A CELEBRATION OF MAINE CHILDREN'S BOOKS
by Lynn Plourde & Paul Knowles
University of Maine Press, 1998

For years and years, Maine has been home to many famous children's book creators. Robert McCloskey, who was the first person to receive the Caldecott Medal twice, created his classics Blueberries for Sal, One Morning in Maine, and Time of Wonder in Maine. Barbara Cooney, who also received the Caldecott Medal twice, created Miss Rumphius in Damariscotta, Maine. E.B. White based Charlotte's Web on his saltwater farm in North Brooklin, Maine. Maine can also claim Margaret Wise Brown (of Goodnight, Moon fame) as a summer resident of Vinalhaven, Maine. Plus Rachel Field, who summered on Sutton's Island, off Mt. Desert, Maine, was the first woman to receive the Newbery Medal for her 1929 book Hitty: Her First Hundred Years. Maine's honored place in children's literature has continued throughout the years with an abundance of quality children's book authors and illustrators. A Celebration of Maine Children's Books is an attempt to celebrate and showcase Maine's talent, past and present.

A Celebration of Maine Children's Books is a 336-page guide to the best Maine children's books. It features 185 Maine children's books ranging from toddler books up to YA (young adult) books. The book is divided into the following sections:

?Alphabet, Counting, and Concept Books
?Picture Books
?Chapter Books
?Anthologies, Short Stories, and Collections
?Poetry
?Biographies, Autobiographies, and Journals
?Informational Books
?Activity Books

Each selected book includes basic bibliographic information (e.g. author, illustrator, age level, length, publishers, copyright, format, ISBN), learning activities based upon the book, plus author/illustrator biographical information.

A Celebration of Maine Children's Books also includes the following appendices and indexes:

?More Maine Authors & Illustrators-brief information about additional children's book creators from Maine
?Author & Illustrator Addresses
?Publisher Addresses
?Points of interest to Maine children's book followers
?Title, Author, Illustrator, and Subject Indexes

Creating A Celebration of Maine Children's Books was a true labor of love for the authors. It took the wife-and-husband team of Lynn Plourde and Paul Knowles eight years to research and write this guidebook. More than 400 Maine children's books were considered for inclusion. For years before the conception of this guidebook, they had already been reading scores of Maine children's books and sharing them with their family. Lynn's experience writing and reading picture books plus Paul's experience with older chapter and YA books as a middle school and high school English teacher allowed each of them to contribute in their areas of expertise. Numerous new Maine children's books have been published since the publication of A Celebration of Maine Children's Books in 1998; and Lynn and Paul continue to devour these new books trying to stay current.

SAMPLE PAGES (click to view each sample page below):

?BIRDIE'S LIGHTHOUSE
?COUSIN RUTH'S TOOTH
?THE FIRE BUG CONNECTION: AN ECOLOGICAL MYSTERY
?LOST ON A MOUNTAIN IN MAINE
?E.B. WHITE: SOME WRITER!