As publisher previews go this may be one of my shorter posts if only because the featured publisher of the day is not a large sort. I have had the pleasure of seeing the products of Tara Books for a couple years now, but it was only recently that Gita Wolf herself came to town to show me the upcoming season. But first, a bit of background.
If the name “Tara Books” is unfamiliar to you here’s what you should know. What we have here is a worker-owned independent… Read More
Yeah, remember when I had that baby and everything looked like things were going to stay exactly the same, like nothing had changed a jot? Well, I’ve found at least one aspect of the blog that’s taken a serious hit since the arrive of the small Bird. Librarian previews. For some reason I just don’t seem to have the copious hours and hours of freedom to type them up that once I had. Mysterious. Now with five (I kid you not) staring me in the face I’m going to strive… Read More
While the message is encouraging in and of itself, Joe Sabia’s TED talk on The Technology of Storytelling is also a brilliant example of how to do an iPad presentation with skill, humor, and facts. I can’t imagine how long this three minute, fifty-one second talk took to put together, but it’s kinda worth it. Inspires one to punch up their presentations, it does. Thanks to @145lewis for the link.
Meanwhile, when it comes to children’s literary scholars it’s a good idea to remember… Read More
What publisher created the first librarian preview, inviting local carriers of MLIS degrees to their places of work to show off the upcoming season? I don’t have an answer to that, I’m just asking. With my NYC preferences and tunnel vision my inclination is to believe that it was one of The Big Six based out of Manhattan. Still it’s not as if other publishers in other cities don’t do the same thing. Take Chronicle, for example. They’re a San Francisco publisher and as recently as November 8th they created… Read More
Here’s how paranoid I am. I saw an allusion somewhere to someone having written up the recent Harper Collins 2012 preview and my first reaction was, “GAH! Someone else is working my beat!!” That was followed promptly by a sense of profound relief. “Aww. That’s awesome. Someone else is working my beat.” Then I actually opened the link in question . . . yeah, it doesn’t count if the preview is written up by the folks holding said preview. Nice try, Bird. Nice try.
Fun Fact: Librarian previews done in the presence of small attention seeking babies yield surprisingly drool-soaked notes. Not so drool-soaked that a person couldn’t decipher them later, but wet with the moisture of someone else’s mouth just the same.
Still and all, the good people of Lerner Publishing Group (Lindsay Matvick and Terri Reden if you want to get specific) weren’t exactly unaware of the effects babies have on one’s output. Hence the tardiness of this post, I suppose. They sat down with me at my favorite local chocolate… Read More
At last! The season for previews has begun yet again! And as of right now I am (checks watch) four previews behind.
Yipes!
Guess we better get started then. If you want to read a recap of this same preview done already (and on time) though, check out this Early Word post by Lisa Von Drasek.
This Fall I’ve been hurry scurrying to each preview in a whirlwind gust of bad timing. Either I’m entering late or I’m leaving early. The Penguin preview was no… Read More
I like a lot of things about Lerner, but probably what I like the most is the fact that they’ve managed to transition from rote titles that are of primary use in schoolrooms to publishing of all kinds of books. Not that they don’t still create useful books for class use, but this preview should be a pretty exhaustive look at the sheer range of titles they’re capable of putting out in a given season. Prior to the birth of my young I sat down with some Lernerites and got… Read More
Prior to my babyfied state I met with two publishers who gave me the rundown on their upcoming seasons. Not knowing when I’d get to their previews I had the vague hope that I’d be able to do so before their books came out (Fall 2011). Fortunately, sometimes life works out just the way you’d hoped it would. So here now, fresh off the presses, comes the fascinating Fall 2011 season Albert Whitman & Co. have whipped up for us here.
Heh heh. You know when I said I’d write up the Day of Dialog librarian previews that I saw? Well, I wasn’t kidding. In fact, I’ve decided to be extra efficient and just cram the whole lot of them into one big, superlative, overcompensating post. Before I do, however, I should note that a couple publishers presented their Fall list and will not show up in this compendium either because I have already reported on their books (Little Brown) or because I am about to report on them in full (Lerner & Penguin).
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.
