Grab Bag Saturday: Smooth Criminal

I've heard/read a lot of chatter over the last couple days about how Michael Jackson's dancing (back in the day, before all the dazzle burned him out) was influenced by Fred Astaire, admired by Fred Astaire, as good as Fred Astaire. Apparently, after Jackson performed the moonwalk for the first time, Fred Astaire called him up to tell him how fabulous it was.

Well, here's a cool Astaire mashup of Smooth Criminal that someone put together about a year ago.

Yundi Li: Chopin Nocturne Op. 9 No. 2

I've been listening to Chopin's Nocturnes in the morning recently (yes, I know, nocturnes in the morning...). Which means that I have the theme from Op. 9 No. 2 in my head a lot these days.

The melody of this piece is so pretty and melancholy, it soothes and breaks the heart at the same time. I came across this video of Yundi Li performing the piece, and was struck by how gently and effortlessly his fingers appear to be playing it, and yet how wrapped up and fully into the music he is. Watch him at the end...he's completely shaken by the music. It's a beautiful thing.

I also came across this quote at Chopin Music--George Sand about Chopin's writing process (Chopin and Sand had a 10-year relationship that came to a rather unpleasant end):

"His creative work was spontaneous, miraculous. It came to him without effort or warning... But then began the most heartrending labour I have ever witnessed. It was a series of attempts, of fits of irresolution and impatience to recover certain details. He would shut himself in his room for days, pacing up and down, breaking his pens, repeating and modifying one bar a hundred times."

It's amazing to me how a composer will put immense effort and work like this into one bar of music, and it can come out sounding as effortless and simple as if he just plucked it out of the sky. Which is, of course, the goal.

According to Chopin Music, Chopin once wrote:

"Simplicity is the final achievement. After one has played a vast quantity of notes and more notes, it is simplicity that emerges as the crowning reward of art."

William Butler Yeats: The Lake Isle of Innisfree

Another dreary day here in Maine (summer will come soon, I swear it will), and I'm at my kitchen table with a cup of tea and some Yeats. I'm in the mood for something classic today.

"The Lake Isle of Innisfree" was written in 1893, a meditation on the lake isle where Yeats used to vacation as a boy. When you think of your childhood, do you have a place of rest like this? Someplace you can go to in your mind when the rush and tumble of adulthood is too much?

For me, there was a little path through the woods I used to walk almost every day in the summer. The beginning of the path was small and close, lined with dark pine trees (I could have sworn faeries lived in there), but after a while, it opened up to light and birches. You'd pass a small open field, with a tree stump perfect for sitting, and if you turned to the right, you would come to the tiniest little opening at the lake--which I liked to call the "Wild Beach." When I was in college, the path was bulldozed and widened to allow forestry trucks to get through, and while it's still a lovely walk, the magic evaporated. But I still go there in my mind whenever I need a little peace that can't quite be found any other way.

"Innisfree" is one of the most lovely, lyrical, nostalgic pieces, and I love how the rhythm of the words flow like the lapping of the water--mesmerizing, infused with a deep, calm longing. It's almost a lullaby.

Below the poem, I've posted a neat homemade video of someone reading the poem while filming a spot on the actual Isle of Innisfree. Very cool.

The Lake Isle of Innisfree
by William Butler Yeats

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;
Nine bean rows will I have there, a hive for the honeybee,
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight's all a-glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet's wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear the water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements gray,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.

Grab Bag Friday: Falling Slowly

It's June, and that means I'm officially wrapped up in one of my favorite guilty pleasures: Season 5 of So You Think You Can Dance! One of the things I love the most about this show is how often I am surprised by a style, dancer, or choreographer that I thought I'd already made my mind up about.

For instance, this couple was easily at the bottom of my list until this week when they hooked up with choreographer Stacy Tookey. Her choreography paired with the gorgeous song "Falling Slowly" brought out something in these dancers I hadn't seen before. As if the movement and music unlocked a little door and let the light shine through.

I think this is just lovely in every way:

Taylor Swift: Love Story

Apologies for missing my Monday post...our router fried out at home, so we haven't had internet for a few days. Crazy how much can come to a standstill because of one little piece of plastic!

Recently, Taylor Swift's Love Story megahit has come up in more conversations than I can count. Since it came out, it's always been in the air, of course, but in the last month, my music students have requested it, I've seen girls at two separate elementary school variety shows sing it with awkward, heart-rending, 10 year old passion, and last night before bed, my 8 year old niece sang it to me over the phone, word for word, without missing a beat.

So what is it about Love Story that makes every young girl swoon? A catchy melody, yes. A pretty girl, of course. But really, I think it's the power of proper story construction. The song is written like a little movie. There's a cute meet, they fall in love, there are obstacles, she feels misunderstood, and just at the last moment when she thinks all is lost, he comes back, the obstacles are cleared, and all is well. And it's all set in a flashback, so that the line "We were both young when I first saw you," repeated at the beginning and end leads us to believe they are still together and really did live happily ever after.

I actually really like the video. It's sweet and romantic without one single kiss. When they sneak off for their illicit rendezvous in the woods, they mainly talk and walk, hold hands, and hang out with a horse. And what girl wouldn't want that horse?



Love Story
by Taylor Swift

We were both young when I first saw you.
I close my eyes and the flashback starts:
I'm standing there on a balcony in summer air.

See the lights, see the party, the ball gowns.
See you make your way through the crowd
and say hello;

Little did I know
That you were Romeo; you were throwing pebbles,
And my daddy said, "Stay away from Juliet."
And I was crying on the staircase,
begging you, 'Please, don't go.'"

And I said,
"Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone.
I'll be waiting; all there's left to do is run.
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story - baby just say 'Yes.'"

So I sneak out to the garden to see you.
We keep quiet 'cause we're dead if they knew.
So close your eyes; escape this town for a little while.
'Cause you were Romeo, I was a scarlet letter,
And my daddy said "Stay away from Juliet,"
But you were everything to me; I was begging you, 'Please, don't go,'"

And I said,
"Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone.
I'll be waiting; all there's left to do is run.
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story - baby just say 'Yes.'

Romeo save me - they're tryin' to tell me how to feel;
This love is difficult, but it's real.
Don't be afraid; we'll make it out of this mess.
It's a love story - baby just say "Yes.'"

I got tired of waiting,
Wondering if you were ever comin' around.
My faith in you was fading
When I met you on the outskirts of town,

And I said,
"Romeo save me - I've been feeling so alone.
I keep waiting for you but you never come.
Is this in thy head? I don't know what to think-"

He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said,
"Marry me, Juliet - you'll never have to be alone.
I love you and that's all I really know.
I talked to your dad - go pick out a white dress;
It's a love story - baby just say 'Yes.'"

'Cause we were both young when I first saw you...

Grab Bag Friday: Surprise Wedding Reception

Today is my bro's 30th birthday! And since he's getting married in just a couple months, I thought I'd post a little wedding fun.

The folks at Improv Everywhere are at it again. I loved this one...

The P.S. 22 Chorus: Landslide

My student assistant's jaw dropped to the ground this week when she found out that I had never seen the videos of the PS22 Chorus. "But this is what you do!" she exclaimed.

Somehow, incredibly, I have missed these sweet performances by the Staten Island P.S. 22 Chorus. The chorus was started by a 2nd grade teacher, Mr. Breinberg (Mr. B, of course) who wanted to teach the kids popular songs, songs they would relate to. He put a few videos up on YouTube, started a blog, and the way these viral Cinderella stories go, the kids were soon singing with the likes of Tori Amos and making Stevie Nicks cry.

Well, who wouldn't cry? In a New York Times article, Mr. B says,

"There’s a great feeling in seeing these kids — some of whom have been abused, neglected, who have nothing to look forward to when they get home — and knowing that when they come in to my class to sing, you can just see the depth of their emotional experience come through."

And does it ever come through. I love this about music. When these kids sing the lines But time makes you bolder/ children get older/ I'm getting older too, you can see that it hits some of them deeply and they sing it straight from the core. Music gives us a place to take our experiences, give them a voice, and send them flying. It also brings us together, and helps us realize that while we all come from vastly different places in our lives, we can sing the same song. Deeply. Boldly. And if we let it, sharing that song can change who we are.


(Landslide video)

David Small: Imogene's Antlers

"On Thursday, when Imogene woke up, she found she had grown antlers."

When I need a book that is going to immediately catch kids' attention, hook them from the very first line, and set their imaginations reeling, I often reach for Imogene's Antlers. There are very few sure bets in the world. Imogene is one of them.

Imogene wakes up one morning to find that she has grown antlers. While this creates some hilarious inconveniences and much fainting on the part of her mother, Imogene and her family come up with some ingenious uses for her new antlers. The surprise ending is one of my all-time favorites, and a crowd-pleaser to boot.

Author/illustrator David Small's illustrations have appeared in countless issues of The New Yorker and The New York Times, and he has illustrated over 40 picture books. On his website, you can view his sketchbook, which is a real treat. Here are a couple of my favorite pages:

Grab Bag Friday: Color Me Katie

On Color Me Katie's blog, Katie recently announced that Radar has put together a documentary about her work. I love Color Me Katie's "street art" photographs because they are so whimsical and spontaneous and pure fun. The Radar documentary captures all the hard work and planning (and fun!) that goes into creating that spontaneity. It's definitely worth a gander:

View the 4 minute documentary here.

Color Me Katie's website is here.

Pomegranates: Southern Ocean

Quick post this morning, since I was up late processing summer workshop registrations. It's so much fun to see some of my previous students returning, and this year there are a lot of new names. I can't wait to meet everyone! There is still some space in Songwriting (K-3), Fiction (3-5), and Poetry (3-5) in case you know anyone who'd like to join in the fun.

I came across "Southern Ocean" by the Pomegranates on NPR's Song of the Day, and it hit the spot: poppy, energetic, fun, with a little raw edge to it. I'll definitely be poking around for more from this band.

Here's how NPR describes the song. Though I'm a little too sleepy for prose at the moment...I admit I had to read it a couple times through. :)

The tune opens with a catchy, surf-tinged motif, then shifts into a tense second movement, propelling the immaculately crafted plot with anticipation and a rich melody. The band never sacrifices the blithe rock sensibility needed to keep the track afloat: "Southern Ocean" exudes such effortless precision, and such fun, that accomplishing all of that in two and a half minutes isn't even a stretch.

Um, just go listen to the song. Maybe dance and bop around a little. That should do.

Jon Scieszka: Knucklehead

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Jon Scieszka is a creative genius.

Knucklehead: Tall Tales and Almost True Stories of Growing Up Scieszka is a hilarious memoir (geared toward the 9-12 set) filled with short vignettes about what it's like to grow up in a family of six kids. Six boys, no less. And just in case that family structure alone isn't comedy itself, try this: six boys in Catholic school.

Of course, growing up in a family of six kids myself (we were five girls, one boy...comedy of another sort), the stories made me grin, guffaw, and repeatedly force my husband to read and re-read chapters. It's that kind of book. The kind you have to share because it's just cruel to keep that much funny to yourself.

After the first couple chapters, I decided to ration myself and only read one chapter a night. I didn't want it to end, and what better way to go to sleep than after a good chuckle?

More than anything, Knucklehead is a testament to the strength of sibling relationships. Jon Scieszka's book illuminates the mystery of how you can sell your brother his own shirt, get him to eat a burnt out cigarette butt, pee on him, and even break his collar bone, and still come out laughing on the other side.

Here's an NPR story about Kucklehead (with some excerpts from the book at the bottom of the page).

Here's a great Reading Rockets interview with Jon Scieszka about growing up with five brothers, teaching elementary school, his unconventional style, and how to get boys interested in reading:

Grab Bag Friday Movie Vault: The Point

Another rainy day here in Maine...perfect for the Grab Bag Friday Movie Vault.

I can count on my left hand the number of people I've met who are as in love with The Point as I am. My brother is one, and he may not count since he's related. Yes, it's dated. Yes, it's 1971-trippy. But Harry Nilsson's sweet, intelligent story and dreamy music work together so well, they transport you to another world. The Point makes my Top 10 movie list any day of the week.

Now let me hip you to reality. This movie is a must-see. Round-headed Oblio is born in a kingdom where every thing has a point. For a while, his parents try to hide his roundness by giving him a pointy hat to wear, but eventually, poor Oblio is outed in a game of Triangle Toss. He and his dog Arrow are banished to the Pointless Forest, where they meet all kinds of strange and wonderful characters who help Oblio rethink what it means to have a "point."

To this day, I can sing almost all of the songs by heart, and "Are You Sleeping" very nearly made it onto my lullaby album. (I guess it'll have to wait for volume two.) Here is one of my favorites, "Think About Your Troubles." This scene is right after Oblio and Arrow get banished to the Pointless Forest:



And The Rock Man was always one of my favorite characters. I love his opening line. "You been goofing with the bees?" I think my bro and I both went through stages of wanting to be just like The Rock Man when we grew up. I like to think a little of it has stuck. :)

Songwriting for Kids and They Might Be Giants

Well okay, these are two separate news items. But wouldn't it be cool if Songwriting for Kids and They Might Be Giants hooked up? Ah, the stuff dreams are made of...

News item #1 (SFK): The June 1 registration deadline for Songwriting, Fiction, and Poetry Writing for Kids summer workshops is just around the corner! If you're in Maine and you know someone who'd enjoy these classes (they're a blast!), please spread the word.

News item #2 (TMBG): Did you know that They Might Be Giants is going to sponsor 10 Little League Teams? To get *your* team in the running for those cool yellow shirts, go to the TMBG Little League page and scroll to the bottom for application instructions. (Thanks to Zooglobble for the link!)

Hmmm...if my team was named after a cool band, maybe I would have taken a bit more interest in grade school softball. As it was, I just sat (yes, sat!) in right field and thought about how unfair it was that the coach (my dad) wouldn't let me bring my book out there. It's not like we *ever* got a field hit, so I really didn't see what the big deal was. Hmph!

How about you? Any fond (or otherwise) childhood memories of our nation's favorite summer pastime?

Grab Bag Friday: Chickpea Tomato Stew

Cool tomato photo by Darwin Bell.

Here's another yummy recipe from The Six O'Clock Scramble. I've been sending this around to all my siblings because it's easy, healthy, filling, and delicious!

Chickpea Tomato Stew

Serve over Israeli (large grain) couscous. (I've tried it on regular couscous and that's tasty, too.)

2 Tbsp. olive oil
3 shallots, finely chopped (I've also used yellow onions or green onions)
2 tsp. to 1 Tbsp curry powder (depending on how spicy you like it)
1 tsp. ground cumin
15 oz. canned chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
15 oz. diced tomatoes, with their liquid (don't get the kind with the spices mixed in)
1 cup red pasta sauce or tomato sauce
1/4 cup fresh mint and/or oregano, or 3/4 tsp. dried oregano, or to taste (fresh mint is the best!)
1 cup nonfat or low fat sour cream or plain yogurt, for serving (optional)

In a heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and sauté them until they start to brown, 3-4 minutes. (If you are making couscous, start that now.)

Add the curry powder and cumin and cook, stirring, for another minute. Add the chickpeas, tomatoes and pasta sauce (if using dried oregano rather than fresh, add it now, too) and simmer it for about 10 minutes. Remove it from the heat and stir in the fresh mint and/or oregano.

Serve the stew over the couscous, topped with a spoonful of sour cream or yogurt, if desired. For a make-ahead option, you can refrigerate it for up to 3 days, or freeze it for up to 3 months before serving it.

Jason Webley: The Cost of Living

I like to haunt around Neil Gaiman's blog, and a few weeks back, he recommended this musician Jason Webley. I made a note to check him out and then promptly forgot about it. Until this weekend.

I was working on one of those long, pull-your-hair out house projects requiring caulk, paint, and a steady hand. The kind of project I can't get through without music. But not just any music. For this task, I needed something with Ramones-style energy (to out my frustrations), but Andrew Bird-style beauty and drama (to stay my concentration). I stared blankly at my Rhapsody playlist for a while, and then decided to check out this guy Neil Gaiman likes so much.

Thank you, Jason Webley (and thank you, Mr. Gaiman) for seeing me through. I listened to The Cost of Living three times back to back, and I even mananged to do a decent job with the caulking.

I love the song Clear, which doesn't seem to be up on YouTube or any of the usual places you can listen to for free. But here is a clip (which, of course, too short to do it any justice at all):



Neil Gaiman posted Almost Time on his journal.

Now, when I was looking up Jason Webley songs on YouTube, I noticed that he often plays solo. Which is cool, but I was curious to see how he would deal with a song like There's Not a Step We Can Take That Does Not Bring Us Closer, which, on the album, has these great violin and trombone sections.

Well, here's how he deals with it. Heheh. I like it:

Hip Hip Hooray! Fuse #8 Top 100 Picture Books Poll

Three cheers for Betsy Bird at Fuse #8! The final Top 100 Picture Books Poll list has been meticulously and lovingly compiled, complete with bibliography (Ms. Bird is a librarian by day, after all!)

Well, I did okay on my guesses about which books would end up in the Top Ten. 7 out of 10 isn't bad. What were my downfalls?

1. Who could have guessed that The Carrot Seed wouldn't make it onto the list at all? My mother would be appalled.

2. I swear, I've never even heard of Millions of Cats which snuck into 9th place.

3. I completely underestimated Mo Willems, who took two, count 'em, two! spots in the top ten with Knuffle Bunny and Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus.

Now, before you view the list and get all worked up that The Cat In the Hat doesn't show up, please keep in mind that this was a readers poll for picture books only. No easy readers allowed. With that little caveat out of the way....go, peruse, enjoy!

Grab Bag Friday: Looking for a Song about Love, Money, and Friends Who Move Away

Every once in a while, on author Cynthia Lord's journal, she'll post some of the funny search engine keywords that bring people to her website. Just for fun, I checked out what words people type in that bring them to my Songwriting for Kids pages. Here are a few of the gems:

good song for when a friend moves away (This search shows up in many different forms, and I totally understand. It was a huge theme in my life when I was a kid. Other favorite versions of this are sad songs if ur friend moved away and my friend moved what song should i listen to)

a song some one wrote it in words

a song someone wrote and needs someone to sing it

a song that describes you like someone but in love with someone else (ouch!)

any songs with mackenzie in it? (I *still* get excited when I find a song with Josephine in it!)

enter a contest where you have to type in all the lyrics to hannah montana (Oh my gosh, *is* there such a contest? I know a few girls who would be tough contenders.)

have to courage in singing a solo (Oh, sweetie. I *wish* I could give out courage on my website.)

how to write a hit song at the age of nine

how much money does a hit song earn? (another extremely popular search!)

i think i have a hit song

i wrote a song now what

im 12 years old and i need a love song (love songs, as you can imagine, are a popular search item as well)

looking for that song about i dont need love, i need money (combining two of the hit themes here...)

need to make money age 9 (This kid should hook up with the age nine trying to write a hit song!)

song about grapes for kids (huh?)

write 10 folk songs from the computer (What a mission!)

Happy weekend everyone!

What Did You Love About Your Elementary School?

This year, I've been having a *lot* of fun working with the fourth and fifth graders in the Williams-Cone Elementary School Special Chorus. Our task was to create a song that the whole school could sing and enjoy.

Well, are you ready for it? Drumroll....here it is: My School.

The first couple days I visited the school, we had some brainstorming sessions about the things that are important to daily life at Williams-Cone. Of course, recess was huge, and we built our entire bridge around that. But what I thought was nice were the small details that came out. The little things you look forward to, that add up to make your day a really great one.

What did you love about your grade school? Here are a few of the things the kids from Williams-Cone look forward to every day:

• Breathing in the smell of clay and feeling it squish through your fingers
  
• Seeing your own artwork on the hall walls
• Listening to the principal whistle a song
  
• Making a "listening flower" (in music class, they all lay down in a circle with their feet touching in the middle and listen very carefully...cool!)
• Knowing the answer to a math question
• Going back to the "kids" section of the library and finding a favorite book from Kindergarten
• Contributing to the unrestrained *noise* in the lunchroom!

It's funny how these details stick with us. I remember distinctly my favorite corners of my elementary school library (the musty one with a whole shelf and a half of the Old Mother West Wind books, and the dark, far corner where you could tuck yourself away and secretly read the "bad" Judy Blume books). When you think about it, these little, constant things often shape who we are just as much as the big dramatic ones. I'm glad the Williams-Cone students have such fun and creative details in their lives!

Grab Bag Friday: Mouse Was Mad Contest

I am so so so excited because Linda Urban's new picture book, Mouse Was Mad, came out this week! I haven't seen it yet (that's my weekend treat to myself), but her quirky middle grade novel, A Crooked Kind of Perfect, was one the most enjoyable kids books of the decade. I'm not exaggerating.

Anyway, to celebrate the publication, Ms. Urban is having a mad contest over at her blog, Crooked Perfect. Just leave her a comment telling her

1. what makes you mad, and
2. your favorite way to feel better
   

and she'll send the lucky winner a signed copy of the book *and* a box of delicious-looking truffles.

I couldn't wait to jump right on it, but then I ran into a problem. As many of you know, there is not a lot that can make me mad. Not real, hopping, smoke-out-the-ears mad. My default is the whole "well that's out of my control" or "you never know what that person is going through" or "who cares?" stuff that drives my husband crazy. Every once in a while, he'll say to me in a fury, "It's okay to be mad, you know! Don't you ever just want to be mad?"

Since I really want to win this book, I had to dig deep. I can think of three instances over the years where I have been red-hot:

1. Pure, animal mad. Flashback to the eighties. I was eleven or twelve (in my permed ponytail and lip smackers gloss, no doubt) babysitting my three younger siblings.
What made me mad? My brother wouldn't go to bed. I lost it. Really lost it. I tried to order, beg, threaten. Instead, he started to kick.
What did I do to feel better? I bit him. Hard. On the leg. At the moment, it felt good. I got even. But the swollen bruise that formed over the week was hideous and the guilt I felt for *years* was even worse. Oh, he went to bed, though.

2. Sick to my stomach mad. In high school, we had dress-up days during Homecoming Week. You know, Pajama Day, '60s Day, all that good stuff.
What made me mad? On Color Day, one of my classmates came to school in a KKK costume. Not just that, he won first prize in the student choice awards. Not just that, the principal handed him the award. SERIOUSLY.
What did I do to feel better? Writer and confrontation-avoider that I am, I wrote a letter to the school newspaper. The teacher who ran the paper wouldn't print it, but she "thought it was a good letter" and took the liberty to send it to the county paper. Let's just say there were repercussions until I graduated, but I have always been glad I wrote that letter.
This one still makes me mad.

3. Fighting mad. These days, there is one thing that can consistently get me riled.
What makes me mad? When I come across a parent or a teacher who writes off a child. You know the kind. A kid doesn't "fit in" or have the same skill set as other kids or doesn't come from the right family and the adult (who should know better) assumes they are "stupid" or a "loser" or "will never amount to anything." I grew up around a lot of these kinds of adults (thankfully, not my parents, who are the exact opposite of this) and I see them in my day-to-day life, and they make me mad, mad, mad!
What do I do to feel better? I work harder. I teach workshops and music lessons and sing and write for kids. I try to help every kid I interact with know that they have something to offer to the world. Because they do. Every one. If they have negative adults in their life, I know I can't fix it. But if I can make a difference with one. Cancel out one voice in the crowd. Well, that's something.

I guess the take away is that for me, doing something about it is what makes me less mad. How about you?

The Clash: Should I Stay or Should I Go

Last week, on Music Wednesday, I posted a couple sweet classic songs from the '40s. As Monty Python would say...And now, for something completely different...

Recently, I've been working on a novel in which one of the characters is a little obsessed with Joe Strummer from The Clash. So I've been perusing YouTube a bit for classic punk rock, and here are a couple treats.

Here's a live version of Should I Stay or Should I Go, one of the most popular "mainstream" songs by The Clash. I love the goofy dancing, I have to say:



This Lifetimes documentary is a hoot. I love the girl who says:

"I don't know why I like them. That's why I like them. You don't have to know everything."

Brilliant. I might have to steal that for my book. :)

Top 100 Picture Books Poll Results

Here's an intriguing question: What are your Top 10 picture books of all time?

Earlier this spring, one of my favorite bloggers (Fuse #8 over at School Library Journal) asked her readers to send in their top 10 picture books. She compiled the results in a painstaking, weighted process (a person's #1 choice got more points than their #2, etc.), compiled a readers-choice Top 100 Picture Books list, and she's been doling out the results in highly entertaining posts over the last month or so.

Well, we've hit the Top 10, and if you've missed the series so far, now is the time to join in! Over the next two weeks, Fuse #8 will be posting about each of the Top 10 winners, counting up to the coveted #1 postition. Today was #10: Knuffle Bunny by Mo Willems.

I made my guesses last week, and I'm already wrong! Here are the books I thought would win the Top 10 spots (in no particular order). In my defense, I voted *before* Ferdinand was posted, and he turned out to be #11. Still, had I known, I probably wouldn't have predicted Knuffle Bunny. My predictions:

• Make Way for Ducklings
• Goodnight Moon
• The Story of Ferdinand
• The Carrot Seed
• Marshmallow
• The Very Hungry Caterpillar
• Where the Wild Things Are
• The Snowy Day
• Harold and the Purple Crayon
• Madeline

Of course, this list of predictions (while I love all those books) is much different than the original list of my favorites that I sent in at the beginning of the process:

1. When the Sun Rose by Barbara Helen Berger (a sleeper, but my all-time favorite...here's my review)
   
2. The Arrival by Shaun Tan (here's my review...it made #67 on the Fuse #8 Top 100)
   
3. The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats (my review)
   
4. Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney (came in #19 on the Fuse #8 Top 100)
   
5. Many Moons by James Thurber (my review)
6. The Wall by Peter Sis (my review)
   
7. Charlie Parker Played Be Bop Chris Raschka (my review)
   
8. Through My Eyes by Ruby Bridges (my review)
   
9. The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka (came in #14 on the Fuse #8 Top 100)
   
10. Imogene's Antlers by David Small

For me, any list of favorites is so subjective and changeable. I'd probably give you a slightly different list every day, depending on my mood.

How about you? What would make your Top 10? Or what would you predict to see there?

Grab Bag Friday: Fine Gardening

Happy May Day!

It's a grey, rainy day here in Maine, but that is great news for my garden. I have tulips and daffodils getting ready to bloom, lupines and primroses spreading like crazy, and my crab apple tree is covered with tiny little buds just waiting to burst. A nice May shower will do them all good!

On dreary spring days, I love to head over and peruse the inexhaustible gardening tips at Fine Gardening. Here are a few little gems I stumbled upon this morning:

• How to Buy the Best Plants: this 5 minute video is well worth watching before you head out to buy plants this year
• Celebrate Spring: fill your pots with colorful plants that don't mind cool weather
• Hummingbird Favorites: find out what all the buzz is about by planting these colorful perennials
• Mother's Day Gardening Gift Guide
  

What are you planting this year?

(Photo by Vince Alongi)

Martha Tilton: I'll Walk Alone And the Angels Sing

A little blast from the past today. Here are two songs from one of my favorite big band singers, Martha Tilton. Sure, she's not a household name, but something about her sweet, clear tone has the ability to always put me right at ease.

And the Angels Sing is probably Ms. Tilton's most famous song, performed with the Benny Goodman Orchestra at the legendary 1938 Carnegie Hall Concert. This is the first song I heard her sing, and it won me over instantly!



A friend of mine sent me a cassette tape with I'll Walk Alone when I was away at college, and to this day, it is one of the most beautiful melodies I know (and I truly believe lyricist Sammy Cahn was a genius). I like Martha Tilton's version because she sings it with just the right amount of melancholy. Not too drippy sweet, like some of her contemporaries performed it.

Robert Hayden: Monet's Waterlillies

When I'm in need of some seriously good poetry, the kind that makes you breathe deep and look at the world in a whole new light, I usually make a beeline for the Collected Poems of Robert Hayden. In celebration of the last Monday of Poetry Month, here is a Robert Hayden poem about the reflective and refractive qualities of art in a world we don't always want to look at head-on.

Monet's Waterlilies
by Robert Hayden

Today as the news from Selma and Saigon
poisons the air like fallout,
I come again to see
the serene, great picture that I love.

Here space and time exist in light
the eye like the eye of faith believes.
The seen, the known
dissolve in iridescence, become
illusive flesh of light
that was not, was, forever is.

O light beheld as through refracting tears.
Here is the aura of that world
each of us has lost.
Here is the shadow of its joy.

Grab Bag Friday Movie Vault: Designing Women

One of the redeeming things about being laid up with a brutal cold is that you get to lounge on the couch and watch goofy old movies. Kevin and I rented Designing Women this week, and I must say, it was a highly satisfying viewing experience.

No, no, not those permed women with their interior design hijinks that dominated our televisions in the 80's. This is a 1957 comedy with two of my favorite actors: Lauren Bacall and Gregory Peck. How could you go wrong?

The basic plot is that Marilla (Lauren) and Mike (Gregory) meet on vacation on the West Coast, fall madly in love, and get married on a whim. When they return to their home town of New York, they find (hilariously) that they have two completely different lives.

I was going to describe the plot and post the original trailer here, but it spoils far too many plot lines. There were so many fun surprises in this movie, it's got to be better to just rent it and start it up cold. Suffice it to say that Gregory Peck is a comic genius. Lauren Bacall is glamorous and wry. The ending (which the 1957 The New York Times review called "in somewhat doubtful taste") had me laughing so hard it hurt my throat (what that says about my taste could be a discussion for another day).

Kevin's verdict? He definitely liked it, but he thought watching me gasp, cringe, and guffaw through the whole thing was more fun than the movie. That's about par for the course at my house.

Oren Lavie: Her Morning Elegance

I know, I know. I missed my music blog post this Wednesday. Instead of blogging, I was curled up on the couch with hot lemon ginger tea in one hand and a box of kleenex in the other. *sigh* Spring cold season.

But, I won't short change you. I'll give you a quick music post *and* a Grab Bag Friday post, all in one day. How about that? All is forgiven?

For the music: a lovely, whimsical video by Oren Lavie (remember his beautiful Dance Round the Memory Tree in the Narnia movie?) I've been loving this song recently:

Mary Oliver: Red Bird

Lately, I've been day-dreaming about which poems to use in my summer Poetry Writing for Kids workshop. It's a fun, but difficult exercise...kind of like having to pick out just a few pieces of candy out of a blimp-sized bag of tasty treats.

Though my class is geared toward 3rd-5th graders, I'm the kind that doesn't like to narrow the field to "children's poetry" (although there is plenty to choose from there.) So when I started thinking about a nature-inspired unit, my thoughts drifted immediately to Mary Oliver. Her simple, elegant, sharply observant, and sparse poems are filled with exactly the kind of wonder and beauty I am hoping my students will tune in to.

Over Easter, I picked up Mary Oliver's 2008 collection, Red Bird. (Her newest collection, Evidence, is scheduled to hit bookstores this month.) As expected, it is filled with rich images from the natural world that plant themselves in your mind and stay with you all day. The poet Stanley Kunitz has wisely said, "Mary Oliver's poetry is fine and deep; it reads like a blessing."

I was particularly struck by the poems in this book that concern words, and specifically, the writing of words. On one hand, Ms. Oliver ponders, words are everything. But on the other, they are nothing. She puts the image of herself, constantly finding beauty, joy, and anguish in writing and manipulating language, against the image of the red bird, the fox, the owl. In the natural world, of which she writes so much about, there are no words. And yet even without words, there is no shortage of beauty, joy, and anguish there. Without words:

"the trees flourish,
the toad leaps,
and out of the silent dirt
the blood-red roses rise." (From "Both Worlds")

Below is one of the poems on this topic that I intend to use for my class. I hope you'll have a chance to pick up a copy of Red Bird and read the rest. It is indeed fine and deep and reads like a blessing.

Percy and Books (Eight)
by Mary Oliver
(note: Percy is Ms. Oliver's dog)

Percy does not like it when I read a book.
He puts his face over the top of it and moans.
He rolls his eyes, sometimes he sneezes.
The sun is up, he says, and the wind is down.
The tide is out and the neighbor's dogs are playing.
But Percy, I say. Ideas! The elegance of language!
The insights, the funniness, the beautiful stories
that rise and fall and turn into strength, or courage.

Books? says Percy. I ate one once, and it was enough.
Let's go.


You can listen to Mary Oliver reading from her poetry (she begins with a Percy poem) at the Lannan Foundation. (Thank you to One Poet's Notes for the link.)

Mary Oliver's biography is available at Poetry Foundation.

Grab Bag Friday: Wild Rumpus on the White House Lawn

This was my favorite video of the week. It's worth watching to the end because President Obama starts to hit his stride. He's not half-bad at story time! Let the wild rumpus begin!

So which rumpus do you think will be better...Obama's interpretation or Spike Jonze's?

Playing for Change: Stand By Me and Don't Worry

My mom sent me a Playing for Change video a few months back, and one of my student's parents recently reminded me about it, so I figure it's high time to get something up on the blog!

The Playing for Change Foundation provides facilities, supplies, and educational resources for musicians around the world. The foundation has started a music school and an art center in Africa, and is working to rebuild Tibetan refugee centers in India and Nepal.

Working with musicians around the world, Playing for Change has recorded a CD, Songs Around the World that will be released on April 28th. It's such a cool project. Here are a couple songs that will be on the album (and are now available on iTunes):

Stand By Me:



Don't Worry:

Jane Yolen at The Miss Rumphius Effect

UPDATE 4/14: For another Poetry Month interview with Jane Yolen, you can wander over to Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.

For Poetry Month, The Miss Rumphius Effect (best blog name ever) has been doing a series of interviews called Poetry Makers. Last week, I was excited to see that she interviewed one of my author-heroines, Jane Yolen.

Jane Yolen is unbelievably prolific. She's published more than 300 books (and I swear that number is growing every day). And she's incredibly versatile. I first got hooked on her fantasy books, especially her retellings of traditional stories like Briar Rose. Then I got pulled into her picture books (like All Those Secrets of the World), her folk tale collections (like Not One Damsel in Distress), and her poetry collections (like the charming new book Here's a Little Poem).

What draws me to Jane Yolen's work is always her strong, brave, and truly capable female characters, her love of the traditional story, her bent toward the whimsical and fantastical, and the *fun* she has painting pictures with language.

What inspires me about Jane Yolen's work is her diversity, her depth, her very nuts-and-bolts, practical, and tireless dedication to sit down and write and write and write.

In The Miss Rumphis Effect interview, you can read some of Jane Yolen's poetry and learn about the new projects she is working on. But here is my favorite question/answer of the whole interview:

What are the things you enjoy most about writing poetry for children/young adults?
Jane: I can help them see the world anew. I can put into words some of the longings, and lingering doubts, some of the puzzles and muzzled moments of their lives. I can give them songs to sing.

She can. And she does. Daily. Thank you, Jane Yolen, and thank you Miss Rumphius Effect!

(Be sure to check out some of the other great in-depth Poetry Makers interviews with children's poets like Adam Rex, Julie Larios, and Joyce Carol Thomas...and stay tuned. There's more to come all month!)

Grab Bag Friday: Kill A Watt Meter

Yesterday, I spent some time at the Bowdoin College Climate Fair, showing people how to use a Kill A Watt Meter, so I thought I'd take a minute to pass the information on to you.

Kill A Watt Meters are becoming available at libraries all over the country (you can check them out just like a book...just ask your friendly librarian). You can use them to find the biggest energy hogs in your house.

They're a snap to use:

• Plug the Kill A Watt Meter into the wall
• Plug the appliance you'd like to test into the Kill A Watt Meter
• Let it sit for an hour

Once you have a reading on the kilowatts per hour you can go to this handy calculator and find out how much that appliance is costing you per month. (You'll notice it defaults to the Maine state rate of $.17/kwh, so if you live in another state, you should change that. To find your state's rate, here is a handy chart.)

Here are some examples:

• My television costs me $12.24 per month when it's OFF. If I plug it into a power strip and flip it off when I'm not using the TV, I could save almost $150 per year. (Or I could just unplug the TV and skip the power strip, but that would mean reaching behind the TV...not an easy task in our house.)
  

• If I turn my computer off during my lunch hour instead of leaving it on, that's another $80 per year.

• If I run my bedroom air conditioner for one hour less per day, I save $75 per summer.

You can see just with those three little painless changes, I've just earned myself a little spa weekend. Thanks, Kill A Watt Meter!

Sam Phillips: A Piece of My Bright Side

Sam Phillips is giving away a brand new song, A Piece of My Bright Side to anyone who signs up for her mailing list. It's an upbeat little gem, and I definitely recommend heading over to download it.

She's also selling a limited edition handmade book with the same name. A collection of "Sam's favorite oddities, pictures, interview tour stuff & more," it looks like her signature quirkiness bound up, packaged, and signed. What fun! I ordered my copy last week.

Here's a link to my previous (and surprisingly copious) Sam Phillips posts in case you want to read and hear more.

The Smallest Range: A Poem for Anita O'Day

For the first Monday of Poetry Month, I thought I'd post one of my own poems, just for kicks.

This is a poem I wrote a while back for one of my favorite singers of all time: Anita O'Day. When Ms. O'Day was a child, she had a botched tonsillectomy that left her with a very small vocal range, and little capacity for vibrato. She always claimed that having less to work with forced her to find more rhythmic, interesting ways to use her voice.

[Completely unrelated side note: There's a great round-up of all the online Poetry Month events in the kidlit world over at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.]

The Smallest Range
Poem for Anita O’Day
by Josephine Cameron

Even this, this nothing, this incremental
change in pitch, if this is all there is, mold it, push it,
slice it to pieces, listen to it skitter and scat
through the cracks of this litany, this homage
to a void, this slender all-you’ve-ever-had.

Anita’s run off with the boys again—
Uptown, they play hardball, incongruous
with these thin lips, these starched curls;
home is a place to leave, so stamp it shrug it
drug it out, send sixteenth notes like so many coins
clamoring; crevices are made to be filled.
Leave behind expectations, preconceptions;
who’d have thought this flatness could burst
within its confines, the poisoned seed bloom;
this is evolution, determination, music, jazz.

Grab Bag Friday: Tilapia Topped with Warm Cherry Tomatoes

For those of you who are regular readers of Please Come Flying, you may remember that about a year ago, Kevin and I decide to try a meal-planning website called The Six O'Clock Scramble. Well, we're still at it, and I officially give The Scramble a two thumbs up. For three reasons:

1. I don't have to plan out our meals (which for reasons good or bad, I can't stand doing)
2. Our grocery list is made for us (and when we stick to the list, we spend less at the store)
3. We are constantly trying new, delicious meals (there are only a *small* handful of Scramble meals we haven't liked)
4. Every single recipe has been so easy, that even I cannot mess it up (ok, that's four)
   

There have been weeks when we haven't used it, but even still, it's been well worth the $1 per week.

And every once in a while, there are dishes that are so easy and delicious I have to share them with everyone I know. Here's one that I can't stop raving about. So simple, so *quick*, so delicious! (I used regular black olives because Kevin's not a fan of the kalamata.) And the cucumber salad on the side just *makes* the meal.

Tilapia Topped with Warm Cherry Tomatoes

This dish takes about 10 minutes start to finish, but you would never know it from the beautiful presentation and delicious flavor. Tilapia is a great fish to use for weeknights, because it is inexpensive, earth friendly, and cooks quickly. Our kids also like its mild taste. Serve it with a loaf of whole grain bread and a Cucumber Salad.

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1-1 1/2 lbs. tilapia fillets (or use flounder, cod, or other thin white fish fillets)
• 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, halved
• 1/4 lemon, juice only, about 1 Tbsp.
• 1 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese, shredded or grated (optional)
• 1/4 tsp. salt, to taste
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper, to taste (optional)

In a large heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the fish and season it with salt and pepper. Sauté the tilapia, turning it once, until it turns white throughout and flakes easily, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the fish to a dish or platter.

In the same skillet (without cleaning it) sauté the tomatoes, parsley, and olives for several minutes until the tomatoes are softened. Season the sauce with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Pour the sauce over the fish, top it with the Parmesan cheese (optional), and serve it immediately.

Tip:

For picky eaters, serve the fish plain with sauce on the side or on just one bite of the fish.

SERVE WITH CUCUMBER SALAD WITH HONEY AND FETA

To make the salad, toss two peeled, chopped, and seeded cucumbers with 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese, 10 chopped fresh mint leaves, and 1 tsp. honey. Serve immediately or chill for up to one hour until ready to serve.

Save the Date: Summer Writing Workshops

I can't believe it, but summer is *really* just around the corner! I thought I'd give you a sneak peak into the workshops I'll be teaching at Bowdoin College this summer. It's so much fun to be a part of the endless creativity that springs from these young writers. They constantly surprise and impress me. I can't wait!

(If you're in Maine, and curious, I'll post registration information soon.)

JULY 13-17 (8:30am-12:00pm)
Songwriting for Kids Vol. 1
Students entering grades K-3
This is the traditional Songwriting for Kids workshop. We will learn American folk songs and use them to discover the basics of songwriting while gaining some insight into the historical context of the songs. We will focus on elements of rhythm, rhyme, melody, and above all, collaboration. Students will learn about creative teamwork and work together to write a class song. Students who have previously taken this workshop are more than welcome as songs and activities vary from year to year.

JULY 20-24 (8:30am-12:00pm)
NEW! Songwriting for Kids Vol. 2
Students entering grades K-3
In Vol. 2, we will experiment with various songwriting forms and structures: the blues, the "hooky" pop chorus, the bridge. Students will work in small groups and individually to write a number of "song sketches" throughout the week. This workshop may be taken as a stand-alone, but students who have taken Vol. 1 will benefit from having a knowledge of the vocabulary and traditional song structure we will use as a base.

JULY 13-17 (1:30-5:00pm)
Fiction Writing for Kids
Students entering grades 3-5
This workshop teaches the basics of fiction writing, including Character, Plot, Revision, and Imaginative Writing. During the workshop, students will study character development, plot structure, and setting in popular children's literature and will write and illustrate their very own book.

JULY 20-24 (1:30-5:00pm)
NEW! Poetry Writing for Kids
Students entering grades 3-5
This workshop teaches the basics of writing poetry in both form and free verse. Students will learn to study and analyze poems by poets from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Robert Frost to Gwendolyn Brooks and Robert Hayden. Students will use class time to write and illustrate their own short book of poems.

Where The Wild Things Are

My friend Robin recently posted a link to this trailer, and I immediately thought...is it true? Is it true?

It *is* true! There is going to be a movie of Maurice Sendak's classic picture book, Where the Wild Things Are. (How did I miss this bit of information?)

Now, I have the same wary feeling about this that I had when I heard they were making a film of The Lord of the Rings. Excited, because it could be a brilliant interpretation of a book I adore, and nervous because it could just as easily be a full-fledged disaster.

What do you think? Can Spike Jonze successfully transfer Max's wild rumpus to film?

Here's a short blurb from the LA Times.

I have to admit, the trailer looks pretty awesome.