Julie Hale

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The season’s best picks for serious readers

Feature by Julie Hale

If you’re shopping for a book-obsessed guy or gal who geeks out over all things literary, then you’ve turned to the right page. The holiday selections featured below offer the sort of author anecdotes, book-related trivia and top-notch storytelling that bibliophiles are wild about. 

LIFE ON THE PRAIRIE
Countless young readers have warmed to the novel form thanks to Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books. Images from Ingalls-family lore—silent Indians, swarming locusts, interminable wagon journeys with Jack the bulldog trotting behind—are now part of America’s collective literary consciousness. Followers of Wilder’s prairie adventures have something new to look forward to with the release of Pioneer Girl: The Annotated Autobiography. Wilder wrote this factual account of her life in 1929-30, and when publisher after publisher passed on it, she repurposed it for the Little House books, using it as the foundation for her fiction. The newly released manuscript displays the forthright style and easy grace associated with the Wilder name and delivers an unsentimental look at the reality behind her novelized life. In a compelling introduction to the book, editor Pamela Smith Hill examines the evolution of the manuscript and offers insights into Wilder’s development as a writer. Maps, photos and other memorabilia make this a must-have for the beloved author’s many fans.
RELATED CONTENT: Read a Q&A with Pamela Smith Hill on Pioneer Girl. 

WRITERS ON THE ROAD
The armchair escapist on your gift list will love An Innocent Abroad: Life-Changing Trips from 35 Great Writers. A wide-ranging anthology that pays tribute to the transformative power of travel, the volume features contributions from an impressive lineup of literary celebs. Far from being savvy explorers, the authors in this globe-trotting collection confess their incompetence when it comes to crossing borders and cracking maps. Ann Patchett’s Paris sojourn contains a quintessential coming-of-age escapade: As a teenager made giddy by the City of Light, she toys with the idea of getting a cow (yes, cow) tattoo. Mary Karr’s Belize eco-tour results in personal growth, as she sheds her civilized self and becomes one with the jungle. Alas for Richard Ford—his hair-raising run-in with kief sellers on a remote road in Morocco demonstrates that danger is all too often the traveler’s companion. Yes, vicarious voyages are sometimes the best kind, and this travel-writing treasury offers an instant—and expedient—adventure fix.

AUSTEN IS AWESOME
Fans of Emma and Persuasion may OD on the eye candy contained in Margaret C. Sullivan’s Jane Austen Cover to Cover: 200 Years of Classic Covers. A fascinating survey of the visual treatments Austen’s work has received over the centuries, this charming anthology opens with marble-boarded first editions of Sense and Sensibility from London publisher Thomas Egerton and ends with a roundup of foreign translations that range from old-fashioned to funky (a 1970 Spanish edition of Pride and Prejudice has a disembodied eye on its jacket). Sullivan, author of The Jane Austen Handbook, tracks how the presentations of the novels changed along with the publishing industry to reflect graphic design trends and technological advances. Austen’s many disciples will swoon over traditional covers from Penguin, Signet and the Modern Library but may cast a skeptical eye at graphic-novel and zombie editions of Austen’s work. It seems every company under the sun has done Austen, and this irresistible album provides an intriguing overview of their efforts.

THE MAN FROM HANNIBAL
Imagine it: Mark Twain on Twitter. With his carefully cultivated persona and gift for succinct verbal expression—it seems his every utterance was a perfect epigram—the author’s following would’ve been off the charts. Viewing the humorist through just such a contemporary lens, Mark Twain’s America: A Celebration in Words and Images proves that his voice and his work are as resonant today as they were in the 1800s. Harry L. Katz, a former Library of Congress curator, teamed with that institution to produce the book, which features a treasure trove of archival materials, including maps, photos, cartoons and correspondence that depict the rough-and-tumble America of Twain’s era. Documenting the many manifestations of Twain—gold prospector, riverboat pilot, newspaperman, novelist—this lavish volume provides a fascinating portrait of a multifaceted figure who was ahead of his time and whose influence, today, is everywhere. With a foreword by Lewis H. Lapham, former editor of Harper’s Magazine, this is a stunning appreciation of a true American original.

20 QUESTIONS
The arrival of the popular “By the Book” column in The New York Times Book Review is the peak of the week for many literature lovers. A writer-in-the-spotlight feature overseen by editor Pamela Paul, “By the Book” made its Review debut in 2012 (the first subject: David Sedaris). A new collection of Paul’s insightful interviews, By the Book: Writers on Literature and the Literary Life from The New York Times Book Review, contains Q&As with 65 writers, including Donna Tartt, Junot Díaz, Hilary Mantel, Michael Chabon and Neil Gaiman. In their candid conversations with Paul, the great writers come clean about their reading tastes, work habits and inspirations, the books that moved them and the ones that left them cold. Jillian Tamaki’s pencil portraits of the authors are a plus. (Test your writer-recognition skills using the grid of famous faces that graces the cover.) With a foreword by Scott Turow, this is a book that will give bibliophiles a buzz.

 

This article was originally published in the December 2014 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

If you’re shopping for a book-obsessed guy or gal who geeks out over all things literary, then you’ve turned to the right page. The holiday selections featured below offer the sort of author anecdotes, book-related trivia and top-notch storytelling that bibliophiles are wild about.
Children's & YAPicture Book

Twinkling lights and candy canes

Feature by Julie Hale

Christmas really is the most wonderful time of the year—especially for book lovers! We’ve selected a stack of seasonal goodies that the little angels and elves on your gift list will love.

GETTING INTO THE SPIRIT
Capturing the only-in-December sense of excitement that accompanies the holidays, Tom Brenner’s And Then Comes Christmas follows a jolly little family as they prepare for the big day. Out in the country, surrounded by snow-covered fields, everybody gets in on Christmas activities: Sis hangs paper snowflakes; Dad’s on light duty; little brother offers encouragement; and Mom accepts mysterious packages from the mailman. This prelude to Christmas is an especially festive affair thanks to Jana Christy’s textured digital illustrations. In her hands, the rituals of December—baking cookies, trimming the tree, sitting on Santa’s lap—have a special candlelit magic. Brenner’s poetic prose distills the essence of the season, including the special solemnity of Christmas Eve, when “the whole world seems to be waiting.”

POEMS FROM SANTA
Who knew Santa was an aspiring writer? In Bob Raczka’s twinkling new book, Santa Clauses: Short Poems from the North Pole, the King of Christmas crafts bite-sized poems just right for little readers. Starting on December 1 and ending on Christmas, the merry old elf himself pens a haiku a day, offering insights into his cozy home life with Mrs. Claus and the holiday preparations at the Pole. On Christmas Eve, Santa writes, “Which is packed tighter, / the sack full of toys or the / red suit full of me?” Through illustrations that are a wonder to study—from Santa’s palatial cabin, with its ornate onion domes, to the blue, lunar landscape of the frozen North—artist Chuck Groenink provides a visionary take on the kingdom of Claus. Raczka’s poems, with their arresting imagery and appealing simplicity, make this an ornament for any Christmas book collection.

A GUIDING LIGHT
Finding the perfect Christmas gift is an issue of unusual import for the adorable angel-heroine of Alison McGhee’s Star Bright. Considering the recipient—a very special baby who’s due in December—it’s no surprise she’s nervous. The angel considers a few gift options—music, wind, rain—but none seems right. When she spies travelers on Earth who are lost in the dark of night as they journey to view the newborn, she sets off to guide them with her own special light—a bright Christmas gift, indeed. Peter H. Rey-nolds’ angels are a spunky bunch who inhabit a celestial realm filled with ladders and catwalks. His swirling watercolor, pen-and-ink drawings keep the proceedings lighthearted. Adding a new angle to the Nativity story, this thoughtful tale serves as a poignant reminder of what Christmas is about: the spirit of giving.

SWEDISH CHRISTMAS
A delightful departure from the Christmas story norm, Ulf Stark’s The Yule Tomte and the Little Rabbits is a rollicking holiday adventure that features Sweden’s answer to Santa Claus. Grump is a Yule tomte, or holiday gnome—a miniature St. Nick who delivers Yuletide gifts. Unfortunately, the loss of his favorite red hat and much-needed mittens has turned him into a Christmas crank. Deciding to boycott the big holiday, he holes up in his cottage, but he’s not getting off so easily. Neighboring rabbits Binny and Barty are determined to celebrate the season the traditional way—with tomte in tow. Eva Eriksson’s delicate renderings of Grump and the bunnies are a delight. Told in 25 chapters—one for each day of the Advent calendar—this festive tale is certain to become a Christmas classic.

NIGHT OF WONDERS
For a magical introduction to the miracle of Christmas, it’s hard to top Lee Bennett Hopkins’ Manger. In this luminous new poetry collection, animals of every stripe possess the power of speech on Christmas Eve, and each pays tribute to the baby Jesus in verse. Hopkins, an award-winning poet, selected the 15 accessible pieces in this special volume, which includes work by X.J. Kennedy and Jane Yolen. Helen Cann’s delightful watercolor, collage and mixed-media illustrations are teeming with detail and color, the perfect match for poems that have a plainspoken narrative quality. This is an enchanting look at the holiest of nights.

SEASON OF PEACE
A century has passed since World War I. In Shooting at the Stars: The Christmas Truce of 1914, John Hendrix offers a moving account of the holiday ceasefire achieved by soldiers fighting at the French-Belgian border. Relating events from the front line in a letter to his mother, a young British soldier tells of the remarkable moment on Christmas Day when French, English and German men laid down their weapons and clasped hands, sharing biscuits and good wishes. Hendrix’s expert drawings in graphite, acrylic and gouache bring the battlefield to life. Among the mud and concertina wire, hope takes the shape of tiny Christmas trees in the trenches. Peace, as this solemnly beautiful story proves, is the greatest gift of all. 

 

This article was originally published in the December 2014 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Christmas really is the most wonderful time of the year—especially for book lovers! We’ve selected a stack of seasonal goodies that the little angels and elves on your gift list will love.

Hidden poetic moments

Feature by Julie Hale

Providing a moment of repose in our accelerated era, poetry is an enduring art. Just in time to celebrate National Poetry Month, we’re exploring three new collections that address the joys and challenges of contemporary existence with compassion, wit and linguistic ingenuity.

In The Beauty, her eighth book of poetry, Jane Hirshfield continues to do what she does best: sift and refine reality—the experience of the self in its surroundings—into poems that contain startling moments of recognition for the reader. Throughout this unforgettable collection, Hirshfield excavates the everyday and finds romance in the routine of being human.

In poems that are tidy and efficient, with brief lines that are notable for their lack of extravagance, Hirshfield celebrates the status quo—“the steady effort of the world to stay the world”—and imbues the homely, plain or pedestrian with wonderful significance. The mundane, everyday items that fall in her way present fresh opportunities for poetic moments. In “A Common Cold,” she makes a common ailment seem cosmopolitan: “A common cold, we say— / common, though it has encircled the globe / seven times now handed traveler to traveler . . . common, though it is infinite and surely immortal . . . ” Now, at the age of 60, Hirshfield also reflects upon her own meandering timeline in a series of equally rewarding and astounding “My” poems. Poetry is embedded in the world, and—fortunately for the reader—her ability to recognize it seems inexhaustible.

LATE-LIFE MUSINGS
A new batch of poems from Pulitzer Prize winner and former Poet Laureate Charles Simic is always a cause for celebration. The Lunatic marks a welcome return from a writer who’s singularly attuned to the absurdity that attends the human condition. The narrator is frequently a tragicomic figure who grapples with a sense of identity and the unrelenting passage of time. Many of the poems find him caught in the grip of history, as the past invades the present, and the intervening years constrict into a single utterance or remembered vision: “The name of a girl I once loved / Flew off the tip of my tongue / In the street today, / Like a pet fly / Kept in a matchbox by a madman,” Simic writes in “The Escapee.” “Oh, Memory” fixes upon a central, haunting image drawn forth from the speaker’s boyhood: “a small child’s black suit / Last seen with its pants / Dangling from a high beam / In your grandmother’s attic.”

Short and incisive, biting in their brevity, the poems are full of black humor and diluted joy. Simic writes with a winning humility: “I’m the uncrowned king of the insomniacs / Who still fights his ghosts with a sword, / A student of ceilings and closed doors,” he says in “About Myself.” Simic’s mining of the human psyche and portrayals of the creaturely discomforts that come with being alive in the world make this a sympathetic and penetrating collection.

AN AGE OF UNCERTAINTY
A visionary book, beautiful and bleak, that speaks to the ills of the current era, The Last Two Seconds is the seventh collection from acclaimed poet and 2007 National Book Critics Circle Award winner Mary Jo Bang. In this tense, unsettling and apocalyptic collection, Bang focuses on the nature of time as it relates to contemporary experience—on what it’s like to live in a world that’s both speeding up and winding down.

Bang is an expert at depicting the machinations of the modern mind, and in this collection, she portrays that interior space as a place of terror and isolation. A character in an extended three-part poem called “Let’s Say Yes” is trapped inside her own thoughts, “the edge of her mind turning meaning for hours / at a time. Hours and days. A sound like a sickle. / Her head a bunch of heather.” Many of the poems address the difficulties of processing the here and now, of sorting out reality. The overall atmosphere is unsettling: One narrator hears “the cricket voice of suffering.” A loaf of bread is like “a dead armadillo.” Disturbing imagery abounds as, again and again, Bang turns the mirror toward the reader. Having arrived at the precipice, where humankind has achieved and yet destroyed so much in this world, we struggle to navigate the most critical of moments. This is a collection that demonstrates Bang’s rare gift as a writer: her uncommon capacity to shake and awaken us.

 

This article was originally published in the April 2015 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Providing a moment of repose in our accelerated era, poetry is an enduring art. Just in time to celebrate National Poetry Month, we’re exploring three new collections that address the joys and challenges of contemporary existence with compassion, wit and linguistic ingenuity.
Children's & YAPicture Book

Salty, sandy fun for little readers

Feature by Julie Hale

2015 BookPage Summer Reads

Nothing says summer like a trip to the beach. Getting there is a breeze thanks to the trio of picture books featured below. Each of these seaside stories offers easy escape—just crack the covers and dive right in. No travel necessary!

AN UNEXPECTED VACATION GUEST
Duck’s Vacation by Gilad Soffer features a curmudgeonly main character in need of some R&R. Duck hits the sand, ready to relax (beach chair: check; tropical bev: check), but soon discovers he’s in the presence of an unwanted guest—the reader! Feathers ruffled, Duck grumpily instructs his audience to quit flipping pages and leave him in peace.

But Duck’s out of luck. The reader can’t resist the impulse to continue the tale, and as the story progresses, so do the disruptions to Duck’s day. There are boys playing ball, a gamboling dog and—uh-oh—accumulating clouds. “It can’t possibly get worse,” says Duck. But more surprises are in store, making this a holiday he won’t forget. Soffer’s pencil drawings are at turns vivid and bright, soft and impressionistic. This bird may have a prickly personality, but readers will love him anyway. 

DIP WITH DINOS
Cordelia, her little brother and their prehistoric pals return in Molly Idle’s delightful Sea Rex. This time around, the hijinks are set beachside, where Cordelia sports a classy hat and chic shades and her brother is in full-on pirate gear. Their dino buddies serve as more than sufficient lifeguards—hovering, attentive and HUGE. 

As usual, T. Rex manages to steal every scene. After a nap beneath an inadequate umbrella (with little brother snoozing on his belly), he creates supersize waves in the ocean. Idle’s dinosaurs—lumbering, bumbling and full of good intentions—are indisputably adorable. Her colored-pencil drawings feature clean, pure colors and display an ingenious use of proportion and scale. T. Rex roars on!

VERY BLUE WHALE
Cale Atkinson’s To the Sea is an appealing tale of friendship between two unlikely chums. Tim feels invisible—he’s a solitary lad in a dreary, rain-filled world. One day, he comes across Sam, an enormous whale who’s trapped on land, out of his element and all alone. Tim befriends the blue behemoth and vows (pinkie-swears!) to get him back to the ocean. Tim hatches various plans to help Sam until finally finding an idea that works. With persistence and courage, boy and whale make it to the beach, where life is decidedly brighter. 

Atkinson’s inventive illustrations include cool typefaces and collage-like spreads that feature Tim in a citrus-orange rain slicker. This ultimately sunny story about loyalty and the importance of keeping promises is (almost) as good as a day at the beach.

 

This article was originally published in the July 2015 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Nothing says summer like a trip to the beach. Getting there is a breeze thanks to the trio of picture books featured below. Each of these seaside stories offers easy escape—just crack the covers and dive right in. No travel necessary!
Children's & YAPicture Book

Get set for a super school year

Feature by Julie Hale

Put away the swimsuits and break out the backpacks—the first day of school is right around the corner! Read on for three totally terrific classroom tales that will help students shift gears and focus on fall. Prepare to have a straight-A school season!

BEFRIENDING THE BULLIES
Tammi Sauer’s Ginny Louise and the School Showdown is a rip-roarin’ classroom adventure that readers will love any time of the year. Chaos reigns at Truman Elementary thanks to a bad bunch of bullies. There’s Cap’n Catastrophe, a porcupine pirate; Destructo Dude, a mischievous pig; and Make-My-Day May, an outlaw raccoon. This “scowly, growly crowd” is perpetually disturbing the peace, kicking their classmates out of the sandbox and overturning bookshelves. But things change with the arrival of a new student named Ginny Louise. A happy-go-lucky hedgehog with a personality impervious to bullying, she extends friendship to the threesome and eventually wins them over. A spirit of camaraderie soon rules the school, and that calls for a celebration—a classroom hoedown, for which Ginny Louise breaks out her fiddle. Yee-haw! Lynn Munsinger’s irresistible illustrations of the Truman Elementary menagerie make this tale feel timeless. The takeaway here: Be kind to everyone—even (and especially) bullies.

END-OF-SUMMER ADJUSTMENT
Mike Wohnoutka turns the tables on the traditional back-to-school story with his fun all-ages picture book, Dad’s First Day. The summer weeks skip by for Oliver and his pop. They read books, play ball and generally pal around. On the first day of class, Oliver’s eager to go, but Dad’s dragging. He isn’t feeling well. He hides behind the couch and ducks into the closet. Oliver coaxes him out, and they drive to school at a snail’s pace. Whose first day is it, anyway? When Dad sees the fun that Oliver has in class, his anxiety ends, and he’s able to breathe easy again. As Wohnoutka demonstrates, no one is immune to first-day nerves! Providing loads of appeal, his gouache illustrations are filled with bold lines and bright colors. His playful tale is a reminder that the beginning of school is a period of adjustment for parents and pupils alike.

COURAGE IN THE CLASSROOM
A small student-to-be takes a large leap into the unknown—the classroom, of course—in Birdie’s First Day of School by Sujean Rim. First-day fears keep Birdie awake all night. She’s heard that school is “all work and no play,” with a teacher who’s “half werewolf.” When the big day arrives, she consults her dog, Monster, on important questions (what to pack in her bag, which outfit to wear) and—with encouragement from her mother—joins the other kids. She soon discovers that class is actually awesome, with new friends, fun lessons and a mind-expanding instructor (who, beyond a beard, bears no resemblance to a werewolf). That night, Birdie can’t sleep, but this time it’s because she’s too excited about school! The latest entry in Rim’s irresistible Birdie series is a visual delight, with collage-like illustrations composed of delicate watercolor washes, colored-pencil details and crayon scribblings. Class with Birdie is a blast.

Put away the swimsuits and break out the backpacks—the first day of school is right around the corner! Read on for three totally terrific classroom tales that will help students shift gears and focus on fall. Prepare to have a straight-A school season!

Children's & YAPicture Book

Picture books and the power of imagination

Feature by Julie Hale

No doubt about it—there’s a direct connection between dreaming and doing. Three new picture books prove the imagination is a mighty tool, indeed. We may be living in the digital age, but as these books demonstrate, good old-fashioned make-believe never goes out of style.

CHASING DOWN A DREAM
Persistence pays off in Brian Pinkney’s inspiring On the Ball. Owen is having a less-than-stellar day at soccer practice. A fall on the field gets him sent to the bench, and then, to make matters worse, he fails to keep the ball from bouncing away. Owen chases it across a stream and into some bushes, where—imagining himself as a cat—he’s primed to pounce on it. But he can’t stop the ball on its mad journey, and his pursuit turns into an unforgettable adventure. When at last he reclaims the ball and zips back to the soccer field, Owen discovers he has new skills (“It was like his feet had wings”), and he always—always—watches the ball. Featuring minimalist lines amped up with washes of watercolor, Pinkney’s less-is-more illustrations of Owen on the run are wonderfully kinetic. As his story shows, determination and imagination are winning traits for a team player. Goooaaal!

CONCOTING THE PERFECT PLOT
A little make-believe saves the day in Nicola O’Byrne’s clever Use Your Imagination. Rabbit is bored: “I wish something would happen,” he says, and straightaway Wolf appears. Although his big green eyes and sinister grin indicate otherwise, Wolf says he’s a librarian (indeed!) and thus an expert in the art of storytelling. Despite this not-quite-credible claim, Rabbit agrees to Wolf’s plan of making up a fairy tale, complete with the requisite plot elements: a forest, a hero (Rabbit himself) and a villain (guess who). To this traditional scenario Rabbit adds a few surprises, including a huge pink elephant, but his ideas are quickly nixed by Wolf, who has his own plot in mind. An unhappy ending seems imminent until Rabbit outsmarts Wolf—using his imagination, of course! O’Byrne depicts the duo’s test of wits in lively, colorful mixed-media illustrations. Her delightful tale is a testament to the power of pretending.

CREATIVITY REALLY COUNTS
Faye Hanson’s The Wonder features a small boy with a big imagination. Fascinated by the world around him, the young lad is easily distracted. At the park, he wanders onto the grass and gets scolded by the groundskeeper. At school, he’s warned about daydreaming. But when art period rolls around and he’s urged by the teacher to use his imagination, the boy is in his element. On paper, he creates a fantastical realm where anything is possible (and walking on the grass is encouraged). There’s a flying car piloted by a pair of rabbits and a marching band composed of polar bears. What will this artist-in-the-making dream up next? His artwork earns the teacher’s praise and makes his parents proud. Hanson renders the everyday world in browns, tans and beiges, the better to play up the energy and sparkle of the boy’s imaginings, which brim with color. Her marvelous mixed-media spreads make this a book that lives up to its title.

No doubt about it—there’s a direct connection between dreaming and doing. Three new picture books prove the imagination is a mighty tool, indeed. We may be living in the digital age, but as these books demonstrate, good old-fashioned make-believe never goes out of style.

Children's & YAPicture Book

Spine-tinglers for the spookiest time of year

Feature by Julie Hale

The phrase “scared silly” takes on new meaning in these madcap tales of witches and monsters. Filled with mischievous fun, these thrilling Halloween reads will leave little readers shrieking—with laughter. Happy haunting!

WITCH VS. WEATHER
Halloween magic gets out of hand in Rebecca Colby’s It’s Raining Bats & Frogs. Delia, an adorable little sorceress, is excited about the annual Witch Parade until signs of rain dampen her spirits. When a full-on downpour soaks her broom-riding sisters, she takes matters into her own hands. Chanting an incantation, she transforms the raindrops into dogs and cats—a switch that goes hilariously haywire. Next, she summons a shower of hats and clogs, followed by bats and frogs, but her spells go awry every time. In the end, Delia realizes that rain is fine—even fitting—for parade day. Illustrator Steven Henry enlivens the witches’ wacky story with detail-filled drawings of marching scarecrows, juggling skeletons and horn-tooting ghosts, all of whom take part in the parade. As Delia learns the hard way, Halloween weather—like her magic spells—brings both tricks and treats!

THERE’S NOTHING TO FEAR
Sam Garton continues the adventures of Otter and her grown-up guardian, Otter Keeper, with the sweet seasonal treat, Otter Loves Halloween. Yes, Otter is excited about October 31, and it’s easy to see why! Preparations for the ghostly evening include a pumpkin-buying excursion (followed by Otter Keeper’s puzzlement over the carving process) and the hanging of decorations (glow-in-the-dark spider webs get stuck where they shouldn’t). Finally, it’s dress-up time. Otter dons a witch’s hat and cloak, and her stuffed pals Teddy and Giraffe get special costumes of their own. But when the trick-or-treaters arrive, Otter is terrified. She hides under the bed until Otter Keeper coaxes her out with an ingenious idea that sets her fears to rest. There’s lots to love about this delightful look at Halloween through Otter’s eyes. Her gentle personality shines through on every page, thanks to Garton’s genius digital illustrations. This is a great way to introduce young readers to the holiday.

READY, SET, SCARE!
A cute—and creepy—group of mischief-makers plans hijinks for Halloween in Ethan Long’s Fright Club. Vladimir the Vampire, Fran K. Stein, Sandy Witch and the rest of the Fright Club gang convene in their clubhouse to prepare for Operation Kiddie Scare. They review the traits of successful monsters (“ghoulish faces, scary moves, chilling sounds”), but their collective shock factor is a little low (to these guys, “scary moves” means ’70s disco steps). When their meeting is crashed by a timid-looking contingent of forest creatures who want to join the club, Vladimir scoffs and denies them entry. But the animals soon prove they’re skilled at being scary, and the two groups join forces for the spookiest Halloween the block has ever seen. Long depicts these eerie antics in black-and-white pencil drawings overlaid with classic monster-movie hues—sepia browns, sickly greens, macabre blues and purples. There’s plenty of fright-night fun to be had with his batty tale.

The phrase “scared silly” takes on new meaning in these madcap tales of witches and monsters. Filled with mischievous fun, these thrilling Halloween reads will leave little readers shrieking—with laughter. Happy haunting!

NonfictionFictionLiterature

Sweet holiday selections for serious readers

Feature by Julie Hale

Merry and bright: that’s the forecast for bibliophiles this holiday season. Inspired gift ideas for lovers of literature are as plentiful as snowflakes in December. Our top recommendations are featured here.

OUR BELOVED DETECTIVE
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle introduced Sherlock Holmes to the world in 1887 in A Study in Scarlet, a novel for which he earned £25—not even peanuts compared to the bucks being generated by the lucrative sleuth today. Somehow, a century and a quarter after his debut, the detective has become an entertainment-industry titan as the star of a successful movie franchise and two popular TV series. Doyle’s detective is undoubtedly having a moment, so the timing couldn’t be better for The Sherlock Holmes Book, a handsomely illustrated volume that provides background on every case Holmes ever faced, starting with A Study in Scarlet and ending with The Adventure of Shoscombe Old Place. Each case is accompanied by an easy-to-follow flowchart, which breaks down the deductive process Holmes used to crack it. In-depth character profiles, a Doyle biography and fascinating chapters on forensic science make this the ultimate Sherlock scrapbook. It’s a must-have for devotees of the great detective.

BIBLIOPHILES TRAVEL GUIDE
Perfect for the armchair traveler or the reader who enjoys hitting the road, Shelley Fisher Fishkin’s Writing America: Literary Landmarks from Walden Pond to Wounded Knee is a meticulously researched, beautifully written survey of the nation’s most beloved literary sites. From the Walt Whitman Birthplace in Huntington Station, New York, to the Sinclair Lewis Boyhood Home in Sauk Centre, Minnesota, the dream destinations of every book lover are included in this fascinating tour. Along with stops at familiar spots like Hannibal, Missouri, and Walden Pond, the narrative includes visits to South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Reservation and sites in South Texas. Fishkin considers the storytelling traditions of these and other parts of the country, highlighting the great writers native to each, and the result is a vivid mosaic of the cultures, voices and geographies that inform America’s literary inheritance. Packed with photographs, this book features more than 150 National Register historic sites. It’s the ultimate trip advisor for lovers of literature and history. 

CHARTING THE CLASSICS
In Plotted: A Literary Atlas, Andrew DeGraff interprets classic narratives as maps. Not the Google kind, mind you. DeGraff isn’t a conventional cartographer, he’s an artist, and his maps—subjective, frequently surreal topographic renderings of narratives both epic (Moby-Dick) and miniature (“A Good Man Is Hard to Find”)—rather than orienting the viewer, often have the opposite effect. DeGraff’s depictions defamiliarize well-known works, uncovering facets the reader never imagined. In his treatment of Hamlet, he tracks the path of the prince’s madness as it contaminates the palace of Elsinore. Inspired by the social factors at play in Pride and Prejudice, he maps the novel as a series of precarious catwalks between family estates. In all, DeGraff charts 30 narratives. He’s a genius at identifying and connecting a work’s key coordinates, then using them as the basis for remarkable visualizations. Each of his colorful, ingenious maps is accompanied by an introductory essay. With Plotted, he guides literature lovers off the beaten path and into newly charted territory.

THE MARCH CLAN REVISITED
There’s comfort to be found in the pages of a classic. A tried-and-true title holds out the promise of pleasure to a reader and never fails to keep the contract. Case in point: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott—surely one of the most reread works in all of American literature. The story of the March sisters, first published in 1868-69, receives the royal treatment in The Annotated Little Women, a deluxe edition of the novel filled with rare photographs, illustrations and other Alcott-related memorabilia. This lavish volume features notes and an introduction by John Matteson, who won a Pulitzer Prize for Eden’s Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father. Matteson offers insights into the author’s creative life and provides context for the novel, finding new dimensions in the familiar classic. Arriving in time for Christmas—the same holiday the Marches celebrate so memorably in the opening chapters of Little Women—this treasure trove of a book is the perfect gift for bibliophiles who fancy old favorites. 

VINTAGE KEYS
We may be living in an age of featherweight laptops and magic tablets, but the typewriter—that clunky classic—remains the most literary device of all. It’s an icon of the writing life, the truest emblem of an author (nothing says “vagabond novelist” like an Olivetti or Underwood). Journalist Tony Allan honors the PC’s stately precursor in Typewriter: The History, The Machines, The Writers. Providing a compact overview of the instrument’s evolution, Allan’s quirky volume is filled with typewriter trivia, retro posters and ads, vintage photos of classic machines and quotes—now golden—from those who pecked their way to fame (including, of course, Ernest Hemingway: “There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.”). With a foreword by Paul Schweitzer, owner of the Gramercy Typewriter Company, this uncommon little stocking stuffer is the sort of thing literary types live for.

 

This article was originally published in the December 2015 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Merry and bright: that’s the forecast for bibliophiles this holiday season. Inspired gift ideas for lovers of literature are as plentiful as snowflakes in December. Our top recommendations are featured here.
Fiction

A long, strange trip: 150 years of ‘Alice’

Feature by Julie Hale

It’s a story that never goes out of style: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll’s chronicle of an inquisitive girl lost in a parallel world of talking animals and pompous royals, is a tale unlike any other—one that celebrates the complexities of language, the singular genius of children and the absurdity that lurks just beneath the surface of reality.

In honor of the novel’s 150th anniversary, we’ve rounded up a trio of new Alice-related titles, all of which prove that Wonderland still has mysteries well worth exploring. 

DECONSTRUCTING 'ALICE'
David Day combines the expertise of an academic with the fervor of a true Alice enthusiast in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland Decoded. In a remarkable act of literary excavation, Day exposes the historical references, classical allusions and subtly disguised symbols that he thinks Carroll embedded in the tale of Wonderland as lessons for his protégé, Alice Liddell. Day believes Carroll included these elements to round out the narrow education Alice would’ve received as a female in the Victorian age. It’s an intriguing theory, and he supports it impressively throughout Decoded. The volume includes Carroll’s novel in full, supplemented by Day’s observations as he painstakingly traces the various themes—music and philosophy, mathematics and poetry—that run through Carroll’s narrative, proving along the way that Alice, even as it celebrates the absurd, exhibits airtight logic. Richly illustrated, this is a book Alice addicts will find irresistible. 

A WONDERLAND HANDBOOK
No reader should plunge into Wonderland without taking Martin Gardner along as guide. The celebrated Carroll expert published The Annotated Alice in 1960 to great acclaim and popularity—more than a million copies are currently in print. In the intervening decades, Gardner, who died in 2010, continued to pick at the riddles of Wonderland—the numerical enigmas and verbal brainteasers that make the text so perplexing—and his findings are shared in The Annotated Alice: 150th Anniversary Deluxe Edition. This comprehensive volume collects all of Gardner’s notes, his correspondence with Carroll critics and his introductions to previous Alice-related works. Filled with breathtaking illustrations by a wide range of artists, including Beatrix Potter and Salvador Dalí, the book offers invaluable insights into the Victorian mores, literary movements and real-life elements that inform Alice’s adventure, including all manner of Carroll arcana (it seems the writer, like the White Rabbit, had a fixation on gloves). For the latest in Alice analysis, Gardner’s your man. 


The Nursery Alice (1890) from The Annotated Alice: 150th Anniversary Deluxe Edition.
 

DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE
As he proved in Wicked and Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, Gregory Maguire is a wiz when it comes to taking a fresh angle on a classic tale and spinning it into a fully formed story—one that lives up to its distinguished lineage. In his new book, After Alice, he works his customary magic, using Carroll’s story as a springboard for his own inventive novel. Maguire casts Alice’s friend Ada (who is mentioned briefly in Carroll’s narrative) as a leading character. When Alice disappears down the rabbit hole, Ada pursues her. In Wonderland, she encounters the usual suspects (including the pipe-smoking Caterpillar and unsettling Cheshire Cat), as well as a number of new—and equally eccentric—inhabitants. Meanwhile, back in the rational world, Charles Darwin, Walter Pater and other Victorian-era personages provide a rich contrast to Ada’s surreal adventures. The blend of fact and fiction results in a magical addition to the literature of Wonderland. Maguire and Alice: It’s a pairing Carroll himself would’ve consecrated.

 

This article was originally published in the December 2015 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

It’s a story that never goes out of style: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll’s chronicle of an inquisitive girl lost in a parallel world of talking animals and pompous royals. In honor of the novel’s 150th anniversary, we’ve rounded up a trio of new Alice-related titles, all of which prove that Wonderland still has mysteries well worth exploring.
Children's & YAPicture Book

Festive picture books celebrate the season

Feature by Julie Hale

There’s no topping the sense of excitement that comes with the countdown to Christmas. And there’s no better way to celebrate the season than snuggling up with a holiday story. Surprise the little reader in your life with one of the delightful books featured below, and let the countdown begin!

SANTA AT THE FARM
Duck and the rest of the barnyard rascals get caught in a Christmas jam in Doreen Cronin’s hilarious Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho!. Spruced up for Christmas Eve with a sprig of holly in his hat, Farmer Brown is hanging stockings by the fire. All is merry, bright and quiet, until he hears noises on the roof. Must be Santa, right? Wrong! It’s Duck, stirring up Christmas mischief. He’s hoping to deliver a gift to Farmer Brown in the style of Saint Nick. But upon seeing Santa in the sky, Duck dives into the chimney and gets stuck. Sheep, goats, cat and cows come to the rescue, but they get trapped, too. Luckily, Santa’s on hand to set them free, and soon they’re making merry around Farmer Brown’s tree. Betsy Lewin brings the Christmas revelry to life in spirited watercolor illustrations. As usual, Duck and friends deliver big fun. 

REUNITED FOR THE HOLIDAYS
With Over the River & Through the Wood, Linda Ashman offers an inspired update of Lydia Maria Child’s beloved 1844 poem. In this contemporary take on the classic, a group of widespread relatives—all very different—reunite for a seasonal celebration. Summoned by Grandma and Grandpa (“Come to our house for the holidays—and bring your favorite pie!”), the family members make the journey from various corners of the country by train, car, plane and ferry. When unexpected obstacles delay the travelers, a surprise sleigh ride saves the day. Brimming with holiday cheer, Ashman’s festive tale pays tribute to the modern family in all its varied configurations, and Kim Smith’s dynamic digital illustrations make this a holiday journey worth taking. 

GIFT-GIVING AT ITS BEST
In David Biedrzycki’s Me and My Dragon: Christmas Spirit, the boy-and-beast team are preparing for the holidays. Lacking the funds to buy Christmas gifts, they take on odd (very, very odd) jobs for cash. Dragon’s fire-breathing abilities prove lucrative: He broils up menu items at the Burger Barn and toasts marshmallows, which his enterprising little partner sells for 50 cents. But when it’s time to go shopping, the boy has a change of heart, and he donates his money to a worthy cause. As for Dragon, he contributes homemade cookies (although his baking skills are questionable). Biedrzycki’s clever digital illustrations are crammed with Christmas goodness—snowy sidewalks, costumed carolers and two happy friends. 

MEDIEVAL MERRIMENT
Filled with holiday witticisms, The Knights Before Christmas is a clever send-up of Clement Clarke Moore’s classic poem, “A Visit from St. Nicholas.” Joan Holub’s playful adaptation features three bumbling noblemen—Brave Knight, Silent Knight and Polite Knight—who are guarding the king’s castle on Christmas Eve. Peace reigns, but not for long: A clatter on the drawbridge signals the arrival of Santa. Mistaking the jolly old elf for an invader, the knights set out to repel him, swords drawn and flourished. But Santa has gifts that he’s determined to deliver, and he launches a special attack on the castle—with sugarplums and chewing gum. Packed with Christmas wisecracks and colorful digital illustrations by Scott Magoon, this is a very merry olde Yuletide tale.

NEIGHBORHOOD CHEER
“Sesame Street” alum Sonia Manzano tells a big-city Christmas story in Miracle on 133rd Street. In their cramped apartment, José and his parents celebrate the holidays, although they pine for their native Puerto Rico. When Mami discovers the stove’s too small for her roast, José has a solution: cook the roast at the neighborhood pizzeria. As José and Papi embark on this tasty mission, they encounter cranky grownups and quarreling kids, none of whom seem happy about the holidays. But on their return trip, a bit of Christmas enchantment occurs, and the tempting aroma of the cooked roast works like magic. Marjorie Priceman’s whimsical illustrations, with swirling eddies of color, are perfect for this tale that will make readers believe in the power of Christmas.

CLASSIC COME TO LIFE
No Christmas would be complete without a few rounds of “Jingle Bells,” the timeless sleigh-ride tune composed by James Lord Pierpont in 1857. In Jingle Bells: A Magical Cut-Paper Edition, artist Niroot Putta-pipat brings the holiday gem to vivid life through precise cut- paper montages. A pair of sweethearts—shown in dramatic, dark silhouette against a snow-filled backdrop—takes off on a sleigh ride through a 19th-century winter wonderland. Song lyrics run along the bottom of each spread, and at the end of the ride, there’s a pop-up surprise the little ones will love. A sing-along is definitely in order!

 

This article was originally published in the December 2015 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

There’s no topping the sense of excitement that comes with the countdown to Christmas. And there’s no better way to celebrate the season than snuggling up with a holiday story. Surprise the little reader in your life with one of the delightful books featured below, and let the countdown begin!
NonfictionBusiness & Finance

Rule your retirement: smart strategies for the easy life

Feature by Julie Hale

It’s never too early—or too late—to start planning for retirement, and the inspiring books below can show you how. These practical reads will help you manage your money and make a successful shift to the next stage of the game if your career is coming to a close. Get ready to face the future with confidence.

Both the high-level exec and the bottom-rung recruit will benefit from Dr. Teresa Ghilarducci’s How to Retire with Enough Money and How to Know What Enough Is. Ghilarducci, a retirement-security expert who teaches at the New School for Social Research, starts by laying out the cold, hard facts about Americans and retirement: Most of us have less than $30,000 squirrelled away for our post-working lives, while a third of us have no savings at all. About half of the middle class will hit poverty level upon retirement. “This isn’t just a personal problem,” Ghilarducci says, “it’s a national problem.” 

Moving beyond the bleak statistics, Ghilarducci shows readers how to improve their long-term prospects. A critical first step is determining the amount of money you’ll require come retirement time—about 70 or 80 percent of your current income. For readers who need to get on sound financial ground before they can start strategizing for retirement, Ghilarducci supplies “a road map to change.” She addresses the here-and-now problems (credit card debt, car loans) that often prevent us from thinking about the future and reveals smart ways to trim everyday expenses. A yes-you-can spirit prevails throughout this brief, handy guide. Ghilarducci’s concise, cut-to-the-chase advice makes planning for the future seem (dare we say it?) easy. 

MOTIVATION FROM A MASTER
Financial advisor Chris Hogan is a sought-after speaker on matters related to retirement and life planning, and the energy he brings to these topics in person is palpable on the pages of Retire Inspired. Both a pep talk aimed at those who feel unprepared for retirement and a practical guide to money management, Hogan’s book addresses the concerns we all harbor in a tone that’s refreshingly positive. Throughout, Hogan shares family and sports anecdotes (he was once an all-American football player), as well as stories about his clients. The result is a spirited, engaging read filled with smart suggestions on how to get serious about saving.

Hogan takes a decade-by-decade approach to retirement strategy. Beginning with readers who are in their 20s and working up to those in their 60s and beyond, he lays out detailed plans for each age group, with tips on how to get out from under the burden of debt, how to set and live by a budget, and how to find the daily momentum that’s required for long-term saving. Best of all, he encourages readers to stop thinking of retirement as a terrible finality and start viewing it as an adventure. “Retirement is not just the rest of the story,” he says, “it can be the best of your story.” Inspiring, indeed. 

MINDSET IS EVERYTHING
Whether you’re toying with the idea of retirement or have already taken the big step, you’ll want to pick up a copy of Happy Retirement: The Psychology of Reinvention, a thorough, accessible volume that’s packed with tips on how to prepare for and savor the years that lie ahead. Created with input from Dr. Kenneth S. Shultz, an expert on the psychology of retirement, the book considers the practicalities of leaving the workforce, providing information on issues like financial planning and healthcare, but it also goes in-depth on the mental and emotional repercussions that come with the conclusion of a career.

Constructed on a foundation of solid research, the book offers guidelines on preparing for life away from the office (start by asking yourself “The Big Four” questions: What will I do? How will I afford it? Where will I live? Who will I share it with?) and provides advice on making a smooth transition. The volume is chock-full of ways to stay happy and purposeful (how about mentoring an up-and-comer at your old company?). Featuring bold colors and nifty graphics, this engaging book covers all the bases, from choosing the right retirement date to saying goodbye to colleagues. It’s a must-have manual for anyone contemplating a departure from the working world. 

 

This article was originally published in the January 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

It’s never too early—or too late—to start planning for retirement, and the inspiring books below can show you how. These practical reads will help you manage your money and make a successful shift to the next stage of the game if your career is coming to a close. Get ready to face the future with confidence.
NonfictionFictionBiography

Fresh stories from the Emerald Isle

Feature by Julie Hale

March is a lucky month for readers who love Ireland—a country with a rich narrative tradition, where stories and poems are considered everyday currency. Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, we’re spotlighting three new titles that prove the country’s memorable characters and storytelling legacy live on.

AN ENDURING LEGACY
Timothy Egan, meticulous historian and crackerjack story-teller, offers a rousing biography of renegade leader Thomas Francis Meagher in The Immortal Irishman: The Irish Revolutionary Who Became an American Hero. 

Meagher, a native of Waterford, Ireland, who fought for the Union in the American Civil War, has a personal history of mythical proportions. At the age of 25, he spearheaded an unsuccessful revolt against the British and was exiled to a penal colony in Tasmania. Less than a year later, he resurfaced in New York, where he was celebrated as a hero, and he went on to command the Irish Brigade—a rag-tag crew of immigrants and outlaws—in some of the Civil War’s most cutthroat conflicts. He later served as territorial governor of Montana. Egan sheds new light on the indomitable Irishman’s final days in this fascinating and far-flung yarn. 

A self-described “lapsed” Irish American, Egan—winner of the National Book Award for his 2007 chronicle of the Dust Bowl, The Worst Hard Time—writes in a spirited style that’s perfectly matched to Meagher’s remarkable life. 

A NEW VOICE
Already a literary sensation overseas, Sara Baume, winner of the 2015 Hennessy New Irish Writer Award, delivers a remarkably accomplished debut in Spill Simmer Falter Wither, a captivating novel that features a man-redeemed-by-dog plotline. The book is narrated by an outsider named Ray, who, at the age of 57—“too old for starting over, too young for giving up”—is spurned by his neighbors after his father dies. Ray is something of a curmudgeon, and when he befriends a scruffy one-eyed terrier, he finds unexpected fulfillment in the relationship. But an unfortunate incident forces Ray to pull up roots and drift—canine by his side, of course. The novel chronicles a year in the life of the improbable pair, four seasons spent on the road that are rich with incident and gorgeously depicted through Baume’s precise, lapidary prose. 

The 31-year-old author, who lives in Cork with two dogs of her own, displays wisdom beyond her years in this compassionate tale.

IRRESISTABLE IRISH YARNS
A native of County Dublin and a longtime columnist for The Irish Times, Maeve Binchy was the author of more than 20 bestsellers, including the classic novel Circle of Friends (1990). Binchy, who died in 2012, had a heartfelt, unaffected storytelling style that made her a favorite at home and abroad. Her many fans will cheer the appearance of A Few of the Girls, a collection of 36 stories never published before in the United States. Exploring the complex nature of relationships in the melodic prose that became her trademark, Binchy charts the dynamics of romance, the politics of family and the stipulations of friendship. When it comes to capturing the caprices of the human heart, she’s unbeatable. Readers will recognize themselves in her nuanced portrayals of women and men whose goals and regrets, dreams and disappointments never feel less than true-to-life. There’s no better antidote to a raw March evening than a dose of vintage Binchy.

 

This article was originally published in the March 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

March is a lucky month for readers who love Ireland—a country with a rich narrative tradition, where stories and poems are considered everyday currency. Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, we’re spotlighting three new titles that prove the country’s memorable characters and storytelling legacy live on.
Children's & YAPicture Book

Flights of imagination

Feature by Julie Hale

Big adventures are in store for rising readers, as these three picture books celebrate the imagination and its limitless potential. These inspiring tales are all about discovery, exploration and letting your imagination take the lead. Anything is possible!

An independent little girl gets lost in an adventure of her own imagining in R.W. Alley’s Gretchen Over the Beach. With her spiffy new sunhat and toys, Gretchen is ready to spend a day at the seashore with her siblings. But she’s disappointed when they race to the ocean, leaving her alone on the beach. Gretchen plays in the sand until her hat is caught by a gust of wind. She snags it by the tail—a length of red ribbon—and is soon airborne. Flying along with her toys for company, Gretchen zips over the ocean. A ride on the back of a seagull makes her beach day complete. Alley uses ink, pencil and acrylics to create a swirling dreamscape of ocean and sky—the perfect backdrop for the story of Gretchen and her out-of-this-world imagination. 

FACING UP TO FEAR
Danny Parker’s Parachute is the uplifting story of a small boy who confronts a big challenge. Toby is never without his parachute. Folded away in an orange pack, it makes him feel less uneasy about descending from his bunk bed or swinging in the park. It becomes very necessary when Toby is forced to climb up to his treehouse to retrieve Henry, his cat. Using the parachute, Toby sends Henry safely to the ground. But now Toby is stranded. How will he get down? With the help of his imagination, of course! Artist Matt Ottley plays with perspective in ingenious pictures that deliver a sense of Toby’s vertiginous experience. His paint, pastel and pencil illustrations are filled with brilliant details (like the stuffed rabbit that’s strapped to Toby’s pack). This is a triumphant tale about defeating fear that readers of all ages will appreciate.

THE SKY’S THE LIMIT
Flying bovines and a friendly dragon—there’s plenty to love about Gemma Merino’s The Cow Who Climbed a Tree. Tina the cow is often teased about her inquisitive mind by her sisters, a complacent trio whose thoughts rarely stray beyond their stomachs. In the woods one day, on a whim, Tina climbs a tree, where a surprise awaits her: a winged dragon! The two trade stories and become fast friends. At home, Tina tells her sisters about the dragon, but they don’t believe her. When she disappears the next day, they make their very first venture into the forest in hopes of finding her. The sisters soon learn that the woods are full of wonder, a place where their wildest dreams can take flight. Merino’s delightful illustrations feature simple lines and bold washes of color. Her story is sure to ignite the spirit of discovery in young readers.

 

This article was originally published in the March 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Big adventures are in store for rising readers, as these three picture books celebrate the imagination and its limitless potential. These inspiring tales are all about discovery, exploration and letting your imagination take the lead. Anything is possible!

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