A letter from Sneed Collard - An author who has created a publishing company

A few weeks ago I read an article about an author who decided to create his own publishing business. It is getting harder than ever to break into children's publishing, so Sneed Collard took the next step. I asked him to tell me a little about his journey. This is his story.

Dear Through the Looking Glass:


Seventeen months ago, I took my family to eastern Montana during a school visit trip to Miles City. Thanks to my sponsors there, I was able to time my visit for the Miles City Bucking Horse Sale. The trip not only led to my newest book, but to my own publishing company, Bucking Horse Books.

As any writer knows these days, it’s gotten almost impossible to sell a book to an established publisher—especially for terms that are even remotely reasonable to the author. Even though I had published 55 books with more than a dozen different publishers, I was getting very discouraged by the shrinking opportunities to publish quality children’s books. Most publishers these days just aren’t interested in anything without crass commercial appeal. Witness the virus-like spread of celebrity children’s books and series about vampires.

Still, I couldn’t resist writing about the Miles City Bucking Horse Sale. The Sale began in 1951 as a way for local ranchers to get rid of “spoiled” horses that wouldn’t do any work. A couple of enterprising cowboys thought “Hey, why don’t we invite rodeo producers up to Miles City and auction off our unruly stock for rodeos?” Sixty years later, the Sale has evolved into a four-day celebration of Western life, matched only by the Calgary Stampede and Cheyenne Roundup.

Even as I was writing the book, however, I thought “No other publisher is going to buy this. They just won’t understand how popular rodeo actually is and how many people cherish small-town existence.” I was right. After getting 15 rejections, I decided “Okay, this is a message.” Instead of continuing to butt my head against the eastern publishing wall, I hired a brilliant designer here in Missoula, Montana and struck a deal with a local publisher to distribute my new company. Six months later, we launched Bucking Horse Books with our first title, The World Famous Miles City Bucking Horse Sale.

The book not only documents the Bucking Horse Sale, but traces the history of rodeo and of eastern Montana frontier life—all illustrated with more than sixty photos, most of which I took myself. You may be wondering, though, if my experiment as a publisher is working? Well, it’s still early, but already The World Famous Miles City Bucking Horse Sale has received more publicity than any of my 55 other books. Part of that, of course, has to do with the fact that an established author got fed up with big publishing and decided to break out on his own. I like to think, though, that readers are also fed up with the commercial books being forced down their throats. All across the country, writers are still writing books and stories that reflect the real values and experiences of real people. I like to think that the success of The World Famous Miles City Bucking Horse Sale will encourage even the big publishers to re-evaluate and improve the quality of what they offer today’s younger generation.

Sneed B. Collard III has written many popular fiction and nonfiction children’s books including Animal Dads, Pocket Babies and Other Amazing Marsupials, Teeth, and the YA thriller Double Eagle. In 2006, he received the prestigious Washington Post-Children’s Book Guild Nonfiction Award for his body of work. To learn more about him and Bucking Horse Books, check out www.buckinghorsebooks.com.

The Read Every Day. Lead a Better Life Campaign

Read Every Day. Lead a Better Life. is a global literacy campaign launched as part of Scholastic's 90th anniversary celebration that underscores the importance of reading to better prepare children who will need strong literacy skills to survive and succeed in the 21st century. Scholastic is asking EVERYONE, our partners, publishers, educators, business leaders, nonprofits, parents, caregivers and students -- to work together to bring reading and deeper understanding to all children around the globe. The Reading Bill of Rights, the foundation of the campaign, includes eight "beliefs" that affirm every child's right to read and what that means in the 21st century... from access to books and great stories to the ability to analyze, interpret and understand information in the digital age.


Here is what we believe about reading in the second decade of the 21st century. 
We call this The Reading Bill of Rights:

WE BELIEVE that literacy – the ability to read, write and understand – is the birthright of every child in the world as well as the pathway to succeed in school and to realize a complete life. Young people need to read nonfiction for information to understand their world, and literature for imagination to understand themselves.

WE BELIEVE that the massive amounts of digital information and images now transmitted daily make it even more important for a young person to know how to analyze, interpret and understand information, to separate fact from opinion, and to have deep respect for logical thinking.

WE BELIEVE that literature and drama, whether on printed pages, screens, on stage or film, help young people experience the great stories of emotion and action, leading to a deeper understanding of what it means to be truly human. Without this literacy heritage, life lacks meaning, coherence and soul.

WE BELIEVE every child has a right to a “textual lineage” – a reading and writing autobiography which shows that who you are is in part developed through the stories and information you’ve experienced. This textual lineage will enable all young people to have a reading and writing identity which helps them understand who they are and how they can make their lives better. In short, “You Are What You Read.”

WE BELIEVE every child should have access to books, magazines, newspapers, computers, e-readers, and text on phones. Whatever way you read, you will need to figure out what the facts are or what the story tells you. No matter how and where you get access to ideas, you will need the skills of reading to understand yourself and your world.

WE BELIEVE that reading widely and reading fluently will give children the reading stamina to deal with more challenging texts they will meet in college, at work and in everyday life. And every child should be able to choose and own the books they want to read, for that choice builds literacy confidence – the ability to read, write and speak about what they know, what they feel, and who they are.

WE BELIEVE that every child has the right to a great teacher who will help them learn to read and love to read. Children need teachers who provide intentional, focused instruction to give young people the skills to read and interpret information or understand great stories they will encounter throughout life.

WE BELIEVE that in the 21st century, the ability to read is necessary not only to succeed but to survive—for the ability to understand information and the power of stories is the key to a life of purpose and meaning.

Blog Book Tour - Thumb Love by Elise Primavera - Includes A BOOK GIVEAWAY!

When I was a little girl, I was a complete thumb addict. I sucked by thumb wherever I went. It made me feel safe to suck my thumb, and gave me comfort. Giving it up was very very hard. For this reason I was happy to join a blog book tour about Elise Primavera's new book, Thumb Love. This is what Elise Primavera has to say about this title:

      When I first came to my editor with the idea for THUMB LOVE she told me the story of how she made a device out of Play-Doh (the dreaded thumb guard) to put on her sister’s thumb to get her to quit.

     It got me to thinking that this business of quitting the thumb is something that everyone has either gone through or helped someone through. It’s a universal theme! It also got me to thinking about bad habits in general. I started wondering if I had replaced one bad habit as a kid only to pick up another as an adult. Is sucking you thumb at five or six any different from my little problem of eating an entire bag of Kettle Corn in one sitting? To this day I can’t bring a bag (chips), a box (cookies) or a carton (ice cream) into my house without eating the contents within 24 hours.

      If it’s that’s hard for me as an adult to lay off the Chex Mix it’s got to be murder for a five year old to quit their thumb. So I got the idea of my little girl character, Lulu, to come up with a twelve-step program to kick the habit. Being a former thumb sucker myself I had a lot of memories to draw from. I remember declaring that I had stopped only to hide behind the sofa a few hours later to be with my thumb. I remember being so glad that my cousin Judy still sucked her thumb—and then going over to her house for a sleepover and the horror of hearing her say, “Are you still doing that? I stopped doing that ages ago!”

     I’ve written many picture books over the years. Some are difficult to write and have to be put away and then looked at a few years later. THUMB LOVE was not one of those. It was tremendous fun to write and came straight from my own thumb loving younger self.

     As I write there’s not a chip or M&M anywhere in my house right now—you could say I’ve gone cold turkey. But I’m starting to feel anxious and, and, don’t tell anyone—but I might have to go back to loving my thumb.

Here is my review of this sweet picture book:

Thumb Love

Elise Primavera

Picture Book

Ages 5 to 7

Random House, 2010, 978-0-375-84481-2

   Lulu is a little girl who has a close relationship with her thumb. Yes, I did say her thumb. You see, Lulu loves to suck her thumb. It is there for her wherever she is, and it is available whatever she is doing (if she does not need both hands that is.) Lulu even sucks her thumb at her birthday party, which is when her grandmother asks her a dreadful question: “Don’t you think you’re too old for that thumb?”

    It is around this time that the snickering begins. Other kids start to laugh at Lulu because she is still sucking her thumb. Even Lulu’s cousin Lili, who has always sucked her thumb, laughs at Lulu. Apparently, Lili stopped sucking her thumb “ages ago.” Will Lulu ever be able to end her relationship with her thumb?

   In this amusing picture book, Elise Primavera follows one little girl’s struggles as she comes to terms with the fact that she cannot suck her thumb for the rest of her life. In addition to Lulu’s story, there is also a section of the book that is all about Lulu’s difficult twelve-step journey to quit her thumb addiction. Lulu offers readers tips, tricks, and encouragement to other thumb suckers, and she reminds them “If you fail…try again!”

BOOK GIVEAWAY! If you would like a copy of this book please drop me a line. The publisher is giving me three copies to giveaway.

Please visit the other sites on this Blog Book Tour:

October 11^th – Booking Mama                             http://bookingmama.blogspot.com/

October 12^th – Through the Looking Glass            http://lookingglassreview.blogspot.com/

October 13^th – Random Acts of Reading               http://randomactsofreading.wordpress.com/

October 14^th – Two Writing Teachers                    http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com

October 15^th – Where the Best Books Are            http://wherethebestbooksare.blogspot.com

October 16^th – The Book Faerie                           http://www.bkfaerie.blogspot.com

October 17^th – Picture Book Review                     http://picturebookreview.com/

October 18^th – Mundie Moms                              http://mundiekids.blogspot.com/

A Book Give Away from Tiger Tales

A Book Give-Away from Tiger Tales

Just in time for Halloween!  Three lucky winners will receive a copy of our “sold out” Halloween title:  Five Little Pumpkins. 

The response to this new book has been so great that we don’t have a single copy left in our warehouse, but a copy can be yours when you enter our give-away. There are three easy ways to win:

• Comment on our blog at www.tigertalesbooks.com.
• Comment on our facebook fanpage.
• Re-tweet our giveaway announcement on twitter.

Three winners will be announced on Monday, October 18. Enter before October 17th to be eligible to win! Note:  The winners must reside in the US and have a US shipping address.

Poetry Friday - A review of Here's a Little Poem

I have to say that I honestly believe that a child is never really too young to listen to poetry. Even if they have no clue what you saying, little children enjoy the sound of your voice, the musical ups and downs that are inherent in so many poems. The book I reviewed here is perfect for young children. The poems were carefully chosen to suit little children, and the art work is quite delightful to look at.

Here’s a little Poem: A very first book of Poetry

Collected by Jane Yolen and Andrew Fusek Peters

Illustrated by Polly Dunbar

Poetry

For ages 3 to 6

Candlewick Press, 2007, 978-0-7636-3141-3

   When you are a young child, long poems, like long books or long dresses or long beds, are not a good fit. You need poems that are short, sweet, and written just for someone who is your age. For this memorable collection, Jane Yolen and Andrew Fusek have brought together old poems and new ones that are especially suited to children who are exploring poetry for the first time.

   The book is divided into four sections, each one of which focuses on one aspect of a young child’s life. In “Me, Myself, and I” there are bright and warm poems that look at the world as seen through the eyes of a child. There are poems about “me” and “I” and “we.” There are poems about food and getting dressed, about falling down stairs and jumping. There are birthday poems, a piggy back poem, and even a tantrum poem.

   The section called “Who lives in my house?” explores the various people and animals that young children live with. There are cats, hamsters, puppies, siblings, parents, and grandparents. Sometimes the times shared are wonderful, like when a cat kisses its little child awake with “sandpaper kisses.” Sometimes they are confusing, like the time when a little boy wonders why his mother is having a baby. After all, “what’s the matter with me?” he asks.

   Next, we “Go Outside,” to eat ice cream, to plant a little seed, to go to the beach, and to walk in the rain. Oh, and don’t forget playing in the mud. There is nothing quite like wallowing in “glorious mud!”

   And then there are the “Time for bed poems,” the poems that are full of cozy moments, bedtime stories, hugs, cuddles, and sleepy dreams that curl around the bed and that float out of the window.

   Throughout this collection, the words of Hilaire Beloc, Nikki Grimes, Jane Yolen, A.A. Milne and many other poets are accompanied by the charming and whimsical multimedia illustrations created by Polly Dunbar. This is a stellar collection that will show little children how wonderful poems can be. 

Join a Dr. Seuss Game on Facebook!

Be the Mayor of Seussville!

RANDOM HOUSE CHILDREN’S BOOKS LAUNCHES A SEUSS-THEMED PROMOTIONAL GAME ON FACEBOOK® PLATFORM

TO CELEBRATE THE ALL-NEW SEUSSVILLE.COM

Earn the most votes to win by Election Day, November 2^nd!

(October 7, 2010, New York, NY)—On the heels of the August 2010 launch of the all-new Seussville (www.seussville.com), the official online home of Dr. Seuss, Random House Children’s Books announced today “Mayor of Seussville”, a new Facebook game for Seuss fans of all ages. Just in time for the election season, the game kicks off today and will run until Election Day, November 2^nd.  In the game, players will be challenged to run a campaign by creating slogans, selecting cabinet members, and completing tasks in a race to win as many votes as possible. Join the race now! http://apps.facebook.com/mayor-of-seussville  The winner will be announced on Seussville.com.

Do you have what it takes to be the next Mayor of Seussville? Similar to other popular social games on Facebook Platform, the game will allow players to accumulate votes by completing a variety of Seuss-themed activities for Dr. Seuss’s most beloved characters in pursuit of becoming the Mayor of Seussville. Players will create their own Seussian cabinet to perform the tasks with and will compete with contestants worldwide. The player with the most votes gained by Election Day will earn the official title of Mayor of Seussville and their picture will be featured on Seussville.com.

Random House Children’s Books collaborated with Big Bad Tomato Interactive Agency, based in Los Angeles, to develop Seussville.com in addition to the new Facebook game.

Seussville—the official home of Dr. Seuss on the Web—is the place for children of all ages to play and learn with Dr. Seuss’s wonderfully whimsical books and classic characters. The Cat in the Hat, Green Eggs and Ham, Oh, the Places You’ll Go! and all of the Dr. Seuss books leap to life through interactive games and activities that will enrich each child’s reading experience.

Dr. Seuss believed that books and learning to read should be fun and exciting for children. The site maintains this spirit of fun and honors the tenets of his work: discovery, imagination, and creativity. Visitors will explore the lush animated environments as they uncover a wealth of games and information, including a comprehensive Dr. Seuss character guide, a searchable Dr. Seuss book catalog, biographical information, educator resources, parent tips, and more.

ABOUT RANDOM HOUSE CHILDREN’S BOOKS

Random House Children’s Books is the world’s largest English-language children's trade book publisher. Creating books for preschool children through young adult readers, in all formats from board books to activity books to picture books and novels, Random House Children’s Books brings together award-winning authors and illustrators, world-famous franchise characters, and multimillion-copy series. In 1957, Random House pioneered the beginning reader genre when it launched the Beginner Books series with Dr. Seuss’s classic The Cat in the Hat. Each year, Random House Children’s Books, along with Dr. Seuss, proudly supports the National Education Association’s Read Across America initiative, which calls on America’s children to celebrate the joys of reading in conjunction with Dr. Seuss’s birthday, March 2. Random House Children’s Books is a division of Random House, Inc., whose parent

company is Bertelsmann AG, a leading international media company.
 

ABOUT DR. SEUSS ENTERPRISES, L.P.

The primary focus of the Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.P. is to protect the integrity of the Dr. Seuss books while expanding beyond books into ancillary areas. This effort is a strategic part of the overall mission to nurture and protect the relationship consumers have with Dr. Seuss characters. Theodor Seuss Geisel (Dr. Seuss) said he never wanted to license his characters to anyone who would “round out the edges.” That is one of the guiding philosophies of Dr. Seuss Enterprises. Audrey S. Geisel, the widow of Dr. Seuss, heads Dr. Seuss Enterprises as President.

ABOUT BIG BAD TOMATO

Big Bad Tomato is an award winning interactive creative agency specializing in the development of mixed-medium, multi-platform interactive experiences for the entertainment, education, and consumer product industries.  Big Bad Tomato’s mission is to drive new media innovation through creativity using technology to engage audiences in new, fun and creative ways.  Big Bad Tomato is a ‘full service’ development company supporting concept, design, build and marketing for entertainment sites, online learning destinations, mobile applications, social media, viral promotions, and ecommerce solutions.  Big Bad Tomato maintains locations in Los Angeles, California and Manila, Philippines (www.bigbadtomato.com). 

Facebook® is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc.

Tomorrow is Read for the Record Day! Pledge to join and help break a record.

October 7, 2010 is the official date of the nation-wide campaign to set a new world record for the largest shared reading experience on a single day. The hope is to help draw attention to the growing crisis in early childhood education in America: Today half of children from low-income neighborhoods START school one-two years behind their peers. When these children start behind, they stay behind.

Presented in partnership with the Pearson Foundation, Jumpstart’s Read for the Record brings individuals together to show how this situation can be immediately improved. Last year, more than 2,000,000 children and adults helped set the current world record by taking part in one-day local events across the country. In the process, participants help spread the word that reading and engaging with a child before he or she even enters kindergarten can improve his or her chances of graduating from high school by as much as 30%!

This year, record-breakers will read The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats on October 7, 2010. Again this year, the day-long campaign will be kicked off on NBC’s TODAY show and will be followed by large and small reading events organized by individuals, schools, libraries, government organizations and local businesses nationwide. For the first time, participants can also help set the new world-record online, for free, at www.wegivebooks.org. To encourage participation, each time someone reads this classic story on October 7 at www.wegivebooks.org, the Pearson Foundation will donate a new children’s book to a pre-school classroom Jumpstart serves. To help spread the word in advance of the day’s effort, the Pearson Foundation is similarly donating a copy of The Snowy Day to a child in need each time someone reads the book online in advance of October 7.

Now in its fifth year, Jumpstart’s Read for the Record also celebrates the start of Jumpstart’s school year that helps prepare preschool children in low-income neighborhoods for success in kindergarten and life. Jumpstart’s year-round program connects children in need with trained adults who work with them year-round to ensure they enter school ready to succeed. 

Anyone, anywhere can participate in Jumpstart’s Read for the Record by pledging to read at www.readfortherecord.org. The Snowy Day can be read online for free at www.wegivebooks.org. Learn more at www.readfortherecord.org.

About Jumpstart

Jumpstart’s mission is to ensure that all children in America enter school prepared to succeed. Year-round, Jumpstart recruits and trains thousands of college students and community volunteers to work with preschool children in low-income neighborhoods, helping them to develop the language, literacy, and social skills they need to succeed in school and in life. Since 1993, more than 70,000 preschool children across America have benefited from millions of hours of Jumpstart service. Jumpstart’s national sponsors include American Eagle Outfitters, AmeriCorps, Franklin Templeton Investments, and Pearson. Jumpstart is the five-time recipient of the Fast Company/Monitor Social Capitalist Award (2004-2008) and has received a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator. For more information, visit the Jumpstart Web site at www.jstart.org.

About Jumpstart’s Read for the Record

Jumpstart’s Read for the Record™, presented in partnership with Pearson, is Jumpstart’s world record breaking campaign that brings children and adults together to read the same book, on the same day, in homes and communities all over the world. The campaign also kicks off Jumpstart’s yearlong program, preparing preschool children in low-income neighborhoods for success in school and life. Since it’s inception in 2006, the campaign has reached more than 3 million children and more than 750,000 books have been donated to children in low-income neighborhoods. In addition to Pearson, Jumpstart’s Read for the Record is further supported by Penguin Young Readers Group and 77kids by American Eagle. For more information, visit www.readfortherecord.org..

About the Pearson Foundation

Pearson, the international education and information company, is Jumpstart’s Read for the Record’s Sponsor and Founding Partner. The Pearson Foundation extends Pearson's commitment to education by partnering with leading nonprofit, civic, and business organizations to provide financial, organizational, and publishing assistance across the globe. The Foundation aims to make a difference by sponsoring innovative educational programs and extending its educational expertise to help in classrooms and in local communities. For more information, visit www.pearsonfoundation.org.

About We Give Books

We Give Books (www.wegivebooks.org) is a new philanthropic program from Penguin and the Pearson Foundation that helps your child become a lifelong reader and giver. Together, we support literacy through programs that engage entire communities. Working around the world through programs like Booktime and Jumpstart’s Read for the Record, Penguin and the Pearson Foundation have touched millions of lives in thousands of communities.

Calling all Rick Riordan Fans. Join the "largest demigod gathering in history!"

Rick Riordan has written yet another splendid series called the Heroes of Olympus and you can join the celebration on October 12th by watching a live broadcast. Take a look at the Heroes of Olympus website to find out more about this event, to learn about the new series, to watch videos, to play games, and much more. 

Celebrate the 50th anniversary of Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham with the “Ham it up” video contest

Seuss fans can enter to win a cash prize, a year supply of Ham I Am! products, Seuss memorabilia, books and more!

CELEBRATE THE 50^TH ANNIVERSARY OF DR. SEUSS’S GREEN EGGS AND HAM

 WITH THE “HAM IT UP” VIDEO CONTEST

To celebrate the 50^th anniversary of Dr. Seuss’s classic Green Eggs and Ham Random House Children’s Books and Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.P. have launched the “HAM It Up” video contest, calling for fans across the United States to channel their own Sam-I-Am and submit a video capturing their interpretation of a scene from the book. The grand prize winner will receive a $2,000 cash prize, a year’s supply of Ham I Am! products, a beautifully framed 50^th Anniversary Green Eggs and Ham print, a flip camera and a Dr. Seuss library of books. Originally published in 1960, Green Eggs and Ham has sold over 13 million copies in North America.

The “HAM It Up” video contest kicks-off on September 21 and will end on November 3, 2010.  Details on how to enter and official contest rules are available on Seussville at http://GreenEggsContest.seussville.com.  Entrants can submit their video by upload, in-browser recording, or via a YouTube url. The contest platform will display videos within a player so that they are shareable and embeddable. Entrants are encouraged to promote their video to friends and family to boost their ratings. The general public will decide which participants best tapped into their inner Sam-I-Am during a public voting period. The videos with the most votes will be judged by the Random House Children's Books team and Dr. Seuss Enterprises to determine the best overall acts. Prizes will be awarded to one grand prize winner and ten runners up based on the following criteria: creativity and originality, representation of the contest theme and public votes. The ten runners up will receive a $100 grocery gift card from the National Pork Board, framed Dr. Seuss art, and a Dr. Seuss library of books (please see contest website for official prizing details). http://greeneggscontest.seussville.com/greeneggsham/

Dr. Seuss fans can also add to their bookshelves with two new releases! In honor of the 50^th anniversary of Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham Random House Children’s Books released a limited edition of the title on August 24, 2010. This PARTY EDITION includes a foiled-cover and features the complete original text and art at the regular edition price of $8.99. Random House will also release a board book, DO YOU LIKE GREEN EGGS AND HAM? on October 26, 2010 (Ages 0-3 / $9.99). This latest addition to the Dr. Seuss Nursery Collection title is filled with interactive fun for baby, and includes a plastic green egg that children can squeak, spin, and see themselves in with the mini-mirror on the back.  

Banned Books Week - A review of Olive's Ocean, a challenged book

For my last post for Banned Books Week I have a review to share with you. I read Olive's Ocean a few years ago and yet I still remember it very clearly. Growing up is often a confusing time for young people, and in this book Kevin Henkes tells a story that addresses some of issues that teens deal with.

Olive’s Ocean

Kevin Henkes
Fiction
For ages 9 to 12
HarperCollins, 2003, 978-0060535438
Martha never really knew Olive Barstow and she is shocked when Olive’s mother arrives at the house to give Martha a journal entry that Olive wrote before she was killed by a car. In it Olive mentions that she hopes to make friends with Martha and she thinks Martha is the “nicest person” in their class. Martha can’t help feeling sad that she never the chance or took the time to get to know shy Olive.

   Even after she and her family go to her grandmother’s house at the beach Martha cannot rid herself of Olive’s memory. Nor can she really share how she feels with anyone in her family. Though she does share other confidences with her grandmother, Godbee, whom Martha loves and admires a great deal. She tells Godbee for example that she rather likes Jimmy Manning, a boy whom until then was more of an annoyance than anything else. Now Jimmy seems to be interested her and she is sure that she has fallen in love with him.

   She also tells Godbee that she wants to become a writer. Godbee is very supportive of the idea and tells Martha about a short story she wrote when she was young. The story gives Martha an idea – it gives her way to give poor Olive’s mother a gift.

   In then end Martha discovers that Jimmy is not whom she thought he was, and the gift for Olive’s mother is never really delivered, but Martha comes through a difficult time and she makes peace with both Olive and with herself.

   In this beautifully paced novel, Kevin Henkes explores several months in a girl’s life as she struggles with the process of growing up, and as she tries to comes to terms with the death of a schoolmate. Growing up is a rarely an easy process and this 2004 Newbery Honor title perfectly captures the confusion that many young people feel at this moment in their lives.