Sarah (00:05):
You’ve got episode 223 of the Read-Aloud Revival podcast. I’m your host, Sarah Mackenzie. Every year, the Read-Aloud Revival team watches the American Library Association’s Youth Media Awards together. This is the award show where the medals that are considered the most prestigious in children’s publishing are given.
(00:28):
Today, we want to talk about the winners that were announced on January 30, 2023. We’re going to talk about the books we were delighted to see honored, as well as some of the books we think should have been honored because you know we have opinions about that. The team is here. Kortney Garrison, our community director, and Kara Anderson, our creative director. Welcome back to this side of the show, ladies.
Kortney (00:54):
Thank you so much for having us back.
Kara (00:56):
Hey, there. I’m excited to chat books with you all today.
Sarah (01:01):
We actually have a pretty exciting announcement ourselves. We have a brand new member of the Read-Aloud Revival team to introduce to you today. Harmony Harkema is our new managing editor at both Read-Aloud Revival and Waxwing Books.
(01:17):
She comes to us from Zondervan, which is actually the publisher of my book, The Read-Aloud Family. Actually, this is really fun, Harmony and I worked together on that book. She copyedited for Zondervan back in, I think it was 2017? Well, it came out in 2018, so we must have been editing in 2017. We are just delighted to have her with us here at Read-Aloud Revival and Waxwing.
(01:39):
She’s a homeschooling mama of two girls and she brings tons of publishing expertise and a love of children’s books and home education with her. Harmony, you are going to fit right in around here. We are so glad to have you on the team with us.
Harmony (01:53):
Oh, and I’m so excited to be here. It’s just like a dream come true for me to be doing this. I’ve been a listener of Read-Aloud Revival for a long time and a member. So, to come on board and help grow Read-Aloud Revival and Waxwing, and to also be able to serve people who are homeschooling, because that’s really close to my heart, is a big deal for me.
Sarah (02:13):
Well, like I said, we’re just totally delighted to have you with us, and it was really fun to have you watching with us. We did a live watch of the ALA Awards. It was fun to have you join us for that.
Harmony (02:22):
It was a lot of fun.
Kortney (02:23):
Was that your first day, Harmony?
Harmony (02:26):
It was my second Monday, my first… Second Monday, so second week.
Sarah (02:32):
It starts really early for us, but it wasn’t so early for you, but I’m glad that you could be with us.
Harmony (02:38):
It was a lot of fun. I’ve never actually watched the awards before, so it was a good experience.
Sarah (02:45):
They’re fast, right?
Harmony (02:46):
They’re really fast.
Sarah (02:47):
Every year, I think, why do they do this so fast? But there’s a lot of awards to get through.
Harmony (02:51):
It’s true.
Kortney (02:53):
Let’s dive in. Every year the American Library Association awards the Caldecott Medal for best artwork in a children’s book and the Newbery for the best writing. Additionally, a number of books win Caldecott and Newbery honors, but some years there’s one honor book and other years there are lots.
Kara (03:09):
The Youth Media Awards also honor a variety of other books, including the Pura Belpre, the Sibert Award for best nonfiction, the Alex Award for a book written for adults that reads well for teens, the Odyssey for best audiobook, the Coretta Scott King Award for books written or illustrated by black creators and more. I think there are 23 awards, and it took only an hour for them to get through them all.
Kortney (03:33):
As you were listing them off.
Kara (03:34):
I got whiplash.
Kortney (03:35):
Yeah, as you were listing them off, I kept thinking of more books I wanted to talk about like, oh, the Odyssey Award, oh. There’s a list of all of the winners available online and we will link to those in the show notes. Today we’re just going to highlight a few books that we’re happy won and a few other books that we wish would have won. We’re going to keep ourselves reigned in here.
Sarah (03:58):
That was a directive to me, everybody.
Harmony (04:00):
No, I think it was for me.
Kara (04:01):
Are you sure?
Kortney (04:04):
Did you hear that Mac Barnett that won the Odyssey Award? Because it’s really great.
Kara (04:10):
You told me to listen to it and I meant to do it before we recorded today and I forgot to do it. Now I’m going to have to do it on my way home today. I’m going to have to go listen to it.
Kortney (04:17):
Three Billy Goats Gruff read by Mac Barnett. It’s fabulous. One thing to keep in mind is that there aren’t shortlists for these awards. Every children’s book published in 2022 by an author or illustrator who lives in the U.S. is eligible. That means there are thousands of books to be considered. It is a huge field and worthy books get overlooked every year.
Sarah (04:40):
We all know I have opinions today and you’re going to hear them. But the best example I can think of, of this idea that books get… Really good books get overlooked or maybe don’t win the award or whatever is 1952.
(04:53):
Charlotte’s Web was published, Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White. Charlotte’s Web is very often named as the gold standard in children’s publishing. If you’re taking middle grade writing classes or any kind of publishing class, at some point someone’s going to mention the genius of Charlotte’s Web. It’s so interesting. It did not win the Newbery medal in 1952. It did win an honor, but a different book, well, actually do any of you know the book that won the Newbery in 1952?
Harmony (05:25):
I don’t.
Kortney (05:27):
Nope.
Kara (05:29):
I do, because I couldn’t follow the rules and I looked it up.
Sarah (05:35):
I told them, “Don’t look it up. Don’t look it up.” Oh, the Secret of the Andes. The Secret of the Andes, which I’ve never read.
Harmony (05:43):
No.
Sarah (05:43):
I don’t ever hear about. It’s probably a great book. It probably is.
Harmony (05:49):
It is a great book. We read it last year. We read it for Early American History and it was a great book. Lily and I both loved it, my 10-year-old.
Sarah (06:00):
Oh, good to know.
Harmony (06:00):
Yeah.
Sarah (06:01):
Yes.
Harmony (06:02):
But I did not know it won a Newbery. I had no idea until you just said that.
Sarah (06:06):
Oh, that’s so funny. Yes. It won a Newbery and it even beat out Charlotte’s Web because Charlotte’s Web won an honor which, of course, an honor is a big deal. But it’s just interesting that sometimes our favorite books don’t get chosen or selected.
(06:21):
But this brings us to another idea that’s worth considering, which is one of the reasons why the awards were established in the first place. And that’s to help books get front and center that might not otherwise really be noticed or get very much traction.
(06:38):
It can make a big difference because once an author or illustrator has won an award or an honor, we often see them drop off the awards. Well, especially if they’ve won a couple or a few.
(06:51):
This happened, for example, Kate DiCamillo won several Newberys, I don’t know, three Newbery Awards, I think, is what she ended up taking home. Then we haven’t seen her be honored at the ALA Awards since then, the Youth Media Awards since, in the last handful of years. I don’t think that’s because their work has changed. This happens for a lot of illustrators and authors who win a lot.
(07:13):
Technically, the committees who are choosing these awards, they’re not supposed to take any previous wins into consideration. Interestingly, I just heard the other day, they’re not even supposed to take whether or not it’s appealing to kids into consideration. That’s not one of their things that they’re considering, which I thought doesn’t make any sense.
Harmony (07:32):
What?
Sarah (07:32):
Yeah, no, I don’t make the rules. But, apparently, they’re not supposed to take into consideration whether it’s really appealing to kids. It’s just the art form on its own. Anyway, they’re not supposed to take in these previous wins from authors or illustrators but, of course, they do.
Harmony (07:47):
Right, right.
Sarah (07:47):
Of course, they know. You can’t not know Kate DiCamillo, for example, has taken home three Newbery awards. But, really, if we think about an underlying goal as giving books that might otherwise slide under the radar, their spot in the sun, then this makes sense.
(08:03):
It makes sense because what I think should have been at least honored this year did not even get mentioned. We’ll get into it. Just give me a minute. I’m going to let some steam roll off and then I’ll come back and talk about it. Yes, yes. We will get into it.
(08:23):
We shouldn’t gloss over how important these awards can be in the lives of the book creators, especially in the case of the Newbery. In Caldecott, winning one of these awards can change an author or illustrator’s life.
(08:36):
In fact, in RAR Premium, we talked to Philip and Erin Stead who won the Caldecott in 2011 for A Sick Day for Amos McGee. They told us just what winning the Caldecott did for them. Let’s listen to them talk about it.
Erin Stead (08:50):
I wasn’t really expecting it to happen. When it happened was 10 years ago, so the way information moved was different. I got a real phone call and then no one else knew for hours, which isn’t how it works anymore. It completely changed everything in my life. When Amos was first published, they printed 1,000 copies.
Sarah (09:16):
Oh, gosh.
Erin Stead (09:17):
It just kind of became this Little Engine That Could book where really, quietly people started to like it. We were all warned in the beginning when I was making it, this is a really quiet book. No one’s going to read it.
Philip Stead (09:32):
It doesn’t have any children-
Erin Stead (09:33):
It doesn’t have any children.
Philip Stead (09:33):
In the book which, at the time that we made it and maybe still today, was seen as a reason why nobody would want to buy it and take it home.
Erin Stead (09:41):
What happens after the Caldecott in many instances is that the book goes and lives its own life, a long life, which doesn’t always happen with books. We were able to travel all over the world because of that book. It was a really interesting period of time. You get a real medal because a lot of times kids ask me, and I didn’t know this until I won it, but you do get a real medal.
Sarah (10:07):
Is it heavy?
Erin Stead (10:08):
Kind of, yeah, but it’s not attached-
Sarah (10:11):
What do you do with it?
Erin Stead (10:12):
Since it was my first book, I had to kind of put it away and just keep working. I’ll look at it later.
Sarah (10:18):
Can you believe it was Erin’s first book?
Harmony (10:21):
Yeah, that’s-
Sarah (10:21):
And she won a Caldecott?
Harmony (10:21):
That’s incredible. Yeah.
Sarah (10:24):
When they were talking, if you could see her face, we have a video of it, but you can only hear the audio. Her face just it filled up with so much emotion when she said how much it changed their life. It was beautiful.
(10:39):
Changes the trajectory ongoing. So all these future years of making books for kids. That’s beautiful. Okay, so let’s talk about some books that won this year that we’re excited about. Who wants to go first?
Kortney (10:51):
I’m going first because I have got a humdinger. American Murderer: The Parasite That Haunted the South by Gail Jarrow won the YALSA award for excellence in nonfiction for young adults. Murderer and parasite in one sentence.
Sarah (11:07):
Yeah, explain yourself, please.
Kortney (11:09):
I’m sure that’s the first time this has ever happened on this podcast. We’re going to hear about it. No. So this is a nonfiction book about hookworms. Stay with me here.
Sarah (11:20):
Beautiful.
Kortney (11:20):
Yeah, these are tiny parasites picked up from poor sanitation, causes the sufferers to be listless and lethargic. The effects of this disease are just absolutely devastating. Kids can’t concentrate at school, so they drop out. Parents can’t have… They have no energy for work so they’re destitute. And all along there was a simple, effective treatment that existed.
(11:44):
In just a couple of weeks, the whole course of the disease could be changed and kids would start growing and could learn. Moms and dads could have jobs. It was just crazy how quickly the transformation happens.
(11:57):
In the book, there are photographs that show, just weeks apart, photographs that you would not recognize these children. But, first, the doctors had to convince people that this was actually something that should be treated or could be treated.
(12:12):
Gail Jarrow’s impeccably researched book gives readers an excellent sense of the devastation caused by hookworms in The South at the turn of the 20th century. This is a not to be missed book.
Sarah (12:24):
What ages do you think this one’s good for?
Kortney (12:27):
There’s nothing in it… It is, obviously, it’s a serious subject and there are photographs but it’s not explicit or graphic. I would say middle school and up. But it is, like I said, there are an extensive bibliography and an index.
Sarah (12:44):
This is not a read in one sitting kind of book, right? This is longer?
Kortney (12:49):
It’s not. Because there are so many photographs and so much back matter notes and index, it’s not super long. It’s not a long read. But, yeah, it’ll take… It would be great for a high schooler to read.
Sarah (13:03):
Okay. American Murderer: The Parasite That Haunted the South. I do believe that may be the first murderer or parasite book we’re adding to our book list.
Kortney (13:15):
When you see the cover in my book table, you’re going to really just be shaking your head at me.
Sarah (13:22):
What has Kortney done to my beautiful show notes?
Kortney (13:25):
I know, I apologize. But really don’t judge this book by its cover. Please check it out.
Sarah (13:31):
Harmony, what were you excited to see honored?
Harmony (13:34):
My choice was completely different from Kortney’s.
Sarah (13:38):
What do you know?
Harmony (13:41):
The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat was a Newbery Honor Book, runner up for the Newbery Medal. This was actually her second Newbery Honor, so I thought that was interesting. She was honored previously for a book called A Wish in the Dark, which I haven’t read.
(13:57):
But The Last Mapmaker was a fantasy. The main character is an assistant to a mapmaker in her world and her father is a con man. So she is worried about being exposed and she volunteers for a journey on a ship to map the seas, the southern seas, and to help draw the charts for it. It’s fantasy and really different. Probably fans of… Of course, I was thinking of Voyage of the Dawn Treader as we were…
Sarah (14:33):
Yeah. It’s got some… Is it influenced by Thai mythology or something I thought I had read? I might be getting that-
Harmony (14:41):
Yes. And it’s… There was something I read maybe on Booklist or something like that about how it was inspired, like a presumed Asian cast of characters. It does have that sort of flare and edge to it, but it has that just sense of adventure. I don’t want to give spoilers.
Sarah (15:02):
Janssen Bradshaw from Everyday Reading had recommended this to me at some point in the last year. As she said, it was one of her kids’ favorite Read-Alouds of the year. I still haven’t read it but it’s been on my list. I think the author actually won nonfiction award last year. I’m pretty sure she’s the one who wrote All Thirteen, right?
Harmony (15:18):
Yes, yes, she did.
Sarah (15:19):
About the soccer team. Yeah. She could write anything at this point, I’m thinking.
Harmony (15:23):
No, I totally agree. Across genres.
Sarah (15:25):
Yeah. Amazing. Well, I want to talk about the Caldecott winner, Hot Dog, by Doug Salati. Every time I read this book, I love it a little bit more. I have to tell you, at first glance, you pick up this picture book and it is just breezy and fun, summery book.
(15:41):
It’s about a dog who’s too hot in the city and he wants a break. So he and his owner leave the city to go for a day at the beach. The first time you read it, you’re going to be like, “That’s a cute book. Why did it win the Caldecott?”
(15:53):
Then I would encourage you to go back and look at it again because there is so much more going on here that meets the eye. Interestingly enough, I had seen it on some list of books that could possibly take home the Caldecott, so I had gotten my hands on it and I didn’t spend enough time with it.
(16:12):
So beforehand I was like, “Oh, that’s really a sweet book and I’m sure there’s more here that I’m not seeing.” Then after it won, I immediately was like, “Okay, I’m going to go look.” I think I’ve read it four more times since then. My kids have been reading it nonstop since then.
(16:25):
If you compare, for example, this is just an example, I could sit here and probably talk about this book all day long. We’re going to have to probably do it for a Family Book Club guide because I’m like, I have so many ideas for this book.
(16:35):
But if you were to compare a spread from the city where the dog and his owner are in a city, to a spread from the beach, you’re going to see some really sophisticated illustrative techniques the author does to do a story, or the illustrator has done to do so much storytelling.
(16:50):
For the city scenes, the book is laid out in panels, kind of like a graphic novel in parts. But the panels in the city, they’re vertical. They’re really, really tight and they have a solid black edge all the way around.
(17:04):
Then all of the illustrations are done in these warm colors like oranges and yellows and bright red. So you’re reading these books and they just feel crowded. There’s too much stuffed into each panel. The panels are too close together, so you feel hot and crowded. Reading the book you just feel claustrophobic.
(17:21):
You’re looking at these pictures and you’re like, “I want out of this city, too.” There’s stinky garbage coming up out on the sidewalk and it’s just terrible. You just want out. Then you travel to the beach and we can contrast that with the panels on the beach pages. They’re long horizontal.
(17:40):
The book itself is almost a square, so there’s quite a lot of room there for the illustrator to play with the composition of the panels. But the panels are long and they fade out. There’s no black border around them. They fade into the white of the rest of the book. They’re like cool colors, blues and greens and whites. The dog’s fur is whipping in the wind. It’s just absolutely, it makes you feel exactly how… Very immersive. It’s very immersive. Just the composition alone.
(18:13):
Anyway. Then just yesterday or the day before, I was looking at it just for the text because I had spent so much time looking at the illustrations. Because that’s what the Caldecott really is awarded for are the illustrations.
(18:24):
I’m looking just at the text, trying not to look at the illustration and realizing what an alliterative joy this book is to read aloud. There’s so many things going on here that we really… You just have to look for them because he wove them in together so beautifully that you don’t notice that they’re there, so that’s really cool.
(18:46):
Then I have to tell you, also, that Doug Salati, this author illustrator who won for this, he’s fairly new on the scene. Tomie dePaola who, of course, we love, he first saw Doug Salati’s work at, I think, the Maurice Sendak Fellowship, which is a thing for illustrators to get trained and practice their craft.
(19:11):
Tomie picked him out and was like, “His art style, I love his art style. It’s very unique. It’s very distinctive.” There was a book that Tomie wrote that he didn’t want to illustrate. He didn’t think his illustrations were the right fit for, it’s called In a Small Kingdom, and he picked Doug Salati to illustrate it, so that was Doug’s first book.
(19:30):
Then Doug illustrated a second book, but this third one is his first authored one. It just came on the scene with all the beautiful bluster that a book about a hot dog who needs the beach could do. Then I actually really think it’s fun because this is a book that I think kids would really like.
(19:50):
Like I said, that might not be what the Caldecott committee is looking for. But a lot of times books that are awarded at the Youth Media Awards, they don’t strike me as books that kids would be clamoring for. Sometimes they are but not always.
(20:04):
Last year there was a book that was honored called Mel Fell by Corey Tabor that was just spectacular. It was so fun and funny and I was delighted to see it honored because there was a lot of artistic sophistication in this seemingly simple picture book. But you can hand that to any kid and they’re just going to love that book, so I love to see it honored.
(20:24):
I felt like that with Hot Dog. I felt like this is a really good example of a book that has so much going on that you have to really look for if you want to. But also you could just hand to a three-year-old or a five-year-old or, in my case, 9- and 10-year-olds and they’ll just be hooting and laughing and looking back again at the dog’s expression.
(20:44):
The relationship between the dog and the owner is fabulous, I feel. They don’t talk to each other, obviously they don’t. But there’s so much happens between them just with the expressions on their faces and how they relate to each other.
Harmony (20:58):
Yeah. The expressions in their faces, especially as they’re crossing the city street when the dog just decides he’s not walking anymore. He will not cross. Then you look at their expressions and you feel every mother reading this book to her kids is going to be like, I know what you feel like right now, lady.
Sarah (21:16):
Oh, okay, Kara, what about you? What’s something that you loved that was honored at the awards?
Kara (21:20):
Okay, can I cheat? Can I talk about a person-
Sarah (21:23):
Always cheating.
Kortney (21:24):
This is the second cheat in one podcast.
Kara (21:27):
I know, I’m going rogue. I don’t know what’s going on with me tonight. I’m sorry. But I want to talk about James Ransome.
Sarah (21:33):
Oh, good.
Kara (21:34):
Who has been at Read-Aloud Revival with his wife, Lesa Cline-Ransome. He won the Children’s Literature Legacy Award this year. This award honors an author or illustrator published in the United States whose books have made a significant and lasting contribution to literature for children. Right away I put some of his books on hold and my daughter and I spent this weekend immersed in them and, oh, my, is he ever talented. Which we knew that, right?
Sarah (22:09):
Right, right.
Kara (22:11):
But then when you’re flipping through book after book of his, you can just see he is such an incredible illustrator. People listening probably know some of his works. A lot of them are in our Read-Aloud Revival biography book list, which we can link to in the show notes.
(22:28):
He illustrated Before She was Harriet, My Name is Truth and Uncle Jed’s Barbershop. But, I think, in going through all the books this weekend, the one that grabbed us the most as far as illustrations, it was kind of unexpected. It was Satchel Paige, which was written by his wife, Lesa. Those illustrations just have so much feeling. I’m not even a baseball person but-
Sarah (22:58):
That’s putting it mildly, I think.
Kortney (23:02):
I think you’ve been known to read novels at-
Sarah (23:03):
Yes. At professional baseball games?
Kara (23:06):
Yeah. Who brought a book to a professional baseball game. That’s true. That’s true. So I’m not much of a baseball person, but the illustrations. They pull you in with so much feeling, so I’m thrilled he won.
Sarah (23:17):
Yes.
Kara (23:18):
Also, Sarah, can he and Lesa come back? Because do you remember their conversation that day at Read-Aloud Revival?
Sarah (23:23):
Oh, my goodness. Yeah.
Kara (23:23):
It was so delightful.
Sarah (23:25):
Yes. It really was. Seeing them interact with each other was completely delightful. I love it when we have husband and wife teams on. It’s so fun to see them.
Kara (23:34):
Yeah. They were so much fun.
Sarah (23:45):
Well, I want to talk about the one, the one book that I cannot believe was not even mentioned. I think it’s the best picture book to be released in at least a handful of years that I’ve seen, out of all the picture books that I’ve seen.
(24:01):
I am talking about Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall. We are definitely going to do this book in RAR Premium for our Family Book Club very soon. It’s just stunning. The text is flawless. The illustrations are, they’re layered and very exceptional. I heard Sophie talk on the Yarn podcast a little bit about making this book. Just listen in to just this clip and see what you think.
Sophie Blackall (24:28):
As we see scene after scene in different rooms of the house, it takes a few pages, I think, before you begin to realize what’s going on. But they are all connected and then, eventually, without giving it all away, but I’m about to give it all away, having seen glimpses of this house throughout the book, you pull back to see the entire house. It’s a cutaway with all of the rooms and everything that we’ve seen happening in those rooms with the children in slightly different ages, is one giant piece of art.
(25:04):
When I made it, I made it as one giant piece of art. So it took up, I had to build it in Upstate in the farmhouse where we had space to do this. I used all of these materials that I had gathered in the falling down house.
(25:24):
Some of the fabric from the dresses and the wallpaper and the rain soaked school books that the kids had owned and brittle leaves and all of these things, I actually used in the art. It was a way of honoring those things and preserving those things and transforming them and giving them a new life, which felt so incredibly satisfying and rewarding and exciting. It took the art in a completely different direction. I didn’t set out to think that I would actually use the materials in that way. But then once I did, it was thrilling.
Sarah (26:08):
The book is based on a real family in an actual farmhouse where Sophie salvaged artifacts, and she collected facts as she made this book. When you know that she was actually assembling this farmhouse in her house out of… Like how big this piece of art was that they had to figure out some way to fit into a little picture book, it’s just magic. I just… I was…
(26:36):
Then I heard her talking about how she wrote the text of it on this long winding road. Listening to her, she basically wrote the book saying it out loud to herself, then going back and repeating the lines to herself again.
Kortney (26:49):
Wow.
Sarah (26:50):
It’s just magic. Anyway, I think going back to what we were talking about at the beginning of this episode, if the goal of the awards is to let a book that could slide under the radar have its moment in the sun, I think this book wasn’t honored because it wasn’t going to slide under any radars.
(27:06):
Sophie herself, she’s won a couple of Caldecotts before for Finding Winnie and for Hello Lighthouse. She’s well-known. She’s very beloved and her books get around. She’s sort of a master of the picture book. I think this is her best work yet in my very, very humble opinion, of course.
Kara (27:26):
I adore Hello Lighthouse. I just love that book. So as you’re putting books on hold at the library as you’re listening to this episode, just go ahead and throw that one in the cart, too.
Harmony (27:37):
That’s one of the most read story books in our house for sure, Hello Lighthouse and now Farmhouse, too. But, yeah, Hello Lighthouse has been asked for again and again by my girls. They never get tired of it.
Kortney (27:50):
I think you said that you liked the case side on this one, Harmony, and my ears perked up because I didn’t know what that word even meant. Can you tell us about that?
Harmony (27:58):
Yes. This is what happens coming out of publishing, right? Publisher lingo. The case side is the smooth, printed, hard cover cover of the book. Sometimes it’s covered by a paper dust jacket, which is often the case with children’s picture books and sometimes it’s not.
(28:16):
If you have some cookbooks in your home library, a lot of those are printed case sides. They have just a smooth printed cover, no dust jacket. Most adult and YA fiction and nonfiction hard covers have what we call a one-piece case or a three-piece case that’s like matte paper. If you look under a dust jacket you’ll know what I’m talking about and that’ll make sense to you, probably.
(28:38):
But most children’s picture books, the case side, under the dust jacket, will match the dust jacket. Sort of like my sister actually throws away her dust jackets and I’m like, what do you mean you throw away your dust jackets? It’s like sacrilege to me.
(28:52):
But if they match, she’s like, what do I need this dust jacket for? The kids just tear it up. No big deal, so she pitches them. But Farmhouse underneath it’s like a little surprise. There is a different illustration. It’s actually one of the illustrations from inside the book, but it’s expanded a little bit.
(29:12):
So if you take off that dust jacket and, of course, if you get a book from the library, you probably won’t be able to. But if you have a copier, you hop into the bookstore and take a look at it, take that dust jacket off and see what’s underneath. I always feel like there’s just an extra layer of thought and intention that goes on when that happens. I love… I always take off the dust jacket to find out what’s underneath.
Sarah (29:36):
I think one of the books I love that has a different case side is Home in the Woods by Eliza Wheeler.
Kortney (29:42):
Home in the Woods by Wheeler.
Sarah (29:42):
Yeah, yeah. It’s like a different season underneath there. Although, I do find in my house, I do sort of like I’m happy when the case side matches the dust jacket only because my kids are like gremlins and destroy dust jackets. Then it feels like I know what it is because it’s like going to go on my shelf probably without the dust jacket.
(30:02):
I did hear, though, from somebody recently that she saves her dust jackets and uses them as gift wrap. I was like, that is a fun idea. Except that maybe would the kid be sad if the book wasn’t inside? I don’t know, is that just me? I don’t know.
Harmony (30:17):
I will confess that I have a big stack of dust jackets on a shelf in my closet in my office because I can’t bring myself to get rid of them or do anything else with them and I don’t want them to get torn up.
(30:30):
When we come home with a book with a dust jacket on, I take the dust jacket and run away with it and my kids are like, “Mom, what do you do that for?” “I don’t want you to wreck the dust jacket.” I want a rabbit trail, too, because this is one of my favorites.
(30:43):
A recent mama book club at RAR Premium was Mitali Perkins’ Steeped in Stories. If you have not pulled the dust jacket off of that book, it does have a one piece case. But it also has a lovely surprise underneath and I won’t say what it is. But if you have not looked under that dust jacket, you definitely should.
Kara (31:04):
Okay, wait. I’m going to… You said one-piece case and you said three-piece case.
Harmony (31:09):
Yes.
Kara (31:09):
What’s the difference?
Harmony (31:11):
A one-piece case is where it’s one single piece of paper that wraps around the cover. The three-piece is where it’ll be two tone. The spine will have a separate color of paper and it’ll be like a seam. Maybe the front cover and the back cover are blue and then the spine is in white. It’s like they used three pieces of paper to wrap the cover. Everybody’s going to listen to this and start pawing through their libraries and taking off dust jackets to see what I’m talking about, right?
Sarah (31:40):
Yeah. Now, you all know why we brought Harmony into our team, too. Because we’re making books.
Harmony (31:43):
I’m always looking for stamping and embossing and what did they do under this dust jacket? It’s book nerd stuff, right?
Sarah (31:49):
Yeah. Well, you’re talking to the right people here, really.
Kortney (31:52):
We like nerd stuff.
Kara (31:55):
So you know how I just said with Hello Lighthouse, I love it so much and it’s because it makes me want to move into a lighthouse reading it. I just, there’s something so inviting and cozy about that book.
(32:09):
I felt that same thing when I first saw the book Snow Horses written by Patricia MacLachlan and illustrated by Micha Archer. I wanted to go to the place they had created together. It’s like how I felt the first time I saw Prairie Days, that is also the same team, Patricia MacLachlan and Micha Archer. I wanted to move into that book and live there for a while. At first I thought, oh, Snow Horses. I really wish Snow Horses would’ve gotten some attention at the awards.
Harmony (32:40):
Me, too.
Kara (32:42):
But then I was reminded about a book that we talked about in our recent nature study book list episode called The Longest Journey: An Arctic Tern’s Migration by Amy Hevron. I realized it is such a well-researched book. It’s so well-written and illustrated. The back matter is so rich.
(33:04):
Plus the ALA actually honors the most distinguished informational book published in the United States in English during the preceding year with the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal. I was thinking, okay, this should have been there, right? But, alas, it was not.
Harmony (33:20):
Alas.
Kara (33:21):
Alas.
Sarah (33:22):
Yeah. Snow Horses was one that I was definitely hoping to see honor. But I think maybe, Kortney, you might have been the one that had mentioned to me, I don’t know. It’s about First Night and sometimes a book that’s very seasonal is I think a little bit harder, a harder sell. Although they do happen. Snowflake Bentley won a Caldecott and that one’s very wintry, right?
Kortney (33:42):
Well, and if you want to celebrate Snow Horses, we do have a Family Book Club.
Sarah (33:46):
We do.
Kortney (33:47):
In our Premium where we dove really deep into that book and the same with Prairie Days. We’re honoring them in our own way over here.
Sarah (33:57):
Oh, absolutely. Yeah. Oh, man. And watching, because we had Micha come to Premium and she showed us all around her studio and all the super cool little tools and trinkets she uses to make her collages and make her paper is, yeah, it was very fun. It was very-
Harmony (34:13):
It’s incredible.
Sarah (34:16):
Yeah. Snow Horses is actually a book that I prefer the case side to the actual dust jacket cover. I think the case side should have been the cover picture.
Kara (34:25):
Okay. Now I’m going to have to go look, because I don’t remember what the case side looks like. I don’t know if I looked.
Sarah (34:28):
Did you see me just the new lingo that I learned?
Harmony (34:33):
Okay. So let’s talk about some books that we wish had gotten at least onto the list besides Farmhouse. I will say I’m totally with Sarah about Farmhouse. I think that’s the best picture book that I’ve seen in a long time. I was really disappointed to see it overlooked.
(34:49):
We were, my girls and I, were sure that we were going to see that get something for the Caldecott. But that one aside, we read a lot of middle grade fiction in my house right now, and we love fantasy. We love stories about families and friends.
(35:05):
So our top picks in new releases this past year were The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill. Kelly Barnhill also wrote The Girl Who Drank the Moon, which was super popular a few years back. Then A Duet for Home by Karina Yan Glaser who wrote The Vanderbeekers series.
(35:24):
Both of those were really, I know. Both of those were really heartwarming stories with lots of truth, goodness, and beauty elements, and we really loved them. They were no-brainers for us. If we were giving awards, those two would’ve definitely been on our list.
Kara (35:38):
I read Duet for Home, big Karina Yan Glaser fan myself. You all know this, I’m sure. The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill I got from the library and then just didn’t get around to it before I needed to return it. So hearing you mention it makes me want to go back and get it again.
Harmony (35:52):
It’s a bit long.
Kara (35:54):
I know. That might’ve been why I didn’t get to it.
Harmony (35:55):
Wait, that was the wrong thing to say. It was a great book.
Kortney (35:59):
Can you tell me, you said that you like fantasy at your house, Harmony.
Harmony (36:03):
Mm-hmm.
Kortney (36:04):
But is A Duet for Home, is it fantasy?
Harmony (36:07):
No, but it’s got strong friendship themes and those… Just the main characters are very lovable. But so we like fantasy and we like friendship and family stories. My girls love the Vanderbeekers. They love the Penderwicks. They love all of those series and it kind of fits in that same middle grade category of strong friendships and family.
(36:31):
It’s on a unique topic. You don’t… One of the main themes, the situation is that this is a family who’s homeless and is living in a shelter. You don’t see that come up in middle grade very often. It allowed for us to talk about some things that we hadn’t had really a window into through literature before. I thought it was really a brave topic for her to write about. It is quite a departure from the Vanderbeekers. It’s a bit different but equally good.
Kara (37:03):
Yeah, I think almost maybe for a very slightly older audience than the Vanderbeekers, maybe?
Harmony (37:10):
Yeah.
Kara (37:11):
But I do see some themes that are consistent. You can see New York.
Harmony (37:17):
Right.
Kara (37:17):
They’re both set in New York. Music plays a big part in both, all the Vanderbeekers’ books and in A Duet for Home. There was something else that I was thinking. Well, I think the topic actually of homelessness, that theme is broached in one of The Vanderbeekers’ books, but it’s more felt. It’s more of a, I don’t know.
Harmony (37:37):
It plays more of a central role.
Kara (37:39):
Yeah, in A Duet for Home.
Harmony (37:40):
In what’s going on.
Kortney (37:42):
Well, Jonathan Rogers says that, “Writing magic happens when you combine two things that seem like they’re unrelated.” He combined swamps and the Bible, and that gave us The Wilderking series. So spectacular.
Harmony (37:57):
I know, I know.
Kortney (37:57):
We use those sorts of ideas once we hear an author say something like that “two unrelated things.” And your… The author is the one who brings those two things together. He had experience of living in the South and of the Bible, so he was the person who was uniquely capable of writing those stories.
(38:17):
The book that I wish would’ve gotten some attention uses that same sort of idea, two things that seem unrelated. The Gardener of Alcatraz, a true story, combines two wildly different elements, prisoners at a maximum security prison and gardening. Not something that you think goes together, right? But this fascinating book tells a story of redemption and of healing. As soon as I opened the book and saw the end papers, I was a goner.
Kara (38:43):
I don’t think I looked… I don’t remember what the end papers were. Oh, it’s at home.
Harmony (38:47):
Oh, it’s so good.
Kara (38:48):
In my room. Okay, okay.
Harmony (38:49):
They’re so good.
Kortney (38:50):
Jen Ely’s illustrations. They use pattern and scale and repetition to show emotions and mood. These are the same science concepts that we learned about in episode 177 of the podcast, Teach your Kids to Think Like a Scientist.
(39:04):
So looking for things like pattern, scale and repetition helps you think like a scientist. This book is just made, these illustrations are made for that sort of thinking. So we will link to that episode in the show notes so you can find it again.
(39:18):
But it’s the back matter that elevates this book to the level of an RAR picture book biography. There’s excellent picture book biographies, and then there’s RAR picture book biographies.
(39:31):
The author, Emma Bland Smith, talks about the tension in the back matter. She talks about the tension of writing about criminals, and she wants to do that with dignity. But to not glorify their crimes, or to make them seem somehow special because of what they’ve done. This book, it touches on civics, on science, on history, and all of these things are tucked inside one delightful picture book.
Kara (39:58):
See, I think the committee needs to start listening to our podcast.
Kortney (40:03):
Maybe they do.
Kara (40:03):
In their spare time, yeah.
Sarah (40:09):
Well, I think, I know I have added a bunch of books to my little notepad here. I think all of our book lists are quite full. Should we go here? What Read-Aloud Revival kids have been reading and loving? Let’s do it. What’s your name?
Noah (40:28):
Noah.
Sarah (40:29):
How old are you?
Noah (40:30):
Two years old.
Sarah (40:33):
Two years old. Where do you live?
Noah (40:35):
In Wisconsin.
Sarah (40:37):
Wisconsin. What’s your favorite book?
Noah (40:40):
The Gruffalo and I’m going to watch it on TV.
Sarah (40:44):
Yeah, we like watching the Gruffalo movie, too. You like the Gruffalo’s child?
Noah (40:48):
Yeah.
Sarah (40:49):
Who’s your favorite animal?
Noah (40:50):
The little one.
Sarah (40:53):
The little one. The Gruffalo’s child?
Noah (40:56):
Yes.
Sarah (40:57):
Good job, buddy. What’s your name?
Wesley (41:00):
My name’s Wesley.
Sarah (41:02):
Wesley. Good. Where are you from?
Wesley (41:05):
Colorado.
Sarah (41:06):
Colorado. What’s your favorite book?
Wesley (41:11):
Playtown Airport because it’s a flap book.
Sarah (41:12):
Playtown Airport, which is a lift-the-flap book.
Brittany (41:15):
Hi, Sarah. My name is Brittany. I’m American, but I typically live and work overseas in West Africa. The book I would like to recommend is called Baby Goes to Market by Atinuke. It’s just very sweet about a little baby in an African market in a fun context.
Gwen (41:31):
Hi, my name is Gwen. I’m eight years old. I’m from Indiana. My favorite book is Black Beauty because I love horses.
Ben (41:39):
Hi, my name is Ben. I’m six, and I live in Indiana. My favorite book is Elephant & Piggie. Why I like this book is sometimes I read as Piggie and sometimes I read as Gerald. Sometimes dad reads as Piggie and sometimes he reads as Gerald and goodbye.
Sarah (42:08):
Thank you. Thank you, kids. Hey, we’ve got links to all of those glorious books that we mentioned in today’s show in the podcast show notes. Those are at readaloudrevival.com/223. We’ll be back in a couple weeks with another episode. In the meantime, you know what to do. Go make meaningful and lasting connections with your kids through books.
(42:37):
So many of us feel overwhelmed in our homeschool. There’s a lot to do, and it feels like every child needs something a little different. The good news is you are the best person on the planet to help your kids learn and grow. Home is the best place to fall in love with books.
(43:04):
I’m Sarah Mackenzie. I’m a homeschooling mother of six, the author of Teaching from Rest and The Read-Aloud Family. I’m the host here on the Read-Aloud Revival podcast. This podcast has been downloaded over eight million times. I think it’s because so many of us want the same things.
(43:24):
We want our kids to be readers, to love reading. We want our homes to be warm and happy havens of learning and connection. We know that raising our kids is the most important work of our lives.
(43:41):
That’s kind of overwhelming, right? You are not alone. In Read-Aloud Revival Premium. We offer Family Book Clubs, a vibrant community and Circle with Sarah, coaching for you, the homeschooling mom, so you can teach from rest, homeschool with confidence, and raise kids who love to read.
(44:05):
Our family book clubs are a game changer for your kids’ relationship with books. We provide you with a Family Book Club guide, and an opportunity for your kids to meet the author or illustrator live on-screen. So all you have to do is get the book, read it with your kids, and make those meaningful and lasting connections. They work for all ages, from your youngest kids to your teens.
(44:33):
Every month our community also gathers online for a Circle with Sarah to get ideas and encouragement around creating the homeschooling life you crave. They’re the most effective way I know to teach from rest and build a homeschool life you love. We want to help your kids fall in love with books, and we want to help you fall in love with homeschooling. Join us today at rarpremium.com.
