Kindle Daily Post

Guest Blogger: Betsy Landers on Encouraging Children’s Reading

Guest blogger Betsy Landers is president of the National PTA.

Securing your children library cards and spending 30 minutes each day reading together are simple gestures that can dramatically improve their literacy.  These are also just two of the 10 family reading tips National PTA is offering in connection to the newly launched PTA Family Reading Experience, Powered by Kindle.

With the help of parents, educators, and other experts, we have developed a fun, easy-to-organize event for the entire family coupled with a short list of ways adults can pass along a lifelong love of reading to children.

1. Encourage reading in your home

Set an example by reading in front of your child for both pleasure and practicality. You can even create a special space in your home where you can read together.

2. Spend 30 minutes each day reading together

When reading with your child, ask your child to describe what is going on in the scene or happening in the story.

3. Sign up your child for a library card

A library card is essential and free for your child to gain access to countless books. Find a library near you at www.publiclibraries.com.

4. Attend a library event

Most libraries organize weekly or monthly events, such as story times, that you and your child can attend together.

5. Become involved at their school

Communicate regularly with your children’s teachers to help monitor their progress, and ask what you can do at home to support their reading.

6. Applaud your child for reading

Reward your child for reading a certain number of books or finishing a challenging book just as you would other activities, such as basketball or piano.

7. Give books as presents

Give books as a gift, especially on topics your child will love, to encourage and support their interests. Check out the list of books PTA families love to read together.

8. Help your child write their own stories

Encourage your child to write stories based on his or her experiences or favorite characters from other books, movies, or TV shows.

9. Make flashcards to learn new words

Help your child study new vocabulary words or create colorful bookmarks to mark his or her place.

10. Take your child to the eye doctor

Vision problems can interfere with reading development. Schedule an eye exam to ensure that any issues are promptly addressed.

To find more inspiration and download family reading activities, visit PTA.org/familyreading and www.amazon.com/kindleforkids.

Guest Blogger: National PTA President Betsy Landers

Kindle and the National PTA are working together to help families get more involved in their children’s reading and enhance their emerging interest in books. Guest blogger Betsy Landers, National PTA President, shares thoughts on how families can help develop a love of reading among kids.

We recently surveyed National PTA members and asked them to share books that inspired their love for reading.   Among the many nostalgic responses we received, what stood out were the many cherished moments members recalled reading together as family. 

Consistent family engagement is one of the best ways to develop an early love of reading, especially for children who are graduating from picture books to chapter books and beginning to explore everything that reading has to offer.  According to the U.S. Department of Education,“If daily reading begins in infancy, by the time the child is 5 years old, he or she has been fed roughly 900 hours of brain food. Reduce that experience to just 30 minutes a week, and the child’s hungry mind loses 770 hours of nursery rhymes, fairy tales, and stories. A kindergarten student who has not been read to could enter school with less than 60 hours of literacy nutrition. No teacher, no matter how talented, can make up for those lost hours of mental nourishment.” 

And because families’ role in literacy does not end when children enter school, National PTA and Amazon Kindle are launching a new program – the Family Reading Experience, Powered by Kindle -- to help families get more involved in their children’s reading.  We are offering a set of free activities to PTA members that engage the entire family and focus on improving reading skills between kindergarten and fifth grade.  The Family Reading Experience program helps teach parents and adults strategies for participating in their children’s reading process, improving their children’s reading comprehension, and motivating their children to read more frequently.  As a new National Sponsor and the “Official E-Reader of the National PTA”, Amazon Kindle also will donate Kindle e-readers, which we will distribute to PTAs in low-income or at-risk schools.

 

Parents interested in bringing the Family Reading Experience, Powered by Kindle to their schools can learn how at PTA.org/familyreading. To learn more about the benefits of a Kindle e-reader for kids visit www.amazon.com/kindleforkids

 

Top 12 Things Author Jessica Park Flat-Out Loved About 2012

Author Jessica Park writes about the top 12 things she flat-out loved about 2012. On the Island author Tracey Garvis Graves raved about the dialogue in Jessica’s book Flat-Out Love calling it “snappy, smart, hilarious, and (that) it crackles with subtle humor.” In Flat-Out Love, college freshman Julie Seagle is torn between Matt, the handsome guy she likes, and Finn, the guy she flat out loves. The thing about love, in all its twisty, bumpy permutations—it always throws you a few curves. And no one ever escapes unscathed.

1. Naked Prince Harry. The pure abandon! The running wild! I found it all fabulous.
2. Young Adult and New Adult are undeniably viable genres. 2012 was a huge year for indie authors in so many ways, not the least of which was proving that they know their readers and what sells, and they taught big publishers a thing or two. 
3. Bloggers. I would be nowhere as an author without bloggers. Their generosity and unfailing championing of my books and many others has been crucial in helping authors find readers.
4. Readers sharing stories with me about pain, family, and love in the face of tragedy. Every few weeks, I get a touching, honest letter from a reader who has connected with Flat-Out Love very intensely. I love that readers are able to open up to me and to let me know how they were moved by one or another aspects of the story.
5. Social networking. What would I be without it? I’ll tell you: I’d be a sobbing mess of loneliness. I work at home, and Facebook and Twitter are near lifelines to the outside world for support, friendship, humor. They’re the author’s water cooler.
6. Jalapenos in sushi. I’ve gone to L.A. a few times this year and discovered this trend. Manchester, New Hampshire is not known for its sushi, so when I was there I did what I could to gorge myself. Oh, God, I’m hungry now…
7. Pink hair dye. The general population should consider themselves lucky that I don’t walk around armed with latex gloves and a tube of dye.
8. Clint Eastwood and the empty chair.  ‘Nuff said.
9. My fellow authors. What a source of strength, inspiration, and support. When in the throes of a writing crisis, nobody gets one author like another. Emergency phone calls are always answered and freak outs always understood. 
10. Fancy schmancy events. I was lucky enough to attend Amazon’s big press conference in Santa Monica last September. I got to hang out with my buddy Michele Scott, meet the outrageously funny Andrew E. Kaufman, and mingle with Teresa Ragan and Barry Eisler, both of whom were tremendously kind and generous with their advice and experience.
11. Writing. I wrote another book (finally!), and it’s very different from Flat-Out Love. It’s darker, stronger, sexier, more layered, and more intense. Amazon Children’s Publishing picked up the book and will publish it this summer. It’s nice to know that I might not be a one-hit wonder.
12. The best thing about 2012? The indescribably delightful combination of Tumblr and Adam Levine’s appearance on “American Horror Story.” I mean, God bless all of you who took the time to showcase the important parts of that episode in a five-second looping clips. You guys are wonderful. Seriously.

Guest Blogger: Stefan Bachmann, author of "The Peculiar"

In The Peculiar, first-time novelist Stefan Bachmann crafts an elaborate alternate steampunk Britain, set after the Smiling War, when a door to the Old Country was opened and faeries of all types streamed into Bath. Here he is, talking about the top 5 questions kids asked him during his book tour. 

Back in October my publisher sent me on tour for my first book, The Peculiar. This was pprrrettty much the most exciting thing ever. I got to run around the US in a banana yellow car, and go to NYC, and Comic Con, and lots of schools, and meet all the awesome kid readers, and give presentations, and at the end of each presentation we always did a round of Q & A. And after a while I started noticing that some questions came up more than other questions. Like, a lot more. Sometimes several times from the same group, because kids would forget that someone else had asked it and would be, like, “Oh, me! I have a GREAT question.”

So I did this super-scientific tally after each presentation and added them all together, and here they are. . . .

The five most-asked questions from kids:

1. “Where do you get your ideas?”

2. “Will there be a movie? I like movies.”

3. “How much money do you earn? I like money.”

4. “Why does Hettie have branches growing out of her head? That's dumb/weird/rather interesting.”

5. “Is Mr. Lickerish’s faery butler based on the video game Slender?”

So. Here are the answers:

1. Where do I get my ideas? Umm, I meant to pick the kid next to you. Oh, you wanted to ask that question, too?

*flees*

Not really. But ideas tend to come from random places, and in this case the idea for a sinister steampunk-y England with folklore creatures and magic and clockwork birds came from nothing I can actually remember. It basically developed over a long period of time out of all the things I liked, and that’s not a very exciting answer, so I usually just said, “Nineteenth-century literature and Disney movies.” So, Treasure Planet, Atlantis, The Great Mouse Detective. Because Disney movies are awesome.

2. I don’t know if there’ll be a movie of The Peculiar! There’s a tiny chance? Maybe? I have a fantastic film agent who handled the movie deals for such things as Twilight and Eragon, but it’s a long road from book to screen and even if The Peculiar is optioned one never knows whether a movie will actually be made. ’Twould be cool, though.

3. Woah, sorry, what?

Okay, I only said that the first time. And I really should have been expecting this question, because had an author ever visited my school while I was growing up, I totally would have asked this. But of course one doesn’t talk about these things, so I usually just said, “I won’t tell you, mostly because it doesn’t matter. If you’re a writer you’ll write whether you’re paid a bajillion dollars or no money at all. You’ll do it because you love it, and because if you don’t write you’ll go insane.”

4. Because branches-growing-out-of-heads is cool? Obviously?

(What I actually said: Because Hettie (and her brother Bartholomew) is a Peculiar, half faery and half human, and somehow I needed to show that Peculiars were instantly and recognizably different from the Victorian humans and the wild, suspicious faeries. Therefore, branches.)

5. Mr. Lickerish’s faery butler is not based on the Slender Man. They’re both tall and creepy and have the tendency to show up when they’re least wanted, but the Slender video game didn’t even exist when I was writing this book. That’s okay, though. I loved this question.

I loved all the questions, really. Even the repeat questions and the silly ones. Kid readers are the best, and once we got these five out of the way, we got to all the smart and interesting ones about what it’s like living in Switzerland and the differences between it and the US, and why I wrote a book as a teenager instead of waiting until I was thirty years old and wise, and whether The Peculiar is secretly a deep metaphor for real-world issues. (Answer: Up to you! I just hope it’s an exciting and slightly frightening read for all sorts of different readers.)

Author Theo Lawrence’s Music Inspiration

Author Theo Lawrence shares a collection of songs that inspired him while writing the young adult novel, Mystic City.

A collection of songs that inspired me while I was writing Mystic City and represent some of the struggles and feelings of my main characters, Aria and Hunter, and others:

 “Cold War” by Janelle Monáe: I love the cool tones of Janelle’s voice, plus the funky beat of this song. The line “Do you know what you’re fighting for?” was something I thought about a lot as I wrote Mystic City.

“You’re Beautiful” by James Blunt: The unique sound of James’s voice always gets me (and he’s great in concert!). This is what I imagine Hunter would play on the guitar and sing to Aria if he were a songwriter.

 “Love Is a Losing Game” by Amy Winehouse: For me, this is Davida’s song. The dark, sultry tone of Amy Winehouse’s voice never grows old. She is able to capture such heartbreak, and this is what Davida feels regarding Hunter, who loves Aria—not her.

 “Poison & Wine” by The Civil Wars: Another beautiful and tragic love song. This song is about the push and pull of love, which is very present in Aria and Hunter’s relationship.

 “The Cure” by Jordin Sparks: Jordin is a fantastic singer. I like this song because it’s about the love you give being a cure for previous heartache. It reminds me that, with love, every broken heart can mend.

 “Mexico” by Jump Little Children": I love the simplicity of this song. When someone hurts you, sometimes you want them to get as far away from you as possible and never come back! At times, that’s how Aria feels about her parents.

 “Bleeding Love” by Leona Lewis: How can you not love this song? Aria and Hunter’s love is forbidden, but he has awakened something special inside of her that she never thought she would feel—and she’s not going to let anyone take that away from her.

 “Stupid for Your Love” by Brendan James: Have you ever liked someone so much that it made you do crazy, stupid things you’d never do otherwise? That’s what this song is about—it’s something I can relate to, and so can most of the characters in Mystic City.

 “Nice to Meet You Anyway” by Gavin DeGraw: This song expresses exactly how Aria feels when Hunter brings her to Java City in the beginning of the book. She’s intrigued by him and wants to get to know him better, but she’s engaged to Thomas . . . plus Hunter is a rebel mystic. And yet there’s something that draws her to him. Thankfully, Aria listens to her gut instead of her parents!

 “Us Against the World” by Coldplay: Toward the end of the novel, this is 100 percent how Aria and Hunter feel. Sometimes it really does come down how much you’re willing to fight for what you want when the odds are stacked against you.

 “L.E.S. Artistes” by Santogold: Aside from having a great beat, this is one of Aria’s theme songs. One of the lines is “I hope it will be worth what I give up.” This is what Aria thinks when she decides to betray her family and support Hunter and the mystic cause. She is doing what she believes is right, but in order to do so, she has to go against everything she knows.

 “Another Country” by Tift Merritt: Love is many things, but sometimes it can be so wonderful that it transports you to a whole new place. That is what Aria and Hunter feel for each other, and that is what this song expresses to me—that love is worth fighting for because it’s truly magical.

 “Kissed It” by Macy Gray: I love how fun this song is. It’s what I imagine Aria might sing to her parents if she ever had the chance!

 “New York, New York” by Frank Sinatra: Although this standard was originally performed by Liza Minnelli in the Scorsese film of the same name, the Frank Sinatra version is my favorite. It celebrates the city of Manhattan . . . so it’s the perfect song to encapsulate Mystic City!

Learn more about "Mystic City".

New "The Cat in the Hat" holiday books on Kindle

The new release of The Cat in the Hat holiday books on Kindle, is neatly happening in conjunction with the release of a new kid’s learning series on PBS. The new PBS show, The Cat in the Hat Know a Lot About That!, is an animated series which helps kids navigate and explore the natural world. The series premieres on November 21^st on PBS.

In this essay, author Kate Klimo shares the evolution of The Cat in the Hat Know a Lot About That!.

See the complete essay by Kate Klimo.

“Diary of a Wimpy Kid” Book 7 Available on Kindle

Audiences have become captivated by the “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series. In fact, books 1-6 have been the most popular children’s book series on Amazon during 2012.

Today fans will at last get their hands on a copy of The Third Wheel, the seventh book in the enormously popular series. We know that The Third Wheel involves Greg Heffley wading into the angsty pool of middle school romance with its social implications, third-hand accounts of romantic interest, and inevitable break-ups.

We are excited to offer “The Third Wheel” on Kindle as is author Jeff Kinney: “What’s been very rewarding to me as an author has been seeing kids carrying their dog-eared copies of Diary of a Wimpy Kid with them. The Kindle allows kids to have the whole series at their fingertips, and the reading experience is crisp and clean every time…with no chance of today’s breakfast staining the pages.”

The Kindle editions of the “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series include an exclusive letter to readers from the author, Jeff Kinney, which will be included in each of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid Kindle eBooks, including The Third Wheel.

Browse the Jeff Kinney store to learn more about Jeff Kinney and the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.

Why Adults Read YA or Should If They Don’t Already

Guest post by young adult author Maureen McGowan. Her most recent book, Deviants, released on October 30, 2012. In a post-apocalyptic world, where the earth is buried by asteroid dust Glory, a sixteen-year-old orphan, must conceal the superpowers she and her younger brother possess in order to survive.

Until three years ago, I hadn’t read a young adult (YA) novel since I was twelve. Why would I want to read books meant for kids? When I was a teen, most YA novels were decidedly juvenile, so I went straight from Nancy Drew to Sidney Sheldon. But in the intervening (cough) decades, YA fiction has changed.

And I’m happy to confess, I now love YA fiction.

It turns out that I’m not alone. A recently reported Bowker Market Research study found that 55 percent of buyers of YA fiction were adults and 78% of the time they were purchasing for their own reading—that is, they weren’t buying the books for their kids.

If you’re an adult like me, who hasn’t read a teen book in years, here are some reasons you should try:

1. YA fiction is fast paced. In most YA fiction these days, there’s no padding and no excessive description or narrative.
2. Teen novels tackle big subjects without being pedantic or preachy. Today’s YA novels don’t hit you over the head with a “message” but at the same time don’t shy away from big questions and issues. 
3. They are penetrable. While many tackle complicated topics, you don’t need a PhD in English to interpret YA novels, and most have an uplifting ending.
4. There’s plenty of drama, conflict and tension. The teen years are full of heightened emotions. It’s when we experience our first loves, first heartbreaks, first huge setbacks and triumphs. And first experiences are storytelling goldmines.
5. YA fiction blurs genre lines.
   
   • Want a novel set during the Holocaust and narrated by Death? YA has that. Try The Book Thief by Markus Zuzak.
   • Want a story with horror and adventure, set in a future (that feels like the past), written in a literary style? YA has that. Try Blood Red Road by Moira Kelly. 
   • Want a sci-fi re-imagining of Jane Austen’s Persuasion? YA has that. Try For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund. 
   • Want a supernatural thriller, in a dystopian setting, with a dash of both romance and horror? Try my new YA novel Deviants.

I could list more reasons why I love YA but, bottom line, I’ve found most books in this category to be engaging, entertaining, thoughtful and well written.

So, if you haven’t read a YA novel since you were a teen—try one. It just might make reading fun again.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid Comes to Kindle

For young readers and adults alike, audiences have become captivated by the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. Books 1-6 have been the most popular children’s book series on Amazon during 2012, and arrive as Kindle eBooks for the first time today. As part of the exciting launch, Kindle has received an exclusive letter to readers from the author, Jeff Kinney, which will be included in each of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid Kindle eBooks.

Author Jeff Kinney is as excited as we are about bringing his series to Kindle: “What’s been very rewarding to me as an author has been seeing kids carrying their dog-eared copies of Diary of a Wimpy Kid with them. The Kindle allows kids to have the whole series at their fingertips, and the reading experience is crisp and clean every time…with no chance of today’s breakfast staining the pages.”

In addition to the exclusive letter from the author, Kindle has also received a very special original illustration portraying Greg Heffley, the main character of the series, reading on his very own Kindle (see above).

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, as well as Kinney’s illustrations, have captivated audiences and fans can’t seem to get enough of Greg Heffley, the main character. We’re thrilled to have Kindle editions now available for books one through six of the series as well as pre-order available for book seven, which is the most pre-ordered Children’s title in print for 2012.

Browse the Jeff Kinney store to learn more about Jeff Kinney and the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.

October's Kindle Books for $3.99 or Less

For great books at a low price, browse this month's 100 Kindle books for $3.99 or less, a diverse offering available all month. These deals expire on October 31, 2012. Here's a selection of our favorites from October's great collection:

 

Literature & Fiction 

When It Happens to You: A Novel in Stories by Molly Ringwald, $3.99

General Nonfiction 

All New Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew, $2.99

 

Kids & Teens 

The Secret Zoo by Bryan Chick, $1.99

 

Mysteries & Thrillers

77 Days in September by Ray Gorham, $1.99

 

Romance

Wild Montana Sky (The Montana Sky Series) by Debra Holland, $1.99

 

Science Fiction & Fantasy 

American Gods: The Tenth Anniversary Edition (Enhanced Edition) by Neil Gaiman, $3.99

Biography & Memoir 

The Master of Disguise: My Secret Life in the CIA by Antonio J. Mendez, $0.99