Author Madelyn Rosenberg
Every Friday, an author or an illustrator drops by to celebrate books and reading with me. This week's special guest is author Madelyn Rosenberg. We chatted about tea parties, Nanny X, school libraries, and public speaking. I wrote the words in red, and she wrote the words in black. Thank you, Madelyn!
Julia’s
little brother taught me a lot of things I wish I’d learned in kindergarten.
Almost everyone in my family is Type A,
like Charles’ older sister Julia. I’m Type A, along with my mother, my husband,
my kids, and one of my two cats. When my kids were younger, I watched them struggle
with all of the things they couldn’t control, and then I promptly tried to
control the way they responded to those things. (It didn’t work. This probably
doesn’t surprise you.) Anyway, I needed to find a guru who had a more relaxed
view of the world, someone who was full of beans and could turn things upside
down and show me (and Julia) that upside down was okay. That was Charles.
Heather
Ross’ illustrations are
the chocolate layer on the birthday cake. And the strawberry layer, too. I’d
admired Heather’s fabric work and when I found out that she was going to be
illustrating How to Behave at a Tea Party, I couldn’t imagine it in anyone
else’s hands. The expressions on Julia’s face are perfect (“angry Julia” is my
favorite), and each time you study the pages, you find something new. Also, at the risk of sounding like Ron Popeil:
But wait, there’s more! Heather and I
have a second Julia and Charles book coming out next year. It’s called How to
Behave at a Dog Show and I’m pretty sure this is the first time I’ve mentioned
it in public. I just saw the illustrations. Once again, there’s magic in the
details.
“Someone
pounded on our front door at 7:29 A.M.”
This
is the first sentence of Nanny X, a middle-grade novel about a special agent
nanny and her three charges (four, if you count the dog). It’s also the first
line of the novel that prompted me to buy a pair of mirrored sunglasses, which
I’ve clearly needed for some time. Nanny X and How to Behave at a Tea Party
both came out this month, though they were written years apart. Both books
explore brother-sister relationships, and in both, the older sibling is a
slightly bossy sister. I, myself, am a slightly bossy older sister. I’m sure
that’s just a coincidence.
The Schmutzy Family does a much better job than I do cleaning up at the end of the week. This was my first picture book, illustrated by the fabulous Paul Meisel. I consider it something of a coup that I was able to work the words "malodorous" and "cow pie" into this book. And I'm still striving for Mama Schmutzy's sate of Zen. (A tangent: "Schmutz" just became an approved Scrabble word!)
I think school libraries are like the transporter room on the Enterprise. If you want to explore strange new worlds - and familiar worlds, too - this is where you start.
I think school libraries are like the transporter room on the Enterprise. If you want to explore strange new worlds - and familiar worlds, too - this is where you start.
Picture
books are the beginning.
Reading
is the answer, along with love (with a tip of my fancy, tea-party hat to
John Lennon). Reading is also the thing that calms me down when I’m stressed
out. In cases of Supreme Stress, I head straight for an old stack of Nancy
Drews. Reading de-stresses my kids, too. When my son was in preschool, some
parents packed stuffed animals for those moments of upset. I packed books. I
love how reading can be both intensely personal and something that you share.
We do a lot of reading out loud as a family.
Mr.
Schu, you should have asked me… How I got over my fear of public speaking.
The answer would be that I didn’t, exactly, but that I’m much less afraid than
I used to be because before I started making classroom visits, I took an improv
class. The class was held at a comedy club not far from my house, and it was
one of the best things I’ve done for myself as an adult. Improv taught me to
think faster and to go with the flow. It also taught me that it’s okay to be
ridiculous. Or an angry antelope. Whichever comes first.
Thanks so much for these questions, Mr.
Schu! And for all that you do every day! I hope you’ve gotten your library
records back in order.
Borrow How to Behave at a Tea Party from your school or public library. Whenever possible, please support independent bookshops.
Thanks so much for letting me finish your sentences. Fun hanging out here today!
ReplyDeleteThese books ALL look great and I totally enjoyed the trailers. What is it with little girls and tea parties? :D Thanks for the interview and the giveaway, John and Madelyn!
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