Showing posts with label Candlewick. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Candlewick. Show all posts

Monday, October 21, 2013

Meetings, meetings, meetings

Some people's jobs involve a lot of meetings. Maybe even enough that they find themselves complaining about the time they waste spend in these gatherings, where discussion may or may not be more rambling than productive. If this sounds familiar to you, I sympathize. But such is not the life of a bookseller.

For most of us, meetings are a rarity. Oh, we have shift meetings, where we get through about ten announcements in as many minutes. We even have occasional department meetings, which go a bit more in-depth. But such excuses to sit down only come about once in a while. And the type of meeting we had on Friday was rare enough to be a real treat. Debra the Candlewick rep came by, and she brought galleys.

Candlewick Press focuses on children's books, and it makes beautiful ones.

 
Fun ones.
 
 Exciting ones.
 
Thought-provoking ones.
 
Needless to say, when Debra pulled out advance copies of the next round of books, we grabbed. I dove right into Girls Like Us, out in May (consider yourselves tortured), because the need to pass it around was obvious. It alternates between the viewpoints of two young women, both mentally challenged but in different ways, with distinct voices and responses to the sometimes harrowing way the world treats them. This is the sort of book that's going to start great discussions with customers.
I can't wait to look more closely at the rest of the pile in my cubby. If this is what meetings are like, bring 'em on.

 






Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Breath of Fresh Air




Open this book, and you are in the middle of a glittery dark sky. Turn two more pages and you will find yourself in the midst of a garden filled with beautiful blooming trees. Soon, you will be captured into the world of Flory. Smaller than a clump of cherry blossoms, this little demanding night fairy doesn't want anyone to enter her lonely world, unless they can give her rides on her back to wherever she demands.

Friendship can take a lot more courage than you think you have. Through a hummingbird's promise, a ferocious and defiant spider, one very hungry squirrel, and a few other creature-obstacles, Flora soon learns that friendship is sacrificing your needs and giving back.

Laura Amy Schlitz's The Night Fairy is a fabulous read (even more so as a read aloud) for ages 6 and up. Without extraneous plot lines and scenes to clutter your mind around, reading The Night Fairy is like a breath of fresh air. Angela Barrett's beautiful, soft illustrations complete the world of a wondrous backyard garden hidden with danger.

If you are a nature lover, are somewhat adventurous, or love fairies, then look no further than this beautifully packaged book put out by Candlewick Press (2010). You can find an excerpt of the opening chapter at http://www.thenightfairy.com/#book.

Laura Amy Schlitz is also the author of Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village, winner of the 2008 Newbery Award.