Watermark Teacher Feature – November 7, 2007
 
In this issue:
 
BOOK NEWS
 
Newsflashes: More "Eragon" announced; "American Born Chinese" now in hardcover
Fresh Titles: classic poetry with pictures, a great math story, space adventures
 
UPCOMING EVENTS
 
Myrne Roe Reading and Book Signing: Thursday, November 8. 7:00 p.m.
Ally Carter Reading & Signing: Saturday, November 10. 2:00 p.m.
Ally Carter Writing Workshop: Saturday, November 10. 3:30 to 5:00 p.m.
Out of the Book Film Screening--The Coldest Winter: Wed., Nov. 14. 12:00 noon.
 
FEATURED BOOK REVIEWS
 
* Nicola Davies’s smart, funny books on animal biology
 
READ PRO QUO
 
* Free books and advance galleys on offer
 
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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 is a pretty robust issue, so I’ll keep it brief up here: Everyone please be sure to note that Kansas author Ally Carter will be visiting Watermark this Saturday for a reading, signing, and a writing workshop open to youngsters and adults. Ms. Carter is charming, fun, and a laugh riot, and so are her books—page-turning YA adventures of school drama and super-spy excitement. Read on in the events section below for details. And never let it be said that I don’t tell you about the good stuff.
 
Also, be sure to check out Read Pro Quo for more cool swag; many thanks to everyone who has sent in a reading recommendation so far! I’ll be sharing them with the class in a future issue, so keep them coming; you will not go unrewarded.
 
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NEWSFLASHES
 
Christopher Paolini to Expand Bestselling “Inheritance Cycle”
 
At least once every week, an eager reader asks me when the sequel to “Eragon” and “Eldest” will come out. Well now there’s finally an answer: it has been scheduled for September 23, 2008—but wait, that’s not all! Both Publishers Weekly magazine and the Publishers Lunch newsletter reported last week that Knopf Children’s has announced that Paolini is expanding his plans for the series from three books to four in order to deal fully with his characters and with the plot points he’s outlined. No title information has been released as yet, but fans can rest assured that more big adventures are on the way.
 
My top recommendation for eager Paolini readers is to try Patrick Carman’s excellent recent novel “Atherton: The House of Power.” It’s well-written, a well-thought-out beginning to a new youth fantasy series set in a stratified society situated on a floating island; one plucky young boy sets out to uncover the mysteries of this world, and his discoveries unfold as both a gripping adventure story and as a clever parallel to our very real world of unequal wealth and opportunity. It’s great stuff, and it has the same world-building flair (complete with maps!) found in Tolkien and Paolini.
 
 
"American Born Chinese" now in hardcover
 
"American Born Chinese" by Gene Luen Yang (First Second Books, 9781596433731, $19.95) This excellent graphic novel, winner of the 2007 Printz Award and finalist for the 2007 National Book Award, has become a favorite of teen readers, but I've spoken with many librarians justifiably dissatisfied that up to now, it has only been available in paperback. Well, no longer! First Second Books has just released its most acclaimed title in a sturdy hardcover version, so now the story of Jin, Chin-Kee, and the Monkey King can have a fighting chance of withstanding the enthusiasm of its many readers. Don't miss out on this awesome book. Read a review here: http://www.watermarkbooks.com/review0107-012.html

 
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FRESH TITLES
 
Picture books
 
“Jabberwocky” by Lewis Carroll, adapted & illustrated by Christopher Myers (Hyperion/Jump At The Sun, 9781423103721, $15.99; 32 pages; for ages 4 to 10) In his new picture book, illustrator Christopher Myers (son of Walter Dean Myers) re-imagines Lewis Carroll’s classic nonsense poem as the story of an epic basketball showdown. Read review: http://www.watermarkbooks.com/review1107-002.html

 
 
Middle-grades fiction
 
“The Lemonade War” by Jacqueline Davies (Houghton Mifflin, 9780618750436, $16.00, 192 pages, ages 9 to 12) This quick-moving story of front-yard entrepreneurship fueled by sibling rivalry will appeal even to reluctant readers, and its unique focus on math facts and business ideas make it one in thousand. Jacqueline Davies writes long division that’s tense and exciting! Read review: http://www.watermarkbooks.com/review1107-003.html

 
 
 
“Shug” by Jenny Han (Aladdin, 9781416909439, $5.99, 256 pages, ages 11 to 13) Twelve-year-old Shug is at just the age when boys and girls start to pair off, when childhood friendships begin to break under junior-high pressures, and when a girl begins to see her family life in the bright, embarrassing light of adolescence. “Shrug” is a nearly perfect tween novel. Read review: http://www.watermarkbooks.com/review1107-004.html

 
Young-adult fiction
 
“Earthlight: volumes 1 and 2” by Stuart Moore & Christopher Schors (Tokyopop, 9781598167054 and 9781598167061, $9.99) “Earthlight,” a new sci-fi manga graphic novel series for teens, wraps a lot of strong current-events ideas around a tight core of schoolday drama. It’s set on a moon-base colony in the year 2068 and follows the troubles and turmoils of the young offspring of the base’s international staff. Read review: http://www.watermarkbooks.com/review1107-005.html

 
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UPCOMING WATERMARK EVENTS
 
 
Myrne Roe Reading and Book Signing: Thursday, November 8. 7:00 p.m.
 
Myrne Roe has written and compiled "Under Hope’s Roof," a book of stories by people who have faced homelessness and found help and hope with Inter-Faith Ministries Wichita. For the reading and signing, Myrne will be joined by two individuals featured in her book. 100% of the purchase price of "Under Hope’s Roof" ($15.00) will be given to Inter-Faith Ministries for its homeless and housing programs.
 
 
Ally Carter Reading & Signing: Saturday, November 10. 2:00 p.m.
 
Kansas writer Ally Carter will give a reading and sign copies of her books for young adults. Carter is the author of the teen novel, “I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You,” named a 2007 Kansas Notable Book, and its newly released sequel, “Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy.” Both books follow the students of Gallagher Academy, a girls’ prep school that secretly trains up-and-coming spies. (Look further down for information on Ms. Carter’s writing workshop.) Read Beth’s review of Carter’s first book here: http://www.watermarkbooks.com/review1106-004.html

 
 
Ally Carter Writing Workshop: Saturday, November 10. 3:30 to 5:00 p.m.
 
Following her early-afternoon signing, Ally will conduct a workshop downstairs titled “A Movie-Lover’s Guide to Writing Novels.” She'll guide workshop attendees in looking to movies for lessons in story structure, pacing, and voice. Ally got her start writing screenplays, and her young-adult books have been optioned for film by Disney. The cost of the workshop is $15, and reservations can be made by calling Watermark at 682-1181. Space is limited.
 
 
Out of the Book Film Screening: Wednesday, November 14. 12:00 noon.
 
Watermark is proud to host a noon-time screening for the second installment of the "Out of the Book"(TM) independent film series produced by Powell's Books of Portland, Oregon. This short film will focus on “The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War,” a new history by bestselling historian David Halberstam, author of “Teammates” and “The Summer of '49.”
 
The "Out of the Book"(TM) film series uses film to highlight notable authors and important new works. This installment will feature appearances by Joan Didion, Bob Woodward, and Anna Quindlen. You can watch a short clip from the film on-line here: www.outofthebookfilms.com
 
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: Nicola Davies’s funny & fascinating books on animal biology from Candlewick Books. For ages 9 to 12.
 
British author Nicola Davies has written a host of really good young-reader books about interesting animals species, including “One Tiny Turtle,” “Big Blue Whale,” and “Surprising Sharks.” But I think my favorites are the three books she has created in partnership with illustrator Neal Layton. While Layton supplies hilarious and informative cartoon drawings, Davies describes some of the most fascinating creatures ever to walk, crawl, or slither across the Earth.
 
“What’s Eating You? Parasites: The Inside Story” (Candlewick, 9780763634605, $12.99) Right off the bat, Davies makes it clear that parasites are everywhere—and in everyone; they’re a vital part of the living world. Ectoparasites live on animals, and endoparasites live in them. Some parasites, like rabbit fleas, spend their whole lives with a single kind of host; others, like tapeworms, use different hosts at different points in their lives. Certain parasites have truly amazing abilities: one kind of heron tapeworm starts out inside of a stickleback fish; this worm causes the normally grey fish to turn bright orange and to swim near the surface, where herons are sure to find and eat it. Then, voila! The tapeworm has landed inside its preferred host. Similarly, a crab-like parasite called Sacculina can infect a crab and take over its brain and muscles: the mind-controlled crab then must raise the hitch-hiker’s young as its own. “What’s Eating You?” is teeming with odd and interesting stories like these—inside stories—on the weird world of helpful and harmful parasites. Kids reading it may get the itchy-willies, but they won’t be able to put it down. (But not because of mind-control bugs; I promise.)
 
“Extreme Animals: The Toughest Creatures on Earth” (Candlewick, 9780763630676, $12.99) This book starts out by praising incredibly hearty penguins and polar bears, creatures that live in harsh polar environments where humans can’t long survive. Davies explains how a combination of biology (fatty tissues, dense fur) and behavior (ever-moving penguin flocks acting as windbreaks) help these animals thrive. From there, she goes on to describes animals—like wood frogs—that can easily survive being frozen alive, as well as other critters that produce their own forms of natural antifreeze. Of course, then there’s the (hot) flipside: camels have special fur that insulates them from the sun, and their long noses help cool the blood that feeds their heat-sensitive brains. Reptiles of all sorts have scaly skin that keeps water inside their bodies, and there are weird prehistoric creatures called thermophiles living inside boiling ocean geysers and even in the magma inside volcanoes. Among all these amazingly tough creatures, Davies finds one outstanding animal that seems to be indestructible: it’s the tardigrade, a tiny little dude that fills itself with preservative sugar, like a jar of jam, and weathers X-rays, smashings, crashings, vacuums, and more. That critter is fierce, or at least fiercely durable. And it and other animals like it will make this book of enduring interest to young readers!
 
“Poop: A Natural History of the Unmentionable” (Candlewick, 9780763624378, $12.99) Of course, poop is already a favorite subject of many young folks, and while this book’s scatty humor takes advantage of that fact, it also unloads piles of great information. A few choice examples: the poop of meat-eating animals is very different from that of plant-eaters. For one thing, there’s much less of it, since meat is such concentrated nutrition; it’s also much more varied, often including pieces of hair, fur, feathers, and bone. Next, some animals eat their own droppings! Rabbits do so to better digest their food, and baby koalas do it in order to gain helpful stomach microbes from their mothers. It’s like koala yogurt. Many animals use their poop to mark territory, communicate messages, find mates, or find their way home. It turns out that rather than being just waste, poop is really, really useful stuff. Some kinds of ants even farm other insects for their sugary, sappy poop, which they eat straight from the, uh, horse’s mouth, so to speak. Poop: it’s what’s for dinner! Probably the best thing about “Poop” and its companion books is that they contain a wealth of good vocabulary words: “coprophages” (poop-eaters), “defecation” (pooping), “feces” (poop). Yes, this book will incite some giggles, but it uses that snicker factor to hook kids into learning a whole lot about the ins and outs of animal biology. It’s a science book that kids will clamor to read!
 
Recommended for readers ages 9 to 12.
 
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READ PRO QUO: Free books for a song!
 
Here's what is on offer this week:
 
* A "Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows" oilcloth tote bag—very, very slick
* A hardback copy of Jenny Ha’s middle-reader novel “Shug”
* A hardback copy of Frank Beddor's new YA fantasy "Seeing Redd," sequel to the very popular "The Looking-Glass Wars"
 
To request a book or bag, send an e-mail with a quick bit about one of your recent reads, along with your name and contact info, and the item you're requesting to me at: markdbradshaw@hotmail.com

 
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

 

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