Posts Tagged book lists

Author Interview: Shea Fontana

By on September 27, 2018   /   Author Interviews  
DC Superhero Girls: Out of the Bottle Cover

DC Superhero Girls: Out of the Bottle Cover

As a proud comic book nerd, one of the coolest things about my job as a collection development librarian is  the opportunity to preview the latest in the DC Superhero Girls series, OUT OF THE BOTTLE, which was released in August, and SEARCH FOR ATLANTIS, which hits bookstores on October 2nd.

OUT OF THE BOTTLE highlights Harley Quinn as the comic book character she’s created for Ms. Moone’s art class comes to life and wreaks havoc on Superhero High. SEARCH FOR ATLANTIS introduces Raven and Mera to the team. Mera is a new student at Super Hero High, and as she and Wonder Woman becomes friends, Bumblebee becomes anxious that she’s losing her best friend. When the heroes discover that Atlantis has been stolen, the girls have to work together to get it back.

DC Superhero Girls: Search for Atlantis Cover

DC Superhero Girls: Search for Atlantis Cover

Then, I had a chance to talk to author Shea Fontana about the series.

MUF: Every book in the DC Superhero Girls series deals with an important life lesson. For example, OUT OF THE BOTTLE stresses the importance of mental health care, and SEARCH FOR ATLANTIS deals with accepting change. Do you feel that the graphic novel format makes these issues more accessible for young readers? If so, how?

The graphic novel format really gives us the space and intimacy with the reader to dive into big ideas. Plus, having these awesome, well-known characters explore these topics makes it accessible for kids. Our heroes are aspirational for kids reading the books, and we want to show kids that even heroes face hardships. When kids deal with those types of things, like mental health care or accepting change in their friendship groups, it can feel very lonely and it helps to know that superheroes are dealing with it, too! My goal with these types of stories is to always help kids feel less alone and empower them — like they have a team of superheroes that can fight and win every battle with them.

MUF: SEARCH FOR ATLANTIS has a couple of new beginnings. Both Mera and Raven are introduced, and the Teen Titans were essentially formed. Which of these new beginnings were you most excited about introducing? Was it fun brainstorming new names for the Titans? Were there any rejected names that didn’t make it into the book?

I loved integrating both Mera and Raven into this graphic novel! Both are such wonderful, and very different characters. From the beginning of the series, I knew that I wanted to build up to the Teen Titans reveal, bringing together the traditional Titans that kids know from the TV show as well as the comic book version that includes Miss Martian and Bumblebee. The misnaming thread was a fun way to build the tension toward what everyone knows is coming — of course their group name should be the Teen Titans!

MUF: Why was Brainiac chosen as the villain for this story?

We knew that Brainiac got away at the end of the DC Super Hero Girls: Intergalactic Games animated movie, so he’s been waiting in the wings for his next attack. Since in the Legends of Atlantis movie, we meet Mera and Aquaman under water on their “turf,” I wanted to do something different, but still Atlantis-oriented with this story. So, I decided to bring Atlantis out of the water. Since Brainiac is a collector of bottled cities, it seemed the perfect fit.

MUF: What was your favorite part of the story? What was the most difficult to write? What was the most fun?

My favorite part of the story is how Miss Martian steps up as a leader. She’s not the regular kind of leader that the heroes expect — she doesn’t seem as bold as Wonder Woman or as outgoing as Supergirl. But she has a quieter style of leadership that is just as valid.
The ending on this one was difficult for me to write. I really felt for and related to Bumblebee!

MUF: Who’s your favorite superhero? Who’s the most fun to write about? Why?

I loved writing Raven in this story! Her personality is a great contrast to a lot of the other characters. She has an edge and attitude that we don’t often see in kid superhero stories and it’s fun to explore that. 

MUF: Conversely, who’s your favorite villain? Who’s your favorite to write about?

We have had so many fun villains in this series, both in the graphic novels and the animation. I think my favorite is Dark Opal, because he went into villainy as a back-up career when musical theater didn’t work out. Mera’s sister, Siren, who we meet in the Legends of Atlantis animated move, is also great. She’s so controlling and manipulative.

MUF: If you could teach any class at Superhero High, which one would you want to teach?

Power Naps 101.

MUF: Right there with you! I think that would be my favorite class to take. Is there a superhero or villain that you’d like to write about that you haven’t yet? Who?

It had been Batman, as he is my childhood favorite hero, and he is not featured in DC Super Hero Girls. But now I’ve had the chance to write him in BATMAN: OVERDRIVE which will be published under the upcoming DC Zoom middle grade imprint! I can’t wait for everyone to read it — it’s some of the most fun I’ve had writing.

MUF: And finally, do you have any advice for aspiring writers and writers who would love to work on graphic novels one day?

Read a lot and do a lot! The best way to get familiar with story structure, dialogue, and how graphic novels work is by reading. But the best way to come up with stories is by doing! While the old adage of “write what you know” isn’t true (I don’t know how to fly or shoot lasers out of my eyes), the more you experience, the more you’ll have to pull from when thinking of story ideas. Whenever I need the courage to do something new, I tell myself, “Well, it could be a good experience for a story…”

Shea Fontana is a writer for film, television and graphic novels.  Her credits include developing and writing the DC Super Hero Girls animated shorts, TV specials, movies and graphic novels; Polly Pocket, Doc McStuffins, The 7D, Whisker Haven Tales with the Palace Pets, Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz , the new Muppet Babies series; two Disney on Ice shows where she wrote new material for the worlds of Mickey Mouse, Inside Out, Disney Princesses, Finding Dori, Frozen, and other Disney and Pixar properties; and the feature film, Crowning Jules. Learn more about her and her writing at http://www.sheafontana.com/.

 

 

Back to Top

How I Became a Ghost by Tim Tingle

By on September 20, 2018   /   Articles, children's bookstores, Cross-Curricular, Curriculum Tie-in, Diversity, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, independent bookstores  

Well done, Mr. Tingle.

Imagine a class full of anxious 5th graders sitting on the rug at your feet begging for the next chapter in our read aloud, How I Became a Ghost by Choctaw native and story teller Tim Tingle.

As a teacher, I incorporate every moment into a teaching moment, and storytelling is no different. This is my third year reading this book aloud and a common comment after each session is how much my students love this story.

A couple of years ago, I sent two students on an errand, and they later burst through the classroom doors out of breath. They said they had run as fast as they could across the campus to get back before I started reading. I realized then, that I shouldn’t send kids on errands or make kids do catch-up work when we were visiting the land of the Choctaw on the Trail of Tears.

How I Became a Ghost is not only entertaining, it is also brutally honest. It is a tale of the Trail of Tears, when  Native Americans were forced to leave their homes in Mississippi and relocate to land now called Arkansas and Oklahoma.

The story is told through the eyes of Issac, a ten-year old Choctaw. In the very beginning, Isaac announces to his readers (or listeners in this case) that he is going to be a ghost soon. And because of his condition, premonitions of grisly events begin to plague him.

This is where the brutally honest part comes in. There are many disturbing scenes that are so well-told, that the kids shriek in shock. But they get it. And they are anxious for you to keep reading. For example, during one of Isaac’s premonitions, he sees an old Choctaw couple burning in flames. Soon after, the same couple die when soldiers sneak into the neighborhood at night to set everyone’s homes on fire. And then there is the premonition of pus-filled sores covering some of the tribe’s bodies. You guessed it. Soldiers ride into camp and offer the shivering population blankets exposed to Smallpox.

Choctaws were removed west of the Mississippi started in 1831. Louisiana Indians Walking Along a Bayou by Alfred Boisseau was painted in 1846.

Smallpox became a huge topic in the classroom and I had to teach a mini-lesson on communicable diseases (which ties into our Health curriculum) and the use of diseased blankets.  The bigger story, which we discussed several times, was the relationship between native tribes, societal beliefs, and the government in the 1830s.

Because Tim Tingle is a master storyteller, tie-ins to Native American culture are seamlessly woven into the story. We learn how the spiritual world is part of the family unit and how those who have passed on look after and protect those still walking the earth.  When Isaac becomes a ghost, his story does not stop there. As a ghost he is able to assist the living as they continue their fight to stay alive while walking the trail.

As with most great books, and one that has won many awards, the literary elements are rich. Besides profound sayings worthy of insightful discussion, we examined how imagery comes from the imagination. The scene goes from text on paper to an image inside our heads. In the following scene, Isaac’s feet are frozen in a puddle, and when he pulls his feet up the skin tears off. The kids cringe when this happens, but they understand how bitter cold can affect the body and the desperate conditions of the Choctaw. It is interesting to see imagery taking shape through the imagination of a fifth grader.

Some conversations: What is the author saying? Why does the author make a point of one hundred footprints turning into a thousand? Why were the footprints bloody and not regular footprints?

Isaac looking back and seeing a bloody trail of footprints.

Isaac covered with a blue blanket leaning against a tree with his feet frozen in ice.

One of the reasons I originally chose to read a book on Native American history is because it helps students to build a broader concept of how the U.S. was formed. Books can be powerful tools and it is a tool that sits at the top of my teacher toolbox.

 

 

Back to Top

STEM Tuesday — Pair Up! Comparing Nonfiction Titles — Booklist

By on September 4, 2018   /   Common Core & NGSS, Nonfiction, STEM Tuesday  

This month, we take a look at pairs of books that focus on the same subject or theme. Readers can compare and contrast how authors have each approached these fascinating stories to craft their nonfiction middle grade books. In some cases authors have taken a different approach in organization and in others a different point of view. Reading both will provide more details and information on each topic, and also show that all authors find their own way into each story.

Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org

Mary Mallon, known as Typhoid Mary, unwittingly spread the deadly disease as a cook. Read two nonfiction titles that tell this amazing story.

Fatal Fever: Tracking Down Typhoid Mary by Gail Jarrow tells the investigative story behind the tale. 

Terrible Typhoid Mary by Susan Campbell Bartoletti approaches the story as a biography. 

 

Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org

The history of chocolate is important to both science and history. These two authors have provided books that delve into chocolate’s origins and its history as the confection we love.

Chocolate: Sweet Science & Dark Secrets of the World’s Favorite Treat by Kay Frydenborg 

The Book of Chocolate: The Amazing Story of the World’s Favorite Candy by HP Newquist

 

Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org

If learning about scavengers (and the important part they play in the food chain) is up your alley, then these two new titles are for you.

Rotten:  Vultures, Beetles, Slime, and Nature’s Other Decomposers by Anita Sanchez will be released in January of 2019 and delves into all kinds of decomposers. 

Death Eaters:  Meet Nature’s Scavengers by Kelly Milner Halls also focuses on decomposition and provides lots of interesting photos.   

 

Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.orgThese three titles focus on our waste and where it ends up. Eco-justice readers will be inspired by all three.

Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam, and the Science of Ocean Motion by Loree Griffin Burns focuses on how ocean currents move debris around

Plastic, Ahoy! Investigating the Great Pacific Garbage Patch by Patricia Newman follows a team of scientists who study the Great Pacific Garbage Patch for the first time.

This Book Stinks! Gross Garbage, Rotten Rubbish, and the Science of Trash by Sarah Wassner Flynn dives deep into the cycle of trash.

 

Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org

These two titles provide a look at how dogs use their perfect sniffers to help us.

Poop Detectives: Working Dogs in the Field by Ginger Wadsworth focuses on conservation canines.

Sniffer Dogs: How Dogs (and their Noses) Save the World by Nancy Castaldo introduces readers to all kinds of sniffer detection dogs. 

 

Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org

Two great volcano titles for geology units.

Eruption: Volcanoes and the Science of Saving Lives by Elizabeth Rusch deals with the science of eruption. 

Life on Surtsey: Iceland’s Upstart Island by Loree Griffin Burns focuses on the aftermath. 

 

Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org Support Independent Bookstores - Visit IndieBound.org

Budding naturalists will love learning about how apes are studied in the wild with these two titles.

Gorilla Doctors: Saving Endangered Great Apes by Pamela S. Turner

Untamed: The Wild Life of Jane Goodall by Anita Silvey

 

STEM Tuesday book lists prepared by:

Nancy Castaldo has written books about our planet for over 20 years including her 2016 title, THE STORY OF SEEDS: From Mendel’s Garden to Your Plate, and How There’s More of Less To Eat Around The World, which earned the Green Earth Book Award and other honors. Nancy’s research has taken her all over the world from the Galapagos to Russia. She enjoys sharing her adventures, research, and writing tips. She strives to inform, inspire, and educate her readers. Nancy also serves as the Regional Advisor of the Eastern NY SCBWI region. Her 2018 title is BACK FROM THE BRINK: Saving Animals from Extinction. www.nancycastaldo.com

Patricia Newman writes middle-grade nonfiction that inspires kids to seek connections between science, literacy, and the environment. The recipient of  a Sibert Honor Award for Sea Otter Heroes and the Green Earth Book Award for Plastic, Ahoy!, her books have received starred reviews, been honored as Junior Library Guild Selections, and included on Bank Street College’s Best Books lists. New in 2018:  Eavesdropping on Elephants: How Listening Helps Conservation. During author visits, she demonstrates how her writing skills give a voice to our beleaguered environment. Visit her at www.patriciamnewman.com.

 

Back to Top