Beloved by children, librarians, and the entire world for sixty years, Beverly Cleary’s Ramona Quimby calls Portland, Oregon home.  I know without a doubt one of the reasons I am a librarian today is because I loved books so much as a child and so much of that love existed thanks to the works of Beverly Cleary.  I can so clearly see in my mind’s eye Ramona stomping up and down Klickitat Street on her coffee can stilts.  While in Portland, I couldn’t miss a chance to finally see the REAL Klickitat Street!

If you’re not flying out until Sunday and have some time to fill on Saturday afternoon, it’s easy to visit Ramona’s World.  Here are step-by-step directions on how you can make the voyage.  The trip is a fast one and should take you no more than 30 minutes, round-trip.

Start at the Oregon Convention Center.
Head north on Martin Luther King Blvd.
Turn right on Multnomah Street.
Take the 73 bus on North 33^rd Ave. towards Sunderland.
(one adult bus ticket is $2.30 one way, or you can use a valid TriMet pass.)
Exit the bus on the Grant Park stop.  On your way towards the park, look out your left side window on NE 33^rd to see Beverly Cleary Elementary School!

In Grant Park, you’ll find three statues: Henry Huggins, his dog Ribsy, and Ramona herself.  There are plaques on the ground commemorating Cleary’s works and featuring quotes and you’re almost certain to find children playing with and interacting with the statues.  Just like the books, children recognize friends in Cleary’s characters.  On my visit, a toddler couldn’t be pried off Ribsy, who she was pretending to ride around.  “He’s her favorite, we come every day,” said her smiling nanny.

From Grant Park, walk up 33^rd Street approximately five blocks to the famous home of the Quimby family: Klickitat Street.

My visit to Ramona was a reminder that it was a librarian (Beverly Cleary) who wanted to tell the truth about children who helped me find my place as a librarian.  While you’re at PLA, make sure you take some time in-between all the programs and exhibits to think of the person/people who helped you get here in the first place!

(special thanks to my navigator, Erin Waller, Director of the Saline County Library System.)

Included were:

• Russell Freedman talked about his book Lincoln: A Photobiography
  
• Jean Feilwel spoke about the book Lincoln Shot: a President’s Life Remembered, of which she was the editor
• Candace Fleming talked about The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary
• Deborah Hopkinson discussed Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek: A Tall, Thin Tale

Freedman’s presentation focused on the role of research, and how he learned more about Lincoln, a man of “intellect and melancholy,” and his fascination with details, such as the contents of his pockets when he died.   He reminded us that there are more books about Lincoln than any other American.  (Yet, I must say, even with all the books about Lincoln out there, I want to read all 4 of these books I learned about last night!)

Lincoln Shot sounds fascinating.  The first part of it is written as if by a reporter reporting in 1866, the first anniversary of Lincoln’s death.   The second part goes back to explore Lincoln’s life, and the third part is about the Civil War, as seen through Lincoln’s eyes.  It is designed to look like an old newspaper.  Editor Feiwel wants to bring nonfiction to children.

I enjoyed hearing Candace Fleming talk about The Lincolns, and specifically “putting Mary back into the story.”  Can I share your secret here, Candace?  Among her family, her books always have “alternate titles” known only to them (until last night.)  They called The Lincolns “Abe and his Babe.”

And lastly, Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek: A Tall, Thin Tale. Author Deborah Hopkinson talked about her collaboration with her illustrator John Hendrix.   It is a picture book, and a bit of a tall tale.  But is it tale, or truth?  As the author says “that’s the thing with history–if you weren’t there, you can’t know for sure.”

As I said, this was a pleasant start to the conference, for me.  I attended several informative sessions today.  But it’s late, and I must get ready for tomorrow’s array of events.  Reports on today’s events will have to wait.

The webinar’s speaker, Nina Hess, is a Senior Editor at Mirrorstone, an imprint of the very famous and popular gaming company, Wizards of the Coast (publishers of Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, and much more). She edits fantasy fiction for children and teens. She is also the author of A Practical Guide to Monsters, which follows the company’s New York Times bestseller, A Practical Guide to Dragons. Needless to say, she is quite the expert.

I was invited to attend a preview of the webinar, and it’s an excellent Fantasy 101 crash course. Nina talks about:

• her experiences working at Mirrorstone (where she works in a “fantasy world”),
• why fantasy is so popular with kids, especially boys, and keeps them reading,
• the different flavors of fantasy plus a little on fantasy vs. science fiction,
• how fantasy and gaming can go hand-in-hand, and how tabletop role-play can lead to more kids in the library *and* more reading,
• program ideas that incorporate fantasy and fantasy reading

This webinar is a great place to start if you’re lost in fantasy, or just need a push in the right direction. Nina also talks about the many resources offered by her company (many of them free!) to help your library begin its journey into fantasy.

The program is coming up soon, so now is the time to register!

Event details:
A Practical Guide to Fantasy
Friday, September 28, 2007
11 a.m. – 12 p.m. Eastern Time [10 a.m. CT / 9 a.m. MT / 8 a.m. PT]
To Register: Send your name and contact information to . You may either email or call in your credit card information at 914-241-2117.
Cost: $50 per person
Group discounts:
10-49: $45/person
50-99: $40/person
100+: $35/person

What you’ll need: This is a Web-based seminar. Registered participants will receive participation instructions, log-on information and a toll-free number to dial in by telephone for the audio portion of the seminar upon payment of the registration fee.

The description for the session, which was presented Saturday, June 23, was as follows:

Audiobooks are a growing portion of library collections. Here is an event to celebrate and learn about the creation of quality audiobook products from the perspective of authors, narrators and producers who build the blocks that create great listening experiences. This program will focus on audiobooks for young adults and children and is cosponsored by ALSC and YALSA.

Many thanks to ALSC for working with us to record and podcast the session!

Here’s the list of when each speaker begins in the recording, and a little tidbit about each speaker’s segment. It sounds like it was a very interesting and entertaining recording, and I’m sad I missed it (even though I wouldn’t have normally attended this session in the first place), so I’m glad we have the podcast to share with all of you.

Intro: Mary Burkey, Moderator, Odyssey Award Committee Chair, introduces the session, and talks a little about the Odyssey Award, a collaboration between ALSC and YALSA.

5:37: Bruce Coville, Author, Full Cast Audio:

16:03: Judy Blume, Author, Books on Tape/Listening Library – very humorous presentation with bits about reading her books to audio. Her advice to writers is to read aloud!

31:00: John Green, Author, Brilliance Audiobooks – Creator/contributor to the videoblog Brotherhood 2.0 who has worked for NPR, includes bits on the relationship between text and audio.

47:00: Jack Gantos, Author, Books on Tape/Listening Library – Oh my word, he’s funny. Jack tells the story of how a reading of his book that was like “Miracle Whip on white bread” led him to read his own books for audio.

58:40: Question and Answer
Really interesting stuff about sending books to audio before print, behind the scenes at an audiobook recording from an author’s perspective, Fisher Price mp3 players, enhanced audio book CDs, and the fabulous emotion in audiobooks. Unfortunately, the recording stops short of the conclusionary comments, but we still got a good bit of it, and it’s still a good listen.

Rachel Payne, Coordinator of Preschool Services at the Brooklyn Public Library, spoke at the program Brooklyn Reads to Babies. She was followed by Susan Straub, author and director of the Read to Me program, and Sally Anderson, executive director of Mother Goose.

There are a number of initiatives to promote and foster early literacy, but the two I hear the most about at conferences are Mother Goose and Read to Me. The three most important things everyone needs to know about reading to babies:

• it is important to language development
• it helps children enter school ready to succeed
• it is an opportunity for parent/child bonding

The basics were covered, but they also talked about how to get the word out, saturating the area with publicity (e.g. beauty parlors, places of worship, messages on ATM screens). Sally Anderson spoke about working with smaller populations and less money than Brooklyn Public was blessed with, giving suggestions of who to invite to the table when planning an early literacy initiative.

Though not all the information was new it was a good session, and I’ve got a couple ideas I’m looking forward to utilizing.

10:30 From that session I tried moving across the hall to Bringing in the Boys: Using Multiple Intelligencces to Plan Programs that Appeal to Boys, but when I got there the room was packed, without any room left on the floor.

This podcast would be great for children and youth librarians who are looking for off the beaten path books to recommend, and feedback from young readers about what they did and didn’t like. And, it’s a great podcast to recommend to parents who are always on the lookout for books to read to their kids.

Podcasting still a blur to you? Watch the archives of the SirsiDynix Institute webinar on Podcasting (Part 1 – A Consumer’s Guide and Part 2 – A Creator’s Guide) by Greg Schwartz of the Louisville Free Public Library. Also, check out a great FAQ on podcasting developed by the Kankakee Public Library in Illinois. The link takes you to the archive of the library podcasts — which are very interesting and worth a listen — and the link to the FAQ is at the top of the page.

Does your library do a podcast that you’re particularly proud of? Have you seen a podcast in your listening travels that might be useful to librarians and/or patrons? Send us an email and let us know.