They say if you want to win an Oscar you need to play somebody with an extreme personal difficulty (terminal illness, disease, etc.). They do not, for the record, say that about award winning children’s books. There isn’t this general understanding that if you want a shiny Newbery Medal on your cover then you need to give your main character autism or a cleft palate or any of that. People write such… Read More
When we try to name the biggest and best picture book biography authors out there, two names spring immediately to mind. The first is David Adler. Mr. Adler specializes in picture books that go by the straightforward titles of “A Picture Book of [Enter Name Here]“. It makes him easy to spot on a shelf. All his books look pretty… Read More
Patience is a virtue. Riiiiiight. Actually it is, but tell that to anyone under the age of fifteen (to pick an arbitrary age). Though it varies from child to child, immediate satisfaction is something our day and age strives to give us in everything from grocery shopping to movie selection. When kids can just hop… Read More
I tend to run my bookgroup for kids between the ages of 9-12 like a gentle dictatorship. I choose the books, the kids vote on them, and so it goes. Now if the kids had their way we’d be reading fantasy novels day in and day out every single week. With that in mind… Read More
Pity the picture book author. Their lot is rife with strife. With a couple exceptions here and there it is mighty hard to make picture book authorship your one and only occupation. Many times the writer in question has to supplement their income with class visits to schools and libraries around the country. That in and of itself isn’t exactly a… Read More
Elizabeth Bird is currently New York Public Library's Youth Materials Collections Specialist. She has served on Newbery, written for Horn Book, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of NYPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. You can follow Elizabeth on Twitter @FuseEight or email her at fusenumber8.
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