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From: bookmarch at aol.com <bookmarch>
Date: Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:05:37 -0500
As it happens I read the first Octavian Nothing book in manuscript just when I was researching my own book Race: A History Beyond Black and White. And, to be clear, I was not Tobin's editor, just a curious fan who had a compelling interest in the same period and similar issues. While I did query a few specifics (I must admit I don't recall which) I did not find the basic conceit to be anachronistic. My sense of the 18th century is surely influenced by contempory historians, but I don't think that means it violates the past, rather it gives me, and others, the opportunity for fresh visions and insights -- and that is what Tobin attempted, and achieved, in fiction.
Marc Aronson
-----Original Message----- From: Megan Schliesman <schliesman at education.wisc.edu> To: ccbc-net, Subscribers of <ccbc-net at lists.education.wisc.edu> Sent: Wed, 17 Sep 2008 3:14 pm Subject: [CCBC-Net] Parallel Perspectives
Please post any final suggestions or thoughts you have on parallel perspectives. At the end of the week, we'll turn our attention to board books, our topic for the second half of September.
I recently read the new picture book biography of Williams Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant: "A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams" / /(Eerdman's). I immediately thought of pairing this wonderful look at Williams' life with Joyce Sidman's "This Is Just To Say: Poems of Apology and Forgiveness" (Houghton Mifflin), one of my favorite poetry books from last year.
And "Ain't Nothing But a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henry" by Scott Reynolds Nelson with Marc Aronson (adapted from Nelson's adult book), published this year by National Geographic, begs to be introduced with--or followed by--Julius Lester's outstanding rendition of the John Henry story in "John Henry," with illustrations by Jerry Pinkney (Dial).
"Ain't Nothing But a Man" underscores how historical research combines detailed investigations with intuitive leaps, followed by more legwork. The way Nelson describes one breakthrough moment gave me chills when I read it (and him when he made it), and immediately brought to mind the final lines and image of the Lester/Pinkney book, referencing Henry being buried at the White House. Goosebumps again, just writing about it now . . . .
Megan
Date: Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:05:37 -0500
As it happens I read the first Octavian Nothing book in manuscript just when I was researching my own book Race: A History Beyond Black and White. And, to be clear, I was not Tobin's editor, just a curious fan who had a compelling interest in the same period and similar issues. While I did query a few specifics (I must admit I don't recall which) I did not find the basic conceit to be anachronistic. My sense of the 18th century is surely influenced by contempory historians, but I don't think that means it violates the past, rather it gives me, and others, the opportunity for fresh visions and insights -- and that is what Tobin attempted, and achieved, in fiction.
Marc Aronson
-----Original Message----- From: Megan Schliesman <schliesman at education.wisc.edu> To: ccbc-net, Subscribers of <ccbc-net at lists.education.wisc.edu> Sent: Wed, 17 Sep 2008 3:14 pm Subject: [CCBC-Net] Parallel Perspectives
Please post any final suggestions or thoughts you have on parallel perspectives. At the end of the week, we'll turn our attention to board books, our topic for the second half of September.
I recently read the new picture book biography of Williams Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant: "A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams" / /(Eerdman's). I immediately thought of pairing this wonderful look at Williams' life with Joyce Sidman's "This Is Just To Say: Poems of Apology and Forgiveness" (Houghton Mifflin), one of my favorite poetry books from last year.
And "Ain't Nothing But a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henry" by Scott Reynolds Nelson with Marc Aronson (adapted from Nelson's adult book), published this year by National Geographic, begs to be introduced with--or followed by--Julius Lester's outstanding rendition of the John Henry story in "John Henry," with illustrations by Jerry Pinkney (Dial).
"Ain't Nothing But a Man" underscores how historical research combines detailed investigations with intuitive leaps, followed by more legwork. The way Nelson describes one breakthrough moment gave me chills when I read it (and him when he made it), and immediately brought to mind the final lines and image of the Lester/Pinkney book, referencing Henry being buried at the White House. Goosebumps again, just writing about it now . . . .
Megan
-- Megan Schliesman, Librarian Cooperative Children's Book Center School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison 608/262-9503 schliesman at education.wisc.edu www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/ _______________________________________________ CCBC-Net mailing list CCBC-Net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu Visit this link to read archives or to unsubscribe... http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/mailman/listinfo/ccbc-netReceived on Fri 21 Nov 2008 11:05:37 AM CST
