What's Happening this Month?

Attention, attention! All readers near and far get ready, because The Bookshelf, on May 16th, will be turning one-year-old! I am so proud of all the progress that The Bookshelf, and I, have made. Looking at previous posts from last year, I can see how much I've grown and developed compared to newer, more recent posts. I have discovered amazing books, enhanced my writing skills, and have developed an (even) greater respect for literature. But most importantly, I believe I am starting to complete my goal: to inform the world of great books.

I am receiving more and more page views, from twenty plus countries, I am reaching out to people on different ends of the globe, I am discovering what a huge world it truly is out there, and how the people of that world can meet together and share and discuss and seek on one simple book blog. The Bookshelf is slowly, but steadily, becoming one of these meeting places. I am proud, and I am in awestruck of all of the book lovers, young, old, new, shy, loud, and all of the different literature they like, fiction, non-, realistic, fantasy, mystery, romance, poetry. For it is not me or the web or even books that keep this blog alive. It is the readers, the viewers, the commenters, the praise"ers", and the criticizers that keep this blog alive and thriving.

Thank you.

There will be many posts special just to The Bookshelf and me this month. Look forward to reviews/recommendations of Gary D. Schmidt, a favorite author of mine, a review of The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan, another favorite author, a review of Unwind by Neal Shusterman, yet another (no surprise!) favorite author, and I'm sure a few more reviews of spectacular books. (Maybe I'll make this month favorite authors month. Hmmm...) Also on the horizon: part 2 of last year's Stats, a new poll featuring graphic novels (aka, comic books!), and, most endearing to me, a poem-ish post on May 16th about all that happened in one year.

There you have it! May will most certainly be a historical month for The Bookshelf! Once again, thank you to all my readers, and I hope that I will continue to post here for quite some time.

- Jacob Hopkins

(image courtesy of Donna Hopkins, PatchWork Photos)

ALA's Midwinter Conference

Every year the American Library Association, ALA, has a midwinter conference. Usually held in January, these conferences provide many seminars, courses, and award shows for the members of ALA, educators, and authors. One of the most anticipated segments of the midwinter conference is the announcement of the ALSC, Association of Library Service to Children, and the YALSA, Young Adult Library Services Association, Award Winners. Awards that are received include, the John Newbery Medal for children's literature, the Michael L. Printz Award for young adult literature, the Randolph Caldecott Medal for illustrators, and the Coretta Scott King Award for African American authors and illustrators. I am most excited about the Newberry and Printz awards, because the winning books best fit my interest reading level.

I have decided to include the Newbery and Printz winners and honors (runner-ups) on this post, so you, the readers of The Bookshelf, will be aware of some of the most prestigious books to read this year.

John Newbery Medal Winner and Honors:

• Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool: WINNER, Twelve-year-old Abilene Tucker is the daughter of a drifter who, in the summer of 1936, sends her to stay with an old friend in Manifest, Kansas, where he grew up, and where she hopes to find out some things about his past.

• Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm: HONOR, In 1935, when her mother gets a job housekeeping for a woman who does not like children, eleven-year-old Turtle is sent to stay with relatives she has never met in far away Key West, Florida.

• Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus: HONOR, Fast-paced and full of adventure, this fascinating, true story is based on a real incident that occurred in 1841, and follows a young Japanese boy as he travels from Japan to America and back to Japan.

• Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night by Joyce Sidman: HONOR, Welcoming her readers into the “wild, enchanted park” that is the night, Joyce Sidman has elegantly crafted twelve poems rich in content and varied in format. Companion prose pieces about nocturnal flora and fauna are as tuneful and graceful as the poems. This collection is “a feast of sound and spark.”

  

• One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia: HONOR, The voices of sisters Delphine, Vonetta and Fern sing in three-part harmony in this wonderfully nuanced, humorous novel set in 1968 Oakland, Calif. One crazy summer, the three girls find adventure when they are sent to meet their estranged poet-mother Cecile, who prints flyers for the Black Panthers.

Michael L. Printz Award Winner and Honors:

• Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi: WINNER, Near a drowned New Orleans ravaged by hurricanes and global warming, Nailer and his young crew eke out a meager existence by scavenging materials on the ship-littered coast.

• Stolen by Lucy Christopher: HONOR, While on a layover at Bangkok Airport, 16-year-old Gemma, the unknowing object of a long obsession, is kidnapped by Ty and stolen away to the Australian Outback.

• Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S King: HONOR, Vera Dietz wants to be ignored, but the ghost of her ex-best friend won’t leave her alone in this dark comedy that examines relationships, identity, grief and flowcharts.

• Revolver by Marcus Sedgwick: HONOR, In this grim, chilling story set in the Arctic Circle, Sig finds his father’s frozen corpse as human predator Wolff arrives seeking retribution and a hidden Gold Rush treasure.

• Nothing by Janne Teller: HONOR, Pierre Anthon’s nihilism causes his classmates to begin a search for life’s meaning in this bold, unsettling parable translated from Danish.
  

There you have it! I would highly suggest clicking the link on the title for each book; it provides a much more descriptive summary, especially with the last one, Nothing. That summary was the best short one I could find for this modern-day Lord of the Flies. Nothing is an amazing book, different, but most certainly amazing. I plan to post a review on it soon. My personal favorite on these two lists is Please Ignore Vera Dietz. I read it about a week ago, and it is, so far, the best book I've read this year (and once again the short summary does not suffice this fantastic piece of literature). On my to-read list: Moon Over Manifest, One Crazy Summer, and Stolen.

I hope I've provided you with useful suggestions as to what to read this new year, and that this extra long post has not scared some of you away. :)