Episode 149 - Dork Diaries by Rachel Renée Russell

We continue our series of episodes featuring books that have been banned or challenged around the country. This time, it’s the Newbery Award-winning graphic novel NEW KID by Jerry Craft. Books in Katy, Texas were pulled from library shelves in 2021 after a parent petition complained that it contained harmful content about critical race theory. CRT examines how racism has shaped laws and public policy in America. Writer Jerry Craft says he’d never heard the term before and had to google it. An African American parent in another part of the country objected to Craft’s use of the word “oreo” – a derogatory term used to describe a person as black on the outside, but white on the inside. She said she didn’t want her child to be exposed to the term. The challenge in Katy, Texas was dismissed and the book was returned to library shelves. What do you think? Listen to our Book Club for Kids podcast discussion of Jerry Craft's New Kid.

How do you work with your mother on a book? How do you work on 15 books with your mother? We talk to the mother/daughter team behind Dork Diaries, Rachel Renée and Nikki Russell. Kitty Felde is host.

Everybody wants to go to Paris…especially Nikki Maxwell! Readers from Hollingworth Elementary School discuss the latest entry in Rachel Renée Russell’s series. It’s Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Posh Paris Adventure. Rachel and daughter Nikki Russell, who illustrates the books, answer questions from the kids. Our celebrity reader is actress/screenwriter Kate Orsini. Kitty Felde is host.

Madeleine L'Engle's granddaughters share their memories about their legendary grandmother and talk about some of her writing practices. Come see us at Comic Orange Saturday, April 13th from 11-3 at the Tustin Library.

We continue our series of episodes about books that have been banned or challenged around the country. This time, it’s the Newbery Award winning novel by Madeleine L’Engle: A Wrinkle in Time. According to the Carnegie Mellon Banned Books Project, the book was challenged in 1985 by parents in Florida who said the book “opposes Christian beliefs and teaches occult practices. The school principal did not remove the book from 4th grade curriculum. In 1990, a parent in Alabama asked to have the book removed because it “sends a mixed signal to children about good and evil.” The school board and superintendent voted unanimously to deny the request. Six years later, the book was challenged in North Carolina for undermining religious beliefs.The school board denied the request. Madeline L’Engle herself told the New York Times in 2001 that “it seems people are willing to damn the book without reading it.” We read it with a group of young readers and this is what they have to say about A Wrinkle in Time. This week, we tackle a classic – the 1963 winner of the Newbery Award “A Wrinkle in Time” by Madeleine L’Engle. Our readers are 5th graders from the British International School in Washington, DC. Our celebrity reader is public radio journalist Stephanie O’Neill. Madeline L’Engle passed away in 2007, but we're joined by her granddaughters Charlotte Jones Volklis and Lena Roy.  They've written a biography of their grandmother based on her journals called “Becoming Madeleine.” Kitty Felde is host.  FAVORITE BOOKS FROM BRITISH INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL: Panda-monium - Stuart Gibbs Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling The Tiger Rising - Kate DiCamillo Space Case - Stuart Gibbs FAVORITE BOOKS FROM CHARLOTTE JONES VOIKLIS AND LENA ROY A Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L’Engle A Gentleman in Moscow - Amor Towles STEPHANIE O’NEILL’S FAVORITE BOOK: Charlotte’s Web - E.B. White

Want to be on a future Book Club for Kids podcast episode? Listen to this special episode to find out how. Here's the favorite books on this episode: Wings of Fire - Tui Sutherland Never Let me Go - Kazuo Isiguro The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Jeff Kinney Keeper of the Lost Cities - Shannon Messenger The Cricket in Times Square - George Selden Dino-Mike - Franco Aureliani The Little Book of the Avengers - Roy Thomas Join us Saturday, April 6, 2024 at the City of STEM/LA Maker Faire all day at the Los Angeles State Historic Park north of downtown Los Angeles for YOUR chance to be on a future show!    

You may know John Cho from his acting work in "Star Trek" and "Harold and Kumar" movies. But listen to this thoughtful conversation Cho and host Kitty Felde about his work as a writer - including convincing his Korean immigrant parents that his work was his work as an artist was making the world a better place.

On April 29th, 1992, a jury in Simi Valley, a town just north of Los Angeles, did not convict four LAPD officers for the beating of an African American motorist named Rodney King. Within hours, rioting broke out across the city. A particular target was liquor and convenience stores owned by Korean immigrants. The event is at the heart of actor and writer John Cho’s novel Troublemaker.  Cho joins us to talk about his inspiration for the book and LAPD Officer Tony Hyong Im is our celebrity reader. Readers from Tyler Elementary School in Washington D.C. discuss their own solutions to finding solutions to a community’s anger. Kitty Felde is host. Favorite Books from Tyler Elementary School: My Year in the Middle - Lila Quintero Weaver Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J.K. Rowling City Spies - James Ponti Godzilla - Shigeru Kayama JOHN CHO’S FAVORITE BOOK The Joke - Milan Kundera OFFICER TONY IM’S FAVORITE BOOK The Mickey Mantle Murder - Walt Brown

Looking for your next favorite book? Here are some suggestions from readers at  Watkins Elementary School on Capitol Hill: Geronimo Stilton - Geronimo Stilton Athletes vs Mathletes - W.C. Mack Scare Stories to Tell in the Dark - Alvin Schwartz Guts - Raina Telgemeier Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Jeff Kinney Basil and Oregano - Melissa Capriglione  Percy Jackson - Rick Riordan Matilda - Roald Dahl Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - J.K. Rowling Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - J.K. Rowling Flora and Ulysses - Kate DiCamillo Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul - Jeff Kinney Another Kind - Trevor Bream Last Kids on Earth - Max Brallier The Babysitters Club - Ann M. Martin Stone Fox - John Reynolds Gardiner The Day the Crayons Quit - Drew Daywalt Magic Treehouse - Mary Pope Osborne The Getaway - Jeff Kinney Ranger's Apprentice - John Flanagan Grandude's Green Submarine - Paul McCartney Wings of Fire - Tui T. Sutherland