yes & no

I have always been a crier. 

So it's no surprise that when a good day comes to an end, my tissues are close by. The sun sets and it's hard for me to imagine that another one is in the wings. And yet, there always is. Elisha Cooper's new book, yes & no brings up all these kind of feels and I have to say after several reads, I still get choked up at the ending.  

Paired with the good feels, this book also brings in a bit of that frustration I've definitely expressed many times early in my parental career. "Grrrr...Get outside and play. Now." 

In the end, this book of few words and even fewer varied text, is a true winner.  It's gorgeous. Fun. Funny. Sad. Gets your heart rate going. Offers a breath of fresh air and scenery. Wraps up so perfectly and honestly. Because I agree with the playful dog. "The day was good but now it's done." Sigh. yes...

So skip or run or leap to hilltop and scream, "YES. YES. YES. YES. yes. YES!" because this one is definitely a winner.

By the way, my kindergartners love it. They're riveted. And bonus, now they know what an ampersand is.

Two recent must read essays by Elisha:

From the Nerdy Book Club blog: https://nerdybookclub.wordpress.com/2021/04/11/how-to-write-a-great-childrens-book-by-elisha-cooper/

Publishers Weekly "Paper Chase": https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-authors/article/86026-paper-chase.html

#CarleArtInPlace

Like everything else, my son's 8th grade field trip to Philadelphia was canceled. Today is the virtual visit.

If it is a fraction as good as the #CarleArtInPlace exhibit, then it will be a worthwhile day.

I just sat and soaked in all the art in this virtual exhibit. Elisha Cooper shared the link on his Instagram so I initially went to view his page only. I couldn't figure out how to click on the "chapters" or "rooms" until the end and am very grateful for that.  Every time I turned the page I wondered if it would be him.  

Surprise. 

But ahhhhhh....

Not yet. 

My eyes widened.

It was just another fabulous artist, sharing beautiful art and thoughtful messages in an enviable space . Take my advice and don't skip.

Grab a drink (almond milk for me) and a treat (bookbirthday chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting), a cushy-comfortable spot and enjoy. 

#CarleArtInPlace

I loved Sandra Boynton and YoYo Ma's collaboration.

It was wonderful to see Ashley Bryan. I hold a special place in my heart for him.

When I walk through my neighborhood and observe the only children playing alone or with parents, I can't help but feel for all of them. I want to share Carson Ellis's Only Children Hang Tight to these kids.

Like Dan Santat, I, too want to learn how to play the ukulele but I promise I will not be building my own.

Elisha and I are both planning to send our daughters off to college this fall. Spending all this extra time with her is going to make the separation even harder. Back home, I will look up from my desk and see us in Dublin, NYC, Spain, the beach...the many, many places we traveled together.  I might cry but ultimately, I know these memories, like those around me, will save me from falling deep into my sorrow.

Melissa Sweet.  Ryan T. Higgins.  Peter Sis.  Fellow Cincinnatian with Loren Long, Will Hillenbrand. LeUyen Pham. And more... 

Which artist or art spoke to you the most?

PS-Be sure and visit the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art for ideas on how to do art at home, virtual storytimes, and more!

Old MacNATE had a FARM

Farmer Nate Chittenden of Dutch Hollow Farm and his family were so helpful as I prepared for our Loren Long Day last week.  Since Day 1, Farmer Nate was always going to be involved. I had this crazy idea to bus our youngest learners to the farm and have them go on a tour and a listen to Loren read Otis from a tractor. Ran it by Loren and Farmer Nate back in the fall. Both were game.

Not was all lost. Thanks to 4th grader, Jonathan and 2nd grader, Anna for the virtual tour and a lovely read aloud by 7th grader, Zachary with Raspberry, I was happy to spread the #farmlove last week and always.




Here is Zach reading to Raspberry:

#CheeseLove
You can't make cheese without milk so let's talk some cheese. I love cheese.   Hard. Soft. Stinky. Holey. Creamy. Spreadable. Yumminess.

Lately, I can't get enough of local cheese from Four Fat Fowl. (Please tell me you get your milk from Dutch Hollow Farm so I can feel like we are all one family.).  But even if they don't, famous Beechers has a cheese named after the farm! Bonus, you can find it at our local Honest Weight Food Co-op.  My friend, Elisha, sent us to Murray's Cheese in the West Village when we were down in the city in December. Now that was a cheese lover's heaven.  It has a cameo in this RTWJAZ video. When I went vegan this winter, the thing I missed the very most was, you guessed it, cheese.

Speaking of Elisha...Here's his reading of his FARM:





So support your local farmer. Drink some milk. Eat some cheese. Dive into a pint of ice cream. And subscribe to RTWJAZ (Yeah, nothing to do with the dairy but just because it would make a couple of young teens so happy.)

A few websites for further activities:

https://www.visitmyfarm.org/teachers-resources (crafts)
http://www.myamericanfarm.org (games, crafts, lessons)
100 Days of Agriculture (many, many different activities)
https://www.harvestconnection-ny.com (recipes, local farmer's markets, ask a local farmer)

#farmlove   #CabotFarmers    #DutchHollowFarm

We All Scream for Ice Cream!

I've been craving ice cream.  Right at this moment it's a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup Sundae from our local soft serve seasonal place, Lickety Split. Ahhh...But I could for anything.  Down the shore, I love Peanut Butter Ripple--vanilla ice cream with frozen ripples of peanut butter throughout. Ahhh...Last weekend I treated myself to Brew Ha Ha from Stewarts and it was quite refreshing.  And in honor of our upcoming "Loren Long Day" on Thursday, I'll be splurging later today and buying a half dozen pints from his local ice cream shoppe, Graeters.

Monday is Peter Sis's birthday so we'll begin with a read aloud of his book, Ice Cream Summer.

Here are a couple of activities to go with the book thanks to RIF: A word search that can be used on the computer or printed out, a memory match and a crossword puzzle. RIF also has this one page activity guide with more ideas to do at home. 

Here's another fun ice cream read aloud:

Want to make your own ice cream at home? Follow this  recipe  or this video:

I can't write a post about ice cream without including a shout out to my friend, Elisha Cooper.  Have you checked out his Instagram lately? He posts short, fun videos daily about painting, his cats, the ocean, his cats...https://www.instagram.com/elisha__cooper/ Maybe he'll do one on ice cream for us?

If you weren't craving this treat before, I'd be surprised if you aren't now. For your sake, I hope you have some stashed in your freezer.  

Oh, and back to Graeters--Loren Long designed the carton for Chunky Chunky Hippo. I was glad when that flavor appealed to me lol because I knew I had to buy it. So a couple of these pints are in my cart.  Anyone want to splurge and go in for a dozen with me ;-) Happy ice cream eating! 🍨🍦

#ILoveNYLibrariesDay

Growing up in Queens, I frequented two branches of the Queens Public Library.  It was always fun to go down to the main branch in Jamaica on the weekends. They had bins and bins of albums that you could check out.  Being a kid (copyright?) I remember playing and recording the songs I liked on my portable cassette player.  The Briarwood branch was more like home.  I could walk over there after school, do my homework, dive into random subjects in the World Book Encyclopedia (so much more kid friendly than the Encyclopedia Britannica set in my living room) and chill.

When I moved back to New York from stints in Maryland and Maine in 1996, I landed in the Capital Region without a job. My boyfriend, now husband, and I lived in an apartment. I spent a lot of time at the Guilderland Public Library searching for jobs. This was way before I became a librarian. Since 1999, the Castleton Public Library has been my home library.Yeah, I'm not feeling old right now.

I met some good friends at that library once I became a mom.  We would go for story hour and stay. And stay. And stay. We started making a lunch pot luck. "I'll bring the PB and J." "OK. I'll bring the goldfish."  "I got the juice boxes."  It got so crazy that one of my friends sewed a special tablecloth just for us to keep down there. Good times.

Today, more than ever, New York libraries have a lot to offer.  Have you checked out the Castleton Public Library website lately?  There are so many free resources.  Even if you don't have a library card, you can still check out books   They have additional databases (ie, Tumblebooks math) and even ideas for virtual field trips. Check out this LINK for a curated list  of activities and ideas for kids and teens.

Want more? Check out the New York Public Library page for tons of remote resources for parents, families, kids, and educators.

Of course, I have to include resources from my original home town library, the Queens Public Library. Check out their Facebook page for a calendar of all their virtual events. Just have to throw this out there--growing up in Queens that has made me who I am today.  Anyone from Queens can probably agree.  I am forever grateful for that and I love the Queens Public Library.

But we can't leave our upstate friends out.  Gosh, in just a few clicks, I'm realizing that you could go to any public library website and find virtual things to do.  After reading a tweet from my Buffalo friend, Maria, I went to the Buffalo Public Library page and woah! They have a ton of activities in their calendar! Between all these libraries, you could be busy literally every minute of the day! And we didn't even mention reading! If that doesn't make you love New York libraries, I don't know what will.

Yes, I love my friends in Texas. I proudly wear my Texas Bluebonnet award shirt. I have a Texas flag postcard by my circulation desk. But, I am undeniably a born and bred New Yorker and I love ALL my NY libraries. The ones from my childhood, my 20s and now. #ILoveNYLibrariesDay

PS: I got some amazing snail mail today from my friend, Elisha Cooper.  Could it BE more appropriate for #ILoveNYLibrariesDay ?  I don't think so. And a great way to end a celebration of #NationalLibraryWeek.  Thank you, Elisha.

I was hoping you could get a bag, too! So I went searching, sadly unsuccessfully, on NYPL's website.  Maybe when this is all over you can purchase one at the branch? However, I did find a link to free downloads of crosswords, wordfinds and coloring pages for kids and adults. Check it out.  And if you still need more to do, you know where to go! I 💙 Libraries!

Marathon Monday

I did it. I ran five miles yesterday.  It felt good. My heart rate was up and I was warm enough to unload two layers to my tank top.  That felt really good. Winter is behind us. Although, I won't mention that snow fell on Saturday.

This weekend I was supposed to run 13.2 miles in the Helderberg Half.
Today was the Boston Marathon.
Both canceled. But that doesn't mean running isn't canceled.
Beside the obvious of running 26.2 miles, what else can we we do to honor the Marathon's tradition since 1897?

Art

This may be a bit of a stretch but why not color in Rafael Lopez's muralist.  He looks like he could be running through the town while he paints.

Make sure to check out Rafael's Instagram (@rafael_161_ or his blog for daily art ideas).

STEAM

LINK to vault

Ok...So this could be even a bit more of a stretch but while I was looking for ways to tie the marathon into lesson plans, I came across this *amazing* resource from the annual Cambridge Science Festival. I mean, the marathon is in Boston and Cambridge is practially Boston, so not too much off the path.

How about you engage yourselves in a "marathon" of STEAM activities today or the whole week or 26.2 days?!  Check it out! Tons of book ideas, podcasts, shows, virtual trips and all for kids!  Maybe try 26 things? They call it a vault. Be careful when you enter because it is overflowing!

History

Why not do a little research on the Boston Marathon?  Here's a short story about it from NPR today.

Go to one of the databases and read up on marathons, Boston, the Olympics...


Now my friend, Tom Bober, will be proud of me on this one.  I just checked out the Library of Congress and found a photo from the 65th Boston Marathon in 1952.  Examine the photo.  What do you notice? 

Physical Activity

Of course, running today makes sense.  Pick a distance (26.2 yards?) and run. What's your time? Compete against yourself or family members.  What other physical activities can you do? Walk for 26.2 minutes?  What about jumping 26.2 inches? Or see how far you can jump and divide it by 26.2? Jump up and down or off a step 26 times.  Calculate how long that takes. Try and beat your time. Do 26 jumping jacks.   Be creative! See what you come up with! Make sure you are careful and take breaks if you need to.

Finally (and what really inspired this whole post)

Be sure and read Elisha Cooper's piece in today's New York Times. I realize the print version isn't as exciting and we all can't send our husbands out to try and find a copy for us, (although sadly mission was not accomplished YET), but the digital copy will work, too.  I just wanted to get one that I could hang up in my new "office." He's back out to keep looking. I am not too hopeful so please send if you have one and I'll run an extra 26.2 something in your honor. Thanks!

Now off to walk, not run, about 26.2 x 458 steps.
Be safe out there.

Yard Sale Smiles

On a beautiful Saturday morning when my daughter (it always seems to be about my daughter, doesn't it?) was really little (1? 2?), I was shopping at garage sales searching for good finds. I wanted that stoked-on-caffeine find.  An absolute treasure.  And I found it!  AND...it wasn't someone else's junk that was now becoming mine--it was actually a box of brand new books. I cannot remember how the woman got the books, but I bought them all.  A few of them became those books that got read over and over again.

A Well Loved Book

Giselle Potter's,  The Year I Didn't Go to School, was one of them.  The cover is gone now and some pages are ripped. It was well loved and I easily found it on our bookshelf.

I've been thinking about this book because (1) I'm hanging out in our guest room that has a lot of our picture books and (2) this is becoming the year we didn't go-to-school-IN-the-building.  Giselle's book is the story of when she was seven and she and her family packed up to go to Italy and perform as "The Mystic Paper Beasts."  It's a great book to talk about travel, art, theatre and family.

If you have any interest in art or where artists work, check out this link that gives you a peek into Giselle's studio and home.  I'm inspired to bring more art into my work space.

Speaking of hanging up art, I received THE.BEST.MAIL.EVER yesterday from one of my fifth graders. Task for today? Find a frame and hang.it.up. Looks like me, doesn't it?! 😍 I love this so much.

Art Supplies

And while we are on the topic of art, studios and supplies, another shout out to my friend, Elisha and his pencils, brushes, and paper (and his adorable co-workers).  Of course, most of us won't have any of those fancy tools at home so colored pencils (like Chase used!), Dixon Ticonderogas, Sharpies, chalk or even coffee will do! As far as paper goes, we all have that laying around the house.  But big paper? Have you thought about rolling out some wrapping paper and making a mural on the back side?  Try it!

View this post on Instagram

Day 12: Pencil, paint, paper! #operationstorytime #homeschool #teachersofinstagram #teachersresources #watercolor

A post shared by Elisha Cooper (@elisha__cooper) on Apr 4, 2020 at 12:53pm PDT

Lauren Castillo

Thinking of garage sales, reminded me of the beautiful, sad (it's hard to get rid of your stuff) but hopeful book, Yard Sale by Eve Bunting and illustrated by Lauren Castillo.  Maybe this is a good time for us to cull our stuff for a future garage sale. (Remember my Marie Kondo comments from a previous post?). Get the littles involved--What are they ready to get rid of? Add some prices. Make it a math lesson. 

The first time I met Lauren Castillo was at ALA in San Francisco.  We were both at a pre-conference ALSC event.  I was just looking around in my seat and spotted her name tag.  I screamed, REALLY startled and scared her and we have been friends since. Yeah, that could have gone the other way lol.  Anyway, I love her Caldecott honor, Nana in the City because, you know, I love the city. 

This blogpost has some good ideas of activities you can do with the book. I love all the ideas.  Design a city using shapes, make your own cape (the nana makes a red cape for the boy so he feels safe in the city), or bake pretzels.

These leaping pictures with Lauren at the Princeton Book Festival make me crave sunny days (thankfully, we have another one today), hugs and not being physically distant.

Finally, Lauren was a guest on Emily Arrow's show a couple of weeks ago to talk about Nana in the City.  Two fabulous talented women together. Does it get much better than that? Lauren has a new book, Our Friend Hedgehog, coming out next month. She gives a little preview of it in the video! Stay tuned for a book birthday celebration! 🎂 AND--she said she is working on another book, Nana in the Country. YAAASSSS!

xoxo

Alphabet Soup

I'm thinking about the alphabet today.

On Instagram, my friend Elisha Cooper, drew an alligator from an "A".  His alphabet book is one of my favorites.

Mr. Beihler, my friend and fabulous PE teacher (follow him on Twitter here), is home with his twin 4 year olds and 6 year old.  Yesterday he told me that he is printing out practice worksheets during "preschool" and that (along with Elisha's post) made me think more about...

(I feel like I am the mouse with the cookie when I say this) the alphabet and one of my favorite alphabet songs from Maurice Sendak and sung by Carole King, "Alligators All Around."

And that (and Elisha's alligator) reminded me of Snappsy the Alligator (Did Not Ask to Be in This Book) by Julie Falatko and illustrated by Tim Miller, which incidentally, features the letter "P" quite a bit!

So...today is all about the alphabet, alligators and anything else I can squeeze in! Happy Friday, folks!

A is for...

This short video from Elisha will amaze you.  How many animals that start with the letter ___ can you draw in one picture? Me? Easy. Zero.

View this post on Instagram

Day 9: A is for _____! #operationstorytime #homeschool #romper #teachersofinstagram #teachersresources

A post shared by Elisha Cooper (@elisha__cooper) on Apr 1, 2020 at 12:28pm PDT

This is Elisha's alphabet book I love.  Can you try any of these things at home?

• List as many animals you can for each letter.  Don't peek in the book, if you have it! Did you come up with any that Elisha didn't think of? 
• Make a game out of it. Play the "I'm going on a picnic and I'm bringing my friend, the alligator, the bat, the cougar...etc." How good is your memory? That will be a lot to remember when you get to Z!
• Can you write your own "8 A ____ Alphabet Book"?  Try it with food, books, things outside, your friends' names...anything!
• Be like Elisha and try drawing pictures from letters.

Let your imagination go WILD!

Letter of the Week

This is a link on Pinterest for many"Letter of the Week" resources from Random House. Here are a couple of reproducible examples.  If you have a little at home (or two like Mr. Biehler) learning to write or who needs practice, I highly recommend heading to that page.  There's a page for every letter and each includes three book recommendations.  I chose "C" because even though it's not listed, be sure and add Elisha's Big Cat, Little Cat to the list. You can find him reading it aloud on his Instagram, too. I love that book.  Did you know it won the Caldecott Honor in 2018?!

Alexis and I when she was in kindergarten in December 2017.

Alexis (now in 2nd grade), her sister, Grace (kindergarten) and I on our self-proclaimed "Leggings Day" this past Wednesday.

Alligators All Around

This section is dedicated to Mrs. Kosinski.  I know she loves Carole King almost as much as I do. The Really Rosie album would be a good pick me up right now.  And I can belt out every word to every song on Tapestry. 

Here's a sheet you can print out.  Maybe draw something fun in the extra white space?  I love alliteration (i.e., Pastries and Prose, Dewey Duty...).  Can you come up with some alliteration phrases on your own?

Snappsy the Alligator (Did Not Ask to Be in This Book)

I love this reading so much.  David Harbour (do I know him?) is a great reader, the story has a great message and gives me hope that we will all be partying together again some day soon.  Lots of great ideas to go with the book here.  Highlights:

• Make a comic strip and tell the story from your point of view.
• Snappys's shopping list consists of foods with the letter "P".  Create a shopping list with only foods that start with a different letter.
• Plan a party.  Make a list of all things you will need.  Find out how much everything will cost.  Do some math and add it all up.
• Research alligators and crocodiles. What is the difference between the two?
• Make some pudding.  Think about the science behind it.  How does the milk solidify?

My Apologies

Sorry in advance if you are singing Carole King or the Jackson Five all day.  It could be worse. Turn the Spotify up. Throw yourselves an alphabet dance party. Eat foods that begin with every letter. Twist your body into words. Have fun and point your chin way up! Stay inside. Keep healthy. Be positive. Smile at your family and know that we will get through this and all be together again soon. xo

Women + Music

A long, long time ago a friend of mine gave me a card that said, "If you leave it to the last minute, it only takes a minute to do."  That is forever my motto.  In fact, I got a call yesterday from NYSUT asking for a book review due in 2 weeks.  I was completely honest with her and said I would probably work on it in 13 days.

Today I had our usual "Pastries and Prose" meeting at 8:30.  When we have school IN the building, we begin at 7:25 before school starts.  This week and last I had it 8:30, thinking 4th graders would surely be up by then.  Well, I had four kids show up.  But it's not about the numbers, it's about the quality. And this was a good group.

Where does the procrastination come in?  I wanted to share a book but didn't know which one. I had one downloaded but wanted to keep looking for ideas.  This was at 8:18.  I go into SORA and Women's History Month is being promoted.  One of the first books available was Margarita Engle and Rafael Lopez's book, Drum Dream Girl.

I found today's book.  Not only is it still "Women's History Month" (longest March ever, huh?) but it is also "Music in Our Schools" month.  So this was a perfect match.

Drum Dream Girl

It's hard to believe that it has been almost a year now since Rafael Lopez took leaps with me in Castleton (and in the snow in April!).  I am the luckiest person ever because I get to see his inspired artwork every day outside my library.  

Multi award winning author and poet, Margarita Engle's lyrical text paired with Rafael's artwork (which won him the Pura Belpre medal) makes one perfect book.  I just texted Mrs. Gibney, our music teacher and she simply said, "Love that book."  Is there anyone who doesn't?

This book trailer will get you moving and wanting more, for sure:

There are many activities you can do with Drum Dream Girl.  To start off,  here is a discussion guide.

This article has SO many ideas and further links.  These are a few I particularly like:

• Write a story or poem about your own dreams. 
• Check out drums on Garage Band, if you have a Mac, or another program out there if you have a PC. Play around with it and make a song.
• Make your own instrument out of toilet paper or paper towel rolls, paper plates and beans or anything else you can think of!
• Listen to Cuban music. Maybe have some art supplies available and see if you are inspired to create something while you are listening.
• Create a mural of dreams with your family.  
• Read other books by Margarita Engle, Rafael Lopez or on the same subject or idea. For middle grade readers, I suggest Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson which is her Newbery Honor biography in verse or Ruth Behar's Pura Belpre winning Lucky Broken Girl, based on her own life in fifth grade (in Briarwood, Queens, where I also grew up!) with her Cuban American family. Note: Ruth has a new book, Letters from Cuba, coming out in August that I love, love, love.
• Of course, check out more of Margarita and Rafael's books. There are more books they have done together (Bravo! Poems about Amazing Hispanics and Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreo Played the Piano for President Lincoln) More love.

I found this short video from Ms. Carmina Reads about Millo Castro Zaldarriaga from the book, Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls.

Be sure and check out Rafael's blog every day for a different coloring page.  You could print them out and have a whole book when this is over.

Hope these photos get you leaping:

April 5, 2019 

(Check out the blank wall behind us!)

The finished mural taken end of June 2019.

I miss that artwork so much now.💜

Haha Elisha Cooper :-)

By The Way

Speaking of Women's History Month, today is the birthday of Sandra Day O'Connor, born in 1930 in El Paso, Texas (yes, plug for my favorite state where I was hoping to be right now for the Texas Library Association conference) and Nancy Pelosi, born in 1940 in Baltimore, Maryland.  You can find more information about both of these leaders in our databases: FactCite, PebbleGo (only Justice O'Connor) and of course, WorldBook and Britannica.  

Happy Birthday Researching! Happy Women's History Month! Happy Music in Our Schools Month! xo

I Love New York

🎵I love New York in ______. How about you?🎵

Yeah, I pretty much love the city pretty much any time and day of the year.

Born and raised in Queens (yes, Lucky Broken Girl's Ruth Behar and I both are graduates of PS 117 in Briarwood), I have lived outside of 11432 way longer than I lived there. Yet my love for the city constantly flows through my arteries like my past 50 years have all been spent just up from the Parsons Blvd station.

So could that be why I love Manhattan by Jennifer Thermes so much? Maybe. But by the looks of my Twitter feed, my fondness for this book is not unique.  And I follow librarians and educators from all over the country. Let's just say this book that has it all wrapped under one case, is appealing to anyone:

Obviously, the cartographer--Thermes is a map illustrator and it is evident in the perfect map on each page of this ever evolving island.

Historians--The book takes you on the historical journey of Manhattan from millions of years ago to today. You could do a scavenger hunt searching for facts on Hamilton, Edgar Allan Poe, geology...it's extensive.

Urban planners--Details about Wall Street, the grid, Central Park and so much more will delight these folks for sure.

Tourists--This is the ultimate guide to Manhattan. How fun would it be to have this book by your side while you are planning your trip.  Maybe pack the eBook version as it is oversized.  Not a complaint--Manhattan is a long skinny island and deserves this sized book--just not ideal for travel.

And of course, the artists and lovers of kidlit.  I fell for Jennifer Thermes with her Grandma Gatewood Hikes the Appalachian Trail and am glad she moved off the mountain to my happy place.

Last minute gift idea-- give a pair of New York books, wrap Manhattan up with Elisha Cooper's RIVER which flow up to where I reside now.
*********************************************************************************
Speaking of Elisha, he and I met for coffee overlooking the river (sort of) last Friday afternoon.  I was heading to the city the next day and he drew his own map for us.

Library? His idea. Walking through SoHo to West Village? Elisha. Murray's Cheese? Uh-huh. (Yes and the Roomano was quite yummy!) Bar Pisellino? Yep. (Best. Hot Chocolate. Ever.) So it was a great day.

     

The obligatory leap.

Had a couple of 13 year olds who wanted to walk up Fifth. Did that, too.

Got 6 minutes? Check out their video of our day (and maybe consider subscribing to their channel 😉)

On the RIVER with Elisha Cooper

photo credit: Jason McCord

The first time I remember suffering from post-party sadness was pickup day (and the days that followed) at sleep away camp.  The ups and downs of eight weeks at Camp Ramah had ended and adjusting to being home was not easy.

That was when I was 13.  I continued to leave home every summer after that. As hard as it was to come home, it was always worth it.

At 24 I threw myself a huge multi-day party. The last person who left was my best friend from camp. We recapped it all and I cried. How could it already be over?

My wedding. Daughter's Bat Mitzvah.
Son's Bar Mitzvah was this Labor Day weekend. My severe case of post-Bar Mitzvah blues began the first day of school.  Not easy.

I don't do well with endings and goodbyes.  

June 2018: I meet an illustrator at an event in NOLA. He tells me he is working on a book about a woman who canoes down the Hudson River.  I tell him I live and work in Castleton-on-Hudson.  Then and there I decide that he will celebrate that book with us ON the Hudson.  Sixteen months later, Elisha Cooper is reading RIVER aloud with the banks of the Hudson behind him.

That was Thursday.
You can only imagine the fog I was in yesterday walking the halls now with only the memories of his visit alive.

Elisha sat in a canoe in the middle of the gymnasium while first graders sang and fifth graders book talked all of his books. Reading teacher, Mrs. Reed hired a banjo player and our tuba-playing-band-teacher to accompany our fifth graders while they sang a Pete Seeger song about the river. Elisha rowed his boat ashore. The rain poured down outside.

We pulled out the red carpet for him when he spoke at a special K-2 assembly.

Then we donned our raincoats, boarded the buses and headed to the river. Elisha insisted we squeeze into the smaller pavilion on the river and I am glad we did. The kids complained. They were cranky. It was cold. Some were not dressed properly. The rain was steady. A boat sailed by. It was amazing. We will always remember.

 

The day was half way over and I was already beginning to feel sad. I don't do well with even thinking about endings and goodbyes.

We returned to our warm school and sketched with Elisha in the art room and wrote poems in the library.

The finale was sitting in the common area observing Elisha paint.  Mrs. Reed returned with her guitar and we sang. For some that was their favorite part of the day.  For others it was the park.  And some loved being taught tips from an award winning illustrator. For me? The whole package.

How did the woman canoeist feel when she began her journey? During? When her adventure was over? Sixteen months ago our journey was imagined. Thursday it happened. Now it is an incredible, unforgettable memory.  "Don't be sad." Elisha comforted me as I walked him to his car. I'm trying not to but I just don't do well with endings and goodbyes.

Broadway Bound

Hello Lulu
Well hello Lulu
In October your story will be sure to rise above the pack

Hello Lulu
Well hello Lulu
I can't wait to put you in upon my stacks

Well, you get it. Lulu the Broadway Mouse by debut author but veteran actor, Jenna Gavigan, hits the shelves this fall.  And although I may be a tad bias--yes, my Twitter bio says that I love all things NYC and theatre (spelled "re" by the way) and this book is for lovers of all that--I did love this book and think it will appeal to young people with all kinds of interests, but especially those of Broadway.  Do you have a thing for cute, talking mice?  Now I do.  Do you know the feeling of wanting a dream to come true so badly it hurts? Sure.  Was/is there a mean girl in your life? We can all name at least one.

Lulu lives in the basement of the famous Shubert Theatre "home to hits and flops, thousands of debuts and hundreds of return engagements" with her mouse family.  Her mother works in the costume department while Lulu hangs out with the actors, young and old.  Lulu's dream is to leap, well in her case, jete, from backstage to performer.  But a mouse, really? Even Lulu doesn't believe it can come true and her friends try to help her see the reality.

"The way the people in this theatre think? The way they think of you? They don't see you as a mouse.  They see you as a little kid, and a talented one at that; you know this show just as well as they do, if not better.  But most people? Regular people? They're just too closed-minded and ignorant to understand. They'd be scared. And we can't have audiences being scared because they might never come back." (p.42)

Inside the Shubert

We want our readers to believe in the impossible.  And they will.  This is a fantasy book that comes to life and feels as real as any singing and dancing teapot and candelabra feel like real life on the stage and film.

It's a feel good kind of story that will make for a fun read aloud in third or fourth grade. Pair it with images of the city, the history of the Shubert Theatre (Hello, Dolly! 
is there right now--hence my pathetic introduction and one of my very favorite shows premiered there in the 70s, A Chorus Line) and a conversation about theatre and plays.  Great conversations will also ensue about choosing kind, friendship and of course, hopes and dreams.  Then when you are finished you could go see a local play or put one on yourselves. Maybe write a Reader's Theatre script from one of the chapters.  Or write a prequel or sequel chapter. Do a class mock Playbill.  Oooh...I'm getting myself excited and it's only July.

Outside the Shubert in January!

So even though you may not have access to celebrate with a cake from Amy's Bread in or even a  candy bar from Duane Reade, don't kiss the year goodbye without reading and sharing Lulu with a wide audience.

More about Jenna Gavigan and Lulu from Playbill here.

Postscript

#squad

Last week Mrs. Warland and I journeyed to the city for a bookish day.  So it began at the KidlitTV studios because Kwame invited me to be a guest on his live "Smoked Salmon" episode of #Bookish. If you have Facebook, you can watch it here with this link:

BOOKISH JULY 12, 2018

PS-I CAN'T BELIEVE I FORGOT TO SAY THAT JENNI HOLM AND I SHARE A BIRTHDAY!

In the afternoon we met Jenna Gavigan for the first time in the West Village for iced tea so we could make some book birthday plans for Castleton. I was taking my chances since I hadn't read the book yet! Phew! Good thing I love the book!

Then Caldecott Honoree, Elisha Cooper, met us and we had fun talking about parenthood, the Hudson River and the New York Times, Modern Love essays. Elisha just happens to be the author/illustrator of Mrs. Warland's favorite book that she always shares when she is invited to be a guest reader.  He surprised her with her own copy (and now signed) of Homer! #WhatADay