Celebrating 4 Years of Bloggy Goodness: An Appreciation of Bernard Waber
Friday, May 4th, 2012 Posted in Greatest Hits, Interviews & Appreciations | No Comments »I originally posted this in October, 2008. It's nice to come across old writing and think, okay, not terrible. I still agree with myself. ---- "When I am writing, I think of myself as a writer. But when I am illustrating, I ...
Old Posts Revisited: A Celebration of Four Full Years of Bloggy Goodness
Monday, April 23rd, 2012 Posted in Greatest Hits | No Comments »I've been so overwhelmed lately, visiting far-flung schools, working hard on my "Shivers" project, all while fighting "flu-like symptoms" for the past ten days. Anyway, part of my blogging experience has always been one of talking to myself in the dark. ...
Slice of Life Writing Challenge: My Hot Tub Story
Sunday, March 18th, 2012 Posted in Greatest Hits, the writing process | 3 Comments »Preamble: This entry was inspired by Stacey Shubitz and Ruth Ayres at the great Two Writing Teachers blog, where they issue an annual slice-of-life writing challenge. Essentially, to write every day through the month of March. I did not participate formally, ...
Dad’s Fertilizer & the Mortification of Us All: A Father’s Day Tribute
Wednesday, June 15th, 2011 Posted in Family, Greatest Hits | 2 Comments »Dad was the father of seven children, a veteran of World War II who served in the Pacific. After the war, he graduated from Boston University in two and half years, because why in the world would anybody want to ...
The Writing Life
Monday, February 28th, 2011 Posted in Greatest Hits, the writing process | 6 Comments »This is the 600th blog post at jamespreller.com. Will anyone read this? Google Analytics informs me that about 250 "visitors" will swing by today. Whoever they are, taking whatever they want. Close friends, curious guests, lost surfers riding the wave. I'm ...
Getting Boys to Read: Two Authors Chat About It (part 2)
Sunday, December 5th, 2010 Posted in Around the Web, Greatest Hits, The Gender Gap in Reading | 1 Comment »A while back, author Kurtis Scaletta and I shared on this blog an online chat we had on the wide-ranging topic of "the reading gender gap." Specifically, we discussed an Associated Press article, written by Leanne Italie: “How to get boys ...
Patti Smith Commencement Speech: Direct from the Heart
Thursday, June 10th, 2010 Posted in Current Events, Greatest Hits, Interviews & Appreciations | No Comments »I am a huge Patti Smith admirer, for many years now, but especially now after reading her fascinating memoir, Just Kids. A fabulous, uplifting book that could have been subtitled: "Portrait of an Artist as a Young Woman." I'd love ...
Books for Boys: A Tribute to “William’s Doll”
Monday, May 17th, 2010 Posted in Greatest Hits, Interviews & Appreciations, The Gender Gap in Reading | 1 Comment »"William wanted a doll." And so begins Charlotte Zolotow's classic picture book, William's Doll, illustrated by William Pene Du Bois. Published 38 years ago, and dedicated to Billy and Nancy, it is still relevant today -- and very possibly moreso. This title ...
Entenmann’s & Dad: Part 1, from memory to realistic fiction
Monday, April 26th, 2010 Posted in Family, Greatest Hits, the writing process | 4 Comments »Though sudden, it didn't feel traumatic when my father died a few years back. He was in his 80's and, well, it seemed about right. He went the way he wanted to go, puttering around in the yard. Then gone. ...
51 Great Bob Dylan Covers: A Chronological Guide
Friday, February 26th, 2010 Posted in Greatest Hits, Music | 10 Comments »I'm a sucker for cover tunes. I'm always curious to hear a fresh new take on a song, almost any song. It's like a conversation between two artists, a nod, a wink, a genuflection. Sometimes it's pure fun; other times, ...