Long Awaited Material Now Published on the Unjournal!

Hi all, this is Alya checking in from the alumni realm to share a quick update regarding The Unjournal of Children's Literature. The new year has brought new vigor to the editorial staff (most of whom graduated last year and have been scrambling to make order in our lives outside of graduate school now).

But here we are, extremely proud and honored to present the first batch of new material slated for 2015, including a valuable and timely interview with Dr. Katharine Capshaw! (You may have already seen the announcement making the rounds on Twitter and Facebook.) During a visit to SDSU last year, Dr. Capshaw spent a delightful and relaxed afternoon with us talking about everything under the sun, a conversation which resulted in this interview. Please do check it out, there is just so much to enjoy and learn from in there.

We've also finally published the video of the Edible Books Festival held last year in its entirety. You may remember we blogged about it; now you can watch the four fabulous speakers (and one awesome emcee) we engaged to talk about the beauty, prevalence, and value of food in children's literature, as well as the necessity of exploring children's lit in general.

Stay tuned for articles to come soon on The Unjournal. If you're interested in joining the team, you can email us at childlitunjournal@gmail.com, or find us on twitter (@chlunjournal) or facebook.

Announcing a New and Exciting Event: Devouring Children's Literature 2014!

Brought to you by SDSU's ChildLit GSA:

Website: http://sdchildlitgsa.wordpress.com/devouringchildlit/

What is it?: Devouring Children's Literature is an event that naturally focuses on children’s literature — from picture books to young adult novels — in order to highlight both the playfulness of literature for young people as well as the importance of examining it as literature itself. To that end, we also have a fabulous program planned, including the display and competition of children's lit themed Edible Books, readings from some of our esteemed professors of children’s literature and talks from local children’s book authors. Be prepared to experience childhood texts like never before, and get some insight into the place of children’s literature in San Diego and beyond.

What are Edible Books?: Edible Books are book-themed art pieces made out of food. For a some visuals (and you really do need to see them!) visit Staley Library's Edible Book Pinterest page, or see some of the albums at Books2Eat.com, website of the International Edible Books Festival. 

Can I make an Edible Book?: Please do! We are looking forward to many participants creating Edible Books to display at the event- and we'll be awarding prizes to crowd favorites! Visit our Registration page for detailed info on entering your Edible Book in the competition (and make sure to register by April 10th). Whether or not you decide to enter an Edible Book, everyone who attends the event will be able to vote on their favorites. 

More info coming: Check the website and return to this blog for detailed info about the program!

Links to Start Your Week Off

A bit of book news for you...

The Michigan School System was presented a proposal last week from a mother seeking to ban Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl from the curriculum due to one passage she found distasteful and overly sexual. The review committee has decided not to ban it however, citing that 'situational censorship' would be in play if they did. I wonder how the Chicago Board of Education justified supporting the classroom ban of Persepolis. It certainly helped book sales but was viewed as detrimental to kids as well.

independent publisher Pushkin Press has established a new imprint, Pushkin Children's Books,aimed at translating children's books from around the globe into English. This has been something of great import on my mind as well; consider the wealth of storytelling cultural awareness, and overall knowledge that children (and adults) are missing out on by not having access to stories everywhere. There is the Marsh Award for Children's Lit in Translation, which implies its importance, but still the movement has been relatively slow. Nevertheless, Pushkin is pushing the movement forward.

Pakistan will be holding their 6th Children's Literature Festival at the end of May, the first to be held in the capital city of Islamabad. I'll be writing some more on this really soon (let the final papers be done!), but in the mean time you can read up on the organization, making groundbreaking strides with each event.

And because it's Monday and we all deserve a tasty treat to set the week right (It's Children's Book Week by the way!), here are some delectable sights to behold: edible books and more edible books.

International Edible Book Festivals on the Menu!

Keep your eyes, ears, and tastebuds open--International Edible Book Day is close upon us (April 1st) and festivals are popping everywhere to celebrate.

April 1st was the birthday of french gastronome Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin (1755-1826), well-known for his book Physiologie du goût, a witty meditation on food. The celebration--which includes creative perspectives on books through food--began in 1999 and has grown to be a worldwide phenomenon. In the US, universities, libraries, and an assortment of "book art" groups are putting on events. Take a look at the Facebook page for Books2Eat, the organization responsible for spawning the Edible Book Festival, to find event announcements and photos from recent events. Traditionally, these events are held on or around April 1st, which seems like the most appropriate day to have fun and play with your food. And the ideas people come up with, from elaborate artwork recreating a scene or character to punny plays on titles, are both mouth watering and awe inspiring.
Scroll through some images here.

Unfortunately, the only San Diego event I know of, hosted by San Diego Book Arts, already passed. And the SDSU ChildLit GSA has plans of hosting our own event, though not until the fall (consider it a half-birthday celebration, if you will). But there are festivals all over (I believe UCLA's event will be held on April 5; check out details here!). Find an event or hold your own!