Kate Beaton

Tag: Kate Beaton

June 26, 2015 by Betsy Bird

Of Ponies and Princesses: An Interview with Kate Beaton

Well, I’m just about as pleased as I can be. For years I’ve adored and promoted and generally yammered endlessly about webcomic artist Kate Beaton and her Hark, A Vagrant strips. Whether it was her Nancy Drew covers or her psychedelic take on The Secret Garden (to say nothing of her history strips) she’s one […]

October 28, 2013 by Betsy Bird

Fusenews: Pretty sneaky, sis.

I have a sister. Did you know that? Tis true. She’s not a librarian and her interest in children’s literature pretty much begins and ends with me, which is probably why she hasn’t come up before. One thing she is? Crafty. Crafty as all get out. And the kicker is that she’s just started this […]

July 11, 2013 by Betsy Bird

Fusenews: You’re freaking me out, Colin!

I don’t think I’ll shock anyone out there when I reveal that I adore webcomic artist Kate Beaton’s work more than life itself. This past Christmas my husband and I exchanged identical gifts that both turned out to be Hark, A Vagrant! calendars for the coming year. The fact that I ever got a chance […]

The Children’s Book Choice Awards Gala 2012: The Only Place Where Jeff Kinney Can Be the Underdog

May 10, 2012 by Betsy Bird

As fancy pants award ceremonies for works of children’s literature go, I’m certain that there are plenty to choose from. Two in particular stand out time and time again. On the one hand you have the Newbery/Caldecott Banquet. Longstanding, stately, a respectable tribute to the greatest picture books and texts written for children, the ceremony […]

Fusenews: “whimsically apocalyptic”

March 3, 2012 by Betsy Bird

As I’m sure many of you heard Jan Berenstain, half of The Berenstain Bears, passed away recently. The Gothamist called us up at NYPL and wondered if we had any Berenstain goodies in our collection. We don’t but we knew who did. You can read their obit here. The SLJ obit is also well worth […]

Fusenews: Can YOU Identify What Sally is Reading?

January 13, 2012 by Betsy Bird

Okay. First and foremost, citizens of the world I need your help. Take a look at these photographs: What you are looking at are two shots of what the character Sally Draper from Mad Men is reading in episode 5, season 4. It is imperative that we figure out what this book might be. You […]

Review of the Day: Nursery Rhyme Comics edited by Chris Duffy

October 10, 2011 by Betsy Bird

Nursery Rhyme Comics Edited by Chris Duffy Introduction by Leonard S. Marcus $18.99 ISBN: 978-1-59643-600-8 Ages 9-12 On shelves October 11, 2011 Nursery rhymes. What’s up with that? (I feel like a stand up comedian when I put it that way). They’re ubiquitous but nonsensical. Culturally relevant but often of unknown origins. Children’s literary scholar […]

Fusenews: Hand me my smelling salts! I think I have the vapors!

June 6, 2011 by Betsy Bird

There was a kerfuffle this weekend. Did you notice? It was a YA kerfuffle, which I generally tend to avoid, but sometimes inanity makes for good blogging. And nothing was quite as inane as the recent Wall Street Journal article Darkness Too Visible. The gist: My goodness, my gracious, have you seen what kids are […]

Fusenews: Whole lotta off-topic stuff

September 6, 2010 by Betsy Bird

Once in a while it does the brain a bit of good to go a little off-topic. So while most of this is children’s literature related, there’s a whole slew of other topics worked in for spice as well. Have at it. I haven’t been recommending that you read Collecting Children’s Books nearly enough lately, […]

Fusenews: Today we’re all about the visuals

June 15, 2010 by Betsy Bird

All around this great nation you will find chapters of 826. Which is to say, storefronts converted into free tutoring facilities for local kids. There’s an 826NYC (in Brooklyn, inexplicably), an 826DC, an 826 Valencia, you name it. They encourage folks to volunteer in their cities. They also encourage artists to get a little freaky […]