FeedThe Christmas Village by Melissa Goodwin (WOW! blog tour)
November 17, 2011 in Book Club Possibility, Elementary Educators, Goodwin Melissa, Making Predictions, Middle Grade Novel, six traits of writing Tags: books about holidays, children's Christmas books, Middle Grade Novel, WOW, WOW! blog tour
Today, I am very excited to welcome middle-grade novelist, Melissa Goodwin, who is on a WOW! blog tour with her book, The Christmas Village. AND EVEN MORE EXCITING–I HAVE A PAPERBACK COPY TO GIVEAWAY. One lucky reader who leaves a comment or question for Melissa OR who shares their favorite holiday decoration/tradition in a comment by Sunday, November 20 at 8:00 p.m. CST has a chance to win this book. (United States and Canada mailing addresses only please.)
Quick book summary: In this heartwarming story, Jamie wishes he could live in his grandma’s miniature Christmas Village, where everything seems so perfect. Magically, he gets his wish! But, things are not always what they seem–can Jamie help his friends and still get home in time for Christmas?
What an honor–I have Melissa here today with her guest post: “Every Town Tells a Story.” You can use her ideas here with the 6 + 1 traits of writing, the IDEAS trait.
Every Town has a Story – Ways to Encourage Kids (and Grown-ups! ) to Write
Melissa Ann Goodwin
On April 14, 1755, four-year-old Lucy Keyes tagged along behind her older sisters as they trudged through the woods of Princeton, Massachusetts. Lucy never came home. The townsfolk searched everywhere, but no trace of her was ever found. Lucy’s mother, Martha, searched the woods daily, calling for her missing child. More than 250 years later, people in Princeton swore they’d seen Martha’s ghost and heard her cries echoing through the woods.
In 2005, writer-director John Stimpson lived on land that was once part of the Keyes’ property. He’d heard the Lucy Keyes story thousands of times – it was the stuff of legend in such a small town. The mystery called to him so strongly that he made a movie, The Legend of Lucy Keyes, starring Hollywood actors and using Princeton locals as extras.
We can all take a lesson from Stimpson, who saw the potential for great storytelling literally in his own back yard. Like Princeton, every town has stories, and discovering them is a great way to get kids excited about writing – which is really just the art of storytelling. There are hundreds – even thousands of tales a town might tell; we just have to go looking for them.
So where do we start? Here are some suggestions:
Street names: Streets are often named for people who played a significant role in a town’s history. Why did the town name a street after this person? There’s a story there! Sometimes street names reflect something specific about the area. For example, you’d expect Apple Orchard Lane to be near an apple orchard. But what if it’s not? Was there once an orchard there? What happened to it? There’s a story there, too.
Rivers and other landmarks: The names of rivers and geographic landmarks often reflect whatever the person who named them experienced there. A dry riverbed named “Buzzard’s Roost Wash,” creates a vivid image of vultures perched on bare tree branches, waiting to pounce. Whenever I see a name like that, I think, there’s gotta be a reason!
Statues and monuments: In my book, The Christmas Village, there is a statue in the village square that you wouldn’t expect to find in a Vermont town. The idea for this small detail in my story came from the real town of York, Maine. The town ordered a statue, but the wrong one was delivered. The frugal York townspeople didn’t want to pay to send it back, so they kept the statue and put it in the center of town. What stories do the monuments in your town tell?
Cemeteries: Graveyards tell many stories and pose even more questions. Over here is a large plot with ornate headstones, surrounded by a fancy wrought iron fence. What was this family’s story?
Once we start thinking about our own town’s history as a collection of the stories of everyone who ever lived there, the possibilities for storytelling are endless! The local librarian can help kids research the facts about major events and prominent people. But sometimes the answers to our questions can’t be found in the library or at the town hall. Sometimes, like the Lucy Keyes story, they remain a mystery. That’s when, as John Stimpson did with Lucy Keyes, we get to have the fun of telling stories the way we imagine they might have happened.
Don’t forget to leave your comment for a chance to win The Christmas Village.
November 17th, 2011 at 8:48 am
Margo, thank you again for hosting me on your terrific blog! I’m looking forward to chatting with your visitors. Have a great day everyone!
November 17th, 2011 at 9:09 am
Hi Margo and Melissa,
Just dropping by to thank Melissa for another interesting and informative post.
I already have a copy of Melissa’s wonderful book, so don’t enter my name in the contest.
As far as a family tradition: Each Thanksgiving, after dinner and dessert and dishes, all the ladies in the family do an ornament exchange. We each pick out a number then select a wrapped ornament from #1-#15 (or more depending on how many relatives show up). Then the fun starts. Before opening your package, if you don’t like what’s left you you can take one that has already been selected. It is fun. After everyone has made their selections, we all open our ornaments. It’s a fun tradition that connects generations and gives lasting memories.
Donna
November 17th, 2011 at 11:00 am
What a wonderful theme … to live in a miniature Christmas village! It sounds like something that would be so fun for a child to imagine.
November 17th, 2011 at 11:01 am
Great advice on looking at your hometown for writing material. I am reminded of a place north of me called “Dead Horse State Park.” It’s named such because the original owners of the ranch land saw a dead horse there, and the owner’s children called it by that name forever more.
One of my favorite holiday traditions is making the dressing to go along with the turkey. My grandma always made her traditional dressing, and I still make her recipe when we’re with family at Thanksgiving. However, I’ve now made my own new version using cornbread. It makes me feel good to know I’m carrying on that tradition and making the full from-scratch yummy stuff.
November 17th, 2011 at 11:04 am
Great Post–I have all sorts of ideas running through my head right now…
and a Christmas memory of decorations my family used to make when I was young.
As a teenager my brother worked at a place that had one of those big computers…do you remember the kind that used to take those paper computer cards? Well, he would bring home stacks of used cards and the family would all sit around and, using a stapler, paper plates and red spray paint, would create wreaths that looked like pointsettias. I never cared for the wreaths–for me the joy was in having the entire family involved in the project.
November 17th, 2011 at 11:11 am
Melissa,
These ideas are all a fabulous way to prompt a story. Just yesterday, I was researching an old mansion that went up for sale in the area I live; I think there is a lot of history AND mystery in that house.
One of my top memories was having an annual mother-daughter cookie exchange party. My sister and I each invited some friends and their mothers. Everyone brought so many dozen cookies and went home with a great variety to share throughout the holiday season! A delicious tradition!
November 17th, 2011 at 12:41 pm
Thanks Margo. Great recommendation. We live in history and place. Ms. Goodwin’s book delightfully gifts children with a way to see where they live as part of their celebration.
We are covered for the children’s holiday, so I’ll pass on the contest. Good luck someone.
CLaire
November 17th, 2011 at 1:46 pm
What a wonderful story! Jaimie would LOVE this book. Thanks for such an awesome post.
November 17th, 2011 at 3:04 pm
Hi Donna – that’s a great tradition! A bit like a Yankee Swap with ornaments!
LuAnn, kids do love miniature worlds. Seems lots of grown-ups do too!
Beth – there are so many places in the Southwest with names like that, and imagining the reason for the name is fun. Funny how the names stick like that, too.
Robyn, that’s a great memory. I know what you mean – it was the togetherness that mattered.
JC – I LOVE cookie swaps…
Claire, thanks for stopping by and saying hi!
Chynna, good luck! Thanks for coming by.
November 17th, 2011 at 5:51 pm
Congratulations to Melissa! The Christmas Village looks and sounds like a book that would be great as a read aloud Christmas book to share as a family.
When my son was growing up, our favorite holiday tradition was to read a Christmas book aloud. Melissa’s book sounds like the sort of book I would have chosen. Fond memories!
November 17th, 2011 at 6:31 pm
My mother does a fabulous Christmas Village in the living room instead of a tree. I hope to start that a tradition for my family one day.
November 17th, 2011 at 7:54 pm
Clara, people have said it’s a book they plan to read aloud with the whole family – year after year. Words like that make my heart soar!
Jodie, the villages can be so lovely. I bet your mother’s is spectacular!
November 18th, 2011 at 7:32 am
I loved this! I always wonder how many of the lakes in this area were named (all 10,000 + of them) and often think they are just assigned random ones but that’s not necessarily true. Now the wheels are turning…how did Potato, Bad Medicine, and Button Box Lakes get there names? Hmmm…I may have to find out!
This looks like a great book for the upcoming season. Would be a great gift for a lot of kids (and grown ups) out there!
November 18th, 2011 at 8:29 am
The post is full of exciting new ideas about how to get information for a book.
Also, the book sounds inviting and wonderful.
A christmas decoration: When I was first married a co-worker shared the idea of
putting Christmas cards we received on the doorways of our rooms with masking
tape. It makes a lovely decoration and it helps you to enjoy your cards more.
Thanks, Margo, for sharing knowledge of his wonderul book with us.
June Sengpiehl
November 18th, 2011 at 9:50 am
Thank you to everyone who has commented and checked out Melissa’s wonderful book. We both appreciate your support. And I love all these traditions you are sharing. One thing that my mom and I used to do with Christmas cards is make placemats. We took posterboard and cut it to regular placemat size, and then we took cards and made a collage out of them. Glued them to the posterboard and then used clear contact paper to make them a little easier to wipe off if something spills. My mom actually still uses these placemats to decorate for Christmas!
I can’t wait to start some traditions with my daughter.
November 18th, 2011 at 10:08 am
I live in Gold Rush country and the area is filled with things that suggest story ideas.
My family used to have a big reunion on Christmas Day. That happened for about a hundred years, but has recently stopped because nobody wants to host it anymore. I’d do it, but I live too far from most of the others and they don’t want to drive here in winter weather.
November 18th, 2011 at 10:51 am
http://bethfinke.wordpress.com
November 18th, 2011 at 1:13 pm
I put up my Dickens Village every Christmas and have often wondered what it would be like to actually live in this time period. The book sounds wonderful.
Our favorite Dutch tradition is on Dec. 6 when Sinterklaas comes and puts a treat in our shoes.
November 18th, 2011 at 1:24 pm
Great suggestions and a nice post. I think I’ll try and start a new tradition by getting everyone in my family to write something about a past holiday that they found to be the most memorable and start collecting them.
November 18th, 2011 at 3:30 pm
Melissa, what a charming story. Congratulations. And I love all your class project ideas – cemeteries especially. Kids would love this around Halloween!
Teachers and homeschooling parents will find your post most helpful.
* Books for Kids – Manuscript Critiques
Give Books this Holiday Season!
http://www.margotfinke.com
http://virtualschoolvisits.blogspot.com/
November 18th, 2011 at 5:23 pm
that’s good advice. There are stories out there, we just have to find them and write them down.
November 19th, 2011 at 9:40 am
Fascinating post. I’ll be asking lots more questions when I’m back in my small hometown. I’d love to win your book for my granddaughter. As far as traditions, every Christmas eve we have a family picnic supper on the floor in the living room. We started this when our son was young because he wanted us to be able to look at the Christmas tree. That was almost 40 years ago!
November 19th, 2011 at 4:10 pm
Thank you for the ideas. I will pass this on.
my Christmas tradition is a gingerbreag house decotating party. I’ve been doing it for 30 years.
November 20th, 2011 at 7:09 am
I’ve moved a lot. I wouldn’t say I was a gypsy because I never moved in the middle of the night.
I’ve often wondered how places get their names. In Central PA, there are two towns that are close by named Panic and Desire. Just what happened there?
I even scoured the state map looking for Insecurity and Righteous Indignation – but only found Intercourse.
Other than the gathering together of family for good food, I’m not sure we really have any traditions that we’ve passed down. Maybe I need to remedy that.
My granddaughter (almost 8) would love this book! She has a vivid imagination, and is grooming the two of us for a career in soft rock (all instruments except bagpipes) – as well as performing concerts with Justin Bieber.
November 20th, 2011 at 9:54 pm
Thank you to everyone who commented and left their CHristmas traditions. I really appreciate it and I know Melissa does too.
Please check out the post on Monday, November 21 for the winner!