Internet predators

Here are some interesting statistics about Internet predators and their victims, via School Library Journal.

There are some interesting revelations, such as the fact that social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook rarely figure into these types of crimes.

Hot cross books.

School Library Journal asks librarians which books kids are reading for pleasure right now. Basically, if you don't have a lot of copies of all of the Twilight books, you should! Jack Gantos is also featured.

And the winner is...

Did you hear? A Baltimore school librarian won the Newbery Medal! The book looks really good, too, and it's nice to see poetry/dramatic monologues getting some recognition.

Here is a list of all of the award winners announced this week.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard

In case you didn't hear, Sotheby's was auctioning off a copy of J.K. Rowlings hand-written and illustrated book of fairy tales. Amazon.com bought it for 1.95 million pounds, and the proceeds will go to Rowling's charity, The Children's Voice.

There are extensive plot summaries and images from the book on Amazon's Beedle the Bard website.

Where the Wild Things Came From

Here is an interesting slide show of picture book art from the nineteenth through the mid-twentieth century, from Slate magazine:

How children's books evolved from morals to madcap fun.

ALSC Offers Grants to Future Children's and YA Librarians

If you are planning to get your MLS and become a children's or YA librarian, you can apply for one of these grants.

A Legislative Victory for Children's Librarians

Congress passes bill calling for collaboration between Head Start and libraries.

This is a great opportunity for libraries in general, and for children's librarians in particular. It's the most public recognition I've seen of the role that public libraries play in early literacy. Take this information straight to your local daycares, and form ye some partnerships! :)