Splash into Summer

It’s that time of year again — summer reading! My two school-age children made great strides in their reading over the past school year. Future fourth-grader Noah found a true love of reading. He has made a leap from only reading from his favorite time travel and fantasy series. He now gives a wide variety of books a chance, even ones with a bit of pink on the cover!

And my future first-grader, Sky, is just months into her journey of being a reader. She loves tackling early readers and thrives on the success of being able to read a book entirely on her own. (Stone Arch’s Truck Buddies and the upcoming Little Lizard sets are among her favorites.)

So, over the past nine months, Noah’s and Sky’s teachers have built a wonderful foundation for my young readers. Now it's Mom and Dad’s job to build on that. Studies show that young learners’ math and reading skills slide in the summer. How do parents combat that? One of our favorite ways is the summer reading program at our local library. Nothing beats earning prizes while discovering new books.

Most libraries organize their summer reading programs around a certain theme. Our local library’s theme this year is “Make a Splash at Your Library.” Below is a list of Stone Arch Books that are perfect for this theme. Let me know your library’s theme, and I’d love to come up with a list for you.

Books that make a splash:

Bella’s Boat Surprise, by Christianne C. Jones — A My 1^st Graphic Novel that’s perfect for emerging readers.

Boss of the World, by Fran Manushkin — Our girl Katie Woo hits the beach with her pals JoJo and Pedro. This early chapter book is the perfect step up from readers.

Ora, the Sea Monster, by Cari Meister — A Level 3 reader, for the child who is nearly ready for chapter books, but not quite.

Princess Candy: The Marshmallow Mermaid, by Michael Dahl — Kids grades 2-5 will cheer on Princess Candy as she battles an evil mermaid in this graphic novel.

Shipwreck! by Jake Maddox — My favorite Jake Maddox novel; this adventure story, complete with sharks, is perfect for grades 4 to 8.

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, by Jules Verne, retold by Carl Bowen — Readers can tackle a piece of classic literature in a new way with this graphic novel from our Graphic Revolve series.

Julie Gassman

Senior Editor

Words of Wisdom Wednesday: Happiness

A few months ago I finished reading The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. I was very intrigued by her idea of the 4 splendid truths of happiness. The one truth that stuck in my mind is this: The days are long, but the years are short.

I thought back to being a kid, the excitement of school ending and the beginning of summer. Summer seemed to last forever . . . going to the pool, hanging out with friends, the ice cream truck making its way through the neighborhood, picnics, long days with nothing to do but relax and play. Now many years later, it seems like summer is here and gone in a flash. We don't always take the time to relax and play as we are so busy getting to the next task at hand.

Gretchen posted a great video on her website that really made me think. (And, I've heard it's especially impactful for those of you who are parents). The days are long, but the years are short.

Poetry Friday: Their fragrances and colors warmly mix

Good morning! This is my favorite part of summer--I'm not sick of it yet (although I'm starting to have yearnings for the crisp mornings of fall), and the bounty of the season is starting to, well, abound. Some of us here participate in a CSA (community supported agriculture) farmshare, and this week our baskets were literally overflowing with zucchinis, potatoes, cucumbers, cabbages, lemon thyme, beets, and more. In honor of the vegetables and herbs currently crowding my counters and refrigerator, I thought I'd post this great poem by Timothy Steele.

Herb Garden


"And these, small, unobserved . . . " —Janet Lewis

The lizard, an exemplar of the small,
Spreads fine, adhesive digits to perform
Vertical push-ups on a sunny wall;

[...]

Read the rest here.

This week's Poetry Friday is hosted at Poetry for Children.

Have a great weekend!
More soon--
Beth

Poetry Friday: I should like so much to play

This week's poem, by Robert Louis Stevenson, reminds me of being a kid--running around in the backyard, rollerskating with my friends, riding my bike "uptown" (I'm from a town of 700 people, so there wasn't much there). At night, we would fall into bed, smelling like sun. I never understood why my bedtime didn't change even though it was CLEARLY still daytime when the sun was up.

Bed in Summer

In winter I get up at night  
And dress by yellow candle-light.  
In summer, quite the other way,  
I have to go to bed by day.  [...]

Read the rest of the poem here.

This week's Poetry Friday is hosted at Alphabet Soup.

More next week!
Beth

Poetry Friday: Hot Summer Nights

Oh, for the days I was complaining it wasn't warm enough for summer! It certainly is now. And it'll only get worse!


Today's Poetry Friday poem, written by Mary Hamrick, perfectly captures the steamy feeling of summer nights.


Hot Summer Nights

It haunts me so
those summer nights
in dim lit homes

where music flows
and tempers flare
and lullabies fill the air. ...



Read the rest of the poem here.

Poetry Friday is hosted this week at Carol's Corner.

The Graduation Party

Last weekend, I went to my hometown to visit my parents. My dad is a retired high school math teacher who still coaches tennis at the local high school. Saturday afternoon, we came inside the house after enjoying some sun by the pool and there was a message on the answering machine. It was from one of the graduating teenage boys on the tennis team. The message went somewhat like this, “I’m calling from my graduation party and I really hope you can make it. I told my mom to send you an invitation and I hope she found your address – if she didn’t I’m sorry, but I’m really hoping you can come. Mr. Nelson (the other coach) is here and a bunch of the guys from the team. We’d really love to see you.” And the message went on with an address, etc. My dad never received an invitation, but immediately took a shower and got into his car to attend the party. Personally, I was really impressed that an 18 year old boy would care enough to call his tennis coach to make sure he attended his graduation party. That’s the thing about teenagers, just when you think they don’t care, they throw you a curve ball. Even though it may be challenging, continue to be coaches and mentors – it really does make a difference.

It's Summer!

The beginning of June has always felt like the official start of summer to me. I know it doesn't really start till June 21, but June is the first summer month. Lots of schools are out and Summer Hours have begun here at Capstone Publishers.

Of course, since we're in Minnesota, the weather doesn't always cooperate...this doesn't look like summer to me!


Unlike the halcyon days of elementary school, things don't get a whole lot more relaxed around here in the summer. The other editors and designers and I are still finishing up the dribs and drabs of our Fall 2009 season--checking final proofs and approving final copies. (I want to talk about finished copies sometime soon--there is nothing as thrilling!) And I'm deep into work on our Spring 2010 season, editing manuscripts, writing cover copy, and working with design on cover and illustration ideas. Plus, manuscripts are starting to come in for Fall 2010 and I am even working with an author right now on a book that will be published in Spring 2011. We always joke that in publishing you can't keep track of what year it is.

As an administrative note, we're trying something new for a little while here at the SAB blog. I'll be joined by some of my colleagues in the design and marketing departments, as well as fellow editorial staff members. We'll be writing more specifically about what's going on in our days and what we're being inspired by. Today, my inspiration is the weather--it may feel like fall outside, but it's really spring--and I better get back to work on my Spring 2010 books...

more soon!
Beth