Color Me a Kidlit
      Writer
  • Home
  • About Me
  • My Books & Such
  • Clips
  • Blog
  • Credits

Poet: The Remarkable Story of George Moses

8/26/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
Young George Moses loved how words danced. When Bible verses were read, he listened. When children read books aloud, he listened. When songs were being sung beneath the hot sun, he listened. But George wanted to do more than listen to the music that words made when spoken. He wanted to read those words, too. 
So George, by listening, learned the alphabet. Will he be able to read now? His mother gave him a book of hymns, but he couldn't read it. Not yet. 
George found an old spelling book--tattered and torn--and night after night, despite being tired after working all day on his master's farm, George studied the letters. He sounded out the words. He worked until he had taught himself how to read those words. And soon words became sentences, sentences became paragraphs, paragraphs became stories. George was reading! And how he loved being able to read!
George read books. George read the Bible. George read poems. George read hymns. George read newspapers. George read anything he could get his hands on. 
With all those words dancing inside George's head, a wondrous thing happened. Those words began to line up together into their very own song, a song of George's making, a song that needed to be heard aloud. George had become a poet, and not just any poet, but a poet of the finest kind. Now it was his own words that were dancing above the tilled fields like a musical breeze.  

"When first my bosom glowed with hope, I gaz'd as from a mountain top On some delightful plain; But oh! how transient was the scene--It fled as though it had not been. And all my hopes were vain."

POET: The Remarkable Story of George Moses Horton, written and illustrated by the talented Don Tate, is a picture-book biography that every classroom should have. Students will see that even during the dark days of United States history African-Americans could read and write. It was slavery's chains and oppressive laws, especially after Nat Turner's rebellion in 1831, that stole their opportunity to do so. But they certainly had the ability. Language is a gift all humans normally possess, even the oppressed. And I am sure that any child today who struggles to read and write, no matter their ethnicity, will find George's determination to learn to be absolutely inspiring.
There is so much to love about this book. The color tones that Tate used mirror the brightness and joy that words infused into George's life. I love the illustrations where George stands tall while he is reciting his poems for college students. I love seeing George dressed in his finest as he wrote out his poems for the wife a professor, the one who helped him become published. And I absolutely love how the book's designer at Peachtree Publishers took George's poems and placed them about the page like they are dancing on the air.  

0 Comments

Ben Franklin's Big Splash!

7/27/2015

5 Comments

 
Picture
    Ben had imagination.  He imagined that if he could create some fish fins to fit his eleven-year old body, he'd be able to swim just like his aquatic friends. So he sketched. He sawed. He sanded, until his wooden fins fit his hands, then his feet. He strapped on his invention and jumped in the river for a swim! Did it work? I hope you'll read this delightful picture-book biography to find out.
As a writer, I truly enjoyed seeing how the book's author, Barb Rosenstock, located such a kid-friendly fact within the volumes contained in the life of this famous man of Colonial-American history. And I loved how, in turn, she spun that event into a lively story that kids can relate to--wishing to swim like a fish. Rosenstock's clever use of alliteration throughout the entire book is a bonus that makes for an enjoyable read-aloud. 
The illustrator, S.D. Schindler, does a fabulous job weaving historical facts into the book. (Love those shoes and clothes!) And the color palette gives the book a historical feel. My favorite illustration? Seeing Ben, submerged up to his nose, with his swim-fins on and three fish fleeing from him with bug-eyed wonder!
The book's layout, wonderfully designed (and published) by Calkin's Creek, is gorgeous! The text often gives a sense of water moving. And I think it's quite clever how the big, blue font hints of Ben's later-learned skill of printing.
BEN FRANKLIN'S BIG SPLASH; THE MOSTLY TRUE STORY OF HIS FIRST INVENTION is one picture-book biography that I'm sure kids in every elementary classroom will enjoy.
. 

5 Comments

Driving with Jumpy Jack and Googily

5/24/2013

0 Comments

 
Picture
I just knew I was ready for behind-the-wheel. After all, I had read and studied each chapter in the driver's ed. book, paid rapt attention in class, and had passed every test with flying colors. But when it was my turn to put the car into gear, it was another story.

"Haven't you been watching other people drive?" my driver's ed. teacher asked when I inquired which pedal was the brake and which one was the gas. "No," I had to confess. "Was I supposed to?" Before I could barely get down the road, my exasperated teacher told me to get out of the driver's seat. Now! He wasn't ready to die!

My problem was that I didn't know how to put the advice I'd learned in the book into practice. Of course, if I had been watching how good drivers do it, I would have had a clue. Why hadn't I thought of that before I got into the car to drive? 

It's not so different with writing. We can read advice all day, but if we don't observe that advice in "drive", flowing through a real-live book, it will be difficult for us to apply that advice in our own writing. No wonder we are told to read, read, read.

So--not wanting to crash my manuscripts--when a book resonates with me, inspires me, works for me, I analyze why the book "drives" so well. This helps me see how to put advice into practice when I take my stories out for a spin.

Take the book Jumpy Jack and Googily, for instance--written by Meg Rosoff, illustrated by Sophie Blackall, and published in 2008 by Henry and Holt. This picture book makes for a wonderful ride. The story's engine purrs. Here's what advice I see in action when I drive with Jumpy Jack and Googily.

ADVICE: Begin with a Problem.

Twenty-one words into the story and the problem is laid out like the plaid on Googily's pants. Jumpy Jack, Googily's friend and roommate, is sporting not only a brown-striped shell, but a crooked frown as well. "I'm nervous," Jumpy Jack confesses to his dear friend. "There could be a monster nearby and I'm scared of monsters."

With this, Meg Rosoff shows us how to begin a story in media res (Latin for "in the midst of things"). No set up. No expository blah-blah-blah. None of that pillow fluff stuff. Jumpy Jack and Googily's first few sentences simply present the reader with the character's problem. That makes the reader want to turn the page to find out how it'll all work out.

ADVICE: "Page" Your Story 

Jumpy Jack and Googily slosh and plod toward home on a hilly terrain, encountering little obstacles along the way. Is there a monster behind the tree? Ready to pop out of the paddling pool? Staring through a letterbox? Poor Jumpy Jack. He's a bundle of nerves. But thanks to Googily, when you turn the page, each encounter finds our little slime-trail-leaving friend smiling again.

In this, Meg Rosoff shows us how to structure mini-scenes within a story. For Jumpy Jack and Googily each small episode begins on one page, has a middle on the second, then (turn the page) ends with the third and fourth. Having page turns at such strategic places within the plot builds suspense and keeps the story moving along.

ADVICE: Use Repetition Effectively 

Jumpy Jack asks his friend Googily for help over and over again. Each time he does so with the decorum of a finely clad English gentleman. He would be grateful. He would appreciate it. He would feel better. Every time Googily replies patiently, reassuring his friend. "No monsters here," he says. Jumpy Jack sighs a "Phew!" in relief every time.

In this, Meg Rosoff shows us that a thread of repetition woven throughout a story makes the storyline feel like home, the characters feel like family, the setting feel like a view of our own backyard.

ADVICE: Use Humor 
Jumpy Jack is afraid of monsters with dreadful smiles, horrible scary hair, and long tongues, right? Yet, our dear Jumpy Jack has no idea--n'er an inkling--that Googily is a monster that possesses these very attributes!

In this, Meg Rosoff shows us that the humor in our stories must be well thought out, fresh, clever.

ADVICE: Visualize the Text 

Jumpy Jack's eye-spots twist in every conceivable direction. From beneath his wiry smile on his slug-like body, two buck teeth protrude. Big, blobby, blue Googily is attired in a green bowler hat, a red wristwatch, plaid trousers, pink socks, and pointy shoes. One arm drags behind him while the other totes an umbrella. And those goofy facial expressions as the two friends experience their day together--all make for a visual delight.

In this, we writers are shown that we need to see the possibilities within our text for an illustrator to work his or her magic. This we should do as we are outlining, planning, and writing our story, whether we are an illustrator or not.

ADVICE: End with a Twist 

Little do we expect for Googily to be scared of anything. But surprise! As the two friends come to the close of their day, it is our brave Googily that sports a nervous frown. It's Googily that asks Jumpy Jack for help. It's Googily that declares, "I am frightened of socks." As the two of them peer under the bed to see if the frightful apparel is present, another twist is spun! The sock says, "Boo!"

In this, Meg Rosoff demonstrates that a simple, yet clever twist at the end of a story is like an elegant evening of dining ending with a delightful burp!

0 Comments

    Author

    Dionna is a spinner of children's yarns, a weaver of nonfiction articles, and a forever-learner enrolled in the Institute of Imaginative Thinking. Her work has appeared in Ladybug, in online children's magazines, newsletters for writers, and in Charlottesville Family Magazine, a Parent's Choice winner. She's been an SCBWI Mid-Atlantic member since 2005, and the content editor of her region's SCBWI newsletter, the Highlighter, since 2017.


    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Archives

    January 2019
    October 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    April 2018
    February 2018
    December 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    February 2017
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    February 2015
    May 2014
    March 2014
    September 2013
    July 2013
    May 2013

    Categories

    All
    Abrams Books For Young Readers
    Adriann Ranta Zurhellen
    Aladdin Pix
    Alexandra S.D. Hinrichs
    Alice Ratterree
    Amy Lee-Tai
    Andrea Brown Literary
    Angie Arnett
    Angie Miles
    Anna Staniszewski
    Anne Marie Pace
    Anne Moore Armstrong
    Arrows
    Ashley Spires
    Bagram Ibatoulline
    Barb Rosenstock
    Beach Lane Books
    Ben Franklin's Big Splash
    Blink YA Books
    Blog Hop
    Blog Parties
    Book Trailers
    Boyds Mills Press
    Brenda Woods
    Brian Rock
    Bright Literary Agency
    Brown Books For Young Readers
    Busy Eyed Day
    Busy-Eyed Day
    Calkin's Creek
    Candlewick Press
    Carina Povarchik
    Changes In Publishing
    Charlottesville Illustrator
    Chronicle Books
    Confetti Kids
    Coping Skills School-aged Children
    Coyote Moon
    Craft Of Storytelling
    Craft Of Writing
    Crenshaw
    Critiquing
    Crossover
    Cyndi Marko
    Daniel Bernstrom
    Daniel Nayeri
    Dave Mottram
    Deborah Prum
    Dish Up A Reading Delight
    Donna & Libby Farrell
    Don Tate
    Ebony Glenn
    Eerdmans Books For Young Readers
    Engaging The Audience
    Erica Perl
    Erin Murphy
    Erin Murphy Literary Agency
    Ethan Suspended
    Eucalyptus Tree
    Farrar Straus And Giroux
    Feiwel & Friends
    Foundry Literary + Media
    Four Beautiful Picture Book Biographies
    Fran Cannon Slayton
    Frann Preston Gannon
    Frann Preston-Gannon
    From My Notes
    Garvey's Choice
    Getty Publications
    Good Illustration Ltd.
    Grammar Tip
    Great Nocturnal Book For Kids
    Growing Up Pedro
    Hannah Barnaby
    HarperCollins
    Holly Webb
    Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
    I Love My Library
    Interviews
    Jacques Kaufmann
    Jennifer Elvgren
    Jennifer Laughran
    Jen Shulman
    Jessica Sinsheimer
    Jewell Parker Rhodes
    John Parra
    Julia Kuo
    Julie Matysik
    Jump Back Paul
    Jumpy Jack & Googily
    Kara Reynolds
    Kar-Ben Publishing
    Karen Nagel
    Kate Testerman
    Katherine Applegate
    Kathleen Kellett
    Kathleen Rushall
    Kathryn Erskine
    Katrin Dreiling
    Kell Andrews
    KidLit411
    Kidlit Agent
    Kidlit Art Director
    Kidlit Artist
    Kidlit Author
    Kidlit Author & Illustrator
    KidLit C'Ville Blog Party
    Kidlit Editors
    Kids Can Press
    Kristen-Paige Madonia
    Kwame Alexander
    Ladybug Magazine
    Laura Lyn DiSiena
    Lee & Low Books
    Less Is More
    Lilliput
    Lily's New Home
    Linda Pratt
    Literary Agent Interviews
    Little
    Liza Wiemer
    Lois Sepahban
    London
    Lynne Chapman
    Making It (not Too) Personal Query Etiquette
    Marc Boston
    Marfe Delano
    Margaret Ferguson
    Margaret Ferguson Books
    Maria Gianferrari
    Marvelous Cornelius
    Marvelous Cornelius Blog Party
    Mary Amato
    Mary Rand Hess
    Maverick Children's Books
    Melissa Gorzelanczyk
    Melissa Manlove
    Michael J Rosen
    Middle-grade
    Moira Donohue
    Nancy Paulsen Books
    Nikki Grimes
    Olivia Hinebaugh
    One Day In The Eucalyptus
    One Good Deed
    Pam Ehrenberg
    Paper Wishes
    Paper Wishes Blog Party
    Paula Yoo
    Peachtree Publishers
    Personal Rejections
    Phil Bildner
    Picture Books
    PJ Books
    Planting Parsley
    Poet: Remarkable Story Of George Moses Horton
    POV
    Proofreading
    Queries
    Query Kombat
    Query Kombat 2018 Grand Champion
    Race Car Dreams Blog Party
    Random House/Delacorte
    Rejections
    Renee Graef
    Return To The Secret Garden
    Reviews
    Roberta Pressel
    Rosie McCormick
    Running Press
    Ryan Hayes
    Sairom Moon
    Sam Gayton
    Sarah Jane Freymann Literary Agency
    Sara Holmes
    SASE
    School Visits
    Scott DuBar
    S.D. Schindler
    Seth Fishman
    Sharon Chriscoe
    Shirley Ng-Benitez
    Short Pump Bump!
    Simon & Schuster
    Slush Piles
    SOLO
    Sourcebooks
    Spencer Hill Contemporary
    Spooky Cheetah Press
    Stan Fellows
    Stephanie Fitzgerald
    Susan Bartoletti
    Susan Batori
    Suzie Townsend
    Swenke Elementary Book Trailer Crew
    Sylvia Liu
    Tami Traylor
    Teresa Bonnadio
    Terrible Typhoid Mary
    Terri Fields
    The Amazing Age Of John Roy Lynch
    The Crossover Review
    The Most Magnificent Thing
    Therese Makes A Tapestry
    The Tale Of Rescue
    This Little Piggy: An Owner Manual
    This Little Piggy Has A Blog Party
    Tillmon County Fire
    Tips For Book Events
    Towers Falling
    Trombone Shorty
    Uwe Stender
    Virginia Festival Of The Book
    Want To Play?
    Wordsong
    Writing Advice
    Writing Process
    Writing Quotes
    Zoe In Wonderland