Illustrator Dow Phumiruk sent me this lovely illustration and it made me think of a recent visit I made to Ali Isaac’s Home of Irish Mythology where I found a post about Irish Mythology and the Swan. I learn a ton of interesting information about the swan. It is an enjoyable post. See link and more at the bottom of this page.
Dow Phumiruk, she is a pediatrician who has found her passion in art. Over the past few years, she has been able to focus on her love of illustrating for children. I love seeing how her artwork has grown in the last few years. She is definitely someone to enjoy watching. http://artbydow.blogspot.com/
IF YOU WANT TO WRITE YOU MUST READ.
How many of the books on these lists have you read? Have you recently read a really great YA, MG, or Picture Book? I’d love to hear about other good books out there. I’ve read all but one of the YA books on this list below, since most have been on this list for years. Maybe we can help get some new books on the lists.
NYTIMES JULY’S BEST SELLING YOUNG ADULT NOVELS:
1. PAPER TOWNS, by John Green. (Penguin Group.) After a night of mischief, the girl Quentin loves disappears. (Ages 14 and up)
2. ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL, by Jesse Andrews. (Abrams Books.) A high school senior befriends a girl with cancer. (Ages 14 to 17)
3. LOOKING FOR ALASKA, by John Green. (Penguin Group.) A boy finds excitement when he meets a girl named Alaska. (Ages 14 to 17)
4. THE BOOK THIEF, by Markus Zusak. (Knopf Doubleday Publishing.) A girl copes with life under the Nazis by stealing books. (Ages 14 and up)
5. MISS PEREGRINE’S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN, by Ransom Riggs. (Quirk Books.) An island, an abandoned orphanage and a collection of curious photographs. (Ages 12 and up)
6. THE FAULT IN OUR STARS, by John Green. (Penguin Group.) A girl faces new realities when she learns she has cancer. (Ages 14 and up)
7. WE WERE LIARS, by E. Lockhart. (Random House Publishing.) Four friends decamp to a private island off Martha’s Vineyard. (Ages 12 and up)
8. AN ABUNDANCE OF KATHERINES, by John Green. (Penguin Group.) Colin Singleton wants to break the pattern of being dumped. (Ages 12 and up)
9. ELEANOR AND PARK, by Rainbow Rowell. (St. Martin’s Press.) The world opposes the love of two outcast teenagers. (Ages 14 to 18)
10.THE ABSOLUTELY TRUE DIARY OF A PART-TIME INDIAN, by Sherman Alexie and Ellen Forney. (Little, Brown & Company.) A boy leaves his reservation to attend an all-white school. (Ages 12 and up)
Also Selling
11.RED QUEEN, by Victoria Aveyard (HarperCollins Publishers)
12.THE 5TH WAVE, by Rick Yancey (Penguin Group)
13.THIRTEEN REASONS WHY, by Jay Asher (Penguin Group)
14.THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER, by Stephen Chbosky (Simon & Schuster)
15.P.S. I STILL LOVE YOU, by Jenny Han (Simon & Schuster)
BEST SELLING MIDDLE GRADE NOVELS:
1. THE ISLE OF THE LOST, by Melissa de la Cruz. (Disney Publishing Worldwide.) Children of famous villains band together to retrieve the Dragon’s Eye; a Descendants novel. (Ages 9 to 12)
2. WONDER, by R. J. Palacio. (Knopf Doubleday Publishing.) A boy with a facial deformity enters a mainstream school. (Ages 8 to 12)
3. THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN, by Katherine Applegate. (HarperCollins Publishers.) A gorilla living in a mall meets an elephant. (Ages 8 to 12)
4. HITLER’S LAST DAYS, by Bill O’Reilly. (Henry Holt & Company.) An account of the collapse of the Third Reich and the death of the Nazi leader. (Ages 10 to 14)
5. INSIDE OUT, by Suzanne Francis. (Random House/Disney Publishing Worldwide.) Inside the mind of an 11-year-old; the junior novelization. (Ages 9 to 12)
6. COUNTING BY 7s, by Holly Goldberg Sloan. (Penguin Group.) Willow struggles to adjust after the death of her adoptive parents. (Ages 10 to 14)
7. JURASSIC WORLD, by David Lewman. (Random House Publishing.) More prehistoric havoc; the junior novelization. (Ages 8 to 12)
8. MINIONS. (Little, Brown & Company.) Good servants, bad masters; the junior novelization. (Ages 8 to 12)
9. OUT OF MY MIND, by Sharon M. Draper. (Simon & Schuster.) A brilliant girl with cerebral palsy longs to speak. (Ages 10 to 13)
10. A LONG WALK TO WATER, by Linda Sue Park. (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.) A Sudanese tale of survival. (Ages 10 to 14)
Also Selling
11. BROWN GIRL DREAMING, by Jacqueline Woodson (Penguin Group)
12. THE CROSSOVER, by Kwame Alexander (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing)
13. THE CARE AND KEEPING OF YOU by Valorie Schaefer. Illustrated by Josee Masse (American Girl Publishing)
14. I AM MALALA, by Malala Yousafzai with Patricia McCormick (Little, Brown & Company)
15. ESCAPE FROM MR. LEMONCELLO’S LIBRARY, by Chris Grabenstein (Random House Publishing)
NYT’s JULY’S TOP TEN BEST SELLING PICTURE BOOKS:
YOUR BABY’S FIRST WORD WILL BE DADA, by Jimmy Fallon. Illustrated by Miguel Ordóñez. (Feiwel & Friends.) Animal fathers hope to hear a certain word from their little ones. (Ages 3 to 5)
THE DAY THE CRAYONS QUIT, by Drew Daywalt. Illustrated by Oliver Jeffers. (Philomel.) Problems arise when Duncan’s crayons revolt. (Ages 3 to 7)
THE BOOK WITH NO PICTURES, by B. J. Novak. (Dial.) Silly songs and sound effects in a book without images. (Ages 4 to 8)
DRAGONS LOVE TACOS, by Adam Rubin. Illustrated by Daniel Salmieri. (Dial.) What to serve your dragon-guests. (Ages 3 to 5)
I WILL TAKE A NAP!, by Mo Willems. (Hyperion.) Red-eyed Gerald needs some sleep, or is it Piggie who’s due for a nap? (Ages 6 to 8)
GOODNIGHT, GOODNIGHT, CONSTRUCTION SITE, by Sherri Duskey Rinker and Tom Lichtenheld. (Chronicle.) As the sun sets, hard-working trucks get ready for bed. (Ages 4 to 8)
PRESS HERE, by Hervé Tullet. (Handprint/Chronicle.) A whimsical dance of color and motion, at the touch of a finger. (Ages 4 to 8)
WAITING IS NOT EASY!, by Mo Willems. (Hyperion.) Impatient Gerald has to wait for Piggie’s promised surprise. (Ages 2 to 7)
HOW TO BABYSIT A GRANDPA, by Jean Reagan. Illustrated by Lee Wildish. (Knopf.) Taking care of your charge; snack ideas included. (Ages 4 to 8)
ROSIE REVERE, ENGINEER, by Andrea Beaty. Illustrated by David Roberts. (Abrams.) A young inventor learns to fail better. (Ages 4 to 8)
Click here to read Ali’s article about Irish Mythology and the Swan.
Let me know if you read it and enjoyed it, too.
I spent a little time on her site and discovered that Ali has written two interesting fantasy books. Love the covers and have the books on my Amazon Wish List, so I remember to “Look Inside.” I hope they are as interesting to read as her covers are to look view. Here are the links to Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Four-Treasures-Eirean-Ali-Isaac/dp/1781768072/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8
http://www.amazon.com/Conor-Kelly-Fenian-King-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B00LN8GDE0/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8
Talk tomorrow,
Kathy
Filed under: Book, inspiration, Middle Grade Novels, picture books, reference, Young Adult Novel Tagged: books to read in 2015, NYTimes Best Selling PB - MG - YA, REad if You Want to Write
