Book Review: Night of the Veggie Monster by George McClements

Book: Night of the Veggie Monster
Author: George McClements
Illustrator: George McClements
Published: 2008

One evening, a young boy sits down to dinner. Oh, doom! For there on his plate, alongside the chicken and the mashed potatoes are . . . PEAS. He knows what peas do to him. At the (exasperated) urging of his parents, he tries just one--and then the real horror begins.

This book is a hoot! The high drama of the picky eater, contrasted with his parents' sarcastic asides, means that all ages will get a kick out of it. McClements uses a mixture of photography and colored pencils on brown paper to bring his story to life. And of course, the pea isn't that bad (but that doesn't mean he's any less averse to, say, broccoli). This hilarious little book illustrates a situation familiar to many families. I can't wait to read it in storytime.

Banned Books Week Starts Tomorrow

And in honor of that, I'm pointing you at this Unshelved cartoon from a few months back. Even sweet little picture books about cute penguins aren't immune.

KidLitCon Meme

There's a new meme in town, and it's all about the KidlitCon. Being as I've been to both so far and am all set to go to year 3, I figured I'd chime in.

Why did you decide to attend the KidLitosphere Conference?

The first year, when it was in Chicago, because my brother lived in Chicago. It was a two-fer--I'd get to visit him, and I'd get to meet some of the people whose blogs I followed (and still do).

Plus, as it got bigger and bigger, it just sounded like so much fun that I didn't want to be left out.

Who was most like their blog? Who was least like their blog?

MotherReader was exactly as I would have expected from her blog. With Pam, what you see is what you get. Lee Wind, also, pours forth the same energy in person that you can feelfrom his blog.

Who was least like? A startling number of people were on the quiet side in person, but were still great fun to hang out with.

What surprised you at the conference?

That people actually knew my blog (at the time, I only had one, Confessions of a Bibliovore). Perhaps because blogging is so physically solitary, I had this idea that my words were drifting out into the void. I was shocked when somebody said, "Oh, yeah, of course! Confessions of a Bibliovore!" Me: "Bwuh?"

What will you always remember about the last conference?

Hanging out with people in the evening, talking for hours about nothing and everything. That was also the night that Jackie of Interactive Reader talked me into buying an iPod Touch merely by demonstrating WorldCat on her iPhone that evening. My god, I'm a geek.

Did you blog about the conference?

Sure did.
KidlitCon 07
KidlitCon 08:
Parts One
Two
Three and
Four.

KidlitCon 09 is October 17th, in DC. Step on over to Kidlitosphere Central to find more information, including the sign-up page.

Language Development, AKA Cute Baby Video!

YA author Lauren McLaughlin recently posted a video of herself and her new daughter, babbling gleefully at each other.

Okay, okay, it's a great excuse for an adorable video, but Lauren makes a good point in her post about the basics of language. Sure, it's a cute baby and we all go awwwwwww, but important things are happening in Addie's little baby brain. Reading doesn't happen in a vacuum, but builds directly on early language development.

Her other good point is how exciting it all is. For baby, for mom and dad, this is the most amazing babble in the history of the world.

Have you babbled at your baby today?

Why Kids Should Get Library Cards

This one's been hanging out on my Google Reader for a couple of months now. Oops. Anyway, my friend Lisa collected testimony from librarians, Twitter friends, and various others on why kids should get library cards. My favorite:

You can find out how to protect yourself from zombies.

Bwaha. See the more serious ones over at Bunkermentality.

Maurice Sendak on Display

If you're in San Francisco, hie thee to the Contemporary Jewish Museum for what promises to be a completely awesome exhibit titled, There’s a Mystery There: Sendak on Sendak. It's billed as:

the largest and most ambitious exhibition of original watercolors and drawings from more than 40 of Sendak’s books, including his most beloved titles. It also features rare sketches, never-before-seen working materials, and exclusive interview footage.

Woweee. This article from the San Francisco Sentinel elaborates. But get there quickly--it starts today and only goes through January 19th.

Thanks to a tweet from Mitali Perkins.

Reading Roundup August 2009

By the Numbers
Picture Books: 12
Early Readers: 1

Standouts
Writing: Snoring Beauty by Bruce Hale
Illustration: Shape Me A Rhyme by Jane Yolen, photographs by Adam Stemple
Overall: Baron Von Baddie and the Ice Ray Incident by George Clements

Because I Want To Awards
Most Fun Interplay Between Words and Pictures: Adventures of Cow, Too by Lori Korchek