The Book Rat: New & Noteworthy: Battle of the Book-Movie Trailers, Magical Middle Grades, Feel-goodyness & more!

Woo, New & Noteworthy, back again to check and/or wreck this! Feel free to hop around to what interests you. =)
In this issue:

All that and a bag of chips after the jump!

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, a lot of people are looking for ways to help. Heading into the insane spending of the holiday season, the devastation it caused comes into even sharper relief. So why not use your holiday spending to do some good? Scholastic, Toys for Tots and The UPS Store are teaming up to donate a minimum of 50,000 books this holiday season, including a focus on donating to those who were hardest hit by Sandy. For every Storia book bought before Dec. 31st, Scholastic will donate a book!

New York, NY – November 15, 2012 –Scholastic (NASDAQ: SCHL), the global children’s publishing, education and media company, The UPS Store and Marine Toys for Tots Foundation are launching a READ EVERY DAY holiday campaign to promote the love of reading and encourage all families to help give books to kids who need them most, including those who lost books due to Hurricane Sandy. This holiday literacy drive is part of Scholastic’s global literacy campaign, Read Every Day. Lead a Better Life, an effort to help all children experience the love of reading and owning a book.

Here is how families can help to contribute books to kids in need this holiday season:
1) Download Storia^®, Scholastic’s new teacher-recommended children’s ereading app, and help pass on the reading to kids in need. Upon downloading Storia, families will receive five free children’s ebooks to start a home digital library. For every additional ebook purchased on Storia now through Dec. 31, 2012, Scholastic will donate a children’s book to a child in need through the Toys for Tots Literacy Program (with a minimum of 50,000 books committed).
2) Visit a participating The UPS Store location across the U.S. now through Dec. 31, 2012 to purchase a donation card to benefit the Toys for Tots Literacy Program, a year-round initiative of the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation. Every dollar donated helps provide new books from Scholastic for less fortunate children in local communities throughout the U.S. Customers can also donate online at The UPS Store Facebook page. As part of the longstanding collaboration withScholastic Literacy Partners, The UPS Store location that raises the most money during the holidays will receive 500 books to share with families in their local community.

See the full press release and find out more here.

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It's a battle of the YA book-to-movie trailers this week, as they all scrambled to have their trailers shown to that rabid fanbase - midnight viewers of the last Twilight movie, Breaking Dawn pt II. Cassandra Clare's The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl's Beautiful Creatures and Stephenie Meyer's adult cross-over, The Host all premiered their trailers this week, and fan-reaction videos/blog posts abounded.
Here are all three trailers, for your viewing pleasure. Which (if any) are you excited to see?

My thoughts:

When it comes to The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones I think I might have an advantage in seeing this one, in that I don't love the book. I mean, I liked it okay enough to read book 2 (and it's quick, so I liked it enough to tear through it and be almost eager for book 2); but then the glamour faded and I didn't feel a need to read past book 2 once I realized it was all going to be the same dreck anyway... So I don't have huge expectations to be let down, you know? I think I can sit back and enjoy the movie for what it is, and not flip out over all the little places (and you know there are a million) where it doesn't match the book. Plus it looks like it's going to be visually stunning.

Beautiful Creatures... Oh, Beautiful Creatures. There's a 2nd trailer for this, too, and can I just say holy shit. HOLY. SHIT. I've had the first 2 books sitting on my shelves since the summer of 2010, when I met the ladies & got them signed at ALA, and I haven't picked them up because there always just seemed to be more pressing things to read (and all of the fangirling was making me nervous that they were going to be fluffy throwaway). But now... Oh man, now I think I need to read these ASAP. The trailer (both trailers) were flipping fantastic, and that cast! I have basically zero nerves going into this one, I highly doubt it will be a letdown. The plan is to wait until after the movie to read the books, so that I'm not reading it so close to the premier that I'll remember and nitpick everything, but honestly, after seeing that, I don't know if I can. (Also, the use of "Seven Devils" was perfect. Chills, I tell you!)

When it comes to The Host - I'm nervous. I have to say, I truly love this book (seriously. Even if you hate Twilight, there is something really powerful about Meyer's adult follow-up), and I don't see how they could ever pull it off. There are parts of the trailer that give me the teeniest bit of hope that they will, but other parts that make me think it's going to be so watered down and romanceyblah that I'm sort of dreading it. I guess time will tell...

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William Alexander was named the winner of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature, for his book Goblin Secrets. (You'll remember, when I posted the nominees for this year, I noted it was all death/loss/abduction/abuse/war/darkdarkdark - oh and goblins! - looks like the goblins won out. Publishers Weekly did a play-by-play of awards night, if you want to know more about all that (PW).

About the book:

A boy joins a theatrical troupe of goblins to find his missing brother.

In the town of Zombay, there is a witch named Graba who has clockwork chicken legs and moves her house around—much like the fairy tale figure of Baba Yaga. Graba takes in stray children, and Rownie is the youngest boy in her household. Rownie’s only real relative is his older brother Rowan, who is an actor. But acting is outlawed in Zombay, and Rowan has disappeared.

Desperate to find him, Rownie joins up with a troupe of goblins who skirt the law to put on plays. But their plays are not only for entertainment, and the masks they use are for more than make-believe. The goblins also want to find Rowan—because Rowan might be the only person who can save the town from being flooded by a mighty river.

This accessible, atmospheric fantasy takes a gentle look at love, loss, and family while delivering a fast-paced adventure that is sure to satisfy.

This year marks the first year the event has been televised, so if you don't want to miss a moment of the bookish goodness, or if you want to know the winners in the other categories, make sure to check out the National Book Foundation's coverage!

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Bring on the super-cuteness middle grade squees for this round of Coming Attractions!

I talked a bit in one of my book hauls about going to the Written in the Mitten author tour, where I met Merrie Haskell (The Princess Curse); we talked a bit about how absofanfrickentastic Jason Chan's covers are, at which time Merrie told me that the cover for her new book, Handbook for Dragon Slayers, had just been finished. Though it wasn't a Jason Chan, she thought I'd approve (I did!), and now that it's been released, I can share it with you!!

When a runaway princess throws her lot in with a couple of would-be dragon slayers, before long she is facing down the Wild Hunt, befriending enchanted horses, battling fire-breathing dragons, and learning more about herself than she ever expected...
Expected publication: May 28th 2013 by HarperCollins

And since I'm sharing that awesome cover/concept combo (+3 alliteration), I figured why not make that this week's theme? So:

In a magical kingdom where your name is your destiny, 12-year-old Rump is the butt of everyone's joke.

Rump has never known his full name—his mother died before she could tell him. So all his life he's been teased and bullied for his half-a-name. But when he finds an old spinning wheel, his luck seems to change. For Rump discovers he can spin straw into gold. Magical gold.

His best friend Red Riding Hood warns him that magic is dangerous—and she's right! That gold is worth its weight in trouble. And with each thread he spins, Rump weaves himself deeper into a curse.

There's only one way to break the spell: Rump must go on a quest to find his true name, along the way defending himself against pixies, trolls, poison apples, and one beautiful but vile-mannered queen. The odds are against him, but with courage and friendship—and a cheeky sense of humor—Rump just might triumph in the end.
Expected publication: April 9th 2013 by Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

Eleven-year-old Holly Shepard wants nothing more than to seek adventure outside of her humdrum American life. She gets her chance at last when her family travels to England and Holly receives an unusual gift: an iron key that unlocks a passage to the dangerous kingdom of Anglielle, where magic is outlawed and those who practice magic are hunted. When her friend Everett and brother Ben are captured by Anglielle’s ruthless king, Holly must rescue them. But that means finding—and using—the magic within herself and learning which magical allies she can trust. The Key & the Flame is the first in a brand-new fantasy adventure series for ages 8 and up.
Expected publication: April 2nd 2013 by Margaret K. McElderry Books

Looks like next Spring is going to be pretty magically middle-grade. =D

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News from Strange Chemistry & MTV today - Gwenda Bond's debut, Blackwood, has been not just optioned, but picked up by MTV for future production! The press release states:

MTV has put in development Blackwood, a drama from Lionsgate Television and Kelsey Grammer’s Grammnet Prods. It is based on the young adult book of the same name by Gwenda Bond, which was published this past September on the Strange Chemistry YA imprint of UK-based science fiction publisher Angry Robot Books. DC Comic book and television writer Peter Calloway (Brothers & Sisters) will write the adaptation. Blackwood centers on 19-year-old Miranda Blackwood who, when 114 people, including her father, suddenly vanish off Roanoke Island, begins to investigate the mass disappearance, teaming with her high school sweetheart. But she makes a chilling discovery when she uncovers that she’s at the center of not only this mystery, but one that traces back to the first American mystery: the disappearance of 114 people at what would be called The Lost Colony. The project stems from Grammnet’s deal with Lionsgate. Calloway executive produces with Grammnet’s Kelsey Grammer, Stella Bulochnikov, and Brian Sher. Grammnet VP Brian Taylor found the manuscript and sought out the rights for Grammnet and Lionsgate TV. WME reps Calloway, who is managed by Adam Kolbrenner, as well as Grammnet. Bond is repped by Andrea Brown Literary Agency and Gotham Group.

Strange Chemistry's Amanda Rutter says "...this is massive news. It isn't just an option to produce something, they have stated an intent to write an adaptation and put it into development." Massive, indeed! If this makes to your small screen, will you be checking it out?

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In random news I had to share:
* Moira Young, author of the Dust Lands series (book 1 = Blood Red Road) was an opera singer. For reals. Asked about how it influenced her writing of the Dust Lands series, she says

I had the privilege of inhabiting story on a grand scale. Opera deals with the big stuff of life, all [set] to a sublime orchestral accompaniment, with wonderful costumes and a lavish set, divided into scenes and acts.
Saba's story is one of epic scale, concerned with the big, universal themes. I think of the books in the Dust Lands trilogy as acts in a three-act opera. (via this interview in Shelf Awareness)

* Also, this happened. It's a "Dudes of YA 'lit-erotic' photo spread" by author (and lit-erotic "dude") Sean Beaudoin, over at The Weeklings Featuring the likes of Aaron Hartzler (hello, Aaron Hartzler...) and, um Lish McBride (who is not a dude, but rocks a pretty awesome 'stache for the spread), this post will either make your day or make you feel a little ickycreepy. One of the two. ;)

*My favorite may be MT Anderson's come-hither Twister pic. Or Adam Rex's lollipop. Oh hell, I love them all, and the interviews are friggin hilarious. Go check it out already!