Author: Loree Burns

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Discipline Must Be Maintained

I have been working hard to complete a solid first draft of the bee book before the kids get out of school on June 12. I had high hopes for this goal. Until …

other deadlines crept up on me (my website update is due any day now);

and baseball season dipped into overdrive (three kids, two fields, five games, seven days);

and my Interlibrary Loan books arrived (I have been waiting for my turn with THIRTEEN REASONS WHY forever);

and the stomach bug paid a visit (two of my three kids, my sister, and my babysitter have all been knocked out with bad stomachs and/or stuffy heads).

I have not thrown in the towel, but I’ve been wringing it nervously in my hands and wondering how a girl is supposed to be devoted to a goal under such conditions.

And then I read today’s report from Roz Savage, who is in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, headed to Hawaii in a rowboat. Alone. And the dear girl set me straight. Throw in the towel? I bet Roz doesn’t even own a towel! Her motto, she says, is “Discipline must be maintained.” What does discipline mean when you are rowing from California to Hawaii?

“I’ve fallen naturally back into the routine I used on the Atlantic, of 3 hours on, 1 hour off for logbook update and a meal. Repeat 5 times a day.”

Good Lord.

::slinking back to my keyboard, folding towel neatly into desk drawer, and getting to work::

 

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On Oceans

Some people do their part for the ocean by consuming less plastic. Others collect and count trash at the beach. A few brave and amazing people take to the ocean itself in hopes of inspiring others to the cause of ocean protection.

Roz Savage, for example, has rowed across the Atlantic Ocean. What she saw during that journey inspired her to make humankind more aware of our oceans and their plight. And so, three days ago, Roz set off from the Golden Gate Bridge toward Hawaii on the first leg of her three-part, three-year row across the Pacific. Alone. She blogs from sea, and if you are all interested in the status of our oceans, or in the depth of human courage and endurance, you’ll want to follow her journey.

Dr. Marcus Eriksen embarks June 1st on a similar voyage. Marcus is not rowing to Hawaii, though. He’s sailing. On a boat made out of fifteen thousand plastic bottles. Why? In his words, “Because there’s just too much plastic clogging the oceans. The world needs to realize this.” Marcus is a colleague of Captain Charlie Moore’s at the Algalita Marine Research Foundation, and I had the pleasure of meeting him while researching TRACKING TRASH. To learn more about his mission, and to follow his journey, check out his blog.


Me and Dr. Eriksen aboard the Alguita, circa 2005

Following these two mighty conservationists as they travel the seas would be a great way to celebrate World Ocean Day, which is June 8. You could also spread the word about their efforts, visit and appreciate an ocean near you, register for the International Coastal Cleanup, or eat ocean-friendly seafood. Hey, you might even buy someone you love a copy of TRACKING TRASH.

For more ideas to celebrate the ocean, check out this World Ocean Day website.

 

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Busy Writing

Will blog soon.

Busy writing.

And photographing Hosmer. Hosmer is a Gray Tree Frog found this morning while waiting for the school bus. Isn’t he cute?

Back to work…

 

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Super Sweet Research

Without honey bees to pollinate strawberry, raspberry, almond and other crops, the folks at Häagen-Dazs would be unable to make forty percent of their sixty ice cream flavors. Worrisome, to say the least. And so the company has launched its newest flavor, Vanilla Honey Bee, to celebrate the mighty honey bee and also to educate the public about honey bee health issues.

Being a meticulous researcher, I had to check it out.

Here’s the scoop: it is good. Really, really good. According to the (very astute) Burns children, “It tastes like honey.”

Häagen-Dazs is using funds from the sale of Vanilla Honey Bee to fund research programs at the University of California, Davis and the Pennsylvania State University. They’ve also created a kid-friendly website to educate the public about honey bees and their importance to our food supply.

See? Sometimes my work is painful (stinging myself with a honey bee, for example), and other times it is oh-so-super sweet.

 

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The Secret Life of Bees

THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES
By Sue Monk Kidd
Penguin, 2002

Catgeory: Adult Novel

I might be the last person on Earth to read this book. And I didn’t even read it, I listened to it on CD. But it is so very good that I have to sing its praises here. Better late than never, you know?

First, a word on audiobooks. Listening to the marvelous Jenna Lamia read THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES has won me over completely. While I will always prefer curling ‘round a book and experiencing it wholly, I discovered that listening has its own appeal. I was amazed at Ms. Lamia’s ability to inhabit characters by voice alone, and at how comforting it was to be read to.

As for story, I was swept away. Fourteen-year-old Lily Evans journeys so very far in this book. She overcomes grief and guilt, she lets go of ignorance, she embraces family in the strange form it finally comes to her. By the end of the story, I loved Lily Evans, and I hated to see her go. And then, just this morning, I learned I can look forward to seeing her again, this time on the silver screen. THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES movie will be released on October 17, 2008. Just look at this cast:

Lily is played by Dakota Fanning;
Rosaleen is played by Jennifer Hudson;
August is played by Queen Latifah;
June is played by Alicia Keys;
May is played by Sophie Okonedo.

I can hardly wait.

A final word … on bees, of course. (Duh!) I was struck by how subtly the author instilled her novel with ‘bee love’, the comfortable feeling–familiar to those with a passion for raising bees–that comes from being close enough to see and smell and hear and taste and touch the hive. It added so much to the story.

 

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Getting Buzzy


My honeybees, circa 1999

I submitted a writing project that was due today, and so can officially turn my attention back to the bee book. This makes me very happy. And as I was making room on my desk for the pages of research notes, stacks of interview transcripts, and giant binder of bee images, I came across this photo of my sons on their very first Halloween.

Feels like a good omen…

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Blue Lipstick

BLUE LIPSTICK
By John Grandits
Clarion, 2008

Category: Concrete Poems

I know! I know! A Poetry Friday post from me? Crazy. But I am so excited about this collection of poems that I have to share.

Concrete poems, for the uninitiated, are poems whose words are displayed purposefully and artistically so as to expand the meaning or context of the poem. The resulting images lend nuance and intrigue and humor. For example, the poem “Talking to my Stupid Younger Brother Is Like Swimming Upstream in a River to Nowhere” is a hilarious and oh-so-realistic conversation between fifteen-year-old Jessie and her younger brother Robert; the fifty-four lines of the poem are arranged in the shape of a river. (For a better explanation from a better-qualified explainer (is that a word?), check out this How-To by concrete poet Paul B. Janeczko.)

Anyway, I was inspired to pick up BLUE LIPSTICK after hearing John read from the collection at IRA last week. His poems are funny, realistic, accessible, and completely brilliant. BLUE LIPSTICK is a glimpse into the life of a contemporary teenager; Jessie touches on everything from bad hair days to silver spandex … and she brought me straight back to the 1980s (er, my teenage years).

The truly fabulous news is that BLUE LIPSTICK is a follow-up to John’s earlier collection of concrete poems, called TECHNICALLY, IT’S NOT MY FAULT, which gives reader’s a look at life from younger brother Robert’s point of view. TECHNICALLY is so on my To Read list.

Happy Poetry Friday!

 

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My Dad’s a Birdman

MY DAD’S A BIRDMAN
By David Almond
Illustrated by Polly Dunbar
Candlewick, 2008

Category: Middle Grade Fiction

I’ve said it before, but I love meandering through the library stacks, judging books by their covers. Just last week I came upon MY DAD’S A BIRDMAN and was taken in by the title, the jacket art, the cover beneath the jacket. It is a gorgeous little package and there was simply no way to leave without it.

Reading the book felt the same way. One glimpse into Lizzie’s world and I was hooked: Lizzie’s dad, whose sadness is barely hinted at in words and pictures; Auntie Doreen, who just doesn’t understand sadness that cannot be cured with dumplings; and Lizzie herself, who loves her dad enough to don wings and fly. I thought the book was a Dahl-esque little masterpiece of oddness and irresistibility and I highly recommend it. In fact, I have been told by a certain kidoodle in this house that I should read it again … out loud.

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Tracking Trash at the Boston Authors Club

The Boston Authors Club has named TRACKING TRASH one of six 2008 Highly Recommended Books for Young Readers, which means I will be attending the 11th Annual Boston Authors Club Award Luncheon at the Boston Public Library on Thursday. Believe it or not, I have only been to the BPL once, and that was one hundred years (or so) ago. I am excited to get back there!

I am also excited about the possibility of meeting the authors of these other Highly Recommended titles:

Ralph Fletcher, THE ONE O’CLOCK CHOP (Holt, 2007)

Jack Gantos, I AM NOT JOEY PIGZA (FSG, 2007)

Peter Johnson, WHAT HAPPENED (Front Street, 2007)

Mitali Perkins, RICKSHAW GIRL (Charlesbridge, 2007)

Jane Yolen and Robert J. Harris, THE ROGUES (Philomel, 2007)

These 2008 Young Reader Award Recipients will also be honored on Thursday (but as award winners, they have to give speeches!):

Brian Selznick, THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET (Scholastic, 2007)

Elizabeth Alexander and Marilynn Nelson, MISS CRANDALL’S SCHOOL FOR YOUNG LADIES AND LITTLE MISSES OF COLOR (Wordsong/Boyds Mills, 2007)

Mark Peter Hughes, LEMONADE MOUTH (Delacorte, 2007)

For a complete list of Boston Author Club 2008 Awards (including adult authors and titles) as well as details on Thursday’s award luncheon, visit the official Boston Author Club Award website.

 

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In My Own Backyard

Well, sorta.

These are my neighbors … and their brandy-new hive of honeybees.

Whenever I need a little inspiration, I need only head over to their place. How cool is that?