Palestine was originally a set of 24 to 32 page comic books released every few months from early 1993 to late 1995.   It features a young man who appears like Sacco touring the Occupied Territories, relating his adventures.  After getting his journalism degree in Oregon,  Sacco decided to go to the Occupied Territories because, as he says himself, “I felt compelled to.”   Politically, as an American taxpayer, he felt irked by the thought of his money going to the state of Israel to “perpetuate the occupation” and as a journalist, he felt the state of reportage about the Palestinian people woefully inadequate.  So in the winter of 1991-1992, armed with a camera and notebook, he headed off to the Occupied Territories to begin his quest for journalistic verity — that is, of his own unique making in a form he himself calls “comics journalism.”

Children feature in the various strips.  In a section called “The Boys,” a 15 year old youth named Firas who is a worker for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine is interviewed.   He is a dedicated stone-thrower like so many Palestinian youth.  When asked about school, he responds, “In the morning, if I go in the streets and see the soldiers, I’ll fight them.  I won’t go to school.”  In another strip, one particularly bright and curious girl of 10 turns the tables on Sacco when she plies him with a barrage of questions like “What does the water taste like in your country?  Do you have the soldiers and the Jews and Fateh and the Popular Front in your country?  Can a man have two wives?”  The girl’s interrogation ends when the grandmother tells her that if she wants, she could marry Sacco in two years when she becomes a woman, to which the girl replies “Why not?”

Many Palestinians are third generation refugees.  Paradoxically, they are the homeless in their own homeland.  Sacco’s rendering of their situation is a deeply moving and compelling account of their world, and is well worth the read.

The Lee & Low Books eleventh annual New Voices Award is accepting submissions through September 30th (postmark date).

The Award will be given for a children’s picture book manuscript by a writer of color. The Award winner receives a cash grant of $1000 and our standard publication contract, including our basic advance and royalties for a first time author. An Honor Award winner will receive a cash grant of $500.

Established in 2000, the New Voices Award encourages writers of color to submit their work to a publisher that takes pride in nurturing new talent. Past New Voices Award submissions that we have published include The Blue Roses, winner of the Paterson Prize for Books for Young People; Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds: The Sammy Lee Story, a Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People and a Texas Bluebonnet Masterlist selection; and Bird, an ALA Notable Children’s Book and a Cooperative Children’s Book Center “Choices” selection.

The contest is open to writers of color who are residents of the United States and who have not previously had a children’s picture book published.

To learn more, click here.

A Movie in My Pillow is a bilingual book and contains short poems in Spanish and English.  In this book, the poems are more straightforward contemplations of the life of an El Salvadoran boy in San Francisco.   My daughter enjoyed this book very much and in fact, wanted to read the poems in English while I read the Spanish (which unfortunately I don’t know very well, but had fun trying to read aloud!)  After the book was done, she said she liked this poetry book a lot.  It was one of the few poetry books I’ve read that she was truly engaged in.

PaperTigers has done an interview with Jorge Argueta.  You might check it out along with his books for a wonderful treat of words!  I do hope his endeavours with the first ever children’s poetry festival in El Salvador go well.

Poetry Friday this week is hosted by Susan Taylor Brown at Susan Writes.

A historical note at the end (and readers may want to consider reading it before getting started), helps contextualize the story, which is told, mostly, in the alternating voices of Daniel, a 13 year-old German Jewish who escapes Germany in 1939 after being separated from his parents, and whose ship is finally allowed entry in Cuba after being turned away from the U.S. and Canada; and Paloma, a 12 year-old girl who, unbeknownst to her father, is helping refugees. We also get to “hear” accounts of the refugees situation by two adults: El Gordo, Paloma’s father, who is making money by selling entry permits to refugees; and David, a former refugee who, along with others, such as young Paloma, helps shelter and feed the recently arrived refugees.

It seems Cuba is no safe haven, though, as the same boats that bring those “searching for something as simple as hope”, are also bringing Nazi agents, whose mission is to stir up anti-Semitism in the island.

The story of Tropical Secrets is mainly Daniel’s, who never loses hope of one day being reunited with his parents (as far as he knows, they are looking for him in New York, where his boat was supposed to have gone). However, the layering of the four distinct voices and perspectives, paint a much more detailed portrait of this painful and little-known chapter of Cuba’s history. It also helps us realize how dependent on the good will of others refugees’ lives are, and reminds us—because we still need to be reminded— that history leaves traces on how we live in the present.

The author says, at the end: “Even though I didn’t follow the faiths of either of my parents, I hope I have taught my children to be the kind of people who will help refugess of any faith in times of need.”… Wonderful words to ponder over as we close the book and travel with our thoughts, looking for ways to help those who have come to our country looking for hope and a safe harbor.

(Click on event name for more information)

2011 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award Nominees Announced~ Sweden

Skipping Stones Youth Honor Award Winners Announced

Fremantle Children’s Literature Centre 2010 Exhibits~ Australia

Beijing International Book Fair~ ongoing until Sep 3, Beijing, China

Taranaki Children’s Book Festival~ ongoing until  Sep 4, Taranaki, New Zealand

Western Australia Spring Poetry Festival and National Poetry Week~ ongoing until  Sep 5, Australia

Melbourne Writers Festival: Stories From Every Angle~ ongoing until Sep 5, Melbourne, Australia

Singapore International Storytelling Festival~ ongoing until Sep 8, Singapore

Childrens Books Ireland and SCBWI Ireland Present: Between The Lines, an information seminar on writing and illustrating for children ~ Sep 11, Dublin, Ireland

Dromkeen Exhibitions: Mbobo Tree, The Race for the Chinese Zodiac, and Stranded~ ongoing until Sep 17, Dromkeen, Australia

2010 Bologna Illustrators Exhibition of Children’s Books~ ongoing until  Sep 26, Nishinomiya, Japan

An Exquisite Vision: The Art of Lisbeth Zwerger~ongoing until Sep 26, Amherst, MA, USA

Lee and Low’s Books New Voices Award Entry Submissions~ ongoing until Sep 30, USA

The National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature Exhibit: Golden Kite, Golden Dreams: the SCBWI Awards~ ongoing until Oct 1, Abilene, TX, USA

International Youth Library Exhibition: The Treasury of Binette Schroeder~ ongoing until Oct  1, Munich, Germany

Words+Pictures=Book, Contemporary Malaysian Picture Book Illustration~ ongoing until Oct 3, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Mirror, an Exhibition by Children’s Author and Artist Jeannie Baker~ ongoing until Oct 10, Australia

Dromkeen National Centre for Picture Book Art Exhibit: From the Collection~ ongoing until Oct 24, Riddells Creek, Australia

International Youth Library Exhibit: Shaun Tan, Pictures and Books~ ongoing until Oct 31, Munich, Germany

Everyday Adventures Growing Up: Art from Picture Books ~ ongoing until Nov 28, Chicago, IL, USA

Hedwig Anuar Children’s Book Award 2011~ entries accepted until Dec 31, Singapore

Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) Annual Conference~ Sep 1 – 3, Brisbane, Australia

Brisbane Writers Festival~ Sep 1 – 5, Brisbane, Australia

Moscow International Book Fair~ Sep 1 – 6, Moscow, Russia

Writers’ and Literary Translators’ International Congress ~ Sep 2 – 5, Istanbul, Turkey

Bendigo Children’s Literature Conference: Texts Mark the Spot – Getting Real: Debating the what, why and how of realism in children’s and YA texts~ Sep 3 – 4, Bendigo, Australia

Asian Digital Storytelling Congress: Beyond Words ~ Sep 4, Singapore

CYA Later, Alligator – Children’s and Young Adult Writers And Illustrators Conference~ Sep 4, Brisbane, Australia

KATHA’s I Love Reading! Week~ Sep 4 – 10, Delhi, India

International Literacy Day~ Sep 8

UNESCO Literary Prize Awards Presentation~ Sep 8, Paris, France

IBBY’s Biennial Congress: The Strength of Minorities~ Sep 8 – 12, Santiago de Compostela, Spain

Nu Wa International Storytelling Tour of China~ Sep 10 – 26, China

The Kennedy Center’s 15th Annual Multicultural Children’s Book Festival~ Sep 11, Washington, D.C., USA

African Library Project’s 5th Anniversary Celebration and Fundraiser~ Sep 11, Menlo Park, CA, USA

SCBWI Ireland Conference~ Sep 11, Dublin, Ireland

First International Conference on Language, Literature and Cultural Studies~ Sep 11 – 13, Skele, Albania

Book Blogger Appreciation Week~ Sep 13 – 17

The Manila International Book Fair: Words Without Borders~ Sep 15 – 19, Manila, Philippines

International Children’s and Youth Literature Festival~ Sep 15 – 25, Berlin, Germany

Hispanic Heritage Month~ Sep 15 – Oct 15, USA

Chapter & Verse, a Book Club for Adults Discussing Children’s Lit~ Sep 16, USA

Children’s Author Virginia Pilegard to Speak at Arne Nixon Center for the Study of Children’s Literature~ Sep 17, Fresno, CA, USA

Eden Mills Writers’ Festival~ Sep 17 – 19, Eden Mills, ON, Canada

3rd International Biennial SCBWI Australia and New Zeaand Conference~ Sep 17 – 19, Sydney, Australia

SCBWI Children’s Book Seminar~ Sep 18, Iloilo City, Philippines

Adarna House’s 30th Anniversary Celebration and Storybook Launch~ Sep 18, Pasay City, Philippines

57th St. Children’s Book Fair~ Sep 19, Chicago, IL, USA

Thin Air – Winnipeg International Writers Festival~ Sep 19 – 26, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

International Day of Peace~ Sep 21

What Children’s Literature Tells Us~ Sep 21, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Eric Carle: A Feast for the Eyes~ Sep 21 – Mar 20, Amherst, MA, USA

Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) Biennial Institute~ Sep 23 – 25, Atlanta, GA, USA

Göteborg Book Fair~ Sep 23 – 26, Göteborg, Sweden

Wigtown Book Festival~ Sep 24 – Oct 3, Wigtown, United Kingdom

Bath Festival of Children’s Literature~ Sep 24 – Oct 3, Bath, United Kingdom

Once Upon a Time: Fairy Tales and Childhood~ Sep 25, Amherst, MA, USA

National Book Festival~ Sep 25, Washington, D.C., USA

Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read~ Sep 25 – Oct 2, USA

The Word on the Street National Book and Magazine Festival: Celebrating Reading. Advocating Literacy. ~ Sep 26, Canada

School Library Association of Queensland / International Association of School Librarianship Joint Conference~ Sep 27 – Oct 2, Brisbane, Australia

Canwest Raise-a-Reader Day~ Sep 29, Canada

The Carle Honors 2010~ Sep 30, Amherst, MA, USA

Northwoods Children’s Book Conference ~ Sep 30 – Oct 1, Cable, WI, USA

Reading Association of Ireland Annual Conference~ Sep 30 – Oct 2, Dublin, Ireland

The Children’s Bookshow: Stories From Around The World~ Sep 22 – Nov 17, United Kingdom

So I couldn’t resist picking up Ed Young’s Red Thread (Philomel Books, 1993) when I came across it recently: and it’s a wonderful story, which grows in meaning the more you read it. Wei Gu is a young man who, having been orphaned as a boy, is keen to find a wife and be part of a family. Hearing that a matchmaker is going to be in the town of Quinge, he travels there and makes sure he is at the temple good and early – in fact, he is so early that it is still dark (and here, Young’s illustrations are particularly stunning). He meets an old man, a spirit who can tell him that the red thread connecting him to his future wife leads to a three-year-old girl, and that they will marry in fourteen years time. Not only that, but they can go together to see her right there and then. However, Wei Gu is disgusted that she is apparently the daughter of vegetable sellers; and he also finds her ugly. Horrifically, he orders his servant to murder the child – but the red thread cannot be broken so easily and when Wei Gu marries fourteen years later, he discovers that the flower seed his beautiful wife always wears between her eyebrows carries a not unfamiliar story with it…

The narrative is simple but still manages to convey psychological depth; and the complexities inherent in the story mean that the book will grow with young readers. The act of violence is shocking – but as is so often the case in fairy-tales (and I am particularly struck by parallels with the western Snow White here), young readers/listeners will probably be less affected by it than the grown-ups reading it to them. The message that you can’t outrun your destiny is clear – but all the same, Wei Gu is lucky after his wicked act to end up with a loving wife who still loves him, even when the truth comes out.

A red thread runs throughout the book, straight across the pages, separating the text from the main focus of the illustrations, which completely fill each double-page spread. There are grandiose architectural spaces, busy market scenes and energetic close-ups, all depicted in a beautiful pallette of blues and greens, with orange as a striking outline color. In fact, as far as Young’s illustrations go, this for me is right up there as one of my favorites.

Now, there’s a question: which books by Ed Young are your and your children’s favorites? I am being very kind putting it in the plural, because I would find it very hard to narrow it down to just one myself!

After basking in the light of the carnival’s links, make sure to check the blog’s sidebar for a list of Top 50 Australian Writing Blogs. Enjoy!

Chris founded the African Library Project (ALP) in 2005, with the goal of increasing literacy in Africa. Since then, with the help of literacy activist volunteers and organized book drives, ALP has created over 500 small, free lending libraries in various countries of Africa, such as Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Malawi.

Chris lives in Portola Valley, California.

PT: What motivated you to start the African Library Project?

CB: I spent my Junior Year Abroad studying in Sierra Leone and traveling throughout western and central Africa. I was deeply touched by the warmth of people and troubled by the potential lost in just trying to survive given the everyday challenges of extreme poverty. As a 20 year old, I felt overwhelmed by this and did not know what I could do that would have much of an impact.

Fast-forward 30 years to 2004… on a homeschooling field trip to southern Africa with my husband and two children, ages 9 and 13, while pony trekking in the tiny, remote mountain kingdom of Lesotho, I discovered there was just one library in the entire country. Noodling along on my horse, I couldn’t stop thinking about the US bookshelves overflowing with once-read books and landfills filling up with what would be a precious resource in Lesotho.

PT: How did the first library come about and what was the process of going from one library to more libraries like?

CB: When I got back to the village, I met with the manager of the lodge that had rented us our horses and asked if they had ever considered having a library. “We have always wanted a library, but did not know how to get books!” I offered to provide books if the local leadership would provide space and staffing for the library and commit to running it as a village enterprise. Two months later, I contacted them and they happily reported that the library building was half done! I was committed. The village decided to give the task of developing the library to a US Peace Corps Volunteer who was scheduled to arrive soon. I thought this was a great idea. If you have never seen a library, how would you know what to do?

A little miracle happened next. When the Peace Corps Volunteer arrived, she was a retired librarian! Together, along with many generous American book donors, we developed five small libraries throughout Malealea Valley, the first of now 562 African Library Project libraries.

Eventually, I decided to partner with Peace Corps Lesotho to establish libraries throughout the country. I found it inspiring to work with the smart, capable and passionate Americans who serve in Peace Corps. They and their villages were ecstatic to get books and many American schools and groups were eager to make a concrete and personal contribution to Africa.

PT: How do you determine which countries (and which towns and communities) will receive book donations?

CB: We’ve grown a lot since our first libraries. We will work in any stable English-speaking African country where we can find a suitable partner. Our partners are large African organizations whose mission is library development or education, usually NGOs or government branches, e.g., the Swaziland National Library Service. Our African partners vet the local library projects, bring our containers in, distribute the books, train teacher-librarians and track results. We ship 30-60 libraries each year to our partners, year after year, because it is efficient, economical and allows us to have a major impact by building a library movement within a country.

PT: What is involved in creating rural libraries?

CB: Most African cultures don’t have communal public institutions, as we know them, with the exception of schools. About 90% of our libraries are in schools and most of these are open to local villagers for checkout of books. Sometimes, as many as sixteen villages will use a single African Library Project library, as it is the only source of reading material in the area.

To apply, a village or school must provide the space for the library, furniture, staff and a library committee dedicated to establishing and managing the library. The African Library Project provides a manual on how to set up and run a simple library, the books, and ensures that the staff receive training and ongoing support.

PT: Once the libraries are established, how sustainable are they?

CB: We’ve learned a lot about sustainability since we started! On my first trip back to visit the libraries, at one site I found our boxes of books had been sitting for six months untouched. Since then, we’ve changed our systems to provide ownership by the African community from the very beginning of the project throughout. Training the librarians is vital and providing a tracking system to measure results is helping our country partners find the libraries that need extra support.

PT: Can you tell us a little bit more about ALP’s all-volunteer network?

CB: I love working with ALP volunteers! Our board and administrative volunteers are a passionate and talented group of African literacy warriors who have a solid background in Africa and library development. What a pleasure it is to work with them.

We have now had volunteers from 30 states and four countries organize book drives to help start a library in Africa. These schools, youth groups, companies, individuals and families commit to collecting and sorting 1,000 gently used children’s books, raising the approximately $500 in related shipping costs and putting in the elbow grease to pack and mail them. Children as young as six years old and adults in their eighties have rallied their local communities to help start a library. Many of these grassroots volunteers report that their book drive really helped pull their local community together around a cause everyone believed in, bringing diverse groups together to work on it. I love that! Kids are often the driving force behind our book drives and they report learning all sorts of new leadership skills while organizing their African library project.

Of course our donors love that we are 100% volunteer and that all the books are donated because they know their contribution completely supports our core needs.

PT: Do the book drives and donations focus on books for a particular age group?

CB: Every book drive is partnered with a specific wannabe library in Africa and the book drive organizer collects the types of books requested by their African match. We are starting and improving preschool, primary and secondary school and community libraries.

Literacy levels are much lower in Africa for two reasons: English is a second language; and without access to books, it is difficult to get really good at reading. Even teachers top out at about the equivalent of a U.S. 8th grade reading level. For these reasons, we send preschool-8th grade level books as these are what are requested by our African partners.

PT: Can you tell us about some of the special projects ALP has undertaken in Africa?

CB: In Botswana, there was a huge need for books in primary schools, so we started the “Botswana 100″, an effort to start 100 primary school libraries with the South District of Education. We got a little carried away though. We completed libraries in all of the South District and are now covering our third (of twelve) school districts with 199 libraries and counting. We aim to blanket Botswana’s primary schools with access to books and completely change their educational and development opportunities. Some wonderful innovations have come from the “Botswana 100”, including a Culture Corner in every library that serves as a little mini-museum to preserve Botswana culture. One school added an hour to their school day every morning so that the entire school came in just to read! The district initiated a pilot project for second and third graders to come in for an extra week of school to participate in a reading camp.

For the past two years, we have organized ALP African Partner Summits in Botswana and Lesotho to bring together our international teams and share best practices. The best ideas have now spread throughout all of our libraries thanks to these conferences.

In Lesotho, where Peace Corps Lesotho is our main partner, the Ministry of Education is gradually increasing their role in library development. This year we have a pilot project with the Butha Buthe District of Education for 20 schools to begin libraries, assisted by just three Peace Corps Volunteers acting as consultants instead of the usual one-on-one mentoring relationship.

We are working in the countries most affected by AIDS. Because our libraries are in a unique position to reach young rural Africans, we work hard to raise additional funds to try to provide each library with a fantastic set of HIV/AIDS children’s readers that are set in southern Africa and written for African reading levels.

PT: Do you keep in touch with the communities you serve? What would you say are the most pressing issues facing them?

CB: Good communication is one of the biggest challenges we face. Most of our libraries are in remote areas without electricity, running water and sometimes even roads. In some places, an ALP team visits these libraries to conduct library workshops. In others, the teacher-librarians travel to a central location to get their training. We’ve recently implemented a simple tracking system using SMS texting for the libraries to report monthly statistics.

The challenges facing most Africans are daunting: HIV infection rates of up to 30% of the population; lack of clean, easily available water; inadequate food; no healthcare and inadequate educational options and resources. Solutions to all these problems are available, but basic literacy skills and access to information are fundamental to implementing change on a broad scale.

PT: What have been ALP’s biggest challenges and accomplishments so far?

CB: We’ve discovered that getting the books is the easiest part. American bookshelves overflow with books no longer being read. Getting the books to Africa efficiently and economically is another story. Now, we’re shipping 30-60 libraries at a time in containers to African partners that can support large-scale library development of small libraries.

In Africa, there are many challenges. Developing a reading culture in a continent with a strong oral tradition takes focused effort by teachers. Many students with illiterate parents cannot get support in learning to read from home. We must train teachers in basic library management skills as their exposure to libraries is limited to non-existent. Teachers are not used to having books available so we need to include training on how to best use books in the classroom. Administrators consider the books a great treasure and sometimes do not want children to use them in case they might damage or lose them.

As for our accomplishments, we’re very proud of the unique model we’ve created that has allowed over 500 book drive organizers from 30 states and four countries to start libraries in Africa. The roughly 25,000 Americans, especially kids, who have contributed to book drives have developed their global consciousness as they learn more about the African continent. During our first five years, we’ve recycled over 600,000 books to provide half a million Africans with quality, carefully selected reading material. Working with our African partners, we’ve been able to start or improve 562 small libraries in remote areas of eight African countries. Our African Partners Summits have spread exciting and valuable ideas in rural library development throughout southern Africa while creating professional connections between countries.

PT: On September 11th ALP will be celebrating its 5th anniversary with a fundraising party to celebrate the spirit of Harambee (a Swahili word that means “Let’s pull together to get it done!”). Looking back on these past five years, how do you see your journey?

CB: Well, it hasn’t always been easy, but I’ve loved it. We’ve undergone an organic and strategic process of going from one library to hundreds. We’ve had a huge impact, but there is so much more to be done! I look forward to engaging more and more Americans and Africans “to pull together” (Harambee!) to change lives through what is essentially a simple redistribution of resources.

PT: You have a won a Jefferson Award for public service. Has this recognition helped raise awareness of ALP’s efforts?

CB: Yes. Because the Jefferson is competitive, winning it lends credibility to those looking at our work, knowing others have taken a close look and found it deserving. Anything that gives the African Library Project more exposure (like this interview!) has the potential to attract someone who wants to organize a book drive which will turn into a new library.

On a personal note, I find it a little hard to take in. I love what I am doing and get massive fulfillment from it. So many people contribute to our success, it seems crazy just to honor me.

PT: What are your hopes for the future of ALP?

CB: I am a pragmatic person who naturally thinks long term. Eventually, I hope to create an international movement that will cover Africa with libraries so that Africans grow up thinking of themselves as readers, book buyers, writers, book store owners, publishers and book distributors. I think this will revolutionize Africa and is a concrete contribution ordinary citizens can make to support development without trying to control it.

PT: Thank you, Chris, for joining us and for sharing with us the ALP story. We wish ALP continued success for the next 5 years and beyond. Harambee!

A thousand thanks to Porter Square Books in Cambridge, Ma and to my publisher Charlesbridge for hosting my Bamboo People book launch party. I always get nervous, so I greatly appreciated everybody who came and sent notes of encouragement from near and far. I’ve posted a few videos below, and here are some recaps from others who attended:
Charlesbridge, Walk the Ridgepole, Not Just For Kids, Britt Leigh’s Brain on Books, and The Papa Post

Arrived to find this gorgeous bamboo plant sent from Portland, Maine by Curious City’s Kirsten Cappy, Jamie Hogan (who illustrated my book Rickshaw Girl), Annie Sibley O’ Brien (After Gandhi), and King middle school librarian Kelley McDaniel. Thank you so much, ladies, for your love and support!

I loved watching people mingle and meet.

My buddy Deb Sloan is one of the best book cheerleaders on the planet.

Authors who write for adults don’t get love like this.

Porter Square bookseller Nathan exuded hospitality. Thank you! I’m holding the bamboo bookmark giveaways I picked up a couple of weeks ago at the Chiang Mai Night Bazaar.

Introducing the book

Reading an excerpt of BAMBOO PEOPLE

FAR volunteer and musicologist Adam Pogoff is seen here recording on the ground in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. His piece covered both the pure beauty of the centuries-old music, and the harsh realities under which it continues to flourish. Adam, who along with photographer and schoolteacher Alison Brockhouse and other friends, volunteered to travel to Jaisalmer this April to experience and record first-hand the sounds of this legacy. They returned from the scorching desert amazed and excited, keen to spread the word about this gifted community.