Literacy Now

Nick Bruel's Bad Kitty series has entertained readers of all ages. He'll share the stories behind the cantankerous cat at the featured author session on Monday, April 30, at 11:00 a.m. at the IRA Annual Convention in Chicago. Reading Today interviewed Bruel on his career, his books, and his characters' popularity with children with special needs. 

Reading Today: What got you interested in writing books for children and/or young adults?

Nick Bruel: Just prior to wandering into this wonderful career I've found for myself, I was a cartoonist. I had some moderate success sending cartoons out to trade magazines around the country and abroad, and I even managed to self-syndicate a weekly comic strip for two years. I never earned enough to support myself, but I loved the work and I learned a lot. But then I found myself working in a small children's bookstore in Manhattan, and that's where I discovered how much picture books and comics shared a similar language in the way text and illustrations worked together to tell a story. I had tried previously to publish children's books, but to no avail. But while working in that bookstore, I became so saturated and educated in this wonderful literary form that I tried again. And this time it worked. My first book Boing was published in 2004, and I've never looked back.

RT: What do consider your best book to date and why?

NB: I get this question a lot, and I still don't have a satisfying answer. I don't have a favorite. I like to make the analogy of what it would be like if you asked someone who had lots of children... "Which one is your favorite child?" That person would answer... at least I hope he/she would answer... "I don't have a favorite. They are all special and unique to me for different reasons. Each gives me great joy for different reasons. Each challenges me for different reasons." And that's how I feel about my books.

RT: What can attendees at IRA Chicago expect to hear from you? 

NB: I'll be talking a little about my work and about Bad Kitty herself, of course. But I thought I would use the time to explore a recent phenomenon that's been taking place… For the last two years, I've been receiving emails and letters with greater and greater frequency from parents and teachers of children with "special needs" and especially Asperger’s Syndrome from all over the country. It seems that the Bad Kitty chapter books have touched a nerve with this community. After some discussion, a possible conclusion for why this is happening may have been reached. But I'm hoping that some further discussion will take place during the presentation itself. 

Find Bad Kitty games and more information on Nick Bruel's website at http://badkittybooks.squarespace.com. For more information about the 2012 IRA Annual Convention in Chicago from April 29 to May 2, visit www.iraconvention.org.

Nick Bruel Will Be There…Will You?

The Dot, I'm Here, and Ish author and illustrator Peter H. Reynolds is the featured speaker for the Primary Literature Luncheon sponsored by Simon and Schuster on Monday, April 30, at the IRA Annual Convention in Chicago. Below are his insights about the links between reading and creating to help kids "make their marks." 

Reading Today: If creativity is the fuel for getting things going, how can today¹s youngsters tank up in ways that enhance their literacy learning?

Peter H. Reynolds: It's critical to show kids how inspiring it is to create. Real literacy is not just reading stories, but writing (or marking), talking, and listening. Kids are actually game for all four. I like expanding writing to "making marks"--such as drawing, photography, and the other expressive arts. Like writing, these "marks" are ways of communicating ideas. The best way to fill the creativity fuel tank is by CREATING. I love challenging kids to think about how much time they spend consuming vs. creating. You can download music, or you can make it yourself. The joy of making something out of nothing, is nothing short of magic. The feeling is incredible. Sharing your "marks" with the world, while not a requirement--inspires others to do the same--creating a never-ending circle of perpetual creativity!

RT: You doodle your way to images that are the starting point for stories, animations, and paintings. What drives your initial spark of creativity?

PHR: My brain is always moving and my pencil tries its best to keep up. I have what I call "story radar" which is always on. I often can "hear" the story radar sounding when my brain senses a story idea. It can be triggered by a conversation, an image, a dream. I quickly make a sketch and label it so that I don't forget the seed of the idea. Later, I review my notebook and there is the beginning of a story. I have over 400 stories in the hopper. Each story contains a bit of wisdom, a notion, a solution, or a new way to look at the world. I want my stories to make people think, scratch their heads, connect, react and be moved to do something, whether it is be moved to tears, to laughter of to be moved to action. Ultimately, it is mission of the story that sparks me. 

RT: What makes The Dot so special, what do you want children and teachers to know about your inspiration for this book?

PHR: Thanks for saying so. The Dot is a very special book for me as it carries with it my mission to remind all of us to be brave--no matter what our inner voice of doubt might be whispering. I want to shout to the kids of the world--do NOT give up! Do NOT fear trying! Keep experimenting, playing, exploring, practicing, sharing. Each time you do, your confidence will grow and your true voice will show! While I hoped The Dot would be an enjoyable read, the goal was that the most exciting part of the book was after you closed it. I wanted the book to spark the reader to make their own mark--through art, music, science, innovation, community service, or anyway that moves the world to a better, more thoughtful and caring place.

RT: What's in store for people who come to hear you at the IRA Convention?

PHR: I love IRA. I have attended many IRA conferences over the past two decades. It will be an honor to share my stories, my films, my world view, and my mission with IRA attendees. I am hoping to find like-minded, kindred spirits who believe the best is yet to come. I want my audiences to be prepared to take away creative strategies and inspiration that can apply immediately to the kids they work with, as well as themselves, and their communities. Expect a warm, whimsical style, sprinkled with story and humor. I remind all of us that if we are to inspire children to create, we must model that. If we are to inspire children to learn, we must show them what that looks like. If we are to inspire children to be brave, we must show them our fearless selves. If we want our children to make a difference, we must show them how to make our mark--how to move the world to a better place.

Visit www.peterhreynolds.com for details about Reynolds' work. For more information about the 2012 IRA Annual Convention in Chicago from April 29 to May 2, visit www.iraconvention.org.

Peter H. Reynolds Will Be There…Will You?

Here is the list of authors who are signing books at the IRA Bookstore (Booth #2247) at the IRA Annual Convention in Chicago.

Monday, April 30

11:00 - Nicki Clausen-Grace and Michelle Kelley 

1:00 - Diane Lapp

2:00 - Doug Buehl

2:30 - Douglas Fisher 

Tuesday, May 1

9:00 - Douglas Fisher and Diane Lapp

9:30 - Valerie Ellery and Jennifer Rosenboom

10:00 - Beverly Tyner

10:30 - Jennifer L. Altieri

11:30 - Jan Burkins 

1:30 - Lori Oczkus

Wednesday, May 2

9:30 - Valerie Ellery

Author of children's picture books as well as books to help teach literacy, Esmé Raji Codell will sit on the panel at the IRA Annual Convention's closing general session on Wednesday, March 2, with Laura Numeroff, Linda Sue Park, and Rita Williams-Garcia. Reading Today asked her about her passions, favorites, and perspectives on reading and literacy education.

Reading Today: What got you interested in writing books for children and/or young adults?  

Esmé Raji Codell: I started writing intentionally for children (especially intermediate aged children, ages 9-12) after I wrote my books for adults, Educating Esmé and How to Get Your Child to Love Reading. I noticed as a result of writing books for grown-ups, I ended up talking to adults a lot, which was okay...but I was an elementary teacher at heart, and missed talking with children. So I started focusing on creating books for that audience, so I would be sent to speak with them more often. That trick worked.

RT: What do consider your best book to date and why?

ERC: Come on, not a fair question, anyone knows that. It's like asking about a "favorite" book or song or person; different ones work at different times in life. I am very lucky that all of my books so far have been my best for someone. I am personally very especially proud of How to Get Your Child to Love Reading, because it was a labor of love and I really believe it is more than a book, it is a remarkable tool for using children's books to equalize education, and to make anyone who reads it an expert in children's literature. My picture books, The Basket Ball and Fairly Fairy Tales, are what I would want to read in the school library story time. I think Sahara Special speaks to a lot of kids who feel labeled and to urban kids, and Educating Esmé: Diary of a Teacher's First Year reached a lot of readers and helped them feel less alone through a very difficult and universal teaching experience; I think with the new guide full of pragmatic advice for first year teachers in the new edition, it will help even more. One of my personal favorite books I wrote, and one of my best, Sing a Song of Tuna Fish, about growing up in the 1970's, is out of print. I wrote it to be used as a mentor text to help kids write and celebrate their everyday lives. Whatever book I am writing, I have teachers and how books are actually used by teachers in the forefront of my mind.  I hope each book will be helpful and make someone laugh through challenge or adversity. Then I know that book is the best.

RT: What can attendees at IRA Chicago expect to hear from you?

ERC: As a dedicated Chicago Public School educator with one foot in the thick of teaching and another in the world of publishing, I think I bring a unique perspective to conversations about children's literature and how it comes to life in schools and homes. I look forward to sharing a panel with talented children's book authors, and talking about how my own Chicago Public School teacher inspired me.

Esmé Raji Codell Will Be There…Will You?

Park, the award-winning author of A Long walk to Water, A Single Shard, The Kite Fighters, When My Name Was Keoko, and many more inspirational children's books sits on the panel at the closing general session of the IRA Annual Convention in Chicago on Wednesday, May 2. She shared her views on the challenge of writing for children with Reading Today. 

Reading Today: What got you interested in writing books for children and/or young adults?

Linda Sue Park: Writing for young people requires greater economy of language, scrupulous word choice, and a tighter focus on story. The good children's writing I admire and strive for makes much adult work seem fat and lazy by comparison. I think the challenges of writing for young people make me a better writer, which hopefully carries over into all my work.

RT: What do consider your best book to date and why?

LSP: That's like asking me which of my kids is the best! But if I had to choose the book that has had the biggest real-world impact, it would be A Long Walk to Water. Students at schools all over the country have read this book and been inspired to raise and donate money toward building freshwater wells in South Sudan. Because of their efforts, people who have never had clean water before now have it. It's been a privilege to be part of that effort.

RT: What can attendees at IRA Chicago expect to hear from you?

LSP: I want all my books to accomplish two things: to entertain young readers, and to make them think. Thinking about the story long after they finish the book: that is a skill I fear is eroding in this era of tweet and sound bite and instantaneous response. Young people need considered narrative. It's a huge part of what makes us human. 

Visit www.lindasuepark.com for more details about Linda Sue Park. For more information about the 2012 IRA Annual Convention in Chicago from April 29 to May 2, visit www.iraconvention.org.

Linda Sue Park Will Be There…Will You?