Volume 1, Issue 2 September 2011
University of Kentucky School of Library and Information Science
The McConnell Center for the Study of Youth Literature Sendak is Back! Meet Bumble-Ardy Maurice Sendak, author and illustrator of In the Night Kitchen, Where the Wild Things Are, and many more is back with Bumble-Ardy, the first book he has both illustrated and written in thirty years. Bumble-Ardy first appeared as an animated cartoon by Sendak and Jim Henson on Sesame Street in the early 1970s and features a little boy who has never had a birthday party. When Bumble-Ardy’s ninth birthday on June 10th (the same date as Sendak’s) rolls around, the little boy decides to have his own birthday party and invites “some grubby swine to come for birthday cake and brine at ten past nine.” Bumble and the pigs have fun, all in rhyme, until Aunt Adeline returns home and breaks up the party, but like Max in Where the Wild Things Are, Bumble is
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soon forgiven. Sendak has made some changes to the story and its illustrations for its picture book debut, including turning Bumble into a pig and tweaking some vocabulary so that the guests now drink “brine” instead of “wine.” The clothed pigs from the cartoon also get a new wardrobe and are now dressed as monsters, old ladies, and cowboys. Keep an eye out for small details like a pig reading a newspaper that says “WE READ BANNED BOOKS,” as well as messages in Hebrew, Russian, and Italian. Bumble-Ardy will be published on September 6th, 2011 by HarperCollins. Want to see the original cartoon? Check it out here: http://bit.ly/ZE9K8 And check out the following pieces on the new book: • Publisher’s Weekly Review • Wall Street Journal Article • School Library Journal Article
● Sendak is Back ● Wonderstruck Prelaunch ● Events Reminder ● Banned Books Week ● Presenters’ Books ● Fall Courses Feature ● On the Blog/In the Center ● About the Center
Wonderstruck Prelaunch Party Join us for a launch party of Brian Selznick’s newest novel Wonderstruck! When: Monday, September 12, 4-5 pm Where: The McConnell Center, room 310N, Lucille Little Fine Arts Library We’ll discuss The Invention of Hugo Cabret while we celebrate the new book. Feel free to bring your own covered beverage as well as a snack you can share if you like. We’ll also have a follow-up discussion about the book in October to hear your thoughts on the new book!
Ben and Rose secretly wish their lives were different. Ben longs for the father he has never known. Rose dreams of a mysterious actress whose life she chronicles in a scrapbook. When Ben discovers a puzzling clue in his mother’s room and Rose reads an enticing headline in the newspaper, both children set out alone on desperate
quests to find what they are missing. Selznick is the author/ illustrator of 2008 Caldecott Medal Winner The Invention of Hugo Cabret among others.
Upcoming Events Reminder •
September 12th, 4–5 pm Wonderstruck Prelaunch Party: Join us for a potluck celebration of Selznick’s upcoming book! •
September 27th, 4–6 pm Good Enough to Eat Contest: Come celebrate Intellectual Freedom with us! Registration deadline: September 17th; Drop off your creations September 27th between 9am and 3pm; Entry is free; $2 to eat/judge Register at http://bit.ly/nj258t •
October 1st Call for Proposals: Send in your proposals for sessions at the McConnell Conference 2012; Deadline October 1st; Notifications sent by November 15th; Turn in your proposals here: http://bit.ly/ r92yON
•
February 1, 2012 Connecting with Characters Contest: Encourage your students to submit their letters and artwork for a chance to win a signed book by one of our Conference authors. Full rules/ guidelines here: http://bit.ly/rml5N0 •
March 23rd–24th, 2012 McConnell Conference 2012: Celebrate great children’s literature and meet our featured presenters this spring! Registration link coming soon. Check here for more information: http://bit.ly/ree7O1
Oops! The hours for the McConnell Center were incorrect in the last newsletter. The correct ones are listed with the Center information on the last page of this issue. ~Thanks!
Banned Books Week, September 24th–October 1st Banned Books Week is an annual event that celebrates the freedom to read as well as the importance of the First Amendment. It is based on Intellectual Freedom— the freedom to access information and ideas regardless of their popularity (ALA, 2011). BBW showcases the benefits of free and open access to information and draws attention to censorship by highlighting actual or attempted book bannings across the US. Though books are rarely banned these days, the top three reasons for challenges are: 1. The material was considered to be “sexually explicit” 2. The material contained “offensive language” 3. The material was “unsuited to any age group” (ALA, 2011) Various people and groups challenge books each year. Parents challenge
materials more often than any other group, according to a report compiled by the ALA. A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict access to materials based on the challenger’s objections. A banning is the removal of challenged materials from the library collection or the school curriculum. According to the ALA, the top three most challenged books of 2010 are: 1. And Tango Makes Three by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson 2. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie 3. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley Find out more about Banned Books Week at: http://www.ala.org/bbw and celebrate your freedom to read with us at our Good Enough to Eat Contest on September 27th from 4–6pm at the McConnell Center for the Study of Youth Literature. Register at http://bit.ly/nj258t
Source: ALA | Banned Books Week.
(n.d.). ALA | Home - American Library Association. Retrieved August 31, 2011, from http://www.ala.org/bbw
2010’s Good Enough to Eat Contest Entries were delicious!
McConnell Conference 2012: Some Featured Titles Here are some of the most recent titles by our featured presenters for the 2012 McConnell Conference: Agent Q, or the Smell of Danger by MT Anderson (2010). Having mopped up their last crimefighting caper, our three heroes – Lily Gefelty, Katie Mulligan, and Jasper Dash, Boy Technonaut – are eager to get home. But the secret police in the war-torn realm of fantasy where the three kids are trapped (the state of Delaware) don’t want them going anywhere. Our dynamic trio knows way too much about the whereabouts of certain fabulous treasures to escape the grip of Delaware’s Ministry of Silence. So, chums, it’s a race to the border of New
Jersey against spies and government agents and double-crossers … That is, if our heroes want to make it home alive! (retrieved from http://bit.ly/ pzNYVu) The Trouble with May Amelia by Jennifer Holm (2011). May Amelia lives in pioneer Washingon State in 1900, and she just can't act the part of a proper young lady. Working a farm on the rainy Nasel River isn't easy - especially when you have seven brothers and a Pappa who proclaims that Girls Are Useless. May Amelia thinks she may have finally earned her father's respect when he asks her to translate for a gentleman who's interested in buying their land and making them rich. But when the deal turns out to be a scam, Pappa places all
the blame on May. It's going to take a lot of sisu - that's Finnish for guts - to make things right. (retrieved from http:// bit.ly/haTcHx ) Lulu’s Piano Lesson written by Arlene Alda, illustrated by Lisa Desimini (2010). Who wants to practice the piano? Certainly not Lulu. She'd rather listen to her swing squeak, the bell on her bike ring, or the apples thump as she climbs a tree. Even her shoes play a tiptap tune as she runs on the sidewalk. Before she knows it, it's Friday afternoon and time for her piano lesson. Lulu's heart sinks. She hasn't practiced all week. Luckily, Lulu's teacher knows how to inspire his small student. (retrieved from http://bit.ly/ra83S1)
Fall Courses Feature This fall, the School of Library and Information Sciences will offer the following courses that focus on service to children and children’s literature. LIS510 Children’s Literature and Related Materials (3): A survey of modern and historical children’s lit will be taught by Professor Nelson on Mondays at 5:30 pm and by Professor Haynes on Thursdays at 5:30 pm. This is an undergrad course for education majors.
LIS610 Library Materials and Literature for Children (3): A survey and historical study of library materials and literature for children up to grade 6 will be taught online by Professor Reynolds.
If you have Professor Reynolds for class, be sure to check out her wiki here: http://sites.google.com/site/ youthlitmatters/index The McConnell Center has many of the required readings for these classes. We will also be open from 12–5pm on Mondays and Thursdays to accommodate students that want to come in to work on their readings (or just hang out) in the evenings and before class.
LIS613 Information Resources and Services for Children (3): A study of effective programming for children and young adults will be taught online by Professor Reynolds.
http://www.uky.edu/CommInfoStudies/SLIS/mcconnellcenter/
On the Blog and In the Center On the Blog: For book reviews of new and upcoming youth literature, check out our blog Youth Lit Matters at: http:// youthlitmatters.wordpress.com/
Don’t forget, you can also help us out with the reviews by volunteering for our ARC Read and Review program!
Our available titles are: Juvenile Fiction Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier Dear America: With the Might of Angels by Andrea Davis Pinkney Young Adult Ashes by Ilsa J Bick Bronxwood by Coe Booth iBoy by Kevin Brooks Reel Life Starring Us by Lisa Greenwald The Shattering by Karen Healey The Hourglass Door by Lisa Magnum Deviant by Adrian McKinty Ashfall by Mike Mullin Boy 21 by Matthew Quick The Phantom Limb by William Sleator and Ann Monticone
In the Center: Join us for the McConnell Center Reading Club where we meet and discuss new titles for children and young adults. We are currently deciding on a new time for our meetings. Give us your thoughts about times on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ groups/164302160289842/ We also have a new Youthlitmatters Group on Facebook. Check it out here: https://www.facebook.com/ groups/249490781731022/
About the Center A vital gathering place for books and ideas, the McConnell Center is committed to identifying excellent literature for children and adolescents and to bringing this literature to the attention of those adults who have an academic, professional, career, or personal interest in connecting young readers with books. We maintain two main, noncirculating collections: Our Current Collection includes all books sent to us for review by publishers during the current year. The Permanent Collection is several collections of books maintained in the Center as a resource for students and librarians. It includes the Basic
Collection, the Award-winning Collection (Caldecott, Newbery, Printz, Morris, Pura Belpré, Sibert, and Orbis Pictus Awards), the Kentucky Collection (notable Kentucky authors and books about Kentucky), the Reference Collection, and the Periodical Collection. Starting Monday, August 22nd, our Fall 2011 hours will be Monday/Thursday 12–5pm and Tuesday/ Wednesday 9–2pm. Please visit our website for more information: http://www.uky.edu/ CommInfoStudies/SLIS/mcconnellcenter/
http://www.uky.edu/CommInfoStudies/SLIS/mcconnellcenter/
Contact us! Dr. Stephanie Reynolds stephanie.reynolds@uky.edu Rachel McGuire, GA remcguire@uky.edu Visit us! Lucille Little Library, 3rd Floor, Room 310 N Fall Hours: Monday/Thursday 12–5pm and Tuesday / Wednesday 9–2pm