KidLit Left Out in the Elements
It was dark and stormy night… —A Wrinkle in Time Preschoolers must learn their seasons, but as they grow they will find storms and changes in the weather an ever increasing metaphor for change in their lives and the outside world. From Madeleine L’Engle’s famous and cliché opening to A Wrinkle in Time, we remember the great storm of adolescence. If you are a fan of said metaphors, here is handy list of weather metaphors! Listen to the podcast chatter about atmospheric kidlit on Green Mountain Morning! The Carnival at Bray By Jessie Ann Foley Publisher: Elephant...
Read MoreFractured Fairy Tales, Shattered Slippers
Children’s literature has been feverishly fracturing fairy tales since Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith released the The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales in 1992. Do the princess fairy tales featuring girls only made powerful by their beauty (and sometimes kindness) need to be especially fractured? Do we need to smash the glass slippers for girls and women to smash the glass ceiling? Is it time to encourage your child to leave behind the Disney Princess Halloween costume? Look to A Mighty Girl for a “Girl Empowerment Costume Guide.” Curious City joined Chris...
Read MoreFake Your Own Mothman Sighting
For every sighting of a cryptozooilogical creature, there may be an equal number of FAKED sightings. Curious City will encourage this bad behavior this summer by offering readers the tools to Fake Their Own Mothman Sighting with the following print and digital tools! Doing so will celebrate Mothman’s Curse by Christine Hayes and illustrated by James K. Hindle (Roaring Brook Press), the middle grade novel Kirkus Reviews called “an ectoplasmic extravaganza”! Fake Your Own Mothman Sighting View, Download & Print Mothman Cut-out Sheet (PDF) Download Digital Mothman (.png)...
Read MoreWant to See the Ghost of Mothman’s Curse?
To discover what this ghost wants, read Mothman’s Curse by Christine Hayes, illustrated by James K. Hindle (Roaring Brook Press). An ectoplasmic extravaganza…tailor-made for reading beneath the bedcovers. —Kirkus Reviews Animation by Curious City intern Amelia Waltz and illustration by James K. Hindle. Download and Share the animated gif HERE! Share...
Read MoreUninvited
What would you think if your school visit was canceled a few days before your arrival? Scheduling error? Budget cut? Bad weather? What if the school told you it was a scheduling error but refused to reschedule you? What if all the book orders were canceled? What would you think then? Young Adult author e.E. Charlton-Trujillo suspected she was canceled because of the content of her novel Fat Angie or her documentary At-Risk Summer. But if no one tells you that is the case, is it Censorship? Curious City joined a league of clever people including the ALA Office of Intellectual Freedom to...
Read MoreStill Lugubrious: Exhibit Celebrates ALICIA HAS A BAD DAY
In celebration of a beloved Maine children’s book’s 20th anniversary, The Portland Public Library will be celebrating with an art exhibit entitled “Still Lugubrious: 20 Years of the Book, Alicia Has a Bad Day.” Opening on First Friday November 7, 2014 from 4:00-6:00 PM, the picture book’s artwork by Portland, Maine author/illustrator Lisa Jahn-Clough will be on exhibit through November in the Children’s Room. Lisa Jahn-Clough will appear at the event and sign books and art prints for sale by Longfellow Books. The picture book Alicia Has a Bad Day has remained popular with children for 20...
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