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Notable Non-Fiction
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From: sully_at_sully-writer.com
Date: Thu, 14 Oct 2010 08:25:50 -0700
There is an article by Caroline Arnold, an excellent nonfiction author , titled "Is Nonfiction Dead?" in the latest issue of the SCBWI Bulleti n . In the article, Caroline says: "Since 2007, the number of nonfictio n books for children has dropped about 25%. Some publishers have cut their lists by 50%. I don't know the source of Caroline's statistics, but it  ;looks to me that nonfiction is doing quite well these days.
I had the great pleasure of serving on the Sibert committee last year which had to be one of the best I have ever seen for nonfiction. This was t rue of books for both younger and older readers. There were so many outstan ding books to choose from. It was a very difficult, frequently painful proc ess, of having to narrow all those wonderful books down to one medal winner and three honor books. I'm sure this year's committee is having a similar experience.
I am consistently impressed with the quality of the books in Houghton Mifflin's Scientists in the Field series. There are four exem plary titles published this year, one of which is the 5th collaboratio n in the series by Sy Montgomery and Nic Bishop, Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World's Strangest Parrot . Bishop's stunning photography and Montgo mery's superb storytelling make them an incomparable team.
Marc Aronson, who has already contributed quite a bit to this discussi on, has an excellent book out about Stonehenge, If These Stones Could&n bsp;Speak (National Geographic). Marc tells a compelling story an d shows readers that history is not static. He reveals how new discoveries change historical thinking. Marc also co-authored an excellent book with hi s wife, Marina Budhos, Sugar Changed the World (Clarion). The y offer a sweeping look at the impact sugar has had upon global history. Th ey begin with intriguing personal stories of how sugar figures prominently in each of their family histories, the impetus for their writing the book. They explore their family connections again later in the text. Their discus sion of personal connections is something I particularly like. Young people think of history with a real disconnect. They don't see it relevant to the ir own lives. Trying to get them to think about history in terms of their o wn family connections is an excellent way to motivate interest.
The always reliable Russell Freedman has two books out this year. In h is book on World War I, The War to End All Wars (Clarion), Ru ssell talks about how his father's service was the impetus to write about t he war. I am so impressed with how Russell explains so concisely the considerable political and diplomatic complexities in Europe leading up to the outbreak of hostilities. In his other book, Lafayette and the A merican Revolution (Holiday House), Russell brings the French her o vividly to life and does a superb job of depicting his close relationship with Washington.
Speaking of writing about complex subjects, Tonya Bolden does that wit h amazing success in her book about the New Deal, FDR's Alphabet Soup (Crown). Susan Campbell Bartoletti's They Called Themselves th e KKK is a superb, unflinching look at an ugly, ongoing American night mare. Some other 2010 titles for older readers that have impressed me are Connie Wooldridge's stunning biography, The Brave Escape of Edith Wharton (Clarion), Ann Bausum's excellent story of the American g overnment's war against civil liberties during World War I in Unravelin g Freedom (National Geographic), and Margaret Blair's story of slaves who fought for the British during the American Revolution, Liberty or D eath (National Geographic).
As for notable nonfiction for younger readers, several people have men tioned Ballet for Martha (Roaring Brook). Jan Greenberg and S andra Jordan are another incomparable team who never disappoint, and Brian Floca's illustrations are simply amazing. The double-page spread with Aaron Copeland sitting at his piano and the score in the background is a masterp iece! Larry Dane Brimmer's Birmingham Sunday (Calkins Creek) i s a gripping chronicle of that tragic day. There's been a bunch of Cha rles Darwin books published recently but Niles Eldridge's Charles Darwi n and the Mystery and Mysteries (Roaring Brook) is one that stand s out. Jacqueline Briggs Martin's The Chiru of High Tibet (Houghto n Mifflin) and S.D. Nelson's Black Elk's Vision (Abrams) are both beautiful books. Charles Smith's Black Jack: The Ballad of Jack Jo hnson (Roaring Brook) is a stunning picture book biography with i llustrations by Shane Evans.
There are plenty of other nonfiction titles, for younger and older rea ders, that have impressed this year but these are some that stand out in my mind. Judging from what I've seen of last year and this year, I'd say the prognosis for the future of nonfiction is a good one.
Edward T. Sullivan, Rogue Librarian Author, The Ultim ate Weapon: The Race to Develop the Atomic Bomb (Holiday House, 2 007) Visit my web site, http://w ww.sully-writer.com Visit my blog, Rogue Librarian: All About Books and Reading http://sullywriter .wordpress.com Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/sullywriter
Received on Thu 14 Oct 2010 08:25:50 AM CDT
Date: Thu, 14 Oct 2010 08:25:50 -0700
There is an article by Caroline Arnold, an excellent nonfiction author , titled "Is Nonfiction Dead?" in the latest issue of the SCBWI Bulleti n . In the article, Caroline says: "Since 2007, the number of nonfictio n books for children has dropped about 25%. Some publishers have cut their lists by 50%. I don't know the source of Caroline's statistics, but it  ;looks to me that nonfiction is doing quite well these days.
I had the great pleasure of serving on the Sibert committee last year which had to be one of the best I have ever seen for nonfiction. This was t rue of books for both younger and older readers. There were so many outstan ding books to choose from. It was a very difficult, frequently painful proc ess, of having to narrow all those wonderful books down to one medal winner and three honor books. I'm sure this year's committee is having a similar experience.
I am consistently impressed with the quality of the books in Houghton Mifflin's Scientists in the Field series. There are four exem plary titles published this year, one of which is the 5th collaboratio n in the series by Sy Montgomery and Nic Bishop, Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World's Strangest Parrot . Bishop's stunning photography and Montgo mery's superb storytelling make them an incomparable team.
Marc Aronson, who has already contributed quite a bit to this discussi on, has an excellent book out about Stonehenge, If These Stones Could&n bsp;Speak (National Geographic). Marc tells a compelling story an d shows readers that history is not static. He reveals how new discoveries change historical thinking. Marc also co-authored an excellent book with hi s wife, Marina Budhos, Sugar Changed the World (Clarion). The y offer a sweeping look at the impact sugar has had upon global history. Th ey begin with intriguing personal stories of how sugar figures prominently in each of their family histories, the impetus for their writing the book. They explore their family connections again later in the text. Their discus sion of personal connections is something I particularly like. Young people think of history with a real disconnect. They don't see it relevant to the ir own lives. Trying to get them to think about history in terms of their o wn family connections is an excellent way to motivate interest.
The always reliable Russell Freedman has two books out this year. In h is book on World War I, The War to End All Wars (Clarion), Ru ssell talks about how his father's service was the impetus to write about t he war. I am so impressed with how Russell explains so concisely the considerable political and diplomatic complexities in Europe leading up to the outbreak of hostilities. In his other book, Lafayette and the A merican Revolution (Holiday House), Russell brings the French her o vividly to life and does a superb job of depicting his close relationship with Washington.
Speaking of writing about complex subjects, Tonya Bolden does that wit h amazing success in her book about the New Deal, FDR's Alphabet Soup (Crown). Susan Campbell Bartoletti's They Called Themselves th e KKK is a superb, unflinching look at an ugly, ongoing American night mare. Some other 2010 titles for older readers that have impressed me are Connie Wooldridge's stunning biography, The Brave Escape of Edith Wharton (Clarion), Ann Bausum's excellent story of the American g overnment's war against civil liberties during World War I in Unravelin g Freedom (National Geographic), and Margaret Blair's story of slaves who fought for the British during the American Revolution, Liberty or D eath (National Geographic).
As for notable nonfiction for younger readers, several people have men tioned Ballet for Martha (Roaring Brook). Jan Greenberg and S andra Jordan are another incomparable team who never disappoint, and Brian Floca's illustrations are simply amazing. The double-page spread with Aaron Copeland sitting at his piano and the score in the background is a masterp iece! Larry Dane Brimmer's Birmingham Sunday (Calkins Creek) i s a gripping chronicle of that tragic day. There's been a bunch of Cha rles Darwin books published recently but Niles Eldridge's Charles Darwi n and the Mystery and Mysteries (Roaring Brook) is one that stand s out. Jacqueline Briggs Martin's The Chiru of High Tibet (Houghto n Mifflin) and S.D. Nelson's Black Elk's Vision (Abrams) are both beautiful books. Charles Smith's Black Jack: The Ballad of Jack Jo hnson (Roaring Brook) is a stunning picture book biography with i llustrations by Shane Evans.
There are plenty of other nonfiction titles, for younger and older rea ders, that have impressed this year but these are some that stand out in my mind. Judging from what I've seen of last year and this year, I'd say the prognosis for the future of nonfiction is a good one.
Edward T. Sullivan, Rogue Librarian Author, The Ultim ate Weapon: The Race to Develop the Atomic Bomb (Holiday House, 2 007) Visit my web site, http://w ww.sully-writer.com Visit my blog, Rogue Librarian: All About Books and Reading http://sullywriter .wordpress.com Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/sullywriter
Received on Thu 14 Oct 2010 08:25:50 AM CDT
