Printz Discussion

I’m very excited to be participating in the Printz discussion at the Youth Services meeting next month! This is the first opportunity I’ve had to be involved in one of these round-table discussions. Two years ago, I was all set to participate until I realized that the meeting was to be held on my pregnancy due date! Needless to say, I didn’t want to commit myself to participating only to find myself in labor when the day finally rolled around. (As it turns out, I was not in labor that day, but 2 short days later!)

Anyway, each year for the December YS meeting, we rotate through either the Printz, Newbery, or Caldecott Awards. This year, we’re taking a look at possible Printz Award winners. I’ve been assigned 5 teen titles to either read or read reviews of, in order to be informed enough to participate in the discussion. I’m very much looking foward to my assignments:

• Shift by Jennifer Bradbury
• The Compound by S. A. Bodeen
• Lock & Key by Sarah Dessen
• The Fold by An Na
• Ringside, 1925 by Jen Bryant

I read Shift over the summer and was quite captivated with it. (I actually included it with my Columbus Parent book reviews.) Sarah Dessen is an author who is always on my to-read list although I never seem to get around to her. Her books circulate so well with teens so I’m interested to see what her writing style is like. Of course, An na is brilliant and I’m sure I’ll be engrossed in The Fold. Not only is Ringside, 1925 a work of historical fiction, but also a story in free verse, told by various spectators of the Scopes “monkey trial”. I enjoy reading books in this format, as with Day of Tears by Julius Lester, Bull Run by Paul Fleischman. And, lastly, The Compound was already on my to-read list on goodreads, which also bodes well for my enjoyment of it!

I’ll post about these again, once I’ve had a chance to get started on all this reading!

The reviews are in!

October’s issue of Columbus Parent has hit the newsstands and with it my children/teens book reviews! And, I must admit, I like seeing my name in print!