The author who now lives in Union City is especially popular with teachers who she lionizes in her books. Her most recent book “The Junkyard Wonders” is based on her actual experiences growing up as a learning impaired student unable to read or do simple math calculations until that special year when she was 14. Polacco’s parents divorced when she was young and she spent the school year in California and summers with her father in Williamston.

At 14, Polacco stayed in Williamston for the school year and a very special teacher, Mrs. Petersen, came into her life and transformed her and other student’s lives. That forms the basic premise of the new book. A few years ago, Polacco told me in an interview that because she learned to read and write later in life she turned to visual communication which has served her well. She now has illustrated and written more than 70 books. Polacco who still has trouble reading and putting words on paper went on to receive a PHd and became an art restorer before turning to writing and illustrating.

In her book ” The Junkyard Wonders” she follows the escapades of a “special ed” class” who are transformed through the efforts of Mrs. Petersen. Polacco is outspoken about education politics and it doesn’t take much to get her going on the topic. She has set several of her books in Williamston and typically runs into old friends while visiting the city. Tuesday Books is located at 137 W. Grand River in Williamston.

Two recent books are likely to intrigue readers who enjoy Michigan history. One offers a variety of interesting facts while the other, aimed at younger readers, provides a thought provoking stepping stone for creativity.
“Michigan’s County Courthouses” by John Fedynsky, (University of Michigan Press, $40), is a tall, well- designed book that’s subtitled “An Encyclopedic Tour of Michigan Courthouses”.
It explores the fascinating history of all of the courthouses in each of the state’s 83 counties as well as the Michigan Supreme Court.
The oversized book is illustrated with many detailed black and white photographs, includes maps and is arranged alphabetically for ease of reference. Michigan Supreme Court Justice Stephen Markman has written an excellent foreword that delves into the content and intent of the volume, noting the challenges that Fedynsky faced in compiling this work.
This isn’t just a boring reference work that merely lists facts and figures; instead, it’s a wonderful effort that captures much of the essence of Michigan history, from its wilderness beginnings through contemporary times.
There are many intriguing insights into the state’s history, including land squabbles, architectural priorities, financing efforts, political dickering, unusual cases and famous trials. Fedynsky, who is an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Michigan, also includes a selected bibliography for historians seeking more information.
This is ideal for any local library and is an exceptionally useful updated addition to Maurice Cole’s 1974 book on the same subject.
“Diary of a Michigan Kid”, illustrated by Cyd Moore (Sleeping Bear Press, $9.95) is an unusual oversized paperback that should offer hours of creativity for kids. It’s much more that just a simple diary, providing lined space for children to write as well as blank pages for drawing.
Interspersed with the colorful drawings by Collins are questions (and answers!) relating to Michigan history that many adults may even have trouble answering. Simple recipes for tasty pizza, s’mores, fudge and snow candy also appear.
Additionally, there are games for children who are on vacation or travelling, activity ideas and space for poetry or creative insights. A completed book would be fun to examine ten or twenty years from now or even later, when fond memories of childhood may slowly start to fade.

Ray Walsh, owner of East Lansing’s Curious Book Shop, has reviewed crime novels and Michigan books regularly since 1987. Visit the store’s redesigned website.

The Literary Landmarks program is administered by the Michigan Center for the Book. The de Angeli site will be formally dedicated at the Lapeer District Library on Sunday August 22. William Anderson who is de Angeli’s biographer will speak. To read more about the National project visit the American Library site.

De Angeli won the Newberry Medal for her 1958 book “The Door in the Wall”. A collection of her work is in the Lapeer Library.

 Old skool meets new skool at MSU Children’s Garden 

Riggle’s book arrived in the mail from Avon with the notation it was an Indie Pick for September 2010. In her book, three high school characters arrive in their home town unexpectedly and must weigh in on their high school dreams. Riggle will be on the panel “Michigan Lit” along with National Book Award finalist Bonnie Jo Campbell, Wendy Webb, and Michael Zandoorian. They will be interviewed by Eric Olsen.

Deborah Diesen, who will conduct a session at the 8th Annual Bookfest called “sing and read along”, had her newest book “The Pout Pout Fish in the Big Deep” reviewed in Publishers Weekly. They called her book “a spirited tale with light doses of humor”.  Indeed it is. Her most recent book  the  “Barefooted, Bad-Tempered Baby Brigade” was reviewed by this blog. Diesen is from Grand Ledge Michigan and her newest book is a sequel to the “Pout Pout Fish”.

William Kent Krueger will join other mystery authors Steve Hamilton, and Bryan Gruley on a panel moderated by Craig McDonald. The panel will focus on what is being called “Northern Noir”. Krueger’s most recent book “Vermillion Drift” is the 10th novel featuring Minnesota PI Cork O’Connor and the discovery of six bodies in an old mine sets Cork on a course of a complex case. Publishers Weekly called the book “a thrilling read” and said the book “succeeds on every level” (no mine pun intended”.

All three of these authors will certainly be heard at the Kerrytown Bookfest which takes place in Ann Arbor Michigan on Sunday September 12. The Bookfest is one of the most successful single day book festivals in the country and this year the free event feature authors with a “bent” for Michigan. The event is free. A complete schedule of authors and events is available at the Kerrytown website.

Shutta Crum follows a vertically challenged but brave young boy who joins the King as a page in her new book, “Thomas and the Dragon Queen” . When his fellow pages make fun of him, Thomas toughens up to earn knightship. He is then sent on a dangerous journey to save the King’s daughter. Along the way he must slay a dragon both metaphorically and literally before he can save the Princess from a dragon queen. Crum who is a transplanted Kentuckian has been a high school writing teacher, a librarian and lives in the Ann Arbor area. She is the author of more than 10 award winning books.

New York Times Best-selling author Deborah Diesen of Grand Ledge Michigan has the second installment of her Pout Pout fish series due out in August. Diesen’s newest book, “The Pout Pout Fish in the Deep Deep Dark”  takes her fish to the deep water where mmm. Deb is a wonderful blogger and its worth your while to follow her posts on mostly Michigan children’s authors and to read interviews with other authors. Diesen also has a second book out this summer about some radical kids who revolt and form the “Barefooted, Bad-Tempered Baby Brigade.” Diesen’s sense of poetic timing and the beautiful way she puts words together will almost have you singing along. Also read Diesen’s list of water-related children’s book with a Michigan connection on LansingOnlineNews.com

Is our lust for everything vampire sated, waiting for the spike, as popular media have suggested? Or is it just sleeping, ready to reawaken with a new passion when “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse,” the latest film based on reigning queen of vampire fiction Stephenie Meyer’s novels, is released June 30?

Since Meyer’s “Twilight” series hit bookstores in 2005, there has been a flood of movies, books and promotions jumping on the vampire bandwagon.

A recent item in the humor magazine The Onion suggested minotaurs were the next hot literary trend, along with “a badboy mummy, a bad-boy cyclops, and a badboy Mayan vision serpent.”

However, The New York Times bestseller rankings still attest to the popularity of vampires, with books by Meyer, Harris, Gena Showalter, Laurell K. Hamilton, Chris Freehan, Kerrelyn Sparks, Sherrilyn Kenyon and Keri Arthur appearing prominently on the list.

In a conversation with City Pulse in 2009, Garry Hoppenstand, professor of American studies and editor of The Journal of Popular Culture at Michigan State University, said the public should not be surprised by the popularity of vampires: “Legends of vampires have been around as long as human civilization, and there is an intrinsic human need for mythology, such as devils and angels. The vampire is another reinterpretation of the devil.”

Hoppenstand has written several books on pop culture and horror, including looks at Clive Barker and the “Queen of Vampires,” Anne Rice, who published “Interview with the Vampire,” the first of her 12 vampire novels, in 1976. According to Hoppenstand, “Rice created a highly sexualized and highly eroticized vampire.”

Becky Fermanich, Delta Township Library’s children’s librarian, still sees the demand for vampire-themed books continuing, for at least this summer.

She said all the young adult vampire books are checked out or on hold at the Delta Township Library and that all the original vampire authors are going strong. She has even seen adults slipping into the teen section to check out books.

“It has leveled off some,” Fermanich said. “The ‘True Blood’ series is still very popular, but Stephenie Meyer is the reigning author.”

In an unusual move, Meyer recently made the novella “The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner” available to download for free on her website (www.breetanner.com) for four weeks. “Bree” is about a relatively minor character in the “Twilight” saga, but Meyer has made a case for the character’s development — perhaps to keep the buzz alive for the upcoming “Eclipse” movie.

Jennifer Otto, Reading is Fundamental coordinator for the city of Lansing, says vampire books are still some of the most requested books by young adult readers (mostly young women). She likes to call the books in the genre D,U &W, or “the dead, the undead and werewolves.”

Otto said one of the things she finds interesting about D, U & W books is that they have a broader appeal than you might suspect.

“The fantasy/sci-fi audience at the teen level, at least in the Lansing schools, is pretty small,” Otto said. “Like a lot of books aimed for the teen audience, many of the D,U&W books are about relationships, coming-ofage, and figuring out who you are and where you fit in the world — or the unworld.”

Although D, U & W still has its following, it appears young adult readers may be gravitating more toward endof-the-world scenarios. Fermanich said she has seen an uptick in books like the “Hunger Games” series. According to a recent article in The New Yorker, apocalyptic or dystopian books are the fastest growing segment of the young adult market.

New Yorker writer Laura Miller describes “The Hunger Games” as “a trilogy of novels by Suzanne Collins, which take place at an unspecified time in North America’s future. Her heroine, Katniss Everdeen, lives in one of 12 numbered districts dominated by a decadent, exploitative central city called the Capitol. Every year, two children from each district are drafted by lottery to compete in a televised gladiatorial contest, the Hunger Games, which are held in a huge outdoor arena. The winner is the last child left alive. The fervently awaited third installment in the trilogy, ‘Mockingjay,’ will be published by Scholastic in August.”

Miller notes ther are more than 2.3 million copies of the previous two books, “The Hunger Games” and “Catching Fire,” in print.

Super agent Caryn Wiseman, writing in the online site Galley Cat, said she’s looking for “funny, middle-grade, horror, dystopian, steampunk, multicultural fiction. No more vampires, werewolves or zombies. I´d like to see a middle-grade or YA novel that explores a fresh, new paranormal category or a new twist on a dystopian world.”

OK. What about a steampunk vampire with a taste for oil?

Skippy Jones by Judy Schachner

Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins

Chicks and Salsa by Aaron Reynolds

The Little Red Hen- illustrated by Jerry Pinkney

Big Chickens Fly the Coop Leslie Helakoski

Big Chickens by Leslie Helakoski

Henny Penny by Paul Galdone

The Rain Came Down by David Shannon

Chickens Dance by Tammi Sauer

Reading is Fundamental is cooperating with Macy’s across the country to help assure our youth have the books they need to be good readers. If you give three dollars to RIF Macys will give you a $10 off one purchase of $50 or more. Even a literary site can figure out that’s $7 off the purchase.

Macy’s will then donate $1 locally; $1 to RIF’s multicultural campaign and $1 to purchase reading resources nationally. Learn more about the program by visiting Book a Bright Future. The program runs June 1-July 30.

Another great attraction of the BookFest is it’s all in one place and under cover so rain or shine it goes on and everything is within a few hundred feet with most events in the Ann Arbor Farmers’ Market on 4th Street.

There’s plenty of places nearby to relax and eat including the venerable flagship Zingerman’s. There are also more than 100 exhibitors and antiquarian book dealers along with some very classy artisans. And since it is on a Sunday (September 12 from 11 a.m.-5 p.m.) parking is easy to find. This year expect every author to have won an award ranging from a National Book Award to a Michigan Notable Book Award. The only downside is there are so many great authors how do you get to see them all.

Read a more detailed description of the event.

The 8^th Annual Kerrytown BookFest in Ann Arbor Michigan will celebrate Michigan authors and books on Sunday, September 12, 2010. Authors in this year’s event include three National Book Award finalists; several Edgar Award and Anthony mystery award winners and nominees; a Caldecott winner and numerous Michigan Notable Book Award winners.

The Kerrytown BookFest is unique according to Gene Alloway president of the BookFest Board and owner of Motte & Bailey Bookstore in Ann Arbor. Kerrytown is an historic neighborhood in the city which includes the Ann Arbor Farmers Market where the event is held.

“The BookFest is the only festival of the book to celebrate both authors and the artists and crafts people who help create books.”

As a special attraction, mystery writer and Edgar Award winner Doug Allyn of Montrose will interview the Kerrytown BookFest’s Community Book Award Winner, Whitmore Lake mystery and western writer Loren D. Estleman. Estleman has been a National Book Award nominee, an Edgar Award finalist and has won the Spur, the Shamus and the American Mystery Award.

Alloway said that the Book Award is given each year to a person who exemplifies the spirit of the BookFest.

“Estleman is a major literary figure in the Ann Arbor community and goes out of his way to support local writers and literary events.”

Events this year include panels on Northern Noir; Paranormal Fiction; Children’s Literature; Memoirs; Historical Fiction; and Michigan literature along with hands-on demonstrations from local craftspeople.

National Book Award finalist Thomas Lynch from Milford Michigan will be interviewed by Keith Taylor, head of the University of Michigan Undergraduate Creative Writing Program; another National Book Award finalist and Caldecott Award Winner, David Small, will be interviewed by Nicola Rooney of Nicola’s Books and the third finalist Bonnie Jo Campbell will participate in the panel on Michigan literature.

This year’s event also will have a special focus on children’s literature. Best Selling authors Sarah Stewart, Mendon; Debbie Taylor, Ann Arbor; Susan Kathleen Hartung; Portage, Deborah Deisen, Grand Ledge; author and illustrator Michael Monroe and Colleen Monroe of Brighton and Lansing author-illustrator Ruth McNally Barshaw will make presentations and do readings. A group of area teen poets will also do readings and story-teller Heather O’Neal of Ann Arbor will entertain with children’s stories from Nepal.

Five Michigan authors at this year’s event have won the Michigan Authors Award presented by the Michigan Library Association. They are Steve Hamilton, Loren Estleman, Sarah Stewart, Thomas Lynch and this years’ award-winner John Smolens.

The Northern Noir panel is packed with award-winning mystery authors Steve Hamilton, Bryan Gruley and William Kent Krueger and moderated by Edgar and Anthony nominee Craig McDonald. Hamilton won the Edgar Award for his book “A Cold Day in Paradise” and Bryan Gruley book, “Starvation Lake”, was an Edgar Finalist. Krueger has won the Anthony Award three times. Gruley also was recently nominated for two Anthony awards for his first mystery “Starvation Lake”. Gruley’s most recent book, “The Hanging Tree” was selected as an Indie NEXT pick.

True crime writers Mardi Link and Gail Griffin a will discuss “Michigan Murders” –two cases about serial killers on college campuses. The University of Michigan Press will also release the updated version of the “Michigan Murders” a book by Edward Keyes about the serial killings in the Ann Arbor- Ypsilanti area during the late 1960s.

Michigan Notable Book Award winners on the BookFest program are: David Small, Bonnie Jo Campbell, Thomas Lynch, Donald Lystsra, Mardi Link, Steve Luxenberg, Loren Estleman, Steve Lehto, Steve Amick, Keith Taylor and Michael  Zadoorian.

Also this year there are two literary arts competitions: the Book Cover Design and the Edible Book Contest. Entrants to the Book Cover Design Contest which is open to Michigan high school students are being asked to create a new cover design for Hamilton’s “A Cold Day in Paradise”.

Honorary chairs for this year’s event are Joe and Karen O’Neal (Kerrytown Market and Shops) of Ann Arbor. Last year more than 5,000 attended the one day event which includes more than 100 exhibitors, artists and book sellers.

Alloway said the BookFest will feature an outstanding array of illustrators, poets, letterpress printers, calligraphers, librarians, publishers, book artists and storytellers.

The BookFest also mounts a literary exhibit in the Ann Arbor District Library. This year’s theme is “Michigan Treasures” showcasing art, dust jackets and books that represent Michigan award-winning books.

The Kerrytown BookFest Board of Directors includes bookstore owners, retailers within the Kerrytown District and representatives from the media and community. This year three new board members were added: Lynn Yates of Zingerman’s Foundation; Kate Kehoe, Hatcher Graduate Library and artisan; Meg Brown, community representative and Lisa McDonald, proprietor of the Teahaus in Kerrytown.

Other Board members are: Gene Alloway, proprietor of Motte & Bailey Bookstore; Robin Agnew, proprietor of Aunt Agatha’s mystery bookstore; John Hilton, editor of the Ann Arbor Observer, Bill Castanier, literary critic and mittenlit.com and Cindy Hollander¸ co-owner of Hollander’s, a Kerrytown shop specializing in decorative paper, bookbinding supplies and workshops.

For more information on the BookFest and for a complete listing of authors and programs visit www.kerrytownbookfest.org

Diesen figures with all the lakes, streams and rivers in Michigan it makes sense to have a list that fits with the national summer reading  theme of “Make a Splash”. She calls the list her splishy-splashy list. Diesen has made quite a splash herself with her first children’s book “The Pout-Pout Fish” landing on the New York Times Best Sellers List. Her second book “The Barefooted , Bad-Tempered Baby Brigade” was just recently published and she has a sequel to Pout Pout Fish waiting in the wings or should we say murky depths. Her book “The Pout Pout Fish in the Big Big Dark” will be released later this summer.

A couple highlights on her list include Lansing Michigan author Ruth McNally Barshaw’s third Ellie McDoodle book, “Ellie McDoodle: Best Friends Ever”; Shutta Crum’s “Thunder Boomer” and Nancy Shaw’s “Sheep on a Ship”.

If you have suggestions for additions to her list just let Deborah know on her blog “Jumping the Candlestick” which she uses to tell us mostly about other people’s books. Diesen should be the ambassador for Michigan children’s books. Last year her book, Pout Pout was chosen for the Library of Michigan summer read program.