THE TOP CHILDREN'S BOOKS -- THE REST OF THE NOMINEES

I'm going to propose using this list from the School Library Journal to pick the next book in our mother-daughter book club, which is meeting this Sunday.  So I'm posting the also-rans because

(a) I want to be able to access it easily when we try to figure out what we want to read next;
(b) We have a loose rule that we only read books that no one has read, and since we have some very avid readers in the group, it is entirely possible that we could get through the first 120 and not find a single book that at least one of us hadn't read;
(c) I really like lists and found this one fascinating; and
(d) I want to hear your thoughts on these books. 

No, that is not a multiple choice quiz.  Or if it is, the correct answer is (e) All of the above.

Here are the rest of the top children's book nominees.  (Well, almost the rest -- I left off everything that only got one vote.)  And we really are looking for our next book, so please feel free to highlight good options for us.  (I'm marking the ones I've read, which would mean they're not eligible... even though I'm tempted to say I have read Watership Down just to get Sabrina to read it!).... 

Some of these are pretty obscure....  Some are not.  And let me point out that one of the rules for a book to make the final top #100, it had to get a minimum of two votes from adults (kids were also allowed to vote).  Based on point totals alone, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince should have come in at #51 on the original list.  The fact that it shows up here as an also-ran means that it got, at best, one adult vote.  Interesting.

Let me know what you think!

(X)    HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE by J.K. Rowling
THE MAGIC THIEF by Sarah Prineas
THE FROG PRINCESS by E.D. Baker
DIARY OF A WIMPY KID: DOG DAYS by Jeff Kinney
(X)    PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS: THE SEA OF MONSTERS by Rick Riordan
(X)    PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS: THE TITAN'S CURSE by Rick Riordan
(X)    PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS: THE BATTLE OF THE LABYRINTH by Rick Riordan
(X)    PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS:  THE LAST OLYMPIAN by Rick Riordan
INKDEATH by Cornelia Funke
THE THIEF LORD by Cornelia Funke
(X)    VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER by C.S. Lewis
(X)    KNIGHT'S CASTLE by Edward Eager
A YEAR DOWN YONDER by Richard Peck
DEAR MR. HENSHAW by Beverly Cleary
UNDERSTOOD BETSY by Dorothy Canfield Fisher
THE GREAT BRAIN by John D. Fitzgerald
DIARY OF A WIMPY KID by Jeff Kinney
SHILOH by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
THE EDGE CHRONICLES: BEYOND THE DEEP WOODS by Paul Stewart
(X)    WATERSHIP DOWN by Richard Adams 
ONCE UPON A CURSE by E.D. Baker
THE SALAMANDER SPELL by E.D. Baker
DRAGON'S BREATH by E.D. Baker
RULES by Cynthia Lord
THE DEVIL'S ARITHMETIC by Jane Yolen
(X)    THE TWENTY-ONE BALLOONS by William Pene Du Bois
PRINCESS ACADEMY by Shannon Hale
(X)    BUNNICULA by James Howe
(X)    CHILDREN OF THE LAMP:  THE AKHENATEN ADVENTURE by P.B. Kerr
MICK HARTE WAS HERE by Barbara Park
LIZZIE BRIGHT AND THE BUCKMINSTER BOY by Gary Schmidt
AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS by Gennifer Choldenko
ARTEMIS FOWL by Eoin Colfer
BETSY, TACY AND TIB by Maud Hart Lovelace
(X)    SUMMERLAND by Michael Chabon
BEEZUS AND RAMONA by Beverly Cleary
GRANNY TORELLI MAKES SOUP by Sharon Creech
(X)    CALL OF THE WILD by Jack London
THE MAGIC THIEF: LOST by Sarah Prineas
(X)    THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER by Barbara Robinson
HOMECOMING by Cynthia Voigt
(X)    TARAN WANDERER by Lloyd Alexander
THE FANTASTIC MR. FOX by Roald Dahl
STONE FOX by John Gardiner
(X)    THE LONG WINTER by Laura Ingalls Wilder
(X)    MISTY OF CHINCOTEAGUE by Margueurite Henry
CHOCOLATE FEVER by Robert Kimmel Smith
(X)    THE BLACK CAULDRON by Lloyd Alexander    
(X)    MR. POPPER'S PENGUINS by Richard Atwater
NO PLACE FOR MAGIC by E.D. Baker
JUST AS LONG AS WE'RE TOGETHER by Judy Blume
BETSY AND TACY GO DOWNTOWN by Maud Hart Lovelace
(X)    HOMER PRICE by Robert McClosky
(X)    THE HERO AND THE CROWN by Robin McKinley
A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS:  THE REPTILE ROOM by Lemony Snicket
(X)     HEIDI by Johanna Spyri
MILLICENT MIN, GIRL GENIUS by Lisa Yee
SEVEN WONDERS OF SASSAFRAS SPRINGS by Betty G. Birney 
THE MOUSE AND THE MOTORCYCLE by Beverly Cleary
ARTEMIS FOWL: THE ETERNITY CODE by Eoin Colfer
RANGER'S APPRENTICE: RUINS OF GORLAN by John Flanagan
INKSPELL by Cornelia Funke
CHARMED LIFE by Diana Wynne Jones
THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE by Jacqueline Kelly
THE DIAMOND IN THE WINDOW by Jane Langton
THE WEE FREE MEN by Terry Pratchett
DICEY'S SONG by Cynthia Voigt
(X)    FARMER BOY by Laura Ingalls Wilder
CHASING VERMEER by Blue Balliett 
RAMONA THE BRAVE by Beverly Cleary
GREY KING by Susan Cooper
THE FOUR STORY MISTAKE by Elizabeth Enright
CORALINE by Neil Gaiman
THE THING ABOUT GEORGIE by Lisa Graff
AMONG THE HIDDEN by Margaret Peterson Haddix
THE TROLLS by Polly Horvath
FINN FAMILY MOOMINTROLL by Tove Jansson
THE WILLOUGHBYS by Lois Lowry
SHERWOOD RING by Elizabeth Marie Pope
THE KING AF ATTOLIA by Megan Whalen Turner
THE DOLLHOUSE MURDERS by Betty Ren Wright
THE DRAGON PRINCESS by E.D. Baker 
(X)    PETER PAN by J.M. Barrie
THIMBLE SUMMER by Elizabeth Enright
FLY BY NIGHT by Frances Hardinge
THE ORDINARY PRINCESS by M.M. Kaye
ERAGON by Christopher Paolini
(X)    A SWIFTLY TILTING PLANET by Madeleine L'Engle
BLUBBER by Judy Blume
BABY ISLAND by Carol Ryrie Brink
(X)    THE BLACK STALLION by Walter Farley
I WANNA BE YOUR SHOEBOX by Cristina Garcia
SILVERWING by Kenneth Oppel
SOMEDAY, ANGELINE by Louis Sachar
EACH LITTLE BIRD THAT SINGS by Deborah Wiles
THE PINK MOTEL by Carol Ryrie Brink
THE GOOSE GIRL by Shannon Hale
(X)    THE OUTSIDERS by S.E. Hinton
GOOD NIGHT, MR. TOM by Michelle Magorian
EMILY OF NEW MOON by L. M. Montgomery
AIRBORN by Kenneth Oppel
HOUNDS OF THE MORRIGAN by Pat O'Shea
THE HIGHER POWER OF LUCKY by Susan Patron
(X)    THE LITTLE PRINCE by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
A DROWNED MAIDEN'S HAIR by Laura Amy Schlitz
THE WEDNESDAY WARS by Gary D. Schmidt
A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS: THE WIDE WINDOW by Lemony Snicket
A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS: THE MISERABLE MILL by Lemony Snicket
(X)    MARY POPPINS by P.L. Travers
(X)    STUART LITTLE by E.B. White
HOME OF THE BRAVE by Katherine Applegate
STARRING SALLY J. FREEDMAN AS HERSELF by Judy Blume
FIRST TERM AT MALORY TOWERS by Enid Blyton
TRIXIE BELDEN AND THE SECRET OF THE MANSION by Julie Campbell
ARTEMIS FOWL: THE ARCTIC INCIDENT by Eoin Colfer
BLOOMABILITY by Sharon Creech
THE WHEEL ON THE SCHOOL by Meindert DeJong
SPIDERWEB FOR TWO: A MELENDY MAZE by Elizabeth Enright
THE SILVER CURLEW by Eleanor Farjeon
THE EAR, THE EYE AND THE ARM by Nancy Farmer
PICTURES OF HOLLIS WOODS by Patricia Reilly Giff
THE DARKEST HOUR (THE WARRIORS) by Erin Hunter
(X)    THE JUNGLE BOOK by Rudyard Kipling
A PROUD TASTE FOR SCARLET AND MINIVER by E.L. Konigsburg
(X)    THE STORY OF DOCTOR DOOLITTLE by Hugh Lofting
A SINGLE SHARD by Linda Sue Park
THE TRUE MEANING OF SMEKDAY by Adam Rex
THE MYSTERIOUS BENEDICT SOCIETY AND THE PERILOUS JOURNEY by Trenton Lee Stewart
(X)    THOSE HAPPY GOLDEN YEARS by Laura Ingalls Wilder
(X)    LITTLE MEN by Louisa May Alcott    
NO FLYING IN THE HOUSE by Betty Brock
(X)    THE LAST OF THE REALLY GREAT WHANGDOODLES by Julie Andrews Edwards
JULIE OF THE WOLVES by Jean Craighead George
(X)    BLACK BEAUTY by Anna Sewell
THE HUNDRED AND ONE DALMATIANS by Dodie Smith
A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS: THE ERSATZ ELEVATOR by Lemony Snicket
THE VELVET ROOM by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
ON MY HONOR by Marion Dane Bauer 
NO TALKING by Andrew Clements
THE MIDWIFE'S APPRENTICE by Karen Cushman
THE TIGER RISING by Kate DiCamillo
AND THEN THERE WERE FIVE by Elizabeth Enright
(X)    KING OF THE WIND by Marguerite Henry
THE YEAR OF MISS AGNES by Kirkpatrick Hill
(X)    THE YEARLING by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
BECOMING NAOMI LEON by Pam Munoz Ryan
THE UNDERNEATH by Kathy Appelt
SKELLIG by David Almond
WHALES ON STILTS by M.T. Anderson
DRAGON KISS by E.D. Baker
TANGERINE by Edward Bloor
THE WHITE MOUNTAINS by John Christopher
THE REPORT CARD by Andrew Clements
GREGOR THE OVERLANDER by Suzanne Collins
THE TWITS by Roald Dahl
THE MAGICIAN'S ELEPHANT by Kate DiCamillo
JOEY PIGZA SWALLED THE KEY by Jack Gantos
BETSY AND TACY GO OVER THE BIG HILL by Maud Hart Lovelace
(X)    JACOB HAVE I LOVED by Katherine Paterson
(X)    THE ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS by Dav Pilkey
A GIRL OF THE LIMBERLOST by Gene Stratton Porter
A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN by Betty Smith
PETER AND THE STARCATCHERS by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson
THE FIELD GUIDE (SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES) by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi
HEARTBEAT by Sharon Creech
REPLAY by Sharon Creech
LETTERS FROM RIFKA by Karen Hesse
MOOMINTROLL MIDWINTER by Tove Jansson
THE SCHOOL MOUSE by Dick King-Smith
DIARY OF A WIMPY KID: THE LAST STRAW by Jeff Kinney
HEAT by Mike Lupica
MRS. PIGGLE-WIGGLE'S MAGIC by Betty MacDonald
(X)    THE PRINCESS AND THE GOBLIN by George MacDonald
EXPERANZA RISING by Pam Munoz Ryan
THE EDGE CHRONICLES: MIDNIGHT OVER SANCTAPHRAX by Paul Stewart
THE EDGE CHRONICLES: STORMCHASER by Paul Stewart
(X)    THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON by Johann Wyss
A STRING IN THE HARP by Nancy Bond
THE WANDERER by Sharon Creech
THE LONDON EYE MYSTERY by Siobhan Dowd
THE FLEDGLING by Jane Langton
(X)    DRAGONSONG by Anne McCaffrey
JEREMY FINK AND THE MEANING OF LIFE by Wendy Mass
ENCYCLOPEDIA BROWN, BOY DETECTIVE by Donald Sobol
(X)    THE HUNDRED DRESSES by Eleanor Estes
DIARY OF A WIMPY KID: RODRICK RULES by Jeff Kinney
ZOOBREAK by Gordon Korman
(X)    A WIND IN THE DOOR by Madeleine L'Engle
EVERY SOUL A STAR by Wendy Mass
BLACK AND BLUE MAGIC by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
(X)    TOM SAWYER by Mark Twain
DADDY LONG-LEGS by Jean Webster
BEFORE WE WERE FREE by Julia Alvarez
ELIJAH OF BUXTON by Christopher Paul Curtis
THE TOWER TREASURE (HARDY BOYS MYSTERIES) by Frank Dixon
THE SEA OF TROLLS by Nancy Farmer
OUR ONLY MAY AMELIA by Jennifer Holm
THE MAGIC PUDDING by Norman Lindsay
SAFFY'S ANGEL by Hilary McKay
CALICO CAPTIVE by Elizabeth George Speare
(X)    SEVEN DAY MAGIC by Edward Eager
THE LIVES OF CHRISTOPHER CHANT by Diana Wynne Jones
JUNIE B. JONES AND THE STUPID SMELLY BUS by Barbara Park
JOURNEY TO TOPAZ by Yoshiko Uchida
THE 39 CLUES: BEYOND THE GRAVE by Jude Watson
(X)    TRUMPET OF THE SWAN by E.B. White
OZMA OF OZ by L. Frank Baum
HATE THAT CAT by Sharon Creech
PERMANENT ROSE by Hilary McKay
ELDEST by Christopher Paolini
RETURN TO SENDER by Julia Alvarez
HOPE WAS HERE by Joan Bauer
HANK THE COWDOG AND THE ONE-EYED KILLER STUD HORSE by John Erickson
THE WITCH FAMILY by Eleanor Estes
LAD: A DOG by Albert Payson Terhune
EIGHT COUSINS by Louisa May Alcott
CRISPIN: CROSS OF LEAD by Avi
LITTLE WITCH by Anna Elizabeth Bennett
SUPERFUDGE by Judy Blume
(X)    THE ISLAND OF THE AUNTS by Eva Ibbotson
ALVIN HO: ALLERGIC TO GIRLS, SCHOOL AND OTHER SCARY THINGS by Lenore Look
HARRIS AND ME by Gary Paulsen
YANKEE GIRL by Mary Ann Rodman
A CROOKED KIND OF PERFECT by Linda Urban
THE PRINCE OF FENWAY PARK by Julianna Baggott
OTHERWISE KNOWN AS SHEILA THE GREAT by Judy Blume
FIVE ON A TREASURE ISLAND by Enid Blyton
REVENGE OF THE DRAGON LADY by Kate McMullan
THE PUSHCART WAR by Jean Merrill 

THE TOP CHILDREN'S BOOKS -- THE ONES THAT ALMOST MADE THE LIST

More from the School Library Journal's list of top children's books.....  Here are the ones that almost made the top 100.

I think it's interesting that I've read (proportionately) more of the books on this list than on the top 100 45% of these compared to 40% of the top 100.  Not a bit difference, but I am guessing that it's because there are a lot of newer books on the list that haven't risen to my awareness because (a) I'm not a child anymore and (b) they never rose to my kids' awareness.  (Are there a lot of books from the '80s and '90s there, ones that would have fallen between our kids'-book-reading-windows?)

Some truly great books on this list as well.  I am particularly happy to see FIVE CHILDREN AND IT make the list -- my mother was a huge E. Nesbit fan, and introduced me to her... the beginnning of a long love affair with British children's literature which hasn't faded!....  I wish I had time to sit down and read (or re-read) them all now!

I've X'd the ones I've read.  And I'm including the dates, just to check my theory above...

TOM'S MIDNIGHT GARDEN by Philippa Pearce (1958)
THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW by C.S. Lewis (1955)   (X)
TREASURE ISLAND by Robert Louis Stevenson (1883)   (X)
THERE'S A BOY IN THE GIRLS' BATHROOM (1987) by Louis Sachar
DEALING WITH DRAGONS by Patricia C. Wreade (1990)
REDWALL by Brian Jacques (1986)
CLEMENTINE by Sara Pennypacker (2006)
A CRICKET IN TIMES SQUARE by George Selden (1960)   (X)
ANASTASIA KRUPNIK by Lois Lowry (1979)
DANNY THE CHAMPION OF THE WORLD by Roald Dahl (1975)
THE HOUSE WITH A CLOCK IN ITS WALLS by John Bellairs (1973)
FIVE CHILDREN AND IT by E. Nesbit (1902)   (X)
MRS. PIGGLE WIGGLE by Betty MacDonald (1947)   (X)
FABLEHAVEN by Brandon Mull (2006)
MISSING MAY by Cynthia Rylant (1992)
JENNIFER HECATE MACBETH WILLIAM MCKINLEY AND ME, ELIZABETH by E. L. Konigsburg (1967)
THE BOXCAR CHILDREN by Gertrude Chandler Warner (1924)   (X)
A WIZARD OF EARTHSEA by Ursula LeGuin (1968)   (X)
THE THIRTEEN CLOCKS by James Thurber (1950)   (X)
THE MOFFATS by Elizabeth Estes (1941)   (X)

THE TOP 100 CHILDREN'S BOOKS

Beth over at Endless Books has delightfully linked to the School Library Journal's list of the top 100 children's books, per a recent vote.

I found the list full of memories.

I love children's lit, and especially YA books. I think the books we read as kids and as teenagers are the ones that shape our lives. I am who I am because I devoured A Wrinkle in Time and Harriet the Spy and The Lord of the Rings at a young and impressionable age, an age when I was more apt to let a book wash over me, before that inner critic was fully developed.

Even today, I'd much rather read (or re-read) my way through this list than through the current New York Times' Bestseller list...

Here's the list. I've read 40 of them (that I remember), but of course quite a few were after my time, as it were.

How many have you read?

#1 Charlotte's Web by E.B. White

#2 A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

#3 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

#4 The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

#5 From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg

#6 Holes by Louis Sachar

#7 The Giver by Lois Lowry

#8 The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

#9 Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

#10 The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

#11 The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin

#12 The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

#13 Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

#14 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

#15 Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo

#16 Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh

#17 Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli

#18 Matilda by Roald Dahl

#19 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

#20 Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

#21 Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

#22 The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread by Kate DiCamillo

#23 Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder

#24 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling

#25 Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

#26 Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

#27 A Little Princess by Francis Hodgson Burnett

#28 Winnie-the Pooh by A.A. Milne

#29 Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland /Alice Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll

#30 The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper

#31 Half Magic by Edward Eager

#32 Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien

#33 James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

#34 Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis

#35 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire JK Rowling

#36 Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume

#37 Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor

#38 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling

#39 When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

#40 The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

#41 The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare

#42 Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder

#43 Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary

#44 Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume

#45 The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman

#46 Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls

#47 Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis

#48 The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits and a Very Interesting Boy by Jeanne Birdsall

#49 Frindle by Andrew Clements

#50 Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell

#51 The Saturdays by Elizabeth Enright

#52 The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick

#53 Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

#54 The BFG by Roald Dahl

#55 The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson

#56 Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

#57 Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary

#58 The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken

#59 Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

#60 The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi

#61 Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

#62 The Secret of the Old Clock (The Nancy Drew mysteries) by Caroline Keene

#63 Gone-Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright

#64 A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck

#65 Ballet Shoes by Noah Streatfeild

#66 Henry Huggins by Beverly Cleary

#67 Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher by Bruce Coville

#68 Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

#69 The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

#70 Betsy Tacy by Maud Hart Lovelace

#71 A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket

#72 My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett

#73 My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George

#74 The Borrowers by Mary Norton

#75 Love That Dog by Sharon Creech

#76 Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

#77 City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau

#78 Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes

#79 All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydney Taylor

#80 The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

#81 Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin

#82 The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

#83 The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

#84 Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge

#85 On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder

#86 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

#87 The View from Saturday by E. L. Konigsburg

#88 The High King by Lloyd Alexander

#89 Ramona and her Father by Beverly Cleary

#90 Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

#91 Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar

#92 Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

#93 Caddie Woodlawn by C. R. Brink

#94 Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome

#95 Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

#96 The Witches by Roald Dahl

#97: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo

#98 Children of Green Knowe by L.M. Boston

#99 The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks

#100 The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

TIPS FROM THE MARKETING DEPARTMENT

Borrowing today from Sean, who in turn borrowed from The Hollywood Roaster....

Here we have the top ten script notes from the marketing department.... I think I've actually heard #3 in a meeting...

10. Can the robot be drinking Pennzoil?

9. Maybe he breaks up with her because she doesn’t like Starbucks…

8. This guy needs a catchphrase!

7. Would it be weird if the caveman had a MacBook?

6. This won’t play well with teens…research suggests they hate scenes over a minute long.

5. It could be funny if the climax of the movie was sponsored by KY. Just a really tasteful logo that flashes on the screen a few seconds.

4. That’s not how Orci does it…

3. Funerals make people depressed. Can it be a beach party instead?

2. We’re already at page 30 and you haven’t set up the sequel yet.

1. I’m just spitballing here…but maybe the dog’s name is Old Navy.

PARTICIPATING IN LIFE

Sometimes, I find, being behind a camera prevents me from fully participating in whatever event I am trying to record. And sometimes blogging is the same way. If I sit down immediately to try to record the event in words, it's as if that was the main reason I participated in the event, and the immediacy of my own reactions are somehow stripped away.

All of which to say that I have been a pathetic excuse as a blogger lately, for which I apologize.

Three events in which I participated over the last two weeks come to mind and are significant....

First, Annie, the spring musical at Cory and Sabrina's school. Cory auditioned for Rooster (he has a weakness for comic villains), was then asked to audition for Daddy Warbucks... and got neither part.

He wasn't upset. These things don't seem to upset him. Instead, he was cast as FDR, which I have always seen as a throwaway role, rather stodgy. In every production I've seen, the actor playing FDR always feels as if he's trying really hard to "play" presidential. In a way, I wasn't surprised. The first time Cory auditioned for a role at Harvard-Westlake, he wore his suit jacket over a pair of jeans, and he's been cast in "suit" roles ever since. (He does look good in a suit. I'm just saying.)

So Cory diligently went to rehearsals as FDR, and soon was offered another part as well, the Irish cop who chases down Annie and her dog. Not a suit, but a uniform, and Cory always likes parts where he can wear hats, so all was well. (And lest you think I am omitting Sabrina -- she was also in the show, in the chorus, with a few lines...)

Well, two weeks ago, along came the performance -- and Cory was a complete revelation. He made that stodgy part, FDR, come alive with optimism and hope. He radiated joy right off the stage and turned an often clumsy scene into one of the highlights of the show. I was astonished.

"Of course you thought it was great," I hear you thinking. "You're his mom." Well, that's true. But we got independent evidence that he was terrific when, a week later, the head of the upper school theatre program at HW invited him into an exclusive summer acting workshop at HW -- only happens every other year, 30 kids, 30 instructors, normally by audition and interview only, but Cory goes in without an interview. All on the basis of the instructor having seen Cory in "Annie."

I was riveted for two of the three performances. But I fear I semi-missed the third performance (Cory's best), because I was behind the camera lens, snapping shots for posterity....

Next up: Living Room Musicals, a week ago. The idea here was that we would get together a group of people, send out scripts and music ahead of time, gather (or create) the backing musical tracks, and put on a musical in our living room in one evening. No cameras, no recordings, no audience. Everyone in the room must participate, is the rule. (Yes, even the college buddy of one of our actors, in town for the weekend, who'd never done anything like this before.)

It was wonderful. Everything I hoped it would be. We had everyone from incredibly talented professional actors playing the roles they were made to play to middle school kids who'd barely been on a stage before. It was truly a delight.

I have no photos to post for you. That's because I was participating. Which was a joy. (Even without a camera, there was the temptation to step back from full participation, I found, in having the script on my lap: The temptation to read along rather than to enjoy the performances.)

Third, Easter at the Hollywood Bowl. I have come to truly love the fact that Bel Air Pres does Easter at the Bowl. I love being outside on Easter, watching the wind through the eucalyptus trees, watching the clouds go by.

I love it that we get there early and get to hang out for a couple of hours with no pressure to get anything done, just munching on our bagels and lox, our muffins, our mangoes and pineapple.... greeting friends and offering them a muffin, waving hi to people we know.

I love it that we don't have to get dressed up. Or that we can get dressed up, if we want. Some people show up with the outfits and the hats -- but some people show up in shorts or jeans. And it's all ok. I love it that I don't have to pressure Cory to wear something "nice" (though I did tell him that all black might not be appropriate), and that Sabrina insisted that she needed a new Easter dress, all for the same event.

I love the service itself, with 10,000 people or so shouting back "He is risen indeed!" and the 100-voice choir and the 50-piece orchestra and the rock band, and the fact that I know people in that choir and that orchestra and that band, and get to enjoy their enjoyment that, yes, they are on the stage of the Hollywood Bowl.

To me, the Easter service has just a hint of what heaven might be like: The lack of time pressure. The myriads of friends passing through. The good food. The music.

If we were back in Bel Air's sanctuary, I'd feel as if I were watching a show. Outside, at the Bowl, I feel as if I'm participating. I love that.

And while, in the name of full participation, I did not take my camera, I did have my iPhone with me, and couldn't help, after the service was over, snapping a couple of "sibling" photos. (The girl on the left of the girls' photo is sister to the boy on the left in the boys' photo; same with the two in the middle; Sabrina and Cory are on the right of each photo.)

A lovely Easter. And now, with Easter over, it's as if the New Year had just turned, as if we just had the first day of school. Time for a fresh start on participating in life.