Ellen's Broom by Kelly Starling Lyons

Not long ago I had the great honor of creating a Reader's Theatre script and a companion reading/craft guide for Ellen's Broom, a truly amazing picture book written by Kelly Starling Lyons and illustrated by Daniel Minter. Honestly, I spent several hours lingering over Kelly's words and Daniel's incredible illustrations in awe. Ellen's Broom is the sort of book that never grows old. Each reading invites a new appreciative awareness for the overcoming of harsh familial struggles such as the one depicted in this mindful picture book...a true treasure to behold.

Kelly approaches this timeless story of triumph over heartache through the eyes of a young girl in a tender, yet highly profound way. The powerful illustrations, deftly toying with color and light, are loaded with intriguing layers of emotional depth. Together, Kelly and Daniel have created an important book celebrating the precious bond of marriage and the trials of a people who yearned to openly express their loving commitment to one another.

A broom craft featured in the Reader's GuideI leapt at the chance to participate in a blog roll promoting the launch of Ellen's Broom- you betcha! And, guess what! Anyone who leaves a comment on any of Kelly's tour stops will be entered in a drawing for the grand prize - a signed poster of the Ellen's Broom cover and a decorated wedding broom from Stuart's Creations (www.stuartscreations.com). The winner will be drawn on January 16. So make a comment, y'all!!! Win that broom.

 Kelly kindly agreed to answer a few questions about the inspiration for the book, the answers for which are listed below. Read them and you will get a little peek into the soul of an author who has a deep appreciation for the plight of her people and the passion to tell the world in a unforgettably authentic manner - through the eyes and heart of a child. 

Kelly, what inspired you to write Ellen's Broom?

While researching family history in a North Carolina library, I saw a document called a cohabitation register which opened up a new world to me. This record listed the names of formerly enslaved people who lived as husband and wife during slavery and the names and ages of their children. Though their marriages, sometimes solemnized by jumping a broom, meant the world to them, those bonds were not legally recognized. A slave owner could sell husband and wife away from each other at any time. But with the recording of their marriages in cohabitation registers during Reconstruction, finally their sacred unions received legal protection.

I told Clay Winters, my mentor at the Writers Workshop at Chautauqua, about my research. He said I had a story in there. At first, I didn't see it. But when I went back to my room and thought about what having their marriages made legal must have meant to the couples and their children, a story started taking shape. I wrote the first scene of Ellen's Broom while at Chautauqua. Now, seven years later, it's a picture book. I feel so blessed.

What does it mean to you to share this story?

This story is special to me, because it's a part of history that remains unsung. We seldom hear about how much having their marriages legalized meant to freedmen and women and their families. It's a story of celebration, freedom and love.

What do you hope readers take away from the story?

I hope children and adults read the story, soak in the beautiful illustrations and feel the love and faith that flows through the family. From Ellen's love for her parents to their love for each other, it's an unshakeable bond that carried them through slavery and into the future.

Thank you for taking the time to chat with us today and, more importantly, for writing Ellen's Broom. It is astounding! Well done, Kelly. Well done.

Posting with the American Library Services to Children Blog

Today is a super exciting one for me! I wrote a post about Book Guides for the ALSC. That's right...little old me! The post begins like this...

A few months ago a debut author contacted me requesting that I create a companion Reader Guide for his middle-grade novel, per his editor’s request. The author had nary a clue what was being asked of him or how a guide would benefit the sale of the new novel. “Why bother?” he asked. “What difference can a guide make, anyway?” I explained that, once he knew the type of guide he or his editor/agent wanted created, it can serve as a solid investment in the longevity of the book’s shelf life.

While some publishers employ their art department to create visually appealing works of art, most authors and illustrators are encouraged to seek out an experienced free-lancer, such as myself, for support.  Reader’s Guides vary in size, shape, functionality, purpose, and in production price range.  There are three guide basic formats to choose from – the Discussion, Activity, or Academic Guide.

To read more of the blog post access the following link:

http://www.alsc.ala.org/blog/2011/12/reader-guides-%e2%80%93-pick-your-pleasure/

How about that?

Mason Dixon: Pet Disasters

From ReaderKidZ

Being an only-child doesn’t bother Mason Dixon in the least. He prefers to enjoy a simplistic, uneventful way of life – right down to his “quiet, ordinary, calm, and predictable” choice of wearing only brown socks. No white. No black. Only brown. To Mason, brown socks don’t call attention to themselves, which is the course he’d prefer to follow throughout all of his predictable days. His parents, concerned for his emotional well-being, see things differently and incessantly bring pets home for Mason to care for…including one that meets a tragic, over-fed demise. 

It is not until he and his best-friend Brody rescue a three-legged pound dog, who is named Dog, that Mason begins to actively participate in the complicated emotional richness of life. Though Mason is initially resistant to adopt another pet, Dog changes him. Instead of an ordinary, predictable, brown-sock-life way of living, Mason risks a little artistic expression, confronts a bully, and experiences the near loss of his best friend and, even, Dog himself. Mason learns that there is a hole in his quiet, calm heart that only the lop-sided love of a three-legged dog can fill.

Claudia Mills’ wonderful Mason Dixon: Pet Disasters is a hilariously terrific read, perfect for any middle-grade child whatever his or her sock-color or pet preferences may be.

Around Our Way on Neighbor's Day

 Below is a post from the Simple Saturday category of this website which features inexpensive craft ideas suitable for family fun. In addition, a teacher guide especially crafted to complement a remarkable picture book is featured - a cross-curricular, multi-sensory guide created by ME!

To begin with, let me tout the splendor of this amazing picture book, Around Our Way on Neighbor's Day, written by Tameka Fryer Brown and illustrated by Charlotte Riley-Webb. If you're looking for a lively book that celebrates a sense of community, diversity, and the joy of friendship look no further, pal. This book is a one stop shop for all things neighborly.

Speaking of shop...did you get the milk, Dixie cup, Popsicle stick, and box a instant pudding we talked about yesterday? Good. Now you're ready to mix up a little bit of tongue-tickling fun!

Access the Teacher's Activity Guide by clicking HERE. The recipe for Simple Saturday Pudding Pops can be found on page 6.  While you're at it you might like to check out the discussion questions, the other craft ideas, and the song list.

Afterwards, go ahead and buy the book. You know want to!

Warriors in the Crossfire by Nancy Bo Flood

How in the world can an author encapsulate the destructive brutality of war, the fascinating nuances of island life, the tenderness of familial loyalty, ancestral honor and tradition, a boy’s coming-of-age awareness of life, and the underpinning themes of integrity, loyalty, and honor in one small book? That’s a pretty big order to fill, wouldn’t you say? Well, I’ll tell you how Nancy Bo Flood did it…through the mesmerizing detailed use of incredible poetic prose. This book reads as rhythmically as waves lapping upon the shoreline, like the steady back and forth of a kayak in the sea, like a baby being rocked in its mother’s arms. Poignant and powerful, Warriors in the Crossfire propels the reader into a harsh awareness of devastating effects of war upon a tender community of indigenous people.  Perhaps the Flood’s thoughtful lulling is what is needed to make this terrible message palatable.

Each chapter begins with a poem that not only introduces the chapter’s theme, but adds layering depth to the story.   One of my favorites is entitled Journey (54). It reads:

Geckos chirped,

 Kingfishers squawked,

Dogs barked.

This is home.

War cannot come here.

Cannot.

Can you feel that rhythmic wave-like motion in her words? Back and forth, back and forth, only to come to a crashing halt with the final word ‘cannot’. Geckos…kingfishers…dogs…home… all colorful symbols of charmed island living. And then BOOM, a harsh foreshadowing of things to come…war…here…cannot, twice repeated. Dear reader, the entire book is laced through and through with astounding prose just like this!

How about one more? War reads (102):

Moonlight

Shines silver

Across breadfruit leaves,

Broken shards of light,

Broken dreams,

Broken.

Get the picture? All is beautiful – the silver light cascading across the breadfruit tree, the primary source of sustenance for the tropical island people of Saipan. And a turn transforms moonlight into glass-like shards slicing, ripping destroying all that was once cherished, sabotaging dreams, and shattering souls. Flood’s words certainly tear to heart, don’t they?

Putting poetics aside, in addition to creating believable, multi-dimensional characters, Flood manages to muster up a tidal wave of action, intrigue, and suspense, enough to keep even the most reluctant reader engaged. It is because readers easily connect with primary characters Kento and Joseph they are willing to wade through the wages of war … page after page after suspenseful page. I asked Nancy how was she able to inhabit the psyche of her primary characters, two very different boys, so effectively. She answered:

“Joseph and Kento were as different to me as their families and cultures. Once I identified, “what did they want. What did they live for…what would they risk death to achieve?” then I could anticipate their decisions, their reactions to obstacles, their choices of how they would succeed. Kento was quiet, careful, precise but also timid, unsure, hesitant. Joseph was action. Cross him and he would fight back. Joseph had a lot to learn but he was determined, stubborn, persistent and loyal. They were the best of friends until they each had to decide between family and friendship.”

When asked how she was able to write a compelling story as Warriors in the Crossfire, yet remain completely culturally convincing Nancy answered, “Years of research, I am embarrassed to admit how much or how long…Research is a lot more than just reading. I swam with turtles - and the sharks. I paddled out across the reef, got scared to death as shark circled our kayak. I tipped over my kayak in the deep sea beyond the reef and was terrified. That’s what Kento felt and it was no fun. Havin the shadow of a shark slide over you is terrifying. It was also part of research. Read it, live it, ask it. Then listen, listen, listen. Keep collecting images, sounds, smells, ideas, information. Remember the joy, kindle the passion, and begin writing.”

Regarding being culturally accurate Nancy states, “Who can write about another time in history, about another culture? Someone who can write with accuracy, authenticity, and respect. Someone who can see from a child’s point of view, who can relate historical events to children’s contemporary experiences. For example, the betrayal of friendship is historical and contemporary, as is the death of a parent….We all share universal challenges and experiences – birth, growth, relationships, change, and the ultimate change, death. We all experience bigotry, betrayal, prejudice, misunderstanding, discrimination, bullying as well as triumph and compassion.

“I wrote Warriors in the Crossfire not thinking about genre, if it was historical, multicultural, or multi-racial. It was an important story that was shared with me. I could not write about Joseph without writing about who he is, what makes up this person, Joseph – his people, family, traditions, navigators, the sea, the sea, the importance of Dance. I could not write about survival without writing about dance, spirituality, and family. That is how we all survive, with the strength given to us by traditions, beliefs, and family.”

In conclusion, Nancy left me with two words. One being Kanji – the power of the written word, and the second being Haiku – the power of poetry. I would add Warriors in the Crossfire – the power of Nancy Bo Flood’s poetic prose, a book that raises difficult ethical questions regarding the use of atomic weapons, considers the conflicts of cultures, and the ultimate loss of innocent lives, all the while caressing the reader in the comforting rhythmic poetic rocking motion of the sea.  

Bo Flood, Nancy. Warriors in the Crossfire. Honesdale: Frontstreet, 2010.