You hear it all the time now, every time you turn on the radio. Syncopated rhythms, heavy beats, words laced together at an alarming speed. But where many people hear blasting music and demeaning lyrics , I hear alliteration, assonance, and allegory. Simply put, I hear poetry. Of course, I’m not saying that there aren’t a [ Read the full article… ]
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Head’s Up
Heads Up, a periodic column of The Brown Bookshelf, is a reposting of AACBWI’s announcement of book releases that may picque the interest of young African American readers. As a Brown Bookshelf partner, The African American Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators society is dedicated to spreading the word about these and other books that are of special interest [ Read the full article… ]
Help! My Kids Don’t Like to Read
If you’re a teacher, author, librarian, bookstore employee, chances are that you’ve been asked, “How do I get my kids or students to read more?” or “How do I get my kids or students to like reading?” As a teacher, I was asked some variation of those questions. Since becoming an author, I’ve been asked [ Read the full article… ]
Three moves is all it takes to change the outcome of the game
This past weekend, I read G. Neri‘s Chess Rumble, illustrated by Joshua Watson. Got my copy at the newspaper where I work. Couple times a year, they hold a huge book sale with proceeds going to charity. The books are sent from publishers hoping for media exposure. I made it to the sale three hours [ Read the full article… ]
Stocking A Teen’s Bookshelf
YA and teens go well together – they’re both in awkward stages. Teens (and for the sake of conversation let’s include tweens ages 10-12) are newly indepenent thinkers, yet not ready to fly solo. Some blame the underlying tension and conflict between teens and parents on a generation gap – but I think it has more to [ Read the full article… ]
What’s on Your Christmas List?
Last week I discovered a quote from Lenore Hershey, the former editor of McCall’s and Ladies Home Journal magazines, where she in her sage wisdom advised us, “Do give books – religious or otherwise – for Christmas. They’re never fattening, seldom sinful, and permanently personal.” Now of course, I agree with her words, as both [ Read the full article… ]
Letters to a Young Brother
Recently I picked up a copy of Hill Harper’s Letters to a Young Brother. I purchased it only because my wife chased me through the book store, repeating, like a broken record, “But I think you’ll like this book. But I think you’ll like this book. But I think…” I didn’t want a celebrity book. [ Read the full article… ]
Can you hear us now? We sure can!
To everyone out there that send an email or nominated an author or just posted a comment — THANK YOU! Quite frankly, we’ve gotten more suggestions than I ever imagined we’d get. And what a great mix is it — pbs and middle grade, YA and chapter books, historical fiction and sci-fi, serious books and [ Read the full article… ]