Bookworms is a column of concise yet colloquial reviews of what's new and/or good in children's literature published the first of each month, as well as a sprinkling of interviews with some major children's writers and illustrators. A couple of the most recent columns are listed below; for a more complete listing, see the archives.

Recent Articles

Being Thankful © November 2001
School Daze © October 2001
SEX! (that got your attention) © September 2001
In the Good Old Summer Time, Try Some Good Old Classics © July 2001
Animals © May 2001
Poetry © April 2001
Meet Jerry Pinkney © March 2001
Who Wrote the Book on Love? © February 2001
The Truth, the Whole Truth & Nothing But the Truth © January 2001




My qualifications? I was an English major (with a concentration in writing), and have been working in libraries since I was 15, in one form or another. I was a librarian in public libraries for about 10 years, and have also worked in two high school libraries. I am the mother of (depending on how you count them) 3, 5 or 6 children.

So I review the books from many perspectives...as a parent, a librarian, a writer, but most of all, as someone who has never lost the feeling of wonder that books can bring.

I'm looking to expand into online publishing; the print version of Bookworms has been going on for 14 years in Baltimore's Child, a monthly parenting publication dedicated to printing useful stuff for parents in the Baltimore metropolitan area.

What do I look for? A happy meld between words and pictures, where one compliments the other...where the writers can tell stories without patronizing or preaching...or where illustrators can be artists that create pictures obviously more advanced than kindergarden attempts. I do believe that some of the best and most neglected art these days is in children's books.

Picture books are obviously for babies, preschoolers and beginning readers. Older kids books are children's novels for (roughly) fourth graders on up to young adult. And transitional books are the ones in between, with short chapters, easy to read typefaces, and a fair amount of illustrations - a transition from picture books to novels.

Follow the link for more personal information about me and my family, or the links below for business information. We're interested in hearing any feedback, so feel free with any reasonable suggestions.

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All contents © 2001, Kate Marley. All rights reserved.