Post like the WIND!

Just a few quick notes you need NOW:

The latest Kids' Next Indie Bound list is out! See what our fellow independent booksellers have selected as the best and brightest of the most recent books for all age groups infant to teen.

Bloggeratta Rachel, in her alter-ego as an ABC (Association of Booksellers for Children) techie goddess girl, has been preparing for an auction of original art by children's book illustrators. Jerry Pinkney, Kevin Henkes, Steve Jenkins, Brian Selznick, Betsy Levin, and the soon-to-be-signing-here Grace Lin, among many others, have contributed swoontastic art to help make the world a better place for children's booksellers. Our lucky blogger-in-arms will be at Book Expo America in NYC this weekend, hobnobbing with fabulous authors, illustrators, editors, agents, and publishers. Shelftalker is tempting me to brave the four-hour trip on the FungWah bus and and sneak into the event.

More on the afore-mentioned signing:
A reminder that THIS SUNDAY, MAY 31, at 12 pm, author SONYA SONES will be here to present her first picture book, Violet and Winston, illustrated by Chris Rashka. Ms. Sones will also be signing her acclaimed YA novels What My Mother Doesn't Know and What My Girlfriend Doesn't Know.

NEXT SUNDAY, JUNE 7, at 1 pm, author/illustrator GRACE LIN will present her newest middle-grade novel, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, and sign a selection of her large body of picture books and novels.

Make sure you check our blog or Facebook for details and reminders -- you won't want to miss either of these events!

What Katie wants to blog about this week -- or -- bits and bobs

I remember the days when we were just a wee little blog... (Let's face it, we're still a pretty wee blog.) Every week the "three little monkeys" (who were really just Bethany and I!) would agonize over our Friday post: "Should we post about this book? How about this toy? There's that event coming up... Is that enough? Is it too much?" And then we would blog uphill, in the snow, both ways.

Now with Rachel and Michelle -- blogging fiends, the both of them -- on the team, and more features to write and resources at our fingertips than ever before... Well, it seems like there's more blogging to do than there is time to do it. I could spend my whole week at the George just blogging and still not write about all the awesome stuff I want to tell you! The best blurbs for today:

We've been nominated as Nickelodeon "Parents' Pick" Best Boston Bookstore!
Woohoo! Please vote for us online before July 15th.

Judging for our annual Art and Writing Contest is almost over...
...and as soon as it's all done, we'll be posting the winning entries on the blog, alerting the winners through the mail, and generally making a well-deserved big fuss over them and their awesomeness. Since lots of you have asked when the winners will be announced, I know everyone's impatient to just know who won already! (Believe me, I am too!) In the meantime, I wanted to link to this incredible art show happening now in San Francisco, called Beyond the Page: Re-Illustrating Our Favorite Children's Books. Our art contest participants have done essentially the same thing these artists have done by illustrating a scene from their favorite story. Maybe someday you'll see a grown-up CG contest winner's work displayed at Gallery 1988!

Nation's first Ambassador for Young People's Literature Jon Scieszka reflects on the first half of his term at ShelfAwareness
Who doesn't love Jon Scieszka? And really, who can not belly-laugh at the image of Jon Scieszka reading his essay "Crossing Swords" (about sharing a bathroom with his five brothers) to President Bush and First Lady Laura Bush, the Library of Congress, and members of the Cabinet?

Picture Book Don'ts at Blue Rose Girls
One of my favorite illustrators, Julie Vivas has, in addition to "safer" subjects like farm animals and grannies, depicted home birth, Alzheimer's disease, children in a concentration camp, and reincarnation, all in warm, fuzzy pastel watercolor. The gentle shapes and colors of her art seems to make these "off-limits" topics more approachable. You can imagine how happy I was to see a discussion of when and how to depict taboos in picture book illustrations broached by the writers and artists over at Blue Rose Girls. What do you think -- at what age do you draw the line (no pun intended) for certain topics? Are there things that are never okay to include in a picture book?

My heart was broken after finding out Neil Gaiman came to Harvard Square under cover of the night --
-- and didn't stop in to say hello! But then it was unbroken (at least a little) by the news of the Coraline musical. Now I'm imagining the Other Mother tap-dancing through a musical number on her creeptacular many-jointed bug legs. Although I doubt this fantasy is actually a part of the production, Coraline the musical must naturally be brilliant, witty, and bizarre -- just like all things Gaiman. ♥ When oh when will it come to Boston? (Alternatively, when can I get away to NYC for the weekend? Hmm...)

Speaking of ♥...
My fantabulous fellow bloggette Rachel is such the blogging fiend (see above) that she's got her own epistolary review blog, Let(t)'er Rip. It's brilliant, witty (and yes, occasionally bizarre), so you can see why I love it! Let(t)'er Rip is not entirely children's book reviews, but it's clearly skewed in that direction -- and trust me, you'll enjoy Rachel's thoughtful comments on her lunch break reading whether the intended audience is the board book set or the board room set.

Speaking of reviews...
Twenty by Jenny is a great new resource for parents, teachers, librarians, and booksellers alike! Children's book publisher and reviewer Jenny Brown has compiled a list of twenty essential books for each of four age groups: birth to 3 (board books), 4 to 7 (picture books), 8 to 12 (chapter books), and teen (YA).

That's probably enough bits and/or bobs to exhaust us both for now!

Sure, it's a blog... but it's so much more.

You may have noticed that our latest blog posts have been even more linkeriffic than past ones. Our awesome receiver John has been holed up in the Vault making website magic; now you can order the books and products we recommend directly from the blog! Clicking these links will take you to our website where you can shop online. We ship world-wide at standard shipping rates (and John is super-speedy at getting packages ready to go). You can also always order by calling us at 617-498-0062 for the added bonus of our charming phone demeanors.

Speaking of orders... Did you know that you can special order just about any in-print book from us and it will usually arrive within a week? While we pride ourselves (and we're constantly complimented) on our huge selection of children's fiction and nonfiction, it's impossible to keep everyone's favorite on the shelf at all times. We're happy to order books especially for you at no extra cost, and most will arrive at the store in a matter of days.

Curious Facebook!

Did you know that our store now has a Facebook account? Our page, found under Curious George Books & Toys, is complete with a news feed updated with every new blog post, photos of the store, event updates and a discussion forum. So for those of you who get all the important info of your day from FB, check us out, and be sure to become a Fan!

Naked Monkey George's Blog Gets Dressed!

We've been hinting for a few weeks now about some changes coming to this monkey blog business, and now that it's a new year, it's time for a fresh look for us! We'll be adding some regular features, like The Best of the Baby Room, highlighting the new, the popular, and the standby items in those areas. We will also answer some of our frequently asked questions (a new baby for a big sister, fire engine books for a four year old, fantasy beyond The Lightning Thief, et cetera), and tagging them with our new labels, for those times when you're stumped on what to get that picky six (seven, nine, twenty...) year old you know. As frequently as our staffers write them, we will post their chapter book room favorites, with occasional reviews and further reading lists ("If you like Twilight, try City of Bones, Tantalize..." and so forth). There will also be more topical lists, such as a graphic novel round-up or magic kits for Harry Potter parties. If there's anything you'd like us to focus more on, please let us know, we are open to suggestions!

All these and more will kick off within the week, and even more excitingly, under our new team member tags -- so you'll get to know our bloggers individually and see a more personalized approach to our reviews.

We look forward to hearing your thoughts on what you'll be seeing!

Happy new year!

Curious George visits a radio station!

Tomorrow morning at 8:40, CG will be featured on the local radio show "Sunrise Bookshelf"!

Our general manager Bindy will be chatting with Bookshelf's host Henri about Curious George creators Margret and H.A. Rey, the history of the store, recommended new books and toys for fabulous Christmas and Hanukkah gifts, and lots more. If you miss the 8:40 broadcast on UMass Lowell's WUML 91.5 FM, you can catch it streaming on the WUML website or download it as a podcast on Friday.

We have plenty of other surprises planned for the holiday season, so stay tuned -- you don't want to miss any monkeying around!

Warning: shameless fangirling ahead.

We've just received our shipment of the first picture book by resident illustrator Julia Denos! Julia's illustrated the early chapter book series Sleepover Squad by P.J. Denton and a nonfiction early reader called Sojourner Truth: Path to Glory by Peter Merchant, as well as doing cover art for the middle grade mystery Marley Z. and the Bloodstained Violin by Jim Fusilli.

Her first-ever picture book is by none other than country music star Tim McGraw. It's called My Little Girl, inspired by the song of the same name he wrote for the movie Flicka. Check out a virtual galley of My Little Girl at the publisher's website. Julia's blog, with some behind-the-scenes sketches and updates on her ongoing illustration work, is a must-see.

Julia is definitely a rising star to watch in children's illustration. We are so proud of her and her accomplishments!

....and now George staffers are coming by and gagging at the sappiness of this post, so let's call it a night, okay?

Julia D and the Mystery Novel

The latest from CG resident illustrator Julia Denos is here! Julia's distinctively dazzling art graces the cover of new title Marley Z and the Bloodstained Violin, a middle grade mystery by Jim Fusilli. Blending the genres of girl detective story (a la Nancy Drew, Sammy Keyes, or Veronica Mars) and art caper, Marley Z features an intrepid eighth grader who's determined to clear a friend accused of stealing a valuable violin.

Head over to Julia's blog to see illustrations from her upcoming picture book collaboration with singer Tim McGraw and leave her some love.

Oh, the cleverness of you!

Although the final tally of the Art and Writing Contest entries won't be ready for a few more days, we'd just like to congratulate all contestants on their brilliance. It's making for difficult judging! Good luck to everyone who entered.

Congratulations are also due to our own Julia Denos, whose latest illustration effort, Sleepover Squad 5: Pony Party!, is beautifying our shelves now.

Be sure to check out the first four Sleepover Squad books and Sojourner Truth: Path to Glory in our chapter book room for more Julia genius!