well-known children’s book authors and illustrators, this is an extraordinary journey through American history (ages 8–14).

The creator of The New Way Things Work (Houghton, 1998) uses a similar approach to explore and elucidate a new subject: The Way We Work: Getting to Know the Amazing Human Body (Houghton). From cells to the major body systems, David Macaulay demystifies complicated concepts with vivid text, crystal-clear illustrations, and engagingly lighthearted touches to create the ultimate owner’s manual (ages 12 up).

Fabulous Fiction for Middle Graders
In Clementine’s Letter (Hyperion), the irrepressible third grader generates one “astoundishing” idea after another as she tackles her problems with élan… but still ends up in trouble. Perfect for newly confident readers, Sara Pennypacker’s humorous text and Marla Frazee’s spry sketches will wow fans of Ramona and Judy Moody (ages 7–9).

Kids who like action-packed puzzlers such as Blue Balliett’s Chasing Vermeer (Scholastic, 2004) or Trenton Lee Stewart’s The Mysterious Benedict Society (Little, Brown, 2007) will tear through Siobhan Dowd’s The London Eye Mystery (David Fickling). In this thriller, Ted relies on his unique way of thinking and the help of his older sister to find a cousin who has vanished into thin air (ages 10–13).

Fans of both horror tales and comics will be riveted by P. Craig Russell’s chilling graphic-novel retelling of Neil Gaiman’s Coraline (HarperCollins). Crisp artwork and concise storytelling will keep readers mesmerized and petrified as Coraline discovers an alternate world on the other side of a bricked-up doorway that at first seems appealing… but soon turns terrifying (ages 10–13). The animated movie version of Gaiman’s tale will be released in February 2009.

Two packed-with-adventure novels feature strong female protagonists and highlight coming-of-age experiences. Set in 1939 England, Eva Ibbotson’s The Dragonfly Pool (Dutton) introduces Tally—a courageous and creative 11-year-old who helps the prince of nearby Bergania escape the Nazis—and his overbearing royal relations (ages 10–13). Similar to Gail Carson Levine’s novels (Ella Enchanted, HarperCollins, 1997), Catherine Gilbert Murdock’s latest book mixes realism, magic, and once-upon-a-time flair to tell an enthralling tale. Newly orphaned, Princess Ben (Houghton) is lonely and miserable as the unlikable Queen Sophia tries to whip her into throne-ready shape. However, when Ben discovers an enchanted room in the castle, she soon turns her life around, growing into an individual who can take on dragons, lead her country, and even fall in love (ages 11–16).

For Those Tough-To-Please Teens
Chick-lit aficionados will get a kick out of E. Lockhart’s The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (Hyperion). This true-confessions-style account tells how one girl transforms from a sweet-natured “Bunny Rabbit” to a cocky “near-criminal mastermind” who infiltrates a secret all-male society at her elite boarding school and orchestrates a series of awe-inspiring—and trouble-making—pranks (ages 12 up).

Teens who like their fantasy with a touch of martial arts excitement and X-Men-esque inner turmoil will enjoy Kristin Cashore’s debut novel. Katsa is a Graceling (Harcourt)—an individual born with an acutely developed ability—whose special skill happens to be lethal combat. With the encouragement of new friend/love interest Po, who is also gifted, the young woman rebels against her royal uncle (whose been using her as a heavy) and decides to use her expertise for the greater good. This epic-scale novel is laced with romance, adventure, self-discovery, and fight scenes (ages 14 up).

Fantasy-master Terry Pratchett’s latest book takes place in a parallel Pacific Ocean during pseudo-Victorian times and stars two unforgettable young characters. Mau (the sole survivor of the tsunami that decimated his village) and Daphne (an English castaway with the spunk and swashbuckling independence of Pirates of the Caribbean’sElizabeth Swann) find themselves rebuilding Mau’s island Nation (HarperCollins) as refugees (and enemies) arrive in droves. A thought-provoking and wryly entertaining alternate history adventure (ages 12 to 16).

Several set-in-a-possible-near-future thrillers will keep kids reading into the wee hours and enthusiastically passing books among friends. In Suzanne Collins’s riveting The Hunger Games (Scholastic), teenagers are selected by lottery to represent their districts in a fight-to-the death contest that is broadcast on live television. Reflecting broken-mirror images of today’s ubiquitous reality-TV series, this gripping survival story incorporates romance and adventure and explores issues of humanity (ages 12 up). Mary E. Pearson’s The Adoration of Jenna Fox (Holt) is set in a time marked by mind-boggling—but illegal—biotechnological advances. Seventeen-year-old Jenna, who has just awoken from a yearlong coma after a devastating car accident, slowly regains her lost memories and soon realizes that her parents are keeping a startling secret… one that reaches to the core of who—and what—she is (ages 14 up). Armed with an amazing array of snoopware, Big Brother is watching Marcus, the tech-savvy star of Cory Doctorow’s Little Brother (TOR). When Marcus is mistakenly arrested and mistreated by the Department of Homeland Security after a terrorist attack on his hometown of San Francisco, it’s Marcus against the Man in a battle of wills, courage, and techno smarts. Flavored with humor and romance, this spine-tingling read will have teens thinking about personal freedom and the standing up for one’s beliefs (ages 15 up).The mother of three voracious young readers, Joy Fleishhacker is a children's librarian and freelance writer who has many of these titles on her own gift-giving list.

Three mothers battle to save school libraries

When I was growing up on the island of Cyprus in the Mediterranean I spent many blissful hours at the British Council Library. Being able to go to the library and to borrow books made the long hot summers bearable. Then, when I was a teenager, I worked as a library assistant, helping to manage my high school library. It was a job I was enormously proud of.
Now here I am spending my life surrounded, literally, by books. Just like my younger self, I cannot imagine what life would be like without books and libraries. When I first moved to Ashland, Oregon, a year ago I was horrified to discover that the town's library was closed and had been in this lamentable state for months. The county and state just did not have the money to keep the libraries in this area open. Finally, to my great relief, the people of the town of Ashland stepped in. We were all asked if we would be willing to pay a little more in taxes so that our library could reopen. We were willing to do this and now our splendid library is up and running again.
Recently I read an article about three mothers who have been trying to get the state of Washington to stop taking money away from its public school libraries. For some children, the books in their school libraries are the only ones they get to read. School libraries also provide another priceless service; they are a place where children who don't have computers at home can learn how to use the Internet. Without this resource they will leave school not knowing how to tap into the World Wide Web.
To me this is a frightening thought, and I decided that I would share the story of these three courageous and determined mothers with you. You can read the complete story on School Library Journal . You can also visit the online petition to add your name to the list, and to thus show the powers-that-be that you support this cause. In addition you can visit the Washington Coalition for School Libraries & Information Technology website for more information about this story and the campaign.
If you live outside Washington State you might well ask why you should care about this campaign. The way things are going these days your state might be next. With libraries and book friendly organizations like RIF losing money left, right, and center, we all need to help one another save what we hold dear.