September 2009
17 posts
Even More Feasting and Books →
Somehow I scored an invite to a lunch celebration at the Boston Public Library for THE DAY OF THE PELICAN, Katherine Paterson’s new novel from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt about a Muslim Albanian family…
Consumerism and the YA Novel →
I remember loving A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN partly because times were tight in my own immigrant family. I also might have connected our loss of property and wealth in Bengal with the Alcotts’…
Boston Kid Lit Pie Night Redux →
We schmoozed. We ate pie. We lifted our forks in the direction of the NY Kid Lit Drinks Night, where a Boston Cream Pie was being consumed in our honor. But best of all, we talked and celebrated…
Paula Chase Hyman: Extroverted, Earnest, and... →
Today I’m honored to host Paula Chase Hyman, author of the Del Rio Bay series of books and co-founder of The Brown Bookshelf, a site “designed to push awareness of the myriad of…
Managing Your Online Presence SALON →
Managing Your Online Presence: Websites, Blogs, Twitter, Facebook, and More Speakers: Mitali Perkins and Deborah Sloan NESCBWI Salon A program for published authors and illustrators of…
Magic Carpet: Books, Identity, and Assimilation →
We’ve been talking about books as windows and mirrors this week on the Fire Escape. First off, I’m convinced that “mainstream” North American kids and teens can and will enjoy books as windows into…
Poetry Friday: Coconut Cowgirl →
Enjoy the poem that tied for third prize this year in my annual poetry contest for teens between cultures. Read it aloud for the rocking Fijian rhythm.
Coconut Cowgirl by Hosanna,…
Teens, Tweens, and Secret Reading →
After our discussion about books as mirrors or windows at different stages of life, I’m setting up a tentative hypothesis. Ready? Here it is:
Elementary-aged kids and upper high-schoolers are…
Five Good Twitter Gifts →
I’ll admit it. I’m a bit of a social media maniac. Why, Mitali, why? you might be asking. Let me share five sweet outcomes of my involvement with Twitter, moving from the sublime to the…
Are Books Windows or Mirrors? →
Think of a novel you enjoyed recently. How did the protagonist remind you of yourself? On the other hand, what did you glean about living a different kind of life? My guess is that you can answer…
9/11 Gift: 14 COWS FOR AMERICA →
The phone was ringing when I returned from a walk on that sunny day. It was my Dad, weeping as he told me about the first tower falling. We didn’t have a television so I ran to my…
AMREEKA: Flicks Between Cultures →
My favorite part of the preview for Amreeka is when the daughter says, “Here’s a shocker, Mom, we live in America! We’re Americans!” The mother answers with a phrase most teens between cultures…
Pair a Book with a Fair Trade Toy →
Looking for a gift for that kid who seems to have everything? Make a book come to life by pairing it with a fair trade toy or other goodie. Here are three suggestions, followed by a list of places to…
Poetry Friday: Rooftop Fireworks →
Enjoy the poem that tied for third prize this year in my annual poetry contest for teens between cultures.
Untitled by Bea, Moldova/USA, Age 19 Imagine the coincidental unison
Kid Lit Pie Night! →
In the Boston area? Tired of missing the fabulous NYC-based Kid Lit Drink Nights hosted by the likes of Besty Bird and Cheryl Klein? Well, now you don’t have to feel like a wallflower ever again,…
Notes to a Young Immigrant →
It’s been a while since I wrote this essay on the bittersweet experience of growing up between cultures, but I stumbled across it in Teaching Tolerance and wanted to offer it again here on the…
The Mysterious Google Book Settlement →
I’m hoping some of you might be as confused as I am by the Google Book Settlement, because if it’s just me who doesn’t get it, I’m in trouble. In any case, the Society for Children’s Book Writers…