Goin’ Up t’ Cripple Creek

Saturday, December 10, was a mild winter day, perfect for a drive from the Palmer Divide area to Cripple Creek. The winter scenery, carols on the car radio, and a small-town Christmas parade brought on the Christmas spirit.   

By invitation of the Teller County Parks and Rec Department, Nancy Oswald signed her new book Rescue in Poverty Gulch during the Cripple Creek Gold Camp Christmas celebration Friday and Saturday. The middle-grade chapter book  is set in Cripple Creek in 1896 and features the antics of 11-year-old Ruby Mae Oliver and her donkey, Maude.

Click to read more about the book in the review in the Salida Mountain Mail.

Christmas: Read It / Watch It

Part of the joy of Christmas is repetition. Working the same jigsaw puzzles, cooking the same recipes, baking the same cookies, so this list of books and movies is, to put it gently, ‘vintage’. What’s new can be found at Amazon or by asking the helpful, knowledgeable staff people in bookstores. My recommendations for great reading/viewing —drum roll, please.

• A Christmas Memory by Truman Capote. Yes, that Truman Capote. This is a great read aloud (ages 10 and up and all adults) if only for the line, “It’s fruitcake weather!” Simple, sweet, and, somehow subtlely and powerfully, this one carries an emotional wallop.
• The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree is perfection. Enchance the experience of reading Gloria Houston’s touching story by sharing it with young children. Set deep in the Appalachians of North Carolina, Ruthie and her mother set out to find the perfect tree Ruthie’s father picked out before he went to WW1. The story is illustrated by the great Barbara Cooney, and makes the strong point that Christmas does not depend on purchasing power.
• For something completely different there’s Denver’s own Damon Runyan. His short story, “Dancing Dan’s Christmas“  shows up on these lists from time to time and for good reason. You can read P. G. Wodehouse’s  Another Christmas Carol or have it read to you via YouTube posting. Total reading time, 17 minutes. Totally Wodehouse and that means totally funny.

My movie list is almost as dated as the books, I’m afraid. Must see Yuletide flicks –

• Numero uno – Christmas Vacation. Each year I watch and wait for good wife Beverly DeAngelo to speak truth to power. Fav line: ”What can I say? It’s Christmas, and we’re all miserable.” Yep. The antithesis of sweet Christmas books, but I love it.
• Numero two-0. About a Boy. Cynical Hugh Grant finds the Christmas spirit by saving a youngster from performing Killing Me Softly in his school’s talent show. Now, there’s an act of Christmas charity!
• Numero three-o. The Bishop’s Wife. The original Christmas chick flick, filmed in 1947. Men do not ‘get’ this movie, so call in your gf’s for tea, sandwiches and 2 hours with glamour guys Cary Grant and David Niven. The plot? Loretta Young makes angelic Grant think twice about his heavenly mission on earth. 

I’ll add to this list throughout December in other posts and award a FP gift certificate to anyone who coontributes a title - movie, book, short story, poem – to it. Merry. Merry. Merry.

 

The Thanksgiving Proclamation

October 3, 1863

By the President of the United States
A Proclamation

The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever-watchful providence of Almighty God.

In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign states to invite and provoke their aggressions, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere, except in the theater of military conflict; while that theater has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union.

Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defense have not arrested the plow, the shuttle, or the ship; the ax has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege, and the battlefield, and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.

No human counsel hath devised, nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.

It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American people. I do, therefore, invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a Day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens. And I recommend to them that, while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners, or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty hand to heal the wounds of the nation, and to restore it, as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes, to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility, and union.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United Stated States to be affixed.

Done at the city of Washington, this third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the United States the eighty-eighth.

Sculpting a Garden

Late in the summer, I had the opportunity to be in Ann Cunningham’s company. She is a fabulous sculptor, visual arts theorist, tactile artist, instructor at the Colorado School for the Blind, and gardener.

Reading by Moonlight

Her vegetable garden this year included six varieties of tomatoes and nasturtiums for salads and quick snacks while tending  her garden. Her creativity and adventurousness is exhibited here and elsewhere. Ann’s  passion for her backyard garden inspired my husband and I to double our small garden plot this year. The yield was, hmmm, spotty and sparse, but the fun of playing in the dirt grew nicely. In spite of low yield (who has time to can anyway?) the experience was far from frustrating and the marigolds ‘caught on’ as did the zucchini, in the end.

Back to Ann. Check out her permanent piece in the tactile art gallery of the Fine Arts Museum in Colorado Springs, or get an idea of her fabulous gifts by visiting AnnCummingham.com or by watching her talk about her work on youtube .

A Night at the Museum

Educators Grace Zirkelbach, Steve Walsh, Stacy Turnbull, Suzanne Frachetti, E. E. Duncan, Cat DeRose, Penny Cunningham, Martha Biery, Cheryl Beckwith.  Jamie Trumbull was unable to attend.

Does your faith in public education need a boost? Read on. On September 22, at the Denver Art Museum, Tom and I met the teachers in Denver Public Schools who wrote books for the Great Lives in Colorado History series. 

How is it that a publisher does not meet authors until the launch event for the published work? The special nature of this project explains the unusual circumstances.  Under the direction of Colorado Humanities, the teachers volunteered time to research and write Colorado biographies because they knew that they could write in a way that would engage their young students. Their books were written before Filter Press came on board as publisher of the series. Having worked intimately and intensely with their words, it was very gratifying to meet the teacher-authors and be part of the congratulatory celebration at Denver Art Museum.
 
Also attending were Filter Press authors Dan Blegen and John Stansfield.  Beth Kooima of Kooima Kreations, who provided layout and design for the books, was also present. Dan had consulted with the editorial committee on two of the Great Lives books, and John has been part of the project since Colorado Humanities and Denver Public Schools first conceived the idea of teacher written bios. John added to the celebration by giving a short first-person performance as Enos Mills. Doris McCraw, Colorado Springs author, performer, and actress, presented a bit of the life of the noble Helen Hunt Jackson.  Doris and I not only share a first name, we share a deep appreciation for Helen Hunt Jackson’s life and writing.

The most joyful moment of the evening came when Cheryl Beckwith’s students ‘rushed the stage’ to embrace their teacher.  (Cheryl’s the author of the William Bent bio.)

And the books! What’s not to love? The short books are bilingual (Spanish and English) and designed for younger readers than were the Filter Press Now You Know biographies.  All thirteen titles are now in every third grade classroom in the Denver Public School system. Click for information on purchasing a set for your child’s or grandchild’s school.

Great Lives committee: Doris Baker, Michelle Delgado, Joel Bradley, and Betty Jo Brenner in the courtyard of the Colorado Humanities offices.

The Great Lives in Colorado History biographies are in classrooms today  because of the initial idea and continued enthusiasm of Betty Jo Brenner, Program Coordinator at Colorado Humanities and Elma Ruiz, formerly the DPS Elementary Social Studies Coordinator, and the consistent attention and  hard work of Michelle Delgado, the current Elementary Social Studies Coordinator at DPS.  Why did it take so long? The Great Lives committee dealt with the writing styles of ten authors, they had to agree on a design,  the translation department at DPS spent weeks pouring over the Spanish text, the glossary terms had to be chosen and defined for our third grade audience, and  the images to illustrate the books had to be chosen, obtained, and captioned. These are the main steps. They were many others.

Working with DPS educators and Colorado Humanities affirmed what I already knew. Educators care deeply about education! They want children to learn and retain knowledge. Their expertise in how children learn and how to best present Colorado history facts and concepts to elementary students was an education for me. These exemplary educators of the Denver Public Schools are teachers you want for your children and for all children. They make a positive difference in the quality of life of their students and enrich the communities they serve. Their influence is profound.

PPLD Mountain of Authors – Things Unsaid

Live and learn – the Filter Press motto and mantra.

The Mountain of Authors event at East Library, Pikes Peak Library District, on April 2, was an opportunity to learn.  I learned much from publishers Nancy Mills and Teresa Funke who joined me on the Publisher Panel.

Nancy Mills with Tim Blevins and conference attendee

The second panel on Paranormal Fiction was fascinating. Mario Acevedo, Jeanne Stein, and Parker Blue taught me that zombies and vampires are lurking and their ‘lives’ make good stories.

Tim Blevins, Special Collections Manager at PPLD, moderated the Publisher Panel. Tim has been around the publishing block himself. He is editor of the Regional History Series published by the library district, which recently released Enterprise and Innovation in the Pikes Peak Region.

Tim kept the panel presentation focused and moving along. When our hour was over, Tim asked for concluding remarks. Here’s what I left unsaid in spite of his prompt.

1. The panel emphasized the importance of the editor’s role but did not address how to find an editor. A good place to begin is with the Rocky Mountain Publishing Professionals Guild . The Guild is also a good place to find an indexer, illustrator, designer, ghost writer, and other, well, publishing professionals.

2. During the panel discussion of e-books, I left unsaid that it is the pure economics of e-publishing that will make the format more and more dominant. A study group recently concluded that the New York Times could buy a Kindle reader for every one of its subscribers for about half the cost of delivering a print version for half a year. I could have also shared that personally I view a book as a collection of thoughts. By and large, I don’t care how the thoughts are delivered. I care about the words, about what is conveyed through ink on paper or through dots on a screen. I wonder now how the audience at Mountain of Authors viewed book formats.

3. I also omitted a sincere thank you to Librarian Krista Meier and the Pikes Peak Library District for providing the Colorado Front Range book community a way to come together for a day of celebrating books, authors, and readers.

Being part of Mountain of Authors was a good warm up to National Library Week, April 10 – 16.

The library is not a shrine for the worship of books. It is not a temple where literary incense must be burned or where one’s devotion to the bound book is expressed in ritual. A library, to modify the famous metaphor of Socrates, should be the delivery room for the birth of ideas – a place where history comes to life.
— Norman Cousins

50 Books a Year?

Michael Gove, Education Secretary in Britain, said in a recent interview that students as young as 11 years old should be asked to read a book a week because the academic demands schoolchildren have been “too low for too long.” He says that all schools should require pupils to read large numbers of whole books at the end of primary school and throughout secondary education.

A report from the study by the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) last December showed that reading standards among British teens dropped to a ranking of 20th (with the United States ranked 14th), behind South Korea, Japan, Canada and most other European countries. 

Although hard to argue with the general notion that school children would be better served by reading more books, it is less clear that the standard should be 50 books a year – or fewer – or more. Is it likely the burden of a number and deadline might kill the joy of reading for some children and be couterproductive. Would a  single standard fit all youngsters? (Is it “elitist” to think not?) Does WHICH books are read matter more than HOW MANY?   

For his own required reading list, Gove suggested these authors: JK Rowling, C.S. Lewis, Philip Pullman, Kenneth Grahame, Rosemary Sutcliff, Alan Garner, and Ursula Le Guin.

Our own eclectic list of children’s fiction starts with historical fiction by Mary Peace Finley, Nancy Oswald, and Elaine Pease. Other titles in no particular order would surely include the following:

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle ,
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis,
The Giver by Lois Lowry
The Little House Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
Treasure Island by Robert Lewis Stevenson
Call of the Wild by Jack London
Matilda by Roald Dahl
The Bromeliad Trilogy by Terry Pratchett
Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome

What are your top-10? If you could wave a magic wand and have school children read ten books, what would they be?

Congratulations to Elaine and Cathy!

Elaine Pease’s new book, Ghost Over Boulder Creek, is the first place winner, Juvenile Books category, of the EVVY Award from Colorado Independent Publishers Association. The March 19th awards dinner was attended by Elaine and Rick Pease and publisher Doris Baker.

As thrilling as it was to see Elaine called to the front to receive her literary award, more acknowledgments were on the way.  Cathy Morrison’s evocative drawing for the cover of Ghost Over made the award for Best Cover a cinch. Thank you, Cathy.

And, thank you, Elaine, for the privilege of publishing your work.

Some comments from the Judges:

Judge #1: ”I love the historical fact and details, the characters, the integration of the language, and the authenticity of the voice. The language is beautiful.”

Judge #2: ”Overall, this was an enjoyable read. I liked the dichotomy within the boy from having two very different cultures as his heritage. The ending sets up the possibility of this becoming a series.”

Judge #3: ”Very readable. The author has a good sense of pacing, which makes the book exciting. I enjoyed reading it, and I’m sure your target audience also will enjoy it.”

Rarified Air – The Newbery Medal

Like most good writers I know, guest blogger Lois Ruby belongs to a critique group. The affiliations and affection that grow in critique groups bolster the careers and writing of all. Part of the affiliation is cheering on fellow writers. Lois certainly has something to cheer about, as you’ll see in her post. Thank you, Lois, for sharing your personal connection with Clare Vanderpool with FP blog readers.

Imagine winning the Newbery Medal for the most distinguished work of children’s literature.  Last week the American Library Association awarded the Newbery to Clare Vanderpool, author of the brilliant novel, Moon Over Manifest, and her life changed in a flash.  The next best thing to clutching that medal is rubbing shoulders with the actual winner – or claiming the author as a daughter.   

Truthfully, I’m not Clare’s mother, though I have kids as old as she is.  Still, I feel as giddy as a mom.  I met her 17 years ago when she was a new mother herself, overflowing with wide-eyed zeal and the insatiable urge to write.  Once she started, story poured out of her.  There was no jamming the stopper back in the jug.  She gave our Wichita critique group the first tentative words of her novel, still sketchy in her mind.  We workshopped it and quickly recognized it as something special.  But Clare’s a born storyteller.  She needed little from us while plotting and honing the characters and the rich setting, until the result was so splendid that months ago I predicted it would be the Newbery book.  So, our critique group of four proud moms is going to New Orleans in June to hear Clare give her acceptance speech at the ALA conference. 

Don’t delay.  Go right to the library or your local bookstore for a copy of Moon Over Manifest.  Savor it for your own delicious pleasure, then find your favorite middle-grader or a whole class to share it with.  Enjoy!

Lois Ruby, is the author of  The Secret of Laurel Oaks, Journey to Jamestown, Steal Away Home and other novels for mid-grade and YA readers.   

A Look Back at 2010

Perhaps because Filter Press publishes history (fictional and non), we are always looking back on what has come before. A look back at  Filter Press in 2010—or just a look out our office window (above)—reminds us how fortunate we are.

2010 New Releases:

Mary Peace Finley’s first book since her Colorado Book Award winning title, Meadow Lark, is an engaging and lighthearted fictional account of the events leading up to the founding of Lamar, Colorado. The Midnight Ride of Blackwell Station was chosen by the Lamar Public Library as a community read in August.

Bringing The Walls Talk: Historic House Museums of Colorado by Patricia Werner to print was a joyous journey that has led to new friendships within the Colorado history community.

Lydia Griffin’s second Filter Press title was a big change from her picture book Prunes and Rupe. Lydia contributed a new biography to the Now You Know Bio series with Susan Anderson: Colorado’s Doc Susie.

Ghost Over Boulder Creek added a very good ghost story to the growing list of upper elementary historical fiction titles. Elaine Pease’s novel set in 1860′s Colorado Territory saw release late in the year.

Since April, Filter Press has worked with Colorado Humanities and Denver Public Schools to produce the Great Lives in Colorado History series to reach a younger audience with stories of pioneering Coloradans. The bi-lingual books have been an exciting and challenging project that continues into 2011.

2010 New E-books and New Audio Book:

The Midnight Ride of Blackwell Station became the first audio book released by FP. The superlative audio production began what we hope will be a continuing relationship with audio production company, Skydance Music.

We continued to expand digital offerings and have a number of titles now available for download to Kindle, Nook, and other e-readers. We first started thinking about e-books at the 1997 PubWest conference (then called the Rocky Mountain Book Publishers Association). It has become clear the book world has e-tipped, and in 2011 all new FP titles will become available in e-book format while we continue conversion of many backlist titles.
Event highlights:

Our favorite place to be each February is the Colorado Chapter of International Reading Association (CCIRA). In 2010, Mary Peace Finley was a featured author and Doris Baker was a presenter at the annual  conference in Denver, making it an extra special weekend.

March brought CIPA College, an educational program presented by the Colorado Independent Publishers Association. At the annual EVVY Awards banquet, former CIPA president Doris Baker was recipient of the 2010 Ric Simmons Memorial Life Vest Award 

Colorado Authors’ League honored Joyce B. Lohse with a 2010 Top Hand Award for her Now You Know biography, General William Palmer: Railroad Pioneer. A snowy May evening of great warmth.

In July, it was off to beautiful Gunnison, Colorado, where Doris Baker was a presenter at the Writing the Rockies conference hosted by Western State College, a chance to mingle with and learn from beginning and published writers from all over the region.

In August, we had a party to celebrate the release of The Walls Talk: Historic House Museums of Colorado by Patricia Werner. Seventy-five friends and supporters came to the Molly Brown Summer House to acknowledge Pat’s fine work.
 
The Women Writing the West conference at Rancho de los Caballeros Resort near Wickenburg, Arizona, turned out to be a delight with its spectacular high desert setting and the pervasive spirit of encouragement and cooperation among the writers.  Filter Press was represented by publisher Doris Baker and authors Nancy Oswald and Joyce B. Lohse.  Then, the pièce de résistance, Laurie Wagner Buyer’s haiku collection, Infinite Possibilities: A Haiku Journal, was recognized as a WILLA Literary Award Finalist. Memories are made of this!

In November, we were back at the Molly Brown Summer House for the Harvest of Books. Twelve Colorado authors visited with readers and signed books on a beautiful fall day. A very fun event that will be repeated in 2011.

The annual conference of Colorado Association of Libraries, also in November, gave us a chance to visit with the smartest people we know — librarians. The new Loveland setting for the conference gave us a chance to visit with our son who is pretty smart too. The 2011 conference will return to the Loveland site.

Whew. No wonder we are tired!

Wishing all our blog readers, good luck, good wine, good reads, good friends in 2011!