Barley Sheaf School

FLEMINGTON, NJ — There’s a Chinese superstition that says if it rains on your wedding day it’s a sign of a prosperous life ahead. I chuckled at that thought two weeks ago while driving through a torrential rain to a school visit more than 50 miles from my home. I wondered what the Chinese would say about a blinding downpour on Author’s Day? Surely it was a sign of imminent death on the clogged New Jersey roadways where more than 600 people die in the nearly 300,000 crashes that occur every year!

TGIMI. Thank God I Made It, or I would have missed this handsome librarian waiting for me under his umbrella: His name is Greg Slomczewski, and he’s the movie star, I mean the librarian at the Barley Sheaf School. His last name is easier to pronounced than it looks. It’s “Slom-chess-key.” I had to practice it a few times. But it’s very hard to spell. Mr. Slomczewski said that he had often misspelled it as a little boy and had to practice spelling it over and over. Aww.

No wonder it’s taken me two weeks to post about this visit.

How to Get Over Your First Librarian Crush:

1. Procrastinate.

2. Procrastinate.

3. Just procrastinate!!!

Okay, now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let me tell you about my marvelous day at the Barley Sheaf School in Flemington, New Jersey!

First, the third-graders were really enthusiastic and asked a lot of good questions:It was so hard to choose from among so many hands!

Thunder rumbled and rolled and rattled our bones throughout my presentation. It was so scary! I stopped at one point and confessed that the thunder was freaking me out and asked if any of them were also afraid. Many heads nodded. Sweet faces dissolved into worried looks. Hands clapped around ears to shut out the scariness. Oops. Something told me it was the wrong thing to say. All we needed was one blood-curdling scream or one crooked finger of lightning to come crashing down on us and pandemonium would break loose.

My body froze.

I stared at them.

They stared at me.

One wrong move, or one mis-chosen word, and that would be it. A stampede would end Author’s Day, just like that.

The air tasted thick.

What To Do When Author’s Day Teeters On The Edge Of Total Chaos:

1. STAY CALM

2. CHANGE THE SUBJECT, QUICK!

3. AND CARRY ON.

So with the thunder rolling underneath our feet and the rain hammering on the roof and a penguin sitting on top of my head, I showed the color galleys to my next picture book, BRUSH OF THE GODS:It’s a calming thing to do on a stormy morning, isn’t it? Or maybe it was an entirely self-calming thing, from the looks on the faces in the above photo!

Funny, the thunder came in with the third-graders and left with them. How did that happen???

I’m sorry I don’t have any photos from my other presentations to grades K-2, and the fourth-graders.

But here’s a photo of the lovely lunch I had with Mr. Slomczewski, the second grade teachers, the principal and the vice principal: I bet you can’t tell who the principal and vice-principal are. They all look so nice! And they were all SO incredibly warm and hospitable too! But I was still a nervous wreck sitting at the same table with the principal and vice-principal, I mean isn’t eating lunch with them putting you this close to getting busted???

Seriously, a big THANK YOU and hug to the Barley Sheaf PTO for so generously providing lunch from Panera Bread. And many thanks to Mr. Slomczewski for not asking me to work through lunch. When you’re doing Author Day, it’s so nice to have a break and to be treated to some adult conversation. Thank you to everyone who joined us .

Here are my new friends who lingered after a presentation to ask a few more questions: Such as “Do you have a boyfriend?” And “Are you married?”

When you meet a bunch of guys on Author’s Day, it’s no different than meeting them anywhere else!

I was still smiling from the encounter when I started to sign books at the end of the day:A little table with a few books. I can handle this, no problem!

But after I finished, I was taken to another table in the inner sanctum of the library, where I found this:Yikes!!! And that was only what fit on the table. There were more books in a box! It was around 3 o’clock. I could hear kids screaming in the hallway and into the parking lot as they were leaving school. Oh, how I wished I were one of ‘em!

By the time I finished everything, the clock looked like this: And all the signed copies looked like this: The Chinese were right about rain being a sign of prosperity! Wow! A HUGE THANK YOU to everyone at Barley Sheaf for giving me the LARGEST book sale of the year!!! Woohoo!

The movie star-librarian looked like this: Ooh, how I wished I had something intelligent to say after signing five hundred books.

But I didn’t. What do you say when the rain clears and sky looks like this at the end of an Author’s Day where they cared for and loved you like one of their own?You say thank you. Sometimes that’s all you can say. And you feel immensely grateful. Your car is the only one left in the parking lot, but it’s a good thing. It means it wasn’t towed.

You didn’t park here: But instead, you parked in the “10-MINUTE PARKING”:Do you think I should have gotten BUSTED for staying 10 HOURS in a 10-MINUTE space???

Thank you to all the young readers at Barley Sheaf for the perfect ending to a wonderful school visit season!!! XXOOs to all!

Styling Librarian #TreatTuesday

Reblogged from The Styling Librarian:

• 

Thanks to Twitter Friends for creating a delicious meme.

Especially thanks to Niki Barnes at Daydream Reader 

and  Shannon Houghton at Ms. Houghton’s Class.

Treat Tuesday.

Alvin Ho Allergic to Babies, Burglars, and other Bumps in the Night
by Lenore Look, illustrated by LeUyen Pham

I'm quite excited about finally reading Lenore Look's new book!

My review: Alvin Ho Allergic to Babies, Burglars, and Other Bumps in the Night by Lenore Look, illustrated by LeUyen Pham…

Read more… 356 more words

Many thanks to Debbie Alvarez, a k a The Styling Librarian, a k a the librarian at Bradbury School, Hong Kong, for blogging about my newest Alvin book! And with a Twix bar! Yummy!

Ironia Elementary

RANDOLPH, NJ — Visiting the Ironia School last week was a trip down memory lane. This is the school that both of my daughters attended. Located on Dover-Chester Road, it’s just around the corner from riding stables and wooded hiking trails.

Here, the principal stands outside every morning, in rain or shine, and greets each child as she/he steps off the bus:Wow. If that doesn’t make you feel important and welcome, I don’t know what does.

It also tells you NOT to do anything you would regret .

His name is Dr. Dennis Copeland. And he greeted me as warmly and respectfully as he greeted his students . It made me hold my head higher and walk a little taller going into the school. Thank you, Dr. Copeland!

Inside, I was immediately hugged by the amazing PTO moms who had organized my visit. Wow! I really liked it here! Here they are, Gail Kreitzer on the left and Stephanie Coleman Chan on the right:They did everything. They had water and snacks waiting for me. They organized my entire day. They hosted the pizza lunch/writers workshop. They suggested pre-visit activities to the teachers. They did book sales. They made me feel special and loved all day long. Mrs. Coleman Chan even took all the pictures you see here except for the one above that I took of her. They were such kind and gracious hosts, I can’t thank them enough. Thank you, ladies!!!

Plus, they had decorated practically the entire school! Here are some of their decorations:

My day started with a reading of BRUSH OF THE GODS to the kindergarteners:They were very good listeners and very sweet.

After that, I had to rush down the hall to the gym where a very different audience was waiting for me: Gulp!

Three hundred third, fourth and fifth graders.

No worries! Dr. Copeland knew exactly how to handle a crowd like that. He gave me a very warm introduction . . .Then everyone was very attentive, just like that!Wow. Magic!

I think he should bottle it and sell it to authors visiting schools. He would make a mint!

Among the teachers sitting on the side were my daughter’s third-grade teacher, Mr. Cervona, and her librarian, Mrs. Lockwood. I saw no other familiar faces. It was great to see them again. Thank you, Mr. Cervona, for coming to say hello during the writers workshop!

Here we were in our writers-workshop-pizza-party:And you thought you had to write a lot during the general assembly. Ha! This is where I get to really torture you!

A word of warning to young authors who think they might want to sign up for my writers workshop: DON’T. Don’t even THINK about it. Go to gym instead. Or go to recess. Then I will have a WHOLE pie to myself . Mmmmm!

After that, Dr. Copeland worked his magic again for my next assembly. See how attentive they were:These were the first and second graders and they were great — they gave me real belly laughs at all the right moments without any prompting! Thank you, first and second graders!

When you’re an author, and your audience laughs at all the wrong moments, it makes you wish you could disappear. But when they laugh at all the right ones, it makes you want to say something even funnier!

Here I am with my daughters’ beloved art teacher, Perry Tyroler, who is a real inspiration to all, myself included, not just to the children lucky enough spend time in her art room:Look at some of the art that they’ve created with her:And these from coffee filters: Priceless.

Normally, I talk about the young readers when I post about a school visit, but this time I  was struck by the grown-ups. They really set the tone for the kids here. The children were treated with such great respect that in turn, they treated me in the same way. After the first assembly, for example, many of the third, fourth and fifth graders wanted to hug me — so they asked very politely, then spontaneously formed a line in the hallway for hugs ! It was SO sweet. The students also looked me in the eye and greeted me by name each time I passed them in the halls. And when they didn’t, if there was a grown-up around, they got prompted, for sure!

Wow. It made me feel like I mattered. It made me feel FANTASTIC!

When you’re an author, doing author visits can be brutal. You have to understand that your young readers never mean to hurt your feelings. They’re kids. They will say all sorts of things. Such as, “I was hoping to meet R.L. Stine,” when they meet you. And when you leave, “I still want to meet R.L. Stine.” Or, “You don’t look like your picture.” (After you’ve covered yourself with lots of anti-wrinkle cream to try to look like your picture.) Or worse, they just don’t acknowledge you at all.

But not at Ironia. This was where my youngest daughter’s proudest day occurred during her turn as “Star of the Week.” Back then, when you were the Star of the Week, you received a large cut-out letter of the first letter of your name. And printed on the letter are all the words that your classmates used to describe you: marvelous, wonderful, beautiful, magnanimous (yes, they used this word!), generous, kind, forgiving, hard-working, brainy, smart, creative, artistic, musical, a good friend, huggable, a good listener . . . and on and on. On the day that you come home clutching that letter, you’re different. You walk so tall and smile so big, you’re unrecognizable. My daughter kept that letter on her door even through college.

When you’re acknowledged like that, it really changes you.

Everyone at Ironia is a star.Thank you, Ironia grown-ups, for being the brightest stars of all.

And thank you, Ironia young readers, for being super-duper special too !!!

A FOURTH Star!!!!!!

Can you believe it? A FOURTH starred review for BRUSH OF THE GODS, from Booklist. I’m overwhelmed. I dunno what to say, except THANK YOU to everyone who worked so hard to make this a special book.

Here it is, as sent by my publisher:

The following title has received its fourth starred review in the

May 15, 2013 issue of Booklist (circ: 24,150):

 

«BRUSH OF THE GODS

«Brush of the Gods.

Look, Lenore (Author) , So, Meilo (Illustrator)

Jun 2013. 40 p. Random/Schwartz & Wade, hardcover, $17.99. (9780375870019).

Swirling back through the mists of Chinese history, collaborators Look and So bring children the story of Wu Daozi, an artist with magic in his brush. As a boy in the late seventh century, Daozi was taught calligraphy—at least the monks attempted to teach him. But instead of letters, worms and horse tails fall from his brush, and when he takes his art into the city, his flowers and clouds are so full of vivacity and life that people from all over come to admire his work. But what’s this? As Daozi grows older, he’s startled to see the butterflies he draws take flight from the paper. A camel walks away from the wall. His crowds of followers dissipate, perhaps because they don’t believe the art has come to life, but eventually, a new generation brings him to such heights of popularity that the emperor invites Daozi to paint a magnificent mural on a palace wall—one that takes him the rest of his life. The author’s note calls this picture book a reimagined life of the painter who brought spirit and motion to Chinese art. Certainly, Look and So have dipped deep into the well of artistry and creativity to produce a book that captures Daozi’s essence. The richly colored artwork is stunning in both its scope and particulars; inky calligraphy brushstrokes accent people and places. And the words are equally well chosen, such as when the elderly Dazoi is “drenched in the moon’s silver tears.” This combination of talents happily never forgets its audience in an offering as child appealing and whimsical as it is handsome.

Random House Take Our Children to Work Day

NEW YORK, NY — Last week I was given the great honor of speaking to the children who went to work with their parents at Random House on Take Our Children to Work Day.

At first, the crowd didn’t look too big. I can handle this, no problem! Note the blue tape on the floor. It created a “stage.” It was the boundary line between author and fans. It meant CROSS AT YOUR OWN PERIL — in either direction.

A very nice lady named Robin came all the way from their Westminster facility to introduce my editor Anne Schwartz to the crowd. She tells everyone that an editor has a very important job — to look for writers and to help turn their work into books. Note the rebel tape sitters.

Here is my beloved editor, Anne Schwartz:She tells the crowd that we’ve been working together for a long, long time. WAY before any of them were born.

She alone has published all of my books, and she tells them that I’ve written many picture books as well as many chapter books.

And the crowd gets bolder . . . Note the complete disregard for the blue tape.

Worse, Anne is now hurrying through her words . . . I’d hurry too if I had to speak in front of all these tape sitters, crossers and leaner-inners! Note the kid in the bottom left in a sprinter’s start position. Yikes!

By now I can’t hear Anne at all. Her lips are moving, but all I hear is my blood exploding in my ears.

I have no idea what she’s saying. (Sorry, Anne! I know you had nice words for me, but I was so nervous!)

Worse, I have no idea what I’m going to say!

What do you say to a crowd that included numerous sniveling, onion-eyed, book-gripping Shakespearean princes and fairies???Oooh, I wanted so much to put the day in reverse and go home! Authors, as everyone knows, are supposed to be read, not seen! I’m really much better on the page than I am in person. When I speak, sometimes my tongue skips ahead of my brain, other times, my brain races ahead of my tongue. I trip over words. I tango with my thoughts. Anything could happen! You’ll love my books, but I’m not sure you’ll love me . . .

Suddenly, all my insecurities spill out, just like that.

Worse, Anne smiles at me and gives me the mic.

Gulp.

I have no idea what happened next.

But here are some pictures that show I was at least on my feet, and that the wonder and excitement of my books was the direct cause of some mania, at least in the front row:Not only was I about to put one foot in the grave (above), there were signs that I was about to have a very humbling experience (below) . . . watch the tape: What to do when blue duct tape is more fascinating than you:

1. Smile.

2. Do not think about how you pale in comparison.

3. Do not think.

4. Do not even think of thinking.

5. Run.

6. Hide.

7. Cry!!!!

When you’re an author, you will have many humbling experiences.

After that, things will get worse . . . How to survive getting your ankles wrapped in blue duct tape:

1. Wear hose.

2. Take off hose.

3. Run!!!!

Can’t outrun ‘em? You will be nailed and questioned with your back against the wall!

After that, I signed books for all the little darlings in my Random House family :At the very end of the line was Chaz, my biggest fan of all, who had brought all his worn copies of Alvin to be signed:Isn’t that fantastic?!!!  He knew it would take me a long time to inscribe all his books, so he patiently waited at the end. Thank you, Chaz. You’re a true gentleman!!! You could teach Alvin a few things!

Here’s a look around my Random House home and the people who make it so special: This is Anne showing me the drawer where all the dummies of my upcoming picture book, BRUSH OF THE GODS, are kept.

Here’s copy editor Colleen Fellingham, who catch all me misteaks and fact-checks everything, with her pink pencil at the ready:This is the amazing book designer, Rachael Cole, who makes my books look as beautiful as they are:Here’s Anne’s editorial assistant, Stephanie Pitts, who’s super-duper efficient and makes everything run smoothly:Anne in her office:I get inspired with a new idea every time I see Anne. And walking into her office is tantamount to walking into a sacred place for me. This is the birthplace of so many absolutely amazing books.

Here’s a parting look at the Random House lobby where the first edition of every book they’ve published is on display: I’ve never looked for my own books here, where Pulitzer Prize winners, National Book Awards and classics such as Catch-22, are prominently displayed. It would be too humbling an experience to bear.

And this is Sam and the HR team who had organized the day’s activities:Thank you, Ladies, for all your hard work!!!

Thank you, everyone, for inviting me to be a part of your special day. It was really wonderful and exciting to meet so many of you and to sign books for all my young readers !!!

I love my Random House family!!!  XXOO

Alexander Hamilton School

MORRISTOWN, NJ — Last week I had the pleasure of visiting the Alexander Hamilton School in Morristown, NJ:Looks like a large, stately mansion, doesn’t it? I love the Classical columns in the front, where I was greeted warmly by the librarian, Linda Murphy.

In the library, many historical figures had taken the best seats in the house for my author presentations: Can you guess who they are? Hint: the guy with the white hair is NOT George Washington.

I forgot to mention to the young readers there that I have a close connection to Alexander Hamilton and his nemesis, Aaron Burr . . . I live TWO miles from the site where Burr shot and killed Hamilton in a duel in Weehawken, New Jersey, in 1804. You can read about it here. It’s very creepy!

But my day at Alexander Hamilton was not creepy at all. In fact, it was filled with surprise and wonder and great fun and excitement from beginning to end. This is how it began: 

Christian, a third-grader, came in early and welcomed me with his hip-hopping. Click on the photo to see him in action. He was fantastic!!! Thank you, Christian for such a special welcome to your school!

This is what I love most about author visits: The beautiful smiles and enthusiasm!!! Plus, everyone here was SO well prepped — they’d read more than one of my books. You have no idea how good that makes an author feel. I felt like dancing — just like Christian!

On top of that, they were super-duper good listeners:

They gasped at all the right moments:And asked some great questions:And took LOTS of good notes:Who says you come to an author presentation to be entertained? You come to work !

It was fun, right???

We played a game at the end that made all the note-taking worthwhile:They got to make their very own SIK (Shakespearean Insulting Kit), and use it. Just like Alvin’s dad!

I hope you guys are also practicing your Shakespearean compliments!!!

Thou art such a joyful, happy, quick-witted, kind-hearted, well-read bunch of lollapaloozas!!!

Add that to your writers’ notebooks — a list of unusual words — like lollapalooza. I just love that word!

Here’s Mrs. Murphy serving pizza at Lunch with the Author:It was SO yummyful!!! Thank you, Mrs. Murphy!!! I LOVE pizza!!! I had TWO big slices.

When you’re an author, Author Day turns you into an eating machine! It’s not at all like a regular author day (lower case) when you’re sitting at your desk writing your books and not burning 5,000 calories per hour.

The last event of the day was my writers workshop. It was an unseasonably warm afternoon, and I thought for sure, it would be a soporific time in the very cozy library. I pictured speaking to a group of nodding heads and closed eyes. I would have it easy, right? Wrong!

The young writers at Alexander Hamilton were SOOO enthusiastic, they hijacked my workshop from the get go!

First, Hadley, on her own accord, stood up in front of everyone and read a wonderful poem that she had written about her little sister, Elizabeth. It  was such a loving tribute that it made Elizabeth blush and hide behind her hands, but only for a moment.

Then Diana got up and read a poem about being a pair of shoes, and everything that the shoes have to put up with by being on her feet. It was super-duper clever and Diana was ever SO dramatic in her reading! I loved it!

After that, Elizabeth got up and read something she wrote. It was only then that I remembered my camera, so here she is: She was very good! When you’re an author, and you have a loving sister like Hadley who’s also an author and writes wonderful things about you, it will give you this kind of confidence. You will find your voice. You may be the smallest one in the room, but you will stand up and be heard.

Wow.

What’s more important to learn than that?

That’s the other thing I love about author visits. Your readers will surprise you, humble you and teach you things you would never learn on your own.

You will feel so grateful.

We had such a wonderful writers workshop, I didn’t want it to end.

Thank you, Mrs. Murphy, for a truly spectacular day.

Thank you, Alexander Hamilton HSA, for your generous support.

Thank you, young readers, for being so marvelous and inspiring to me!!!

And thank you for all the fantastic PDKs that you made too — here are some parting shots of them, starting with Nicole, who used a fly box, just like Alvin’s: Scary!!!

And not so scary:Very smart to have money in your PDK, just in case!Thou art a thoughtful, wise, well-prepared, wide-awake, PDK-carrying bunch of fantastic readers!

XXOO

 

A Third Star!

I feel guilty putting up good news on a bad news day. I got the news of my THIRD star for BRUSH OF THE GODS just seconds before a friend told me about the bombs going off at the Boston Marathon. My heart goes out to all those affected by the violence.

Here’s the starred review from School Library Journal, as sent by my publisher:

The following title has received its THIRD STARRED REVIEW in the

May 2013 issue of School Library Journal (circ: 30,000):

 

«BRUSH OF THE GODS

«LOOK, Lenore. Paintbrush of the Gods. illus. by Meilo So. 40p. Random/Schwartz & Wade. June 2013. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-0-375-87001-9. LC 2012006442.

K-Gr 3–Young Wu Daozi tries to please his calligraphy teacher, but his brush drips out squiggles and twists and dots, his lines turn into trees, his hooks catch fish, and “his dots burst into eyes, then pigs, and monkeys.” Wu Daozi paints on walls in temples and teahouses, and even the great wall surrounding the city. His work becomes known and admired throughout China. One day he paints a butterfly so beautiful and delicate that it appears to be real. When the wind blows, the wing moves, just a little, and the butterfly suddenly flits off. Soon everything he creates either flutters, gallops, or rolls away. No one believes that his paintings come to life, except the children. Then one day, the emperor asks Daozi if he would create a masterpiece on a wall of the palace. Stunning ink, watercolor, and pencil artwork brings to life ancient China and the beautiful children who remained faithful to Daozi. Highly detailed and vibrantly colored, the illustrations render Daozi’s paintings with brilliance. Children will appreciate the imaginative aspect of the text as well as the inspiring story of a boy who follows his dreams. Inviting and appealing, this title serves as a great addition to a unit on ancient China or Chinese Art.–Carol Connor, Cincinnati Public Schools, OH