Tag Archives: children’s books

“If you don’t see the book you want on the shelves, write it.” — Beverly Cleary

“I think children want to read about normal, everyday kids. That’s what I wanted to read about when I was growing up. I wanted to read about the sort of boys and girls that I knew in my neighborhood and … Continue reading

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2023 Books Read

I think I might have read more books by non-American authors than American this year. Countries represented below: Austria, Hungary, Poland, Germany, Czechoslovakia, Croatia, Ireland, France, Russia, Colombia. I revisited some old favorites, which I will continue to do in … Continue reading

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R.I.P. Beverly Cleary

“I think children want to read about normal, everyday kids. That’s what I wanted to read about when I was growing up. I wanted to read about the sort of boys and girls that I knew in my neighborhood and … Continue reading

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2019 Books Read

It’s been such a busy year for me as a writer. The busiest. I’ve had to “make time” for reading stuff that has nothing to do with anything writing-wise. I need to read for pleasure. Many of the books I … Continue reading

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Today in history: March 11, 1916

Ezra Jack Keats is one of my favorite children’s book author, and he is always, somehow, looped in my head to Sesame Street, the world being depicted in his classic tales (Peter’s Chair (Picture Puffins), The Snowy Day, Whistle for … Continue reading

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Where the Wild Things Are; (2009) Dir. Spike Jonze

Maurice Sendak’s children’s classic Where the Wild Things Are isn’t plot-driven. There’s not much text, and he uses a lot of repetition (“and they roared their terrible roars,” etc.) that gives the book an incantatory feel. As though we, as … Continue reading

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Happy Birthday to Ezra Jack Keats

Ezra Jack Keats is one of my favorite children’s book author, and he is always, somehow, looped in my head to Sesame Street, the world being depicted in his classic tales (Peter’s Chair (Picture Puffins), The Snowy Day, Whistle for … Continue reading

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The Books: “The Hobbit” (J.R.R. Tolkien)

Daily Book Excerpt: Adult fiction: The Hobbit; or, There and Back Again, by J.R.R. Tolkien As a child, I was never a Tolkien fanatic. I was a fanatic about other books – all of Madeleine L’Engle’s “time” books, and I … Continue reading

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“In an old house in Paris that was covered with vines …”

Today is the birthday of Ludwig Bemelmans, author of the beloved Madeline books. Here is a really interesting biographical sketch of him. I didn’t know any of it. Listen to this: When he was a teenager, his parents apprenticed him … Continue reading

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A Book Questionnaire

Book Meme!! I got it from Heather. I love her answers – it’s always fun to see what other people were into, if they’re big readers. 1. How old were you when you learned to read and who taught you? … Continue reading

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