The Horn Book » Anita L. Burkam http://www.hbook.com Publications about books for children and young adults Tue, 14 May 2013 13:27:31 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.2 Review of The Letter Q: Queer Writers’ Notes to 
Their Younger Selves http://www.hbook.com/2012/07/choosing-books/review-of-the-week/review-of-the-letter-q/ http://www.hbook.com/2012/07/choosing-books/review-of-the-week/review-of-the-letter-q/#comments Wed, 25 Jul 2012 15:54:54 +0000 Anita L. Burkam http://www.hbook.com/?p=15383 The Letter Q: Queer Writers’ Notes to 
Their Younger Selves edited by Sarah Moon, with 
contributing editor James Lecesne Middle School, High School    Levine/Scholastic    
282 pp. 5/12    978-0-545-39932-6    $17.99 Inspired by mentors in her own childhood, editor Sarah Moon asked sixty-four gay, lesbian, and bisexual writers, illustrators, and publishing professionals to write letters to themselves [...]

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Their Younger Selves appeared first on The Horn Book.

]]> moon letterq 197x300 Review of The Letter Q: Queer Writers’ Notes to 
Their Younger SelvesThe Letter Q: Queer Writers’ Notes to 
Their Younger Selves
edited by Sarah Moon, with 
contributing editor James Lecesne
Middle School, High School    Levine/Scholastic    
282 pp.
5/12    978-0-545-39932-6    $17.99
Inspired by mentors in her own childhood, editor Sarah Moon asked sixty-four gay, lesbian, and bisexual writers, illustrators, and publishing professionals to write letters to themselves at a younger age — names such as Marion Dane Bauer, Jacqueline Woodson, Gregory Maguire, Brian Selznick, and a host of others. The resulting letters combine advice, reminiscence, funny stories, and encouragement for readers struggling with their sexuality. As with any collection with such a narrow focus, repetition is a problem, but panels from graphic novel creators help to break up the text and vary the pace, and a few of the writers arouse interest with truly surprising revelations (David Levithan, for instance, writes about bullying, but from the perspective of being the bully; Martin Moran writes about the sexual abuse that led to his award-winning book The Tricky Part). A mostly secular exploration of growing up gay, the book has regrettably little advice for gay and questioning teens grappling with religious dilemmas. Still, with its repeated exhortations to relax more and worry less, this book might be a life-saver for some — and could function as an author list, as well, for teens wanting to read more about People Like Us.

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Their Younger Selves appeared first on The Horn Book.

]]> http://www.hbook.com/2012/07/choosing-books/review-of-the-week/review-of-the-letter-q/feed/ 1 Review of Cold Cereal http://www.hbook.com/2012/01/choosing-books/reviews/review-of-cold-cereal/ http://www.hbook.com/2012/01/choosing-books/reviews/review-of-cold-cereal/#comments Sun, 01 Jan 2012 18:52:40 +0000 Anita L. Burkam http://www.hbook.com/?p=12057 Cold Cereal by Adam Rex; illus. by the author Intermediate, Middle School Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins 422 pp. 2/12 978-0-06-206002-0 $16.99 g In the town of Goodborough, home to the Goodco cereal company, new kid Scott Doe is seeing things. Specifically, a rabbit-headed man, a unicat, and a leprechaun named Mick. His only friends, brainy twins [...]

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]]> cold cereal Review of <I>Cold Cereal</i>Cold Cereal
by Adam Rex; illus. by the author
Intermediate, Middle School Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins 422 pp.
2/12 978-0-06-206002-0 $16.99 g
In the town of Goodborough, home to the Goodco cereal company, new kid Scott Doe is seeing things. Specifically, a rabbit-headed man, a unicat, and a leprechaun named Mick. His only friends, brainy twins Erno and Emily Utz, are working on the latest puzzle their guardian has set them when a creepy Goodco “doctor” reveals they’re subjects in a Goodco experiment. In a zany adventure filled with Arthurian references and sly parodies of popular breakfast cereals, Scott, Erno, and Emily set out to find the connection between the megalomaniac cereal company and magical beings enslaved for their “glamour,” all the while keeping one step ahead of the Goodco goons who want to dissect Emily to analyze the results of their experiment. An expansive cast of colorful characters (including Merle Lynn, an accountant) keep the surprises coming. Cartoon illustrations of dramatic moments and drawn panels accompanying TV commercial scripts supplement the text. Rex takes his time mounting his preposterous edifice of a plot, but reader interest and suspension of disbelief never flag in this humorous, consistently entertaining, well-spun yarn.

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