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Watermark Teacher Feature – January 9, 2008
In this issue:
BOOK NEWS
Newsflashes:
* Jon Scieszka named Ambassador for Young People’s Literature
Fresh Titles:
* “Jon Scieszka’s Trucktown: Smash! Crash!” by Jon Scieszka
* “Duck for President” by Doreen Cronin & Betsy Lewin
* “Piano Starts Here: The Young Art Tatum” by Robert Andrew Parker
* “How They Met, and Other Stories” by David Levithan
UPCOMING EVENTS
* Sara Paretsky Reading & Book Signing: Fri., Jan. 11. 7:00 p.m.
* John Burnham Schwartz Reading & Book Signing: Mon., Jan. 28. 7:00 p.m.
* Sweet Potato Queen Jill Conner Browne - Talk & Signing: Tue., Jan. 29. 7 p.m.
* Next KMUW Literary Feast: Friday, Feb. 1. 7:00 p.m.
FEATURED REVIEW
* “Ain’t Nothing But a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henry” by Scott
Reynolds Nelson, with Marc Aronson
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This and previous issues of Teacher Feature are available on the Watermark Web
site. You can read on-line, complete with pictures and clickable links, here:
www.watermarkbooks.com/teach.html
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Greetings and salutations,
This has to be one of my favorite stretches of
the year: the big, all-consuming holidays are behind us, which leaves breathing
space for several lower-key, more contemplative dates on the calendar. And as
you'll see, this issue of Teacher Feature reflects my affection for late-winter
commemorations. Several stand-out titles are perfectly timed for Black History
month in February, there's a tongue-in-bill book that's well-suited to
President's Day, and David Levithan's new collection of teen-focused stories has
"Valentine's" written all over it.
Enjoy the slower pace that January brings, and drop me a line to tell me your
favorite books for Kansas Day and Groundhog Day!
Please send all replies to
mark.bradshaw@watermarkbooks.com
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NEWSFLASH
Jon Scieszka named National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature
Beloved children’s author and frequent Watermark visitor Jon Scieszka has been
appointed the first National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature by the
Library of Congress and the Children’s Book Council. His appointment lasts two
years, and the mission of the newly created position is to champion children’s
literacy and most especially to encourage reluctant readers and reach out to
non-readers. Scieszka has worked for years with his “Guys Read” initiative to
promote reading among young boys, a goal furthered by his boisterous new
“Trucktown” books. Read below for more on the first Trucktown book, and follow
this link for the full story on his ambassadorship:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6516432.html
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FRESH TITLES
Picture books
“Jon Scieszka’s Trucktown: Smash! Crash!” by Jon Scieszka (Simon &
Schuster Children's Publishing, 9781416941330, $16.99, ages 2 to 8, 42 pages)
Scieszka’s Trucktown is a place filled with race tracks, building sites, junk
yards, and miles and miles of smooth pavement. Starring best friends Jack Truck
and Dump Truck Dan, this first Trucktown picture book tells a simple story aimed
to get young kids—boys especially—excited about books and reading:
Read review
“Duck for President” by Doreen Cronin, illus. by Betsy Lewin (Atheneum,
9781416958000, $16.99, ages 4 to 8, 40 pages) Election year is the perfect time
for Atheneum’s reissue of this lively picture book: it’s a funny, silly story
that gives our youngest readers a good introduction to simple ideas about the
democratic process, and Lewin’s animal illustrations are a hoot!
Read review
“Piano Starts Here: The Young Art Tatum” by Robert Andrew Parker
(Schwartz & Wade, 9780375839658, $16.99, for ages 4 to 10, 40 pages) “Piano
Starts Here” works as a simple childhood story and also as an introduction to
the world of Jazz music and to the life of an African-American musician who
stands among such greats as Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Charlie Parker, and
Duke Ellington: Read
review
Young Adult & Teen Literature
"How They Met, and Other Stories" by David Levithan (Knopf Books for
Young Readers, 9780375848865, $16.99) This collection of stories crackles with
the magnetic pull of young love of all kinds: the coffee-shop love of a boy and
his barista; love that trips you up going down the escalator; the weird kismet
of a first meeting on a plane. Teens will especially adore the many variations
on the fraught potential of crashing and burning on prom night. Each one
delivers humor, excitement, and kind-hearted empathy:
Read review
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UPCOMING WATERMARK EVENTS
Sara Paretsky Reading & Book Signing. Friday, January 11. 7:00 p.m.
Kansas native Sara Paretsky will read and sign her new novel “Bleeding Kansas.”
Set in and around present-day Lawrence, the book features a plucky
fifteen-year-old heroine who maneuvers through a close-knit rural hierarchy and
an army of varied characters: Hasidic Jews, evangelical Christians, a Wiccan, a
haunted man, and more. Paretsky combines her own Kansas upbringing with
historical references to Quantrill’s Raid and other events to create an
authentic and entertaining Kansas story. Visit Paretsky on-line at
www.saraparetsky.com
John Burnham Schwartz Reading & Book Signing. Monday, Jan. 28. 7:00 p.m.
John Burnham Schwartz, author of “Claire Marvel” and “Bicycle Days,” will be at
Watermark for a reading & signing of his new novel, “The Commoner.” Steeped in
the traditions and rituals of Japanese royal life, “The Commoner” is one woman's
story from humble beginnings to Empress -- and the cost of such a
transformation. Exploring themes of sacrifice, duty, and isolation, Schwartz
lifts the veil of secrecy from the Imperial Family to reveal the heart beneath
the ceremonial robes. (The book is set for release on January 22. Pre-order by
calling Watermark at 682-1181.)
Sweet Potato Queen Jill Conner Browne - Talk & Signing. Tue., Jan. 29. 7 p.m.
The Sweet Potato Queen is coming back to Doo Dah! And this time she'll tell us
all about her new guide: “The Sweet Potato Queens' Guide to Raising Children for
Fun and Profit.” The event will take place at The Orpheum, 200 N. Broadway
(doors open at 6:00 p.m.). Tickets are be available at Watermark Books & Cafe in
exchange for a donation to The Orpheum.
KMUW Literary Feast. Friday, February 1. 7:00 p.m.
The February book will be “Bleeding Kansas” by Sara Paretsky. Literary Feast
participants will enjoy dinner together, with a menu specially created by our
Watermark chef, then take part in a book discussion over dessert. Tickets are
available at the Watermark book counter or by calling (316) 682-1181. Places are
limited, and we recommend purchasing your ticket well in advance. Read more
about the book and author on the KMUW Web site:
http://www.kmuw.org/LiteraryFeasts.html
For a full listing of Watermark events, including book clubs and art openings,
visit the Events page of our Web site at:
http://www.watermarkbooks.com/events.html
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FEATURED REVIEWS
“Ain’t Nothing But a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henry” by Scott
Reynolds Nelson with Marc Aronson (National Geographic Children's Books,
9781426300004, $18.95, ages 9 to 12, 64 pages)
In this excellent book from National Geographic, historian Scott Reynolds Nelson
delves into the legend of African-American folk hero John Henry to discover the
history behind stories and songs about the “steel-driving man” who raced a steam
drill and “died with a hammer in his hand.”
A history professor at the College of William and Mary in Virginia, Nelson
describes for young readers how his fascination with John Henry began when he
was a boy growing up in Florida near a railroad line. Early on, he learned that
history books largely left out mention of the nearly 40,000 Black rail-workers
who laid and serviced tracks after the Civil War. As he investigated their
stories, Nelson again and again encountered the songs they sang to help them all
work together in time as they shifted and repaired the heavy steel tracks. The
most popular and varied of these songs were those about the legendary John
Henry.
“John Henry told the captain,
‘A man ain’t nothing but a man,
Before I let your steam drill beat me down,
I’ll die with a hammer in my hand.’”
Nelson used the details of those songs as clues to trace down possible origins
for John Henry, hoping to uncover whether the man was real or fictional. Led by
rhymes and music, he discovered that many free black men were wrongfully
imprisoned in the South after the war, and as prisoners they were hired out to
do railroad work in hard and dangerous conditions. Among records of these prison
laborers, Nelson found mention of a young man named John William Henry, who
might be the basis for the John Henry of legend.
In “Ain’t Nothing But a Man,” Nelson excels in making the story of John Henry
exciting. Even more, he excels in relating his experience as a researcher.
Studying history, he explains, isn’t like filling up on knowledge as a car fills
up at a gas station; instead, it’s about asking questions, finding gaps and
empty spaces, and seeking to make new discoveries. Nelson is a fine storyteller
throughout the book, and in its back pages, he includes additional historical
information, a thorough bibliography of books and Web sites, and an essay titled
“How to Be a Historian,” which encourages young readers to do their own research
projects in history and genealogy—even ones that prove his theories wrong!
This book is beautifully designed, filled with facts and ideas (including an
intriguing possibility for the origin of the term “Rock ’n Roll”), and suffused
with a love of learning that is bound to catch the attention of young readers. I
hope National Geographic creates many more books in the same mold. It’s great
reading for people of all ages and a must-have addition to youth library
collections.
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Past reviews and archived issues of Teacher Feature can be read on-line on the
Watermark Web site at:
http://www.watermarkbooks.com/teacharchives.html
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Later educators,
Mark David Bradshaw
Click here for the Teacher Feature Archives
Peruse
back issues of teacher feature since its inception in April
2003.
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