The Lerner Blog

by Anna Cavallo A while back, my colleague Carol Hinz wrote a post demystifying reading level–the evaluation tools we use, some tricks of the trade, and more. As another Lerner editor compelled to ponder/study/grapple with reading level with a significant portion of my time, I realized I could add one more favorite tool to the […]Read more "On Vocabulary"

Two of my favorite Lab Rats have nailed it this week—or maybe I should say others have recognized the fantastic force with which they hit ferrous fasteners. First, Blythe Woolston posted an homage to Harvey Pekar that turned into a post about R. Crumb that became a post about writing better. And it’s still short—like […]Read more "Nailing it."

by Erin Finnegan Melinda Thielbar is the primary author behind Manga Math Mysteries, our series for Grades 3-5 that relates math to everyday life through the eyes of the students at a Kung Fu dojo. Melinda is a statistician who has previously worked as a math teacher “in real life.” What was the first thing […]Read more "GU Comics Day: Figuring it all out with Manga Math (and Tigers)"

I grew up playing soccer. It was my fist organized sport. We played in the spring and fall where I grew up. This was in the 80s, and it was a fairly low-key league. We got a tee-shirt at the the beginning of the season for a uniform, and it seems like I was always […]Read more "In praise of soccer in the age of You Tube"

Over the Fourth of July holiday, I traveled to Chicago by train. The scenery between Minneapolis and Chicago isn’t dramatic or exciting. But gazing out the window as we passed through the small towns and fringes of cities gave me a glimpse of something I don’t see much of anymore—the slow march of summer days. […]Read more "The Heart of Summer"

vs. I’m working on Americanizing  a YA novel from the UK  for our spring 2011 Carolrhoda Lab list. That was a hard sentence for me to write, because I’m somewhat allergic to the idea of Americanization. As a reader, I really enjoy encountering the subtleties of different forms of English usage in fiction. I think […]Read more "Separated by a common language"

By Domenica Di Piazza, Editorial Director, TFCB July 4. Fireworks. Brats on the Grill. Corn on the Cob. Boston Pops. Federal Holiday. Day off Work. Swimming, Boating, Fun. Behind it all is the struggle for the nation’s independence 234 years ago, and TFCB has a number of books on the subject to provide good background […]Read more "Independence Day"

Carol H. tells me that this is the first anniversary of the Lerner Blog. It appears that the inimitable Fuse #8 has given us an excellent present in the form of a post about our BEA Librarian Preview. (It’s also just in time for our new website’s launch.) So let’s not mess about here; head […]Read more "[Screams] Happy Blogoversary to Us"

by Erin Finnegan, NY editorial intern This week I interviewed Anne Timmons, the illustrator of our version of Pigling, as told by Dan Jolley. It’s part of our Graphic Myths and Legends series. It turns out Anne is the prolific illustrator behind loads of fun-looking graphic novels! Hopefully we can get her to do another […]Read more "GU Comics Day: Talking with artist Ann Timmons"