We don't do stars...
We don't do thumbs...
We read children's books and grade them in 10 categories:
literary quality
plot
voice
originality
descriptive ability
humor (if attempted)
illustrations (if present)
believability of characters
believability of situations
overall reading enjoyment

There is no grading curve. There are no points for classroom participation. There is no extra credit.
If you disagree, come speak to us after class.

The Grading System

A+.....this means (guess what) we think it's great. So great it surprised even us.
A.....this means it's pretty darn good. A book we'd recommend to just about everyone we know.
B.....better than most. Not exactly Shakespeare for kids, though, if you get our drift.
C.....mediocre. Like the color beige, it didn't stand out.
D.....we didn't like it. There were more bad aspects than good ones.
F.....it reeked of badness. We read it over and over when we are in dire need of hysterical laughter.
F-.....We're pretty sure Dante had a circle of hell for the people who wrote these...and a lower circle for those who published them.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Food for Thought...and don't forget to enter contest to win real food (a.k.a. chocolate) and a signed copy of Shannon Hale's latest!

"Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world."
-Albert Einstein

And speaking of imagination... I met Shannon Hale at a book signing Friday and she signed the copy of FOREST BORN for our contest. (Remember to enter here: http://thechildrensbookreporter.blogspot.com/2009/09/another-contest-to-win-free-stuff.html)
She has a seriously crazy imagination, and her chat/signing was a blast. If you haven't read any of her books, do so. Really.

2 comments:

Cate said...

hmmm. I have never known just what to think about this quote. At first I like the sentiment, especially as I love the imagination and all it can create. But then a quote from G.K. Chesterton always pops into my head: "Truth, of course, must of necessity be stranger than fiction, for we have made fiction to suit ourselves." I feel like both express something important, although I suppose knowledge and truth are not necessarily the same thing. Perhaps they simply serve as a warning against either extreme.

Faith said...

Good point...although I would certainly argue that knowledge and truth are not only different but different species altogether. As Tolkien skillfully pointed out, for fiction to be good, it must be true. Not real, not history, but true to the human story. Fairy tales are true though not real.
Additionally, without knowledge, imagination is impossible... But where would Lewis Carroll, for example, be with no imagination and only knowledge? An accountant, I suppose. Certainly not the author of a beautiful make-believe story that elucidates so many truths.