Ruth Krauss quotation on Los Angeles Public Library: photo by Cam Smith Ostrin

Happy Birthday, Ruth Krauss!

quotation from Ruth Krauss’s A Hole Is to Dig (1952), on the L.A. Public Library. If she were alive today, you would be wishing Ruth Krauss a very happy 106th birthday.  And yet Krauss was actually born 116 years ago, not 106 years ago. Look at the date in the upper-right-hand side of the document:

Crockett Johnson's Barnaby, 17 March 1948

Crockett Johnson’s Barnaby, Volume Four (1948-1949): Notes and queries. UPDATED!

Good news: I’ve finished the Afterword and Notes for Crockett Johnson‘s Barnaby Volume Four: 1948-1949 (co-edited with Eric Reynolds, and coming next year from Fantagraphics)! Revision to first sentence: we might put “finished” in quotation marks because there are a few references that stump me. Perhaps you can help? At the back of each book,

Beyond Diversity and Inclusion: Changing the Culture and Practices of the ChLA

We Need Diverse Scholars

The most powerful panel at last year’s Children’s Literature Association conference was “Needs of Minority Scholars,” featuring Sarah Park Dahlen, Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, Laura M. Jiménez, and Marilisa Jiménez Garcí­a. If you are at the Children’s Literature Association conference right now, I encourage you to attend the follow-up session, “Beyond Diversity and Inclusion: Changing the

Weapons Policy Module: screen 2

A Weaponized Campus Can Be Fun!

Excited about unregulated firearms coming to Kansas State University’s campus? Well, be sure to thank Representative John Barker and Senator Jacob LaTurner. They refused to let the university campus-carry exemption bills even come up for a vote in the full House and Senate. So, thanks to them, the citizens who voted for them, and to

The Horn Book, May-June 2017

Laughter and Resistance: Humor as a Weapon in the Age of Trump (Horn Book)

In its new issue, The Horn Book joins the resistance. If the previous statement is a slight overstatement (and it is, because the magazine’s values have opposed those of Trumpism since before it acquired that name), it is only a slight overstatement. The May-June 2017 issue includes at least four pieces critical of the current

Francesca Sanna, The Journey (2016)

Refugee Stories for Young Readers: Francesca Sanna’s The Journey (Public Books)

Over on Public Books today, I have a new, short piece on Francesca Sanna’s The Journey, a.k.a. one of the best picture books published last year.  If you have yet to read it, check out “Refugee Stories for Young Readers” (my essay), which includes some images from the book.  In the piece, I observe that As Francesca Sanna’s

Pi sculpture, Seattle, Washington

Happy π Day from Nine Kinds of Pie

π Day is upon us once again! Here are 3.14 pieces of Pi (as it were). 1. The π sculpture in Seattle, Washington. Photo by Niall Kennedy. 2. π to 1000 decimal places 3.1415926535897932384626433832795028841971693993751058209749445923078 16406286208998628034825342117067982148086513282306647093844609550582 23172535940812848111745028410270193852110555964462294895493038196442 88109756659334461284756482337867831652712019091456485669234603486104 54326648213393607260249141273724587006606315588174881520920962829254 09171536436789259036001133053054882046652138414695194151160943305727 03657595919530921861173819326117931051185480744623799627495673518857 52724891227938183011949129833673362440656643086021394946395224737190 70217986094370277053921717629317675238467481846766940513200056812714 52635608277857713427577896091736371787214684409012249534301465495853 71050792279689258923542019956112129021960864034418159813629774771309 96051870721134999999837297804995105973173281609631859502445945534690 83026425223082533446850352619311881710100031378387528865875332083814 20617177669147303598253490428755468731159562863882353787593751957781 8577805321712268066130019278766111959092164201989 This website lists π out to its