62. Our first author is very inspiring to those of who started writing later in life. She started writing when she was 49, and was 53 when her first books was published. She has been pumping out award-winning books for children ever since. One of her books won the Newbery in 1996. She lives in Seattle.
Do you know who she might be?
63. Our second author saw a need for books about immigrants coming to Canada, particularly Chinese immigrants. With a Master’s degree in Canadian history, he has the research skills to write authentic tales. As a third generation Canadian, he knows the challenges immigrants face from experiences in his own family. His book, Ghost Train, won Governor General’s Award for children’s literature in the same year our first author won the Newbery.
Question 60. Our first author got his start almost by accident. The students in his classes loved the stories he told, so he wrote them down. His discovery has led to over 100 books. His books have won numerous awards and one is that is currently being made into a film by none other than Steven Spielberg.
In addition to being a prolific author, he is also a children’s rights advocate and started the Farms for City Children program that has been active for 30 years.
Do you know who he is?
If you haven’t heard of Michael Morpurgo yet, I’m sure you will soon. His book, War Horse was turned into a play with critically-acclaimed performances in London. It is now being brought to Broadway (March 15, 2011) and made into a film by Steven Spielberg.
In this trailer, you can see the incredible horse “puppets” that are used in the play.
Morpurgo started his career as a teacher. At the school where he taught, he was required to read to the students at the end of each day. One day he realized the children weren’t connecting with the book. His wife suggested he tell them on of his own tales. The students were so excited about his stories that before long he was writing them down and getting them published.
In this video, he gives the details:
Isn’t he still a wonderful storyteller?
Many of his books are still available. I know I will be trying to get my hands on them.
Question 61. Our second author had a lofty goal. She wanted children to be able to read books by Australian authors. Going to the myths and legends of the local people, she then developed stories that were distinctly of the land. Perhaps you’ve heard of The Nargun and the Stars? Her fantasy novels received attention not only in Australia, but throughout the world and in 1986 she won the Hans Christian Andersen Award for Writing.
Do you know who this woman who helped formulate Australian children’s literature might be?
Patricia Wrightson spent most of her life in the North Coast Region of New South Wales. She first started publishing in the 1950’s and her first book won the Children’s Book Council of Australia’s Book of the Year in 1956. Three of her following works also won.
Today we are taking part in the kick-off of the blog tour for a fantastic new book, Scribbling Women: True Tales from Astonishing Lives by Marthe Jocelyn. When you are done reading the review, be sure to check out the Tundra Books Blog for updates and information about an exciting contest to win copies of all of Marthe Jocelyn’s books. As you will see, she has quite a diverse list of published books.
Scribbling Women: True Tales from Astonishing Lives is an amazing find for Women’s History Month. Jocelyn has gathered the stories of eleven women whose writing has captured significant times and events in history in a way that no one else could.
The title, Scribbling Women, refers to a quote from a letter Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote to his publisher in 1855 exclaiming that he was irritated by the “mob of scribbling women” who were popular with American readers. He thought his books wouldn’t be able to compete with those of the women authors of the time, and in fact stated that if he was successful at selling books, he would be ashamed because obviously “the public taste is occupied with their trash.” Sour grapes?
Rather than “scribbling,” these are 11 women who tell important tales. Several of them wrote under conditions that were extremely harsh, yet they persevered. Some weren’t authors in the traditional sense. For example Margaret Catchpole wrote letters about life in the penal colony at Botany Bay, Australia that are the only records of that time. Two wrote diaries. Some of the books were groundbreaking, such as Isabella Beeton’s Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management, the forerunner of our modern cookbook. Others simply connected well with their readers, and continue to do so, such as the novel by then nine-year-old Daisy Ashford.
The chapters are laid out in chronological order, starting with Sei Shonagan, who was born in 965. As to be expected, the information about the earliest writers is less complete. For example, Sei Shonagan’s true name has been lost, as well as the details of her life other than those she wrote about in her book The Pillow Talk. Doris Pilkington-Garimara is the only author from the group who is still living.
Jocelyn does a wonderful job of using each woman’s own words and “voice” to tell her story. Each chapter reads as a separate piece, and readers could certainly pick and chose which chapters they are most interested in. All are so absorbing, however, it is hard not to read it from cover to cover as soon as you pick it up.
The lives of stories of these women are full of contrasts and parallels, which give the book a rich complexity. I have pointed out a few in this trailer for the book.
Have you ever heard the saying that each of us has a story to tell? This book is definitely convincing evidence the saying is true.
It also leads to a number of questions, such as what about modern day bloggers, who “scribble” electronically. Are our voices going to be lost to future generations? What do you think?
Reading level: Young Adult (14 and up)
Hardcover: 208 pages
Publisher: Tundra Books (March 22, 2011)
ISBN-10: 9780887769528
ISBN-13: 978-0887769528
Nonfiction Monday is a blogging celebration of nonfiction books for kids. We invite you to join us. For more information and a schedule, stop by the new Nonfiction Monday blog to see who is hosting each week.
Are you an aspiring children’s author? Cheerios has a perfect contest for you!
If you are an unpublished author (please check the website for the rules about being published), then you should consider entering the 5th Annual Cheerios Spoonfuls of Stories New Author Contest. The deadline is July 15, 2011. The winner will receive a $5,000 cash prize and a possible publishing deal with Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, in addition to having his or her book featured inside Cheerios cereal boxes nationwide.
Ron Rauss won last year for his story Can I Just Take a Nap? Look for his book in Cheerios boxes during the spring of 2012. (Can you imagine how fun it would be to find a copy of your book in a cereal box?) See more about Ron at Simon & Schuster.
After finding a free copy of Duck for President by Diane Cronin in our Cheerios one day, we have been hooked on the Spoonfuls of Stories idea. What a wonderful way to promote reading and to help new writers get a start.
Are you ready for some more trivia questions?
