WOOD, WIRE, WINGS has been out in the world for nearly three whole months. In celebration, I’m giving away an autographed copy of WOOD, WIRE, WINGS, along with a copy of Vicky Fang’s HAPPY PAWS. To enter, sign up for my monthly newsletter here. That’s it! Giveaway ends 5/25 at midnight PDT. Sorry, US entries only.
Hi friends,
Was it just over a month ago that WOOD, WIRE, WINGS finally took flight? It seems like an eternity after four weeks at home. With many of my book events postponed or canceled over the coming months, I’m focused on what I can do right now, both physically and emotionally.
Here’s hoping you are able to stay safe at home, while your dreams soar in books.
It’s been a busy couple of months with lots of podcasts, guest blog posts, and media appearances. Here are a few of the places I’ve been.
Coming soon: appearances on Jedlie’s Reading With Your Kids podcast (4/21), Matthew Winner’s Children’s Book Podcast (week of 4/27), Chris Wood’s STEM Everday Podcast (TBD), and much more. Follow me on Twitter @kirstenwlarson or follow my Facebook page so you don’t miss my upcoming appearances.
For those who have students home from school due to COVID-19, children’s book creators are putting together a number of resources to keep your students occupied and engaged. Aside from creator content, I am also sharing some of my favorite sites for kid-friendly activities and content. My goal is to keep this site updated as I find out about more.
| Thanks so much to everyone who came to my Barnes and Noble book launch and helped raise money for Valley View Elementary School. It was such a thrill to see so many family, friends, and young readers. It’s not too late to support Valley View’s school library by buying a book of your choice at BN.com and using the school’s bookfair ID at checkout. See the graphic below for where to enter the ID. The fundraiser ends 3/7. |
 |
I know that not everyone will be able to buy my book, but please know there are SO MANY other ways you can help authors like me. Here’s a great post from LitReactor about how to support your favorite books without spending a dime.
I’ll be honest, I have so many author/illustrator friends, and I can’t buy all of their books. BUT these are some of the things I do to support them. |
| I’m thrilled to announce my true picture book, WOOD, WIRE, WINGS: Emma Lilian Todd Invents an Airplane, will take off Monday, March 2nd at Barnes & Noble in Palmdale, CA. Join me at 6 p.m. for a storytime, a STEM activity, and book signing. A percentage of purchases (of any books, plus, music, games, and toys) will support the school library at Valley View Elementary School. Just mention the Valley View Bookfair and/or bring a copy of the flyer above. You also can donate books from teacher wishlists for their classroom libraries.
Not local? You can still help me celebrate by ordering merchandise online (gift cards and ebooks excluded) and using Bookfair ID 12584280 at checkout between March 2 and March 7. Let’s celebrate literacy together by raising money for our school libraries! Learn more about Bookfairs at B&N. |
Books I’m Over the Moon About |
I just finished two wonderful nonfiction picture books that reveal how two classic children’s books came to be. And that made me think about what fun it would be to pair these picture book biographies with the children’s classics in the classroom.
First up is FINDING NARNIA by Caroline McAlister, illustrated by Jessica Lanan (Roaring Brook, November 2019). In our schools, students read C. S. Lewis’s THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE in fifth grade. A magnificent companion, FINDING NARNIA is the story of (C.S. Lewis) and his brother Warnie, the imaginative world they invented as children, and how those childhood stories grew into the world of Narnia.
Next, MIEP AND THE MOST FAMOUS DIARY by Meeg Pincus, illustrated by Jordi Solano (Sleeping Bear Press, August 2019), explains how Miep Gies rescued Anne Frank’s diary when Anne and her family were taken by the Nazis. This book pairs perfectly with Anne Frank’s DIARY OF A YOUNG GIRL, which our students read in 7th grade.
For younger readers, Melissa Sweet’s SOME WRITER! THE STORY OF E. B. WHITE (HMH, 2016) could be read alongside E. B. White’s CHARLOTTE’S WEB (approximately 3rd grade).
Finally, I’m looking forward to the forthcoming BEATRIX POTTER, SCIENTIST by Lindsay H. Metcalf, illustrated by Junyi Wu forthcoming in September from Albert Whitman. What a great book to read alongside THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT.
The takeaway: if your classroom is reading a classic work of literature with students, check your library to see if a picture book biography is available about the author. PB bios and classic children’s books are always better together.
If you have other great pairings, please share them in the comments. I’ll add them to the Pinterest Board I’ve started.
Teachers and librarians, I’m now booking free 15-minute Skype visits for World Read Aloud Day on Feb. 5, 2020! My schedule, along with those of 50+ other creators, is available on author Kate Messner’s website.
To book, just send me an email at creatingcuriouskids [at] gmail [dot] com with the following information:
1. What’s your name and where do you teach? Please include your school, city, and time zone.
2. What are ALL the time slots that would work for you, based upon my availability on Kate’s site? I will certainly try to meet your first choice, but the more flexible you are, the more likely it is that I’ll be able to accommodate your request. Please note that once your visit is scheduled, I may not be able to reschedule.
3. How many students will I be Skyping with, and what grade(s) will be included?
4. What book(s) will the students have read before our Skype visit? This is not required for WRAD (which involves reading my books aloud, of course) but students tend to have a better experience if they are familiar with my books in advance and brainstorm questions. You can find a full list of my books on my website.
5. What is your username on Skype? If you do not have a username yet please go to the Skype website, sign up for an account, and get a username before you email me.
6. Please provide a classroom or cell phone number where you can be reached on the day of our scheduled visit in case of technical difficulties.
If Feb. 5 doesn’t work for you, remember I’m offering free,15-minute Skype visits for classrooms and libraries who have read WOOD, WIRE, WINGS: EMMA LILIAN TODD INVENTS AN AIRPLANE with their students after its release on Feb. 25 (through May 31).
Want to make sure you don’t miss release day? Mark the book “to read” on Goodreads, and you’ll get an email when it releases. Or preorder at your store of choice. Need one more nudge? Below is a picture of a recent Skype I did with fourth-graders in Tulare, California.
ICYMI: Blog Roundup
How do authors leave “fingerprints” all over their work? Check out my discussion of author voice and point of view in this #STEMTuesday post.
In just four months, WOOD, WIRE, WINGS will be out in the world. I’m celebrating the final countdown by offering four months of free, 15-minute Skype visits to teachers and librarians who read my book with their students.
Here’s the fine print: Once the book releases February 25, 2020, read and discuss the book with your kids. Then reach out to me at creatingcurioukids@gmail.com or through my website to schedule a virtual, 15-minute visit with your classroom or library. I can FaceTime and Google Hangout too. Virtual visits must take place between February and May 2020.
Want to make sure you don’t miss the release day? Mark WOOD, WIRE, WINGS “to read” on Goodreads, and you’ll get an email when it releases. Or preorder at your store of choice.
I’ll have an educator’s guide available in February chock full of ideas for using my book in your classroom or storytime.
As part of my writing process, I read dozens of books by other nonfiction authors. When I read, I make notes about the craft choices authors make in terms of voice, structure, POV, and other unique elements that add up to amazing books. I recently decided to share my notes (in a searchable format), so teachers and fellow writers can see what I find new and noteworthy. Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
Book: Look! I Wrote a Book! (And You Can Too!)
Author: Sally Lloyd-Jones
Illustrator: Neal Layton
Publication Info.: Schwartz& Wade, July 23,2019
Ages/Grades: ages 4 to 8 (or aspiring authors of all ages)
Categories: second-person POV, expository nonfiction, how-to structure
First lines: “When you want to write a book, first you need a Good Idea.”
Overview (from the publisher): “Want to write a book? Well, the spunky, know-it-all narrator of this side-splitting story can tell you just how to do it. She walks readers through the whole process, from deciding what to write about (like dump trucks or The Olden Days) to writing a story that doesn’t put everyone to sleep and getting people to buy your book (tips: be nice, give them cookies, and if all else fails, tie them to a chair).”
After reading this book, I’m left wondering why I have shelves and shelves of “how-to-write” books with hundreds of pages. All I need is Look! I Wrote a Book! Lloyd-Jones and Layton have crafted a concise, hilarious, yet so-helpful how-to book for beginning students and aspiring grown-up writers alike. Lloyd-Jones helps readers assess their ideas, figure out their audience, plot, draft, revise, and even create titles (my weakness for sure).
For aspiring nonfiction authors, this book is a wonderful example of the less-used “how-to” expository text structure. Paired with a second-person POV, the reader is left thinking “sure I can write a book.”
Additional resources for authors, educators, and parents:
As part of my writing process, I read dozens of books by other nonfiction authors. When I read, I make notes about the craft choices authors make in terms of voice, structure, POV, and other unique elements that add up to amazing books. I recently decided to share my notes (in a searchable format), so teachers and fellow writers can see what I find new and noteworthy. Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
Book: DANCING HANDS: How Teresa Carreño Played the Piano for President Lincoln
Author: Margarita Engle
Illustrator: Rafael Lopez
Publication Info.: Atheneum Books for Young Readers (August 27, 2019)
Ages/Grades: four to eight years (preschool and up)
Categories: third-person POV, narrative nonfiction, biography, interiority, heart
First lines: “When Teresa was a little girl in Venezuela, Mama sang lullabies while Papa showed Teresita how to let her happy hands dance across all the beautiful dark and light keys of a piano.”
Overview (from the publisher): “As a little girl, Teresa Carreño loved to let her hands dance across the beautiful keys of the piano. If she felt sad, music cheered her up, and when she was happy, the piano helped her share that joy. Soon she was writing her own songs and performing in grand cathedrals. Then a revolution in Venezuela forced her family to flee to the United States. Teresa felt lonely in this unfamiliar place, where few of the people she met spoke Spanish. Worst of all, there was fighting in her new home, too—the Civil War.
Still, Teresa kept playing, and soon she grew famous as the talented Piano Girl who could play anything from a folk song to a sonata. So famous, in fact, that President Abraham Lincoln wanted her to play at the White House! Yet with the country torn apart by war, could Teresa’s music bring comfort to those who needed it most?”
This book arrived at the perfect time in my writing journey. In my current picture book draft, I’m struggling to remember to focus on the main character’s internal journey, to slow down and share not just facts, but feelings. Engle does an excellent job of tracking Teresa’s emotional journey in this book. Here’s an example: “Poor Abraham Lincoln! Teresa hoped she could entertain the president, his grieving wife, and their two surviving sons. …But Teresa was brave, and she believed in trying her best…” Engle shares not only Tersa’s internal thoughts (“Poor Abraham Lincoln!”) but her feelings too, with words like “hoped,” “believed,” “remembered” and so on. This is such a wonderful reminder of what a picture book biography is about: a person, not just a plot.
Another element I admire about this book is how Engle elegantly shows why studying music matters. In this case, Teresa’s song comforts — for just a moment — a grieving family. What a beautiful testament to why the arts are important in daily life.
Additional resources for authors, educators, and parents:
