Horn Book bought by Media Source Inc.

The Horn Book has been "acquired" by Media Source Inc, owner of Junior Library Guild. Editor-in-chief Roger Sutton says “Our print and digital publications will be refreshed, redesigned, and rethought — but always in line with founder Bertha Mahony Miller’s directive to ‘blow the horn for fine books for boys and girls."

I wonder what kind of changes will be made to the print version. I really love the Horn Book the way it is now - the small size, the content, etc. Here's hoping that not too much changes.

The Red Necklace

Paris, 1789. The populace is stewing and revolution against the king and aristocracy is brewing. Against this backdrop, we find the heroes and heroine of Sally Gardner's The Red Necklace. At the story's open, Yann Margoza is fourteen and has the remarkable ability to throw his voice and read minds. Even more amazing is the ability of Tetu, his adopted guardian, who can move items without ever touching them. When Yann, Tetu, and the magician they work with are called to the grand estate of a cruel marquis they are pulled into a terrifying race against an evil Count and the outbreak of revolutionary violence to try to save an innocent young girl.

This wonderful story is just itching to be made into a movie. With the follies of the aristocracy, the fantastic elements of Yann and Tetu's talents, the suspense of outrunning the Count (who may be the devil himself), and plenty of young love thrown in, this novel is highly entertaining. Highly recommended for fans of both fantasy and historical fiction. Grades 9 and up.

Award announcements

Two award announcements to link to:

The 2009 Charlotte Zolotow Award goes to Bob Graham, for How to Heal a Broken Wing. This annual award honors outstanding writing in a picture book. Past winners include Kevin Henkes, Peter McCarty, Molly Bang and Uri Shulevitz. Thanks to The Joy of Children's Literature for the link!

And speaking of Kevin Henkes, he's won the 2009 Jeremiah Ludington Memorial Award from the Educational Paperback Association, for his "significant contribution to the educational paperback business." I'm excited to hear this - I met Mr. Henkes at the 2007 Arbuthnot Honor Lecture. He's a wonderful speaker and an all-around great guy.

The Cat Heads of Dr. Seuss

The Haverford College News Room has a really interesting article about Dr. Seuss in their online version.  Although Dr. Seuss wasn't connected to Haverford, his agent Herb Cheyette was a Haverford graduate.  There are a lot of good tidbits, but here's my favorite:

"He had also created a painting called 'Plethora of Cats' featuring nothing but cat heads, and often relaxed by adding another head to the menagerie."

Thanks to the power of Google, I've found that a print of 'Plethora of Cats' can be had for only $9,995 at artprints.com.  What a steal!  

Harry Potter in 10 easy steps

Kids blogger Wizards Wireless recently posted on basic plot outlines that seem to pop up in some popular fare.  She breaks Harry Potter down into 10 steps, but points out that Deathly Hallows broke the mold pretty effectively.   My favorite part of the post is Amelia Bedelia in 5 steps.  Why in the world doesn't Mrs. Rogers fire Amelia?  Pie is good and all, but it ain't that good. 

Time to close some tabs

Fuse 8 has posted her annual Golden Fuse awards in categories such as Best Cover, Most Misleading Cover, and Worst Mother of the Year.

The 2008 Cybils finalists have been posted.

Again from Fuse 8, a nice link to a site featuring spreadsheets in which to post links to Mock Newbery, Mock Caldecott, and Mock Printz lists.

Via Smithsonian.com, the 2008 Smithsonian Notable Books for Children.  A couple on here that I've been meaning to get to (A Curse as Dark As Gold; Steinbeck's Ghost) but this just expanded my to-read list a good bit.

Leila at bookshelves of doom is launching her own fiction chapbook, TBR Tallboy.  Submission guidelines here.  

Children's Choice Book Awards Voting

Teenreads.com has posted a long list of titles and a form to vote for favorite titles for the 2009 Teen Choice Book Award, which is part of the Children's Choice Book Awards. Head on over and vote for your favorites! The top 5 vote-getters will be the finalists for the final vote. The deadline is January 31.