Books Kids Will Sit Still For LIVES!

[Judy Freeman <BKWSSF@AOL.COM>]

Hi Folks--
Well, here's my great news for the month. More Books Kids Will Sit Still For
is BACK IN PRINT!

"Huh? When did it go out of print?" you might be asking. Well, back in August,
when most of us were still on blissful vacation and maybe set to NO MAIL on
LM_NET, I got the crummy news from Bowker, my publisher, that they were
putting both Books Kids Will Sit Still For: The Complete Read Aloud Guide
(1990) and More Books Kids Will Sit Still For (1995) out of print.

I asked the person in charge, Megan Jackson, if I could post a message to
LM_NET asking if people wanted to respond to this action in any way, and she
said she'd like to see if people had anything to say about it. So I posted a
little note asking you for comments, and within 3 weeks, more than 60 people
wrote to me or to Megan, protesting Bowker's decision. WOW! I even got fan
mail! I felt just like Sally Field: "You LIKE my book! You LIKE it!"

People let her know in no uncertain terms that they use the books on a daily
basis and that no, they are not outdated, and that if Bowker just PROMOTED the
books instead of ignoring them, this would be a good thing. Of course, that's
just what I told Bowker, but who ever believes the author?

I forwarded all the mail to Megan, who was on vacation most of September, and
heard nothing for a long time. I couldn't stand to think that the 4 years of
my life--spent slaving over a hot Mac, reading children's books looking for
great read-alouds, and writing like a maniac--would be negated by the books'
demise.

So imagine my relief when she finally called to say the book was going back in
print, that there were still 1,000 copies of the first book available, and
that people would finally be able to get copies in another month. Whew!
They're only printing 1,000, and if they don't sell, I imagine I'll be drawn
and quartered, but I'll worry about that tomorrow. Or maybe the next day. If
you ordered a copy from them ages ago and never heard a word, you can e-mail
Megan Jackson at <megan.jackson@bowker.com> or call customer service at
888-BOWKER2. Please e-mail me if you have any problems with this.

A huge thank you all of you from all across the U.S. and Canada who wrote and
called and made a big enough stink that Bowker had to stop and reconsider
their decision. I am indebted to you all. I don't think they expected such
impassioned arguments. Either did I, and I was so elated that it sure took
some of the sting out of going OP.

In the meantime, they'd like me to write a new book for them. I'm not
committing to one blessed thing until the year 2000, and then we'll see. In
the meantime, if you'd like to see the best new picture books, sign in to the
LM_NET chat on Tuesday, where Peggy Beck & I will be revealing our 20 favorite
books of the year so far. Should be fun. We spent all afternoon arguing about
titles. We LOVE to argue about titles. I mean, discuss.

Judy Freeman--Librarian
Van Holten School
Bridgewater, NJ 08807
<BKWSSF@aol.com>

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