Book News

ALA 2011: Laissez les bon temps roulez!

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We’re getting excited to head down to New Orleans this week for the American Library Association Annual Conference. New Orleans has always been one of my favorite cities, and I’m looking forward to eating piles of beignets meeting many awesome librarians while we’re down there. If you’ll be there too, please stop by booth #1132 to say hello! Here’s what we’ll have going on:

SATURDAY, 2-3PM: Under the Mesquite ARC signing and giveaway with debut author Guadalupe Garcia McCall. This is a PHENOMENAL book – it made me cry right at my desk – so you’ll definitely want to snag a copy.

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We Shall Overcome

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Over the weekend I listened to a band called Flame perform at a fundraiser for my youngest son’s school. The school offers a socialization program for special needs kids which my son, who is seven years old and autistic, goes to on weekends. What was unique about the ten members of the band is they all have some form of developmental and/or physical disability.

Flame, The Band
Flame rocks!

At the fundraising event, my son was supposed to sing “Three Little Birds” by Bob Marley with the other kids in the program, but he is sensitive to loud noises so he refused to go on stage. While he was sitting on my wife’s lap, I noticed him singing softly to himself during the song, which was good to see since he is usually non-verbal. He even applauded when the song was over.

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Splash Into Summer Giveaway Hop- The Mangrove Tree

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Summer is finally upon us, and there’s no better way to celebrate than to dive into summer reading with Lee & Low’s latest release, The Mangrove Tree! As part of the Splash Into Summer Giveaway Hop from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer, Lee & Low is giving away a copy of The Mangrove Tree by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore. The hop runs from May 25th-May 31st, so get reading!

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Honoring Memorial Day with Lee & Low

Teachers- Looking for a way to talk to your students about war this Memorial Day?

Parents- Trying to make your kids understand the importance of remembering those who gave their lives for our country?

Lee & Low has some great titles that will get your kids interested and help them understand the great sacrifices made by our men and women at arms, what really makes someone a hero, and the impact of war on a level they can relate to.

Heroes by Ken Mochizuki, illustrated by Dom Lee

Set during the ’60s with the Vietnam war going on and World War II popular in the media, Japanese American Donnie Okada always has to be the “bad guy” when he and his friends play war because he looks like the enemy portrayed in the media. When he finally has had enough, Donnie enlists the aid of his 442nd veteran father and Korean War veteran uncle to prove to his friends and schoolmates that those of Asian descent did serve in the U.S. military.

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Join us at IRA 2011!

Will you be heading down to Orlando this year for the International Reading Association Annual conference? If so, we’d love to see you!

Join us in our Exhibitor Session with elementary school principal Jerry Michel: That Which Makes Us Differ Makes Us Stronger

Wednesday, May 11, 2011 • 9:00-10:00 AM • West Building, W207-A

Explore how instruction that features culturally diverse literature and resources increases students’ capacity for learning and future success. Jerry will discuss current research on culturally responsive classroom instruction, the influence of culturally responsive teaching on student engagement, and how to build on students’ cultural strengths.

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Watching Old Movies and Discovering Racism

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In addition to loving to read, I am a big movie buff. I make it a point to introduce my 10-year-old son to some of the films that were my favorites when I was growing up. Once in a while, we come across some scenes in a film that are somewhat offensive. This happened when we were watching the 1975 classic

The Return of the Pink Panther, starring Peter Sellers. The moment occurred after a scene in which Clouseau is ambushed by his Chinese servant, Kato, resulting in the total destruction of Clouseau’s apartment. Later, Clouseau is talking to a co-worker at police headquarters about the incident, and he refers to Kato in several derogatory and racist terms. My son instantly turned to me and exclaimed, “Hey, that’s racist!”

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