Catching up and Rhombus news

I know I've been gone for a while, but with school / the Brown Bookshelf / work / Thanksgiving / life in general, I just haven't had the time to blog.

I've got a few things to announce, but first, some Public Service Announcements:

1) Thanks for all of your support for both The Brown Bookshelf and the 28 Days Later initiative. The last day to suggest a book is this Saturday, so be sure to head over to the site and nominate a book.

2) There's a great discussion going on at Finding Wonderland concerning just what it means to be a "brown" author. There are good points on both sides of the issue there--I highly suggest reading through the comments (up to 30 as of this evening), and perhaps even posting one of your own.

And concerning Rhombus:

It's hard to believe, but in five short weeks, My Life as a Rhombus should be on the shelves (I say should because release dates are notoriously wrong). I've updated the website to list upcoming author appearances, a new blurb from Booklist, and...the first full chapter of the novel!

Take a look, and let me know what you think.

The Brown Bookshelf and 28 Days Later

Attention all librarians, book sellers, editors, authors, readers and bloggers: We need your help.

After months of hard work, Co-Chair Paula Chase-Hyman and I are pleased to formally introduce The Brown Bookshelf. We're a group of authors and illustrators brought together to push and promote African-American authors in the Children's Lit community.

Along with the African-American Read-In Chain, the Black Caucus of NCTE, and AACBWI, we're proud to launch our first initiative, 28 Days Later, where we'll be profiling a different author on our website for the first 28 days of Black History Month. We'll have some great giveaways sprinkled throughout the month, and on February 29th, we'll give out our grand prize--a gift basket featuring every book profiled during the month, donated to the library of your choice!

Excited? So are we. But to pull this off, we need your help. We're looking for the best new and unnoticed works by African-American authors. From picture books to novels, books fresh off the presses to treasured classics--whatever books you like, we want to know. We're specifically looking for new books and books that have "flown under the radar," but you can nominate any book, as long as it's a children's or YA book written by an African-American author.

We'll be taking nominations from November 1st to December 1st. Just post a comment at the 28 Days Later page, or email us at email@thebrownbookshelf.com. You can nominate as many books as you like. And be sure to leave your email address, as each nominator automatically has the chance to win one of our great giveaways.

Also, be sure to check the website often, as we'll have regular updates and blog posts by the members of the Brown Bookshelf, and maybe even a post or two by some special guests.
So what are you waiting for? Nominate an author! And spread the word!

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Edit: I neglected to mention that all of our logos are available for download on the site. They were all design by author, illustrator, team member (and my friend) Don Tate.