1

Interview with

Martha Bennett

Stiles

Dan Yaccarino

Upcoming

McConnell Center

Events

McConnell

Conference

Author Spotlight

McConnell Board

Game Night

Angel Tree

Donations

Teens Choose

Divergent

Connecting with

Characters Contest

National Book

Award Finalists

2012

Student Section

On the Blog and in

the Center

About Us

What is your favorite thing about

being a writer? Half–well, five, of my 12 books are

historical novels, and I enjoyed the

reading they required tremendously.

Being allowed to consider reading

“work,” and therefore not feeling like a

self-indulgent slouch as I spend week

after week just reading, is lovely.

Learning why we do some of the things

we take for granted doing is another

bonus.

I know that’s only half an answer, but I

can’t pin down the other half. Once I

accepted, first, that I couldn’t draw, and

second that I couldn’t have at least 3

children, writing is all I’ve wanted to

do. I simply enjoy crafting sentences,

making up stories.

Occasionally a book will have a more

than casual purpose. Darkness Over the

Land was written as I was trying to

make sense of the Third Reich, which

had baffled me since childhood.

Sarah the Dragon Lady is about coping

with loneliness and was written for the

sake of a niece who’d been moved

from state to state to state and was real-

ly unhappy. Kate of Still Waters result-

ed from my hearing a counselor say

how rust belt farm children's school

performance was suffering from their

worry over maybe losing their homes;

from their getting less sleep and having

less time for schoolwork on account of

having to pitch in around the house for

a working mother, or doing more farm

chores as their fathers took on outside

jobs. I meant Kate of Still Waters to be

an encouraging book, though some

chapters are grim. Some chapters, like

the one about wrapping Lexington's

tallest building with silver-sequined

burlap, are just for fun.

2

Do you have a certain process for writing? I majored in chemistry, and have had to remind myself from time to time that

Louisa May Alcott didn’t have the benefit of writing classes either. In the begin-

ning, I made my story up as I went along. This makes for an episodic narrative. I

have grown more systematic through the years. Having a plan in the first place is

both more efficient and more apt to result in esthetic success, and, as I used to

reassure my students, one hasn’t to regard this plan as the tablets of Moses. If my

story starts willfully surprising me, I permit it some leeway. When I began Lone-

some Road, I had no idea where the disappeared child, Lang, was, and didn’t aim

ever to say. As I wrote, I realized how cruel this was, to the parents, who had be-

come real to me, and to any readers. So then I had to stop and figure out what

had become of Lang. Well, where was he last seen? By the mailbox. Well, the

neighbor boy says Lang didn’t come to his house, so Lang was most likely

picked up at the mailbox, most likely by someone he knew. And so on for more than a dozen chapters I hadn’t

expected to write. Sailing to Freedom was conceived with just one hero, a 12-year old cabin boy who is afraid

for awhile that he is going to get chucked overboard, but who winds up a dazzling hero. Urged to give him

even more adventures, I considered that you can have too much of a good thing, and instead invented a second

hero, ashore. Ogun, 11, is an escaping rice plantation slave, bits of whose story alternate with the Massachu-

setts cabin boy’s. Island Magic, a gentle story about a boy and his grandfather on Grosse Ile, Michigan for

which Dan San Souci painted such beautiful watercolors, began as a parody of Carl Sandburg’s Fog. Some-

times all I have at the beginning is a question. How could the country that produced Brahms, Beethoven, Mo-

zart, Heinrich Heine, my family’s creche, produce the SS? My husband’s Guggenheim gave me a year in Mu-

nich, allowing me to pursue that question, and write my most seriously intended book, Darkness Over the

Land.

Which of your books did you enjoy writing the most? The character whose story gave me the most pleasure writing it is Sailing to Freedom’s runaway slave, Ogun.

Certain facts had to be got across in Sailing to Freedom, and I had Cook’s helper, Ray, help me deal with them

all in his chapters. I was free, then, in writing Ogun’s parts, to concentrate on Ogun–what is he feeling, think-

ing, remembering. I am naturally therefore strongly attached to Ogun. For dearest female character, maybe Sa-

rah the Dragon Lady. I permitted Sarah to deal imaginatively, successfully, with problems which bulldozed

me when I was her age.

Do you have a favorite children’s book? Gracious no, I am attached to far too many. Naming the first half dozen favorites that spring to mind will I

hope be acceptable–The Sword in the Stone; The Wind in the Willows; Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s

Stone; all the Louise Andrews Kent He Went Withs I could lay hands on; Johnny Tremain (though it does

some whitewashing); Histoire de Babar, le petit éléphant, my first book--

huge, in French, and I nine months old–my first Christmas gift from my writ-

er grandfather, John Bennett. My memory of Babar begins at two, I on my

stomach on the floor, poring over every detail in every picture, who knows

how many times. Today the only French I know, aside from the snatches a

tourist must learn to survive, are lines that my patient mother read to me many

times. Ce n’est pas un joujou, monsieuer l’ éléphant is never much use in

Paris, but it brings back happy memories of my mother, my grandfather, my

treasured first book.

Is there a particular genre that you most enjoy? I have published 5 historical novels, and, with modern settings, 3 picture

books, 2 middle-grades, one young adult and one adult novel. I guess I am

Browning’s last duchess incarnate, she who liked whatever she looked on,

and her glance fell everywhere. This has not quite cost me, like her, my life, but certainly had I settled on one

age of reader, one time period, I would be less obscure. For me, the sacrifice would have conclusively out-

weighed the benefit, which is why I didn’t make it, but I do confess to wistfulness.

3

You have lived in Kentucky for a long time. What is your favorite thing about Kentucky? Kentuckians are grand, but I have found grand people absolutely everywhere, so let’s choose something only

our own, our wonderful landscape. I float along the Paris Pike and appreciate that I am among the world’s

privileged. And I remind myself that this countryside will disappear if horse racing fades. We took a visiting

Swiss couple for a picnic into Kentucky’s mountains and they were soberly enraptured. “There is nowhere in

Switzerland,” they said, “where we can have this experience.” As we knew them for skiers, we were puzzled,

but they continued: “Nowhere in Switzerland can we stand and see nothing made by the hand of man. Even

where there is no house, no road, there is always a wire...” Forgive me for not leaving that perfect moment

perfect: please, please inform yourselves about mountaintop removal.

Can you tell us about your newest book Sailing to Freedom? The major narrator, Ray, a twelve-year-old whose clipper ship-captain father gave him a monkey to console

him for not getting to sail on said clipper, works for the cook on a coastal schooner which is smuggling the

cook’s infant granddaughter to a Canadian island. Ashore, the infant’s mother and 11-year-old brother are

making their way by any means to the said island. Nobody has it easy.

Are you currently working on any new books? I am always working on new books.

Do you have any upcoming events? First, Kentucky’s marvelous, Carl West-inspired Novem-

ber 9-10 Book Fair that manager Connie Crowe and her

staff work on so selflessly every year. Then a talk to Lex-

ington’s Transylvania DAR, who are kindly interested in

One Among the Indians, it being about a real Jamestown

boy who was a hostage to Pocahontas’s father for 3 years,

and like Pocahontas, has identifiable descendants living in

this country to this day.

Look for Martha Bennett Stiles at the McConnell Conference 2013. She will be signing!

Kate and Nate are Running Late is the newest

book by Dan Yaccarino.

Check out this book from 2013 McConnell

featured presenter

Dan Yaccarino!

http://bit.ly/Dan2013Presenter

4

November 3 at 7:00 pm

Discussion of Michael Grant’s BZRK

http://bit.ly/McConnellBZRK

November 24 at 7:00 pm

Discussion of Veronica Roth’s Divergent

http://bit.ly/DivergentMcConnell

December 1 at 10:00 am

Wrapping for the foster children of

Fayette county.

http://bit.ly/HolidayMcConnell

Please RSVP on our Facebook pages or

the form found here for these events so

we know approximately how many are

coming or if we need to reschedule.

~Thanks!

McConnell Conference

March 1-2, 2013

Embassy Suites Hotel, Lexington,

KY https://ci.uky.edu/lis/mcconnell-

conference

5

Is love a curse? Can you love your family too much? Jack Gantos address this dilemma in The Love Curse of

the Rumbaughs. This is a dark gothic story about Ivy Spirco, a girl who is caught up in a curse. The curse

makes the love she feels for her mother dark and disturbing at times. She is part of three generations of a

family who are doomed to love their mother beyond reason. The story follows Ivy’s growth from childhood to

adulthood. Her family is made up of a cast of strange characters. The Rambaugh twins teach Ivy how to

taxidermy and provide semi-father figures. Ivy’s mother dresses her in the same outfits and parades her around

town. Ivy is obsessed with her mother and even more obsessed with her mother’s future death. As Ivy learns to

taxidermy she starts to question her mother immortality. She also starts to ponder dark thoughts. This book is

for readers, who like macabre environments, dark plots, and twisted characters. A moral discussion about love

in all its forms, follows after a reading of this book. This is defiantly a unique book in the world of young adult

fiction. For those who like physiological thrillers this might be for them.

Gantos, J. (2006). The love curse of the Rumbaughs. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Read A-Likes

Hartnett, S. (2006). Surrender. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.

Sebold, A. (2007). The almost moon: A novel. New York: Little, Brown and Co.

Werlin, N. (2006). The rules of survival. New York: Dial Books.

Every month leading up to the

McConnell 2013 Conference, the

McConnell newsletter will feature a

new book review from one of our

2013 featured presenters. These

reviews will introduce you to our

authors and some of their work. If

you have any books from our 2013

presenters you would like us to

review, please send suggestions to:

mercedes.hopewell@gmail.com

The Love Curse of the

Rumbaughs

By Jack Gantos

6

Thanks to everyone who came to the

McConnell Board Game Night!

Look for the next McConnell event on

November the 3rd at 7:00pm. http://bit.ly/McConnellBZRK

Above: Chris Walz, Jessica Herrington, and

Mary Mayfield.

Above: Jesse MacLean, Caleb Dunaway,

David Senatore, and Tyler Anderson

To the Left: Andrea Johnston, Aaron Palmer, and

Heather Burke

7

In the annual Teens’ Top Ten poll

sponsored by YALSA, teens

choose Divergent as their favorite

book. Below is a list of the top ten

books teens choose.

1) Divergent by Veronica Roth

2) The Fault in Our Stars by John

Green

3) Legend by Marie Lu

4) Miss Peregrine's Home for

Peculiar Children by Ransom

Riggs

5) What Happened to Goodbye by

Sarah Dessen

6) Across the Universe by Beth

Revis

7) Cinder by Marissa Meyer

8) The Scorpio Races by Maggie

Stiefvater

9) Where She Went by Gayle

Forman

10) Abandon by Meg Cabot

Be an Angel!

This holiday season the McConnell Center is

taking donations for three Fayette county

foster children. We have a wish list for the

two boys and one girl that you can check out

here

http://bit.ly/TR5jvv.

We hope to make this a great holiday for

these children. Donations can be dropped off

at the McConnell Center. We will be

wrapping their gifts at the center on

December 1st, 10:00am.

8

If for you, NBA has nothing to do with basketball and everything to do with books, then

check out the National Book Award finalists for the Young People's Literature

category: William Alexander, Goblin Secrets “A boy joins a theatrical troupe of goblins to find his missing brother.”

Carrie Arcos, Out of Reach

“A girl searches for her missing brother who is an addict.”

Patricia McCormick, Never Fall Down

“A child of war tries to stay alive in Cambodia against all odds”

Eliot Schrefer, Endangered

“One girl tries to save a group of bonobos from destruction.”

Steve Sheinkin, Bomb: The Race to Build---- and Steal-- - the World's Most

Dangerous Weapon “A fascinating story about how one split atom changed the course of history.”

We are excited to announce the 2013 Connecting with

Characters Contest. All kids in preschool through

12th grade in Kentucky or a neighboring state can

enter. Sponsoring libraries and schools must register to

participate by November 30, 2012. Entries must be

received by January 18, 2013. The Contest is in

conjunction with the 2013 McConnell Conference for

Youth Literature, which will feature Jack Gantos, Dan

Yaccarino and Selene Castrovilla. We hope that the

Contest will provide an opportunity for the youth of

Kentucky and the surrounding states to connect with

the works of these wonderful contributors to the world

of literature for youth.

Participants could win a signed copy of Jack

Gantos’s Dead End in Norvelt, the 2012 Newbery

Medal Winner! There are also great titles available by

Dan Yaccarino and Selene Castrovilla. More

information is forth coming but be sure to check out

our website at https://ci.uky.edu/lis/mcconnell-contest-2013

9

Are you in LIS 610 or LIS 613 this

Fall? Come use the McConnell

Center! We can help you find books

to use for your class.

Hours Monday & Tuesday 10 am - 3 pm

Wednesday & Thursday 12 pm - 5 pm

Or by appointment contact

mercedes.hopewell@gmail.com

STUDENT SECTION INFORMATION FOR SLIS STUDENTS

Krista King has a new article in the

Fall 2012 Young Adult Library

Services journal. Krista King is an

alumna of the School of Library and

Information Science. She was also

the McConnell Graduate Assistant

from 2008 to 2009.

Krista’s article is called “Advocacy,

Teens, and Strategic Planning.” She

talks about how libraries can utilize

teens in their strategic planning.

Check out her article in the newest

issue of Young Adult Library

Services this month!

King, K. (2012). Advocacy, teens, and

strategic planning. Young Adult

Library Services, 11(1), 24-26.

Picture by Krista King

10

On the Blog:

ARC Read & Review 2012! We

have the following titles available

for anyone who wants to read and

review them for the McConnell

Center blog at http://

youthlitmatters.wordpress.com/

New Books in the Center:

Juvenile Fiction

The Peculiar by Stefan

Bachmann

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Young Adult The Crown of Embers by Rae

Carson

A vital gathering place for books

and ideas, the McConnell Center

is committed to identifying

excellent literature for children

and adolescents and to bringing

this literature to the attention of

those adults who have an

academic, professional, career, or

personal interest in connecting

young readers with books.

We maintain two main, non-

circulating collections:

Our Current Collection includes all

books sent to us for review by

publishers during the current year.

The Permanent Collection is

several collections of books

maintained in the Center as a resource

for students and librarians. It includes

the Basic Collection, the Award-

winning Collection (Caldecott,

Newbery, Printz, Morris, Pura Belpré,

Sibert, and Orbis Pictus Awards), the

Kentucky Collection (notable

Kentucky authors and books about

Kentucky), the Reference Collection,

and the Periodical Collection.

Our Fall 2012 hours are Monday &

Tuesday 10 pm - 3 pm and

Wednesday & Thursday 12 pm - 5 pm

Please visit our website for more

information:

https://ci.uky.edu/lis/mcconnellcenter

Under the Never Sky by

Veronica Rossi

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn

Anderson

A Confusion of Princes by Garth

Nix

Picture Books

In the Land of Milk and Honey

by Joyce Carol Thomas,

illustrated by Floyd Cooper

Everything Goes in the Air by

Brian Biggs

In the Center:

Join us for the a discussion of

Michael Grant’s BZRK!

Our next event will be a

discussion of Discussion of

Michael Grant’s BZRK on

November 3 at 7:00 pm Find us

on Facebook to RSVP for this

event.

http://bit.ly/McConnellBZRK

You can find the McConnell

Facebook Group here:

http://on.fb.me/

McConnellReadingGroup

You can now RSVP for Center

Events via the following form:

http://bit.ly/McConnellRSVP

11