How I Get My Kicks
My students are always excited when a new Pete the Cat book comes out. I think we can all agree that the blue cat is a phenomenon. I too am full of excitement when a new Pete hits shelves – for my students, of course, but for another reason as well. I look forward to how the book will be credited. Below are some of the various ways credit has been given.
This has to be a record.
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About Travis Jonker
Travis Jonker is an elementary school librarian in Michigan. He writes reviews (and the occasional article or two) for School Library Journal and is a member of the 2014 Caldecott committee. You can email Travis at scopenotes@gmail.com, or follow him on Twitter: @100scopenotes.
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Woah, I never noticed that… I wonder if Mr. Eric has anything to do with it anymore? I noticed the latest (Wheels on the Bus) is the one that is “based on the creation of James Dean.” Does that mean there was a ghost writer or something? Confused…
Our pal Mr. Schu came through with this that helps explain things a bit. http://www.ericlitwin.com/#!new-characters-and-books-/c1wuz
Thanks, Mr. Schu! Interesting, I say.
This has raised the question at our library of how to label these books so that they can be shelved together. “Litwin” was our initial choice but no longer seems relevant. “Dean,” even though he is not the first author on every book? “Pete,” going by series? My vote was Dean, since he is consistently *an* author, as well as creator of the character, but I can certainly see the argument for any of these options.
We moved it from Litwin to Dean in our store with the latest installment; I was confused, too. D is a bit more prominent than L in our picture book section, though, so I think we’re happy with the choice.