Thursday, February 28, 2013

Reading Day Event and a New "Friendly" Read on the Way!

This coming Saturday the New Children's Museum celebrating Reading Day with a slew of activities.
From their website:

Experience the imagination and fantasy ignited by reading!
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! We've also invited special guests from the San Diego County Library, Red Piggy Press, The Yellow Book Road and First Book to join in on the fun! The festivities mark the 16th Annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday and is celebrated by millions of children across the country. 


And if that doesn't excite you, maybe this will: Eric Carle, author of The Very Hungry Caterpillar recently announced a new book called Friends! For no other reason than we all have some kind of memory with that caterpillar or a brown bear somewhere, this should bring some smiles and excitement around.
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
Reading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
Reading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
Reading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
Reading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
Reading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
Reading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
Reading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
Reading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
Reading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
Reading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading! - See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
arrowReading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading!
arrowLocation
The New Children's Museum
200 West Island Avenue
San Diego, CA 92101
- See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
arrowReading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading!
arrowLocation
The New Children's Museum
200 West Island Avenue
San Diego, CA 92101
- See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
arrowReading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading!
arrowLocation
The New Children's Museum
200 West Island Avenue
San Diego, CA 92101
- See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf
arrowReading Day
Saturday, March 2 | 10am–4pm

Free with general admission
Celebrate literacy with a fun-filled day of storytelling, art-making activities and special workshops at The New Children's Museum! The festivities mark the 16th annual Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss's birthday. Join us for this special celebration and experience all of the imagination, creativity and fantasy that are ignited by reading!
arrowLocation
The New Children's Museum
200 West Island Avenue
San Diego, CA 92101
- See more at: http://thinkplaycreate.org/calendar/calendar-reading-day-2013.html#sthash.MMUzZPqo.dpuf

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Links to Ponder

Some links to get you pondering as we descend into the rest of the week:

1. The world of Oz is catching imaginations again, with the new movie Oz the Great and Powerful coming out and now a new collection of stories about Oz written by a variety of fantasy authors. The collection, Oz Reimagined: New Tales from the Emerald City and Beyond, features an introduction by Gregory Maguire:

... Oz lives contiguously with us. The Yellow Brick Road and the Emerald City and the great Witch’s castle to the west; these haunts are more than tourist traps and hamburger stands. They are this century’s Pilgrim’s Progress and Via Dolorosa and Valhalla. Oz is myriad as the Mediterranean with its spotted Homeric islands; Oz is vast as Middle-Earth and moral as Camelot. This is to say, of course, that Oz is a mirror. Turn it about and, in the mirror, OZ nearly says ZOE, the Greek word for life. ...

You can read a larger excerpt of his essay here.

2. Jill left an insightful comment on the earlier post about cover reveals about the YA novel becoming the new teen girl's magazine. Building off of that, an essay in New Statesmen discusses the anti-feminist traits within young adult literature and the romances that ensue.

3. And a bit of thoughtful fun: Maria Tatar asks what books with magical properties can you think of that crop up in our favorite children's stories. Aside from the texts she mentions in Harry Potter I can't help but think of Tom Riddle's Diary. Have a suggestion? Join the comment thread here.

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Maurice Sendak's "Yummy Death" and Perspectives on Publishing


In its March 2013 issue, Harper's Magazine ran an interview between journalist Emma Brockes and children's author Maurice Sendak that had previously appeared in The Believer's November/December 2012 issue (see the full interview here). Brockes interviewed Sendak in 2011 and got him talking about the state of publishing (it was better in the 50s), his perspective on death (he cites William Blake's "happy death"), and his family's experiences as Polish immigrants who lost family during the Holocaust ("My love of Poland is very bleak to this day"). Additionally, his response to Brockes' question "What do you think of ebooks?" is particularly delightful:

"MS: I hate them. It’s like making believe there’s another kind of sex. There isn’t another kind of sex. There isn’t another kind of book. A book is a book is a book. I know that’s terribly old-fashioned. I’m old, and when I’m gone they’ll probably try to make my books on all these things, but I’m going to fight it like hell. [Pauses] I can’t believe I’ve turned into a typical old man. I can’t believe it. I was young just minutes ago."

Phil Nel also recently featured one of Sendak's last interviews (dubbed "The Final Interview"), which appeared in The Comics Journal. Both interviews illuminate Sendak's wry sense of humor, matter-of-fact opinions, and acceptance of the end of life.

Friday, February 22, 2013

Two CFPs for the PAMLA Conference

The Pacific Ancient and Modern Language Association (PAMLA) Conference will be held in San Diego this year, from November 1-3, 2013 at the Bahia Resort Hotel. Below are CFPs for two exciting panels related to children's literature, one of which is chaired by SDSU's very own graduate student, Lauren Benard!

Children's Literature Panel

Pacific Ancient and Modern Language Association
contact email: laurenbenard@hotmail.com
proposal deadline: April 15, 2013
The academic interest in children's literature has been growing in popularity. Why do these stories interest a young audience as well as adults? Why are new versions of old stories still interesting? Is the story itself compelling, or are readers fascinated with the aspect of the child itself? This session will focus on children's literature as well as literature about children. Papers can range from any time period and genre (young adult, picture book, folk, film, etc.) Submit a proposal of 300-500 words explaining your project pertaining to the realm of children's literature.

Topics prospective panelists may wish to address include, but are not limited to the following:
  • Marketing of children's literature
  • Intended audience
  • Depictions of the changing child body
  • The dynamic between the adult/child relationship
  • Trauma
  • Gender
  • Creativity
  • Family relations
  • Visual and literary worlds of childhood
Proposals should be submitted to PAMLA's online proposal system (http://www.pamla.org) by April 15, 2013.

Direct any questions to Lauren Benard (laurenbenard@hotmail.com).

Panel on Princesses in Popular Culture
 
Pacific Ancient & Modern Language Association (PAMLA)
contact email: michelle.stonis@csulb.edu
proposal deadline: April 15, 2013
Panel -- Once Upon a Time: The Impact of Princess Culture on Girls

And they lived happily ever after, or did they?
This special session seeks to explore the impact of burgeoning princess culture in literature, film, and media on young girls. The panel on popular culture will also examine the multi-faceted way in which girls imagine, perform, and conceptualize feminine identity via princesses. A specific approach to the topic of princess culture is not expected, so please submit what you're working on to be considered for this panel. This is an approved special session for the 2013 annual conference of the Pacific and Ancient Modern Language Association (PAMLA) in the beachfront city of San Diego, California.

Please send a CV and abstract of no more than 500 words to the following email address by April 15: michelle.stonis@csulb.edu

Michelle Stonis
Department of History
California State University, Long Beach

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Judging The Big Reveal

Rule #1: Never judge a book by its cover *insert admonishing finger here*
Rule #2: Always get excited about cover reveals!

To be honest, I never paid attention to the anticipation of a cover reveal until the Harry Potter books came out. Then it was all speculation and analysis and curiosity and excitement and... you get the idea. Even then, I really didn't notice until the rise of the "YA novel" as an entity all its own. Of course, any avid reader/book lover/author follower will always be ready for any news of the next book they are devoted to pick up. However, it seems to me that YA novel cover reveals have reached an entirely new status of acclaim. Do they have events for these things? Maybe they should.

It does problematize something I was diligently taught as a child (see Rule #1 above). Of course that phrase refers to more than just, well, books but I always took it seriously even when I was scouring bookstore fantasy sections for the coolest rendition of a dragon or the kids' sections for the most brilliant whimsical artwork. I still knew that what lay inside was more than its glossy interior.

Oh, those eyes...
However, now I get very perturbed by the abundance of glossy young females with piercing eyes and pouty lips. I'm judging, I admit to you now. I'm judging hard. I'll be less inclined to nab one of those versus an artful challenging cover. So perhaps these cover reveals are a double-edged sword--slice right through to the hearts of teens everywhere, but possibly severing my tie before I get a chance to research the book itself.

Check out this Pinterest Board of cover reveals (by Epic Reads) and see if you can guess which ones I love. Are there any that stand out to you?

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Top Ten Best Love Stories in YA

In honor of ol' St. Val's Day, I'm borrowing The Broke and the Bookish blog's most recent Top Ten Tuesday meme: Top Ten Romances in Books. I'm keeping my list in the YA realm, because these books about hormone-laden teenagers are almost always good fodder for a love (or infatuation) story. In no particular order, l'amour:

1. Anna and Etienne, Anna and the French Kiss. I've mentioned this book before, and for good reason. It's simply enchanting, and the romantic tension and build-up from friendship-to-more between Anna and Etienne is spine-tinglingly good.

2. Lyra and Will, His Dark Materials trilogy. These two go from childhood innocence to teenage sexual awakening together. Their realization of love is electrifying, and their destinies are heartbreaking.

3. Duck and Dirk, Beautiful Angels. Francesca Lia Block writes about oddball characters that, after much searching, find a place to call home. Duck and Dirk, two gay teenagers coming of age in the fraught 80s, find each other, and it is beautiful.

4. Cate and Finn, Born Wicked. Finn is the bookish boy-next-door type, and Cate is the stubborn, strong, and fiercely secretive young woman who loves him. Their forbidden first kiss in a closet is intense.

5. Lennie and Joe, The Sky is Everywhere. Lennie is dealing with the intense grief of losing her sister when Joe, the new guy in town, offers a distraction she didn't know she needed. Author Jandy Nelson deftly navigates the complexities of falling in love while nursing an already broken heart.

6. June and Day, Legend. Day is an outlaw in a dystopian future Los Angeles. June is the highly trained Republic officer tracking him down for arrest. Well-matched in wit, secrecy, and hand-to-hand combat, they fall first in like, then in love.

7. Briony and Eldric, Chime. The friendship between charming and creative Eldric and charming and tormented Briony blossoms with such a sense of fun and sparring wit that you'll want to be part of their secret "Fraternitus Bad-Boyificus."

8. Ash and Kaisa, Ash. Malinda Lo envisions a Cinderella story wherein Cinderella falls not for the prince, but for the court's huntress. Ash's dawning realization that she loves Kaisa raises the stakes in this magical story.

9. Katsa and Po, Graceling. I'm a sucker for romances where the two love interests fight each other. Katsa and Po are both fierce fighters, gifted in lethal abilities. What starts as an adversarial relationships blooms into a romantic one as they team together to, you know, save the world.

10. Hazel and Gus, The Fault in Our Stars. Oh my God, this book. Hazel and Gus are normal teenagers just doing what normal teenagers do, only they met at a support group for teens with cancer. So, they're not normal. But they are amazing. Just read the book. Just do it.

  

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

ChildLit Grad Students Off to Pop Culture Conference

The SWTX ACA/PCA Conference in Albuquerque, NM takes place this week and two SDSU childlit graduate students -- myself and Alixandria Lombardo -- will be attending. The conference, dealing with all things pop culture related, will have some featured events including talks by David Peterson, language creator of HBO's Game of Thrones and SyFy's new series Defiance. (If you recall my Tolkien forum post, you can imagine I'm thrilled to explore the makings of language in any form, especially one as topical as this).

There are numerous panels related to children's literature--the Children's Lit panels themselves, as well as one geared specifically to Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Fantasy, and Myth. Alix and I both have the privilege of presenting on one of the Children's Literature panels: "Gendered Journeys, Places, and Spaces."  Alix's paper concerns itself with the complicated issues of gendered space in Pam Muñoz Ryan's Esperanza Rising. I will be discussing the controlled space of feminine identity in Charlie Fletcher's Stoneheart Trilogy.

This is my first experience presenting at a conference, as it is for Alix, so naturally some nerves are present but this promises to be an amazing and stimulating conference and we are both exhilarated by the prospect of presenting and the excitement of listening to the other scheduled panels.

You can take a look at all the various panels and events here
 

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Links for a Tuesday

Here are a few fascinating reads regarding the world of children's literature and culture...

Girls Gone Missing: Reel Girl takes a look at the movie posters for 2013 and calls out the insidious dearth of representation of female characters, even if the film has a female protagonist. What's up with that? Jezebel.com also featured Reel Girl's piece and posited a few theories.

Top 10 Bizarre Fairy Tale Adaptations: Flavorwire's list includes fantastic short story collections like Angela Carter's The Bloody Chamber and Kate Bernheimer's My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me as well as cheeky retellings like Six Gun Snow White and a profound examination of Hansel & Gretel's hunger set during the Holocaust.

SDSU Professor Emeritus Jerry Griswold's latest review for the New York Times examines two middle-grade books set during World War II.


Kansas State Professor (and SDSU friend!) Phil Nel has a rundown and critique of a ridiculous lawsuit occurring in the academic publishing industry.

Is reading a good way for children to learn grammar? (That would be a resounding yes.) The Guardian explores how children's fiction might be a better grammar resource than a textbook.

You need to read this article about Theodor Geisel's relationship with hats. And definitely take note of the picture of Dr. Seuss in the San Diego State band hat.

This Tumblr of gifs of one librarian's response to common library occurrences is hilarious. Hilarious, I tell you!

Monday, February 11, 2013

Five Lessons from Children's Lit

I recently read an article on the five lessons adults can learn from Children's Literature. Consequently that got me thinking about what five lessons I might put out there. Days later, the task still loomed high above me--I've learned so much! How can I wrap that into five measly lessons?? Nevertheless a bit of whittling down resulted in the following. Though they don't encapsulate every important result of ChildLit (which is limitless, of course), they certainly hold meaning for me and explore a handful of lessons worth learning.

1. Curiosity -- How else do nearly all tales, children's or otherwise, unfold? With some healthy dose of curiosity. Alice must follow the white rabbit to Wonderland, Coraline must venture into the miniscule door to discover her Other mother, Harry and his cohorts must figure out what was in Gringott's Vault 713 that's so valuable. Certainly it doesn't always propel the story, but it lets the audience know that a bit of nose-poking and eye-peeking can lead to wild, amazing, even dangerous things, but if you keep your head about you, you'll make it through and straight to your next page-turning adventure.

2. Flight! -- If I took anything away from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy books, it certainly was the possibility of human flight. Well, that and 42. But according to Douglas Adams, flight can be achieved simply by falling... and missing the ground. It seems obvious, almost elementary. Why hasn't this been explored yet? Naturally, the physicist in us all will gently put this concept to rest in our heads as impossible, but for me it hints to something larger. Extraordinary feats are simply lying in wait amidst their ordinary exterior.

3. Identifying what you really need -- Knowing what you want is not the same as knowing what you want. Harry Potter knows Ravenclaw's Diadem is hidden in the Room of Requirement but actually identifying it is another challenge altogether. Fortunately for the Wizarding World, Harry does just that. In Stoneheart, George wants answers from an enigmatic Sphynx, but he needs to ask the right question, which proves trickier than he expects. Sometimes the biggest challenges are not the villains you chase or the fears you face, but simply puzzling out what matters most... and how to phrase it.

4. Perils (and perks?) of Vandalism -- I imagine it goes without saying that destroying property is wrong. It's disrespectful, harmful, costly and generally indicates violent, dangerous, or imbecilic behavior. In fact, break a stone dragon head off a building's exterior and you might awaken all the beastly statues of the city, inadvertently inviting them to hunt you down, as is George's dilemma in Stoneheart. No matter the consequence, we know that vandalism is punishable... unless it isn't. Being a child carries burdens, especially emotionally when the world lets you down (or you think you've let yourself down). A sudden rage to let out the pain might be needed; consider what Harry experiences in Dumbledore's office after the death of Sirius, and Rosalinda's breakdown upon learning exactly why she was left asleep for 62 years in A Long Long Sleep. We learn coping with trauma takes many forms, and occasionally a broken dish or twenty is necessary.

5. Time Travel -- It's going to happen. Just look at the necessity it breeds in When You Reach Me or A Wrinkle in Time. This life lesson is more of a demanding hope; just hurry up and make it real! Until it is proven impossible, we can still believe in the possibility and hope for its discovery. Above all else, hope allows everything else to blossom; its light sustains our existence.



What lessons from Children's Literature would you share?

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

CFP: Cultural Minorities in Children's Literature and Verbal Culture Conference in Iceland

This is an invitation to participate in the campUSCulturae network and a third Call for Papers for the conference:

Cultural Minorities in Children's Literature and Verbal Culture

April 24th and 25th 2013, in Reykjavík, Iceland

Arranged by The Vigdís Finnbogadóttir Institute of Foreign Languages, University of Iceland in cooperation with:

- The campUSCulturae Network
- The Nordic Culture Fund
- The Committee for Nordic Studies Abroad

We invite the submission of papers in the field of cultural minorities in children's literature and other verbal culture, as well as related fields.

The conference will have two central themes which may be divided into separate seminars:
• Minority Children’s Literature versus Global Popular Culture
• Children's Culture and Roots of Minorities


Keynote speakers:

Minority Children’s Literature versus Global Popular Culture
• John Stephens, Emeritus Professor at Macquarie University, Australia
• Karin LanggÃ¥rd, Associate Professor at the University of Greenland, Nuuk
• Turíð Sigurðardóttir, Professor at The University of the Faroe Islands, Thorshavn
• Vuokko Hirvonen, Professor at The Sámi University College, Guovdageaidnu, Norway

Children's Culture and Roots of Minorities
• Helene Ehriander, Assistant Professor at Linné University, Sweden
• Iram Haq, Author and Illustrator, Oslo, Norway
• Maria Österlund, Assistant Professor at the Aabo Academy, Sweden
• Nina Christensen, Head of Centre for Children´s Literature, Aarhus University, Denmark

Speakers from the campUSCulturae network
• Xosé A. Neira Cruz, Professor at the University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain
• Sofiya Zahova, Specialist at The Bulgarian Academy of Sciences



Guidelines for submission of abstracts:

Proposal abstracts (250-500 words) should be sent to the The Vigdís Finnbogadóttir Institute of Foreign Languages by February 20th, 2013, to infovigdis@hi.is. Please use the subject header: campUSCulturae_your last name_first name initials. In the e-mail message, please include the following:
• Title
• Theme under which the paper should be placed
• Abstract of presentation
• Name(s) and affiliation(s) of presenter(s)
• Contact address: e-mail and phone number

The conference fee is 200€ which includes food and light refreshments during the conference, payable online on http://conference.hi.is/campusculturae/registration/

Keynote lectures will be given in English but workshops will be organized in the Nordic languages. A possibility remains to give lectures in other languages upon request.

Publications

Papers presented at the conference may be submitted for publication. Guidelines for submission will be featured if applicable on the conference website.

Further information: www.conference.hi.is/campusculturae

The Vigdís Finnbogadóttir Institute of Foreign Languages is a research institute within the University of Iceland. It is comprised of faculty members who teach modern languages and cultures, the classical languages, and translation studies. The Institute has the honour of bearing the name of Madame Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, the former president of Iceland (1980-1996). She was the first woman in the world to be democratically elected as a head of state and now serves as UNESCO’s first, and so far only, Goodwill Ambassador for Languages.

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Twist on Young Adult Artwork at Gallery 1988


For most young adult novels, the only lasting visual impression is the cover. Ranging from utterly perfect to disappointing, often the cover shapes what we see and how we feel about the characters that live within or the overarching atmosphere of the book. This can have severe repercussions especially with reprints and reimaginings of the novel, as highlighted by the recent controversy over Sylvia Plath's masterfully witty and troubled novel The Bell Jar. You can decide for yourself whether the 50th anniversary edition really speaks to the heart of the story or reflects an adventurous tale about a well-meaning air stewardess.

Still, to re-envision is to rekindle, to bring a book back to life, and possibly instill more energy than previous artwork had achieved, a kinetic energy that breathes vigor, creativity, and sass. Such appears to be the goal of the current (but very brief) exhibit at Gallery 1988 Melrose, an art gallery in Los Angeles geared towards the never ending journey through pop culture. In conjunction with Hello Giggles (yes, the one co-founded by Zooey Deschanel), Gallery 1988 is hosting a series of works which reinvent many of the youthful novels of our childhood (well, mine at least).

The show, succinctly titled "Young Adult" includes new visions of Nancy Drew, Harriet the Spy, Sweet Valley High, Goosebumps and more from what I've seen online. The show only runs until February 23, so if you're interested in viewing it, I'd book it up to the gallery soon. Then you can let me know what you think. I'm curious what emotions a Nancy Drew silhouette on mudflaps elicits.

Monday, February 4, 2013

Tolkien Forum and a Few Thoughts

Last Monday the ChildLit GSA held our public discussion forum centered on all things Tolkien. For those of us peripherally interested in, entranced by, and in awe of the monumental library that is J.R.R. Tolkien's comprehensive spectrum of works, this was an ideal opportunity to come clean about our general unawareness of Middle Earth and to openly explore its themes, roots, purposes, and more. Special thanks to Jacqui Yawn, Jill Coste, and Professor Alida Allison for joining us.

The evening started with another rousing Pub(lication) Quiz, highlighting the pop cultural influences of Tolkien's works and general Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trivia. Basically it served as the perfect primer for discussion before we began our journey into Middle Earth, a balanced dose of fun, challenge, and revelry leading into illuminating discussions. Having spent time researching on various aspects of Tolkien and his works, we were able to put forth a fair number of questions to one another, beginning with topical pop culture issues like the apt or incongruent comparison between Tolkien's works and the Harry Potter Series,the cultural phenomenon that his works have spawned and how that has impacted the fantasy and science fiction genres, and Tolkien's potential opinion of the current films. By the way, if you can make it to Indiana on March 1-3, Valparaiso University is holding a Tolkien Conference.

Conversation moved into more critical issues, including one raised by critic Jared Lobdell questioning whether these works should be categorized as fantasy or not. That led into Tolkien's own perspective of his works, which we gleaned from The Letters of Tolkien, a fascinating and worthwhile read for anyone wanting to see the inner workings of the author and witness his stories unfold and develop. As a philologist, it was no surprise to read how invested and devoted he was to the construction of languages, but we did not anticipate learning that he built the stories literally around the elvish language. In some ways, Tolkien described the point of the books as a "linguistic aesthetic" before moving on to issues of life, death, immortality and the makings of a hero. He argues against critics who claim the apparent lack of religion in the texts, stating that they exist in a "monotheistic world of 'natural theology.'" All in all, I would recommend Letters for insight into his dynamics with his peers, his editors, and his fans; the ramifications of the World Wars on his writing; and classic lines about the nature of graduate student work (would helping us with research really be robbing us of our excuse for existing? He seems to think so).

In a nutshell, the evening sparked debates over many areas of his works and challenged us to consider the purpose of fantasy, of "fairy stories", and the many motivations and inspirations behind writing. We wrapped up with riddles reminiscent of The Hobbit, as well as a few written by Tolkien himself (originally in Old English, no less!). Eventually these will be shared on the ChildLit GSA website, so keep an eye out for that. And finally, for a sweet treat, we shared some sugar cookie "Lembas Bread" to sustain our journeys home. Hopefully all forums will be as fruitful in company, discussion, and baked goods.

The discussion did leave me with some larger questions about language, primarily in fantasy literature. I was particularly awed by the notion of building a story around a language (rather than vice versa as would be expected). I understand that for someone so invested in the lifelong pursuit of understanding languages, this would almost be second nature; nevertheless, the term "linguistic aesthetic" continues to play in my mind. Do The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings reflect the craft and beauty of Elvish or does language seem supplemental? Can or does all high fantasy require such treatment and focus on words? Is that how we construct myth? I would welcome any thoughts on your views of the linguistic aesthetic.

Finally, a parting thought: Tolkien once wrote on the possibility of an animated film as a welcome idea, finding the risk of vulgarization less painful than the sillification of the BBC. What do you think he means?

Friday, February 1, 2013

Book Event This Weekend at Yellow Book Road

This Saturday, February 2nd (tomorrow!) the Yellow Book Road bookstore in conjunction with Adventures by the Book is hosting a book drive and fundraising event in honor of Sandy Hook Elementary. This is a sublime opportunity to meet local authors and artists, have some fun, eat some food, and support your local community all in the name of ultimately serving the the minds and imaginations of children.

The event details:
When: Saturday, February 2, 2013
Time: 2:00-5:00pm
Where: Yellow Book Road, 2750 Historic Decatur Road, Suite 101 (Liberty Station), San Diego 92106
Local Authors/Artists attending include: Robin Preiss Glasser, David Shannon, Pam Muñoz Ryan, Salina Yoon, Candace Ryan, Marla Frazee, Susie Ghahremani, Annika Nelson, Edith Hope Fine, Kathleen Krull, and Arthur Sal.
All the information and details on the event can be found on here.

If you do attend, let us know your experience!

The Child and The Book Conference in Padua

The Anatomical Theatre at Padua University

The Child and The Book 2013
Ninth Annual Conference

University of Padua – Italy
March 21 – 23, 2013

Children’s Literature, Technology and Imagination.
Research, Problems and Perspectives

In 2013, the Research and Teaching Group for Children's Literature (GRILLI) at the University of Padua will host the ninth international Child and the Book Conference at the Department of Philosophy, Sociology, Pedagogy and Applied Psychology (FISPPA), Padua, Italy. The Child and the Book conference annually attracts delegates from all round the world, and offers a unique opportunity for postgraduate students to present and discuss their work, in company with established scholars.

This inter-disciplinary event was inaugurated in 2004 at Roehampton University. It was then hosted in 2005 by the University of Antwerp; in 2006 by the University of Newcastle in the UK; in 2007 by the Department of Western Languages and Literature at Bogaziçi University in Istanbul, Turkey; in 2008 at Buffalo State University in upstate New York, USA; in 2009 by Vancouver Island University, Canada; in 2011 by the University of Norway; and in 2012 by the Department of Education at Cambridge University.

For further information about the history of the conference, see the National Centre for Research in Children’s Literature.

Conference venue:
University of Padua, Italy
o Archivio Antico e Aula Magna, Palazzo del Bo, Via VIII Febbraio n. 2, Padua
o Sala delle Edicole, Piazza Capitaniato, Corte di Arco Valaresso, Padua
o Dipartimento FISPPA, Via Beato Pellegrino n. 28, Padua.

Organiser:
Research and Teaching Group for Children's Literature (GRILLI)
Department of Philosophy, Sociology, Pedagogy and Applied Psychology (FISPPA)
University of Padua
Via Beato Pellegrino, 28
35137 PADUA - ITALY