Spring 2016 Newsletter
The Center for Children's and Young Adult Literature
African American Read-In
Second Annual African American Read-In Feb. 26, 2016 Join the second annual African American Read-In on Friday, February 26, 1:00-5:00 p.m. in the Dixie Marie Wooten Commons Area in Hodges Library. Students, faculty, staff, administrators—all are invited to read an excerpt from a favorite book by an African American author. Readers can bring a book to the reading or select a text from African-American authored books that will be on display the day of the event. Contemporary, award-winning children’s and young adult books by African-American authors will be available for browsing in the Center for Children’s and Young Adult Literature (CCYAL) (3rd floor, Hodges Library) during the month of February, and during the event. Readers are encouraged to find texts to read prior to the event. Search the Libraries’ catalog (e.g., American literature—African American authors), browse the display in the CCYAL, examine the bibliography of recommended books at the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) website or check other popular book blogs and websites listed below:·
The Brown Bookshelf
The Dark Fantastic
If you want to participate as a reader, email Dr. Susan Groenke, Director of the CCYAL, at sgroenke@utk.edu to reserve a 5-minute time slot between 1:00-5:00 p.m. Sponsored nationally by the Black Caucus of the National Council of Teachers of English and the International Literacy Association, the Read-In makes literacy and the literary works of African American authors a central part of Black History Month. UT’s Read-In is sponsored by the CCYAL in conjunction with the College of Education, the College of Communications and Information Sciences, the College of Arts and Sciences, and Hodges Library.
SEYA Book Fest
Meet the Authors Series
February 17th-Carolyn Lee Adams (author of Ruthless)
March 2nd- Adam Silvera (via Skype-author of More Happy than Not)
March 9th- I.W. Gregorio (via Skype-author of None of the Above)
April 4th-Rita Williams-Garcia (author of Gone Crazy in Alabama)*
April 17th- Ashley Hope Perez (via Skype- author of Out of Darkness)
*Rita Williams-Garcia will be speaking in Hodges Auditorium from 7:00-9:00 p.m. A light reception will precede at 6:00 p.m.
Looking Back on the Events of 2015
Adam Gidwitz Author Reading and School Visit
In October 2015 we were happy to host Adam Gidwitz, author of the popular trilogy of Grimm's Tales and more recently the reinvention of The Empire Strikes Back, entitled So You Want to Be a Jedi?
He spent the morning enchanting students at Episcopal School of Knoxville, and then the afternoon with students at Gresham Middle School. Gidwitz made traditional fairy tales cool again for middle schoolers. Gidwitz also spent an hour talking about writing with students in the writing club at Gresham. In the evening, he also spoke to the UTK community in Hodges Library, and dazzled audience members with instructions from his latest book on how to be a Jedi. Gidwitz reminded his readers—both young and young-at-heart—that seemingly “new” stories about Luke Skywalker and Harry Potter are timeless human stories, just recycled. We’ll take Gidwitz’s recycling, for sure!
Story Time at the UTK Early Learning Center
PhD Specialization in Children's and Young Adult Literature
Students interested in researching past and current trends in children’s and young adult literature now can do so at UT, thanks to the new PhD specialization that began Fall, 2015.
The doctoral specialization in children’s and young adult literature will explore the history and evolution of the two genres and topics, including reading theory and pedagogy and literary criticism. It will be housed in in the Department of Theory and Practice in Teacher Education in UT’s College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences.
The specialization adds a needed research and scholarship component to support the mission of UT’s Center for Children’s and Young Adult Literature, said Susan Groenke, center director and the doctoral program faculty advisor.
The Center for Children's and Young Adult Literature
Email: ccyal@utk.edu
Website: http://ccyal.cci.utk.edu/
Location: 1015 Volunteer Boulevard, Knoxville, TN, United States
Phone: (865) 974-2305
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ccyalutk/?ref=ts&fref=ts
Twitter: @CCYAL