Good grief! It’s been nearly 50 years since A Charlie Brown Christmas first hit TV screens.

And, next year, the 65th anniversary of Charles Schulz’s first Peanuts comic strip, will be marked by a new animated movie featuring the characters.

The movie’s producers appeared on the Today Show last week and introduced the kids who will voice many of the characters.

Eerily, however, Snoopy and Woodstock will be “voiced” by the late Bill Melendez, the voice of those characters in A Charlie Brown Christmas, via sampled recordings.

A new trailer is also available (note: it says movie is coming “Next Christmas,” but the release date is actually Nov. 6)

A tie-in scheduled for next summer — many more are sure to come:

Peanuts Movie Original Graphic Novel
Charles Schulz
S&S/BOOM! Studios,  August 11, 2015
Trade Paperback
$9.99 USD

National Public Radio today published their staff selections of the best books of 2014, with a spiffy interface that allows readers to filter it in many ways (such as  “Book Club Ideas” and “Rather Long” — there is no “Rather Short,” category, however. UPDATE:  There IS a “Rather Short” category! Thanks to Margery at BCPL for pointing it out).

We’ve updated our downloadable spreadsheet, 2014-Best-Books-Childrens-and-YA-V.5 with their picks. The list now includes 280 titles selected by the Amazon Editors, Kirkus, PW, SLJ, and NPR.

Leading in total number of picks is Jacqueline Woodson’s National Book Award winning memoir, Brown Girl Dreaming (Penguin) as well as E. Lockhart’s Y.A. novel, We Were Liars. (RH/Delacorte).

There’s little consensus, however. The majority of the titles, nearly 250, were picked by just one or two sources.

Still to come is the NYT Book Review’s Notable Childrens Books, Horn Book‘s “Fanfare” titles, as well as the ALA awards, to be announced at Midwinter.

We are at work updating our adult fiction and nonfiction spreadsheets and plan to have them ready by the end of the week.

In an Op-Ed piece in today’s New York Times, Jacqueline Woodson proves that a thoughtless comment can be answered thoughtfully and poignantly,

Responding to Daniel Handler’s “joke” at the National Book Awards about her being allergic to watermelon, she notes that she does indeed have an aversion to watermelon, a fact Handler knows because they have been friends for years.

By bringing it up, though, Handler reminded the audience of the way watermelons have been used to ridicule African Americans. “In a few short words, the audience and I were asked to take a step back from everything I’ve ever written … By making light of that deep and troubled history, he showed that he believed we were at a point where we could laugh about it all. His historical context, unlike my own, came from a place of ignorance.”

Saying, “It feels amazing to be one of the prize’s least-known winners,” author Piers Torday won the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize this week for his middle grade novel, The Dark Wild, (Penguin/Viking Juvenile), to be published here on January 22.

Begun in 1967, The Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize is awarded by a jury of children’s authors. The longlist for this year’s Prize included Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo as well as We Were Liars by E. Lockhart,

The book is the second in a trilogy, following The Last Wild, (Penguin/Viking Juvenile), a title  featured in our Penguin Young Readers program, which gives librarians the opportunity to read galleys and chat with rising star children’s authors. View the chat with Torday here.

Join us for our next author chat, this Wednesday, with Kim Bradley, author of The War That Saved My Life, (Penguin/Dial), this Wednesday, Nov. 19, from 5 to 6 p.m., EST.

The New York Times Book Review issue with the “Best Illustrated Books” list arrives in print this Sunday (see my takes on each specific title).

As those of us who have been watching this list for years know, it typically contains a surprising mix of books with popular appeal and those with arty sophistication. Although it is tempting to second guess and speculate on why one particular title made the list and another was left off, these conversations rarely reflect the actual considerations that went into the selections.

I had the honor to serve as a judge one year. At the time, children’s book editor Eden Ross Lipson encouraged us to write and share our process and deliberations. This is an outlier attitude. Most book selection juries, from the American Library Association’s Newbery to The National Book Awards, are asked to keep the discussions confidential, to allow for more free of expression of opinions. I recall that the only requirement imposed on the NYT Best Illustrated judges was to keep their appointments a secret until the announcement was made public. I was bursting but honored the request, even taking a vacation day from work for the deliberations so I didn’t have to disclose my participation to my library director.

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The NYT Book Review‘s selection of the ten best illustrated books of the year is offered as simple list, with no annotations. Librarians may want a bit more background on the titles. Below are my takes.

Draw!, written and illustrated by Raul Colon (S&S/Paula Wiseman)

A word-less masterpiece, a sweeping tribute to the power of imagination, this is a technical tour-de-force.

The Pilot and the Little Prince: The Life of Antione de Saint-Exupery, written and illustrated by Peter Sis (Macmillan/FSG/Frances Foster)

Anyone who has had an eye on this year’s output recognizes that The Pilot and The Little Prince is another Peter Sis classic. The exquisitely detailed illustrations beg readers to pore over them again and again, revealing new insights with each reading.

Harlem Hellfighters, written by J. Patrick Lewis, illustrated by Gary Kelley (Chronicle/Creative Editions)

Pairs J. Patrick Lewis’s fact based poems and Gary Kelly’s dark, haunting illustrations combine in a very personal profile of this World War I brigade that fought in France.

Time for Bed, Fred, written and illustrated by Yasmeen Ismail (Walker Books/Bloomsbury)

With spirited watercolor, Ismail coveys emotion and motion with a loose line, indicating the form of the resting or restless or bouncy body of the shaggy dog. A winner for bedtime, story time, or any time.

Where’s Mommy?, written by Beverly Donofrio, illustrated by Barbara McClintock (RH/Schwartz & Wade)

This sweet but not saccharine story of a girl and a mouse parallel lives above the stairs and below is depicted with skill as readers enjoy all the tiny details of a “day in the life” The quiet humor of the text is matched in form and color. The very example of a child-centered picture book.

Here Is the Baby, written by Polly Kanevsky, illustrated by Taeeyun Yoo (RH/Schwartz & Wade)

It is easy to overlook the obvious and familiar. I am grateful that the Judges brought attention to Here is The Baby, a quiet perfect book reflecting day in the life of a toddler. Kanevsky’s rhythmic, repetitive text makes it good to read aloud. Taeeun Yoo, winner of the Ezra Jack Keats Award for new illustrator, skillfully expresses emotion and light, climate and comfort with specificity of line and color. This is a sleeper that shouldn’t be missed.

The Baby Tree, written and illustrated by Sophie Blackall (Penguin/Nancy Paulsen)

I was delighted. Simply delighted to see this on the list. Anytime I had been in a judging situation, humor was the toughest to sell to my colleagues. Blackall has nailed the subject (misunderstanding grown-up explanations of “where babies come from”) with empathy, kindness AND fun.

Shackleton’s Journey, written and illustrated by William Grill (Flying Eye Books)

Published by a small press in the U.K., this was not reviewed by the professional journals and therefore is not owned by many libraries.  Shackleton’s various arduous expeditions into the Antarctic have been covered in many books and a TV series starring Kenneth Branagh. An example of the arty but accessible (click on the title link to see some of the interior pages), the sketches evoke the feeling of a naturalist’s diary with an almost documentary feeling as we peek into the mundane (six months provisions) isolating hardship (crossing the ice fields) and relief (rescue and survival). Supplies at wholesalers are limited, but this award is sure to result in a reprint.

Haiti my country, written by Haitian schoolchildren, illustrated by Roge (Fifth House Publishers)

As we enter the culture and the land of Haiti through portraits of teenagers, we find ourselves entering their lives and struggles. This picture book can pair well with Youme’s award-winning Selavi: That IS Life, A Haitian Story of Hope, (Cinco Puntos Press, 2004), a book that is essential to all well-rounded collections. (Good news — the publisher tells me that a reprint of this one is coming and it should be at wholesalers in December).

The Promise, written by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Laura Carlin (Candlewick Press)

An urban “Johnny Appleseed” about a young girl whose life as a thief is transformed when she is tricked into planting acorns and witnesses how the resulting trees improve people’s lives. I have to admit that this one did not work for me. As Kirkus puts it, this is “yet another heavily earnest parable,” adding dryly that the idea is “Valid as metaphor though much less so as a feasible plan of action.” Booklist, however, gave it a star.

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket is making the leap from big screen to small screen. All 13 titles in the book series have been acquired for adaptation by Netflix.

The first book was adapted as a movie  in 2004, starring Jim Carrey, Meryl Streep and Jude Law. It was originally planned as the beginning of a  film franchise, but that never materialized.

There’s no news yet on who will star, or when it is likely to debut.

The press release quotes the author,

“I can’t believe it,” Mr. Snicket said in a statement from an undisclosed location. “After years of providing top-quality entertainment on demand, Netflix is risking its reputation and its success by associating itself with my dismaying and upsetting books.”

That sense of humor will serve Snicket, (aka Daniel Handler), well when he hosts the upcoming National Book Awards.

The trailer for the movie, below:

Of course, author and exec. producer John Green is VERY excited that filming has begun for the adaptation of Paper Towns.

He’s coy about the specific location, but it’s already been reported that the shoot is in Charlotte, N.C.

The movie is scheduled for theatrical release on June 19, 2015.

Twelve thousand teens have voted and selected their favorite 2013 books for the YALSA Teen’s Top Ten. The winners are announced in the video below, by Willow Shields (aka Primrose Everdeen of The Hunger Games). The number one title is Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell (Macmillan/St. Martin’s Griffin).

The author is clearly a librarian favorite, as well. Her YA title Fangirl topped the very first LibraryReads top ten list, as a crossover title for adult readers, and the author’s adult title, Landline, (Macmillan/St. Martin’s Griffin), was on the July list.

The winners are also announced in more prosaic list form.

Voting was based on the following 25 nominees:

THE PILOT AND THE LITTLE PRINCE:
The Life of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Written and illustrated by Peter Sis
Frances Foster Books/Farrar, Straus & Giroux
(Picture book; ages 5 to 12)

THE BABY TREE

Written and illustrated by Sophie Blackall
Nancy Paulsen Books/Penguin
(Picture book; ages 5 to 8)

THE PROMISE

Written by Nicola Davies, Illustrated by Laura Carlin
Candlewick Press
(Picture book; ages 6 to 9)

WHERE’S MOMMY?

Written by Beverly Donofrio. Illustrated by Barbara McClintock
Schwartz & Wade
(Picture book; ages 3 to 7)

HERE IS THE BABY

Written by Polly Kanevsky. Illustrated by Taeeyun Yoo
Schwartz & Wade
(Picture book; ages 2 to 5)

TIME FOR BED, FRED

Written and illustrated by Yasmeen Ismail
Walker Books/Bloomsbury
(Picture book; ages 4 to 8)

HARLEM HELLFIGHTERS

Written by J. Patrick Lewis, Illustrated by Gary Kelley
Chronicle/Creative Editions
(Picture book; ages 9 and up)

HAITI, MY COUNTRY:
Poems by Haitian Schoolchildren

lllustrated by Roge
Fifth House Publishers
(Picture book; ages 4 to 12)

SHACKLETON’S JOURNEY

Written and illustrated by William Grill
Flying Eye Books
(Picture book; ages 7 to 11)

DRAW!

Written and illustrated by Raúl Colón
A Paula Wiseman Book/Simon & Schuster
(Picture book; ages 3 to 9)

The New York Times Book Review‘s annual selection of the ten best illustrated books, chosen this year by judges Jennifer M. Brown, director of the Center for Children’s Literature at the Bank Street College of Education, and author/illustrators Brian Floca and Jerry Pinkney, has just been released online, in the form of a slideshow, with interior illustrations (our slideshow of the covers, above). The printed list will appear in the 11/9 issue.

Our downloadable spreadsheet rounds up the childrens and YA best books picks to date, 2014-Best-Books-Childrens-and-YA-V.2

The U.S. release of the film adaptation of Michael Bond’s Paddington Bear has been moved from Christmas to  Jan. 16, but it is still set to open in the U.K. on Nov. 28 and a new trailer has been released

Official Movie Site: Paddington.com (which includes a look at Paddington as envisioned by various illustrators)

For tie-ins, check our Edelweiss collection.

Mark Rylance, who stars as Thomas Cromwell in the upcoming BBC production of Wolf Hall (recently wrapped, no U.S. release date yet), is set to play the lead in the live-action adaptation of Roald Dahl’s 1982 picture book, The BFG, (Macmillan/FSG YR). To be directed by Steven Spielberg, it will be the director’s next film, according to The Hollywood Reporter, after he finishes his current project, St. James Place, an original Cold War thriller starring Tom Hanks (with Rylance in a supporting role).

This raises a question about what has happened to another Dahl adaptation, BBC One’s TV movie based on Esio Trot, starring Judi Dench and Dustin Hoffman. The Weinstein Co. acquired the U.S. rights for its fledgling TV business back in August, and no further announcements have been made. It is set for release in the U.K. in December.

Saturday Night Live has been sending up YA film adaptations.

Last week, dystopian movies got the treatment:

The week before, it was a “grounded” YA film:

Originally scheduled for release on Christmas Day, the Weinstein Co.’s adaptation of Michael Bond’s Paddington Bear has been moved to a different holiday, the Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, Jan. 16.

Official Movie Site: Paddington.com (which includes a look at Paddington as envisioned by various illustrators)

For tie-ins, check our Edelweiss collection.

What do you do when the first movie in a planned YA series bombs at the box office?

You may want to consider another medium, television.

The producers of The Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones, based on the first in the Y.A. fantasy series by Cassandra Clare, are doing just that, with wrier-producer Ed Decter (Helix, Unforgettable, In Plain Sight and The Client List) as showrunner.

There’s no information on whether the cast of the movie will be returning. On her blog, author Clare addresses that question, declaring, “I have absolutely no idea! I am sure they are not casting at the moment and probably nobody knows. There is absolutely nothing whatsoever I could possibly ever do to influence whether they kept the same cast (assuming they were available) at all, so I will be waiting, like you, to see if they cast new people, and hoping that if they do, those people will be good.”

Cassandra Clare’s series consists of six books, as well as a 3-part prequel series, Infernal Devices, which concluded with Clockwork Princess, (S&S/ Margaret K. McElderry, 3/19/13). The author has also announced a new series of sequels, called The Dark Artifices, to begin in 2015.