The South Carolina State Library's Center for the Book has selected How I Became a Pirate, by Melina Long, to represent South Carolina at the 2013 National Book Festival in Washington, DC. The book is the state's selection for the National Book Festival's "Discover Great Places Through Reading Map". Each state selects one title of fiction or non-fiction, a book about the state or by an author from the state that is a good read for children or young adults. The map is distributed at the Pavilion of the States at the Festival and lists "Great Reads About Great Places".
About How I Became a Pirate - When Jeremy Jacob sets off on a pirate adventure, he loves doing everything the pirates do . . . but then he finds out what they DON'T do.
Pirates have green teeth--when they have any teeth at all. I know about pirates, because one day, when I was at the beach building a sand castle and minding my own business, a pirate ship sailed into view.
So proclaims Jeremy Jacob, a boy who joins Captain Braid Beard and his crew in this witty look at the finer points of pirate life by the Caldecott Honor--winning illustrator David Shannon and the storyteller Melinda Long. Jeremy learns how to say "scurvy dog," sing sea chanteys, and throw food . . . but he also learns that there are no books or good night kisses on board: "Pirates don't tuck." A swashbuckling adventure with fantastically silly, richly textured illustrations that suit the story to a T.
How I Became a Pirate is published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Melinda Long is a teacher and author and lives in Greenville, South Carolina. Melinda began her writing career on a rainy day when she was six. Her mother, tired of hearing how bored Melinda was, told her to write a story about Yogi Bear and friends. She even gave Melinda a typewriter to use. It was so much fun, Melinda just kept writing. Now it's one of her favorite things to do.
David Shannon is the author and illustrator of many highly praised books for children. Born in Washington, D.C., he grew up in Spokane, Washington. He graduated from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, with a fine arts degree, and then moved to New York City. His editorial illustrations have appeared in The New York Times, Time, and Rolling Stone, and his artwork has appeared on numerous book jackets.
The National Book Festival will be held on the National Mall on September 21-22, 2013. It will feature award-winning authors, poets and illustrators in several pavilions dedicated to categories of literature. Festival-goers can meet and hear firsthand from their favorite authors, get books signed, have photos taken with mascots and storybook characters and participate in a variety of learning activities. The Pavilion of the States will represent reading and library programs and literary events in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. trusts and territories. Children attending the festival are given maps to take to each state's table to have that state stamped to receive a prize.
The South Carolina Center for the Book is the South Carolina Affiliate of the Library of Congress Center for the Book and is a cooperative project of the South Carolina State Library, the University of South Carolina School of Library and Information Science, and the Humanities Council SC. The Center is located at 1500 Senate Street, Columbia.
For more information, please visit www.readsc.org.
