CMIS Evaluation Fiction Focus

Yes, the man behind When the Wind Blows and The Snowman is still going strong at 74. Here’s an interview with him in today’s Guardian.

Can’t you just hear him saying:

I wish I could be a proper writer, having to do only the words. Proper writers can start at the beginning, go on till they get to the end, then stop and hand it in. Luxury.’

No, it’s not YA but it’s a bit of fun.  The Guardian has a test-yourself Olympic literary quiz. Have a go and see, if like me, you are literature’s equivalent of Eddie the Eagle or if the Gold Medal is heading your way.

(Well, there’s only one YA question - that’s my excuse! They weren’t all wrong, honest.)

Closer to home, the shortlists have also been announced for the 2008 Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards.

Of the 12 categories in these awards, the Prize for Young Adult Fiction has three nominees:

• Solo (Alyssa Brugman)
• Pool (Justin D’Ath)
• Tomorrow All will be Beautiful (Brigid Lowry)

The judges, who include last year’s winner Simone Howell, also noted some outstanding ‘near-misses’.

• Leaving Barrumbi (Leoni Norrington)
• Pip, the Story of Olive (Kim Kane) and
• Sunny Side Up (Marion Roberts)

were all commended for their quality.

All three shortlisted titles are also 2008 CBCA Notable Books for Older Readers, as is Leaving Barrumbi. The winner of the Premier’s Award will be known on 1 September.

It’s great to be able to report news from Canada - a country whose YA literature doesn’t reach Australia as often as we would like. The finalists have been announced in the Canadian Children’s Literature Awards, and as one criterion for the award is that the books must be targeted towards an age group up to 12, we are happy to note that three titles at the lower end of the YA spectrum have been nominated.

Kenneth Oppel’s Darkwing is the latest in his amazing series about prehistoric bats. We don’t have a review of Darkwing, but the book’s website gives a great sense of what it is all about.

Also on the short list fitting the YA tag is Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Curtis, which was also a Newbery Honor Book this year and Shane Peacock’s Eye of the Crow (the Boy Sherlock Holmes)

There’s more information about the Canadian Children’s Literature Awards on the Canadian Children’s Book Centre site.

The winner will be announced in Toronto on November 6.

J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis both owed much to Pauline Baynes, whose death has occurred at the age of 85. One of the most distinguished illustrators of children’s books of the last century, she will always be remembered for her work on the Narnia titles and the creation of the definitive Aslan.

The Guardian obituary outlines the extent of her work and her relationship with both Tolkien and Lewis. And UK broadcaster and writer Brian Sibley pays a warm personal tribute, with some stunning examples of her work, on his blog.

We can’t let you know about the Man Booker long list without reference to our own prestigious literary award. The shortlist for the inaugural Prime Minister’s Literary Award was announced yesterday, with an impressive $100 000 going to the winner.

The YA link is tenuous - John Marsden is one of the three fiction judges - although as with the Booker, the titles will be of interest to teachers of senior students.

Seven books have been shortlisted from 91 submitted for consideration:

• Burning In Mireille Juchau
• El Dorado Dorothy Porter
• Jamaica Malcolm Knox
• Sorry Gail Jones
• The Complete Stories David Malouf
• The Widow and Her Hero Tom Keneally
• The Zookeeper’s War Steven Conte

No firm date has been set for the announcement of the winner.

Announced in January, the Michael L. Printz Awards for Young Adult Literature were presented to the winners a few weeks ago.  Our own Judith Clarke’s  One Whole and Perfect Day was an Honor Book this year.

The acceptance speeches, including Judith’s, can be heard here.

As well as the overall winner, Geraldine McCaughrean (The White Darkness), other acceptance speeches can be heard from New Zealander Elizabeth Knox (Dreamquake), A.M. Jenkins (Repossessed) and Stephanie Hemphill (Your Own, Sylvia).

Hop over to the Inside a Dog website to see the titles of the 20 books that have been named on the long list for the Inky Awards.

The ten Australian and ten overseas contenders will be whittled down to 3 of each on 12 September, and the winner of the Golden Inky (Australian) and Silver Inky (overseas) will be announced on 6 November.

All the guidelines are on the web page but voting is restricted to those aged between 12 and 18 and can be done by SMS or email. Readers worldwide are encouraged to participate.

Such a strong long list presents many opportunities for English teachers and Teacher Librarians to promote wide reading.  All are compelling reads so the selection of the short list will not be easy.

The site also has details of a Creative Reading competition and information for teachers and librarians.

This is the second year of the Inkys.

Issue 2 of Fiction Focus has just arrived back from the printer and will be winging its way to subscribers in time for the Olympics. Yes, this one is a topical issue with a feature on China and YA reading. Watch out for it - two copies will be arriving in WA Government schools via the Principal and individual subscribers should receive theirs next week.

Meanwhile, here’s the cover.

If you are looking for titles suitable for using in Literature Circles, don’t forget to look in the CMIS Resource Bank. Currently 122 annotated titles are listed that we feel would work well as small group studies. A future search will reflect additions to the database.

If a book has been reviewed in Fiction Focus, age guidelines (such as 12+) indicate the suggested level. Titles without such age suggestions have been reviewed in our sister publication Primary Focus, and will be ideal for younger students - although some will still suit secondary students in Years 7 and 8 where the concept works well.

There is plenty of information about literature circles although much of the material has a US elementary focus. The most common approaches are based on the work of Harvey Daniels, and can be adapted for lower secondary groups.