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 | 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 ...
Ernie Harwell Remembered
Thursday, May 6th, 2010 Posted in Around the Web, Interviews & Appreciations | No Comments »"I have a problem and I hope you'll understand and bear with me. One of the finest men we have ever met, and a great broadcaster -- he's in the Hall of Fame -- Ernie Harwell, the voice of the ...
Bullies in the News: Feature Article on BYSTANDER
Sunday, April 4th, 2010 Posted in Bystander, Interviews & Appreciations | 2 Comments »The news has been so sad, so disturbing, so upsetting lately. It's as if the world has woken up and suddenly, wherever you look, there's news and columns about bullies and victims and bystanders. On that note, I was recently the ...
Happy Nappy Bloggy Baseball: Around the Horn with Doret
Friday, March 26th, 2010 Posted in Interviews & Appreciations, New York Mets, Six Innings | No Comments »My friend, Doret Canton, of The Happy Nappy Bookseller blog, goes around the horn with nine authors of children's baseball books. It's a pretty cool lineup with some heavy hitters, sure to score runs in bunches. Doret's come up with a ...
Breaking the Silence: Interview at Boylit.com
Thursday, March 25th, 2010 Posted in Bystander, Interviews & Appreciations, the writing process | 3 Comments »I'm breaking my self-imposed gag order to alert my Nation of Readers of an interview I did with Carl DeLuca over at Boylit.com. Click here like a crazed ferret and you'll find it. I think anyone interested in boys and books (together, ...
The Great Comedy Albums of My Youth: “March Comes In Like A Lion . . . and Out Like a Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse”
Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010 Posted in Family, Interviews & Appreciations, Jigsaw Jones | 4 Comments »"Now look, pal! I know a country where March comes in like an emu and goes out like a tapir. And they don't even know what it means!" -- John Belushi Do you remember listening to comedy albums? I sure do. ...
James Preller Interviews . . . Kurtis Scaletta, author of “Mudville” and “Mamba Point”
Sunday, February 21st, 2010 Posted in Interviews & Appreciations | 3 Comments »Sorry, you're going to have to wait a minute. I know you're in a big hurry and everything. People nowadays expect their blog entertainment to run like clockwork, click, click, click on that mouse. Well, go grab a seat. There's ...
RIP, J.D.
Thursday, January 28th, 2010 Posted in Current Events, Interviews & Appreciations | No Comments »"I hope to hell that when I do die somebody has the sense to just dump me in the river or something. Anything except sticking me in a goddam cemetery. People coming and putting a bunch of flowers on your ...
“Teachers Make A Difference,” performed by Taylor Mali
Thursday, January 28th, 2010 Posted in In the Classroom, Interviews & Appreciations | 1 Comment »I understand that in some exotic cultures poetry -- actual poetry -- is celebrated on Fridays. For example: here, and here, and here. This week I decided to play along. But with a difference. Here at JamesPreller.com, we're all about ...