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Recapping the TENT Program for Jewish Children’s Literature.

By on May 6, 2019   /   Articles  

Hello Mixed-Up Filers!

How are you all doing? It’s been a little over a month since we were last together, and we have soooo much to catch up on! So, instead of continuing with the pleasantries, how about we get right to it?

Anyway, this past week, I was fortunate enough to have been one of the invited authors to the TENT program for Jewish Children’s Literature. The retreat is sponsored by PJ Library and takes place in the Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, Massachusetts.

Other authors and illustrators included in this program were: Sarah Aronson, Nancy Churnin, Paula Cohen-Martin, Nancy Cote, Meira Drazin, Donna Gephart, Ari Goelman, Alison Goldberg, Megan Hoyt, Sarah Klinger, Elisabeth Kushner, Yael Levy, Varda Livney, Sherri Mandell, Tamar Meir, Susan Meyer, Suri Rosen, Vesper Stamper, and Elaine Vickers.

Besides us, there were also some returning alumni from last year’s trip: Evelyn Krieger, Joanne Levy, Erica Perl, and Alan Silberberg.

Honestly, it was humbling to be surrounded by that much talent. And like any program with writers, discussions led to our chosen field, and that may have been one of the best experiences. First off, to get to meet in person, others who you have respected or admired from afar, and also just to get to hear their experiences. You get to see that you aren’t alone. We celebrated successes and also got to understand that the things you’re going through aren’t isolated cases. It helps having a support system of your peers, and I’ll say that this group was incredibly supportive.

Still, the main focus of the program is to get artists to create Jewish stories. Now, as anyone who knows me can tell you, I’ve been a huge advocate for the need for Jewish books for kids. With antisemitism seemingly escalating daily, it’s important for Jews to be represented in kidlit. First, it’s important for Jewish kids to see themselves, but it’s also important for non-Jews to see them as well. This weeklong retreat was all about that.

The first day we arrived, we hit the ground running with a tour of the Yiddish Book Center, and getting to hear Aaron Lansky, the founder of the center, talk about the history of the center and how he’s rescued over a million Yiddish books from around the world. There were so many fascinating and historical items, you really didn’t know where to look first. We also heard from Sue Macy and Stacy Innerst, the author and illustrator of the upcoming book about Lansky, The Book Rescuer: How a Mensch from Massachusetts Saved Yiddish Literature for Generations to Come. The book comes out in October, and I can’t wait for all of you to read it.

We spent a couple of sessions with Miriam Udel to discuss the history of Yiddish literature, which was fascinating. And also, three days were spent on workshops with people from within the industry. I was in the middle grade workshop, so I was lucky enough to be part of a group of seven authors led by Kendra Levin, an Editorial Director from Viking Children’s Books. It was a supportive environment, and the feedback in these workshops was in-depth and extremely helpful.

Tuesday night, we were all taken to the home of Harold Grinspoon and Diane Troderman, who graciously hosted us for dinner and to discuss Jewish books. It was a great discussion, and by the way, the food was delicious!

 

One of the main highlights was getting to go to the Eric Carle Museum and getting a peek behind-the-scenes at artwork which isn’t always on display to the public. Such incredible pieces that can only be shown every so often. And I must say, that caterpillar car was incredibly cool.

The last couple of days, we had discussions with author Marjorie Ingall, from Tablet Magazine, about the importance of diversity and Jewish books. She was amazing and so well-versed on the issue.

The last full night, we had a cocktail event at the Rich Michelson Gallery. Each piece of art was more incredible than the last. I kind of loved the Dr. Seuss display. There were also surprise appearances by Jane Yolen and Barbara McClintock.

 

As always, with these types of things, it’s sad when it’s over. You’ve made so many new friends, that you hate to say goodbye. But the good thing is, you’re definitely inspired. At least, I know I am. This was a great group and I’m sure we’ll all keep in touch and push each other. Hopefully, the end result of all of this will be a contribution of plenty of Jewish stories for many future generations of kids to enjoy.

If you have the opportunity, I’d definitely recommend applying for this retreat next year. It was well worth it in both a creative atmosphere and for a worthwhile mission. And who knows, maybe you’ll get to see me there as well, as part of returning alumni! (Hint, hint!)

So, thanks to the Yiddish Book Center. Thanks to PJ Library. And thanks to all the authors and illustrators who participated in this, to make it a fulfilling and inspirational week!

Well, that’s it for now my Mixed-Up friends! According to the hundreds of texts I’ve received, Dorian Cirrone wants coffee, and it’s my turn to bring it to her.

So, until next time . . .

 

Jonathan

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World Press Freedom Day

By on May 3, 2019   /   Articles, Book Lists, Curriculum Tie-in, Diversity, Fiction, For Kids, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, Nonfiction  

May 3 is World Press Freedom Day, which celebrates the importance of a free press in a functional society. First organized by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993, it’s a day to commemorate journalists around the world who have fought with integrity for a free press.

Here at The Mixed-Up Files, we’d like to celebrate by shining a light on middle-grade books about real and fictional investigative journalists. If you have your own favorite middle-grade book about a star reporter, tell us about it in the comment section!

 

The News Crew, (Book 1: Originally The Cruisers) by Walter Dean Myers
The is the first in a series, which included: Checkmate, A Star is Born, and Oh, Snap! Zander and his crew are underdogs at DaVinci Academy, one of the best Gifted and Talented schools in Harlem. But even these kids who are known as losers can win by speaking up. When they start their own school newspaper, stuff happens. Big stuff. Loud stuff. Stuff nobody expects. Mr. Culpepper, the Assistant Principal and Chief Executioner, is ready to be rid of Zander, Kambui, LaShonda, and Bobbi – until they prove that their writing packs enough power to keep the peace and show what it means to stand up for a cause.

 

 

Isabel Feeney, Star Reporter by Beth Fantaskey

It’s 1920s Chicago—the guns-and-gangster era of Al Capone—and it’s unusual for a girl to be selling the Tribune on the street corner. But ten-year-old Isabel Feeney is unusual . . . unusually obsessed with being a news reporter. She can’t believe her luck when she stumbles into a real-life murder scene and her hero, the famous journalist Maude Collier. The story of how Isabel fights to defend the honor of her accused friend and latches on to the murder case makes for a winning middle grade mystery.

 

 

 

The Tragically True Adventures of Kit Donovan by Patricia Bailey

Life in a Nevada mining town in 1905 is not easy for 13-year-old Kit Donovan, who is trying to do right by her deceased mother and become a proper lady. When Kit discovers Papa’s boss at the gold mine is profiting from unsafe working conditions, she realizes being a lady is tougher than it looks. With a man’s hat and a printing press, Kit puts her big mouth and all the life skills she’s learned from reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to work, defying threats of violence and finding that justice doesn’t always look like she imagined it would.

 

 

 

Adam Canfield of the Slash by Michael Winerip

Adam Canfield has to be the most overprogrammed middle-school student in America. So when super-organized Jennifer coaxes him to be coeditor of their school newspaper, THE SLASH, he wonders if he’s made a big mistake. But when a third-grader’s article leads to a big scoop, Adam and his fellow junior journalists rise to the challenge of receiving their principal’s wrath to uncover some scandalous secrets. From a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and NEW YORK TIMES columnist comes a funny, inspiring debut that sneaks in some lessons on personal integrity — and captures the rush that’s connected to the breaking of a really great story.

 

 

 

The Truth About the Truman School by Dori Hillestad Butler

When Zebby and Amr create the website thetruthabouttruman.com, they want it to be honest. They want it to be about the real Truman Middle School, to say things that the school newspaper would never say, and to give everyone a chance to say what they want to say, too. But given the chance, some people will say anything—anything to hurt someone else. And when rumors about one popular student escalate to cruel new levels, it’s clear the truth about Truman School is more harrowing than anyone ever imagined.

 

 

 

Clara Voyant by Rachelle Delaney

Clara can’t believe her no-nonsense grandmother has just up and moved to Florida, leaving Clara and her mother on their own for the first time. This means her mother can finally “follow her bliss,” which involves moving to a tiny apartment in Kensington Market, working at an herbal remedy shop and trying to develop her so-called mystical powers. Clara tries to make the best of a bad situation by joining the newspaper staff at her new middle school, where she can sharpen her investigative journalistic skills and tell the kind of hard-news stories her grandmother appreciated. But the editor relegates her to boring news stories and worse . . . the horoscopes.

Worse yet, her horoscopes come true, and soon everyone at school is talking about Clara Voyant, the talented fortune-teller. Clara is horrified — horoscopes and clairvoyance aren’t real, she insists, just like her grandmother always told her. But when a mystery unfolds at school, she finds herself in a strange situation: having an opportunity to prove herself as an investigative journalist . . . with the help of her own mystical powers.

 

 

Ida B. Wells: Let the Truth Be Told by Walter Dean Myers, illus. Bonnie Christensen

This picture book biography introduces the extraordinary Ida B. Wells. Long before boycotts, sit-ins, and freedom rides, Ida B. Wells was hard at work to better the lives of African Americans.

An activist, educator, writer, journalist, suffragette, and pioneering voice against the horror of lynching, she used fierce determination and the power of the pen to educate the world about the unequal treatment of blacks in the United States.

In this picture book biography, award-winning, New York Times bestselling author Walter Dean Myers tells the story of this legendary figure, which blends harmoniously with the historically detailed watercolor paintings of illustrator Bonnie Christensen.

 

 

 

Nellie Bly and Investigative Journalism for Kids by Ellen Mahoney

In the late 1800s, the daring young reporter Elizabeth Cochrane—known by the pen name Nellie Bly—faked insanity so she could be committed to a mental institution and secretly report on the awful conditions there. This and other highly publicized investigative “stunts” laid the groundwork for a new kind of journalism in the early 1900s, called “muckraking,” dedicated to exposing social, political, and economic ills in the United States. In Nellie Bly and Investigative Journalism for Kids budding reporters learn about the major figures of the muckraking era: the bold and audacious Bly, one of the most famous women in the world in her day; social reformer and photojournalist Jacob Riis; monopoly buster Ida Tarbell; antilynching crusader Ida B. Wells; and Upton Sinclair, whose classic book The Jungle created a public outcry over the dangerous and unsanitary conditions of the early meatpacking industry. Young readers will also learn about more contemporary reporters, from Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein to Amy Goodman, who have carried on the muckraking tradition, and will get excited about the ever-changing world of journalism and the power of purposeful writing. Twenty-one creative activities encourage and engage a future generation of muckrakers. Kids can make and keep a reporter’s notebook; write a letter to the editor; craft a “great ideas” box; create a Jacob Riis–style photo essay; and much more.
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May New Releases!

By on May 1, 2019   /   Book Lists, Fiction, New Releases, Nonfiction  

What’s sprouting up in MG lit this May? Some weather and nature-themed
middle-grade books! Here are a few to fill your rainy, cloudy, and sun-sprinkled May days.

 

Shouting at the Rain by Lynda Mullaly Hunt  
(Nancy Paulsen Books) May 7, 2019

From the author of the New York Times bestseller Fish in a Tree comes a compelling story about perspective and learning to love the family you have.

Delsie loves tracking the weather–lately, though, it seems the squalls are in her own life. She’s always lived with her kindhearted Grammy, but now she’s looking at their life with new eyes and wishing she could have a “regular family.” Delsie observes other changes in the air, too–the most painful being a friend who’s outgrown her. Luckily, she has neighbors with strong shoulders to support her, and Ronan, a new friend who is caring and courageous but also troubled by the losses he’s endured. As Ronan and Delsie traipse around Cape Cod on their adventures, they both learn what it means to be angry versus sad, broken versus whole, and abandoned versus loved. And that, together, they can weather any storm.

 

 

Hurricane Season by Nicole Melleby (Algonquin Young Readers) May 7, 2019

Fig, a sixth grader, loves her dad and the home they share in a beachside town. She does not love the long months of hurricane season. Her father, a once-renowned piano player, sometimes goes looking for the music in the middle of a storm. Hurricane months bring unpredictable good and bad days. More than anything, Fig wants to see the world through her father’s eyes, so she takes an art class to experience life as an artist does. Then Fig’s dad shows up at school, confused and looking for her. Not only does the class not bring Fig closer to understanding him, it brings social services to their door. As the walls start to fall around her, Fig is sure it’s up to her alone to solve her father’s problems and protect her family’s privacy. But with the help of her best friend, a cute girl at the library, and a surprisingly kind new neighbor, Fig learns she isn’t as alone as she once thought . . . and begins to compose her own definition of family.

Nicole Melleby’s Hurricane Season is a radiant and tender novel about taking risks and facing danger, about friendship and art, and about growing up and coming out. And more than anything else, it is a story about love—both its limits and its incredible healing power.

 

Exploring Nature Activity Book for Kids by Kim Andrews (Rockridge Press) May 28, 2019

Nature books for kids should get them excited about heading out into the great outdoors. This one encourages them to track, explore, discover and create. Unlike some nature books for kids, the Exploring Nature Activity Book for Kids, is filled with hands-on educational outdoor activities―like crafting bird feeders out of fruit, pressing flowers, creating sundials and so much more.

 

 

Flying to the Moon: An Astronaut’s Story by Michael Collins (Farrar, Straus and Giroux) May 28, 2019

In time for the 50th anniversary of man’s first landing on the moon, this re-release of Michael Collins’s autobiography is a bold, sparkling testament to exploration and perseverance. In this captivating account, space traveler Collins recalls his early days as an Air Force test pilot, his training at NASA, and his unparalleled experiences in orbit, including the Apollo 11 mission, the first manned lunar landing. The final chapter to this autobiography is an exciting and convincing argument in favor of mankind’s continued exploration of our universe. Originally published in 1976 and updated for this new edition, including an introduction from astronaut Scott Kelly, Collins’s voice and message are sure to resonate with a new generation of readers.

 

 

 

 

 

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