United States Board of Books for Youth
dear friends--Where to start? You must trust me on this: I just attended one of the best small conferences I have ever gone to in my 31 years of going to educational conferences!! (Just learn to live with my exclamation points, please). I just can't imagine why I never went to a USBBY conference before!! Well, yes I do know--IT WAS EXPENSIVE!! And it has never been in the Southwest before.
IBBY is the International Board on Books for Youth & you can go to google & get their web site to read all about how they have 60 nations joining together to promote children's literature. USBBY is the United States chapter which held their conference in Tucson last weekend. The conference was limited to 250 participants & the only vendor there was a local book store selling only the IBBY honor books that are biennial awards--1 from each country member for text & 1 for illustration (let me know if you want that list as I have a bookmark with them listed), books of the speakers & the local authors & illustrators who attended Friday night.
Thanks to my principal who let me hit the road Friday early to get to Tucson early enough to check into my hotel, register, & then have time to study the program offerings before the conference started. Dinner with friend Jim Deem & his wife (he writes many nonfiction mummy books & is somewhat of an expert in that field now--glacier mummies is next), then to the opening session at 7PM.
Yuyi (pronounced JuJi) Morales from Mexico though now lives in San Francisco opened the conference with a spirited session about her willingness to stay in her seat & keep working until she produced works she was proud of. She is the illustrator of HARVESTING HOPE by Kathleen Krull--picture book bio of Ceasar Chavez, which I use every year at the end of March for CC's birth date--many students don't know he was born in Yuma AZ. Two years ago I heard Yuyi speak at a conference at the U of A & she was very meek & timid. WELL, she has gained her confidence & since has published 2 books she wrote & illustrated: JUST A MINUTE: A TRICKSTER TALE & COUNTING BOOK and LITTLE NIGHT which is just new. Her presentation included entirely changing her outfit while on stage to show the transformation she has been through. Google her for a great web site.
Sat. morning's session began with a very inspiring talk by Palistinian writer Ibtisam Barakat who now lives in the US in MO. Her book for older students is TASTING THE SKY about her experiences growning up in Ramallah, West Bank. I went to this conference pledging not to buy any books but 1/2 through the talk when the mike failed, I found myself rushing outside to purchase it. The person ahead of me got the last copy & I was OH, so diappointed until I found a colleague willing to drive down to the U of A bookstore with me & purchase it there. You would think Ibtisam would write with hatred for what's happened to her & her homeland, but she doesn't--her message of kindness, helpfulness & social justice came through loud & clear. She said she has found that she is comforted by learning that we are all suffering in some way so she tries to be kind knowing everyone is fighting a great battle. Another book is THE TIP OF A PIECE OF WHITE CHALK which tells about coming to NYC & going to the UN building but not finding the Palistian flag. So the next day she came back & drew it on the sidewalk with chalk. She also said that kids need our full attention to grow up to be caring adults--full attention from everyone.
A very big treat for me was the unexpected presence of children's author/illustrator David Weisner who has won the Caldecott Medal for best illustrated children's book THREE times: recently for FLOTSUM (see previous blog entry) and previously for TUESDAY, and also for THE THREE PIGS. I still can't believe I stood in the breezeway of this fabulous resort just casually talking to him about his work, his art & telling him how the kids in my school FLIPPED over his books. A very shy, quiet, unassuming super star of children's literature, he is the US nominee for the Hans Christian Andersen award for illustration.
I better stop! I could go on & on about this conference. More later!!
Cathy
IBBY is the International Board on Books for Youth & you can go to google & get their web site to read all about how they have 60 nations joining together to promote children's literature. USBBY is the United States chapter which held their conference in Tucson last weekend. The conference was limited to 250 participants & the only vendor there was a local book store selling only the IBBY honor books that are biennial awards--1 from each country member for text & 1 for illustration (let me know if you want that list as I have a bookmark with them listed), books of the speakers & the local authors & illustrators who attended Friday night.
Thanks to my principal who let me hit the road Friday early to get to Tucson early enough to check into my hotel, register, & then have time to study the program offerings before the conference started. Dinner with friend Jim Deem & his wife (he writes many nonfiction mummy books & is somewhat of an expert in that field now--glacier mummies is next), then to the opening session at 7PM.
Yuyi (pronounced JuJi) Morales from Mexico though now lives in San Francisco opened the conference with a spirited session about her willingness to stay in her seat & keep working until she produced works she was proud of. She is the illustrator of HARVESTING HOPE by Kathleen Krull--picture book bio of Ceasar Chavez, which I use every year at the end of March for CC's birth date--many students don't know he was born in Yuma AZ. Two years ago I heard Yuyi speak at a conference at the U of A & she was very meek & timid. WELL, she has gained her confidence & since has published 2 books she wrote & illustrated: JUST A MINUTE: A TRICKSTER TALE & COUNTING BOOK and LITTLE NIGHT which is just new. Her presentation included entirely changing her outfit while on stage to show the transformation she has been through. Google her for a great web site.
Sat. morning's session began with a very inspiring talk by Palistinian writer Ibtisam Barakat who now lives in the US in MO. Her book for older students is TASTING THE SKY about her experiences growning up in Ramallah, West Bank. I went to this conference pledging not to buy any books but 1/2 through the talk when the mike failed, I found myself rushing outside to purchase it. The person ahead of me got the last copy & I was OH, so diappointed until I found a colleague willing to drive down to the U of A bookstore with me & purchase it there. You would think Ibtisam would write with hatred for what's happened to her & her homeland, but she doesn't--her message of kindness, helpfulness & social justice came through loud & clear. She said she has found that she is comforted by learning that we are all suffering in some way so she tries to be kind knowing everyone is fighting a great battle. Another book is THE TIP OF A PIECE OF WHITE CHALK which tells about coming to NYC & going to the UN building but not finding the Palistian flag. So the next day she came back & drew it on the sidewalk with chalk. She also said that kids need our full attention to grow up to be caring adults--full attention from everyone.
A very big treat for me was the unexpected presence of children's author/illustrator David Weisner who has won the Caldecott Medal for best illustrated children's book THREE times: recently for FLOTSUM (see previous blog entry) and previously for TUESDAY, and also for THE THREE PIGS. I still can't believe I stood in the breezeway of this fabulous resort just casually talking to him about his work, his art & telling him how the kids in my school FLIPPED over his books. A very shy, quiet, unassuming super star of children's literature, he is the US nominee for the Hans Christian Andersen award for illustration.
I better stop! I could go on & on about this conference. More later!!
Cathy
