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Booktalks and Book Trailers: Or, How To Get Kids To Check Out A Book

 Kids can be a tough sell when it comes to convincing them to check out a book. So an effective booktalk is an amazing thing. Booktalks are slightly more formal than just telling one kid how much you loved a book.  Giving booktalks isn’t something you can snooze through. If you are passionate about the book you’re selling, there can be unexpected and even exciting benefits for everyone.

Unshelved strip for 9/15/2003

Unshelved by Bill Barnes and Gene Ambaum, Sept. 15, 2003.

 

There might be other reasons that you choose to booktalk a particular book. Maybe you’ve been assigned to sell it, or you feel like you have to align your booktalks with the Common Core standards. Doesn’t matter. You have to find a way to get kids to want to pick it up.

I just reviewed Witches! The Absolutely True Story of the Disaster in Salem by Rosalyn Schanzer (check out the review here). This is a fascinating look at the Salem Witch Trials, which becomes even more powerful due to its fantastic design and Schanzer’s amazing black, white, and red scratchboard illustrations. It feels like you are really opening the pages directly into history. I would totally add this to my list of books I love to booktalk, which also include The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker, The Devil’s Arithmetic, and Jeremy Visick (it’s been awhile since I actually had to get up in front of a classroom full of kids, though). I understand it’s intimidating to do it, and I think it’s even more so when you have to booktalk  into a camera as a classroom assignment, so it’s not that I really want to pick on Heather Prince. But this is not how you get kids to pick up a book. You’ve got to give it some pizzazz.

 

Admittedly, it’s hard to project your charisma on YouTube (note how I’m not booktalking on video here– there are reasons for that). But this is the joy of book trailers. They’re not as simple to put together as a booktalk, but when done right… wow.  And Destiny, here, has done it right. If you like horror movies, she will have you hooked, but there’s more than flash going on here too. I think she liked the book, don’t you?

 

 

I LOVE this trailer, though. This is one that the author and illustrator of the book did, and it showcases the kind of craft that she put into the book. You can see one of her illustrations literally take on a life of its own.

 

Obviously she has the advantage of being the author and illustrator, but who better to hook you into finding out what comes next? Too bad it’s not possible to always get the author in to share the magic, but the glory of the Internet is that you still can find some pretty wonderful stuff.

But, even with great resources like this available, you’ve still gotta show them you, yourself, love it.  And that is why you should read Witches! yourself, and if you are as impressed with it as much as I am, tell everyone about it. And you will get them to check it out.

Posted on September 8, 2013 by , Reply

The Return of Frankenstein

I know I just wrote about Frankenstein, but there’s always more to share, and I just wanted to quickly share this with you. August 30 was Frankenstein Day, the birthday of Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley. In honor of the day, Diane Colson over at The Hub has some suggested reading. This Dark Endeavor, the first book she lists(reviewed here—  its sequel, Such Wicked Intent, is reviewed here as well) is scary as hell, and Angelmonster (reviewed here), which she also lists, is a truly amazing book.

It’s not what I would call YA-accessible, unless the young adult in question is absolutely devoted to knowing the backstory of the original novel, but since Colson listed several other books I don’t know if I would consider targeted to YA readers, I will suggest that those who are really interested in the players who were there the night Shelley came up with the story also check out The Monsters: Mary Shelley and the Curse of Frankenstein.

And a happy (belated) Frankenstein Day to you!

 

Posted on September 5, 2013 by , Reply

MonsterLibrarian.com Review of The Undead and Theology Published By Examiner.com

If you visit our site frequently, and I hope you do, you know that we just wrapped up a big review project on the Stoker nominees of 2013. In 2012, for the first time, we decided to review as many of the Stoker nominees as we could. Many of the writers and publishers of nominated books sent us review copies and our hardworking reviewers took on the challenge of getting as many reviewed as possible. This year we decided to do it again. Lisa Morton at the HWA notified nominees that we planned to review Stoker nominees, and we received review copies from many of the writers and publishers. Our final reviews for the Stoker 2013 project went up in June before the Stokers were awarded.

One of the Stoker nominees in the nonfiction category was The Undead and Theology, edited by Kim Paffenroth and John W. Morehead. This is an anthology of essays by academics on the topic indicated by the title, published by Pickwick Publications, an imprint of independent publisher Wipf and Stock. Having just written an essay for an anthology of essays by academics myself, I can tell you that it doesn’t pay much to write for one, and copies are expensive and not handed out to just anyone. So we were very pleased to receive a review copy of this book! Reviewer Colleen Wanglund read and reviewed The Undead and Theology for us, and recommended it for purchase by libraries.

I am pleased to say that Colleen’s review has now been picked up by Examiner.com, where hopefully an entirely new audience will be reached. Reviews matter, especially for niche academic titles, and the more people who know about a great book, and want to read it, the better. Take a moment and check out the review, and reviews for some of the other nonfiction titles we’ve done in the past. Best wishes to everyone involved!

Posted on July 8, 2013 by , Reply
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