TEN ON THE SLED holiday performance

How adorable it this?! A school program (where, I don't know) where students performed my TEN ON THE SLED as a holiday song. Great job and so cute. I feel very proud -- like Cole Porter for kids!

Kim Norman

FREE BOOKS FOR YOUR LIBRARY!

Last year's Free Book special was so popular that I've decided to run another special for the 2011-2012 school year:
Any school that hires me for a 3/4 or full day author visit will receive a complete set of my hardback books for the library. If the school happens to be located in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, I'll even extend that offer for a HALF day visit!

See more about the offer on my website: kimnormanbooks.com

Kim Norman

A note from the Orange County Children's Book Festival

Recently, I heard from a representative of the Orange County Children's Book Festival, asking if I would post a press release for them. I was happy to oblige....



Now in it's 8th year, the Orange County Children's Book Festival, is the largest children's book event in the country! The 2010 Festival had over 30,00 people in attendance for this ONE day event. We foster confidence through literacy and work to instill a true joy of reading!

2010 was also the inaugural year for our Teen & YA Stage and we ROCKED IT! With over two dozen authors on stage back to back we had an audience of fans that listened to readings, participated in conversations and bought books ALL DAY!

Booth costs are reasonable and we have a great cost effective option for Debut & Self Published Authors to be involved that is within your budget...you can find the 2011 Exhibitors Info on the website: www.kidsbookfestival.com

We are a non profit and do not have a budget to pay authors or illustrators however this event draws the top talent in the field, along with Media, Educators, Librarians and tons of Fans!

Let us know if you would like to be involved at any level with our event on the Orange Coast College Campus, Sunday October 2, 2011.

Contact Info:
Robyn Hawk, OC Children's Book Festival, Teen Stage Coordinator
Email: robynahawk@yahoo.com
Web: http://www.kidsbookfestival.com/
Twitter: @kidsbookfest
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OCCBF

SCBWI listed publishers

Here is a list of publishers which appear in the SCBWI Market Survey. (Larger publishers first; scroll down for smaller presses.) If you see your publisher on this list, feel free to write to me about adding your link to this site. I'm sorry to have to be so specific, but I've been spending a lot of time checking out obscure publishers and self-publishers.

If you are published by any of these houses, I'll be happy to add you to my listings. If you don't see it here, then submit your publisher to SCBWI for review. If they approve and add your publisher to their Market Survey, let me know, and I'll add it to my list, too.

Abrams Books for Young Readers
Aladdin
Aladdin/Simon Pulse
Albert Whitman & Co.
Alfred A. Knopf
American Girl
Amulet Books
Arthur A. Levine Books
Atheneum BFYR
Balzer & Bray
Barron's Educational Series
Beach Lane Books
Bloomsbury Children's Books
Blue Sky Press
Boyds Mills Press
Candlewick Press
Capstone
Carthwheel Books
Charlesbridge Publishing
Children's Press
Christy Ottaviano Books
Chronicle Books
Clarion Books
Cricket Books
Crown Books for Young Readers
David Fickling Books
Delacorte Press
Dial Books for Young Readers
Disney Press
Disney-Hyperion
DK Publishing
Dutton Children's Books
Egmont USA
Enslow Publishers
Facts on File
Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Inc.
Feiwel and Friends
Frances Foster Books
Franklin Watts
Golden Books
G.P. Putman's Sons
Graphix
Greenwillow Books
Grosset & Dunlap
Harcourt Children's Books
HarperCollins Children's Books
HarperFestival
Heinemann-Raintree Publishers
Henry Holt Books for Young Readers
Holiday House, Inc.
Houghton Mifflin Books for Children
Katherine Tegan Books
Lee & Low Books
Lerner Publishing Broup
Little Simon
Little, Brown BFYR
Margaret Ferguson Books
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Marshall Cavendish Benchmark
Marshall Cavendish Children's Books
Milkweed Editions
Nancy Paulsen Books
National Geographic Children's Books
Orchard Books
PeachTree Publishers
Peilcan Publishing Company
Philomel Books
Pippin Press
Puffin Books
Push (YA fiction paperback series)
Random House/Golden Books
Razorbill
Roaring Brook Press
Robin Corey Books
Running Press Kids
Scholastic Press
Scholastic Trade Paperback
Schwartz & Wade
Simon & Schuster BFYR
Simon Pulse
Simon Spotlight
Sleeping Bear Press
Sourced Media Books
Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.
The Child's World
The Rosen Publishing Group
Tricycle Press
Viking Children's Books
Walden Pond Press
Walker & Co
Wendy Lamb Books
WestSide

SMALL PRESSES
Azro Press
Barefoot Books
Bay Light Publishing
Beachhouse Publishing
Bess Press
Birdsong Books
Blue Apple Books
Blooming Tree Press
Blue Marlin Publications
Boulden Publishing
Bright Ring Publishing
Bright Sky Press
Bureau for At-Risk Youth
Caxton Press
Children's Book Press
Childswork Childsplay
Dalmation Press
Dog-Eared Publications
Flashlight Press
Flux
Four Corners Publishing
Fulcrum Publishing
Gifted Education Press
Graphic Arts Center Publishing
H.J. Kramer
Hara Publishing Group
Hendrick-Long Publishing
Hickory Tales Publishing
Humanics Publishing Group
Innovative Kids
Intervisual Books
Lawells Publishing
LIttle Pickle Press
Llewellyn Worldwide Publishing
Lucent Books
Magination Press / APA
Maval Publishing
Meadowbrook Press
Mountain Press
New Leaf Books
Northland Publishing/Rising Moon Books
Northwood Books
Perspective Press
Piggy Toes
Providence Publishing
Raven Tree Press
Scobre Press Corporation
Shen's Books
Sleeping Bear Press
Sports Publishing
Tanglewood Press
Turtle Books
Twin LIghts Publishers
Westside Books
Windward Publishing

Four on a sled!

Lots of snow around here in southeastern Virginia. Deeper than my 17-year-old son has seen in his whole life.

The best sledding hill in this flat little tidewater town is right behind our house (lucky us!) so I went out with the super-sized Scholastic paperback of Ten on the Sled and found a quartet of good-natured models to pose with the book. So thank you to Kathryn, Emily, Marnie and Ev for being such good sports. And thanks to their moms and dads, too!

Happy sledding!

Kim Norman

ps: I think the super-sized Scholastic paperback (as well as regular-sized Scholastic paperback & an audio CD) are only available thru Scholastic Canada right now. I haven't seen it yet on the Scholastic US site -- but I could be wrong about that. The Sterling hardback is available... well... "everywhere books are sold" as the advertisements always say.

Hanging in the top ten!

I took this screen grab from Barnes & Noble on Tuesday night. Check out the Bestsellers in the right hand column. (Specifically, the book at number 5.)

Take THAT, Justin Bieber, looking up at me from your lowly number 10 position!

:->

Yeah, I know it changes almost hourly, and usually young Mr. Bieber wins. But it's been nice for the past week, watching my TEN ON THE SLED bounce around.

Kim Norman

TONI BUZZEO'S NEWEST BOOK!

Jacket Art ©2010 by Amy Wummer

Adventure Annie Goes to Kindergarten
by Toni Buzzeo; illustrated by Amy Wummer
Dial Books for Young Readers, 2010
ISBN: 978-0803733589

ORDER NOW!

About the Book: There won't be a zoo escapade or a high-flying circus exploit today for Adventure Annie. Instead it is her

VISIT TONI'S WEBSITE

FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN ADVENTURE!

Luckily with her zookeeper hat, her high-wire slippers, and her walkie-talkies tucked into her backpack, Adventure Annie is ready for anything--even Kindergarten! Her teacher isn't pleased when Annie tries to turn every activity into an adventure, but when the milk for snack time goes missing, it's

ADVENTURE ANNIE TO THE RESCUE!

This energetic and laugh-out-loud story is sure to get every kid excited about starting their own Kindergarten Adventure.

From the Book

"Rise and shine, Adventure Annie,"
Mommy sings at my door.
I hop to my calendar.
AT LAST!
Adventure Annie kindergarten day.
"Will I have a wild animal zoo advenure?"
"Maybe not today," says Mommy.
"Will I have a high-flying circus adventure?"
"Maybe after school," says Mommy.
"What about a daring search-and-find rescue adventure?"
"Maybe on the weekend," says Mommy.
I throw my arms out wide.
"Well then, what adventure will I have at kindergarten?"
"Sometimes," says Mommy, "kindergarten is its own adventure."
I give her the Adventure Annie thumbs-up.

Toni shares "The Story Behind the Story"...

When the color art arrived from Amy Wummer for Adventure Annie Goes to Work, I fell even more in love with my rambunctious little character and knew she was going to light up her school when Kindergarten rolled around. I wrote to my editor, Lauri Hornik, and said, "I think Annie ought to go to Kindergarten."

She responded, "Write it!" and so I did.

Now, I was not at all like Annie in Miss Smiley's Kindergarten. I was shy and quiet and afraid of my rather cranky teacher. But as with so many of my characters, I think a high-spirited child lived inside me, the Annie I am able to channel as I write the Adventure Annie stories.

I knew I wanted to use the Pattern ofThree story structure again, as I had in Adventure Annie Goes to Work., and so I began by imagining what three adventures Annie might most like to have. Then I gave her a prop for each one (a zookeeper's hat for her wild animal adventure, high-wire slippers for her high-flying circus adventure, and walkie-talkies for her search-and-rescue adventure) to pack in her backpack. As in the previous story, Annie's exploits get her into a world of trouble, but in the end, it is Annie who saves the day--as I certainly would have, if my inner child had ever been allowed out!

Reviews and Awards

"Annie's good intentions, optimism, and curiosity make her a likable character and an excellent one to dispel fears for incoming kindergartners." ~Kim T. Ha, Elkridge Branch Library, MD School Library Journal 5-10

"Toni Buzzeo's jaunty text and Amy Wummer's jovial artwork convey a gentle message while keeping the tone effervescent. Use this bubbly book to introduce your own classroom rules and encourage individual exuberance." ~ Joy Fleishhacker, "School is Cool: Fabulous Books for Reading Aloud", SLJ Curriculum Connections 8-3-10

"With the help of this ever-spunky heroine, readers will discover that, as Annie's mother puts it, "Sometimes . . . kindergarten is its own adventure. " ~Publisher's Weekly 7-26-10

"Washed with bright, cheerful watercolors, the cartoon-style pencil drawings magnify the story’s humor and high spirits. A fine addition to the Adventure Annie series, this picture book offers a dynamic alternative to stories about shy kids with kindergarten jitters." ~ Carolyn Phelan, Booklist 5-1-10

"Buzzeo’s dauntless heroine’s attitude is infectious, and Wummer gives the curly-mopped tyke all the visual verve she deserves." ~ Kirkus 6-1-10