A Visit From the Author of Katie Woo!

Me (Emily) on the left and the Fabulous Fran on the right.

Last week I had the great pleasure of meeting Fran Manushkin, the author of the wonderful Katie Woo books! I wish we could have spent more time together, because she has so many fascinating stories to share. We (or at least I), don't get to meet the authors and illustrators behind our books very often, but when we do, it's such a treat! Actually meeting and talking with the person who comes up with the stories or creates the illustrations enriches my experience as a book designer, it makes the words and pictures even more meaningful to me. That's also why, in the cases when I don't get to meet them in person, that I always appreciate the "about the author/illustrator" in the backs of our books. It helps me gain a new level of understanding about the story and I like to see what may have influenced them to write it in the first place.

Now we just need to convince Tammie Lyon, the illustrator, to pay us a visit!

Are you ready for the Olympics?

Olympic fever is here! In only 15 short days, we will be watching and cheering for our favorites in figure skating, ice hockey, ski jumping, and the luge! Capitalize on the excitement by hosting your own Reading Olympics. Sports fanatics will be thrilled with all of the exciting new titles Stone Arch Books and Capstone have to offer . . . especially our new Sports Illustrated Series. Check out all of our sports books and Reading Olympics downloads.

Photo shoot!

This morning, Kay (art director), Emily (graphic designer), Ali (associate editor), and I traveled deep into the Warehouse District of Minneapolis for a photo shoot. The photos in question were for our Monica books (which feature Monica Murray, the best friend of Claudia Cristina Cortez).

Our model, Devyn, was fantastic. She's thirteen, just like Monica, and fit the part perfectly. She wasn't afraid to do silly stuff like toss pom-poms in the air or pretend to punch the camera, and she has a gorgeous smile.

All told, there were about 600 photos taken by the amazing people at Delaney Photography. We narrowed that down to a hundred that we liked. (Devyn is amazingly photogenic--it was hard to choose!) Four of the photos will end up on book covers and be on shelves in August.

Here's Devyn posing for one shot.



And here's one of the shots we loved.




Thanks, Devyn and Delaney—now Monica has a face!

Announcing a new contest!

It’s time for another exciting contest from Stone Arch Books! This time we are teaming up with Sports Illustrated Kids for our Create Your Own Sports Star Contest. The winning character will be in a Sports Illustrated Kids Graphic Novel. This contest encourages kids to use their imagination to describe the traits and characteristics of their sports star. To get inspired, they can read the first 6 books in the Sports Illustrated Kids Graphic Novel series.

To make the contest even more fun, we will post the top 5 finalists so that kids can vote on their favorite. Kids will decide who wins and becomes the ultimate sports star! The contest is open to students currently enrolled in public or private schools in grades 3 – 6. To view all contest details and to enter the contest, go to www.capstonekids.com.

Stay tuned for updates over the next few months.

Hello Genius!

Say hello to Hello Genius, our new line of board books for toddlers.



Featuring perfect topics for kids 0-4 (tooth-brushing, toilet learning, mealtime manners, and bathtime), these four new books were under many Stone Arch staffers' Christmas trees this past holiday.

As the parent of a 17-month-old boy, I know half of what I look for in a book for my son is something that appeals to me, too. After all, if it's a favorite, I might be reading it fifteen times in a row. These books are great for that. The text is fun, the illustrations are adorable, the colors are exciting—you're not going to be bored while you're reading these books to your child, and you won't roll your eyes internally when they look at you with those puppy-dog eyes and beg for another read. Really.

Here are a couple of our toddlers (Raini and Sofia) enjoying the Hello Genius books.

We've Lifted Off!

Our new Capstone website has taken flight, and rewards await you.

We're excited to offer you a new website that showcases all of our titles, products and services, publishing imprints, and educator resources in one place.

We have lots of new features and resources to check out. You can preview titles and "look inside the book" before you buy. And browsing and searching is easier than ever:

* By state correlations
* Reviewed titles and award winners
* Program reading levels
* And more!

Plus, get free Capstone Rewards points when you check out our site!

Visit www.capstonepub.com, complete a short survey on your experience, and we'll reward you with 500 Capstone Rewards points for 5 minutes of your time.

You must be a rewards member to qualify. Sign up today, before taking the survey, to receive your 500 points toward free books.

New Years' Resolutions

I believe there is a difference between reading and being a reader. My son Noah has been reading for about three years now, but it wasn’t until he made his 2010 new year’s resolutions that I was certain he had become a reader.

At the top of the list: “Read 300 books,” and my favorite, “go to the library all by myself.” Now that is what I call an independent reader.

What is your reading resolution this year?

--Julie, senior editor