Fusenews: Printz Charming

All right.  Test Subject A is still sleeping through the night but due to events beyond our control she has decided to go to bed two hours later than usual.  So it is 10:00 p.m. and I’m only just starting my blogging on this post.  And a Fusenews night at that?  Better slip on my particularly speedy fingertips.  Play, magic fingers, play!

• To begin it’s that super fun time of the year when you get to nominate books for the Cybils Awards.  Pay very close attention to the criteria and nominate those titles you feel deserve some attention.  A lot have already shown up, but there’s always room for more, I say.

• Sometimes a review comes along that says everything you wish you had.  This old movie review of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas does precisely that.  Thank you, Cheryl, for the link.

• I pick up the phone on the reference desk the other day and on the other side I hear an incredibly familiar voice.  I’m a fan of the NPR show Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me and the voice was sometimes panelist Roxanne Roberts.  She wanted to talk about Callista Gingrich.  To be slightly more specific, she wanted to talk about picture books written by those working in the political realm.  I was very pleased with the quotes Roxanne took from me, and I managed to limit my gushing.  Never even told her that I thought she was the best contestant at “Not My Job”.  Ah well.  The final article Callista Gingrich, children’s author: Political VIPs can sell books, but can they write them? is up and running, though I must warn you that it begins with a somewhat gulp inducing photograph.

• Asterix is ending?  Aw, say it ain’t so, joe.  Say it ain’t so. One does wonder if an Asterix and Obelix movie might be in the works at some point, though.  I mean, if the Tintin film does well . . .

• Quiz Question: Was mainland America ever bombed by the Japanese?  If you answered “Yes, Oregon was hit”, then you’re up on your history.  You may also be somewhat interested in this project author Marc Nobleman cooked up.  Having written a children’s book on the subject (which includes facts like the pilot who did the bombing returned twenty years later at the invitation of the town) Nobleman had the clever idea of conjuring up interest by asking some children’s illustrators to illustrate potential covers for him.  They did and they look great in the post Picture book for sale.  Now THAT is clever self-marketing.

• Speaking of superheroes (Nobleman wrote a biography of the creators of Superman . . . not all connections I make are intuitive) there’s a great post out there of redesigned superhero costumes.  Ever wanted to see Wonder Woman as an honest-to-gosh Amazon or Kal-El actually looking like an alien?  Check out 5 Essential Superhero Redesigns.  Thanks to Elizabeth Fama for the link!

• It’s not exactly Hot Men of Children’s Literature . . . but it’s close.  Thanks to Sharyn November for the link.

• And while we’re on the topic of librarians and the places they work, I’m glad that I’m secure enough in my love of my workplace not to be upset that my library wasn’t included in the round-up of The 12 Coolest Libraries in the World.  No really, it’s cool.  I’m okay with it.  *devours enormous vat of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream*

• New Blog Alert: If you’ve sat through announcements about Caldecott blogs and Newbery blogs, just biding your time, your patience has just been rewarded.  BEHOLD!  Someday My Printz Will Come, an honest-to-gosh Printz Award blog, is up and running here at SLJ.  When the award season is over and the blog takes a hiatus, can we rename it The Blog Formerly Known As Printz?  (additional cheap Printz-related jokes are welcome)

• Far be it from me to ever link to the New York Post for any reason but as someone who was once on the receiving end of the Amazon Vine community’s wrath it was with great interest that I read Michael Chabon’s wife’s anger at the Vine community’s reaction to her husband’s recent picture book for kids. Thanks to Adam Rex for the link.

• What are the essential British children’s books? Great question.  Not much of an answer, I’m afraid.

• It’s finally happened!  Rick Riordan has confirmed that he is going to write a book about Norse gods next.  Tough to figure out where he’s going to after that, of course.  Probably not Hindu gods.  Thanks to Monica Edinger for the link.

• Daily Image:

Nepotism guides today’s image.  My l’il sis in L.A. spotted this window display in a local music store.  There’s an idea for you.  Painted book displays:

Nicely done.  Unless you don’t like your books painted, of course.

Filed under: Fusenews