The rocking awesomest Jon Scieszka (Stinky Cheese Man, Time Warp Trio, etc.) has been named as America’s first National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No, the President did not make this appointment. The very smart people at the Library of Congress did.
Right now copy editors across the country are ripping through their files triple-checking the spelling of Jon’s last name. “Four consonants at the end? In a row? Are you sure?” They are all wishing for a vowel movement that is not going to happen. For the record, it is pronounced “Sheh-ska”. And “J-on”.
(Washington Post coverage, and the New York Times has a very nice picture and article. Publisher’s Weekly weighs in. I’ll add more coverage as people wake up and write about it.)
Along with being a terrific storyteller, writer, and all-around nice person, Jon is the brains and force behind the Guys Read program. I think this is a fantastic choice and I can’t wait to see what he does.
Jon and I share two publishers. Here we are with Viking editor, the ever-fab Sharyn November at IRA last year.