Inside Nan: Baseball and Life

This is the first blog I followed. 37 Days. That's not how long I followed it, that's the blog title. I still follow it, sometimes it is so real I can't, but mostly I do. I'm talking about it today because I am thinking about prison and crime and mistakes. Back in 2007 Patti Digh of 37 Days wrote this post: Explore Your Prison Cell. Not long after I saw the Point of View (POV) film "What I Want My Words to Do to You" by Eve Ensler. The film goes inside a writing workshop led by playwright and activist Eve Ensler, consisting of 15 women, most of whom were convicted of murder. Here's that photo of Rush City Correctional Facility again -- notice the baseball diamonds on the grounds. Now I'll try to explain about this post -- Baseball and Life. Yesterday was opening day for the 2009 Baseball Season. My home town team the Minnesota Twins lost 6-1 to the Seattle Mariners. Today in my request stack at the library was James Preller's new book "Mighty Casey". James can tell you about baseball. He's a little league coach. And James can tell you about Life. The capital letter Life. Read Six Innings. Anyway, here's the last line in the dedication for Mighty Casey. "Bases loaded, two outs, I'm rootin' for ya." Thanks JP. Play Ball.

Inside Nan: Volunteer Tuesday

We are reading Dominic by William Steig. I picked this book for us because it is stellar in every way and Travis deserves the best. Today we met Bartholomew Badger. From the drawings Travis is sure that the old pig is a "she" ; he is adamant about it. Even when the words say "Mr. Badger dozed off again..." Travis brought a hairbrush with him today, he brushes his hair as I read. "This is my friend's brush", he says. "he said I could hold it for him. I like it but mine is softer." As he brushed I read. We are on a journey together, one not unlike Dominic's journey. "I'm just moving along, on my way to wherever I get, to find whatever I find."

Inside Nan: Volunteer Tuesday

Every Tuesday during the school year I traipse over to the local Middle School and read with a student. Sounds simple. It is simple. I participate in a program that pairs adult volunteers with students. That's all it is. I show up, the student comes from homeroom and we read together. Remember the post about Tribes? You can do it too, call your local middle school and make yourself available. Write an email to the principal, the librarian, the reading specialist, tell them what days and times you have available. Does this speak to you? Sure we can encourage parents to read to their own children - and I certainly support all efforts and campaigns to do so, but this is something you can do. When I come home from my reading time on Tuesdays I often wonder, why aren't more adults doing this? It is easy. It is important. Say, YES, I can. Say, YES, I will.

Inside Nan: Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us or Nan Comes to Another Fork in the Road

The concepts in this book have been rattling around in my head -- well clanging against the walls and yanging at me in frequent situations -- and although it is NOT a kid's book I am going to post it because I want to rant, I mean, tell you about it. My supervisor put it on my desk with a note "interesting book..." That's all she wrote (it was a small post-it note). Thing is, she is retiring after a long successful career in our library system and our head reference librarian also just retired. So there is at work this undercurrent. This is my perspective, remember its an Inside Nan post. Hmmm, this book is all about leadership. And then there is the whole Obama transition --- so I am crazed by Godin's straightforward, conversational, passionate message. I had never heard of this guy but now that I have he is everywhere. His blog is an irritant - in a GOOD way. I mean it is a constant encouragement to take hold of the situations. Of course you can imagine what that leads to...
Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us by Seth Godin
Here's the summary blurb: According to Godin, Tribes are groups of people aligned around an idea, connected to a leader and to each other. Tribes make our world work, and always have. The new opportunity is that it's easier than ever to find, organize, and lead a tribe. The Web has enabled an explosion of all kinds of tribes and created a shortage of people to lead them. This is the growth industry of our time.
Now that pasted, here are a few quotes:

"...A tribe is a group of people connected to one
another, connected to a leader, and connected to an idea...some tribes are stuck. They embrace the status quo and drown out any tribe member who dares to question authority and the accepted order..."

"...Heretics are the new leaders...troublemakers and change agents are the keys to success...Growth comes from change and light and noise...skill and attitude are essential. Authority is not. In fact, authority can get in the way."

"...Life is too short to be mediocre..."

So here's the sum. I read the book, a couple of times and took about 10 pages of notes. It's about my own life of course and it's about my life in the daily library and the library system. And the blogging life. This was part of the inspiration to add the Annotated to the Anokaberry. I have to return the book to the library and now I can file the notes, the ideas, however, are let loose.

"...one person with a persistent vision can make change happen..."

"...Are there thousands of reasons why you, of all people, aren't the right one to lead? Why you don't have the authority...So what? Go."

Inside Nan: While We're Waiting

This feeling of waiting - and the song (music and lyrics by Fred Rogers) that always comes - is part of my growing up. Click on the link and then on the Audio File below Mister Rogers picture.




Let's think of something to do while we're waiting
While we're waiting for something new to do.
Let's try to think up a song while we're waiting
That's liberating and will be true to you.
Let's think of something to do while we're waiting
While we're waiting 'til something's through.
You know it's really all right;
In fact, it's downright quite bright
To think of something to do
That's specific for you.
Let's think of something to do while we're waiting.
Now while we listen and remember whatever all it brings back, let me say this: When I say "growing up" I don't mean a distant past, although some of it happened then, but an ongoing process that is rarely painless, always turbulent, and sometimes/often involves waiting. These last few years I've tried to embrace waiting without the "I can't wait for..." feeling. I learned a long time ago from a philosophy professor in college that to say "I can't wait" was to negate the present and more and more I sense that less and less of the present is still mine. All my time is so precious. So today I salute the moment -- remembering all my sisters and brothers who wait with me for the fun announcements of tomorrow morning...

let freedom ring....

Inside Nan: Don't read this post if you don't want to know what I'm reading and thinking about it...

When you see Inside Nan in the title of a post be aware that what follows is editorial comment, maybe a rant, a sigh, an eruption. If you don't want to know don't read it. I've been blogging for a year without the permission of the "Annotated" aspect so I have many Inside Nans waiting for publication. Here's the first...

Sticks and Stones: The Troublesome Success of Children's Literature from Slovenly Peter to Harry Potter by Jack Zipes
Here's the publisher's blurb: Have children ever really had a literature of their own? In Sticks and Stones, Jack Zipes explores children's literature, from the grissly moralism of Slovenly Peter to the hugely successful Harry Potter books, and argues that despite common assumptions about children's books, our investment in children is paradoxically curtailing their freedom and creativity. Sticks and Stones is a forthright and engaging book by someone who cares deeply about what and how children read.
Here's Zipes... "To attract children and adults as consumers of literature, the very nature of the book - its design and contents-began to change. Gradually books began to be produced basically to sell and resell themselves and to make readers into consumers of brand names...(p. 6)...Children's books are formulaic and banal, distinguishable from another only by their brand labels. Yet book publishers argue that as long as these books get children to read, this is a good in itself...(p.7)

More Zipes: "I do not mean to slight the reviewers of children's books in local newspapers or in the popular press, but I have rarely read a negative review of a children's book or a book for young adults. It appears that everything and anything is good for children's minds and eyes. Good is rarely defined, though the reviewer may appear to have a firm grasp on what is appropriate literature ..."
I am reading this book and thinking about my field from Zipes' perspectives. So far I think he has strong opinions and arguments for them. And yes, the examples I posted are extreme but...What do you think? Lurk or go ahead and say it...

Turmoil and Transition

The Stars Will Still Shine
-by Cynthia Rylant

this new year...
the sky will still be there
the stars will still shine
the birds will fly over us
church bells will chime
cows will have calves
kittens will sleep
flowers will bloom
(a promise they keep)
we shall have peaches
we shall have pie
we shall have ice cream
three scoops high!
homes will be cozy
homes will be warm
we'll curl up together
when rain makes a storm
and in this new year
love will be strong
growing and growing
all the days long
there will be goodness
there will be grace
there will be light
in every dark place
the sky will still be there
the stars will still shine
birds will fly over us...
church bells will chime.

Welcome 111th Congress!

No Time

Yesterday at the library I tried to help a mom and her son. They needed historicial fiction and they needed it fast. They had no time. He wasn't interested in a book and the interview wasn't productive - a shrug. The eye-roll. The mom looking at her watch. It happens often in juvenile fiction. The kid has to have a book, the kid has no interest, the mom has no time. I grabbed a couple of good ones, with good covers. Less than a minute - they were gone. What exactly happened there I don't know but I am thinking seriously about ways the library put materials in these patrons' hands with a better result. Can we do Reader's Advisory by email - 3 easy questions -- or telephone? Give us a call, we'll do the interview by phone and have a stack waiting for you -- by the curb if necessary. All these books waiting for readers.... I am resolved to remedy by all means possible - or impossible. I let this family down, it is impetus for change. No excuses.

Focus on Putting the Books in the Bowl

I am re-reading my favorites for the 2008 Anokaberries. Yesterday as I was reading -- well, I won't say which one -- I was thrilled with the strength of the characters and the rich unfolding of the plot. I wanted to underline underline underline! I knew I had been there before but - WOW - what a wonderful book. This is the kind of book I want to place in the hands of the youngsters who come into the children's room and say "Do you have any good books?" Yes, that is often the way they ask. I'll be selecting the books for the Anokaberry and making that glorious and difficult announcement soon -- the image of the bowl of berries has settled into my sense about this Anokaberry thing so I won't have a single book and the bowl may seem crowded -- isn't that good? Next year I will definitely be staying with books written with primarily 8 - 14 year-olds in mind, fiction and non-fiction but I am turning the idea of introducing categories to the framework. The end of Year One brings on all these results of hours of thinking, working, reading, writing... I often wonder how others stucture/restructure their blogs and deal with the inevitable changes in direction and focus that process and progress bring. Your comments?

End of Year One: Some Stats and Comments

I entered 796 books into the Anokaberry account at LibraryThing in 2008. You are welcome to look at that collection - at LibraryThing click on the Search tab and enter "Anokaberry", click on "see library". I gave 5 stars to 65 books, 41/2 stars to 16 more and 4 stars to an additional 35. I gave more than 60 books less than two stars. Some have no stars from me because I didn't read them. Some have no stars because I thought they were awful. I wrote personal reviews on a few, those can be found on LibraryThing as well. Anokaberry published three short list plus the vote list. Short List #1 on May 31, Short List #2 on August 13 and Short List # 3 on November 9. I put up the vote list the first week of December. I will post the results of the vote (the Anokaberries!) - from the votes and emails soon. I made a lot of mistakes this first year, enough to seriously consider not doing this another year. I posted almost 800 times. The "mock Newbery" aspect of this blog is still central but I think of it more as an online booktalk of books published in the current year for young people. I focus on books of interest for 8-14 year-olds. I have often wished for more of a voice here -- that may be part of the way Anokaberry becomes Annotated.