Jenna Bush And Mitali Speak Simultaneously

That's right. Here I am in Dallas for the GIGANTIC Texas Library Association Conference, and the real First Daughter is speaking about Ana's Story exactly during the hour of my Books Between Cultures session (she's appearing at noon in a huge banquet hall; I'm tucked in a conference room somewhere). Interesting timing, considering that one of the reasons I'm here is to sign and promote my First Daughter novels. There's irony in there somewhere for those of you tracking my pajama publicity efforts. Oh, well. I'm off to the exhibit hall, consoling myself with the super-sized everything here in Dallas -- airport, convention center, food portions on every plate, smiles, and the unsurpassed hospitality of Texas librarians.

Traveling, Talking, and Television Shows

I'm going on the road next week, so I'm not sure if I'll be able to sneak out to the Fire Escape too often, but I'll try, because I love it out here. Here's where I'll be:

Friday, April 11th - Saturday, April 12th: On Friday, I'm at the New England Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators Annual Conference, enjoying dinner and a cabaret presentation by author/illustrator Anne Sibley O'Brien, author/illustrator David Hyde Costello, and Charlesbridge editor Yolanda Leroy called CONFESSIONS OF THE PROFESSION: A STARRED REVUE. I can't wait to see it! I'll also be presenting a workshop on Saturday April 12th from 10:05 -11:00 a.m. called "Pajama Promotion: Five Web-Savvy Ways to Generate Buzz About Your Books."

Wednesday, April 16th: Come join us for my session called "Books Between Cultures," offered from 12-12:50 at the Texas Library Association Convention, (Program CPE#356 in room D 171/173 sponsored by the Texas Association of School Librarians) followed by book signings on the exhibit floor, first at the Penguin booth #1701 from 2 – 3, and then at the Author Autographing Area with Charlesbridge from 3-4. Stop by and say hi.

Thursday, April 17th: I'll be celebrating Operation Teen Book Drop at the Winchester Author Festival in Winchester, Massachusetts.

Friday, April 18th: If you're in the San Francisco Bay Area, you can catch me on ABC/KGO's View From The Bay from 3-4 p.m. PST (streaming online live here), where I'll be chatting about growing up between cultures and how stories kept me balanced.

What's that? You want to be on television, too? Well, then, your mother should cold-call the station without telling you about it beforehand and leave a message bragging about her kid. Yep, that's how I got the gig. Thanks, Ma.

"If you don't promote this book,

my mother will cold-call you, too."

Woburn Library Knows How To Do It

An author visit, that is. 

It was a miserable, sleety school night in March when I approached the gorgeous building built in 1877 by Henry Hobson Richardson, the architect who designed Trinity Church in Boston.


I was hearing that familiar internal pep talk that comes before potentially sparsely-attended appearances: "Listen, chickadee. If even two teens show up, you give your presentation with as much grace and effort as you would to a crowd of a thousand bookstore buyers."

But I didn't need the talk, because teen librarian Christi Showman Farrar had done her work. She'd publicized the event widely, including good signage as a final touch:


Christi also invited people personally, read First Daughter with a group of her teens, and coordinated with the schools to offer extra credit for attending author visits.

Every seat (pictured above before the talk) was full by the time I finished, book sales were brisk, and Christi (pictured below to the left with permission) had even baked oatmeal scotchies, just like the main character in my novel.


Thanks to the Friends of the Woburn Library for sponsoring the visit, to Book Ends in Winchester for providing the books, and to Christi and her tireless teen workers for hosting me so warmly.

Librarians Who Move And Shake

Know a librarian with the power to change the planet? Nominate her/him immediately to be a part of Library Journal's compilation of the top fifty innovators in the profession.

Never Sign Near Mo And Other Conference Survival Tips

Ah, me. On the whole, the TLA convention was a blast, don't get me wrong, but watching (from my lonely author signing booth RIGHT NEXT DOOR) a long line of librarians waiting for Mo Willems was not so much fun. A score of sopranos squealed ecstatically when young Mr. Willems eventually appeared. Another one of Betsy Bird's Hot Men of Children's Literature, John Green, elicited a question during a YA author panel from a middle-aged woman who gushed embarrassingly about his cuteness. As E. Lockhart (Dramarama) commented when we commiserated over the young-guy-author-groupie-magnet factor, we are cute, too. Okay, she is cute, especially with that intricate Olde English tattoo fully encircling one buff upper arm.

I also got to chat with Kirby Larson of Hattie Big Sky fame (one of the three kind people in my author signing line), Cynthia Leitich Smith who wrote Tantalize (as generous with her Texas hug as she is with links and news on her famous blog), Esme Raji Codell (stylish, sweet, and smart in person and in print), and Copper Sun author Sharon Draper (who, on a hotel shuttle bus, passed on good advice about school visits and a lovely two-handed blessing she'd received years ago from Virginia Hamilton). The list goes on ... many other luminaries and celebrities were present, proving once again that Texas occupies a big, big place both in the country and in the world of children's literature.

Now I'm off to the 116th annual gathering of librarians in Connecticut, where author Joseph Bruchac is scheduled to provide the swoon factor.

A Library Can Be A Sick Crib

Last Sunday's Boston Globe ran an article by YA author Lauren Mechling, "Come For The Xbox, Stay For The Books," about the changing relationship between libraries and young adults. If you build it, apparently, they will come, and they just might read, too.

Melissa Jenvey, a young adult specialist at the Donnell Library in midtown Manhattan told me that after redoing the teen section four years ago, circulation of young adult titles rose 400 percent. "We just needed to have the merchandise that they wanted," she says. "It's like how they put the milk in the back of the supermarket to get you to buy all the other stuff."

In my visits here and there, I've been impressed with several strikingly teen-friendly libraries, like the ones in Reading, Massachusetts, Pleasanton, California, and Springfield, Massachusetts. But before spending huge amounts of time, money, and energy on an arcade-like decor, those communities pursued different priorities, like hiring librarians who love to chill with teens.

ALA News: Notable Books For Children 2006

The American Library Association has just posted a list of (potentially) notable books for children published in 2006 that will be up for discussion during the upcoming ALA midwinter conference in Seattle January 19-24th: Notable Children's Books Discussion List - Midwinter 2007 (Excel file).

Authors of between-culture novels on the list include Grace Lin (The Year of the Dog), Jennie Lombard (Drita My Home Girl), Lenore Look (Ruby Lu, Empress of Everything), Mike Lupica (Heat), and Vandana Singh (Younguncle Comes To Town ).

The ALA will also provide a live webcast of the top children/teen literary awards announcements on January 22nd 8-9 a.m. PST. This includes the Newbery, Caldecott, Carnegie, King, Batchelder, Geisel, Sibert, and Wilder Awards.

Tasers In The Sanctuary

Libraries have always been havens for immigrants; they've certainly felt like that to me ever since I first walked wide-eyed into the Flushing branch of the NYPL all those years ago. Maybe that's why what happened Tuesday night in the UCLA library of all places is doubly disturbing. If you can stomach it, witness this cell-phone footage of campus security officers using a Taser stun gun on a 23-year old Iranian man who refused to show his ID during a routine random late-night check:

So it's come to this, has it? Strident, important words like "secure" and "safe" can no longer serve as adjectives describing one of my favorite nouns: "sanctuary." Still, that age-old whisper of desire isn't going anywhere, despite all the shouting.

Pleasanton Library's Teen Fusion Night

Hey, Northern Californians! I'm heading your way this Saturday to talk about growing up between cultures at the Pleasanton Public Library. Apart from moi, it's going to be an adult-free event, so teens are welcome at 4 p.m. to join in on the conversation. After an hour or so, the library closes, I get kicked out, and the real fun begins -- movie, food, mendhi, and music. (Don't worry, I'll be relaxing in flannel jammies and drinking tea with my parents ... true bliss.)

ALA's Becoming American: New Immigration Stories

Check out the American Library Association's wonderful new site:

Becoming American – New Immigration Stories is a project designed to provide libraries throughout the United States with a selection of excellent books on immigrant literature for adults and families. The reading lists and resources on this Web site have been developed to help librarians engage their communities in reading and discussing important texts containing rich and deep insights into our vibrant tradition of immigrant literature.

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The Great Paterson in Cambridge; The Wee Perkins in Wellesley

Fellow Presbyterian Minister's wife Katherine Paterson will be reading from her new ALA Booklist starred-review novel, Bread and Roses, Too, tonight at 7 o'clock at Porter Square Books in Cambridge. I can't make it because my writers' group is having our annual fall kickoff/goal-setting dinner, which I love, but I'm conflicted because (a) Paterson's new book is a between-cultures novel about an immigrant family from Italy, and (b) she's my hero.

Sigh. Anyway, there's more to anticipate when it comes to bookstores, because tomorrow I'm driving around New England with Judy O'Malley and Donna Spurlock of Charlesbridge to introduce myself and Rickshaw Girl to a few indie owners. And finally, if any of you are in the vicinity of Wellesley, Massachusetts on Sunday, September 17th, I'll be speaking at the town's fabulous library at two o'clock. Here's the description of the program provided by the library, and if you do come, please introduce yourself as a Fire Escape visitor:

Life Between Cultures
Sunday, September 17, 2006
2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Wakelin Room 1

Mitali Bose Perkins was born in Kolkata, India, and immigrated to the United States with her parents and two older sisters. The Bose family lived in Cameroun, Ghana, Mexico, and New York City before settling in the San Francisco Bay Area. Using a personal, humorous slide show, Mitali shares candidly her experience of growing up between two cultures, explores some of the tensions immigrant kids face, and introduces some of the richness of her Bengali heritage. This family program is suitable for upper elementary and middle schoolers. Kids are encouraged to ask questions, and discussion throughout the presentation sparks lively responses from participants. Free and open to the public. Co-sponsored by the Friends of the Wellesley Free Libraries and World of Wellesley.

ALA: Books Between Cultures

If you're going to ALA's annual convention in New Orleans, you're cordially invited to attend Books Between Cultures: How Stories Help New Americans Find Their Balance at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 24th in the Morial Convention Center (MCC) Room 393:

What are the tensions facing kids growing up between two worlds? How does pop culture push against them? What are the best books for kids caught between two or more cultures? This presentation will inspire you to serve kids who are struggling to feel at home in our communities. Using a personal, engaging slideshow that requires audience participation, author Mitali Perkins shows how a story -- and a caring librarian -- can make a difference.

I'll also be signing on Sunday morning June 25th from 9:00 - 10:00 at the Little Brown Booth (#1150) and at the Random House Booth (#1324) from 10 - 10:30 AM. If you come by, please mention that you visited the Fire Escape.

If you're not going to be there, travel by blog via YALSA or Fuse #8. I'll be posting some reflections on Monday about my own 24-hour ALA immersion.

PLA Confidential

My day at the Public Library Association Convention in Boston started when I met my friend, Alvina Ling, editor at Little Brown, for bagels at Au Bon Pain in the Prudential Mall. Next I signed books for L/B (they gave away 80 free copies of The Not-So-Star-Spangled Life of Sunita Sen), and for Random House (Monsoon Summer) and raced across Boylston street to the Colonnade for the YA Author Luncheon featuring Jerry Spinelli. To my amazement, L/B, who sponsored the event, had me seated at the head table, so I got to chat with Alvina again as well as with Mr. Spinelli. He was hilarious and inspiring as he reminded the packed ballroom that responding well to failure is the key to eventual achievement.

As he was talking, though, I kept glancing at my watch, noticing with a slightly panicky feeling that time was flying by. I was ten feet from the podium and didn't want to stand up in front of a spellbound audience to leave while Mr. Spinelli was still talking. By 1:45, though, I had to stand up and race back to the Convention Center, because my session was scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m.! Sweaty, disheveled, but delighted to be there, I started the powerpoint and launched in. About 150 librarians came, and once again, I got choked up looking out at so many people eager to serve immigrant kids. (And yet again, I ran out of handouts, even though I'd made 200 copies, so here's the link to view the annotated bibliography of best kids' and YA books between cultures that I distributed.)

And The Award Goes To ...

From the American Library Association:

For the first time ever, the American Library Association (ALA) will pilot a live Webcast of its national announcement of the top books and video for children and young adults - including the Caldecott, King, Newbery and Printz awards - on January 23 at 7:55 a.m. CST. The award announcements are made as part of the ALA Midwinter Meeting, which will bring together more than 12,000 librarians, publishers, authors and guests in San Antonio from January 20 to 25. Online visitors will be able to view the live Webcast the morning of the announcements by following the links that will be on the ALA home page and at news.ala.org. High-speed access will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

It's fun to watch the Amazon sales rankings change in response to the ALA's prizes.

Love at the Library

I'm sitting in the Newton Free Library meeting room during a strategic planning session. The first two expert presentations have resounded with the difference between "technology natives" (teens) and "technology immigrants" (adults), and have encouraged our library to take some risks when it comes to reaching young adults. Now they're talking about setting up a savvy, teen-friendly YA space. What's worrying me is that noboby's mentioning the importance of relationship to this generation — and especially relationship with caring adults. So what if the library has a cool coffee hangout and tons of state-of-the-art computers? Listen to the wisdom gleaned in Arizona as described in VOYA magazine:

It's 3 p.m. Like clockwork, the after-school rush begins at Teen Central, Phoenix Public Library's 5,000-square-foot teen space. Hundreds of teens from public, private, and charter schools pour through the door. Some check in with the staff at the desk, while others head to the living room to see what movie is playing today. Still others just want to unwind and play RuneScape® on the Internet with their friends. What keeps these teens--more than 10,000 each month--coming back to Teen Central? It's not just the twenty Internet PCs, the large-screen TV, the surround-sound stereo music, and the loaded vending machines.Those bells and whistles are great, but I'll let you in on a secret: They're not the main reason that Teen Central is so busy. The real reason for its enduring popularity is that it offers a safe, structured environment with friendly staff.

Teens are hungry for relationships with hospitable adults who are thrilled to see them. If our library has to choose between spending money on a space or hiring a staff member who loves teens and understands their culture, I'd cast my vote for a person every time.

Color-Coded Library Books

The Motion Picture Association of America rates films, iTunes marks music downloads as "explicit" or " clean," and the Entertainment Standards Review Board decides if a video game should be rated "M" for mature, "T" for teen, or "E" for everybody. Some people wonder why the book industry doesn't create an easily-recognized ratings system for people concerned about the age-appropriateness of books. The answer is easy — books don't need a regulating board like the MPAA or the ESRB because information about a book's content is already abundant and accessible (unlike the content of other genres of entertainment.) The age-level suggested by a publisher is usually on the copyright page, as well as keywords that provide even more insight into the subject matter. No other source of story or entertainment is as widely reviewed by so many reliable sources. An industry-wide board overseeing a multi-tiered ratings sytem would be a step backwards from the wealth of information that the publishing industry already provides for any literate parent — or teen — who wants to know what's in a book.

A problem, however, exists when the digital, linguistic, or literacy divide prevents a parent — often an immigrant parent — from accessing that information. That might be why savvy librarians use a simple colored sticker system to classify the age-appropriateness and/or content of books. It might also be for the young reader's sake — many an immigrant teen, desperate for a reprieve from the constant push of "edgy" pop culture, takes refuge in an old-fashioned, wholesome story. A library-based sticker system provides quick info for any reader seeking safety on the fire escape.

Per Capita School Librarian

Before you move into a neighborhood, ask these two questions: Do all the schools in town have their own librarians? Does the community employ more school librarians this year than they did five years ago?

I just got back from presenting and signing books in Pittsburgh, where four thousand librarians are attending the AASL's National Convention. Our school district recently eliminated several school librarian positions — a warning sign, perhaps, that a once-forward-thinking community is beginning to decline. Our elementary school librarian now runs back and forth between two schools.

Get this through your heads, people — school librarians are not expendable book stampers and shelve organizers. The majority are talented, inspiring educators involved in the teaching of every discipline, including cutting-edge technology, and in integrating them for students of many capabilities. So fugeddaboud "location, location, location." Here's the new mantra for the savvy real estate broker: "Librarian, librarian, librarian."

Wipe Your Feet On Us

Public libraries have always served as a welcome mat at the portal of American life. Voice of America reports that in Kansas City, newcomers to America are still reacting like I did when I first stumbled into the untold wealth of a library:

Claudia Visnich says immigrants are often surprised that the North-East Branch provides so many services for free. "They're surprised when we don't charge for a library card," Ms. Visnich says. "They're surprised when we don't charge for books, and they're surprised when we let them check out as many books as they want."

In Asha Means Hope, I'm about to tap into a sweet memory and write the scene of a first-time visit to the NYPL's Flushing Branch. Now, back to work...

Boston's Little Vietnam

As I drove towards the Field's Corner Branch of the Boston Public Library, I couldn't help noticing the french bakeries, the fish markets, the curling Asian script. In fact, Dorchester Avenue has become quite Saigon-esque in ambience. I found myself wondering if this was an easy transition for the neighborhood. Did these new immigrants receive a genial welcome in that established, mostly African-American community? Or have the Vietnamese been resented as they set up stores, banks, Buddhist temples, pawn shops, and beauty salons?

I should know more about this, especially as I've lived in Massachusetts for five years now. But I have to confess that this is only the second time I've left the leafy western suburb I call home to venture into Dorchester. (The first was when the boys were in second grade and I drove one of their bussed-in friends home after a play-date at our house.) So, can anyone out there tell me the story of Dorchester? Or should I get on the net and do the research?

After my presentation at the library, a beautiful Vietnamese girl approached me. "You wrote this book," she asked/said, holding up a copy of Monsoon Summer. "It's all about-chew, right?"

I nodded and tried to hide my surprise. She looked Vietnamese, but her accent sounded exactly like the African-American ones on the rap/hip-hop radio station my kids listen to. Maybe that encounter answers my question about Dorchester better than the archives of the Boston Globe. Immigrant kids have an uncanny knack of making themselves right at home.

Ode to Librarians

This morning I spoke to 75 librarians who work in the City of Boston, either in the schools or in the public libraries. The seminar was sponsored by the Foundation of Children's Books. I always get choked up at the end of my "Books Between Cultures" presentation, when I speak of the debt I owe to librarians. As an immigrant kid with no extra money to buy books, my only source of stories was in the library. I quickly became an addict, drawn back week after week for a fix. I still can't walk into a library without a sense of awe at the treasure and abundance so freely shared. So — a thousand thanks to librarians. Keep an eye on that shy child who slips in the children's room and heads to the shelves, gorging on the feast of stories you've gathered. She, or he, may well end up a writer. Or better yet, a librarian.