Intellectual Freedom and Kids

lntellectual Freedom and Kids
VLA Annual Conference
Friday, October 26, 2012
2:15-3:00

Presented by:

Lisa Crisman
MSLS, Catholic University, 1995
Children's Librarian, North Avenue Branch
Richmond Public Library

Amanda Giannini
MLIS, Florida State University, 2010
Young Adult Librarian, North Avenue Branch
Richmond Public Library





* What is the role of the Librarian in protecting the rights of children while respecting the rights of their parents and guardians?

* What role do "community standards" play?

* Youth Services staff everyday face issues regarding internet access, collection development, program choices and more.

In a Glass Grimmly

In a Glass Grimmly by Adam Gidwitz
Publication Date: September 27, 2012

Childrens'/Tween, Ages 10+

ARC copy used for review.

Personal Ranking 3.5 out of 5


 

"Step lively, dear reader...
happily ever after isn't cutting it anymore."

We all know the familiar tale of Jack and Jill and their journey up the hill. We have been told about the Emperor and his new clothes.  But there is so much more to the stories. First the frog, whose name is Frog, loses a leg to a spoiled princess. Then Jill runs away from home and rescues Frog on her way to meet up with Jack. Journey with the trio as they grow beanstalks, escape giants, meet mermaids and outwit goblins, all during a quest to find the Seeing Glass. In a Glass Grimmly weaves together familiar fairy tales with original work to make a new tale that is not for the faint of heart. Enter the fairy tale world with Jack and Jill and Frog, if you dare.

It is rare for me to review children's books, but when this ARC crossed my desk, I just knew that I had too. I am a fan of fractured fairy tales and other ways of looking at the familiar in a new way or seeing the other side of the story. Of course, the first thing I did was check out the first book, A Tale Dark and Grimm. I loved them both. What is fun about Adam Gidwitz is his narrative of the stories. He has taken traditional stories, and tried to go back to the true tale, all the while weaving together tales that we are familiar with to tell a new cohesive story. In a Glass Grimmly he has intertwined the Frog Prince, the Emperor’s New Clothes and Jack and the Beanstalk; and that is just the beginning. A Tale Dark and Grimm was based on the Brothers Grimm. For In a Glass Grimmly he has branched out to include the works of Hans Christian Anderson, Mother Goose and Christina Rossetti, just to name a few.

Even those these are tales, there is still a great lesson for us all to learn. This time, Jack and Jill are on a quest to find the Seeing Glass. When they run into the three ravens, the ravens try to convince them that they are not confused, but in fact are con-fused. They leave them with three pieces of wisdom. First "when you do what you want, not what you wish," second "when you no longer seek your reflection in other's eyes," and lastly "when you see yourselves face to face," these three lessons will get them what they seek. At first Jack and Jill are even more con-fused and continue on their quest, but then when it is all over they finally figure out what the ravens meant. Only by finally coming to peace with themselves and seeing themselves for who they truly are will they find happiness.

Since In a Glass Grimmly is a companion to A Tale Dark and Grimm, it doesn't matter in what order you read them. But read them both. Meet Jack & Jill and Hansel & Gretel. Gidwitz is a wonderful storyteller, who often made me laugh  even when talking us to Hell with the devil himself. I can only anticipate what story Gidwitz will tell us next.

The Infinity Ring

The Infinity Ring: a Mutiny in Time by James Dashner

Expected Publication Date: August 28, 2012

Childrens'/Tween, Ages 8-12

ARC copy used for review.

Personal Ranking 3 out of 5

"History is broken...."

Best friends Dak Smyth and Sera  Froste could each be considered a genius in their own right, even though they are still only in the 5th grade. Dak loves history, and cheese, but mostly history. His parents are research scientists, and Sera shares their love of science and quantum physics. So when Dak's parents go out of town and Sera figures out how to get their new invention to work, it causes consequences the likes of which they could never have imagined. Now with his parents missing, Dak and Sera have been recruited by a mysterious group called the Hystorians to go back in time and fix history. Before its too late.

Yes, I am a huge fan of The 39 Clues, and was actually reading Book 3 of the Cahills vs. Vespers when this ARC arrived on my desk. So I was very excited, but a little hesitant to jump on board a new series that was so similar. To give it a fair chance I put it aside, actually read some published books and tried to get Dan and Amy Cahill out of my head. Now here we are, and 24 hours after I started, its finished and I loved it!

The overall concept for this series is that Aristotle predicted that one day time travel was going to be possible, and that there were "breaks" in history. Or rather, things that happened, that were never supposed to. The Hystorians know that the world in which they have grown up in seems off, but its the only life they know. Yet they believe Aristotle and his plan to fix time when it becomes possible. When the book starts, Dak and Sera attend Benedict Arnold Middle School and are on a school field trip to the Smithsonian Museum in the nation's capital of Philadelphia.

America was discovered by the famous Amancio brothers, but the story often leaves out the tale of their heroic mutiny over the cruel Christopher Columbus.  So, when Dak's parents get lost in time and Dak and Sera are recruited by the Hystorians they are told that they will just be providing the transportation to teams that have been training for these opportunities for years. But when the SQ raids the facility, Dak and Sera escape with Riq, a sixteen year old language expert, and their only option is to begin fixing the breaks in time themselves. So when the first break tells them to go to Palos de la Frontera, Spain on August 3, 1492 they know that they have to do something with the voyage to America. But are they supposed to help the Amancio brothers or rescue Christopher Columbus? All they know is that they have to get on that boat!

One thing that is a common theme for me is my love of "altered" history. The ability authors have to take the reality that we know, tweek a few things, and show us one of the many "what if" realities is really fun and impressive to me. Even though they call it "broken history" in the Infinity Ring, seeing how they put it back together is what is going to keep me glued to this new series. Thankfully, they included the publication schedule in the back of the ARC, so here are the dates to keep a look out for. Book 1: 8/28/12, Book 2: 11/6/12, Book 3: 2/5/13, Book 4: 6/4/13, Book 5: 9/3/13, Book 6: 12/3/13, and Book 7: 3/4/14. So just like The 39 Clues, keep an eye on the Infinity Ring website. Right now its just an except of the first book, but once it goes live it will include the online component of the games. Thankfully, Scholastic seems to know what it is doing in using all avenues to keep children engaged in reading!