Mitali's Fire Escape

First, California. Next, My Winter Retreat.
I'm heading to Southern California today for CSLA's annual convention. I'll be presenting "Books Between Cultures" on Friday from 2:15-3:15, and then signing in the exhibit hall from 3:30 to 4:30. On Sunday, I'll be at the Author Brunch listening to Bruce Hale's speech and schmoozing with librarians. If you're there in real life, come find me, and I'll be sharing news from the conference virtually on twitter using hashtag #csla2009. After that, I begin my winter retreat, backing away from the internet to create space for writing and the holiday s

Thanksgiving From The Margins
Thanksgiving is my favorite North American holiday by far. It doesn't make new or poor Americans feel as left out as some of the other festival days. Why did the fat dude in red bring presents for everybody in my class except me? Duck For Turkey Day, a new picture book from Albert Whitman & Co by Jacqueline Jules, illustrated by Kathryn Mitter, tells the story of T

Wordle Your Brand
Not sure how to describe your blog's "brand" or "niche"? I do an occasional check on search terms or keywords using free tools like statcounter or google analytics. For fun, you can also create a wordle to get a quick snapshot of your blog's brand. Here's one generated for Books With Flair, for example:

Could A Story Help This Happen?
I'm bullish on the power of story to inspire and revolutionize acts of justice and peace. So when I read about something as exciting as Bishop Desmond Tutu's simple yet powerful plan of universal birth registration, my mind begins to whirl around plot possibilities. A dystopian YA novel about teens with lost identities? A picture book featuring one of these children to show how important a birth certificate can be? As you watch the video below, what stories come to mind for you? Come visit me on the

15 New YA Books Featuring Forgiveness
I put out a call for books published in 2009 that underline the theme of forgiveness, and received several responses in the YA category, listed below in alphabetical order by author's last name. Thanks to everybody who contributed; if you don't see your suggestion, it's probably because the book wasn't released in 2009. Let me know if I've missed something. I'm still collecting titles on the theme for tweens and kids, so feel free to add those in the comments, and don't forget to check the