Go Bee!

Thanks to the Columbus (OH) Dispatch for naming

 BEHOLDING BEE

 one of its four top 2013 fantasy novels for children! 

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/life_and_entertainment/2013/11/24/1-1aa-fantasy-books-art-gofpmvn3-1.html

Don't forget those book order forms!

So thrilled that Scholastic bought the rights to feature my second novel, THE WONDER OF CHARLIE ANNE, in its school book clubs in the US and Canada.

 Remembering how exciting it was to see those book flyers every month...

What a wonderful time meeting young people and parents/teachers/librarians at The Rhode Island Festival of Children's Books and Authors!  With authors Adam Gidwitz, Daniel Handler aka Lemony Snicket and his editor Susan Rich, Avi, Sharon Creech, Kate Messner, Dan Santat , me, and Gregory Mone. Not pictured, Bill Harley, Jarrett J. Krosoczka, Chris Van Allsburg and Laurie Keller.

I spoke about BEHOLDING BEE and how I found the idea for a character like BEE -- at a traveling carnival, of course!

Questions for Bee

Children's Librarian Wendy Walker of the Payette Public Library in Payette, Idaho, wrote to me asking for BEHOLDING BEE discussion questions for her young readers' book club.

 I loved thinking deeply about the novel and coming up with questions that I thought were important to the book.  I also enjoyed looking up how far Payette is from my little town of Foster, RI.  It would take 39 hours to drive the 2,679 miles.  As soon as I finish the draft for my newest novel, I will be ready to go!

Until then, here are the discussion questions for BEE.

Discussion Prompts for BEHOLDING BEE

BEHOLDING BEE is essentially a book about courage and learning to believe in yourself.  How does Bee become self-reliant and resilient?

Why does Bee spend so much time hiding behind her hair?

Why does Pauline think it will be impossible to leave the carnival and find a new home?  Why does Bee think it can be done?  Why is a home so important to Bee?

Why can’t Pauline look past the pig smell and see inside to Bobby’s heart?  Why is this easy for Bee?

Why is Bobby so important to the book?

Pauline says everyone has troubles, so Bee is not alone.  “Some folks have troubles on the outside for everyone to see, and some have troubles on the inside where they hide and fester. “But everyone has something, Bee. So you are not alone.”  But Bee responds, “I think it must be way easier to have troubles on the inside where no one can see.”  What does Bee mean by this?  Is she correct?

Why is resilience such an important theme in the book?

Why is Bee the only person who can see Mrs. Swift and Mrs. Potter?  Do you believe they are really present, or are they figments of Bee’s imagination?  Is there any evidence that they may, in fact, be living in the house with Bee?

Are Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Swift ghosts, angels or something else?

During the 1940s, “freak shows" were common on the carnival circuit.  Bee’s birthmark isolates her in many ways from regular society.  What are some examples of other characters in the book who face isolation/discrimination?

Did Mrs. Swift and Mrs. Potter face discrimination in their times?  What do they try and teach Bee about being strong?   

Is there something of a fairy tale in Beholding Bee?  How?

Mrs. Swift’s background as a suffragette gives her special knowledge of the things Bee needs in her life if she is to stand on her own two feet.  Explain.

Special education classes have changed since the 1940s.  Are children “set aside” today?  Why did school officials in Bee’s time think that it was important for children with special needs to be separate?

British Bee!

I'm so excited to introduce my novel to British readers, thanks to the wonderful publisher Faber and Faber, London.

The first review of the British Bee is in!  Thank you to Luna's Little Library who named the novel one of her Top 10 Reads of 2013.

"Bee is an orphan who lives with a traveling carnival. Every day she endures taunts for the birthmark on her cheek – though her beloved Pauline, the only person who has ever cared for her, tells her it is a precious diamond. When Pauline is sent to work for another carnival, Bee is lost.

Then a scruffy dog shows up, as unwanted as she, and Bee realizes that she must find a home for them both. She runs away to a house with gingerbread trim where two mysterious women, Mrs Swift and Mrs Potter, take her in. They clothe her, though their clothes are strangely out of date. They feed her, though there is nothing in their house to eat. They help her go to school, though they won’t enter the building themselves. And only Bee seems able to see them…

Whoever these women are, they matter. They matter to Bee. And they are helping Bee realize that she, too, matters to the world – if only she will let herself be a part of it.

The story is narrated by Bee, who at the beginning of the book is only 11. She’s grown up with a travelling carnival and works at the hot dog stand with Pauline, a young woman who has been Bee’s family since her parents died when Bee was 4.

The story starts with Bee’s life at the carnival. One of the things that I loved so much about Kimberly Newton Fusco's writing was that everything is so vivid. Bee is an amazing little girl that I can’t imagine anyone not loving.

When Pauline is sent to another carnival Bee has escapes in search of a home, taking her dog (Peabody) and piglet (Cordelia) with her. She finds a house “the colour of buttercups with blueberry shutters and a front porch with rocking chairs still rocking”. Inside she is welcomed by Mrs Swift and Mrs Potter, two elderly ladies.

I could quite happily tell you about how fantastic and touching the story is but I don’t want to spoil the joy of reading it. I loved the language, the imagery, the characters and of course the names. The Daring Escape of Beatrice and Peabody is magical – enjoy!"

BEHOLDING BEE gets ALA attention!

I am thrilled that BEHOLDING BEE is one of 15 novels nominated today to the list of Notable Children's Books that will be discussed at the ALA conference in Chicago!

The ALSC committee writes that “notable is defined as: Worthy of note or notice, important, distinguished, outstanding. As applied to children’s books, notable should be thought to include books of especially commendable quality, books that exhibit venturesome creativity, and books of fiction, information, poetry and pictures for all age levels (birth through age 14) that reflect and encourage children’s interests in exemplary ways."


For a list of all the wonderful books nominated, visit:


http://www.alsc.ala.org/blog/2013/06/notable-childrens-books-nominees-summer-2013/

A Home Run!

A lovely review can splash sun all over a rainy Friday, as this one did today!
Thank you to Sprout's Bookshelf:

"Summer is right around the corner, and that can only mean one thing - Summer Reading! If you've followed this blog for very long, you know that I was a very bookish child who has become a bookish adult with a serious soft spot for Summer Reading. It was my favorite time of year: curling up in a sunny spot with my dog and a good book, or making a pilgrimage to the bookmobile (later the library) only to emerge with a bag of books I could barely carry. I read everything that caught my fancy in those years, and many things that I never would have otherwise tried, but for the fact that I suddenly had plenty of leisure time to explore new literary worlds. Heaven, for me, is books, no question.

And today's pick is one that the young me would have devoured, and then gone right back to for a second read-through. Kimberly Newton Fusco's previous books have garnered starred reviews and awards, and no wonder, because they are just amazing. But in her latest book, Beholding Bee, a WWII-era novel, Fusco has scored a home run - a character whose voice is so indelible and unforgettable that she draws you right into her story, and you never look back.

Bee has lived with Pauline ever since her parents died when she was three, and the traveling carnival where Pauline works is the only world Bee's ever known. It's not an easy life, and it's made tougher by the presence of Bee's "diamond", a prominent birthmark that draws the attention of everyone who comes to buy hot dogs from Pauline. Bee knows her diamond makes her special, but it sometimes seems too much to bear. And then things get even tougher: Pauline takes up with a boyfriend and leaves Bee behind to manage the hot dog cart all by herself. Bee takes as much as she can stand from unpleasant carnival boss Ellis. But finally she's had enough, so Bee and her dog Peabody, plus a piglet named Cordelia take off at a run, literally. And eventually Bee finds herself at a house that looks like gingerbread, where two quirky old ladies seem to have been expecting her. It's not what Bee bargained for, but it might just be everything she needs.

Beholding Bee is a historical novel for all kinds of kids, but especially for those who know what it's like to be an outsider. As an orphan and an outcast, Bee's developed a unique perspective on the world, and that informs her every decision in a way that makes her a character you can't help but root for. She reminds me so much of other strong girls in literature: Gilly Hopkins, for one, or Hollis Woods, even a younger Dicey Tillerman. She's got heart, but she's not fragile - Bee's a girl who has taken what life dishes out to her and keeps going, because she must. I love the complexity of this character, and Fusco never takes the easy way out for Bee, which makes me love her all the more.

Older readers will likely suss out some of the more mysterious elements a little sooner, but that doesn't take away from the pure enjoyment of the story. And believe me when I tell you that Bee's voice will linger in your mind: I finished this novel over a week ago, and I can't stop replaying Bee's story, thinking about her and the other characters in this vivid, unforgettable tale. With this effort, Fusco confirms her place on my list of writers I'll continue to look out for -- and I hope the Newbery committee feels the same.

Beholding Bee by Kimberly Newton Fusco, published by Alfred A. Knopf

Ages 9-12

Source: Library

Sample: "I hear one lady tell her girl I must have done something horrid to be stained all over my face like that. Or maybe my mama is the one who did something awful, or maybe my daddy, and I am the one being punished. . . . But Pauline holds me and whispers they are not right. Otherwise, why would I have a beautiful jewel on my cheek the color of a rose at dusk and they do not? / I do so like Pauline's way of looking at things."

Highly recommended"

http://www.sproutsbookshelf.com/2013/05/beholding-bee-by-kimberly-newton-fusco.html