Children's Books Explorations: Concept Books

What is a Concept Book?

A type of picture book made to explain or introduce an idea or activity. This includes the alphabet, counting, colors, times, and shapes.

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The Concept Books I read: 

1. Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh
2. I Feel! A book of Emotions by Juana Medina
3. Mouse Magic by Ellen Stoll Walsh
4. Let's Say Hi to Friends Who Fly! by Mo Willems
5. What's Your Sound, Hound the Hound? by Mo Willems

What I learned: 

I have taken fine art courses at undergraduate programs, and I still struggle with the color wheel when it comes to tertiary colors. I was impressed by how Mouse Paint and Mouse Magic by Ellen Stoll Walsh introduced art concepts of colors. I even learned something! I'm rather sad that I did not read them as a child.

I Feel! A book of Emotions by Juana Medina showed a variety of emotions with facial expressions and colors. I thought the order of emotions was interesting. It was fascinating to see that there are several emotion wheels. I have certain emotions that I connect to specific colors, and I really like the shades used in the following wheel. Are there certain colors that you associate with emotions? Is anger only red? Is joy only yellow? 

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The work of Mo Willems was musical and lyrical. I can imagine how much fun it would be to read with a child. Friends was a concept in both Let's Say Hi to Friends Who Fly! and What's Your Sound, Hound the Hound?. It was neat to see how the characters moved on the page and interacted with each other.

Do you have a favorite Concept Book? And what colors do you associate with emotions? Comment below.

Children's Books Explorations: January (Board Books)

What is a Board Book?

These are usually made for newborn babies to around 2 years old. They have thick paperboard pages to combat wear and tear from baby hands and mouths. There may be more interactive elements to these books such as cloth, noise, or popups to engage a baby or allow the reader to make the story more exciting. Our Hello Genius books are favorites among toddlers because of their fun stories with familiar animals, repetitive text, and bright, energetic illustrations. Parents and caregivers love them because they are the perfect guides for a child’s first steps in social emotional learning, self-care, and manners. 

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The Board Books I read this month: 

1. Jasper & Joop by Olivier Dunrea
2. Peter Pan by Jennifer Adams, Alison Oliver
3. Classic Lit A to Z by Jennifer Adams, Alison Oliver
4. A Little Princess by Jennifer Adams, Alison Oliver
5. My First Passover Board Book by Claire Lister
6. Making Faces by Abrams Appleseed
7. The Secret Garden by Jennifer Adams, Alison Oliver
8. The Jungle Book by Alison Oliver, Jennifer Adams

Yes, I read more than five! I am shocked because I was behind in my other goals for January. 

What I learned: 

Of course there were illustrations, and thicker pages to withstand small fingers helping to turn pages. I learned that even subjects of Passover, emotions, and literary classics can be a board book. It broadens my scope of what I want to write when I create my own board book. Any story can be a board book.

Do you have a favorite Board Book?

The History of Children's Books

What is the first children's book? Who wrote it?

There is no clear answer on who wrote the very first children's book that we are familiar with today (board books, concept books, etc.) that I found in my research, but by the end of the 18th century, children's books publishing was definitely flourishing.

Prior to the children's books we know today, children, of course, learned to read with books of fables, fairy tales, and basic primers. Or by looking at a manuscript of letters and numbers. Much like we do today with teaching the next generation to read.

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Early topics of the stories were about morals and manners, often told with riddles and rhymes. How to behave, to not lean against surfaces, to be seen and not heard. You know, not the fun stuff, but part of socializing and setting expectations of behavior in society. Then you get to the fun stories and characters that are more familiar today.

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One of the earliest children's books cited is by Lydgate.

"Puer ad Mensam is ascribed to John Lydgate, about 1430, and is in the Lambeth Manuscripts. The Babees Book, in the Harleian Manuscripts, was written about 14th, for children of royal or noble blood then serving as pages in palace or castle. The English version is translated from the original Latin, but both author and translator are unknown."

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The most common celebrated "father" of children's books is John Newbery, who wrote A Little Pretty Pocket-Book Intended for the Instruction and Amusement of Little Master Tommy and Pretty Miss Polly, published in 1744. It was accompanied by a pincushion for girls and a ball for boys. 

While there is no clear answer on who wrote the first children's book and what the first children's book was, it was fascinating to read some rhymes and themes that were common in the first "wave" of children's book publishing.

In the coming months, I'll be sharing what I learn about children's books. What burning questions do you have about children's books?

For more in depth information about the history of children's books, check out the Atlantic and British Library.

Goodnight Mr. Darcy and Other Boardbooks for Babies

Over the holidays my kids unwittingly brought home a Jane Austen primer, Goodnight Mr. Darcy.  It was such a darling idea, I had to share. A publishing company named BabyLit offers such titles as The Tattle-Tale Heart, and Anna Karenina, as board books.

If you're familiar with Goodnight Moon, you'll love Goodnight Mr. Darcy. It begins:

In the great ballroom
There was a country dance
And a well-played tune
And Elizabeth Bennett--

Present in the story are three officers sitting in chairs, and Lydia and Kitty who think they are very pretty, and Mr. Darcy enjoying a pair of fine eyes. And when we read, "Goodnight, mush," it's accompanied by a picture of a hearts-for-eyes Mr. Bingley who has gone to mush over Jane. Love it!

I have Shakespeare for Kids and Greek Myths for Kids, but it never occurred to me to get Pride and Prejudice for Babies. I love that they call them "primers" and indeed they do serve that purpose. I can just imagine my sons, as teenagers of the future, picking Pride and Prejudice from the shelf and going, "Ah, that's why Mr. Bingley was mush." 

What do you say? Is babyhood too early to introduce Edgar Allan Poe or Leo Tolstoy? Or is it, the earlier the better?

Literary Rock Star Interview with Teen Writer and Philanthropist Riley Carney

Have you had the pleasure of meeting Riley Carney on twitter?

You may have stumbled upon her interview this past September at CYNSATIONS or heard about the literacy advocacy nonprofit she runs with her brother (Breaking the Chain).

Or maybe you're already a fan of her fantasy series, The Reign of the Elements.

If not, then allow me to introduce you to a woman who loves books as much as you do, a woman who won't rest until she's shared that love with the children and adults of the world, a woman who started a nonprofit organization in her early teens and now, in her late teens, is in the middle of seeing her first five-book series published! This is an amazing person, someone who personally inspires me. I hope you'll enjoy getting to know her as much as I have.

Here's Riley.

Katrina: You started writing seriously when you were ten, but when did you know you wanted to be a professional writer?

Riley: I’ve always loved to write, so becoming a professional writer was always a dream for me. During first and second grades I wanted to be veterinarian, but I think that was because I was so proud that I could spell the word. After that, all through my elementary and middle school years, I always wanted to be a writer. I loved the idea that my job could be something as fun as making up stories.

Katrina: What resources did you find most helpful as a young writer? Friends? Family? The internets? What is your advice to other teens, or kids, who want to become writers?

Riley: So many resources have been helpful to me. My family, of course, is incredibly supportive. They are always my first readers and I trust their feedback more than anybody else’s. Twitter and the internet have also been immensely helpful. There is so much information out there and so many helpful people in the writing and publishing industry that it can be really easy to educate yourself on everything that is happening, to find writing tips, or just to be able to communicate with some truly amazing authors. It’s great to be able to make the kind of connections that Twitter facilitates that I never would have been able to without it.

My biggest advice for kids and teens who want to become writers is to keep on trying. Persistence is key if you want to succeed. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there – rejection and failure is part of the process. Also, educate yourself as much as possible. Read books about writing, read books about publishing, and just plain read!

Katrina: You have two published books, three more in that series, and another trilogy already written! Eight books by age seventeen. Are you participating in NaNoWriMo and what's next for you?

Riley: I am not participating in NaNoWriMo – I’m actually halfway through the first book of a new trilogy right now, and I never like to interrupt the flow of a book when I’m in the thick of it! This trilogy is YA with a dystopian bent to it, and I’m really excited about it. It’s different than anything that I’ve written before.

Katrina: Your parents must be immensely proud of you. But give it to me straight: are guys intimidated by your sheer awesomeness?

Riley: I’m not sure how to answer that one, except to say thank you so much for the compliment! :)

Katrina: If you were a character--any character--from a Harry Potter book, who would you be, and why?

Riley: I would definitely choose to be Hermione. She’s amazing – smart, funny, and quite dangerous with a wand. Honestly, I don’t know who wouldn’t want to be Hermione!

Katrina: (I would totally pick Hermione, too! She made me want to go to the library and read dictionaries. She rocks!)

At fourteen you started your not-for-profit against illiteracy, Breaking the Chain. At fifteen you wrote your first book. How did these choices influence each other? How did you make time to do it all?

Riley: Both my decisions to create Breaking the Chain and to write a book stemmed from my love of reading and learning. I first created Breaking the Chain when I learned that 120 million children worldwide are denied access to a basic education and that 1.2 million kids drop out of school each year in the United States. Hearing that and reflecting on my own education and my love of reading really propelled me to take action. My desire to write books and get them published came from my desire to share a story. I specifically targeted the age group of 8-14 since so many kids stop reading at that age, especially boys, and I thought that a fun, fantasy-adventure story might just keep some of them engaged in reading.

After I wrote my first book, I decided to leave my traditional high school and I began taking my classes at home through online programs from Johns Hopkins and Duke Universities. I usually do all my school work in the morning and early afternoon, and then spend the rest of the day writing, speaking at schools, or working on Breaking the Chain. I’m a little obsessive about scheduling my time, but I wouldn’t be able to get everything done if I wasn’t.

Katrina: Your not-for-profit, Breaking the Chain, has brought literature and learning to people near and far. We think it's incredible what you've accomplished and we want to support your efforts. Where is the greatest need and what can we writers do to help?

Riley: Breaking the Chain has built three schools in Africa, created a children’s literacy center at women’s shelter in Colorado, and given over 18,000 new books to classrooms in high-need or low-literacy schools across the United States. Here in the U.S., children are being left behind and never becoming literate. Two-thirds of children who do not learn how to read by the end of fourth grade will end up in jail or on welfare. I think that the best way to empower children is to teach them how to read, Sixty-one percent of low-income families do not have age-appropriate books in their homes. Only through exposure to books do children truly learn to read, and since so many children in low income neighborhoods are only exposed to books at school, Breaking the Chain is putting reading books in classrooms that have none so that every student has access to books. If you’d like to support our efforts, you can visit our website at www.linkbylink.org.

As writers, we all know the power of books and reading. It’s our responsibility to help kids who haven’t had the opportunity to learn to read, or haven’t had the love of reading fostered in them, discover the power and enjoyment of reading.

Thank you for caring about children’s literacy and thank you for having me!

Thank you, Riley! You are such an inspiration to me. I'm so glad you took the time to join us and share about your world.

Operation Awesome peeps, you can say hello to Riley in the comments and find her at any of the links below. 

I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving! Christmas is just around the corner. Giving books to kids is like giving them a completely separate world to process this one through. Spread the awesome. :)

Links:

www.rileycarney.com

www.linkbylink.org

rileycarney.blogspot.com

www.twitter.com/rileycarney

www.goodreads.com/author/show/3056388.Riley_Carney

Interviews:

http://rileycarney.com/10.html

THE BOOKS:

The Reign of the Elements, Book 1: The Fire Stone

The Reign of the Elements, Book 2: The Water Stone 

From the promotional copy of The Fire Stone:

Matt knows how to shovel hay, dig trenches, and dodge his father’s whip.

But when three terrifying creatures attack him, and he is rescued by a wizard, kidnaps a baby alorath, and is befriended by elves, Matt’s life transforms overnight from dreary to astonishing.

He unwittingly joins a quest to find the Fire Stone, one of the elusive Stones of the Elements which have the power to destroy the world, and is thrust into a string of perilous adventures.

Matt soon discovers that magic does exist and that he has extraordinary powers that can change his destiny and determine the fate of Mundaria.