C
Number 16
(September 2009)
THE
TThe Arne Nixon Center and The International Wizard of
Oz Club (www.ozclub.org) invite everyone to a national
Oz conference, “Oz: The Books,” May 14–16, 2010, on the
Fresno State campus. Featured speakers will include
Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked; Michael Patrick
Hearn, author of The Annotated Wizard of Oz; John
Fricke, co-author of The Wizard of Oz: An Illustrated
Companion to the Timeless Movie Classic; Kathleen
Krull, author of The Road to Oz: Twists, Bumps, and
Triumphs in the Life of L. Frank Baum; and graphic
novelist Eric Shanower, author/artist of Adventures in Oz.
The conference will feature a musical, “Time Again in
Oz,” produced by the Fresno State Theatre Arts
Department and directed by J. Daniel Herring. Playwright
Susan L. Zeder, who based this play on the third Oz book,
Ozma of Oz, will also be a speaker. The Henry Madden
Library will offer Oz exhibits and a Special Collections
exhibit on the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893.
This world’s fair attracted Oz creator L. Frank Baum and
artist W.W. Denslow to Chicago, where they later formed a
partnership to write and illustrate children’s books.
ANCA, the Arne Nixon Center Advocates, will sponsor
the conference reception. The Fresno Metropolitan Muse-um
will offer a special Ozzy exhibition. Other community
sponsors include Fresno
Pacific University and
The Fresno County Public
Library. Planning is still
underway; some projects
are dependant on the fu-ture
generosity of donors.
As plans progress, informa-tion
will be posted on the
Center’s web site at
Follow the Yellow Brick
Road to Fresno!
Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month
with author Margarita Engle at the
annual meeting of ANCA, the Arne
Nixon Center Advocates. The meet-ing
will be held at 6:00 p.m. on
Friday, September 25, at the
Unitarian Universalist Church of
Fresno, where ANCA members and
others will be the special guests of
the Norelma Walker Youth Library.
The church is located at 2672 East
Alluvial Avenue (just west of Willow), Clovis, California.
Following a reception at 6:00 p.m., the program will
begin at 6:45 p.m.. The author’s PowerPoint presentation,
“Finding the Poetry in History,” will include family
pictures.
Margarita Engle, who lives in Clovis, is the Cuban-
American author of three novels, written in free verse, for
young people:
• The Poet Slave of Cuba: A Biography of Juan
Francisco Manzano, won the Pura Belpré Award, the
Americas Award, and many other national awards.
• The Surrender Tree, about a
freed slave who treated the wounded
from both sides in Cuba’s 19th-century
struggle for independence,
won the Pura Belpré Award, and the
Americas Award, and it is a 2009
Newbery Honor book.
• Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Ref-ugees
in Cuba, published in April
2009, is already winning rave reviews.
The program, to be emceed by
ANCA president Denise Sciandra, will include a brief
business meeting and a presentation of Jane Addams
Award-winning books to the Arne Nixon Center by
community activist Ellie Bluestein. The Jane Addams
Children’s Book Award is a national award, given
(See Engle, page 2)
Margarita Engle to speak
September 25
spring Magic Mirror will
include a schedule and a
registration form.
arnenixoncenter.org. The
www.
2
Tales & Tidbits
from ANCA
(Arne Nixon Center Advocates)
I
by Denise Sciandra, ANCA President
Our new library opens!
n February 19, the Henry Madden Library reopened its
doors after almost two years of being closed to the public.
In the first month, thousands of people toured the
Library, which has eight acres of interior space. Many
visited the new Arne Nixon Center, on the third floor of
the South Wing. Huge windows in the Center’s reading
room and workroom overlook the campus and, on good
air days, the snow-covered peaks of the Sierra Nevada.
The Center’s new space has received rave reviews from
visitors, patrons, and staff. People literally gasp when they
see the stacks. One frequent comment has been, “Now it
looks like a world-class children’s literature collection!” or
words to that effect. The staff has spent the summer unpack-ing
boxes from storage and deciding on permanent homes
for different parts of the collection. At press time, some
signage and furniture was still to be installed. With the
building done, work will begin soon on the ANCA-funded
Leo Politi Garden, to be built on the east side, between the
two wings. Readers are most cordially invited to visit.
have dreamed of having the Beatrix Potter Society meet
at the Arne Nixon Center. In 2005, I started campaigning
with the Society to come to Fresno. Even though I told
them all about the wonderfulness of the Arne Nixon
Center, that the Center was experienced at hosting
conferences, and that other literary societies had already
visited, they were uncertain. By 2008, they agreed to a
“Celebrate Beatrix Potter” conference that was held in April.
Since 2009 was the one time the Society would be
coming to Fresno, I was determined that the conference
would be successful. I committed to giving a 45-minute
PowerPoint presentation, housing two speakers from
England, and hosting dinner for fifteen. That was in
addition to my usual involvement with planning, organi-zation,
and publicity.
I thought that I’d be a little bit insane before the
weekend was over (I was), that I had overcommitted
myself (I did), and that I would find the weekend very
satisfying (I did).
Often, it is the seemingly unimportant details that
create lingering memories. I’m picturing Emma Laws and
Liz MacFarlane pulling back the blankets on their beds in
the guest bedroom to show off the Peter Rabbit sheets to
Selwyn Goodacre—and Betsy Bray capturing the scene
with her camera.
At that moment, I shared with them the story of how
my son Aaron had unknowingly completed my two sets of
sheets just two weeks earlier. He called to say that he had
purchased some Peter Rabbit fabric at an antique store and
that he would make me anything I wanted from it. He said,
“It looks like a sheet.” I said, “If it’s twin size, mail it to me
right away.” Not only was it a twin, it matched the bottom
sheet I already had!
And then there was my friend Nancy Hatcher. As I was
leaving the campus on Saturday, I walked out with her.
She noted that I could go home and put my feet up. I
explained that I was going home to help my husband Sal
prepare dinner for fifteen people. She immediately and
emphatically said, “You need help! What time shall I be
there?” Nancy was a huge help. I probably got to bed two
hours earlier because of her.
Following the conference, I received an e-mail from
Judy Taylor, outgoing chairman of the Society. In it she
said, “Congratulations on your persistence. It was an
excellent meeting.”
Maybe next time I propose something to the Society, it
will take them only a year to agree to my suggestion.
O
annually by the Women’s International League for Peace
and Freedom and the Jane Addams Peace Association to
the children’s book that most effectively promotes the
cause of peace, social justice, world community, and the
equality of the sexes and all races, as well as meeting
conventional standards for excellence. The Surrender
Tree won for 2009.
Margarita Engle has donated her papers to the Arne
Nixon Center and she has also donated original art, by
Sean Qualls, from The Poet Slave of Cuba. These
materials will be displayed at the program. The author’s
books will be available for sale and autographing.
There is no admission charge for this event.
Reservations are required by sending email to mrianto@
csufresno.edu or by calling (559) 278-8116.
Engle, from front page
by Angelica Carpenter
CORNER
CURATOR’S
ooks are donated to the Arne Nixon Center from
many sources. Publishers send review copies of their
newest titles. Some relationships with publishers date
back to the time when Professor Arne Nixon attended
international library and reading conferences, pulling
a cart full of books behind him and waiting in long
lines to get them autographed. The Center continues his tradition of showcasing
new books for teachers and librarians, and of inviting the authors and illus-trators
to speak in Fresno.
Other books come from libraries. The public libraries in Berkeley, Los Gatos,
Napa, Oakland, Richmond, and San Francisco have donated thousands that are
too outdated, fragile, or politically incorrect for their use. Some librarians,
whose libraries are not mentioned above, risked getting in trouble by sending
these books to the Arne Nixon Center instead of selling them for next to
nothing at a library book sale.
Ex-library books are controversial in a children’s literature collection. We use
them as place holders until better editions can be acquired. Amazingly, replace-ment
volumes have arrived, from collectors like Reed Bilz, Michael Cart, Linda
Park Cassady, Denise Sciandra, Michael Gorman, Pamela Harer, Don and Carol
Larson, Blossom Norman, and Mary Purucker.
Other books come from their authors. Karen Cushman, Lois Duncan, Sylvia
Engdahl, Margarita Engle, Steve Mooser, Shirley R. Murphy, and Tamora Pierce
have all sent books. Susan Cooper sent 32 foreign language editions, saying that
she was glad to get them out of her basement.
It’s always interesting to know why people give books. Lorraine Bennett
attended the Katherine Paterson lecture this spring and was so impressed that
she donated four boxes of her childhood books, from the 1930s, and some of
her father’s childhood books, too.
Ramona Frasher, a professor of children’s literature from Florida, offered a
collection of 387 paperbacks from China to the Baldwin Collection at the
University of Florida. The Baldwin does not collect in Chinese, but Curator Rita
Smith knew that the Arne Nixon Center did, and she referred this gift to Fresno.
Rosalie Pratt, who lives in Australia, met a librarian who knew me from the
American Library Association. After some correspondence, Rosalie donated 131
children’s books from Australia and England this year. She even paid for the ship-ping,
which is very expensive.
Some books come after their owner dies, given by the heirs. It pleases these
donors to know that a library values the books collected by their loved ones.
What do we do with duplicates? Sometimes we keep them—titles by authors
affiliated with the Center, for example—but we can’t keep them all. Unusual
books are offered to other children’s literature collections and they often recip-rocate.
Newer titles are offered first to the Teacher Resource Center, a circulating
collection in this Library, then to local teachers and children’s librarians.
The Center’s collection development policy, viewable on our web site, out-lines
the kinds of books we hope to acquire. The web site also has a wish list of
specific titles, but surprises are nice, too. Major donations, like the 6,000 books
in the Helen Monnette Amestoy Collection of Books on Cats, can take us in a
welcome new direction.
Whoever the donors are—publishers, libraries, or private donors—they all
say the same thing, “I’m so glad that there is a collection like this in California!”
And when the boxes arrive, and we open them, it’s like Christmas, or maybe
Christmas in Australia, when the temperature in Fresno is 108º.
The Arne Nixon Center for the
Study of Children’s Literature
Henry Madden Library
California State University, Fresno
5200 North Barton Ave. M/S ML34
Fresno CA 93740-8014
Phone: (559) 278-8116
Please call for an appointment.
Web site: www.arnenixoncenter.org
Angelica Carpenter, Curator
E-mail: angelica@csufresno.edu
Jennifer Crow, Library Assistant
Mila Rianto, Library Assistant
Angelica Carpenter, Editor
Janet Bancroft, Designer
Peter McDonald
Michael Cart
Maurice J. Eash
MAGIC MIRROR
MAGIC MIRROR
Published by
Staff
ANCA Board of Directors
ANC Governing Committee
Alma Flor Ada
Steven Mooser
Magic Mirror
Denise Sciandra, President
Phone (559) 229-5085
E-mail: denises@comcast.net
Jessica Kaiser,
1st Vice President, Programs
Jackie Sarkisian,
2nd Vice President, Membership
Audry Hanson,
Corresponding Secretary
Angelica Carpenter,
Recording Secretary
Cynthia MacDonald, Treasurer
Laurel Ashlock
Ruth Kallenberg
Jo Ellen Misakian
Judith Neal
Kristene Scholefield
Ellis Vance
ANC Advisory Committee
B
3
4
he Arne Nixon Center needs volunteers to:
• Cover dust jackets with mylar
• Make boxes for fragile materials
• Process donations
• Work on special projects
Volunteers work three to four hours a week, although
other schedules may be arranged. Training is provided.
Please call the Center at (559) 278-8116 to volunteer.
Volunteers needed!
rtist/author Aliki, aka the Arne Nixon Center’s fairy
godmother of art, has donated 21 pieces of original art—as
much art as she would have done for a picture book. Aliki
created special cat-themed illustrations for the Center’s web
site, to match categories there. Then she donated the actual
art: charming pictures, on paper, done in pen and ink,
colored crayons, markers, and watercolor pens—“whatever
I needed,” she explained, “to keep the sketches free.”
To thank Aliki, the Center commissioned Fresno State
ceramics student Abiam L. Alvarez to craft a two-handled
mug, using Aliki’s design.
He made two, just in case.
Both of these, wrapped
carefully, made it safely
to Aliki’s home in
London and the
good news is, she
liked them! The
Center’s cup runneth
over with gratitude for
Aliki’s wonderful donation.
Aliki donates art
A
Fresno State
ceramics
student Abiam
L. Alvarez and
the mugs he
created using
Aliki’s design.
Anne Moore making boxes for the Arne Nixon Center.
3 The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
AAnswers to quiz:
1The Surrender Tree by Margarita Engle
2Twilight by Stephanie Meyer
4 A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
T
2009: September 25
ANCA Annual Meeting,
Unitarian Universalist Church,
6:00 p.m.
2010: February 11
Tea for ANCA Life Members,
3:00–5:00 p.m.
April 11
Secret Garden Party, 3:00–5:00 p.m.
May 14–16
“Oz: The Books!” national conference,
Fresno State campus
Join us!
5
or the first time in its 29-year history, the London-based
Beatrix Potter Society came to California for a conference.
And what a conference it was! There was something for
everyone, from talks to a play to a garden party.
The conference was held from April 17–19 on the
Fresno State campus. The weekend began on Friday
evening with a reception honoring ANCA Life Members.
That was followed by a mesmerizing talk by celebrated
author Katherine Paterson, whose “Stories of our lives”
had the audience laughing at times and teary-eyed at
others. Many were surprised to learn that Paterson’s best
known story, Bridge to Terabithia, was written as a
response to the death of her son’s childhood girl friend.
Four speakers came from England. Judy Taylor, author
and outgoing chairman of the Society, entertained the
audience with her talk, “Where did Jemima and her
friends come from?” One conclusion that caused a titter in
the audience was that Mr. Puddle-duck has two wives,
Jemima and Rebeccah. Although Potter is not widely
known for her humor, Selwyn Goodacre, a Beatrix Potter
expert, gave a talk titled “The humour in the little books
of Beatrix Potter.” Emma Laws, Frederick Warne Curator
of Children’s Literature at the Victoria and Albert
Museum, and Liz Hunter MacFarlane, House and Collec-tions
Manager for the Hawkshead and Beatrix Potter
Property of The National Trust, jointly presented a talk
about Beatrix’s brother Bertram, “The art of Bertram
Potter.” They noted that were it not for his connection
with Beatrix, his work would undoubtedly not be the
subject of a lecture in California.
Denise Sciandra, ANCA president and Beatrix Potter
Society member, gave a PowerPoint presentation, “View
from the top of the stairs: Beatrix Potter, an early pres-ervationist.”
In it, Sciandra gave a history of Potter’s life
in nature and showed many beautiful scenes from some
of the more than four thousand acres of land that Beatrix
Potter placed into The National Trust.
J. Daniel Herring directed a play, “The Tale of Jemima
Puddle-duck,” that had been adapted from Beatrix
Potter’s story by Katherine Paterson, Stephanie Tolan,
and Steve Liebman. It was produced by Fresno State
Theatre for Young Audiences and the actors were all
students from the university. The simple, yet clever, set
and costuming were very effective.
The grand finale was the annual Secret Garden Party
held in Mr. McGregor’s garden in Old Fig Garden (see
story on page 6). Beatrix Potter herself, portrayed by
Scotswoman Linda Spalding, and Peter Rabbit were
present. Dan Pessano brought several of his Good
Company Players who sang songs from “The Wiz.”
Both ANCA members and Society members raved
about what a good time they had these three days. New
friends were made. Old friends got reacquainted. Both
ANCA and the Society gained new members.
Beatrix Potter Conference
Director J. Daniel Herring (left, standing) with the
“Jemima Puddle-duck” cast and Katherine Paterson
(seated at far right).
by Denise Sciandra
F
In its July newsletter, the Beatrix Potter Society chair-man,
Rowena Godfrey, noted that the Fresno conference
was “an outstanding success.” Darlene Atkins, who wrote
about the events on Friday, said, “What a weekend was in
store …!” Anadel Law’s closing comment was, “A million
thanks to Dale Schafer, Denise Sciandra, and Angelica
Carpenter, who masterminded this delightful and inform-ative
weekend!”
Conference speakers Judy Taylor, Selwyn Goodacre,
Betsy Bray, and Dale Schafer.
record for the date. Iced
lemonade and champagne
helped to keep things cool
as Event Chair Cynthia Mac-
Donald welcomed guests.
ANCA President Denise
Sciandra then introduced
President John Welty, Li-brary
Dean Peter McDonald,
and director Dan Pessano,
who presented five per-formers
from Roger Rocka’s
Dinner Theatre, singing
selections from their
upcoming musical “The
Wiz.” Howard Watkins was
the event photographer;
his pictures can be seen at www.arnenixoncenter.org.
The party brought in $20,000 in sponsorships. Funds
raised, which are essential in this year of ongoing
budget crises, will be used to supplement the Arne
Nixon Center’s programs and collection.
6
NCA, the Arne Nixon Center Advocates, hosted a
record-breaking crowd of 215 at their seventh annual
Secret Garden Party on April 19. The Beatrix Potter-themed
event was held, appropriately, in Mr. McGregor’s
garden—the lovely formal garden of John, Rebecca, and
Katharine McGregor, in Fresno’s Old Fig Garden
neighborhood. Master Gardeners Jessie Ciancetti, Mary
Perez Dong, Sue Kendall, and Sharon Matson welcomed
party-goers with infor-mation
about the
beautiful flowers and
plants. The guests, in-cluding
people who
had attended the
Beatrix Potter confer-ence
earlier in the
weekend, came from
all over California,
from nine other states,
from England, and
from Fresno, of course.
A jolly good time was had by all.
Special guests included officers of the British based
Beatrix Potter Society; Beatrix Potter herself, as played by
Linda Spalding; and Peter Rabbit, aka Milford Miles,
wearing a warm, furry costume provided by Petunia’s
Place bookstore. Warm was the key word as the afternoon
high reached 92 degrees Fahrenheit, tying an all-time
ANCA hosts Beatrix Potter
Secret Garden Party
A
Rebecca and Katharine McGregor.
Sharon Rossi
The cast of “The Wiz” from Roger Rocka’s Dinner
Theatre performed at the party.
Bette Peterson (far left) and Grace Pengilly (far right) with friends.
Dale Shafer (on the left) and her twin,
Joyce Miller.
SIGN ME UP!
I/We would like to join the Arne Nixon Center
Advocates and enclose a donation. (Donations
are tax deductible as allowable by law.)
Make check payable to CSUF Foundation.
Mail to: Angelica Carpenter
California State University, Fresno
Henry Madden Library
The Arne Nixon Center
5200 North Barton Ave. M/S ML34
Fresno CA 93740-8014
Phone: (559) 278-8116
FAX: (559) 278-6952
E-mail: angelica@csufresno.edu
Name (s)
Address
City/State/Zip
Phone
E-mail
(Please circle one) Ms. Mr. Mrs. Mr. & Mrs.
New membership Renewal
1,000 Life membership
Patron membership
Sponsor membership
Advocate membership
Sustaining membership
Student membership
Other amount
500 Benefactor membership
$
$
$ 250
$ 100
$ 50
$ 25
$ 10
$
7
It’s electric!
n an effort to save resources, both financial and ecological,
the university is encouraging all departments to move from
paper to electronic formats.
Electronic versions of past issues of this newsletter are
currently available at www.arnenixoncenter.org under
“Publications.” If you would like to receive electronic issues
as they are published, please send e-mail to mrianto@
csufresno.edu, and please remember to notify the Center if
your e-mail address changes. The paper version will remain
available for those who prefer it.
Past newsletters have included the names of donors who
gave either money or materials. These names will now be
published on the web site, as donations are received, but they
will no longer be included in The Magic Mirror. Thanks to
all our donors for bearing with us through these changes.
Your gifts mean more than ever in a year of budget crises.
I
Christy Hicks, Rosemary Lawrence, Pat Bird,
and Terri Monson.
Peter Rabbit and friends.
I prefer to receive my newsletter via e-mail.
California State University, Fresno
The Arne Nixon Center for
the Study of Children’s Literature
Henry Madden Library
5200 North Barton Avenue M/S ML34
Fresno CA 93740-8014
ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED
Non-Profit
Organization
U.S. Postage
PAID
Fresno, California
Permit No. 262
Can you identify book titles from these first lines?
(Answers on page 4)
Some people call me a child-witch,
but I’m just a girl who likes to watch
the hands of the women
as they gather wild herbs and flowers
to heal the sick.
Q3
Q4
Q2
Q1
I’d never given much thought as to how I would die—though I’d had reason enough
in the last few months—but even if I had, I would not have imagined it like this.
It was a dark and stormy night.
It was seven o’clock of a very warm evening in the Seeonee Hills when
Father Wolf woke up from his day’s rest, scratched himself, yawned, and spread
out his paws one after the other to get rid of the sleepy feeling in their tips.
