So that’s it!  The end of two reading challenges for 2011, though there are lots of books still in my to-read stack that will spill into 2012.  It’s been really informative to focus my reading in this way.  I still deeply love historical fiction and have great respect for the good work of debut authors—many who wrote historical—twice as good for me.  A number of books are on both lists.  Here is how the two challenges shake out:

Historical Fiction—Needed 15, Recommended 15
Crossing the Tracks, by Barbara Stuber
Forge, by Laurie Halse Anderson
Between Shades of Gray, by Ruta Sepetys
The Trouble with May Amelia, by Jennifer Holm
The Year We Were Famous, by Carole Estby Dagg
Okay for Now, by Gary D. Schmidt
Sylvia & Aki, by Winifred Conkling
The Lost Crown, by Sarah Miller
Queen of Hearts, by Martha Brooks
In Trouble, by Ellen Levine
My Name is Not Easy, by Debby Dahl Edwardson
Inside Out & Back Again, by Thanhha Lai
With a Name Like Love, by Tess Hilmo
Anya’s War, by Andrea Alban
City of Orphans, by Avi

Debut—Needed 12, Recommended 13
Crossing the Tracks, by Barbara Stuber
Between Shades of Gray, by Ruta Sepetys
Warped, by Maurissa Guibord
Words in the Dust, by Trent Reedy
Sylvia & Aki, by Winifred Conkling
The Mostly True Story of Jack, by Kelly Barnhill
Wildwood: The Wildwood Chronicles, Book 1, by Colin Meloy with illustrations by Carson Ellis
Frost, by Marianna Baer
Inside Out & Back Again, by Thanhha Lai
The Faerie Ring, by Kiki Hamilton
With a Name Like Love, by Tess Hilmo
The Pull of Gravity, by Gae Polisner
Anya’s War, by Andrea Alban

Editor’s note: These titles can all be found in the alphabetical list on the right.

—Kari Baumbach, children’s literature enthusiast

I’m participating in two reading challenges out in the kidlitosphere this year:

The 2011 Debut Author Challenge, hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. The challenge is to read at least twelve novels from Young Adult or Middle Grade debut authors.  Anyone can join.  Here are some titles I’m considering:

Warped, by Maurissa Guibord
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, by Michelle Hodkin
Luminous, by Dawn Metcalf
Shattered Souls, by Mary Lindsey
Moonglass, by Jessi Kirby
Blood Red Road, by Moira Young
Dogsled Dreams, by Terry Lynn Johnson
Frost, by Marianna Baer

The 2011 YA Historical Fiction Challenge is hosted by Sabrina at YA Bliss.  My goal is Level 3, which is to read 15 historical fiction, young adult or middle grade books this year.  Some titles I’m considering:

The Luck of the Buttons, by Anne Ylvisaker
 In The Shadow of the Lamp, by Susanne Dunlap
Strings Attached, by Judy Blundell
Chime, by Franny Billingsley
Ashes (Seeds of America #3) by Laurie Halse Anderson
Belle’s Song, by K.M. Grant
The Lost Crown, by Sarah Miller
The Year We Were Famous, by Carole Estby Dagg
The Trouble with May Amelia, by Jennifer L. Holm
Sparrow Road, by Sheila O’Connor
Daughter of Xanadu, by Dori Jones Yang
Forgiven, by Janet Fox
Cleopatra Confesses, by Carolyn Meyer
The Vespertine, by Saundra Mitchell
Between Shades of Gray, by Ruta Sepetys (Debut Author)
Crusade, by Linda Press Wulf
Sylvia & Aki, by Winifred Conklin

Join a challenge yourself or follow along.  It’s sure to be a fun ride.

—Kari Baumbach, children’s literature enthusiast

written by Patricia Polacco
Philomel, 1994
ISBN 9780399226717

Pink and Say, created by Ms. Polacco in picture book format, propelled a group of us recently into a discussion about picture books for older readers. “I think adults would like this book,” one person said. “There’s so many discussion starters here,” said another. “Every person in America should be required to read this book, no matter how old they are. Especially now, with the media starting their focus on racial divisions in the presidential campaign,” said a third.

Indeed, there are many topics adults want to discuss within the pages of Pink and Say. So let’s call this an “illustrated book” rather than a picture book and maybe some of those adult readers will get over their prejudices about “baby books.”

The story of two teen boys who meet when they are separated from their troops during the Civil War, Pink and Say is a true story in that it was handed down to Patricia Polacco through generations of family members, the first of whom, Sheldon Russell Curtis, was nicknamed Say. He fought for the Ohio Twenty-Fourth, although he was only supposed to be standard bearer at age fifteen. When Say is badly injured, Pink finds him in the woods. Lost from his own regiment, the Forty-Eighth Colored, Pink decides to take Say home to his mother, Sweet Moe Moe Bay, to be nursed back to health. The two boys become good friends, learning more about life in another person’s skin, one of them dreading going back to the war, the other eager to fight so he can make things right. The book ends at Andersonville, a notoriously awful prison camp run by the Confederate Army. Ultimately, though, the book is about hope and friendship and doing what is right. It is a powerful statement about life and love. The author’s illustrations are equally strong, supporting the text with understanding and illumination.

It’s a fine book … one that should be read by people of all ages.

— Vicki Palmquist, children’s literature enthusiast